The Sneeky Sun

2007-03-23T22:25:00.000-07:00

fiona and i adore this song... the newsboys version ROCKS. ;-)

In Christ Alone

by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend

IN CHRIST ALONE my hope is found,
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This Cornerstone, this solid Ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My Comforter, my All in All,
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone! - who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied –
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin’s curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine –
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life’s first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I’ll stand!

this goes to show that though i am married i am still a teenager at heart.... X-P

2007-01-06T01:52:00.000-07:00

You Are Sunset

Even though you still may be young, you already feel like you've accomplished a lot in life.
And you feel free to pave your own path now, and you're not even sure where it will take you.
Maybe you'll pursue higher education in a subject you enjoy - or travel the world for a few years.
Either way, you approach life with a relaxed, open attitude. And that will take you far!

What Time Of Day Are You?

2007-01-02T23:35:00.001-07:00

Ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-chaaanges...

Happy New Year! 2006 was a full, eventful year. I only wish I had been a better journalist. *sigh* Many happy events and great memories.... Perhaps my lonely stack of neglected notebooks will fill up one of these days.... At least I can say that my wedding memories are safely recorded in a special book. ;-P *chuckles*
I am too tired to write a proper post at the moment, but thought I'd pass on this tidbit for all those bloggers who have links that will be affected: Steve's blog address has changed slightly this new year. The address is now http://eclecticalstorm.blogspot.com though as of yet it has the same apearence.
As for blogs, ladies, you should check out Proverbs31Woman , a blog where 'Thea is sending out challenges for us to strive to be women as descirbed in Provebs chapter 31. :-)
God bless you in the coming months!
Toodelz!
~(#)

hangin' out on nov 21

2006-11-26T13:26:00.000-07:00

We went to Earl's with Neil, Yvonne and Aaron before going accross the street to the Three Days Grace concert at the Crystal Centre on Nov. 21. Very cold evening, very hot concert.
No cameras allowed at the concert... shucks.

Stole this from Fiona etc... :-P

2006-11-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

Alright, so we decided to post this as a couple as our iTunes has both of our music on it.... Here's what it came up with!

1. Open your music library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend youre cool...

OPENING CREDITS: Rage of the Winter - Rhapsody

WAKING UP: Rain Down on Me - Blue Rodeo

FIRST DAY AT SCHOOL: Noble - Dropkick Murphy's

FALLING IN LOVE: Magic Power - Triumph

FIGHT SONG: Summerland - King'sX

BREAKING UP: Suffocating Sight - Trivium

FORMAL: Twenty-Four - Switchfoot

FINAL BATTLE: Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones

DEATH SCENE: Bangs - They Might Be Giants

FUNERAL: As I'm On My Way To You - Mercy Me

END CREDITS: Love Is Not Enough - Nine Inch Nails

Photos

2006-09-04T08:09:00.000-07:00

More photos from our wedding (May 20) are now up on my pictures blog. Especially for family and friends in far-off places, and those who have not seen any of the photos yet. :-)
They should be a fair quality, perhaps even for printing... ;-D
Enjoy....
I will also be posting some pictures from Laura and Henry's Wedding (Sept. 1) soon! :-D

2006-07-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

wedded bliss

Married and loving it

2006-06-28T06:02:00.000-07:00

Steve and I had a good time at our wedding, and a fantabulously fun honeymoon.
We are now settled in to our condo, just about all painted and set up how we want it. I will post pictures soon. I am kicking my self that we didn't take "before" pictures.... it is amazignly different, now! :-D

Registries... and lack thereof....

2006-03-01T12:06:00.000-07:00

To answer a few questions: we are registered at The Bay and Home Outfitters (which you can access online), and at IKEA (unfortunately they do not have the registries online...yet, i'm sure one day they will...). However, please realize that I (Alison) do not think it nessicary to recieve all gifts from registries. If you can glean some ideas of what Steve and I like, and wish to give us something else, or get it somewhere else, goodie... i love suprises! ;-D *chuckles* I hope this does not come accross looking greedy, but as a helpful tidbit... :-D

Keep Smiling!

