can't sleep....

so, it's like three in the morning....and I can't sleep.
I floated about in the internet , doing some searching and trying to inform myself on a few things.
but...the brain is a little fuzzy and my heart is worried.

An illness keeps me awake, it's not mine.

My concerns, my worries, my head trying to think things through trying to make sense of something I have no control over, whatsoever....but, I keep trying to put into some kind of assembly so I can sleep and let this 'mind-wandering' go.

In truth, I am not one to sit up nights and "stew" about things. I generally hit the pillow and am out for the night, not even getting up to go to the bathroom....and at my age ,,...I believe that to be "sumpthin'. But, apparently, I cannot control my head once it starts to spin and whirl looking for answers, but only coming up with more questions!

I shall poke about the internet some more and then trust that when my head returns to it's original position on my pillow, I will be content enough to enter dreamland once again. The melodious sound of hubby's rumblings (snoring) should put me either back into R.E.M. sleep or put me back in front of the computer.....

it's the weekend......

When I finished work yesterday I got home as quickly as I could. Molly was going to be here for the evening. I was pumped.
Molly's Mom and Dad had a "date". Molly was going to hang out with the Gramma for the evening.
The evening started out good, except I did not know what to make for dinner and what I did make Molly did not like. She's not a fussy eater by any stretch, she just doesn't like perogies....I forgot.
We had to readjust some thinking in that dept. but by the end of it...she was filled with some good things and happy. I introduced her to Paddington Bear, the video. In my imagination he was a lot cuter than this video portrayed him as....hmmm. She thought he was cute, but the story was not note worthy. We went downstairs and played in her fort, had some fun down there and then came up stairs to make some cookies. Auntie Tess dropped by, what a beautiful girl...both inside and out. I gave Molly her bath, she knows the routine around here and where everything is...so other than running the tub she had it all ready to go. After climbing into her pj's ....there was a knock at the door....a policewoman standing on the other side of the window. Nice. It was a friend of mine, who happens to be a police officer and she works this district.
She's a wonderful young woman, with a ready smile and to be honest sleep comes easier knowing she is close by. We did not get a chance to say much more than hello, but hopefully, she will ring our doorbell again and come in for her break. Molly's introduction to the police force will be a friendly and happy one, as it should be, because of Cst. T.
It was a nice evening.
This morning started off with a great cup of Costa Rica coffee, yeah, my sister-in-law tucked in a fresh pack of it when we left their place at Christmas. She buys it by the case and has it shipped to Canada for their enjoyment.......and now ours, too!
...the weekend,.....time to do just relax and be. ah.

prickly, pokey, accepting, or critical.....?

It's odd the things I notice.....
People during conversation.
Responses can be slow in coming, fast in retort, simple and quaint or simple and rude, always negative or mostly positive, always agreeable or forever critical....so many options...depending on the day, the mood of the person, my mood of course, and does the moon have something to do with the actual lunacy that seems to pop outta people...just because the moon is full or what?

What's the old saying "give a person an inch and they will take a mile".....

Where is common courtesy....what happened to it?

Speaking in a condescending manner does not win you over to people.

Laughing should not be hindered.....someone told me something funny in a public place and what the heck ....I laughed out loud....he "shushed" me. Why, I wonder....did I laugh too loud? I don't think so...was it bothersome to know that he made me laugh? Did it disturb people to hear a joyful laugh?

Simple things.....that seem to be missing daily in life. Laughter and common sense.

my elusive dreams....

Sunday night...well, actually more like Sunday morning...it was 3:30 am and I am wide awake looking at the ceiling. I have a dentist appointment for 8 o'clock Monday morning and I figure I'm in for an extraction of a wisdom tooth that the dentist has been watching for a LONG time. The tooth finally erupted from the gum over the holidays enough for me to notice it even had a little cavity....I KNEW I was in for the needle and the pliers. I could not sleep thinking about the very disturbing event that was to come. I trust my dentist but having an tooth extracted is just not anywhere near a happy thought....yeash. So with my heart pounding in my chest, I make my way to the dentist chair...only to find out through the x-ray that the wisdom tooth is VERY healthy indeed but it's also moved and taken the place of a molar that was removed when I was a kid.
The dentist filled the little cavity, no freezing needed!! yes folks, no freezing..it was that small a cavity! and he said it is perfectly aligned with my other teeth so we are good to go. Do you have any idea what a relief that was......see miracles still happen in everyday life!!

