Zeddie the mighty hunter

Okay, okay, within a few weeks the cat postings will decrease and it will be all about the baby.

But for now, Dale and I were quite amused at the first gift that Zeddie brought home for us. Our kitten is growing up!

I think she was a bit disappointed that it wasn't playing with her anymore though.

Dancing

I just saw this guy on a re-run of the Ellen show and thought it was hilarious, and wonderful. Check out Matt Harding's website and turn up your speakers:
http://www.wherethehellismatt.com/

Visit from my dad

In the last week we had the pleasure of a visit from my dad, Harv Hedley. It's the first time he's been able to make it here since we got married and I moved in. My dad grew up not too far from Esterhazy, in Hamiota, Manitoba (about a 1.5 hour drive away). So even though he'd never actually been here before, because the landscape and other aspects are similar, it brought back memories for him.

In our travels, we visited the Kaposvar church, which marks the location of the Kaposvar colony, a Hungarian settlement, that was established south of Esterhazy, back in the late 1880s. (A good summary of the history is found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esterhazy,_Saskatchewan - thanks Jody for the link!). The church shown here was actually built in about 1907 and is a lovely historic site. Dad found a stove inside the rectory that was just like the one his mother would have used in Hamiota.

The Qu'Appelle valley is just a few miles south of Esterhazy. The Qu'Appelle river, which starts west of Regina and ends in the Assiniboine river just inside the Manitoba border, is generally not a huge river, but meanders through the glacially created valley, and it's very beautiful.

Finally, Dad helped his very pregnant daughter weed her garden. I can't really bend down and do much weeding these days and Dale has been busy farming whenever it has not been raining, so it was welcome help!

Mentos and diet coke

This is too funny!
http://eepybird.com/dcm1.html

5 1/2 weeks, and counting

I'm starting to understand why so many pregnant women get a little tired of being pregnant in the last month. I have acquired the pregnancy waddle and have a lot of difficulty getting up off the couch, and really look forward to bending over, being able to get into and out of the car without difficulty, sleeping in any position, having full feeling back in my hands (pregnancy version of carpal tunnel syndrome), being able to lift heavy things again (I actually miss hoisting archives boxes around), being able to walk around the grocery store without having to rely on the grocery cart to keep me up, and on and on the list goes.

But, I'm really in awe of this process of bringing a new soul into the world. Of the movement inside. Wondering what this little creature will be like. Will it be an Ernstschprockel, so named by friend Brian, or Hermione, the name bestowed by my sister-in-law Leslie? Realizing that this soul is a gift from God, a trust from God, really. It reminds me of the piece by Kahlil Gibran, "On children", which has been put to music by Sweet Honey in the Rock, that goes

Your children
Are not your children
They are the sons and daughters of life's longing for itself
They come through you but not from you
And though they are with you they belong not to you....

That's all for now
Ailsa