it's just a passion

I simply adore making crafts with my kids, even if it means I'll need to spend an hour cleaning up a five minute craft. I'm in the process of making samples for a craft I'm going to share with Alissa's kindergarten/gr 1 class, and I needed to make sure it was doable for 5 and 6 yr olds, so what better way to make sure of that, is to get my own offspring to play. I rolled and cut with heart cookie cutters, some heart shaped frames from polymer clay .. let it sit for two days to dry really well .. then let the girls have at them with paints. Once the frames were painted, that didn't stop them from 'creating'. Out came the extra paper, on the hands went the paint, and now I have some beautiful handprints to add to the stash of artwork I've been saving over the years.

funny things

I picked the girls up from school this afternoon, and we right away had to head for appt. On our drive, Hailey tells me her class had a substitute teacher for the afternoon, but "the weirdest thing happened every time I looked in her eyes, Mom. I'd feel all dizzy." I asked her if the sub wore glasses, or perhaps she had something different about her eyes. Nope .. normal, glassless eyes. Sometimes I wonder if my kids just spout off things that are going through their overly active brains, or if they think before speaking.

Alissa said something so darn cute too. She's learning to use larger words in their right context. I have had the privilege of hearing it often and at times I'm forced to muffle a giggle or two.

So she's talking about sharing her leftover snack with Hailey, while we're still riding in the car to the appt. She's thinking aloud, saying how if she shared her snack with Hailey because she herself wasn't hungry .. that would be okay. But if she shared when she didn't really want to, that would make her very 'fuStrated'. So cute!

I also want to say thank you to those of you that commented on my recent layouts. Your kind words are very appreciated!

scrapping galore...

I realize I've been sharing a lot of scrapping lately .. but I can't help being inspired, because quite frankly, I'm not going to fight the inspiration when it wants to rear it's head into existance. These ones are done with paper, not digital.

more, more, more!

This thing that's developing into a digital addiction of mine is really BAD! I feel like I'm sitting at the computer for WAY. TO. LONG! But I can't help myself.

Here's what I did tonight .. that took me over an hour because I couldn't get a couple embellies I wanted to use, right .. so I nixed them altogether.

Template is Jen Caputo's

Kit is Just Minty Mocha by Katie Hadfield

Font .. Cricket

SPF

My second week playing along, and again Kristine gives only one photo to scrounge for/take. Yay! These babysteps are making it easier for me to play along.

This week, it's My Buddy. I took this picture last April while we were up in Northern BC visiting my parents. All the traveling made my sweet little, then 4 yr old, very sleepy, and who can resist a sleeping child? Not I! Alissa's my little buddy .. especially on week mornings when it's just her and I, filling the precious three hours we have with 'mommy and me' time. I'm savouring the moments!

a little digital

I was playing around with Cindy Simon's new PinMe! pins on this layout using a photo of my cousin on her recent birthday. (shared photo here)

You can find Cindy's new pins for sale at Natural Designs in Scrapbooking.

Other credits go to Cheryl for her template, and the kit is Close My Eyes by Beth Nixon (photo corner recoloured).

thankful thursday

From recent behaviour from my FIL, I almost want to shout from the rooftops how incredibly thankful I am that my husband grew into an adult, father and husband WITHOUT some of the qualities his father pocesses. In many ways, he's like his father, yet when it comes to his immediate family .. he would die before he ever treated us like his father treated his own wife and still underaged daughter. There's a way to be an adult about certain situations, and then there's the way he chose .. being an ass, acting imature and stupid about his 'rebound' choices, etc. I know this is rather vague, and if I told the whole indepth story it may all make sense, but I'm trying to NOT pull family members into my quiet, serene little place, where I like to hang out when the big bad world isn't so pleasant.



So to sum that paragraph up .. I'm thankful for a husband that can see the faults in his upbringing, and make steps to make sure that doesn't happen to him or his very close loved ones.



