just me?

So as we drove through Jasper National Park I noticed this beautiful mountain... now what I see in this photo are two hands coming out of the earth... I don't know if you'll see that or not... but I just felt this weird connection with the mountain and took a few photos as we got closer to it...


two hands
reaching towards the sky
hoping to stretch their fingers to the heavens

(In case you can't see it....)

another, cause I can't sleep

So here is another photo from tonight... can't sleep... it was a pretty good fireworks show and Dawson Creek has a great hill for viewing... the bugs decided to come and feast on us... but it was a small price to pay... :)

ok - one more photo

Another moon shot... can't wait for the sky show on the 12th...

crazy stuff in the sky...

We saw this after the fire works at the Dawson Creek Fall Fair... turns out it was a paper balloon with a fire bag under it... it was crazy to see...

no stench

Alright so the smell has cleared from the campsite ... thank GOD! Today we just hung out in Edmonton - spent some money at West Edmonton Mall and went to IKEA... and caved on buying a new mattress for the tent trailer because we just were not sleeping well.

Tomorrow I'm heading to Dawson Creek for the big race... which I'm pretty nervous about right now... I bought a bear bell in preparation for it and I'm picking up a new pack tomorrow before I head out. I should have bought it today but just wasn't really thinking about it - well that's a lie - I've been thinking about it a lot... mostly my thoughts are positive though and how freakin' cool its going to be to cross the finish line of a 1/2 marathon... I'm also focusing on the miles and not km... because 22 (ish) km sounds dreadful, while 13 miles... see where I'm going with that... I know - it's retarded - but that's why you keep coming back to read here.. expect no less than my stupidness :)

Love to all!

from the depths of hell

Next time I'm staying in alberta can someone remind me to ask what the place smells like - I'm so hyper sensitive to smells that I'm pretty much in pain every second we are the RV site.. it smells like ass x 20 x something that got burned... AHHHHHHHHHH! I just want to get the hell out of this campsite.

Other than that - we are alive - kids went to the water park yesterday and just hung out today... we went to the zoo, but don't even get me started on that... I'm not really sure how they can even call that a zoo... Calgary and even the Vancouver one are better...

Alright - there is some good old fashioned venting... now if I could get my email to send I'd be way better... back to trying to make that happen...

and while i'm thinking and not sleeping

In just a few short days the best meteor shower is on... so mark Aug 12 on the calendar - find yourself a nice place to sit and watch the sky come alive... with any luck I'll have photos to share as I'm planning to get outside that night and snap a few off... but don't wait for me to post pictures - so it in person - it is worth the look up!

no topic

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
and nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us, something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they say
never cared for games they play
never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
and I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No, nothing else matters

(Just on the off chance that someone doesn't know where that comes from - this is the lyrics to nothing else matters by metallica... and I just felt like posting that tonight... I've been humming it all night and have decided that I shouldn't be the only one humming it...)

a little bit bigger

Some fun moon photography... man - I just need a converter to double my range... oh then look out...

photo fun

Half moon, July 29 09

oh what fun

Alright... so here is a job perk.... we managed to get Mantracker in Quesnel for a couple of episodes and this afternoon our office got to meet him - it was AWESOME! We just tried to contain our excitement.

gee willackers...

This month has been full of drama. My grandmother decided to move with her boyfriend and then things at the new place didn't work out - eg the place was a slum... so she decided to move... then after a few days she decided she needed to move back.. you guessed it now she decided to move away... and so tonight she is sleeping in my guest room upstairs. Now I actually didn't come on here tonight to complain about that - I actually think this is an important thing and believe that these are exactly the kinds of situations where families are meant to pull together - regardless of the retardness... (I know my word loving friends that isn't a word, pretend it is) And then tonight she goes to bed early - like right after dinner early... tired, hasn't slept in days/weeks - ok - night - even though it is SO DAMN hot upstairs that I'm actually working in my office... sad - but true... then gets up a couple hours later and then pretty much goes right back to sleep - or at least I think she is - for whatever reason I look down the hall and there on the counter in my guest room are her teeth in a bowl... yuck right... flash to me thinking about how that sucks and I don't want that and... oh it gets better - I see her hands and move out of the way thinking she is coming to the door... nope - she has spied (with her little eye) a pile of papers.. and she is making her way through it - looking at our old bills and crap, that is now part of the re-use pile of paper... - part of me wanted to open the door, but I would have bonked her in the head... I mean - what the flamin' toilet paper is that... thanks for letting me stay at your house and while I'm here I'm going to perform a full audit...

What it made me think - is what did she look through while I was out of the house all day... there are few items/things/papers that would be bad in the wrong hands... even in good hands... :)

What else - tomorrow is garage sale day at our house - I picked the hottest weekend of the summer to have a garage sale - fan-freakin-tastic..., my sister is here tomorrow - woohoo - ok - time to turn the water off - gotta get up at 6am to start setting up the garage sale... or earlier..

cold battle

BLAH - the cold is not improving - AT ALL!

I'm sick and need a place to whine - so here I am...

My throat is no longer sore - so that is a positive note. However, the cold has relocated in my sinus. I'm not really feeling like I have a real cold and have to wonder if I'm having some kind of stupid allergy. I guess I'll see how the rest of the week goes... I may also try a allergy medicine and see if that alleviates the symptoms.

Ok and now for a beautiful flower photo from Lillooet...

photo

This was taken at 7am from the Seton Rest Area in Lillooet. If you look closely you'll see the moon above the mountain top.

I'm working at fighting off the cold I have right now - I'm also trying to get my distance up for the emperor's challenge. I definitely need some great socks and bandaids. I have a pretty bad blister on one of my toes and I'm just hoping it will heal up - I guess I should be taking better care of it - plus my left heel is really cracked - I mean more than a .5 cm wide and at least that deep... all from shoes - any time I wear backless shoes my heel cracks... why... why... why does fashion have to bare such a heavy price ;)

Oh and I got another piece of funny mail. I asked that some coupons be sent to the attention of the "Queen of the Universe". Since they sent it to the house it must be true! Damn straight!

