One Frazzled Momma

Homeschool - week one

2012-01-06T21:26:00.000-08:00

We started homeschooling Monday - so far so GREAT!!! I am completely sure of our decision now!! I admit the first day I was wondering what the heck we got ourselves into, but watching the kiddos become fully engrossed in their work and having my daughter giving me a huge hug today and saying it was so much fun and way better than going to public school...so. totally. worth. it!!! I am finding that the curriculum I chose is not the best for us, but we'll make it work till June. That gives me lots of time to research different curriculums and hopefully find one that will work better for the kids.

Changes

2011-12-19T08:34:00.000-08:00

Again, I haven't posted in a very long while. But this time, I would like to think I had a valid excuse! We have made the decision to homeschool our children. This decision has not been taken lightly. We have talked, argued, prayed and finally came to an agreement that this is what will be best for our family.

We live in a small village. The school is very small. While the teachers and staff are wonderful there, sending my children to school for 8hrs a day just never did sit right with me. I hated it when my oldest would come home saying she no longer liked playing with whatever toy it happened to be at the time because so and so didn't like it. I hate the fact that my 7 year old rarely plays with toys at all because her other friends don't anymore. SEVEN. YEARS. OLD. Seriously. Ridiculous. I don't like the attitude she comes home with and the attitude my 5yr old is starting to develop.

Now I know those aren't exactly valid reasons to pull my kids out of public school and homeschool them, there are plenty of other, more serious, reasons that made our decision, but we do have wonderful friends that do have their children in the school and don't want to be 'bashers'.

So ,I'm probably still going to be a sporadic poster, but when I do post it will be more on the homeschooling end of our lives now!

Jasper Trip

2011-09-28T08:06:00.000-07:00

We finally made it to Jasper last weekend!! This little excursion only took us 2 years to actually go on!!! The kids had a blast and I must say, hoteling it was super easy with them!! I was a little worried about them sleeping at night, but not a problem!! They were out as soon as their heads hit the pillows they were so worn out at the end of each day!!!

Main Street Jasper

The Tram - I was worried about the kids being scared...they were fine...I was not...!

At the top of the mountain

Maligne Falls

Back to School!!!

2011-09-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

The kids started school last week. And now we have very. nice. warm. weather. Boo!!! Shelbie is now in grade 2, Logan is in Kindergarten. They are getting much too big for me!!!

Sniff, sniff.

So summer is gone and I haven't blogged once?! What the heck??!!!

2011-08-28T16:46:00.000-07:00

Quite obviously my pledge to myself to post at least once a week has not happened!!! We've had a great summer even though we didn't really go anywhere!! It's been great just hanging out with the kiddos, spending time at the lake doing not much!!! Here's a little picture recap of our summer:

The kids had a lemonade stand and raked in with over $50!!!!

We had a nature hunt. I printed out a list and we all went in the trees to find everything!

Corn maze fun!

Too fun!!

Messy Days!!

Power plant demolition! (this was our view heading into our little village, now gone!!)

And maybe, just maybe I'll post in a week or so the rest of the summer fun!! But, that's enough pictures to overload you with now!!

Can I get an 'AAAWWWWWW'!!!!

2011-06-12T18:26:00.000-07:00

Meet the newest little member of our already nutty household:

Shelbie named him Alvin...the grey, jealous one is Simon...she better not want a Theodore anytime soon.....

Finally, a slight break in the chaos!!

2011-06-04T19:30:00.000-07:00

I have been taking a photography course and I am FINALLY DONE!!! Can I get a woot?! One less thing on my daily list!! Yay!! I have officially started earning $$$ for pictures! Here's some shots I have done recently...

She is soo cute!

Amazingly fun couple!!

Another total cutie!!

Oh and if you wanna check out my facebook page and see more pics, feel free...and if you really want to, go ahead and like it too....I love getting new likes!!! ;)

Long Weekend Fun

2011-05-22T15:29:00.000-07:00

We didn't go anywhere this long weekend, just stuck around home. But we tried to make it fun for the kids. Yesterday and today was full of finding new trails in our community. (in case you didn't know, we live in a lakeside village attached to a provincial park) So we really don't need to travel anywhere to enjoy some wonderful nature hikes! Now it's pouring rain and is supposed to do so for the next few days - which is perfect for the awful forest fires here in Northern Alberta!!

Getting To Know YOU Sunday!!

2011-05-15T09:02:00.000-07:00

I am soooo happy Mannland is doing this linky again...she has for awhile now, but ya, you all know how my posting has been lately...next to nil! Without further ado:

the q's.

1. have you ever gone to see a movie by yourself?
Nope, I am not a movie watcher...I only go when the kids want to see a movie and hubby needs help...can't wait till the kids are older and I don't have to go! (does that sound bad?!)Ya, I could totally make it through a hurricane! (maybe)
3. have you made summer vacation plans?
Not really...just camping and lazing around.

4. what's your favorite accessory?
My rings. Nothing exciting! lol!

5. have you ever been thrown a surprise party?
Nope, I DESPISE surprises....just in case any friends are reading this....
6. are you friends with your neighbors?
No. Our neighbour is a 22yr old electric guaitar playing at all hours, partier that doesn`t shovel his snow or mow his lawn. Ever. It sucks. Maybe I should try and set him up with a nice girl so he`ll settle down....
7. what's the last movie you saw in the theater?
Umm, Rio I think. It was a kiddo show anyways
8 what's your favorite food network show?
Cake Boss...is that on the food network or tlc? I don`t watch it very often, but I enjoy it!!

Homemade Laundry Soap and Crazy Busy-ness!!

2011-05-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

My life has been on the fast track lately and it's not gonna slow down anytime soon here! I recently started up my photography business and I must say as scared as I was to take the plunge, it's been great!!! I am already booked into mid June and have full mini sessions booked for July...which is more than I thought would ever happen!!!

Anyways, I have a 30 before 30 list that I am slowly trying to complete. I am hitting the big 3-0 in September and wanted to get a few things accomplished before I did. Replacing all my commercial cleaners with homemade ones is one of them. I researched different 'recipes' and actually a facebook friend posted one that I ended up using!

Take 2 cups each of washing soda and borax (both found in the laundry aisle) and 1 bar of pure soap. I tripled the recipe so it would last a while. Grate the soap finely. Mix all together and add 4-5 drops of essential oils and you're done!! Use 1tbsp per load or 2tbps for really dirty loads. I keep mine in an old kitty litter bucket. I have used this for a few weeks now and am totally happy with the results!!!!

I have replaced all my cleaners now and only use borax, washing soda or vinegar for cleaning - made a huge amount of difference in the cupboard space used and no stinky fumes!!!

Yup, another birthday!!

2011-04-27T14:54:00.000-07:00

For those that only have one child and are contemplating having more....space them throughout the year (if possible!!) My four are all in March, April and May...hubby's is in June as is fathers day! Makes for an expensive few months!! :)

Yesterday was my baby's 3rd birthday!! Yuppers, my baby is 3. :( We opted for a small family party at home for his, actually he pretty much chose that. I was gonna have a glorified playdate for his but anytime we asked him if he wanted a little boy he plays with to come, he would throw a fit and say 'no, me no like him!' O-kaaayy...so family party it was!!

His bathrobe from grandma

His hi hoe cake that he (daddy, really) insisted on

Our Earth Day Craft

2011-04-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

A few days late...it's kind of sad that Earth Day fell on Good Friday this year. Of course Good Friday is one of the most important biblical holidays, but Earth Day does deserve it's own day! :)

We took our scratched old dvds (um, my son had an obsession with dvds for awhile, hence the destroyed ones!!

Slather both sides with peanut butter:

Coat with bird seed:

Hang with a pretty ribbon:

And yes, I was extremely lazy and took the picture through the window...you get the idea!!

HAPPY EASTER!!!

2011-04-24T07:24:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post saying Happy Easter to everyone!! I hope you all have a fantastic day!! :) Remember, like Christmas, beyond all the commercialization, there is a reason for the season!!! :)

Another Birthday!!

2011-04-18T08:31:00.000-07:00

Today is little miss Morgan's 4th birthday!! She had her party on Saturday at My Once Upon a Princess. It was sooo cute!! I loved it....maybe more than she did, but she had fun too!!

The pictures are very 'pink', I couldn't seem to adjust them without taking away from the picture, so they are all rosy hued!!

This coming weekend we are celebrating Dylan's 3rd birthday, so watch for yet another birthday post next week!!

Hi all, I'm back! (for today!)

