oops-a-daisy girl

12 Instagrams on the 12th, February 2012

2012-02-12T14:14:00.003-07:00

I absolutely love having my camera on my new iphone. I love it a little bit too much. The whole instagram thing is totally addictive... All the different filters and washes you can use... I have to force myself to pick up my Nikon these days...

Here is this months 12 on the 12th:

Madelyn's Party Complete with Special Guest

2012-02-12T12:56:00.002-07:00

On Thursday, I got an invitation to a party.

By Thursday night, the party had morphed into a very special event indeed. A special guest had been invited. She kept this buttoned up tight...

A little secret about our Miss Madelyn, although she can be challenging at times, she can also be sweet. Very sweet. She had talked to Ama [who it turned out was the special guest... ;-)] And had arranged for her to bring apple juice and a special treat. After all, what is a party without food?

She went on and on about her upcoming party and her 'special guest', who would most certainly be in attendance. She had to change the party to Sunday to accommodate our social calendar this weekend. Now, I would be lying if I said that I was surprised the special guest was Ama. There was a lot of whispering and phone calls between the two of them in the past couple of days, but I did act surprised and delighted when I found out who the special guest was.

Now Ama, was not totally certain what was expected of her... I might have indicated to her that this is not a big deal. Meh. We'll get around this somehow, don't worry about it... You needn't come bucketing over first thing Sunday morning, I told her...

In my mind, I was pretty sure that once Sunday morning rolled around I'd be able to talk her out of a party with the promise of breakfast out somewhere.

What I didn't anticipate however, was being awakened this morning at 8:30, and being told that I had to get up immediately because our special guest would be here any second... What I didn't anticipate is a little girl who'd gotten up, made her bed, cleaned her room [because naturally, that's where the party was being held] gotten herself dressed [in her Christmas dress] and decorated her room for the party, she also had a little table set up, ready for food... Those are the things I didn't anticipate...

So, I kid you not, an emergency phone call went out. I had to hide myself in the bathroom, with the water running, so Madelyn wouldn't hear me say to my Mum... "Get over here, pronto!"

And my sweet Mother, our sweet Ama, phoned Madelyn back, told her she had to have a quick shower, and would be there shortly. To buy us a little bit of time to at least get a coffee into us...

Here are a few pictures of our little party, which took place this morning at about 9:45 am.

Initially the boys hadn't been invited, but she felt bad and invited them to attend too.

Thank you Ama, for being available to come bucketing over at a moments notice. She was extremely pleased with herself for being a hostess... She held a great party. This is what memories are made up of.

A Day at the Mountains

2012-02-04T09:07:00.010-07:00

For Christmas, my parents and us got the kids ski lessons at COP. We thought it was a good idea, because they've shown an interest in skiing for a while now, both of them. The great thing about skiing, it's a fantastic family sport. Although certainly not an inexpensive sport. [I'm sure it wasn't back then either, when I was growing up] Thank you M&D for introducing us to, and taking us skiing. I have a lot of great memories of my brother and I skiing with our Mum and Dad. Every Supertramp song that comes on can take me right back there, as well as a heavy snow fall warning... Check this out:

My parents had a friend, that let us borrow his cabin, right on the ski hill. A great deal of teacher's conventions in February, had us camped out here for 4 days. It was awesome...

I knew I wanted to share that awesomeness with my kids. When they showed an interest in skiing, we were very supportive.

I've skied a LOT. I learned when I was around the age Madelyn is right now. I learned to ski at COP, back when it used to be called Paskapoo... [Yes, I just dated myself there, big time] We skied a lot as a family and as a teenager [before I had my drivers license] I would go over to Market Mall and get on the greyhound shuttle bus to one of the ski hills with friends. [Do you remember that Mum?] To be honest, I can't imagine letting my kids do that... But then again, they're only 9 and 6. Then, somewhere around grade 10, a lot of us started getting our drivers licenses... I remember vividly, a drive up to Lake Louise with Jimmy Z and Roy N; there's a spot on the highway, right past one of the Banff exits, Jimmy's car did a 360° on the highway. [Mum, don't know if I ever told you that or not, but thankfully it worked out...] We weren't farting around, it was just winter driving conditions... [Again, would I ever let my ~~kids~~ Madelyn, get into a car with teenage boys???] At this point in time, I say NO.

I spent a lot of time in the mountains with ski's and cold weather gear. When Barry and I got together, he didn't share my passion for the ski hill, but he was easily talked into trying it out. He hadn't done much down hill skiing, but spent a lot of time as a kid cross-country skiing. It turns out, he liked downhill. So him and I skied quite a bit. We did some ski trips [they were awesome] we skied with family and friends. [One of my most favourite ski stories was when we skied with Chris up at Sunshine and he shoved a nervous nelly off the t-bar...] Hil. Ar. Ious. And then I was pregnant with Mason... A day of skiing is definitely a full-day commitment. I think I might have got out once after he was born, with a trip through the social club at work...Then along came Miss Madelyn. I have not put ski's on since she joined our family. She'll be 7 this spring, so that means it's been at least 8 years since we skied.

Yesterday the kids had a PD at school and we thought it would be perfect, to take them to the mountains skiing. We decided on Nakiska because it's close to home, literally an hour from our front door to the parking lot, we don't need a park pass to get there, the skiing isn't as expensive, it's a great hill for beginners. We went up for a 1/2 day.

The last time I was at Nakiska, this picture was taken:

That's right, the 1988 Olympics... So it's been awhile. I hadn't skied the hill in years, so I had little memory of the actual ski hill, or the runs.

We drove towards the mountains yesterday morning, there was hardly any snow on the country side, hardly any snow in the ditches. We've hardly had any snow... It's weird. The thermometer read 4°. By the time we got to the hill, it was -1° [I know, right? Dreamy...] It was absolutely gorgeous there. The sun was shining. It was warm. It wasn't busy, line ups weren't long at all. It was some of the best conditions I've skied in, ever. It was like the best spring skiing day you could only hope for. We ate our lunch outside on the picnic tables.

It was the perfect kind of day, to show your kids what skiing is all about. Let's face it, they'll spend plenty of time riding up chair lifts in sub-zero temperatures. They'll ski in white out conditions. They'll get frost bite once or twice. But not yesterday, yesterday was perfect.

We had a great time. They had a great time. It made me realize how much I love skiing, and how much I've missed it. It's a great reason to look forward to winter, and I'm glad to have that appreciation back again. [Though this winter is clearly an exception] We even ran into one of Mason's friends and his Dad, so the boys were able to ski a couple of runs together. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.

-getting ready to go up the chair for the first
-we did it! we went up the lift!

-the snow was great, conditions were perfect.

-stopping for a bite of lunch.

-Mason running into a friend, then he went up the chairlift with him and his Dad.

-Barry, Madelyn and I took the chair behind. [our very out-dated ski's worked just fine...]

We're totally looking forward to our next ski trip.

Caught Up

2012-01-30T16:15:00.003-07:00

Today went by in a blur. I wish I could say it was because I was so busy today, and list all the things I did. [Things like: sweep the kitchen, wash dishes, do laundry, make beds, clean kids rooms, make dinner, bake something fab for dessert] But it wasn't that kind of day at all. {Though, I did make beds.... I at least washed half the dishes in the sink... Laundry from 9:30 this morning still needs to be switched from the washer to the dryer and our supper is on the counter thawing...

So it was not because of that the day went quickly. It went quickly as I worked on the final touches of my December Daily album. Remember back in November when I said that it's not for the weak... That when you commit to doing a December Daily book it's a LOT of work. That you need to keep up and not get behind, because if you do, eeks! All true. But as it all comes together, the final product is so worth it. I have 3 more things to do, then it's finished. I'll be so pleased to put it away. [I'll be so glad that I persevered and kept on with it next Christmas] By then, the memory of just exactly HOW MUCH work is involved is a bit dull... I need to figure out how to simplify it even more. I thought I had done that this year with making most of it digital, but it still seemed like a ginormous project. I'll post a few pictures once the final touches are completed.

Speaking of ginormous projects... I'm still working on my project life for 2012. I love it. But it too needs a crazy amount of time put aside. I've been successful, because I've tried to keep up each day. I can't imagine getting behind on this project...

I was a bit reluctant to do this. Then I saw so many great examples on different blogs, that I became quite passionate about it. I had intended to use this platform, to do more cutting/pasting/placing etc. Now that I pretty much just stick to digital scrapbooking, I do miss the physical putting things together. But that's not exactly how it's turned out. It's more digital than I would have liked. I'd like it to be more a mixture of both. I just find it easier to 'create' things in PSE, than to go and buy elements I like or want. Plus, to be honest, the scrapbook store I go to, just doesn't have the great product you find on-line. So I make the elements instead. I don't know why I'm fretting about this, it's WAY cheaper... Last weeks pictures cost me $1.23 from Costco... Can't complain that I'm spending too much with that price.

I guess I was looking forward to creating things physically a bit more. But, I look back at the 4 weeks I've done already, and I'm pleased with the result.

Here's the first 4 weeks of my 2012 Project Life:

What I have noticed though, since starting this project, is that I use my iphone all the time, to capture instagram shots [which i LOVE] But I have hardly picked up my camera at all in the past month. Considering I usually have about 350 pictures a month, that's a little bit shocking. Yikes, I have 60 pictures for January, that's it...

Plus, it feels like stuff I talk about on my blog is redundant. I guess it's only redundant for me. So I still kind of have to figure how everything fits together.

So far though, I'm loving this project, and I don't feel like it's too daunting at this point. I'll let you know how I'm feeling in another month or so...

No Wheels

2012-01-27T09:55:00.002-07:00

Sheesh... I'm still without my vehicle.

It's been a little bit inconvenient... I'm not going to say who it's been more inconvenient for, myself of Barry, because that would certainly start an argument. [Ah heck, I think I'm the most displaced person in this scenario... ;-)]

Having said that, it's been really foreign to disclose daily information to my husband. You know, the 'daily life' stuff, that under normal circumstances, doesn't come up in conversation. For example, going for coffee. I'm sorry, but I just have to say that getting together for coffee is quite a common occurrence between most girlfriends... Not only that, it's a necessity... And in usual times, times that I have my own car parked in the driveway, it's not a subject that comes up. Ever. Being a stay at home mum is my job, and like any job, there are a few perks. Sometimes the boss takes you for lunch. Sometimes you get a Friday off. Sometimes you get a vest with the company name on it. Sometimes you go for coffee with your colleagues.

For me, going for coffee is a delightful part of my job. Like I don't ask him the specifics of his job, but all of a sudden he wants to know stuff like "How many coffee dates do you have in a week?" I have to admit, this week was a bit unusual, I've had 3... That doesn't mean every week I have 3. I mean come on, the groceries got picked up, meals have been served at dinner time, the house is tidy, laundry is done, beds are all made, cookies have been made [and consumed in 2 days.... C'mon guys, they could last at least a week] I've even managed to do a little bit of work for Barry in the mix... I'm doing my job. And I'm doing it well.

So coffee dates are my perk and they're certainly non-negotiable...

Come back to me little truck... Please come back...

Stuck at Home

2012-01-23T12:43:00.004-07:00

My car broke down on Saturday. I was heading to COP to take the kids to their ski lessons. Barry was planning on meeting us at the hill. Moments before we turned onto the highway, my car started acting strange... Thankfully there wasn't much traffic. Thankfully I was able to pull into a residential area. Thankfully my car is only 3 years old, and is still under warranty. Thankfully we keep renewing our AMA membership...

We made it to ski lessons, but now I'm without a vehicle. HATE that feeling. There is something unsettling about watching your car drive along side you, on the back of a tow truck...

Brrrr....

2012-01-18T10:48:00.002-07:00

MAN, is it cold out. [-28° not including the windchill] My little truck don't like the cold... I don't like the cold. No one likes the cold... We've got a few more days to go. Apparently it's supposed to warm up again for the weekend.

Instead, I've been keeping warm indoors. Baking cookies, doing some work for Barry and most exciting, I got my persnickety order in the mail yesterday! Today I'm going to work on my December Daily album. Seeing all the pictures makes me excited to get it finished up!

12 Instagrams on the 12th, January 2012

2012-01-12T17:57:00.010-07:00

Last year I did 11 on the 11th, the year was 2011. In 2010 I did 10 on the 10th. [See the trend?] So it makes sense that this year I do 12 on the 12th [and then thank heaven's, be done with it] As much as I like the idea, I just don't have that many more random tidbits to share...Having said that, I am not a quitter... So I've come up with another approach.

Instagrams.

12 random pictures, that are taken, that day, the 12th of each month. Bear with me, because I suddenly came up with this idea this afternoon around 2:30 pm. Considering my day started much earlier than that, there are a number of things that I missed capturing... [ The chunks of ice floating in the Bow River. ~~Auntie Gertie~~ err, I mean Ama in a hat. [Jokes Mum, just jokes...] Man that wind, on a non-windy day was cold. A bunch of chit-chat at a coffee shop, after the walk. Seeing the sun... It disappeared behind the clouds shortly after I arrived home, but it was out and it was beautiful first thing this morning] All of this before noon!

