I want to take Bailey!!!!!!

Algonquin Trip

Mike and I spent this last weekend at Algonquin Park for some much needed couple time. It's been a long time since we had a whole weekend away by ourselves...it was nice! We did some hiking and some canoeing. It was a tad chilly but not uncomfortable and of course having a heated trailer makes all the difference.

I am not overjoyed with the photos I ended up with this time...my camera is in desperate need of some service...I would actually love to upgrade to a new Cannon but we will see about that.

Here are the little pieces of Algonquin Park that I captured this weekend...we plan to go next weekend as well for Thanksgiving so stay tuned for more photos.




We were also lucky enough to see another moose...a buck! Sadly he retreated to the woods before I was able to photograph him...oh well, ya can't win 'em all!

Busy Busy Busy!

Life gets so crazy so quickly sometimes and all of a sudden you find there's no time for anything.
Blogging has taken a back seat to all of the other things that have been going on but I thought I'd just pop in to give a quick update on life in my little world...

- I now have a job...I clean houses with my friend Rochelle. I really enjoy it and it gives me spending money. It's physically tiring but it feels good to be working again.

- Bailey has just begun third grade. I can't believe it! She is growing up too fast and if anyone knows how to freeze time so I can keep things just the way they are right now...that would be great. I would gladly use some of my new income to pay you for such a service. Eight year old's are just about perfect!
Here are some photos from her first day of school...







- We went to Arrowhead again at the beginning of September. It was beautiful as always and we all had a wonderful weekend.
Of course there were plenty of opportunities for picture taking...















- Mike and I are going to take a well deserved "Mommy and Daddy weekend" to Algonquin Park in October...can't wait for that! The colours should be amazing and the local wildlife will hopefully make themselves available for some photos.

Well that about covers the big stuff. Hopefully soon I'll have some new scrapbook pages to show off. See you soon =D.

I Have an Angel to Thank

Mike fell at work.

His employee, Geoff, called my in-laws to get my cell number.

He told me that the paramedics took him to St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. (he was working in Toronto that day)

I had been told that he seemed to be OK but I really had no idea what his condition truly was.

It seemed like a very long drive to the city.

I was afraid of what I was going to see when I got there.

So many terrible thoughts went through my head.

When I got to the emergency room and started walking toward bed 9 my stomach was in complete chaos and I was fighting back the tears.

The curtain was open and there he was, covered in blood, wrapped in blankets and wearing a neck brace.

Oh my God! That is not a sight I ever want to witness ever again!

All I could think was "Thank God he's alive"! "What the hell would I do without him"!

He had x-rays...no broken bones.

He had a CT scan...no brain injuries.

He was given six stitches in his head and four in his eye. (the man has the hardest head in the world)

He had several big, deep bruises. (more than two weeks later some still remain)

He was released from the hospital approximately five hours after he arrived.

This is a photo of the structure that he fell from...it is 25' high...he fell head first!




This photo was taken well after his fall. Long after the structure was fixed and his trailer has been moved. The wood forms were also not there at the time.

Basically, he landed in the ONLY spot that was free of any obstructions, a space barely bigger than he is. Had there been any variation in the way he fell or how he landed...the outcome probably would have been devastating.

I think that maybe...just maybe...an Angel caught him.

Yay Me!!!!

Can I just tell you...

I LOVE my husband...

LOOK what came for me today!




I am soooo happy =D

Another Creation...I'm on a Roll!

I am so proud of the artist that my daughter is. She has a real talent for drawing. I love her bright and colourful style and the little characters that she dreams up are very unique.
She drew all of these little vignettes last summer and I have been looking forward to giving them a special home. I hope I did them justice =D.

Guess What?

I scrapbooked!!!

No...my room's not done.

But...I moved my very large stash of supplies into it anyway.

I just could not take it anymore!

I hope this will give me the "push" need to get it finished.

There's really not that much left to do...well besides cabinet doors, which we will have to wait a while for.

Anyway, I am feeling very creative...inspired by so many people:

Pink Tomato...with her very own brand new store!

Jennifer...love her stuff and I miss seeing her in person.

Tara...makes the cutest cards and her talent for scrapbooking just keeps amazing me.