Has anyone else been selected for a Stat Canada Labour Market survey before? They make it out like it is such an honour... they track a household for six months and you have to do it otherwise they hound you like bill collectors... apparently it is part of being a proud Canadian. I think I missed the fine print on that one.

a little camping

So we went and spent the night at McLeese Lake Resort last night... unbeknownst to us a nice storm came through - so we ended up looking at each other for a few hours while the storm passed over. Tent trailer held up well - but it was freakin' cold. I know I'm getting old, but come on. Now I hear it is supposed to really get hot for the next few days - which I'm actually looking forward to... that's right - I just said I was looking forward to warm weather... insane!

The guys had a good time at the lake - despite the weather - found some snail shells - the only shells in northern BC (ok - Prince Rupert and Kitimat have some shells... ok - only shells in the Cariboo - happy...)

We are heading to Edmonton in two weeks. I haven't been there since I was 15 so if anyone knows what we should do there - outside of West Edmonton Mall - cause, yeh, I've heard about it - then please let me know 'cause I don't know what the hell we are going to do for five days there. I'm leaving the family behind on Aug 6 or 7th and heading to Dawson Creek for the Emperor's Challenge - and yes - that actually does make me insane... half marathon through the bush... I'm actually really looking forward to it.

Ok - onward and upwards, happy thoughts onboard :)

i gotta say..

I'm sure that some group of people sat down together and thought this was a brilliant idea... I'm sure they patted themselves on the back and cheered... but seriously... naming your product bumpits... seriously... maybe I'm just watching too much late night television - but really - that's the best they could do... now they say it hyphenated - bump-its... but the website is just bumpits.. so we've got armpits... and... that's right bumpits...

I've also got Roxanne stuck in my head - it has been in there for a few days... the version from Moulin Rouge...

a work trip...

Ok first....

This was one of the lightning strikes I managed to catch during the great storm that rolled through Quesnel on July 12.

So yesterday I drove to Lillooet for a meeting. I'm not sure what I was expecting - but I definitely got more than I what I expected. Lillooet is in this amazing location between Cache Creek and Whistler. I really couldn't believe how breath taking the scenery was and how friendly the people were (are). Definitely a place to go back and visit... they've got an apricot festival next weekend... should anyone be interest in making their way there... and now for some pictures of this beautiful place...

so much for a sunny afternoon

THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL AND STRONG WINDS THIS AFTERNOON. MONITOR WEATHER CONDITIONS..LISTEN FOR UPDATED STATEMENTS. IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES TAKE IMMEDIATE SAFETY PRECAUTIONS.

THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON AS AFTERNOON SUNSHINE HEATS AN UNSTABLE AND MOIST AIRMASS. A RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF HAIL UP TO 15 MM..LOCALLY HEAVY DOWNPOURS..AND STRONG WINDS GUSTING TO 70 KM/H.

I also like how the weather network writes in caps... we might not take their warnings seriously if it weren't for the shouting caps...

So that storm has finally arrived - they've called off the warning - but the storm came anyway. Lots of rain- nothing hitting here yet, but you can see it rolling over here. I tried to take some lightning photos but it isn't striking... or at least - isn't yet - so I'm waiting to see if the storm picks up, or if it just stays flashing... better go get my tripod out of the car

Did you know you aren't supposed to put the following in microwaves - (these can cause a fire or explosion) grapes - grapes cut but not completely sliced through and you can get a fire, a raw egg should not go in - it will explode (less than 20 seconds)
Good old Food Network - how I love with you :)

Cariboo Safari

Well I couldn't resist - I had to share photos of April's Cariboo Safari.


Here is a nice bull moose that Stephanie spotted about 20 km from my parents house. This was on our way home.


Here is the bear we "chased" down... he stuck his head out as we were driving out - so I did a four point turn on the highway and went up a little forest road to see if we could see him. Then we waited while the bear decided which direction he was going to go in. He started to head back towards us and then cut in front of us.


And here is me taking Paula on her first ever ATV ride... woo hoo!

a break

So I've been on holidays for a few days... I took off Thursday/Friday while Paula and then later, my aunt visited. Everyone packed up and left today... which was sad and the older I get the harder it is for me to not cry... my aunt picked up her two puppies last night on our trip to Nazko. We had a nice drive out and we got to see some bears, deer and even a moose... April's Cariboo Safari was in full motion - it was great... we even chased down a bear (a bit) so we could get a photo.

I managed to stop clenching my jaw over the last few days and now I sit here tonight wishing that I had another week off. I am going back to work as the acting executive director - that's the big news that I haven't been able to talk about. What does that mean? Well really it doesn't mean much - it is a title. It is exciting though - I've got a great staff right now and I'm excited about the direction the ship will go in for the next six months - as that is how long I will be "acting" in this position... and then we will see what happens.

After my best friend and favorite relative left today we went on our saturday garage sale and picked up a rock polisher, a new to us spider man car (Michael is sleeping with it), some pokemon books and a batman lego set... which sadly didn't have batman in it but it had the joker and some other cool stuff - so we spent a good part of the afternoon playing lego and building different batman airships and boats... I also spent some time reading the polishing manual and found out that it takes 11 (that's 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11...) DAYS to polish rocks... you leave this little rotating cup rotating for 11 days and at the end of the three different cycles you get pretty rocks - I gotta say I was a little bit more than shocked when I read the instructions - I mean - no wonder it isn't a popular item... I thought I was getting this great deal... I'll be giving it a try... I need to pick up a few supplies in order for it to work.

Well that is about it. I'm a wee-bit low tonight and I know I just need a good nights sleep... we'll see how that goes. I've been getting less than six hours a night and that never does anything good for me.

a long day

Well work was busy today... I actually asked some of the staff to stay late to help me out - bought pizza - kept them a bit longer and then let them go... then I kept chugging along for another 90 minutes - finished all my immediate/pressing work and then came home and cleaned up my office... which was great - I can actually see my desk and might even been inspired to get some work done this weekend now...