So I crammed 12 pictures into a 6 hour window. Next month I'll be more on the ball. I know it's something I'll definitely be able to do... Excited about it.

1. Playmobil has been popular and well played with since Christmas. 2. Sweet little ivy plants, they were outside, but I brought them in for winter. 3. Skylanders, it's a wii game Mace loves right now. 4. On the way home from the bus. 5. Miss Madelyn got her scholastic order, always so much fun to browse through and circle favourites. 6. Reading through the playmobil book, circling sets she wants. 7. Hot mug'ga tea [yummy Lipton Cinnamon Spiced Chai] 8. Mason, ready for Cubs, having his dessert, a couple of bites out of a Hershey's Cookies and Cream Bar. [Yes, the same one he got from Santa at Christmas, oy...] 9. Miss Madelyn her first night back at gymnastics. 10. Snack before bed, the kids, not Barry, he has his later. 11. Sharing a glass of wine with my sweetie. 12. Still loving my candles from Christmas, found the idea on Pinterest you know...

I've Decided

2012-01-08T21:15:00.003-07:00

To do Project Life. I have been watching a few bloggers, and been so inspired by them over the past year. I began to do some research [because that's what I do, research] and I love how everyone has a different take on this project. I have sat on the fence about committing to this, for the past few months. Hubsy was going to buy me the Becky Higgins kit for Christmas, but I never ordered it. I basically talked myself out of it. If you recall, I did a Project 365 in 2010. It was a ginormous project. By the end of it, I was done. I was not one bit interested in doing it again for 2011. Then I started to compile stuff for my December Daily Album. I started seeing Project Life stuff, and I got more and more intrigued. This is what finally made me jump in with both feet:

Source: the-lilypad.com via Candy on Pinterest

That's right I can do it. How. Ever. I. Want... So I'm starting it, and believe it or not, just sent all my photos to be printed for the first week already... I know, right? [Let's wait and see if I'm this enthusiastic in 6 months]

I spent two whole days last week [special thanks to Ama for having my kids for a sleep over that started at lunch time, and for kids who had a Phineas and Ferb marathon in their jammies one day] sorting out layouts for my December Daily, and doing some scrapbook catching up. I mean when you're sending an order in and you're paying for shipping, you have to get the best bang for your buck. Having said that, I have two giant baseball sized knots in my back, from so much computer work... [Because naturally, once my right hand got sore from the mouse, I switched to my left hand] Barry is not as sympathetic as I'd like... Every time I hint at a massage, he just kinda snorts at me... I think he probably feels like 40 hours in front of a computer in the past week, mostly until the wee hours of the morning, [thank heaven's for winter break] was not the best use of my time.

What all this scrapping has done, is get me totally pumped about scrapbooking again. [I haven't scrapped since the kids started school in September. I still have our.... gasp... Disneyland trip to do] Now I'm just all jazzed up to do the Project Life thing, and just kind take it day by day. Not get to worked up about it. Take it as. it. comes.

I'm also really excited to be able to add some of my instagrams into my stories. I got an iphone for Christmas don't ya know. SO excited about some of the scrapbooking qualities this affords me. I mean, what's not to love?

Not so excited about the texting... Sorry Nicole, I just don't check it like that... But if you need to reach me, CALL ME.... I promise I'll answer.

That's all I've got right now. My shoulders are throbbing and the hot tub is calling my name.

Christmas Vacation is Nearly Over

2012-01-06T22:54:00.002-07:00

I know I'm lucky. My kids get along. I apologize to my poor mother often about that fact. [Sorry Mum] because it makes me feel like a heel that I was so mean to my brother when we were kids. I'm not mean to him any more, but growing with me as a big sister, might not have been the most pleasant thing in the world...[Sorry Chris]

Any who. My kids, who play really well together and for the most part, get along well, because of Mason's personality. He will let his little sister do just about anything. If he wants to watch something, and she doesn't he says "Fine, let's watch your show". If he wants to play a game, and she doesn't, he says "Fine, what do you want to do?" If they're playing, and he wants to do something a certain way, but she opposes, he'll finally say "Fine, let's do it your way" He's very accommodating. Too much so, I think sometimes. I tell him that he needs to stand up for himself, and do what he wants, not always let her have her own way. He nods his head, agrees with me, but then let's her get her own way a nanosecond later.

Having said that, if it were Mason making the demands, wanting his own way, Madelyn would have absolutely no qualms about saying to him: "Look dude, that's NOT the way I see this playing out" She would probably even go so far as to say, "Look dude, if you're not going to play this my way, then you're not playing..." [No doubt she'd have her hands on her hips as she said this] I have a sneaking suspicion that I was a little bit more like Madelyn in this aspect, being the older sister. Unfortunately I wasn't the nurturing, agreeable type. I suspect I could have learned a lot from Mason.

This could go on and on, how I was bossy, mean and not much fun to be sisters with, but this isn't about me... It's about a conversation I overhead this afternoon.

Here's a picture of these two, taken on Monday. A whole week of vacation left. Both giddy with their jammy day. Playing with new toys, new games, having a great time.

Today I heard this, and I just knew it was a good thing school is back in on Monday:

mace: "Madelyn - What's gotten into you? You're like a bad smell following me around. I just don't want to play with you right now. Can you please just leave me alone...

Of course, when he does stand up to her and say no, it's always very dramatic, and there are always copious amounts of little girl tears...

But sometimes you've just gotta stand up for yourself. Way to go Mason.

There has been enough together time.

A Fresh Start

2012-01-02T16:36:00.016-07:00

Wow, it's twenty twelve. Crazy. We're in the process of de-Christmas-ing the house. Every year I enjoy December with the house decorated for Christmas. I love the lights. I love the decor. I love to eat sweets from morning to night. I love to admire real candles flickering so nicely. Then, I love to take it all down, put it away in a box, and have my house back.

I went to a New Year's Eve Party, and our lovely hostess wanted to go around the table and talk about our resolutions for the new year. And you know what, I hadn't really thought about a 'resolution' up until that point. I haven't really done resolutions for the past couple of years. In my opinion, making a bunch of resolutions, is setting yourself up for failure on or the night before the very the 1st day of the year. If you fail to keep your resolutions [which I typically do] It kinda just hangs out there... It's certainly not what I would consider a builder upper. The last few years, I've focused more on my word, than a resolution. And it's worked well for me.

Now, despite what I just said, I did indeed have a 'resolution' for the crowd, because believe me, I didn't want to be pigeon holed into a resolution they thought I should have... [Sorry about that Nola...] So I said that one of my resolutions this year was to Simplify... Which I do wish to do, but it's hardly a resolution. It's more a way of life. [Wish me luck, I live with Barry]

Last night, Barry and I got to talking, I told him about my resolution quandary. How I'd said what I said [simplify] to appease the crowd, but how I thought it was important this year that he and I make it a priority, or a resolution to spend more quality time together. In Oct/Nov, I had originally thought I would try to plan a date per month for 2012 and give him all the pre-planned dates as a gift for Christmas. [I read about the date ideas here] One night, when I sat down to work on it, I realized exactly how much work it was. A ton of preparation, and some things are just to hard to plan that far in advance.

I didn't end up doing it. We agreed last night, that we do need to spend more adult time together, and planning dates for each other is, something we'll focus on this year. Taking turns. The bonus is, he thought it was a great idea. So I get to plan January's date. [I mean it makes sense that he plans February, what with Valentine's Day and all]. And we'll plan dates for each other, every other month. How cool is that? I'm excited about it for sure.

To me, the new year means a new start. A fresh beginning. A do-over. A look forward, not backwards. To be successful and be positive. Some of the things I'd like to see this upcoming year are:

- a healthier diet, for sure. Serious commitment to meal planning. [Usually I do well in this aspect, but December was atrocious] And I would bust something right now, for a nice green salad.

- exercise [teeheehee] But I have to put it in there, don't I?

- setting up a schedule to clean a bit each day [like Nicole, but with way more flexibility ;-)]

-to spend more quality time with my kids [notice a bit of a trend?]

- use my new iphone, to do 365 days of instagrams. Seriously, I'm SO excited about this one. I've been imagining it for a few years now...

- to be a slug on the couch a LOT LESS frequently.

- to sort out our basement, so I don't die a little bit inside if an adult [that's not Barry or I] goes down there. Seriously. It's bad... I mean, it's not hoarder bad, but it is bad.

- de-clutter.

-spend more quality time with girlfriends... Seriously, the 2 times we've met for coffee since our kids all started school in September is kind of ridiculous... I want to see them more...

-get my December Daily book finished and sent to the printers before I lose interest. [Because I KNOW I'll be so grateful I took the time to finish it, next December.]

All this kind of brings me to this year's word I've selected: Renew...

There are a lot of things I thought I would do, with 2 kids in school full time. But it didn't happen in September [or Oct/Nov/Dec] I have the opportunity to make it happen now. I'm going to renew. I'm excited about this. I'm looking foward to this new year. Welcome twenty twelve!

One Little Word for 2012

2011-12-31T16:53:00.004-07:00

I have spent a lot of time, thinking about my word for the next year. It's not something I've ever decided on a whim, a lot of thinking goes behind it. Having said that, I came into December not really sure what my word would be. There are a few words that have made themselves known to me, but nothing seemed to really stick.

Until last night.

I was laying in bed, listening to my ipod, and suddenly the word Renew popped into my head. The next song that played, opened up with this verse:

the mist is lifting slowly, i can see the way ahead

And I thought, of course.... Renew...

For some reason this word resonates with me. Deeply. And so without a shadow of a doubt, I have chosen my word for 2012.

I plan to follow along with Ali Edwards, One Little Word class, through BPS. [I'm planning on following last years prompts, I'm not purchasing the new class for 2012] I started out strong with the class last year, with my word, faith, but for a lot of reasons, didn't keep it up. I hope to do a better job for 2012.

Happy New Year! All the best for 2012!

The Last Few Days...

2011-12-29T11:07:00.009-07:00

Here is what we've been doing the last few days:

Our annual Morning of Christmas Eve, Family Skate:

Miss Madelyn can smell out a timbit donut from miles away

Mason playing hockey with the guys.

The whole clan. [well sorta, most of us gals sat and drank coffee/hot chocolate]

Christmas Eve:

Christmas Eve -the kids waiting so patiently to open presents.

Outside to build a snowfort, Madelyn & Siera.

Christmas Morning:

Coming down the stairs Christmas Morning.

Milk and cookies are gone, off the plate Mason made.

A big hug for favourite brother, after opening a book all about the Beebs.

A big hug for favourite sister, after opening a Lego creation book.

Special hand-made gifts for Mummy & Daddy, from Madelyn.

Christmas Day, after supper:

Showing a card to Gigi, you kids were both so good with her this year.

Baba getting some special love from Mason after he opened the wii Skylander game.

Something special, for you both to read...

What? Can this be true?

Some special love for Ama, after learning about upcoming ski lessons.

2 new helmets and upcoming ski lessons, so exciting!

And now, it's a few days after Christmas. This is what my family room looks like... I couldn't bear to show the whole room, because it makes my heart quicken. Every piece of Lego has been built. All the dolls, treehouse, squinkies and video games are being well used. It's a chore to get these darn kids out of jammies... I guess that's what the holidays are all about.

Keeping UP - December Daily 2011

2011-12-19T14:50:00.004-07:00

I have been doing my best, to keep up to date with the December Daily book I'm working on. It's time consuming. So many things at this time of year are time consuming. This year, I thought I would try a mostly digital format, but it's still time consuming. I know that once I get it all put together, I'll be glad I did it. I know it's a fantastic keepsake to look back at each year. All four of us have enjoyed looking at the previous years books [I've done the past two years] When you're in the every day of life, it's hard to sometimes see how your life is changing, but to look back at a 4 year old girl and a 7 year old boy, the changes are obvious. For that very reason, I'm glad I decided to do it again this year. I'm going to wait to print the pages, after I'm finished them all. I was going to send it off to be printed in 2 batches, but decided to just wait. After all, then I'd have to pay for shipping twice. I have been sending things to be printed at here at Persnickety and I can't say good enough things about the results. I'm very pleased with the quality of their work.

I have the last of my Christmas cards ready to be dropped off at the post office. Do I have stamps yet? Of course not, I like to wait until the last week before Christmas, it would seem, so myself and 45 other snarly people can stand in line in winter coats/mitts at the post office.

Now having said that, I haven't even pulled out my Columbia down-filled jacket intended for grisly cold temperatures yet. It's been so mild! Last year it was SO cold... The poor kids couldn't be out at recess or lunch because of the windchill. We've got a month of nicer weather under our belts, and we're well past half way into December, how lucky! When winter lasts for what seems like 6 months, we feel pretty lucky to get break.

