Cloe and Mom Thursday

So After some long talks with Cloe this past week we have decided to make Thursday Cloe and Mom day and we will do one things she wants to do that day no matter how silly it might be (I half hope for silly and half hope it never gets to silly).

So Today she wanted to make cookies.

Now some kids don't have the patience to cook right from scratch but still like the joy of making cookies. Well I once came across this recipe for Cake Mix cookies and to be honest I don't remember where as it was when Sam was little and he was, and sometimes still is, one of those types of kids.

Well Today for Cloe and Mom day we made those cookies.

So here are some pictures of our fun and after I will post the recipe for others to try.

This a picture of getting everything ready. She had to touch everything with the spoon and make a little music before we began.

Cloe putting the cake mix into the bowl.

I cracked the eggs into the bowl and she loved pouring them in.

I put all the measured things into cups bigger than needed so they are easier for her to pour.

She was sure concentrating when she was stir it all together.

I just loved how this stirring shot turned out.

This was her second favorite part of making the cookies.

Already to go in the oven

This was Cloe's Favorite part of making the cookies

This is Cloe telling me that I am no longer aloud to take pictures of her eating her spoon.

The cookies are all done and fresh out of the oven. The house sure smelled yummy!

Eating the first cookie while it was still hot.. she just couldn't wait anymore.

She delivered some cookies to her favorite neighbors after wards. That was her happiest moment of the whole experience.

She was most excited to give a couple to our neighbor across the street. They love to sit and visit often.

So here is the recipe:
1 package of cake mix ( we used white for our cookies but works with most flavors)
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 tsp of flavoring (she chose strawberry for hers today and we put a touch extra in)
A shallow bowl of sugar (optional but really fun and yummy on the lemon ones especially)

Pre-heat the oven to 350
Mix the cake mix, eggs, oil, and flavoring together
drop small spoonfuls of the dough into the sugar roll it around lightly the put on the cookie sheet.
bake for 8-10 minutes and then cool for a couple of minutes before eating.
These make for a really yummy soft cookie.

My favorite version is using a lemon cake mix with lemon flavoring.. they end up tasting like lemon drop cookies.

ENJOY!

Weigh-In Wednesday and being OK

Well This has been a crazy bad, dare I say it.. Like living in a Horror Movie kind of week.

Wow! What could of happened to make me say that you ask?

Well Let me tell you.

If you remember a few months ago I had talked about my daughter liking to go for walks on her own and just leaving the house.

Well it hadn't happened in about 3 months so we had thought we had solved the reason for her doing that with enrolling her into Daycare 3 days a week so she could meet new friends.

Actually we have solved that reason the problem I have now is that she still thinks that because she has brothers who can go on walks alone that she also can do that. She doesn't see the world as a dangerous place and of there is something scary out there well she is brave enough to face it because her brothers taught her not to be scared.

It is not a bad thing EXCEPT that means she does see strangers as something she should fear.

So last Thursday we had a problem.... not just a problem my worst nightmare come true to a point.

Seriously my worst nightmare ever since Ben was born was that I would turn my back for a second and when I turned back I would see the toys the kids were dealing with laying on the ground with the sound of a car squealing off. I always wake-up crying with that one.

I was having it less and less as the Boys grew older and I learned to trust them. They would never even consider getting into a strangers car let alone talk to them. Sam would be heard for blocks upon blocks if someone he didn't know ever tried to touch him.

When Claudia came along I kept her close to me because she is cute but I also had become accustom to a comfort level with my fears as well that my kids knew and understood the dangers because I had taught them well. So the first time Cloe took off on her own for a walk I had a moment but sat down and talked to her and tried not to panic about it. Then it happened again and I freaked out inside but tried to keep calm while I dealt with the situation. Then not once more but twice more it happened again. I called in reinforcements by this point because I had no idea how to handle this problem. They helped get Cloe set up in daycare and she no longer went looking for friends to play with. It was nice for the short time we had that peace of mind.

So like I said this past Thursday what I thought had been solved turns out it has not.

I had told Cloe that we were going to help out at the younger boys school that day handing out fruit and veggies (this being one of her days home with me). She was so excited but upset when those boys walked to school with Josh and his friend Jake. She wanted to go with them but I told her we had to wait and drive Ben to school since he had a late morning getting his papers delivered.

