Consideration

Please join me at my new site:  bcsmithereens.wordpress.com

I hope to see you there!

D

Salvation Army iKettle ’10

The Salvation Army has made a huge impact in our family this past year.  Tim was volunteering in the Soup Kitchen for the first half of the year.  I became employed in the Thrift Store in August.  And Candle came on board, volunteering many hours in the Thrift Store too.  God is using The Army to meet many people's various needs.  Please consider a donation to the Salvation Army this season.  The money goes directly to the needs, and in Canada you will receive a tax receipt! 

God bless you!  

Dawn

Salvation Army iKettle ’10

I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together...

Life's good, but I've just not been able to write.  I'm thinkin' maybe it's time to pack this puppy in... not forever, but for now... so, if you've been faithfully checking in to see if I've updated anything, it may be a while.  Thanks for hangin' with me.  But for now, ... "it's the time we have to say "goodbye".

Cheers,
D

I Missed It!

Can you believe it, I've been posting for over a year now, and I missed it!  For those of you who weren't with me at the beginning, here's my original post.  I think I've come a long way since then.  Thanks for being there with me.  I couldn't have done it without your encouragement, love, and prayers.

FIVE GOOD THINGS:

1.  My new job

2.  I've kept this blog for a year

3.  You've read this blog for a year

4.  I'm not where I was a year ago (mentally or spiritually)

5.  My daughter turns 18 tomorrow

Cheers,

D

Memories on Mondays

Overwhelmed.  That's how I felt all last week.  I was also excited and full of anticipation.  It was a good week, but I just didn't have the gumption to write, so I didn't.  I went to work each day, did my best, was cheerful and helpful, and came home and sat on my rump.  It was a hot week.  An extremely hot week.  I'm not complaining though... well, maybe a tad, as our mobile home has been overwhelmingly H.O.T.T. My laundry pile is a mountain, and I just don't have it in me to wash them.  


Candle came home again, for a night.  She's my 18 (in 5 days) year old who is helping out at a kids camp for the summer.  She looks so relaxed and at peace.  I love seeing her like this.  Her girls this week are in for a treat.  Apparently she found some extraordinary truffles from the Health Food Store that she works at.  She special ordered a box in for them.


Tuesday night we had Tim's parents, his sister and her family, and our sister-in-law and two nephews over for dinner.  It was a nice visit, and I really didn't seem to get that worked up about it... but then again, I didn't do much the rest of the week.


I'm quite looking forward to starting my new job tomorrow.  I'll be the cashier/person sort-of-in charge of the Salvation Army Thrift Store.  There is a Supervisor, who works opposite shifts as me, but she said that when she's not there, I'm in charge... over volunteers or whatever.  It'll be interesting to find out what that entails... Rick (my boss), I know you're reading this... please give me some direction!

Anyways, I thought I'd drop a quick note to say that I am alive... sweaty, but alive!  Oh yeah, I'm still going to the gym with my friend, and Tim's even started to come too.


I hope you are having a great day.  It was a holiday here, BC (British Columbia) Day... we don't really know why, but are glad to have it.


Say "hi" some time... I love hearing how you are, and finding out who's new here.  I'll try to be more faithful on here again, but it may take a week or so, with the new job.


Cheers,


D


Oops, did it again... FIVE GOOD THINGS:


1.  Heat (or should I say, "NO SNOW!")
2.  Nathan just finished up the dishes
3.  Today was grocery day, and I saved 15% by shopping today
4.  Counselling is tomorrow  
5.  Saw my sister-in-law and two nephews

Saturday's Savor - Prayers Answered!

After my desperate plea for sanity last night I woke up to be taunted by Rollie, our miniature horse.  He and Wriggley have been quite fiesty at mealtimes, and have literally been giving me a run for no money each time for about a week.  Today Rollie decided to toodle out onto the road, where a kindly neighbour tried to help me out to catch him, but we were unsuccessful.  Eventually the stupid thing went up the road and into our landlord's field, where I chased him for a while, then left him to get some fresh greens.  When I was calmed down, and him too, I begrudgingly offered him some oats, and lured him back into our field again... 

