The swimsuits are drying by the fire; the snow-gear is packed; leftovers for dinner. We’re heading on our way back to the city in a few hours. Trading ski days, duck calls, and a weekly rental for school days, traffic noise, and a for-sale sign (yep, it’s still there). I will miss this breathtaking backyard scenery.

We’ve had plenty of adventures this week. Many special moments. Plenty of good times, a few lows, but all part of the adventure.

We soaked in hot springs, swam laps in the on-location pool, rolled in snow before climbing back into the hot tub. We gazed at the wide array of constellations and named planets. We collected rocks, pinecones, and action shots. We survived sunburned noses, a teething sweetie, sore throats, and lumpy mattresses. We kissed a little boy with a black eye.

Ski lessons, snowshoe adventures, winter walks. We watched the pond freeze over and watched the snow melt.

A boy ran into a tree on skis, and a garbage can on skis, then headed back to the tow rope. He gained a new nickname, Bullet. His big sister had an accidental adventure on the chair lift – she rode up alone. I stayed off skis – they all out-pace me now.

It’s been a wonderful, refreshing escape. Putting me in mind of the old saying, “A change is a good as a rest.” Our week was a bit of both.

But coming home…there’s nothing like it and no place like it.

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more.

It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal

into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our

past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

~Melody Beattie

In the name of gratitude and truthfulness I’ve decided to post a little piece of reality here once a week. Likely just a single picture. See my original post here.

Not everyone gets excited about all the meals that happen here. During one of the recent big family dinners, this boy enjoyed his chicken leg with a side of puffed corn cereal. And now dinner is often accompanied by the statement, “I havin’ cer-rear!” He is not one bit impressed when it is denied him. Such is drama of dinnertime with six children.

I am more grateful than I can express for these family dinners, though. The noise, the mess, the complaints, along with the thankfulness, the laughter, and the memories. Despite the sad fact that we no longer fit comfortably around our small table, we squeeze and shuffle, bump elbows and kick shins. Somedays these meals feel like a jumble of chaos and confusion. Somedays there are tears, “see-food”, and bad manners.

But…there is always love; always abundance; always gratitude; always family.

::

If you’d like to join in with a reality check of your own, please add a link or note in the comments!

P.S. Moving ::reality check:: to Tuesdays starting next week – see you there!

Here are a few peeks into our week. It has been a busy one. My parents stopped by (from across the country) for a couple of days on their way to a conference Add to that my brother’s return after two years in Asia, a teething little lady, and an attempt to keep the house from falling apart…It’s been a full, joyful, and rather exhausting week. It’s been wonderful, but needless to say I am ready for the quiet day we have planned tomorrow.

I’ve also been having some problems with wordpress. Some of my posts have been removed to draft status, some have disappeared completely, and all comments from these posts have been deleted. It is definitely frustrating me so until I figure it out (any suggestions???) I may be all little more quiet here. Maybe I’ll get to chance to work on the stockpile of posts I have dreamed up…

I’ve been feeling somewhat overwhelmed with life lately and this may be the breather I need. The days just seem to fly by despite the feeling that I’m not getting much accomplished. I’ve been missing my visits to many of your online spaces but I haven’t been able to make it happen. Please know I always appreciate your visits and words even when I am silent. The community I have found here means a lot to me.

If you need a more reliable way to contact me while I try to sort out the glitches here you can email me at rachel(at)housefullofjays(dot)com.

March is just around the corner. Wishing you a most wonderful end of February weekend. xoR

It’s been a week full of red and white hearts. Baking – everyday and extra special. Sharing love, receiving love…and sometimes forgetting. Laughter, tears, and exhaustion. Thankfulness for health and sticky fingers. Blessings from friends and prayers for friends.

We’re looking forward to a very busy weekend (by our low-key standards anyways). It’s a long weekend for us here with Family Day on Monday, and I’ve filled it fun plans. Dan always laughs at me when I complain that we haven’t seen anyone for a while because I promptly follow that up by booking us like crazy with visits to and from friends. We’re looking forward to catching up with some lovely people this weekend. And visits from friends always requires fresh baking, right? So I figure it’s an excuse for more cupcakes (I’m weak for the suckers), another batch of sticky buns, and perhaps some experimenting.

::

Happy Weekend! How’s yours shaping up?

The weather does not quite feel like January – although I’m quite certain will be seeing those temperatures again. Despite the illusion of spring in the air, it was indeed the last weekend of January.

My weekend began with an escape for a most welcome massage from a most skilled friend. A family visit to the science centre and pizza back at home. There was a new book to read, a lunch date with a beautiful mama-to-be, dress up time, soup that tasted good and felt good too, the end of this series snuggled on the couch with hubby, and only one casualty. Warm (to us) weather, penguins in the snow, and spring coats with ski gloves outdoors. While indoors I baked up a storm, danced with florence, smiled at a girl, and did lots of washing up.

And at the end of it all, three new recipes you’ll get to see here soon and a treat you may have seen before, the next instalment, and knitting needles in hand.

::

How was your weekend? Hope you’re enjoying a bright start to the new week. Wish you could stop by for a slice of pie and a steaming cup of tea!