Friday, December 24, 2010

Thursday, December 23, 2010

seasons greetings

last week we had some nasty weather,
snowing and blowing-
it was pretty yucky out,
but it sure made my candy cane decoration look neat!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

christmas dresses

every year I make the girls Christmas dresses.
so far they have been the same, and I will continue making them matching dresses until they complain!
this is Maggie's dress this year-
front-


and back-
sadie's is the same idea, but she asked for long sleeves,
and silly me- I measured her arm from the shoulder where sleeves usually start,
and cut out the pieces, sewed them on, and once she tried on her dress I realized that I should have measured from her neck instead- so she ended up with 3/4 inch sleeves. but she said that's okay.
I meant to take a picture of them in their dresses on Sunday, but they changed out of them too quickly.
if I didn't tell you, you would never know that they were made out of a bed sheet, right?
shh. it will be our little secret!

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

they're home!


and we are so happy!
(and from their stories, I think they are happy to be back where there are normal toilets, and roads with no hills, and not so many crazy drivers!)
-they were gone for 18 months serving a mission for our church in the Phillipines!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

this is it



the last 2 wedding pictures I will share. I just finally learned how to install actions, so I was having some fun playing! there is no end to the fun I can have with pictures now!

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

for joanne and kayli and amy

working a bit more on the wedding pictures- from almost a month ago-
it is about time!
Kayli- here they are, looking forward! and this one is for Joanne- you silly picture wrecker!
(those are her fingers!)
still a bunch to be done.
hopefully soon!

Friday, December 10, 2010

making a list..

how come the days till christmas are getting shorter,
but my to do list is getting longer?

-finish sadie's christmas dress
- make Cory a wise man costume for tomorrows ward party
-wrap presents
- buy presents
-find out what one kid really wants so I can figure out what to get him

and on and on!
must get busy!

Wednesday, December 08, 2010

tis the season

for birthdays!
my twins (born 4 years apart) had their birthday on Saturday.
last week we had a little party for Sadie.
w
we had mini oreos, mini ritz crackers with cheese, made mini clay cupcakes,
and I had to make a little banner for the cake!
Maggie was right there during it all,
and sweet Sadie let her help-
even help blow out the candles.

what a great sister and a great girl.
love you Sadie!

Friday, December 03, 2010

happy mail

so, one of my most favorite things about christmas,

besides the lights,

the treats, the presents,

is getting christmas cards in the mail- but especially christmas cards with pictures.

over the past few years I have tried to be creative with my picture cards,

but I have found shutterfly- and they have such fantastic christmas cards!

here are a few that I really like-

this one would be great with a certain picture I have in mind- this one- so cute, and I could write a personal message on the inside! love.
stinking adorable-
so simple, and so very cute.
these are just a few of the fantastic christmas photo cards they have! check out some more here.
picking my favorite one will not be easy, that's for sure!
but they don't just have christmas cards-
they have super cute baby announcements too!

and after christmas, when the presents are open, and you need to send out some thank you cards- well, wowsa- they have those too! so fantastic!

they must have a great team of graphic artistsworking for them. the ideas, the cuteness. so super!
I need to get on the ball, get some super cute cards made, and get them out in the mail!
christmas cards are such a fun part of christmas,
and these- well, way fun!

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

life lessons

Maggie has been in swimming lessons for the past couple of weeks.
swimming is an important life skill.
I love that for the first few lessons she was the only one in her class-
private lessons for public lesson price- you have to love that!
-but now there is another boy in her class.
but anyway,
this morning she told me-



it's all worth it.
important lessons have been learned!

Monday, November 29, 2010

last week

the flu hit a few of us.
Sadie had it Monday-
she camped out on this chair, snuggled in and spent the day. then most of the week was flu free, until Jack had it over night, but was fine the next day.
But Ben- well, he came home from school on Friday, grabbed a bucket and headed down stairs. I think I saw him for a total of 1 hour all weekend. poor guy.
but I was happy to see him well, and off to school this morning.
here's hoping that was the last of it. we shall see!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

a wedding

cory's brother got married on the weekend.
I think it was the coldest weekend ever.
I got to take some pictures.
but it was so very cold that my camera froze up.
so I didn't get too many.
but this is one I did get that I like a lot.


