Winter Friends Wednesday Blog Hop

Welcome to "Winter Friends" January 5 . 
Week 2

This is a hop for making friends and meeting other bloggers.

This is hosted by Snack Bar Reviews, 3 Princes and a Princess 2, Luvin My Lil Monkeys.

SPOT LIGHT HOST
~ Frugal Invitation~

RULES

• To be in this hop just follow all three hosts'.(We always follow back, leave a comment)
• Follow the SPOT LIGHT HOST
• Follow the person before you. 
• Have fun. Add the linky and/or button to your page to get more followers!

ENTER: this linky and you could be the NEXT "Spot Light Blog" We will be choosing one random blog via random.org each week to be featured. We will contact you on Thursday and you'll have till Monday 6pm to respond or we will move on to the next random blog. 

Don't forget to follow the first 4 in the linky.

Wordless Wednesdays ~OMG! The playroom is CLEAN!!??!!

The Story of our Love ...the good, the bad and some of the ugly

I was  awarding  Love is Everywhere with the Stylish Blogger Award when I saw her request for love stories.  Since I had JUST finished writing my "7 things about me" for the acceptance of my award and had mentioned a bit about my Love I thought I would maybe tell the whole story.....


It was a chilly day in January, 1999, and I was in rough shape.  I was young an foolish and quite hungover.  My "date" and I were having some lunch when he suggested I must "pass one more friend test".  { I mentioned young and foolish already right??}  So I rolled my eyes and asked which friend was going to interrogate me now?  My "date" had an older, wiser friend who worked just down the street and if SHE approved of me I was going to be made in the shade!  So off we went {not because I felt I had something to prove but because I really had drank WAY too much the night before and had no energy to argue}, I held his hand down the street until I spied this tall good looking man propped up against a wall who gave us a nod.  I could not help but squeeze my "date's" hand and ask "Who IS that?" (Major Sparks are flying)  It turns out he is the older brother of the friend we were coming to meet....


So to cut some of the middle junk out...I passed the "test" with flying colours!  The friend and I became Best friends and  eventually I dumped the "date" and moved on with my life, a little older and a little wiser....


One beautiful day in June, 2001,  during prep for my Mom's wedding I ran into Crystal (aka, the Ultimate Test) and she invited me down to her new apartment.  I was pretty relieved to have an excuse to escape from the hustle and bustle so I told her I'd stop over as soon as I finished up.  When I arrived I saw Wayne sitting on the front steps and my heart just about stopped.  He was just as good looking as the first time I had saw him.  He totally captures my attention.  We talked for hours, even after Crystal went off to do her own thing.  We talked about life, weddings, tv shows, jobs and kids, I really didn't want to stop but I had to get back to my Mom's, her wedding was the next day.  So I said my regretful good-bye and started out the door when Wayne stopped me and asked if he could have a picture of me " all done up" for the wedding?  He explained that he thought I was already beautiful but he could only imagine how stunning I would look the next day.  I  blushed and agreed. (It's a good thing too because this picture would be a huge deciding factor over the following couple of years)
 For the weeks following I found excuses to visit and hang out, even when Crystal was working, by the end of the summer I couldn't get enough.  I could tell Wayne was pretty fond of me too...but something was holding him back.  It turns out that he was pretty nervous about the age gap between us.  That I was too young and "too good" for him and wouldn't stick around long. 
Needless to say it is now 2011,   the 13year age gap has never been an issue.  We have 2 beautiful girls together and 2 beautiful daughters that live with their mothers.  We have endured some really strenuous times and some Amazing moments and we are madly in love. We could not be happier!   Neither of us has had great examples of marriages so we have been a little slow moving in that department.  Wayne asked me to marry him on October 11th, 2007, but we have yet to set a date for a wedding....we'd be happy to go to City Hall and just sign papers, we're not big into fancy or being center of attention, but Ainsley has been hounding for pretty dresses and flowers since she figured out what an engagement ring is for.   So maybe sometime in 2012, when the debt is clear and both girls are old enough to participate & remember we will have the wedding Ainsley dreams of.  Xoxo

Busy start to the New Year

 I have always been a "busy" girl...for as long as I can remember...I almost thrive off of the chaos...ALMOST lol.
So far 2011 is starting out the same as many others busy, busy, busy.  I am juggling everyday housework with my lil's (and the extra housework they create) and a part-time job and TRYING to have somewhat of a social life  AND keep up my new found "social life" on the web through blogging.

