A Deep Conversation Between Father and Son

"Dad, why do you have a zipper on your bum?" "Its not a zipper son.  It's thread."    
*Go see Lolli here for an explanation on where poor Cecily is.  There are more GMYBS-PSF too.*

Dear Cecily.  I miss you.  I love you.

xo

Christmas in Pictures

Christmas is...presents under the tree

....excited children at 7am

...spontaneous moments

...quiet thoughts

...hugs and kisses between the generations

...smiles

...emotional moments

...{after turkey} naps

I hope your holiday was as joyful, chaotic and just as {absolutely} perfect as ours was.

I am tired.  And burnt out.  But sad it is all over.




Go see more holiday favourites here.  It's fun!  

Year in Review. Kinda sorta.

I am not a mushy person. Except my tummy.
But as I sit here missing my boys who are away with their Grandma and watching my daughter wear her Snow White princess shoes as she sings "Tinkle Bells", I cant help but feel a little mushy.
And alot emotional.

I am blessed.
Not one day goes by that I don't think about how lucky I am to have all that I have.

But none of it matters, except my family and all of those who I love so dearly.
The moments I witnessed and took part in during 2010.
The memories we created.
The smiles.
The accomplishments.

Those are what matter.

The kindergarten graduation.
The first time water skiing.
The smiles on my children's 94 year old great grandfather's face just because they came to visit him.
The hugs from my husband.
The first day of school.
The singing and dancing to any kind of music that played on the radio.

The tears because my children got a boo boo.
The "I'm sorry"'s.
The "I love you"'s
The reunions with distant relatives.
The sad goodbyes.
The cuddles.
And kisses.

The moments.

2010 was a wonderful year.

January. I began my weight loss journey and healthy living lifestyle.  I had had enough of feeling yucky and was determined to get the old Momma back.  Middle child turned 6.

February.  My oldest child turned 8.  My youngest child had her first hair cut.  My father celebrated his birthday.  And I took alot of pictures.

March.   We went to the zoo.  My brother and his fiance celebrated their 30th birthdays.  I survived a week with all three children at home.  I taught my readers about milk in a bag.  And we found out some devastating news.

April.  My parents and I flew to British Columbia to visit family after receiving devastating news.  Princess turned 2.  Mr. Momma turned 35.  And I continued taking alot of pictures.  Momma's Momma celebrated her birthday.

May.  I showed my readers my hometown.  My family lost a member.  I turned 35.  Blech.

June. I prepared myself for a summer with three children at home.  We gardened.  And went swimming.  Middle child graduated from kindergarten and I cried.

July.  I wrote a poem about Studley.  Grandma turned 83.  Our garden grew...and grew.  I attempted {and failed} water skiing.  My family stayed in my great grandmothers home.  We celebrated Canada Day.

August.  We were busy.  My family witnessed a miracle.  I saw my boyfriend, John Mayer.  Mr. Momma built a fence.  I lost 33 pounds.

September. The kids went back to school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I gave photography tips.

October.  I had my first photography job!  I broke my foot.  Studley turned 11.

November.  Momma and Mr. Momma celebrated 10 years of marital bliss.  Chloe the cat died.  Our bunny died. 

December.  We were busy.  Enough said.



When I started blogging, it was an outlet to hold on to my sanity. Then it became a way to document the stories of our lives. My readers have made it much more than that and I thank you for your support as I crawl myself through this journey.

Thank you for joining me.

Click here for more WW

May Santa bring you all you ask for.
May your children get along....for just one day.
May you eat alot of turkey...and stuffing....
....and chocolate.
May you enjoy a relaxing Christmas.
Because you deserve it.

xo

A 5 minute Christmas craft. You're welcome.

I should be wrapping
baking
cleaning.

But instead I decided to get a little crafty. Ok, not really, but I tried.

Trying is what matters the most right?

Remember I made this?

Well, I changed it up to go with the season.  Just because.
Same frame.  I just removed the floral matte and found some cardboard to fit in.


I searched for some scrapbooking paper, stickers and Christmas photographs.
Then I used my handy dandy {removable} adhesive and made my frame look Christmas-y.


It took approximately 5 minutes and 24 seconds.


And afterwards I sat down and ate chocolate because being crafty is damn hard.

Go here to see more Wordful Wednesday posts and procrastinate like me.  It's fun.

Procrastinate. Try it, it's fun.

I like to think of life as a big test.
There are problems to solve.
There are successes.
Failures.
And along the way you learn alot about yourself.

I have learned that I am a procrastinator.

When my "To Do List" is long and I get a little overwhelmed, I plop myself on my ass and don't do any of it.

Until I absolutely have to.

