Family Day at Winterlude

On Monday we were asked to join our neighbours and some friends to go over to Jacques Cartier Park to partake in the Winterlude festivities for Family Day. I must have been delerious from my sleep deprived weekend...because I went. Just me and the two girls(insert what was I thinking..lol) We got all packed up to go, I got out the 'ol GPS and put in my coordinates, feeling pretty confident that I could drive there no problem because of it. WRONG! After yelling the umpteenth time to the girls I finally got onto the highway...and then it started. The GPS tells me the battery is low...I think that is ok.. it should have enough juice to get me there, and once I got there, I should be able to get home no problem...right....WRONG! So I take the Nicholas exit like it says(let me insert I only somewhat familiar with going down Elgin...oh and I really stress out when I go downtown..lol) So I get off the exit, and then it tells me I have reached my destination....WHAT..OH NO...what to do. I see signs for Gatineau and I fallow them. Well that takes me over the King Edward bridge which turns right into Highway on the Quebec side. Whats the problem you may ask...I have no freaking clue as to what exit I have to take to get to the park from there. So I take the first one, and then I finally come across a road name I recognise. And now the cruising begins...trying to find a spot to park. I circled block after block, came across the neighbours walking by me(thank god I found them..but I still have to find a parking spot) circle one more time and then finally get into a very cramped parking lot (I am driving a van which really feels like a tank..lol)which is all ice(no snow tires on meaning no traction..lol) and quickly get out of the van and kiss the ground that lil ol me made it there..phew...SO we catch up with everyone in the park and we advance to the slides. There was a crowd, but thankfully the lines moved at an ok pace. We indulged in some beaver tails and maple taffy, and took in the snow sculptures. All in all it was a fun time with beautiful weather. Then it was time to go. I went to turn on the GPS and..UH OH..it is completely dead. I think to myself, that is ok...I can do this. I exit the parking lot and then it begins..the roads are blocked off and I am wanting to go where the roads are blocked off because that is the way I knew from going to the museum...try to find an alternate way to get there...damn one ways...I can't. So my only solution is to go towards the way I came in..starting to sweat a wee bit...FINALLY a sign pointing to Ottawa..HOORAY!!!! I make my way to it and after merging in with a bunch of crazy drivers I made it onto the highway and back towards the bridge...phew...Now I have the mind frame that I can drive anywhere...LOL...So here are a few snapshots of the day...I saw a bunch of people using this polaroid program lately and thought I would give it a go...what fun!!!

MMMMMmmmm...Beavertails

what a bunch of goofballs




US GIRLS!!

the drive home

passed out..just how I like them ;)

What a weekend!

I have finally had a chance to get away from all my every day stresses to just relax and have no one to worry about but myself. With that, this has been one of my most productive weekends away when it comes to creating. I was able to create 8 layouts and 2 "family" bracelets(it has each of our birthstone colours in swarvoski crystals) to bring home to my girls for valentines day. I probably could have done a bit more in the layouts department, but I pretty much goofed off on Friday night and did alot of surfing online and trying to take in the olympics opening ceremonies, and then also indulged in a relaxing swim on Saturday. I had a GREAT time, even though I now have a sore tummy..and feel like exploding all thanks to the gourmet food served(can you hear the sarcasm pooring out..lol) and am defintely a wee bit tired...10 hrs sleep in those 2 days..ugh...who needs sleep really..LOL...All that mattered that I was with great company...right.
SO here are my masterpieces ;) FOr some reason some of my layouts are loading sideways...and cannot for the life of me figure out how to fix them around...they are the right way on my computer...grrr....oh well...just move your head to the side and you will get the gist of them! I tell you, if I was not so darm tired, and the fact my scrapping bag is still in the car, I would still be scrapping..lol. Oh I forgot to add...I came home to a homemade chinnese food dinner, dozen red roses, and a baskin robbins ice cream cake....life is pretty good!

(love this pic of the girls)

(the girls bracelets...picture does not justice..they are so sparkly IRL)

(this lo still needs some jounal strips which I will add over the "T")

(this was a challenge Mell and I did using the same products in a kit)

(this is one of my fave lo's I did this weekend)

Ramblings.....