Now I'm watching the matrix.. because that's the kind of fun I'm having on a friday night... next friday night though... hmm.... me thinks I might be having a lot more fun... a lot more ;)

How could I not post about it

By now you've read all the headlines that Michael Jackson has died. I shouted at a Staples employee (in a good way..) to "shut up" that Michael Jackson was dead. I refused to believe her - I went out to my car and called my office and asked if anyone had heard this madness - this lunacy.

There are a lot of things bothering me about his death. I'm not one of those hard core fans, but I was/am a fan. He did have some great songs and he was an amazing performer. I can sing loads of his songs, can't moonwalk - but wished I could, can't break dance - but tried, have grabbed myself (even though I lack the essential physical attributes) to MJ songs. I'm bothered by what I was reminded of - that I should get use to it - this is going to keep happening. That the people we loved as kids and young adults and even as adults are going to die. That is bugging me a lot! I mean, I know it is true... but that sucks.

I guess there isn't much one can say about all that. The issue of death is a lurking part of my anxiety and it drummed it up a bit today. (Think Jumanji and when you get close to the game the drum gets louder and louder and louder, but then when you open up the game and the drumming stops, you realize that your problems have only just begun.) Always pleased to hear others thoughts on this... I'm reading Tony Robbins right now to continue to work on my anxiety issues - I've been following him on Twitter for weeks and finally borrowed one of his books.

more new puppy photos

Another round of puppy photos are up at nazkopuppies.blogspot.com

Didn't sleep much last night - too much activity too close to bed... lesson learned... something else also chewed the crap out of my leg... so now I have these terrible burning bug bites - ARG!... and there is a short whining session

night all :)

I did it

Well I was aiming for 20km... and I surpassed that tonight - it must have been around km 20 that I started to get all - what the hell am I doing... I road up to Pinnacles - now in my head I was like - hey - no problem - it is steep, but it isn't that bad.. HA - I'm an idiot! I also thought that the ride down (back over Pinnacles through to Bouchie Lake) was flat... HA - stupid - there were hills and I started to think - man... I had lots of moments where I was just super pleased though... then there was this moment - I got off to walk for a few minutes to get my heart rate down about 2 km from the top of Pinnacles hill and out comes a bear.. GREAT - I was about 100 yards away - a good telephone pole to telephone pole distance apart - I stood there for a second thinking - ok - I can turn around and go back or see what happens - so I wait and see - the bear stops to see what I am - I'm wearing white - so he turns and looks and then I figure - ok - better protect myself a little and I put my bike in front of me - the bear then turns and walks off into the bush. So I wait - thinking - now what... I don't want to ride back down because the Pinnacles ride down is steep and I just didn't want to - so I watch the bear roam off - climb back on my bike and a second bear comes out... so I pull over and wait... and wait - he isn't interested in me and just follows the other off in the bush... there is a clearing so I just watched them head off... and so I climbed back on my bike and went on.... had to get to Pinnacles... which I totally thought was closer than I really was at this point. (Yes, Paula, I know - I'm retarded... )

The other moment that got a good scream out of me was a scene from "Aristocats". Remember those dogs that got the butler... so I'm riding and this little barker semi-startles me - lets out a couple of barks. I see another larger dog ahead and try to pick up speed. He waits on the side of the road and as soon as I pass he is out for the chase - then I give'r - I'm going hard - thank god it wasn't a hill - and so I think I'm clear (see ' I think') and then it was like my sixth sense kicks in... and I turn to my right shoulder and there is he is getting ride to pounce on me and I let out this scream and my legs found some new speed and off I went... blah.... I'm sure those a-hole dogs had a good laugh after - see that retard go - I wonder if she'll come back - that was fun... I was so close... so close - I could taste those gray yoga pants she was wearing... no, really, I swear....

So tonight's ride was 23.8 km (according to google maps) it took me about 110 minutes (or just shy of two hours..) - and now I'm going to go and shower and continue to unwind... woohoo... if I can get my cell phone to download photos I'll share my photo of me at pinnacles.

knee

Everything appears to be better - I think it was the foot wear I'd been wearing that day and it just tweaked something. How do I know it is better - well I launched into a good long ride tonight. Well again I thought I was going to be right at the 20 km mark - I went up to Marsh Rd which is where I grew up - so that was a challenge - pretty steep and long to get to the top - its about 2.6 miles from my house to the worst part of the hill - so that took me the longest. Then I took a logging road back down to West Fraser and looped back. It was a good ride... once I got past the thundering heart part :) Turns out it was about 16km... that is, however, my farthest cycle to date - so I'm pretty pleased with that - I'm also pleased with the time it took me - I was back in less than 90 minutes and when I first started biking I did a 3.5 km cycle that would be easy now that took me 30 minuntes... so I'm improving and feeling good about it. Now if my ipod shuffle would cooperate on these treks...

a new found love

So I've been biking over the last few weeks and initially I was thinking - why - and then I got into it and now I'm actually planning for farther and farther routes... well until tonight - I think I've strained something in my knee - nothing terrible - it causes pain when I do some moves - I took the guys on a quick ride tonight - about 1.5km - so for Kyle that's a big deal. My knee wasn't too bad... but it was an easy ride - nearly all flat and I still had hiccups in pain. Then we get back to the house and I tell Kyle to slowly go down the driveway and he just goes full on and rather than braking, drives right into the house - hard... He was totally fine. I wouldn't have been :)

I'm definitely busy at work - and I'll have a better update on the work front soon - lots of top secret stuff... on the not so top secret front Mantracker will be coming to film two episodes in the Quesnel area - which is awesome! I can't wait for them to be in Quesnel - they'll be here next month - Very exciting! Our first filming opportunity!

