Uh...oops

So about a month ago I blogged about my many attempts at knitting a scarf. Well, I got the hang of it and have been working on it ever since. Unfortunately, I think I got a wee bit carried away with it and made it too long. Here are a few pics.

Here it wrapped around my neck like 10 times.
ew p

The busyness of it all

This past week I feel as though I have been caught up in a a whirlwind of activities. And although I love being busy and having things to look forward to, I also crave quiet and solitude. As a new week begins, I am going to challenge myself to steal away some moments and reflect. Reflect on who I am and who I want to be. I am tempted to take my camera and my journal and just drive. Drive for an hour into the middle of no where and see where I end up.

This will be our sixth Christmas here in Auguston. So much has changed, and although I do not ever wish to go back to that time, I do know that life was much simpler. I used to think I knew what I wanted in life, now I am not so sure. All I know is we have to live each day as if it were our last.

Here is a pic I dug up of us at the tree farm our first year here.

As I was looking through my new year's resolutions from last year I noticed one of them was to become a better cook. Unfortunately that is one that I have not accomplished yet, sooooo last week I began thinking I should do something about it! I am thinking about taking some cooking classes, but I thought I should really just learn some basics. Elissa asked me last week why I never cook turkeys. I told her we really only have them on special occasions. Oh and also...I have never cooked a turkey. I was relaying this conversation to my mom later that day and she suggested I try it, so I can add it to my "repertoire," which I thought was kind of funny, seeing as how I don't really have a cooking repertoire. Anyway, fast forward to later that night. The opportunity came up for me to host a dinner, a tacky Christmas dinner at that, where we all get to dress up in our most uber tacky Christmas attire. So I volunteered to cook a turkey!

So it is in the oven as I type this. There are a few things I have learned so far about cooking turkeys.

1. Giblets are GROSS! Especially having to stick my hand into a birds body and pull them out! Ewwww!

2. It is important to know which way is "breast up" I apparently don't know the difference and guessed, which turned out to be the wrong way... ooops, anyway, I flipped it

3. these suckers are time consuming!

4. Since the bird is still cooking I don't have anything else to add, but I probably will. I may even snap a pic :)

Choosing a tree

Today we went to the tree farm to pick out our Christmas tree. I put together a slidewhow for fun. I haven't edited these images, but this is my fun blog where that kind of thing doesn't matter right?

Is it me?

On facebook there are tons of little quizzes, all of which I think are a big waste of time...but, I did see a friend do this one and was curious what facebook thought my personality was like. You type in your birthdate and they think they can figure you out! So here is what they said about me. Accurate?

Personality Traits
- Exuberant and cheerful.
- Deep thinker.
- Good sense of humor.
- Understanding nature.
- Faithful towards family, friends and your love.
- Easy going.
- Attractive personality.
- Generous.
- Amiable.
- Ambitious.

I snagged this off of Jason's blog. This was the group of us that did the shoot at the Powerhouse on Sunday. I think it's fairly obvious who the models were.

Weekend fun

Wow. It has been quite the exciting and exhausting weekend. Friday night Brooke came and spent the night. We were up until 1:00 going over our plan for Saturday's wedding as well as general fun photography talk. We left here at 11:00 am Sat. morning and headed into Chilliwack. One thing I learned about myself this week is I am soooo bad with directions! You would not believe the number of google maps I had printed out. We had four locations to be at and I was sure that with a little help from my maps I would be fine. I was very wrong. Needless to say, we ended up being where we needed to be...on time at that! We shot in the rain, we shot in low light and we shot in the dark. Not exactly ideal. It was a long day. I got home around 9:00 that night. The house was peaceful. The kids were at my in laws for the night and Joel was in Vancouver for his company Christmas party. I had endles hours of editing to myself. The problem was, was that by 11:30 my eyes could not stay open and my body ached.

Yesterday I attmpted a run in the morning, but my body still ached and was very tired. I ran, but it didn't feel good :(

At 1:00 I had a shoot at the Stave Lake Powerhouse. It was a photographer's birthday and he had invited 5 of us (all photographers) to do a vintage 1920's era industrial shoot. He had arranged for the location, three models, stylists, hair and makeup artists. It was very cool, but wow, I have a lot to learn! I had never done a shoot like this before. It was fun but challenging.

On a side note, I got a wee bit lost going to the shoot as well... not reeeeally my fault since they had closed the road that my google map told me to go on!

After the shoot, 4 of us went out for coffee and talked shop fpr hours! It was another great day, but exhausting! I feel like I didn't see my family at all this weekend! But Chritsmas is coming, so things will slow down a bit.

Here is a favourite from the wedding and one from yesterday.

Oh fudge...

Personally it has always irked me when people have said this, but I thought it suited today's blog title.

I remember my mom doing a lot of Christmas baking, cooking and entertaining this time of year. Two of my favourite treats she made were Peanut Butter Balls and fudge. The peanut butter balls were creamy balls of peanut butter covered in a dark yummy chocolate... so good, but took days to make! The fudge, also very yummy, but didn't seem to require the same time commitment.

So today, I made fudge. With a candy thermometer and everything!

Things I learned:

*You need to be very patient. Standing at the stove for almost an hour stirring and watching the thermometer creep up ever so slowly can be very painful, especially if patience isn't one of your virtues.

*Being splatted by hot, boiling candy on the hand, numerous times, really hurts! It actually sticks to your hand... continually burning!

*Fudge is made up of nothing healthy. Pure sugar.