Our crazy elf Calvin, has been up to his mischievous antics also. Never a dull moment around our house in the morning.

Calvin will only be with us until Christmas Eve... He's been so much fun this year, and little bit of trickster. I'm going to miss him when he goes.

2011-12-19T10:06:00.001-07:00

This is the kind of thing, that makes my heart warm, and what makes the Christmas season most special, in my mind. People coming together. Tell me if you can watch it, without crying... Because for some reason, I can't...

11 on the 11th of December, 2011

2011-12-11T15:48:00.008-07:00

This is my last 11 on the 11th entry of the year!

1. You know you're old when you have the following conversation with your six year old...
mg - "Mummy, what year were you born in? Did it start with a 2?
me - "No, it started with a 1 9..."
mg - "Wow... Did you have tv when you were a kid?
me - "Of course I had tv when I was a kid.
mg - "I bet your tv had those metal sticks on the top [antenna]

2. Pinterest has ruined me. I have so many great ideas, and there are not enough hours in the day to do them all...

3. There's no denying the magic that happens at this time of year... I particularly love this photo I found on, where else, Pinterest.

Source: zsazsabellagio.blogspot.com via Michelle on Pinterest

4. Even though it's cold here, and it gets dark early here. I'm thankful that I don't live closer to the North Pole, where we'd be lucky to see the sun for an hour a day.

5. Got my Christmas cards ready to send out. Now I just have to send them out.

6. I had my very first Starbucks Caramel Brulee Latte, but that's the last time I spend $5 on a coffee... It's not that good... but I get so sucked into Starbucks, cause I love their Christmas campaigns every year.

7. Going to the malls right now, is beginning to become like an Olympic Event... Do you have the stamina and patience it takes, to wait in line longer than the person in front of you? I am about 90% finished my shopping... Maybe I'll do the last 10% on-line...

8. It came without ribbons, it came with out tags, it came without packages, boxes or bags. - Grinch. Madelyn keeps walking around the house saying this...

9. Can't wait to watch Polar Express with the kids... [Madelyn also promised she'd watch Elf this year, after last years disastrous attempt to have family movie night]

Source: google.com via Nikole on Pinterest

10. The other day, I thanked Mason for being such a big helper lately, and for making his bed. He looked at me for a few moments, without saying anything... And finally I said "what?" He said, "You're not doing that sarcastic thing are you?" Of course I wasn't, I really meant it! But perhaps I ought to rein in the sarcastic comments a bit...

11. I want this little guy under my Christmas tree this year...

Source: twochicsphotography.com via Candy on Pinterest

Elf Mischief

2011-12-06T09:52:00.005-07:00

After we got over the shock of having our family pictures vandalized by Calvin, he's behaved himself. Here are a few places we've found him...

Every morning it's so much fun, to see where he is! It makes getting out of bed a little bit easier these dark and dreary mornings.

The Elf Arrives

2011-12-03T11:54:00.002-07:00

We got home yesterday morning, from parent/teacher interviews and imagine our surprise when we discovered this little guy sitting on our advent calendars.

We're not exactly sure how he got into the house, but we'll just chalk it up to Santa's magic, like we did last year, with Elvin Elf. The thing is, this is not Elvin... This elf came equipped with a note, it would seem that Elvin hurt himself in Santa's workshop last week. He's unable to come to our home. This little guy, has come as his replacement.

Right away the kids were excited. They left him some food [orange and almonds] Madelyn gave him Jack to keep him company. She put a bed out for him, a blanket. This little elf also changed her attitude on taking her medicine [which has been a motion picture drama 3x a day, since we picked it up from the pharmacy Thursday morning] However, when the elf appeared, she said "I'd better take my medicine" and she did. Just like that. The kids named this elf Calvin. It seems quite fitting, because both kids love Calvin and Hobbes comics and we woke up this morning to this...

In Mason's words, "I think Calvin is going to be a bit troublesome"...

Me too buddy, me too..

Both kids came into our room this morning, so upset about him writing on the pictures. We both thought it was actually kind of clever and funny. You best behave Calvin, we live with rule followers.

Diagnosis is in

2011-12-01T13:59:00.004-07:00

Yesterday I'd sent Barry to the pharmacy with a picture of Madelyn, and hope... The pharmacist took one look at the picture and told Barry: "Get her to a doctor". My Mum called and said "Maybe she has Impetigo, you should see a doctor". My friend emailed and said "Looks viral, perhaps you should see a doctor..." It was only me, that thought what we were looking at was a severely chapped mouth. My worst night mare was she had cold sores. [something I deal with on occasion, and truly wouldn't wish on my worst enemy]

This morning I got her to the doctor, who took one look at her and said, "She has Impetigo" I have never heard of this before, it's from a strain of Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus pyogenes , also known to cause strep throat. It's highly contagious, and spreads like wild-fire... It happens when an area of skin has been irritated [such as severely chapped lips] and then aggravated by little hands that won't leave the area alone. The good news is, once diagnosed, the antibiotic should begin to work within the first few days.

1. when we're hiding under a blanket, it doesn't look too bad actually. 2. we just can't leave those poor little lips alone. 3. i can't watch her... i can barely be in the same room... i'm doing the best i can, to try and get her over the hump. 4. she laughs...[at something on tv mind you, but it certainly makes me feel better] I'm trying to keep her in gum, to keep her mind off things...

Right now I'm washing down everything she's had contact with [which I began doing last night, once I self-diagnosed her on the internet] The poor washing machine is humming away...

Happy December 1st. We start our December daily today, guess what the first story of the month will be...

Looking forward to a healthy month.

Tomorrow...It's nearly here...

2011-11-30T11:25:00.008-07:00

Tomorrow is December 1st... It comes every year, and each year I seem to be taken by surprise by it. Once again, I'm home with a couple of sick kids. I certainly hope that history does not repeat itself, December of 2010 is something I care not to re-live.

The past couple of years I've driven myself crazy, with trying to do a home made advent calendar for the month of December. [Believe me, I know I have an entire year to prepare for this, but it still always seems to suddenly be here, so unexpectedly] The first time I did the advent, each day was filled with a little treat and something to do such as bake cookies, go look at lights, visit Santa, etc. It was overwhelming, I hadn't planned it out that well, and I tried to cram in WAY TOO MUCH. Last year I simplified it quite a bit, by saying things like: tell a friend at school you think they're awesome, or wish someone a Merry Christmas today, read a book to your sister after school. It made it much less stressful, but it was still a lot of work.

This year, I've tried something new yet again. On top of the bought advent calendars, which this year there is one for each [Star Wars Lego Advent for him, and Playmobile advent for her] I wrapped up all Christmas books individually, a book for each day. I had seen this idea on Pinterest [of course] as well as on other people's blogs. Imagine my delight when I counted our books [which are put away the rest of the year] and found that I had more than enough to keep us going for the next 24 days. [Thank heaven's for 5 years of scholastic book orders]

The kids don't know about this yet. I guess they'll find out about it tomorrow.

What's neat about this idea, is now they'll for sure read every Christmas book. In the past, when you have a pile of books sitting there, some of them might get overlooked. This year I think they'll be excited about the prospect of opening and reading a new Christmas book each day. Both kids are avid readers, so I think this will go over really well.

I also have my December daily book ready to go... Well, for tomorrow I guess. It's ready to go for tomorrow... See? How does it creep up on me like this every single year? And look at this, my sewing machine and I are friends after all, as long as I don't move it off the zig zag setting...

As I mentioned in a previous post, I'm loving turquoise right now for Christmas colours. It doesn't seem feasible to throw away everything I have and start over, with all new decor, so I'm going another route. I'm focusing on turquoise in my December daily album for 2011.

My colours this year are turquoise and red, with green for good measure. I'm using an 8x8 Red American Crafts binder I picked up on clearance at Winner's/Homesense. This year the book will be put together throughout the month, but I'm planning on doing it partially digital, so I'll send all the pages away at once when I finish the last day. We won't be able to look through it quite the same as we have in the past, when I've done my best to keep up with it daily. I'll try it this way this year, and see if it's easier or not in the long run.

Now, back to the sad story of my sick kiddies... It's just a mess around here. It seems to be one thing after another. November has not been a good month for us health-wise. All 4 of us have been sick. Miss Madelyn seems to be getting the worst of it however... The last 2 weekends she's been sick 2 weeks ago she had a flu bug. Last weekend she seemed be be getting better, then by Sunday night had gone in the complete opposite direction. She's now laying on the couch with her croup-like cough and a face only a mother can love...

This child will NOT leave her poor mouth alone... It absolutely breaks my heart to look at her right now... I have been diligent about putting stuff on her lips, but she keeps licking them [and yes, I've even tried to scare her into stopping] but she just won't quit. She's either rubbing them, or licking them every time I look at her. So put in a prayer or two for us... Or our family picture for Christmas of 2011 is going to be a doozy... I've even looked up severe chapped lips on the internet. Barry has gone off to the pharmacy equipped with this picture and a plea of help. I hope we can get this under control. My poor little baby girl...

It's Coming Along

2011-11-23T10:33:00.009-07:00

I had second thoughts this year, about doing a December daily. I'll keep it simple, I thought. I won't get stressed out about it, I thought. It'll only take a couple of days to put together, I thought. I'll only use what I have on hand, I thought. My sewing machine and I are friends now, I thought...

My thoughts were a bit off... I thought I was keeping it simple by using an 8x8 format, and creating my own digital template for the daily pages [that was the easiest part, it took no time at all to get that done] The daily pages happen daily... Once the template is ready to use, I don't need to look at them again, until the day I'm doing it. Easy-peasy. Then I started to get into the daily divider pages, and no, I don't need to do those. But it definitely looks nicer with them. Therefore I've spent way too much time, sketching and jotting, and figuring things out...

It's taken much longer than a couple of days, I'm hoping to be finished by December 1st! I have tried to just use what I have on hand, but have made trips to the scrapbook store [which seems to be the only time I enter a scrapbook store any more] And my sewing machine and I are absolutely NOT friends at the moment. I wouldn't even say we're on speaking terms for that matter. In fact, I might go so far as to say I hate her... [or him] I thought we were on the same page, but does this, for even a moment, look like we're on the same page? Nope. We are obviously not on the same page...

However, I go back to the previous years books... And I'm so glad I did them. They're full of great every day stuff from our past. Even now, it's hard to believe that Miss Madelyn was only in preschool the first time I kept up with a December Daily book, and Mason in Grade Two [with his first speaking part in the Christmas concert] The kids love looking through all the things I make and the scrapbooks I do, so that alone keeps me focused and looking forward.

So yes, the December daily book I'm creating for 2011 is much more work than I'd anticipated. But in the long run, I know it will be so worth it.

Month in Photos - October

2011-11-17T13:28:00.003-07:00

1. 3 cousins. 2. Halloween fun - made from crescent rolls. 3. Madelyn and Mummy playing Hi Ho! Cherry-O. 4. Decadent halloween s'mores. 5. Drawing pictures in the kitchen. 6. Outside pumpkin light. 7. Mason peering down at me. 8. Another cousin sighting. 9. Mason and baby Isabella. [who told me later, he connected with her] 10. Madelyn and Isabella [she so badly wants to be a big sister]. 11. Our front step full of pumpkins. 12. Little Red Riding Hood and Pirate Mason.

Pie Party

2011-11-16T18:28:00.005-07:00

I'm not a huge fan of pie. [Which maybe isn't the best way to start off my love the pie party blog entry...]

Don't be shocked, but I've never really cared for pastry... [You don't have to start paying super close attention to that I'll tell you right now, you will see me eat pie] It is after all, a dessert. For me, dessert is one of the food groups.

But one pie that I do love, was the Flapper Pie that my Grama used to make. It has a crumb crust, a creamy vanilla centre and a meringue top. I will never tire of this tasty treat.

She gave me a recipe binder for my 19th birthday [eeks, that was a long time ago] which had a number of hand written recipes in it, all being my favourite recipes of course. To make Flapper Pie with this particular recipe was time consuming. Plus it's very tricky not to scorch the filling, which would ruin it completely in a second flat. So imagine my delight when my Mum came across another quite simple recipe for the filling. I use the best of both recipes together and create this...

I don't know how people get the meringue so high, because mine has never been impressive looking, but it tastes just fine...

One bite of this pie, takes me back to my childhood. It's still my very favourite. Today for TidyMom's Love the Pie party was the perfect time to make a pie, for just because.

Flapper Pie

Crumb Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup melted butter or margarine

Preheat over to 375°. Thoroughly mix graham crumbs and sugar, add the melted butter. Mix until well blended. [Reserve 1/4 cup of mixture for topping] Firmly press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool Completely.

Vanilla Cream Filling:

2/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups milk

In a large glass mixing bowl, stir together sugar, cornstarch and salt to blend well. Add a small amount of milk to make a smooth thin paste, then gradually add rest of the milk. Stir until smooth. Microwave on high for 8 to 9 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes, until smooth and thickened.

