Another Project Checked Off the List

Nathan's deluxe walk in closet is built and painted. In two weeks, once the paint is cured, we'll start loading up those shelves and making his room as neat as a pin!
Keith gets credit for the master building and designing and Andrew for the awesome paint job!

Lavished Upon

I got spoiled for my anniversary. Keith says the computer wasn't a gift but to me it was! He also bought me an external hard drive so now I can back things up regularly and not be devasted when things go crash.

I woke up to these gorgeous red roses on my dresser on my anniversary!

And then Keith proceeded to give me yet another gift of a new perfume set! Something I never ever buy for myself. I like it when he choses the scent since he's the one that will be smelling it. I like this one very much!

And we also had a spectacular dinner on the eve of our anniversary at Restaurant 62. Have you ever eaten there? It's not cheap but the food is very fresh and very well presented and simply delicious. We started with some cocktails, bread with fresh hummus and lovely potatoe & onion soup. For our entrees I had seared chicken over pasta with bacon and sundried tomatoes and Keith had seared rock fish with crab and a little ramekin of baked pasta with tomatoes. It was soooo good but sadly we didn't have room for dessert. The options looked delicious but we just could not manage it. While we were there, the network 'TLC' was filming an episode for a new reality dating show to be aired Dec 4th. It certainly gave us something to gawk at between courses :)

The finale of our anniversary celebrations will come in November when we will escape to Harrison Hot Springs for two nights. We cannot wait!

Great Moments

Rewind to this past August when I went to Burnaby Village with my mom and kids. In one of the houses there was a print that caught my eye. It was very Victorian and old fashioned and for some strange reason I simply fell in love with it.

I went home that day and starting searching the net trying to find out more about it. The picture is actually a set of post cards that were given free with Good Housekeeping magazine subscriptions back in the 1920's. Of course I could not afford, nor did I want a set of original post cards. I knew a print would do me nicely. I lucked on on E-Bay and found it in my mail box a few weeks later for a very reasonable price!

What was not reasonable was the cost of matting and framing the darn thing. Even with a 75% off coupon the price made my jaw drop. Since it is an odd sized print I could not frame it myself so I really didn't have a choice. I told myself it was an investment and plunked down my poor over-used Mastercard. But now that I have it back and it's hanging in it's new home in my ensuite I am super happy with it and glad I treated myself.

So...without further ado...here it is, frame by frame.

I'm sure a liberated, modern woman would never freely admit such old fashioned events make up the greatest moments of their life but truth be told they are pretty great!

The finished product....isn't it lovely?

Something just for me, in my only 'girl' room in my testerone filled house!

Liam's Party

I first have to post this video of Liam ceremoniously throwing his beloved soother in the garbage.  We've been talking about this for months now.  He woke up yesterday morning and without a word from me went straight to the kitchen and put it in the bin!  What a trooper!
Last night he did ask for it and when I reminded him that three year olds don't have soothers he told me he didn't want to be three anymore.



Three Years of Liam

Three years ago our lives changed quite dramatically!

This little baby has grown into such a character. We can't help but love him! Except in the mornings when he has to be woken up. Then he's a real crank-pot!

Happily Back Online

I'm happy, so very happy to have a computer again. The mystery remains as to why my 2 year old laptop died and my husband's 10 year old PC still chugs away. But I cannot dwell too long on this matter or my blood pressure goes way up.

We've been busy! While Nate is at rehearsal for A.C.T. each week, my boys are in the local pool. Chad is taking his level 3 lessons and Liam is taking his very first set of lessons with dad. He's fearless in that water and I'm so pleased with his progress. He looks forward to Saturdays very much!

One of the most amusing aspects is watching all the dads with their tots playing certain games where they all hold hands in a circle and sing and go around and around. That my friends, is true love for your kids. Those men would do that for no other...I'm sure of it!

17 Big Ones!

Been married a while now. 17 years to be exact!

It's a hard yet very rewarding endevour. We started young and ignorant. I hope we have gleaned some wisdom along the way.