Lets talk teeth again. Just ONE more tooth was lost and now I believe we'll have a waiting period again until more teeth wiggle free. Hailey lost her 10th tooth a couple nights ago. The TF was very generous and brought her a loonie and a toonie (that's a $1 and a $2 for my non-Canadian friends). She wondered aloud, why the TF brings different amounts all the time. Little does she know .. it's whatever we have hanging around in my purse or D's pocket, that determines the $ amount. In this day and age of debit cards .. I carry very little change/bills, and one time even had to raid her piggy bank, and make a mental note to owe her when I got some change again. What's a parent to do, if they keep losing them late in the day?



So I have a question regarding teeth. As I tucked the new little tooth in it's baggy, into a nesting box I have for them (one for Alissa too, with her two bottoms), I wondered what do I do with these said teeth once they've lost all the ones they'll lose? I'm sure by the time they get around to losing the first molars, they may already know the TF is fictional and then I may as well hand over the teeth, but until then, I've had them hidden way up in a back dark corner of a cupboard so they'll never come across them or see the cute little nesting box and wonder why they can't have it. So dear parents, what do you do with your childrens lost teeth?

keya

After nearly three weeks since joining Karate, I finally brought the camera to get a few pictures of Hailey in action. I got a video clip too, but had the camera on it's side (for height) and now the clip is sideways. :(

Hailey LOVES (and I can't say that enough) karate and all she's learning thus far from it. And for us, it was more then just the self defense we hope she gleans from the program, but also the self dicipline, the respect for the art and the other members, the physical aspect, and a little cultural study too. As we watch from the sidelines, Alissa mimicks many of the moves, and I'm sure by the time September rolls around (she needs to be six, but September is the next time they take new members) she'll be all gungho and cruise through the introductory stuff quickly, I'm sure.

What do I want to be remembered for?

This was the topic for this week's student journal (book of me) on 123-scrap. I haven't made the layout, because it really has me stumped. I've been thinking about it for the past two days, and can't find any huge significant thing I've done or am doing in my life that I would be greatly missed once I'm gone. Yes, being a wife and a mother has been my two most important roles .. and I would hope that what I've put into my three loved ones would be enough to make my legacy live beyond the grave, but anything further then my close circle of friends and family remembering, I can't think of anything. Perhaps one day I'll have a job where I'll make a drastic impact on the world and be famous enough that more then the people that know me well, will take note. But I highly doubt I'll invent anything, find a cure for cancer or any other known disease, get into politics or become a famous photographer. But one never knows what the future may hold. My hope is that I have spread enough kindness, love, friendship and respect for those I come in contact with on a daily basis, that when I'm gone .. they'll know that the world lost a good person.

Wow, I think I may have just typed up the journaling I can include on my layout. Maybe not knowing what I'll be or what I'd like to be remembered for is enough.

January births

January brings a few birthdays of those that are close to me. Firstly one of my older brothers celebrates on the 18th, then my brother thats just 21 months older then me celebrates on the 21st, my Mom on the 24th and my sweet cousin who just moved here to the Island last year turned 30 on the 20th.


My cousin, L, had a party on Saturday, and here she is, in all her cuteness. She was feeling all bummed about being "old", but she doesn't even look 20, to me. She's going to age gracefully!

*I didn't want to use a flash, so played with the white balance and it didn't quite work so well, but I kinda like the artsy affect.

sisters in sweat

I know .. that title sounds gross hey? Well it's what Leslie Sansone says on her DVD while we're walking away the pounds. I'm back on the exercise wagon as of today! No more "tomorrow" for me. Actually I had told dh this morning that I'd wait a few more days until I was feeling a little better, but it's Monday, and a perfect day to get it started. Unless I actually turn the DVD player on and hit play, I'll forever say "tomorrow".

My short-term goal is 25lbs, and I've already started with the careful eating, selecting snacks carefully, making healthy choices for each meal, etc. So wish me luck! Or rather .. don't cause that could jinx me and we can't have that!

On a crafty note .. I've had the inspiration bug bite me and I've scrapped. Here's a couple of my latest creations. I'm LOVING the angles, so these next to were to satisfy that urge.

and a fun little project I did for a scrap rally on 123-scrap.com

my first SPF!

