Greek Fest

Last night we were off to the Greek Fest here in town. Seemed like a good portion of the city came with us. What a crowd. We had a very interesting tour of the Greek Orthodox Church (very beautiful) which was quite educational. Not many people participated in that, of course. Then we ate Greek food. I think the main thing they really do well is quantity. Lots of food. In vast quantities. Then we squeezed our way into the watch the dancing. The people come just to participate in the dancing I think. There is a live Greek band and folks just love to do the circle dance. Couldn't find anyone to join with me, so I stayed seated :). Guess we just needed some of that 80proof ouzo. At the end the men do the zorba dance, throwing around and breaking plates and drinking ouzo and throwing about the cups. It's a lot of fun.

NEW OLD CAR

We took the two-tonne challenge and lived without a car for five months. It was a great experience. I learned the bus system, got in shape riding my bike (and got a good tan in the process) and saved a lot of money. Still, when we thought about doing that in the winter, it was not a pleasant thought. About a month ago we began to look at cars and I began to do research.
Last week, we finally narrowed things down and even found a car we liked. After more work and research and some negociation, we made a deal. Today we picked up our 1998 Toyota Corolla - new to us - old to someone in Buckingham, Quebec. We are very happy.
Cute, isn't it? After we brought it home, I kept asking everyone if they didn't need to go somewhere. I was dying to take it out for another spin. So we did a little arm-twisting and Sissy agreed to eat a Blizzard at Dairy Queen. Then we went grocery shopping where we stocked up. When we came out of Loblaws, João went to the wrong car. I laughed! There was another Corolla, same colour just two spots down. I had already memorized the first 4 letters of our plates, so I knew which one was ours. Funny!!! He says the car handles and drives quite well. He drove it on the Queensway on the way home, and had a hard time keeping the speed down. So he put it on cruise control. So we are happy with our new old car.

Mama Mia!

Last night I went out to see Mama Mia that's here in Ottawa for a couple of weeks. I went with a women's group from another church. What fun it was. Of course I knew almost all the ABBA songs as they had been so popular in the 70's. I suppose the vast majority of audience were women about my age. Everyone laughed and giggled and had a really good time. At the end, the cast came out and sang a couple of ABBA songs. By that time everyone was on their feet dancing and singing and clapping. It was such good fun. I really had a blast. I felt like I had been there about 15 minutes when the whole show was over. I didn't have a hard time catching a bus home and as I walked up our street I saw Sissy and João sitting out on our porch. I thought: "How sweet they missed me and were anxious to see me arrive." Nice thought. Not true. The two of them had locked themselves out and were anxious to see my keys (not me) :). It was after 11:00, so they had waited for 2 hours. Isn't that funny? I made pizza and we got to talk about the day. We all just about fell asleep at the kitchen table.

Flowers

Not too much is happening around here these days. Things are pretty quiet. Tonight I was with my favourite little girl and she "helped" me water the dahlias. She just drinks in information and pours it back out again. There is nothing more precious than seeing her grow. Tonight we sang (in portuguese) "Who made the pretty flowers... I know it wasn't me! 'Twas our heavenly father." Soon she could sing it to her parents when they came, as she showed them the "pretty flowers."

She always reminds me of the joy of being alive! Look at this face. I hope you feel this alive too!

Back down to earth!

I suppose Sissy and I are back down to earth, but we certainly had an exciting morning. After just a few hours of sleep last night, we got up early (5:00) and headed off to Carleton University where we went ballooning to celebrate Sissy's birthday. Wow what an experience. It was fun to watch the balloon being "assembled" and filled with air. It was an adventure to get into the balloon. And then we took off.

It was such a calm, tranquil experience.. no bumping or jumping. Just gradully moving up into the air and watching the world below float away. There were two other balloons that took off together with us. It seemed like all the noises and hurry were just gone as we hung in the air and looked around us. It was surprisingly un-alarming and amazingly still.

The only real excitment came as we approached land. We went down a couple times (I was even able to grab leaves off the tree tops) and once we did a "Splash and Dash" (Thankfully avoiding the Plunk and Dunk). That is, we dropped down into a river, touching the water with the basket and then took off for the skies again. The photo below is our reflection in the water. I've kept the photos to a minimum, but I took 70 in the one hour we were up there. It was irresistible.

I must tell the funniest part, which was our landing. After we jumped out and had our champagne toast, the guys went to roll up the balloon and the rest of us stood around in this farmer's field. Suddenly a herd of cows appears to investigate (I think they liked the champagne). Everyone was rather in a panic, as there were a lot of them and they didn't seem to happy to see us there. We laughed until we cried. The "chase car" rescued us and then drove us back to the University where Sissy and I caught a bus home. It must have been 10:00 or so when we arrived - to João's relief. What a morning. Glad you could share the fun with us.

Saturday

Last summer we had 24 Alabamians here to help us reach out to our neighbourhood. As a fruit of that work, this year our church people decided to do it on their own! Cool idea. They did a great job handling it all. They came out in droves and really did a wonderful job setting up and cooking and making things happen. We had good attendance of our neighbours and really enjoyed getting to know folks. The kids did face (and arm) painting in the back, in the shade.

The little ones stayed for the whole affair and eventually began to play with bubbles in the back yard. I'm not sure who had the most fun... the wee ones, the church folks or the neighbours who stopped by. But it was a great day. I wish our "southern" neighbours could have seen it -as they were our inspiration.