Well,that is my ramble on fudge. I also made tons of shortbread, so much simpler.

My flight plan...

Every night at 9:56 my e-mail dings and I get an e-mail from the flylady. In the e-mail she sends reminders as to how to make life run smoother.

Today's Reminders:

* Morning Routine:
-Get Dressed to Shoes including Hair/Face, Brush Teeth
- Make Bed
-Swish & Swipe
-Empty Dishwasher
-Reboot Laundry (a Load a Day Keeps CHAOS Away)
-Check Your Calendar
-Check Your Control Journal

* What's For Dinner? Chicken & potatoes & veggies

* Drink Your Water - ewwww

* Declutter for 15 Minutes

* 15 Minutes of Loving Movement (exercise) going to do an hour run tonight

* Before Bed Routine:
-Lay out Your Clothes for tomorrow
-Check Your Calendar
-Put things needed for tomorrow at the Launch Pad
-Where are your Keys?
-Spend Two Minutes Clearing off a Hot Spot
-Shine Your Sink
- Wash face/Brush Teeth
-Go to Bed at a Decent Hour

This weekend is going to be a bit crazy. Friday night Brooke is coming over for a sleepover and then Saturday we are shooting a wedding from 12:30 until 9:30 out in Chilliwack. I was asked by Elissa why she needs to come on Friday and I told her we needed to make a flight plan for Saturday. We actually need to make two, one for rain the other for..uh, not rain. On Sunday I am heading up to Stave Lake Power Centre for a commercial shoot with a few other photogs. I get to shoot real models and everything! That is a five hour shoot... super intense! I imagine by Monday I will have approx. 1000 images to cull, proof, and edit.

I had a shoot yesterday in my studio with an adorable 9 month old. That is my comfort zone. I can take pictures of kids, and I love it. Weddings... always more stress and although somewhat in my comfort zone, just not quite as enjoyable. And commercial stuff... well never really done it. Definitely out of my comfort zone, especially since I'll be working with some top notch photographers.

Anyway, this is truly a random post.

I hope you enjoy the glimpses of sunshine today :)

Purolator

Okay, I realize this is a total "you had to be there" kind of stories, but it made me laugh so much that I HAVE to share it!

Okay, so I seem to frequent the Purolator store in Abbotsford Village fairly often. Usually there is this sweet lady there who is about 5 ft tall and about 85 pounds overweight. She has really long gray hair that is usually somewhat tied up in a bun. She is so super friendly and always very chatty. I always hope to get her since the other gal that works there is super b****y. (That is a whole other story unto itself)

So this afternoon I walk in and she says "it's the photographer girl!" I say hi and proceed to the computer to start entering in my info. She is standing next to me chatting away, asking about my business and the kids, when all of a sudden Shania Twain comes on over the speakers and she breaks into her own version of "Any Man of Mine!" It was so funny! She sang it straight from her heart and even had some fun little dance moves to go with it.

Anyway, I was still laughing to myself while getting into the car.

I hope you had something in your day that caused you to smile and even laugh out loud.

~L

Ran 10km in the beautiful misty rain tonight! Yay!

Weekend away

On Friday night I headed down to the States for a Women's Retreat. It was so great and it felt so needed. I spent my time connecting with women, learning about my spiritual gifts and how to use them, eating yummy food that I didn't have to cook or cleanup after, laughing, playing games, shopping and I even got in a 7 am run!

We did different "inventory" worksheets to help us discover our gifts. My highest ranked gift turns out to be Encouragement, with Administration close behind. We also did another inventory thing that told us what "colour" we were. These were the colours and what they represent... can you guess which one I am?

GOLD: Ruled by the clock: efficient, time conscious, detailed person, organized, structured, goal oriented

GREEN: Ruled by the mind: intellectual,thoughtful, reasoning, reflective

ORANGE: Ruled by the moment: spontaneous, energetic, active, perpetual motion, risk taker

BLUE: Ruled by the heart: personal, people oriented, warm, friendly, good eye contact

No person is one pure colour - we all have these traits to a varying degree and mixes. A person tends to be stronger in one or two colours than in the others. Most people express their strongest colour in positive, comfortable situations, but move to their second colour when under stressful or challenging conditions.

misty morning

After days of cold rainy weather, I decided to go back to my summer pictures. I found this one I took one misty morning on Pender.

"Lock you knee, lock your knee, lock you knee!" This is what is done in so many postures in my yoga class. It sounds a lot easier than it is. I actually am finally able to see my quadriceps and lock my knees now though.

My legs are a wee bit sore after my run today and yoga yesterday. I only hope I will be able to make it through my class tomorrow!

This is very random post, just my thoughts.

what to do...

Last night as I was watching the snow come down I was wondering to myself, how on earth am I going to do my run tomorrow morning? I then remembered my mom has a treadmill and I could actually do 10 kms on it! I was very excited at this concept, but when I awoke this morning to find beautiful sunshiny weather I began thinking that a run outside would be so pretty! I still am undecided, but I need to go soon!

Here are some quick pics of my knitting thus far... although these were taken a few days, so my scarf looks quite different now...not because it's longer, but because I've torn it apart 50 times and started over.

rain & wind

I went out last night. With Hannah. Just her and I. It was cold, windy, and rainy. As I was walking I was remembering the warm summer nights I would walk her. The sun would be setting, the coolness of dusk was refreshing after a hot day, it was nice, really nice. I was wishing I could go back, back to the warmth. But alas, we live in a part of the world where we experience four seasons. Thankfully we do, because I can now really appreciate the beauty of summer nights.