:-D

A & S meet story

2005-11-14T14:55:00.000-07:00

The May long weekend of 2003 was cold and the weather forcasters predicting snow. Despite the rather obnoxious weather a URC youth reatreat was still a go. Registrants from across Canada and the Northern States arrived at a staggered rate after 6pm on Friday. Ice breakers and talks began the weekend, then people scattered around the camp to find friends, flashlights and sweaters in preperation for the campfire on the beach as a cool evening dampness seemed to drop and settle in around Lake Nakamun while the sun slowly dropped behind the lakeside trees, casting long, chilly shadows across the lake and camps around it.

The fire pit was located in a cluster of spindly trees just off the beach. Benches akin to risers encircled the pile of wood and paper awaiting flames. A figure slouched on the top bench silently watched a man attempt to start the campfire. Only a few hours earlier had the crowds arrived for the youth retreat, and most were still settling into their cabins before campfire started. The ice-breaker games that had just finished had been profitable for most, yet a chore for some who would have preferred staying home on the Victoria Day long weekend. The figure at the smoldering start of a campfire was one of those whose thoughts were of things he could have been doing if he had not come.

Steven Hofstede would have been happy to be back home in Grande Prairie, finishing up a nice physical day of work, likely then settling into a relaxing time of reading or tinkering around on the computer. A voice at his elbow broke into his bubble of self-pity.
A rather tall girl dressed in blue jeans and a bulky old Nike sweatshirt smiled up at him and glanced around the nearly vacant benches encircling the fire pit and inquired if his friends had abandoned him. When he grunted his reply, she chuckled and said hers had lost her too, or rather, she had lost them. They were obviously not at the fire, but everyone would soon be gathering there for evening devotions and campfire songs, so this was bound to be a good place to catch up with them.

The girl was Alison Doige, who had sauntered down to the campfire early, in hopes of finding her friend Amanda and sister Fiona, both of whom had disapeared from view after the ice-breaker games as they were not in the same cabin. When Alison had seen Steven sitting alone, she felt sorry for him, knowing what is like to be alone when everyone else is having fun. She remembered meeting him in the first ice-breaker game, when the people in charge of the youth retreat randomly created groups by having everyone match up different pieces of paper.
Knowing everyone else in the "chronicles of narnia" group, she had talked to the quiet guy, and found out he was Steven Hofstede from Grande Prairie and he liked Tim Horton's coffee. A nice-looking girl had suantered up to him and hugged him, then sat in the chair next to him, smiling and pulling her feet up to the chair, hugging her knees. Alison assumed it was his girlfriend until his face turned pink and he introduced the girl as his sister, Emily. It was a pleasent but vague meeting before the mixers continued and people dispersed.

A cold gust of wind reminded them of the ominous weather threatening to make the weekend miserable. Shivering, Alison remarked that she hoped the weather would be better for her grad. Steve inquired what school she was graduating from, and Alison chuckled. She told him she was home-schooled, or rather, home-educated.
Steven looked less grumpy and said, "really, me too." Alison was suprised, yet perplexed. This guy certainly didn't look like he was high-school aged. She asked, hesitatingly, if he was in grade 12, too. He looked at her sharply. "No." he said, his voice flat yet emphatic.
"How old are you then?" Alison laughed and told him she was confused because he had said "me too". A look of embarrasment washed his face and he corrected himself, saying he was 22 and he HAD been home-educated previously, before he went to work.

By this time, several others had gathered for campfire, and there was little seating left. Emily came to sit with her brother, and invited Alison to sit with them. Their sister Laura also sauntered over and joined her siblings, thus recieving a brief introduction to Alison. The singing was exuberant, and several of the people sitting with emily and steve knew 4 part harmony, which pleasently rang out across the lake.

The two days that followed were filled with various activities, most of which had to be tailored according to the fickle weather, as rain and bitter winds swept through the camp and the outdoor games became physically painful, thereby deeming the day an indoor one. Swimming, and various indoor games were impromtively arranged, though some people preferred to sit around talking and playing cards games.

Sunday, of course, included a worship service in the gymnasium and many people from the Neerlandia church joined, which made for wonderfuly sized congregation. :-) Coffee following the service provided a much more mature level of mixing and visiting. Emily introduced her mother and younger sisters to Alison and her sister, Fiona. Fiona and Emily had been in the same cabin and team for the weekend, and as a result the girls had spent a fair amount of time together with Alison and hoped to keep in touch post-retreat.