Saving money on a visit to the dentist

Sunday I had a great day. We had a picnic lunch to celebrate Rosemarie and Manuel's 20th wedding anniversary. It was a great day to be outside. And the food was just great.
After lunch, I was inside for a bit and one of the Mary's birds, took a "liking" to me. It was her Love Bird, who gave me lots of "kisses". He even gave me a thorough cleaning - even of my teeth. I guess I won't have to go to the dentist any time soon, huh? What a hoot. Just had to share it.

Book Club

This is the book club (minus Anne who took the photo) that met on Thursday. We had a GREAT discussion on the book "Eve's Daughters" that we all highly recommend. We had a wonderful time being out at Barb's cottage. It was a gorgeous day outside and we enjoyed a peaceful walk all around the lake. The photo below was taken down at the lake. As we talked about the book we enjoyed this great view. Everyone brought something for a potluck lunch and we ate like queens. What a great way to spend the day. It's good to have friends and good to enjoy spending time together. It's fine to read interesting book and talk about them with others.

Oh, Canada!

We enjoyed Canada Day (July 1st) here in Ottawa. It's a great place to be. The night before we enjoyed the RCMP Sunset Musical Ride. It's really quite a show with horses, dogs, bagpipes, choirs, even Sky Hawks (parachute team). You can see the horses in their star formation below.

Canada Day was a good one here in town. Sissy and I especially enjoyed going to the National Art Gallery and seeing a special display on the Florence Rennaisance art, with pieces by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.

In the photo above, Sissy is standing by the giant spider sculpture outside the museum. Note the ominous sky... We got caught in a rainstorm on the way home and were two drowned rats by the time we got home. João just laughed hysterically at us!!! The rain cooled things down a bit, so when we went back out to see the fireworks around 9:00, it was quite cool. Of course, the fireworks were late and some people even went home, thinking they had been cancelled. They weren't, and it was well worth the wait and all the nasty little bugs. What a show.
Sunday was a gorgeous day and we had a great service. Even being a long holiday weekend, the church was full. We had both baptism and Lord's Supper, so that kept the sermon short, especially being bi-lingual. Vince, who was baptized is Italian and his whole "clan" came in for the occasion. Filled up two pews. They sang and played the piano and flute and made for a lively service. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the whole experience. It was different.
In the afternoon, João squeezed in some visits and I was able to make sure all was clean and closed up at the church, as well as at the house. The evening, while Sissy went out with friends, I worked in the yard (as did João, until a visitor arrived). When the crew came home about 9:30, we ordered in pizza and talked and laughed until after 11:00PM. It was a wonderful day.
Today Sissy is off to start English (Intermediate Level) at a new school downtown. Tomorrow night she will start her French classes in the evening. She will be a busy little girl. In the afternoon, she has aerobics. No moss on her. Hope you are as busy and happy as we are.

Hot - Hot - Hot

After 3 weeks I'm back, but it's been an eventful 3 weeks. João and I went the Baptist Convention in London and really enjoyed ourselves. We learned a lot and got to see a lot of people. We got back on a Saturday and had all the preparation for Sunday.
The following week I was off to Toronto for a board meeting of the women. It's now my third year on the board and I finally feel I'm catching on to things. It was a productive meeting too.
In the meantime we had a tremendous thunder storm that zapped my computer. The damage was extensive, but fortunately repairable. More than could be said for my modem, router, cordless phone and remote control fan. So there went $500 down the drain.
Then last week Denny, a church member, had a bad motorcycle accident and we really felt that deeply. I'm glad to say that although he will have a long recovery, we feel he is well on his way now. But there were a few tense days.
One of our church members, Odete, has returned to Brazil (boo-hoo - we will so miss her!). She left us her car and we were excited, although it was quite old. But after spending money getting it partially fixed up, we discovered it couldn't pass the safety test. Alas and alack, more money down the drain and no license. Oh dear!!! But the guy at the garage is looking for the parts to fix the problem in a scrap yard and if he finds it, there won't be too much cost involved.
It's been quite warm here in Ottawa - with a humidex of 45 (that's around 105 or so) and we are feeling it in the house. I've been hibernating in the basement to be honest. The heat gives me a headache! So Sissy I went to the Rideau River (by bike) and jumped in. We were having a good time as you can tell. It cooled us down quite a bit. We needed a little bit of fun, that's for sure.
So that's enough news for one day, right? Stay cool and enjoy.

Under the Lilac Tree

João and I are offfffffffffff! Away we go the the Baptist convention for the first time since we've been here. We are looking forward to understanding things better, meeting new and old friends and learning new things. We will be in London (alas, Ontario, not England).
Couldn't resist showing you my beautiful Lilac bush in the back yard, taken as Mom and Carol were leaving to go back to Kentucky. Isn't it lovely? (you decide, us or the tree!)

Smith Girls

It was a whirlwind week with a lot of things happening and no time to write. But it was a great week. I so enjoyed having my Mom and Sister here. Although we didn't do a lot, we had fun hanging out.
Since all good things do come to an end, they both had to go back to their own homes, so on Thursday we all said good-bye, but here we are in my living room on our last night together.
After so many years of being far from my family, it is so nice being able to be together. I think now more than ever I appreciate ties - being able to talk about our mutual past and remember the same old stories and sing the same dumb songs. We are so much alike in so many ways. I think you can see - but I can feel - the family resemblance.

Merrickville

This has been a great week, as my Mom and my sister arrived for a nice visit. It's been a long time since they have both been here. We are enjoying our time together.
Today we drove down to Merrickville (except for Mom who wasn't feeling up to the trip) and enjoyed the day. Here you can see Sissy and I at the canal.

We particularly enjoyed eating at the Charles Dickens Restaurant and doing some shopping as well. We ended the day by having some delicious homemade gelatto.