I put her coat and shoes on her when we were ready to leave and then turned around to get $5 out of my purse for Ben for lunch that day. When I turned back to say it was time to get in the van she was no longer in the room. We checked the house as the front alarm didn't go off but no sign of her so we checked the yard and nothing so I checked up and down the streets and still no sign.

Ben stayed in the house in case Cloe appeared from somewhere we had missed looking while I drove the route the kids take to walk to the school and she wasn't there. I am panicking at this moment when I drove up to the house and the phone started to ring.

It was the little kids school calling to let me know that She was there!

Before I could ask how they told me that an old administrator had seen her walking and picked her up and dropped her off at the school knowing it was a safe place for her.

I am so grateful it was a good person that picked her up but the fact that she got into a car with a stranger willingly has had me tied in knots since then. I haven't slept hardly at all because the nightmares are even more intense than they ever were with her body being found thrown in a park and all. I wake-up unable to breath.

I haven't hidden it well but still tried to do the best I could for the kids.

Well that leads to me emotionally eating so that I can feel better for a little while.

So last night I decided that this was eating me inside.

I AM NOT OK!!

I had the worst summer ever where I almost lost Tommy to some dumb parasite.

Spent most of it locked in my house after that with 6 kids desperate to go do something.

It cost us thousands of dollars to deal with and we are still paying for those cost with the temporary shut down of our cell phone plan and eating very basic of foods.

I almost lost my daughter to her fearless nature and rosey view of the world

and you know what..

it is OK to not be OK!

I am aloud to feel like crying all the time right now as I work through everything.

I am aloud to want to scream with terror at the thought of what I almost lost these past few months.

I am aloud to be frustrated as I deal with the financial cost of all of this.

I am aloud to feel hurt by those that I thought would be here to help me and weren't

I am most of all aloud to feel NOT OK.

So today my thing I keep telling myself it is OK to NOT be OK.

With that said I am not going to stop taking care of myself while I go through this as that is something I think would keep me down and so I am working on keeping the emotional eating down this next week and find something physical to do instead. Hmmm wonder if I can find a cheap punching bag and take up boxing for the next little while. Something I can put in the corner of my room and take everything I am feeling out on.

So I did in fact weigh myself today because no matter what I don't need to hate myself for dropping this again. so here we go...

I actually lost weight through all of this.

Yep I weighed in at 314 this morning.

So that is a loss of 4.8 lbs from last week.

Not much but still better than a gain. I will take it and it will be my start at finding something good to start this next week off with.

How did your week go? I truly hope it was better than mine.

Here is a picture of a painting I did a few months back to cope with the stress of the first times Cloe escaped and when she did her thing to my project. I think it displays it all.

My Special Project Revealed

OK so I posted Here about some frustration I was having over Cloe doing her thing on a special project I was working on. Well I had managed to fix it finish it to the way it was wanted and after these past few months I can finally reveal what it was I was working on. I was doing a book cover for the book "Dragon Fury: Triple Dragon Suns" by Teriann Jackson found here on Amazon , or here on Chapters, or here on Barnes and Noble, and here on the Publish America Page.

She is a new Author out there in world of books.

She wanted a More eclectic art work That showed a child innocence to her dragons on the front cover. It was a challenge but I think it worked. I was a little upset about how the company did the lettering on it covering up on of the dragons heads which I think turned out the best.

Tell me what you think and check out the book.

There will be 2 more in the series coming out in the next couple of years.

Forget Me Not

Really needed to hear this tonight.

New Favorite Song

OK by now I am sure you have come to realize I LOVE Music.. all kinds and I flip between favorites all the time. There are the classics that I put on and they just get me moving. Disney is always playing here in the house, sound tracks and such. The kids introduce me to new things all the time now that they are growing out of the little kid stage and into the teenage stage. I love that they have found the same love for music as I have.

Ben is more into video game songs dressed up and his favorite artist is Bass Hunter who is this Amazing Swedish artist.

Josh is more into groups like Nickleback.

Sam is completely into video Game songs Like those from Mario and it drives me CRAZY! 

Matt is into Pop music and his favorite right now is Selene Gomez which he has Cloe singing to and it is soo cute.