Once I was settled down from that, I did a bit of office work for Tim.  He's taking a few woodworking items to Prince Rupert to try to sell on consignment, with a touring business there.  We had been to their office/showroom last week and heard they took local work on consignment.  Tim left shortly afterwards, and should be home later this evening.

It was after this that I got a phone call from our friend, Rick Apperson, who is in charge of the Smithers and Houston Salvation Army, and he also authors one of my favorite blogs-Just A Thought.  It was a barely audible cell phone conversation, but from what I understood he was offering me a position at the Thrift Store.  After another conversation with him, finding out some details, I quickly called my manager at Extra Foods, who was unable to match the wages I was being offered at the Thrift Store, and so I gave her a week's notice.

This was totally unforseen by me, but I believe that someone's prayers were answered!  I begin my Tuesday through Friday (12:30 - 4:30) shifts and Saturday (9:30 - 4:30) shift on Tuesday, August 2nd!  Unreal!  No more evenings, no early mornings, 2 days off together, no stats, and no Sundays... I am indeed blessed.

Thank you all, for being with me (virtually or in real life) through my journey.  I couldn't have done it without you.

So, I've pretty much given you my FIVE GOOD THINGS (listed above).

Hope your day goes well too.

Cheers,

D

Not good!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There were 20 good things yesterday... 20 hours of no problems, but come 8pm I couldn't hack it!  From then until 11:30 it was nothing but trouble... so, we'll see if I bother to continue after that.

Anyways, I thought I'd fill you in.  One more night shift, and apparently Saturday's are the hardest... and then next week it's all morning shifts, which I am totally afraid I won't be able to handle, as my noggin' doesn't usually kick in until around 11am.

Prayers appreciated.  Hope you're doing okay.

Cheers?

D

Wonderful Wednesday

Hey there Dudes and Dudettes,

I figure I should inform you that today is a special day!  It's a day that was created specifically for you to enjoy.  I'm planning on enjoying some pampering (can never get enough!)... gonna get my hair done, after I head back to the gym (that way I can get it washed and made purtiful for my evening shift).

While I'm on that subject, last night's shift wasn't too bad... but if you're from around here, you may want to verify that with S.  He is my trainer, and a pretty good one too.  I'm sure he wouldn't like me mentioning him here on the blogosphere, so this should be the last time that I do.  It's a privilege for me to be able to work with kids/young adults my kids' ages.  Hopefully we will be good for each other.  Anyways, I was able to complete the things I needed to do without going overtime, so felt pretty stinkin' good about that.

I'm thinking of doing some write-ups on some of my favourite blogs I check out.  If any of you actually read what I write, and have anything special planned for your site, please let me know, and maybe I can feature you here at the same time.  I don't really think that many of you do read mine, but the numbers have really been adding up on my bean counter lately, and some very unusual locations have been showing up on my  sitemeter (which is very exciting).  

For those of you who don't blog, but have been checking mine out, please drop me a note to say "Hi".  I'd love to find out how you came upon my site.

I actually think I'm still in shock about Tim going back to work!  I'm so happy for him, and that he'll get to work with people that love and appreciate him again.  

I just realized that when I wrote yesterday, I never posted my FIVE GOOD THINGS, so here are TEN!!!

1.  Tim is able to return to work

2.  Tim's boss said he'd find him work (unfortunately some people may need to be bumped, as it is a Union position)

3.  I'm okay with this!!!  (when he got sick a year-and-a-half ago, I never thought he'd be able to return to work)

4.  I made it through more training

5.  Timing is everything (God's, in particular)

6.  I get my hair cut

7.  I'm looking forward to going to the gym tomorrow (finally feeling good enough to, after being sick)... and my partner is on vacation, so it's all up to me

8.  My kids are healthy

9.  My husband's healthy

10.  Did I mention that my husband is going back to work?   

I'm doing a happy dance in my chair.  I just am in awe... Just last week we were told that Tim's long-term disability was being cut-off, but they were giving him a 3 month adjustment period... it's extra money in our pockets!  Oh, and he will get full benefits again!!!  And vacation time!!!  And a 4 day week!!!  God is soooooooooooooooooo gooooooooooooooooood!