Tulip Festival

We finally had a lovely day here in Ottawa so off the three of us went on our bikes, with our picnic lunch to see the Tulips. Here was a bike break, since it was a rather long ride.

The weather was warm, so we thoroughly enjoyed walking around and seeing the flowers, watching the buskers, and generally being glad that Ottawa has a great Tulip Festival. I've been able to go every year since we've been here, so this was my 5th Tulip Festival.
They were magnificent, but our "flower" threatened to outshine them all.

It's that Time of Year

It's that time of year is a Christmas song, that says "It's that time of year, when all the world seems to fall in love..." Don't you think those lyrics are more appropriate for Spring? Just can't seem to get them out of my head today. I just LOVE spring. I can't resist going outside several times a day to look at the flowers... as if I could see daily growth or something. There is nothing quite so rewarding as watching the growth of plants I put into the ground. Of course being Tulip festival time, around here, there are lots of flowers to be seen. Tomorrow, if the weather holds out, we all plan to get down to see the festival, although there are tulips everywhere, like below (These are in front of the Prime Minister's house).
I am making my list to start a vegetable garden, since I think we've seen our last frost. Up til now I've stuck with planting flowers. So let's see if there is any possibility of making other things grow. We'll see, right? Wish me luck.

50th Birthday

Today was João's 50th Birthday. We tried to give him a surprise party. Didn't really suceed in surprising him, although did manage to fool him to at least thinking it would be at night, not right after church. It was so much fun to gather together and wish the man I love a wonderful birthday. Here he is blowing out the candle on his ice cream cake.

After the party had pretty well wound down Brian took João for a ride in his 1955 Chrysler - that he had remodeled. It was gorgeous. We asked everyone who was in better condition... I won't tell you the answer! But it was a great day.

I'm home from the convention

I am just home from a fantastic weekend! I was in Waterloo, ON, for the convention of the Baptist Women of Ontario and Quebec. We had a group of 410 women, a part of which you can see below.

I rode down and back with Carol Sollows in her car and we had a GREAT trip together - we even roomed together as well.
So many good things happened, that it's hard to give the "highlights". The speakers were stimulating, the fellowship fantastic, the hotel and service was super. To sum it up, I came back flying high.
One of the fun things I participated in on Saturday was the "Project Inasmuch", in which about 50 of us went out into the community to participate in various projects. Below you can see me loading up the materials the women had brought for the women's shelter that my small group went to. We had such a good time! In fact everyone did.

Now, we from Ottawa are dreaming about having the convention here in 2007. Wouldn't that be terrific?
It was a little tiring, but it was worth it all.

Car vs. Bus

We are getting along just fine without a car thank you very much! Mom just wrote and said she sold the old Buick, so now you see Sissy and I travelling around town in our red "limousine". It's quite easy to get around town on the bus system here. And more economical than a car! So don't cry for me Argentina.

Bike Hike

We had such a great Sunday! The worship service was so good this morning. And the attendance was great this morning. We had many terrific conversations with people.
The weather was also perfect. After lunch Sissy and João and I decided on a bike ride. We were having so much fun, we decided to head over to the Quebec side. We rode around behind the museum of civilization. We crossed back over into Ontario and tried to ride behind Parliament Hill, but discovered it was closed (after riding down a big incline!). So we went back to Quebec and came home the way we went. (I won't mention getting lost on Ottawa River Pathway on the Ontario side...)
It was a terrific little outing that lasted 3 hours. We all felt great when we got home - just a little sweaty and anxious to take showers. But I notice everyone was pretty quiet this evening. I think we will sleep well. We are all looking forward to a wonderful week. God was so good to us this week, answering our prayers in such good ways, that we know this week will be exciting as well as we discover the wonderful ways He cares for us.

Spring has done sprung

It looks like Spring is here in Ottawa. We are so thrilled. It's warmed up nicely and for the first time in our four years here, we really feel like we are having a real spring - a gradual warming. It's bright and sunny and we just love it. Little green things are poking up out of the ground. The day Sissy arrived, my mini-crocus appeared (white). Then over the weekend the purple ones came up. That's a sure sign of spring to me. Isn't she lovely?

We had a great weekend, enjoying the terrific weather. Sissy and her father went out biking on Saturday. She and I biked to a birthday party on Sunday. We did have to stop a few times, due to our very serious crisis - we couldn't stop laughing, making it hard to breathe and ride the bike.
We are SO enjoying having her here. She started classes on Friday and we were pleased that she has a native speaker as a teacher (a Canadian). She took a placement test and placed in the Beginner 3 level - together with people who have been in the country a long time. It's a challenge for her, but she'll do fine. Everyone wanted to talk with her on Sunday and it was a little overwhelming, but that's just what she needs. We are trying to speak English at lunchtime at least.
All else is going well in our corner of the world. Hope yours is too.

She's he-e-e-e-r-e!

Today Sissy arrived from Brazil. Not on schedule, but the important part is that she is here. She arrived in Toronto early this morning and had to go through immigration there. When she didn't answer all the questions to their satisfaction, she had to get into a line for the one translator for all the Brazilians and Argentinians. She waited and waited. She missed her plane and the next one as well. Fortunately there are planes every hour from Toronto to Ottawa. There was no problem on her side, because as soon as she got out, there was a desk and someone waited on her in Portuguese and re-checked the luggage and rescheduled her flight and even told her where to go to catch the plane.
In the meantime, however, we had no idea of what was happening since we had gotten to the airport early. So, I came home with Barry and left João at the airport. That way, if she arrived someone would be there. And if she called, someone would be home. I got home and got on the phone to Air Canada and discovered she was due to arrive at 11:00. (They wouldn't tell me at the airport because of privacy laws. But they did on the phone - Go figure!!!) When João called from the airport, I said: "She arriving now" and he said "No, she's here!" I then called Anne who gladly drove me back out to the airport (even with a terrible cold!) and there Sissy was. I jumped out of the car and gave her a big hug. I hardly waited for the car to slow down. There wasn't time to catch it on film, so we gave it a posed shot. See how happy we are?