I've been lurking at Kristine's blog (Random and Odd) for awhile now .. getting a sense of how this SPF (Stuff Portrait Friday) thing works, and she's chosen to start the new year off with a tiny baby step. This is giving me the chance to play along for the very first time, because one photo is far easier then three.

This week's is "Your Television Remote/s. " My nephew gave this cool little remote caddy to D for Christmas. It even spins! Although it hasn't kept the one remote from being lost alongside the couch cushions, due to a little someone thinking if you hide it, Mommy can't change the channel. Hah, I have legs and a finger and can do it the old fashioned way .. kiddo. ;)

thankful thursday

I wanted to share this photo D took while in Vegas. He knows that if I were to ever go
there, THIS is the show I'd want to see. Isn't he too sweet to at least capture a photo of the advert for me?

So, on to the real reason for this post. Thankful Thursday is upon us again .. and this week I'd like to put it out there into the universe that I'm thankful for my sweet children again. The reason I'm doing this is because positive thinking leads to positive results, right? Okay, so then this thought should indeed lead to two very well behaved, sweet girls, who will ignore the fact that driving there nearly insane Mom over the brink into the real ocean of insanity. I'm not sure how many times a parent must ask their children to 'listen to me the first time and Mommy won't be upset' before they'll finally get it. I knew I didn't like the 5's the first time we tredged through it with Hailey .. but now Alissa's swamped in with the same 'stage 5' as I like to refer to it, and I'm not liking it just the same. Why must boundaries have to be pushed, rules bent, tantrums, and whining, and so. much. more? I swear I'm growing a new strand of grey hair each and every day.

So instead of dwelling on all the negative .. please allow me to take this space to say that because of these trying acts, I'm thankful for these two sweet girls because they show me on a daily basis (heck .. hourly basis is more like it) that I'm human but that I'm developing patience and a kinder side .. even when the nicest thing I can think of to say is SO not worthy of a child's ear .. I'm learning to hold back .. breath .. think about what I want them to hear me say, and choosing my words wisely. I hope ONE day, they'll actually listen to me and hear my words, instead of what I think they hear, which probably sounds alot like Charlie Brown's teacher.

He's BAAAAAACK!

My hubby's back from Sin City, and he had a great time! I can see why (from the atmosphere and from what I've seen on TV), but I don't quite understand why people think that when someone goes to Las Vegas .. they'll get themselves into trouble. The only trouble Dave got himself into was calling me at nearly 1am Sunday morning, to tell me what they (him and his friend/boss) did that day) and he had NO sense of what time it was. He said it's the strangest thing, and if you stay indoors gambling and whatnot, you'd never know the day has turned to night because everything is open 24 hours, and there's no winding down for the evening .. people just keep. on. going! So upon arriving home at just after 5pm, the poor guy could hardly keep his eyes open until after the girls were tucked in bed, then he crashed too .. and will probably sleep well into the morning.

He DID manage to get a decent amount of quality photos that I can scrap for him into a small album. But like he said .. he hasn't had nearly as much practice with the camera, although he did surprise me with a few really cool angled shots.

Besides gambling, he did take in a couple local acts .. such as Howie Mandel (who apparently wasn't as funny as his opening act comedian), Beatles: Love (see photo), and the rollercoaster at NY NY.

Of course the girls were overly giddy to have daddy back, AND he brought presents with. He got me a CSI Las Vegas pink camo baseball cap!!!!!!!, a deck of cards with MY name on them, and a LV pink hoody. The girls he brought each a very soft cuddly bear, some bath bubbles, soaps and lotions AND a casino coin.

I'm thrilled to have my hubby home, and I've made him promise not to go on any trips like that again without me. (can you tell we don't vacation apart?) Next big trip tho, for our whole family, is Disneyland! :D .. not sure when but hopefully within the next 12-18mos.

Blogger Tag

I read Cori's entry for today and she had this tag listed. And even though she orders those that have read it, to post our own .. I'm doing it because I like tags/meme's I haven't done before. So here it goes...