Well nothing creattive to note in this blog post. It has been pretty busy. I am getting away this weekend and hope to have many creative pages to post early next week! This past week has been very exhausting in the motherhood department. As they get older, they definitely give you a run for your money. Yesterday made me feeling like a very inadequate mother. Ab ended up doing some really stupid things, and I had no idea it was even going on. I always thought that I had a hand on things and knew what she was up to...well she hid it well..ugh...Let's just say she has lost a mnay priviledges for quite a few weeks. I said if things do not change, she will not be heading to Florida with the rest of the family. I will have someone stay with her! I think I gained a good 50 more grey hairs just from her. I hate the attitude that they get once they hit the preteens. Of course Hadley has also been testing our patience as of late. I must say I am looking forward to this weekend, and then next weekend John and I are heading up to Mt. Tremblant with friends...cannot wait!!!! Ok so now onto some other ramblings. This is all to do about home decor and furnishings and such.
I have been on the search for a dining table and chairs for at least 6 months now. Just not finding anything that catches my eye... since it is a very expensive investment, I just did not want to settle for jus anything. I have always loved the look of harvest tables, and then came across one looking like this which is made from old barn threshing boards. I love that old world charm. I am pretty sure this is what I want in my dining room. I have my great great grandfathers buffet which I stained in a darker stain and looks just like the table. And to make it more modern, and to mesh with the rest of the house, I thought I would add some brown leather parson chairs. I would love to have John make me a table like this so we can save some $$, but he is not too sure if he is up to the task.. Well there is no real rush on this...I really want it, but I have a table that works when need be. Eventually I will get it..plus I wil look for the chairs when they are on sale, and pick them up then.

(this is my dream table)

Now onto another project I have been mulling over this past week or so. One of my garage entrances opens into the kitchen. We have a closet right at the door which more or less just houses the pet foods and brooms, mops and whatever else needs to be hidden. Not a jacket gets hung up there..and the boots just lay strewn all over my kitchen floor. We tend to be using this entrance alot lately.

(the back entrance door area)

We were going to take off the bifold doors and replace with swinging doors..but instead of buying new doors I think I want to convert this closet with mudroom lockers. I will split the are into two lockers for each girl, with a bench and then open area underneath to house all the boots and shoes. They will have hooks which will make it easy for them to hang up their school bags and coats. They just cannot do it with hangers since the rods are so high. I will have shelves above that can hold some baskets where hats and such can be placed into it. Here are a few photos of ideas as to what I was wanting.

(I like how the bench goes out further than the cubby)

(in this photo I love how the seat is dark, I want to do this to match the kitchen cabinets, and love the beadboard in behind..still deciding if I want to do it 2 tone like this or just do it all in the stained oak to match the kitchen.)

Now as you can see in the phot below I have been using my door as somewhat as a message centre. Which is nice since it is hidden behind the wall so you do not see the clutter until you walk in front of the door. My thoughts with this is I want to paint that wall to the right of the door in black chalk board paint. I found a really cute dry erase vinyl calender which I would buy to put up on that wall and any other cute vinyl pieces..like seen in the photo below with chalkboard wall. Then I could use the door just to hang the girls art work...thus tiding things up a bit and adding some colour/pizzaz.

So whatcha think...should I take the plunge and do the lockers and message area? I think if I do that, perhaps my front entrance will stay cleaner and clutter free. So when someone comes to the door, it is not an obstacle course for them to get through.

Some more layouts

Well..I was able to do up a few more layouts...I actually did these based on sketches. I was never one to truly use, but wow..it made things go quick...that and I barely used anything on the pages..lol.

Had fun doing this..I only wish I could be a more tidier scrapper. My god, the mess. I am horrible! I just cannot be tidy. I mean really..how hard would it be to put things away as I was done a page. Apparantly for me...REALLY HARD..lol.

Enjoy!

Creative Weekend!

It has almost been a year since I have sat down and scrapbooked. Well that has now changed. After having a wee bit of a cretive afternoon/evening on Saturday, I decided to sit down and scrapbook today. Now when I say scrapbook, I did not one, not two..but almost 3 layouts today. The third one is sitting just waiting to be attached mor permanently. It felt really good to sit and create some pages. I did come to the realization that I am somewhat of a simple..less is more gal...and it will take me decades just to get through all my stash. I sat and looked at all my jars of ribon, and wondered why did I ever buy all that..lol..I rarely ever use ribbon. I am happy with an assortment of pattern papers and maybe the odd little embellishment. I think I will have to try and make myself load up some of my pages, just so I can dwindle down my huge stash.

So my Saturday had me creating this little bird home decor project which I will find a home on some shelf. I still have to fix his wire legs and attach them to the bird, but I took a photo so you would get the gist of how he looks.

And here are the two layouts that I was able to finish up today. I will try and post my third one tommorrow..who knows..maybe I will make up a 4th tommorrow:)

Super old photos..but that is all I had...I have not developed anything in a looooong time!

Dreams.....

