The happiest of times....in the happiest of places.....

This picture reminds me of one of the best days of my life...definitely one of the best birthdays of my life!  It was in January 2007.  Lloyd and I got married in Florida just the day before - 'honeymooning' in Asia and Africa c/o Animal Kingdom ;)

For my birthday though, I got to choose where I wanted to go - and I chose to go to Epcot!  It turned out to be my favourite of all the Disney Parks and will always have a special place in my heart because of that birthday!!

I remember going in to the Patisserie in France and we couldn't decide what to buy, so we basically said "we'll have one of everything"....and we all sat together at a table outside enjoying our Pain au chocolat's and chocolat chaud and other delicacies :)  It was a lovely little courtyard type alleyway and so easy to think you were far away from central Florida!!

In Japan Lloyd surprised me by giving me a ticket to pick my own oyster from the tank - I chose the fattest one I could see and they fished it out for me - inside was a lovely big beautiful pearl :)  My birthday pearl :)

This picture above shows the girl getting my pearl out of the shell for me :)  You can see the sizer next to the tray for sizing the pearl.  Picking the fattest oyster shell worked in my favour as I ended up with a larger than average pearl :)

The picture at the very top of this post shows Sam running away from Belle.  Susannah loved having her picture taken with all the Princesses, but Sam was not interested at all.  He was only 2 years old and there was NO WAY he was having his picture taken!!  Belle tried to catch him each time he ran by but he was too fast ;)  She was laughing at him :)

We really enjoyed our day at Epcot.  Laurence and Christopher went off on their own for a large part of the day as they wanted to enjoy the rides, while we took the younger children to meet the characters and we saw the different 'lands'....we enjoyed seeing 'Canada' and 'Great Britain'.  We had such fun on the Finding Nemo ride too and I strolled around some stores while Lloyd took the girls on some rides.

It was just a wonderful place and I loved it so much!!!

My birthday dinner was at the Rainforest Cafe at Downtown Disney.  We had never been to a Rainforest Cafe before but loved our experience.  I had the most amazing crab cakes there and then I shared a Volcano dessert with the children - a HUGE dessert with chocolate brownies and ice cream and sparklers coming out of it - they run through the restaurant carrying it and yelling VOLCANO with it all on aflame and it's wonderful :)  The kids loved it and even wit 5 of us sharing, we struggled to finish it!!

It was a birthday to remember...a day to remember....a holiday to remember!!!  A time I will never forget - no matter how many times we return to Florida and to Disney, I think that first time will always be the most special and hold special meaning to me.  

I had become Mrs Lloyd Thorpe, we had become a whole family....blended as one....and this holiday seemed to represent that.  The whole holiday had been about that, but this day was special to me, for me and about me because it was my choice for us all of where to go and what to do.  I hope I chose well that day - I think I did......the many pictures I have from that day seem to reflect that :)

(Florida trip Jan / Feb 07 if you'd like to see more)  

Inseparable..

Feeling festive....

Chat on the 'Journal Your Christmas' forums has already begun over at Shimelle.com and I'm really enjoying preparing for this next class.  It was suggested that to make the class much easier, that you prepare the base of the album NOW - and this starts with getting your supplies in order.

They suggested going through all of your supplies and putting all your Christmas supplies into one box so that you have everything together when you start the class.  This works well for me as this is exactly what I did when I took Kara's 'Fall in Love' class recently over at the Old Lady In a Teenager blog.  (Kara recently moved to a new blog which is equally as fabby by the way...you should check it out at:  My Blog).

Anyhoo.....this afternoon I started going through my supplies and found I do not have many Christmasy things at ALL......I have to sort my pictures from past Christmases yet, but really I don't have any embellishments or anything - so I see a shopping trip to the scrapbook store in my not too distant future ;)

I'm feeling all Festive...and then what should arrive in my mailbox, but my December issue of Creating Keepsakes magazine :)

Feel free to say hi....

If you're dropping by from Shimelle's class then please do stop in and say hi - leave a comment or two - I'd love to hear from you and know that you've visited!!!

Thanks
:)

Tuesday ramblings..

I have to work on my prompt for todays class...I'm mulling over my ideas for it...I've been working on my other class work for SAIT too...looking over modules 1 and 2 and my first assignment.  Dinner is in the crockpot - chicken Tikka Masala with Basmati rice and Naan breads...

