This Weekend

Wow! Yesterday was an exciting day, and we got a whole lot of work done around the house. A HUGE thanks goes out to both our Moms and Dads, Karen and Uncle Gord, Danielle, Lauren and Amanda - without your amazing help yesterday there's no way our house and property would look as nice as it does right now!! We started preparing for yesterday last Saturday, when my parents came down along with Grandma Mussche, and we got the framing done for the deck and the walls in the kitchen prepped for painting. We even put Grandma to work pulling off wallpaper!! Thanks Grandma!!
And this Saturday, the whole crew came down and we were busy all afternoon: Mike, Dad and Dad building the deck, Uncle Gord, Danielle, Lauren and Amanda cutting down branches and cleaning up the yard, and Mom, Mom, Karen and I painting and wallpapering in the kitchen. All end results look fantastic and we are so happy with the new look! Our yard looks great, the deck is wonderful and the kitchen looks so cozy and clean!! We feel so blessed to have the help of so many people!! It certainly was a very encouraging day.
We also learned a new reason to keep our doors locked at night. St Catharines is celebrating the Grape and Wine Festival all this week, meaning much festivities and of course much drinking downtown. Generally we feel fairly distanced from downtown but last night at midnight downtown came to our doorstep. We were almost asleep when we heard some very, very drunken man wandering down the sidewalk mumbling to himself about random things. He then came down our front path, wondering out loud, "Is this my house? Do I live here?" [insert swear words wherever]. Apparently the latched door confused him and he decided that he did not, indeed, live in our house, and so he went on his wobbly way down the road. We were quite relieved he decided to leave, and also quite relieved the door was latched!!

Grandma hard at work

Mom M and her wonderful edging

Mom VD and her wonderful rolling

The men working on the deck

The yardwork ladies - on second thought maybe they shouldn't

have been allowed to have any sharp objects . . .

Finished kitchen #1

Finished kitchen #2 - isn't it cozy?

I can't post a finished deck picture because I don't have one, and since we don't have a privacy fence up yet and the neighbour has a bunch of people over in the backyard, I don't feel going out there for a picture right now!! Maybe later. It looks great though, believe me!

Red or White?

Since it is always best to be prepared, the other day Mike and I headed out to Canadian Tire to purchase a household fire extinguisher for the kitchen. Of course, this has no meaning or implication as to my skills as a cook; you just never know when something in the kitchen or in the house is going to spontaneously combust.
However, when we arrived in the fire extinguisher aisle, we were faced with a choice - red or white. For me, the choice was obvious. For Mike, the choice was obvious as well. However, when we reached the cashier, we had to make a decision, and one of us had to return our fire extinguisher of choice back to the shelf. Actually, we didn't really make a decision - my fire extinguisher was taken from me forcibly, and now we have purchased a fire extinguisher which is the wrong color.
I will learn to love this new little appliance, but I will always wonder if I was right in my color preference or if I was just out to lunch. If you could take the time to do my little poll along the right side of this page (it's near the bottom), I would certainly appreciate knowing your opinion!

Mr Vander Deen - Teacher

Congratulations to my wonderful husband for a great start on his new career as a teacher! Mike taught his very own class for the first time on Tuesday, welcoming 26 grade 6 students into his well-decorated classroom. Things are going very well, and both teacher and class are enjoying themselves. All the hard work and preparation over the last month and, really, for the last few years, are paying off now as the rubber hits the road. May the Lord continue to bless your hard work as you prepare these young minds for service in His kingdom!