I have not wrapped.
I have not finished my Christmas shopping.
I have no idea what food I will be serving when we host Christmas Eve.
I haven't done any baking.
I haven't sent out all of my Christmas cards.
The kids haven't seen Santa at the mall.
They need haircuts.
And showers.
And new socks.

But here I sit.

Just like I always do, until I get so overwhelmed and stressed out that I am no fun to be around and everyone wants to run away from home.

Story of my life.

On a side note, my husband cleaned our shower head with some small "scrapey" tool and it is sparkly clean.

And I painted my toenails.

Etsy Shopping.

If only the sellers at Etsy knew how much I loved them and wanted the whole world to know about them.
In the meantime I will post pics of some of my favourite things.
In red and green.It's a holiday theme my friends. Go with it.

Click on item word to see where you can purchase the item for me yourself.
Pillowcase dress
HOBO bag
DSLR camera strap
Print
Fabric Branches
Frame
Apron
Dress
Travel Bag Purse Go here to view more PSF peeps.  It's fun. 

A True Story

Yesterday I posted pictures of my butt.
Today I am going to tell you a story. A very unflattering story about myself and stupid things I do.
If I cant laugh at my stupidity, then life is no fun right?
You can laugh at me too. Just not in front of me because I am emotionally fragile and may burst out in the ugly cry.
Anyways, I addressed some of my Christmas cards and stamped them so they were ready to be dropped in the mailbox at the post office.
But there were 2 addressed to British Columbia.....Canada.
I didn't stamp them.
Instead I made the trip to the post office with my pile of stamped cards and the two unstamped cards.
The post office was busy.

"Can I help you?"
"Hi there. I need these envelopes to be mailed and I also need postage for two to BC."
"Umm...you mean British Columbia Canada?"
*giggles*
"Yes"

"Umm...ma'am. Postage is the same throughout Canada. If you look on the stamps, it says Canada right on them. The price only adjusts when it is out of country."

*more giggles*

"Ahhhh....yes. I knew that! What do you think I am? An idiot? I was just testing you. Geesh."




Do you think they talked about me during their lunch break?

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Snippets

My thoughts are random.
They are rarely deep.
Because my brain is mush.
And I am so busy I could weep.

Why do I feel the need to do so much over the holiday season? Why do I stress about every little damn thing?

I blame it on genetics and all of the wonderful women in my family who have always done everything gracefully. Me. I am not graceful and feel I am letting the line of wonderful women down.

But anyways.

Miley Cyrus was caught using a bong. I don't know whether I should be proud of her or be disgusted. Actually, what bothered me the most about the video was her laugh. She sounded like a horse with a bad cough.  Just sayin'.

Moving on.....

I like to people watch. If I didn't have so much to do, I would plop myself at the food court in the mall and watch other humans for hours...and hours. There is nothing more fun.

I never enjoyed 9 year old children. Now I am the Mother of one (almost). I am having a very hard time with this and really don't know how I am going to survive the next..um...9 years. The attitude. The language. The stubbornness. Hold me.

Winter is not until next week. We have already been buried under the snow and experienced -20 degrees (Celsius) temperatures. Damn you Mother Nature.

We just watched The Santa Clause.  Tim Allen is a horrible actor.


Should I be concerned when my husband has the camera or flattered that he takes pictures of my ass?


Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.........

Happy thoughts my friends!!!

Check out other random thoughts here.

Mother and Child at the Dollar Store.

In the midst of the chaos and craziness of my life, I took my oldest son for a quick trip to the dollar store so he could purchase Christmas decorations for his bedroom.

Just because it was something he wanted to do.
And I wanted to be with him. Just him.

This short, simple trip was a memory I will treasure forever.  The smallest, spontaneous moments are what I enjoy more than anything.  Sure the expensive trips are nice too, but when it is just Mother and Child enjoying eachother, nothing can compare.
Horse lover.
Math smart.
Lover of the word "crap" and "frickin".
Computer addict.
Creative inventor.
Imaginative story writer.
Detailed artist.
Headstrong.
Unaffectionate.
Liker of pizza with BBQ sauce.
And buckwheat honey.
Sneaky gum stealer.
Night owl.

I love the person he is.
Miss the person he was.
Cant wait to see what he becomes.
Because I know I will love him no matter what.
Forever.

I am a lucky lady.

*On another note, this same child lost his computer privileges today for saying mean words to his Mother.  The same Mother who took him to the dollar store, just because.  The same Mother who loves him unconditionally.* 

Go see more Photostory stuff here.

Excruciating

ex·cru·ci·at·ing (k-skrsh-tng)
adj.
1. Intensely painful; agonizing.