Today, I trundled to see my Doctor....oh yeah, why not get it all done in one fell swoop. So I get into see her because I have had this freakin' rash that has driven me nuts for two weeks and I have been using tea tree oil to soothe it...but the smell is about to put my husband over the edge! plus it wasn't helping that much anyway. The Doctor tells me ...no big deal, it's a rash that will over due course run it's time and I'll be fine in about six weeks, it's not contagious...but it's something viral working it's way "out" of my skin.....could be caused by a lot of different things....but she knows for sure she can't give me anything for it and no one else is goin' to get it from me. Nice. I gotta admit - I'm glad it's not summer outside cause wearing a tank top with this mess....would not be pretty....no no...not.

Life.....just keep walking.

Gloria, inspired me to read more than one book at a time....so now I am reading two...I'm pretty sure that's my limit...confusion would abound if any more were added to the read now list.
The two titles are .....oh, yeah...get this for diverse.....
Angels and Demons by Dan Brown
Lost Women of the Bible by Carolyn Custis James

it's about the adventure.....

an adventure around every corner.....

Molly came over the other night. We had loads of fun, building a huge fort....eating french fries, reading funny books together and laughing at silly Grampa! Her buddies and babies are all put to sleep before she leaves, this time inside the fort....cause at Gramma's house the fort doesn't have to come down anytime soon. It is left up downstairs for the next time she comes over.
We packed up all her stuff she had brought with her and proceeded to get dressed up like it was -40. After we each had on enough winterwear to walk to Regina...we tried the front door. No go. The door knob was seized. Tight, no movement....nada...nothing. We attempted to take the door knob apart, even little Molly used her screwdriver inside the dead doorknob.....to no avail. Finally, after much sweating...we decided to head out the back door. Now, one must realize we just went through a huge blizzard and ....yep, we did not shovel the entire walk in the backyard, as yet...WHY?? Well, part of the reasoning was to keep Daisydog corralled in when she comes to visit....maybe part was laziness ....whatever the reason it was a TRUDGE to get to the fence. Brett jumped the six foot fence ....yeah, not bad for a old fella, huh!? I handed Molly over the fence to him and he proceeded to the vehicle to get Molly settled. Uh,....oh, ya...that left me to jump the fence and yes, I made it. (okay, I stepped on a big block of ice that was near...but hey I got over the fence without damage to any body parts!!) We took Molly home, singing the whole way....her response "this is so much fun, guys!". oh Molly, hanging with the Gramma and Grampa is always an adventure!! When we got home and back in the house we pulled and snapped and yes, swore a couple of times at the doorknob....finally...finally it let loose. We now have a lovely, VERY EXPENSIVE, new door knob on our front door....and lo and behold it works like a charm....ah....on to the next adventure.

Spicy isn't always a good thing......

So, if variety is the spice of life.
Then the place of work must be the entire spice rack...with some extras thrown in for good measure.
Adding spice to something generally livens it up, gives it color and enhances the flavor. Uh....okay,
something tells me there are some of us who don't have a lot of spice in our work places. Should you be the spice there....somebody's gonna be allergic, somebody's gonna make a face...somebody's gonna talk about the dish when finished cause you gave it a whole new 'flavor'. Not all spices should be mixed together....oh, boy...I am not gonna even go there. But, I find it so interesting the dynamics of a work place and who you can relate it to the spice rack.....given enough time I could bore you to tears with all my similarities. But, I think you get my drift. Today, my day felt quite a bit like rice pilaf.....you figure it out!!

Outside the workplace, life has taken on some strange curves for me. My parents are getting older and my Dad is fading from this life, slowly. Don't get me wrong he is not ill, just losing interest quickly, strength rapidly and concentration is minimal. The idea of having to "do" a task of say, going for groceries is huge for him. Being with more than two people in a room causes his concentration to go haywire, it makes "his head spin". I get very emotional thinking that one day my Dad won't be on earth anymore, it's a tough thought....cause there is a man who loves me unconditionally....always has, always will....that's my Dad. I'm "his girl". uh...I think I gotta quit here....on to something else .....
We have had some illness in the family and that weighs one down as well.....worry....no wonder I color my hair!!! oh...okay....something a little more upbeat here, ......