Let's start off to say I am huge in the dream department. I do not think there is not a night where I do not dream. My dreams tend to be very vivid, and I tend to remember a many of them. I awoke from one this morning just before the alarm went off. Ever since I have been truly an emotional wreck(not too sure why it is turning around so much). I had a dream which included my grandfather whom just passed at christmas. Now some believe that if a dearly departed comes into your dream, it oculd truly be their spirit. Perhaps that is why there is a bit of turmoil..just not too sure how to interpret things I suppose. This is the second time he has come to me in my dreams(if that is really what is happening) The first time was the night..or shall I say morning he died. After finally falling asleep in the wee hours of the morning after being at the hospital with him as he passed, he came to me in my dreams. I really wish I wrote down what happened, because now I do not remember. I just know he was there. This morning my dream began with John and the girls at my grandparents old house. My grandmother was out in the garage greiving for the lost of my grandfather, and I felt so helpless just watching her from inside. She then comes in to the house from the garage. My grandfather also comes into the kitchen. We know that he is dead, but he was there with us none the less. He appeared as I remember him when I was younger, before he became ill from his strokes. I was sitting on a chair at the kitchen table and came and gave me a kiss and I told him I love him. He was then playing around and goofing with the girls and watching the dog and cat play. We were all laughing and I could feel happiness all around us in the kitchen. But all through the laughing and joking we all new he was dead, we were just enjoying the time we had. Then I just awoke quickly from the dream and since then I have been feeling very dicombulated and crying at the slightest thing. I really like to think this was his spirit visiting me...I feel truly blessed to have that dream and to be remebering him in his vitality...I just really wish to know why I am so bothered inside...it is such an undescribable feeling overwhelming me....with that I will end by posting a phot from many years back of my "Papa".....RIP...."love you!"

Deception....this & that

Well I have been deceived through labelling. Now, I imagine this has not been the first time, nor will it be the last. How have I been deceived you might ask? Well it was with tortilla chips. Quite a while back a well known brad came out with Multi grain chips and I thought..wow..great lets get these...must be better for me. HA! Well this is where I come into comparing the nutritional label of these and the regular chips. They both have the same calories, fat percentage and fibre content....the difference...the multi grain had sugar in them, where the regular had 0 grams of sugar. All this time I thought I was eating the better choice..NOT!! So this is now a reminder that I must check my labels more closely. Multi grain is no longer wanted in this home..well at least for these chips:)

As for this and that, this morning I spent a little while surfing the web at scrapbook layouts, looking for some inspiration. I believe this is step one in me getting back on that scrapping wagon. I even started planning layouts as I was looking. Next step is to go through photos, do a little editing and then get some printed out. Here's hoping by Feb. I will be ready to scrap:)

Not much else has been happening in the last week except for the usual...kids and school, working out, work and more work. I actually have to soon get off this computer so thta I can do a few chores around the house, and then head out to do a trade type show for work. I did get my hair done yesterday...so needed it...it is now at a more managable length(meaning quicker to get done for work) and all the grey is once again hidden...lol....

Well that is all for now..sorry for the bore:)

Post #2 ....WOW

I am on a roll now..lol;)
So today was a very busy day. After getting the girls off to school I was on my way for a meeting at work. Looks like I will be kept somewhat busy with work. I will be working every 3rd weekend or more if I need to cover others. I will also be going in on Tuesday and Thursdays to be doing design work for print jobs and just looking after several other little projects that must get done before we become busy. That means the days that Hadley is at school I will be busy with exercise classes and then off to work...the only real day I will have to myself is every other Friday when she is in school. I am sure I will somehow manage to tackle my house to do list even though she will be around...well crossing fingers that I can. Back to today, I went to my 4 hr meeting, and then it was off to pick up the girls from school so that we could head out to the cemetary for my Papa's interment. It was a very nice short(thankfully since it was bitterly cold) service where at the end we all covered his casket with cream roses, and the girls placed a red rose each on top of it. It was nice to have the closure today and not have to wait until the spring to do it. We then all headed to my grandmother's house for some hot soup and sandwiches and yummy birthday cake. Today was my grandmother's birthday.
Tommorrow I look forward to heading out to dinner downtown with my bestest friend in the world and my mom. After that we are heading out to The Nordique Spa for some well needed relaxation. The past few weeks have been pretty tough, and we are all looking forward to it.
Well that is all for now...too tired to try and post any photos tonight....

Hold onto your BRITCHES!!!

I am here to put up a quick post, and hopefully try to update a little more often than as of late. When I first started my blog my main purpose was to write down all those memories of the little ones growing up. I figured I was always on the computer, so my chances of preserving anything was better here than in the baby books I have for the girls( I just found Hadleys and I quit after writing her birthdate..lol). Well now it appears I am lacking on the blog part along with the books. After awhile I also started posting my creative stuff alongside the memories. Well my creative stuff went to a screaching halt in the spring, and I kind of just swayed away from it all. So my resolution for 2010(might I add I never do resolutions..lol)is to try and post more stuff. SOme may not find it too interesting, but one day I would like to print it all up, so it can be cherished by all in the years to come.

