Friday fill-ins!!

And...here we go!

1. This is what life does. It lets you build up faith and trust in someone and then it knocks you down and hits you hard and teaches you valuable lessons...but it also makes you stronger.

2. Why is it so often difficult to just slow down enough to appreciate the moment?

3. Upon reflection, Lloyd leaving me was probably the best thing to happen this year.

4. I haven't had a green monster for quite a long time.

5. Later, you wake up and smell the roses and realise that he was being honest - he really HADN'T loved you the WHOLE time he was married to you!!!!  Ha!!!  But...in the end it didn't really matter....

6. I would love to be able to run off to the far and boundless sea. I miss the ocean very much.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to talking to Darren, seeing Christie and Sid, having an early night...catching up on some reading and maybe some writing, tomorrow my plans include taking the girls shopping for their camp supplies - some little travel bottles of shampoo/ toothpaste etc and a disposable camera for Abby...some glowsticks for their bags and a beachtowel for Susannah....batteries for her camera etc..... and Sunday, I want to take the girls to camp and reassure Abby that she is going to have a wonderful time horseriding all week!

Morning coffee with Sam......

Amber and Rosie are sat in the doorway desperately wanting to come in...Amber keeps creeping in and then tries one paw over the threshhold and removes it when I say 'out'!!!

Then I turn around and see her asleep on the mat INSIDE the kitchen.....sigh....

I love quiet mornings here....coffee in the kitchen or on the deck...the breeze blowing through the trees outside...the birds and frogs outside......

Sam is now painting a box beside me and gluing some 'clothes' onto some foam people.

I have so much to do today and yet here I sit...drinking coffee, chatting, emailing and procrastinating....and enjoying my home :)  

Kitty

Kitty is a year old now and will have been with us for a whole year in a few weeks.  He's still a gentle sweetheart, and now he's had his pompoms chopped he no longer sprays, so he he can stay - YAY!!!!

He's such a sweety!!!!!  All he does is purr and cuddle!!!!

Bathtime :)

I had a fun afternoon at Ikea today with two of my most favourite people :)

Owen decided to get in the claw foot tub in one of the bathrooms, so I snapped this picture...he was then 'soaking in the tub' the other way round...but when I went to help him out, we realised that the bath wasn't attached to the floor and it almost fell over!!!  Ooops :)  

It was funny :)

For today......

Outside My Window... It is cloudy and breezy...I think it is starting to thunder in the distance.  The wind is really starting to pick up and it's raining a little.  I like days like this after a series of hot days.

I am thinking...of so many thinks that it feels as if my head may explode.

I am thankful for...a few wonderful people in my life who have been amazing recently!!  I seriously don't think I would have survived without them....or at least would be in the position I am in without them!!!  Thank you, thank you!!!

From the kitchen...I've been barbecuing more now that I know how to!!  I made a yummy pasta a couple of nights ago and threw in some mushrooms...the girls had some for lunch yesterday.  There are so few of us here right now (Chris and Laurence aren't around right now) that there are leftovers!!

I am wearing...as always, I am writing this in bed, so I'm in my nightwear still!!

I am creating...Not much this week - it's been a busy week with other things....I guess you could say it's been focused on creating a new life for me and the kids ;)

I am going...insane ;)   but apart from that.....I am going to miss Darren when he goes back to work tomorrow.  I am going to have breakfast with Val at some point this week and catch up with all her news.  I am going to take Susie to see Eclipse.  I am going to go to our favourite outdoor pool as soon as the weather heats up again!!  I am going to see Christie and Sid again next weekend :)  I am going to take my girls to camp next week.
I am reading...three books right now - two fiction and one non fiction.  The non fiction is one Darren gave me and I'm working through.....I'm reading a Jane Green novel and a novel Vals Daughter Kayla let me borrow!!

I am hoping...that this week is much easier than last week....


I am hearing... Miss Spiders Sunny Patch on Treehouse, and the window blowing through the window and under the door..

Around the house...I'm still painting my room, working on the stairs....life keeps getting in the way of me finishing it!!!

One of my favorite things...sleepovers :)

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...get the windows clean, go swimming, give Chris a driving lesson, cut the grass, count the money in the jar, start packing for the girls for camp. go to the bookmobile, see the Twilight movie.....

City Hall Wading Pool...