The other day I made my first trip to The Scrapbook Academy since I stopped scrapping. That gave me the warm fuzzies. It was so good to see Charlene...I missed her.

And as always...Elsie Flannigan is soooo inspiring but I think my very favorite scrapbook artist is Vicky Boutin. I took a class from her once and found that she works very much like I do. I just love to look at her pages.

Here are the very first pages created by me in over nine months...hope you like them.

Our New Favorite Place

Arrowhead Provincial Park is located in Huntsville Ontario and is one of the nicest parks we've been to. We were especially impressed with the privacy and size of the campsites. We could not see any other sites from ours and had a feeling of having the place to ourselves even though the park was practically full.
I would recommend this Provincial Park to anyone who loves to camp and isn't looking for a "party park". This campground was peaceful, quiet and family oriented and I hope it stays that way.

Here are a few of the many photos that we took. Keep checking back to see more.

Happy Father"s Day...

Today is very emotional. We are going out for breakfast and then I'm going to go to the cemetery. This will be the first time that I can't hug and kiss my dad on Father's Day. I will take a flower to his grave and tell him I miss him and that I love him and I know he will hear me. I really believe that he will hear me.
Love the men in your life today...they may not always be there.

So ends his suffering...

God grant me the serenity

To accept the things I cannot change;

Courage to change the things I can;

And wisdom to know the difference.

William Harvey "Slip" Rowe
1929 - 2008

At approximately 5:30 am on May 29 2008...I lost my dad.
He was, so I am told, very much at peace at the time of his passing. I am so thankful for that. I am thankful for the days before his death that I was able to tell him that I loved him and I am thankful that he nodded his head in comprehension. I know that he understood.
All of his children were able to see him at some point in the week before his passing. We were all able to spend the time we needed to and my mom spent many hours by his side in the three weeks he was in the hospital.
My dad left behind six children and their spouses. Eight grandchildren and a wife he loved for nearly fifty-seven years. He was seventy-nine. I am going to miss him terribly.

Just a Quick Up-date...

My Dad is very ill. He has been in the hospital for 10 days now. I really don't expect him to ever go home. Besides growing old and the fact that he has smoked for around 65 years and his heart is now starting to pay for it, we're not really sure what is wrong. His mind is going and he is talking a lot about his parents (They both have been gone since before I was born). The word "Alzheimer's" is starting to be used in conversations about him. It's not fair! He's my Dad! It's just not fair.

I am still going to the gym. That alone must be some kind of record for me. What's more is that I still love it! Flabbies are starting to disappear and I can actually see muscle taking it's place. Even better Mike tells me he can see it too. Bailey was captivated by my new bicep muscle. She's so funny.
Mike is also doing well with his workouts, although he lost about a weeks worth due to a slight case of the flu. We have been going together now that my personal training sessions are over and it's great to spend that time together.

OK...OK...The art room!!! No...it is not finished. (Sorry Jodi!) I take full responsibility for that and I feel terrible because Mike worked so hard to get it to this point. I just get so overwhelmed with all my regular everyday stuff that I have to do. Then all the stuff I want to do, like take photos and blog and stuff, that the idea of sitting alone in a room painting cabinets (oh...so many cabinets!) just makes it difficult to get my ass in gear to do it. I will make time for some of that this week as long as Dad's condition doesn't worsen.

Just so everyone knows...I am still following your blogs. I pop in and check out what's going on and pop back out again. I just haven't had time to comment so...

Jodi...OMG!!!! you're opening a store! YAY! Good for you. I am so excited for you. I'm sure that The Pink Tomato with be amazing and I hope I can talk my husband into taking a road trip someday. I would just love to check out the place and it would be so nice to meet you in person. =D

Tara...you have been making the most adorable cards! The watercolour technique you use is stunning. You are such a talented person.
=D

Jennifer...beautiful new LO's and your photos from your trip are awesome. Keep 'em coming. Your photography is brilliant! Glad you had a good time at DC. Maybe next time I'll join you.
=D

Laura...Happy Mother's Day sweetie! I hope everyone is feeling better now. I also hope your getting lots of use out of that new camera.
=D

To all you Moms...

Happy Mother's Day!!!!!
and to my mom...I love you. You're the best!