2011-04-14T17:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't been very good at the whole promising I am going to keep this blog up more regularily...you could say I am regularily, sporadically posting though!!! Currently I am working on two of the kiddos birthday parties, a baby shower, soccer start up, school council, photography and trying to be a mom in between all that!! The next two weeks are going to be c-r-a-z-y! I treated myself to a new......camera!! Yes, I am a tad bit camera-crazy, but I promised hubby this would be the last for awhile! Check this bad boy out:

Pictures from google

Ahhhh, I love!!

Baby Pictures!!!

2011-03-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

My neighbour had a little girl a few weeks ago and let me take some pictures of her for practice! She is too sweet!!

Shelbie's 7th Birthday!

2011-03-16T07:49:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was Shelbie's 7th birthday party. We had it at Crock-A-doodle, a pottery painting shop. It is soo neat, I love it there!! It was the quietest birthday party ever, the kids were too busy concentrating on their projects!!

Hannah Montana Cupcakes

Love Your Shot!!

2011-03-14T19:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm back. I missed you guys too much!! ;)

This is my first time participating in Love Your Shot's link up and am very excited!! :)

The theme is All In The Details...which I had a quite a time deciding what that was to me. When I was flipping through my pictures and saw this one of my daughter concentrating so hard on the book (and trying not to look at me and smile) I thought, this is it!! No, it's not all about a certain detail, but it's just the perfect detail about my daughter and her love of books!

Taking a bloggy break

2011-02-24T11:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, so instead of sporadically posting every couple of weeks when time allows, I am taking a bit of a blogging break. I can't seem to fit everything in and I am starting to not enjoy it, so I won't be posting for awhile until things settle down around here. A good friend just had a baby preterm and needs our support emotionally and physically till her wee one can come home plus all the other things piling up here like school (mine and kiddos), soccer and well, life! Some of you might decide to un-follow, but don't worry, I won't take too much offense to it!! lol!! :)

MCP Action Giveaway!!!

2011-02-15T20:11:00.000-08:00

MCP actions are my FAVE for photoshop actions and they have a new FREE mini fusion download here - a mini version of their new set Fusion coming out March 1st!! Eek!! Here is what I did with the free download:

Love it!!!

1st Pictures

2011-02-13T10:21:00.000-08:00

I am taking a photography course and had the opportunity to take some shots of my friends most adorable baby girl the other day!! She is so sweet and was wide awake the entire time!! I think they turned out ok for my first time shooting pics other than my own kiddos!!

Bloggy Blues and My 4

2011-02-08T08:23:00.000-08:00

I'm sooo not keeping my promises on here, you know that one I make every time I sporadically post? to blog more often? To show pictures of my crafts? Ya, that one. Life has been CHAOTIC to say the least! My hope is after this month, it'll calm down abit (ya, right, then soccer starts) but I can hope, right??!! Anyways, I got this idea from The Life Of This Country Mama, actually, it's not an idea, I just copied/pasted her questions here. Don't worry, they're my answers though!!

My 4's

4 shows I watch:

Ok, I don't really watch tv. So I don't have 4 to put here!!

4 things I’m passionate about:

1. Photography.

2. Carbs and chips!
3. Family
4. Learning about world religions

4 phrases I say a lot:

1. Seriously?
2. knock it off!!
3. Ask your daddy
4. Do ya think?!

4 things I have learned (YET STILL DO) from the past:

1.Laundry is so much easier if a load a day is done
2. School lunches are too much time to make in the morning, much easier at night
3. Having a 'day off' makes the next day the worst day of the week. It's just not worth the day off. (ok, this is Krymsen's but I totally agree!!!)

4. Kids and McDonalds. Need I say more?

4 places I’d like to go:

1. Italy

2.Vegas again, LOVE IT!! Just the sights and shopping, the whole wasting money on gambling is not my thing
3. Australia
4. Anywhere warmer than here

4 things I did yesterday:

1. Laundry

2. Totally cleaned my kitchen - oven and all!!

3. Started teacher appreciation gifts
4. Paid bills - blah!

4 things I look forward to:

1. Getting my basement finished.

2. Trying to talk hubby into homeschooling next fall (I figure if I start now, I may have him convinced by then!)
3. A huge garden this year, I miss my old one!!
4. Summer. Period.

4 things I love about winter:

1. Christmas
2. The countdown till spring
3. Hoar frost - so pretty
4. Having a nice hearty meal cooking and baking while it's too cold to do anything else!!!

4 things on my wish list:

1. A kitchenaid mixer
2. Another dog - I want a basset hound in the worst way!
3. A craft room all to myself
4. A double oven.

Sledding

2011-01-29T09:58:00.000-08:00

Trying to make the best out of so much snow (can you tell I'm not liking this?? Why I live in northern Alberta is beyond me!) we took the kiddos sledding.

Of course, Morgan would not get on a sled!! Maybe next year!! :)

Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know...total fail!!

2011-01-27T11:18:00.000-08:00

I came across this article and when I read it, I almost felt like writing back and saying, ummm, in who's world?? The day that books become obsolete...right...that's never gonna happen. I will ensure my kids read from BOOKS. Some things ya, might be gone with the dinosaurs, but we'll always have books, always have mail (hello, parcels!!) and my kids WILL know how to write a letter to family and friends, my 6 year old already practices this. Kind of a silly read, but none the less, the author needs to give his head a shake and maybe get around some people and have human contact rather than the digital kind!!

BTW, this is kinda tongue-in-cheek, not meant to offend anyone, just my little opinion!! :)

Child Labor

2011-01-25T09:38:00.000-08:00

My cat, as much as I love him, is a destroyer!! This wall had a nice paintable wallpaper painted forest green. The cat decided that wallpaper made excellent scratch post material. Sigh. So I enlisted the help of my minions, who by the way, were more than happy to rip down wallpaper and not get in trouble for it!!

And the finished product:

I'm loving the lighter color - just need to redo the frames and ya know, straighten them!! lol!!

Snow, snow and more snow!

2011-01-23T20:50:00.000-08:00

Wow, I haven't posted in awhile!! We have been dealing with so much flippin snow!! Is it spring yet??!! I am so done with snow. It is now a four letter word in this household. Here's a few pictures showing how much we have:

Do you see our 5ft fence??? Our dog can literally walk over it! Have to tie the poor thing now when we let her out!

Hopefully I'll be back blogging more regularily now...didn't I say that last time?! I promise to make an effort - lots of crafty fun going on here!! :)

Guilt Is A Horrible Thing!

2011-01-11T08:22:00.000-08:00

This year I have resolved to do more WITH my family not FOR my family. Make sense? Doing things with my family include things like helping in the classroom with my child, going sledding, movies, etc. Doing things for my family include being on school council, home and school, volunteering in other ways that benefit my children but as young as they are, they need me to BE there, not doing things on the sidelines. There are plenty of other people willing to do that, but it's not what it's cracked up to be for me! Don't get me wrong, as a mother I am constantly doing things for and with my family, I just need to tone down the commitments I have made outside the home and concentrate on inside my home and family!

This morning is a home and school meeting. With other committments that I cannot drop until the end of the school year, this is the first to go. So I didn't go to the meeeting. Now I am sitting here feeling guilty. I know I shouldn't but I do. But as my youngest is now snuggled up to me looking playing with his stuffies, content and happy, I know I made the right choice. Dragging him to another meeting is no fun for him or me when all I do is try to keep him quiet and all he wants is mommy's attention!!

Hopefully I can squash the guilt down and be WITH my family the remainder of the year!!

Dogs, dogs, dogs!!

2011-01-07T12:13:00.000-08:00

When we went down south to see family, we stayed at my parents house because we're able to bring our mutt with us. Cindi has a blast playing with the other dogs and is usually pretty depressed for a couple of days after we get home. (we are on the hunt for a playmate for her!!) Since I post billions of pictures of my kidlets, I thought I would show you the canine variety!

Here's our brute:

And my parents brutes!!

This grandpa holds a special place in my heart- he`s been around MANY years, still when I lived at home even, which has been about 12years ago and my parents got him a few years before that and he was about one or two when they got him!! He`s slowed down alot, but is still going strong!! I love him!!

Hoooo Are You?

2011-01-04T17:24:00.000-08:00

I decided to finally do this meme from Night Owl Crafting. I read it every week, but never have had the ambition to join in, so here I am!!

1. Did you make any New Year's Revolutions?

Yes, the usual - lose weight, save money, stick to my budget....

2. What are some goals you have for 2011?
To finally get my bedroom done!!! I have the furniture in the basement waiting to be sanded down and painted, the walls have been begging for paint since we moved in too!!!

3. What is something that you got for Christmas?
I got a Tassimo (sp?) machine. I am loving the green tea it came with!!
4. Did you see any good movies over the holiday season?
Nope. Not really a movie watcher
5. Do you do your own taxes or have someone do them for you?
Do our own. Ours are pretty easy to do.

