Yes, I'm finally sitting down to contribute my own update on life in Smithers. It's hard to believe tomorrow marks the completion of our first month in this house! Wow!
We have felt warmly welcomed so far here. Within a couple of days of moving in, Curtis was cutting the grass and met one of our neighbours, got talking about what he does, and within minutes heard of a potential client. That client (our neighbour's co-worker) called the next day and set up an appointment to meet Curtis, after which he was hired to photograph her wedding , which will happen next weekend.
Just a few minutes ago, other potential clients just left, after discussing their wedding needs for the end of the month. Curtis has also made contact with several businesses here in town, and is doing a brochure for one, has some of his cards in a couple of others, and also has his business cards in a couple of places for potential wedding clients. I'm glad God has provided these opportunities for him. Thanks for your prayers!
As Curtis has mentioned, I am back in the working world, doing what I did before Isaac came along - taking care of seniors in a facility setting. I toyed with the idea of trying Home Support, but I would need to use our vehicle to get to the different clients' residences, and since we only have one vehicle, I thought it would be best to work at a place I can walk or bike to if Curtis needs the van. (To be honest, so far I've been driving to work, as my bike is out of order, and walking early in the morning or late at night hasn't appealed to either of us. I hope to get my bike fixed soon, though.) I just finished my 3rd week at the Lodge - the first two for orientation, and last week I picked up several short shifts, as well as a full night shift. Curtis has been really good about either going out for the morning or somehow keeping Isaac quiet while I sleep after a night shift. This coming week I have a block of evening shifts, and then my parents and brother are coming up next weekend to help us rebuild/replace the back steps and landing, which we plan to enlarge.
A lot of you are probably wondering how I'm settling in to a small town, having grown up in the Fraser Valley. So far, I think I'm doing quite well. I'm getting more exercise, despite not making it to Curves as often as I did there, and am never without something to keep me busy. Thankfully most of the boxes are unpacked, pictures hung, and, as Curtis mentioned, some improvements have been made to his office space and the adjoining bathroom - with a little help from Isaac. I have been concentrating on the upstairs spaces, while Curtis has concentrated on the downstairs. We've all helped with the yard work- Curtis does the lawns, and I do the gardens, and Isaac contributes his efforts all over. We need to get his sandbox built so that maybe he'll stop digging in my gardens!
We've had a couple of invitations to visit people already, and stopped by unexpectedly at the home of a couple we know in Telkwa yesterday who invited us in for coffee. We had a birthday dinner for Curtis' brother Michael and his friend Randy the week after we moved in, which motivated us to get the house in order, and this last week we had in the couple we bought the house from for dinner. They seemed impressed with how we decorated (I said it helps when your husband is an artist and you can hang his works all over the house!)
Isaac is also settling in much better than I expected, but then he has so much space to play in, inside and out! He absolutely loves following Curtis around when he's cutting the grass, and keeps saying "I think the grass is too long - we need to cut it". Part of the attraction, I think, is that we invested in a brand new red lawnmower from Sears. He will tell anyone who will listen that it "has a pull cord to start the engine". I'm hoping to get him into a preschool program for the fall, but it hasn't been at the top of my priority list yet, so other than being told of a few options, we haven't actively pursued registering him. Isaac was getting to know some of the kids in Curtis' parents neighbourhood when we were staying with them in June, but he hasn't met any neighbourhood kids here in Smithers yet.
We keep being told that this isn't a typical summer - firstly because of the rain (Curtis claims we brought it with us), secondly because of the amount of mosquitoes (due to aforementioned rain and spring flooding), and the cool temperatures. The gardens my mother-in-law planted for me are doing fairly well, though. The potato plants are huge, and we've been enjoying fresh lettuce, spinach and beet greens, tomatoes, and will soon have peas, I think. The carrots are a little slower, as are the cucumbers , beans, and zucchini. The kohlrabi are starting to develop. I don't think I'll get any strawberries. and very few raspberries this year, but the rhubarb is doing okay in the front yard, I think. I made a rhubarb crisp the other night.
I forgot to mention how much Isaac enjoys living close to the train tracks - we're only a street away, and a lane. Hardly a meal goes by when he doesn't stand on his chair and announce "the trains are moving, the trains are moving!" We can see them from our dining room and kitchen windows, between the houses behind us.
Well, that should pretty much catch you up for now. Wishing you God's blessings, and thanks to those who have been keeping in touch!
Tomorrow I am going to be at the Bulkley Valley Farmers' Market here in Smithers from 8 am until noon. We'll have to get up a little bit earlier than normal to get the van packed up, drive over to the site and then set up my display. Here's a couple pictures of most of the stuff I'm bringing with me:
Obviously I want to go and sell some cards, but the more important reason I'm going is to introduce myself and my business to a greater cross-section of the public than I've been able to meet thus far. So if you could pray that I would be satisfied with my display and content with whatever turnout the Lord brings to my booth. In these sorts of situations, I tend to over-think and worry a lot and not be satisfied with the little response that I usually get.
Thanks.
Music I listened to while making this post:
U2: The Joshua Tree
We thought that since we've been here in our new home for a few weeks now, we'd start a new blog where you'll be able to stay updated on our lives and all that we experience here in Smithers. Our goal is for Bonnie and I to each post as often as we can, who knows, maybe even more than once a day. Hopefully we'll remember to sign our respective posts so you'll know who was writing.
Today, Isaac and I spent the morning together out on the town. Bonnie was working a short 5-9 shift last night and got asked to work the night shift as well (10 PM to 6 AM) and so when she got home this morning, Isaac and I left so she could get some sleep. Isaac got in his seat in the van and we were off. We did Tim Horton's for his breakfast, followed by stops at a bike shop downtown, then onto Canadian Tire, the Smithers Lumber Yard, Safeway, an Internet Cafe, a playground, the post office, back to the playground and then home. We were getting hungry and I was running out of energy.
After lunch I worked on some things for my business, and then did some housework while Bonnie and Isaac were at the swimming pool. We had some guests coming for dinner at 5:30 and so had a few things to take care of before they arrived. At church this past Sunday we invited the previous owners of our house over for dinner, and so I was wondering if it would be awkward for them to come into their old home and see all the changes we've made. They're pretty gracious people so I don't think it was too hard, but who knows.
Anyways, Bonnie did a poached salmon for the main course and it was a fun couple of hours together before our respective children got antsy and needed to get to bed.
Tomorrow there's not too much that absolutely needs to get done. I've got to make an appointment with the manager of one of the local hotels to see if I could display some of my prints there (and also possibly sell some photo cards), and I've also got to do some more work on a brochure I'm designing for the local Jewellery store. Other than these things we'll TRY to rest some too.
I'll close with a photograph. Just before dinner tonight, Isaac and I were out on our front lawn playing Bocce. During a lull in the action I grabbed my camera and made the following image:
Peace,
Curtis