Cheers,

D

Tuesday's Treats

Well, in 2 1/2 hours I begin my 5 day stint at work.  I hope I make it through the training!  Thankfully I haven't made  any appointments earlier than noon, so will be able to sleep in afterwords.  My plan for when I'm finished writing this is to take a cool bath, relax, then grab a quick bite before I make my appearance at the store.

In other good news, today Tim was officially cleared to go back to work.  He went to his previous employer and told him, which he replied, "so when would you like to start?"  He's going back 4 days a week, and has set a few boundaries for himself.  I'm very excited for him!  Please pray for a smooth transition, as he will most likely only be working one-on-one with the adults with developmental disabilities.  I also hope he will be able to still continue woodworking in his "off-time", as that really helps him to relax.

So, that's my news for today.  I'm still trying to figure out how to not worry or be anxious.  Will this be a lifelong course I am taking?

What kinds of things are you dealing with in your walk of life?  My counsellor has to keep telling me I am not wasting her time.  There is a reason for everything.  Oh, I want to have my life all neat and tidy, yet wonder if I ever will.

Cheers,

D

Memories on Mondays

We did it!  Tim and I took the plunge and drove to Prince Rupert on Saturday (which I slept for most of the way there), spent a couple of hours browsing the shops, having a nice dinner, and then heading home.  It was a good time to get away.  And again, for a port city that usually rains, we had beautiful weather again!

Yesterday we were invited to some friends' place for lunch.  It was so good.  We were treated with being able to pet and hold a young fawn that had been left at the side of the road a couple of weeks ago.  Our friends have been nurturing it back to health, and it was just so special to be so close to a deer.  Mostly it slept on their deck, but they said it often goes into the bush to rest too.

I'm getting healthier, finally.  When I head to bed at night, I still have bad coughing fits.  But this morning was a lot better.  The weather is still quite muggy here though, and being that I'm asthmatic, I tend to feel tight in my chest from that.

The horses have been giving me a run for my money, when I take them out to the larger field to eat, or when I bring them back to our yard.   They're getting sneaky, and I get so angry.  I'm not sure if we'll be able to keep the Arabian much longer, unless he gets gelded.  I love having them both, but when they are stronger than me and want to get their own way, I really don't like it.

I'm enjoying the last of my 3 day weekend.  Today I should be quite busy for the remainder of the day, as there are a few things I need to tend to.  Tomorrow evening starts a row of working 5 days straight.  I sure hope I won't have to do that often.  Just thinking of it tuckers me out.  Most of my shifts this week are 6:30 - 10:45 pm.  Should be interesting.

Well, I guess I've stalled enough for today, in doing what I need to accomplish.  I think I'll start with  putting a loaf of bread on in the bread maker.  Then at least it will smell like I've done something good all day.

Does your week look busy this week?  How are you planning on accomplishing all you need to do?  Do you have enough time left over for doing the things you want to do?  

Enjoy your week!

Cheers,
D

FIVE GOOD THINGS:

1.  Getting to cuddle with the fawn
2.  Wind on a sunny day
3.  Another day off
4.  A good day trip
5.  A loaf of homemade bread 

Saturday's Savor

I have 3 days off in a row!  Whoo hoo!  I'm doubting that will be a typical thing  for me from now on, but I'm glad for it now... still feeling under the weather, as I'm barking like a dog all night, waking myself up and probably everyone else.

Candle came home for a night and day.  We thought we would be taking her back to camp tomorrow, but a friend from a previous year at camp came up, so she left home early.  She's just beaming to be there!  Here's a link to where she's working, check it out, it's a wonderful place!  Rough Acres Bible Camp

Next week I begin working evenings, till around 10:45 pm... they're mostly 4.25 hour shifts, but it is a tad later than I'm usually using my pea-sized brain.  Hopefully it will all be good.  The week following I'm scheduled to work mornings... hahahaha

I'm tempted to see if Tim wants to drive us to Prince Rupert and back tomorrow.  It's a little port city  in Northern British Columbia, about a 4 hour drive from here, but the scenery is spectacular!  I'll have to see if we can fit that into the budget.

So, my FIVE GOOD THINGS are:

1.  Second work week is done
2.  Candle's looking good
3.  Nate played soccer tonight 
4.  A possible trip tomorrow
5.  Three day weekend


Anything you're looking forward to today?

Cheers,
D