Happy New Years!!

2011-01-03T08:10:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a fab holiday and ate way too much and gained weight like I did!! Seriously - 9 pounds in two weeks!!! Lovely. It'll probably take me three months to lose it!

Onto the New Years goals I made so far:

-lose some more weight, get more toned.
-organize my house - it's been a pretty sorry state for much too long now!
-make more 'me' time. I deserve it!! :)
-pay off more debt and stick within our budget.
-get right back into using coupons. I used to do this and saved so much money, I fell off the bandwagon this past year!

That's about it, I guess. Everything *seems* attainable!!

To start with the organizing my home, I split my house into zones and am going to work on one zone each week. This week is the kiddos rooms.

I started my diet up again today, I'm starting my workouts tonight.

I revamped my coupon binder, so it's all ready to go and our budget is finalized.

I bought me some new books for my 'me' time.

There's the start, now I need to continue with it!!

What are your goals for 2011?

Merry Christmas!!!

2010-12-24T06:50:00.000-08:00

It's almost here!!!! My kids are bouncing off the walls, I am slowly going crazy...it's all good!! Today we are going into town to get last minute groceries. This afternoon we are baking cookies for Santa. Apparently he likes Tim Hortons donuts as well!! We are spending Christmas day alone with our little family and having a munchie dinner. My parents will come up the 26th and we will have a nice dinner then. Then on the 28th we head down to hubby's family. Whew!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and is able to spend quality time with their families. Please remember to drive save all this next week too!!

And take time to remember the reason for the season!! Without Him, their would have been no Christmas!!

Linking up to:

Join in on the Social Parade fun!!!

Do you have a budget?

2010-12-20T15:53:00.000-08:00

I'm curious here - how many of you have a financial budget? Do you consistantly follow it? Or is just a 'guideline'?

We have a 'guideline' budget. Until January 1st that is. We have a few big ticket items we want and need to save for them, so we are in the process of making a stricter budget so we can save a few more pennies!! While we are feeling pretty good financially, there is always room for improvement. We do have a couple more loans that need to be paid off, we could not spend as much on stuff...and so on. We waste alot. On food, un-nessasary items (can you say Timmy's coffee or iced caps!) I have spent a fortune this year in crafting supplies, while it's a great hobby for me, I definatly didn't need to buy the excess I did. We are going to be working towards our goals this upcoming year and we plan on meeting each one of them, so we need to be much stricter with ourselves. I am starting this week linking up with My Pretty Pennies with her meme. Join her too, if you want! :)

1. The most I’ve spent this last week was on a movie - Despicible Me.

2. Today I feel pretty good towards money.

3. Money can’t buy happiness. One free/inexpensive thing I did last week that made me happy was reading Christmas stories with the kids.

4. I will consider this week a success if I don't spend a dime until Thursday when I will get the rest of the food items needed for Christmas day.

5. My favorite holiday movie is the old Rudolph cartoon - I've always loved that one!!

Do you have financial goals set for 2011?

Preschool Christmas Concert

2010-12-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

More pictures from yet another concert!! Logan did so well, singing his little heart out! Morgan was not a happy camper!! She scowled through two songs, then burst into tears and I had to go get her and bring her with me!! And of course, Santa was a huge hit with all!! :)

Christmas Concert

2010-12-16T08:34:00.000-08:00

Shelbie's Christmas concert was tuesday night and man, was it too cute!! I am apparently a 'concert cryer'!! Bawled through half of it!! Here's my winter princess:

The whole grade 1/2 gang:

Notice there is only 4 girls!!

Singing her little heart out!! :)

Advent Calendar

2010-12-09T11:47:00.000-08:00

Sooo, I meant to post this awhile ago, but seriously, the craziness of this season is making ME crazy!! Anyways, we have been doing our advent now since the first and the kids love it!!! I took an old cookie sheet painted it blue, hated it, so covered it with burgandy and roughed it a bit so the blue showed through a little. I mod podged some pretty paper on and cut circles from the cricut and numbered and decorated them. I had grand plans of getting some magnetic little tins and putting little goodies in them, but when you have four kids to do this for, the little tins are not big enough!!! So I just glued the circles onto magnets to stick on the cookie sheet. Then I cut up a bunch of paper and made little riddles to go underneath the magnets that the kids had to figure out to find their surprise!!

Award at School

2010-11-30T14:58:00.000-08:00

This afternoon was the monthly award ceremony at the school and Shelbie was the lucky recipient of the Outstanding Writer award today!!! We're so proud of her!! :)
Oh, and it was flourescent day today - that's why she has the neon pink arm bands on!! I made them out of socks because it's super hard to find flourescent clothing!! Half the kids didn't have any, so it was obviously a hard thing to find!!

Happy Homemaker Monday

2010-11-29T13:07:00.000-08:00

We finally seem to be healthy around here!!! I say 'seem' because I don't want to jinx it and have someone be sick tonight!!!

The weather in my neck of the woods:

About -8C or so. Nice cover of snow on the ground, looking Christmas-y!!!
Things that make me happy:

-coffee and baileys. Love to have a cup in the evenings when the kiddos have gone to bed!!
Book I'm reading:

The Next Best Thing - Kristian Higgans. Nice, mindless reading!
What's on my TV today:

It hasn't been turned on yet today!!
On the menu for dinner:

Spaghetti
On my To Do List:

-Laundry
-Mop

-clean litter box

-make caramels
-finish advent calendar
New Recipe I tried or want to try soon:

Nothing really, I'm in a cooking funk!!
In the craft basket:

The Advent Calendar

Looking forward to this week:

Putting up our tree this weekend
Tips and Tricks:

Don't give your 2.5yr old a sippy of water at bedtime because he's sick. When he's healthy it's gonna be a massive fight to take it away again. (Obviously, there is a battle going on here the last two days!!)
My favorite blog post this week:

My apologies, I haven't read anything lately, too busy cleaning puke!!!
Lesson learned the past few days:

You can't do everything, so just sit back and do what you can and not stress about the rest!!
On my mind:

Christmas, everything needing to be done before then and trying to figure out ways to keep it un-commercialized!

Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (1 Colossians 3:12).

Sickness in our household...

2010-11-22T21:22:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry I haven't been posting lately. We have had a nasty bug hit our household involving vomit. Lots. of. vomit. Without going in to details, I'll just say it involves a whole lot of laundry, carpet cleaning, sanitizing, bathing and more. I'll be back more regularily when we have beat this bug!!

Purse Junky Party

2010-11-14T20:09:00.000-08:00

Today I hosted a Purse Junky party. Oh. My. Goodness. If you're a purse lover like myself (or as hubby calls me - the purse whore, this is your kind of party!! Along the same lines as Tupperware or Epicure, except she brings all her stock and it's cash and carry!! Like a ton of stuff!! It covered my table, chairs, couch, end tables, plus her own racks she brought!! I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the party, but took some of the awesome purses I got today! Bonus: I got $80 credit for hosting and because my friends bought stuff too!! :)

My favorite!!

Isn't this an adorable little change purse? I got two for my daughters! They love them!!

A Rememberance Day Story

2010-11-11T08:26:00.000-08:00

Remembrance Day Story

sent in by a reader at DLTK's site

He was very old now, but could still hold himself stiffly at attention before the monument. His war, the one to end all wars, now just a fading part of history. Very few could remember, first-hand, the savageness of the ordeal that had sent millions of young men to their deaths. Cannon fodder, they'd called them, sent before the guns to be mown down -- blown apart by chunks of metal which had decimated their frail bodies. The cream of a generation; almost wiped out. He was haunted by the faces of the boys he'd had to order into battle, the ones who'd never come back. Yet one nameless ghost was able to bring a measure of comfort to his tormented mind. At the sound of the gun signaling the eleventh hour he was mentally transported back to the fields of Flanders.

The battle had raged for over two hours, with neither side gaining any advantage. Wave after wave of soldiers had been dispatched from the muddy trenches and sent over the top. So many had died already that day that he decided he could not afford to lose any more men before reinforcements arrived. Perhaps they'd give the remnants a few more days of life. There came a slight lull in the battle due to the sheer exhaustion of the men on both sides.

During this interval, a young soldier came up to him requesting that he be allowed to go over the top. He looked at the boy who couldn't have been more than nineteen. Was this extreme bravery in the face of the enemy or was the soldier so scared he just needed to get it over with?

"Why would you want to throw your life away soldier? It's almost certain death to go out there."

"My best friend went out over an hour ago, captain, and he hasn't come back. I know my friend must be hurt and calling for me. I must go to him, sir, I must." There were tears in the boy's eyes . It was as if this were the most important thing in the world to him."

