Australia Day celebrations, the Flower and Garden Show and Basketball!

On Saturday, the 31st of January, Australia Day in BC Fraser Valley was celebrated with a potluck dinner. Canada was in charge of organizing the event this year and we had it in the Abbotsford church. We had a good turn out of approx 50 people. Dinner was a wonderful selection of sausage rolls, lasagna, meatballs and salads.

The hall was beautifully decorated with bunting, flags, Aussie serviettes etc.

Here's the two little girls ready to go with their Aussie jumpers and tattoos.

After dinner, we sang some good old Aussie songs and of course the National Anthem!

And then we had dessert!

Delicious individual pavlovas - a real hit!

A little mouse stole some key letters - it was meant to read "Happy Australia Day"!

We even had live entertainment! (Henriette and Wendy!)

There were Aussie pic coloring in sheets, Aussie puzzles and the boys played a game or two of cricket on the carpark.

A neat little poem to sum it all up!

We had a really nice evening and it was great to catchup with the other Aussies in the area. 

Next year is Lynden's turn again!

On Friday morning, Stefan along with his basketball team and coach, went to Canada to Sunshine Coast (where ironically it rained the whole time they were there!) to play in the tournament. They first had to get to Vancouver (1 hr) then go on the ferry (45min) then 15 minutes driving to get to the school. They lost the first game and then they bunked in the church next door for the night, and the next morning played another team, but unfortunately lost them too. The team they played against was an A team while Cornerstone Cougars is a B team, but they had fun anyway!

We just enjoyed our mid winter break which meant three days off school. On Thursday I, along with 9 other ladies, headed to Seattle for the Flower and Garden show. We left at 8 in the morning and got there just after 10am. We checked out the various garden displays and stalls and then headed to the Cheesecake Factory for a delicious lunch! After lunch, we headed back to the show for another hour of browsing and then we headed back up to Mt Vernon to Hobby Lobby, where you could spend all day and all your money on beautiful decorative stuff for the house. We curbed our time there to just under an hour and headed to Applebees for dinner. Another great meal! We then drove back to Lynden and got back around 8:30pm. We had a great day, great company and great food. What more do you need?

Below are some of the displays. Some inspiring ideas!

And I discovered another word which we use in Australia but is not known here. And that word is:

Secateurs = clippers or pruning shears

On Monday of our winter break, we went to Vancouver and spent the day there. We went to the Salmon hatchery which would be really neat the see when the fish are running as you could see the fish ladder behind glass.

We then went to Lynn Canyon which is free and also smaller and not so extravagant as Capilano. It also has a suspension bridge over the canyon and then we went for a hike in the forest.

From there we headed to Stanley park and enjoyed the park and the water views.

It was a nice day out and a nice way to end the break!

Basketball has come to an end with the finals played last  Tueday and Thursday. Stefan's team just didn't make it but Jaclyn's team won!

Here's a quick video of Jaclyn scoring a basket!

Here's the winning team with their trophies!

And Stefan the mascot!

And that ends another post! We have been enjoying lovely warm sunny weather. Spring come early! We won't complain.

We pray this finds you in good health in your corner of the earth.

We thank God for His continued love and care.

Thanks for looking!

In Memory of Dad Houweling

On Thurday, the 15th of January, 2015, the Lord took home one of His children, and our father and grandfather, Teunis Houweling. His task here on this earth was complete and with minimal suffering, he entered into eternal glory at the age of 86.

We continue to stand amazed at the providential timing of Steve's trip to Australia where he could spend quality time with his dad and mum. During this time, he could take them on a number of outings, spend one to one time with his Dad and so commit these precious times to memory. God is good.

We pray to for Mum too now that she is on her own without having Dad by her side.

Wedding Day

50th Wedding Anniversary

Father and son (Stephen!)

The many faces of Dad!

The funeral was held on Wednesday, 28th of January, 2015. Some family members face timed the event which allowed us to be 'part' of the funeral which helped bridge the distance. Very thankful for technology! Dad's sister Tante Fien and John and Veronica came and together we watched the funeral.

