Please don't tell my husband...

I have too much scrap crap. And since getting hooked on Pinterest, other crap too... and all of that crap seems to make its way into my once organized scrapbook room. But there is too much. I have several unfinished Pinterest projects... I also have every intention to finish these projects, but I am, once again, spreading myself too thin, and am finding I lack the time to get my craft on. But I digress.
I haven't scrapped in months. MONTHS! I have lost my mojo again, and I know it is stuck somewhere in that room. So, today is supposed to be cooler and maybe a bit rainy, so I guess that means I need to tackle the task I have been dreading and ignoring, and procrastinating about.
If you never hear from me again, send help.
And a moving van.

I am a lucky, lucky girl

I don't know if it is lucky, or grateful, or a combination of both, but I am feeling pretty lucky today. I spent a good part of yesterday cleaning up our yard from the windstorms that we had this past fall and winter. I have a pile of tree branches taller than me, (not a MAJOR feat, but a feat nonetheless) in the backyard. That pile of dead branches means a fire, and wiener roast for the kids. I just need to to not be so dry and windy, and that day we will have supper roasted on the remnants of the trees in our yard. :) While I was lugging logs around the yard to make the pile I got to thinking how lucky I was. 

Lucky Number One:

I get to, and will vote tomorrow. I have voted in every election I was eligible to vote in since turning 18. I see it as a right. I see it as a privilege. I see it as a way to share my voice. This provincial election is the most important one in my lifetime, and you can bet I will be doing my part to ensure my voice is heard. I will not rant about the parties involved. I have done enough of that on Facebook and Twitter, but I will be  in line at 9 am tomorrow when the polls open, and will be planted in front of the TV tomorrow night to watch election results. And may the best man or woman win, whatever that means...

Lucky Number Two:

My brother in law is from New Zealand. New Zealand has an amazingly talented designer named Annah Stretton. And she makes Chameleon dresses. An example is pictured above. The dress can be worn in ten different ways. These dresses are pricey... Like $400 pricey. (But when you break it down to 10 dresses, each dress is only $40... ) My sister came home from NZ this past fall with one. I was JEALOUS..... such a cool concept, and design. Well...... yesterday I got a phone call from my sister saying that she won a dress on New Zealand's answer to eBay. And, even better, she was bidding on the dress for me.... and even BETTER.... she isn't going to make me pay her for it. She is going to trade me for a family sitting.... LUCKY ME!

Lucky Number Three:

I found a new, yummy, not pictured above flavor of Palm Bay. Maybe not luck, but definitely something to look forward to after helping Grant get going seeding today... And well deserved, if you ask me.

Lucky Number Four:

I went to Coldplay in Calgary on Wednesday night. They are AMAZING live. Beyond amazing. They are so talented. They know how to work the crowd, and spend every minute on stage making their audience happy. Every concert goer got a bracelet to wear during the show, and then at certain times during the night, the lights went out, and the bracelets lit up. One of the coolest things I have EVER seen at a concert. Period. And the second part of the lucky that day was going to the concert with my friend Jenn. Jenn and I were friends in high school, and then, as often happens, drifted apart. We reconnected about five years ago thanks to facebook, and we have been besties ever since! I am lucky to have a friend like her who loves the same music as I do, who makes me laugh, who reminds me of the fun we had in our teens, who GETS it. I am lucky to have her in my life again. She has reminded me of the power of true friendship. We were able to pick up exactly where we left off, and to me, that is a real friend.... <3

 

Lucky Number Five:

 I will be taking my husband on a date on Tuesday night. To see this guy. Yep... two concerts in less than a week. One was Coldplay, and the other is Elton John. LUCKY...... I can't even start to list the songs I hope to hear on Tuesday. Probably because there are so freaking many good ones, that it won't matter what he sings. The best part? I don't usually get a night out with Grant during seeding, unless the weather has gone for shit. But Tuesday night, we will get to have one of the most exciting date nights we have had in a long time..... :)

So... I am a lucky girl. Sometimes I need a reminder to slow down and look at all of the good in my life. And there is so much to be grateful for. I have great kids. They are kind to each other (most of the time), they are smart, they have good work ethics, they love me... I have a great marriage. I love the man I married more and more every day. He is one of the best providers I know. He works harder than ANYONE I know. He loves us more than we deserve, and I love him to the moon and back and to the moon again.  I have kick ass friends. You know... the really good ones. The ones who send you text messages of the mouse they caught so you know it is safe to come to work, the ones who pop over for an impromptu night of wine and movies, the ones who call you four or five times a day with nothing to say, but hours of conversation just the same. I am a lucky girl.

