Christmas in August with the Hagglund Family 

I so regret that I did not buy this hat....haha 

Im getting eating by a tyranosaurus rex.....you know the song, or don't you...hehe 

OK this is just frikkin hilarious......look at wesleys face! 

ok this one is just because I am so proud of my bravery. Yes that is a giant insect on my hand...a millipide to be exact. Eww... 

ok so, in an effort to show some pics and not bomabrd you here are five of my favorites....inside a mouth at Science North 

After what feels like forever, I am home....

How wonderful to have spent time with my family. I miss them so much, and it was wonderful to share laughter and tears with my mom. We had our shopping adventures, our day at the hairdressers, and a lovely meal together. There is nothing in the world like the bond between a mom and her daughter :)

I think one of my favorite memories was of doing a deep sea mask with my mom, and trying not to laugh at how ridiculous we looked as it hardened on our faces. Ha...We kind of looked like the incredible hulk.

It was good to be able to massage my dad's shoulders, and hear him sneeze (I know that might seem odd, but believe me no one sneezes like my dad, its quite a thing to experience) I loved being there in their home, and watching their relationship bloom with their grandsons.

And like all good things, it came to an end far too soon.

We did however get the opportunity to spend some wonderful quality family time together on our way home. Off we went to Valleyfair, and made some great memories!

I will share some pics and maybe a video later :)

I think however one of my favorite memories from this trip will be the long drive home. Our whole family listened to "The Chronicles of Narnia" all seven books, over the course of nearly 22 hours of travel.

I found myself caught up in the magic, and not at all were the parallels of these stories and God lost on me. I found myself softening and relating to my Saviour in ways I had forgotten. In ways that only a child can.

I come home refreshed, renewed and repentant. For all the ways I failed to be the reflection I would have wanted, and my constant want to change people that I have no business changing.

My heart is happy, and content.

I am looking forward to the fall, I feel the winds of change, and this time, they feel warm against my cheek; like an embrace from a very dear and long forgotten friend.

Sand Castles with Tia and Uncle Jean-Luc 

Beaver tails with Tia 

mom and her boy 

us again 

Dave and I 

Drew at the beach 

Well, I know its been forever, so I figured now was as good a time to update as any.
My little men are off on an adeventure.

They flew by themselves off to Ottawa to their Auntie Tia's for four days of adventures, and are now at my parents house
after a short stint at my Grandparents cottage!

I miss them....

I can't believe how much. I am so excited for them to be having this time though....What wonderful memories to be made.

Dave and I are enjoying our time, although it has taken me a few minutes to get use to the difference of pace. We had a "date" night last week and went to the Drive-In Theatre, watched Superman, and Click (both of which I recommend) and stayed up till 4 am. I was so proud of us, we can never make it up that late! :)

I am excited for our travels as we are taking the Stateside to pick up the boys, and the one time I did that trip it was in the middle of the night, so I am looking forward to actually exploring it a bit. We are staying in Superior, WI, and on the way home will be staying in Eden Prairie Minnesota, (right near Minneapolis) and taking the boys to Valleyfair.

I am excited (can you tell)

I am looking forward to spending time with my parents, and hopefully seeing my sister, and my grandparents.

We are also in the middle of cleaning our very messy house and getting ready to have a yard sale to get rid of all of our clutter so hopefully upon our return the house will me clean and organized for the rest of summer!

Hope everyone is having a great summer, I will post some pics :)

Julie

She sits up and faces the new day with a yawn and a stretch,
the sunlight trapped between her hands, dancing, searching, calling her to awake.

She smiles when she realizes it is Saturday.

Glancing over at her husband, she gently traces his forearm, playing with its celtic markings.

She reaches over to him and whispers softly, “Wake up”

She giggles as he remains asleep.

Slipping from the sheets, she walks downstairs.

She carefully measures out the grinds of coffee, embracing the smell

Watches as it percolates, finds the strangest joy in the tiny drops as they get lost in the sea of dark liquid

Pleased that the weather has co-operated in her plans, she proceeds up back up the stairs

She stares in at the peaceful, gentle faces of her boys.

With a fierce pride, she blinks back the tears that surprisingly find their way to her eyes, and calls them to awake.

Her oldest throws on some clothes, eager to participate in the day’s activities. His impish grin, funky hair, and slept in appearance makes her laugh out loud.

Her youngest not quite as convinced, demands some form of enticement for his loyalty to his mothers hobby

None to pleased with the ultimatum, and yet secretly impressed by his creativity she promises a Chocolate Chip Muffin from the local Coffee Shop.


They all fall in line with her as she shuffles them out the door.
Nothing like some quality family time Yard Saling.

Ok, I need some help. I have been incerdibly lazy with my writing lately. I need to challenge myself. Soooo,
my few readers, would you kindly help me out by giving me a few words each to write about.
I need say, six to eight words, and I will try to write something interesting about it. We used to do this little exercise in
Grade 11 Writerscraft. That was my favorite class.

