happiness is...

happiness is...

...capturing the moon

happiness is...

...an amazing view of the sunset God painted across the sky

happiness is...

... a hat made by my BFF at ButtonUp Designs it graciously hides the 'mama didn't shower yet hair' phew!

happiness is...

... this sweet little 6 week old babyK who is melting our hearts & making me work for every single smile [comes easier to others somehow!]

happiness is...
the clean eating blog with great recipes i recently found, called The Gracious Pantry... including the pastry for my first ever chicken pot pie i made! the stuffing in it is also clean but from a recipe we received from one of the meals we got after babyK was born.

we will be enjoying that while we watch the blue bomber game on tv with Rick's parents!

do you have Friday Favorites? those are the favorites that make me happy :)

linking up with sweet Rachel...

200 contd...

200 continued... see the first 100 here.

10 things about boy3 [101-110]
-he has big grey eyes
-was an early talker just like his brothers
-can count to at least 6 [and he's only 2!]
-LOVES cars
-will ride his lil fred flinstone type car with one leg in and one out
-asks to go play in the attached garage & will play with his cars
-wakes up in the morning and yells 'DAAAAAD' or 'MOOOOOM' to get out of his crib
-frequently sits on the potty for the last three months
-but has never once peed on it!
-hasn't sat in a highchair at the table since he was a year and a half

10 things about babyK [111-120]
-slept well at night [4-6 hr stretches] from the day we came home from the hospital
-the last three nights has not
-is now 10 pounds [started out at 7lbs14oz 6 weeks ago...]
-now smiles!
-although usually not when i am around...
-went to sleep twice in his swing without his soother
-LOVES being swaddled for sleeping [pretty sure every baby would actually ;)  ]
-has beautiful blue eyes
-is completely loved by his older brothers
-currently sleeps in the playpen in our room until we change around the other boys sleeping arrangements

9 movies/shows I like [121-130]
-Dirty Dancing
-Big Bang Theory
-Survivor
-Big Brother [I know the last two are reality shows but these are the only two I can stand and actually make an effort to watch!]
-General Hospital
-Hawaii Five-O
-David Letterman
-Off The Map [now cancelled I believe]
-Ellen Degenres

9 pet peeves [131-140]
-awful drivers
-liers
-arrogant people
-scripted reality shows
-bad actors in movies
-not being heard
-unanswered emails [I honestly try to respond but am my own worst enemy and don't always do this either]
-when people try once then give up
-telemarketers

9 people I miss having around all the time [141-150]
-Gramma F - playing cards & baking & going for walks & frequent sleepovers & books she lent me to read...
-Grampa F - playing cards & gardening
-Shelley - playing games, watching BB together, crossing the 'bridge' to bring random baked/cooked food to each other
-Grampa L - the great schmot fat he made
-Gramma L - the roll kuchen & taking us across the road for ice cream
[yup, that's right, i have no grandparents left. they are all waiting for me up above...]
-cousin Mem - the great summers we had, with sleepovers, selling corn on the hwy, playing cards at the farm & other adventures...
-S&S in Ontario. The sweetest Newfie pals ever!!
-Miss B south of me. She deserves so much better than the life she is getting dealt right now :(


10 bloggers I know/have met IRL [151-160]
-AndreaT
-AndreaP
-Pam
-Colleen
-Krista [she hasn't blogged in months, maybe go say hi]
-Jenn [her too actually!]
-Ruth
-Melissa
-Tammi
-Lori
[and there's more!!]

10 things I could live without [161-170]
-facebook
-tv
-microwave
-reality shows
-gossip
-war
-jealousy
-horror movies
-bugs
-baths [I'm totally a shower person]

10 things in my fridge [171-180]
-margarine
-International Delight coffee creamer
-beets
-milk
-apples
-ketchup
-spicy ketchup
-dr.pepper bbq sauce
-butter
-eggs

10 things in my freezer [181-190]
-freezies
-homemade beef broth
-whole chicken
-chicken breasts
-bread
-ice cream
-strawberries
-farmer sausage
-ground beef
-roasts

10 bucket list items [191-200]
-travel the world [most continents]
-travel across canada, from east to west or vice versa...
-run a marathon
-go on a missions trip
-move to a different province for at least a year
-turn my current business into a brick & mortar with a coffee shop
-live in the country on acreage
-have zero waste for one week [or more]
-write a book
-foster/adopt an unloved child.

bonus things I do to save $ and be green
-garden
-cloth diaper
-shut lights off
-let natural light in
-BBQ alot in the summer

If I counted right, that is 202 things! Thanks for making it this far.
See the first 100 things here.

monday

counting of my 1000 gifts continued... [#242 to #254]

... sleeping in on a monday

... early morning baby snuggles

... weekend return of a lost cat

... a great visit with auntie & uncle along with a fire and roasted wieners!

