Mama-luia

This week involved a few tears and many prayers as my dad underwent a 'standard procedure' to determine what, if anything, was wrong with his heart. Really, when it's your daddy, the words standard procedure mean nothing when you hear heart as well. Your mind races to different possibilities and you find yourself simultaneously panicked and trying to ignore your own thoughts as the Holy Spirit whispers over and over, "trust, trust." We are so grateful that all went smoothly and there is nothing serious to be concerned about. He is doing extremely well, and seemed so calm and completely himself when he came from the hospital on Tuesday. He smiled and watched in delight at his three grandkids playing in his yard, playing in the sandbox and pouring buckets of water everywhere. I saw a smile I have seen many times, but never knew exactly what it meant until not so long ago. When I sang a solo in my honour choir's Christmas concert -- in German -- Dad was t...

Patrick is out with my parents' van tonight, busily taking boxes into our new house with the help of my ever-selfless father-in-law. I'm home as Noah peacefully sleeps, dreaming of the big plot of land we'll get explore first thing tomorrow . Our first day in our home! I probably should be putting our remaining things into boxes. You know, like, this computer. But I am so eager to show you our home, and invite you to come over for a cup of tea (hot or iced, we like both!) or some homemade gingerale . Whatever you choose. We have no furniture actually in the house yet, of course, so until then, you're most welcome to pull up a cardboard box and enjoy our ocean view with us. Without further adieu, the house: The entrance. Just picture some sweet hanging baskets and a few Craine touches and it will be perfect. It's home. Our home . A funny sight when you first walk in, I confess. Yet an amazing gift to a cloth-diapering stay-at-home mom: a washer and dr...

I got this image from a blog of a lovely friend and a wonderful mother. Click it to enlarge and read it. Then go live it! I told you last time about us deciding to buy a house. What I didn't tell you about, though, is the confirmation we received right after making up our minds that we were doing the right thing . As I mentioned to you, we had struggled for a year living here with the idea of community . Friends, other young families, fellow Catholics -- we wanted them, we knew they were around, but how exactly to connect with them? We signed our offer on a Friday, and found out our lovely friends the Wee Irish Lass and the Texan Liturgist were in town for a visit that weekend. Splendid. Could they come over? Sure, always. They told us that night they had decided to move back to Nova Scotia from the nearby but not close enough for my liking Island. Our hearts swelled. We share so much in common, and we can hardly wait for their baby to come this fall! Dear friends of ours, living s...

In less than one week, we will be moving into our first house! I can hardly believe this is happening, but yet, I feel so at peace. God has been doing wonderful things in our lives, and He really is extravagant. I will tell you all about the house when we're there (with pictures, too, of course!) but for now, I want to just want to tell you about how God set the whole thing up! When Patrick and I made the decision to move back to Nova Scotia, we were in the hospital after Noah's birth. My dear husband was unemployed, we had university debt to last us, well, a looong time, and here we were, cradling this innocent gift of God who was relying on us to supply his every need. It was very humbling, to say the least. We knew we had a wonderful community in Barry's Bay, and we even thought it likely that Patrick could find some work there, but it just didn't seem right for us to move there. Not when we knew we could live in Halifax and be so close to both sets of parent...

I am really overwhelmed by the encouragement I have received in blogging since that fateful post. I know it sounded like I was fishing for compliments, but in reality, I simply wanted to find out why other women (presumably women; I think my only male reader is my own husband!) blog. I was particularly inspired by a friend of mine who wrote to me on Facebook concerning this: " I just wanted to tell you that you should keep writing. Not only do I love reading your very talented writings on life, but I think that this talent should be cultivated and shared w i th the world no matter how small a piece of the world it is that sees it." Perhaps only a very small number of people read this, and perhaps even a much smaller number still comment, but what I get to do is share something of my life as I blog. Maybe what I write will make you smile, make you think, inspire you a little, or even annoy you. But maybe the point is that I wrote something . {It is all about me, of ...

Today I was sitting in my husband's office, surreptitiously sewing a little something for him to commemorate our second anniversary, which is tomorrow. You know, the cotton anniversary. A little sewed something seems natural, no? As I listened to this song, I happily stitched away in the few moments of quiet available while Noah napped. The quiet made me introspective, and I was struck by the sight of my own hand as I sewed. Specifically, my wedding ring. I was struck how my wedding ring and engagement ring are such wonderful symbols of our life together. There is the obvious symbolism of the rings being forged into an unending circle, made from solid, precious metal.But the story behind these specific rings say something about us. Patrick couldn't afford an engagement ring when he proposed. Neither of us could stand for a blood diamond as a symbol of our love and commitment to one another. Yet a Canadian diamond was simply out of his budget from a 'Franciscan' sal...

I am really struggling with this business of blogging. I have yet to find my 'voice' as a blogger so I never know what to write about when I sit down at the computer, but more importantly, I don't know how to word it. Who is blogger Jenna? Is she someone who writes about her cooking, crafting and other domestic triumphs? Or does she get more raw and discuss where she is going wrong in these areas? How much information about my family is relevant? Interesting? What ought I write about? Also, I find myself questioning my whole pursuit as a blogger, because honestly, I'm discouraged by the lack of comments. I think, if I wanted this to be only about me and for me, I'd keep a journal. And I wonder if writing about my life in an attempt to reflect on it's simple joys should be public. So I am asking you today, why do you blog? And, if you have a reason, why should I ?