Many things have happened throughout the year 2009. Since my last post, Abigail has entered into grade 5 and Hadley into Junior Kindergarten. Abigail is now getting into that age where boys are becoming prevelant. She has been getting plenty of calls from one over the holidays and he even came over to go sliding and such. I am ok so far but this is just the beginning...lol. Hadley absolutely loves school and cannot wait to go. Let's hope that stays with her:) Work has kept me busy all Fall, and now I am having a wee bit of time off. Though I went and did some work today and have a meeting on Thursday, so hopefully by next thing it will be a bit slower for me. Christmas started off well. John's family came down to spend it with us. We had a nice christmas eve spent with friends and family and a little visit from Santa on the fire truck. Christmas morning I was up early with my father in law and we actually had to wake up the girls at 8am. They were spoiled as usual. The best present getting the most use so far is the nintendo ds and dsi...well worth the money! After breakfast and getting the dinner all prepared, we went off and had a nic visit with my grandfather at the nursing home. Came home and had a nice dinner with all the family. Then about 8pm the nursing home called me to say they were calling the ambulance to send my grandfather to the hospital(huge shock to me, apparently his breathing became laboured throughout the day). My parents went and took my grandmother into the hospital. Mom called about 9 pm saying it was not good. John and I quickly drove into Ottawa to be there. When I got into the ER around 10 pm, they found out that his bowels were obstructed with 1/2 of it dead already, along with a hole in it and severe infection. Not too sure how the nsg. home could not have seen the distended belly, but in reality, even if it was caught sooner, not much could have been done. Surgery was not an option, he would not make it through due to age and medical condition. At 12:30 am on December 26th papa died in the hospital with myself, my grandmother and mom at his side. I am so thankful that we got to see him in the home and give him his gift. The entire time we were there he kept his eyes on the girls. I am also thankful to have been at the hospital to be there for my mom and grandma. Needless to say my holidays became quite busy with having the wake on Tuesday and the Funeral on Thursday. We will be burying him on Thursday (they were going to wait for spring, but things changed..only thing is it will be my grandmothers birthday). Hopefully this will be the last family death for a wee while. We had 4 this year alone.

So with this new year and new "blog" resolution, I have decided to change it up a bit. Slowly I will get it all done and everything just so. I will try to also do a photo post of the past few months. As we wnter this new decade I will embrace all that is good...Happy New Year everyone!

Hiatus...

Wow..it really has been sometime since I blogged. To be honest I just did not feel like it. I have been on hiatus with the entire blogging thing and anything creative to boot. Summe has quickly passed. If you want to even call it that. The weather was horrible this year. With the nights getting so darn cool, you just don't want to swim during the day. The pool is like ice now. We definitelyt should have thought having a heater with the pool. Oh well. Nothing to new happening over the summer here. Did our normal week holiday down in Windsor. Which I must say was very relaxing to get away from work. The only problem though was once I got back to work I felt like I had no clue what was going on...did not like that too much. I am now once again on holidays starting today. I was supose to start Monday but I just did not want to feel as lost as last time. Plus I had a bunch of stuff to do, and looks like I will be doing work at home..if time and girls permit me to. So with this time I am suppose to try and get the girls ready for school on Tuesday. I think we are almost ready on the supply end, just need to find orange and white duotangs for Ab...I really hate the specific colour thing...grrrr...In Ab's school supplies alone I have spent $150 it is getting crazy. Thankfully for Hadley all she needed was school bag, lunch kit and indoor shoes. The older they get the more thay need. Hadley is super excited to start school, Ab not so much..lol. I cannot wait for them to go, they are starting to bicker non stop!!!! Mommy needs a break:) I have a list as long as my arm as to what I want to get done on my childless days before I must go off to work. Hopefully within the next few months I will have the house in order and decorated how I want it. I have fallen in love with the used ottawa and kijiij sites:) My morning routine now consists of grabbing my coffee and searching the sites for the newest ads. This week I bought a pub height table and chairs in an espresso finish for my kitchen, and absolutely love it. It has some scratches and such, but I figure with my girls they will just add to them anyways. Tonight I am going to go pick up a treadmill. Really excited about this one. It will make it more easy to run when I cannot get out because the girls are home. I was running in the evening after work, but it is now getting darker much quicker as of late. So I am only getting a run in here and there..my level has definitely declined due to this. I am still hunting for a double loft bed, entertainment unit for my big screen tv and then perhaps I dining room set. My next goal will be going through my stuff and putting it up for sale. I have tons of baby stuff and clothes coming out of my ying yang:)

On a creative note, I actually went and tried to put away some of my scraping supplies from when I went away in April. I also went and visited a scrap site online too. Who knows...maybe I will get back into doing it. I figure maybe exposing myself slowly back to it will maybe make me want to do it again..lol...that or I will seriously have to think about selling alot of stuff;) Perhaps in Jan. I will have more time to think about it since I will be off of work for 3 months.