Wayne & I had the opportunity to go 4-wheeling on Sunday with another couple and what a great day!  We left early in the a.m and head just outside of town to pick up my FIL's bike. Then from his house out to explore the back trails and logging roads.  I am the driver in our family so it was a really nice break to let Wayne have a turn while I sat on the back and watched for deer & moose tracks.  It was a beautifully mild day for January in the Maritimes.  We had a couple of spurts where it rained slush but 
overall we could not ask for better!  For hours we followed tracks, did donuts and chased (on the bikes) each other in the snow, it was so much fun and super relaxing. I cannot wait to get out again!

Monday, I had to quickly catch up on my postponed housework and grocery shopping because I had my newest client (for childcare) showing up, for their first day, at lunch time.  Once my newest young fella arrived we popped some popcorn on the stovetop and sat down to watch Beauty and the Beast {one of my favorite Disney Movies}.   Then supper, then off to work and home to check my blog where I found not 1 but 2 comments saying

Congrats!!!

I was chosen to receive the Stylish blogger award and I got to pick bloggers I thought deserved the award as well and you were one of my choices

Check it out here

I was pretty excited!  Especially since I am still very new to all of this.  But I got straight to work trying to figure out who I was going to nominate in return and how on earth I was going to write 7 things about ME...not my strong suit lol.

So today I got up early (well earlier than I have been this holiday break) and got to work on my housework  phone skills (hey, I managed to make plans for Wayne's birthday dinner so not all so bad right?)  :P  ...then made the kids some breakfast on the go, Fruit smoothies and dry cereal, and set off for a playdate...came home to do housework but got distracted by my new award and decided to finish that up while the girls painted their plaster hand prints from New Years....now I am typing away still avoiding the dishes and counting down just how many minutes I have left before HAVING to start supper and get ready for work.

If this is Holiday "break"  and I'm this "busy" I can't wait until next week when school gets back in, my new lil fella starts afterschool full-time, Ainsley goes back to Cheerleading and Ava's program is back in swing at the library....I might have to just start scouting out quiet comfy HIDDEN spots to curl up for naps.

Fruit Smoothies
* I did not measure a thing this a.m I just literally dumped stuff in the blender and hit pulse*

- 1/2 fill the blender with frozen mixed berries
- dump in some vanilla yogurt (maybe 1 -1 1/2cups??)
- pour some milk over top top
Pulse for a minute and add more milk if things are moving around much. Pulse til smooth, pour into cups (we use tupperware cups with lids & straws)

Stylish blogger Award

THANK YOU SO MUCH  to At Home with Mom and Wedded Mommy Bliss for awarding me with the "Stylish blogger Award" 

This is how this fun award works:

1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award.

2. Share 7 things about yourself.

3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers.

4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!

7 things about myself ...

1.  I stink at talking about myself....I could talk for hours about my family though
2.  My favourite colour is purple, like eggplant dark & rich
3.  I don't drink coffee or tea ...never did and never will...however I'm addicted to Pepsi (which is AWFUL for you) and hope to be done with that this year!
4.  I have been with my "better half" since 2001 but we met in 1999 and I definitely felt sparks (even though I was on my 1st date with the guy who introduced us).  We hardly saw each other between '99 and '01 but once we started hanging around we were inseparable. 
5.  I want to go back to school and become a teacher's assistant and specialize in working with Autism...I can't honestly explain why but I have wanted to work with kids for as long as I can remember and for years I have had the "pull" towards autism the further I've gone putting it off or ignoring it the stronger the "pull"gets and the more my life gets exposed to it.....maybe it's part of my destiny??
6.  I enjoy volunteering...I would make a career of this if I was well off enough to never work a "real job" again.  I don't do it for applause or accolade's but because I get a tremendous high from being of help or use.  If I can make the tiniest difference in someones day or life it really warms from head to toe.
7.  I'm not exactly religious but I am so incredibly FAITH FULL! 

Now the 15 bloggers I am giving the award to. This was so hard since I have found so many great blogs over the last few weeks!