I continued walking in the dark and rain. There is something soothing about the rain and darkness. No one can really see me, and the although the rain is cool against my face, it's nice. It was even a bit foggy which always adds a bit of drama to the street lights reflecting in the puddles.

So tonight I will run in the dark and possibly the rain... without a wet dog.

Mmm... Soy

After doing a fair amount of reading this week on natural remedies I have decided to switch over to Soy products. I have had a few tummy troubles recently and although I know some of it is related to stress I do know a lot of it is related to what I put into my body. My Dr had suggested years ago that I may be lactose intolerant and for me to cut down on dairy products and switch to soy. I was never able to do this, just b/c I love milk, but in my reading this week I also read that dairy can also lead to break outs, which I do seem to suffer from. So For the past 3 days I have been enjoying soy lattes, steamed soy milk, and cereal with soy milk. I am actually starting to like the taste, my tummy has been better and my skin is clearing up!

Yay for inspiration!

With my photo shoots coming to an end I have found myself craving other creative outlets. On Wednesday I went to Vancouver with a friend and we did the big Circle Craft Fair at Canada Place. It was so not what I had imagined! No little hokey painted woods signs here... there were amazing designers from all over Canada who were selling clothing, jewellery, pottery, soaps, and tons of other really neat things.

It was so inspiring seeing what others have come up with and how they are making a living off of doing what they love. Although I do find it really hard paying for something that I think I can make myself. Sooooo...

I have begun a knitting project. I've been wanting to start something for a bit now, but after seeing knitted scarves being sold for $130, I thought, huh, I think I could do it for $10. Of course that's not including the hours of labour. But I really do enjoy knitting and find it a great way to relax.

Enjoy our crazy weather!

~L

LOVE this!!!

goat commercial

Another quote that touched me tonight...

“Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something, and has lost something”

So true.

In search of peace

We all want peace right? Do any of us really have it? I believe some do. I actually believe a lot of us have peace every day, maybe not all day, but at some points during our busy days. I believe I have at times felt very at peace. But more recently I haven't. I feel as though I am on the search for it, and I do feel like I am getting closer. I came across this quote this morning...

"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Interesting I thought. As I head out the door to my yoga class, I will be thinking more about this.

May you all find some peace in your day today!

~L

To IPhone or not to IPhone

that is the question. I have dreamt about having an IPhone now for the last year or so, but b/c I am in a plan with Bell I have to wait until next year when my 3 year contract comes up. Or at least I thought I did, until now... Bell has now taken on the IPhone and I could easily switch over. When I first heard about this I was very excited and thought of it as a no brainer, but as I am reading more and more about simplifying life and I am seriously rethinking it.

Do I really want to have access to e-mail all the time? Do I want my clients to think I am at their beck and call? Do I want to be one of those people who is busy texting/e-mailing while waiting at a red light? No, not really. Do I need to waste more of my time downloading and playing with cool apps while on the go? No. This does not sound like simplifying my life, it sounds like it would create more distraction away from what is really important. Not to mention my phone bill would at least double every month, which I really cannot justify.

So for now... I am holding off on the IPhone... maybe one day when I grow up and have a super busy business that requires me to be in more contact with clients I will reconsider. But for now, I enjoy getting back to clients when I'm ready :-)

I went out this afternoon for a run. I've been feeling a bit sick these past few days, scratchy throat, and just a bit lathargic, but I really wanted to go. So when the rain stopped this afternoon I headed out. It was so beautiful and peaceful. As I turned out of our back lane, there was a perfect rainbow. It was amazing. I did the Whatcom run and managed to shave off another minute, so I was happy... and I didn't even feel like I was going to puke!

Came across this tonight

and thought it was kind of cool...

Simplicity, many people think,
is an end in itself
But they’re getting it backwards
Simplicity is the path, the means
It’s not a far off destination,
somewhere in the future
It’s right here, right now
It’s taking things one at a time
It’s asking simple questions
It’s taking simple actions
It’s doing it slowly
It’s considering and being conscious,
with everything

When you find yourself becoming overwhelmed
on the path to simplicity
Taking a complicated, frenzied path
to get there
Stop, consider, and choose
the simpler path
And take it slowly
And easily
And lovely

Simplicity is the path, not just the destination, by Leo Babauta

Mmm.. gingerbread lattes are back!

And they are almost as good as the Pumpkin Spice lattes. Either one is perfect for a windy fall day like today. I have some vegetable soup simmering on the stove and fresh buns for dinner. I have a run planned for tonight at 5:30, but I am feeling a wee bit achy now and my throat a tad scratchy... yuck. I had similar symptoms last week and managed to bounce back fairly quickly, so here's hoping! Perhaps I will go rest and read, although I really just feel like closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep.

Found this pic of El and I taken in Sept. It was so warm then... I am craving warmth

Wow, I apologize for the dreariness of last night's post. Sometimes I just have down days, yesterday was one of them I suppose. Although I had a rough sleep last night I woke up and was happy to see the sun. I had my yoga class in the morning which was very refreshing and gave me a lot of time to think and re-energize!

I am inspired to do get going on a lot things. I have pictures to edit, e-mails to reply to, and a few phone calls to make. I've been bouncing some new business ideas around as well as logos/branding and marketing. I am feeling inspired to cook, organize, and clean up my yard. I want to try some some new things with my camera and take some pictures for me! And maybe get them blown up, and maybe even put on a canvas! See, I am feeling much better today!