Hope everyone is fabulous! The rain has been with us for a few days, but we needed it - and as my faithful readers know - I love the rain!

something smart

Got a minute... have a look at this... thank god some people are really thinking about changes that can make our world a better place...

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2009/06/12/dnt.wa.paper.water.bottle.king

Friday night

New puppy photos have been posted over at nazkopuppies.blogspot.com...

ohhh...

I was just saying today how I wasn't really into watching movies and then low and behold a good one is on tonight - good old Sleepless in Seattle - "Well I'm going to get out of bed every morning, then after a while I won't have to remind myself to get out bed and breathe in and out and then after a while I won't have to think about how I had it perfect for a while. It was a million tiny little things - I knew it, I knew it the very first time I touched her - I was just taking her hand to help her out of a car and I knew it."

It helps that I also love the soundtrack... love it!


Ahhhhh - fabulous! This is the best way to finish a day...

another weekend

Ahhhhhhhh - yup - we had another great weekend... until about 60 minutes ago... and it was at that moment I wished that the gravel in our backyard was made of marshmallows. We just got back from a bike ride - Kyle is biking and loving it now and Michael is in his little blue trailer behind me. We get back to the house move the water around so the lawn can have a drink and I'm just about to put all the gear away when Michael runs full on, into the ground. He didn't move and didn't speak - I thought he was ok and just gathering himself up and then he starts up the blood-chilling scream. I bust it over to him and he doesn't want to move. He is just crying as loud as I've ever heard him cry. I turn him over and it is a rough, bleeding mess on his knee and he is wailing over it. Then Kyle comes up and says "oh my god, his knee is gushing"... now really it was a trickle - if that - but that set Michael off again. He then cried for the next 10 minutes - progressively louder and louder still when I cleaned it out.

We made it through story time without tears and then he'd settled down enough to sleep... phew. He seemed to be pleased to hear that the band-aid had some magic cream on it.

It must have been the day for damage - I smashed my middle finger (the most important one) this morning - smashing it and at the same time cutting the crap out of it. So there you go - another weekend done - another week starting... Kyle starts his level 1 swimming tomorrow after successfully graduating from pre-1 on Saturday... hooray! I hope everyone else is doing well and enjoying fabulous weather wherever you are! Oh right - exceptions - sorry my calgary friends - I hope you are doing well and I'm sorry you live in a place that would snow in June :) (ok - so I'm secretly laughing... oh wait - now it isn't a secret)

Fun filled weekend

Yesterday was the fabulous Quesnel Farmers' Market, swimming and soccer photos. Today was a trip to Nazko to see the puppies (new photos posted) and then a whole bunch of other great sights... four bears, one coyote, three deer, and eight pelicans... it was awesome!





(And yes, this was with my new lens - that I LOVE!)

new puppy photos

I've loaded one of the puppy photos over at nazkopuppies.blogspot.com...

Something one of my co-workers sent me

Ok - so this has some cussing in it... you've been for warned... I've done my public service announcement...




30 THINGS STRESSED WOMEN MAY SAY AT WORK

1. Okay, okay! I take it back. Unfuck you.

2. You say I'm a bitch like it's a bad thing.

3. Well, this day was a total waste of make-up.

4. Well, aren't we a damn ray of sunshine?

5. Don't bother me, I'm living happily ever after.

6. Do I look like a people person?

7. This isn't an office. It's hell with fluorescent lighting.

8. I started out with nothing and I still have most of it left.

9. Therapy is expensive. Popping bubble wrap is cheap. You choose.

10. Why don't you try practicing random acts of intelligence and senseless acts of self-control?

11. I'm not crazy. I've been in a very bad mood for 30 years.

12. Sarcasm is just one more service I offer.

13. Do they ever shut up on your planet?

14. I'm not your type. I'm not inflatable.

15. Stress is when you wake up screaming and you realize you haven't
gone to sleep yet!

16. Back off!! You're standing in my aura.

17. Don't worry. I forgot your name too.

18. I work 50 hours a week to be this poor.

19. Not all men are annoying. Some are dead.

20. Wait...I'm trying to imagine you with a personality.

21. Chaos, panic and disorder. my work here is done.

22. Ambivalent? Well, yes and no.

23. You look like shit. Is that the style now?

24. Earth is full. Go home.

25. Aw, did I step on your poor little itty bitty ego?

26. I'm not tense, just terribly, terribly alert.

27. A hard-on doesn't count as personal growth.

28. You are depriving some village of an idiot.

29. If assholes could fly, this place would be an airport.

30. Look in my eyes ... Do you see one ounce of gives-a-shit?

oh, and...

If you feel like having a sugar coma... we made the below chocolate-y goodness....



Visit here for the recipe... Rice Krispies

i bought a new lens

I am now the proud owner of a 75-300 lens for my Canon XTI - hooray! I've only used it a few times, and I've been pleased with the results so far. I took 20 minutes tonight to sit under our apple tree and take shots of the hummingbirds feeding before bed.




(This one looks better if you click on it - you can see how the blossom has been kissed with some pink.)

some days definitely require these...

My favorite Aunti Jenni sent this cute little pic today... and now I'm sharing with you - happy Friday.

ha

"When you pass my desk complaining that your work wasn't on the printer, I took it. The more you bitch the funnier it gets."

