travel with us as we chronicle our family adventures

I’m not one to reflect on the past much but I thought I’d take a few minutes today to look back on the year that was 2011.

Our family played outside a lot this past year. I went snowshoeing once or twice a week last winter and the kids had 5 once-a-week ski lessons at Red Mountain with a bunch of other homeschooling kids. In the spring Angela and I did a weekly mountain bike ride organized through BettyGoHard and Teck. The boys and I rode a few great rides this year including a 35km ride and a 56km ride. I had the chance to get Aisha on dirt in the summer and we rode around town too. I rode lots, yay! We also had opportunity to hike and swim and camp, we even did a couple night hikes complete with flashlights and bears, oh my! All in all it was a great year to be outside.

Schooling this year involved all three children. All three kids primarily used ACE on 2010-11 but this past fall we transitioned the boys to other curriculum while Aisha continued on into Gr1 with ACE. Homeschooling has it’s challenges and rewards. It’s been interesting to be able to talk with the boys about how our faith has long-reaching implications in our everyday lives, for them this means how we view a lot of their school subjects such as literature, social studies, and science. Being wholly responsible for our children’s education has meant that what is “extra” for other kids (ie. Skiing, soccer, biking) is something that we NEED to do in order to fulfill the learning outcomes required for them to be able to complete their schooling, we’re continually learning to be proactive with PE.

Our church life this past year has continued to be fun. We gather with a wonderful group of people who come from a varied church past, but overall are more reformed and conservative than what we’ve known. This has proven to be a blessing to us in that we’ve been encouraged in our faith foundation. We’ve also been challenged to seek the Holy Spirit in new ways (or perhaps to not confine the Holy Spirit to how we think he should move). I’m quite thankful to have had great conversations with our church family whether it’s been at home group or during our sunday potlucks or out hiking together.

“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another…” Hebrews 10:25

This verse has been our un-official motto this year….if we’ve learned anything this year it’s that we need the body (ekklesia), to be integrated in it, to receive and to give.

On the work related end of things I still work at Teck and am a happy camper in the lead refinery, working 4 & 4. Ang is still busy with her store, Delicious Baby & Toddler Boutique, in Rossland.

This year was a surprisingly good year for books, movies, and music. Here are a few of my favorites, but please note that not all these were released in 2011, just that I (we) discovered them this year.

Books that made an impact in our lives this year: The Bible (obvious, but still…), “In Defense of Food” by Michael Pollan (it will change what you eat), “Erasing Hell” by Francis Chan & Preston Sprinkle (a scriptural rebuttal to a universalist view of hell), “The Furious Longing of God” by Brennan Manning (Jesus loves me, but do I really KNOW?), “5 Conversations You must have with your Son” by Vicki Courtney (for any moms who have sons), “Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl” by N.D. Wilson (a colorful romp through God’s crazy glorious world), and a few re-visits to C.S. Lewis classics including “The Chronicles of Narnia”, “The Screwtape Letters” and “Mere Christianity”.

Movies that we’ve enjoyed this year (and are worthy of noting): The Help, Of Gods and Men (bio-pic of a group of monks), Soul Surfer, The Adjustment Bureau, To Save A Life (surprisingly good for a Xian flick), The King’s Speech.
I’m sure there were a few others but I can’t think of them right now.

Music that has been replayed again and again: Gungor (Beautiful Things & Ghosts Upon The Earth), Matt Redman (10,000 Reasons), August Burns Red (Leveler), Blindside (With Shivering Hearts We Wait), The Echoing Green (In Scarlet and Vile), Times of Grace (The Hymn of a Broken Man), and Thrice (Major/Minor).

2011 has had it’s moments, it’s ups and downs, it’s highlights and even a few low lights but remember…

Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. I Thes. 5:18

Hope springs eternal….