On another note...we were asked to go to Cuba in Nov. The neighbours and some of their friends are heading down there. We can go for $2400 7 nights all inclusive for the 4 of us...which is a pretty darn good price. The girls would have a blast with all the other kids. The only thing John is not too keen about is that it is in Nov when it is not too cold yet. I did remind him we started having snow in October last year:) I think the only thing really keeping us from jumping on and going is that we will be going to Florida for 2 weeks in March. We will see. John keeps on joking with me about it..so who knows...maybe we can wait and get a even better last minute deal:)

Well I blabbed enough for now...time to tackle things around here!

Time is a companion that goes with us on a journey.

It reminds us to cherish each moment, because it will never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we have lived.

Quite some time has definitely passed, and with it I am definitely cherishing every moment.Family life has definitely been very hectic with very little breaks. Abigail has finished with yet another year of school and will be heading into grade 5 in September. Hadley graduated from a little pre-school program and is well prepared to enter into JK. She adores her teacher and gets excited to see her out and about in town. The past few weeks has seen Hadley to blossom into a very outgoing little girl. She is chatting up a storm with anyone these days. A little social butterfly.

Sadly we had to say our final goodbyes to John's grandma a week and a half ago. She will definitely be sadly missed but never forgotten. She holds a large part in all of our hearts. SO with her passing we found ourselves down Cottam way. It was nice to have the whole family together, only wish it was for happier circumstances.

Work is going well. I think we are all starting to get into a routine of things now. I am collecting more hours, and hopefully can stay that way for July. I really enjoy getting out and going through the entire process involved in selling a home, to the finished project. I think I am fitting in well. My boss has told me how happy he is to have me on board, how he feels secure knowing I am on the job. I definitely became full of pride there:) Last Thursday John and myself attended my first job function.....a boat cruise on the Ottawa river. We had a nice dinner, drinks and casino fun.

Our pool is finally in. There still needs tro be some repairs done, but we are able to swim in it. Hadley began by hanging off of us, and now she goes in all by herself with floaties on. She is a little fish! The girls are loving the pool. I have even been in it quite a bit, shocking to JOhn. I have enjoyed having it here after I finished my runs. Still keeeping up with it and can run a couple kms without a break, just need to get passed that now. I think I am running too quick of a pace and need to slow it down a bit. All that really matters though is I am running.

The girls are still busy with soccer 3 nights a week. Ab cut of all her hair and is donating it to Locks for Love. She had about 13 inches taken off. She now has a cute little bob..I still need to take a photo of the new do. Oh I am now a lifetime member with weight watchers. I have gotten down to my goal and then a little bit. It took me a full 3 years almost(off and on of course) but I did it!

Well that will be all for now...really tired, and I have to start work early tommorrow, and Ab is going away for a week, so I have to make sure she is packed fully.

Here is our latest family photo, taken when we were down in Cottam

So..........

I have definitely been lacking in the blogging world as of late. Things are still in a bit of turmoil. Onto week three of the new job and the family is slowly starting to get use to the change of routine, though this week things have definitely been put to the test. Soccer has now started which means 3 days out of the week John and the girls must have diner, homework done, and out of the house by 6:15 to make it to their games. Thankfully I will be able to catch the last half of the girls soccer. It would have saddened me if I could not see any of it. Hadley looked adorable in her oversize uniform on Monday. It also appears that she has a knack for the game. She definitely has a good kick. I missed Ab last night, but she was happy because she was goalie for the entire game(she grabbed her sister's cleats instead of her own so all she had were her crocs to wear) and they won 4-0.

I have had to put the running aside for the past week and some. It appears that I have the common "runner's knee" injury. Which means my knee cap went off track and now the knee aches horribly. I have been icing it, taking ibuprofen an now have a patellar sleeve to keep the knee cap in line. I hope to try and ease back into the running within the next few days. Still nothing done in the creative side. By the time I come home from work, I am just too tired to do anything, and my mornings consist of doing all the needed housework. Speaking of which I have a ton of laundry to get put away and some bathrooms which need scrubbing. I just realized the time and I will soon be heading to work and I have yet to shower....