Thank you for all the love...

Change- my love/hate relationship with it

This will truly be a rambling post as my thoughts are so scattered tonight.

I love change. I love when the seasons change, when I get to a new location for a shoot and it's amazing, a new running route, a new paint colour, rearranging furniture...you get the idea.

I also hate change. The change I despise so much and have trouble dealing with is change I cannot control.

I know, I am a control freak... I have to let it go.

icky sicky yuck

that's kind of how I am feeling right now. My day started off great, but by the time I had finished putting on a coat of paint in the kid's playroom, my throat began to get scratchy. I then headed out to Rona where Connor picked out this killer colour of orange for the playroom. I was all ready to get home and put it on, but by the time I arrived home all I could do was lay on the couch and keep myself from falling asleep before it was time to pick up Elissa.

I've been editing all afternoon and I think I am nearly caught up, just a bit of burning and packaging left. I had big plans to make a yummy vegetable soup with fresh buns, but the energy just wasn't there... maybe tomorrow.

waiting for Fed-Ex and logo design

So this pretty much sums up my day. I went to a grueling Bikram yoga class this morning. My arms feel like jelly and I'm not sure I can make it down the stairs to grab another load of laundry out of the dryer. I have some lovely lululemon yoga shorts coming via Fed-Ex. According to my tracking #, they are in transit and are due to arrive today :-) Yay, although I am scared to leave the house b/c I don't want to miss them. So here I wait...

Also I know I should be editing my sessions from yesterday, but I am feeling this overwhelming desire to have a new logo, or any logo, since I have never really had one before,, well one that I like. So I have samples... here they are:

Opinions? Yay, nay? Back to Photoshop?

Sunday

I woke up yesterday to one of the most lovely surprises ever! It was around 7:30. I put on my slippers and a hoodie and walked downstairs. I kissed my kids good morning and proceeded into my office. I turned on my computer and opened the blinds. I was expecting to see a cold drizzly morning, but instead I saw this...

It was one of the most beautiful sunrises I had ever seen. Bright oranges, reds and golds, mixed with an opaque layer of fog. I knew I had to capture this. I only wish I could capture the whole feeling... the peacefulness, the cold crisp smell in the air, and the stillness. It made my day.

The sun and the fog didn't last very long. Unfortunately by the afternoon the rain had begun to fall, and I began to wonder how my original plan of running 10 km was going to unfold. I decided to do it anyway, I've been wanting to to do it for a long time and I am so glad I did. It felt so good, although I have to say I am a wee bit sore this morning. I want to do it again, like right now! Thanks for all the encouragement ;-)

Pro-d day

I love these days! Being home with the kids, not worrying about rushing out and picking them up or trying to be somewhere at a certain time. I have to admit, my day wasn't completely without a schedule. I arranged to have my photo shoot that was originally booked for 9:00 am this morning yesterday, as I thought the weather was going to be rainy today. I am glad I did. But that also freed me up to do another hot yoga class this morning! It felt so good! Anyway, I thought I would document today in pictures.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins....

Burning one of my favourite scents, patchouli (although it's been referred to as something a grandma would like)
Keeping Hannah inside so she doesn't get wet and stinky.
Afternoon Starbucks break
The water bottle I use at yoga...yep, I drank the whole thing!

new record...

I have this thing with grocery stores.

I don't like them. Not that there is anything terribly wrong with them. Although the thought of so many sick people with germs, or even people who aren't sick, who touch the shopping carts and baskets, really creeps me out. But that is another issue altogether.

Unless I have a specific recipe I am dying to try, I simply find shopping for food boring.

So I usually try and get through the store asap. Well today I broke a new record! I was out of my car, into the store, grabbed some veggies, beef, and yogourt, through the check out and back in my car... all within 9 minutes! I was very excited. I get excited easily, can you tell?

Bikram Yoga

This morning I did my first hot yoga class. It was quite the experience, and although I felt like I was going to die near the end, it also felt sooo good. They reccomend not eating before the class or else you will puke. So since it was a 9:15 class and I didn't wake up until 7:30 I didn't eat anything. Which normally is okay, but the last time I had anything to eat was 5:30 last night. I drank lots of water like I was told, like maybe half a bottle ;-) So with the room starting off at 90 degrees and getting warmer and warmer I felt slightly lightheaded and dizzy, which apparently is good and normal... who knew? Anyway, I wasn't sure what to expect so when I walked into the yoga room and saw about 20 people lying on there backs completely motionless staring up at the ceiling I knew I was in for some fun. As it turns out that pose is called the "corpse pose" nice huh? On a side note, I thought it was kind of funny that one guy was so relaxed he had fallen asleep and was snoring.

Anyway, we went through the poses and I dripped sweat. It was 90 minutes of pure sweat. It was a lot harder than I thought, I mean really, you have your feet planted on the ground pretty much the whole time, how hard can it be? Well, I can barely lift my arms and my legs feel like jelly and I am sure after a night of sleep I will be a wee bit sore. But I like a challenge and this was a good one. Now I have to figure out when I can go next. FYI this is one of the poses, I don't think I had the same dorky smile on my face, but hey, it's not as easy as it looks!

I ran 8 km this afternoon. It was okay. My legs wanted to keep going but I got horrible cramps and felt like I was going to puke. The leaves were really pretty and the sky was interesting. I completely overdressed, but when I left I was cold. Very random, I know. Now I need shower.

Rain

It's wet outside today. Cold, windy, and wet. I often find the rain soothing. Not today.

carrots, beets and squash?

