Life's Whirlwind Adventures

New Moon the second book in the Twilight Saga. How many pages can an author write about depression in a novel that is geared towards teenagers?? Well apparently around 400 pages or so. Can you find a more pathetic child in all literature?? You want to tell me that Bella is suicidal because Edward left her??? Huh?? It doesn't work with the character they began to create in the first book. Bella in the first novel started out as some what of a loner. She was boring and a little plain. Maybe that was the authors intention to make her so plain in comparison to her Vampire family, if it was then she succeed!! But to have Bella turn into a snivelling zombie in New Moon, well that's ridiculous. You mean to tell me that Bella can't be whole without a boy in her life??? Is that really the message we want to send out to teen age girls?? Then Bella becomes happy again because she's hanging out with another BOY. She couldn't hang out with her girlfriends and become...

This year was a busy year for Christmas in our house. Not as busy as some people's Christmases but busy enough. We had Christmas at my mom's house first and then we came home and had Christmas at our house with Adrian's family. Christmas travelling is interesting. The boys and I flew to Saskatoon on a seat sale with Westjet, then Adrian drove out on Christmas Eve. Adrian, Leigham and I then drove back to Red Deer on Boxing Day. And no I am not sad I did not go Boxing Day Sale shopping. I hate shopping during Boxing Day. While in Saskatchewan I was able to make it to Prince Albert to do some visiting with my Aunty Lila, my step-dad Emile and my friend Estelle. Then my Grandma, Leigham and I drove back to Saskatoon to prepare for Christmas. I was not able to see everyone I wanted to visit in Prince Albert but next time maybe I will stay longer. While in Saskatoon I was able to visit with Karen and Michelle but I was not able to meet up with Sharon or Roxann. Next ...

So after much delay I have finally read the Twilight Saga. I have a few concerns with this series, and I am not sure how any parent of a teen girl could let their child read this story without having a conversation with them either before or after. Seriously, I...... well I will break down this series review to each book, that may keep my rantings down to a minimum. The overall writing of the book was moderately pleasing. She was able to create a setting that was believable and well described. It was easy to picture the story as it played out. The plot was interesting if nothing else, but not especially captivating. Her description of the characters was clear and I was able to picture these four vampires trying to blend in with society. I am not sure if the casting director of the movie made the right decision, but I was able to mold my view of Edward into the actor from the movie. As for the main character of Bella, well I didn't like her. I don't like her and I had di...

I think I may finally be done Christmas shopping, well almost. I feel like I say that every year. Every year I want to be done early and every year I am still buying Christmas presents right up until the last moment. It's ridiculous really. I am not sure if the people in Red Deer have heard this or not but we are in a RECESSION!!! I am sure that most of the citizens of Red Deer did not receive that memo. Point in fact today, today is a Monday, schools are still in session and people have JOBS that they need to be at. So I was surprised, shocked really, to find that half the population of Red Deer had converged upon Costco this afternoon. It was Saturday afternoon busy in there today. I wanted to go on Monday because I thought it wouldn't be as busy. Boy was I wrong. What should have been a fifteen minute trip in and out took an hour because I stood in the check out line for twenty minutes, and then another ten minutes in the get out of the store line. I also spent a ...

So it is the season to send out holiday greetings to those near and dear to us no matter how far away. It is at this time that my road to hell is paved. I have the best intentions to send out cards and most of the time I actually do write these cards out but it takes acts of God to get those cards to the post office. Seriously, I found a card addressed to my cousin that had a picture from Chandler's first Christmas, that's how bad I am at this. So I have all my Christmas cards written up now and I am gathering all the addresses I need and I am going out to deliver the other ones. That is my plan and I hope that I accomplish it soon. I am going to go this week and send out those cards because I have to do it this year!! Wish me luck!!!

