Our new Home ( not so sweet yet ) Home !!!

It's official everyone - our new home :)

                                               LET THE CONVERSATIONS BEGIN

This is going to be more fun than -
I'm not quite sure
To see what I'm about to step into ( if you haven't already - or if you need a reminder of just how insane I am )
you can visit HERE
To see what I'm stepping away from you can visit HERE
To see where I may end up in the near future you can visit HERE

The only thing I'm going to say in my defence is this
The last home we bought - was on the market for over a year - no one and I mean no one wanted it -
even though it was on one of the nicest streets in a prestigious neighborhood - everyone thought I was crazy
BUT when we listed it - it was sold in 8 hours
The one we're leaving now was also on the market for 14 months - it didn't show well - even though this one is in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Montreal - BUT we sold it in 5 days ( even breaking a record for this area )
So you all need to have a little faith in me - BEFORE you have me committed ( although this time I may very well just have myself committed to be quite honest with you )

Blogging may become a little sporadic around these here parts

Suzan says - John you're going to have to help with the packing - I'm killing myself here - especially trying to lift them and put them on top of each other
John says - What are you talking about?  I started last week

AND HE'S DEAD SERIOUS EVERYONE - 100% DEAD SERIOUS

At this rate I'm pretty confident he'll have 4 complete boxes done by the 22nd of November - but you never know.....................you just never know -

Suzan says - I'm underwhelmed John - completely underwhelmed
Suzan says - I've packed over a hundred boxes - you can't even finish the one you started.
John says - Oh excuse me - I didn't know it was a competition
John says - Oh excuse me - I didn't know it was a competition
John says - Oh excuse me - I didn't know it was a competition

I typed that 3 times so you could get the full impact of those 10 words....................

Tonight 

John says - what's for supper
Suzan says - you've got to be kidding me
John says - well we have to eat
Suzan says - so...............what are you making?
John says - I made supper 3 nights last week
Suzan says - Oh excuse me - I didn't know it was a competition......................

24 more days to get my hands on paint again
( it's much easier on the eyes in sketch form than reality right now lol )

Have a wonderful Tuesday everyone
Much love,

Montreal Churches / Stations of the Cross

It's Sunday morning - everyone

Get up - it's time to go to Church ( es ) 

Montreal is renowned for its churches. Indeed, as Mark Twain once noted, "This is the first time I was ever in a city where you couldn't throw a brick without breaking a church window."^[3] 

The key word here is CITY - these are all in the City ( or the island )  of Montreal 

 

Notre Dame Basilica - Montreal
Interior below

source

St George's Anglican Church
( Where John sang for many many years )

St. Patrick's

                                                   

St James

The Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew

Mary Queen of the World Cathedral

Interior Below

                                                                   Mountainside United

source

NOTRE DAME DE BON SECOURS
( our Lady of good help )
Built in 1771 over the ruins of a destroyed previous Church

source

AND the last one is the largest in Canada - and it's quite magnificent - with more than 2 million visitors annually.

A major site of Roman Catholic pilgrimage and worship, St. Joseph's began with the devotional impulse of a humble monk called Frère André who worked across the street at the Collège Notre-Dame. His original tiny chapel, begun in 1904, is still extant on the southwest side of the church shown here, which was begun in 1924 and substantially completed in 1956. It's the biggest church in Canada, and the dome is the world's third largest, after Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro in Côte d'Ivoire and St. Peter's in Rome.

Devout visitors sometimes climb the steps in the middle, kneeling to pray at every step; most walk up normally or take one of the free shuttle buses from the base.

My Grandmother ( on my Mother's side - Irish/Canadian - actually knelt and prayed at every single step during World War 2 - all 280 of them - I've walked up them many many times in my life - and every single time I do - I imagine her and the grief that made her do it..............

There's a Sculpture garden - " The Way of the Cross " ( although I was always taught it to be the Stations of the Cross....................)  Care to stroll through the garden with me?

STATION 1
JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH

STATION 2
JESUS IS LADEN WITH THE CROSS

STATION 3
UNDER THE WEIGHT OF THE BURDEN JESUS FALLS FOR THE FIRST TIME

STATION 4
JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER

STATION 5
SIMON OF CYRENE HELPS JESUS BEAR HIS SUFFERING

STATION 6
VERONICA WIPES THE FACE OF JESUS

STATION 7
JESUS FALLS FOR A SECOND TIME

STATION 8
JESUS COMFORTS THE WOMEN OF JERUSALEM

STATION 9
JESUS FALLS FOR A THIRD TIME

STATION 10
JESUS IS STRIPPED OF HIS CLOTHES

STATION 11
JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS

STATION 12
JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS

STATION 13
JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS

STATION 14
JESUS IS PLACED IN THE TOMB

THE RESURECTION
                                                          

POOL AND FOUNTAIN OF REDEMPTION

It's truly a magnificent garden - people of every faith and denomination visit this garden yearly - and no matter what your belief system is ( even if you don't have one ) - you can only feel a wave of peace and love upon leaving it.

Hope you feel a bit of both today
Much love,

images were sourced through DC MEMORIALS.COM  - click to see other images.
( unless the source is hyperlinked beneath an image )

THE GARDENS OF THE WAY OF THE CROSS

The outdoor Gardens of the Way of the Cross is one of Saint Joseph’s Oratory’s best kept secrets. The 16 stations unfold amidst an artfully landscaped terrain. Located to the east of the basilica, the gardens are a good place to meditate.

