I would like to think that I am a trustworthy person who can hold secrets. Sometimes it's hard to know what is secret and what is not though. In those situations where it is not clear I may mention it ~ but is it my fault since I didn't know that you were avoiding telling your two-year-old that you were going out tonight? If I know that you are entrusting me with information that is to be kept "in the vault" I won't spill it. And if I do have to burst and tell someone it will be a non-verbal toddler (that's okay, right?!).
1. A cup of tea with sweet honey.
2. Family makes a place feel like home.
3. Everything has its beauty when it's clean.
4. Don't you adore the taste of strawberries?
5. Art makes me imagine places and things I may never experience.
6. LOL I just noticed I forgot to organize lunch early and now the kids are cranky.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to sewing, tomorrow my plans include Weight Watchers weigh-in and manicure and Sunday, I want to chill-ax!
I got a pattern for this cute crochet hook holder. Mine looks very similar but it is taller than I expected - more knitting needle length versus crochet hook size. Good thing I do both!
I went to my stash of knitting and crochet supplies (read all about said stash here) to see which to keep in this nifty holder. The needles were quite unorganized. It's great to have so many but not so great to not know what sizes there were. Since each size has at least two sets of needles, I'm going to make my mom a set for her house on the promise she doesn't purchase new yarn without consulting my supply first! Perhaps I will gift this set in my new hook/needle holder. Yes, I'm that sweet...
I'd love to make one for you. I'll even supply the yarn (you KNOW I have enough of it!) and my time ~ you need only pay for the shipping fees which I don't estimate would be too much since it's so light and I could jam it pretty small into an envelope. Comment to this post if you are interested and I'll set you up (this is me being sweet again ~ tee hee).
I'm considering starting a small sewing business, not for an income per se but more of an initiative that will allow for my sewing hobby to pay for itself.
I have a few ideas of a niche market but wanted to poll you, my readers, to see where there is interest. So, what idea would you be most interested in purchasing for your child or as a gift? (Answering isn't committing you to anything.)
Baby accessories (bibs, blankets, pillow cases, I can personalize with initial or name, date of birth and birth weight, etc.)
Clothes (I'm thinking but am not limited to skirts, shirts with gender-specified designs, etc.)
Home Decor (pillow cases, throw pillows, table runners, place mats, table cloths, etc.)
Other ~ I'm looking to you for ideas please. What would you commission someone to make for you?
Last weekend was a great opportunity to watch the Olympics; partly because the children were at the grandparents and we were allowed to watch over preschool geared television. Once they returned, however, the television has been either off or onto one of their shows. This is the reason I've been delayed in posting the new information on medals achieved.
I agree the photos are terrible from the official site so I'm posting some much nicer ones of our medal winners.
Thank you Mommy Maria for posting this ... I'm borrowing it for my blog. It's quite humorous ... enjoy!
Friday, February 19, 2010
The challenge is almost up. Next Friday February 26 is the last weigh-in to determine the winner based on the most percentage of body fat lost.
After 4 weeks of tracking my Weight Watchers points, I finally feel motivated and on track. I've also cut out pop this week and purchased a new stainless steel water container to help me increase my water intake. So far so good as on Thursday I was down 2 pounds. I hope it really starts melting off from here - and especially before next Friday!
Canada got it's first gold medal and a few other medals too ... here is a summary of the athlete's statistics who have won medals to date ...