3 egg yolks, slightly beaten [use whites for meringue]

Stir half the hot milk mixture into egg yolks [being careful not to cook the egg... go back to high school home-ec] Then add yolk mixture back to the milk dish. Microwave on high 1 to 2 minutes, until mixture is thick and glossy.

1 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla

Stir in butter and vanilla. Pour mixture into cooled crumb crust. Let cool.

Meringue:
3 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add cream of tartar. Gradually add sugar, beating until white and shiny. Spread meringue over cooled filling, to the edge of the crust. Sprinkle on reserved crumbs. Bake at 425° for 5 minutes or until lightly browned.

This is the type of pie that is best enjoyed the day you make it. It starts to get a bit weepy and soft by the next day. However, I can assure you that although it might not be quite as impressive to look at, it is every bit as delicious to eat.

Enjoy! Click the link below to check out all the yummy pies!

“Come join Love the Pie with TidyMom sponsored by Cherokee USA, Le Creuset, Wilton, Bags by Bloom and Harvard Common Press”

Lesson Learned...

2011-11-13T12:22:00.004-07:00

Don't tell your kids that the rest of the Halloween candy is going to be packed up and sent to work with Daddy then leave the room...

Or there is a chance that 15 minutes later, you could come back to this:

I still can't believe no one got an upset tummy...

Wanna Join Me?

2011-11-12T11:03:00.003-07:00

This Wednesday, November 16th, TidyMom is having a Love the Pie Party on her website...

By golly, I think I might join her... Now, I have to decide which pie to make...

For more info, click on the Love the Pie Button on my sidebar. [Check out all last years pies... Seriously, how I'm not 250 lbs. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful, but I like sweets]

11 on the 11th of November, 2011

2011-11-11T19:22:00.009-07:00

1. Today is 11-11-11... That won't happen again in my lifetime. It also happens to be Remembrance Day. ~~Our family~~ Barry and I watched the ceremony from Ottawa, tears streamed down my cheeks for a good portion of it. Once you become a mother, the idea of losing your child to war, is heartbreaking. There were women who lost multiple children to war... One lady lost her 5 sons in WWI. I can't even fathom that. While we were watching Miss Madelyn was busy at the kitchen table. Here was her contribution to Remembrance Day.

2. I am finally starting to feel like a human being again today, after being hit by a ~~freight train~~ dreadful head cold. It came on hard and fast, and I spent most of Wednesday and Thursday in the horizontal position. THAT is why it's awesome that both kids are in school full time.

3. I am spending WAY TOO MUCH TIME on Pinterest... Have you checked it out? It's ~~insanely~~ mildly addicting... Check it out my pins here... Ay-yi-yi....

4. I've been watching this season's Battle of the Blades. It's been fabulous. I'm in awe how these hockey players have turned into figure skaters. Seriously, if you just turned on the tv and didn't know what you were watching, you'd be positive you were watching figure skating guys. I'm pulling for Tanith and Boyd to win on Monday night.

5. I'm beginning to see hints of Christmas all around... I want to do another December Daily this year, but it's SO MUCH WORK... Having said that, I absolutely LOVE looking back to the years gone by... I just have to take the time to get it together, before December hits, or else look out. Already our calendar is starting to fill up, and I find that kind of overwhelming. This girl makes me want to not hedge and just go for it...

Source: aliedwards.com via Candy on Pinterest

6. I took a photography course last weekend. It was all about getting off of auto mode and having a little bit more control. Creating the kind of pictures you want, by using apertures and shutter speeds to your advantage. I learned about a few buttons I didn't even realize I had on my camera. Now having said all that, I've used my camera very little since the class. It was overwhelming to say the least, but I'd like to try and utilize some of what I learned.

7. This year, for Christmas, if I could get away with it, I'd get rid of everything we have and start over. I'm totally into turquoise for some reason... I know that I can't get rid of everything and start over... Wouldn't it be dreamy if I could? I do have my Christmas Card template set up and ready to go... [guess the colour] Now I just have to get some pictures lined up. Just because I'm not starting over, doesn't mean I don't love the color scheme I see in my minds eye...

Source: laurabielecki.com via Creative on Pinterest

8. Speaking of documenting life... I would really like to do another project365. In 2010 I documented the whole year, day by day. It was HUGE... I won't pretend that it wasn't a lot of work, it was... But I see other blogs, that are documenting their daily lives via Becky Higgins Project Life, and I'm in awe... To remember the every day things... The details that we don't think we'll forget, but do... I love to look back at the year I documented, even though I came into this year thinking 'thank goodness I'm not doing that again...' I could capture how Madelyn calls head phones 'ear muffs' or how she genuinely thinks that it's Justin Beaver, not Bieber... I want to have it in me, I just don't know if I do or not...

Source: beckyhiggins.com via Candy on Pinterest

9. I thought recently, that I'd like to create a recipe book, through an on-line company such as Shutterfly, one for me and each of the kids, of all our favourite recipes... And then I remembered, they both like 4 things, so I might hold onto that thought for a later date...

10. I don't mean to brag... But I have most of my Christmas shopping done...

11. Tonight we had Family game night. We played a game called Cuponk. I googled the game, for more information, I typed in top kids games of the 2011, and ALL the hits came up as video games.[ Xbox 360°, Wii, Kinect, ipad, iphone, itouch, PC, Nintendo DS...] Eeks... We can play without the aid of an electric device right? We had fun, there wasn't any tears and there were a few pictures to boot.

[no one was harmed playing games tonight, everyone is still in tact]

Halloween 2011

2011-11-03T16:51:00.006-06:00

Eeks, I'm a bit late with the Halloween pictures. The weekend before Halloween was so busy. I'd planned to get the kids dressed up in their costumes to take pictures, but we just couldn't fit it in. I thought the perfect solution would be to wait until the weekend after Halloween, to dress them up again and re-create the scene... Well, it snowed, so that changed plans again.

Here are a few pictures of the kids, dressed up and raring to go last Monday night.

Little Red Riding Hood and Pirate Mason, Arrrrr....

He doesn't look too happy in this picture, I wonder if he was getting into character.

Ready, set, GO!

One of these kids takes it all in stride, the other races up and down the street like her life depends on it... [One of them is ready to quit early, the other would go until midnight if you let her]

We got lots of great compliments on how spooky our house looked... Here's how the witches curtain turned out. There was just enough wind, to blow the plastic, to have our spooky witch peak out every so often.

And finally, our pumpkins.

As far as the candy they've collected goes... they've eaten a little bit each day. During the week they're allowed to pick something from their stash to take to school to eat after their lunch. Then they get to pick one to have after supper, for their dessert. They get to have their fill until Thursday this week. On Friday Barry will take what ever is left over to work. [thank goodness]

Pumpy-kin Carving

2011-11-03T16:18:00.005-06:00

8 kids.
5 adults.
12 pumpy-kins to be carved...

This year we didn't host our annual adult and kids Halloween parties. The guilt factor worked it's way in and I hosted a pumpkin carving party instead. Low key. We picked up pizza for the kids, adults had a few snacks, we carved pumpkins and then we ate. [I tried this for the adults, it was easy-peasy and we were not disappointed] And Stephanie was gracious enough to bring a dessert, which was heavenly... Thanks friend.

I was most impressed with how the kids all took to cutting open their pumpkins, emptying their guts and cutting out faces. I was even more impressed that all the kids but mine, did this... I also had to laugh when Gabrielle asked Mason 'are you sure you're a boy?' Because he didn't want to pull the seeds out of the pumpkin. It is pretty slimy and gross. I have to admit, the idea of giving a sharp cutting tools to my kids, does seem slightly foreign to me. [I still sit outside the bathroom when they're in the tub for heaven's sake...] But after watching the other kids, we handed Mason the tools he needed. I was also shocked at how much effort the kids put into their designs. The kids went through templates, and picked the ones they wanted to do. Miss Madelyn wanted her pumpkin to look like Jack Skellington, no surprise there. From out of nowhere, Mason wanted his pumpkin to be the Calgary Flames logo. Alecia, Austin and Gabrielle, all did pumpkins that were very detailed, and they turned out great. [Alecia did the ghost, Austin did the owl, and Gabrielle did the Frankenstein though he didn't show up great in the picture below]

The kids had a great time. [I didn't have to plan any games or crafts] The noise steadily escalated, and then everyone headed home. It was a great night. Who knows, maybe we'll do an annual pumpkin carving for the kids from now on? I'm undecided.

I never got around to carving my pumpkin, that night, or the next. So I have a pumpkin sitting in the kitchen. I think I might attempt to bake/cook/roast it and make my very own pumpkin puree. Then I can make delicious muffins my kids won't eat...

Humble and Thankful

2011-11-02T15:00:00.008-06:00

I have kept quiet about something. It turns out, I don't share my feelings too well. [Of course my close friends and family already know that, so this admission isn't new to any of them] Yesterday my Dad was in surgery. Major surgery, to remove a portion of his lung. We've been waiting ~~patiently~~ for this surgery to happen since the beginning of September. Let me go back a bit...

When we got home from our trip this past summer, in July, my Dad got word that there was a spot on an X-ray that was 'of worry' to his doctor. There's nothing quite like that conversation to change the way you view things, and nothing like those few words to put you in a place where you begin to think of every worst case scenario possible... Over the past 3 1/2 months we have worried and worried and worried some more. There have been tests, appointments, scans, probes, searches... The results have constantly evaded a diagnosis. It was decided that the doctor would remove the mass in his lung. It's a major surgery. We waited to hear about a date for the surgery since the beginning of September. Suddenly there was a phone call, and a date on the calendar penciled in. We found out the about the surgery on Wednesday, and it took place on Tuesday.

I have spent countless hours praying to God over the past 3 1/2 months. Early on I stumbled across this scripture: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding" [proverbs 3:5-6] Immediately those words gave me such peace. Since this began, I kept finding myself coming across this scripture. So often it happened just when I needed to see/hear it most. It was God's gentle reminder to me, that I was not in control, He was/is.

The surgery took place yesterday. It went without a hitch. It was scheduled to be at least a 3 hour surgery, and it ended up being a one hour surgery. We all feared the worst, and it ended up being the best resolution possible. It turns out, the mass was what they call a 'burned out infection'. They removed the mass and it wasn't nearly as intrusive to the surrounding lung tissue that they'd first anticipated. The best news of the day it's not cancer...

Though the news is terrific it was still a major surgery and the recovery time is 6 weeks. He'll be in the hospital for the next 5-7 days.

I am humbled, that God is gracious enough to give our family this outcome. We are blessed and forever thankful.

You KNOW you really like him when...

2011-10-31T16:02:00.002-06:00

You pop into the grocery store [after a quick coffee with your Mum] heading directly to the milk aisle. As you have your head stuck in the fridge scanning expiry dates [because you have to pick the date furthest away, even though a 4 litre jug of milk may last for 3 days in our house] some guy smiles nicely at you after nearly ramming you with his cart and your first reaction is "He's cute and has a nice smile" and then you realize it's your husband... And it gives you those butterfly feelings in your belly... Well, that's how you know after 4 years of dating, and 13 years of marriage, that you still really like him...

Rocked Out

2011-10-28T09:52:00.009-06:00

Bar and I went to the Foo Fighter concert last night. We went with no expectations. We went with a friend of Barry's, who spontaneously bought online tickets for us back in August. We happened to be sitting outside on our deck, enjoying a beautiful evening. [perhaps having an adult beverage or two...] Apparently this was Mike's most favourite band in the world... He assured us we wouldn't be disappointed. Barry's always after me to see more live music, so we thought, why not?

We started off our 'night out' with dinner at Lounge Burger. Because of the concert, we could only choose options off their 'event menu' so that was a bit disappointing, but the burger was still de-lish. Here's a terrible picture of us, thanks to Bar's Crackberry. [I call it this, because the moment someone gets a hand held device they can check email on, they become a different person... And believe me, it's not always pretty] But last night I was glad for the picture taking [albeit crummy ones] capabilities. Here we are at Lounge Burger. [Proof that we were at a restaurant other than Denny's or Boston Pizza]

Once we got to the Dome, we were greeted with this sign:
I have to admit,whilst receiving my 'full body pat down' I was a wondering what we'd gotten ourselves into. I mean the video/audio devices and outside food, that's kind of a no-brainer. What alarmed me was the need to post the Non-Permitted items:knives, tasers, mace, weapon-like devices and fireworks... Seriously? You need to post that? Eeks. My comfort level plummeted slightly...

They had two bands open for them. We missed the first one, and the second was, in my opinion, crap. That being said, they got the crowd revved up, so someone must have liked them.

Foo Fighters started at 9 pm sharp. It was loud, bright and exactly what you expect a rock and roll concert to be. They played until 11:45 pm. Nearly 3 hours... Wowser. The Calgary Herald summed it up nicely: Dave Grohl and his band Foo Fighters put on, simply, one of the best, most exhilarating, most entertaining, most memorable straight-up rock shows the Saddledome has seen in recent years.

