webkinz

I am addicted to webkinz games. I have pushed aside, ignored and stolen it from my kids so that I could play. HELP!

Pluck me

I see your eyebrows
I want to help
You instead...YELP

You want to wax
But now its more tax
and still won't help you to relax

so I end your pain
because it is all in vain
the hair lives to grow another day.

A Quote

I found this quote and loved it:

A good friend is someone who saw the hurt in your eyes, while everyone else saw the smile you were hiding behind.

Margaret and Rita

I recently was introduced to Margaret. It was the same time my mom met her. She was so fun and friendly. She shared with us so much but she had to go. My mom missed her very much and was extremely sad to see her go that she instantly went out and found someone else just like her...RITA. Rita now lives with my mom and is just as fun and friendly.

Livi, Kaeds and I love going to visit Rita. Don in 17 sleeps can met her. I can't wait for everyone to know them more. They have forever changed our family and we will have sooooo many new traditions with them. I should figure out a way to post their picture. I will have to ask Lis. She can do it for me.

from the mouths of babes

Kaeden: Do you love shopping more than me?

Ang verses the "shred"

So the shred is still going. I am on day 4. I wasn't very smart because I started day 1 in the evening and the very next morning at 6:30, I was up and starting day 2. I was a bit more prepared and peed first. Next I grabbed a big glass of water and started day 2. Things went pretty good...I was still enthused. However, by that night, my whole body ached. It hurt to sit up and move, my arms were so stiff. But I kind of like that, it makes me feel healthier, so I ate 2 cheerio jello squares. Heehee.
Day 3 came next. I woke up before my alarm which I took as a good sign. The kids were still sleeping, so after my morning pee and grabbing my big glass of water, I started with no volume on the tv. My body was unbelievably sore so it was really hard doing the push ups and staying focused on not taking too many breaks.Basically it was hard just to keep going until the kids came out when I was finishing and I had my own personal cheer leading team. Day 3 was brutal. All day at work my arms throbbed and my movements were very stiff. I came home and looked like an idiot walking around my house shaking out my arms and legs trying to loosen up my joints. Oh and I did some extra stretches.
Day 4 I jumped out of bed. The kids woke up at the same time and I felt better starting. I had a bit more endurance except for those lousy push ups. The kids watched again asking me who I was following. I said the girl in green because she is doing it easier. The kids told me they could do all those things easy but they never did do it or even tried! They just watched. And would yell if I paused or looked away from the tv or broke the rules by not using the weights for only one set of exercises.
This brings me to tonight. I am not as sore as I was yesterday. Day 3 was definitely the worse. I am still excited for tomorrow morning. Because from what I've told, the next few days you feel your endurance and muscle power build. Hooray...I hope so.

day 1

huff puff huff... so I started with my day 1 of the 30 day shred. Hold up....deep breath in and out.
My legs are currently still shaking, I am sweaty and remember one of my early blogs about being a mom.... wet underwear. Yep, I can not do a jumping jack without leakage. So tomorrow( I hope I have the power to do day 2), I will remember to pee first, put on a pad and pray my legs hold up because I am sure there will be sore muscles. A

I forgot

So the month of May has been busy and I like it like that. It makes time go by quickly and with each day, brings me closer to having Don done school and back at home.

So I tend to forget about my blog. In response to my last post...the lie was the last one. I have never memorized all of psalm 119...the longest psalm. I think it has 176 verses and I may have a good memory but not yet that good.

I guess I should make that a goal, but I have soooo many hopeful ideas and I am not good at the follow through. Just today I have decided to do the 30 day shred...starting tomorrow. LOL. Ask me in 30 days how I did?

truths and 1 lie

I was lying in bed one night and I remembered a ice breaker game called 2 truths and 1 lie. People had to guess what was the lie, so I got to thinking what I would do and all I kept coming up were truths. Then I couldn't sleep because I headed down memory lane. SOOOOO can you spot the lie?

1. delayed a plane heading to seattle
2. hiked 9 hours through a jungle
3. flew out of a motor boat travelling a excessive speed.....no life jacket
4. worked in mexican village that no longer exists
5. smoked cigarettes and cigars
6. got drunk on a church ski retreat
7. got a tattoo
8. hit 2 parked cars
9. peed my pants at macdonalds
10. stole from ikea
11. been on a yacht more than once
12. showered once in 10 days
13. pulled a tooth
14. lived in a barn
15. been hiking in the dark with no flashlight...only lighters
16. threw a burning log into the forest
17. went tubing 2 weeks after giving birth
18. wrote a diary to my dead cat
19. walked home from school with a limp and goofy face thinking then no one would want to kidnap me
20. pushed a grocery chart all the way home and the only thing in it was my sister
21. went to a special school and rode the special bus
22. received top science student in grade 12
23. played the piano for a radio show
24. laughed so hard, I have had milk stream for my nose
25. memorized psalm 119