GOLD MEDAL
Event ~ Freestyle Skiing - Men's Moguls
Athlete ~ BILODEAU Alexandre
Height ~ 173 cm (5' 8")
Weight ~ 76 kg (168 lbs)
Date of Birth ~ September 8, 1987 Age ~ 22
Nationality ~ Canada Birthplace ~ Canada
Club ~ St. Sauveur Freestyle Ski Club ~ Canada
Coach ~ Dominick Gauthier (Canadian Freestyle Ski Association, 22 Oct 2009)
Other Sports ~ Up until 2004, he competed in both aerials and moguls. Upon joining the national development team programme, he chose to pursue a career in moguls. (Canadian Freestyle Ski Association, 03 Jan 2006)
Education ~ Environmental Science - College Montmorency: Laval, QC, Canada
SILVER MEDAL
Event ~ Men's Snowboard Cross
Athlete ~ ROBERTSON Mike
Height ~ 185 cm (6' 0")
Weight ~ 83 kg (183 lbs)
Date of Birth ~ February 26, 1985 Age ~ 24
Nationality ~ Canada Birthplace ~ Canada
Coach ~ Tim Milne, Marcel Matthieu, René Brunner (CSF, 03 Nov 2009)
Hobbies ~ Mountain biking, climbing and playing hockey. (CSF, 03 May 2009) Occupation ~ Landscape Architect
SILVER MEDAL
Event ~ Freestyle Skiing ~ Ladies' Moguls
Athlete ~ HEIL Jennifer
Height ~ 162 cm (5' 3")
Weight ~ 55 kg (121 lbs)
Date of Birth ~ April 11, 1983 Age ~ 26
Nationality ~ Canada Birthplace ~ Canada
Nickname ~ Jenn. (freestyleski.com, 16 Dec 2009)
Coach ~ Dominick Gauthier (freestyleski.com, 06 Nov 2009)
Hobbies ~ Yoga, sculpting and shopping. (Canadian Freestyle Ski Association, 03 Jan 2006)
Other Sports ~ She was a freestyle swimmer for 11 years and competed in provincial competitions. (SLOC, 2002)
Congratulations to Jennifer Heil who successfully won Canada's first 2010 Olympic medal in women's moguls. Heil did a fantastic job and it was a very solid competition between her and the US's Hannah Kearney, who ended up with gold when she beat her out by less than one point.
A little bit about our silver medalist ... Heil is a "world-class freestyle mogul skier, Jenn secured numerous titles and medals, among which 4 consecutive World Cup Titles and a gold medal at the 2006 Olympics." (source)
On the schedule for February 14 is ...
10:00 - Nordic Combined - Individual NH/10 km CC - Competition Round
11:15 - Biathlon - Men's 10 km Sprint (Medal Event)
12:00 - Ice Hockey - Women's Preliminary Round - Group B Game 3 (USA vs China)
13:00 - Luge - Men's Singles Run 3
13:00 - Speed Skating - Ladies' 3000 m (Medal Event)
13:45 - Nordic Combined - Individual NH/10 km CC - 10 km (Medal Event)
14:30 - Freestyle Skiing - Men's Moguls Qualification
15:10 - Luge - Men's Singles Run 4 (Medal Event)
16:30 - Figure Skating - Pairs Short Program
Finland vs Russian Federation
16:30 - Ice Hockey - Women's Preliminary Round - Group B Game 4 (Finland vs Russia)
17:30 - Freestyle Skiing - Men's Moguls Final (Medal Event)
I am Canadian. A proud Canadian. The 2010 winter Olympics are in my country. This adds to my heart's bursting with pride for my country.
Last night I watched an hour into the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics and, gosh ... what to say. It was beautiful, artful, eclectic and ever so s-l-o-w. My husband and I were watching it on the couch and there were a lot of "huh?"s and "what are people thinking this Canada is, exactly, as represented by this?".
CTV did a great summary of the origin of the opening ceremony and why things happen in the order they do. Also, for an ongoing Canadian coverage of the Olympics, visit CTV online here.
Did you see the Opening Ceremony? What do you think of Canada after having seen it?
If you are writing about the Olympics on your blog, please post a link in my comments so I can read your thoughts.
I finally finished the sleeves and assembling the sweater that I made over the Christmas break. I thought it would make a great sweater for our Valentine's Day date tomorrow (hence the decor in the background of my photo shoot). I think I'll need to find a nude bra or camisole too as the white is pretty blinding at some angles!