1.   http://furlinedtoiletseats.blogspot.com/

2.   http://mamabeefromthehive.blogspot.com/

3.   http://www.frugalfamilyfunblog.com/
4.   http://www.momtriedit.net/
5.   http://intellokids.blogspot.com/
6.   http://loveiseverywhere.blogspot.com/
7.   http://www.funnydayswithmommyandmaddie.com/
8.   http://www.wonderfullydysfunctional.com/
9.   http://bearwithus4.blogspot.com/
10. http://www.fineandfair.blogspot.com/
11. http://www.sweettmakesthree.com/
12. http://theadventuresofmommyb.blogspot.com/
13. http://bigbearswife.blogspot.com/
14. http://mrskarensclass.blogspot.com/
15. http://www.mydeliciousambiguity.com/

New Year's Eve Spa day with the lil's

 Wayne & I generally don't travel too far on New Year's Eve...to be honest we'll generally are sound asleep before the 9pm on this night...so I planned to stay in with my lil's and to make it a special event we had a Spa Day.

First we had to start with some nostalgia ( for Mom's sake, not really spa related at all) so we opened the plaster kits, that their Aunt Kim & Nanny Cindy sent down from Niagra Falls, and did handprint castings with their names and 2011 marked in them.   Maybe I'll be able to organize this as a regular tradition to see just how much they grow over the years.

Then we went straight from the mess to the bath tub where they had a bubble bath and body scrub....a very overdue process but time just escapes me during the holidays.

Then out to get a massage with their new lotion...into fresh clothes and headed downstairs for a light snack and the mani/pedi's....then the "fancy" hair-do's.

Ava is such a HAM! lol

My mom ended up taking the girls for a sleepover with their cousins so Wayne & I ventured out to do a little bit of visiting and even managed to ring in our 1st New Year in the 9.5yrs we've been together!!! 

 Welcome 2011!    

ANY HELP/SUGGESTIONS ARE APPRECIATED

Hopefully My first blog hop is a success and I will get lots of new visitors and maybe even some new followers...but mostly I look forward to some helpful tips & advice.
Being a new blogger I am totally overwhelmed with all the creativity of all the new and BEAUTIFUL blogs I have linked from one-to-the-next. It amazes me how unique & different each and everyone is from the next.
Things from the wonderful names of the blogs ...my personal favorite is Fur Lined Toilet Seats (LOVE her writing too, Thanks Fatima!) ...to the gorgeous layouts and beautiful buttons...the giveaways/reviews ....and the list could go on and on.
I am in head over feet in this blogging world and have so much to learn!  Please feel free to leave a comment, feedback is WELCOMED with wide open arms!

This year I'd like:

•  to learn how to make/design a button?
• become more confident in my writing
• build a network of wonderful blogging friends (aka followers)

Blog Hop with The Baby Bottom Line

This Blog Hop has currently closed.

Trying to Blog Hop...let's see how this works

As a Newbie to the blogging world I am learning more each and everyday, sometimes learning just how much I don't know lol...but this week I figured out how do work a linky (I think...I hope).  So I thought I host my own link-up/blog hop/WhatchamCallit kind of like a "Welcome to the Neighbourhood Party" ...but maybe in reverse???? (Who really needs an excuse to party??)
So my "theme" for my first ever linky party is "An Oldie but a Goodie" what is your favorite post from when you first started your blog??
Everyone is Welcome to "party" and invite a friend along ;)

Thankful Thursday

I was NOT feeling good at all yesterday but Thankfully I did not throw-up and even more Thankfully I woke up feeling much better this morning.
My family are pretty lucky in the sickness dept.  we are over all a pretty healthy bunch.  Rarely do we get sick and never does it last for too long.  I am very Thankful for this.  I do not handle puke well and I do not like to be out of commission for any length of time. I am Thankful for Wayne who may not be the most helpful fella on the regular basis but when in a pinch (or barrelled over a toilet) he springs into action and comes to my rescue.  He made me lunch yesterday and supper for our family while I laid shivering and useless on our couch, whining like a baby.

Wordless Wednesday ~Bieber Fever~

Biggest Surprise!

This Christmas while opening gifts I had the biggest surprise yet! 
I was watching the girls open gift after gift when Ainsley passed a small gift to me. 
When I opened it up I was elated!
  It was the Family Tree necklace that I had tried to order myself from Vivian Lane Jewelery.  When I messaged Laine she had told me she was too busy to do Christmas orders and would have to get back to me in the New Year.  (Which was fine with me, I have a birthday in February to celebrate : p )

My sister-in-law, Kim, had ordered the necklace for me before I even had the chance and told Laine not to sell me one.  Then she had it shipped to my father-in-laws to be wrapped and delivered to me on Christmas morning.  Kim and I talk long distance almost EVERYDAY!  How she ever managed to keep this secret I'll never know but I LOVE my necklace!  Thank you so much Kim!!