I love you Keith and am really proud to be your wife!

Blogging Backlog

Well, I have plenty of blogging material but cannot post photos until I get a new computer so it'll have to wait.

I'm reading your blogs as I can, but until we decide on a new system my blog will be pretty quiet.

We are going back and forth on a laptop versus a desktop computer. The more we shop and research, the more confused we get.

We really weren't expecting this and there are many other things that need our attention right now so I'm hoping we'll sort it out soon but I'm not holding my breath!

A Little Story

Keith took Liam to Wal-Mart today to buy a new car seat for his parents.

As they were standing in line to pay a very elderly gentleman asked Liam if he was being a good boy. Liam very shyly said yes and tucked his head into Keith's shoulder.

Then the gentleman dug into his pocket and Keith feared he'd pull out an old sticky candy but it was a small black wallet. He dug around and pulled out a loonie which he presented to Liam because he was a 'good boy'. Liam said thank you and clutched it tightly.

As they shuffled up in line, Liam held out the loonie asked Keith: Daddy, what dat?

Ah yes...he knew it was a good thing but not sure why!

What a sweet old man....this story warmed my heart and maybe it will warm yours too!

Hopefully Not Terminal

My laptop went wonkers yesterday. I cannot revive it.

My laptop holds all my blog links, email addresses, photos and basically everything else that I hold in high regard.

Our IT friend cannot look at it until Tuesday.

Until then I can only hope for the best.

PS.

I am typing this on Keith's archaic old beast of a PC. It'll do for now.

Fueling Up

I would never get through the morning without my Kashi! I am a major cold cereal lover and I have found that only a few keep away the hunger pangs until lunchtime. I'd have to say Vector and Kashi are the top two for doing this job properly due to their high protein content!

But I love all cereals very much....it's my favorite breakfast.

What's your favorite cereal?

New Beginnings

This is the first time in Nathan's school career that he has not worn a uniform. We are both happy for the change! He had a wonderful first day of grade 8. I was so nervous for him this morning but he had huge smiles after school and can't wait to go back. Phew!
Chad also had a terrific day in grade 5. He's got the same teacher as last year and is with his bestest friend...what more could a boy want. He's already got a field trip planned to Deep Cove to do kayaking next week too!

Yep...happy boys makes a happy mom.

Back to School Eve

I'm feeling good about tomorrow. I know it will be crazy and the day will just fly by! I'm happy that we are getting lunch brought in for us...it's always a great treat and a good way to start up the year.

Chad is excited to start grade 5! The last year of elementary school for my little bud. It's a bit surreal for us both. He's going to love being the big fish in the little pond.

Nathan is wavering between excitement and nerves. Starting a new school is a daunting experience no matter how you slice it! I feel for him and I hope and pray he has a great start!

I am thankful Keith had the foresight to book the day off. With these half day starts, I will need him to shuttle the kids around.

I don't have my freezer full of lunch box treats as I might have liked but the hot weather never really inspires me to bake. After supper tonight I did whip up a batch of 'Pina Colada Muffins' which do smell divine. Once the weather turns cool, I'll get back on that baking band wagon.

Look at Him Go!

Liam has had his strider bike for just about a year now. He's never grown tired of riding it and enjoys zipping around the house on a daily basis. Lately his latest move is to pull up his legs off the floor and coast. He also likes to try to pull up the front wheel as he whizzes by to do a 'pop-a-wheelie'! Will I finally have a son who enjoys a good adrenalin rush?!

PS.

Thanks for all your encouraging comments on my previous post!

B-O-R-I-N-G

How does a 'classic' become a classic? Who decides these things anyways? What is the criteria? I am reading the classic 'Anna Karenina'. It's very long and very boring and I'd like to know how it ever became a classic. I am half done and since I usually finish the books I start I am dragging myself to the end of it. I confess that I am skim reading sections and hoping for it to better but am definitely not getting my hopes up on that one!

Next on the list are Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights! Let's hope they are more interesting.