1.Do you like the looks and the content of your blog? Yes, I've tweaked it to reflect my favourite colours, I change the header occasionally for a different look, and the content isn't THAT bad .. although I do wish at times I was a better writer.
2.Does your family know about your blog? my hubby, sisters, one SIL know about my blog. I'm a little descreet with whom I want to share it with just in case I need an outlet to express views or feelings that may hurt a particular reader.
3. Can you tell your friends about your blog? Yes, a few "real" friends know about my blog but don't comment. DH knows and reads it occasionally (usually posts I've spoken of him, oops)
4.Do you just read the blogs of those who comment on your blog? No, I have a long list of blogs I read, and I'm very thankful for google reader, because it keeps up with new posts made, and I can glance and see which ones I have time to read, etc. Only pain about that is that you have to actually GO to the blog to comment, which deterrs me from commenting as much as I'd like.
5.Does your blog positively affect your mind? Pretty much. I do sensor myself alot tho, but this is the only journal (other then in scrapbooking) that I keep.
6.What does the number of visitors to your blog mean? It means I have alot of visitors and not enough commenters. :P
7.Do you imagine what other bloggers look like? Yes! It bugs me when they don't have an avatar up of themselves, but I do understand if they want to stay anonymous.
8.Do you think blogging has any real benefit? It's benefitted me in that I have a place that I can express myself and it's MY space and even if I get positive/negative feedback, it's still MY place to talk (type). It's fun running into other bloggers with the same interests, and following along with their lives/stories.
9.Do you think that the blogosphere is a stand alone community separated from the real world? Not really .. it does cross into the real world in several instances.
10.Do some political blogs scare you? Do you avoid them? Politics aren't my most favourite topic, so I usually pass over those blogs specified for just politics, but the odd post about it interests me.
11.Do you think that criticizing your blog is useful? Constructive Critisism is useful ONLY oif the blogger is asking for it, otherwise it's the authors space, like it or move on.
12.Have you ever thought about what would happen to your blog in case you died? I just read a blog by a lady that died of cancer (was linked in her neighbours blog (a famous scrapper)). It was fun to read her humorous words even tho I knew she had passed on. I'm not sure what would happen to my blog after I die. Probably be suspended in blog land forever.
13.Which blogger had the greatest impression on you? I really can't pinpoint one person from my list .. I enjoy a well rounded read from MANY bloggers.
14.Which blogger do you think is the most similar to you? Same as #13. I glean bits and pieces from many blogs and find a similarity with many.
15.Name a song you want to listen to? Don't flame me because of this .. but I'm loving My Chemical Romance lately .. especially since the radio station I listen to often plays them many times throughout the day. Lisa got me hooked on them when she shared a layout she had made showing her love of their music.

Eva Avila - Meant To Fly (Single)

girls weekend!

D should be landing in Las Vegas in just a few minutes (if his flight was on schedule), for a 'guy weekend away'. Actually he was given the trip as a bonus for getting his boss a 5 year contract on a retirement subdivision .. so the trip was well earned if you look at it that way. Anyway, so with D gone until Monday, the girls and I have planned some fun things to pass the time. Starting with our well loved PJ Party which entails a homebaked pizza, movie of their choosing, and later popcorn and hot chocolate or similar. They can stay up later then usual, and we're comfy for the entire evening in none other then our Jammies of course. Love evenings like this!

Tomorrow we'll go to Michaels for the kids craft time, always a fave for the girls .. and then do some fun crafty things at home (so I can work on a craft I'm doing for the Scrap Rally on 123-scrap). Not sure what else we'll fill our weekend with, but playing it by ear is also a fun thing to do. I plan on 'making' the girls sleep in both mornings because it's something they ask each and every week morning, and if they don't sleep in the two mornings they CAN, so help me .. I'll just have to give them something to help them sleep. :P

In other recent news. Hailey's joined our local Shotokan Karate club, and is LOVING it. She's gone twice, as it's twice a week for an hour, and on Thurs recieved her Gi. I'll make sure to get a photo of her in it, and a wee vid clip that I can refer back to after 6 months or so, to see how much she's improved.