More pumpkin pie for dessert - for some of us at least - there are about 5 slices left (unless I cave and have a piece with coffee this afternoon).

Abigail made a board game this morning where you had to move along the board collecting trophies and saying weird things on certain squares - or stopping for ice cream (whereby you missed a turn).  She's also worked on her book report for Where the Wild Things are, and pages on money in math.  She's good at money - her Dad says this is because of all the shopping practice with me ;)

Sam played with the shaving foam on the island again - and then painted an empty cereal box.

The weather here is gorgeous!  Way above average for here and long may it last!  Yesterday I sat outside on the back deck and had my lunch.  I was in a t-shirt.  A t-shirt outside for lunch in November!!!  I tidied up the wraparound porch  - emptied all the flower pots.  So glad I left a couple of cushions out there on the chairs so that I can relax in the sunshine on nice days.  I love having the covered porch.  It was so quiet out there.  I filled up the feeders for the birds and watched them come and go.  One of the Chickadees was sat on the back of a chair near me - he didn't mind me being there at all - or Kitty, who was sat on the windowsill in the kitchen ;)

Well, i'll be back later with my homework from todays class.

Consider joining me - Journal your Christmas!!!

I am taking Shimelle's online ' Journal Your Christmas'  class and would LOVE to have you join me!!!  (Click on the purple writing to learn more).

I have wanted to take this class for the last two years...and THIS is the year!!!! :) I am so excited :) Sooooo looking forward to it. I have heard such good things about it and have followed others online as they took it and blogged their progress and albums through the month of December.....

Such a wonderful way to 'take back the holidays'......

Consider joining me on this journey through the Christmas season.....and remember that once you join, you can take part every year at no extra cost :)

Privacy and safety...

Along with todays prompt for my Blogging for scrapbookers class, came a section on safety and privacy regarding blogs. This is something that concerns me because of how much content I put into my blog - the detail and information. I'd just like to mention that most of the time my blogs are private and locked. They are only open to friends and family who I allow access to.

I open them up only a few times each year when I take part in online classes where I would like to share the contents of my blog with members of my class and I find the easiest way to do this is via my blog being open.

I actually do not feel comfortable having my blog open to the public any more and prefer to know who is reading and when. When the current class is over, my blog will be private and locked again.

I AM well aware of all the safety issues around having my family's details online - I don't write blindly - I just believe that the benefits for me and my family FAR outweigh the risks.

SAIT student!!

Today I started my first class with SAIT online....I finally got to log in to my WebCT (web class tools for online learning) and have a look at my modules and assignments for the class over the next few months. We got to introduce ourselves via the discussion forums and generally get an idea of what will be expected of us during the course.

Home made pumpkin pie....

I had one pumpkin left from the weekend that hadn't been carved, so I decided to turn it into a pumpkin pie. This was the first time I had ever made a pumpkin pie from scratch!!! Turns out it is really simple!!! I made a round one and Susannah made a square one. We had some for dessert tonight with squeezy cream. Totally YUMMY and much more filling than bought pie or tinned filing - maybe because fresh pumpkin is unprocessed and so much more natural for you???

We are finding the same with Lloyds home made bread....I struggle to finish two slices of his bread as it is so filling - and it keeps me full for hours - yet processed wholewheat bread I can eat slices and slices of! It just isn't the same thing at all! Even Cobs bread isn't quite the same as Lloyds home made bread which just seems more REAL.....

Supper tonight was potato and bacon soup - a family favourite....smells so good in the slow cooker all day.....

Apple bobbing.....

We played apple bobbing on Saturday afternoon before heading out to trick or treat....

Halloween - trick or treat time!!!

Abigail was a peacock complete with peacock feather wand...Sam was a fireman. I was a devil all day and even forgot to take my horns off when we went out for the evening and didn't remember until I was lining up in Starbucks, that I was still wearing them....sigh....

Pumpkin carving 09......