Tonight we are finishing the shoveling from the blizzard, our back sidewalk is impassable. I had a little difficulty getting the back door open.....I squeezed through by holding my breathe and making my self REAL tall....grabbed a shovel and scooped out enough to make sure the dryer vent was okay....and the backdoor could be opened easily.

The really upbeat stuff, my husband is making dinner and it's smells Wonderful. Chicken stir fry with basmati rice.....my saliva is doing a little dance....HELLO!!! gotta go now, folks.

Stay warm and God bless.........

never seen before.....in the history of ...well..ME

I finally made it to the hairstylist. It's been five months, in many way that may not seem like much time to many of you, but I was trying to grow my hair a little longer...so no visits to the scissor lady. I really like my stylist, she listens, suggests and then snips away....she also knew I would not be seeing her for awhile due to my wanting to grow out this mop of top of me head.
The trouble with growing one's hair "out"..is it becomes unmanageable at some point and the scissors in my own drawer call me to do something drastic.....I held off, stood firm...okay except for those couple of times when my bangs were like sitting on my chin (not really, but I did give those a bit of a trim now and then). I have even snipped off a strand of errant hair, "T" my stylist would just look at me in the mirror as she finds my handiwork and give me a little glare followed by a grin and a quick shake of her head. What are ya goin' ta do? The stuff doesn't "do" what is suppose to for days....off it comes. So as you visualize all this, know that I have a healthy head of hair....lots of curls and a snippet or two taken out will NOT show up quickly.
I waited until after the Christmas rush to get into to see her, imagine my dismay when she was away on holiday for over two weeks. Now what? I could book with another of the stylists in the shoppe.....uh.....oh...uh....uh.....but, I.....OKAY! I'll do it. This "new" young lady did a fabulous job! So, now when I need to get the hair appointment in again, I can have a choice.....who knew one could get so lucky? She even suggested "straightening my curling locks with a flat iron". A what you say? (actually that was me....saying that) I went for it. The stylist figured if I did not like it....well, there's water in the tap and we could begin anew. It only took her a few minutes,
wow...she's good with that wicked looking thing. You cannot imagine my shock when I looked in the mirror....who was this woman with the sleek, shiny....straight hair. What a difference, what a transformation......I love it! I hugged that young lady for putting her magic "wand" to work and gave me a look I had never dreamed of seeing. Pleased doesn't quit cover it. She told me if I ever wanted her to do this again, it would take less than an hour for the wash and style.
No curls, just sleek flowing locks....can you believe it? I still look in the mirror and am shocked.
IN a very good way, but still "gape" would be a word I might use here.
I gotta tell ya, when I walked into the house and my husband viewed my new do....he was much impressed!! It's fun to do something new like this, I dunno if I would do it often to my hair, but it sure opened up a door that was firmly planted closed before. Just imagine.

let the bells ring out and the banners fly......

Tonight is New Year's Eve for those folks who do not go by the Gregorian calendar. So those folks who celebrate by the Julian calendar are in for some good eats, lots of music and such!
WE are celebrating with some folks, eating the perogies, cabbage rolls, sausage....oh, best be wearing "stretch" type pants, me thinks. We shall be listening to the banjo, accordian, lots of guitar and then at 12 midnight shoutin' out to the masses a Happy New Year (once again....ah, well).

26 years ago tonight, I was in labor with our son. Had we watched the year go by with the Julian calendar....our boy would have been the NEW YEARS babe of 1981!! But, as it is...he has a fun night nontheless.


I found myself spending some fun time with Molly today. Her Mommy made a quick trip out of the house and I watched over our grand-daughter. We laughed, played hide and seek and generally had a fun couple a hours. She is growing far too quickly....these days are precious.
It's funny to watch her when she has a cookie and doesn't want to quite finish it yet....she knows that she has to put it up high so puppy doesn't get it and munch it down! She looked in a dish she had accidently left in her "tent" and Daisy had found it first....inhaling a piece of Molly's banana bread. Molly looked in the tent and "oh...no...Daisy" was all she said. I giggled...what else are ya gonna do? No wonder Daisy follows Molly everywhere....there is a chance of a nibble of cookie, or banana bread...or maybe if she's lucky a small piece of sandwich leftover. Daisy loves Molly, chases her down the hall and generally is a great companion...she's also part vacuum ...not bad thing when clean up duty is called in to play!!!