I spent a wonderful afternoon outside in my garden today. This morning started out dark and dreary with gusts of heavy rain falling at times. I thought for sure this was going to be a curl up-in-my-favourite-sweats-and-read-a-book kind of day. And although I did do a bit of that I was also pleasantly surprised when the sun peeked out and the temperature seemed to rise by 10 degrees.

I have been meaning to clean out my vegetable gardens and figured today was the perfect day. I cleared out a lot of rotten tomatoes and old pumpkin vines. I dug up a lot of carrots (that will be used somehow in tonight's dinner), pondered what to do with my parsley that has grown a little bit out of control and dug out some beets. The beets I do hope to "pickle," perhaps with more than just vinegar ;)

As all of this clearing was going on I came across what looks to be a squash. I've never bought a squash or cooked a squash, I actually don't think I have ever even tried it, so I am very confused as to how this squash like vegetable began growing in my garden. Anyway, it was a fun little surprise, just not sure what to do with it.

I thought while I was outside and enjoying the fresh fall air, I should give Hannah a good brush. I took a lot of fur off of her. I then thought that maybe she could use a bit of a hair cut. Now, since I am not a hairdresser and have never cut dog fur before things got a little out of control I think. Not that it won't grow back or that her owners are coming back anytime soon, I just feel a wee bit guilty that it is going into winter and her coat just got 10 pounds lighter.

Simplicity

I spent some time today reflecting. I am reading this book called Less is More. We hear this all the time, but do we ever really apply it to our lives? We live in a society where we think we deserve the newest trends, gadgets, cars, and yes, even computers :( Do all of these things really make us happy? Maybe for a few minutes, or perhaps even a few weeks, but it wears off.

They define simplicity as this:

"Simplicity is a complex concept, but at the core is voluntary limitation of our outer wealth so that we can have greater inner wealth."

Our earth is so full of junk and stuff that was once treasured (probably for only a very short time) and is now left in a landfill. We have been blessed with such a beautiful earth, and I am feeling more and more guilty about what I fill my house with. Especially things made in China, where children are being paid peanuts to produce toxic goods. That is one reason I despise Dollar stores so much, but I won't get into that rant today.

Anyway, just my thoughts for the day! I am challenging myself to not buy anything else this week that will harm the earth.

getting lost

I love how getting away can bring on a such a new perspective on life. I spent this past weekend in Toronto with family, taking pictures, and exploring the city. It was a quick trip and every moment was spent on the go. It was so great to be able to wake up every morning, get dressed and walk out the door and grab a Starbucks. My last day there I woke up to a damp misty morning. It had rained heavily all night and I was expecting a cold west coast morning, surprisingly I was met with warm humidity and the hustle and bustle of a busy city life, far different than what I am used to. Everyone has a place to be. Nobody really knows anybody and everyone is in their own little world. What really struck me was how entwined I am in my little Auguston bubble. Like most people in my community, they are off to work and leaving their community to work or be with people from anywhere but there. I on the other hand do not do this on a daily basis. I know all of my neighbours, I walk to and from the school 3 times a day with the same people, I go to church in the same community as all of these people and I work from home and work mostly with people from my community. Honestly, I feel like I need out! There is such a big world out there and I want to be part of it. I'm not sure where these thoughts will lead me, probably not too far, but I do feel like a need a change, even if it's a small one. I used to take art classes every Wednesday night. I met many different people there from all over. Some older, some younger, all with such interesting stories. I find myself craving that, not necessarily art classes, but something. This is definitely a rambling post, but getting lost in a city like Toronto was nice, even for a few days. Here are some pics my mom took while I was there.

Leaving on a jet plane,

don't know when I'll be back again...okay, actually I'll be home Sunday afternoon, I just wanted to finish the line in the song.

Tomorrow morning I'm heading to Toronto for the weekend. I will be doing a couple of shoots as well as visiting family. As I get ready to leave I am feeling a mix of emotions.

* I am looking forward to getting lost in another city

* There are a few of you out there that I will really miss

* It will be great seeing my family

* Taking pictures in a different city is super fun!

* I like riding the subway

* I hope I'm not getting sick

* I hope I haven't forgotten anything

* Responsibilities? I'm traveling without kids, I have no responsibilities :)

* Life is good

peace out...

lj

Really?

Wow, I am not sure really where to begin this blog entry. I'll start with the fact that after nearly nine months of planning, a lovely Pig Roast is going to be held right across the street from my house in just over 24 hours. I've come to grips with it. Really I have. I mean why would watching a poor little pig spin helplessly on a stick over hot flames right in front of my house for hours on end be at all disturbing?

Okay, skip to another random fact about my life... trust me, this will all come together at the end.

A couple of weeks ago I picked up a book at the library on business. More specifically Starbucks. How Starbucks became so successful so quickly. Really, a very interesting book, with a lot of ideas to incorporate into my business, or anyone's business for that matter. So tonight I was going through my Twitter contacts and came across this article about how Starbucks is now un-cool. I was intrigued, so I clicked the link. (here's the link if you're interested) I thought it was kind of funny. I also noticed on the page a bunch of "ads." No not the kind of ads you're thinking... good clean ads. Or at least I thought. One of the ads said "Learn to Cook!" Well, that sounds good, I would love to learn to cook. So I clicked it. Okay, was so not prepared to see a 7 minute video on how to butcher a lamb. A.whole.lamb. AYKM??? Gross, and so uncalled for. BTW, I am not posting the link to the lamb video, if you want to see a carcass being cut up come to the pig roast on Sunday. Really, I'm not bitter :-)

Today...