Cooling off (freeeeeezing off????) in the water after the festival...they were having a blast!!  They all had cups to fill with water and throw at each other.....and Sam was the only one with spare clothes to change in to!!!  :)  

Street Performers Festival...

Yesterday we went to the Street Performers Festival in Downtown Edmonton with some good friends of ours.  You can read about it

 HERE

It was the first time we had ever been to this festival and it was a really fun afternoon!  Of course the first focus for the kids was the FOOD!!!  lol...so they all had hot dogs or lemonade, poutine or snow cones etc....

I got to have some Indian food :)  

We did eventually get to watch some of the street performers!!  I really enjoyed one guy who was making a couple play tennis with a ball that he was controlling on a stick.....and then he was pulling a little girl along with a rope....

I also really enjoyed the guy in the pictures above!!!

I would have liked to have watched the girl who was hula-hooping as Barbie, but the children had all been in the City Hall pools by then and were wet and cold, so we wanted to get them home!!

It was a fun evening and perfect weather :)

Sunday morning sunshine....

The weather here has been gorgeous lately.  Today is the first cool day for a while and it's supposed to rain today and tomorrow and then be hot again by Wednesday.  

This was me yesterday morning, bright and early, having coffee out on the back deck with my laptop checking facebook.....bed hair and still in my nighty lol.....oh I LOVE living on an acreage with no neighbours that can see me....it doesn't matter that I've just crawled out of bed and I'm outside....no one can see me :)  well, except you lot now because I've posted this picture lol!  :)

Oh my, I look FABULOUS in the mornings huh??? Hahahahaha ;)  ok no comments please ;)

:)

Glow stick fun....

On Saturday night I gave the kids a bag of glow sticks at bed time and they had a blast messing about with them.  At first they couldn't get them to glow - in fact it was little Sam who finally found a way to snap them and get them glowing :)  Once they were glowing they were all high as kites for a while enjoying them :)  

Shocking how much fun you can have with a $2 bag of glow sticks :)  

Friday fill-ins!! - a day late!!

And...here we go!

1. Layers of chocolate cake with fresh cream and fruit puree....mmmmmm.

2. I'm grateful that although I have a disorder, it is one that allows me insight.

3. I'd be willing to bet I know who that is on the phone.

4.not much scares the dog but thunderstorms scare our neighbours dog so much he has been known to run away to the other side of Edmonton.

5. I'm fond of listening to the rain....

6.  Sometimes it all gets too much!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to not much as I was sick all day Friday and didn't stop being sick until midnight or shortly before, tomorrow my plans include (well we were supposed to go to the Scottish gathering at Fort Edmonton but the rain and the fact that I was recovering from a migraine, meant that we have cancelled that.  I also had plans with Darren tonight but can't make that either :(  so instead, I am having a quiet day at home with the younger three and watch a movie tonight....do some laundry, read, shower....feel better....and Sunday, I want to go to the Street Performers Festival!

My week....

Christie and Danika came to stay this week...Christie was an AMAZING help to me (thank you Sid for lending her to me lol) and I don't know how I would have managed without her!!  

I was so sick yesterday I didn't even get to say goodbye to them when they left :(  so thank you Christie soooo much!!

We did do a few other things while they were here aside from bank/ lawyer etc etc appointments - like the new splashpark in Millwoods (not impressed) and the farmers market on Wednesday evening...and on Thursday night we went to the pub quiz with Darren, Samantha, Ian and Ben.....then back to Samantha's house where we sat out by the fire chatting with hot chocolate until 1am  :)

Sunday.

On Sunday the children had a nice afternoon out with their Dad.  

Painting my bedroom...

Susannah helped me paint my bedroom this week - it isn't finished yet - I have only primed the dark wood and it still needs the coat of white gloss, but it's so much nicer with white trim and windows instead of that nasty dark wood!  I love the pale blue paint too - it's a robins egg blue called 'Falling Rain'.  I then found some new bedding at Homesense that is ULTRA soft and comfy....a 10 piece set with comforter and I just love it :)

I should take some new piccies with my real camera and the flash - these are just snapshots with my iphone and they make the room look really dark lol - it isn't though, it's lovely and light :)  New white curtains really lighten it up too :)