Letting Go

I've found over the last 2 years, I have begun to let go. What do I mean? Letting go of certain stresses, decision-making and control. It has not always been easy and yet because of letting go........and letting God.....I'm really enjoying my "spring".

my parents

My parents are the best. You see, I basically still live at home with my parents. Yes, I am married. I have 2 children but I live at home. Some wise person once suggested to my mom to stop cooking with cheese, but they love us so much. They not only cook us many meals throughout the day, but they BOUGHT my little family a 2000 vw jetta. They allow us to live in our cozy cabin and PAY for our utilities. And more than that......they PAY us a monthly income. How great are they! Last summer, my dad even talked about putting a pool in for the kids and me!

I am honored to have a mom and dad who show us such love. I love you, mom and dad.

best cookies ever!

So a lady I work with brought in these delicious cookies. They were soft and colorful and soooooo yummy. I haven't stopped talking about them or drooling over them. My limited self control has forced me not to make them...yet.

Hmmm, I should clarify...me not having a dishwasher or electric mixer has forced me not to make them because I am so tired of dishes or hand mixing at the moment ( see cake making, cake decorating blogs). Okay without further delay here is the recipe:

Super-Duper Mini Eggs cookies

1 Cup butter/margarine, softened
1 Cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
4 serving pkg instant vanilla pudding
2 cups crushed mini eggs ( not finely chopped)

Preheat oven 375*F. Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at at time. Mix in vanilla. Add flour, b.soda, pudding powder...mix. Add crushed mini eggs.....Mix. Drop byheaping teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

P.s. Enjoy and no, I don't have any pictures because we have the slowest internet ever and it takes far too long to upload. If you want pictures regarding any of my life see " her beautiful mess" blog. My sister is my photographer and she is funny.

cake decorating Part 2

If you haven't read part one posted March 12, it probably doesn't matter

After making the ganache the night before and glazing the cake, I had read you could whip the ganache and use it for piping. I thought what a great idea. I would get great taste and looks. Now my one book said refrigerate overnight and whip it the next day. And they were smart because they knew I was tired. But for some reason, I choose not to listen and whipped it last night. I also thought it would set hard because that is what is was doing on the cake.I was having a hard time telling if it was too soft to pipe and questioned if it would hold its shape....so at that point I decided to listen and placed it in the fridge.

So this morning I got up to finish my mom and Lisa's cake. I thought after such a smooth day yesterday, today should be nice and easy and it is the more fun part. Upon opening the fridge and the whipped contents, I discovered I had made the most delicious mousse but not the best with trying to decorate with. Waste not , Want not...I tried to make it work. I tried with 2 different thing to soften and pipe and then I attempted it on the cake. Yep, it definitely wasn't working. So my beautiful delicious ganache cake got down graded with my attempted piping, the grouse tasting fondant came out to help beautify the situation and my son screamed...not that green stuff! And on top of it all, I ate a lot of extra calories because the mousse just tasted sooooooooooooooooo good.

cake making

So for the past little while, I started dabbling in cake decorating. It started with trying to get creative for my kids birthday cakes andI found I enjoyed it. Next came my other family. Sister, mom, kinda brother-in-law ( he challenged me with ice cream cake which isn't really decorating ) niece and even my own birthday cake.

My mom and Lisa have been my biggest supporters besides my kids( I can do no wrong in their eyes if it has sugar!). So seeing that it is March and both Lis and mom's birthday. I took on the fun and challenge of doing their cake. I want it to not only look good but taste good. Fondant is very fun but doesn't taste good! So after you peel it off, the cake is less pretty.

It was off to a great start when after placing my cake ingredients in a bowl, I remembered I no longer own a electric mixer. No Problem for me. They never had it in the olden days ( one of my favorite sayings, to keep me grounded). So I whisked the ingredients for 2 minutes trying to use my arm muscles that haven't had much of a work out, besides playing wii.

I poured my cake into my prepared cake pans with parchment paper I still haven't returned to my mom but since it is for her cake...no big deal. Then I was trying to decide on the filling. I thought a mocha filling would compliment the swiss chocolate cake. So I looked in my fridge and realised, I had 1/4 c of whipped cream and no chocolate pudding and no instant coffee. Crap! NOW, I not only no longer have the mixer to whip the cream, but I also don't have any ingredients. So I called my mom.

After borrowing all the ingredients for the filling and her mixer, I made the filling and assembled the cake. I am getting better at this part , so all went smooth.

Now for the next attempt, the ganache. I have read all the instructions via internet and from the best cake decorating book I got for my birthday from my sister. The only problem is......I still have no ingredients. So another trip to my mom's, an arm full back and I am ready.

