Used Salespeople??

On our way home from Jasper with Bryan and Karen, we found this ad in the newspaper. If they want used salespeople, then what are un-used salespeople?! We had a good laugh over this one!

Aloha Friday #11

It's Aloha Friday! I missed joining in last week because I was away on vacation (see post below for lots of pics!). As you know by now, Aloha Friday is a blogging tradition that originally started with Kailani over on An Island Life. I ask you a simple question, and you answer! It's a great way to interact with family and friends and to meet new bloggy friends along the way! To participate, just head over to Kailani's blog and follow the instructions.

My question this week:

Do you have any special plans for Valentine's Day this year? Any yearly traditions?

Valentine's Day is probably my most favourite holiday of the year! I love the red, pink and white combination, I love making fancy homemade Valentine's, I love making and baking special treats, and I love giving everything away to my friends and family! Yesterday I baked and decorated Valentine cupcakes with the kids, which you can see below. We had fun!

Today I will celebrate my annual tradition, a Valentine's Tea Party! My new homeschool friend, "D" and her two kids will be joining us this afternoon for tea, cupcakes and other goodies! This tradition started when my little sister, Heather was around 2 or 3 years old. I would have been about 19 and I wanted to do something special and "girlie" with her for Valentine's Day. It was a major hit, so the tradition has continued whenever possible! I wish I could be with my sisters today to have my tea party with them. But, I'll see you girls in April and we'll do something then! :-) Tomorrow I have bunches of little treats for Sara and Sky. Then, Joshua and I have a date at one of our favourite restaurants in the late afternoon. I can hardly wait! I hope all of you have a special weekend with the one's you love most!

Vacation Pictures!

We had a wonderful week with our friends Bryan and Karen! I don't think we could have fit in much more fun and activities than we did! They arrived Monday, February 2nd. We celebrated their arrival with a meal at a Japanese restaurant and more food than we could possibly eat! That evening and Tuesday were rest and relaxation days which gave Bryan and Karen a chance to get used to the 2 hour time difference.

On Wednesday, we took them to West Edmonton Mall, which is about 20 min. from our house. (This is the largest mall in the world.) The kids were at a friends' house so they wouldn't get worn out walking the mall. After exploring, shopping and lunch, we left to pick up the kids. We decided it would be fun to go back to the mall and play at the indoor World Waterpark. Our family had never been there (Joshua used to go as a kid), so Sara and Sky were super excited! It was tons of fun! Joshua and Bryan tried all the scary slides, Karen tried a couple of scary slides and I didn't try anything scary! :-) I spent most of my time with the kids in the wave pool or on the kiddie slides and that was just fine with me! We didn't remember cameras, but that's O.K. because we didn't want you to see us in our bathing suits anyway! :-)

Thursday we were up bright and early for the next stage of vacation. Grandpa (Joshua's Dad) came at 9 a.m. to collect the children. He took them out for a pancake breakfast, which they were pretty excited about! The 4 adults then packed up the car and we headed to Jasper, Alberta (about 4 hours away) for the next 4 days. Here are a bunch of pictures from all our adventures there!

The cozy Gingerbread Cabin where we stayed. Joshua and I have stayed here a couple of times for our anniversary, so it was fun to share the experience with friends!

Bryan and Karen at Maligne (Muh-leen) Canyon near Jasper. There is a river and waterfalls that run very deep through the canyon. In the winter everything is frozen, so it was very spectacular.

Joshua and I enjoying the view at one of the lookouts. Of course, the pathways were completely covered in snow and ice, so we had a VERY slippery hike! It was quite funny! We were all wearing running shoes, so none of us had any traction!


The guys slid down the pathway as fast as they could go. Here they are looking smug and laughing at us girls! Karen and I were just a bit more cautious and we clung to the handrails for dear life!

Here is one of the frozen waterfalls we came across. It was awesome! The picture doesn't do it justice - you can't tell how deep the canyon is.

Me and Karen taking a self portrait.

Karen getting her "ski legs" back after not skiing for many years! She did a GREAT job!

Joshua and I during lunch break on our first ski day.

At the end of a very snowy, windy ski day, the sun finally peeked out and treated us to this beautiful sight!

Jasper's downtown area with the beautiful mountains in the background.

This vacation was so needed and I'm so happy we were able to share it with special friends! Inspite of long, busy days and major sore muscles, we were refreshed. Thanks for coming, you guys! We couldn't have asked for a better time!

Bits and Pieces

This post was originally posted on Thursday night (Jan. 29), but it got buried under my Aloha Friday post and I didn't want my regular readers to miss it! So, I'm re-posting this again today!

I haven't posted much about daily life around here, so here are a few random snippets of what's been going on lately...

1. Remember my new rule about not turning the T.V. on in the mornings? I really thought it would be an issue, but I heard next to no whining or complaining about it! I've had a couple of requests, but when I say "no" and remind them that we're not doing that anymore, they are quick to go find other amusement - happily! It's almost like they are relieved that they don't have to watch the same old dumb shows on T.V. every morning! Now I have to tear them away from building with Legos or their imaginary play, when it's time for school to begin. I like that so much better!