Tommy still loves the Wiggles but this song by China Anne McClain, which comes on a lot when he is watching his family channel shows, is his new favorite song. 

My new favorite actually came from watching America's Got Talent with my kids, Their favorite TV show until Canada's Got Talent finally airs on TV. I was one of the final 10 results shows where 5 of the acts move on and they get all these other amazing talents to perform and Demi Lovato came on to sing her new single Skyscraper. She is of course doing a come back after taking some personal time off to deal with mental heath issues that come from being a young star. I love that she was up front about these things and went for help before she became another Lindsey Lohan. Well What a song it is. I blew me away at how the meaning of the song was how you are strong no matter what anybody else says or does to you. Great inspiration. So it is now in our morning play list of getting up and getting out the door songs along with these ones I talked about before and a few select others like this one.

For now enjoy the music video Of Skyscraper By Demi Lovato

Weigh-in Wednesday...reborn... not so pretty

So after having taken the summer off for both the fact I couldn't maintain my food plan because of various reasons, and then the focus on getting the house hold back together I am back to doing what I was doing before... but after stepping on the scale this morning I almost cried. Part of me wishes I had stayed blind to what all the stress, lack of food control, periods of starving my body because of being ill myself, and well completely BAD habits all around ( and yes that includes emotional eating from time to time as I struggled to not loss my mind with everything else... see bad choice) had done to my body that I had worked so hard at getting back into shape.

I was not able to going walking everyday like I wanted to because I was locked in my house and when I wasn't I was busy trying to build up my house again. I haven't been able to go to the pool with my friend for the same reason.

One would think that during the time when I was sick I would have lost weight but remember that kicked my bodies starvation defence into over drive and so instead of losing weight I gain it. Yeah... not fun.

So here I am so sick as to all the work I had done almost gone... OK now you may be curious as to my current standings. well lets do a quick recap of where I started ( I need this one) to where I was, to where I am now.

I started out on May 18 at 325.6 lbs

in July I was 295.8 and so happy to be out of the 300 club with a weight loss of 29.8lbs!... then life kicked in

So today I began to get my life back after getting the rest of the family back together... and so I begin again with a weight of 318.8 lbs. yep almost back to where I was. I was not happy when I stepped on the scale, but I was not all the way back and having done it already once I know I can do it again. And looking at the bright side I still have a loss off 6.8 lbs. Life goes on and you can't let one small set back get you down.

And so to end this post on a fun note check out this picture of Matthew jumping off a rope swing for the first time in the river down in Abbotsford. It still makes me laugh looking at it.

Grandma's Wisdom

So I have been blessed in my life to know all of my Grandma's and even some of my great Grandmother's.
This is something I took for granted when younger. I did not realize then how many people never get to meet these amazing people. I spent time with mine, learned card games from some, crafting things from others. I LOVED visiting my grandparents. They always were so excited to spend time with me and reminded me how special I was. They are the reason I strive to make other people know their worth as well when I can.
They all have imparted to me some wisdom along the way in one form or another and I try to share that with my kids as they grow up and is part of the reason I become involved with Heritage Makers. So I have started working on some Heritage Books that will help me share this wisdom with my kids and maybe even remind some of those family members out there what these amazing Ladies have past on to us. I have been focusing on my Grandma Derkson right now as she inspired much of what I live by today. She shared with me often the mistakes she had done and the wisdom she learned from those mistakes. When we were little we would get to spend our birthdays with her and I loved learning a new skill every time I went. It was a tradition I missed when we moved too far way from her to do it anymore.
When we got older she started giving us gifts that shared her talents and wisdom with us and I treasure these items. Even to this day I still pull out little stories or saying that she has given me along the way that help with challenges I face.
So the other day as I was struggling with my fears over going to church, and the fears of others I pulled out a little book she gave out to everyone at Christmas in 1999. It is a book of lessons she had learned through her then 66 years of life. Reading it is what gave me the strength to admit my fears and to have the power to face everyone else's fears. So today I would like to share that little section with you.

"Controlling yourself is more important than controlling others.

