Best Little Cartoon Ever

While it's still January

I thought I'd finally post quickly about Christmas and our visit to Dawson. Had a great time with J's family, his mom and bro came down for the Christmas week. The boys played squash, the girls played at Ikea, we all decorated our tree which ended up looking like Christmas threw up on it. But hey, that's the beauty, or so I'm told. We went to the Airdre Festival of Lights and took the obligatory photos:

Jeremiah and Carmen

Carmen and Jeremiah

Jesse and Carol

Me and my niece who is looking very "special" in this photo and while she is undoubtedly special to me, she may hate us later in life...
We had tons of fun dancing, jumping on beds, making a gingerbread house, tormenting the cat, playing the new Barbie phone's ring over and over and over.

And of course the whole reason for the trip: my precious new nephew who I miss holding and snuggling. Great job P & T.

Traveling, traveling

So, my lovely husband has changed his mind again and decided that Bali is too far away and costs twice as much to get there so we should go to South America and spend the same amount but do more things. So, the decision process starts again. Guatemala, Venezuela, Brazil, Belize? Probably Belize, but really, all I care about is having a beach to hang out on and not being kidnapped or scared. I did purchase my backpack today, from MEC:

Isn't it pretty?

I took it home to play with and see how much stuff (shoes, books) I can fit in it comfortably.

We had a great weekend in Dawson visiting the chillens. Got to meet my new nephew, and I have to say, pretty darn cute. Besides he like never cries and snuggles really well; what more can you ask for?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Baby It's Cold Outside

Had a lovely visit with my bro earlier in the week when he came for a quick overnight trip. Chatted til the wee hours, went for supper in a unique, quaint little Mexican restaurant that looked authentic and tasted rather revolting. Little too deep fried for me, but at least I had a good margarita.

Jeremiah has finished school and I am proud to say has won the Dean's award for outstanding achievement. Now it's just the waiting game to find out final marks, and he's doing that in Fernie on a free snowboard trip with his co-workers. Lucky him.

Work is going well, still haven't been hired on permanently but they have extended my contract until the end of March, which is better than nothing. I guess that means I should make my office a little more mine, and with that in mind I went shopping for some picture frames today. Last year my lovely sister in law gave me an Oriental Flowers calender that I just love and I have chosen 4 of the pages to frame for my office (the butterfly one's my fav). Now I just need some black flower pots and some plants for my bookshelf and it will look like a real lived in office instead of a bright (glaringly so) empty space.

One of my co-workers and I have been organizing an Adopt-a-Family thru the Mustard Seed. We have spent a total of 12 hours shopping on 2 different days to "even out the piles", and then last night we went back to the office to wrap the last of them after spending 6 hours at Market Mall. We didn't get home til after 12am...I am so tired. And I still need to shop for the brand new baby boy. I went out to superstore this afternoon hoping to find some nice receiving blankets, some sleepers etc. at great prices so I could then shop at Old Navy or Gap or Please Mum for other fun stuff. (budgets you know). I was extremely disappointed to see that the girls section was HUGE and the boys section tiny. They didn't even have any newborn stuff for boys beyond some short sleeve tee's. I think we as girls are obviously trained right from birth to love clothes and shopping and choices, as has been made clear everywhere I've looked so far. But, I will not give up, I just may have to spend a little more money than originally planned.

So, to cheer me up I bought myself some beautiful flowers and a pretty new vase, and will try again tomorrow.

And now, I must go watch some more Criminal Minds and drink some tea and perhaps eat one more delicious sugar cookie before bed.

It's That Time of Year Again

CLICK HERE

Redneck Tank Top

We're going to Bali!

How exciting! Jeremiah & I, soon to be world travelers. Indonesia will be an amazing place to visit; we plan to concentrate on Bali and possibly Lombok, with perhaps a 3 day sailboat tour to Komodo Island to see the Komodo dragons. J's dad has generously purchased scuba diving lessons for us so we will for sure do some of that while we're there, along with snorkeling, an elephant ride, a bike ride down a volcano, plenty of dinners on the beach and a day in Ubud, art central, where hopefully we can pick up some canvases. I want to wake up in the morning and step out of my room onto the beach and greet the sunrise with a yoga class.

We've narrowed this trip down a little, we realize that we need a vacation as it's only for 2wks, and so we plan to experience both the $12 a night on the beach el cheapo route as well as maybe a 2 night stay at a place like the Hanging Gardens Resort. Of course, at $370 a night, we may have to spend several nights in the $12 place but I do think the trade off will be worth it.

In other news, I've started deep water aquafit classes at the community pool near our house and I love it! I know, I am actually in a bathing suit in public, a big step, but I want to be in shape (ie sexy skinny) more than I mind the humiliation. Also, I'm still hoping for a permanent placement at my current job, the people are just so fun to work with. One of my coworkers just got back from her honeymoon in Bali so she's able to give us lots of tips, how much to pay for things, she even lent us a couple of books tagged and highlighted. It's nice to know someone like that, saves us some headaches and will hopefully contribute to the best time we could have.

So, lots to do, lots to plan, lots to buy...

Where will he pick?

Will it be Panama? Bali? Thailand? The Dominican? Brazil? or some other destination? That's right. When you turn 30 in this house, you get a wonderful 2 week vacation to an exotic location of your choice.

What a nice wife I am. I wrapped up a digital camera for him to open. After checking it out for awhile, I told him I had already taken one picture . So, when he found it he got a fantastic surprise: Jeremiahlove, you will need this camera because I'm taking you on a trip! See spreadsheet for more details :)

So, we plan on going around the end of Feb, beginning of March for 2 weeks. Finally, we get a real vacation. And none of this all inclusive stuff either...nope, his idea of a great vacation is to backpack around, stay in great little places on the beach and experience the different cultures. Well, it is his birthday, so I guess we'll let him choose.
For those bored/interested in travelling/ killing time @ work, check out the Lonely Planet dot com.

Why Men Are Not Allowed To Write Advice Columns

Dear Walter:
I hope you can help me here. The other day I set off for work
leaving my husband in the house watching the TV as usual. I hadn't gone more than a few hundred yards down the road when my engine conked out and the car shuddered to a halt. I walked back home to get my husband's help. When I got home I couldn't believe my eyes. He was parading in front of the wardrobe mirror dressed in my underwear and high-heel shoes, and he was wearing my make up. I am 32, my husband is 34 and we have been married for twelve years. When I confronted him, he tried to make out that he had dressed in my lingerie because he couldn't find his own underwear. But when I asked him about the make-up, he broke down and admitted that he'd been wearing my clothes for six months. I told him to stop or I would leave him.
He was let go from his job six months ago and he says he has been feeling increasingly depressed and worthless. I love him very much, but ever since I gave him the ultimatum he has become increasingly distant. I don't feel I can get through to him anymore.
Can you please help?

Sincerely,
Mrs. Sheila Usk

Dear Sheila:
A car stalling after being driven a short distance can be caused by a variety of faults with the engine. Start by checking that there is no debris in the fuel line. If it is clear, check the jubilee clips holding the vacuum pipes onto the inlet manifold. If none of these approaches solves the problem, it could be that the fuel pump itself is faulty, causing low delivery pressure to the carburetor float chamber. I hope this helps.
Walter