Happy Easter

When João described our Resurrection sunday morning service, his comment was apt: "Only in Heaven will it get any better." It really was such a great blessing for us today. There were so many highlights, it's hard to know where to start!
Everyone seemed to especially enjoy the "flowering cross" that we did as a part of our children's message. We took the "old rugged cross" as the emblem of "suffering" and transformed it into a beautiful object of joy by covering it in flowers. The adults liked participating with the children. You can see the line-up to add their flowers. Then below, the finished cross. This very simple gesture seem to make tangible the meaning of the cross.

The music in the worship service was also beautiful and uplifting. The sermon about the resurrection was exciting as well. Then the worship service closed with the baptism of six new Christians. That was an emotional high, as the true symbolism of the resurrection was physically acted out by the baptisms. Between each one we sang "He is Lord... He is Risen from the dead and He is Lord." We really felt his Lordship!

After the very full worship service (By the way we had a crowd of 100 people!), we gathered downstairs for an Easter dinner. Wow, was the food ever delicious, the fellowship even better. There were many visitors to chat with. One of our newly baptized ladies had a special cake made with her fellow "baptizees'" (I just made up the word, as I didn't know what else to call them) names on it. It was lovely. One gentlemen had a family dinner and couldn't stay, but you can see the other five who were baptized.

Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen Indeed!

And now you know why it was such a great Lord's Day for us. We do feel that we completely celebrated our Lord's resurrection.

Seder

Last night we had a Christian Seder (Passover meal) as part of our preparation for our Resurrection worship service on Sunday. It was a lot of work, but certainly worth it. It was so meaningful to think about how the wonderful symbolism of the Old Testament that was fulfilled in the life of Christ. For me it was especially meaningful when we came to the part of the Seder where traditionally the door is opened for Elijah's coming to proclaim the Messiah. Then we offered a prayer of thanks, for we are no longer waiting for the Messiah. He has come! I think everyone enjoyed eating and drinking and it gave us all a deeper understanding of the Last Supper, and our own celebration of the Lord's Supper.
We are looking forward to our Easter celebration at the church. Especially the baptisms. I think that will be a deeply meaningful way of proclaiming Christ's resurrection.

In the Swing of things

Now that we've been back a few days, I think we are back in the swing of things. Life seems to have assumed a rhythm that's smooth. It was great to be back at church on Wednesday. We both missed "our" church. I'm busy about thinking about our Easter service. It's going to be so exciting! And next week we will be having a small Seder service on Wednesday night. Lots to do to get ready for that. Can't wait to see everyone this Sunday.
Our kitty, Sadik, has been so "needy" I can tell he missed me. We are babysitting a calico cat, called cha-cha and she is driving him nuts. It really was hate at first sight and second, and third... They growl and hiss and keep their distance. They both relax when each one is one a different floor. It's so funny to see them posturing. So far no fights.
We are getting used to having no car. I just have to be a little more organized. I can't just "run" out to do things. But we've been to Loblaw's twice for some small things - it's only a 10 minute walk. I've walked to the pool twice - it's only a mile, so that's not bad. Today, though, we did buy some bus tickets as we have some places to go next week that will require transportation.
So we are "springing" into a new lifestyle.

Home again - home again

Well the party's over. Or more to the point, we are home from vacation. We had a wonderful time, but it is also good to be home.
We enjoyed our last few days of vacation, especially having a good visit with my sister Carolyn. She had been in Arizona on vacation with her husband Curt, so we were glad to have some time with them. She is doing quite well, regaining her strength after finishing her cancer treatments.
On Sunday, before returning to Canada on Monday, the family got together midway between Indianapolis and Cincinnati, for a Sunday dinner at a Chilis restaurant. We really enjoyed having a visit with everyone, except my nephew. You can see us in the photo below.
We flew into Ottawa Monday, arriving safely. We were so grateful to my brother-in-law who arranged a "buddy pass" for us, through his brother who is an airline employee. We flew for minimal cost. Although we flew stand-by, that was no problem. The most interesting parts of the trip were the very thorough inspection we received as we left Cincy... we were targeting for a "terrorist" alert because we paid cash, bought a one-way ticket at the last minute. It was very thorough... and for a minute I thought they were going to ask us to undress. But all very professional and polite. Made our travel more interesting. Then the second incident was finding I had no passport upon arriving in Ottawa. PANIC!!! It had been in my pocket when I boarded. Fortunately the nice USAIR folks went back to the plane and found it in my seat. (It had fallen out of my pocket.) In fact the employee was a Portuguese lady and we got to chat in portuguese.
We found our house all in order and Sadik VERY happy to see us again. I can hardly get him out of my lap. We are pretty well organized to get back into the full swing of things tomorrow.

Sunday morning in Alabama

As you can see, Joao and I thoroughly enjoyed renewing our friendships with the folks in Dothan Alabama. On Sunday Joao spoke and I translated at the Sunday morning service. There was a good response at the service. It really was wonderful to see everyone and worship together with them. Here you can see Joao standing with Bro. Danny, the pastor at Heritage Baptist Church.