So this year I was able to purchase my first house. It is a four level split with a huge yard. Well I think the yard is huge. It's on a corner lot and faces to the north. The only real downfall of the house is that it faces a trailer park. But the trailer park isn't that bad at least what I can see of it look esthetically nice. It's a little sketchy in who lives in that trailer park and the problems the city has with some of those residence but other residence in the same trailer park are working to make it a safer place to live. So really it is six of one and half a dozen of the other. The house was built in 1980, next year it will be thirty years old. So needless to say, but I am going to say it anyways, it has some projects that need to be completed to make it a real home. I am not sure what the guy who owned the place before we bought it was thinking but he was insane. He painted a huge room sunflower yellow and a hallway. It's not a horrible colour but in...

So I have places to go and things to do... as everyone does, but in the winter it's so damn difficult to get anything done. Not because of the busy holiday season, or because there's more events coming up that you have to plan for. No none of those things make it difficult to complete tasks, they force you to be more organized with your time, but as soon as you think you are organized that evil entity enters the picture. You know who I am speaking about, Mr. Weatherman. I refuse to blame this situation on Mother Nature because a Mother would know how important it is to be able to complete things in a timely manner. Today for example I wanted to take a quick trip to Innisfail, it's a small town, twenty minutes from my driveway. To get to Innisfail I must drive on the Queen Elizabeth 2nd(QE2) Highway or take Highway 2A. Now the QE2 is a double lane highway and it basically runs from one end of Alberta to the other north and south. The 2A is a secondary highway that was replac...

So yesterday marked the one year anniversary of my father's passing. It was a horrible day. The only good thing about it is last year the temperature was warmer where I was. I was in California trying to get my dad's estate organized because he was on life support in the hospital and the doctors refused to cooperate with the family so as it looked like he would be there indefinitely we were planning on heading home. We had already been down for five weeks by this time. The doctors said he was not going to come off life support but because of outside influences the hospital would not move him to comfort care where he could pass away with dignity and with his family surrounding him. While my mother and I were taking care of his business so we could keep his house up and running from Canada my dad laid in his hospital bed alone. Only the sounds of the ventilator and cooling blanket for company. Traffic sucked on the 580. There was a big accident and it literally took us an...

Took little man for pictures today. They turned out ok, but he would not smile and he didn't want to look in the direction of the camera. It was a process to get the photos we got. So I ordered my pictures and they should be ready the day after I leave for Saskatchewan. I am just going to have Adrian bring them to Saskatoon at Christmas and hopefully I will be able to get most of them out to people!! We also have Canadian Babies Photography coming to show us pictures we had done last week. We will see how those photos turned out, they are more expensive but if they are really cute I may not be able to help myself and I may end up buying some more pictures of little man. Honestly I may have a problem, when Chandler was little I took him for like four photo sessions before Christmas, so it's not like this is really unusual.

Tis the season!! So that's what people say. I find this time of year to be insanely busy. I have Christmas shopping to do, Christmas parties to attend, Christmas baking to complete, Christmas cards to send out, Christmas decorating to hang, and then the regular normal everyday activities. To be honest, I am not feeling the Christmas spirit as I used to. It's really quite sad, but I have the same feeling I had last year, if Christmas just passed by and slept through it I can't say that I would miss it. It's a terrible feeling to have, absolutely terrible because I used to be the girl that loved Christmas. I have a new baby to celebrate this season of giving with and the things I usually do to get into to festive mood is not working. I find this terribly sad. I am not unaware of why Christmas has taken a not so festive turn, I know it stems back to the events of last year. Last year on December 8 my father passed away, it left a very dampened mood over Christmas. ...

Winter Oh Winter How I loath thee Your bitter cold miserable wind (pictures of the storm on Dec 4, 2009) You turn the streets to skating rinks sidewalks to death traps If it weren't for Christmas Who knows what I would do (Even my dog was unimpressed with Winter's arrival)

So many times credit card companies send out your information to outside companies that offer to "protect your credit" or "offer assistance if you should get hurt/ laid off etc". I have five credit cards (yikes) and I have recieved calls from all these people, they want to give you a free thirty day trial of their product then after that they will charge you X-amount of dollars a month to continue their service that they are sure we will "love". In order to get these people off my phone as quickly as possible I will say yes to whatever they are offering. I find when I say no, they try to use up more of my precious time explaining why i "absolutely need this service" and how it is "such an amazing deal". Quite frankly they are asking for my money, in the off chance that I will use their product, I don't use it, I never have. I have been unemployed and don't use my insurance or care to read my credit report daily. This was th...