... energy & healing of the body

... a battle with cancer lost, but the pain is gone. rest in peace Jack Layton.

... boy3 taking time to bond with babyK while he plays cars next to him on the floor

... smiles from babyK that I worked hard for by making silly noises!

... time taken for reading God's word

... new mercies every day

... God's Grace that is given freely to all

... two functioning vehicles to get us from point A to B even though Rick's work van looks like a train wreck and is written off [meaning the search for another reliable vehicle for him YIPPEE <---sarcasm]

... 12 cups of homemade chicken vegetable broth frozen in cup portions amongst the full freezer of food

blessed we are. thanks God.

linking up with:

200!!

I did it! I did it! This is my 200th post :)
I will spare your time and break this post up into a few sections. The next post I have scheduled for tomorrow!

10 things about boy1 [1-10]
- he is a screen addict
- fave tv show right now is 'suite life of zach & cody'
- fave wii game 'toy story 3'
- fave sport - hockey
- position he plays best in hockey - defense [and still scores goals!]
- enjoys reading at night before bedtime
- loves to eat. and eat. and eat.
- loves rice. & will have at least three large helpings of it.
- he is a great big brother!
- when asked if he could tell me anything he wanted to put on my blog what would it be? his answer, "ummm, i love sports"

10 things about boy2 [11-20]
- fave sport - soccer
- 2nd fave sport - football
- 3rd fave sport - baseball
- 4th fave sport - hockey
- he LOVES sports & was shooting a soccer ball around with a mini hockey stick since he could crawl at 10 months
- often replaces his 's' sound with 'f' 
- lately when he is goofy he will often lisp
- has followed around boy1 ALL summer
- starts preschool for the first time this fall!
- when asked if he could tell me anything he wanted to put on my blog what would it be? his answer "ummm, mickey mouse clubhouse?"

10 restaurants I like [21-30]
-The Old Spaghetti Factory
-Boston Pizza [the bandera bread is delish!!]
-Earl's
-Original Joe's
-Pasquale's
-Ghan's [chinese!]
-Quizno's [chicken carbonara sandwich, yummm]
-Moxie's [their spinach salad is AMAZING]
-McDonald's [just their fries actually!!]
-Burger King [mmmm poutine...]

10 fave foods [31-40]
-homemade pizza
-perogies
-farmer sausage
-BBQ chicken
-BBQ burgers
-homemade sweet potato fries
-borscht soup
-caesar salad
-chicken pot pie
-homemade bread

10 places I have been [41-50]
-Orlando, Florida
-Tampa Bay, Florida
-Thunder Bay, Ontario
-Pickle Lake, Ontario
-Calgary, Alberta
-Edmonton, Alberta
-Drumheller, Alberta
-Minneapolis, Minnesota
-Winnipeg, Manitoba [at least every week!]
-Thompson, Manitoba

10 places I would like to go [51-60]
-Australia
-England
-Ireland
-British Columbia
-Rocky Mountains
-Calgary, Alberta [where a few close friends live]
-Kitchener, Ontario [where a few close friends live]
-entire East Coast Canada
-California
-New York

10 crafts I would like to do [61-70]
-button or crayon monogram
-mobile for baby
-upcycled scarf
-bunting
-more tree paintings on canvas
-card making
-stencil designs onto my painted dining room chairs
-paint a vase hot pink [its already painted white from it's ugly 70s brown color]
-handmade Christmas gifts
-chevron art

10 things I would like to sew on my new [to me] sewing machine [71-80]
[sorry if this seems like a repeat of this post, i started this one first!]
-rag quilt
-jean picnic blanket
-swaddle blanket
-upcycle an old& holey shirt to make a current shirt fresh & new
-tote bag
-stuffy [elephant or bunny or monster]
-pillow cover
-applique shirt
-curtains
-apron