Yesterday a 100 year old building in my town caught fire and quickly turned into one of the largest fires we've seen here for quite some time. No one was injured but a wonderful piece of this towns history has been destroyed.

This photo was on page 7 of one of Canada's largest news papers, The Toronto Star, today:



This photo was taken by me (on my cell phone...yuck):


Damn right! That's MY photo!!! It even has my name under it.
It was also shown on the evening news and Breakfast Television.
Don't laugh...this is exciting for me.
I think I would like to do this for a living.

Here are some other shots from yesterdays fire:







Our Mayor:


The aftermath:



More to come.

I Joined GoodLife Fitness...

It's a new dawn
It's a new day
It's a new life
For me
And I'm feeling good

Tired of feeling sick.
Tired of being lazy.
Tired of extra fat on my body.
Tired of being self-conscious.
Tired of treating myself badly.

I want health.
I want energy.
I want muscle.
I want self-confidence.
I want to respect myself.

It has been a week since Mike and I joined and I am already noticing a huge difference in how I feel. I sleep better, I eat better and I have more energy during the day. I am a happier person. I have all but given up Pepsi, which is all I usually drink and replaced it with water. We are eating more meals at home and trying to make healthier choices without changing to much all at once. We do not want to become overwhelmed...that is a sure road to failure. We have a different outlook on working out than we had ten years ago. This is not about being muscle bound and shredded or all the unrealistic goals we set for ourselves back then and never came close to achieving. For me it's about feeling like this body I'm in...belongs to me. I'm not fat! I know that, but I also know that I can have a better body and if that is true...why not have it?
More than that, for me, this is about health. I want to be able to move when I'm old. I don't want my rib cage cut apart and have some doctor piecing together my arteries while chatting with the anesthesiologist about the new Porsche he just bought. I don't want to have a stroke and forget how to turn my stove on. Yes, these things could happen anyway but I am going to do something to try and prevent it. I still want to paddle a canoe when I'm sixty-five and go to Disney World with my grandchildren when I'm seventy. I want Bailey to see the rewards of a healthier lifestyle so that maybe she will get an earlier start than I did. Maybe she won't make some of the same mistakes I made. Maybe she'll notice the changes in her parents and understand that we are becoming better people for having made them and then maybe, it won't be so difficult to get her to eat a vegetable or walk a couple of blocks without complaining. I firmly believe that our desire to become healthy is going to do good things for our marriage. If he is happy, I am happy and vise versa. It is also an obvious fact that no one wants to admit but, I'm sure we would be more attractive to each other minus some of the belly fat. When you don't feel good about yourself it's hard for your partner to feel good about being with you.
We often go to the gym together. It's nice to spend that time with each other. Sometimes we go separately. It's also nice to have that time alone to work out issues in your head and release the stress that he gets from work and I get from life.
I will keep you all posted on my success. I might even post a before photo of me in a bikini (ewww). I'm not sure yet. You guys may never come back to my blog if I do...hee hee.
I am going to live the GoodLife!

I know, I'm a blog tease

I'm sorry guys. I know that I got ya all worked up and everything. The truth is that not a lot has gotten done recently so there is nothing new to take photos of. It's my fault. I have been taking my time painting my cabinets...have you ever had to do that?...it bites!
Listen guys...I'm OK but I will likely not be around for a few days. I'm just not feeling like blogging. I will try to get back soon and hopefully have an art room update for ya.
Also, I would like to say thanks to you all for taking the time to visit my blog. It means a lot to me.

I just couldn't pass it up!

I bought one of these!
The best part is...50% off!


So I bought one of these too!



Bailey loves hers.
I don't really get to use mine until my room is finished.
Can't wait!

Somebody Pass Me a Tissue...

My baby's growing up too fast. Today she is eight! Wow...the years really do go by so fast. Every birthday that passes is a very big deal for me. She's my one and only so I only get to do each one once.
This is, of course, a big day for her. This is the the day that, by Ontario law, she no longer has to use the booster seat in the car. If there were no gifts, cake, money, or birthday wishes of any sort...that alone would be enough to make this the best day ever in her eyes.
This year we decided that instead of having a party with several kids from her class, we would go for the less expensive option. We'll have Bailey's best friend and cousin, Hannah, over to spend the night this weekend. We'll take them out for dinner and I am going to make a cake. Then, when it gets warmer, we are going to buy a trampoline!!!


