Thursday, December 25, 2014

Family Christmas
















Thank you for coming Alexander family (Sue, Randy, Brittany and Brayden)
and making our Christmas merry and bright! xox

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

is one of our favourite Christmas carols.

Written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who in 1861 suffered a very personal tragedy which inspired this beautiful song. An unusual heat wave in Massachusetts prompted Longfellow's wife, Fanny, to trim the heavy locks of their seven year old daughter, Edith. Fanny decided to preserve little Edie's curls in an envelope. As she heated wax to seal it, hot drops fell unnoticed onto her dress and caught on fire. Fanny rushed into Longfellow's study. Longfellow first tried to extinguish the flames with a rug, and when that failed he threw his body onto his wife, severely burning his face, arms and hands. Fanny Longfellow died the next morning. Fanny was buried three days later on their 18th wedding anniversary. Too ill from his burns and grief, Henry did not attend her funeral. (Hence Longfellow's trademark full beard arose from his inability to shave after this tragedy.)

This song is actually a love song—our love song and everyone's love song—full of peace and hope.

Our favourite lines from the song are these two verses:

And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth," I said;
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men."

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep!
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With peace on earth, good will to men!"

With God anything is possible. Even happiness and peace in the worst situations is possible.

Happy Christmas week!

Sunday, December 14, 2014

Merry Christmas

GENESIS 1:1-5, 26-27

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day" and the darkness "night." ... God said, "Let Us make human beings in Our image, to be like Us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground." So God created human beings in His own image. In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.

*****
In the beginning is when the greatest story ever told begins.

The story of Christmas begins in the beginning—because Christmas is about Jesus and Jesus' love, which has been looking to hold you close since the very beginning of time.

Jesus was before time, His voice hovering over the depths of the darkness like a mother eagle hovers over her young. Jesus was there when the voice of God breathed wonder into the darkness: "Let there be light..."

And just the sound of God's voice made light dance into being, all brightness shattering the dark.

"Let there be land." And at the music of His voice, mountains roared and raised up through the oceans. And God said, "Let there be living plants, and let there be lights in the heavens, and let there be living beasts."

And at the wonder of His voice, leaves unfurled and stars spun happy and elephants trumpeted praise.

But what about when God dreamed up the very best at the very last? God did not say, "Let there be..." as He had for everything else. When He dreamed of a face like yours, His voice filled with the gentlest love, and He smiled. "Let Us make human beings..."

God the Father gathered close with God the Son, Jesus Christ, and God the Holy Spirit, and all the glory of the Trinity gathered close when They imagined the masterpiece of you. And God in three persons scooped a handful of dust together and knelt down, and together They kissed warm life into God's children with the breath of His love.

The whole world was made by God's word. But God's children alone were made by all of God's love. You were formed by a huddle of holy hearts.

You are made of both the dust of this earth and the happiness of highest heaven. You are made of both flesh and spirit, and you are made of two worlds longing forever with Jesus.

No matter what happens in the world, the truth is always this: you were formed by Love... for love.

You were formed to have front-row seats to waves hugging the shore, to trees touching the sky, to stars falling across the night—the whole of the universe falling in love with God.

Your eyes were formed to be awed by the art of every wonder-laced snowflake and the carving of every swirl of frost and the sculpting of every cresting snowdrift. And then to see it—God's own signature in the corner of everything. God the artist who imagined and made the masterpiece of this world. Your mind was formed to be wowed by God. Wowed by His uncontainable, unending, unconditional, unbeatable, unfailing, unwrappable love.

You could unwrap the wow today just by going to the window. By going to the front door, to the park, to the backyard, or to the top of the highest hill you can find—standing there and staring and being wowed by the shape of the clouds or the colour of the sky or the size of the sun when you hold up your hands. You could unwrap the wow right now.

And the greatest gift we can give back to our great God is to let His love make us glad.

The whole blue marble of the world spins happy right now with the gladness of His love.
Unwrapping the Greatest Gift, Ann Voskamp


Christmas joy to you and yours.

Love, Sandi, Tim and Huffy the Hedgehog

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Happy Birthday to Tim

THROUGH THE YEARS...


Toddler Stage (with twin sister, Tessa).


Ski Racing Stage.


Awkward Stage.


Beatnik Stage.


Wanderlust Stage.


Heart Throb Stage.


Ski Racing Stage 2.


Marlboro Man Stage.


Don Johnson Stage.


Richard Gere Stage.


Starting To Look Like Mum Stage.


Best Thing I Ever Did Stage.


Perfectly Aged Stage.

Happy Birthday my love!

I am so thankful you were born sixty-two years ago. I wake up every single day, smile and thank God for letting me walk through this life with you. You're perfect to me and for me in every way. I love the big, random hugs and kisses you give me when I'm least expecting it. I love the kindness that shines out of those beautiful, green eyes of yours and how devoted you are to me and so many others. I love your sense of humour and how you can always get me to smile and laugh, even when I'm being a grumpster. You still make me weak in the knees with your English charm and dreamy good looks. I love that you never leave to go anywhere without saying, "I love you sweetie" as your final words. You're simply my hero in more ways I can explain. I love this life with you and miss you as soon as you step out of the door to go skiing, biking, hiking, golfing... even when you step out of the room. I love that we're hopelessly in love after all these years. What I really want to say my darling is...

... your birthday is the happiest day of my life. I love you forever. Sandi xoxoxoxo

Monday, September 15, 2014

San Juan Islands Hop


We arrive by ferry at Friday Harbor on San Juan Island in the United States and drive to Roche Harbor, a heritage destination resort about 14km away. San Juan Island is a popular holiday destination, offering visitors the most in terms of urban amenities, relaxing hideaways, and wilderness hikes. 



