Chuckle for the day!(thanks Georgette)

A husband  in his back yard is trying to fly a kite. He throws the kite up in the  air, the wind catches it for a few seconds, then it comes crashing back  down to earth. He tries this a few more times with no  success. All the while, his wife is watching  from the kitchen window, Muttering to herself how men need to  be told how to do everything. She opens the window and yells to  her husband, "You need a piece of tail." The man turns with a confused look  on his face and says, "Make up your mind. Last night, you told me to go  fly a kite.

 

 

Thanks Lori(click on image to enlarge)

Winter Exercise program...  Take one Weetabix. Take an Aero chocolate bar. Crumble the Aero over the Weetabix. Voila! AEROBIX !

HAPPY EASTER

CHECK IT OUT HERE! 

Daylan wrote this song on Feb.11th 2010(his 20th birthday)

He and Danica revised it a bit to sing at Baba's service.  

This was in the kitchen when he was practicing.....sounded much better when he performed it at the hall, with a mike and amplifier.  This recording is done on his laptop....not the greatest sound!

Chorus:

Well Did I make the most of my time here,

in this place called earth.

Will my kids remember, or forget in time

too bad i cant wait and see.

Will that house i built be cared for through the years

or will it only crumble to the ground

What people will remember of me when im gone,

ooooooooooooooo when im gone.

Verse 2:

Old photographs and videos will fill the boxes in my closet

all the important parts of our life, stuffed into forgotten corners.

Generations yet to come will dismiss them as relics, void of any worth

priceless momentos of another life and better days gone by.

Verse 3:

The sand in the hour glass of my life has slowly drained away.

All the small decisions I have made, has helped me leave a lasting legacy.

So dry your tears, and cry no more, for I'm happily at Heaven's door.

We'll meet again somewhere down the road, for now remember me.

Chorus:

Well Did I make the most of my time here,

in this place called earth.

Will my kids remember, or forget in time

too bad i cant wait and see.

Will that house i built be cared for through the years

or will it only crumble to the ground

What people will remember of me when im gone,

ooooooooooooooo when im gone.

Baba's Eulogy as written by Granddaughter Amanda.....delivered by Granddaughter Candace(excellenet job girls)

A Tribute to Baba from the Grandchildren

Natalie Krawchuck, was born on September 10, 1918 in Rife, Alberta . NATASKA became her name when her first grade teacher nicknamed her this and it stuck with her from then on. Our family gathered this past September to celebrate a milestone - her 91^st birthday. 

Baba was one of 12 children born to Helen and Fred Krawchuck. Her siblings – some near, some far, were always in her heart. She had a special bond with her sister Doris, who she spent countless hours with, as her and Mike lived nearby. Baba spent most of her life in Glendon, but also lived in Toronto and Victoria. While in Glendon, she met George Wizniuk. Gido told us a story about when he met baba, he wanted to walk her home from church – well he walked her…9 miles there and 9 miles home – he hoped after the long walk he would get just a kiss, but NO kiss!  On February 9, 1941, Baba married her best friend and life companion George. Baba and Gido celebrated their 69^th wedding anniversary this February. They stayed true to their vows....they took care of each other, for better or for worse. 

Baba and Gido raised their four children – Georgette, Ted, Shirlee and Daniel on a farm at Giford, and in 1951 moved to their long term residence on a farm outside of Glendon. Baba loved the farm – she spent hours in her beloved garden – she always made sure she had tons of peas for the grandkids to shell under the shady tree by the house but heaven forbid we got caught eating any. She always had plenty  vegetables and made sure her family could take some home when they visited. All of us have fond memories of spending summers out at the farm with baba and gido – helping with the chores, taking a hot lunch out to gido in the field ,somehow she always knew where he would be around lunchtime, helping in the garden, picking berries and mushrooms, and tending to or often sleeping  with the baby chicks. She also took good care of the farm dogs – she was the only person who would ever take the time to make chop for them daily.

Baba loved all the holidays – she made them so special as our huge family would travel to the farm at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas and pack into the house to celebrate. Somehow it never seemed that full as everyone always had a place to sleep and a belly full of her wonderful cooking – and no one got away without the Kutya on their plate at Christmas. She always had treats for the kids too – homemade baking, candies in the squirrel dish, or gum in the medicine cupboard. Baba also made each of her grandkids a special Easter basket with Paska in them and led us on a Easter basket hunt every year. Baba also never forgot a birthday – she never missed a phone call and a card on anyone’s birthdays. She especially liked her 7:00 o’clock Sunday morning phone calls.