The following was included in the booklet.

Teunis Houweling

October 27, 1928  - January 15, 2015

Teunis Houweling was born to Cornelius and Hester Houweling on October 27, 1928 in Capelle a/d Ijssel, The Netherlands. He was the sixth of ten children: Cornelius, Leny, Jan, Steef, Hester, Hans, Netty, Fien and Herman.

During the war and the occupation of Holland by the Germans, times became increasingly difficult for him and the last months of the war, due to severe food shortages, he was sent to the North of Holland to stay and work on a farm. 

Following the war he worked in his father’s drogist (drug shop) where he developed an interest in pharmaceuticals which would later earn him a position at the Swanborne Graylands hospital pharmacy as a pharmaceutical dispenser.  After World War II, at the age of 22, he decided to migrate to Australia after viewing a film of the Great South Land.  He left Holland by himself and migrated to Australia on-board “De Groote Beer” arriving in Fremantle in June 1951.  The early years after arriving in Australia were difficult for Dad as he needed to adjust to a new country’s language and culture.   Work also wasn’t easy to get and he spent time working in carpentry and also six months in Westfarmers in Carnarvon.

Shortly after arrival in Australia, dad joined the Presbyterian Church of Perth and on one of the first Sundays was invited by John Vandenberg to the Vandenberg house for coffee.  There he met Johanna Vandenberg and they were married on April 30^th 1955.

After nine years of marriage, the Lord blessed Dad and Mum with a son John.   The Lord continued to bless Dad and Mum with 5 more children; Henry, Agatha, Timothy, Stephen and Philip.   Over the years of the Lord blessed Dad (and Mum) with 36 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.  

Dad was hard-working and loyal in his work as a pharmaceutical assistant at the Graylands Hospital, where he worked for over 38 years.   He enjoyed taking the family on summer holidays to different places such as Albany, Margaret River, Busselton, Coogee (with the Coogee gang), and Kalbarri (with the Strating family).  On many of the Public Holidays Dad loved to take the family out for a daytrip and picnic lunch or BBQ. 

Dad was a loving and dedicated, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and friend. He will be greatly missed and lovingly remembered by all who had the privilege of knowing him.  Dad was faithful to the vows that he made in Church before many witnesses.   The Lord worked through him in the office of elder in which he served a number of times.  He placed his trust in the Lord and confessed that Jesus Christ is his Saviour. After spending eleven days in hospital, the Lord, in His time on 15^th January 2015, called His servant Teunis Houweling home to himself into eternal glory.  And so together with Paul, Dad can now say….I’ve fought the good fight, I’ve finished the race, I’ve kept the faith.  Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, has awarded to me (2 Timothy 4:7)

We here in Lynden were amazed and very thankful at the overwhelming communion of saints we received by way of cards, emails, messages and in person. 

"The Lord gives, the Lord takes away; blessed be the Name of the Lord".
 Job 1:21

Steve's return and Nat's medical emergency!

After a long flight with numerous long lay-overs, Steve arrived safe and sound! It was wonderful to have him back home again. Unlike traveling to Australia, jet-lag did hang around. He seemed to be floating in space for a few days, particularly since he started at school the very next day! It took a good week for get back into the normal day and night pattern!

Meanwhile the three girls: Marlies, Natalie and Anthea were up in Vernon enjoying time in the snow and visiting with Nat's sister. They did snowboarding, tubing, skating, sledding and making a huge snowman!

On Tuesday, on the bus ride home, Natalie was not feeling well and by the time they got to Chilliwack, she was not doing very well at all. We got her home across the border and she then collapsed again. 911 was immediately called and within 2 minutes they were at our house. They took one look at her and whisked her straight off to St Joes hospital in Bellingham. She was admitted to ICU where they discovered a stomach ulcer which had burst and was causing all the problems. She stayed in ICU till Saturday before being released. Recovery was slow and each day she had a little more energy. Her sister and brother in law came down from Vernon the next day and stayed to give Nat support. She also got lots of visitors from the American Reformed church! On Monday, she finally came 'home'. 