I told him to whisper something in her ear.
I think it was something about the yummy food we ate at the dinner.
or maybe not!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

too small

I got some boots for Maggie, from someone,
and she would try them on and say they were too small.
so I put them up to her feet.
they definitely should fit.
what is the problem?
then I thought about it.
maybe there was something in the boot.
lo and behold- a little sock wadded up in the toe of one boot. I pulled it out, and now the boots fit.
thank goodness!
I felt like a bad mom for getting a little mad at her for saying they didn't fit, when I knew they really should. shame on me.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

for Taryn (and anyone else who wants to know!)

so, Taryn-
my dear roomate from back in the day, ( the good old days!)
asked me how to get big pictures on her blog.
well, I learned this somewhere, but of course can't remember where, so I will show you what I have learned-
how I get big pictures on my blog:

upload your picture, then when it is on your post, click on the little tab that says Edit Html-
it should be right about here-

then all that fun computer lingo will pop up- and it will look like this-
you want to highlight the part that says something about width...all the way to the height, and whatever numbers and the px that are there, then delete it all.
it is a bit scary, but it works. (and if the picture dissappears, you can always upload it again.)
and it will dissappear, unless you do the next step which is where the magic happens.
or so I like to believe.


find the part that says s/400- like this-


delete the 4 and replace it with an 8.
magic.
try it,
and let me know if it works.
and I hope it does, because I really know so little about computers,
this is my one piece of magic!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

It all began innocently enough

Or- Who needs Vegas?

so, Sunday night, I am washing dishes, Jed is drying.
he gets to the salad spinner. trys spinning it to see how many times it will go around.
Jack comes and trys to get it to spin more times than Jed could.
then, as things do, it evolved into this-



a roullet game in the basement.
all five of them. putting in stuff they found around the house-
pennies, army men, plastic cars, magnetic toys. whatever can go into the kitty.
calling out the number they wanted.
cheers and boos depending on if they won or not.

they were all having so much fun, no harm done? right?
(if any of them end up with gambling problems later in life, I guess we can trace it back to that sunday night with the salad spinner.)

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

knitting fool

yep, I have been busy,
knitting up a storm.
you see, I have a friend who is a photographer.
I think I have mentioned her before!
anyways, she has a blog for other baby photographers,
with tips and etsy shops, and stuff, for others to learn about,
and this week she is giving away this hat from my shop.
consequently, a bunch of people are buying stuff from my shop,
so I am keeping quite busy.
I think I am going to head downstairs and watch a movie with the girls.
and knit,
of course.
I am loving it!

her blog is here, if you want to see it!

Friday, November 05, 2010

I remembered, but I was late

so today at school, they had a remembrance day program.
because next week we have fall break and no school.
great. not sure what we are doing to fill that time, but sleeping in sounds good to me.
anyways, back to today.
programs. plural. two schools. same time.
no van. Cory had it.
which is fine, the schools are close to our house, and to each other.
Maggie had the brilliant idea of riding bikes.
but I couldn't find a lock.
so we walked.
I decided to try to hit Jack's first. his band was playing O Canada.
I thought it started at 10:30, but that was Sadie's.
his was at 10:45.
incidentally, the sound of bagpipes, and that trumpet song they always play on remembrance day always brings a tear to my eyes.
I love that the kids still get a tiny bit of time every year to think about and learn about times past, and people who fought and died for our freedom.
Jack's school had a bag piper playing in the hallway, and when she walked past the classrooms, the kids were supposed to follow to the gym. love it!
so, listened to the band, the trumpet song, then headed back to Sadie's school,
and totally missed her choir. and they even sang two songs.
it was too bad.
I wonder if I had gone to Sadie's first, would I have missed Jack's song?
who knows.
but I tried.
maybe I will have better luck next year. and no kids to bring along, and maybe a van!