"Soldier, I'm sorry, but your friend is probably dead. What purpose would it serve to let you sacrifice your life too?"

"At least I'd know I'd tried, sir, he'd do the same thing in my shoes. I know he would."

He was about to order the boy back to the ranks, but the impact of his words softened his heart. He remembered the awful pain he'd felt himself when his brother had died. He'd never had the chance to say goodbye.

"All right soldier, you can go." Despite the horror all around them, he saw a radiant smile on the boy's face, as if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"God bless you, sir," said the soldier.

It was a long time before the guns fell silent for the last time and each side was allowed to gather their dead and wounded. The captain remembered the young soldier. He looked through the many piles of bodies. Young men. So many as to give an unreal quality to the scene before him.

When he came to the makeshift hospital, he looked carefully through the casualties. He soon found himself before the prone body of the soldier, alive, but severely wounded. He knelt down beside the young man and gently laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, son. I knew I was wrong to let you go."

"Oh no, sir. I'm glad you did and I'm glad you're here now so I can thank you. You see sir, I found my friend. He was badly wounded, but I was able to comfort him at the end. As I held him dying in my arms, he looked me in the eyes and said: "I knew you'd come."

The young soldier faded between consciousness and oblivion for some time before he finally slipped away. The captain stayed by his side until the end, tears streaming quietly down his cheeks. Only in war could the happy endings be so terribly sad.

As the bugle sounded "Taps", the old captain envisioned once again the young soldier's face. Looking up, he could almost hear the stone monument calling out to him: "I knew you'd come."

Happy Homemaker Mondays!!

2010-11-08T08:25:00.000-08:00

Happy Homemaker Mondays!
(sorry, I can't get the picture to load, so imagine it here!!!)

Head on over to Diary of a Stay at Home Mom to read more!!

The weather in my neck of the woods:

Chilly: about -5C. It's gonna get colder soon! :(
Things that make me happy:

My kids, my husband
Book I'm reading:

20 Wishes -
What's on my TV today:

The kids are watching Handy Manny
On the menu for dinner:

Chicken, potatoes and carrots
On my To Do List:

-bathrooms
-laundry
-sewing badges on Sparks sash
-mending

New Recipe I tried or want to try soon:

Spinach bites - they are a cream cheese and spinach mixture rolled into crescent rolls and baked - very yummy!!
In the craft basket:

Nothing on the go right now, I have a list of Christmas crafts to do, just need to carve the time.
Looking forward to this week:

It's only a three day school week and then a five day weekend!! Ahhh, my pillow will love me in the mornings!!!
Tips and Tricks:

Learn to say 'no' to various things requiring a chunk of your time, when time with your family is a precious commodity!! I'm slowly learning....
My favorite blog post this week:

I'll be quite honest, this past week has been a little crazy for me and I haven't had the time to do my regular reading. This week will be slower and I'll have more leisurely reading time!! :)
Blog Hopping (a new discovered blog you would like to share with the readers:

Living Life Crafty - she has some of the cutest crafts!!!

No words needed (favorite photo or picture, yours or others you want to share):

My great aunt and uncle! They are the sweetest people ever!!

Lesson learned the past few days:
I need a break every now and then. I need something for me. I splurged and got my nails done Saturday evening all by myself. A little pampering and adult conversation made me feel new again!!
On my mind:

My sister. We had a falling out a few months ago, and while I'm still upset with her, I kinda miss her...

Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2, NLT).

My Van Won't Start....

2010-11-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

I seem to be running in 3 different directions at the same time lately. Constant running, meetings, baking for various events, other school things, getting ready for holidays, the list is continuous and never ending!! I have been longing for the days where my kids were all very small and not in school yet, as much as I couldn't wait for some to start school and see how they developed in that chapter of life. Today was another one of those days, running here and there and all over the place, but that got cut short real quick.

My van wouldn't start.

This morning, with the commotion of getting kids ready to head out the door, buckled up in the van and nothing. It won't turn over at all, the lights kinda flicker though. My only thought was 'now how the f*^k can I get all this stuff done???' I unloaded the kids and walked/ran to school (don't feel too bad - I really don't live far from the school at all!!!) When I came back home, I made the necessary calls to cancel EVERYTHING that required me driving to, then sat my butt down at the computer while the other kids watched Mickey Mouse. Then I realized...I am commitment free until 3pm when I pick up Shelbie and her friend for a playdate. Absolutely NOTHING planned whatsoever!! So, I played with my kids. I'm gonna bake with them in a bit, catch up on some laundry and just relax.

Who would have thought a van not starting would be the best thing that happened to me today?!

Our Halloween

2010-11-01T15:42:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a spooky Halloween last night and scored lots of goodies!! We sure did!! :)

I Ordered Me Self A New Camera!!!

2010-10-27T07:48:00.000-07:00

I am so excited!! Right now I have a Canon Rebel which I LOVE but have bit the bullet and bought a Sony. I know a Sony is not the 'traditional' photographers camera and most people would think I was crazy for getting one when I have a Canon, but I have a bit of a love affair with Sony and I'm not a photographer!! :) We always seem to try other brands out and head back to Sony. After reading a gazillion reviews, we (ok, I. Hubs just foots the bill!!) decided to go with the A390.

Ain't she a beauty?

I can't wait till it comes in!!!

Fun, Fun

2010-10-25T08:22:00.000-07:00

We had a busy weekend. Hubs came home. Bonus: he's going to be working only an hour away from home so he's gonna be home every night for awhile!! Yay!! Saturday we had a birthday party to go to, the kiddos had fun, of course. Then we went to town to look for the perfect pumpkins. Ok, so I guess we should have gotten pumpkins a lot sooner because they were all un-perfect shaped and lots were rotting. Sigh. But we found four non-rotting ones for the kiddos. Then literally drove around for an hour looking for somewhere to eat with all the kiddos. We don't go to restaraunts very often because it's usually torture and for 6 of us, it's usually pretty pricy. I'd rather spend my money on more fun stuff (like scrapbooking supplies!) than overpriced food. There isn't many options unless we want to drive to the city, so I was not impressed!! So seriously, here is the list of place we went. Note that all of them are family friendly fare, no fancy dining here!!

-Humpty's - closed (wtf, it was Saturday at 5pm!!!)
-Pizza Hut - only take out available during renos
-Smitty's - closed (again, WTF???)
-Boston Pizza - at least a 45 minute wait. 4 little kids. right.
-KFC it is!!! Not exactly my choice, obviously, but at least we finally got to eat!! I was ready to go home and make grilled cheese!!!

So, Sunday we went to a Halloween party put on by a friend. It was so fun! The kids had a blast!! (This is the part where I'll mention that I um, forgot to charge the camera batteries, so no pictures!) She had made a cardboard witch and mummy (I think) with head holes so the kids could get their pictures taken. Then there were 4 craft stations, the kids made pumpkin men, bats, pumpkin faces and did a skeleton puzzle. There was TONS of food! And creative food. (not by me, I brought a boughten tray of veggies...) Breadstick bones, goulish punch, mummy pizzas and more. So cute and fun!! Really wish my batteries were charged!!! After we got home, we carved our pumpkins (I do have pictures of those, I just haven't uploaded them yet!!!!)

Seriously, I got nothing!

2010-10-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

Our lives have been busy hectic, but nothing blog-worthy to note about!!! I could tell you about taking kids to Sparks, library, dance, piano, dealing with school council, getting ready for halloween parties, trying to keep my house relatively clean and much more, but I am just not feeling it this week, sorry!! lol!!

On little tidbit I thought was kinda funny, but kinda bad too. I was watching my neighbor's kids and my own at the park yesterday afternoon while they were at their parent-teacher interview (my kid is doing great, btw) and another little girl started yelling at me. She was about 2-3 years old. I went over because I was pretty sure she was swearing as well. Sure enough, I ask her what she needs and she points to the ground and yells 'what is this sh*%!, what is this sh*%!' I looked at the ground and seen there were some clumps of grass that probably fell off a lawn mower, which I guess could have looked like poop. Trying to keep a staight face, I told her it was grass. She said 'it's not sh*%? I said nope, it's not POOP, it's just grass. She was there with her older brother, so I couldn't even relay it to her mom, but it was kinda funny. Wouldn't be funny coming out of a 6yr old's mouth. My daughter was giggling and asking why she was swearing. Myself, trying not to giggle, I just told her she probably didn't know it was a bad word.

Hmmm, I guess I did have a few things to share!!!

One Month To Organization...Total Fail!!