That was from PostSecret - who is posting little quips on Twitter.... this is just the kind of evil shit I needed to read this afternoon.. I'm totally down with that :) I think I might throw some of that into my daily grind... Andy would say I'm already this evil - in fact we drove by what was probably the smellest thing in the world this weekend and he says "do you smell that" and I'm all... "what? I don't smell anything" now this was AWFUL - imagine the worst smell ever and then imagine that it has been wiped under your nose... twice... and then he carries on - that can't be me, that can't - and I'm still playing the whole - nope - can't smell it - but then I cracked - because it STANK! This is my level of evil - I haven't graduated to an evil lord, yet...

earthquake

I was just twittering away and see that earthquake came into the most searched - apparently a 5.0 just happened in LA... one of the new services just wrote "Geologists say an earthquake capable of causing widespread destruction is 99 percent certain of hitting California within the next 30 years.".... which leaves me wondering why the hell anyone lives there.. I mean seriously - next 30 years - there are so many places to live on earth and yet millions live in a place that scientists are pretty sure is going to see some significant change... really... ok- so it is the anxious, tired, not feeling good version of april speaking.. but - well I just can't believe it... I guess there are probably lots of places just the same or worse for risk... i guess.. it just struck me odd... alright - and now to try and get back to sleep.

a little bit of mouse trap

Michael and I triggered the trap about 50 times last Friday when he stayed home sick... good times :)

ginger ale with green tea

I decided to try out the new green tea infused ginger ale as ginger ale is pretty much the only pop I'll consume anymore... ok that and the occasional rootbeer - but we are talking occasional - and so I try a cup - it wasn't too bad - didn't chuck the rest out - and then a few days later I go back for another and find that upon closer inspection there are floaties. No I know it is meant to be green tea but really - floaties in pop - gross. Tonight I caved and actually strained the pop and then really read the label to find that though it doesn't taste like much it is full of sugar - I mean full of it! So that's that... try it - see what you think... let me know.

We cleaned the deck tonight and had a great time doing it. The guys got right into it. It seems that if I include a little soap and water to any activity they come running to help out... it was great fun - then after all the work we played a couple hands of uno on our cleaned up deck and if the weather cooperates we'll be out there for dinner tomorrow night.

Ok - so I watched one of the commercials for this stuff more closely today and it turns out that there is supposed to be floaties in the pop... ok - so it doesn't mean it went bad - but still not great... today, as an alternative, I steeped some blueberry tea with a little sugar and enjoyed that instead

reading

So on March 11 I wrote that I've been reading a good book. I was reading Just do it - a book about 100 consecutive days of sex - and when I wrote in March I was already into the book and fairly jazzed up about it. I still think it is worth the read, especially for couples. However, it was rushed - again - rush, rush, rush - the beginning had more details and then around the time they got to 70 days it was less and less... maybe they thought the audience was going to get bored but I was more disappointed by the quick finish. Nonetheless, check it out.

So is that sad that it took me two months to finish a 250 page book. I am multi-tasking - I've got a few others are on the go as well... including the little book of stress relief - which is ok - plus I read magazines at night. Tonight I'm struggling to get to sleep, but reading helped and it meant that I finished the book that's been on the night stand for two months. What does this all mean? Well I'm again looking for book suggestions. I'm looking for a book that is happy (largely), and I especially like the first person books like the "just do it" and bridget jones, etc... I like life lesson stuff and will take fiction or non fiction. Thank you :)

a blog to check out

Here's a blog I've been checking out for a while - it is a continuous art project and I think it is a fun idea... I'm thinking about trying out what they are asking for...

igotanenvelope.com

what's new

Well Kyle is back in soccer and enjoying that. We had a mini camp which looked like fun and then a game last night. (It made me think about floor hockey and wondering if I could join a women's league that is accepting not so fast people...) During the game last night I witnessed one of those child meltdowns that I thought was make-believe. The little boy was getting pretty frustrated that he wasn't scoring and then in the last five minutes he has a complete full out meltdown. He just stopped in the middle of the field and started screaming about how he couldn't score and how he was mad and then he started jumping up and down - not just once, but over and over and over - and higher and higher - it was crazy and sad.

The meal planning is still happening - well not the last two days from a cook book - but still cooking at home - but it is an ongoing thing... we are eating out less and that is good. I've got to write up my meal plan tomorrow and then go shopping tomorrow night as the boys have a date with there aunti dawn who takes them on great little outings nearly every week.

Spring is in the Cariboo and I love it - the rain has been amazing - and the colors are so great... I was so done with winter and that whole gray stint between winter and spring... my rose bush has started to come back and in two weeks I'll be able to plant some veggies.

etsy and my other new site

Ok - so I've loaded up to etsy a few of my cards. I'd love some feedback too... good, bad and ugly...

I've also been working on another work project - South Quesnel Business Association. I would appreciate any of you taking a look at the site and letting me know what you think of it. I know there is some content missing, but I'm working on it :)

And I know - that is totally a pathetic update - so I'll load some more shortly... like later tonight.

weekend relaxation

We had one of those weekends that allowed for relaxing and just enjoying life. Garage sale season is back up and running so we took in a few on Saturday morning. We also went to Monsters vs Aliens - the first movie I've been to in theatres in more than four years... and well... as you probably will guess - it was a bit of a "meh" movie for me. I mean there were some funny parts and the guys sat through the whole thing but it wasn't ... WOOHOO....

On Sunday we had one of those proud parent moments. Bike riding clicked for Kyle and he did - no training wheels - a few push starts and off he'd go... it was awesome! And that's just how I felt about it - he's pretty pleased too.

On the cooking front - I did another meal plan for the week. I had meals for every night but tonight I didn't cook because we had so much left overs. Sunday was a couple of Chinese dishes - one that was good and one that was ok but I made way too many noodles and then I didn't have enough sauce. Last night I made asian turkey burgers and they were MUCH better than the dill ones.. I'm using a readers digest vegetable focused book this week. I'll post the recipes if anyone is interested. One of the Chinese dishes was called ginger pork stir fry - what was funny is that there was not a piece of ginger in the entire dish... tonight was supposed to be manicotti - but I guess I'll hold that one over to next week - since tomorrow night is taco night. Hooray for meal planning. I recommend it to everyone.

alrighty then...

SO I got one site started... I bought two because I'm crazy.

The first one is A Million Little Thank Yous.... you'll see that I've got a store too - but it isn't selling anything yet.. I need to do some photos and then I'll start loading product. Pretty simple concept...

The other site that I alluded to will take a little longer... but I'm totally working on it.

I love you guys!

Thank you!

thank you

notes taken....

maybe this is the beginning of something much greater ....

time will tell...

