The weekend is finally here....

Good Afternoon to you...

This morning I was wondering why no one was leaving me comments. My Godmother mentioned how she left me a comment but I said it couldn't be because I couldn't find it anywhere....

'I feel like a putz..' I did actually have a few lovely comments but had to publish/accept them before they showed up on my site. Still new to blogging so....I just had a (Oh...okay moment!) a few minutes ago! Ever have one of those moments, here you finally clue in to something...

Anyways, Thanks for the Happy Easter wishes! Greatly appreciated!Yesterday for the first time, I transplanted a few trees in my yard and I must admit it was actually quite exhilarating and hard work. My parents were around to supervise as I have never attempted this before. I wanted to move one to the side of the house and one in the front yard. It went great. I never knew even the smallest of tree had such big roots. I will admit to feeling achy last night...But my fiance gave me a back rub so that was well worth it.
I can't wait to water them and watch them grow. My daughter helped as well and she kept asking if they were her trees. So I told her yes. And her smile grew ear to ear. Very simple to make a child happy. She also had a little bit to much fun with the water hose. The trees weren't the only things that got wet...My jogging pants were drenched!! Thanks sweetheart.. I'm glad the weather was gorgeous, the sun was shining and Hope had fun helping and flying a kite with her Meme. Winter is long past us now... I'm realizing that as stressful as owning a house can be it can also be therapeutic. Gardening and backyard up-keep are excellent activities to keep you moving and promote good health. Gardening can also be a stress reliever, a great outlet for creativity and can produce an undemanding concentration that increases our capacity to rest.

I was working along side my father yesterday and couldn't help but stare at him and wonder if he believes he's lived a great life. And perhaps if there still something he's loved to do but hasn't. My father and mother are the best two people I know. They are kind, loving, thoughtful, sincere and hard working people. They've adopted me and my brother at an early age and we feel awfully lucky to have them as parents. My mother is ever so nurturing and my father is truly the most hard working man I know and very simple. He enjoys laughing continuously and my mother is my best friend. Their that couple that are just perfect for each other. My parents are the kind of people whom show their affections equally between their kids and also Grand

kids as many parents don't, as I have learned. They tend to be laid back but yet always help when needed. They are in my opinion the greatest parents ever. They have given me the greatest gift: To have been loved and sought out great love.

Thanks Mom & Dad for all you do! Have a great Weekend....
Take a few minutes for yourself...
Perhaps look around your garden, I actually have a few flowers in bloom. I believe they are tulips...(but not having a green thumb your guess is as good as mine)
See you soon.
Cheers.

More pet peeves....

As I promised more vents for moi. But before we get to that...Can we not take a minute to smell the fresh warm air! It's gorgeous out there and I'm dying to take out my Gardening ornaments.

My first vent of the day is for some people not a problem and yet for others you can see them getting frustrated by the minute, even seconds...I call it the 'Waiting game.' We spend so much time waiting in lines. For me, I will admit I can't handle it. I believe I spend more time in waiting lines at department stores, than I actually do that of shopping! Just standing there damn right annoys me. I start to fidget, sway back and forth and even start biting my lower lip. lol

• What I cannot understand is shopping at Big Brand Stores where their are tons of people shopping yet they only have two-three tellers open, which creates long customer line ups.
  
• Why should I half to waste my precious minutes waiting in long queues that seem to be going nowhere fast?
• Then when your finally advancing in the line, you get happy until some customer has a few articles of clothing or products with no label or has a problem with pricing...then your at a complete halt. (not always the customers fault, mind you!) If there was more cashes open we could change lines but NOPE!!!

• Then you notice the department stores clerk s-l-o-w-l-y ringing up every item and telling the customer her life story... Urgggg You know what I'm talking about every store has them.
  
• We seem to get angry when we are served by a teller whom has this dumbfounded look on their face and doesn't smile which is rightfully so. I hate when I try to make a joke about something with the person serving me and there lost in another planet. I know sometimes we are bothered with other stuff in our lives and our jobs get mundane but if your going to work with the public should you not be present in the moment?
• More often than not, I get closer to the front of the line because people before me get frustrated and leave the store.
  

