Wednesday's Words of Wisdom - Paulina's Special Edition

It is our daughter, Paulina's, 9th birthday today.  In honour of her this quote (more good stuff here on my Pinterest page):

{one of my favourites}

To follow, a few shots of Paulina, exhibiting above characteristics:

{ siblings' first meeting }

{ roar }

{ sand ball wars at Second Gap, Thornmanby Island }

{ surfing ~ Buccaneer Bay }

{ mermaid princess ~ Second Gap, Thornmanby Island }

Happy 9th Birthday, Paulina.  You are small but mighty & you are fearfully and wonderfully made.

With love,

Your Mama

Happy Birthday, Mum!

Today is my Mum's birthday.  She taught me many things... about being a mother, a wife, a woman & a person.  Here are my top FIVE in no particular order:

Have adventures.

I grew up sailing the South Pacific, riding the trains of India, cruising the Caribbean, navigating the Needles and the English Channel, braving the wilds of the northern BC coast and more all thanks to my Mum {& Dad}.  I haven't been as bold as my parents were but we do travel with our kids, take them out to fancy restaurants {which can be quite the "adventure"}, and look forward to taking the road less traveled.

{ sailing off the Isle of Wight, England }

Set the table for dinner.
Even if it's just a regular Tuesday night dinner of spaghetti & apple juice.  Light candles, put out placemats.  Set the table.  It makes you stop, enjoy your food & each other.  The same goes for your home.  Put out flowers.  Hang up your kids' artwork {or yours}.  It doesn't have to be perfect.  But it will make your house a home.

{ rustic meal with blooms from the garden}

Don't finish your kids' food.

Basically:  you are not a garbage can!!  Garbage in; garbage out {or on the hips!}.  If you want a treat, have your own & enjoy it.  Food is not to be avoided but to be savoured.  

Go on dates with your husband.

When we lived in Oona River, my mum's friend, Sharlane, would come & watch us so Mum could go on 'crabbing dates' with Dad.  They went out on the Distant Drummer, my parents' fishing boat, and spend the afternoon crabbing together off Porcher Island.  A date doesn't have to mean spending a wagonload on dinner out {while that's always very nice!}.  My kids will grow up and move out & I don't want to look across the table at my husband & not know each other anymore.

{ me & Craig }

{ Mum & Dad }

Pray.
When in doubt, worried, scared, happy, concerned, puzzled.... WHATever:  PRAY.  God is listening & the answer will come.  Not always the answer you want but your prayers will be answered.  I like Annie Lammot's thoughts on prayer.  She says all her prayers {mine too} come under the "help me... help me... help me..." or "thank YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!" variety.  Yup.  Pretty much.

Happy Birthday Mama-Doo.  I love you.  You are the best mummy in the whole world.

Happy 6th Birthday

Happy Birthday, Paulina {aka Leenzie-Loo, Super Dooper Looper, Sweet P... our Paulina Gabriella Smith}. Six years ago today in the early morning hours you hastened into this world surprising everyone with your speed of arrival. You still have a mind of your own & do things in your own time. You are sweet, kind, sparky, have a great sense of humour & love with your whole heart. God bless you little one as you grow into a lovely big girl.

Kisses, your mama, always. xxxoo

40 things to do in my 40th year

I am turning 40 today. Here's little girl me {far left} with 2 of my sisters & 2 of my cousins:

{ full of giggles }

And here's me now:

{ big smiles in the sun }

I am blessed with a belly full of baby, a best friend for a husband who still gives me goosebumps {in a good way!} & 2 children who bring joy & light & craziness into what could otherwise be a much too well-ordered life. I am lucky enough to have 4 sisters who are my besties & confidantes no matter how many miles separate us. I have parents who encourage me & challenge me & support me no matter what. I have a gaggle of friends I can laugh & cry with and a bunch of wonderful in-laws who I'd be friends with even if I weren't "married in".

{ the big four-oh }

I enjoy where I live, what I do & how I feel when I wake up in the morning. Most days. The days I don't make me grateful for the days I do.

So, because I'm waiting on this lil' babes to arrive & can't go out for dinner & have too much vino or spend the week surfing in Costa Rica like a friend is doing for his 40th {jealous much??!} I've decided to create a list of 40 things I want to do this coming year.

Ready? Here goes......

1. plant flowers

2. get more smile lines

3. run a race {5k - 10k}

4. buy myself some jewellery {not the costume kind}

5. stretch daily

6. take a dance class

7. take dj lessons

8. go to a music festival {would love to go to Coachella or Mali's Festival Au Desert}

9. fly first class somewhere

10. eat an ice cream cone with more than one scoop of full fat ice cream

11. plant some veggies

12. hang up more art in my house

13. do a girls' shopping trip

14. read my devotional & Bible daily

15. walk more

16. drive less

17. visit one of my sisters in their home

18. have a baby

19. do a guest blog

20. have someone guest blog for me

21. have more patience

22. take a cooking course with Craig

23. go on a wine tour

24. make a really fantastic sand castle with the kids

25. find more beach glass

26. set up a cozy guest room in our basement

27. get our final occupancy permit

28. vote

29. volunteer

30. wear sunscreen

31. bike ride around the seawall with the family

32. learn to skate

33. take swimming lessons

34. snowshoe

35. get chairs for our master bedroom deck & enjoy a morning & an evening out there with my love

36. get more comfortable driving the Mastercraft X2

37. sew something for the new baby

38. speak kindly more often {especially to my kids}

39. put up hooks in mud room

40. make fresh-squeezed lemonade

Some of these are highly ambitious. Some are easy-peasy. Truth be told, it's a little intimidating to put these out there in case I don't stroke them all off within the year. But they say {whoever "they" are} that if you want to do something you need to be held accountable. So, I figure blog world is as good a place as any to be held accountable, right?!

{ Happy 40th to me!!!! }