We got home after midnight, on a school night...

It was indeed entertaining. They put on a good show. Mike was right, we weren't disappointed.

We are ever so thankful to my Mum and Dad who not only ferried kids around to the extracurricular activities they had to be at, but gave them dinner before hand, put them to bed after wards, and stayed up well past their bedtime too. [Not to mention it would have been a $60 dollar babysitter bill]

Slightly Crazed...

2011-10-26T15:23:00.003-06:00

I'm gearing up for the end of October in a slightly crazed fashion... This week has been really busy, and as the weekend rolls closer, it doesn't seem to get any less busy.

Tomorrow, Hubsy and I are taking in a concert... I'm not sure how I got roped into it, but I did, and I'm going. We're going to see the Foo Fighters. [It was dangerously close to being Judas Priest] I think we might even try to fit a bite to eat in before hand. How exciting. I'm going to wear my new boots and jeggings... Yup, you read right. Jeggings... [I hope I'm not delusional, I want it to look great] I always warm up to something, when it's beginning to go out of fashion. Any way, it's a big night out for us. We've got grand-parental back-up taking over... My Dad will get Mason to Cubs and Ama will get Miss Madelyn to gymnastics. We're so darn lucky. Thanks Ama & Baba.

Friday, the kids are off at noon. I have to get Mason in for a haircut, I just can't believe how fast his hair grows and how thick it is. Friday evening, we've got the Halloween Hop. A dance for elementary kids is crazy, but the kids have so much fun.

Saturday carries on with a birthday party in the morning for Mason. A luncheon to celebrate October birthday's and meet the newest addition to our family, Miss Isabella. [Can't wait to get my hands on that baby...] Then Saturday night we have a retirement party to attend.

Sunday the boys are selling poppies with cubs [last weekend they did a bottle drive and the weekend before that they were at camp] Then, finally late Sunday afternoon, we're having a little Pumpkin Carving get together... I'm not having a kids halloween party this year, so this is my way of not feeling too guilty about that fact. [Though I do still feel a bit guilty about that fact]

So we head into Monday with pumpkins carved, kids go to school. I am helping out with Pizza lunch at school. After school Mason swims, we'll have to race home, gobble down dinner and the kids will go out trick or treating...

Sometimes weeks at a time, just don't seem to get any slower...

Busy Week

2011-10-21T16:52:00.010-06:00

I've been busy this week... I've been to the eye doctor, I've volunteered in the school, I've stuck to this weeks menu plan [which included a roast, a lasagna, pulled pork sandwiches, and beef dip with left over roast beef] I've taken kids to extra curricular activities, and I've baked. I baked mainly because I spent far too much time this week on Pinterest... [I think I might have a problem] Halloween is around the corner, and so I get to see all these fabulous Halloween-type things. And by things, I mostly mean delicious sweet, yummy type things...

I made these:

I found the recipe here, and I'll be completely honest, I haven't tried a cookie yet... But Madelyn who is always eager to be my 'cookie tester' gave me the two thumbs up as she scarfed one down. Both kids have come home from school since Tuesday and gone straight to the cookie jar, so that's encouraging. The cookies are ginormous. The recipe called to use 1/4 cup for each cookie, and mine are not far from that... They are a decadent treat.

Speaking of decadent, next I made these:

Sweet Mother of Pearl... I changed the recipe slightly [because I could] and added Reece's Peanut Butter Bar instead of plain chocolate... Mmmmm.... Found the recipe here. And this one I did try... And my word, it's good. I under estimated the richness of it though, because I made 2 for everyone. Believe it or not, Madelyn didn't even get half way through hers. I soldiered on, and ate one of mine. Barry, like a trooper, ate both of his, but told me later he thought he was going into diabetic shock. [No offense to anyone diabetic, I know it's not a laughing matter]

Here's my little girl, who has been sporting the new t-shirt I bought her last week. While we were in Disneyland, who was it that she become absolutely enamored with? Not Mickey Mouse, not Minnie. Not Chip or Dale... Not Ariel or Cinderella, even though we got to meet them both. She has a special place in her heart for Jack Skellington...

The Jack stuffie is one of the special things that she spent her money on. I have never seen the movie Jack stars in, The Nightmare Before Christmas, so I really have no idea what kind of person Jack is [although I have my suspicion that perhaps he's not very nice] I do know that we were first introduced to him in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, and to be honest, their first meeting wasn't great... She was genuinely scared of him. But she woke up the next morning, told us she realized it was just pretend and from that moment on it was Jack this and Jack that. Jack, Jack, Jack... I even held her off buying 'Jack' until Wednesday night, hoping someone else might tickle her fancy. But no one did.

Here's Jack during the day. It's true, the Haunted Mansion is not nearly as spooky during day time...
Beloved Giraffe has definitely fallen down a notch. Though apparently the two of them have become the best of friends. Jack has been a fixture in her arms ever since he came home from the Disney store. [A fixture in her thoughts as well... here are a few pictures I found last week]

The picture on the right, is what she drew for Ama. Her words were "So Ama can make a blanket for me".

And because it's been kind of fun, this is what the clementines in her lunch looked like this week. And guess what? I'm not saying that the only reason she ate them were because they had his face penned on with sharpie, but that certainly didn't hurt matters.

Un-Inspired...

2011-10-18T09:11:00.004-06:00

I hate it when you go through little phases like this... The phase of being utterly un-inspired...

Back in September, on the very first day of school, I rushed home, scrapbooked the first day of school pictures and sent them off to be printed. As of then, I was completely caught up with my scrapbooking. Right now I feel completely un-inspired to scrapbook.

I have over 500 pictures of our trip to Disneyland, and I'm still un-inspired.

We're 2 weeks away from Halloween [my MOST favourite time of the year] and I'm un-inspired. I'm trying to thwart that a bit though... For the sake of the kids. Starting this week I'm adding a few little extras into their lunches. Some jokes, some spooky things, I picked up Halloween hand sanitizers at Bath & Bodyworks. The anticipation of the countdown makes them giddy. On Sunday night Madelyn actually couldn't sleep because she's so excited about Halloween! Yesterday, for their lunch boxes, I made them individual english muffin pizzas, with strips of mozza and olive eyes peering out... Mason ate his, Madelyn ate hers at 4 pm, after school when she realized what it was. I mean why would you open up the your lunch box and check at lunch time? Seeing as how I often send chicken gizzards and fish eggs to school....NOT. Today I sent them each an orange, with a jack 'o lantern face on it. [Or in Madelyn's case, a Jack Skellington face on it] But will they eat them? I highly doubt it... But at least it gets them revved up for Halloween.

I made these on Sunday night:
They turned out super cute, using Pillsbury crescent rolls, but would Madelyn even try it? Nope... So it kind of takes away some of the joy of WANTING to do these types of things for the kids.

I did try something new this year, I have coveted Martha Stewart's black witch curtains, made out of plastic bags for a couple of years now. And as much as I'd love a house with a giant front veranda, that's not what I have at the moment. So here's my take.

With a light on in the garage, it's going to be spook-ta-cular!

Thankful Thought No. 6

2011-10-17T15:20:00.003-06:00

There are older cousins too, but these 4 get a long like a house on fire.

11 on the 11th of October, 2011

2011-10-12T08:42:00.014-06:00

1. I am sadly watching the leaves fall off the trees and onto the ground. I hate this time of year. Not because it's so beautiful, visually it's lovely, but because I KNOW the next season lurks around the corner. The longest season of all... winter.

2. I have noticed that when the alarm goes off at 7 am, it's now DARK. I know there'll be a week or so that it might seem light-ish, once we switch the clocks back... But along with the leaves falling, and old man winter lurking around the corner, it's yet another sign that the next season is the longest of all for us. Cold and dark, what an unpleasant combination.

3. I have decorated the mantle for Halloween. I didn't put up as many of my decorations this year, but I do think it looks just right. The kids disagree... I think I could dismember a body in the kitchen, and they'd tell me 'still not scary enough'.

4. The crock pot has made it's way back onto the counter again. Our schedule is quite busy we're on the go 4 nights a week; I'd like to utilize the crock pot maybe 2 times a week this year. Last year, when we had Crock Pot Tuesday, Mason told me that because of the crock pot, he now hated Tuesdays. [Of course when it's Peanut Butter Pork night, he suddenly loves the crock pot] I'm going to find some new awesome recipes.

[picture from Stephanie O'Dea - A year of crockpotting]

5. My kids have picked out what they're going to be for Halloween this year. Madelyn is planning on being Little Red Riding Hood. Mason has decided he'd like to be a pirate this year. I'm looking forward to putting his costume together. Madelyn's costume was bought last year, and then she changed her mind at the last minute and was Jessie from Toy Story.

6. We're into the routine of school now, full time days for both kids. I have to tell you, that the days go by so quickly, it seems unfair. I'm shocked actually. I've also discovered something else, in the past when I've been in the school and I've walked by the Lost 'n Found, I've always thought to myself "Seriously? WHO forgets their jacket?" [Enter Madelyn] who on a daily basis forgets to change into her outside shoes, therefore wearing home the indoor shoes. She forgets her jacket, her vest, her hat and mittens, and yesterday came home without her lunch box... Ey-yi-yi... In the 5 years Mason has been going to school, I checked the lost 'n found once, now I go bi-weekly... I was under the impression that girls were supposed to be more responsible.

7. It's barely the middle of October, and we're knee deep in fund-raisers for school, gymnastics and Cubs... It just never ends. So far we've doled money out to the school for scholastic book orders. For gymnastic we've bought frozen cookie dough [I hope it's yummy, we're taking a chance with this one, but how can frozen cookie dough be bad?] We're in the midst of our fresh fruit fund raiser for school and Scout Popcorn is for sale! The scout popcorn is SO worth it. We love it around our place!

8. I have had my first pumpkin spice latte and pumpkin scone from Starbucks. Both did not disappoint. [I've also made my own batch of SB Pumpkin Scones, they didn't disappoint either]

9. If you decide to take just the weekend off of doing laundry, it piles up in an alarming fashion.

10. My sweet hubby signed me up for a photography class, it's in November. I'm super excited. Wasn't that nice of him? I think so.

11. It's the time of year that I see so many decorating ideas, and I begin my wish list. Here's number one on my wish list, a front porch like this:

Sadly, I don't even care what the rest of the house looks like, I'm just smitten with this snippet! Dream on!

Month in Photos - August & September 2011

2011-10-07T14:01:00.003-06:00

1. First day of school. 2. Madelyn's name tag and shoes at school. 3. Watching the Cochrane Labour Day Parade 4. Playing in the backyard, oblivious to any one else. 5. My expecting niece and her husband. 6. The kids with Pluto. 7. Madelyn's first ever face paint 8. Family photo at Disney California Adventure 9. Signs I made to get the kids picked to be a part of the Jedi Training Program at Disneyland. [They worked!] 10. Two little kids dead tired at the end of the busy day. [They looked like this most nights] 11. Mason and Barry, on our first Disney ride, It's a Small World. 12. Spooky decor outside the Haunted Mansion.

1. My mantra. 2. Little Miss riding her bike without training wheels. 3. Mason at the end of the day of his Tour de Calgary bike camp. 4. Birthday Boy Baba, and the kids. 5. Bench at Nose Hill. 6. Family Self-Portrait at Johnston's Canyon in Banff. 7. Madelyn getting splashed with ice cold mountain lake water in Kananaskis. 8. What the floor looked like under our seats at our first Viper's Baseball game. 9. Little wind-blown girl. 10. Mason on the slip 'n slide in the backyard. 11. Barry and the kids in the canoe at Kananaskis.

Home from the Happiest Place on Earth

2011-10-04T13:44:00.005-06:00

It's true, Disneyland is one of the happiest places on earth. They are really happy there. I was astounded by their attention to detail. Everyone we ran into, no matter what position they held, were polite and kind. I have to tell you one thing, right off the bat, I could NEVER work at Disneyland. I simply could not be that nice, all the time. [Seriously, ask the people I live with, they'll vouch for me for sure]

But for my sake, and my kids sake, I'm really glad that there are that many people, willing to smile and be kind to everyone they encounter. In fact, I'm pretty sure Madelyn came back with a bit of a swelled head. Everyone smiled nicely at her and called her a princess... [Upon our return, that came to an abrupt stop] We had a great time. The weather was great. The park [although busy as an ant hill] was great. The rides were great. We met characters, took lots of pictures, went on lots of rides. We figured out Fast Passes. We were finally able to visualize what it looked like to have 2 parks across from one another. We saw how the Downtown Disney area fit into the equation. We saw the laser show and the fireworks. We watched the parades. We re-went on our favourite rides. All in all, we couldn't have had more fun.