Side note: I am getting my hair coloured and cut tomorrow so it will be perfect for said date night. The photos also motivate me to continue my weight loss efforts. I'm doing well but you can never have the same motivation as photos of yourself! LOL
Here are some great questions from Steph in the City ... What are your ideas for Valentine's Day activities? Do you involve the kids in your V-day celebration?
I am so grateful to my parents who generously take the kiddies for weekends. Today my mother met me and picked up the two little squirts (who were counting down the "sleeps" until they could visit Mama & Papa). They were especially thrilled when they convinced her to take them to "Uncle Donald's" for lunch (McDonalds). I think my mother reported that Ava (3 years old) ate about 9 or 10 McNuggets and half a pack of fries ~ she MADE my mother go get more because she insisted she was starving. What a kid.
Anyhoo ... this leaves my husband and I free to have a Valentine's Day on Saturday and then we'll drive to my parents' house for a nice rest and visit.
So tell me, ... what are your ideas for Valentine's Day activities? Do you involve the kids in your V-day celebration?
I love Friday follows! I've met some awesome new bloggy buddies through this! Go link up! NOW!
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Welcome to the Friday Follow celebration hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades! We invite you to join us every Friday to get more blog followers and to follow other interesting blogs. It is all about sharing and having fun. Here's how YOU can join the celebration:
Link up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky on all three of their pages. Only need to add on one blog to be seen on all the blog hops.
Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots.
Follow as many blogs as you'd like.
Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow.
Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow.
Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award.
Unfortunately, I don't know 12 bloggers as I'm just really getting started to follow others so now the next lucky recipients (in no particular order) are: Mass Hole Mommy - I love her type-bite Mama's Losin' It - she has taught me so much about blogging and surviving mommy madness Thrifty Decor Chic - tons of fabulous decorating ideas
I see a ton of bloggy awards floating about out there. How does one get one? Is it bad to campaign for one? Is my blog not meeting award criteria and if not, how can I meet criteria? I need some love folks; I'm just sayin' ...
I inherited a fabulous gift from my grandmother who is now unable to see well enough to use yarn to crochet or knit. She had also received a lot of yarn from my aunt's husband's aunt ~ with me there? LOL
This is the box (above), filled with bags and bags of yarn. Thankfully, some of the bags were organized but there was one lovely bag that was just a mottled mess of yarn (below).
I got a huge amount of crochet hooks, knitting needles and other accessories ...
What to do with it all. I decided it was best to sort it by type of yarn weight.
Put those neatly into clear bags, with labels of the yarn weight, and stuff them (neatly) into the yarn chest.
But wait ... one bag leftover! (ah, I'll stash it in my closet ...)
And here is my helper to vacuum up the mess AFTER I have put the bags all away (I did not need him tearing at the neat balls ... way too tempting).
I was busy this weekend sewing some valances for our main areas. The windows have been blah for long enough. The kitchen window over the sink with yellow paint and the dining room is surrounded by red paint. For the dining room I was going to spray paint the chandelier a deep brown but when I found this fabric it pulled it all together.What do you think?
My husband's wedding ring got stolen from inside our home by (who I can only suspect) the house cleaners.
I'm annoyed at him for leaving it around the house in the first place but not thrilled that a) I have no cleaners now and b) I am reluctant to have any cleaners again after this dreadful experience. Good news is that the insurance company will cover the ring's replacement without deductable because we had a seaprate rider on the ring.
It will be ice for him to have a ring again so I can bitch about him not wearing it.
Here are two great sites that promote discovering new blogs.
NEW FRIEND FRIDAY
Here's a great idea from Industrious Me ... New Friend Friday is about discovering new blogs. This is your chance to spam my blog (with other blogs only!). How do you participate? If I already read your blog, suggest another blog. If I don’t read your blog, suggest I stop by yours. What do you do now? SUGGEST!
{Want to host New Friend Friday on your blog and get some linkage at the same time? Copy and paste the above text, or change it completely for all I care, add a link back to Industrious Me, let her know in a comment, and she’ll add your blog.} ~~~~~
FRIDAY FOLLOW
Today I stumbled upon the Friday Follow Blog Hop Party and I am so glad I did!