All I want is shorter lines. Tellers whom are cheery and have a personality. And more cashes open!

Just a little periwinkle flower to brighten up your day. Even though I write these vents....I'm a very content person. I just thought I'd share with you things that at times frustrate me.
flower photo from:http:www.nature-and-flower-pictures.com

And my second pet peeve of the day is................women's clothing....Now I'm your average size women...Not skinny but not crazy big either. What ever size you are you should be able to find clothing which looks good on you right? The answer is wrong!!
I'll be honest with you I'm a little fluffy....but I feel as though I can't find any clothes. Sure, their are shops like Pennington's, Addition-Elle and others but the problem is their clothes....
Let's be honest if your not a size 'zero' you have big problems.

• Why is it that pants for fluffy women make us look like we have bigger crotches than our partners? Can someone explain me that.
• Because we are fluffy we seem to be deemed as the Big Polka Dot wearers...Even though I have a few more fat cells than others DON"T FREAKEN MEAN I WANT TO WEAR OVERLY BIG PATTERNS ON MY SHIRTS! Now this dress is absolutely gorgeous...For a little girl. Polka dots look great on kids to a certain degree. Like adults some kids clothing are also ridiculous.
  

Polka dots belong back in the 60's. Big or small I hate them. The bigger you are the bigger they look on you. Polka dots were made famous from the song 'Itsy Bitsy Tiny Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Beenie, by Brian Hyland. And I believe they should of stayed in that era.

• And dresses.....Don't get me started....I have a figure....Why is it that most of the dresses could fit my hot water tank? I have curves and my fiance has no chance of flying away. lol

• It's sad that in this day and age when many of us are little fluffier, we are made to feel ugly. If we don't conform to society's beliefs we are punished.

It's sad but we as a society need to stop judging each other. Everyone is different, everyone is not a size zero....When we were younger and in school we were told to be nice to everyone, accept everyone, no matter what color, race, weight or other different characteristics yet we as adults criticize everyone and anything. I will be the first to admit I'm part of that group as we all are. Sadly enough, I think women are pretty harsh when it comes to other women. Should we not as a whole unite and not bash each other. We should praise one another. It wasn' t that long ago when women could not vote, nor hold high position jobs. We as women know the challenges we face everyday, the burdens and everyday issues, therefore we need to stand up and start finding ways of accepting each other.
Sorry for getting of topic.....I was going to erase this whole paragraph...but sometimes things just come rushing out....so....I left it... :)

If your ever in the mood for a great listen.....Carolyn Dawn Johnson's song :
"God doesn't make Mistakes."
I can't wait for more women to be able to say this line including myself:
"I'm ok with the way God made me,
I have my days but doesn't everybody
It's not always easy for me to believe in myself
But I gotta remember
I'm always gonna be a better me
than anyone else
And God doesn't make mistakes'

Have a great evening....
Take time for yourself....
Cheers
Nat

Easter has come and Gone...

Happy Tuesday to all,

I hope everyone had a great and safe weekend. Easter was really exciting this year. My daughter awoke bright and squirly (7:ooam) and wanted to start her Easter Egg Hunt. I woke up to her saying: "WOW! Mama, there's Easter eggs everywhere. She immediately ran in our room and asked if she could start to gathering them up. We asked politely if we could make some coffee first. (we bad! lol)
Then she grabbed her Diego pouch and found all of her eggs. It's priceless watching them get so excited for such little things. Perhaps we as adults could take pointers from them. I think many of us forget to enjoy the simplest of things life has to offer. We should take the time to smile when we see flowers beginning to bloom, take a moment and reflect the beauty of nature. We should be in amazement when our child learns a new word or finally sings a few songs by her/him self. She gets so excited when I tell her Mama and Daddy bought her Popsicles. We as society, are too busy multi-tasking and not taking the time to enjoy what is surrounding us.
For example, at this present time look around you, do you smell anything good? Do you see anything beautiful? We need to embrace and start capturing simple everyday moments and sprinkle them throughout our day.

