Don't mind me!!!!!

Don't mind me if I show you!

Please click on the picture the colours are so much better!

I received these from the office,

at Maple Leaf Enterprises

then......

Miep one of my best friends

took me for lunch

and brought me these!

to top this off.....

Ron came to the house with

Hudson (6) who picked out

this yellow beauty for me!

I just want to thank those who sent me E-card, E-mails and phone calls. I missed a few because I was working today. Besides family and friends singing 'Happy Birthday', clients, after finding out, sang for me!

Yep I am a whole 67 years now. Last year Yvonne and I were celebrating our Birthday's in Holland and it seems like yesterday. Today, well I am going to work and going for lunch with my best friend Miep.

Theo and I had plans to go out this evening but since he is sick that might not happen. We share everything as he got the cold I endured over the weekend and am now recovering from.

I did get a parcel from my niece JoAnn who lives in Holland. She is such a sensitive and sweet girl. As you remember she was here in September.

The parcel she mailed me contained: Cheese, cookies, hagelslag, large chocolate bar. Wow, JoAnn, thank you very much!

Our weekend

This weekend we are looking after the girls as Yvonne and Jason are away for her "Birthday surprise". We were not supposed to be responsible to watch them the entire weekend. Renee would also take some responsibility, but that meant they had to go home. There is no doubt that they love Renee but the girls just wanted to stay in Oma and Opa's house, so here we are for the second night.

I have the baby monitor so that I can hear the girls. I gave Anneka my LED clock since they are NOT supposed to get up before 7:00 at home. Now I was using one that is not all that clear at night. Aila started crying I looked at my alarm clock 6:15 am. When I came down the little sweetie told me, the small car she was holding all night, had fallen on the floor. By than she was too awake to go back to sleep.

"How about you and I snuggle on the sofa in the sun room?" I said. After lying there for awhile I realized that neither one of us was going back to sleep, besides it must be close to 7:00 am. I got up to get us some breakfast. When I came into the kitchen I noticed that it was not 7:00 but only 4:00 am!!!!!!!!!

Now I am too awake to go back to sleep so here I am writing my blog.
Hopefully I have a chance to catch up today. This afternoon we have to go to Hudson's Birthday party. Anneka and I wrapped his present and she made a giant card for him. She was so terrible exited.

To see Aila making pudding go to Ted's blog

What's in a name? Your Age!

Times change and so do names. The Social Insurance Banks know the names of all newborns, as their parent's family allowances depend on them.

For the just completed year the "hit parade" of popular girl names is:
Sophie, Sanne, Lisa, Anna, Julia, Emma, Lieke, Fleur, Lotte, Eva, Iris, Anouk, Anne, Isa, Femke, Noa, Roos, Britt, Amber, Maud.

Over six decades ago, 1940 to be precise, this list was:
Maria, Johanna, Anna, Cornelia, Wilhelmina, Elisabeth, Catharina, Hendrika, Adriana, Petronella, Geertruida, Helena, Jacoba, Margaretha, Antonia, Aaltje, Theodora, Christina, Alida. and Grietje.

On the boys side we see today:
Sem, Daan, Thomas, Lars, Milan, Tim, Thijs, Jesse, Lucas, Sven, Stijn, Reuben, Bram, Luuk, Lucas, Max, Finn, Niels, Jan, Nick and Tom.

In their Grandparents days, the list was:

Johannes, Jan, Cornelis, Hendrik, Willem, Pieter, Wilhelmus, Petrus, Gerrit, Antonius, Jacobus, Gerardus, Adrianus, Hendricus, Franciscus, Theodorus, Johan, Jacob, Dirk Marinus and Govert.

My name ?: Geertruida Bertha Decock-Brussee
My husband: Regnerus Theodorus Decock
Brothers: Dirk Govert, Govert Cornelis, Cornelis Dirk, Willem Adriana and Nicolas
Sisters: Jacoba, Bertha Geertruida and Lijdia.
My mothers name: Adriana Aaltje (Actually I love that, next girl will get that name!)

I am sure you were waiting for this information, hahaha!

Anneka and Samantha

not just cousins but best friends

Nothing in life is a destination,

Every stage leads to another stage!

*************************

I do not judge - that is God's job

I do not accuse - that is the devil's job

I just love - that is MY job!

Happy Monday

We had a nice Sunday even though it was busy as we had the children and grand kids over. The little ones are always very happy to see each other.

I always make the same Sunday lunch, which is:
My homemade Cinnamon Buns.
Pillsbury Crescent Rolls.
Cheese and Crackers.
Jason meat (sliced chicken or turkey meat because he does not eat cheese)
Jam and "hagelslag"if I have it in the house.

As if this is not enough sweets, a dessert. yesterday homemade Cream Puffs and Chocolate Cup Cakes for the kids (and kids at heart). For Opa Apple Pie as he had a craving for that.

Then there is the Chocolates/Nuts/Chips or Popcorn Coca Cola and coffee!

As you can see, A VERY HEALTHY MEAL, hahaha!

I have been doing this ever since I can remember.