Green peridot for Ainsley's August birthday
and Orange citrine for Ava's November birthday

Re: Done

Today is Boxing Day and all is done!  Really done, even my anxiety & guilty conscience! 
My kids had an amazingly ridiculous Christmas!  I must of unleashed atleast a dozen Zhu zhu pets in the last 48hrs.  Wayne LOVED his new jeans and his work socks, as well as his new barber kit.  I was super pleasantly surprised to receive not just a new camera (finally lol) but also a beautifully fleeced lined wool sweater that I have been wanting for years!!
My father in law was ECSTATIC to receive his basket of preserves and photo books of the grand kids...but most of all he loved the calender that I filled out with all of the kids, spouses & grand kids birth dates and anniversaries.
Christmas was enjoyed by everyone!

Wayne received a 22lb fresh turkey with his Christmas bonus on Thursday so I cooked that on Christmas Eve and we invited my younger brother & sister to dinner in addition to my sweet niece (who lives with us) and her boyfriend.  We had a nice relaxed meal complete with all the fixings.  Turkey, stuffing, gravy, carrots, potatoes, yellow beans, squash, cranberries and rolls.  { Thanks to Wayne for peeling all of the veggies for me while I stuffed the turkey} Then we went out visiting.  My Aunt & cousins and then best friend & her family.  Then we put on our brand new Christmas jammies and tucked the girls into bed.
Ainsley had lost a tooth early in the am so I searched the house for a dollar and then Wayne & I started the daunting task of putting the new Little Tykes Kitchen set to together for the girls...and putting the others gifts under the tree.  I don't think I got to bed until almost 2:30am by the time all was said and done.

But at 8:30am it was all worth it!!
The grand parents came to watch the girls open gifts (a tradition that was started when we purchased our first house 3 years ago) and then we had a quick brunch before heading to the church.  This year we had the opportunity to help out a local charity, The Joshua Group, serve a Christmas dinner to the less fortunate.  What a humbling experience!
 I am so glad that my family were able to do a little something to make a difference in someone else's day.  We all got our hands involved in something from plating food, to lugging boxes or serving drinks.  Ava (3yrs) climbed up into a chair next to a gentlemen named Fred and started a conversation with him and was excited to make a new friend.  Fred, who frequently stays at our local Salvation Army, had offered his only Christmas gift to Ava and it just opened my heart so much....A man who received just a small shopping bag of necessities on Christmas morning offering up his only possession just makes me want to do more and more however and whenever I can.
The Joshua Group's founder, Robert Hayes, inspires me to get involved in my community doing anything and everything I can...and doing it together as a family!  I hope that in 2011 us Clark's can be a help to Bobby (Robert).

Christmas 2010 is officially DONE!!!  ...and I am happy for EVERY minute of it!
I hope everyone has a Safe & Happy New Year!

Thankful Thursday

I spent a long cold Thursday hanging out at the garage waiting to have my van fixed. Which gave ample time to consider what I am thankful for.

...a warm woodstove to cuddle next too
...a HUGE hearted mechanic who considers my children's safety before the cost of his labour
...that Wayne's employer still employ's him when he leaves on call for weeks and months at a time
...that my employer is flexible with Wayne's schedule an allows me to come in late without ever a complaint
...that we have never had to worry where our "turkey dinner" was coming from

I hope that everyone has a warm & happy holiday, but I do know that unfortunately this isn't always the truth.  This Christmas morning Wayne & I are packing the kids up and heading out to volunteer at a local church and serve food to the less fortunate.  I figure this is the very least we can do.

DONE! Done! done???

So I sit here tonight DONE!  Done shopping, done wrapping, done baking, almost done school for 2 weeks (just a 1/2 day left)....
And already the guilt has kicked in....
Will the girls love their presents?
Will my father-in-law  appreciate the work and thought put into his personalized photobook of the grandkids? 
Could I have done more?
Poor Wayne, another year of socks and jeans.
All Wayne has wanted for the past 3 years is a LARGE FLAT SCREEN TV...we made a deal a long time ago, if he bought us a home of our own with a playroom for our girls then he could finally splurg on himself.  He held up his end of the bargain.  We have a 2600sq ft home.  My girls have an enormous playroom.....and well Wayne still dreams of his tv :(


So ofcourse when I'm stressed I like to take my mind off of things by cruising the web...and well today I came across CSN Stores and let me just say WOW!   They have EVERYTHING!!!  and they EVEN SHIP to Canada!  (easily excited I know lol) 
I started with the usual...kids stuff lol and they have some wicked deals and then I got looking at tv's and then at TV stands for flat screens so that I can visualize the tv actually in our home.......and well Wayne's birthday is just  around the corner...and the week after Christmas usually has some pretty good sales ;) ;)
I think this birthday may be even better than the surprise party I threw for him last year!