Sunday night saw the permission granted to those who wished to pull an all-nighter and movies such as Veggie Tales, The Emperor's New Groove and Ice Age were projected onto a large screen in the basement of the lodge. Sleep-deprived people have a tendancy to find humourous films all the more hilarious in the wee small hours of the morning, and otherwise sane human beings begin to engage in uproarious laughter as "Silly Songs With Larry" suddenly seems the ideal entertainment for a group of teenagers and young adults! When duct-taping the weaker people, who gave in to their natural desire to sleep, to the floor became the most entertaining pastime of the weekend, and caffine and sugar highs ran rampant, the morning sun was already beginning to creep into the building. For those who remained awake the entire night, it was very amusing to watch others fall asleep only to be abruptly awakened but duct tape ripping noises.

Monday morning was an interesting clash of zombie-like sleepyheads and excited people running about catching people before they all left, exchanging email addresses and phone numbers and taking last minute photos. During the pre-breakfast hubbub, Steve handed a slip of paper (remains on Sunday's bulletin) to Alison with his email address on it. Following common courtesy, she wrote down her family's addy for him, not really expecting anything of it all, but looking forward to the promise of a link to the website Steve's friend Alex was setting up for the youth retreat photos.

Monday night, when the Doige family's email was checked, a message containing a link to the youth retreat's website was sent from one Steven Hofstede for Alison. The thank you she sent in reply was the start of a electronic dialougue that continued on and developed into a great friendship.

Once Upon A Time...

2005-11-04T13:28:00.000-07:00

I was thinking it might be fun to post a story of how Steve and I met....
Perhaps before Christmas, eh? :-D
If you have any suggestions of what I should include (eg: first impressions, other people there, etc....) or any questions, please let me know, then I will see what I can do. :-P

September 11, 2005

2005-09-21T10:07:00.000-07:00

2005-09-20T16:04:00.000-07:00

8 months til Steve and I are married! Wow does time ever fly and drag at the same time.... *sigh*

2005-09-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

I used to think Wedding Registries were stupid and rude begging tools. Let's just say I've changed my tune of more recent moment. :-) A registry can be a helpful resource for both the couple and their guests. Creating a registry causes the couple to think about their future life together, what their style is and how they will decorate their home. For the guests, it takes a lot of the guess work out of gift-buying/making. If not buying from the registry, a guest can at least know what the couple's tastes are, and the registries serve as a guide.
Gift registries set up in good time provide ideas for showers and group gifts as well, which seems like a good idea to me, as couples can often recieve duplicate gifts and/or less-than-desireable items. Again, I am not implying that all gifts must come from a select location, or that suprises are never pleasant; however I am coming to the conclusion that regiteries can be beneficial.
Steve and I have already started registires at the Bay, Home Outfitters and Ikea for variety. :-) It is amazing how much STUFF is out there, but we are pretty unified in what we like, so it is not overly difficult to decide what goes on and what does not. X-D

If anyone has wedding prep / shower ideas they'd like to share, please email or comment. Thank You!

W00T

2005-08-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

This little dancer guy always makes me laugh. Thought I'd share a smile on this rather blustery day... :-D

I've always liked this pic...

2005-07-11T16:10:00.000-07:00

This is a photo that was taken the day of our first outing as a couple. We went with Laura, Fiona, Emily and Julie to Heritage Days in Edmonton. :-D I've always thought this was a nice pic. :-)

Happy Birthday Steve!

2005-07-05T08:18:00.000-07:00

Hugs and smiles for your birthday, Steve!!! :-D I love you!

2005-06-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

2005-06-06T21:27:00.000-07:00

Us this last weekend... Totally casual

2005-06-06T21:17:00.000-07:00

The following was our itinerary this last weekend.
Friday June 3rd
9:30 - Steve arrived in Spruce Grove
Saturday
-Breakfast at Ricky's
-Looking at cars and such
- Lunch with one of Alison's friends
- Off to West Edmonton Mall
-Shopping at the Bay and Jysk
Sunday
-left for Neerlandia at 8:30
-arrive at 10 at the Hofstede's
-coffee and Alison's birthday cake
-church service, Julie's profession of faith
-back to Hofstede's for lunch and dinner
- left at 5:30 for Spruce Grove
-Steve left at 9:00

2005-05-23T15:50:00.000-07:00

Alison and Steven

2005-05-22T17:56:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone.
This blog is where to come if you want to know what is up with the wedding and stuff.
Stories and stuff and pix will be up soon.