A village unto itself, the Roche Harbor Resort offers accommodations, as well as a marina for seafaring guests, large enough for 377 vessels.




First, there is the century-old Hotel de Haro, where lace-trimmed beds, antiques, and roaring fireplaces transport you back to an earlier time. 


Originally a log bunkhouse, which sports the occasional slanting floor and crooked window, the hotel evolved into the distinctive three-story structure you see today, sophisticated enough to entertain company brass and dignitaries, including President Theodore Roosevelt who signed the guestbook in 1907.


John Wayne loved his baths in this custom, over-sized bathtub, now in the shared bathroom on the second floor. "Pass the bubbles Pilgrim."


There was no town at Roche Harbor until John S. McMillin, a Tacoma lawyer, discovered the richest and largest deposit of lime in the Northwest at Roche Harbor, and began negotiations for his claim in 1884. By 1886, the Tacoma and Roche Harbor Lime Company had been incorporated and became a large-scale business.


In 1975, the road was paved with yellow bricks—the fire bricks which lined kilns one through eight, hence the name Yellow Brick Road.


As there was no local source of bricks when the kilns were built, bricks were purchased in Canada and shipped to Roche Harbor. The names on the bricks reflect the names of the companies they were purchased from.



Named for an early lime-kiln operation on site, Lime Kiln Point State Park is the only park in the world dedicated to whale-watching. Researchers use Lime Kiln Lighthouse, built in 1914 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, to watch for whales and to determine whether passing boats are affecting their behaviour.



San Juan Island's colourful past stems from a boundary dispute between the US and Great Britain when, from 1860 to 1872, both countries occupied the island. In one of the stranger pieces of history, the killing of a British homesteader's pig by an American settler nearly sent the two countries to the battlefield. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, so what is now referred to as the Pig War of 1859 resulted in only one casualty: the pig. The San Juan Islands were eventually declared American territory. The American Camp (above photo) serves as a historic reminder of those early days. The windswept grassy peninsula is a wonderful place to spend a sunny afternoon.


In sharp contrast to American Camp, English Camp is located in an area of protected waters, with maple trees spreading out overhead. A trail leads through second-growth forests up to Young Hill, a fairly easy 198m (650ft) ascent with panoramic views as the reward.




Jump forward. This may look like the same place but it's not. We get around, don't we? We're now on Orcas Island in Moran State Park at the top of Mount Constitution (elevation 731m, 2,399ft) where the panorama stretches from the North Shore Mountains over Vancouver, BC to Mount Rainier, south of Seattle.


Snow-capped Mount Baker can be seen in the distance. Named for the viceroy of Mexico in 1792—not, in fact, for the orca whales common to its waters—Orcas Island is the largest, hilliest, and most beautiful of the San Juan Islands. Half the fun of exploring this island is traveling its roads, which, in addition to going up and down, twist and turn among hedgerows, fields and orchards. Around any bend might lie a jewel of a bay or an unexpected hamlet filled with quaint cottages and wildflower gardens.


We're staying at the Rosario Resort & Spa, a turn-of-the-20th-century mansion, originally the private residence of shipping magnate Robert Moran and the crown jewel of Orcas Island. Walls are 30cm (12in) thick and paneled with mahogany. Windows are 2.5cm (1in) thick plate glass. And teak parquet floors, covering some 557sq. m. (5,995 sq. ft.) took craftsmen more than 2 years to lay.


The music room features a Tiffany chandelier and a working 1,972-pipe Aeolian organ, which, when installed in 1913, was the largest organ in a private home in the United States. We are treated to a free concert by the talented General Manager, Christopher Peacock, who not only plays the organ but also a 1900 Steinway grand piano. It's just too beautiful not to share so here's a sampling:




The house's lower level (now the gift shop and spa), has a floor made of Italian mosaic tile, and had a swimming pool, billiard table, and a bowling alley.



The pretty soap dish in our room reminded us so much of the swirling west coast waters we have been traveling on we just had to purchase one from the gift shop to take home.



We're on the ferry again bound for our last island, Lopez (passing Mount Baker). Laced with country lanes, picturesque farms and orchards, Lopez Island is just about as bucolic and pastoral as it gets. Cows and sheep are a common sight, as are bright fields of lilies and delphiniums. In summer, cyclists flock to the gently rolling hills, hikers explore the trails and bluffs of county parks, and birdwatchers take to the expanses of protected tidal flats to watch a myriad of shorebirds.


We had the best room service meal we've ever had at the Coast Victoria Harbourside Hotel in Victoria and now, here at Isabel's Espresso in Lopez Village, we're having the best cappucino and chocolate chip oatmeal cookie we've ever had.



Happy hour watching the sunset over Fisherman Bay at the Lopez Islander Resort.




Back on the mainland we're spending a few hours exploring Pike Place Public Market in Seattle.


It's the oldest covered market in the country, and certainly one of the busiest, used by Seattle residents and restaurateurs looking for the freshest fish and produce as well as throngs of tourists looking for photo opps.


At $40/pound for Alaskan King Crab you can understand why security guards are needed.


Seattle's Starbucks has become ubiquitous throughout the world, with coffee shops in such unexpected locations as the Forbidden City in Beijing. It's hard to turn a corner in Seattle without finding a Starbucks, but this location at Pike Place Market is where it all began in 1971, complete with the unique logo of the original store. Makes us jittery.



Oh, the flowers!



The English muffin and his crumpet can't resist The Crumpet Shop on First Street. The good folks here have been making crumpets for 36 years running and boy, are they are good. Re-e-e-e-eally good.


We wrap up our island hop at Christian Faith Center in Federal Way to see the inspirational Ravi Zacharias touch hearts and intellects with the love of God and truth of the Gospel. We're heading home tomorrow but not before a stop and shop at the outlet centers conveniently located en route to the Canadian border.