A day like this

Who cannot love a day that begins like this...

Snow just a week before Christmas!

(This photo was taken across the road from where I work. The building in the distance is Bacardi Rum. mmmm)

And ends like this...

With the Grade 2 & 3

Christmas Concert.

TJ is so in his element on stage. He has no nervousness or fear about it at all. I think he actually really enjoys it. He was the only kid who bowed after each performance when the audience clapped. I laughed so hard. OMG! It was soooo funny! I love this kid big time.

And on a surprising note, Alex and Chelsea were pretty well behaved, at least compared to last year. Gotta love those 2 little people too. Yep, I'm one lucky mama!

Pics from home

This was taken from the hills behind Mom & Dad's place. I grew up playing in these hills.

It's a painting

Chelsea came home from school one day this week with a sheet of paper she had painted on. I found the colours to be pleasing. So I asked her what it was becuse I couldn't decipher the subject itself. She responded..."It a painting mommy". Yes sweetie, it is! And a very nice one at that.

I love that my little girl is artsy.

...and they're back to school...

On Tuesday the 3 kiddo's headed back to school. TJ's in Grade 2 (WOW!) and Alex & Chelsea are in Sr. K.



This was the first time there weren't 5 of us walking together. Perry is still pretty much stuck in bed. Poor guy! My heart ached for him a little as we left. Actually, the 4 of us didn't walk, we drove. I changed my hours at work so I could drop the kids off, butI still have to be there by 9:00am. So, I decided to save a few minutes by not having to walk back. The kids were a little disappointed and so was I. We really enjoy out little walk to school. Anyway, here are some pics taken just before we left...




I just love these happy smiling faces...

And here's a classic of Alex's cheesy grin and Chelsea's pout. We see these expression from each of them often. We're standing at the fence by the kindergarten play area. Chelsea know's it's almost time to say our goodbye's. Alex, well, he couldn't wait for school to start again ever since it ended. lol Tom, he's not as excited about school so much this year. He knows from last year he has to behave and that work is involved and the fun of Kindergarten is over.

A quick little update

So, it's been a very long time since I posted anything. Things have been very busy around here.

We enjoyed having Mary (AKA Nanny) stay with us for a few weeks. She has gone home now and we miss her very much. We all love you Nanny!

We were supposed to be on vacation in NFLD right now, BUT, 2 weeks before we were supposed to go, Pery fell and broke his leg. Our trip isn't cancelled, just delayed. We will still go home to see everyone. Still looking forward to that. :) Hey, when we do go, we'll just appreciate it even more.

Poor Perry, he got a really bad break, Tib & Fib, just above the ankle. Required surgery with 2 plates, 11 screws, 23 staples up one side, and 13 on the other. OUCH! He is starting to do better. The nerves are starting to come back to life (from surgery) but that means he can feel the staples. They are bugging him alot. The long side of the cut is still bleeding a bit. Ick! Sure hoping for him that starts to heal soon and then heals quickly.

The kids are being good and we are having some fun. Last year we coined it "The Summer of Fun" and it was. We did all sorts of fun and different things. This year, has been the year of the backyard and broken leg. Not so much fun. Anyway, that's life...Humps and bumps, and ups and downs.

So, no pictures today, just a little update. As time allows, I will try to post some pics with quick captions of the happenings of the last month or so.

The pool is open

On Thursday Night Perry put up the pool. We let it fill over night. Finally on Saturday the kids got to swim for the first time.

Alex was the first one in the pool. He jumped off the ladder straight away.

TJ was next. The water was cold and it sure does look like he found it cold too.

Chealsea was the last one in, but at least this year she got in and didn't need me with her. Woohoo!

Mary & Perry

Here's another one for Alf...

This one's for Alf

Just though you might like to see a picture of your beautiful wife. :)

Thank you so much for sharing her with us for a little while. We all love you and wish you were here too. Time passes quickly and we'll all see you very soon!

Nanny Pitcher comes to visit

We are delighted that Nanny Pitcher has come to visit again this year. We all really enjoy spending time with her. The first week and half she stayed at Aunt Marilyns but did come to visit and spend time with the kids. They all jumped on the chance at a bed time story last week. He's some pics...


Nanny is attempting to read a seek and find type book. She did a fantastic job and the kids just loved it especially the boys. It was funny to watch because it was a Little Mermaid book. I would have thought Chelsea would have been more into it than them. You just never know with kids. Since TJ and Alex started reading they are both even more into books than ever before. Nanny was easily convinced to read another book after the Mermaid one.

Can you read that!?!

Tonight as we were attempting to get the kids ready for bed, I walked in on a delighful surprise! I was looking for Tom (aka TJ, Luigi, Tedo, etc...) because it was his turn to brush his teeth. I see Perry at Tom's bed with a boy and I hear reading. Assuming it was Tom, I went in to get him. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears when I saw Alex reading "Are You My Mother?" to his dad. He was just finishing the last page when I walked in. Perry told me that he read about 1/2 of it on his own. I'm so proud of my little guy! I can hardly believe he is reading while still in Jr. K. I know that boy is smart, but it still blows me away. You rock Alex!