So last year I got it into my head that I wanted a dog. After much research and self debate i chose to get a Great Dane-mastiff crossed puppy that was for sale just north of Red Deer. The add for these *little* puppies had been in the paper for three weeks. I called the number and they had one little girl left so Adrian and I went up to take a look to see if I wanted this little puppy. Well they were adorable, they looked like little cows and she had some unique eyes. They asked if I wanted to hold her and I said ok and that was the end of that I was taking home the little cow to become my puppy. So this is her, the little princess. She's sitting in the front seat of my car at this point. But as all dogs grow, Sasha began to grow. She didn't grow really fast but she began to grow and as she grew I noticed other idiosyncrasies about her as well. She suffered from separation anxiety, she would whine and howl if I had to leave her at home by herself. As I had to work she ha...

So for my baby shower I wanted to be able to share with everyone some of his photos from his first month of life. So I created a movie to play during the baby shower. Having so much time free now I have discovered great programs that I can use on my computer, that previously I was unable to use because I had no time to figure out how to work them. Now that I know how to use them it is fun and it could be a new part-time job for me to make these little videos. They would be great for reunions, birthdays, yearly catch up videos for family far away. I am seriously loving this time off because I am learning new skills!! So I am going to upload this video to share with you! Hope you enjoy it!!!

Just wanted to thank you to all the girls that came out to the baby shower. We had fun!! Big thanks goes out to Tara and Stacey who did all the planning it was a lot of fun!!!

Here are pictures of little man and the changes he's gone through in the past four weeks. He's four weeks old this week:(

So one of the things new parents do with their new babies is burp them. So the new mom feeds the baby and then places the baby on their lap in a seated position, or laying across their lap or over their shoulder and begins to pat their little backs to get that gas bubble out of their stomach. Sometimes it takes FOREVER. you feel like by the time this child burps, you will be needing to feed them again. Our parents tell us their tricks for burping but they all seem the same, just some variation on what the nurses in the hospital tell us. There has got to be an easier way to burp these little guys!!! I am about to let you in on a secret, I have found a way. It is an amazing little trick, but it works everytime. It's simple and easy and what's strange is I have no idea why it works. The secret is this.... lift the babies arm up. You can lift them alternately, or together. Usually the lifting of the arm brings the burp up, if the baby doesn't burp, pat their back and w...

A few years ago, like a lot of years ago, the movie Pay it Forward came out. It was a little movie with a big message. I have always loved that movie, more for what it taught me then for the acting skills of the actors in the movie. The actors were fine, the story was fine but the theme of the movie really resonated with me. For those of you who never saw the movie or read the book, here is a quick synopsis of what the movie was about from my memory. I have only seen the movie once and I read the book once but again this was years ago, so if my memory fails me with the details just bare with me. In the movie a teacher challenges his students to come up with a service project to help make the world a better place. (this is the detail I am not sure about) So Haley Joel Osment (the kid from the Sixth Sense) comes up with the idea for pay it forward. He decides to do three good deeds for random people, and all he asks that these people do is return his good deed to three other peop...

http://www.breastfeeding.com/reading_room/change_your_life.html My friend Roxi pointed me to this article I thought I would just share it with you all too. It's so true!!!

So Chandlerman is in soccer. He really enjoys playing indoor soccer and he's not bad at it. He has played all positions. He does well at seeker, and he did pretty well at defense. He is a very positional player. If he is told to play right wing, he sticks to the right wing, if he's told to play defense he stays in his predetermined position. Last year he had an excellent coach. His coach was well versed in soccer and really knew what was going on. He was able to communicate to the children the positions he needed them to play. Sometimes he would use sayings like "touch tight", some parents would voice that the children didn't understand that. But, the kids did understand and they followed his instructions. The reason, he explained what he was saying so the kids knew that when he called out instructions they would know what to do. He celebrated the children's accomplishments and congratulated the children when they did what they could even if they l...