• When is the last time you actually sat with your first coffee of the morning and enjoyed the aroma?
• When did you last smile at the birds flying over your head?
• What about watching the sun go down?
  
• Remember flying a kite when you were younger and running in the fields with your parents?
• Your first walk on the grass barefoot in the summer?
  

I would like to take the time to thank you for reading my blog, it brings a smile on my face to see you have came for a visit.

Back to Easter.....These are the beautiful little bouquets of Easter Eggs Hope gave to her family. Everyone was quite impressed. She loved every minute of painting them. She has a great passion for painting. She's a fun-loving, warm-hearted child.
We finished the Easter Hunt, had breakfast and went to church. She wore her beautiful pink dress and looked like my very own little princess. She was great in church. My fiance was subjected to going to French Church, so he was like a deer caught in head lights. The priest came to our pew and wished us a Happy Easter as asked Allen what his last name was (in French) I'm sorry to laugh but he looked so lost and confused. He started to explain to the priest that we had only been living in our home for a short time and....I had to nudge him and just tell him to tell the priest his last name. The priest proceeded to tell him his last name meant 'peace'... I had to laugh again... My daughter came with me to receive communion and she proceeded to stretch her arm out to receive communion but was SHOT down...How do you tell a three year old why she couldn't have one...(lol) After church we had pancakes and where off to the in-laws...
Where she got spoiled by everyone. I honestly believe in teaching my daughter that she should appreciate every gift she receives big or small. I am hoping, as she grows older, she won't approach every holiday thinking it's all about the gifts but about and what is most important is her FAMILY being around her and loving her. I also believe in teaching her that it's just as much fun giving to others.

What I was most proud of is when I asked her what Easter was all about and she replied: it's a celebration, we get Easter eggs from the bunny and Jesus is alive again! Remember this is coming from a 3 1/2 yr old...I'm a proud mama....

Again...I hope you enjoyed your weekend...
Easter has come and gone again....
Let us now enjoy the fresh air, flowers in bloom,
roasting marshmallows, kites flying and let us not forget corn on the cob...

Cheers....
Take Care

Easter Time...

First and foremost....I'd like to wish everyone a Happy colourful Easter decorated with much love, happiness and joy. Wishing everyone a blessed Easter.

Easter has gotten so commercial, let me re-phrase that, it's been so for many years. Stores are filled with plastic eggs, bunnies, chocolates, baskets filled with both and let's not forget toys. Easter is much more than candies and bunnies. Easter day is a day of rejoicing. It is the day that Jesus Apostle's found out he was alive again. They had gone to the cave where he was buried and found the rock that had blocked the cave pushed to the side. He was alive. This year seems different for me. Why, you ask. Because I have a 3 1'2 yr old whom understands a bit more than last year. I feel the need to teach her that although Easter is great because we get to wake up to the Easter Bunny's chocolates, we also need to keep in mind that Jesus or as she calls him baby Jesus- (at Christmas she saw Baby Jesus under the tree in a manger so now she calls him 'baby Jesus') is alive again. At her age I feel as though we don't need to go in specific details but let our kids know that this celebration is not simply that of gifts and chocolates but a day to be thankful and be close to family and friends.

For the past week I've been making eggs with Hope. (As you may or may not have noticed I collect everything with my daughter's name on it-this one was a gift from my god-mother for her birthday)

She enjoyed making them. It's so much fun making crafts with your kids. You get to see all their creativity flow. You also, and be honest moms, need to bite your tongue at times when you see their painting or drawing and you think you can tweak it a little. We were painting styrofoam eggs and making Easter pots for the family and I happened to have black paint. She wanted to use the color black so I simply mentioned that Easter colors where more about pastels colors, and well.....I had to set my opinion aside and give her the black. It was her project so I had to let her make her own mind up...and they turned out beautifully. We made smaller versions of my Easter table center piece which my best friend made me. But I substituted the dollar store eggs with Hope's painted eggs and smaller pots (for a plant) from the $ store. (my batteries for my camera are dead...so I'll post them later)

Yesterday my parents came over for Good Friday. Hope was excited to visit with them. She loves them so much and they spoil her rotten. We went for a drive in the country and landed at Tim Horton's for a coffee (Canadians do love their Tim Horton's) You can practically find one in every corner of Canada.