Happy Birthday TJ & A Bonus

...first the Bonus!

We are going to Newfoundland this summer!!!
Yep, bought the tickets today. Soooo excited about that.

Today was TJ's birthday. He proclaimed it to be the best birthday ever...again. lol Isn't it great when every birthday is the best one ever. He's had all of 7 birthdays and probably only remembers 4 of them.



This is one of the cards he received. This one is from his Great Nan Pitcher.

He was so cute with his cards and read every single one of them. I was so proud. What’s really cool is that in February he couldn’t read Alex’s & Chelsea’s cards. He’s come a long way in a short time. We’ve been pretty diligent about reading thanks to the schools “Snuggle Up & Read” program. Last night he read Alex’s library book to him. So cool! We have hordes of books just lying around so he can pick them up and read anytime. I’ve noticed him doing that more often lately. Too bad it’s when he’s supposed to be doing something else. Haha!

Tennis raquets from Nanny& Poppy Pitcher and some sports balls too. He absolutely loved them! Score!

He got this "Boom Box" from Nanny & Poppy Hollett. He was quite thrilled. Scored again!
















Then from Mom, Dad, Alex & Chelsea, he got a wicked new Wii game, Mario Kart! He was really excited.






















TJ had a great Birthday. The day started by going to school, getting picked up at lunch time, opening presents, going to Subway (his choice) for lunch, and then we were supposed to go bowling, but, he opted to play Mario Kart instead.


I picked up a little cake at the store for him.






On Saturday, he's having his birthday party at Chuck E Cheese. Lucky Boy!

As it goes...

I just got back from picking up Jivey's ashes. After I got the call it was ready a few things struck me...

Jive died on Candice's birthday, and his remains returned home on TJ's birthday. It is also a week ago today that Aunt Shirley was buried. Bizarre! It's funny how these things just seem to go that way sometimes. Some say a co-incidence isn't just a co-incidence but the universes way of telling us something. If that's true, I don't know what it is trying to tell me. Beware of Birthday's, maybe..who knows.

In loving memory of Jive (Spring 1998 - May 25, 2008)

Early this morining we found that our dear sweet pussy cat Jive (aka, jivey, Jiver) had passed away overnight.

Chelsea and I had our crying spurts together. She loved Jivey so much. Within the last few weeks we decided that they had such a great relationship that he should be her cat. I'm so sorry it was for such a short time. Poor girl is taking it pretty hard and is asking a lot of questions just trying to make sense of it. To tell the tructh I am too. Jivey wasn't supposed to die so young. He always seemed to be the healty, sensible cat and I thought he'd live for another 5 years or more.

Jivey was a sweet cat with a quiet deameaner. He is loved by all and will be missed by all. I've been thinking about him all day and want ot write more about him, but tonight I'm exhaused and and he'll be in my thoughts.

Rest in peace Jiver! We love you.

A memory of Aunt Shirley captured.

I completed this LO last night. I had been working on it for a couple of nights. One of my biggest challanges was finding a decent photo. This one was a pic of her and I together taken about 12 1/2 years ago during one of my visits to see her. I was in the picture but I scanned it and cropped so the focus would be on just her.

Lady Cat!

I got my turn this morning.

Ross gave me guided instructions to scrape out a bump and dump it.

Diggin' the dirt!

Lady and her cat.

Ok, so I have to tell you. THIS IS FUN! I totally understand the big boys entheausimn last night with the call of "Ok, it's my turn". lol

Actually, I'm pretty impressed with myself and how I handled that machine given it was the first time. It helps that the controls just seem to make sense. Perhaps my little bit of forklift experience helps. This Rocks!

Can you Dig it!

Step 1 of a bigger driveway and backyard reno.

The bin is full but the boys keep filling it.

All the things we do together

This is a LO I made using a drawing TJ made for me. He was so proud to give me the drawing and tell me about it. I put it on my desk knowing it would be my next scrapbooking project.

Aunt Shirley

Nearly two yeas ago I subscribed to an online class called Favourite Childhood Memories. I wote about some of the things in the prompts but never turned them into layouts. One was about Aunt Shirley. This is what I wrote...

Aunt Shirley lived in Arlington, MA, (just outside Boston), so spending time wiht her was rare, but always very special.

When she came to visit she brought gifts for us. Even though I looked forward to the gifts, it was her that was the greatest gift. She totally doted on me and always made me feel special. She was fun to be with and genuinely enjoyed her time with us as well.

Some nights when I was to scared to go ot sleep, mom would tell me to thing about happy things. For me this was always to think about Aunt Shirleys next visit. I always looked forward to it with great antiipation.

Today, Aunt Shirley passed away peacefully at the hospital in Burin. She moved back home in late November to be closer to her family.

I told her a few years ago about her being my happy thoughts and I could tell that meant a lot to her. I'm so glad I told her so she knew how special she is to me. I love you Aunt Shirley and will miss you forever.

