Summer Vacation

Hello again all.I've been away for the last last week enjoying a little vacation.Even us stay at home moms need a little down time.We spent the week at Lake Newell in Brooks.I had a fantastic time soaking up the sun,swimming(aka sitting on the edge and letting the water lap up onto my legs),building sand castles,hunting dinosaurs,and topping it off with some Shakespear in the park.Oh yes I musn't forget learning all the new ways that use duct tape!So much versatility in one little roll of tape.Canvas repair,keeping the rain from pouring into the trailer,holding together bed rail that got broken enroute,holding a spatula to a longer stick in order to not get burned by the fire."RedGreen"was certainly on to something when he called it the handyman's secret weapon.LOL!

This was little E's first camping trip and she handled it quite well (better than I was expecting thats for sure)and even G had a good time to.I think her favorite was going to the lake.She continues to get more confidence about being in the water.She still won't put her head in the water and refuses to float on her back,even with her lie jacket on,but we are working on it.Little E was quite content just to sit on the edge of the water playing with the sand and rocks."Dead Dinosaur Park"as G likes to call it was fun.I can't even remember the last time I was there.It was really hot down there though(31 C)Thank goodness for the lovely air conditioned concession and cherry slurpees and ice cream! .I also wish I had never even mentioned snakes.G whined the whole time about them and wanted to be carried everywhere.Trying to carry a three year old around when its that hot just doesn't go over very well.

This vacation was a lot more relaxing than I was expecting but I think that was mostly because Auntie H joined us.That extra pair of hands and eyes just made the work load a lot lighter.Thanks Auntie H!
I also won't soon forget G's version of the Wiseman/Foolish man Sunday school song. "The rains came down and the bugs came up......."Hee Hee.

Now its back to reality. With mountains of laundry to do,plants to water,gardens to tend,lawns to mow.....

Lighten up already!

Boy oh boy do I ever need to lighten up and put a smile on my face, may be even throw in the occasional chuckle once in a while.

I was taking a look at some of my previous posts and one would think my life is nothing but a misery.It is true that I do suffer from clinical depression and anxiety but really there are so many blessings to be thankful for.Two beautiful ,healthy girls,a loving husband,a roof over my head,food on the table,the freedom to choose to stay at home....the list could go on and on.So here is a great big smile from me to you, to say life is GOOD!

Canada Day

For us our day was pretty quiet and uneventful.I have a hard time with any holiday other than Christmas in regards to knowing what to do.Growing up most of theses days were nothing more than a passing moment.July 1st we sometimes got together with my moms side of the family to watch the parade(in Bassano) and have a great picnic but as time marches on families grow and change and that sort of got lost in the business of life.

Also DH grew up in a family that didn't do much celebrating either.I am trying to change that for the girls.I want them to know what an amazing country we live in and how we have so much to be thankful for.They did wear Canada t-shirts and "E" had barrettes with little Maple leafs on them and we made Canada flag cupcakes(.*just a side note*.. don't put wet strawberries on top of the icing, they will not stay on !)We tried to watch the fireworks but the good LORD had different ideas HE decided we needed a thunderstorm instead.So the fireworks were very short because of the rain.Oh well may be next year.

Happy Birthday Canada!! I am proud to be Canadian.Eh?

Decisions Decisions

This year is the year we have to renew our mortgage(just a little side note of useless information....did you know that mortgage means until death?Hmmm strangely appropriate)We are facing a very big decision.Should we borrow against our homes equity to put a proper foundation under the house and add one more bedroom or do we wait.

Our house will not fall into the ground if we don't(it would just be nice to have something other than dirt ) nor will we die if our house only has two bedrooms.People not that long ago raised families of twelve in homes smaller than this so I think a family of four can do it.It is sometimes difficult not to get caught up in the "bigger is better" mentality.Bigger just means more house to clean!

We were fortunate to purchase our house before the house prices spiked.So our house has almost doubled in value since we bought it 5 years ago.Our mortgage broker has come back with an amount that we can get and how much it effects our monthly payments(which is not a lot)People pay way more in rent than we would have to pay.But the decision is still difficult to make.DH is self employed and has taken a considerable hit due to the recession.Business is picking up again now that people have gotten over the initial fear, but my point is will there be enough in our budget to take on the extra.(We have already dipped into the savings to keep a float.)However the prices of materials and labour keep going up dramatically so in five years when we revisit the same decision will we be able to do it then?It is so difficult to choose.

Then there is the other aspect.The actual renovation.I want the end result but I'm just not sure I would survive the actual process.I do have some idea of what renovations entail.Dust,dirt,meals out,permits,time lines not being met,more money being required than originally anticipated,.So I am not on renovation cloud 9 with unrealistic expectations.But I have only dealt with reno's on a small scale not something as big as this.Then add to the mixture two kids under 5 and an open stairwell to a concrete pit and you have a recipe for disaster( or mommy completely ready for the nut house.)

Only time will tell.

Lions and Tigers and Bears.....Oh my!

Well I took the girls to the zoo this week.I went with my sister-in-law and a couple other moms.This was my pumpkins first visit and only my monkey's second.Her first trip was when she was around 18 months or so and we went with my mom.So its been a while.
I must admit after their antics before we left for the zoo, I was really tempted to leave them there.Although I am not so sure that the monkeys would have wanted them either.But by the time they got to the zoo they were very well behaved.So no drastic measures needed to be taken.

We managed to see all of the big animals like the lions,tigers,giraffes and elephants but we whizzed through so fast that we didn't really get to enjoy them.The other moms had seasons passes so it didn't really matter to them if they were only there for a couple hours.Going with friends is fun but I must admit there is something to going alone.To go at your own pace.Oh well,it won't be the last trip to the zoo,I'm sure.The girls and I stayed for about an hour after everyone else had gone.We enjoyed a snack of strawberries and grapes and the girls had a great time at the park climbing through the tunnels and racing down the slides.By about 1 o'clock the zoo was beginning to get over run with school kids on field trips so that was our cue that maybe it was time to go. I think the highlight of the trip was all of the kids were running around asking where "Marty" and "Melmen" were.I think they have all seen just a little bit too much "Madagascar".Too funny!