My fiance has gotten me hooked on coffee in the mornings. I had never really been much of a coffee drinker whereas he had been drinking coffee for ages! I won't drink it all day. I'm one of those people that I have a few sips and put it down somewhere around the house then drink a few more sips, then refill it, and again leave it somewhere on a coffee table. So I hardly see the end of the cup and in the end I end up pouring it out... Sounds ridiculous now that I say it out loud! lol We had a great day with my parents. Hope had her Pepe (short for pepere-French) swing her on the swings, buy her Timbits and read her books. Since it was Good Friday we ate Fish and fries. And ended the nite by tucking Hope to bed and watching 'Don't mess with the Zohan, an Adam Sandler movie...A must see.. So stupid that it will make you cry laughing.

Back to , I must

admit I can't wait to see her face when she sees the Easter egg hunt all around the house. Then were off to church in our Sunday's clothing. Hope will be wearing her pretty Easter dress bought by her Nanny. Still not sure what I am wearing...I will know at the last minute... This happens every time we go out...But that's a whole other post.. lol Then were off to the in-laws for supper.

Have yourself a Great Easter...
Eat,
laugh whole-heartedly,
rejoice, enjoy,
be in the moment.
See you soon!
Cheers

Wednesday Vents....

Good afternoon.....Weather again is blah....I'm still wondering where my 'great Thursday day' went from last week... Why are we having snow again...yet the sun is trying to shine through my basement window. I decided to try something new... This post will be about my pet peeves.
I thought I'd share more about myself so we can feel more like were friends which would perhaps bring you to visit me more often as I reveal more about 'moi' little by little. Wednesday's will be my 'Vent day'. You know those things that totally annoy or frustrate us to no end! We all have them and now mine will be share with you.. The reason for this is my first pet peeve. OK ladies, I'm sure many many many of you can relate....I've been reading 'how to make a great blog' and the one common denominator is 'find a related topic.' Well...I think I may have found mine.
It's a three letter word. Which brings many of us conflict. Are you ready for it.
My first vent is about....... (drum role please)


1. BRAS There is nothing worse than a terrible fitting bra. The straps keep falling down, they never stay in place. You can adjust the strap over and over again yet still fall down. The wire underneath the breast is simply uncomfortable. After washing your bras they become stretched and some discoloured. We've all heard of the push-up bras...What if my boobs are big enough and I don't want a push up bra? Why is it that if your small breasted lady you can find tons of bras and 'ON SALE' and they are very stylish with great patterns, prints and colors. Yet for those of us whom have average to bigger breast we need to pay 'an arm and a leg' for our bras, they mostly come in white black or beige...Who the hell wants beige bras except for my great-grandma( sorry grandma) We can't find bras with nice patterns and a wide range of colors. And if you do find them they are top $. We're bras not made to hold our boobs up...And I mean big boobs...not those who belong to the (itty titty bitty comity) as my fiance and his co-workers call them! I'm not trying to be mean to small breasted woman but yet the people whom make them. I hate going to buy bras. I would rather chew my arm off. I am a 30ish young woman whom would like to wear bras my husband finds appealing not BEIGE!! Can you tell I hate the color beige... lol Last but not least, I don't want a bra that fits my whole front chest. I recently went to a department store and got fitted for a new bra and well things went from bad to worse. The sales lady came in and asked if I needed help. I reluctantly said yes. She proceeded to give me all the bras that my grannies would wear. You know the ones with the thick, heavy straps and wide band in the back and 'for the love of god' 'BEIGE'..... Need I say more..!!! All I want is a bra that supports my boobs, strap that stay up and perhaps a purple one! lol Sadly enough most of us can't go bra less yet my fiance would have no problem with it.. :) And one more thing I hate, under wire bras because after a while the wire tends to poke me in the underarm...URGGGG Need I say more... I actually looked around the net and found sites devoted to 'I hate bras'....as I sit here writing this post I am bra less... Ha- Ha....