  I discovered early in life that other people always think they know exactly what you should be doing, when you should be doing it and how you should be doing it.  The problem is that if you listen to ten different friends, they will each tell you something different, but when it comes time to take the consequences of what you do, it is you who must take them, whether you have listened to your friends or not. Be careful who you listen to.
     On the other side of the fence, it seems really easy to see exactly what everyone else should be doing, when they should be doing it and how they should be doing it. Trying to force others to follow your map for them is what causes contention between people, in families, wars between countries and much misery in the world.
     The truth is we never really know what is in the heart and soul of others and this is why the Lord has cautioned us to be careful in our judgment of others.
     Controlling ourselves is much more difficult than controlling others. We make excuses and exceptions for ourselves that we would never make for someone else.
     'Now these are the words which Jesus taught his disciples that they should say unto the people, Judge not unrighteously, that ye not be judged: but judge righteous judgment. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.' Matthew 7:1-2"

Yep she inspires me, I am so grateful to still have her words to give me strength even though she is not living here on earth anymore. I can still give my kids her wisdom like she is standing right here.

And now since a Blog is not the same without a picture.. I present to you the picture for the day. Even plants and trees do their own thing and don't always do what others think they should do. It creates something beautiful

I Heart Faces: A Touch of Sun

So I was so excited about this weeks theme.

I had tons ideas running through my head that I have written down and will do with my kids one of these days soon, but for today's entry I chose to use a photo I took of my Cousin with her boyfriend this past summer. She LOVES sun in photos and so I had to make sure I took at least one for her with some in it. She wanted some nice artistic pics to hang on her wall. I hope she loves this one.

Enjoy!

Checkout the other entries at

Flecks of Gold

Oh how I forget the worth of the small things sometimes.

Too many times it seems lately.. maybe that is why we went through the trial we went through.

Thought I would share a message that helps remind me of the worth of the small compared to those nuggets we go looking for that are too big to carry.

P.S. I just Love the talks that Elder M. Russell Ballard gives and you can check out his entire talk called  "Finding Joy Through Loving Service"  Here

Something I have missed

Yep... crazy to think that I am missing something.

OK not really because seriously how many times have I written about something I miss or something I wish I could do. But this is something that I truly have missed in my life and the difference is big.

What is it already you may ask?

You sure you want to know?

Some people are scared of such things and I will admit to having my moments too. I am not perfect, or even as strong as some people may think I am most days. I am emotional and scared. I hurt and I am shy at times. But it's who I am and that is what makes me special.

Why would I be so scared of doing something I miss?

Well having mentioned before that darn parasite that knocked my family down to its knees this past summer, I am afraid of being judged, I am afraid of people not talking to me because they are afraid. I am terrified of feeling alone and looked down on for something I had no control over. I am afraid of the looks I will get when my children misbehave because they have had a long rough summer and are so full of raw emotions too that they can't keep it all in. I am scared of how I will feel when my kids behave badly. I am scared I will not be welcomed back. The crazy thing is that I know in my mind that I have no real reason to be scared because there are so many amazing people and friends there and even if there are those odd few I am not forgotten or unloved and even if I was there is one person who matters more than the others who will gladly welcome me back with open arms, but I am still scared.

So are you going crazy trying to figure out what it is that I am talking about or have you figured it out?

If you haven't I will tell you.

It is going back to church.

Such a small thing and yet so important to my life.

Why haven't we been going you are wondering if the kids can go to school and summer camps for this past month?

Well it is because of other peoples fears.

Understand now why I am afraid?

Maybe not, it seems silly to be not doing something because someone else is afraid.

You see even though we have been cleared to go out as long as we wash ourselves, especially our hands before we go until the house is cleared (furniture gone and having gone bleach WILD, etc.) from this parasite, they were afraid of their kids getting it. I was called by the bishop the week that we were cleared to leave and he asked me some questions and I was so excited to be going.. I even had most of the kids ready for church already. But then the question came and when he asked it my heart sank. I put on a brave face over the phone but I was dieing inside. Was my house cleared yet? No. It wasn't. That was before we found out we had to get rid of the furniture. So it has been a long time.since we have been there.

Was that a fair thing to be asked of us?

It felt like no but really yes it was. I would NEVER wish upon any parent the sight of their kid in the hospital with 2 IVs and oxygen. I would of been scared too if I was on the other side of the fence.