When you have children you wonder what will they be like when they are older, you wonder what they will desire to do with their life and you wonder if you will be able to protect them and teach them to be responsible, contributing members of society. Well those are some of the things I contemplate as I hold me babies. As Chandler grew I noticed interesting personalities quirks that he developed. He showed from a young age that he cared about animals and bugs. Sometimes his caring got a little carried away. Once he was concerned his fish were cold in the water so he scooped the fish out with his bare hands and put them in the register to warm up. But it was the thought, he didn't understand at 2 that his fish were cold blooded and needed to be in water to survive. I saw at a very young age that he was spiritual. I am Catholic, but I have not really raised my son to be religious. But at 2 and 3 Chandler was already inquiring about Jesus and God and how people got to heaven. I...

I am loving the Olympic torch relay. I have loved the idea behind how they chose the people to run with the torch, I love the ideals the Olympics stand for and I love that Olympics bring people together. I never applied to carry the torch. I did not feel like I would have qualified to carry the torch. I live a fairly healthy lifestyle. I work out, I eat healthy, I don't smoke or do drugs so I could have possibly been a contender but I did not apply. I am not doing much to help with the environment. I mean to, I recycle my paper and cardboard and my bottles, but I have not done anything over and above. I would like to send out a thank you and big CONGRATULATIONS to all those that are doing things to be healthier and make our world healthier!!! Since I have a year to be at home with my little man, I plan to do more to help create a more beautiful world for my family to live in!!

I have gone through life wanting things, desiring more than I had, and wanting to keep up with those around me. I have sometimes forgotten to appreciate the things I have and done. I get caught up in life, the media promoting images that tell you will make you happy and without those things you will not be happy. I am guilty of keeping up with Joneses, guilty of trying to fill a hollow in my life with material things. I am not always this way but I have found that there are times in my life where those material things matter more than the important things. I know what's important in life. I value those close to me and foster those relationships that deserve to be fostered, loved and grown. I love my family, my friends. I care for people, I want to help make the world a better place, I want to show respect for everything and everyone. I try to live by my values everyday, showing respect and love for everyone. I get better everyday and have a better understanding everyday of...

So when I first decided to start writing this blog I had an idea in my head of what I wanted the blog to entail. It stemmed from my belief in the teaching field and my beliefs in parenting. These beliefs include rewarding children for positive behaviour and not spending much time on negative behaviour, basically the scale should be more time spent rewarding good behaviour and less time penalizing bad behaviour. Children should not be punished but taught how to be disciples of positive behaviour. We can't expect children to know how to behave unless we teach them how to behave properly in various situations. It is the foundation to having a well run classroom, and having well behaved children. I think that if we took this philosophy and applied it to the world at large the world could be changed into a better place. I wanted a place to blog about those positive stories, those stories that show the world to be a great place, and that's what I am going to be working on, hope...

Motherhood is always a new experience with each child. Not only do you have to balance your life in accordance to the child that first arrived but you have to make allowances for the new babe in your life. Being a first time mom is different from being a second or third time mom, but in ways that are very different then I ever expected. With my first child, all eleven years ago, I was experiencing all the new joys of motherhood for the first time. First feedings, diapers, smiles, and noises babies make were all new wondrous moments for me to experience. Also developing a routine with this miraculous little babe that was in my care was sort of challenging. You wonder if you will ever sleep again, if you will ever be able to be able have a relaxing bath again, if you will ever get your hair back under control, but even if you don't it's all worth it because that little babe in your arms is the most amazing thing you have ever created. I do not necessarily believe that I am ...

OK so I am not a big news watcher.... not even a little bit, but my mom, well she watches the news and always feels the need to share weird stories with me. Most of the time these stories are humourous , but sometimes they are a little disturbing. So I feel the need to share this outrageous story with you guys... I do not know what some people are thinking sometimes they just seem absolutely crazy. So apparently some guy was sentenced in the states to three years in prison. Three years in prison for having... wait for it... sex with a HORSE!!! Not just once but he was caught doing it twice. The lady who owned the horse thought he was doing it, caught him, he was charged, and she figured he was still doing it so she set up a video recorder and caught him on video doing it AGAIN!!!! What the heck is wrong with people!?!?!?!?! Yes so a word to the wise you can go to jail for beastiality ..... especially if the beast you are fornicating with is not your own. Seriously, it is just dis...