2. The phone rings. Your in the middle of doing laundry or simply answering the door or preparing supper while your child asks you a million and one questions. You run to the phone and it's your bank calling or some business calling for a 'courtesy call.' I almost feel as though I am being stalked by telemarketers. I always get them when I'm busy. I know I should be nice because these employees are simply doing their jobs BUT if they call ten times a day my patience grows thin.

• The best is when you pick up and a recording tells you to wait for someone to come on the phone and speak to you...You want me to wait..YOU CALLED ME....
• Then after running a flew flights of stairs to get to the phone, they say it's simply a courtesy call. Wondering if their service is satisfying. If I needed to change something with my service I would go their in person. If I was mad with my service they would know. This is not a courtesy call it's a 'would you leave me the heck alone and stop calling my house sort of call.'
• And to top it all off....How many times can I say I'm not interested in one phone call..They simply keep talking like I'm gonna change my mind. Madam, many people in your neighbourhood have this service. I respond: No thanks. But.. Madam, this would be a great blah blah blah blah blah...( like the teacher talking in Charlie Brown)
  
• I admit, after a while, I get annoyed or hang up on them. There I said it, the dreaded hanging up on people...Is it rude, perhaps. But when I tell you I am not interested STOP! asking!.

• Honestly do you really want me to let you go on with your sales pitch If I am 100% sure I'm not interested?
• What I hate the most is them calling on weekends...Come people I have a life..Weekends are spent with my family. It's enough that you call me everyday of the week.
  

Can we just get along...lol

I hope your enjoying your day and week... I will leave you with my first pet peeves...
Surely more to come...undoubtedly!
Feel free to leave comments.
Cheers to you!
Where ever you are I hope the sun is shinning upon you.
See you soon...

My labour of love....

The weather outside was nothing to talk about but inside was a different story. What is a crafter to do on a wet flurry day like today! Let me tell ya. I opened my cross-stitching box and wondered where all my cross-stitch projects had gone. It seems as though all of my projects where gifts to my loved ones. This was my very first one made in a few days. My best friend Jenna encouraged me to take up this fantastic craft. This was the first project she showed me how to tackle. The picture isn't the best but you can get the idea. It's called an Amish Quilt. Cross-stitch is simply about counting your thread and making an X-shaped stitch which is how you form a picture. My next project was that of Winnie the Pooh. Another love of mine. Before my daughter was born I was collecting everything Pooh and now it's a thing of the past, perhaps! I collected stuffed bears, glasses, mugs, pictures, pens, pins, figurines and so on. I'm a kid at heart. I love the simple things, I simply can't help but adore him as does Hope. Yet I think she's more into Dora and Diego at this point...She's moved on yet I still haven't!!! lol

For my next project I decided to tackle a project a bit over my head. I will admit it was quite challenging, yet I did it. This was for my fiance's cousin Amanda whom was getting married. She simply adored anything having to do with lighthouses. I found a pattern and was determined to make her this lovely gift for her collection. (I forgot to take a picture of it so I'll show you the pattern.) It took me a few months yet it came together well. It wasn't that hard to follow..