So the furniture is gone and starting to be replaced. The bleaching is done and burned our eyes. Is my house spotless and sparkly?? NO I have 6 kids are you crazy!!they lived in the cleaned rooms while I worked on the others... I suspect I will never have a home that will be spot lighted in Better Homes and Gardens, but we are happy, and healthy and glad to be able to go back to church.

What I find fun is that this Sunday is National Go Back To Church Day. So if you haven't been in a while for one reason or another, think it over. And watch this video, it might just inspire you.

Speaking of Inspiration

Being a mother of 6 AMAZING kids presents its self with many different dilemmas everyday.

There is many , many great songs out there that are written and performed by people who want to share their faith. But These great songs are not played on the radio station or listened to by many kids at school. When going to dances you are not going to hear Michael McLean's "His Hands" played so we, as parents, need to be aware of the other music out in the world and make sure our children know those songs that come along that are just as inspiring but is out there in the general public.

When my kids were little they discovered my Bon Jovi collection an fell in love with his music. So when he came out with the song "It's My Life" I used that to enforce with my kids that they are saying it's OK to say no to drugs, and alcohol, and the many other things in this life that others may want you to do that you know are wrong. It is Your Life and you have the right to choose the way you want to live it. Now I have head strong kids that make presentations to their classes on how they hate smoking and alchol and they are proud to be who they are. It also means they stand up against me when I tell them they have to do something they don't want to do. I try to remember that it is not necessarily bad but that I need to point out that good and bad choices have consequences... good and bad ones.

Now I have a couple of kids who have people, friends I told, telling them that they are not worth anything. They pick on them and ignore them and it breaks my heart because I know how they feel and no matter how many times I tell them they are worth so much more than even I know because they are Heavenly Fathers children, they hurt inside. So I was grateful the day I turned on the radio and there was Katy Perry, a musician who is a role model in so many kids eyes singing the song "Firework". Now I don't nessarely like most of her songs or what they stand for but I admire her courage to be who she is and I LOVE this song that tells our youth it is ok to stand out for who you are. It doesn't matter what ANYONE else says, your are a firework and you need to let it shine. I play these 2 songs in the morning now before they head off to school so they remember these things as they go to face the day against these "friends" (who I have said are not real friends if they treat you this way).

So as I get ready to start a new day today with my kids I thought I would share these songs with you. And also to say THANK-YOU to all my amazing friends who accepted me for who I am... faults and all. I truly love you all.

Great People

We all get star struck when we hear big names in Music and Movies. No matter how you feel about some of them if Brad and Angelina were to walk past you you would feel some awe. If  Michael Bubblé was to stand behind you in the grocery line you would consider your self lucky.

Where is all this going do you ask? Well I wanted to say how lucky I feel to have met to of the greats.. whether you know them or not in my life. They don't go out and sing the most popular thing or act in the most popular roles that will get their names in lights but they inspire us to be the people we all can be.

They have both portrayed one of my favorite most inspiring pioneer story in ways that make anyone feel  what it was like for them. A piece of LDS history that is as sad as it is amazing. I truly don't know if I could have the strength these people had. I am talking about the Martin Handcart Company. A handcart group that travelled through the most horrifying of weather because of their faith. They did things that made the Prophet weep. These people are examples to us all about how strong we, EVERYONE, are.

The first person I consider blessed to have known in my life is Jaelan Petrie. He was my high school crush. Not just because he was oh so darn cute but because I admired his strength of spirit. I was such an emotional mess back then spiritually and other wise that I never felt I could deserve someone so amazing. I managed a few times to build up the courage to talk to him and even ask him to dance. I even said Hi to him once in a voice so high and squeaky that my Best Friend couldn't stop laughing for weeks. I still laugh at times about it. I really felt like a fool when I finally got to sit in that back seat of a car with him driving home from a party and pronounced the name of a constellation wrong. Yeah.. I was a high school geek.. still am most days I think.. Well I am sure my kids thing so anyways. I continue to admire him because he went on to become the actor he wanted to be and played the lead role in the movie Handcart. Now this is a fictional story about the company but his courage to even play a role that would have go through such trials both emotional and physical is brilliant. I know some people don't feel the movie was so great but I don't care. I loved being able to share it with my kids. Look for a clip at the end of this post.