Went to the Doctor yesterday for a prenatal check up. Nothing out of the ordinary. not really. My doctor and I discussed how I was feeling, had another internal exam (yucky), my blood pressure was taken, listened to the baby's heartbeat (137) and discussed an issue that came up with work and my due date. My doctor, who is my favourite person right now, is at a conference on my due date. This made me a little agitated, but well I wasn't too worried about it really. I would like my doctor to deliver my baby but if he can't he can't, c'est la vie. But he told me that they usually like to make a person go ten days overdue (this is unacceptable for me lol I don't want to wait that long) but, he said he thinks if I made it to my due date I could be induced on the following Monday. That would be November 2, 4 days after my due date. I got right on board with that! As for my work issue, I have been subpenaoed to court and court is on the 2, 3, and 4th of November. ...

So I found some raspberry tea and brought it home to test the raspberry tea inducing suggestion.  So far nothing.  I may have had a contraction or two, but I don't really attribute that to the raspberry tea just to the fact that my due date is 8 DAYS AWAY!!! See this is my problem, I am impatient.  Completely impatient for waiting for things to happen.  If I want to induce my labour I want to do what they ask and then labour to begin within the hour.  I am aware that it does not work that way, but I really do want it to work that way.  So I have to do some extra research, because I have come to the realization that if some of this theories take some time to get started my labour could become very intense and not fun at all.  For anyone who has been induced with the drugs at the hospital can tell you that when hard labour comes on that quickly it is painful.  Pain and I do not get along so I am going to be forced to do some extra research so that the natural induction theories do no...

So in keeping with the documenting of labour induction I attempted to get this baby out again today. Yesterday's stretching of the membranes did not work. It was uncomfortable and a little painful but no contractions followed. So I have now gone to try the next item on my list. My list, by the way, is not written in any particular order, it's basically what is easiest that day. Today I tried spicy food. Today is a day I wish I were in California hanging out with Alex and her family because then I would have gotten some real spicy food. Alas, I am in Alberta where we do not get a lot of spicy food. I guess that might not be an accurate statement but there are not a lot of options for spicy food that i enjoy. My friend Tara came and picked me up and we went to the mall. Tara had to do some shopping and I had to do some walking around and looking for spicy Mexican food. Unfortunately, the only Mexican option was Taco Time. But some type of spicy food is better then nothin...

So today was officially my last day of work before I go on Maternity leave. I am very excited to be on Maternity leave. Work was getting stressful and I am so tired from not sleeping that I needed to leave. I had contemplated leaving six weeks earlier but I toughed it out and have made it to the end of my pregnancy. With my due date being 14 days away, I am now trying to induce labour early. I have been doing research (read looking on line) for ways to induce my labour. There are a few that everyone knows about and some that I had never heard of before. So from now on until this little child enters the world I shall be trying to induce labour. There were many suggestions online to induce labour. These suggestions included acupressure, nipple stimulation, sex, spicy food, raspberry tea, pineapple, and Castor oil. With my first pregnancy I tried Castor oil, four by fouring, and sex. None of these options worked then, the only thing that worked was contractions starting and...

So over the past year many of my friends have started blogs. Mostly just to speak of their experiences in their life. Some speak of Motherhood, wedding planning or just other things that happen to them. I have had blogs in the past, on my myspace page and on my facebook page, so this will be my first attempt at a blog on a blog site. I enjoy checking my friend's blogs but with work and just wanting to watch television I admit I have not been the best reader of their blogs. That shall all change now, as I am about to go on Maternity leave for a year. I know I will be busy with raising a newborn and keeping my eldest in check, but I feel I will have some spare time on my hands. Time to put into a Hobby I love. I love to write and I love to share my thoughts on different events. Maybe have some discussions start on new topics or bring up new views on old ideas. If all goes as plan, starting next week, the Week starting October 19 my blog will be up and running. I would like to update ...