Baba was always busy and always surrounded by family and friends – whether she was curling at the rink, floor curling at the Seniors Hall, painting every piece of outside furniture, or wood she could get her hands on, fishing ,especially when her grandkid tagged along, gardening, playing cards or picking berries and mushrooms so she could have mushrooms and cream for supper. She could have spent all day picking berries and mushrooms in the bush. She also loved her “stories” and often made time in the afternoons to catch up on what was happening in all her soaps. She also loved watching sports – often tuning it to the ball games so her and Gido could watch together. Baba and gido had many good friends and would spend hours visiting, eating, having a drink, and  playing cards with these treasured friends.  Baba also never missed the opportunity to participate in the Glendon parade or take her grandkids to the church on the hill for Ukrainian Easter.

Baba’s biggest claim to fame was her perogies. Without a doubt she made the best perogies in the world. She always had perogies ready for every family gathering or for 600 people at the hall as the Head Cook for the Glendon Catering Club. She wasn’t just great at cooking perogies though – she was great at cooking anything she made, especially when she could add tons of garlic. We will never forget her chicken soup, borscht, nachingka, pidpenky, studnatz, homemade oreo cookies, pampushky, and cinnamon buns. She loved to cook...and her family loved to eat her cooking!

Baba was also very crafty. Her most cherished creation was her Ukrainian Easter eggs. She made the most beautiful Ukrainian Easter eggs, but was often modest about the details of her creations. She even started making Ukrainian ostrich eggs and made one for every member of her family (14 eggs in total!) so we would have them as a keepsake. Her other talent was her Korovia’s – Ukrainian wedding cakes. Her cakes were so amazing they went all over the world. She made one for all her children and as many as she could for her grandkids when they got married. 

Baba was a selfless person – she always put her family first. Even when her health was ailing and we would ask how she was, her response was always – “not too bad”, and then before you could get another word in, she was asking questions about your family and how they were doing. It was always about someone else, and never her. 

Baba was also a worrier – a love kind of worry as she was always looking out for the people she loved. If you were fishing, she wanted to make sure you were being careful, if you were ski-dooing, she wanted to make sure you didn’t go too fast, if you were traveling she always wanted to know when you left and when you arrived. She always worried until she knew her loved ones were safe and sound. I still remember every time we traveled to the farm she would be waiting at the window for us to pull up the driveway – it was always a sense of relief to her as we walked down that long path up to their house.

All four of Baba’s children and their partners, ten grandchildren and the eleven great grand children she had a chance to meet, had a special place in her heart. Family was the love of her life and she would have done anything for us from killing moths in the middle of the night under the bed, spending hours making cabbage patch dolls one year for Christmas, buying our warts from us for 25 cents so we didn’t have to suffer from them, spending countless hours playing 31 and marbles, even giving us the nickels from her change purse to play and letting us keep our winnings. She would french braid or put rags in our hair in the evenings. Baba also told great bedtime stories to help us fall asleep.

Baba hardly refused a babysitting request from our parents – she didn’t want to miss an opportunity to spend time with her grandkids. We all spent a lot of time at the farm and as we look back and remember our time spent with her – we all wonder how she handled us!  She was a strong woman and it showed. It was always a great trip out to the farm....until we spent more than a weekend there...suddenly baba wasn’t so patient anymore! I think we all heard Baba’s famous saying “Don’t be so stupid” or “eah” – yet she always had a little smirk on her face when she said it. She was always yelling at us to go to bed  or not to have any pop before bed so we  kids would’nt  “pee the beds”, cleaning up ashes covering the entire basement from the old stove when the boys got into it, cleaning up our messes from going through her old clothes and playing fashion show, tidying up the beds after we were jumping on them, and  we all felt terrible when we broke  the hands off  her  glow in the dark Jesus figurine. We all knew Baba meant business when she would pull open the kitchen drawer – we knew that meant out came the wooden spoon and we would scatter! We always knew we were in trouble and that she had had enough when her and Gido started bickering in Ukrainian so we wouldn’t understand them. 

No matter how much trouble we caused her, baba loved every minute of her time spent with her family and the days when we all gathered at the farm. It was her remarkable strength that became the glue for our family and the reason we remain such a strong family today. We all have so many great memories of our baba. She brought traditions into our family that will be passed down for years to come as our family continues to grow. 