Snow....snow...snow....we still need to finish shovelling snow. The backyard is incredible...I sure hope we don't get a quick melt in Spring....could be ugly! Think ARK. By the way, did you know there were two ARKs in the Bible? I leave you to ponder that one.....

looks can be deceiving.....

It's like looking at a postcard. really.
The view from each of our windows is amazing. It reminds me of postcards I have seen, each scene pretty and lovely in it's own way.
Until....you poke your nose outside the front/back door and the blast of freezing cold air hits you a smacker in the face. Not so pretty and lovely, I tell ya. I only ventured outside once today and that was to dump some garbage in it's container....the door squealed and yelped as I opened it, the container crackled and snapped as I pushed open it's lid....I, twinkle toes, danced over a few large mounds of snow....I'm sure I heard my neighbor laugh as I did so...but,
yikes...that is snappin' freezing air out there. The neighbor was out shoveling the snow, it was packed down so hard that it was coming out in blocks not nice shovel-fulls. Igloo's.....hmmmm.

Today, I cleaned the house ....put away all kinds of junk, throw out all kinds of other junk and made up a pile of stuff to recycle....so, today was not a wasted "snow" day....very productive I must say.

Our neighbor on the other side of us...owns a snowblower. He was using it this afternoon to clear his driveway....the snow "blower" must have been faced towards our house for a time...as it seemed as thought the storm had begun again.....bang, splatter and the pitter patter of pelts hitting the side of the house gave me pause. ...it did not last long, he must have realized he was 'smokin' little snow pelts at the house as it quit as quickly as it started. I wonder if he would like some homemade cookies or cash to help out a neighbor and clear out our driveway?.....maybe we will ask....will see.

Good luck to those who have yet to shovel....it's hard work and tough sluggin'. So take it slow....unless you have a neighbor who has a snowblower and likes homemade cookies!!!!

it's not the DAIRY QUEEN kind.....

We are in the middle of a blizzard.
Wow.
I was at work until a little after two o'clock today. Then my co-worker offered to give me a lift home when we were to be closed down due to blizzard conditions. The trip home was an adventure, a safe one...but still an adventure. Complete white outs from time to time, could not see the car in front of us....tail lights ....nothing! They dropped me off at the end of my street and I walked a little over a block. I stumbled, fell and plunged into snow drifts that were thigh high, I huffed and I puffed because the wind was knocking MY wind outta me. Tears were flowing down my cheeks, ice formed on my face and when I finally entired the front door to our home I was completely covered in WHITE. I was so happy to be home...safe and sound. I was out of breathe, somewhat exhausted, a little chilled....but none the less....I was home were the furnace was blowing warm air and the cold was gonna remain on the outside of the walls.
I have a couple of DVD's to watch, some good books that can certainly be fallen into.....there is hot chocolate in the cupboard and my husband is already making dinner.... yup, we can bunker in for the night.
I am sure we will hear all kinds of stories tomorrow at work of how the blizzard altered peoples day....should be an interesting one....but that is for tomorrow.....tonight, I will relax and simply enjoy a quiet night at home.
I hope you are home, safe and sound, warm and cozy!

Omigosh.....

Oh...omigosh....
oh...omigosh.....
it's snowing and it's fantastic.....I think all throughout the Christmas season I was missing "winter"...and boom, here it is....ah...

I have a new author that I am checking out tonight, should be an interesting read by all the reviews (actually I take little if any notice of reviews as I like to form my own opinion...but
it's like talking about the book..somebody is gonna love it and somebody ain't).
I also, have in my possession the DVD "Pirates of the Caribbean - dead man's chest"....hubby is at the hockey game - a place he loves to be. A MOI....oh, yeah....I have the evening of flannel pajamas....a good book and a interesing DVD to watch.....oh man....oh...man.....ahhhhh.

Let it snow...let it snow...let it snow....

in the still of the night.....

I look forward to a very quiet evening.

