Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Optimum Pooper

I had to share this...I love this commercial. I suppose this means I may have a strange sense of humour, but I'm quite okay with that!

Slacker

Wow! It seems I have once again been neglecting this blog. I'm really not sure why I occasionally forget about blogging because I thoroughly enjoy it. I would like to say that I've simply just been too busy to blog but that is just not the case. I often think about blogging and then get distracted. So, once again I am going to really try to do a better job of updating on a more regular basis.

There's been lots going on with our family lately but of course I can't remember everything (which is why I should update more regularly). Cameron has been pretty entertaining lately...we just never know what he's going to say next. An example of such would be last week when we had a family tickling/wrestling match on the living room floor. Mommy always ends up taking the brunt of it and in this true fashion I ended up laying on the floor with Cameron laying on top of me and Cory on top of Cameron. When they finally got up I laughed and said we made a Cameron sandwich. Cameron thought this was excellent and declared, "Let's do it again!" He then looks at me and says, "You be the meat and I'll be the salad...Daddy can be the bread!" It was very funny.

Cameron started school (pre-K) last week. I added a pic from his first day of school. As of now, he just goes on Wednesday afternoons but it will hopefully be changed to 2 times per week sometime soon. He absolutely loves going to school and I think it would benefit all of the kids if they could go twice a week. Right now they have to cram a lot of stuff into a couple of hours per week. Cameron is actually at school right now. I find it very strange when I have this time alone in the house...it's just so quiet. I generally don't know what to do with myself for these couple of hours. I usually take advantage and just relax and watch some TV. Cameron is typically in control of the TV in the living room during the day.



In other news, our old laptop died. It was slowly dying and then one morning a couple of weeks ago it had the blue screen of death. It's sad to say but I cannot live without a computer. The computer died in the morning so we then had to take a trip into Yorkton to purchase a new one. I love our new laptop and it works so much better than the old one did. We did decide to take the old laptop in to determine if it could be fixed. We ended up putting a new hard drive in it and they were able to retrieve all of our photos and music files off the old hard drive. I've definitely learned my lesson about not backing up my files. We'll be purchasing an external hard drive in the very near future! I had 2 years worth of pictures that I though I had lost forever.

Bye for now!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Secrets of Better Photography

I recently signed up for an online photography course and I am loving it! I have learned so much and I can't wait to start practicing some of the things that I am learning. I'm only half way through this course but I've already signed up for another course. This course is called Secrets of Better Photography and it focuses on a variety of areas. So far the lessons have been about equipment, film, lighting, exposure options, and portraiture. I'm really looking forward to the next lesson which is on children and pet photography.

Although, I'm loving the course and learning so much, I've found it difficult to get out and take pictures lately. I did manage to snap a few pics to use some of the techniques I've learned but I really need to start taking more pictures. I'm going to make the effort to get out every day and take some pictures. The assignment for the portraiture lesson requires me to find someone who is willing to let me take their picture so I'm on the hunt for a willing subject. If no one is interested, I suppose Cory will just have to have his portrait taking!
Here are a couple of pics that I have taken since I've started this course. They aren't very exciting but I was keeping it simple while practicing various techniques.






Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Road Trip

This morning I flew out of bed to the sound of my alarm. It's amazing how much it startles me when my alarm goes on in the morning because I so seldom have to actually set it. I often have to remind myself as to why I would have been so silly to set the alarm in the first place but this morning I quickly remembered that we were going on a road trip today.

Cory is gone golfing with the boys for 4 days. They are in Humboldt for the annual Saskatchewan Provincial Police Golf Championship. Cameron and I dropped Cory off yesterday morning and we then proceeded into Yorkton to pick up a few things. However, today we had a bigger road trip planned. We had some problems with our home theatre system and it had to go back to Best Buy to be sent away for repairs and they called last week to say that it was fixed...which thus required a road trip to Regina. Since Cory was going to be away for a few days, I decided it would be good for Cameron and I to get out of the house for a day while he was gone...we sometimes get a little tired of each other when it's just the two of us for days on end.

I invited my friend Amie and her sweet little baby Rylee (who just so happened to have turned 7 months old today) to come along for the day. Amie was also looking forward to getting out of the house for the day. We left Sturgis around 9am and made it to Regina shortly before noon. We decided we better have lunch before we did anything else. We decided on Applebees and it was pretty good. I've eaten there a couple of times before and today's lunch wasn't quite as good as what I've had there before but no big deal. Cameron refused to eat his lunch (it's in a container in our fridge now) and Rylee was a perfect little girl.

After lunch we headed for Best Buy to pick up our home theatre package. It is in a huge box that weighs at least a 100 pounds so two young gentlemen that work at the store were kind enough to put it in the truck for me. We then ventured next door to Winners and Homesense. Amie was on the hunt for a couple of pictures/art work but didn't have any luck. We both ended up just buying a toy for the kids. We discussed doing some more shopping but we both decided we didn't really need anything. I also figured I didn't need to spend any money when I should be saving for our Florida vacation that is fast approaching.