When we reminisce about Nataska we will remember her dark black hair  that never completely turned to grey, her warm smile, her helping hands, her sense of humor, the special bond she had with her  friends, the smell of her kitchen, her  many  talents, her love of the farm, her strength, her children , her grand and great grandchildren whom made her world go round and the long and loving relationship she had with her life partner George. 

As Ryan said, today isn’t about mourning the loss of this special woman – Baba wouldn’t have wanted that. Instead, we are celebrating the life of a strong, selfless, and beautiful wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend. 

We would like to thank the staff at the Bonnyville hospital and extended care home for taking such good care of our baba over the past few years, as it became her home. On behalf of our family, thank you all for being here to help us celebrate the life of Nataska Wizniuk.

 

another, no words needed photo

our three during the family viewing on Friday

There are no words to describe what this picture means to me.......thank you again Lori!

a few others....

the above and below pictures were taken before we entered the main part of the hall for the service. 

I think Daylan, Gido, and Amanda were watching the little munchkins run around. 

The Grandchildren(I will be giving this picture to Gido, he will love it))

photo taken by Lori on March 20th, the day of Baba's service. 

one week......

she's been gone! 

This piece of music was played at the service......very moving as Amazing Grace always is! (I believe credit for this goes to Amanda.....thank you)

I forgot to mention....

very mischievous(scaring people)! 

thanks Daryl for borrowing these pictures.....and Lori for sending them to me

these 3 pictures were part of Daryl and Lori's wedding.  

Shirlee was telling me how her Mom and Dad would do almost anything to get to town for curling..........freezing cold, snowing, blowing, drifting and they would head to town for curling!  

this was hilarious......look who can't sing because she's laughing so hard!  I was there that day.......Nellie and her crew were the life of the bonspiel!   

Lori SERIOUSLY made my day!

the Pussy Willow are out..........YA!!!  

Baba's Obituary

March 17th Edmonton Journal

Nataska Wizniuk
WIZNIUK, Nataska On March 15, 2010, Mrs. Nataska Wizniuk of Glendon, passed away at the age of 91 years. She is survived by her loving husband of 69 years, George; her children, Georgette (Russ) Drolet, Ted (Judy), Shirlee Olekson and Daniel (Donna); 10 grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; one sister, Doris (Mike) Filipchuk; sisters-in-law, Anne Krawchuk and Sennie Krawchuk; brother-in-law, Paul Tomen; also numerous nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by two grandchildren, William and Kenneth; parents, Fred and Helen Krawchuk; four brothers, Lotic, Patrick, William and Paul; five sisters, Neda, Minnie, Nina, Lillian and Pauline. Funeral Service Saturday, March 20 at 10:30 a.m. at the R.C.M.P. Century Hall, Glendon. Reverend Father J. Lipinski officiating with interment in St. Peter's & Paul's Ukrainian Orthodox Cemetery, Nova Bukowina. If desired, donations may be made to the Heart & Stroke Foundation or a charity of one's choice c/o Box 425, St. Paul, AB T0A 3A0. Yewchin's Funeral Chapel Ltd. St. Paul. 1-780-645-5177

Love, Love, Love these two photos.....the greater the picture, the harder it is to realize the reality of this!

More great pictures!

Our dearest Baba

This photo was taken at Glendon Seniors hall during the September Birthday party in 2007....Baba turned 88 that year.  She is proudly wearing her Ukranian blouse made for her by her daughter Georgette.  

conitued from previous post.......a few thoughts

this is the day after.....tonight I'm wondering if this is real....I have spent the day looking at pictures of Baba.  Although I enjoy it......see her smiling face makes it hard to believe what happened yesterday....it's not real yet!  

Baba and her jet black hair.......I can't tell you how many times I've heard people ask her if she coloured her hair........I think she was pretty proud of her non-aging black hair.  

I recall Gido telling a story(I have to ask him if I have the story straight)!  When he was thinking he wanted to court Baba in the early 30's it seems the thing to do was walk someone home from church.....so he did!  He told me that he hoped after the long walk he would get a kiss..........well after nine long miles of walking, NO kiss!  He then had another nine mile walk to get back home!!!  Not sure how many times this happened?  This is was beginning of their long life together........with that kind of start one might think things wouldn't last.....but then again, maybe the start is what helped make it last......I'm sure Baba knew what see was doing!  

