Chesley Orchestra

My sister-in-law Sue is an extraordinary musician/violinist gifted with a passion for teaching others the craft. She has single-handedly started off every string player in the extended family and managed to bring out the best in each one of them as well.

Consequently - our family gatherings and celebrations are often tended with an in-house full scale orchestra. Some sing, play the flute or clarinet, violin, cello, viola, piano or CD player.

We actually have quite a few Ipod players as well :)

I think if we'd been born a couple millennium ago we may have found ourselves in the tribe of the Levites.

We've been going to the same vacation spot en masse for the past 30 years or more and this year, Susie negotiated a plan to accompany both morning worship services ... all the pre, post and during service music. What a blast!

I asked my son to get some video coverage which regrettably, he took from the furthest back corner of the sanctuary. *sigh* Boys are so yucky.

So here's a snippet of what happens when Susie orders up a last minute rehearsal and tells you to pack your instrument for a gig at Chesley!

I love that girl.

For your benefit Nicole, I will identify the members of your family orchestra:

From L to R: Cousin Kelsey (violin) Aunt Jo (piano)

Aunt Sue (violin/concert mistress)

Cousin Megan (cello) Cousin Brittany (flute)

Cousin Kayla & Jamie (violins)

Cousin Julia and Emily (violins) on the far right of the stage with

Cousin Amy (violin) in the foreground

Not shown in this particular set:

Cousin Heather (clarinet)

Cousin Brian (piano and solo voice)

Procrastinator Redeemed

I finally kept an ancient promise to myself to submit a box full of video coverage (no less than 35 tapes - 120's and mini's) that hold various vignettes of our life over the past 20 years. They are in the laborious process of being transferred to DVD - and perhaps in a months time, if all goes well, my family and I can enjoy looking at the 'Way We Were'.

One item of major interest is the inaugural tape of our daughter and sister Yvonne with her daughter Nicole, filmed in the three weeks before her death. It was December 1988 that we treated ourselves to the purchase of our first ever video machine with the express intention of helping my dying sister record her thoughts, wishes and final farewells to her little girl.

I remember distinctly what a nuisance my hubby made of himself, (enamoured as he was with this new toy) sneaking up on us at the most inopportune times to capture moments of life significant or otherwise.

But I must say, I am forever grateful for his wise forethought and generosity of heart that made the making of this memory possible.

The anticipation of seeing it again is both sweet and painful. Bittersweet is the word I suppose.

....not to be confused with 'bitter' in any shape or form.

God has graciously spared us from the ill of THAT cancerous response to difficulty. He is Capital G Good!

Awww....

I follow in my mom's footsteps with a love for being in my kitchen, cooking up a storm and feeding the masses. I've also learned her peculiar renegade style of doing my own thing and ditching the recipe book.

Yes I love food, but what truly appeals to me, is the anticipation of fellowship that a big 'sit down dinner' often delivers.

A few years ago during our big kitchen reno, it was determined that the new family table would have to be round to accommodate exactly that kind of objective. Enough of this hollering down the left to the person outside periphery to pass this or that!

My baby sister brought me a beautiful gift yesterday that might just propel me to make a few changes in my 'style' - probably long over-due anyway...

I recently confessed to being smitten with the new Meryll Streep movie Julie & Julia right?

I admitted that I might even go and see it a third time?

Well I did.

This time accompanied by my sister Catherine, who in turn went straight off to Indigo to find the cookbook which she delivered to me as a gift of familial love and understanding.

If you've seen the movie you'll get the bit about the pearls but my portraiture also conveys my impression of this 'jewel of a gift' from my sis.

Thanks from my heart Cath!

If I ever find the courage to steam a live lobster to death or debone a dead duck - you will be personally escorted to the front row seat. I will even let you video tape it for posterity :)

Love you.

.... I'm sorry. I just can't help myself....

Three awesome things...

Number One:

I recently went to see Julie & Julia with a good friend and LOVED it for several reasons....

Meryl Streep is an incredible actress and she played Julia Childs to a perfect tee.

Julia Childs is the household name for great cooking and left us (she just died in 2005?) with the winsome cookbook: Mastering the Art of French Cooking - for servantless Americans.