..dogs ages

...well it simply has been a dogs age since I posted anything on this blog. Things have been busy in the Gibbs household. As I wrote in my last post that there was possible changes on its way....well they have come. Just before Easter weekend I took the plunge, did up a resume(not an easy task since I have not done one up in ah....almost 13 years) and applied for a job with Corvinelli Homes. I interviewed a few weeks ago(and told no one about it....did not want to jinx myself) and then went on my merrily way. I really thought that I did not get it since quite some time went by since the interview. But then last week, I got the call and was offered the job. I beat 5 other applicants...woohoo... So what does my job entail....a little of everything. I will be doing sales, admin work, scheduling, a small publishing project, design(helping clients pick out their exterior and interiors). It is a part time position where I work 4-7 on evenings(mind you I did not get out last night until 7:45 last night) and will do every few weekends. I will also have to cover the other day shift when the other employee cannot do them. So far there are 4 weeks where I will be doing that. It looks like I may also have a Tuesday day shift(we are still trying to figure out all the scheduling) Now this is only a seasonal job which means it will run till the middle of Nov. Then I will be layed of and brought back next April. Right now it is taking a bit of shuffling around and trying to get someone to watch Hadley every once in a while..It will be much better once she is in school full time in the next few years(yes I am hoping to stay in this position for sometime). Must admit I am only into the middle of the week and I am a wee bit tired. It does not help that I have come down with an awful cold(what a way to start a job huh) Hopefully by next week I will feel more on top of things. I am not the only one feeling the shift of things. It is now up to John to deal with the girls after school and to cook the dinner...(must admit it is nice to come home and not have to do that...though I am trying to get things done before I go to work in the afternoon...which is not easy with Hadley constantly sneaking out of the house...so I am running after her more that anything else)...Hadley is also having a wee bit of a hard go. I went to take her to get watched from a friend and she would not let me go....this was a first time ever...I think it is just a real big change for her and within a few weeks she will be better. So right now I am feling like I was just thown into the water and I either sink or swim(no real training given...though I have been through this as a client when I built so I have a bit of an idea as to how things go) I am content.

On a creativity note..I went away to NavCan a few weekends ago and worked on a few things with nothing really accomplished. I think things will definitely be on a hiatus until we get our new schedule in place. I am sure I will get back to it soon...I can never leave it for too long.

Well today will be a busy day of trying to clean, wait for our pool to be delivered and then off to work.

L8R;)

OMG....

I cannot believe in a few hours I will be a mom to a 10 yr old...... how quickly time flies by. She is a pretty lucky girl, for at school tommorrow is their easter dance. So in a way she can celebrate her birthday with all of her friends. Then in the evening she will be going to guides and we will be sending cupcakes along for everyone to enjoy.

Things have been pretty chaotic around here. John's grandma has gotten a wee bit better, though she is still in the hospital. She is now talking eating and doing physio daily. John's mom arrived here last night to help Ab clebrate her birthday. She will stay with us till next Tuesday. On friday Ab will be having a sleepover with her 2 best friends..I am looking forward to finally doing just a simple small party. It will be just pizza, nachos, DQ cake, popcorn and movies. Then on Saturday we will be heading out to a local suger bush to partake in an easter egg hunt. Should be a blast. Our neighbours and also Ab's best friend's family will be attending. I just hope it is not too muddy. Then we will be having family and perhaps some friends over on Sunday for a big Easter dinner and birthday celebration which will include more cake. NOt too sure what Monday has in store for us...perhaps a bit more home reno stuff. Speaking of which...we finally went out last weekend and ought a pool. By the end of May we should have a 24' pool installed in our backyard...woohooo.

We are finally just getting over the nasty rotavirus...I would say it has hit our house middle of March and I was the last to be hit with it. It did not matter how much disinfecting I was doing, it just seemed to stay around. Our poor neighbours are now plagued with it. Here is hoping this is the last of it.

I have been on a bit of a creative hiatus as of late. There just seems to be too much other stuff going on right now, and to be honest I am just not feeling it. I think I just need a little break from it all.

It was a pretty good weight loss week. I went down 2.5 pounds. I am sure the running had something to do with it. I ran 5 kms one day and then almost 4 another last week. I have been lacking in the exercise department this week..this cold and snow just does not help. Who wants to run when it is cold and windy...not me. Hopefully I will get in a couple runs though by weekends end. So for the weight loss I am now within my range and I can set on becoming a lifetime member....which means no more paying...yippeee...of course I still on plan on striving to loose another 10 or so pounds.

Other changes may be happening in the life department, but I will talk about those later on sometime.

Now I must go sleep...very tired here..thank god tommorrow is the end of the week for school and work:)

been MIA...