I thought it looked tricky and re-read the instructions soooo many times I pretty much have it memorized. The funny thing is it has very simple instructions my 7 year old could make it but it looks so fancy and it seemed so intimidating. All went really well. And I could whip the leftovers and use it for piping but I have to let it chill overnight.

So I mostly have the cake made for mom and Lis. A cake made from pretty much my mom's food and her "tools". My kitchen is a complete disaster.! I used a lot of unnecessary dishes and have them piled high. We don't have a dishwasher.....

so I called my mom.

my gripe about skype

When we decided that Don aka my husband, was going to go to school in toronto and the kids and I were going to stay in BC, we discovered Skype. In the beginning we loved it. We could see Don and talk to him and it felt like he was soo close. I even carried my laptop around so that he could join in the family get togethers.

Now one year later, after several dropped calls, feed back, kids interrupting, sound cutting in and out during a good conversation.....my love has faded away. I almost would rather use a phone except that at least skype is free and I guess on that note, you get what you pay for.

At least I can still see his handsome face and watch him pick his nose and roll his boggers. Man, I love that guy!

ten things I want most

Top ten things I want most at this moment

1. My husband done school, home and working
2. A bigger house with nice yard
3. A healthy body where I could walk into any store and by a regular medium size
4. A chef
5. A personal trainer
6. $50,000 (and up)
7. A big dog
8. A vacation to somewhere hot
9. A pool
10. This list completed

too busy to blog

So apparently with spring cleaning my attitude, it meant not being on the computer. Haahhaa. My sister told me I should say that I will blog about as frequently as I get my periods...once a month. But the real truth was I was enjoying my time. We had the Olympics to watch and even more important was my best friend who happens to be my husband was home! Hooray.
The end is near of us being apart. He is on his last 6 months of school and we are starting to see the glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Today I am optimistic but ask me again in another few weeks and the light will probably have dimmed again.

And because he is away, my blogging is back!

feb and spring cleaning

So it is February, and usually we are still in the middle of winter. However, this year the snow is gone and we have been left with gloomy,dreary days and mud. January was not a good month for me. In fact everything about screamed "WINTER" from my soul, to my attitude and just life.

So I said good bye to January and I have embraced February with some spring cleaning attitude. I have rolled up my sleeves, and started in on some changes. Like getting rid of face book and it's new look. I HATE it and for many years I was fine without it and I am going to be fine without it again.Oh and the kids bedroom rearranged...always nice to do some rearranging. Which brings me to next spring cleaning item...rearranging my attitude and heart.So, I have prayed for more joy and not just prayed for patience. You see Joy means being content and a sense of well being even if life is throwing a lot of challenges. And it is funny because I do enjoy cleaning and so for me, spring cleaning all the messy,dirty bad stuff ( from house to heart) really does bring me joy.

So it is nearly the kids bedtime and I actually finished everything early. Teeth brushed,kids bathed, bible read, prayers said.

So I think, hey I will let the kids read in bed for 3o min before I turn off the lights. I go with them into their room and make my final decision. IT IS TIME to rearrange their bedrooms. I can see Don shaking his head at me and truthfully I deserve it. But hey, I am started on this idea and now there is no turning back. So 45 minutes later, the kids scared because we talked about fire safety and why I have to leave the dresser where it is, I have swept the mess of it into my small hallway and tucked them into bed. And all I really want to do is relax, read a book but no, I have to finish the task I had started before I go back to work tomorrow and the house builds up its clutter until I have time next week to clean again. Why oh why do I do this to myself?

Thursdays

Thursdays have become one of my most favorite nights! First, it is my Friday. So last day of work and I am always in a good mood. Second, I get dinner made for me by my mom..Thanks Mom! Third, GREY'S ANATOMY!!!!!! and my newest Thursday show - the Mentalist.

I put on my jammies, knowing that the next day I can sleep in a tiny bit longer, and the next few days will be spent with my kids. There is always the inevitable house chores but tonight I can relax and live in the pretend world of TV. And If the phone shall ring, I will only answer it in my 2 minutes of commercials.

Rich Man

Many years ago, I heard this song by Paul Brandt and it made me smile and cry. I instantly thought of Don as we were barely making ends meet and had a new baby girl. Don was a little offended at the "I look in the mirror and don't see much, fashion sense out of touch". But the rest of it fit our family perfectly. Now years later, we are back in that position with Don going to school and me working. I heard this song and thought of our family and although I have had a hard month or so, this song made me smile and reminded me how rich I am.



And as I wrote the lyrics, I was reminded of my own parents struggling through some tough times as I was a child but how much I always felt loved and secure. My parents passed on the truth about how much "wealth" is out there besides the numbers on the paycheck.



