The Thaw 2011...

Getting to know you Sunday!!

1. do you weigh yourself?  Very rarely.  I used to weigh myself a lot and had the scales in my bathroom, but my Daughter started weighing herself too often and worrying about her weight too much, so I packed the scales away and now don't worry about it - I focus more on whether my clothes feel comfortable....

2. what's the nastiest thing you've ever eaten?  Caviar - blegh!!  Lloyd ordered some for our Anniversary last year as I wanted to try some as one of my goals for the year....it was disgusting but I'm so glad that we can all say we've tried it.....You can see the post where we tried the caviar HERE

3. snail mail or email?  snail mail :)  

4. do you have any irrational fears...what are they?  No, I don't think so.  I used to....but one came true and I survived....so now I know I can survive pretty much anything.  

5. do you play an instrument?  No.  I had guitar lessons as a child but don't remember anything.

6. would you rather be bitten by a snake or attacked by a bear?  snake.

7. do you ever go braless in public?  omg no!!!  

8. today i am thankful for........................?  My amazing childrens help in the grocery store and at home with the recycling and sorting out the garage and truck.  All their help with very little complaining.  They are wonderful.  I am soooo lucky.  

You can join in with this meme HERE 

I have my eye on you ;)

Stylish and sparkly :)

Abigail asked if she could have her hair cut off, so we went this afternoon and had it cut short into a bob again - I love it when it's this length and think it really suits her :)  The hair stylist straightened it for her but also layered it so that if it dries naturally it should have a fair bit of natural curl in it.  She also sprayed it with glitter spray for Abby and it looked sooooo nice :)  

I have two BEAUTIFUL daughters - so lucky xxx

Beauty....

Sam's hat!!

Sam wore a hat out today...kind of funny really as he hasn't worn one much all winter and now the weather is warm he suddenly decides to wear one!!  Anyway, we shop for a while and then stop off at Timmys....the Timmys we go to is full of soldiers and cops...not that that matters...just kind of funny really (I mean what coffee shop ISN'T full of cops lmao) but it isn't until we're sat in Timmys having lunch that I realise what Sam's hat SAYS!!!  :)

Geez....perfect hat for a six year old huh????  I have NO clue where that hat came from!!  I certainly didn't buy it....so how it ended up at our house I've no idea, but I thought it was hilarious....then I sat there at the table and kept speaking overly loudly and calling Susannah (13) 'Mommy' to Sam...and me Grandma.....so we looked like one of those awful families...a beer drinking teen who had a baby soooo young and puts her kid in a beer hat ;)  

Friday fill ins!!

1. I can't believe how lovely and warm and sunny it has been the last few days - Spring has sprung!!

2. I hope it is a good Summer for everyone.

3. How can I be everything I need to be to everyone I need to be it to...without burning myself out.  I have so much I need to do all in such a short time, and so many people need so much from me and have so many expectations from me....and I know what I think is most important....but still, so much of it is important....and it's difficult to know what to let fall to the side....it's like juggling knives over a baby - I can't let ANYTHING fall....

4. Baked potatoes was the last thing I cooked. It's all we ever eat here now - the kids seem to be on a baked potato obsession/ craze at the moment.  I did force them to have a couple of different things last week....hash brown casserole with lots of vegetables for example....but at least their obsession is healthy and often has a side salad and cheese...and they get lots of fruit etc at other times...

5. Six of one kind of top is not strange for me - I will often get six of my favourite kind of long sleeved plain T's at Reitmans when they are on sale Buy one get one half off etc as I wear them sooooo often!!!  

6. More cold weather and snow; nonono!

7. And as for the weekend, Friday night I was looking forward to Jessica coming to stay and all of us going to the roller rink, Saturday my plans included a lovely brunch outside on the deck in the sunshine with all the children and Sunday, I want to clean out the truck, go and get laurence from the twins house, get Susannah new shoes and take Rosie for a walk!

Meme - Fabulous Five :)

Five questions...found on a blog...I copied and pasted it earlier and now I can't find the link :(  


1.  Crunchy or soft Taco's?  We make both here and they are a favourite food of the kids....but I prefer crunchy....Sam likes crunchy although he tends to empty out the contents and eat that with a fork and leave the actual taco!!  Abby loves soft...I think soft seems to be the most popular but I don't like soft....