2010-10-18T15:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I really did have grand plans of getting my whole house organized this month, but with the chaotic last few weeks, I have been lucky to get the floors mopped once in awhile!!! Things seem to be calming down in November, so I'm gonna try it then...hopefully!!! I'm tossing around making a linky party out of it if there is any interest? Before and after's of our closets, cupboards and rooms would be neat. Then it would make me feel better that I am not the only one that has a disorganized mess on my hands!!! ;)

Rude Bloggers

2010-10-16T07:38:00.000-07:00

I came across a fairly rude post the other day from someone I follow(ed). They are sick of all the Halloween crafts being linked up. Ummm, it's Halloween season. Duh. Don't look at them then. Calling down other bloggers because they are showing off some of their amazing crafty skills in the Halloween theme is a low blow. Every blogger is entitled to post what they want, not to the whims of one person. Do what I do and read through what I want on a blog and scroll through what I don't want. You aren't going to like everything you read/see, but that's no reason to make a post about how you 'have no use' for the crafts on other people's blogs. Have some heart and realize that some people can be offended by posts like that and we're all here to have fun and are each unique bloggers that have something to share that we feel is important to us, not necessarily to you.

I'm just saying.

Loosthin a toof!!

2010-10-14T03:39:00.000-07:00

Shelbie has finally lost one of her front teeth! We were getting quite worried we were going to have to take her to the dentist to get it pulled because it has been loose for so long and the gums above were turning pretty red and swollen, but she let me yank it out once I told her it was VERY loose and that I probably wouldn't have to pull too hard, which I didn't, it popped right out!

She is somewhat upset at how she is talking right now though!! I think it's adorable!!

Officially A Spark!!!

2010-10-13T03:37:00.000-07:00

Last week my daughter had her Spark's Enrollment Ceremony! She was so excited!!! She got her first two badges - First Year Spark and her Cookie Badge.

Getting her pins

The whole gang

Showing off her badges!! Now I need to wait for her sash-y thing to get here so I can sew them on!! Oh, did ya notice her little gappy toothed grin!! Post tomorrow on that!! :)

Halloween Decor

2010-10-12T04:00:00.000-07:00

While I haven't been exactly regularily posting lately, I have been crafting away doing up some Halloween decorations!! While none of these are original, they have all been the ideas of some fab bloggers here, I couldn't resist trying them all out!!

The BOO frames idea came from Sevin Family blog, I have had these bookmarked for about a year now, just waiting to get done!!! I didn't use fabric, just scrapbook paper I had on hand and I spraypainted some old frames black. Little mini pumpkins came from the $ store awhile ago for a craft I have yet to do...

I have no idea where I got this idea from - sorry!!! I did get it in blog land though!!

This idea came from House of Hepworth's - the famous dryer duct pumpkin!! I love!!

And last but not least, Craft-O-Maniac's cupcake liner topiary - hers is much cuter - check it out!!

Linking up to these FAB parties this week!!!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!!

2010-10-11T11:49:00.001-07:00

Just thought I would pop in and wish everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving!! We're not doing the Turkey thing, but hubs has been home, so we have been busy with him!! I'll be back to regular posting tomorrow!! :)

Adoring

2010-10-05T06:52:00.000-07:00

I still have a computer. I'm not sure why it's still working, the battery has been operating on two days of 0%, but whatever, I'm still gonna use it!!!

I got this picture of Morgan looking at Shelbie so adoringly, I just love it!! But I am so mad it's not completely in focus, it could have been a really good picture. It still is, you get the just of the picture, it makes me so happy that my little girl loves her big sister so much.

Gonna be MIA for a couple of days...

2010-10-03T21:58:00.000-07:00

So, I guess buying an off-brand power cord for my laptop when the last one bit the dust was not a smart thing to do!!! It quit me!! It'll hold the charge but not actually charge and I lose a % every day. Too bad I didn't notice this when I had the laptop in the kitchen with me trying out a new recipe - so, I only have 1% left and obviously it's gonna die tomorrow!! I ordered another one - an actual Dell this time - so it should be here this week (I freakin' hope!!! I will be without tv and internet!!) Though I may get some stuff done around here without electronics to keep me side-tracked!! So, just giving y'all the heads up that if I don't post for awhile, it's because I'll be rocking in a corner going through tv/internet withdrawals!!!

One Month To Organization?

2010-10-01T16:09:00.000-07:00

I have been reading a lot of posts lately about organizing homes. A few of you are even taking the month of October to get er' done!! I've decided since I seem to be a disorganized mess lately, I would do the same. I think I'll post each Friday pictures of before and after in a room, to keep me accountable. For me, it's not going to be just about organizing, but minimalizing as well, I (ya, just me, I'm going at keeping the kiddos stuff under control!!) have A. LOT. OF. STUFF. Like, lots and lots. I'm getting embarassed...I think I may have a slight scrapbooking problem...well, no, maybe just an addiction buying EVERYTHING that has to do with it. What else? Craft stuff in general, clothes, shoes, shoes, shoes, boots, boots, boots, makeup, books, purses, junk....

So, next week, I'll post my closet, the hall closet, the kids' craft cupboard and my room pictures - before and afters, so I guess I'd better get started...

Behind, Ahead, Whatever!!!

2010-09-29T14:40:00.000-07:00

The last couple of weeks I have been so bleeping busy, I'm pretty sure I've fallen so far behind I think I'm first!!! My normaly semi-organized self has become a disorganized mess lately!! I have 5 craft projects on the go - all about half finished sitting around waiting to be done. 5 of them!! WTH? I never do that. Never mind the half organized little messes all over the house. My attention span is nil lately.

But, I did get the ironing done today, so that's a start right?

Fun Fall Days

2010-09-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago, I ranted on how I hate fall and winter. I still do. A lot.

But...

Their love for the fun in fall is starting to win me over a little.

Afternoon From Hell!!

2010-09-24T21:21:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I was doing a load of laundry downstairs and I could hear my youngest two arguing - no surprise there!! Then a huge BANG and kids crying. I ran up the stairs and the tv was on the floor. Apparently the kids were fighting over the tv for some reason and knocked it off the stand and it scared the crap out of them. I was praying it wasn't broken because it's hubby's baby. I got it working but I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to hook everything back up because when it fell, the cords ripped out of the back of the tv. I guess I am not a techy, or hubby has too much crap hooked up to it. (I'm going with the latter!) Needless to say even after talking to hubby tonight we still have no tv. I can't get the satellite to work, I can get the Wii and Playstation on, but no sound, but I can get the dvd player working fine. I give up!! We just won't have satelitte for two or three weeks till hubby is home to fix it!!

I had huge plans of gutting our bedroom this afternoon and reaaranging it, but that obviously didn't get done!!

I love my kids, I love my kids, I love my kids......(bangs head on wall!)

29

2010-09-22T07:49:00.000-07:00

That would be me today! I really hate birthdays (just mine, I'm so not gonna age gracefully!!!) but this year hubby knew I was dreading it being my last year before I turned 3-0, so he spoiled me wonderfully!! I came home from town the other day and I was telling him about all the incredible deals Wal Mart had on for their anniversary sale. I told him on an end cap, they had the Cricut Expression on for $279 with two cartridges. He asked me if that was a good deal and I kinda looked at him blankly, like, ya, anyone who knows anything knows that it is one heck of a deal considering they're still on the cricut website for $399 with no cartridges. Nothing else was really said. Hubs took the two older kids to the new movie Alpha and Omega on Sunday and came home with....a bright red Cricut Expression!!! Love it!! Now I need to sell my Create - any buyers?

Isn't she pretty?!

Another thing about aging - one thing I am really dreading about turning 30. Not because it's you know, 30 (well, ok, to be honest, it's all about turning 30) but you know those little surveys you fill out on some websites, to get a free product or to sign up for their newsletter or whatnot? Next year I will not be checking the 20-29 category - I'll be checking the SECOND one. No longer a young buck!!!
I'm sure tomorrow I'll be back to my chipper (older) self!!

EEK!!! I've Been Featured!!!

2010-09-19T21:37:00.000-07:00

I am so excited that someone liked my Spider Plaque enough to feature me!!! Head on over to Craftomaniac and check her out!! Thanks so much!!!

Thanksgiving - Question For My Readers!!

2010-09-18T19:04:00.000-07:00

Canadian Thanksgiving is coming up and this year we're staying home. I still want to make something special of it, but really don't want to have to make a turkey dinner for two adults and 4 kids that hardly eat anything!!! Does anyone have any festive ideas for this?

My Little Dancer!

2010-09-15T11:46:00.000-07:00

Miss Morgan started dance the other night - isn't she sweet??!! I love little girls in dance gear!! Too cute!!

Halloween Decor

2010-09-13T06:33:00.000-07:00

Ya, I know it's only the first part of September, but I've seen some cool Halloween crafts in bloggy land and it got me in the mood!!