One thing I'd researched and knew about ahead of time was the Disney Photopass. There are dozens of photographers around the park, at any given time, and you can have your picture taken by them. They take your picture, scan a credit card type thing, and return it to you. This allowed me to be in numerous photographs [in fact,these photos will prove that I was on vacation with my family!] This was a no brainer for me, and we have lots of pictures to show for it, so fun. It also took a lot of the pressure off taking pictures all the time, though my camera was never very far from reach.

Disneyland had been transformed for Halloween. It was neat to see. Some of the rides were catered specifically for Halloween [the Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain] there were meet and greet with villains [we met 3!] There was the Main Street Pumpkin Festival [over 300 different carved pumpkins] Here are just a few pictures:

Look at that, even I'm in the pictures this trip! And imagine running into Tinkerbell there! How lucky were we?

This was the Jedi Training Academy, we tried this 3 times, until the kids were chosen to participate... The battle against good and evil. Mason got to battle Darth Vader, while Madelyn was up against Darth Maul. Both won't forget this experience for a long time.

Here we are with vacation Mickey. Madelyn's most favourite mascots are Chip 'n Dale. We luckily found them, and got a picture! And then there's Woody... He's much taller than I thought he'd be!

The kids were at the perfect age for this trip. I couldn't imagine them being any younger. We went hard for a whole week. I'm not kidding, we did 12 hour days. We walked and walked and walked. There was no complaining. Little girl had to be carried on Barry's shoulders a couple of times, but both of them did great. We did nearly EVERY ride in both parks. It was awesome. I was suitably impressed by both kids.

Having said that, the next vacay, will be just the Mummy and Daddy... :-)

I'm happy to be home, and I can't wait to put a little scrapbook together of our Disney Adventure.

A Big Suprise...

2011-09-24T07:39:00.008-06:00

Last night we had a small little birthday celebration for Barry. We had a BBQ, we blew out a few candles, we ate some birthday brownie and then...

We surprised the kids with a trip to Disneyland.

It was worth the anticipation of the surprise, and I'm pleased to say, we were delighted with the result. Their reaction was truly disbelief and excitement. And then, for the rest of the evening they walked around saying "I can't believe this" and "Thank you!".

I made journals for the kids, to document their trip. [Also part of their 'homework' as they're missing a week of school]. We picked up a couple of t-shirts as part of their celebration uniform as Barry called it, and I made up made some fun luggage tags that will go on their backpacks.

Can't wait to see how they do... We're pretty sure we're capturing them at the most perfect age... Here we go!

Happy Anniversary

2011-09-19T11:53:00.004-06:00

Today is my 13th wedding anniversary. Sometimes 13 years feels like a lifetime. Other times it feels like we just got married. Today is an overcast, rainy, somewhat dreary day. Just like it was 13 years ago on our wedding day. At that time I was told that rain on your wedding day was a sign of good luck. [That's the only way I could justify not being totally upset about a rainy day, and indoor portraits] I think it's only fitting that rain on our anniversary still signifies good luck.

You still have my heart. [Even though it would be awesome if you could find the laundry room sometimes]

Happy Anniversary Barry, I would indeed, do it all over again... ;-)

Photo Challenge - A Touch of Sun

2011-09-19T11:15:00.005-06:00

I sometimes tend to stay away from these challenges, but I have a picture that fits this challenge perfectly. I couldn't resist.

I took this photo of Barry and the kids in the summer, my sole purpose was trying to achieve the sun 'flare'. I was quite pleased with how it turned out.

Texture Tuesday - September 13th

2011-09-13T10:25:00.006-06:00

Once again, participating in Kim Klassen's texture Tuesday. This week's challenge was to use the texture Autumn Burst and center the photo around the verb DO. I happened to go to a wedding this summer, so the word couldn't have been more perfect. Here's my picture:

To play along, or find out more:

11 on the 11th of September 2011

2011-09-11T12:05:00.017-06:00

As I was preparing to do my 11 on the 11th [which let's face it, has been a little bit sporadic this year] I suddenly realized that today is September 11th. September 11th, 2011... 10 years after that fateful day we all now know as 9/11. It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years. Already. I can remember things about that day, as if had happened just last week. Images that have been burned into my memory. Horrifying images. So today's 11 on the 11th is being dedicated to the day that changed the way I saw the world.

On September 11th, 2001, I went to work, like I did any other work day. I went for coffee with Janet, like we did every morning, and she said to me, "Did you hear about the plane that hit the building in New York?" I hadn't heard about it. My initial thought was that it must have been a little tiny plane, someone was very confused, had made a very big mistake. I thought someone had miscalculated and missed the airport. How awful, was what I had thought. As we came back from coffee, we met a swarm of people, located on the plus 15 level of our high rise building, watching the televisions that were on. It became very clear to me, very quickly, that we were not talking about a small plane. It was a commercial airliner... Which had crashed into one of the world trade center buildings. As we stood there, in shock watching the live coverage, suddenly another plane hit the 2nd building... How could there have been two tragedies of that magnitude? We learned shortly after that, that this wasn't random, or an accident, but a well thought out plan put into motion. Those images, that we saw over and over, burned into my head forever. We saw people jumping from windows, as the towers became fiery infernos. We saw repeat coverage of the planes crashing into the buildings, until I was completely numb by it. Throughout the day we learned about 2 other planes that were involved in the plan as well, one headed to the Pentagon, and one crashed into a field as it's heroic passengers forced the pilot down.

From my office window, I watched planes gather on the run ways at the airport, as there was a world-wide grounding of air traffic. I tried to contact Barry, who was on a plane that very morning [though only on his way to Regina, thank goodness] I wanted to be home. I certainly didn't want to be on the 27th floor of a high-rise, on the west edge of down town. I wanted to be on the ground.

2 years ago, in 2009, I was in New York. As we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge from Brooklyn back into Manhattan, I kept looking at the skyline, thinking how horrifying it must have been that day, when people were heading into Manhattan for a routine work day, to witness what they did. Here's my picture of the Manhattan financial district skyline from the bridge, back in 2009.

This is what the people on the bridge and in Manhattan saw on 9/11.

Throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn we came across tributes to honor those who were lost. They never failed to take me right back to that day.

One of the places I needed to see on that trip, was the site where the former World Trace Center stood, then known as Ground Zero. Because we were there in late September, there had been a tribute on the anniversary of September 11th. When we arrived, plaques and wreaths, and notes to lost ones littered the area. It was extremely emotional. It was hard to believe I was standing in the spot, where the world had changed. None of us spoke to one another, I can only speak for myself, but if I'd opened my mouth that day, I would have started sobbing.

Posted on the still functioning fire station No. 10; was a plaque dedicated to the fire station who lost 6 of their crew on that fateful day.

We also spent time at St. Paul's Chapel, which miraculously sustained no damage, despite being right across the street from where this tragedy happened.

So what have the last 10 years been like?

• The world as we knew it changed. In. One. Single. Day.
• We watched a nation come together in a time of need.
• I lost a grandmother, who would have been in disbelief about what happened that day.
• I got pregnant and had my first baby [whom I was told when I went into Labor, was a 9/11 baby]
• I have personally never flown on an airplane since, without thinking, "What if?"
• I have had the most extensive full body pat downs, every time I go through airport security.
• I think we tend to look over our shoulders more now. An attempt to see what's coming.
• I don't take anything for granted, especially not tomorrow.
• Planes take off [we live by the airport] and I still hope they all make it up, up and away.
• I don't think I'm as naive about the world, as I once might have been.
• As long as I'm with my family, I feel like things will be all right.

Trying Stuff

2011-09-04T23:21:00.002-06:00

I took the kids to Fish Creek Park yesterday. It was lovely, though the wind was a bit cool. It would seem that fall has arrived. Mason has a homework assignment we've been working on all summer, to get to places all around Alberta. The Ranche at Fish Creek Park being one of places on his list. So away we went, with camera in hand, of course.

I also came across a diy tutorial, on creating an action in PSE, it's the Coffeeshop Sunny Pop Action and Unwrapped tutorial. You can read about it here. So of course, I had to try it out. And to be honest... I think I'm in love... This action is to add warmth and boost contrast, and I think it does both quite nicely. I would have to say, I'm a bit more than intrigued about altering pictures than I ever was. I just wish the whole part of photoshop didn't scare me so much!

So, here are few of the pictures I altered, they are before and after, though I didn't label them that:

I LOVE the red wooden building, but the kids were less than pleased to pose for me. They've had enough of the camera... It's been a long time coming. I don't know if I'm totally crazy about this action on the red, but it's definitely growing on me, but check out the next couple of shots.

Mason has mastered making the face, just as I release the shutter. Seriously, every time. And it's pretty funny. I guess I'd hate a camera in my face all the time too.

And not to be left out:

Yup, she's a card too. I love how this action works on the white background. LOVE it. Makes me want to alter a ton of pictures! It's just completely changes the picture. So there, that's what I've got.

We Did It!

2011-09-01T22:27:00.003-06:00

We made it through the first day of school. What a relief. It seemed like utter chaos. I can't for the life of me understand why they can't just let the Mum's and Dad's have this morning, to see their kids start school. But we got shoo-ed out, like a bunch of cattle. Boohoo, so that means absolutely not one single picture of the kids in the school. Plus, this was the first time we had 2 kids going in 2 separate doors, at the exact same time. We had to split up. [I'm very lucky that Barry has been able to come with us, to the first day of school, every first day of school] I know Mason knows what's happening like an old pro, but why Madelyn suddenly seems like a toddler to me, is beyond all reason...

I got up bright and early this morning, to make two lunches... ;-) That's right, two... Of course there were some special first day of school things for each of them.

I wanted them to both know I was thinking about them of course!

I attached a wee little baggie of smarties for each of them. The shocker was, Mason's came back all finished, and hers didn't! [It might have had something to do with the little note I slipped in her lunch reminding her to eat her healthy things first!]

Ready to head to school. [You see, the photo shoot a couple of days ago didn't at all mean I wouldn't be taking pictures!]

They rode the bus home together after school. Miss Maddy was annoyed that they didn't ride it up to the school this morning. When she got off the bus, she was smiling ear to ear. She's also told everyone who asked that "Grade one is so AWESOME!" I certainly hope it will be.

My first assessment is that the class sizes are way to big... Scary big. I'm going to sit back and see how the next few weeks play out. They've made some changes I'm not crazy about. It's hard to let your kids go, and have absolutely no idea what's going on during their day. And the kids just don't seem to be that great at passing along information. For example, when I asked Madelyn who her teacher was, and I named all three, she wasn't able to give me a definitive answer...

There were no tears on my part. And I didn't break out the champagne... I thought it might be inappropriate on school property. I can't believe my baby is in school. Having said that, she seems so much littler than Mason was when he started Grade One. I guess that's because she's the last. She'll always seem younger than Mason. No matter what.

So we all move on, in this second stage, and feel our way, and figure things out.

Back to School Cheat....

2011-08-31T22:19:00.004-06:00

I did something the other day. I staged our 'back to school' photos. Why? Because it was 29° and gorgeous outside, and the forecast for Thursday called for 15° with the possibility of rain. Besides, I try to cram so much into the morning of the first day of school, I thought why not just loosen up, and not get all carried away with my camera. [If you believe me right now, have I got something I could sell you] Because of course I'll be snapping pictures like a crazy woman tomorrow morning.

But, it poured rain all day today, and the temperature was at best 9°, so for the time being, I'm patting myself on the back for having these pictures already done!

Two kids are bathed, clean and in bed. [It's 10:27 pm right now, and Miss Madelyn is still talking in her room, she is so excited about tomorrow] Clothes are laid out for the morning. Back packs are ready to go. Muffins have been made, lunch boxes are out. Snacks are ready. Breakfast has been decided [french toast] and tomorrow they start back to school. Phew.

I'm undecided about how I feel... I mean, I know they're ready to get back into their routines [as am I] We had a great summer, and it's time to wrap it up. I just can't believe Mason is going to be in Grade 4, and that my baby will be starting Grade 1. Now having said that, I'm wondering if I'll be the only Mummy there in the morning, that will be ready to pop the cork on a bottle of champagne when that bell rings... I guess we'll see what tomorrow brings.

Busy Weekend

2011-08-29T10:19:00.006-06:00

We had a busy weekend. One of those weekends, where you have something lined up, for pretty much every hour of the day. We haven't had many of those this summer, and I'm glad we have a few days off before school starts, so we can catch our breath.

My favourite part of the weekend, was spending Saturday out in Kananaskis with some friends. They have a cabin there, and we were invited to come out and spend the day. The weather was amazing, it was a little windy, but thankfully the wind was warm. The thing that strikes me the most is how utterly quiet it is in the forest. Well, except for Madelyn's constant chatter that is. When she wasn't talking, for a moment here or there boy, was it quiet.