These were the pumpkins we carved this year......we did them saturday afternoon while Susannahs friend was here (they were supposed to be pulling mean and moody poses in the picture but only Susannahs friend did it - Susie started laughing lol). Lloyd carved his scary face with a drill but I did mine with my wonderful Cutterbee - a scrapbooking knife lol!!!! Probably ruined a good blade but it was worth it ;)

OMG the kitchen was such a mess afterwards - Pumpkin goop and gak and muck everywhere - and Lloyds drill threw tiny bits everywhere!!!! But the fun - and the results were definitely worth it :)

Blogging for Scrapbookers - class intentions...

My intentions for this class, are to develop my blogging into something more than it has been lately.....to hopefully learn new techniques and ideas for journaling and writing. I would love to learn ways to change the style of my blog and the way it looks - ways other than just the background and header using typical backgrounds....

I'm interested in using my photography to inspire my writing more - using it to connect to the writing in the way scrapbooking does.

Since I've been posting on facebook, I've neglected my blog a little, and I'd like to pay more attention to my blog again...it needs some TLC ;)

Come and join me as I take this class at www.shimelle.com/classes/618/a-new-online-scrapbooking-class-blogging-for-scrapbookers/

Blogging for scrapbookers.....

www.shimelle.com/classes/618/a-new-online-scrapbooking-class-blogging-for-scrapbookers/

I signed up for this course today - although the start date is today, it isn't too late to join in with me!! It's about $16 Canadian or 9 pounds in the UK I think......I have to say that from what I have seen so far of the prompts and all the work put into this course, it's going to be amazing!!! Three weeks of prompts for blogging, with plenty of tips on how to make your blogging life easier - how to change things up, transform things and how to connect your blogging life to your scrapbooking craft (if you are a scrapbooker).....

I've opened my blog up for the next three weeks too - while I take this class, so we can share our prompts and our blogs with others in our class...hello to anyone who drops by from Shimelles class!

End of the month tag - October...

What books and/or magazines did I read this month? Womanition, Avenue, CK, Redbook, Believe (Canadian Cancer Society magazine), Ladies Home Journal, People, the local paper....various homeschool books.....many many MANY books on Halloween for the kids....I started 'The Book Thief'.

What movies, television shows, plays, etc. did I watch this month? Year 1 (funny funny funny), Greys Anatomy Series 5, The Ring 2, Revolutionary Road, (was it Oct or Sept that I saw Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs?? Can't remember.... Transformers 2, The Other Boleyn Girl (Fab Fab Fab!!!)....

What fun things did I do with my family and/or friends? We went to the Haunted Pumpkin Festival, Laurences birthday and our family dinner to celebrate! Date nights at mini glow golf, A Taste of India, New Asian Village, Joeys Global.....Thanksgiving. Getting to know our new neighbours better - they are so so nice :)

What gifts did I give and/ or receive? Perfume from Lloyd, a new Macbook Pro laptop and a cute pink bag for it. My kids gave me my favourite Oh Henry bars from their Halloween candy :) Little love notes form Lloyd left on top of my coffee cup in the mornings are very special to me :) And the pictures the children draw me or cards they make for me!! The cups of tea or coffee they make for me - or the offers of help!!

What special or unusual purchases did I make? I bought a cupboard and some shelves for my craft room and we bought a PS3 and new tv for it too so Lloyd can spend time with me in there. I bought witches legs :)

What illnesses or health concerns did I have? My lymph nodes continue to hurt..really should get them checked out but don't want to sit in a waiting room full of flu germs ;) I figure my body is just fighting off some infection or other so I guess they are doing their job!! Apart from that I feel fine - Sam and Abby had a virus last week and Sam had a fever for a night and wasn't himself for a few days but they are ok now....we are eating well and doing all we can to keep our immune systems strong as there are so many bugs around at the moment!

What were my accomplishments this month? I am registered for college and start tomorrow with my first (pre-requisite) course. I am looking forward to March when I can start my first real course of interest!! This first class is computer fundamentals and just covers MS Office - I already have a certificate in this but I took that almost 10 years ago so I think it will be good to refresh my skills now in it all.

What were my disappointments this month? Not being able to go on my trip to the Dominican. Sam being ill the day of his Halloween party. I broke my precious laptop.

Anything else noteworthy to include? October was a difficult month for me and I struggled through it. I am glad it's over. I welcome November with open arms! Octobers weather was horrid - windy and cold and up and down...snow here then gone, here then gone......it was a GREY month and everything is brown outside. Spring seems a long time away!