RICH MAN by Paul Brandt



I look in the mirror and don't see much
Fashion sense is a little out of touch
The house is run down as the bills pile up
But I am a rich man



The breakfast table, the morning rush
Sometimes it seems we barely have enough
But if its true that all you need is love
Then I'm a rich man



When she smiles and then calls me daddy
all the worries of the world just seem to fade away
I'm alive and I know what matters
If this is all I ever have well that's ok
cause I'm a rich man



Say everymorning and a brand new day
with each and every single breath I take
I'm blessed and I'm thankful
I've got it made
Oh I'm so glad life turned out this way



I have loved, I've been loved
Show me someone else with as much as me



I'm proud to say I'm a rich man

Good bye January

I have know idea why the people that made the calendar thought we needed 31 days to start the new year but I wish it was only 28 like February. It seems to have been a long month and maybe part of it is I am looking forward to my next visit with my husband and thought it would go by fast. Or it could be the dreary weather we have been having.....but I must admit no snow on the roads has been nice. If only the sky remained blue and the fog wasn't there.

So Good bye January. I will miss the few good times and laughs we had. The tears, the gloom, the cooped up feelings, the overwhelming feelings along with frustration and irritation all have to go with you.

February the love month, please don't break my heart but strengthen it. I count on you to bring back some love and sunshine ............BUT if you don't, at least it is only 28 days!

a glimpse

a glimpse of the future

It is almost 9am and I am home alone. I slept in and rushed through getting the kids their breakfast, dressed and off to school. Although I am a Dental Assistant, I managed not to enough time to have the kids brush their teeth. Shame on me!

I watched them climb on the bus and hurried home to tidy my cabin. The thing about living in my cabin is that it can look really really messy and only take a little bit to clean.

So I washed my dishes, tidied our living area space and was off to dust and vacuum before starting laundry. And all who know me, know how much I hated laundry! So I figured it was a good time to blog. I have left my laundry so long that I now have 2 big baskets to fold and put away, plus all the laundry from this week to wash,fold and put away. Even writing about it makes me scrunch my face. I was feeling very overwhelmed on Monday and I am starting to get that feeling again. I should have folded it on Sunday or as it came out. My mom is always trying to tell me to do it like that and it wouldn't be so bad, but like a good daughter, I ignored that advice and now I am kicking myself for the work I am going to have to do.

So, my glimpse at the future is... The days that I can take my kids to school, do 1 load of laundry ( folded and put away RIGHT away!), and be able to have some quiet time. Some time to help in their school. Not being exhausted at the end of my day but having energy to do school work with them, take them to the park, play on the trampoline. To plan and cook a good supper. And although it is coming soon, I am thankful for this little glimpse from an unexpected day off. AND NOW I should quit delaying and go do my chores..... that is the best word for laundry:( ...so I can enjoy the rest of this great day!

10 things that have happened to me since becoming a mom

1. Sneezed and Peed
2. Sang about poo and pee
3. Puked and Peed
4.Collected poo sample (which involved a lot of #3 note as well)
5. had someone cheer for me as I peed
6. jump on the trampoline.....and pee
7. peed my pants at MacDonald's
8. been peed ON
9. potty talk as my second language
10. No longer laugh at the depends commercials as it is in my future .....and I may PEE

small places

Small Places

I live in a very small cabin. And some days I am absolutely in love with it. It is cozy, homey, very beautiful at Christmas and so summery in summer. It takes very little time to clean and tidy and because it is rustic, it is great for the kids to grow up and do their damage before we can get the nice furniture and floors.

HOWEVER, when it comes to sharing a bedroom between a girl almost 7 and a boy that is 5. It is a whole other story. Changing clothes, alone time, and bedtime become a logistical nightmare. One wants a night light and the other can't fall asleep with it. One wants to have her own space...the other wants company. One wants the cats in to cuddle, and the other wants nothing to do with the cat. And of course, you have a mom who is at the end of her day and therefore at the end of her patience and my cozy little cabin begins to feel a lot more like cabin fever.

There are time when visiting friends and you see dry wall walls painted to what ever color. Floors with smooth hardwood, laminate,carpet and you want to roll around on it. Storage spaces, playroom, laundry room, nice master bedrooms and your heart longs for a bigger space. As my daughter says....a house with stairs.

I guess there is a season for everything and time goes by and yes, we will outgrow the cabin. And one quiet night at bedtime when the big house is empty, I will look back and remember the cabin's bedtime routine and....... miss it.

Who ever would have thought we live in a day when you would publicly journal. I remember hiding my journals and using code words incase anyone ever dared to read them. Then there was the journal I wrote after I lost my cat. I was in grade 7 and had read a book where the girl wrote to her father that passed away. I thought with my first broken heart and mourning for my pet that it would be a good help and proceeded to write to my cat. I stumbled across it one day after I was married and laughed so hard and immediately phoned my sister and shared it with her. And that journal I had coded with XXXXXXX all across the front so that no one would know what was inside.

So here I go...