Wednesday, November 03, 2010

halloween recap

well, it's over again for another year.
sadly, I was really bad with taking pictures.
this is what I got from the school-
Maggie in her class room after the parade and a couple of little songs, and story reading in the gym-



(pretty sweet puffy sleeves, right? makes me think of Anne of green gables, and her desire for puffy sleeves! funny)



Sadie in the actual parade- I made her dress from a real dress pattern, as opposed to a costume pattern, not a fake pattern, as you might be thinking.
I was thinking that maybe we could just shorten it a bit, and she could wear it to church,
but since it has no zipper, the neck opening is kind of big,
and i had to pin it both times she wore it.
I might try to fix it and make it smaller, and less gaping, but then it might not fit over her head.
not sure what to do about that!
(digging the captain underpants guy behind her! hilarious.)

there was one girl in the parade, just wearing a normal dress with her hair in pony tails, and I was wondering what- if anything- she was supposed to be,
then later I found out it was a boy.
yikes.

Jed was a Calgary Flames fan. he wore a hoody he already has, red pants, red coloring in his hair, and red face paint. then he carried a stuffed hand with the finger up- like #1 (sort of like those foamy ones, but this was smaller and stuffed, we found it at a thrift store.)
easy enough.

Ben went to a halloween dance on Friday night, and wore a plaid jacket he picked up at a thrift store a bit ago- just to wear,
drew stubble on his face with a marker (himself- I was gone until he was done!)
wore his hiking boots,
carried around a fake axe and called himself a lumber jack.

Jack made a kissing booth. I can't believe I didn't take a picture. I will have to see if it is still around and take a picture of it!

my clown costume turned out pretty good. I have no pictures of it. my sister did take one of me on Sunday. I will have to see if I can get it from her!
and Cory ended up getting tickets to a football game on the night of the church party, so he really had no need for a costume. phew.

and that was halloween.
over except rounding up the costumes and decorations to pack away,
finishing up the candy,
and of course,
picking up the wrappers all over the house.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

signs of halloween

vampire teeth on Cory's pillow.
not sure how they got there.
spooky.

candy wrappers all over the place.
drives me crazy.
and this is only after the smallish amount of candy they got from school!
yikes.

good thing we just got new toothbrushes from the dentist! they will be getting a good workout this weekend!

Friday, October 29, 2010

I feel pretty!

there is a lady who has kids at my kids school,
I have always thought she looks a bit like me,
short curly blond hair, glasses,
today, when I was heading to the school for the halloween costume parade,
she was coming in at the same time as me,
and said that the other day at the park,
her boys came up to her, and told her that they were calling mom, when they saw me across the park, thinking that I was their mom,
and she said that she was flattered,
because I am so pretty.

really, she said that.
and I am the one who is totally flattered!
I think we should become good friends.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

good times.

well, thank goodness for Value Village,
even thought the check out guy was a bit sassy to me the last time I was there-
(remind me to tell you that story.)
I checked through the patterns, and got a princess one for 69 cents, instead of going to the real fabric store and paying at least 4 bucks.
it is cut out, mostly. but I am making it out of an old sheet, so it isn't really fancy - going to a ball - princess dress, more like a hanging out at home, lounging about princess dress. hopefully the little princess won't mind.
and I got a fun clown costume pattern for me, and Cory, but I don't think Cory will go for it.
too bad. (and another awesome sheet to make it out of. yes, we are experiencing a new trend. costumes out of sheets. watch out world!)
he can figure out his own costume then! ha.

we all have dentist appointments in the big city this afternoon.
always a good time!

and this morning I will be cleaning, and picking up some groceries,
because there is going to be a party here tonight!
a pampered chef party that is.
if you are local, and want anything, or just want to taste some yummies,
come on over!
now that is a good time!
alright, off to scrub!

Monday, October 25, 2010

crunch time

less than a week until halloween.
I thought I was on top of it,
but really, I have one kid's costume done, and it still needs accessories.
yikes.
and Cory and I , and the big boys need something for the church party on Saturday.
(as well as the 3 younger, who will need something for Friday school parties.)
so, I was looking on line for costumes, and these ones on Amazon caught my eye.