Well I have not been around on the www much since my last post. I must say it feels really nice to take a break from it all. Last week John was home on holidays and we tackled a bit of home reno's. We(well John..lol) laid a tile floor down on our basement stir landing(that would be the sideways pic...forgot to rotate it) We still have to finish putting up the corner round and painting the one wall. We will also be carpeting each individual stair and have oak risers( I felt the carpet was needed for slip factor with all the kids that go up and down them). OUr next project to tackle was the kitchen backsplash. I choose to do it in a tumbled travertine with a travertine/marble mosaic tile to accent. I am extremely pleased as to how it turned out. I finished up the last bit of it yesterday afternoon. We have 3 out 5 of our basement doors put up(just waiting for the other 2 to come in) and they are still waiting for me to finish painting them( I have one coat done so far) I am really wanting to finish our inside projects so we can start on the outside ones. Hopefully by the end of this week we will have a pool bought so we can have it installed by end of May. We are also wanting to do interlock in the front walk and perhaps fencing and decking in back.

I have been lacking on my running as of late and I definitely have a love/hate relationship with my weight loss progress. It is definitely not going as well as I hoped.

We have been plagued with more bad news. On this past Sunday night John's Grandma has had a massive stroke(in my opinion) and as of last night she was still unresponsive. I am awaiting any news of changes as we speak. After telling Ab you could see the hurt in her. My grandma's death last month definitnely saddened her and she was not as close to her as she is to Gram. I cannot believe how incredibly strong my girls are through everything that is happening in the past month. Abigail is definitely showing maturity(at times..of course) and I can see her as the 10 year old that she will becoming next week. So now all we can do is pray and know it is within god's hands. Here is a photo of them from our last visit at christmas time.

So with all that is happening, I think I will be MIA for a while longer. Emotions are just everywhere right now, and both scrapping nor computer is on my mind as of late. I am hoping to go out for a run tonight just to help me put everything in check.

Day 2, and a layout.....

Well I did my second run yesterday. It was an absolutely beautiful day to go do it also. I started with a brisk warm up walk for 5 minutes, I then would jog for 1 minute and then walk for 1 1/2 minutes for a total of 20 minutes and then just did another cool down walk around the block. I ran for a total of just a little bit over 2.5 kms. This is amazing for me. I have never liked running, and pretty much sucked as it..lol...but yesterday even though it was tough at times, I thoroughly enjoyed myself and cannot wait to go out and run again. Found this cool website mapmyrun after seeing Donna Downey write about it on her blog. It is the coolest site ever. I can map out my runs and it will tell me the distance of them, I can also see other maps of people in town who have mapped theirs. It keeps track of all my workouts, calories burned, weight...etc... I am very determined to stick with this, in hopes of maybe doing a run sometime in the future. I have finally decided I am going to do myself right. Sure weight loss is great but my body needs to be stronger. So my next run will be tommorrow. I am going to sit down soon and try to make up a training schedule....I picked up a book today to help me with easing into the running and all the ins and outs of it.

Now onto the layout. I actually had this finished the other day, just did not get around to taking a picture of it. Nothing special, but it is a page done.

I started playing around with something that I wanted to do as a home decor project, but it is not working out as well as I hoped, perhaps I will gain some patience to do it today.

KISS ME, I'm Irish....

......er .....well....I have a little bit of Irish somewhere in me. My ancestors did start off in Ireland before they planted their roots in Scotland. Heck...are'nt we all Irish on this festive day;)

May the Irish hills caress you.

May her lakes and rivers bless you.

May the luck of the Irish enfold you.

May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.

~Irish Blessing

So here is a little funny for the morning. I was trying to explain st. patty's to Hadley this morning and why we were going to wear green and such. As we make our way downstairs she says when is Sponge Bob day since today was Patrick's day..LOL...my daughter watches way too much spongebob!!

So update on my weight loss journey..last night I was not firends with the scale...it said I went up 1.5 pounds. It deinitely did not help that hormones kicked in about 2 hours before I was to go and be weighed and I bloated up like a big balloon...ughhh...so now I am super determined to have a nice loss by next week. Today will be day 2 to my jogging routine, and I am very happy to see that it will be an absolute gorgeous day for it. I cannot wait for John to get home so I can go out and have my time. I am still a wee bit sore, but I love feeling it...it makes me know I have done something good for my body. Plus ...I will also not feel any guilt as I indulge in one or two of these this evening;)

On a creative note..I am almost finished my layout I was putzing with, and I think I am going to try and do up a little mixed media type project today....I have be wanting to do it for a while now, so hopefully today I will be successful.

Well must get dressed so I can take Abigail to her course today..it is either cpr or first aid...so glad to see her taking these...

Day 1 and a beautiful day .......

Today is the first day to a newer stronger and healthier me. I have taken the plunge and started on a new adventure. What adventure may that be.....the joys of jogging. Mind you I see no joy in this activity yet..lol. This is how I hope to look sometime in the future as I run my way through the neighbourhood streets.....the graceful, this isn't so hard look....