So on that note I'll leave you with a video of a song I have on repeat on my MP3Player right now. LOVE it! LOVE her!
*for some reason I can't get her video to upload here. :(

baby, it's cold outside!

For here in southern BC anyway. We rarely see temps dipping below zero, but with this northern coldsnap making its way past us, it's cold, snowy, sunny and clear skied. This was this mornings sunrise as it peeked through the trees at me. I had to step outside to capture it in all it's stunning glory. It's warmth rising in behind the coldness of the snow laden trees makes it even that much more stunning, I think.

NDW

Apparently it's National Delurking Week from what I'm getting as I cruise around the blog world.

I know there's more of you visiting then post a comment, so why don't you take this opportunity to say 'hi'. I'd love to see who's out there, reading my lil' old blog. :D

mindful musings

I moved away from my hometown and parents nearly a year after getting married, to one of the most beautiful places in BC .. Vancouver Island. I love the ocean, the green vegetation year round, the beautiful early and colourful springs, the unique shells to collect, the nature paths to explore, the warm sand between my toes .. and my list goes on. But the Island is lacking one thing. My family. Last year my dad went through a triple bypass heart surgery, and since then so much of his personality has changed. He's forgetful, so much so that it's turning into dimentia, he's disoriented and is suffering with anxiety. He's also an insulin dependant diabetic, as is my Mom .. but often forgets what his doseage is or when he's last taken his readings. He has become a fulltime job for my Mom .. in which she cannot leave him for even a moment. I never realized how living this far away from them would affect me. As they grow into their older years, I so want to be there .. to share in the help my other siblings offer them. To fix meals my Mom can freeze and reheat as they need, to go in and help clean .. so she can have a break from that part of her responsibilities. Even to visit with my Dad for an afternoon, so my Mom can go out and have some time to herself. I want to spend every minute I can with them, because I know time is short, and life can be snuffed out far to soon and unexpectedly. With the health issues they both face, it makes me feel torned between the wonderful life D and I have created here together, the beauty and awness of the Island .. yet I'm pulled to live closer to my parents so I can be there for them, see them more often then the once or sometimes twice a year, and show my respect and love by returning some of what they put into raising us children.

*sigh*

nose to the grindstone

The winter holiday break is officially over as of today, so it's nose to the grindstone and back to business as usual now. I debated about easing the girls into their pre-vacation schedule of waking at 7am, but chose to just let them enjoy their holidays by sleeping in until they woke naturally. This morning, I was kicking myself for doing that. It's always such a daily fight to wake my sleepy head monster #1 up in the morning. She inherited that gene from her daddy. So not a morning person that girl is. So after threatening to make her bedtime earlier because clearly she was showing me with her actions, that she's not getting enough sleep at night .. she FINALLY dragged her butt down from her bed. Hopefully tomorrow goes better.

And how did I fill my morning? The usual Monday morning tackle of the household chores. I have machines a-humming, surfaces gleaming, air is smelling fresh, and germs have been held at bay. So this week is off to a good start. Clean house, clean children, I've gotten a good start to my water intake for the day (the toilet's starting to hate me tho :P) and the week is looking good. The girls and I have to make plans for this weekend as Dave's heading to Vegas with a friend/boss, and the girls and I are left on our own to do as we please. I'm thinking we'll take in a movie at the Overly Priced Theater, and perhaps enjoy a 'girlie night'. We'll hammer down the plans as the weekend approaches.

And remember that layout I couldn't share because I had to wait to post it until today because it was a BoM assignment? Here it is .. in all it's sillyness.

If you're interested in following along with some topics for your BoM (Book of Me), feel free to visit 123-Scrap for some inspiration.

Scrapping Bliss!

I've been able to fit some scrapbooking in this weekend, and boy, did it feel GOOD. I realized I hadn't scrapped since before Christmas! I'm not counting all the little gifts, or crafty Christmassy things we did .. because that's not perserving photos nor moving photos from my shoebox to the ablums.