(the last 2 for the big boys. the matching ones for Cory and I)
I am leaning towards the where's waldo. pretty simple.
must get busy.
I will let you know how it turns out.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

37 things

1. it is getting colder here. I guess it is time to pack away the flip flops. sadness.

2. it was our sister saturday yesterday. is there anything better than a day away from the kids to do crafts with fun ladies at the church? i think not.

3. I hit Bulk Barn yesterday, and spent way to much money on halloween-ish candy.

4. I bought the candy to put in some fun jars I picked up at Value Village.

5. I don't think the candy will make it to Halloween.

6. I am getting that picture of us on that bridge blown up big. it should be here next week! can't wait.

7. I ordered some awesome boots on line from old navy, but then days later they sent me an email saying they were out of stock. I was so sad.

8. I continue to be on the look out for awesome boots that can be dressy, or casual, and are not too expensive. anyone know of any?

9. I am going to swear off bejewelled blitz on face book. that game is a time sucker. but it is so fun. nope, need to avoid it. and read books to my kids!

10. there is a tiny bit of snow on the ground this morning.

11. I love chocolate.

12. I bought a pumpkin a while ago, and cooked it up, and have been using that in my muffins and cookies and breads I have been making. way cheaper than buying canned pumpkin. so delish!

13. I look forward all week to my sunday afternoon nap. love.

14. time to put on the flannel sheets!

15. I am itching to go shopping in the states. why is it so much funner to spend money down there?

16. I hate the smell of ketchup.

17. it drives me crazy when my kids are looking at the computer over my shoulder when I am on it, but I do it all the time to them!

18. I guess I need to tell Cory what I want more! that man just goes out later, and gets me what I want, but am too cheap to buy for myself, and gives it to me for gifts. so sweet.

19. I really want to make some quilts. must get busy cleaning up my craft room, so I can get in, and get things done!

20. still love knitting sweet little hats. Ben wants a hat, but it isn't so fun making big boring hats.

21. Chocolate covered jubejubes are such a great invention.

22. how do people come up with these things?

23. I am not good at coming up with new ideas, but I love copying other people's brilliant ideas!

24. and thanks to the internet, there is no limit to the ideas out there! what a time sucker.

25. cheese is so yummy.

26. but really, all I eat is cheddar and mozzarella. I am sure there are other good cheeses out there, but I am not to adventurous with my food.

27. but I did go out with a friend for bubble tea the other day. interesting. and yummy.

28. I love polka dots.

29. still love to eat ice. weird, but I am so addicted. good thing it has no calories.

30. we are going to try to do Christmas on the super cheap this year. I will be sure to share any ideas I have, any great ideas you have are more than welcome!

31. Cory is getting so old!

32. good thing he is always going to be older than me!

33. it's my birthday today.

34. I am 37.

35. wow, that sounds sort of old too!

36. the primary kids sang the birthday song to me twice today, because the presidency felt bad because they forgot it was my birthday today. that was embarrassing.

37. good thing when they said there were no birthdays this week, sweet little Maggie piped up with - it's my mom's birthday today! what a fun kid!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

last weekend


we headed to Banff- Cory was running a leg of a relay race there-
and on the way, we stopped to see our super adorable new baby niece/cousin.
so little, and so sweet!

after the race, we headed to some water falls, took a self portrait picture
(teenagers are so fun)


found a cool looking tree- such awesome roots!



set the timer and took a group shot by the falls-
but you can't really see them- they are right behind us.
oops.



and of course, hit the candy store there.
I find it funny that we will buy the kids each a bunch of over priced candy there,
but at home always tell them no, I will not get them that average priced candy.
silly tourists.
gets us every time.

it was a fun family get away! we should do it more often. (but take our own cheaper candy, and avoid the expensive candy stores!)