We left Regina at 2pm and arrived in Sturgis just before 5pm. However, we did make a quick pit stop in Fort Qu'Appelle at the Dairy Queen. The DQ in Yorkton is closed due to flood damage so we decided we should get our fix on the way home. We were lucky and didn't have any crazy weather to drive in...no thunderstorms, rain, hail, etc. Cameron wasn't an angel today but he wasn't horrible either...he just likes to push my buttons some days. Rylee was a little angel though and slept most of the way to Regina and most of the way back to Sturgis.

All in all it was a good day and it was great have some company for our little road trip. We'll have to do it again some time. Now it's time to relax for the evening. Cameron's watching a movie and I may put in a movie for myself after he goes to bed.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

PEI Vacation - Part 3

I didn't spend my entire vacation on PEI. There was a road trip to Halifax, NS after Cory returned to SK. Myself, Cameron, my mom and my aunt Mae went on a little roadie to Halifax to visit our great friends, Lori and Wayne. We went to NS on a Thursday and came back on Saturday. We did a little shopping, toured the Halifax waterfront, had some good eats and most importantly, spent some time with Lori and Wayne. It was a great little trip!

Wedding number 3 took place on July 17th, which was when one of my dearest friends from high school got married. Krista and Marc have been together for 10 years and finally tied the knot. They live in New Hampshire so we don't got to see each other too often but we are all still great friends. My mom was my date for their wedding and we had a fantastic time. It was one of the most amazing weddings I've ever been too...even better than our wedding! The work that they (Krista) put into the wedding to make it so special and personalized was unbelievable. I am so happy for this wonderful couple. I just wish we didn't live so far away from them :(

Some other highlights of our vacation include:
~ A few trips to the movie theatre...I went to see Shrek Forever After, Toy Story 3, Grown Ups, Eclipse, and Despicable Me...can you tell I miss having a movie theatre so close to where I live?
~ I got my hair colored and cut TWICE by my favorite hair stylist who I actually trust that she knows what she's doing with my hair.
~ Canada Day fireworks...Cory's done a decent job with the backyard fireworks the past two years but these were much better.
~ Cow's Ice Cream...oh so yummy, and Cameron couldn't finish his so I couldn't let it go to waste.
~ Meeting two new little babies...Olivia Margaret Stanley and Aiden Andrew Smith.
~ A second trip to Shining Waters on a very, very hot day.
~ Getting to spend time with family and friends...although, as usual the time went so fast and I didn't get to see everyone as much as I had hoped.

That pretty much sums up our PEI Vacation for 2010. Again, I'm sure there was lots more that happened but that's all your getting! Now we're gearing up for our next vacation which will be in just a little of 2 months...Florida here we come!!!

Saturday, July 31, 2010

PEI Vacation - Part 2

Wow! So, keeping a blog updated was apparently much more difficult to do while on vacation than I had thought it would be. I had this vision that while I was in PEI, I wasn't going to run all over the place and that I would have lots of down time. Well, the joke was on me!!! The 7.5 weeks that Cameron and I were in PEI just flew by and we were very busy. We probably only had a total of 5 days that we just stayed "home" and relaxed. The 2 weeks that Cory was with us in PEI also went very quickly but I had expected that. Since I didn't do a very good job of blogging while on vacation and I didn't exactly take notes to keep track of what we did, I'm going to do my very best to recap the highlights!

So, I already gave all the details of Stephanie's wedding, etc. The week after Stephanie's wedding was pretty uneventful for us. I took advantage of not having any obligations and had some relaxation time and got caught up on some sleep. However, our quiet time was short lived because Cory arrive in PEI on June 22nd and we were all pretty excited. While Cory was in PEI we did lots of visiting and touring the Island. On Cameron's birthday, myself, Cory, Cameron, Shirley, Jesse, Dylan, and Brandon went to Shining Waters Family Fun Park in Cavendish. We also had a birthday party for Cameron at Cory's parent's house. Cameron had lots of fun and it was a great way to get to see some family and friends. Cory and I took Cameron for his first round of mini golf in Cavendish. I got some great pictures and you can't even tell that Cameron was being a bit of a handful that day. We also perused Ripley's Believe It or Not after mini golfing and it was quite interesting. While Cory was in PEI we also made an obligatory trip to The Frosty Treat in Kensington...it was super yummy.

Cory and I celebrated our 6th anniversary on June 19th but we were still 4000kms apart. We planned an evening for just the two of us to go out for dinner and exchange gifts. We don't usually do the whole gift exchange thing for our anniversary but we decided we would this year. I had been planning Cory's gift for months! I had boudoir photos taken by an amazing photographer, Rachel Peters, and I gave him an album with the pictures in it as his gift. He was so surprised, he was speechless and for anyone who knows Cory, he's rarely at a loss for words. Cory gave me a beautiful journey diamond pendant and I absolutely love it. We went to Off Broadway Restaurant for our anniversary dinner. Cory used to work at Off Broadway and it had been quite a while since we had gone there to eat and the food was amazing.