Wordless Wednesdays ~Salmon Dinner~

Burning the midnight oil

It's just days away from Christmas and I am averaging little to no sleep. 
Tonight I finished wrapping gifts and then tackled Ainsley's gifts for her classmates.  We had made playdoh on Halloween (orange & black cherry) and sent it in lou of candy and it was a HUGE hit!  So Ainsley thought it'd be great to make a different kind to send in as a christmas gift (candy cane & gingerbread).  So here I am up still at 2am just finishing 18 sets of playdoh...with Ainsley's help (she woke up to go pee and "couldn't go back to sleep")
For each kid we had a snowflake cellophane bag filled with a handful of playdoh and  tied with curling ribbon with a cookie cutter & a fun-foam snowman attached.

Playdoh Recipe
2cups flour
1 cup salt
4 tsp cream of tartar
2 tbs veg. oil
2 cups of water mixed with kool-aid packet

Mix dry ingredients with oil then slowly add water.  Stir til combined them microwave for 3-5 minutes removing to stir at every minute until you can no longer stir.  Then roll out on counter and knead til smooth.

** I omitted the kool-aid packet for our flavours tonight.  For the candy cane I added peppermint extract at 3mins, then added glitter when I started the kneading process.
 For the gingerbread I mixed in  ginger, all spice, nutmeg & cinnamon to the dry ingredients.

RED PEPPER JELLY

For years and years my Aunt's have made red pepper jelly, it has been a staple at all family get togethers & holidays...it's never been my favorite but since Wayne has joined my family he really really enjoys it.  So this year we have adventured into the world of canning...since the elders will no longer do the work for us lol.
So far we have canned beets and green tomato chow and today I finally got around to red pepper jelly...just in time (I hope) for christmas.
It was rather simple (I think...we'll see if it sets right) and Ava loves to help, especially when there's a food processor involved.

Red Pepper Jelly
6 sm. red peppers (1 1/4 lbs.)
1 c. vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
5 c. granulated sugar
1 bottle liquid Certo

Chop peppers fine. Measure 2 cups pepper and juice in large pot. Add vinegar and salt. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer covered 10 minutes until tender. Stir in sugar, return to rolling boil and boil, uncovered and stir one minute. Remove from heat and immediately stir in Certo. Stir for 5 minutes to blend. Pour jelly into sterilized jars and seal. Serve over Philadelphia cream cheese with crackers.

Ribbons

Ava has been doing a "Time for Tots" group at our local library for 2-3 months now and her favorite part of Thursday mornings has got to be the RIBBONS!

So I really wanted to make her some for her stocking....I've had leftover dowel pieces (from the toy shelf Wayne & I built 3yrs ago) that I have been meaning to put to use and endless bottles of paint & spools of ribbon....BUT time, oh my, WHERE DOES IT GO???? 
I have been meaning to start this project for weeks but something else always comes up and now christmas is literally just days away...so I started this morning.

You will need:
looped screw
dowel
paint
ribbon

Step 1:  screw a looped screw

 (tecnical name?  I think not lol) 

into the end of a dowel

(you can get these at Walmart or hardware stores,

 or at the bottom of my messy craft drawer hehe)

Step 2: paint whatever colour you wish

...dry...repeat until satisfied.

Step 3:  loop ribbon through screw and Voila! 

 (btw I'm far from french lol)

Simple eh? (I am Canadian though haha)
I wonder why it took me so long to start these???

Thankful Thursdays

Today I asked Ainsley and Ava "What are we thankful for?" and this is what we came up with....

Ainsley:

 tattoos...the power company gave them to Ava so she'd stop climbing their display while I paid our bill lol

getting to wear pj's to school tomorrow!  ...our province is having an anti-bullying day where they plan to "Put bullying to rest!"

FOOD!!!  ...especially pizza

Ava:

Christmas trees...she has not taken her eyes (or hands) off of it since I put it up lol

Kraft dinner

POP!!! ...she doesn't get it often but she loves the bubbles

Mom:

My sweet baby girls

a warm cozy fire

...and to almost finally be done shopping for the year