2. On Saturday morning, Sara and Sky had their second Nation's Cup ski race. It was a brutally cold week, so as the weekend approached and things didn't warm up at all, we kind of assumed that the race would be cancelled. It wasn't. I checked my e-mail every 5 minutes between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. on Saturday, and there was nothing. Joshua had volunteered to help with the race, so he felt like we should be there. It was -36 when we left our house and -34 at the hill when we arrived at 8:45 a.m. I couldn't believe they were going through with it! I mean, really, what was the dude in charge trying to prove?? As I bundled up the kids for warm-up and course inspection, I was so stressed out I was fighting back angry tears. The two runs were an hour apart, so we kept the kids inside until it was absolutely necessary to go out. We had toe warmers in their boots and hand warmers in their mitts. I am definitely thankful for those little inventions! Sara and Sky both did well. There were a lot of missed gates this time, but we could tell they were doing their best - especially under the circumstances. I still don't think I've completely recovered, but we did survive....

3. Joshua lost his wedding ring (again - this is ring number 3) on Monday morning. He keeps it in a basket by the phone. The problem is, the basket is full of coins, old receipts, spare keys, a few screws, paperclips, etc. Joshua's ring is made out of tungsten carbide (same thing they make chainsaw blades with), so it's able to withstand the abuse, but it also blends in because it's a silver gray colour. As Joshua was getting ready to go to work that morning, we both looked through that basket very thoroughly and came up with nothing. He looked several other places and finally had to leave for work. Later, I emptied the basket onto the floor, went through all the change and couldn't find it. I checked the pockets of everything he wore over the weekend. No ring. Joshua came home at lunchtime. He looked under the couch, we checked in both of our vehicles. Nothing. I even checked inside his gloves to see if it had slipped off in there! We looked through that basket a couple more times, hoping it would magically appear. It didn't. That evening, Joshua took Sara for her music/piano lesson at 5:45 p.m. I looked a few more places after he left and then gave up. I decided it would just have to turn up on it's own. After Sara's lesson, Joshua decided to take Sara out on a date. Sara picked Swiss Chalet to eat. When they were done, they went to the mall. Joshua called when they were on their way home. He said he found a ring on sale and went ahead a bought it. It was a final sale, but that was O.K. - other ring was just nowhere to be found. When they got home, Joshua was missing his old ring, so decided to go through "the basket" one more time. He dumped the entire contents on the kitchen counter and there was THE RING!!! What??!! How did we miss that?? The next day Joshua took the ring back to the store and was able to exchange it for something else.

He said it was an early Valentine's Day present! Isn't he sweet?! (It's times like these I decide it's O.K. to keep him! Just kidding - I'm not that shallow!)

4. Today it's raining! What's up with that? Rain? In January?! The roads are a mess with all the melting snow and rain! There is so much water! It's going to be pretty scary out there when it freezes tonight.

5. School has been going well. We are in week 3 of our new schedule and disciplines. The first two weeks were a fight. It was difficult and exhausting for all of us. But, I didn't give up and we got so much done! This week has seemed a lot easier, so I'm hoping we're getting into a rhythm and learning some good habits.

6. In just 4 days, my wonderful friend, Karen and her husband Bryan, are coming to visit for a whole week! For 3 of those nights we will be at the Gingerbread Cabin in Jasper, AB. Sara and Sky are very excited about having an extended sleepover with Grandma and Grandpa! Mommy and Daddy are just as excited about having an extended sleepover away from the kids and the normal routine! I think I can say the same about Bryan and Karen! The weather forecast is beautiful, so it should be a great week!

7. I played Candy Land with the kids before bed tonight. It's always a competition to see who can get the most "candy" cards! They haven't quite grasped the concept that sometimes those cards can knock you backwards on the board and should not always be the most desired!

That's all I can think of for now! Hope you enjoyed the update!

Aloha Friday #10

It's time for Aloha Friday! The day I ask a simple question and you answer! Thanks to Kailani over on An Island Life for the original idea. If you'd like to participate, head on over to her blog, and follow the instructions! It's a great way to make new bloggy friends!

My question for this week:

What is your preferred method for cleaning up those crumbs on the kitchen floor? Broom and dust pan or hand vac?

I could not live without my Dustbuster! It's great because even the kids can use it. Although, now that they are 5 and almost 8, they aren't quite as excited about vacuuming for mom as when they were 2 and 3 years old! Not understanding that other people do not share the same feelings about hand vacs, I bought a Dustbuster for my mother-in-law a few years ago. I was sure I was doing her a favour and had rescued her forever from her broom and dust pan. The Dustbuster now proudly hangs in her (detached) garage!! The broom and dust pan are still just a few steps away in the coat closet! Oh well!

P.S. After receiving a few comments, let me just clarify... My Dustbuster is cordless and it sits in it's charger right next to my dining room table. I do not drag out a vac with a cord everytime I need to clean a mess!

January Winner!

Congratulations to my sweet friend, Emily!! She has won my giveaway for this month! (My helper for the draw today was Sara!) After just reading Emily's latest post, it sounds like she's the most deserving. Let's just say "strep throat" and you will understand... I hope you feel better soon, Emily! Enjoy!

Aloha Friday #9

It's Aloha Friday already! It came fast this week! So, you know the drill by now. I will ask a simple question and you give me your answer. It's kind of my day to take a break from blogging. Thanks to Kailani over on An Island Life for the original idea. If you'd like to link up and participate, head on over to her blog, and follow the instructions!

My question for the week:

Are you an early morning riser or a late night owl?

I have always been a night owl! I get that second wind around 10 p.m. and feel like I could stay up all night. I hardly ever go to bed before 11 p.m., but many nights I'm up even till midnight. I've actually been told that it's a problem with my adrenal glands, so I'm on some herbs from my herbalist to help get me to bed earlier and wake up happier. (Mornings are generally not my best time of the day!) Fortunately, I don't have to deal with children who get up super early. I trained my children from the beginning, to not get up early, so they're usually not up till 8 or 8:30 a.m.