Baba bought Daylan's mononucleousis warts....I forget what she paid, yes she gave him money, and guess what.......in no time flat she had the warts.  

I have to get to bed(12:30)so I will fill in tomorrow! 

Blessing of the graves

Easter bread

Baba's Wheat

Watching for Gido coming to the house while Daniel and I talked on the phone!  

Sleeping with the baby chicks

Dana pouring on the faucets 

how on the ball she was with birthdays......

late 70's early 80's, calling on Sunday mornings........7:00 a.m.

Daylan smelling Baba cooking bacon, even when she wasn't 

Baba telling fibs....a bear is going to get you, the police are going to take you away

her Love of Christmas......and having to have a tree! 

the hardest I ever laughed with her....... 

the saddest I've ever seen her......

giving me a lesson in picking mushrooms(I think I was her worst student)

then of course there's the turkey story

She's gone......2 o'clock this afternoon

A few thoughts......

a very dreaded moment is upon us......

Daniel headed to Red Deer this morning(his regular Monday morning), and got a call from the hospital saying if he, or anyone is coming, they best get there.  He relayed this message to his brother and two sisters.........as it seems now they will all be with Baba.  I can't tell you what(I believe)this would mean to her, and how comforting it will be for Gido(he will need them).  Our mothers bring us into the world.......although very difficult, it's seems right we be there/help them leave it.  

There are many words that describe my dear Mother-in-law, this is the first one that comes to mind, 

Selfless 

-adjective

having little or no concern for oneself, esp. with regard to fame, position, money, etc.; unselfish.  

from what I know of her, she ALWAYS put others first.......especially the little ones! 

Firstly, I think of Gido............losing a lifelong partner of 69 years is beyond my comprehension.

Her children......will think of them all day, this is going to be so hard.....

Auntie Doris...........she will lose her sister(her last living sibling), I called her last night.......she visited with Baba last Sunday.

My children have had the privilege(as I did)of having the best Baba/Grandma in the world...... what more could you ask for.....she gave them so much!  

I think of Nellie K., probably Baba's longest dearest friend........in today's world they would be referred to as BFF.......she visited Baba this week, how hard must this be?  Baba 91.5 and Nellie nearing 90(I'm sure)!  

I think also think of my Mom, who loved Baba........I have TONS of memories of them laughing together, having a great old time!  It might have been painting, picking berries, plucking chickens......after the work was done they usually enjoyed a glass of wine(or a shot), then a few more laughs.  Not that you want people to mourn, but it feels stange to me that Mom will not even realize one of her very dear friends will soon be gone(that's another story).  

The past several years have been hard for Baba.......her health not giving her many breaks.  Back surgery, strokes, heart troubles, kidney problems......other ailments that come with aging.  To the say the least, she has be stronger than strong........she has amazed me many times!! 

Because our recent memories are difficult ones....I am choose to think back a bit, back to the day when she of full of life, back to the days when she had a good hardy laugh(the ones from the belly).  The days when she could single handly put on a meal fit for a King(if the King liked Ukranian food).  She could cook for any number of people......whether it be in her own kitchen, or the Glendon hall.......650 for supper, no problem(she had help at the hall)!!!   She was worrier........a love kind of worry.....always looking out for others.  She wanted to be sure everyone was healthy, safe, not in any type of danger........hoping no one would get hurt.  If you went fishing she wanted to make sure you were careful, ski-dooing, traveling, anything.........until she knew you were back, safe and sound......she worried!  This never changed, even the last time I visited her and she could only get out a few words.....it was, "how's the kids"(hoping all was well, they were okay)?   At present we all think of Gido being the gardner......I think back to the day when the garden was Baba's(Gido was usually in the field).......and what a garden it was!  After the garden.....there were her flowers, she LOVED FLOWERS.......and she loved getting flowers as a gift.......I've heard her say many times....bring me flowers when I'm living so I can enjoy them, not when I die.  Her love for crafting, she has made, crafted so many things...........and for so many people!  Probably her most cherished creation is her Ukranian Easter eggs........when chicken eggs got to be hard to complete(due to the size), she wasn't ready to give up her talent, so she switched to ostrich eggs..........making everyone in the family one......each child, and grandchild....that would be 14 of them(and I think there a few extras)!!!  How could I forget her Korovia's(Ukranian wedding cake).......how many of these did she make.......they've gone to many location from the east to west coast, and many places in between!   

story still in progress.......above post! 

I AM CANADIAN