Seriously... I can't put it down

Before Trevor and I jetted of to Mexico, a co-worker fo mine lent me a book called OUTLANDER by Diana Gabaldon. She told me it was historical fiction, with a twist. Now, my first literature love is historical fiction therefore, I was completely excited to read it on the beach.
I literally devoured the first book in the series. I had the second book on hold at the library and it felt like I waited forever until I could dived into it. I'm in the middle of the 3rd book and I can't put it down.
-I've given up watching Canada AM in the mornings so I can read.
-I read while brushing my teeth.
-I'm contemplating buying the series just so I don't have to wait for the libary holds.
-Trevor tries to talk while I'm reading and I mumble vague "uh huhs" and "yeahs" at him (he could probably get away with saying anything....)
-I'm learning to cook with one hand so that I can hold the book in my other.
My goodness... here I am at work wishing I could find out what exactly such and such characters are up.
I've always been a book-worm but, this is even a little extreme for me.

Ladies' Night

This weekend, Trevor was away at a Men's Retreat with guys from our church. They had plenty of fun playing ultimate, ping pong and diving deeper into the Word.
I really wanted Trevor to go and have a good time but, I was sad that I'd be all alone on the weekend. Friday, I ate a Blizzard for supper and watched a movie with my sister-in-law.
Saturday, I had a bunch of girls from church over and we had a wild and wacky Ladies' Spa Night. We treated ourselves like the princesses that we are. It was fabulous. We had tons of wonderful food as well. Here are some great snaps from our evening of decadence.

Dance Dance Revolution

Once, when we were dating, Trevor and I randomly ended up in a Ruckers where we first encountered the Dance Dance Revolution machine.
Trevor and I don't dance. It's not a religious thing or a particular abhorrence to movement to music. We dance in our kitchen to our Ipods while doing dishes and we've been known as "that couple" at weddings when we've tried our stellar moves on the dance floor. We just know we're not that good. Our initial attraction to the DDR Machine therefore, is still a mystery.
Yet, it drew us in with it's flashing lights, computerized voice praise and catchy beats.
Last week, we went on a road trip with some friends to see Cirque de Soleil which, by the way, is completely mind-blowing. Before we went to the show, we ended up at a Ruckers where we tried our moves.
Of course, Mennonite-boy kicks my butt at grooving to the DDR machine. The machine rated him a B+. Pretty good for a boy who claims he can't dance. He's got the rhythm. I got the blues. The machine didn't even rate my moves. I actually used to take dance classes. I thought I had some moxie.
Here are some fun shots of our DDR experience.

Questions...

I have been sad recently. I've had a lot of questions for God. I want to know why bad things happen to good people. Oh, I know the theological and deep, intellectual reasons. I've heard enough sermons and led enough of my own studies to understand evil and free will. All of that is knowledge... maybe the absorption of wisdom. Unfortunately, my heart still hurts. I feel pain when I think of what has recently happened in my circle of friends. I am left completely confused and angry at my God. I think that I am allowed to ask these hard questions of Him. I think that is part of my journey. I still don't have answers though.
I'm taking comfort in the words my pastor shared. He used a poem written a long time ago to help us take perspective. It's not the answers I'm looking for but, it's giving me some peace.

Life is But a Weaving
My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colours
He weaveth steadily.
Oft' times he weaves sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forgets He sees the upper
And I the underside.
Not 'til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.
The dark threads are as needul
In the weaver's hand
As the thread of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned
He knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leaves the choice to Him.

Most of my adult life...

Today is the 10th anniversary of Hotmail.
I think I have had an account for like 9 years... the same address and everything.
Crazy how dependant I have become on keeping track of people by simply typing and sending.
I remember in grade 10, when our computer teacher first introduced us to the concept of email. He told us that computers could "talk" to each other and send each other messages. My whole class thought he was trying to pull some elaborate prank. We totally didn't believe him. Then, we were so amazed when one computer in the lab sent a message to another computer in the lab. Who would have thought that emails could go global. This was around the same time that we had to sign out 1/2 hour blocks at the only computer in our library that had internet access. It was this amazing research tool but, it was so confusing.
I must be getting old. My students can't even imagine a world of not carrying a cellphone, not having a High-5, Facebook or Myspace account and not doing research on the world wide web.
Happy Birthday Hotmail.

My Mommy!

Happy Mother's Day Mommy!
You are one of my best friends.
You sacrificed so much time for me when I was little.
You listen to all my secrets, gossip and worries now that I'm big.
You sewed clothes for me.
You bandaged cut knees.
You hugged me when nobody else could make it better.
I love you so much.

Curiousity awakened...

Every morning, on the way out the door to work, I take a brief detour around my back yard.
Every day, after work, I check out both my back and front yards.
I'm waiting to see what's popped up in my flower beds.
I planted some seeds and now, I'm waiting.
The people who lived at our house before planted perennials and I'm waiting to see what they are.
My tulips came up late and now, I'm waiting for them to bloom so I know what colour I planted.
My little flower beds have become this little place of wonder for me.
I love spring.

A treat...

Sometimes it's just nice to give yourself a treat.
Our appliances came with our house. That was great because neither of us had our own appliances stored in our parents' basements. We were excited that, on top of house buying and wedding planning, we did not need to think about Kenmore, Whirlpool or Maytag.
Our late 1980s, bisque fridge, stove and dishwasher were okay with us.
Except:
-I couldn't really cook anything in the stove. My cookies were usually burnt on one side and raw on the other.
-Our fridge made really weird noises... like a really grumpy old man.
Our dishwasher gave us no problems at all... until 2 weeks ago. A spring fell out of the door. Then, the washing wand fell off the roof.
While eating burnt and raw cookies that evening, we decided that now was the time.
Tonight the delivery guys put our nice, new, white appliances in our kitchen.
They're pretty.