I started off buying this fugly little chicken plaque-y thing. It was at the $ store and was well, only a buck and it was wood, so I had to buy it!!

I slapped on a coat of black acrylic paint:

yes, this cardboard has seen many a paint job!!

While that was drying, I cut my circle from some halloween paper I had on hand and VERY lightly used Black Soot distressing ink around the edges.

Then I used my cricut and cut out a spooky spider using the October 31st cartridge.

I applied it to the plaque with Mod Podge and sealed it with another light coat.

Super easy and hardly took any time to make! My kind of project!!! Linking up to some great parties here

Fall's A Coming!!

2010-09-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

And I'm not exactly happy about it! I've been pulling flowers out of the pots that got hit with frost (boo), cutting down perrenials and just getting things ready for the long. cold. winter. that I HATE. I should really move to Hawaii or something. These winters are killer and much too long. I'll here of people south of us having balmy 12C weather in the spring and guess what? We're still in the negative digits and snow is still on the ground. There are days when it is so cold (-30 and colder!) that we can't leave the house because even if vehivles are plugged in, they won't start. Or there's so much snow that getting on the highway is suicide. Trying to look on the positive side...but there is no positive when it comes to winter here. A central Canadian winter sucks!!

But I am looking forward to sledding and hot chocolate. Oh, and stew. And Christmas. And looking forward to spring again!!

Needless to say, I'm a summer kinda gal!!

Linky Party List

2010-09-09T21:10:00.000-07:00

Here's all the fabulous linky parties I'll be linking my stuff up to whenever I get a chance!! They are in no particular order - they are all wonderfull!! Check them out!! (Ignore the buttons all over, for the life of me I can't get them in a straight line here? Anyone got any pointers, send them this way!! :)

Blog Hoppin' Friday!!!

2010-09-09T20:03:00.000-07:00

It's blog hopping time!!! I appreciate everyone who has visited me and left some awesome bloggy comments!! (and to those who decide they like my blog enough to follow me too!!!) So, check out all these blog hopping hosts and I look forward to hopping around with you!! :)

Chore Chart

2010-09-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

There are some amazing chore charts out there in blog land that I love, so I decided to make my own version for my daughter using the Cricut Chore Chart cartridge. I am in love with that cartridge!!! I've used it to label things of the kids, scrapbooking and now for its actual intended use!!!

I started out with a laminated poster board and marked out the lines I needed:

Then I spent three evenings cutting out and laminating the characters. (I'm a little slow, I guess!!) I bought some magnets and glued them to the backs of the chores and stars and to the chart like this:

Here's a closer picture of the 'chores'. I like how I can change them as things change around our house.

And the finished product: I started cutting out the words 'done' for the middle of each star, but then my blade started to get dull and chew the paper and I really wanted to just get this done, so some are with and some are without!!

I left the one at the bottom right blank for something beyond our control that couldn't get done. She gets paid 50 cents per line each day, if she misses one (besides her one freebie per week) she doesn't get the money for that day. So far, so good!!! Now to make one for the little ones...

Linking up to some fab parties here:

Preschool!!

2010-09-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

I sent off my two middle kiddies to preschool today!! They were soooo excited to go to school like their older sister!!! Morgan was more excited to wear her backpack than anything!

Logan

Morgan!

First Grade!!

2010-09-02T21:15:00.000-07:00

I'm having a hard time believing that my little girl is now a big girl and in grade one!!! She was so excited to start school yesterday! She had kinda a rough day yesterday but we got all the kinks out and today was 'sooo much fun'!!!

I've been so busy the last few days, I am already ready for a breather!!! And hubby is coming home tomorrow!!! He should be home when I pick of Shelbie from school, so that will be a great surprise for her when we get home!! (I never tell the kids when hubs is coming home, just in case something comes up and he can't - the surprise is better anyways!!)

Freezer Spaghetti Sauce

2010-08-30T22:09:00.000-07:00

Around this house, spaghetti is eaten about once a week or so. It is one meal that we all actually love!! I HATE boughten pasta sauce, it's so full of who knows what and is usually pretty salty. So I make our own sauce that I freeze a huge batch at a time and it's the perfect time because tomatoes are in season here and cheap!!!

You want to make sure your tomatoes are really ripe! You should be able to put a dent in it when pushing on it lightly with your thumb.

I add whatever to my sauce, grated carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, peppers, etc. I just make sure it's all grated or chopped really fine so the kiddos don't really notice it. Take any veggie plus your tomatoes and chop them up. Here is my secret spice:

Pretty original eh?

Mix it all up and let it simmer for at least 3 hours

Pour into freezer containers and let cool before chucking in the freezer. You'll notice it seems really liquidy. When thawed and put in a pot and add a can of tomato paste in to thicken it up so it is more saucy and then it gets the darker red color that you see in boughten sauces.

Linking Up to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam!!

and

New Routines

2010-08-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

This morning I started implementing our school day routine. Shelbie starts grade 1 on Wednesday and the middle two start preschool next week, so I figured I might as well start the week and tweak before school starts. FYI: I'm at tad anal about being organized in the area of being on time for things, having everything needed for whatever it's needed for (forms, homework, anything like that), that kind of stuff. I despise being late for things. I mean REALLY hate it!! Which means I actually have a piece of paper with our routine written in out, down to the the last five minutes!!

It went well, it started off with me getting up at 6 and showering and applying makeup. Then woke Shelbie up for her shower and I made breakfast. Then get the rest of the kids up for breakfast, clean kitchen, do my hair, bathe rest of kids and do girls' hair. That put us right on schedule for 7:45 which when school starts, leaves enough time for the kids to watch one cartoon and chill and for me to throw lunches in backpacks, double check everything needed is where it should be and head out the door. And it was calm, unharried and relaxing. There was no fighting with the kids to hurry up because I didn't have things organized to be ready on time!! So, hopefully on Wednesday morning, it still works for us!!! :)

Getting To Know YOU Sunday!

2010-08-29T07:46:00.000-07:00

Hee, hee, love the questions this week!!!

The Q's.

1. If you accidently knick a car in a parking lot..Do you leave a note or do you get the heck out of there?

I really don't know. It's never happened (yet). I would like to say I would leave a note, but knowing me, I would totally book er' as fast as I could!!!
2. Love your body or plastic surgery?

I'm not above getting something done, something small, like Botox or something, we'll see when the time comes, I guess!!

3. What about your favorite blog(s) continues to drive you back?

I love all crafty blogs, but the ones I continue to check out daily have unique ideas, something out of the ordinary! I wish I had their creative streaks!! I tend to craft after them!!
4. What percent of your blog is BS just to make your life seem more interesting than it really is?

0%. I have no life, as you can tell by my blog, kinda boring around here!!
5. If you had to give up one type of meat for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Pork. Not a big fan.
6. How often to you eat out?

Not very often. We usually get takeout once when hubs is home, so maybe once a month.
7. Skinny jeans or boot cut jeans?

I love both!! I have a friend that hate skinny jeans, so I make sure I wear them around her to drive her crazy!!! I'm such a good friend!
8. If you caught your spouse cheating would you forgive, divorce, or plan your kill?

Totally plan my kill. It would be long and painful and very discreet so I could still collect insurance!! (insert evil laugh here!)

Scared For Things To Come...

2010-08-27T11:58:00.000-07:00

I was doing the bank thing today, checking the chequebook, bills, blah, blah. I have one child going into grade one, 2 going into preschool plus dance, piano and sparks. I added it all up and it totalled almost $500!!! And I am not done!! This isn't including school supplies or clothes. This is just fees for everything!!! I'm scared for when all four kids are in school and I need to pay school fees, supplies, clothes, extra curricular activites (which btw, will be dropped to one per kid!!!) Plus soccer or whatever in the spring!!Holy hell!!! That's all I have to say about that!! And then I think, Christmas comes shortly after this chunk of change has to be plunked down...

Friday Blog Hoppin'!!

2010-08-26T21:45:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again when things start getting busy!!! Shelbie starts grade 1 on the first! Eeek!! Am I that old that I have a child in grade school already?! And she's going to be gone All. Day. 5. Days. A. Week? I'm a little sad!! Logan and Morgan start preschool on the 7th and they are soo excited!!! For two mornings a week it will be just me and my little man! I'm kinda looking forward to hanging with just Dylan and spending some quality time with him!!

It's blog hopping Friday time!! I'm looking forward to checking out some new and exciting blogs this weekend!! :) Here's the parties I'm linking up to:

I hope you'll all join in too!! :)

New Little Addition To Our Family

2010-08-24T07:34:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not pregnant!!

