I love to watch spring unfold - the earth greening and all the flowers budding…

This year I am enjoying it twice!

London in bloom

Hyde Park 

The little garden around St David’s - the church next door to City Temple where Andrew and Hyekoo live.

I stopped to take a deep whiff of this lilac every time we went out the door of City Temple.

Victoria Embankment along the River Thames

PEI beginning to bloom…

 
My daffodils 

Marsh Marigolds grow wild in a marshy stream area nearby.

Tiny wild violets growing in our woods.

My tulips  are a little behind - I’ve seen many  already in bloom across the Island.

Maybe they were waiting for me to come home…

*grin* 

so many wonderful experiences ~ so many wonderful memories 

but

it’s good to be home.

Our son’s wedding blessing was of course, the highlight of our trip.

My pictures didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped. But they will give you an idea of how lovely everything was.

Our beautiful daughter by love

A little friend bringing a lilac for the happy couple 

A father’s blessing

 
A happy couple

More trip highlights to come! 

1992 ~ Cavendish Beach
These are the five  who have made me one incredibly happy mom! So many happy memories and so much more to come!

I received this beautiful poem from a good friend ~ I’m passing it on to each of you, my friends, with much love and prayers for a Happy Mother’s Day!

~ Before I was a Mom ~

I never tripped over toys

or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn’t worry whether or not

my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind

and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held down a screaming child

so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night

watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,

I never held a sleeping baby just because

I didn’t want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces

when I couldn’t stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small

could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,

I didn’t know the feeling of

having my heart outside my body.

I didn’t know how special it could feel

to feed a hungry baby.

I didn’t know that bond

between a mother and her child.

I didn’t know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night

every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth,

the joy,

the love,

the heartache,

the wonderment

or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn’t know I was capable

of feeling so much,

                                                                                before I was a Mom.

Just a note to let you know we’re having a good time - eating at pubs, walking around the streets of London admiring all the old architecture and statues and trying not to get lost.

click to enlarge

This is the street where Andrew lives - I waited for the double-decker bus to arrive so that I could capture a quintessential British scene for you -  the old telephone booths, double-decker bus and the tavern!

Roger and I enjoyed a walking tour around St. Paul’s Cathedral. The day was cool although spring is in full bloom here with so many various shades of tulips and other spring flowers. There is a lilac bush blossoming in a church garden next door to Andrew’s building. I breathe in the sweet scent everytime we head out. What a treat!

click to enlarge Remember the scene at St Paul’s from Mary Poppins with the old bird woman? Actually, you are not allowed to feed the birds anymore  - not anywhere in London. Our son, Andrew, says they are like flying rats - very germ-laden. Although I couldn’t feed the birds I was still singing the song “All around the cathedral, the saints and apostles look down as she sells her wares. Although you can’t see it, you know they are smiling, each time someone shows that they care…”

We also headed down across the Millennium Bridge over the Thames and to the replica of the Globe theater where Shakespeare put on his plays. Roger found a Starbucks - which is his substitute for Tim Horton’s while he is here. He’s a happy man.

Yesterday we went to the shopping district around Oxford Street- the streets and busses were crammed with shoppers.It was cool and rainy so we carried our umbrellas. There is a bit of a trick walking with an umbrella in those  crowds! I haven’t figured it out yet. I came quite close to poking a few people with the sharp spokes of mine.

Last evening we had the wedding blessing rehearsal. My son’s wife is Korean. We met her family for the first time - they shook hands and we gave a little bow -it was all good! Andrew and Hyekoo added a Korean custom to the wedding ceremony - as they  walk down the aisle after the ceremony, they stop and bow to us first, and  then to her parents. I think I like it!! This reverence for parents is rather nice.

Afterwards we all went out to eat at a Japanese restaurant. I tried sushi (raw fish)  - let’s call it an experience :) We  communicated through Hyekoo and her sister, who also speaks quite good English. They were asking questions about PEI culture, our family and our church. Hyekoo’s mother is an elder in a Presbyterian church in Seoul. She attends a prayer meeting every morning at 5 am.

Today we are going to take the tube (subway) and head to the War Museum. Tomorrow we are planning an all day bus tour. We will stop at all the famous places including Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms.  We’ll also see Buckingham Palace, the National Gallery and lots of other places. I’m taking  pictures. I’m sure there will be many blog entries to share!

Cheerio!

where we are heading tomorrow…

Have you been there? 

We will be attending our son and daughter in law’s wedding blessing in their home church.

And wandering around London hand in hand with my sweet husband. 

I’ve been busy planning walks, libraries, bookstores,

Get the gist?  free to inexpensive

London on the cheap :) 

I’d appreciate any hints - suggestions - tips - your favourite spots!

I’ll have Internet access so see you in the comments!
 

click to enlarge
This commemorative stamp, celebrating 100 years of Anne, will be released by Canada Post on June 20th -  on the same date, Japan will also release an Anne stamp - an historical joint issue between our two nations.

Did you know that Anne of Green Gables is a cultural icon in Japan?