Ok, so a few people, just post the words in the comments section and Ill get started. :) Feel free to join in the challenge, and Ill post them all.

Thanks,
Julie

I recently heard a song on the Christian Radio Station that has finally said so much of whatis in my heart. She just did it better than me :)

I love the song, and I hope to sing it out at the Water sometime.

-and just a clarifier....I do not agree with the line "simple-minded friends"...I have many friends who are not believers in the same things as me, and they are anything but simpleminded. (wink)


Nichole Nordeman - What If

What if you’re right?
And he was just another nice guy
What if you’re right?
What if it’s true?
They say the cross will only make a fool of you
And what if it’s true?
What if he takes his palace in history
With all the prophets and the kings
Who taught us love and came in peace
But then the story ends
What then?

(Chorus)
But what if you’re wrong?
What if there’s more?
What if there’s hope you never dreamed of hoping for?
What if you jump?And just close your eyes?
What if the arms that catch you, catch you by surprise?
What if He’s more than enough?
What if it’s love?
What if you dig, What if you dig
Way down deeper than your simple-minded friends

What if you dig?
What if you find
A thousand more unanswered questions inside
That’s all you find
What if you pick apart the logic
And begin to poke the holes
What if the crown of thorns is no more
Then folklore that must be told and retold

(Chorus)

You’ve been running as fast as you can
You’ve been looking for a place you can land so long
But what if you’re wrong?What if you jump?
And just close your eyes?
What if the arms that catch you, catch you by surprise?
What if He’s more than enough?What if it’s love?

Hedwig and The Angry Inch 

I had debated whether I would post about this, as my reading audience I am aware has expanded some. However, as this is my blog, it is always better to be honest anyway.

I recently watched a Rock Musical with my friend Chel. It was called Hedwig and the Angry Inch. She has been trying to get me to watch it forever, and I always said that a movie about a man who’s sex change operation gets botched just does not really interest me.

However in a moment of weakness, I surrendered.

Now, ever since, I have been obsessed. Strangest thing really. Chel keeps laughin at me, but I just loved it. Loved the movie, the music, and the story. Most of all I think that John Cameron Mitchell is a genius. He wrote, directed and starred as Hedwig. His voice is amazing, and he managed to capture something in this film that many people might not understand but can still manage to feel by listening and watching.

I really cannot explain why I loved it so much, but it has a profound impact on me.

I have been listening to the music over and over.

My favorite song from the film, and let me tell ya, I like them all, is the Origin of Love. It also makes me cry sometimes. I suppose it appeals to my feeling of feeling very different, and I can understand feeling ripped in two sometimes.

When the earth was still flat,
And the clouds made of fire,
And mountains stretched up to the sky,
Sometimes higher,

Folks roamed the earth
Like big rolling kegs.
They had two sets of arms.
They had two sets of legs.
They had two faces peering
Out of one giant head
So they could watch all around them
As they talked; while they read.
And they never knew nothing of love
It was before the origin of love.

The origin of love

And there were three sexes then,
One that looked like two men
Glued up back to back,
Called the children of the sun.
And similar in shape and girth
Were the children of the earth.
They looked like two girls
Rolled up in one.
And the children of the moon
Were like a fork shoved on a spoon.
They were part sun, part earth
Part daughter, part son.

The origin of love

Now the gods grew quite scared
Of our strength and defiance
And Thor said,"I'm gonna kill them all
With my hammer,Like I killed the giants."
And Zeus said, "No,You better let me
Use my lightening, like scissors,
Like I cut the legs off the whales
And dinosaurs into lizards."
Then he grabbed up some bolts
And he let out a laugh,
Said, "I'll split them right down the middle
Gonna cut them right up in half."
And then storm clouds gathered above
Into great balls of fire

And then fire shot down
From the sky in bolts
Like shining blades
Of a knife.
And it ripped
Right through the flesh
Of the children of the sun
And the moon
And the earth.
And some Indian god
Sewed the wound up into a hole,
Pulled it round to our belly

To remind us of the price we pay.
And Osiris and the gods of the Nile
Gathered up a big storm
To blow a hurricane,
To scatter us away,
In a flood of wind and rain,
And a sea of tidal waves,
To wash us all away,
And if we don't behave
They'll cut us down again
And we'll be hopping round on one foot
And looking through one eye.

Last time I saw you
We had just split in two.
You were looking at me.
You had a way so familiar,
But I could not recognize,
Cause you had blood on your face;
I had blood in my eyes.
But I could swear by your expression
That the pain down in your soul
Was the same as the one down in mine.
That's the pain,
Cuts a straight line
Down through the heart;
We called it love.
So we wrapped our arms around each other,
Trying to shove ourselves back together.
We were making love,
Making love.
It was a cold dark evening,
Such a long time ago,
When by the mighty hand of Jove,
It was the sad story
How we became
Lonely two-legged creatures,
It's the story of
The origin of love.

That's the origin of love.

So, despite the fact that there are some odd scenes, and that its truly all about a man’s struggle with his sexuality, I think it is a great film. I loved it really…..highly recommend.