Introducing Simon!

Isn't he sweet?

Chalk Board Paint!!

2010-08-22T20:07:00.000-07:00

So, I know there are a billion of these around here in bloggy land, BUT I have never used chalkboard paint before and finally picked some up to try it out! Pricey little stuff, but oh, so cool and seems to go a long ways!! I took an old frame, painted it white, then painted the cardboard insert with the chalkboard paint and wa-la - chalkboard menu! Love it!! :)

Linking Up To These Fab Parties:

Getting To Know You Sunday!!!

2010-08-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

The Q's.
1. If you could host a Reality TV show, which one would it be?

I don't really care for reality tv, but once in awhile I do watch Big Brother, so I guess that would be it.
2. Do you put your seatbelt on before or after you start the car?

Before. After. I don't know!! I never really thought about it before!!!
3. Shave or hair removal cream?

I wax!

4. What's your favorite feature in a house?

The kitchen. I always look at the kitchen first!!
5. What is your favorite "Fall" scent?

I like good ol' vanilla!!
6. What tv show are you looking forward to seeing the most this Fall??

I am honestly not a tv watcher period. I go on the computer or craft in the evenings usually.
7. Personal Shopper or Personal Chef?

Personal chef, for sure!!!
8. What is the first word that comes to mind when you think of "Fall"?

Crisp clean air, beautiful leaves. The end of summer :(

Wacky Jacqui Designs Launch Party!!!

2010-08-21T08:28:00.000-07:00

Jacqui, from Wacky Jacqui Designs is having a PaRtY to celebrate the launch of her super cool new site taking off!!! She designed my fab button over on the right in a giveaway I won! Isn't it cute? This event is going to be a WEEK LONG!! With tons of neat prizes!! Here's a list of the prizes being given out:

3 winners- Custom Made Buttons
2 winners- Pre-made Design Package
1 Winner- Animated Header
2 Winners- I Heart Blogging Package
3 Winners- Custom Made Twitter Background

GRAND PRIZE-
A Blog make over that include everything she can do.
• 2 or 3 column design
• Custom background
• Custom header (basic or animated)
• Matching font color
• Sidebar titles (unlimited)
• Custom signature
• Custom post divider
• Social network icons (unlimited)
• Convert to a 3 column layout (if needed)
• Custom blog button (2 included)
• Matching profile picture
• Navigation bar with text or images
• Matching twitter background
• Favicon
• Deletion of Blogger navigation bar if desired
• Installation

Total of 12 prizes to giveaway!!
Wow!! Who doesn't want a blog makeover?!!

This event runs from August 23 - August 30th, so be sure to head on over there to read the rules and enter!!

New Friend Fridays

2010-08-20T06:32:00.000-07:00

Well, we're still smoky here. It's not as bad so far today. The kids might actually get to play out!!! Today we're heading to the last day of the two oldest's church day camp. They are going to put on a little skit and then there is a bbq afterwards. I'm actually quite excited that this is over (even though the kids had a blast!!) Next week is my last week of summer laziness!!! I have absolutely nothing concrete planned except for Monday morning and Tuesday afternoon piano lessons. The rest of the time I am HOPING that the weather co-operates and we can hit the lake or spray park or something along those lines!!

Here are the cupcakes I made for the bbq today. I thought they turned out super cute!!

Gross Smoke

2010-08-19T14:47:00.000-07:00

The wind has blown in the B.C. wildfire smoke to us and boy does it SUCK!!! The government issued an air quality warning, stating our air quality is VERY POOR. Meaning, if this keeps up, some people could get very ill. Namely people with asthma and small children. Which brings up my problem. I have small children. Four actually. And all four love the outdoors. And all four are being held against their will in the house today. Makes for some drama!! They don't understand that even though it's warm and not raining, why they can't go outside even though the haze is so thick and smelly. They just think it stinks, so what? Hopefully it clears up soon!!

Here are a couple of pictures, they aren't the greatest as they were taken through the window (I don't dare open that door - the kids will trample me over, I'm sure, to the nearest park!!)

Kitchen Reveal

2010-08-18T12:47:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it's not done, done, but the painting is done!!

Before: (ignore the mess please, I was batch cooking that day!!)

After:

Picture a vinyl quote above the sink that I just ordered and knobs on all the doors that hubby gets the fab job of drilling holes for when he's home next!! Oh and curtains, I tried putting the white ones back up and it was just too much lightness, so I'm on the hunt for different ones!!

Amazing what a coat of paint and some beadboard does!!! All this cost around $150. (including the knobs and vinyl not up yet!)

Linking up to these great parties!!

Creep City and Idiot Parents

2010-08-18T07:20:00.000-07:00

Our sleepy little village has been haunted by a creepo trying to snatch children. Yup, there's only about 500 or so people, most of them children, so this pedophile decides it's perfect for him to roam! There's been a 3 attempts at getting an innocent child into his vehicle. I haven't heard anything for a couple of days, but here's the catcher:

There are LITTLE CHILDREN in danger and they're out wandering the streets unattended still!!! WTF??!! Seriously, I want to slap those mothers/fathers around. Apparentely, they are under that naive/stupid impression that nothing bad will happen to their angels. Or they don't care. Personally, since I heard this, my kids haven't even played in the yard unattended. Even when I was painting the cupboards, I could easily see them out the kitchen window and hear them. I just don't get it. At least send your child with a large group of kids (I have seen that, I'm just talking about the few parents here that don't seem to be normal.)

There's my rant!! Since this has happened, I have drilled into my kids' heads what to do if approached by a stranger or if someone tries to get them in their vehicle. Hopefully, because I don't let them out of my sight, this will not happen!! But, they need to be prepared just in case the unthinkable happens.

BTW, the kitchen is almost done!!! I still need to get my decor type items, but I'll be taking pictures today and posting tonight or tomorrow for sure!!! :)

Getting To Know YOU!!!

2010-08-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

Here's to another round of pick your brain questions from Mannland!!!

The Q's.1. What kind of athlete has the hottest body?

I have no idea!!! I don't really follow sports!!

2. Are you a planner or a procrastinator?

I am soooo a planner. I plan things to death!!

3. Diet or regular (soda)?

Diet all the way!! I know aspertame is bad for you and all, but it's my guilty pleasure!!

4. What's your one "must have" for Fall?

A pair of killer ankle boots. I love mine!! Pair em with skinny jeans and your good to go!!

5. What's your favorite fast food restaurant?

I'm not much for fast food, but it seems to come down to McD's!! Ew, I know, but come on, who doesn't love a sodium infused Big Mac of a heart attack once in awhile!!

6. What do you think is the sexiest profession for a guy?

Anything my hubby does, which is environmental construction!!! Of course, there's something there about a cop too...just saying.

7. Did you wear braces?

Yup. For THREE. LONG. TEENAGE. YEARS.

8. Would you rather have a guy that's super sexy or kind?

I'm with Mannland on this one 'Kind is Sexy'!!

Ok, I Lied...

2010-08-14T22:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I said I was going to post pictures of the beadboard backsplash in the kitchen. Well, I decided to paint the cupboards this coming week and possible the walls as well. So...I'm not showing you any pictures until it's complete, hopefully by the end of the week, depending how things go. I have to do all my painting in the evenings after the rugrats go to sleep, so we'll see how far I get!! I forgot to take a before picture, but here is a picture that gives you an idea of the colors (very dark) and the yuckiness that is my cupboards right now!! Instead of the green as a backsplash, the white beadboard is in it's place.

Hubby went back to work this morning. :( He'll be gone for a few weeks again. So back to single parenting it is!!! My two older kids have VBS (vacation bible school) this coming week and they are so excited to go!! It's not totally church-y, they do songs, crafts, stories and stuff, so it should be fun for them.

Blogger, I love and loathe thee...

2010-08-13T19:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I had a ton of posts planned out for this last week and guess what? Everytime I tried to log in, everything froze. So, I got none of it done!!!

Hubby came home early and we have been busy, busy!! He put up beadboard in the kitchen as a backsplash, spent grueling hours driving me around the city shopping, bravely took me to West Edmonton Mall one day after Victoria Secret opened up, I love this man!! lol!!

Stay tuned, pictures will be following tomorrow of our little kitchen update!!

Getting To Know You Sunday!!

2010-08-08T09:01:00.000-07:00

Yay!! I'm glad I'm back to participate in Mannland's getting to know you questions!!! :) Head over there to get the instructions and join yourself!!

The Q's.
1. Do you think mustaches are sexy?

No. Not at all actually!!

2. What's the last concert you've been to?

Omg! I haven't been to a concert in ages!! I think the last one I went to was Lonestar.