Top left is of my younger sister and I, taken in October'06, the one beside it is of the girls and all the pumpkins at the 'pumpkin graveyard'. There's a place along a strip of road going out into the country, where nearly everyone brings their jack-o-lanterns and pumpkins after Halloween is over. It gives them a resting place to rot away, but it's really a cool sight, and the photos don't even begin to capture the coolness. The next double page layout is our tree hunt/trimming. I had so many photos of this little tradition, so you'll see I made a little fold out album on the left side to house the abundance of photos.

I made one more layout, but can't show it until tomorrow, after I post it as the Student Journal assignment on 123-Scrap.

9th

Such small milestones, yet how exciting they are to a seven year old. Hailey started losing her teeth early, probably because her first wee tooth appeared when she was only three months old. So within two years, all the front eight disappeared quite quickly .. and then she had a two year break. Last night, the first of her four cuspids FINALLY came out after a week of being loose. I thought for sure Hailey was going to go to bed, leaving the tooth attached by just one tiny thin little string .. but after holing herself up in the bathroom while bravely trying to pull it herself, she finally came and asked me to do it. I know how much courage that took, because I had been bugging her all day, bumping her arm when she was wiggling it, feeding her apples and other hard foods, but that goes to show me how deep a child's trust is for a parent, and I did thank her later for trusting me to NOT hurt her. She's pretty happy about that gaping hole, and played with her reflected image for quite some time. Long enough that I took some pictures of the reflection, while she pulled faces, felt the extra space

with her tongue and investigated it quite closely.

The Tooth Fairy did not come last night, and the reason being that Hailey wrote out a special letter, requesting a whistle. Why a whistle? Because she was under the impression that she wouldn't be able to whistle after losing this particular tooth. I tried telling her otherwise .. that it would be more the front teeth that would hinder her abilities to whistle, but she wouldn't listen. And after losing the tooth, she realized she could in fact whistle, but still wanted one. And like the good mommy I am, I covered my butt and made sure she knew that sometimes the TF doesn't carry special toys with her, and there may be a delay in her tooth being picked up .. so try every night until it's gone upon waking. Whew, disaster avoided!

I swear, if I were to do this all over again, I'd raise my children to not believe in Santa, the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, and all that jazz. Why? Because it's to difficult keeping all these secrets and performing duties of these fictional characters over and above everything else. And I never grew up believing in any of them, and I think I turned out okay. Although perhaps that's the reason I DO keep these fantasies alive .. because I never had the opportunities to believe.

library, weather and similar things

I simply canNOT get over the fabulous weather we're having as of late. The sun shines from a bright blue cloudless sky, the temps are a tad low for this time of year, but it's really a welcome sight to see the sun instead of the usual rains we get.
Today, like the other day, we managed to get out to breathe the brisk fresh air and play. This time we went to the 'big park', but it didn't take long before fingers were cold, and noses were red and the girls were ready to go home for a hot chocolate warmer up.

It never ceases to amaze me how much the library can rake in on late fees. We had books due on the 27th, and although I knew about it .. I totally forgot in the hustle and bustle of what happened to be the week between C-Mas and NY. Ordinarily, if I want to hang on to the books past the due date, I just log onto the library's website and renew them, but like I mentioned .. my brain was busy elsewhere. So yesterday we made a trip to bring back the old and check out some new ones, and I was hit with the big whopping bill. $9!!! WTH? For six children's books, two children's cds, and one adult book. That's just over 14 cents a day per item! Crazy I say! Especially for books that you loan to begin with. Luckily I didn't have to pay the entire thing up front, and just paid half (all the change I had on me, and they don't take Interac). I did find out that if I use the girls card for the girls books, they just implemented a 'no late fee' until this fall. I just need to be more careful with who's books I check out on which card now.

Just three more days of winter holidays before the girls go back to school. It's actually been quite enjoyable, with minimal amounts of fighting .. which is always a bonus. And you'll understand this if you're a parent to two or more children fairly close in age. The fighting can be out of this world! I purposely kept this past week fairly low key, with small dosages of friend time, mainly because I wanted the girls to really get their time in together. With Hailey in school all day, Alissa in half days, and then homework in the evenings .. I can tell Alissa's missing her 'big sister' time more this year. They got so many neat and entertaining presents from Christmas, so they've been using their imaginations to their fullest. I've enjoyed secretly watching them play so nicely.