The second person is Wayne Burton. I went to institute with him and got to know this amazing person who was fun, outgoing, friendly and so full of talent. You should check him out on a BMX bike. He has this amazing soul that is so full of the spirit that you knew he was going to find some way to let it out and he has. He is a well accomplished musician with albums and such out there. His latest is also a song of the Handcart company but even more of a tribute to these unsung heroes. He captured the feeling that has always been in my heart with this story and how they have always reminded me of Christ true love for all of us.  How lucky am I to have met and learned from these two people. How lucky am I to have the rest of my inspirational friends and family in my life. My Grandma Brooks is currently in Utah filming a movie about the Old Testament. He is also some one I admire. How blessed can one person be. How can I NOT go and do those things the Lord asks me to do with such examples in my life.

I wish I understood my worth sooner when I was younger that I could of worked more closely with both of them. Maybe one day I still get the chance. For now enjoy the fruits of their work with me as well. First a Clip of the Movie Handcart with Jaelan Petrie and then the YouTube Video of the song One By One written and Perform by Wayne Burton. And to those interested Wayne is having a contest go check him out on facebook here and become a fan for your chance to win one of his albums or songbooks for free!

Who inspires you to be a better person or reminds you of what you are working towards?

Starting to Get back to Normal

Yep.. I really mean it. Thanks to some really AMAZING people our lives We have recovered most of our Beds back!! Just one more single bed to go and everyone will have their own bed to sleep on again! YEAH!!

The removing of the furniture and replacing of that has been different. We have only replaced 2 big chairs but it has really got me thinking about what we had and what we actually need to have. I have set up in my upstairs living room a table for everyone to do their homework and stuff on that seems to work better than having their rooms crowded with desks. It is a brighter room and we don't have TVs in there as it is our reading and music room. So I am thinking I will keep the table there with the some chairs to sit on at the table and the I have 2 big comfy chairs for us to relax in and read our books so maybe just one more big chair with the Piano bench that is all ready in there and there is more than enough seats for everyone with out the bulk of a couch and a love seat. Then we just need to get furniture downstairs in the toy room/ games room but maybe even there I might just get 1 love seat for us older people who watch the movies and TV shows and then some bean bags for the kids who like the lower adjustable stuff. I have kids and I need to furnish my house like I have kids instead of trying to make it look like it comes out a magazine. I need to be more practical about my home being for my family and not worry what everyone else does for theirs. I am enjoying having the opportunity to do this. It is starting to feel good again and not so stressed.

Also I have started back to tax class to train for the next level plus the Photography club has started back up again and I went to the first meeting last night. I have my photography schooling I am getting back into with the kids being in school and hopefully will have the next unit done by the end of October with my assignments sent in. The kids are doing great at school and we have even started back into having our crazy mornings since they are getting back into the routine. I never thought I would enjoy the chaos of fighting with Josh to get out of the shower and Sam to get out of bed because he has snoozed enough. It has been a lot of hard work these past 2 months to get here from catching the parasite but in a way it gave us a fresh start and a more positive out look on life. Would it be weird to say it was almost a blessing to have gone through these struggles? I don't think so.

Well I am off to move in the latest of beds to arrive so I will leave you all with a picture of the toads that seem to have survived being in our old aquarium. They all came out to eat the ants the kids collected on a piece of watermelon.

Have I mentioned...

... how much I Love the new Blogger site? It makes creating posts much easier and it also lets me know that even though I don't get many comments (or any it seems most of the time lately), that people do still come to visit my blog. It would be nice if on those days however if even a few of the average 20 people who come would at least say hi. It sure does make one feel more loved when you take the time to comment.

I also LOVE having some free time for the first time in YEARS! I took last week off and didn't do much around the house and stuff but still had fun. I was able to actually do things when I volunteered to help with Burger Day at the school. I sent off my photography assignment and got some of my Heritage Makers business organized with the joy of weekly meeting on line with Julie. I put my binders together for my tax class I started yesterday so I can work this next tax season and even had time to blog almost everyday! I am working on some more photo assignments and challenges and look forward to the great people I get to take the photos of and hopefully one of these days soon I will get that business up and going. I am looking forward to doing so much more. Some people may have thought that saying at 31 I was done having kids was crazy but look at me now.. 34 and starting to feel like more than just a Mom again. There is still so much more I need to go like feeling good about my body again and my health but I feel like there is now time for me to focus on me and do those things. Now if I could just find some amazing fairy that would come wave her magic wand over my home and it would clean itself oh the things I could do ;)

What has you smiling these days?