Here's how YOU can join the celebration:
* * Link up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky below (only need to add to one blog - they are all linked together).
* * Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots.
* * Follow as many blogs as you like
* * Comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow
* * Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow
If you are follower, please leave a comment below with your blog link so I can follow you.
At 8:00AM on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays I pack up my two kids and the three other daycare friends and wait in line for spaces in a free program. They go into a school readiness program where they are in a classroom of children their own age for two hours and I need only be in the building (in the classroom if they are having a sad day).
I'm starting to wonder if this is really beneficial.For my two kids, having two hours separated from me is key or else they'd be attached to my legs all day. Ava also starts kindergarten this fall and I find the structure of their morning is similar to what it will be in school. That said, all of the friends I had there have gone back to work and nobody there really inspires me to go. I'm bored and missing my kids the whole time I'm there (as a childcare provider they have drastically reduced the programs I am allowed to attend) and my loneliness is magnified without them.
Does this sound like I need friends or that I am outgrowing this particular program?
I don't know what it is that has happened to my metabolism. Since Travis was born two years ago I lost all my baby weight within 8 weeks of his birth (yay me) then gained 25 lbs due to post partum anti-depressants (boo fat-making-drugs). I stopped taking the meds in the spring of 2009 because, as I told my doctor, I'd rather be thin and miserable than fat and miserable. Now the pounds have stuck onto my butt, hips and thighs (in particular) for dear life and I'm getting desperate. After seeing my ballooned up self in last summer's vacation photos I have vowed not to look like that this summer (or again, for that matter).
So, I'm challenging myself with a friend, diligently tracking Weight Watchers points, exercising (almost) daily and now I've resorted to herbal laxatives (don't judge me ... seriously, don't). Lord help me, I will be a size six by the time capri season is upon us!!
And the fact that I've gained 2 lbs this week because of my period does not a happy camper make.
I'm going to do my best to participate, and succeed, at the 28 Day Organizing Challenge set out by I'm An Organizing Junkie.
The Official 28 Day Organizing Challenge Rules:
During the month of February participants have 28 days to organize either a whole room and/or small space in their home
You can enter multiple spaces if you’d like but participants will be asked to create a separate blog post for each entry
Two Mr. Linky posts (one for small space and one for whole room) will go up on the morning of March 1st for participants to link up to with a post showcasing BOTH their before and after pictures of the newly organized space. Participants will also be asked to answer a few questions about the process they followed. Questions to come.
Entries that don’t include both before and after pictures and/or question summary will be eliminated.
The challenge end Mr. Linky cut off will be March 2nd at 12:00 pm PST.
Judges will be specifically looking at overall transformation, creative use of space, storage solutions that work and overall experience.
Overall Transformation – A well organized, uncluttered, clearly defined and efficient space that lends itself to easy maintenance. Creative Use of Space – Using creative solutions to allow you to maximize your space and create zones in a new and manageable way. Storage Solutions that Work – Using storage solutions that allow you to establish boundaries and limits and contain “like with like”. Overall Experience – The process that got you to the uncluttered space mentally and physically.
Side note from Org Junkie: My philosophy on organizing is that it doesn’t need to cost big bucks to do it and so you’ll notice that $$ spent is not even a factor in the judging criteria. Many a creative storage solution can be found for next to nothing. Be creative, think outside of the box and let your organizing imaginations run wild :)
Do you ever have a little thing completely throw you into a tailspin? Take tonight, for instance. I finally got up the motivation to get my butt out the snow-filled door to work out. This was the plan and I was going to stop at the library first to pick up an item I had requested. Apparently I missed the one-week deadline by one day and they returned it and were going to charge me a $2 fine. I don't recall getting the message and I always pick up my holds. I convinced them to remove my hold, went to the car and drove home, completely unrelated yet unmotivated to workout or do much else. And then my husband asks me why I didn't go to the gym - humfff!
Do little things like this ever really get to you? Do you indulge in the sulleness of your mood or shake it off and move on?