Dothan, Alabama

On March 4th, we drove about 700 miles down to Dothan, Alabama to visit with our friends who had done a missions trip to Canada. Of course we stayed with my friend Sherrill and her husband Gary. The weather was just grand (74 on Saturday... and considering they had 12 inches of snow and below zero temperatures in Ottawa, that was terrific). We really enjoyed being " out in the country" and Joao even got to drive a tractor. Of course the best part was just visiting and being with old and new friends. Although we were only there for a weekend, we packed a lot in - including a get together with all the folks who had been on the missions trip in July. It was a terrific few days for all of us.

Evangelism Conference

For the first time on vacation John and I spent a day apart. He went off with the pastor of my mom's church, New Bethel Baptist, to the state evangelism conference in Louisville, Kentucky. I hope John and Bro. George are having a grand time.
Mom and I had more coupons to be used - including at Victoria's Secrets. Girls, will be girls you know. I also was able to help her work on her computer. She learned lots of new tricks and is very happy. Now, I must close and install a new mouse and a new scanner.

John and George Naylor in Walton, Kentucky

Sunny Sunday

As you can see it was a beautiful warm Sunday here in Walton, Kentucky. My mom, John and I had a wonderful Sunday at New Bethel Baptist Church. We got to see their baptisms - which is always uplifting - and John even shared a bit about what their church had come to mean to us. And there was a nice surprise for us at the end of the service, but I'll save that for sharing later.
After lunch, John and I took a long walk downtown (can you call it that, since there are actually a couple of stores and one stoplight?), without wearing any coats. It was in the 50's! I saw crocus' and daffodils were up. It felt like spring time. On Tuesday we plan to drive up and see my nephew and the church where he works. It's just a grand life.

Mom and I in her front yard right after church.

What Is It?

One of the things Joao and I most enjoyed in Chicago was the marvelous Art Institute with their world-class French Impressionism collection. I was in heaven.
When I was a teenager Picasso donated a sculpture to the city which was erected at City Hall. I was especially anxious to see it again, as it had become a symbol of the city for me. So off we toddled to see it and although it may be clear to no one what it really is, you have to admit it's an amazing piece of artwork. Big too. Look at Joao beside it just to get an idea.
While I was trotting down memory lane we also drove out to my old high school and house in the suburbs. Amazingly things had changed less than I expected. So 30 years isn't so long after all!
While in Indianapolis, I called around trying to find an old friend I hadn't seen in 20 years. I tried someone in the phone book who had the same last name. "By chance" , she was a member of my friend's mom's church (but not a relative!) and was able to connect my friend and I. Can you believe it???? There really are no coincidences in God's timing. It was so emotional to talk to my old next door neighbour from seminary days. The years fell away and I felt young again.
Right now I am at my mom's catching up with her. Our plan for tomorrow is.... SHOPPING. She has coupons. This could be dangerous.

The Picasso Sculpture at the Richard J. Daly Plaza in Chicago

That Toddlin' Town

Well as you can see below I am no longer in Ottawa! In fact I haven't written for a while because I've been on vacation. Still am. Joao and I arrived in Indianapolis after a 16 hour drive. In one day. We were two tired little puppies when we got to my sister's house. Then we took off for Chicago with here where we stayed on the Magnificent Mile right downtown. We had a wonderful time. Magnificent in fact. We did all the tourist stuff, even if I had lived there 30 years before. I can't tell you what a good time we had, even if it was a little dreary weather-wise. Here I am atop the John Hancock building - 94 stories high. I'll post a few more photos and info as time allows. But we are thoroughly enjoying our time together.

6 more weeks... or not

Well ground hog day came and went (and it's pretty pathetic that it was the highlight of my week) and I couldn't begin to tell you if he saw his shadow or not. Even if he did, I can never remember what it means. I told you I was pathetic!
In fact, it's been so lovely warm here in Ottawa, that it feels like spring. Everyone is gloriously happy that it's above freezing, although I love to remind folks that if we had this weather in August, we would freeze to death. It's all a matter of perspective, right?
I confess, I AM enjoying the january/february thaw. It's mahvelous. I find myself thinking of crocuses (is that how you spell that?) and daffodils and hoping the bulbs I put out in october come out in April.
I don't think I will mind at all, taking some vacation this month. I am looking forward to revisiting Chicago with my sister. It's been 30 years since I've been back. She wants to take João and I and we are looking forward to that. Wish it weren't on a weekend, so we could go into my high school. We even plan to drive by our old house.
We also have made tentative plans to drive down to Dothan, Alabama to visit my friend from Korea days, Sherrill. We will see the folks who did the mission project at our church this summer. They've asked João to preach and speak to the SS classes and I will be singing and speaking in SS too on the Sunday we are there. That should be an interesting cultural experience for us all. And fun to boot.
I'm looking forward to seeing the family and spending quality time with them. My niece wants me to stay in her apartment and I want to do so. Strange for her to have her own apt. She's just a baby... ha, ha. Our oldest daughter also has an apt. and says we can stay there when we go to Rio. Oh, that that were soon. *Sigh*
I've been looking at job banks. I don't know what to do. I probably need to work . (let's rephrase that - I need to earn some money to pay for a trip to Brazil.) But if I work, I won't have time off to travel to Brazil. I have simply decided to put those things in God's hands. And unlike Scarlett O'Hara, I don't plan to think about that tomorrow. I plan to pray about them today!

Canada's Newest Landed Immigrants.