Today I:

- dropped off BOTH kids at school

- had a long and difficult conversation with someone I love

- began designing a sample album for weddings

- placed an order with my lab

- burned and printed a dvd

- returned e-mails

- got a wonderful, unexpected phone call

- lit some candles and read a magazine

- was annoyed that the magazine I was reading had the super interesting article I really wanted to read torn out! (that's what I get for taking mags out of the library)

- cut the grass, weeded the garden, put away the outdoor furniture for the winter

- was totally grossed out by the high number of enormous spiders I came across while in the garden...ewwwww!

- talked with neighbours on the way home from school

- made banana muffins

- helped Elissa with homework

- did some laundry

- made dinner

- and now I am gearing myself up for a run, hoping to do 6 or 7 kms, although I feel like I am being blind-sided by a cold...yuck!

So I was talking with my SIL Brooke today and she was telling me about this uber cool site that lets you download music for free onto your computer and create your own personal playlist. So... since I am always wanting some new proofing music I thought I would give this a try.

Here is my newest playlist... a very random mix

http://www.playlist.com/larajane

I finally know what I am!

So I was reading this running magazine yesterday morning with my coffee. I think I may actually me slightly addicted to theses mags because every time I finish reading one I feel the need to read more and more, like I can't get enough info. Anyway, so I was reading through this one magazine when I stumbled across an article called "The Ideal Runner's Diet."

Hmmm, perfect I thought; I need to know what a good running diet would consist of.

So the article began by talking about how many runners follow one of two philosophies. "You're either a carnivore or a vegetarian." I was like, shoot, I don't really like meat, but I'll eat it, although I secretly kind of wish I could call myself a vegetarian. Then the article went on to say that you can have the best of both worlds, and this is ideally what runner's should eat. Basically making plant foods (fruits, veggies, grain, and legumes) the mainstay of our meals, while still eating animal protein-just less of it. The person who follows this diet, actually has a name I discovered. They are called "flexitarians." Yes, flexitarians! I was sooo stoked to read that people like me actually have a label! Not that I like to be labeled, but this is a label I think I can live with. Actually, this is a label I am very excited about! And the best thing about being a flexitarian, is that it is the "ideal runner's diet!"

Anyway, just thought I would blog about how excited I am to be a flexitarian!!

9/11

The question I hear being thrown around lately is "what were doing when you first heard about the attacks?" So here I am eight years later thinking about that tragic day and all that has happened since.

I had just started a teaching job at a great Preschool in Vancouver. As I got into my Jeep that morning to drive to work I turned on the radio. A happy song was playing, the sun was shining, all seemed right with the world. Little did I know our world was changing, very fast. As the song ended, and I pulled into the parking lot of the school (yes I actually only worked like 6 blocks away) the news came on. The WTC had just been hit. I remember thinking "what, that can't be right." I was in a bit of a hurry to open the doors and get on with my day, so I pushed it to the back of my mind. It wasn't until parents started arriving with their children and were buzzing about this that I began to realize what was really going on. I went home that afternoon and was glued to the tv. I was in disbelief. I was sick, I was sad. My mind began to spin. I began wondering what our future held.

I was ten weeks pregnant with Elissa. I was scared for my baby. What kind of future will she have? How can I be bringing a child into this world, this world filled with hatred, bitterness, and war?

A lot has changed since then. A lot. Life went on, and life continues to go on. Joel was still in University. We lived in a one bedroom apartment on West 44th. We didn't go to church. We didn't see much family. I worked part time.

A lot has changed in 8 years. I wonder what the year 2017 will look like.

Our world is forever changing, as are we.

all in a day

Just when I thought life couldn't get more interesting, it did.

Last Wednesday my mom came over to give me a chance to get out kid-free and run some errands. I was greatly looking forward to this brief amount of freedom and wondered how much I could squeeze into a small frame of time. It all started at good old Costco, where I had planned to meet my MIL and SIL. We were on a mission to pick out a 40th birthday present for another SIL. With that task done, I desperately needed to continue on with some grocery shopping, as I had been putting it off all week. As I started loading my cart with the essentials, my cell rang. It was my mom. My mom never calls my cell, so I thought it was a bit odd. She was calling to say that she thought Connor had broken his arm after falling from the monkey bars. Now a few months ago, Connor had done the same thing, fell from the monkey bars, but his arm in the end hadn't been broken. Needless to say I ditched my cart and drove home. Once I got home, he was lying on the front grass in shock. Our wonderful neighbour had wrapped and iced his arm and said it was pretty bad.

I rushed him to Emergency where we sat for 7 hours. Nothing really prepared me for what his arm looked like though. I literally felt sick to my stomach when the nurse took his sling and ice off. During that time he had an IV put in him and was pumped full morphine and gravol. He drifted in and out of sleep all afternoon. They brought in a portable x-ray machine because they didn't want to move him. He had dislocated a bone as well as fractured three others. The ER Dr. said he had never seen anything like this. At that point it was decided he needed surgery. I spent the rest of the afternoon in the ER with him waiting for the Orthopedic surgeon to come and take a look. He came in and said it was pretty bad and he definitely needed surgery that night. I have to admit, by this time I was both physically and emotionally exhausted. I hadn't eaten anything all day aside from a smoothie that morning, and Joel was away on business. They had to cut off his shirt and put him in a little gown. He was then wheeled up to the OR where I had to get scrubs on as well. I sat with Connor in this little curtained off room waiting for them to come and get us. I looked down at his little body. His arm looking so wrong and so painful. He had an IV in his other arm. He looked up at me with his big brown eyes and said "Jesus is in the room right mom?" I had been strong for him all day, but when I heard him say that I began to weep. I thought of all the other mothers who had been in this same situation. The fear that had gripped them before sending their precious babies into the unknown. I said a prayer through my tears with him. He told me he loved me. They came to get us, and it was time. They hooked him up to all sorts of monitors and put a mask on his face. He went out really fast, kind of scary. Now it was a waiting game.