*listening to my 2 year old whine because she wanted the green plate instead of the pink plate
*convincing my boys to shower
*convincing my boys to change their socks
*and underwear
*going to the mall during the holiday season
*going anywhere during the holiday season
*reading another friggin article about the Kardashians.  Why are they so famous anyways?
*changing a "blueberry poop" dirty diaper
*still changing diapers after 9 years
*stepping on the scale
*listening to my {almost} 9 year old curse because he thinks he sounds cool
*listening to that same boy teach his younger brother how to spell "piss" to get him in trouble. 
 `P-I-S-T`
*hiding my giggles
*my husband wearing his winter toque above his ears and pretending it doesn't annoy me
(a toque is a winter hat just in case you were wondering)
*finding a sippy cup full of milk 3 weeks later
*plucking my eyebrows
*hearing my son say "whatever" for the gajillionth time


So, yeah.  Basically my life is full of excruciatingly painful agony.

Hmph.

Go see MamaKat here. 

Snippets

Hi there. My name is Momma and I used to blog regularly until the holiday season swallowed me up.

I am busy. I am overwhelmed with everything I have to do before Santa comes to our house.  Every year I say I will finish my "To Do List" early so I have time to sit, relax and enjoy it all.

Instead I am running around like a chicken with its head cut off {ew}, trying to make my list shorter.

But it doesn't happen.

And then Mother Nature hit us with a huge snowstorm so I cant drive carelessly and I actually have to pay attention to the speed I am driving.

Damn her.

So I am running around in knee deep snow on a foot that was recently broken.  I am terrified that one wrong move will snap the bugger again and I will end up in a cast for 8 more weeks.

Oh yeah...and this is happening at our house.

So now I have to be all friendly and stuff to the builders, contractors, shirtless excavator operators and inspectors.  When all I really want to do is get out of the van and run inside to my cocoon {house} and drink my overwhelming worries away.

Merry Friggin Christmas.

Welcome Tourists

I enjoy tourists.
I really enjoy tourists who wear sunhats.
And Hawaiian shirts.
And black socks.
With sandals.

Sexy.

Make yourselves at home.
Come in to my entrance way.
Also known as "Le Mud Room".

This is where my family throws their coats, boots, mitts, hats, dirt bike helmets, dog leashes and just about everything else that I can trip over.

Fun times.

I am trying my hardest to teach everyone that there is a place for everything, but, so far, no luck. Feel free to tell me your secrets because I am thisclose to forcing them to live in the barn.

But anyways.

Here is a shelf in Le Mud Room. It really has no purpose other than looking nice and catching dust.




The window blind that I love muchly.


Our cubbies.  Each person in the family has their own cubbie area with hooks and baskets.  My baskets are full of shoes. 
We also have a closet close to the door.. 
It is full of my shoes too.
But anyways.




I wish our entrance way was a bit more exciting.  Other than a key hook, a tractor picture and a mirror, there isn't much more to it.

Thanks for coming.   

Go here to see more


*Canadian bloggers.  Have you entered the Epicure Selections giveaway?

An item all Mothers should have. And a discount to go with it.

I think I have finally found the item that all Mothers want.
This is huge people.

I don't know about you, but as a mother I have constantly found myself trying to think up activities to stimulate my children`s very intelligent brains, and all I come up with is making hamburgers out of playdoh and reading Chicka Chicka Boom Boom for the millionth time.

Or we just go to the mall.  Hmph.

Not anymore.

Because a genius by the name of Tracy has developed Little Lessons.


I call it "Quality Time in a Box".  There is nothing better than sitting at home with your children and having quality time all laid out for you.  Each box includes a craft, song, activity and a book based on a specific theme.

You just have to enjoy.
Enjoy the time you spend together.
Enjoy having no stress.
Enjoy watching your children have fun.
Enjoy witnessing your children learn.

Fun huh?

I think so.

And you will too.  Because Tracy is offering Live. Laugh. Pull Your Hair Out readers a 25% discount on her products.

Not only is she a genius, but also a kind, giving Momma.

All you have to do is check out her website.  When ordering, type in the discount code LLPYHO (that is short for LiveLaughPullYourHairOut) and you will receive the 25% discount.

While you are at it, you can also join her facebook page so you are kept up to date on her new products. 
She sends to the USA and Canada so if you order very soon, you can have your Little Lesson before Christmas.

Dont thank me, thank Tracy.
Ok, thank us both.
I like chocolate.

*Disclaimer.  I was not given any free products or paid to write this post. I was not given any chocolate or offered free babysitting.  I am writing this because I am in love with the product and think you will be too.  I am so excited to purchase the Winter Fun Kit.  But anyways.*

Click here for more Photostory Friday posts