Well here we are folks (in the picture below). Right at the Canadian border having our passports officially stamped as Canadian Landed Immigrants. Barry, from our church, drove us down to Prescott, Ontario. We crossed, briefly into the US at Ogdensburg, NY and then turned around and went back into Canada, where we were officially received and documented. It was a delightful experience. Our immigration officer was one of the nicest people imaginable and gave us a warm welcome to Canada. We just made a morning of it and drove back by a scenic route by the St. Lawrence River and enjoyed a nice lunch in Smith Falls (where else for a Peggy Smith!). What a wonderful feeling to have this behind us. And in just two more years we can apply for Canadian citizenship. Enjoy our joy.

A totally good day

What a wonderful day. I just love days like this. Everything just seems to go right. Today our new book club had our first meeting. We discussed "Come Thirsty" by Max Lucado. I had such a good time. I enjoyed hearing and learning from everyone and seeing that everyone had a different perspective on the book. In addition the fellowship was terrific. Besides talking about the books, we get to know each other a little better.
Right before everyone arrived, I picked up our mail and lo and behold, there were our passports back from Buffalo. We thought about going down tomorrow, but I think we will wait until Thursday to go to the border and have them stamped as official landed immigrants. (You must enter Canada as a "landed immigrant" and have your documents stamped as such to receive your permanent resident card). Then in a short time we will have our cards and be all official. Isn't that great???????????
Today I also got a call from Toronto that my meeting tomorrow was cancelled. So I get to stay home, which I needed. Of course, if I had been going to Toronto, driving down to the border would have been difficult this week. God certainly is coordenating our lives.
Hope your day was as wonderful as ours - but that might be hard.

Freezing Rain

This seems to be the winter of "Freezing Rain." For the first time since we've been here, we actually cancelled a mid-week service. Most everyone called and said they didn't want to get out in the freezing rain, so we decided that the wiser part of valor would be to call the others and cancel. So we did so. Seems so strange though.
We continue to await the news that our passports arrived in Buffalo. Can't blame Canada, though, as the envelope has been in the US since 4:50AM on Sunday. So what's taking so long to get to Buffalo?
Gradually, though, we are making plans for going to the US. We are even started to get excited about seeing people there and enjoying our much delayed 2004 vacation!
Right now I am enthused about a "Reading/Book" Club that we are starting at our church. We have chosen the books and our first meeting will be at the end of January. We will be reading Max Lucado's "Come Thirsty" and so far everyone seems enthused. I am so pleased to participate in this new project as it pushes me to read new and different books.
My other project is that starting next week, I will be back to teaching English once a week. I have a small group of students (Brazilians) who I tutor on English (mainly pronunciation) for two hours a week. It takes almost a whole day to prepare for the two hour class, but I really enjoy it. Certainly keeps me on my toes.
Speaking of toes, here I am with one of my Christmas dresses on. But I had on my house slippers. Oh well. Have a good one today.

Back down to Earth

All is calmed down around here after our excitment on Thursday. We still look at each other sometimes and say: "We're immigrants!" On Friday we were able to get our pictures taken and send off the passports. Now I'm neurotically tracking the envelope until it arrives in Buffalo and then will do the same as I await it's return to us.
So now we are back to some "normality" if anyone who is a follower of Jesus has what others might call a "normal" life. It's such an adventure. Right now I am deeply into the hardest part of Revelation to teach my youth Sunday School class. It's so exciting. For the first time I'm really getting it and applying it to ME and hopefully will help the kids to do the same. Their heads are so full of the junky lousy theology of the "Left Behind" books, we are struggling to see the real truth and life application of what God revealed to John about worship and comfort and assurance (not fear!). We're making progress though and that's rewarding. Hey - no picture today. Just wait. Soon I'll have another one to show you. Just gotta love that digital camera.

Good News/Boas Notícias

Leia a notícia em português abaixo...

I know you will be as thrilled as we are to know that today we received the news that our immigration was approved on December 23rd! Now we just have to send in our passports to the consulate in Buffalo, NY, await their return and then leave the country in order to "officially" enter Canada as immigrants. So all should be officialized in about a month. We have waited many long months of this document and thank all of you for your prayers. You can see the joy on our faces in photos below.

Eu sei que você ficará tão emocionado quanto a gente com a notícia que recebemos hoje: ganhamos nossa "residência permanente" no Canadá (somos imigrantes agora e não apenas "trabalhadores temporários"). Ainda temos que enviar o passaporte para receber o carimbo e depois teremos que sair do país para reentrar como "imigrantes". Devemos terminar o processo dentro de um mês. Esperamos muito tempo para essa notícia e queremos agradecer suas orações e apoio.

The Loyd family

For those who were unable to visit with the Loyds (especially cute little Aiden) here they are!

2005 has arrived

Time marches on and suddenly the New Year is here. We had a relatively uneventful entrance to the New Year. We had a watch night service at church and that was a lot of fun. The kids led the worship at 11:00PM and that was "invigorating" to say the least, as it was very upbeat.

Saturday João and I slept in and then spent the rest of the day getting ready ready for Sunday services.

We had a number of visitors and were surprised with the very good attendance, as it was not a nice day. The nominating committee met during lunch and we worked fast as we were all anxious to get home and out of the freezing rain.

Today, Monday, João and I had a good time meeting up with a couple and their baby who had attended our church while in Bible school. They are from Texas. We were so pleased that they were able to get back for a visit to Ottawa.

Now life has settled back to normal, with me busy on the computer. I have a nice "helper" in my cat, Sadik.