At the lake, there is a sheltered little area, that we tried our hand at paddling a canoe. We've never done that before, and Mason absolutely loved it. In fact, it was hard to keep him out of the canoe. He loved paddling, and both Barry and I took turns taking the kids around and around. Barry and I both paddled until our shoulders burned. [Let's face it, that didn't take too long for me!] And still Mason wanted to go again. Here are some pictures of our day:

Madelyn walking down the path to the beach below the cabin. You definitely wanted to navigate this carefully. We figured it's about a 30 metre elevation drop in about 100 steps... Eeks.

Getting their bearings, it a little pond, before venturing into the big lake. The current was pretty strong, and with the wind blowing, you had to paddle pretty good to get to your destination.

Mason and Barry were a good team. Mason just loved paddling. [Madelyn is talking, if you're wondering]

Madelyn, still talking...

Guess who was also there! Me! To be honest, I was quite content to just sit and watch. Then Madelyn decided she was starving, and Barry took her back up to the cabin for a bite to eat. [We were taking turns going back and forth, because if you have kids you KNOW you go back and forth multiple times, and did you read about the elevation? Seriously, when you get to the top, and your heart is beating in your temples, you need to take turns] So Macy begged me to go in the canoe with him. And so...

There I am. Right here I just splashed Mason with water from the paddle... Who could resist? Seriously. We paddled, and paddled. We went back and forth. Not getting too awfully far from shore. Mace and I paddled around the little island, and on the far side we did encounter waves... But we calmly navigate them without tipping over.

We came back, got Madelyn and went back to the little island, which we explored with bug catchers and nets.

Here, my shoulders were definitely staring to burn...

Back out with Dad again.

I just love that Mason had so much fun. Maybe there will be more canoeing in our future.

Then some splashing and fun, in the ice cold mountain water. [We decided the temperature was similar to the temperature of Mara Lake at the beginning of July]

The view from the deck at the cabin.

Madelyn and Kayley. I have to say I have forgotten how much work a 1 year old can be... Especially somewhere not especially child-friendly. It made me glad my kids are 6 and 9.

We had a great day, we couldn't have asked for nicer weather. We were all pooped from the paddling and fresh air.

Just Around the Corner

2011-08-25T13:38:00.002-06:00

Say it isn't so.....

Is that spook-tacular time of year creeping up on us again? Indeed it is! Whoo-hoo!

Texture Tuesday - August 23rd

2011-08-23T08:36:00.004-06:00

It's been awhile since I've played along with this. Here is my take on this weeks Texture Tuesday. The theme is 'Back to School'. Well, we're not back to school yet, we go back on September 1st. And I don't have to get supplies yet, because it's included in our school fees. So I
used a picture from Mason's first day of Grade 2, 2 years ago. It's one of my favourite photos:

The textures I chose to use were stamped softly and pourvous.

To play along or find out more, click here.

2011-08-22T19:13:00.003-06:00

I haven't done a great job of blogging this month.

My kids are finally fed up with each other. Not every second of every day mind you, but when it starts to go down hill, it does so in a nano-second. Hitting, pushing, pinching, name calling, tattle-tailing and crying have all reared it's ugly head. And do you know what goes hand in hand with that? Yelly Mummy. And I have to tell you, Yelly Mummy is on edge these days. She's tired of the squabbles. She's tired of a couple of kids that wake up way too early, and go to bed way too late. She's tired of making breakfast, lunch and dinner for a couple of kids who turn their little noses up at so much stuff. She's tired of sounding like a broken record that constantly natters things like "pick those up, put that way, make your bed, put your laundry in the basket, turn off the light, FLUSH the toilet, turn off the TV, put away your video games, clean up the toys you were JUST playing with before you start something new." She's tired of negotiating EVERYTHING. She's tired of a particular little girl who does EVERYTHING the HARD WAY. She's tired of dragging kids out of the house because they 'don't wanna go'. She's even a teensy bit tired of being corrected by her 9 year old, who is indeed his Daddy's little boy...

Yelly Mummy has grounded her children from watching television, because we have finally [sadly, I might add] said good-bye to Treehouse. We have gone from Miffy and Friends to The Amazing Spiezs... We've gone from Dora the Explorer to Johnny Test... We've gone from Wonder Pets to Phineas and Ferb [whom I'm pretty sure I hate...] I was kind of okay with the move to the Teletoon channel... I don't love all the shows, but there are some oldies the kids love like: Scooby Doo, Tom & Jerry, The Bugs Bunny & Tweety Show, Looney Tunes. Mason loves Star Wars the Clone Wars. A lot of the other cartoons, I'm just not crazy about. The last month or so, the sass and back talk have flared up around here, and their Dad and I are not taking too kindly to it. After a Mum/Dad huddle trying to figure out 'why the change', we realized, perhaps it was the shows they were watching. Lightbulb, or A-Ha moment, if you will. Seriously, did my Mum worry about what I was watching? [Did you Mum?] Then again, the extent of our cartoons were Flintstones after school and a few Saturday morning shows, end of story.

Don't even get me started on the family channel. I am NOT READY in the slightest bit to have my daughter wanting to emulate any of the girls on those shows. [Madelyn has already asked for her next birthday to be a Justin Beaver party] And yes, I tried to correct her with the name, but she refuses to believe me. So Justin Beaver it is.

I get that these shows are supposed to be funny. I also know they're directed towards kids, not adults. But they make adults/parents out to be complete morons... I mean, don't get me wrong, I watched The Facts of Life.

Every one, sing with me now....

You take the good,
You take the bad,
You take them both and there you have the facts of life.
The facts of life...

I watched and Different Strokes.

I'm pretty sure I walked around the house saying things like "Whatchyou talk'in 'bout Willis?" thinking I was H I L A R I O U S. Both these shows starting airing late in the 70's, Different Strokes ran from '78 - '86 and the Facts of Life from '79 - '88. So, suffice to say, I shouldn't have a problem letting my NINE year old watch a show, not of the cartoon variety, when I started watching these when I was 8-9. [Oops, I just gave my age away ;-0]

But I just don't like the shows today... Is it okay to say that? I mean when we watched those shows mentioned, it was a family affair. We ALL watched the shows. Back then we had ONE television in the house. One. Not a telly in every room. Not a telly on every floor. ONE telly, for the entire family. So of course my Mum and Dad watched with us. It was a Friday night thing. And lucky them, they were able to censor exactly what we were watching, and I didn't even realize that's what they were doing. Now, there are so many shows to choose from and the kids think that just because it's called the Family Channel, I should be okay with them watching whatever they want to. "But Mummy, we're only watching the Family Channel" The fact that they're both still calling me Mummy should say it all. [Or if the truth be told, they still call me Mummy because I told them they had to until they were at least 15...] They don't know any different, yet...

I would like to ~~get rid of the TV entirely,~~ well maybe that's a bit extreme. I would like the kids to not want to watch so much TV. I need to have more control. I'm thinking I'd better look up the information on blocking channels. Now is a good time to do that, I'm already Yelly Mummy, so Wicked Witch Mummy isn't such a stretch from there really. I would like them not to watch so much TV, but at the same time, sometimes the quiet it affords me is blissful. Such a contradiction.

I guess what I'm getting around to, is this Yelly Mummy, who adores summer vacation. Who loves to have no schedule. Who sleeps in and wakes up with a smile most mornings... This Mummy is looking forward to school starting next week. It's taken 8 weeks to get to this point . I wonder if that's why summer vacation is in around the 8 - 9 week mark... I'm pretty sure that 2 weeks from now, we'll all have cooled off a bit, and look forward to spending time together again. [Maybe without so much TV]

Vintage Pictures

2011-08-16T20:07:00.003-06:00

I've been watching, for quite some time now, people posting pictures on blogs and websites that are intended to look old, or vintage if you will. At first I thought, "Gee, really... Why would you want all your new pictures to look old?" I mistakenly thought it was a fad, but it has proven to be one of those "fads" that just seems to go on and on an on.

What I'm saying is, as time has worn on, slightly I'm more intrigued by the vintage look. Don't misunderstand me, I think it's highly unlikely that I'll change ALL my pictures to 'vintage'. But I suppose there is just cause to alter a few pictures... Or is there? I can't get my head around it. So, with out saying anything more, here is my take on vintage photos:

And I think the vintage idea looks neat, but the vibrant color of the original photograph looks awesome... So why am I changing these pictures? I don't know yet. And the jury is still out whether I love the look of it or not...

Overheard...

2011-08-12T14:10:00.002-06:00

A conversation last night, between Mason and Madelyn. I love it when they're just talking so freely with one another, and they don't even know I'm right there...

Right out of the blue I overheard this:

Madelyn: "Mace, when boys are adults they have to find beautiful flowers and give them to their favourite girlfriends"

Mason: "They have to?"

Madelyn: "Yes, they have to."

[Personally, I'm wondering how she would have come across this tidbit of information in the first place...]

11 on the 11th - August 11, 2011

2011-08-10T15:39:00.008-06:00

1. When the alarm goes off in the morning [and this week it's gone off every morning at 6:42...Eek] it's much darker than it was a month ago. Already we're headed toward the longest day of the year... I just love summer.

2. The kids were in camps last week, and again this week. So far they're loving it. I mentioned something to Mason the other day, about the Park 'n Play camps being in an area close to us next week... He very gently said "Mummy, I think I've had enough camps..." Well said, little buddy, well said.

3. This morning, our yard was alive with Waxwings. They're such an exotic looking bird.

4. Madelyn is on 2 wheels!

5. If you can wait until the 11th of August, to do any planting, EVERYTHING is on sale. Up to 60% off. You can get a ginormous planter for $10.

6. As we near the middle of August, I wish we had another 2 months stretching out before us. I've enjoyed time with the kids and time alone while the kids were at camps.

7. Corn on the cob was on sale, I picked up extra ears and made this refreshing salad. It's got corn, red peppers, tomato, cilantro, lime juice and olive oil. It was very tasty.

8. I could eat an egg salad sandwich for lunch, every. single. day. I don't joke about this, I could. It's nice though when you have it at someone else's house once in awhile, it always tastes better when someone else makes it.

9. Tonight we celebrated Baba's birthday. Happy Birthday Baba!

10. Full moon is coming up on Saturday. Our moonlight walks have not taken off at all this year. First of all, winter is not that much fun to walk in. And the weather is a huge factor. Believe it or not, most to the full moon nights have been over cast, or dreadful weather-wise. One thing we have done a lot more this year though, is spend time at Nose Hill. Can't wait until both kids can ride their bikes up!

11. It's getting darker much earlier in the evening. Noticeably so. How sad. And I'm not ready to think about 'back to school' stuff. I'm grateful to just write a cheque to the school and not have to worry about supplies.

Weird and Wacky Weather

2011-08-06T12:58:00.004-06:00

Yesterday we had another wild storm rage through Calgary. The sky was dark, I'll give it that, but it wasn't freaky looking or anything. Last week, they sky looked dark, ominous and scary, and it went right past us with nothing but a bit of wind... Here's a look at last weeks sky:

This seemingly innocent looking sky, hit us good. Later, we found out that around 5 pm or so, there was storm advisory issued for Calgary. I have NEVER seen it rain like that before. [Don't we always say that?] But it poured, for over an hour. There was so much rain and lightening [I try to be brave in front of the kids] The kids took cover in the basement, but it happened right during dinner, so we did sit at the kitchen table. The rain cascaded off our roof, below Madelyn is watching, you can see the stream of water coming off the roof. [Later we found our door leaking... We took baseboards off, and the dry was was soaking wet... NOT a good sign] Obviously water got in somewhere...

Madelyn watching the rain pour down.

Our drainage canal in the back yard was a raging river.

Upon closing kids bedroom windows, we discovered this bedroom window leaking... And I'm not sure leaking is the right word. Every time we moped it up, more just seeped in behind. We soaked a number of towels. This people, is not a good sign. Two in one storm, not good.

This picture isn't great, because the windows were wet, but our street looked like a river. Thank heaven's we're on a slight hill. Beddington Trail was filled with up to waist deep water in some places.
There was so much hail, that our gutters backed up. Again, the picture isn't great, but every seam in the trough had water shooting straight up. It was crazy. I looked for pictures on the web, but the only one I could find was this:

Let's keep our fingers crossed that we're done with these wacky storms.

Month in Photos Catch Up

2011-08-05T15:02:00.007-06:00

My intention this year, was to keep up to date [at least monthly] with my favourite photos from each month. Rebecca Cooper offered her handy-dandy templates here. I realized, that I have completed a few of the previous months layouts, but for some reason they didn't get posted on my blog. I find it hard to narrow it down to a just a few pictures, and then when I look at the favourite pictures, most of them I have already posted individually on my blog. In any case, I'm half way through the year, so I might as well keep going!