Origin

From the early days of the shrine, a Way of the Cross was marked out on the mountain to allow the faithful to come and meditate upon the Passion of Christ. This devotion was very close to the heart of the Oratory’s founder, Saint Brother André. The project of creating a Way of the Cross out of stone, to replace the rustic wooden crosses, emerged in 1935. 

A Garden

Work on the 200,000 square-foot area to the east of the basilica did not begin until the fall of 1942. Famous landscape architect Frederick Todd designed a pathway meandering around the flank of the mountain transforming the site into a magnificent garden with many varieties of trees, shrubs and flowers. This lovely green space showcases one of the most beautiful treasures of Canada’s religious heritage.

The Art of Louis Parent

Montreal artist Louis Parent conceived this major artwork. His Way of the Cross has 14 of the traditional stations to which he added a marble monument depicting the Resurrected Christ and a reflecting pool with the Fountain of Redemption. In toto, the grouping comprises 42 characters, each approximately 9 feet high, which the sculptor modeled in his workshop at the Oratory, between 1943 and 1953. The statues were carved out of Indiana limestone by Ercolo Barbieri, between 1952 and 1958. Louis Parent designed the pieces to blend harmoniously into the natural environment. Art critics have had nothing but praise for this work that has stood the test of time. 

Schedule

The Gardens are open from May 1 to October 14 (Thanksgiving).

SHARING WITH!!!
I Should be Mopping the Floor                        No Minimalist Here                          Savvy Southern Style
Common Ground                                           My Romantic Home                        Coastal Charm
Adorned from Above                                         Uncommon Design

Bedroom nooks!!!

Good morning everyone !!!

I wonder what it is about nooks ( and crannies ) that make most of us that don't have one, wish we did?
Is it something left over from our childhood's I wonder - when we would create little spaces for ourselves using blankets and clothes pins?
I love them - I love them so much that when I joined pinterest it was one of the first boards I created   - never thinking I actually may soon be living in a house that's full of them!  I say soon everyone - because we should know by Tuesday ( it's close now - oh so close ) just some final details to sort out )

This is what some people have done with nooks - I don't think mine will be anywhere near as elaborate - but still, I'M GOING TO HAVE NOOKS AND CRANNIES GUYS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Oh yeah -
I could curl in a nook with a favorite book
( while John's in the kitchen learning to cook )

Have a wonderful day everybody - and a relaxing weekend - and be very grateful that you don't live near me or I'd expect you here, beside me, helping me pack :)

Much love,

SHARING WITH !!!
I Should be Mopping the Floor                      Savvy Southern Style                        Common Ground
My Romantic Home                                      French Country Cottage

The Elephant in the room

ERMA BOMBECK

If I had my life to live over

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren’t there for the day.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the “good” living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television, and more while watching life.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn’t show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I’d have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, “Later. Now go get washed up for dinner.”

There would have been more “I love you’s.” More “I’m sorry’s.”

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute… look at it and really see it… live it… and never give it back.

Stop sweating the small stuff. Don’t worry about who doesn’t like you, who has more, or who’s doing what.

Instead, let’s cherish the relationships we have with those who DO love us.

Let’s think about what God HAS blessed us with.

And what we are doing each day to promote ourselves mentally, physically, emotionally, as well as spiritually.

Life is too short to let it pass you by.

We only have one shot at this and then it’s gone.

I hope you all have a blessed day.

Written when she knew she was dying.....................
________________________________________________________________________________

I can remember the first book I read of hers " If life is a bowl of Cherries ".  It was my Mother's and because I was the type of kid that would read anything - I couldn't wait to get my hands on it - and I fell in love with her. I was probably too young to get most of it - it was way before I was a Mother myself most definitely but her style of writing was such that anyone could enjoy her.  She made me laugh, she made me cry, she made me think.

Every now and then I take out an old folded up piece of paper from my wallet and I read her words..............the words I've typed above.

Such wise words spoken from the heart of a lady that knew her time here on earth was almost over.

.

AND I realized I have not heeded one word...............

Not one word.

When the kids were little they bought me a candle.  An elephant candle because I used to collect elephants.

" Used " to being the operative word here.  I know longer collect them and yet that candle sits in my home as pristine as the day they bought it for me.  Much like Erma's sculpted rose candle I suppose.

I have no idea why - but I suppose it has something to do with the fact that they bought it for me and once it's burned down, it's gone.

Many years ago we had a flood - and I lost all their childhood mementos - ALL of them - their little outfits - their handprints - christmas decorations they made for me - home made Mother's day gifts - and I still get a pang in my heart when I think of it - it's actually palpable - it's a quick jolt that I can feel - so this elephant candle sort of took on some kind of mystical power - it represents their childhood.

BUT  I don't want my kids going through my things one day - and finding this precious gift - still intact - it was meant to be lit.

Thanks Erma.........................I've packed the candle - but it'll be lit the first time I have the kids over for supper in the new house, in their honor.  The perfect decor for my first dinner.
I do not want to be an old lady with an elephant in the room.

You'll have to excuse the odd sentimental posts for a little while - with this move all kinds of emotions are running rampant in my heart.

Sharing with!!!
I Should be Mopping the Floor                          Common Ground                        Adorned from Above
French Country Cottage                                    My Turn for Us                           My Romantic HOme