Thursday, October 14, 2010

she's too big.

so this morning, I had the opportunity to pick up some tickets to go see these fun guys in concert-yep, the wiggles. but then I found out the concert would be this saturday, and we are planning to be out of town on Saturday.
I told Maggie the news, and thought she might be a bit sad,
but she said-
only one and three and four and two year olds like them.
I am too big.
crisis averted.

but I still think it would have been fun.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

thankful

so thankful for my family,
for a friend who will take cool pictures for us!
for yummy turkey dinners,
for parents who serve a mission
for warm fall days
for so much!- we are so blessed.
- it was thanksgiving here in Canada yesterday.
(and thankful that my kids are back in school today!)

Saturday, October 09, 2010

so sweet

I found a blog a while ago- not sure how, but you know how it goes-
one links to another, and on and on-
anyways,
her name is Kayce Hughes,
she has 7 kids,
a gorgeous house,
a fabulous clothing line,
and her house and her family were in country living a while back.
(my favorite magazine. how cool is that!)
anyways, she is giving away this awesome necklace.

isn't it beautiful?
love.
check her out.
(but don't enter, because I want that necklace!)

Friday, October 08, 2010

one more

are you tired of my blue lily pictures yet?
I still have to decide what to do with them all.
what to enlarge, where to hang,
oh, the possibilities.

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

what a deal.

Maggie and I went here-
with some of this-
and got some of these.
awesome!
(and I had a free coupon for a medium drink, so we had that as well.)
bought a burger for maggie- without onions and mustard, and called it lunch.
not the healthiest, but certainly yummy.
and a deal that can't be beat! (free)

we did it yesterday, but they are doing it today to- so grab some play money and get some real fries!

reading

I just picked up this book at my library- (on the new book shelf, that you can only check the books out for one week on),
the authors name caught my eye (she wrote the sisterhood of the travelling pants books)
I had never heard of the book before,
but it is really very interesting!
(how do people come up with these things?)
I haven't finished it yet, but can't wait to see what happens!
in looking for a picture of the book, my google search came up with the info that they are making it into a movie! I would love to see it! -due out in 2012, I think.
I recommend reading it!
(a few swears. just so you know.)
it involves reincarnation.
just so you know.
but I won't tell you anything else!

eta: I changed my mind. I finished the book, and want to say- don't read it.
don't read it yet. I sincerely hope it is a series, and there is more to come, because man alive, it left me hanging.
(and there is some hanky panky, so maybe the movie will not be watchable. we shall see.)
so wait. until the series is all out. and the story has a good ending.
and that is my advice.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

thursday

1. see that girl in the picture- the one with the long skinny legs? she loves skinny jeans. her mom- not so much. where did she get those long skinny legs from anyways? her dad, I think.

2. who came up with the idea to put those elastic button things (maternity style) inside the waist of kids jeans? I would like to say that that was a genius idea. genius.

3. my tomatoes are now ripening at a crazy pace, and since I am the only one who eats tomatoes, I think I will be bottling some up today. (my family does eat them if they are in very small pieces in sauces and such.)

4. I hope to finish season 3 of Alias today (if I can get my tomatoes done this morning) but I don't really want it to end. thank goodness there is a 4th season.. but it is at my sister's house. I might have to go for a drive soon.

5. I scrapbooked on the weekend. this is big! it has been forever. really. I think I want to do some more now. maybe this weekend. Cory will be so happy!

6. those pumpkin milkshakes were yummy. I thought.
2 of my kids took one sip and said yuck. 2 others loved it. the 5th- not sure, I had to leave before his bus came. I don't know that he even tried it.

7. the weather is beautiful here lately. now we see the sun. it wasn't here for most of the summer. but now it comes out. crazy.

8. yes, it was cold and cloudy on tuesday when I started baking my potatoes for the soup, but by supper time it was sunny and beautiful. but we still ate the soup. and it was good.

9. and I can't think of any more randomness to share, so I am ending with 9!
happy thursday to you!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

autumn


-still plugging away at alias- middle of season three now.
- potatoes baking in the oven for baked potato soup for supper. yum.
(with a side of potato skins. yum yum.)
- it is warm, but rainy here. perfect day for soup.
- making these for after school snack. I think they will be delicious. will let you know!
it's a cozy kind of day!
(another picture by bluelily)