Here they are:

1. Daddy helping Mason with his slap shot. 2. Madelyn and I celebrating Gigi's 94th Birthday. 3. Madelyn loving Gigi's wiggly arm skin. 4. Reading this book to me, actually reading it! 5. Trip to the zoo to see that new baby giraffe. 6. Our little gymnast. 7. Silly Bandz boy [they were Star Wars, he was in heaven] 8. Little girl, cleaning up the batter. 9. Mace racing his Cub Car. 10. Mason helping shovel snow off the back deck. 11. Looking the part of a hockey player. 12. I crocheted a cup cozy.

1. Miss Maddy G turns 6. 2. Glasses for Mad's party. 3. Birthday cake. 4. A little charm of Chip or Dale [Madelyn's favourite] though I can never remember who's who. 5. Our shadow family. 6. Mason playing his home made flute. [Many thanks to Baba that helped Mason make it] 7. Me and my kids on Mother's Day. 8. Blooming crocus on Nose Hill. 9. The paper cranes, hanging in the atrium at school. This was a grade 3 initiative to raise money to help the Tsunami victims of Japan. 10. The kids up at Nose Hill. 11. Madelyn with curls in her hair, she requested this 'do' on her birthday.

1. Little bug girl, note the pink nail polish. 2. A rainy day fort. 3. Lego man head sugar cookies I made for Mason's birthday party. 4. Mason totally lost in the 1st Percy Jackson novel. 5. Ama & Baba and the kids, downtown after Madelyn's dance recital. 6. Barry and the kids on Father's Day. 7. Getting a surprise birthday smooch from his adoring sister. 8. Birthday Donut Cake! This was a huge hit, because he doesn't really like cake all that much [whose kid is he?] 9. He's 9. 10. Macy and his Momma. 11. Two very excited little people on the last day of school.

1. Jeff and Lisa, newly married. 2. The happy couple [their outdoor wedding was SO beautiful] 3. Mason at the lake, devouring the 2nd Percy Jackson novel. 4. Barry and I, all dressed up fancy for the wedding. 5. Our family picture at the lake. Chris got to come and spend a few days with us this year. 6. The little diva sunning herself. 7. Mason playing in the sand [and yes he knows his shirt is on backwards and he doesn't care] 8. A picture of me out in the boat... 9. Macy and Ama on the river. 10. Maddy and Baba on the river. 11. Yes, she has a milk moustache, but I love this picture anyway.

Easy-Peasy Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

2011-08-02T21:47:00.007-06:00

I have been using up my rhubarb. I've made muffins, jam and yummy crumble. I can't decide whether or not to post recipes on my blog or not... Yay, or nay? The jam is my favourite. It tastes great on toast and muffins. [I bet it would even taste good on ice cream...]

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

4 cups halved or quartered firm strawberries [depending on size]
1 cup finely chopped rhubarb [my rhubarb was frozen]
2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice

1. Mix berries and sugar and let stand for 8 hours, stirring occasionally. [I cut my strawberries up quite small, I didn't want giant chunks in my jam]

2. Place berry mixture in a medium stainless steel or enamel saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Add lemon juice, return to a boil and boil rapidly for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 24 hours.

3. Bring mixture to a full boil over high heat and boil rapidly for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

4. Ladle into sterilized jars and process [short time processing procedure].

This amount made 4 - 235 ml jars. I made 2 separate batches.

I didn't take a picture of the Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble I made, but it was really good. A perfect balance between tart and sweet. And I suppose if I am to post its recipe it only makes sense to show a picture of it. I guess that means I'll have to make another one, isn't that a pity... [wink, wink]

WITL - Friday, Saturday and Sunday

2011-08-01T23:53:00.006-06:00

Sunday - A quiet, no kid breakfast. Some quiet reading time on the patio. Mum and my freshly pedicured feet. Buffalo Chicken Dip for a BBQ at a friends house. Both kids, riding their bikes around the bike path. Both are getting more and more confident. Mason took a spill, but got right back up, shook it off, and did get on his bike again. I was hoping that Madelyn would see some of the other kids without training wheels and be a little bit more excited to try it herself. We'll see what the future holds.

And this ends the week of picture taking for A Week in the Life. I've put some of the pages together already. I have more to do. Looking forward to getting it all finished and put together.

Saturday - Making pancakes with Daddy. They were very good. Love all the fresh fruit at this time of year. My little non-fiction loving boy... He's spent hours pouring over this book. Shadows in the sun! Date night, a movie [Horrible Bosses] and a bite to eat!

Friday - This is what it looks like outside at 5:59 am. It's light, sun just peeking up... Birds are busy, it's not my usual getting up time. A trip to Costco after dropping the kids off at the Park 'n Play. We had a power outage that lasted from 2 - 6 pm [time not showing on microwave] Little girl having her filthy park feet washed. This is the storm that was brewing in our neck of the woods... It was more than kind of scary looking. For some reason, it missed us completely. [The little town north of us, Airdrie, didn't fair as well. Apparently they got a ton of hail damage.]

WITL-Thursday Pics

2011-07-29T04:26:00.005-06:00

My jam, and yes it is as good as it looks [if you think it looks good that is] Mason mailing a letter. Heading out to Park 'n Play. We woke up to good weather. Price of gas that went up of course, due to the long weekend ahead. I hit the driving range this morning, while the kids were busy. Mason getting dropped off at Ama & Baba's for a sleep over. Inspecting where once a tooth was. Barry, Madelyn and I to BP's for dinner, we got the rare chance to sit outside on the patio. Yard work and weeding. Madelyn got some un-interrupted Wii time.

WITL-Wednesday Pics

2011-07-27T23:41:00.005-06:00

It was raining again this morning when we woke up. It stopped shortly before noon, which was great because the kids had golf lessons. After our lesson, we went to the library, then made a stop at Timmy Ho's for a bite to eat. Tonight after supper, we had a rather momentous occasion... Baby girl lost her first tooth... [I'm taking it better than I thought I would, there were no tears shed on my part] We taught Mason how to play Solitaire. Tonight, I finished my second batch of Strawberry Rhubarb Jam. It's so yummy!

WITL - Tuesday Pics

2011-07-27T09:14:00.005-06:00

We woke up to pouring rain. It rained on and off for most of the day. Needless to say, the kids didn't make it to Park 'n Play, and they were disappointed. It was a great day for hanging out inside. I woke up with an abomination on my mouth... Poor me, so it was a feel sorry for myself kind of day. I made banana bread [yummy]. I made guacamole to put into the freezer [delicious] and I started another batch of Rhubarb Strawberry Jam. I made vanilla steamers for the kids. We read books. The kids played Lego. [I even had a little nap on the couch; shhh, don't tell] Barry took us to Wendy's for dinner [I think he took pity on me too] Later on in the evening, I went for a walk with a neighbor, and the kids went out in the hot tub. I opened a bottle of wine, and we watch the last 2 episodes of Private Practice...[Yes we're THAT far behind] We finally watched the last 2 episodes of Grey's Anatomy last week. Have I mentioned how much I love the PVR?

Week in the Life has Begun!

2011-07-26T09:11:00.002-06:00

I started yesterday. I only took 30 photos... It sometimes takes me a day or two to get into it. And that's fine. This is the 3rd time I've participated in Ali's Week in the Life. Writing down everyday things seems somewhat mundane, and then you look back a few years and realize how big the changes have actually been... Three years ago the kids were 3 and 6. Mason was just starting grade one, and school for the baby still seemed a long way off. This September I have one starting grade 4 and one starting grade 1! Eeks! It is really neat to capture the 'every day'. This is the first time I've done it over the summer holidays, so it changes it up again; with both kids are here all day. Here are a few of yesterday's photos.

Rhubarb Muffins

2011-07-21T10:04:00.002-06:00

Phantom Rhubarb Muffins
[recipe from Best of Bridge series]

Rhubarb Muffins
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 1/3 cups flour
1 cup diced rhubarb
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Topping
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp melted butter

To make muffins: Blend together sour cream, oil and eggs. Set aside. In another bowl, stir remaining ingredients together and combine with sour cream mixture. Mix until just moistened. Fill 12 large muffin cups 2/3 full.

To make topping: Combine all ingredients and spoon onto each muffin. Bake at 350°F for 25 - 30 minutes.

These muffins are delicious. Every time I make them, the kids are excited about the use of rhubarb, but not quite as excited when it comes time to eat them... Oh well, I'm trying to get them involved! I know there are plenty of adults in my life that enjoy a yummy rhubarb muffin, not to worry! On today's agenda, making Strawberry Rhubarb Jam.

Home Again

2011-07-20T19:09:00.007-06:00

Phew... It's already Wednesday. We've been back home for 4 days. We got home around supper on Saturday. Sunday I had reservations for brunch and matinee tickets to see this:

So I kinda felt like I got home and my feet were already running. It's a bit of a shock to spend two weeks on vacation doing absolutely nothing... Seriously. I park myself into a beach chair, and mostly stay put there. There is a lot of snacking, and definitely more drinking that normal. I do manage to do the occasional load of laundry... And those kids need to be fed breakfast, lunch and dinner. Not to mention the snacks they want. Our summer vacations seem to be a lot about the snacks... But the rest of the time, I do nothing. [That's another reason why my legs are aching so badly the past 2 days, I've been doing something, all day long!]

Here are a few pictures of our 2 weeks. The first week was great weather-wise. It wasn't terribly hot, but it was sunny and the sky for the most part was cloudless. I think the rain stayed away until our first Friday there...

1. Madelyn and Baba driving the boat. 2. Family Photo 3. Reading book #2 of the Percy Jackson series [he's totally loving it!] 4. Mason climbed up and jumped off the pole this year! 5. Brother and sister on the beach. 6. Maddy slowly climbing in the ice cold lake... 7. Mad reeling Mason in after a tube. 8. Night time moon over mountain picture, courtesy of Barry. 9. Mason reeling Madelyn in after a tube.

1. Friends arrived! 2. Mason and Madelyn tubing. 3. Playing a new game Baba bought [it was a huge success, we all had a great time playing] 4. Our first Mara Lake turtle! 5. Lake friends, ranging in age from 3 to 13, they all got along wonderfully. 6. Watching a storm on the lake, it was a crazy little storm that had the sand blowing up off the beach. 7. Night time and glow sticks go hand in hand. 8. Our little foursome. 9. Macy and Ama, in the boat.

I touched on the mosquitoes, in my last blog post. But I feel the need to talk about them again. I am not exaggerating, one single bit, when I say that I have NEVER seen mosquitoes like that. They literally swarmed you the moment you stepped out of the cabin. It was awful. The morning we left, they seemed even worse. And with having the cabin door open and shut so much, and the truck doors and hatch open, the cabin was full of them, as was the truck. I would have taken a picture of Mason's back and legs, but I didn't want to be reminded of it for one single moment. He reacts so badly to them, they swell up and it looked like people had put cigarettes out on him. It was nearly unbearable. It made spending time outside, very un-fun. You were constantly smacking and swatting and wiping blood off yourself.

Having said that, now that we're home, I've spent quite a bit of time outside in the garden, weeding and enjoying the sun, and I think I've killed 2 mosquitoes in 4 days... Ahhhhh... It's heaven.

We made a special reading spot in the backyard in our little playhouse. Both kids have spent a lot of time out there the last couple of days, reading. I love that. I love that they both love to read. I'd seen a neat idea for a reading spot in this post here, and considered doing it, then thought why on earth wouldn't I use what I already have? So the 'reading spot' came to be.

After creating their cozy reading spot, and in between nearly a dozen loads of laundry, I pulled up some rhubarb. Couldn't wait to make some muffins, I have a delish recipe, I'll share. They're from the Best of Bridge [of course...] They are very yummy. Can't wait to also make a rhubarb pie, rhubarb crumble, and strawberry rhubarb jam... I got over 8 cups of rhubarb cut up and in the freezer, so the possibilities are endless!

Two Words...

2011-07-13T13:36:00.003-06:00

Rain and mosquitoes. In my entire life, I have NEVER seen mosquitoes like they are right now. Our first week here, they were a bit of a problem in the evening, once the sun went down. But now, and for the past 6 days they have been AWFUL. They literally swarm you the moment you leave the cabin.

It's terribly unpleasant...

And the kids. Those poor little kids who don't retreat to the inside of the cabin like their parents do. I shudder to think how many actual bites my kids have, one of the neighbor kids [Alecia] counted 112 bites... Eeks. So here we are, in the rain, and the mosquitoes actually hang off the screen door... The kids are covered in bites and Off and Deet... That's right... Because what do you do? Everyone keeps talking about how bad it is to get West Nile, which is caused by getting bit by mosquitoes. Then they talk about how dangerous Deet is, and how you don't want to get too much on your skin. And then you chase kids around slapping and smacking and shooing blood sucking little skeeters away, continuously.

And when we complain, they say how they don't want to spray for mosquitoes because it's bad for the environment.... But West Nile and Deet all over our children is okay...

I'm having swarming nightmares... This is not making the holiday terribly enjoyable, I'll be honest. Of course the overcast days and rain, don't help our plight much. Come on Mr. Sun.. We only have a few more days to go!