Wedding number 2 took place while Cory was in PEI. Our great friend, Ryan, got married on July 3rd and Cory was a groomsman. The wedding took place at a lovely little church in Covehead and the reception followed at Shaw's Hotel. It was a beautiful wedding and very yummy meal at the reception. I had never eaten at Shaw's Hotel before but it's definitely a place I hope to return to on another trip to PEI. After the reception, we moved onto The Lobster Trap for a night of fun and dancing.

I know we did a whole lot more while Cory was with us in PEI but I just can't remember everything and I really don't want to bore anyone with too many little details.

PEI Vacation - Part 3 coming very soon...

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

PEI Vacation ~ Part 1

Cameron and I have been in PEI for 2 weeks now and we have been keeping pretty busy. We arrived in Charlottetown at just before midnight on June 2nd. Cameron was an excellent traveller as always...even with our 4 hour wait in Toronto. He was so funny when we finally got to my mom and dad's. He quickly found the bathroom and then went to the bedroom where he began stripping of his clothes. He then demanded his Hulk pj's, which I had to search for in his suitcase...luckily I pretty much knew where to locate the pj's. He put on his pj's and told us it was very late and that he had to go to bed. He climbed into bed and then told us to turn off the light and go...we found this whole thing very amusing of course. So, we said our good nights and Cameron very quickly said good night to Cory on the phone and he was out like a light!

I spent my first couple of days doing wedding related things. My first day here, I had to go and try on my bridesmaid dress. Fortunately it fit perfectly since the alterations were already completed. I also went with the bride-to-be for a meeting at the Rodd Royalty Inn to review some final details for the wedding reception, wedding dance and brunch the day after the wedding. I felt bad that I wasn't here for the majority of the planning so I wanted to help out in any way that I could.

My second day in Charlottetown was pretty exciting...although, I can only share part of my day with you. I went to get my hair hi-lited and cut and it felt so good. I didn't have my hair cut since before Christmas and I had been dying my own hair since last October. Part of my day had to do with Cory's surprise gift for our anniversary, that will have to remain a secret for a little while longer. Our anniversary is June 19th but Cory doesn't arrive in PEI until June 22nd. His gift isn't here yet and I'm hoping to have it back before he has to fly back to SK...I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

After only being here for 2 days, it was then time for Stephanie's Stagette...and it was a super fun day. We began the day with the entire wedding party going to Grandpa's Antique Photo Studio in Cavendish. It was really fun and the pics turned out great. Most of the girls then took Stephanie to The Pilot House for lunch and then it was time to get things ready for the evening events. I had done a lot of planning over the past few months and I think it was a success and everyone seemed to have lots of fun. We played lots of crazy games and there were lots of laughs.

I also planned a Bridal Shower for Stephanie and that was last Tuesday evening. It was just the girls in the wedding and a few of her friends that attended. It was a very relaxed evening and everyone had a great time. Stephanie got some very nice things and lets just say Matt is going to LOVE everything that she got...it was more along the lines of a personal shower.

The wedding rehearsal was last Thursday night in Kinkora. We spent about an hour at the church getting all of our instructions so we would be prepared for the big day. Matt's parents then had everyone back to their home for some snacks and visiting. I was pretty tired though so we didn't stay too long.

The day before the wedding was a pretty busy and hectic day but everything came together in the end. All of the girls in the wedding got together at Stephanie's for the night (I didn't spend the night though). We painted our nails and got everything organized for the kissing game during the reception. When I came home from Stephanie's at midnight, I then had to get mine and Cameron's stuff ready for the morning...ugh, why do I always leave things until the last minute?

Saturday morning, the wedding day, came very quickly. I got myself ready and made sure I had everything ready for Cameron. Cameron was spending the day and night with our great friend Bobbi Jo. I had to be at the hair salon by 7:45am...I was only a few minutes late but it didn't matter. All the ladies got their hair and make-up done and we all looked amazing! We then headed for Kinkora where we finished getting ready and dressed at Chez Shea. We made it to the church on time, the wedding was beautiful and everyone looked stunning. Stephanie was a beautiful bride and her dress was gorgeous! We got our pictures taken at Province House in Charlottetown and I can't wait to see the pics. The wedding reception went very smoothly and all of the speeches were great. I managed to work up the courage to get up and say something but I didn't manage to hold back the tears very well...apparently I made a few people cry ;-) We danced the night away and everyone had a great time. The next morning we went back to the hotel for brunch and the gift opening.

Since the wedding has come and gone, I have finally been able to do a little relaxing. The past few days have pretty uneventful and it has been great. I figure I better rest up before Cory gets here because I'm sure that once he arrives, we'll be run off our feet seeing people and going places until he leaves. Cameron and I are both missing Cory and our own home but we're doing great just the same. We have both said we're ready to go home a few times already but we've still got 5 weeks a couple of days before we go back to SK. We still don't actually have our return flights booked but we should be going back on July 23rd.

Until next time...