3 What was your favorite 80's sitcom?

Ok, I didn't watch 80's sitcoms, the 90's was when I hit the sitcom watching age and my favorite then was Friends and (eek!!) Fresh Prince of BelAir!!

4. Were you named after anyone?

My middle name was for my mom's best friend!! All of us kids have some part of her name in our names!!
5. When you buy new clothes, do you wash before wearing?

Yes, I have heard from friends that used to work in clothing stores and in Wal Mart, etc that when they unload the crates, mouse poop is all over them and all they do is brush them off!! EWWWW!!

6. If you didn't blog, what would you do with your spare time?

Ummm, there's always Facebook!! lol!! Actually, I would probably get tons more done around the house, but what's the fun in that?
7. What is your favorite department store?

Being in Canada, we don't have much for options. It's either Sears or the Bay. And I like neither!!
8. If you were to get Laser Hair Removal..where would you get it?

Deffo my nether regions!!! Imagine never having to shave or wax there again? Heaven!! TMI? You asked!!! lol!

Vacation Part Deux

2010-08-04T22:48:00.000-07:00

Here's just some randoms from different parks, kiddie playtime etc. I finally got to meet my new nephew. Totally missed the newborn stage which makes me sad, but he's still an absolute sweety!!

Playing around:

Vacation Part One

2010-08-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

We went to Waterton National Park for a leg of our trip. I LOVE it there!! The water is so crystal clear, makes lakes anywhere else seem scummy and gross!! The kids had a blast throw rocks in one of the lakes and of course, my favorite part was Cameron Falls. We tried to go see Red Rock Canyon, got almost all the way there and a guy turned us around because they closed the parking lot for construction and the only way in was to head back into Waterton and take the shuttle bus. Next time!!

Back From Vacation!!!

2010-08-03T23:37:00.000-07:00

We're back!! Well, me and the kids anyways! Hubby is still working away!! We got back late this afternoon and have been running on empty since! More pictures to come tomorrow when I hopefully feel human again, but here's a teaser:

An Evening At The Lake

2010-07-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago, we the kids and I spent the evening playing in the lake. They had a blast!! Last year, everytime we went, the two younger ones were too scared of the water and would just sit on a beach towel eating snacks the whole time! This time, they were both being adventurous and decided to get wet too!!

My little man is tucked in behind them, he was refusing pictures!!

Wordless Wednesday - My Little Cowpoke

2010-07-14T13:16:00.000-07:00

Shutter Love Tuesdays

2010-07-12T21:00:00.000-07:00

I'm joining Trendy Treehouse Shutter Love Tuesday this week. This week's theme is 'by the pool'. Sadly, I have no pool pictures, but I have lake pictures, so hopefully that works too!! :)

New Friend Fridays!!

2010-07-09T06:21:00.000-07:00

I'm participating in New Friend Friday with Trendy Treehouse and The Girl Creative!

For those who don't know me, here are a few tidbits of me:

-mom to four crazy kids, ages 6, 4, 3, 2.
-husband works away from home most of the time, so I get to raise these critters darn near singley
-I love to craft when I get a chance, my new love is spraypaint!!
-we have a black and tan coonhound who is the absolute best dog! (except when she chews stuff, or barks, or digs, or....)
-We live in a little village on a lake in northern Alberta.
-I LOVE summer!! Winters are a little long, but summer rocks!!

Anything else you wanna know, you just gotta ask!!

Had To Get My Mama Claws Out This Morning

2010-07-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

My oldest girl is in swim lessons right now. She loves them!! She talks to hubby on the phone every night and tells him she now knows how to swim!! (she so doesn't yet!! lol!)

After lesson today, we were walking in the parking lot to the van. I heard a woman behind me ask her little girl 'did that other girl tease you again today?' The girl said yes and I heard the woman say she would have to talk to the instructor then. I turned and saw the girl was in my daughter's class. So I asked if there had been problems. The woman glared at me and said 'yes, your daughter is teasing and making fun of mine.' Now, obviously that isn't acceptable. I don't raise my children to be bullies or mean to other kids. I immediatly got down on one knee in front of my daughter and asked her what was going on. She seriously looked completely confused and told me nothing, she said she never has talked to this other girl. Which I can attest to as I watch the lessons, but figured I could have missed something because I had the other 3 kiddies there to watch over as well. The other mother doesn not watch, she drops her off to the instructor and then sits in the hottub the whole time.

The other girl then said that no, it wasn't my daughter who was teasing her, it was another girl. The mother looked at me and said 'well you said it was her, so either you lied to me or you're too scared of her' WTF???!! I politely told her that if she still thought it was an issue to talk to the instructor then, but I also told that maybe she should take a proactive role and actually watch the lesson to find out what's going on, instead of listening to what her little angel is saying and sitting her butt in the hot tub. Also, there is only 8 kids in her class and I'm pretty sure the instructor would have noticed something!!Now I have to make sure I sit there and watch EVERYTHING, so I can at least stand up for my daughter (or if in fact she was being a little turd, discipline her) A friend of mine is watching my other three tomorrow so I can give my daughter 100% attention!! Good grief, I never thought this kind of garbage would start yet, she's only 6!

I still feel crummy, I'm not sure what's up. When I wake up in the morning, it literally feels like someone beat me up in the middle of the night. Every muscle is so sore. My arms and hands are the worst, they are so sore and weak that it took both hands to turn on the taps for my shower this morning. I go to the doctor tomorrow, so hopefully I find out what's up then!!

Feeling Like A Truck Ran Me Over

2010-07-06T15:58:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning feeling awful!! My whole body aches and my head is pounding!! Hopefully I'll be better in the morning, but if not, at you know why I'm not posting or commenting lately!!

Getting To Know You Sunday!!

2010-07-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

The questions..

1. What do you look forward to the most on the 4th of July?
Uh, well, I'm Canadian, so on Canaday Day we usually have a bbq and kids activities. I'm sure we'd do the same if we were American!! :)
2. Are you a hugger?
Nope, kisser all the way!!

3. What is your favorite BBQ'd food?
Steak. Medium well. Perfection!!!
4. Do you like to watch parades?
Yes!! I love watching the kiddies eyes light up more than anything though!!

5. Who has stinkier farts..boys or girls?
They both stink!! lol!!

6. Vampires or Werewolves?
Vampires!!

7. Do you read your horoscope?
Nope!! What happens, happens! I'm not one to try and predict my future!!
8. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Maple walnut from Marble Slab!! Mmmmmm!!

Canada Day, eh? (lots of pictures!!)

2010-07-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Canada Day. We kept it pretty low key, but celebrated with the kiddies all the same!

We started out with a trip to the lake, which I forgot my camera, so no pictures there. They kids had a blast!! Then at naptime, I got the older kids a craft to do. Simple, but they loved it!

Then we did a pinata and instead of candies, we filled it with dollar store trinkety items. They had enough candy from the parade last weekend to last a lifetime!!

I hope all my other Canadian bloggy friends had a terrific Canada Day as well!!

Busy, busy!!

2010-06-30T20:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I thought that summer was going to be lazy, perfect days of hanging with my kids at the beach, the spray park, the backyard, whatever. Wrong. Even better:

My sister came up with her two boys and now our house is full of kids (6 of them, all 6 and under!), laughter, playing, craziness, crying and screaming!

I love it!

But, it leaves me fairly busy, so the blog may be neglected a little for the next couple of weeks, but I'll post here and there! For sure, a post will be coming tomorrow for Canada Day!!

Here's a few pictures from the weekend, which was our town days, so we had a parade, fireworks, kiddie fun and more!

Getting To Know You Sunday!!

2010-06-27T07:01:00.000-07:00

The Questions

1.If you had 5000.00 to spend on plastic surgery what would you have done?

Oh, a tummy tuck!! 4 kids does not make for a pretty tummy, no matter how much weight I lost!!!
2. Do you watch Soap operas and if so what is your favorite and why?

No. No soap operas here. Before kids, I used to watch Days all the time though

3. Favorite clothing brand?

I love Tommy Hilfiger. It's my fav!!

4. An afternoon shopping spree at your favorite store or maid service for a year?

Maid service all the way!!!
5. would you ever vajazzle?

I don't even know what that is!!! lol! I'll have to google it!!
6. Favorite Disney Princess?

Snow White. I don't know why, she just is!!!

7. Last movie that made you bawl your eyes out?

Marley and Me!
8. Have you ever broken any bones and if so what?

I recently broke my foot. Kinda embarrassing as I have never broken a bone until I was 28 years old!!!

Rare

2010-06-25T22:48:00.000-07:00

What makes this picture so rare?

A) They. Are. All. Smiling.

B) They are all looking at the camera

C) They don't look like ragamuffins either!!