I looked after Molly E. today, we had a grand ole time of it. Went for a nice, crisp walk this morning over to the Mall so we could get her a "sippy" cup....as she tends to put her little hands into wide mouth cups....go figure....life is just a lot easier with the no-spill sippy cups and a lot less mess. Lunch was shared with her handsome Uncle, and her snack time also included a visit from Grampa....she got in lots of smiles, tons of giggles and more than enough hugs to last her until next time we see her.

Brett is home tomorrow and I am sure he will have the laundry completed, the vacuuming done and the floors washed,....oh...the bathrooms cleaned to spic and span. Right.....pinch yourself ...your dreamin'. The home cleaning is always done by yours truly, he on the other hand is a great cook....he attempts to make dishes that I would NEVER even give a shot to....and he's really good at them. He also does dishes!!! so, it's about balance, right. There may be a little dust laying about...but I am treated to a wonderful home-cooked meal more often than not. So, the dust can sit until I get to it....sooner or later....well, maybe this evening as you see...I ...uh...can't stand to relax unless the place is tidy and in order....yeah, well thats me!!
Surprised....NOT!!!

I have a paperback picked out, my pj's are clean.....the house is actually vacuumed because Molly and I took down the Nativity scene today together....she has all the figures down pat. Mary, Joseph, each wise man and what is the gift they hold...(she has a bit of a time saying frankincense on the first go 'round....)but she knows the shepherd boy as well as each of the animals....and to be sure we always begin with baby Jesus. Not bad for a two year old, huh?

Okay, I am heading into supper, so adieu....for now....hope you too have a relaxing evening ahead.

don't look now......thump...

I have never before said these words...."I'm glad it's over" when I am talking about the Christmas season. But this 2006 Christmas was one I am not soon to forget and in truth I am glad it's over!! Just like all things ....good, bad or ugly....they come to pass and when they are "past" it's much easier looking back than walking "through".

We brought in the new year with some friends up at their cabin. When we left the city I was in a ball of knots, fell asleep about one kilometre away from our house and slept for approx. 45 minutes solid. My poor old body must have to shut down awhile to recuperate and then move on to dealing with the stress. So, after having a much needed "nap" and then staring out the window of our vehicle for 30 minutes I could actually feel the tension leaving my shoulders and neck. slowly. Over the next 48 hours we grazed....yep, grazed.....if we were not at the table eating then we had snacks in front of us .....I feel like a bloated cow at the moment....too many calories, too many carbs.....tooo many...too much....and like a dunce I nibbled and tasted my way through the entire contents. yeash. Whoever invented elastic waistbands and sweatpants....well, God bless 'em. We did get a small amount of exercise, other than the walk to and from the fridge, I mean.....we did go for a nice long hike along the lake edge and along a "bush" track. So, incredible. The walk along the lake edge was funny because as you walked the snow would sometimes sink underfoot, not the ice...the snow. It made for a lot of giggles for me....but then I am amused by simple things sometimes....okay, most times. Anyway, I laughed out loud a few times cause I couldn't contain myself...it was just a moment in time, but for me walking on water and sinking every now and then....just hit me funny. No one else thought it amusing but your truly....yeah, well go figure. I knew there was approx. 18 inches of ice beneath the snow, (our neighbor was a Park Conversation officer and he told us) so I guess there was comfort in the fact that I wasn't going to break through the ice...but the snow just kept letting go ....I suppose you had to be there....but I loved it. The sound of my own feet crunching along the hardened snow, the sparkles EVERYWHERE, the smell of wood burning fireplaces, distant sounds of snowmobiles, the laughter of small kids on sleighs.....yep, it was a moment and you had to be there.....I loved it.....it was a gift for my spirit and I wrapped myself up in the moment of it. ah....peace.

Now back to the routine of life. It's amazing though when you are given a "gift" of beauty and laughter how your soul can reap the benefits so rapidly and feel renewed. Ending 2006 with laughter, relaxation and calmness was a gift and I am thankful. The stress of life, the commotion of living keeps us on a fast track, but there are special moments when the track is given a stop/break/pause and we are shown a gift of love and precious sight that one cannot buy or purchase.....God presents them to us, we just need to stop, view them and digest them.
Gift comes in all shapes and sizes, the best ones are generally free, the most precious ones are always from God.....I just needed the time to stop and witness them.

From my home to yours...."may you witness some of God's precious gifts each day of 2007"