I waited alone for over an hour. My SIL came and sat with me for a bit since she had just finished her shift on a different floor. It was nice to have company. She left and I was alone again. It was a rather lonely day, even though I had been surrounded by nurses and Dr's. Another SIL came just as I was allowed to go be with Connor. I sat with him and waited for him to wake up. He gradually came to. The surgery had gone well. Connor seemed okay, but had some trouble breathing. They had put a tube down his throat during surgery and it seemed to hinder his breathing a bit. We were then taken to the Pediatric ward where he spent the night recovering. It had been a long couple of days. Joel did finally arrived late Wednesday night, which was a relief.

Connor is adjusting well, but is still on Tylenol 3 at night.

It was quite the experience, one I hope to never re-live.

life

I am going through some really tough stuff in my life right now. I am dealing with a lot of hurt and a lot of loss. The nights seem to last forever and mind is forever spinning. I have to admit I have been really quite self absorbed this past week. Only thinking about my problems and trying to deal with a lot of heartache.

Last night Joel and I spent the night downtown in a fabulous 4 star hotel and spent the morning at Starbucks and shopping a bit on Robson. I love the city. I love how I could just get lost there. So many different people, each with their own incredible stories. As we were heading home, we drove through East Hastings. Wow, what an eye opener. We saw numerous homeless people, prostitutes, and a handful of police and ambulances. People who were hungary, lonely, and without shelter. It was tragic to see. How easy it is for me to be stuck in my own little world, with what seems like such hopeless situations. It made me realize that this world is so much bigger than me. That there are so many people out there who have no hope and no love. My heart ached. It ached for them. There is so much need, but really no one to help them. I am thankful for my home, my health, and my family. Although I am struggling with a huge loss right now, I am still holding on to hope. Hold your loved ones tonight.

Okay, so being constantly inspired, artsy, and creative is impossible, maybe not for everyone, but it is for me. And it is sooo frustrating! So what do I usually do? First I stalk all my favourite blogs, then I flip through countless magazines, and then I scour my photography boards. I went through this struggle today, and then I turned on some music. I love music, it can change my mood so quickly. It can make me super happy and energetic (and creative) or it can also make me sad, thoughtful and leave me reminiscing of what I once had. So I'm listening to this great song by Colbie Callait when I remember how much I loved her first music video "Bubbly." So I went onto You Tube, found the video for Falling For You and fell in love with it. So I thought I would share it, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Falling For You video

Here I am again

It has been many months since my last post. I just spent the last half hour putting one together, and then realized I posted it to the wrong blog. Now I'm getting an "error" sign.

My head is spinning right now. Too many thoughts and emotions going on. I will be back to blog later, I promise.

Okay, this really and truly is a rambling post.  I haven't updated for a bit now and I really felt I should.  But the reason I hadn't updated was b/c I really had nothing new to report, therefore this is now a totally random blog entry about nothing!

So I'll be random...

Today I:

lost a game of Sorry t

o a 4 yr old

attempted Sushi for the first time (didn't work out so great)

finished writing meeting minutes for church

talked to my mommy

won a game of chutes and ladders

folded half a load of laundry

ate lots of cinnamon hearts 

listened to Connor coughing

got my new dvd cases in the mail :)

am about to watch Days...

Okay, so like I said, really nothing new and exciting... at ALL!

Maybe I'll throw in a pic... okay, here's me yesterday in my messy office:)

Need a Laugh?

I saw this on one my boards this morning.  I don't usually watch these especially if it's long, but this one was hilarious!  It's nearly 7 minutes long, but worth it.

http://www.boreme.com/boreme/funny-2007/el...dy-p1.php?emf=1

Check it out!

My Journey Has Begun

As I mentioned before, I've really been enjoying running lately.  I probably shouldn't actually call it running, because technically it's more like jogging, I am NOT very fast, but I can keep a steady pace.  Last night as I set out on my nightly run, (I also mentioned how much I LOVE to run in the dark) I had only gone a little ways, when a car with it's high beams on came towards me.  I was on the sidewalk so that's good, but what I didn't see was this metal tie thing that is used to bundle newspapers.  I got my feet tangled in it and fell flat on my face.  Well, not actually on my face, but hard enough to really bang up my knees, shoulder, and hands.  I think at first I was more embarassed than anything else, but once I got up, shook myself off, I realized I was kind of in pain.  I thought, really?  I've been doing well with my runs and now this?  So I went home, showed off my injuries to Joel, washed them with a cloth and decided I had to go back out.  I was so glad I did, as it was my best run in a really loooong time!