Sunday meme

1. How old will you be in five years? ...43

2. Who did you spend at least two hours with today? ... my friend Samantha

3. How tall are you? ... 4' 11"

4. What do you look forward to most in the next six months? ... Going to Vegas  and New York :)

5. What’s the last movie you saw? ... at the movie theatre - Toy Story 3

6. Who was the last person you called? ... probably Darren??  Maybe Laurence

7. Who was the last person to call you? ...Samantha to say she was at the gate.

8. What was the last text message you received? ... from Tess

9. Who was the last person to leave you a voicemail? ... Darren :)

10. Do you prefer to call or text? ... depends who it is - normally text unless it's Darren.

11. What were you doing at 12am last night? ... I think I was blogging or on facebook

12. Are your parents married/separated/divorced? ... married for 50 years

13. When is the last time you saw your mum? ... almost 18 months ago.  They live in England.

14. What color are your eyes? ... grey

15. What time did you wake up today? ... 10:30am

16. What are you wearing right now? ...denim capri's, patterned tshirt, cardigan.

17. What is your favorite Christmas song? ...silent  night  or  We Three Kings

18. Where is your favorite place to be? ...at home or in Canmore

19. Where is your least favorite place to be? ... dentist

20. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?  Cape Cod

21. Where do you think you’ll be in 10 years? ... No clue any more

22. Do you tan or burn? ...I tan.

23. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child? ...spiders

24. What was the last thing that really made you laugh? ... probably something Christie said on Friday night...

25. How many TVs do you have in your house? ... 5

26. How big is your bed? ... King sized

27. Do you have a laptop or desktop computer? ... macbook pro, mac desktop, iphone, 

29. What color are your sheets? ... a goldy colour but I am changing them this week!!!

30. How many pillows do you sleep with? ... 1

31. What is your favorite season? ... Summer.

32. What do you like about Autumn? ... The colours, the smells, the festivals and holidays....

33. What do you like about winter? .... the holidays, the beauty, the fun....the excuse to stay at home, the comfort foods!!

Saturday Meme

Accent - English, slight Somerset, touch of Surrey, touch of Stockport (especially when around Samantha), and a little bit of Canadian which is only really noticed by friends and family back home I think....

Booze of choice - Bacardi Breezers, Tia Maria with coke, Baileys with ice, wine with 7Up in it, Becks, various other drinks....lol!!

Chore I hate - Ironing.  But I never do that so it doesn't count lol - probably cleaning toilets YUCK!!!

Dog or Cat - both - they are both lovely :)

Essential electronics - iphone and macbook - love them both :)

Favorite perfume(s)/cologne(s) -I wear two different ones depending on my mood.  I wear Hot Couture and I wear Obsession.

Gold or Silver? - White gold or Platinum.

Hometown - I'm originally from Yeovil in Somerset, England, but home to me is very much Sherwood Park or Edmonton, Alberta.

Insomnia? - Yes - hence the fact it is 2:30am and I am typing this ;)

Job Title - Homeschooling full time single Mom of 5.  

Kids? - five

Living Arrangement - I live on my own with my five amazing children, two dogs and two cats in a house that I adore - a pretty cape cod style house with a lovely wrap around porch.  I LOVE this home despite the fact that it needs a LOT of work!!!  If I am fortunate enough to get to stay here, I will get to all the work that needs to be done eventually :)

Most admired trait - Probably my positive attitude.  Maybe...I don't know.  Other people would have to answer this...I don't know what I am admired for.  Maybe my positive attitude - not much gets me down really

Number of Sexual Partners - four.  I was married to two of them.....

Overnight Hospital Stays - six

Phobia - A bit of a phobia of heights and spiders.

Quote - Right now I like:  "The Life you have led doesn't need to be the only life you have."

Religion - n/a

Siblings - two sisters, both older.

Time I wake up - late!!  Much too late ;)

Unusual talent/skill - I have a party trick.....it's a good one...best performed in private hahahaha so I guess it's not much of a 'party' trick hahahaha and no I am not videoing it to show you all here ;)

Vegetable I refuse to eat - None. I love ALL vegetables!!!

Worst habit - road rage - yelling, swearing and sticking my finger up at bad drivers and idiots on the road!!

X-rays - I think I've had almost every part of my body xrayed at some time or other!!

Yummy foods I make - I make a LOT of yummy foods - I'm a great cook - I just haven't cooked much lately!!  I need to get back into the routine of cooking.  

Zodiac sign - sun sign is Aquarius!!