Hunger Games..... so good....

When the Hunger Games trilogy first came out I was very reluctant to read the books. I didn't like the concept of fighting to the death for food. It is such an uncomfortable concept. But once I read the first book, I was hooked. I really liked it. I found the second book to be just as enjoyable, but the third one I could do without.
That said, I went to the movie last night. So good. So true to the book. Best casting since Harry Potter. So good. I read the book about two years ago, so there were parts of the story that I didn't remember, but because the movie was so true to the book, it was a great reminder. I think this might be my new Titanic... I don't think I can afford fourteen trips to the theatre. Once was enough. I will definitely be getting this on DVD though....
I also loved that I got to have a night out with the girls. It has been a long time since a girls' night out, (out of my house that is...) and this time we didn't get tattoos. (Despite my request) ;).
There was yummy supper, a couple of drinks, and tons of laughs. I haven't forgotten how a night with just the girls makes me feel.... I did just have a night out a couple of weeks ago (a bunch came over and we watched movies, and drank wine), and a girls' day out at Tara's the next day.... It just felt good to be in a different town, with restaurant options, and movie tickets in hand....
The only thing that would have made this day better was going to the showing of Titanic first, and followed that with Hunger Games... ;)

So here's the plan

So I saw this on Pinterest.... imagine that, right?

Anyhoo, it is a savings plan that involves socking away a five dollar bill whenever you have one. People who are have done this have saved as much as $400 in one year. I would love to have a little extra money for whatever I feel I need. And what a great way to actually show my kids that they are not the only ones saving their money... that they will actually see me doing it. I think this will be difficult because I rarely actually have money on me. I am more of a debit card gal myself, but I also know it will be doable... If nothing else, I should have money on hand to pay the babysitter whenever we need one!

Room Mom of the Year

In my ongoing quest to be "Room Mom of the Year" I made Easter Rainbow cupcakes for Avery's class yesterday. I am quite adamant that I make the treats for her class because of her severe allergy. So, of course I headed off to Pinterest, (Number one resource of room moms worldwide), and looked for something quick and easy, and springy, and easy. And cheap. And easy. Did I mention that?

The cupcakes I found were pretty easy. It was a matter of dying the cake batter with food coloring (I know. Food coloring is bad.) And then dropping spoonfuls into the muffin cups. 

This is what they looked like after baking. They almost look Earth Day-ishy to me...

And then I iced them to look like grass and added peanut free jelly beans. According to Avery's teacher, they were a hit... except I didn't realize there was a celiac child in her class..... Now on to Pinterest to find gluten free, nut free goodness!

Titanic - The Movie - Again

When this movie was first released, I was 15 years younger. I had a different kind of disposable income, and I will admit I saw it 14 times. In the theatre. 14. Excessive? Yes. But does that mean I don't want to see it one more time on the big screen? No. Grant told me Jack still dies in the end of this one, but I don't care. I don't need to see it in 3D. I think that concept is so overdone with regards to movies, but I do need to drum up a movie date to see it one last time. I wonder if Avery is too young for this? ;)

Come Together

I spent this past weekend working two casino shifts as a volunteer for our private kindergarten. We rely heavily on the money as casino brings in to pay wages, provide resources for the kids, and ensure that they have the best start in school they can. There has always been a debate in our little community about the perks of a private kindergarten versus a public, school board one. One of the drawbacks is that we need to work casinos. I like working them. You get two meals, you don't have to cook, or pay for them, you get to catch up on your reading, or crocheting, or.... whatever. But for some reason, people don't step up to the plate. It is the same as any other volunteer activity. It is the same group of people doing the work, and the majority reaping the benefits. I could go on and on about how disappointed I am in people around me, but something else happened this weekend that is offering me more clarity. Friends and neighbors of ours had their baby this weekend. They have tried for years to get pregnant, and it finally happened for them. On Saturday they welcomed their baby girl 9 weeks early. It sounds like things are going well, and I am completely over the moon for them. They will both make such amazing parents, and even though this isn't the most ideal way for a baby to come into the world, their daughter is getting amazing care. I could continue to be frustrated about the casino and apathy demonstrated by some people, but I am choosing to look at the people who did step up with appreciation. I am choosing to look at the things that really matter, like that 2lb 12oz baby girl. I am choosing to come together with the people I really want to be around, and letting the rest live their lives.