I started thinking about what had just happened.  I thought about how it relates to life.  How we can be going along so well for awhile and then BAM, you fall flat on your face, with no warning.  I had a choice, I could go home and nurse my wounds, or I could keep going and plow through.  I decided to do both :)  I am realizing in life, we always have choices.  Some we know are the right ones, others we know are wrong but still choose them, because we as humans are rebellious.  Sometimes we feel like we have no choice, that are hands are tied and we're trapped.  But we do have a choice as to how to handle these situations, we can choose to handle them joyfully and thankfully, even if our situation is terrible, or we can choose to handle the same situation in the depths of despair.  Hard choices, but learning to make the right ones is all about how we want our lives to be.

Okay, enough rambling for today...

the blahs

It is January, I know.  And I always seem to get this way this time of year...not really depressed or anything, just kinda blah.  It has been beautiful here for weeks, with the odd rainy day, like today, but really the sun has been shining so much!  So why the blahs?

I'm not sure my life could get any better, really.  I love where I live, my kids are the best, I have a fabulous job and the most wonderful husband.  I have been so blessed with amazing friends and a great church family, so what more could I possibly want out of life?

I've been searching, seeking, and I suppose yearning for a deeper relationship with God.  I'm not sure if it's things in the past that are holding me back, or am I just afraid to step out and trust? Perhaps a bit of both.  

I've been going for a lot of runs lately.  I love it.  I never really got into the whole running thing, but I have a routine where I love to run in the dark.  Where no one can see me, or stop and talk to me.  Where I can go into my own little world of thoughts and actually think.  Think about life, relationships, and whatever else happens to be going on.  Meanwhile I'm running!  I don't run for long periods of time, although I do hope to build up my distance.

Anyway, I feel like I need to embark on some kind of journey, I feel as though I need to grow deeper in a lot of different aspects in my life. 

 I'll keep you posted:)

All in a week

I have been very negligent this past week with my blogging.  Honestly it's been a rather tough week for me.  On Monday, Todd had asked me to lead a devotional for our Leadership Team meeting.  Initially I really didn't want to do it, I didn't really know what I was going to talk about.  It had been a hard week with Tobi's mom passing away, and I really didn't want to talk or share what was on my heart.  But I did.  I appreciate how Todd likes to stretch us, because it actually made me sit down and think about how I was feeling.  I also had to write down what I was feeling and I actually had to organize my thoughts.  Once I finished doing the devotion, which I might add, was in front of mostly men, I felt this huge burden lift from me.  I felt so much better.

So that is what started my week.  A good way to start I suppose.

Tuesday I had a Women's meeting, I think it went fairly well.  We managed to pretty much plan out the year.

Friday was Tobi's mom's funeral.  It was really good.  Well as good as a funeral can be.  Tobi

, Martin and Bob all spoke.  They were all great, they kept it light for the most part and we could all laugh as we remembered what a wonderful women she was.

Last night we went to Andrew and Suzette's for a lovely birthday dinner for Cally.  Joel and I both feel so blessed to have found such great friends in them.  All the kids get along so great, and we can only pray that as they grow they will continue to bond like family.

Today I held my first photography workshop.  I planned it for January as January is usually very quiet for me in the business aspect  of my life.  I've had a few newborn shoots already this month and a couple of more baby/family shoots coming up.

The workshop has been stressing me out a bit and I was up past midnight preparing for today. Fortunately all went well and it turned out to be a lot of fun.

I wanted to share a funny thing Connor said tonight as we were all sitting around the dinner table (did I mention I registered Connor for KINDERGARTEN this week!!) Here was the conversation:

Elissa: put up your hand if your birthday is in April (hands go up)

Elissa: put up your hand if your birthday is in a month that starts with "M" (Joel's hand goes up)

Elissa: put up your hand if your birthday is in July (no hand goes up)

Connor: put up your hand if you want Elissa to be quiet and eat her dinner! (a few hands go up)

Since I had my camera out for my workshop today, I grabbed these pics of Elissa and Joel deep in conversation in the kitchen today (sorry, I can't remember what they were talking about!)

Life

I just read my oldest and dearest friends latest blog entry. I have tears streaming down my face and I feel so much sorrow for her.  Her mom is dying.  I have known her mom for pretty much my whole life.  Our families grew up across the street from each other and I spent so much time with them.  It's hard to believe she is nearly gone.  

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 says "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die."  I've thought about this verse a lot today as another good friend of mine had a her first baby yesterday.

I know God is good, and God had a plan so much bigger than we can even fathom. 

I know this is life, it's sometimes hard to take it all in.

Happy New Year!

Wow, we started this year off in a winter wonderland!  When we woke up this morning everything was covered in white and snow was falling.  Actually we awoke to the sound of our neighbour shoveling our sidewalk, which was nice, but Joel and I didn't get to bed until nearly 2:30. 

Joel and I went to a super fun New Year's party and rang in the new year with great friends.

We were discussing our resolutions and mine is to get into shape!  I can't believe how great a shape I was in before kiddos and now I can barely run for 20 mins!!  Also I would like to lose weight, which I am hoping will be a side benefit of getting into shape:)  Eating healthier and more organic foods is also on my resolution list.  And finally... to become more organized!

With the help of flylady, I hope to get my house into tip top shape.  Joel and I have actually been working at organizing different areas of the house.  We did the mud room the other day and yesterday we did our walk in closet...whew, that was a big job, but it feels so good!

Anyway, on my flylady list of things to do today is: 

to put away the rest of my decorations

to get rid of extra holiday food (cookies going stale, etc)

And my fly zone this week is Zone 1, which is to spend 15 min. each day going over my front porch, entrance hall, and dining room and getting rid of any junk that is not needed.  

Today we are off to pick up the kids from my parent's house, and then onto Joel's folks.

Happy 2009!

L