Here's a picture I found of us together. It was taken Nov 12 1995. I went to visit her a couple of months after Perry and I got married and broguht the wedding pictures to show her. She couldn't come because of cancer treatments.

FIRE!!!

Ahhh, May 2-4 long weekend with some great friends. What could be better!

A fire and mallow roast is a great way to kick the weekend off to get it up and running. We soaked wooden skewers in water to use as roasting sticks. Once the marshmallows were done, the kids let the end burn until glowey and then shake it around, carefully so no one gets stuck with a hot stick. There were 5 kids running around with hot sticks. Yikes! This mom was a little nervous but they did a-ok in the end. Whew!






Then Saturday night, another fire and more marshmallows. This time we used real metal skewers for roasting, but the added bonus was sparklers. This is Jessie waving hers around.











The others just kind of held them and didn't do much other than stare at the sparkles. To tell the truth, I wished I had one. I love those things. lol

3 boys on the floor decided to sleep in their boxers for some boyish reason. haha! They are on a blowup mattress in sleeping bags and having a grand time. The girls are all snuggle in Chels bed. It's so cute to see them all together. I hope they are friends for life.

Try this Web Cam thing again...

Another try with new equipment. This NEW camera has the mic built in. Woohoo!

***editing to add that it didn't take very long at all to upload! Another Woohoo!***

Wanna See what's outside my front door?

Isn't this a lovely sight! Let me twll you, this bush looks better in this picture than in real life. Last year I decided to trim it back a bit, and went too far! There is more dead parts than alive now. I really do love the colours in the spring though. Perhaps I can put another one like it somewhere. I'm pretty sure this one is going to meet his maker later this spring or summer. Still, it's so very pretty isn't it!

And then, there's the tulips, beautiful, beautiful tulips!
I just love spring flowers. I'm a bit sad our driverway will take over my little flower patch. Maybe, Perrry will help me make a new one somewhere else in a sunny spot.

donna downey

I made it to the donna downey class yesterday and it was fantastic. After the class was over she signed my original 3 books and the two new ones just released that I bought at the store before the class. We sat and talked for awhile and had our pictures taken together. It was so cool!

Here is a pic of donna and me together...

Mission Accomplished

The new mic works...barely. lol



any betterfor video?

Perry found the preferances that I couldn't and we made some adjustments, lso turned off some lights and made the video bigger. The lights were putting a rather harsh glow on my face.

I looked at a new web cam today but it was something like $60 or $70. Perhaps if I use this enough, I will be able to justify it.

BTW, although this video is short it is taking a loooooong time to upload. I can type while I upload. It has been going for a little bit and we're only up to 4M of 40M uploaded. I think I'll have tea while I wait...

I had tea and it's just over 15 minutes later and the video is still uploading. We're up to 35M of 40M uploaded now. So far it's been at least 20 minutes to get 35M uploaded.

Finally done, about 25 minutes to upload this video. I'm learning.

Testing the video cam...

Got the video, but no sound. I think I'll need Perry's help for that. But hey, the video only took a very few short minutes to learn how to do.

Please note my shirt is blue, not orange so the colour is off and the quality sucks. I might need a new camera...

Oh, I also need better lighting. Hmmm...

Updated to add, my mic is busted. I'll be getting a new one very soon.

Early Weekend and lots of plans

I am offically off for the weekend. Perry and I booked Friday off from work. We aren't telling the kids. We are spending a day together. It's long overdue. The last time was something like 7 years ago. We deserve it. :)

Saturday is the digital imaging and photography show which I am very excited to be going to. But best of all is I'm going to meet Donna Downey. She is teaching classes in Toronto and I signed up for one. Although it is short (1 hr) it is better than nothing. I'm also getting signed copies of her 2 new books, and she will sign the 3 I already have. How cool! This lady has an amazing amout on energy, entheausim, and creativity. I'm in awe by her almost daily (I read her blog).

Then on Sunday, my friend who moved to Hamilton is coming to visit. I haven't seen her since last year so I'm really looking forward to that.

It's going to be a great long weekend. I'm pumped. :)

Oh, I think I'm going to try to figure out video blogging so stay tuned for that....in a few days.

Verse Reading

On Thursday, Alex & Chelsea had their first Verse Reading at school. Chelsea was so nervous about it, yet happy I was going to be at her school. Alex didn't even know he was going to be there. Not sure if the teacher didn't tell him or if he wasn't paying attention when she did. I've put up some pics, but be aware, the quality is really poor. School gyms with bad lighting and a mama sitting halfway across the gym doesn't make for great shots.

These two pictures were taken at the end as they were leaving the gym. Ales is feeling all happy and good because he has a special morning. Chelsea is sad. It turns out she wanted me to go back to her class. Such a darling, always wanting more, just like her mama. lol

A bonus was that the grade 1's got to go watch as selected students from their class had solo verses. The kindergardens did theirs as a group. It was so awesome to go to school and see all 3 of my kids in the gym at the same time.