I took these this morning...Happy Birthday Bailey!!!!

April Fool's!!!!

This Easter Bailey's favorite treat from the Easter Bunny was (her words) "one of those really expensive bunnies with the gold wrapper and the red ribbon with the bell on it!!!" For some reason this was just the most amazing Easter treat ever and she is saving it for last.

Today is April Fool's Day.

Guess what I did.

Hee hee.....this is her Lindt Gold Bunny:

I made up a reason to have her look in her Easter Basket...at first she thought it was gone, she thought someone ate it. Then she saw this:



It was really hard to keep a straight face when I told her that it must have shrunk...her face was priceless!!!

APRIL FOOL'S BAILEY!!!!!


I'm going to eat the little one.

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

It was actually yesterday but I was too busy to blog. Bailey and I took her some flowers last evening and a card. A store bought card! Ugh...I can't wait to get my scrapbooking supplies out of the boxes.

Anyway, my Mom is just the best person in the world. She raised six children and to be honest she is still raising a couple of us. She is always there to make soup when I'm sick, lend money when any of us need it, babysit her grandchildren, anything we need...she will always help!
A couple of years ago we almost lost her. She had a small heart attack. It was a good thing that she did. It was how we found out that she needed by-pass surgery....quadruple by-pass surgery...very scary quadruple by-pass surgery. The staff at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre were fantastic. They gave me my Mom back. She made a full recovery. I am so thankful that I can blog about her 76th birthday.
I love my Mom!


It was also twenty years ago today that her mother, my grandma, passed away.

A Weekend of Work

Over the holiday weekend a lot of progress was made on my room. Mike took the whole weekend off and we finished up the lighting, built all the cabinets (no doors yet), laid the flooring and started the counter tops. I can't believe how amazing it's starting to look. It's coming together so well and much faster than I had anticipated.

Have a look for yourself:

Here you see the cabinets (need doors and paint) and counter tops (need laminate) that we made this weekend. I can't wait to fill this wall with yummy product.


The upper cabinets on this wall will have glass in the doors and the tall cabinet for my paper still needs to be built.


I have never had my computer or printers in the same room as my scrapbook stuff before it is going to be so convenient.


I love this floor. It's vinyl plank. You glue it down...it's so easy and it will be a dream to keep clean.

I have to say...I am so lucky to be married to a man that can do this. We don't have to hire anyone for anything. Mike can do it all...framing, drywall, electrical, cabinetry we do together and I do all the painting. He hates to paint.
I am very thankful for his talent. He is very good at what he does. I love him very much.

5 Random Things About Me

1) Hey Jude by the Beatles was my very first favorite song. I remember my parents playing it on our record player. That seems like a million years ago.

2) For 2 1/2 years, I was a licensed driving instructor. For the most part I really enjoyed it.

3) 15 years ago, I gave my sister a kidney. March is kidney month.

4) I wore glasses until Grade 8. I broke them on purpose (shhhh...don't tell my mom) and never wore them again. I found out years later that I never needed them in the first place. Geez thanks for the childhood full of torment and pain!

5) When walking, I will veer slightly from my path so that I can step on a crunchy leaf or kick a small pebble. Weird...I know.

...so that's just a few random things that make me who I am...who's gonna go next?...Jodi? Jennifer? Tara?

You Can Do It... We Can Help!

I took Bailey and her cousin Hannah to Home Depot on Saturday. They hold little workshops for kids. In this particular one they got to sand and paint a birdhouse and they were each given an authentic Home Depot apron. Best part....it's FREE! I love finding free stuff to do. Especially since everything else seems to cost a fortune. Forty bucks for an adult and a child to see a movie and eat popcorn! Oh and don't even get me started on Chuckie Cheese!
After they finished and while we waited for the paint to dry, I figured I should embarrass them by making them pose for photos in and around the various store displays. Hey...it's only fair that I should get some free fun too.

Here are some of those shots (I took them on my cell phone, sorry)...enjoy!

Then they helped me clean up the tools and junk in my art room/construction site. I took this one with my SLR.


And here is Bailey's birdhouse...she's got her daddy's talent for working with wood.