And to end the post with a smile check out this photo ...

I Heart Faces: Back to School

I posted last week some pictures I took of the boys going back to school but for the I Heart Faces challenge this week I am going to share my favorite of the bunch. I asked all the boys to line up and show off their new styling back packs, they were already done with taking the individual photos and so they got a little silly with this one. It makes me laugh and shows the crazy kids I live with everyday.

Enjoy!

And check out all the rest of this weeks challenge entries at

Moments that Matter Most

I know I need to slow down some days and cherish the moments that matter the most... what about you?

Late Night Adventure

So last night I was looking forward to getting a picture of the Northern Lights. According to NASA that was to happen around midnight. Hmmm NASA has some bugs in their system as they actually came out around 9:30 - 10 pm and I was not ready with my camera. I was in my bedroom finishing putting together my new bed given to me by a wonderful friend. When one of my other friends called me to see if I was outside taking pictures yet and to make sure I sent her one I was so sad. it was around 10:30pm and the lights were already fading. I grabbed Cloe and some of the boys and hopped in the van and off we drove. First we were just trying to find a spot where there were no city lights to get in the way. But within a few minutes of leaving we couldn't see them any more. we headed back home but noticed as we were about to park they had come back a little so we headed off again. this time we knew we were heading towards the airport and going to pull over as soon as we could see the lights clear enough. Now they never came back fully but we did manage to capture this picture...

We are going to be more on the ball tonight with popcorn and everything and try and get a great picture of the lights. It has been a dream of mine since I first saw them. Wish me luck.

Did you see the lights last night?

If you had the chance to take a picture of a natural event what would it be?

Please share :) Love to hear from you.



First Day of School

So today the Kids went back to school... For an Hour and a Half! Ok it was fun for them to go but really what was the point? I could of slept in one more day. That's ok We really had fun with it. The Kids got to wear their new shoes and clothes and carry their new backpacks. We had fun taking pictures and everything. I got caught up with the rest of the parents and what they were doing this summer. It was good. Tomorrow I get to get the boys off to school and Cloe off to daycare and enjoy my day to me :) For now you can enjoy the photos we took today :) Check out Josh's "Too Cool" For pictures face ;)

How was your day today?

New Collection, Need Some Help

So a friend is down sizing a lot and has given Us (Cloe and Myself) her doll collection. They are beautiful and wonderful but I know nothing about dolls or how to find information about them. I know that most of these have numbers and names on the back but when I type it into google I get a bunch of eBay listings. So I am going to post pictures of them and if anyone knows anything about them or if you know how to find info about them please email me dyannel@live.com or post a comment (FYI comments are welcome even if you don't know anything)



What Matters Most

There are 2 people today who set aside what they wanted for what mattered most to them and It made me remember this video. I am proud of them and I hope they see the good they did today.

Safe Place to Sleep

So I went to put some newspaper into the recycling yesterday and you will never guess what I found...

Yep 2 little kittens found refuge from the lovable Cloe in my newspaper recycling bin. Since the kids never seem to know how to put the papers in there I think they are safe. That is until the kids discover their little secret.

Ben's Camping trip with Tim Hortons, a Guest post :)

I found this long lost post of Ben from last year hiding in my drafts. I thought I would finally post it for you all to see. I think he wanted to put more info into it but never had the time as he got busy with school and life of a high school student. Enjoy!

So I have promised for a while about Ben guest posting about his camp with the Tim Horton's foundation but it never seemed to happen. Between computer problems and then blogger problems with the amount of Pictures included in this post it seemed to take forever to get it done, but here we are done!

So for all those waiting with baited breath,

Here, at last, is Ben's Guest Blog Post :)

Hello, Ben here.

So the pictures your going to see are both the ones my Mom took with a loaner camera at the airport when I left and when I got home, and my photos I took. Enjoy.