I used to be able to get away with one pan of Cinnamon Buns, but now I need to make two, because the grand kids seem to love them so much. I mean they are large buns, where do they put it!!!!!! They sit around the table in the kitchen and come back to the living room with their empty plates like: "Please Sir, may I have some more?"

There is nothing in this world I love more than seeing them!!! I just want to stay healthy for them!

This is all for now!

Our family, little Aila is missing (she fell behind the sofa!)

(click on picture to enlarge)

Not much happening around here. I worked today and it was payday, how exiting is that!
Debbie and I went for lunch at Moxie's. That was fun as we always have lots to talk about. As you might remember Debbie was widowed just a little over two years ago. She has two kids, whom she adores and lives for.

She was telling me (I have heard that before) how she could identify with people who have Aids or some other infectious decease, why? Because you are being avoided like you have a plague. Most of the friends she and Gerald used to get together with are sort of staying away.

My sister-in-law who was widowed last July tells me the same thing. Nobody calls her and neighbours step quickly back inside the house when she walks down the street. Even members of her own church they attended for over 30 years ignore her.

What is wrong with people! I find that absolutely shocking. I am certainly NOT looking forward to that stage in my life.

Okay, you are going to tell me, "But Trudy the Lord will look after you!" Yeh, right! Just like we tell a person who is in financial need, "I will pray for you!" That is the easy way out.

Do you have any comments? I sure like to hear them.

That's all for now folks. Keep that light shining! Hahaha!

You cannot have everything

where would you put it?

************

People are so busy preparing for a

rainy day that they forget

about today's sunshine!

************

A person who does not recognize

the beginning of trouble

will NEVER see the end of it!

This and that!

I have just finished some office work. It is the end of the year that means everybody will want to have their T4's as soon as possible. So I have been doing the preliminaries. The rest will be done very soon.
The year-end of the company is coming up the end of this month and that is a lot of work. I will have to reconcile every single GL Account. Guess what, I love doing that. The Auditor who finalizes the books for me tells me I am the only person he knows of, who actually looks forward to the year-end, isn't that wild?

For the rest well....... yesterday I was not feeling all that great. Too much exitement over the holidays and too many different food choices. You might say I was simply exausted and my intestines were all wacked up. (Is that a good expression?) I never got dressed yesterday and I slept most of the day.

In the evening we were watching a movie "Terminal"( Tom Hanks). I was really enjoying it (or so I thought) untill Ted blew out the candles. That startled me and I asked him why blow them out? "Because", he answered: "We are going to bed, the movie is finished!" I must have fallen asleep again. Of course I wanted to know the end?" "Wel", Ted replied: "They got married and are happy." I guess he figured that's all I wanted to know, hahaha!
From what I saw it actually was a good movie!

My bosses Roelie and Bill are gone again for their yearly two months vacation to the South.

Well folks this is all I have for you today!

If you cannot encourage yourself,

do not even talk to yourself!

*************

You need a smoke,

you need a drink,

food?

That is basically the same lie

that Eve fell for:

"You need that fruit!"

************

As I was having my devotion this morning I came upon these verses. They are certainly not new as I have read them many times, but yet this morning they really spoke to me.

"Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
Do not add to His words, lest he rebuke you, and you be found a liar.
Two things I request of You (deprive me not before I die):
Remove falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches–feed me with the food allotted to me; (All though Dr. Harris told me yesterday I have to eat more!Hahaha! )
lest I be full and deny You, and say, "Who is the Lord?"
Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God" (Proverbs 30:5-9).

This afternoon Ted and I were at the cancer clinic to get the results from my latest tests. Dr. Harris my oncologist informed me that all the tests came out good. That was good news for us.

Even though I was not nervous at all before, I did prepare myself for the worst scenario. I wondered how I would react. How my life would change. How insignificant bad weather is opposed to a healthy body.

Dr. Harris wants me to go through all the tests in six months again. She said: "Than it will be summer and we'll be complaining about the heat!" See, that is what I mean, it is always the weather.

I have discovered a long time ago and so have you, that there is no paradise on earth. You enjoy the good times and with God's help you take the bad. He has told us that He will never leave us nor forsake us!

Now I know for sure that I would have taken the bad news with THAT attitude, He will never leave me, THAT I have experienced too many times.

But for now.....I am very thankful with the good reports and I wanted to share that with you!

Some people tend to construct their

religious conviction so as to

accommodate their sin.

When you give in to some demands,
do it gracefully.


If your yoke is not easy
and your burden is not light,
you have not been with Jesus recently!

Update

I have had my bloodtest just before Christmas and yesterday I went to the Hospital again for the CT Scan. Next week I will be seeing the oncologist for an examination and the results of the tests. I have been feeling good except for the occasional tiredness. But than again it has been pretty hectic around our place for the last couple of weeks.

Here is an other quote from Ted's book : "Things I heard in Church". We are planning to sell this fantastic little book on the net. It also has Teds own drawings and illustrations.

I cannot run someone else's life:

I have my hands full running

my own life!

or

If you could understand God,

He would not be big enough!

The ones who have easy answers
do not fully understand the problem

Welcome to our winter wonderland!

Jennifer just came from North Carolina and

offered to clean the snow away! Nothing to it

so she thought!

May be if I do it this way!

I guess it's not so easy hey Jen!