A slumberless party

João and I had a great Christmas! The Christmas eve service at church was so inspiring and very well attended. There was a real crowd, which is surprising with so many people travelling to visit families.
We enjoyed a "Brazilian Christmas" on Christmas eve with friends. That was really nice. On Christmas day we had a great dinner and visit with a couple from our church. Of course, throughout the day we called family and friends in the US and Brazil and had so many really good chats! It brought them closer to us.
Having Christmas on a Saturday sort of cut short our free time, as we needed to spend a good part of the day getting ready for Sunday morning. It was a chilly, chilly day, but it was good to back with God's people in worship.
I couldn't resist, however, getting in some after Christmas shopping. So I was up early and was at Best Buy by 6:45! It opened at 7:00 and about 300 of us stood outside in -20 weather waiting for our bargains. I got mine and consequently you'll be seeing more photos on this site - I got a digital camera -YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I also had to hit the store in the afternoon to get a stock of food for the sleepover that evening (and I also managed to find time to get my wrapping paper and cards for next year!). I invited 6 girls from the church to spend the night at my house. They arrived in stages on Sunday evening. Here's part of the crew right after they arrived:

We sat up until 3:00 eating pizza, ice cream and watching movies. Unfortunately they didn't sleep in the next morning, so there wasn't much sleep to be had. We spent all of Monday together just doing "girl" stuff. I love being with them. They are great kids and lot of fun.

I need to sleep. So I'll see you round the net!

Bah- Humbug!

You know this Ottawa weather may turn me into a Scrooge and say "Bah-hambug". Just kidding. But for the second year in a row it has rained all day at Christmas and flooded my basement. I hate wringing out towels and sheets and vacuuming constantly. In fact I'm writing this on one of my five minute breaks from mopping up. I would have rather had 15 cm of snow instead of rain. Snow is pretty. Rain is just cold and yucky.
Just had to complain about the rain. It's driving me nuts. And certainly has messed up the travel plans of so many people. But it all brings me back around to say that Christmas is not about turkey and family and presents. It's all about Jesus Christ. I confess that I sometimes lose sight of that and this little basement mop-up operation has reminded me of all the wonderful blessings God has given me. I do refuse to be down! I am joyous not in the season, but in my Saviour - giving thanks IN all things!
Merry Christmas.

A Really Not-So-Silent Night

My voice is back!!! I can talk and sing. So nothing is silent around here anymore. Nor was anything silent at our church on Sunday night. We presented our Christmas Pageant. Although it was advertised as an "instant" program, we had numerous rehearsals and were nervous down to the last rehearsal if everyone would ever get their part right. But once we put the costumes on everyone, the whole thing sprang to life. Five minutes to start, there were about 10 people in the church. Of course with about 15 people in the play, we knew we would have to invite a lot of people to come. When we finally made our grand entrance, the house was full. We know there were around 100 people and that was a wonderful blessing for us. And the "Not-So-Silent-Night" went off without a hitch. Everyone laughted (it was a comedy) in the right places. Afterward João was able to share a message of what Christmas was all about. Because the children were the "stars" of the play, lots of relatives and friends came out. I filled in as an angel (definitely NOT typecasting) at the last minute since Barb became a grandmother to twins that very morning.
Afterwards we had an International Potluck Dinner. Boy did people bring out the food. We had 4 tables laden down and even had some left-overs. I worked back in the kitchen, so I sampled lots of the food before it went onto the table. All delicious. The fellowship was marvelous as well. When João and I finally got home about 9:30 that evening, we were still on a real high. But believe you me, we were ready for a rest on Monday.
Although not very conducive for going out, since it was -25 (C), João went out early on Monday to help one of our members move. A lousy time of year to do that. I went out later that day to shop. But didn't last long, as it is some how tiring to shop clumping along in boots, coat, gloves, etc. It seems to weigh you down. Normally I leave that stuff in the car and make a dash for the stores, but it was just too cold for that. But that makes it feel all the more like Christmas.
Things are very quiet around here this year - such a contrast from last year when the whole family arrived to be with us. But it's kind of nice to have a break. The worst thing about Christmas this year is that boxing day falls on Sunday and I won't be able to do my customary all day shopping. Oh me oh my. Guess I'll survive!!!

Silence is Golden

It really does look at Christmas around here. We have had so much snow in the past week and now it's cold and the snow is hard and frozen and glistens in the sun that it almost looks unreal. Sometimes it feels like you are walking in tunnels as you walk along the sidewalks because the snow is piled up so high on either side of you with the 30 centimeters of snow that has fallen lately.
I haven't gotten out much to play in the snow because I am trying to stay home and be quiet. Literally very quiet! I have a case of laryngitis and am having some enforced silence. I am truly suffering with this, but have learned to just accept it and await the return of my voice.
Sunday we are excited about our Christmas pageant, called "The Not-So-Silent Night"and a potluck supper afterwards. We've invited lots of friends, so I am trying to cook extra to compensate. Do you think a ham, 2 lbs. of potato salad, cranberry sauce and a coconut cake will be enough? Yum, yum, I'm hungry already.
Tomorrow, I'm sure I'll be in a frenzy trying to finish my last minute gift shopping and grocery shopping. And I still haven't made any firm plans for what we are going to do for Christmas. Crazy, huh?
Yesterday we had an interesting experience. For some reason I made an extra large lunch of fried fish, manioc and mock mashed potatoes (cauliflower) and even had dessert. The guy who cleans our driveway stopped by to ask us to move the car so he could scrape the driveway. We invited him to stay for lunch. He did. And we had a nice long conversation (well, I listened). Another friend, Terry Orchard, dropped by as well and the upshot was both he and João were able to share much about Jesus with our friend and really present him with the challenge of accepting Jesus. He didn't make a decision, but the seed was planted. Who knew that fried fish could be useful in the Kingdom of God? All things for God's glory, right?