Webby Awards

So if you have some time on your hands definitely take a few minutes to look at what is apparently the best of what is out on the interweb... the webby awards lets us regular people vote on the best of the best and it is also a great place to just check stuff out... like this... http://www.eepybird.com/stickynote.html This is very cool!

Visit the Webby awards at http://pv.webbyawards.com/ - you can sign up and then view all the cool stuff... maybe one day one of our sites will get recognized as something amazing... :)

more cooking

So we haven't given up on the cooking - I just haven't posted anything... tonight I went to our new favorite - the yummy steak mushroom sandwich or salad with spinach leaves.. but we did try...



Pork Cacciatore and a Potato Sage Salad - the pork cacciatore with rice was really good. I mean I didn't think I was going to like it at all but it was good. The salad - well I doubt I'd ever make it again. The dressing wasn't very flavorful, and putting warm potatoes with the lettuce - well they just weren't that well suited. The potatoes in the recipe would probably have been fine on their own, but then they need to be cooked longer.

egg flower

of course

Tonight the easter bunny made a mad dash to Wal-Mart to pick up some goodies....

So I'm cleaning off the kiosk that is in the Wal-Mart parking lot - this is part of my part time work job... so I clean it off and walk back to the car and hear something hissing and fancy that... my damned rear tire is going, going, gone. I call Andy and tell him what's going on and ask him to call BCAA... only to find out that because he isn't with me it doesn't count, but that I can become a member... right... so I change the tire. It actually didn't take too long - about 20 minutes. The tire was flat - flat as a door nail as I told my husband and then immediately thought - ok it is dead as a door nail and really - what the hell does that mean.

I took the whole thing in stride.... and then went into Wal-mart to find NO CHOCOLATE! I couldn't even believe it. I actually walked most of the store thinking they'd thought it would be a nice little bit of easter fun to hide the remaining chocolate... no such luck. So that sucked... drove there for nothing and got a flat tire. I ended up at save-on which is about 2 minutes from my house and got more than enough chocolate... I actually thought that as I drove by save-on when I went by, but I thought - oh I'll have a few minutes to look at Wal-Mart and have an outing... HA.

Now I'm home after my fun outing sitting with my sick little boy who has yet another round of swollen tonsils.

I do want to note one more thing - the people in this town are great - AGAIN! - four people stopped to ask if they could help. FOUR!

Good Friday... darn right!

Happy Good Friday :)

I hope everyone has a great long weekend.

home again

Made it home this afternoon... and yawn I'm tired... of course it didn't stop when I got home I still had a board meeting to attend tonight... but now it is the weekend... hip hip hooray!

And now for something from the - I don't know what the hell people are thinking file...

Why do we boil eggs for Easter and paint them... THEY STINK!

STINK

Now I get it - it can be a fun little activity but really... really - this is the best we can come up with - is there someone eating all these hard boiled eggs. It is not only a wasteful activity - it is disgusting... does anyone like that smell... come on... anyone... I thought not... I think a solution is needed! I don't want another Easter to come and for the boys to have a dozen smelly boiled eggs return to my house... blah! Here's my suggestion - next year, let's have those kinder eggs in classes and let the kids decorate those... this will be both a yummy and pleasant addition to easter... we won't be wasting eggs and we won't be stinking up the homes of parents everywhere.

I humbly implore everyone to consider abandoning hard boiled eggs. Thank you.

hotel

My hotel/motel is not very nice. I know - I've been spoiled staying in some of the swanky places in Vancouver, but really I don't think this would rate two stars for a hotel.

Really I just wanted to come and complain. Thin walls, thin doors, funny smell... old, run down, needing a definite makeover...
on the upside... it has high speed - so I guess I shouldn't complain too much :)

away

Tonight I'm at a conference in Williams Puddle :) So no food cooking for me tonight.. which I gotta say I'm missing tonight. Dinner was ok, but man - the portions were disgustingly large - two pork chops, probably a cup and a half of mashed potatoes, beans, carrots, applesauce, cheesecake, salad - most people could barely eat half... CRAZY! The food was good - but not as a good as some of the stuff we've been cooking at home... and sadly I won't get to cook tomorrow night because I'm at another meeting...

My cold is still plaguing me - I'm just not shaking it. With any luck tomorrow will be a better day... I'm feeling better -but just not one hundred percent. Now I'm going to just lounge... conference doesn't start until 9am tomorrow... which by conference standards is actually kind of late.

honey ginger salmon

Well I gotta say that tonight's recipe wasn't exactly fabulous. I mean it was ok... but...

So basically you stir together 1/4 cup of liquid honey, 2 tbsp of rice vinegar and 1 tsp (ish) of grated ginger- stir, stir, stir
Then brush or spoon onto some thawed or fresh salmon. Then the salmon goes in the oven - broiler on - (that's 500) and cook for 8-10 minutes. So it is a quick process... now here's what should have been in the book...




really - the salmon isn't going to pick up much flavor by just sticking on the sauce and chucking it in the oven - it really needs some time to marinate... so I think you should marinate the salmon in the sauce for at least 30 minutes to really capture all the yummy flavors...

note#2 - if you don't have liquid honey, cause you're like me and you use honey sometimes, but not all the time and so the honey goes hard you can warm it up in the microwave... this should be closely monitored... honey explodes - as I found out tonight and when it explodes it also burns... so tonight I was lucky that it missed my face, but got my toe and stomach - yeehaw - so don't microwave honey unless you are going to pay attention to it and then when you do remove it put on a coat of armor :)

So this recipe also called for a salsa - so you cut up some yellow pepper (1/4 cup), 1 cup of cucumber, 1 tbsp of that fun liquid honey, 1 tbsp of rice vinegar, little salt, little pepper, 1 green onion chopped - then you just mix them together and serve with the salmon. Now I served all that with a salad and used the salsa as the dressing for the salad... light - no carb dinner...