10 apps on my iphone [81-90]
-facebook
-twitter
-skype
-kijiji
-realtor.ca
-instagram
-scan
-pinterest
-groupon
-know or go

10 things in my pantry [91-100]
-white sugar
-brown sugar
-whole wheat flour
-coconut
-oatmeal
-cereal
-honey
-coffee
-green Superstore shopping bins
-reusable shopping bags

Did you learn something?

i heart

i heart pinterest.

i  scored a sewing machine for $5 and even though it needs a tune up and is probably as old as i am, it will get used. without a doubt. and i have a pinterest board dedicate to "crafty - SEW it" and things i would like to sew up one day :)

these would be great christmas gifts for the younger boys & lil nephews...

Source: everydaycelebrate.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

or baby gifts too:

Source: candacetodd.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

i have a few shirts that could be revamped like this:

Source: armellejewelry.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

or this:

Source: rufflesandrosescrafts.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

pillows are fun:

Source: cluckclucksew.com via Pam on Pinterest

and pillow cases too:

Source: raegunwear.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

[these might be my first project on the sewing machine actually!!]

and can't forget bags

Source: rosylittlethings.com via Pam on Pinterest

& quilts:

Source: cluckclucksew.com via Pam on Pinterest

Source: crookedseams.blogspot.com via Pam on Pinterest

i LOVE inspiration like these photos...

my goal is to use the fabric i have on hand [already stock piling up jeans and cut offs for a jean quilt] and lovin the colors of the above, especially the look of the chevron!

if i have counted right, the 200th post is coming up next! i broke it up into sections so its much more manageable to think of 200 things... can't wait to share it all with you!

hello monday

hello monday...

hello chilly start to the day.

hello change of morning plans. then another change. then hello back to plan #1.

hello and thank you sunshine for joining us on said plan.

hello mist filled wind to cool us off at the splashpark.

hello friends to join us - expected and unexpected.

hello sleeping baby & wet kids who had fun & delicious apple muffins & iced capps & timbits [for my american friends these are Tim Horton's 'donut holes' yumm!]

hello monday. thanks for being enjoyable.

[neglected to mention the midnight wake ups, the cranky & irritable boy1, seasonal allergies & headaches associated, the uncomfortable feeling still in my tummy despite being 5 weeks postpartum, the mother coming to visit to 'help' with the kids, & the silly hormones that accelerate certain situations **sigh**, all in a days work...]

swinging

actually...

Lessons

I am reminded that when my computer is close by, more work gets done, emails responded to, etc etc... And so it has now migrated from the office to the living room since that is where [hopefully] more things can get done. Who knew that being a mom of four kids, wife to one, business owner, friend, and blogger would be so time consuming? Oh right. I did. But still undertaking it all anyways because that is what I signed up for!

I am also reminded that when God's word is involved in part of the day - it goes MUCH better. Although perhaps I need to adjust that time to the beginning of the day, instead of the end.

I am also reminded that young minds forget, but in some cases they never forget. But the great thing is that they forgive too... hmmm I need to work on forgiving, even if I can't forget.

PS this is post #196, almost at 200! Leave a comment with a few categories and I will try to think up of a good post :)

thankful.

I need to be reminded of all I am blessed with and not take advantage of it by letting them pass by me without being recognized...

[229] four precious boys, each one unique and completely different...

[230] a hardworking [yet frugal] husband who will even stop at the city grocery store to grab a few items we need just to save those few $$ from me going to the city or venturing to the local [and pricier] grocery store...

[231] said frugal husband requesting a haircut from the only barber in the house [me]

[232] and liking the end result of his haircut :)

[233] blogging

[234] finding new friends via blog reading/readers

[235] meals after meals not cooked by me

[236] the anticipation of someone to come and clean my bathrooms and floors since it's something i shouldn't be doing right now... [tomorrow - can't wait!!]

[237] a friend who arranged [235]&[236] - a THOUSAND thank yous!!

[238] air conditioning to keep our house cool. [not fully functioning in our van bc that would be over-rated right?!?]

[239] 20 loaves of bread for $20.11. triple.arm.pump!! [makes me frugal too!]

[240] UPS and downs of having boys. today included a few downs, but many UPS too...

[241] a baby that will have a good 5 or 6 hour stretch so this mamma can get her sleep...

and for THAT i am thankful and blessed :)