Answer to Holiday train question and such

So - not a lot of response from people who found us in the "Holiday Train" crowd (though by looking at the web site stats I can see that some clicked on the picture and tried to find us).... not surprising that you could not see us because that picture was from the stop in London, Ontario (I took it off the web site). You didn't really think I was going to risk $20 on nothing did you? :)

So Sari and the kids had today off - I had to work but I am on holidays now. Let the fun begin! :)

Wooo - that is good stuff!!! :) (Click on them to enlarge)

"Poking her carrot in" - I am going to use that. :)

Holiday train

The CPR Holiday Train rolled into town tonight, so we went and checked it out (I will give $20 to anyone who can point us out in this photo). It was fun - nice night outside - ran into a lot of people we know - went for supper with some friends.... good times!

Sari and the kids are free - on holidays - I have to preach Sunday and then I am in the office on Monday and that is it for me too. Looking forward to going to seeing family - hanging out - sledding - skating - going to World Junior games - just having fun!!!! :)

PS. Check back tomorrow to see if you were right about where we are in the picture - seriously - $20 to the first one who spots us. Merry Christmas)

Christmas shopping

Is it a bad thing that I just started Christmas shopping tonight??????

Now - granted - it is not as bad as it sounds..... I mean Sari is great at the Christmas thing (If the elves ever go on strike - she could replace 98690348690368 of them - she would have gifts flying out of the North Pole like sixty) - so I don't have to worry about 99.9999999 % of it..... but I do have to get a few things.

Sari's gift is easy this year - she bought it for herself (ask her about it if you are curious) but I still had to get her a couple of things, right? As well, I had to get the kids a gift from their Dad (Sari accused me of buying a gift "for Dad" instead of a gift "from Dad" - I told her that it was going to be a Father/daughters bonding experience thing....... can I help it if they like the same things I like???? Gifts don't have to make the giver miserable do they?)

Anyway - there were a fair number of guys wandering around Wal-Mart and Canadian Tire tonight.... most were just "scouting still" - I mean, come on, we still have like a week left don't we? :)

Christmas on the road

Sunday after church we loaded into the van (at -32) and headed for Regina. Sari's mom had purchased tickets for us to see Steve Bell (a Christian singer from Winnipeg) that evening. The place was packed - we saw a lot of people that we knew - and had a nice night.

We then combined this event with our "Mooney Christmas". Sari and the kids took the day off school, Justin took the day off work and I moved my day off so that we could hang out there until Monday. It was really nice. The triplets are growing and changing rapidly, Caden told us lots of stories and we stayed up til 2 am visiting with Jen and Justin. It was very nice and relaxing and fun.

So - a few more things on the schedule this week - it is like the 12 days of Christmas (minus the "swans a-swimming" and the dancing girls) :(

Even more Christmasy stuff

So tonight we went to my "Office Christmas Party". Since I work alone (at the office anyway - other people work very hard - just not there), my party is really supper out with the elders and their wives.

It is a very nice tradition that has been going on for several years now and I really appreciate it. I do not know any other preachers in our churches that get an "Christmas party" so I consider myself lucky.

A nice supper, great friends, family, people who care about us..... a nice reminder of some of reasons we have been here so long.

More Christmas stuff to come.... stay tuned! :)

More Christmas.... it just keeps coming

Today is one of my favorite school days....... Christmas lunch!!!! Turkey.... ham.... mashed potatoes.... veggies...... coffee...... maybe even pie!!!! The school's "Spirit Club" puts it on and parents are invited. We all have to pay our own way though, so I intend to defend my "That guy just ate his own body weight in food" title (It is a real hit with the kids - not so much with the organizers though) :)


So I am off! More Christmasy stuff tomorrow and the next day and the day after that..... oh and I may even start shopping sometime in there too. :)

Christmas fun rolls on

Christmas tree decorated tonight - music - pictures - lights - nice! :)

The Start of Christmas Fun!

So we have officially started out Christmas season.... we went to see Stuart McLean in Regina (The dude pictured above) on Monday night. He is a storyteller who has a program on CBC radio and every year he goes on tour doing a "Christmas show" (Tells stories, brings musical guests, etc).

The thing that I really think is interesting about him is that (as you can see above) he just comes out on stage with a music stand, a microphone and a bunch of stories and mesmerizes people for hours at a time (who says the spoken word - including preaching - has no power or attraction any more?????)

This year we took the kids with us (normally it is just a "Sari and Me" thing). Over the years of listening to his CDs and things, they have come to like him too - so we included them.

We hit the road after school on Monday (at -25). Ate supper at Tony Roma's (yummmm). Went to the show (the girls had never been in the "Centre of the Arts" before..... yes I am aware that they call it the "Conexus Arts Centre" now but since I am sort of "anti-corporate naming rights" it is still the "Centre of the Arts" to me). Left the show at about 10:30 (after lost of laughs, good music and nice stuff) and headed home. Stopped in Weyburn at midnight (at -35) for snacks and finally got in bed around 1:15.

Mom and Dad made it to work the next day..... the kids slept in till 11:30 (but that will be part of the "nice memory" too, right?)

This now kicks off a ton of "Christmasy stuff" - I will keep you posted as we go.

PS. If you have not checked out Stuart Mclean before - you should. Maybe you will like him too.... click here.

Like some beautiful dream

It is a night that will live on in my memory forever....... the sights..... the sounds..... the colours...... the discounts!!!!!

Peavey Mart held their "Friends and Family" evening tonight and I was a "Friend" (at least I think that the manager is my "friend" and not a long lost cousin or something..... maybe that was his subtle way of breaking it to me... hmmm. Anyway.......)

You have to have a secret pass to get in(just like a secret agent - only instead of going to some foreign country you get to buy things from foreign countries - just about the same thing)...... and then the best words in retail.... "Employee pricing!!!!"

I saw grown men wandering around with their tongues hanging out as they tried to calculate (in their heads) what "20% off the last ticketed price" on that Plasma cutter is....... "Hmmm - 9 carry the 7........ well - it is cheaper than the rest of the year" - that is about all we needed to know.

So - I ran into several buddies over there and tried to talk them into buying some big ticket items based on the logic that....

1) When it is a percentage sale, the more you spend the more you save (so it is only smart to spend more) and

2) I may need to know someone who has that tool so that I can borrow it in the future (though that fact did not really seem to sway many of them one way or the other for some reason).

So in the end they had to pull most of us out of there kicking and screaming and holding onto the door jams (some ridiculous thing about the workers needing to go home to their families... or something).

So at the end of this most glorious night, I spent a lot of money....... but think about how much I saved by getting it on sale (isn't that what the women say all the time?????)