Would I make it again? Well if the salmon had been marinated it would have been way better - the salsa was nice, but I don't really think it is a salsa... no heat - which this recipe could have gotten away with because the salmon is so sweet.

the lazy chef

Ok - I'm sick so I can cut myself some slack...but tonight's dinner was blah - some frozen chicken cordon blues for the boys and a 1/2 a bowl of tortilla chips with about a tbsp of cheese microwaved - plus half an avocado - booo - it was awful... back to the book tomorrow night. I think I'm going to make a honey baked salmon dish tomorrow night - assuming I'm not feeling crappy. I did manage to pump out 2 dozen cupcakes and about 20 chocolate dipped eeyore cookies...

The sun came out today... fabulous! It felt warm, but with this flaming cold I didn't get to really enjoy it... sadly I hear it isn't going to last... but at least it feels like spring - the snow is leaving - hooray.

more cooking

So I mentioned the cashew tofu stirfry and I bet to most - that was like - har har Ape's that can't be something you really cooked - so I took photographic proof. It was good - good spice, good flavours, colorful... good with rice or noodles...



Update
So here is the great recipe.... it is from Company's Coming - Healthy in a Hurry recipe book - it is awesome - we've cooked six recipes now and we've got another 4 planned to try...

Combine 3/4 cup cool water, 2 tbsp sweet chili sauce, 1 tbsp cornstarch, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil (optional) I didn't add the sesame oil... Set this aside once mixed and re-mix before you are asked to use it...

Heat large frying pan or wok on medium-high until very hot. Add 1 tbsp of corn oil (recipe says canola but I say NO to canola - it is terrible for you). Add 4 cups of chopped suey choy (also called chinese or california cabbage), 2 cups of sugar snap peas, trimmed, 1 1/2 cups of sliced onion (I just cut up one small/med onion), 1 cup sliced red pepper (if you like red pepper use this amount - if you don't... well might want to use less - we did this amount but then the pepper didn't really get eaten), 1 tbsp of grated ginger (I've bought a small container of ginger that is grated that I keep in the fridge). Stir fry for 2-3 minutes until vegetables start to soften.

Add tofu (1 package of extra-firm tofu, cut into 2cm pieces) and a 1/2 cup of salted cashews. Stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes until vegetables are tender-crisp. Stir cornstarch mixture (early made sauce). Add to vegetables mixtures. Stir-fry for about 1 minute until boiling and thickening. Awesome with some rice and if you are really anti-tofu - replace the tofu with chicken...


I'm coming down with some kind of cold - my sinus and throat just don't feel right.

Despite that we did manage to take in some lead up to the games stuff today...



The mascots were on hand but Kyle decided he would rather hide than see them and Michael cried when we met Quatchi... so that part wasn't great - but trying out some of the winter olympic sports was good fun.

Company's Coming

Andy and I bought a healthy cookbook from Company's Coming and have made a meal plan for the week. Our first kick at the healthy dinner menu was a steak mushroom bun and apple carrot slaw.



Now to be honest, I've been on the 20 dinner rotation for months, if not years, and it was about time I got back making something from a recipe... and it was super yummy.

Yummy steak and mushrooms and then it was placed on a bed of spinach - the spinach was tossed with some light mayo, sesame oil and ginger - man - it was soo good! Tonight I made dill turkey burgers - yummy too - but that steak and the spinach together - I'm still thinking about how good it was.. and we made it - which makes it even better.

spring

spring break fun

We spent some time at Exploration Place in PG - definitely one of favorite places in Prince George. We highly recommend it to any families and if you get a annual membership you can use it at science facilities all across North America - which is definitel worth it!


The staff at Exploration saw that we were (me mostly) interested in the bearded dragon so she took it out so we could touch her... it was AWESOME!

a small political statement

my first swap

So this is what I sent to my sister who agreed to swap craft things with me :)

rain

I've been going to reiki for a few months now. Reiki - well I don't even know how to describe it - initially I was pretty meh about it... mostly meh... and then during my second session I just let myself relax and then it started, my mind just kind of drifted.

During my most recent session I had this sensation like it was raining and I could see the drops of water hitting the surface of a puddle or lake and how calming the entire experience was. It was about as far away from 'meh' as you can get. On top of the calming power of reiki I'm really digging the song 'fix you' by coldplay right now. The torch relay is using this song in their promotional marketing (not sure if it is all public or not... I just know I've seen the 3 minute torch relay commercial at meetings and it usually doesn't leave a dry eye in the house - I see Terry Fox and I just cry now...). So I'm driving back from PG tonight and it starts to rain - just slightly - and then it starts to come down a bit and then my ipod starts playing 'fix you' and I just had one of those extra calming/soothing moments. ahhhhaaaahhhhhhhh - and those are the moments I'm desperate for.

I was sad to see the rain stop. Watching it hit my windshield made me thirst for more. I'm so glad spring is here, or at the very least trying to make an appearance.

Happy First Day of Spring - may all the days ahead be happy, loving and calm for all of us.

slurpee heaven

So this nice lady at 7-11 has made it her job to make me laugh every time I stop by - now I am a regular - for sure - I'll admit that much - but in the last two weeks or so she's started to give me free slurpees every time I go in - tonight she had a joke ready for me - (why does the easter bunny not want people to know that he lays eggs? because he doesn't want everyone to know he sleeps with chickens) so I have a good laugh and then I come up to the counter with my slurpee and she tells the other guy - no we don't charge her for slurpees... I love the people in our town - ok and it isn't just because I get free slurpees - people are friendly, happy and I love that...



oh and Happy Hump day - thank god the weekend is approaching - I've had enough of work this week - more than enough...