Let is Snow!

It's snowing, it's snowing and the old lady is snoring. It feels like winter has finally come to Canada. Gorgeous snowflakes are falling all day long here in Ottawa. It's not accumulating too much since it's only 32 and the snow if very wet. It looks so beautiful sticking to the trees. Since I put up my Christmas tree on Monday, now everything looks just right. I used so many candles in my decorating that João thought I was planning on burning the house down. I don't think I should like the twenty candles on my mantle. I needed something to cheer me up, since my sister left on Saturday night and my house seemed so empty after her departure. We had such a good time together and did a lot of fun things. It was especially sensuous to visit the Hershey chocolate factory. I think I got my chocolate dose for the year, just smelling the air.
I am feeling a little hectic right now trying to get ready for the Christmas program (The Not-So-Silent Night) and the New Year's Eve Program (my teen-agers are planning it and want to do a big bash!) Someday I may catch up. I want to do an open house, but I may just have to forget about it. I do so love getting together with people this time of year! Hope you are having as much fun as I am.

Dear Diary

Sometimes when I sit down to write on this blog I feel like a little girl again with my diary open before me and I can think of nothing to say, so I write "Nothing new happened today!"
That's really not true, for each day is new. Last week, for instance I went, by train, to Toronto for a resource committee of the Baptist Women of Ontario and Quebec. We are working on the materials for the years 2005-2006. Our theme is great (can't reveal it yet!). The meeting was stimulating and I'm anxious to use the material in our own church next year. I worked on reading the books for our recommended reading list and was especially enchanted with the book "Daughters of Islam", which I hope you can read too. It's great. I also loved "Your God is Too Safe". I loved the participation in the meeting. I enjoyed my visit with our friends in Toronto, the Keidann's. They truly make me feel at home.
When I got home I hit the ground running. No time to breathe. I taught my English class (I'll write more about that on another day). Then I went off to a 50th birthday party where I got to be a murderer (calm down - it was one of those murder mystery games and I acted the part of the murderous housekeeper).
Then this weekend we started rehearsals for our Christmas program. It's called "The Not-So-Silent Night" and is quite a comedy. We even have a Christmas rap in the middle of it.
The highlight of the week is my sister's arrival. Jeri came to spend a week with me. It's not Thanksgiving here, but it is in the US, so we might enjoy a baked chicken together. Mostly we will give thanks that we can spend time together.
Hope your week was an uneventful... no! I mean as "exciting" as mine!

Lift the Load

I am so excited! Since September we have been running a low-key campaign in the church for a Canadian Baptist Ministries Christmas Project, called “Lift the Load”, to help child labourers in India be able to study in schools and eventually be able to lift their families out of grinding poverty. The church chose to do this rather than operation shoebox, feeling it would truly make a difference in one child’s life if we could raise at least $400. You won’t believe it, but when we counted the offering today, we had a total of $1290. I was so thrilled I just cried with joy. The kids, who were really the focus of the campaign (children helping children) were jumping up and down they were so excited when they found out. Isn’t that just fabulous? And interesting since João preached about the church in Antioch today and their willingness to care for those in nead. Our next project? We will be caring for the needs of seven families for Christmas, quite a large undertaking. Also we are trying to help the mission for homeless people. Our people’s generosity is always amazing to me, when I know how much everyone is struggling financially. I know God will bless their sacrifice. And I know I was blessed. And in India three children will now have their load lifted. What a wonderful day today!

João in the pumpkin patch

I thought I would just wish you a very happy fall with one of my favourite autumn photos (taken over in Gatineau, Quebec by our friend and neighbour, Wing).

Hallelujah

Unfortunately, even in Canada, October 31st is "Halloween". Our church had a family night, which we call our "Hallelujah" party. We had such a wonderful time. Since old and young come out and play together, we really do feel like one big happy family. It's amazing to see an older bachelor playing ping-pong with a girl of 10, and teen-agers playing foosball with their parents. It seems such a healthy way to spend the evening. I played pin the tail on the donkey, and fishing pond with the younger kids. Adults played UNO, Dominos, Scrabble, etc. I'm not sure, but the main sport just might have been chewing the "fat" or maybe eating cupcakes and guacamole (what an awful combination).
The real hit of the night was our jail. For $1 you could put someone in jail (a locked room) for 10 minutes. They could bribe the jailer to get out, paying a double fee. One woman paid for all the men and that set off a real war. I was the sherrif, so I had quite a workout chasing people around the room. Toward the end of the evening, they took up a collection, stole my keys and put me in JAIL. I was glad for the rest, actually. With our little game, we raised $73 for our Christmas missions project, which is for the Samatha Child Labourer School in Tuni, India.
We did fill goodie bags for the children (up to age 16!), who left very satsified with their haul. The adults looked very longingly at the bags and I think some children will be forced to "share". To satisfy the adult's sweet tooth, we had a "candy bar" walk (just like a cake walk), but it was funny because mostly the teen-agers won the kit-kat bars!
Isn't it great to have such a good time in our community? I've been thinking so much about that lately. Last week, our women took food, everyday, to a woman in our church who has been ill. In addition, one single gentlemen has been unable to do his laundry and a couple in our church went by and picked it up and washed a month's worth of laundry and took it back to him. Saturday the folks turned out to do a fall cleaning of the church - right down to scrubbing the oven and fridge. It all made me feel very warm and good about being those who Jesus said would be known by their love. Pray that we may continue in that love.