As a result, the original departure date was postponed for another week. Marlies was instrumental in arranging this 'major' detail. And now all three girls get to travel together from LA to Perth!

Marlies and Aliesha arranging flights!

After we picked Nat up, we stopped in Edaleens for an ice-cream (normal sized!).

On Monday, Steve went to Mt Baker with a bunch of young people for snowboarding and skiing. Marlies and Aliesha made the most of it. On Tuesday night, they also got to see a calf being born. They have all seen and done so much!

With a farewell dinner and party on Wednesday night, it will be time for the girls to head back to Aus. They had a wonderful time here and we thoroughly enjoyed having them! We hope they have a good flight back and a wonderful reunion with family and friends! No doubt, some ties here will be difficult to leave, but that may result in seeing one young lady back here more often?

Farewell, ladies! We would love to see you all again soon!

Thursday day was Wacky Hair do, so how did Shantel do?

Even though Taleesha doesn't go to school, she wanted a wacky hair do too! Just as well we stayed home for the day!

On Saturday we plan to have our Australia Day celebrations in Abbotsford with the Aussies in the valley. Always great to catchup with an Aussie!

That's it for now. Thanks for looking!

Snow and Steve in Australia

Last Sunday, we eagerly woke up anticipating the ground to be covered in snow, after all, the forecast did predict it. Bit of a disappointment when we looked outside and there was nothing there! However, while we were eating breakfast, we were very surprised when snow flakes started falling from the sky. It snowed quite heavily because we were wondering whether church would be on or not. Once you're on the main roads, providing a plow has been through, it fairly okay to drive, but it's the not-so-main roads that are dangerous. We did go, allowing enough time to drive at slower speeds, and arrived safely. It snowed during the whole church service, so driving back home was also taken with caution. It continued to snow till about noonish, when it then changed to rain.

On Sunday night, these three girls made dinner!

On Monday, school started up again. As did the basketball games, bible study and the regular routine.

In the meantime, things were happening in Australia with Steve too. He got taken out to watch the tennis at the Perth Arena with John and Caren (and Laurissa!).

He went boating with Ken and Estelle and their boys! 

What a life!

Mason, with Bailey on the tube!

The twins, Cody and Jake!

He also got to visit with a very special friend, Mrs Gregory! We've known Mrs Gregory before Anthea was even 1 years old! She lived on the same road and every day she would walk past our place with her dog. Occasionally we happen to be on the driveway at the same time, and our friendship has lasted since then. During that time, her husband passed away, she moved to several places and currently is in nursing home. She is an avid Bridge player and claims she'd have to be half dead to miss that! We are her adopted family and she proudly shows our family photos to anyone who might come in her room. 

He also spent time with J & C and even got to play Acquire! Who's winning boys?

Dad Houweling

On Monday afternoon, Steve's dad had a fall and hit his head. He received a gash near his eye and consequently some bruising and swelling. He was taken to hospital and a scan revealed bleeding on the brain. Due to his age, operating was out of the question. He was made comfortable and kept in overnight for observation.

Since then, he has been sleeping a lot. He seems to be able to hear conversations and will give one word answers. However, his time on this earth seems to be drawing to a close. What a comfort we have to know he has a glorious future awaiting him. For Steve, this obviously is very difficult. He is very thankful for the wonderful time he could spend with his parents. 'Treasured memories' are his words! Particularly knowing he most likely won't see his Dad alive again on this earth. 

Saturday morning was departure date. The evening before that he went out for dinner with his Mum and nephew Eric.

And then it was time to say goodbye. His Mum, and Dad and Mum Byl were at the airport to say goodbye.

And homeward bound!

We have some excited (little) girls awaiting their Daddy's return, and of course, his wife, and son!

Please pray for Steve's safe arrival back here in the States. Also for his dad and his mum and the family back in Perth. What a comfort to know that we are all in God's hands and that He numbers our every breath, and has our whole life in His control. 

Many thanks too for all those who took 'care' of Steve during his time down under. Much appreciated.

"Come Lord Jesus, Marantha"!

Thankyou for stopping past.