I adored this movie so much I went to see it AGAIN with my sister and am toying with the idea of watching it a third time, this time with my hubby? LOL.

It was about the love of cooking and fellowshipping over a meal but it also ended up being a tender, inspiring look at great marriages and beautiful relationships.

Here's a brief synopsis: Based on two true stories, Julie & Julia intertwines the lives of two women who, though separated by time and space, are both at loose ends...until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible

*sigh* I'd recommend it.

A few nights ago, feeling recklessly inspired, I donned my pearls, (a fundamental detail to be sure!) wrapped an apron around me and searched out her famous recipe for Beef Bourguignon - I know I shouldn't be the one to say it but, YUM!! the leftovers are still being drooled over.

I think I could get into this in a serious, addictive way.

Number Two: Our two first born grand-daughters came over for a two-night sleepover including a Sunday morning worship service. We unveiled the Playmobil Mansion which has been collecting dust in Grandpa's closet for ten years waiting for such a moment as this....

It was a big hit with my girlie girls. Shucks, who's highlight was this anyway??

Little coin purses I found that doubled nicely as Sunday condiment (i.e. filled with YoGo bites) for the worship service on Sunday morning.

Quiet Time on Aunt Catherine's bed.

Trying to identify their own baby portraits. LOL.

Number Three: Spending the weekend with my JuneBug and the Rachinator. We love you guys SO much it almost hurts!

Reading Thinking and Resolutions

What a dynamite combination that is! Reading and thinking.

Too bad so many of us have put it aside for the incessant, increasing hubbub of life in general.

Me? I'm tired of making excuses for myself.

I want to grow up and activate that ancient vow of mine to arise every morning at 5am for the express purpose of reading and meditating for the first hour of each day * yawn/gasp! *

I want to be able to walk into my personal library unashamed for a change - hands on the hips - eyes surveying shelf after shelf of books all doggy-eared and dustfree!

I'd love for that Queen Anne's chair in the corner to lose its' pristine appearance.

I should

I would

I could

*sigh*

And now, for those smart people that DO make time for good reading - here's a blog post my daughter just sent me - wisely noting its appeal and kindly sharing it: Sister...show mercy!

... just one of the topics that never fail to stimulate vigorous discussion in our family circle.

And how I adore vigorous discussion.

She reads. Her husband reads. Her three toddlers read! A ton. Luv you kids. Tons more.

I think I'll be a more regular follower of this blog; it features a smorgasbord of thought provoking articles layed out in a highly polished format.

Fascinating.

So it's not a book! My laptop will superimpose nicely with it's metal spine and positioning as I lounge in that Queen Anne's chair creating a sinkhole like never before.

Should this confessional pledge of mine ever morph into a fast and furious habit, you'll be in the know, probably without even saying so.

Little packages are the BEST

Another summer sleepover to hang out with gramma. This time we had some special surprise visitors...

The first order of the day is the now standard breakfast from McDonalds on the back porch.

It's a tad surreal to walk into that local breakfast joint and see who's gracing the tables - all bespectacled retired folk in crowns of gray!

...I take mine to go.

This is Norman. Brother to black Benji. They dropped by with their owner, Auntie Pauline for a rousing session of socialization. Aunt Pauline is a highly favoured family relation whose popularity only pales slightly when accompanied by Uncle GERRY! Can you hear them squealing out his name?

A nippy morning dictates a pass through the cupboards to find some makeshift sweaters.

Barbie sports the same wild tousled hairdo and shades of her playmate for the day...

It took less than a minute to forge a bond with these two sets of siblings.

Somehow, I knew it wouldn't be long before their passive nature was exploited. This almost trumps Thomas the Train!

Norman's look of resignation is even funnier with Micah's mischievous countenance behind it.

Look gramma, he loves me.

Best friends - for the moment

Rachel cracks me up but...

...this kid just makes me howl. She insists on doing EVERYTHING her older siblings do and then some more. Her zest for life is infectious.

I coaxed him down, training the camera lens on his expression. He wisely predicted I wouldn't be able to catch him at the bottom and gave me the most hilarious look of betrayal when he landed in a heap on the grass.

Rays of sunshine bounce off the slide and light up a beautiful expression of my little elfin grand-daughter.

These three revel in the outdoors and teach me much about savouring the simple pleasures in this life.