Yet today I believe I may have looked a little like this....I have come to the quick realization that this will be definite baby steps to get to doing any type of distance running. My lungs are in need of some serious training. I was able to run down one street and a bit of the bikepath before I was going to die. Thank god for my mp3 to help push me along my way. One thing I know for sure is I will definitely be investing in a good pair of shoes..so if anyone has any recommendations of some..let me know.

Today I have also decided to put in my contacts and start getting use to wearing them once again. Now that the sun is shining, I really want the ease of just putting on any ol' pair of sunglasses. I hate having to change out my glasses for my prescription sunglasses and then back again once I venture inside. I do not remember it being so odd to wear them in my younger years. Pregnancy over the years definitely changes things. I think baby steps will be involved in this process also.

After lunch I will be running to the sotre to quickly pick up some well needed items and then I will be doing a little bit of this.......................................................but my paint will be white.

John was successful enough to hang 3 of the doors in the basement yesterday, so I will be painting them today so that we can put on the hardware for them. He will also be putting up the trim around the windows and doors, but first he needs to go out and buy it. Then all will be left are the 2 doors to the office and a storage area to go up...they should be ready to pick up in a week and some...we needed to special order these. Then it will be onto flooring.

Nothing creative to show today, but I may have another layout to show by tommorrow if I get a chance to finish it off.

bits and pieces.....

Well it took about 3 days of sneaking in little creative breaks(otherwise meaning sneaking a moment away from Hadley..lol) to get this layout done. I absolutely loved this photo of Hadley, so I printed it out to 8 1/2 x 12 so that I could scrap it. My first thoughts were to do a single page, but I am really happy with the double page I did instead. I rarely do double page layouts...I really should do more of them. I have another page that I would like to get done, yet I am sure it will take me a few days to get it done also. Unfortunately by the time Hadley is gone to bed and I have no distractions, I am just too tired to work on anything.

So tommorrow I will be attending another wake. One of my great Uncle's died from a massive heart attack on Monday morning. It definitely took everyone by suprise. He was only 63 years old. I do hope this is one of the last wakes I have to attend for some time.

March break is almost apon us. It really will not feel like the normal break though. I have signed Abigail up for a weeks worth of courses which run from 9-3:30. She will be taking a home alone, first aid, cpr, babysitting and a conflict resolution one. I am really excited to see what she takes from these courses. She is really excited also, so that is a bonus. Besides that, not too much going on during the week. John took off the next week and we plan on doing some home renovations during that time.

Thank goodness for crazy hair/pj day.......

Well, it has definitely been one of those hurried mornings. Let's start from last night. First off one woohoo moment, I had my weigh in last night and dropped 4lbs in my first week. Doubt I will ever see that again, but definitely made me want to get up and do more. I would be very happy if this week will be a 2 lb one. Anyways I got home and John and I played a few rounds of tennis on the wii, then moved to a a game of golf(since I got a littel to over zealous and hit John as I was swinging for the ball...who knew you did not have to run to the ball..lol). After that I had to stop and go to bed for this spring ahead is just killing me....I would never thought it would, I mean I have kids and use to do shift work...it is not foreign to me to have any type of sleep routine..lol. Anyways I go up stairs to check on the girls and shut off their lights. As I walk into Hadley's room I am hit with this awful stench. I am going around the room smelling everything wondering what it is. Well thinking maybe she did something in her pull up, I get closer to her, and I go to move her blanket and what do I see......PUKE...everywhere. It looked like she did it several times. The kicker is she is sound asleep all the while covered from head to toe in it. This is the first time she has ever puked in her life...I am quite suprised she made it in life for 3 1/2 years without doing it....and to be not bothered with it. So I quickly get her out of bed and into the bathtub to have a quick bubble bath to wash some of it off of her. The poor thing was shaking like a leaf, and had no idea as to what all went wrong. So instead of going to bed we were bathing, changing sheets, cleaning walls and vacumming Hadley's room. We finally got her back into a clean bed and fast asleep were we all. So asleeep that I did not wake up till a bit after 8 this morning. Ab must be out of the house by 8:30 to get the bus. This is where I am so thankful that she had pj/crazy hair day today. All I had to do was get her out of bed, pack a quick lunch, feed her some breakfast and mess up her hair a bit more and off she went. She was in heaven:) Thankfully Hadley seems to be okay this morning, not a huge appetite, yet there is no fever and signs of tummy aches. Hopefully it will be a quiet day, and I can get some scrapbooking done. I have 2 layout ideas in my head that I want to try and get done. Crossing fingers I can do it.