Thankful Thursday

Today, I'm extremely thankful for my friend, V. Although we no longer live in the same town, her friendship still means alot to me. We make up for lost time as we chat an afternoon away, while sipping tea and commiserating together. This morning, her husband had a heart attack and she and her three children were here in town staying with her niece and visiting around with family and friends for a few days. I can't even begin to know what she's feeling right now .. but I've offered my shoulder and help in any way she needs.
Today, I'm thankful for her friendship, to be able to pour out to her during her time of need.

PSE makes the world a better place!

I love my camera, and LOVE that I'm learning to use my PSE to it's fullest. This photo is one of the many I captured today as the girls and I took a walk with a good friend of mine and her three children (who happen to be my girls friends too .. duh! ;))
Imagine what the photography world would be like if there was no computers or Photo Shop to fix things, make colours pop, add a little texture here and there .. and so much more.

Ah yes, I'm in love!

girls best friend

Alissa is such an animal lover .. and it goes both ways. Animals LOVE Alissa. Even our very finicky cat tolerates her carrying him about .. with hinde end dangling. Everytime we're in one of our local malls where there's a petstore, we stop to see the new puppies and kitties and even dragons, lizards, snakes, and yucky rodents (sorry, but I hate mice, rats, guinea pigs and hamsters) and it never fails that upon leaving .. she's begging for either a kitty or puppy. She loves our cat dearly, but he can't be indoors due to D's allergies, and even though we do let him in occasionaly to eat or weather the recent rain storms, he only ever wants to stay for just awhile .. then off to the door he goes to beg to be let out. So we'll never be able to get another cat (kitty), but we've talked about a puppy in our near future. We're just not sure when in the near future that will be, because if we stay here in this home .. it will have to be a small dog and we're not overly crazy about small dogs of the yappy variety.

So on NYE day, we spent some time out at one of the Island's fish and game clubs, and while D was skeet shooting along with many others .. Alissa found these two dogs irresistably entertaining. The larger one (in the front) is a trained bird hunting dog. He'll play fetch for days, his owner claims, and I have no doubts of that. For he had Alissa throwing a stick (see tiny white speck where the dog's looking?) for nearly an hour. He'd fetch, bring it back, drop it and stand there staring at it until Alissa picked it up and threw it again. The other dog (much younger and obviously NOT the dominant of the two) was more hyper and easily distracted by the people milling about, but ocasionally would run for the stick, then pass it by so the other dog could pick it up.

It was quite entertaining for both the dogs AND the girl, and kept them all busy and away from the shotguns and eager marksmen.

Happy New Year!

It's that time of year again. Time to ring in a brand new year full of many opportunities, fresh starts, new memories to make, and so much more.

We spent the evening with friends over, playing poker, eating tons of goodies, conversing in silly/intelligent/crazy talk, and most importantly .. drinking. ;) Oh but I've learned from my younger years .. no getting wasted for me! I ration out my drinks over the evening, sipping at them slowly and making sure I maintain that buzz, but never going past that ever so fine line.

Hailey and Alissa spent the evening (after their little friends left due to their dad (our friend) having to work the night shift as security at an elite hotel party) up in our room watching a couple movies and eating popcorn and drinking their fill of eggnog. Alissa fell asleep JUST before the countdown, but Hailey came down and as you can see, got right into toasting to a properous New Year. She landed up staying up right until our last guests left, and we hobbled up to bed. I came down with a touch of the flu earlier in the day and was sure feeling ill by bedtime, but thankfully today, other then the massive sore muscles, I'm feeling much better. But we've claimed the day as a PJ day, and we'll fill the afternoon with games and other activities.














Most of the photos I took, didn't turn out all that great, but I wanted to share a couple that I'm 'okay' with.














And our nightowl, Hailey, cheering Daddy with her virgin eggnog. :)