Walden

For book club this month we read Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. This book is a classic, first published in 1854. Thoreau was born in 1817 and lived in the Boston, Massachusetts area. He attended Harvard and rubbed noses with some of the great minds of his time. In 1845 he moved to Walden Pond and began writing Walden. He lived a life of bare minimum for two years before returning to civilization. He did not wish to live the life of a hermiy. He hoped to isolate himself from society in order to gain a more objective understanding of it. Simple living and self-sufficiency were Thoreau's other goals. He was truely ahead of his times, though I'm not sure what he would think of our times, as he saw his own times as fast paced and materialistic!
I did not read the entire book, as it is quite deep and requires focus (a difficult task with busy children and little sleep). The parts I did read, I quite enjoyed. It made me consider what I can live without, how can I simplify my life. In discussing the book, we talked about finding our own Walden's Pond...a place that we can go to/a moment we can take to leave the world behind and enjoy the simple things in life.
When I got home that day I was sitting on the front step watching Ryker play, feeding Blakelee, listening to Kayla sleep, I enjoyed one of those "walden" moments...
My goal is to have more of those moments in my life. Summer should be a great opportunity for this, as we are taking a break from tv and turning our sattelite off for a few months. More time to get out and enjoy the sunshine!

Henry David Thoreau is quoted a whole lot more than you would think...do you recognize any of the following quotes?

Aim above morality. Be not simply good, be good for something.

All this worldly wisdom was once the unamiable heresy of some wise man.

Be true to your work, your word, and your friend.

Beware of all enterprises that require a new set of clothes.

Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new.

The birds in my front yard...

Many years ago, in elementary school, I did a report on "the birds in my backyard". It was all about birds that live in Southern Alberta. All I really remember is visiting a couple in Welling that raised peacocks. I had a big display with pictures and descriptions of all the birds...Today, I will tell you all about the birds in my front yard. We've got a tree in our front yard that was full of berries this winter. When the birds arrived this spring, they were in heaven! I could identify the robins, but there was another kind of bird (a waxwing) that I'd never really noticed until now. They came in large numbers enjoying the berries... One day we were playing in the living room (which has a big window to the front and our berry tree) when there was a big bang on the window. It sounded like when Chris would throw a snowball at the kids while they stood in the window watching him, but there was no snow, and no one even close to the house... I was confused, but went on with life, not thinking about it. Until it happened again...and again...finally, I figured out what it was. The birds, while feasting on the berries, were startled by a car or something from the direction of the road, and flew off in the direction of the house. Some of the birds didn't make it over or around the house and flew straight into the window!! We wondered if maybe the berries had fermented and the birds were getting drunk on them. Many of the birds were simply stunned, then managed to fly away. Some, however, were not so lucky. Those birds, I am pretty sure, became a midnight snack for the neighborhood cats.
Here's some pictures...

Blake and her siblings...

Ryker and Kayla love Blake! Ryker always wants to hold her and help take care of her. Kayla comes up and gives her hugs and kisses (and pokes her) all the time. They both love to watch her sleep, if only they could just let her sleep...

Welcome to the world...

This week we welcomed the newest addition to our family, Blakelee Jean Zuidhof. She arrived at 10:17am on May 5th, weighing 7lbs 11oz, and 20 1/2 inches long. I thought I'd post a few pictures for those that have waited so patiently...


She is an angel and a special part of our family. We're happy to have her with us. I'll try to get more pictures and posts up soon, but right now I am enjoying time with family and trying to recover from this physically and emotionally draining week...