Happy St Patrick's day

This morning we talked about wearing green for St Patrick's day. Kyle dressed pretty much in green today - head to toe. Michael wasn't interested in the green. He picks his outfits every day and isn't very interested in having someone even suggesting what he should wear. Tonight we are talking about the green stuff and I kind of made a comment about Michael not wearing green today and he stops me. Mom I'm wearing green - rolls his pants down to show me his green undies... priceless... I can just imagine that he was doing this same thing at daycare this morning... gotta love them :) How can I worry about anything - this part of life is all that really matters...

what happens after a long day

Tonight we went grocery shopping and that is always a joy with the kids... stop doing that, don't run, don't touch that, no you can't have that, yes we have to buy vegetables, please stop (please being used in the presence of other shoppers)... so we do the aisle thing and I say I'll take the kids to the car while you pay.. ok - so we go outside... and that was the mistake - I'm so busy telling Michael to please hold hands that I just walk out into the parking lot - click the "alarm" off and open the door. The door opens and my first thought was... "we've been robbed" and then I hear someone laughing behind me and these two women are having a great laugh at me trying to get into their car... I turn and laugh along but feel like a giant ass... and try to make a quick escape - exit stage right... thank god at least it was the same car - as I turned and walked off to were we parked Kyle is providing me with notes on how the cars were different - and really the only striking difference is the roof racks - I'm so used to are car not having them that I honestly thought I was at the right car... so there you go - just another maniac monday

because I am the fashion police

Now I am not super into fashion. I like to wear a lot of the same stuff and like to be comfortable. I also know that sometimes it is better to just stay in the house if you can't find clothes from the last 10 years.

I was getting a yummy slurpee (I know they aren't great for me... put that aside for a moment) and come out to find a woman standing by a pay phone (yes those still exist) wearing a big winter jacket - fine... but then she is wearing the biggest pair of hammer pants I've ever seen. I don't think clowns even wear them like that. They were fitted around her waist but the pants flared out like she was smuggling people in them. On top of that they weren't just plain old black or blue hammer pants they were blue with giant stars on them.

My plan tonight was to draw a picture and load it up to give you a clear idea of just how terrible they were but I instead worked on cleaning up my basement - which was very valuable - I will work on my drawing for tomorrow...

Happy weekend to all and to all a good night...

sleep -my old friend

I've started reading a good book. That's right - after months of nothing overly appealing I've found something to read. I'll share it once I've completed it. I'd hate to suggest you go and buy something that sucks at the end... but what I didn't expect last night was that I'd sleep. I closed my eyes and then woke up to Kyle looking at me at 6:45. I said - ok - come and cuddle for a few minutes. I slept for another 15 minutes and then we got our day started... and I can't tell you how much better that made me feel all day.

On a sports note - Carmen - did a great write up on curling which lead to me actually watching curling on TSN tonight while I worked out.

where the sleep went

Dreaming (a rarity) and then with a snap I'm awake and not really alert... what woke me? The dreaming wasn't scarier or worrying... the cold... it is minus twenty after being warmer during the day and the house is just creaking and cracking... ARG - the problem is that I couldn't help but get up anyway and just take a look around and see - just to make sure. Of course now I'm pretty much all awake and the house can't help but creak in this cold - but it isn't stopping or getting quieter.

The whole thing just makes me sad because I really need my sleep. Sleep is so important and yet here I am - up typing on here, watching tv and hoping to catch a break and get back to sleep. Ok - I'm off to try.

a swap

Alright my crafty friends - I've read on a few of your blogs about a craft swap. I'm interested in what that means and how I can do one.. I'm not super crafty, but I'm interested in doing a swap - it sounds like fun... I'm more of a paper/scrapbook kind of swap versus a clothing, craft - that said I can make toques, slippers and scarfs...

So tell me - what needs to be done...

home

I made it back to Q-town this morning. The time change has definitely left me in a fog plus flying this morning wasn't really great... I mean it wasn't that bad - better than the flight in, but I'm still just trying to get over it. Terrible.

So the photo I loaded last from the inside of the plane was the only photo I took on this trip. I did manage to get my photo taken with the Olympic torch but I don't get a copy of the photo for a couple of weeks - and to be honest I'd be shocked if it was any good. I was smiling like a dork because I was pretending to stride in to take the torch from the last person getting their photo taken... I do that - feel all ready and posed and the photographer says he can't see the damned olympic logo... right - cause that's what matters - so then I made a face - and that was it.

I'll share once I get a copy.

Now I'm home with the boys and we are just playing and hanging out. Well they are having a snack and I'm blogging right this second... and now time to get back to fun :)

another flight

Last night I flew to Vancouver for another work thing. Before we left I got to have a great dinner out with Andy (well really the food was not great but the company was) and tried to ease my anxious body onto the plane. For some reason I was able to visualize better because it was night time and I could just think about it being a bus... well actually more like a mini van...



As you can see - this was a little plane - 18 seats total - only six of us actually paying - yup - that is the cockpit you can see. I'm sitting in the second to last seat... no washroom, no in flight anything - just loud propellor blades rumbling us to Vancouver. I got to Whistler and you could see Vancouver in the distance and then the plane got bumpy - it was pretty much like being on a tilt-a-wheel as we descended into Vancouver and that didn't really bother me. I had my tunes, BNL with Steven Page (I still love you), and I just took it easy. I had a nice ride from the airport to my hotel with this cabbie who made good conversation - well until he started to give me an update on all the shootings - it was like he had memorized the details of every shooting that had taken place in the last week... he giggled a bit and asked if Quesnel (Ksnel) had those kinds of problems... nope.

Now I'm preparing for some free time this morning which may include a walk to Pacific Centre and then into conference sessions. More photos to come... I'm heading out for a night on the town with Paula in t-minus 10 hours.

Vancouver Cityscape from Stanley Park

home for a few days

So I worked in Vancouver a couple of days last week and I'm back there again on Thursday for more work.
I had a bath, which was actually hot - HOORAY! And now I'm just going to relax.

Back to the office tomorrow and I need as much time as possible to unwind for that ;)

When we left Vancouver this morning the crocus is my mom-in-laws "garden" were blooming. They were beautiful but it made me sad to think that that is months away for us in the north... we arrived to warm weather (plus 5) but still a couple of feet of snow on the ground...