2.  Do you scrapbook?  Well, I used to scrapbook a lot and I have filled well over 20 albums with 12" x 12" pages....I have given Lloyd all the pages that include him as well as many of the pages that I knew were his favourites...
I don't scrapbook at the moment, although I have thought about doing some in the past couple of weeks.  In the last couple of years I have preferred to make mini albums, art journals etc...and collage on canvases....I'm sure I will return to scrapbooking at some point in the future.  The children say they prefer my scrapbook pages and love to look at my albums.  That encourages me to return to it - to create keepsakes for them.  I know it's important for THEM.  


3.  Do you take daily medication?  Yes, I take Topomax and Effexor for migraines, as well garlic capsules almost daily to keep away coughs and colds.  


4.  What is your favourite sound?  I love sitting on the deck in the Summer listening to the breeze blowing through the leaves on the trees, all the different birds singing their tunes - my redwinged blackbirds, finches, chickadees, robins, woodpeckers, Jays, even the hum of my hummingbirds as they buzz by on their way to the feeders....the children laughing over by the swings....I love thunderstorms....I love the ocean....I love my childrens giggles....


5.  Where were you born?  Yeovil maternity hospital, in Somerset, England.  

PLease come back out and play......

Rosie loves the warmer weather and having us all outside more....

Spring cleaning - the outside.....

The last couple of days we've made the most of the good weather and cleaned off the porch and deck, and then enjoyed sitting outside with coffee - as often as possible :)  Thursday morning there was a good 2ft of snow covering this entire deck - compacted snow and ice...the table too....and plant pots full of dead plants....the occasional buried 'gift' from Rosie...sigh.....

So I shovelled and scrubbed and cleaned and cleared and now it's lovely out there and ready for SUNSHINE and WARMTH :)  

Roller Rink fun!!!

Last night we headed to the roller rink again for some roller disco fun!!  The kids LOVE this place :)  I must admit I do too as it reminds me of my teen years when I used to meet my friends there every Friday evening :)  Things haven't changed much (except the prices lol) and even some of the music is the same!!

Coffee at Greenlands....

On Friday I met my lovely friend JoAnne for coffee at Greenlands Garden centre....a favourite place of mine.  They have their indoor garden set up at the moment - it will only be there for a few weeks, but it's well worth checking out if you're in the area - it's such a lovely place to have lunch or coffee...fish, plants.....so relaxing, and the gift store is just gorgeous!!!  It's soooo warm in there it's a little touch of Summer :)

My Kitty cat.....my miracle cat :)

First Spring brunch on the deck....

This morning we had the first brunch out on the deck...we're so lucky that our back deck is a sun trap, and even on cooler days, as long as the sun is shining, it is warm enough to sit outside and enjoy it :)  I've spent the last couple of days cleaning off the back deck and sorting out the furniture.....getting rid of dead plants, old plant pots, scrubbing, washing and making sure it was ready to enjoy the good weather :)  

It was lovely sitting out there this morning with Susannah and Jessica, Abigail and Sam....we had croissants and jam, buns and juice...and the children had chips too :)  

Yum :)

We didn't bother getting dressed or anything...just piled out of bed, set the table and ate :)  

One of the best things about being in the middle of nowhere and not having neighbours close enough to see :)

Cute evening visitor....heading home....

This evening we had a little visitor to our front yard - this porcupine!!!  Rosie was the first to spot it, so we had to get her inside FAST as we have has a few issues with her before with quills in her - and a trip to the vet before!!  

Sam and Abby were fascinated by it and wanted to head off to see it, but I called them back inside and they had to make do with binoculars...yes you can get fairly close without any problems, but I wasn't going through that deep snow with them, and anyway the porcupine moves to fast and would have been long gone before they got there....and it isn't safe enough for them to go alone!!  So back they came - not happy with me ;)  

The last picture shows how far away it actually was - these are just iphone pictures as my good cameras are packed away - I really should get them out and charge them for times like this, but the iphone is so small and convenient...I only posted these pics so you get a rough idea of the size of a porcupine..it lives in our neighbours wood and often walks through to our place unseen..although Hope our neighbour has seen it quite often.  We have our own porcupines living in our side woods....I love porcupines - they are soooo cute :)