One of Life's Great Blessings . . .

 

My middle son's midde son, Jake, is having a Birthday today!  Happy Birthday Jake!  I hope you have a lovely day filled with all of the things and the people that you love most of all!  

Jake is such a wonderful boy.  He has personality plus!  Filled with enthusiasm and a joy for life, he always  talks to me when his dad facetimes me.  He loves to show me what he is getting up to and I have some really fab art of his hanging on my refrigerator.  Its been there for a while and will stay there forever. Its the only artwork I've ever gotten from a grandchild, so it is very precious indeed!!

I really love all of my Grandchildren.  I have seven of them. Six grandsons and one granddaughter.  I pray for each of them every day.  I think of them (and their parents) always. 

I only ever really wanted to be a mom in life and now a grandmother.  I never envisioned, even in my wildest dreams, that I would end up having to live so far away from them.  Life has a funny way of turning upside down and taking twists we never thought it would take, but here I am, thousands of miles away from all of my loved ones. I really miss my family. I am so very grateful for two sons who make an effort to make sure I am a part of my grandson's lives and for a daughter who speaks to me each and every day possible.  I am also very grateful for the modern technology that m akes it possible for them to do so!

 

My Canadian ancestors that travelled to the New World from England, Scotland, Ireland and France didn't have that blessing. They left home and family behind, never to see it or their loved ones again.  They had to wait years and months for word via letters that either arrived or didn't. What a brave people they were.  My ancestors made up the backbone of what would become Canada.

  

Some of my ancestors were the Filles Du Roi.  Daughters of the King. In 1660, New France had six male settlers for every female settler. The Filles du Roi were poor women who were brought to North America to fix this imbalance and to populate the colony.  They say most French Canadians, can count at least one of these women as one of their ancestors.  I have been able to find a few.  

One was named Catherine Topsan, born in Dieppe, Normandy, France.  She married a French settler named Julian Dumont di LaFleur in 1667 in Notre-Dame-de-Quebec. They had seven children together. 

Another was Marguerite Lamirault who was born in Paris, Il-de-France. She married Honore Martel-dit-Lamontagne in Notre-Dame-de-Quebec and they went on to have 14 children together. 

And that is just two.  There are more.

I have Pilgrim ancestors that came on the Mayflower.  I have ancestors that landed on Nova Scotia shores and I have ancestors that were here before any of the pioneers, or settlers arrived. 

None of them saw their homelands again (except the ones who were already here).  I am so blessed that not only have I been able to go back to my homeland since I moved over here to the UK, but I am also in regular and frequent contact with most of my family back home. All thanks to the miracles of modern technology.  What a blessing it has been in my life!

And with that I best leave you with a thought for the day!  I never have much time on Sunday mornings! 

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
 *The secret of change is to

focus all of your energy not

on fighting the old, but on

building the new.

~Socrates  •。★★ 。* 。  

No new news on Tina this morning.  I will find out the latest at church. Keep those prayers coming!

 

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Caramel Apple Self-Saucing Pudding.  Delicious! 

Have a wonderful and blessed Sunday!  Don't forget! 

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And I do too!