I don't mind all the counting and the small hole's which you insert your needle in and at times get cross eyed! lol Their are so many colors of DMC to buy. I tend to buy colors I need to finish a project and then always end up buying tons of other colors simply because I love the shade of color. Trendy or traditional these works of art are made with love. Anyone who sits for hours at a time and months at a time working stitches are passionate about their work and their crafts. Needless to say, my cousins really enjoyed their wedding gift.
At the present time I'm working on a project for Hope. I made her a circle of hearts and wrote her name in the middle to hang on her door. I wanted to make her another to display on her wall. I started when I was pregnant, three years later still not done. I keep putting it off and well times have been somewhat busy. But I promised myself to have it done in the next few weeks..I really like the one I chose for her. It says 'Believe in yourself' which is something I believe everywhere little girl growing up needs to here more often than not. I was always a shy girl growing up too scared to try most things. I missed out on playing basketball afraid to fail, I was scared to enter singing contest, again scared to fail...do you see a pattern emerging? I want my daughter to be able to stand on her own two feet and discover the world. Be not afraid of the unknown. I simply want her to know she can make her own goals, to believe in her own talents, but most importantly develop a good self-esteem. I want her to be confident and curious. I want her to love and be loved.(again sorry for the terrible picture)
I'll post the finished project soon!
I just bought a pattern through Ebay of a magical fairy(of coarse she's mostly purple) and it's absolutely gorgeous. I'll start it and post a pic and you'll be able to track my progress. As you can see I have many things on the go. But as I mentioned earlier it seems as though all of my big projects are for others. Perhaps this is so for many...
Pls.. come again and show me your works of art.

Saturday morning...

I'm enjoying my morning cup of Joe wondering what happened with the weather. Woke up Thursday morning and it was gorgeous. I had time to put away the Christmas lights hanging on our little tree and a few wrapped around the house...I raked up my little bed of garden which I am going to attempt to plant many beautiful flowers (perhaps mostly purple ones.) With spring rapidly approaching and with my level of green thumb being quite slim to none I am optimistic. I imagine my flower bed to be carpeted in a kaleidoscope of colourful wild flowers. Yet, stay tuned to see if I manage to do so.

I find most of these flowers brighten gardens in almost any neighborhood. I love the simplest of flowers. I've realized that I may need to read a few books to fully understand how to care and maintain a garden. I just thought I would plant some in the ground and place a few garden ornaments and their you go, watch it grow....Silly me! I think I will be making a trip to our local garden shop for further assistance on choosing soil and garden tools I may need.
As I mentioned earlier, on Thursday I puttered around the yard and anxiously already placed my garden gnome in the garden underneath my small willow tree.(I believe that is what that tree is called) I am also planning on making some stepping stones with my daughter to place randomly around the yard. I think that would be a great project such as painting a bird house with her father. I also have a few solar lighting stakes which I find our fun accents which require no batteries or outlets. The amount of things you can place in your garden is unbelievable. You can keep it changing year after year.

While I was pregnant with my daughter, my husband and I were temporarily living with my parents. That summer my mother as usual planted some flowers around the house. Knowing I loved purple she planted my favorite flower: pansies. These flowers have velvety petals of various colors ranging from red, purple, blue, pink, yellow, orange, lavender, white. They may be of a single color or have two or three colors with a face. I decided to dry a few out as fall was approaching and placed them in a special book. I decided to continue growing them each year and make it a tradition with and for my daughter. Each year since she was born (she's now 3 1/2 yrs old)I planted them in a pot. Two summers ago, she helped me and was quite proud of her flowers. It gave her a sense of accomplishment.
Last summer with moving and all, we almost forgot about our tradition. We jumped in the car and searched everywhere for pansies and sadly enough no one had any left. I must admit I was very sad because I wanted this to be a tradition we actually do every year. Traditions sadly enough are often things we tend to forget and not always follow through. Yet I was determined to keep this one alive. I searched many stores before going to Canadian Tire's garden section and again nothing until I spotted in the far corner underneath other flowers a single pot of almost dead pansies. Knowing not much about flowers, I asked my mother if there was any way possible we could bring these flowers back to life and she said yes! My daughter and I were excited to get home and plant them. Pansies for me represent love. Love my mother had for me in choosing these flowers to plant and love I have for my daughter in planting them each year to represent my ever growing love fore her. I believe that gardening is having a story behind each plant. Different flowers can make you think of different people or events in your life.
Before I bore you with my 'love garden' which is what I will call my garden, enjoy this summer and plant to your hearts desire.

Come again, I will post pics of my garden and our special pansies.

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