… Anne has been charming Japanese readers for nearly fifty years. And Anne has a place in Japanese as well as Canadian history. The very first Japanese reader to fall in love with Anne is Hanako Muraoka (1893-1968). She was educated at Toyo Eiwa Jyogakuin, a Canadian mission school in Tokyo, and later became a well known radio personality, translator, Children’s writer, and a commentator on issues relating to women and children. In 1939, Muraoka was given a much-loved 1908 copy of Anne of Green Gables by her friend, Canadian missionary Miss Loretta L. Shaw. Muraoka was charmed by Anne, and also she felt a sense of closeness to the story which was full of Canadian cultural atmosphere. She decided to translate the book into Japanese and introduce it to new readers as an oath of friendship to her Canadian friends who were expelled from Japan at the outbreak of World War Il.  more

A life-long dream for many young Japanese women is to get married here on PEI.

A short drive from the Green Gables farm is the Anne of Green Gables Museum, a pleasant house owned by Montgomery’s cousins. Montgomery called it her ”wonder castle,” and liked to write there and paddle a boat on a nearby lake. In 1911, the author was married in the parlor, as are dozens of Japanese couples every year. They stroll down the aisle to the same hymn composed by Henry John Gauntlett, played on the same pump organ used at Montgomery’s wedding. Even the extra rich wedding pound cake is made using the same recipe as the cake for Montgomery’s special day.  more

If you would like to learn more, and see some wonderful scenic footage of the Island, watch this intriguing video, Anne of Japan (22 min), a  documentary on the long-standing Japanese fascination with Anne of Green Gables and all things PEI.

So … if you ever make your Anne pilgrimage, do not be surprised at the number of Japanese tourists taking pictures around our fair isle. In fact, if you’re inclined, you can come here to take  Asian studies and learn Japanese  at our university. We’re both Island people and  L. M. Montgomery devotees - powerful ties.

 We live on Polly Hill. The hill was named after one of the three ships that brought the original Scottish settlers to this community in 1803. There is a monument and small park across the road from our home.

 

The boys wrote a song about growing up here - on Polly Hill. It’s one of my favourites. This is a video of a live performance - recorded by a fan.

You may want to turn it down a bit in the “singalong” section - it gets a trifle out of tune enthusiastic!

but don’t miss the last note sung by the boys - it’s sweet!

 More endless gifts…
7.my children
8.growing up in a small town beneath an eastern rural sky
9.harmony
10.happy childhood memories for my children  

I am joining my good friend Ann V. at Holy Experience

She writes:

I am seeing things I have never seen before, atuned and aware of this constant, endless stream of gifts from His hand. I am one waking from slumber….from the stupor of indifference and ignorance. I have sight, fresh and keen—-the world is new and full of His gifts.

Too often I miss Him, oblivious, blind. I don’t see all the good things that He is giving me, gracing me with, brushing my life with. True, He is everywhere, always. But maybe, before The Gift List, I thought of Him as further off, not so close. When I started to see all the things that I love bestowed upon me, I started to see Him as near, present, everywhere, showering me with good things. Seeing the things I love all around me gives me eyes to see that I am loved, that He loves me…

1. eyes to see

2. mind to be aware

3. heart to be atuned

4. a life to live awake

5. a Father who is near

6. who showers endless gifts

7. who loves

A good beginning …

Consider joining. You will be blessed!

so much for my “finding spring” photo hunt.

Signs of spring are still a little sparse on PEI.

But it still was absolutely perfect for an April evening on PEI. 62 degrees, beautiful blue sky and the birds were singing madly to one another.

I could hear one little red-breasted robin singing his heart out. I’m sure he must have been calling his lady love. I finally located him at the very top of one of our scraggly spruce trees. So I dashed inside to get my camera but when I came out this fellow had taken his place.

I don’t like crows although I’m sure they have their place in the ecosystem. They are such bullies toward the little songbirds.

My tulips are coming along. I find it hard to wait so my sweet husband stopped at our local tulip farm and brought me home a beautiful bouquet. The farm has a warehouse crammed with all  varieties of tulips. I plan to go on a photo expedition when they are blooming in the fields. Unlike Lovella, it will be a few weeks before we can tiptoe through the tulips.

My sister gave me that little blue jug. It’s perfect for bouquets.
 

The evening light was perfect so I took a macro photo outside.I love the light shining through the petals. I’ll have to post it in my sadly neglected Project 366. :)

Sophie and I are enjoying many lovely walks - well I walk - she loves to run. Sarah caught her in action in this photo.

 You can see the grass in this photo of Sarah and Sophie - it’s just beginning to turn green. We have a lot of raking to do this weekend but it’s no chore this time of year. It’s a joy just to be outside.

Have a lovely weekend my friends.

ah… 16 (62 F)

I’m heading out for a drive and taking the camera with me - looking for signs of spring on this bright and sunny day. I am passing by a sheep farm and I hope the little lambs are out. I’ll post some pictures later. Have a wonderful day!