tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64207895161070922432024-03-18T15:57:27.876-07:00Our Little Cottage in the Big WoodsLiving an authentic life in "Our Little Cottage In The Big Woods". Raising our children,
creating art, writing, film making, fibre art, furniture painting, gardening, traveling, restoring vintage dollhouses, hunting for antique treasures
& chasing our big dream to live by
the sea, all on a frugal budget. Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.comBlogger3817125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-50114550340199466052024-03-17T20:58:00.000-07:002024-03-17T21:53:02.176-07:00Right Here. Right Now.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMxTAKXW53ThrwB83fpRXQlmOVKrd08YKnUYT5nJ4TMTyLL0eQtb3HloDoaFCXeLh4BOdpO13VIUPpvkrybxloMaXEDLnnRA55164EgoqhOZqIiUZa9KCwATEg1L6tYYJp13ufqj3nWRJqJ7o4kn9B53oRk0wF5XA102yBKA1DyzPgKMkMUEInWr0WBQH/s1470/st-patricks-day-quotes12-1611614807.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1470" data-original-width="980" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMxTAKXW53ThrwB83fpRXQlmOVKrd08YKnUYT5nJ4TMTyLL0eQtb3HloDoaFCXeLh4BOdpO13VIUPpvkrybxloMaXEDLnnRA55164EgoqhOZqIiUZa9KCwATEg1L6tYYJp13ufqj3nWRJqJ7o4kn9B53oRk0wF5XA102yBKA1DyzPgKMkMUEInWr0WBQH/s320/st-patricks-day-quotes12-1611614807.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... very light pj's as it was literally a Summer day outside today. It's going to be super warm until Tuesday, then the temperature will drop drastically and by Wednesday morning, our current muddy and brown landscape will be all white again!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... the latest "Daphne's Diary" magazine. I love all the whimsical articles and activities.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... quiet in the moment. Dishwasher is done and we're already snuggled in our cozy bed for the night.</span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span>.... the sun shone all day and the snow is all melted. Just in time for another storm!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... life, our sweet cottage, peace, good food and our amazing family, kind friends and co~workers. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the sour candies my daughter gifted us tonight for a late night treat. Very sweet!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... dh is watching an episode of "The Twilight Zone." Not very interesting to me.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... back to writing my book. I took a writing course so now I want to get back to finishing this story. One day, I'll write the last word and then it will become a journey of figuring out if I want to publish it, then how to do that! Maybe even a little book tour ....</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... how to sleep thru the night .... I was awake until 4:30 am this morning. This can't continue as I'm getting quite exhausted.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the quote for today is above. So sweet! <span style="text-align: center;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></p></div></div></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-31125989153509387122024-03-16T22:43:00.000-07:002024-03-16T22:43:40.495-07:00Silent Corner.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD1j1xj-L0LvmjyAIsJ0Yp-Ws1lu_VYkaoDgdv17AnzHuNJ-4Qeugg1lFRRDzBgplXLsIXT7vBZFIllCDsHI18Ro3oR4dJ20icGi6w6pByFv16GsTBlwIILsfZzqSABSwvHLDdlTQNakfBoBUG6RZApKD5fsrMYBUWv1VauQJ8Jgjiu5xfSxPYDB4blngZ/s640/chair.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD1j1xj-L0LvmjyAIsJ0Yp-Ws1lu_VYkaoDgdv17AnzHuNJ-4Qeugg1lFRRDzBgplXLsIXT7vBZFIllCDsHI18Ro3oR4dJ20icGi6w6pByFv16GsTBlwIILsfZzqSABSwvHLDdlTQNakfBoBUG6RZApKD5fsrMYBUWv1VauQJ8Jgjiu5xfSxPYDB4blngZ/s320/chair.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Dh had to drive into town the other day for an in person meeting, and took dd2 with him as she was working at our centre. Dd1 and dgs were at work and school. So that left me at home, all by myself, for the first time in forever. I had a virtual meeting and used the time before to shower, make the bed, tidy my office space, put my notes together for the meeting, had the meeting, then did some work on our new project. By the time I had dusted, vacuumed and cleaned our bathroom, everyone was coming in the door, or on their way home. I was quite proud that I handled the quiet so well, as it's typically a noisy and busy cottage. I haven't been left alone at all since last Spring, so this new experience was one I had been dreading for months, as I knew at some point the day would come. Thankful it was a busy day and went by quickly. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The shot above was a silent moment in the cottage, before I turned some music on, as I worked. It struck me as the perfect photo to show the quiet in our home that morning, with the sun reflecting on dh's chair, and yet, he's not sitting in it as he normally would be. A silent corner in a typically life filled home!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-22015404719196899922024-03-13T08:02:00.000-07:002024-03-13T08:17:19.685-07:00Tiny Garden.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo4y19Uq-9gYo3g5vcQ8KCuP7eU3UMW51r75lmYP5N8QT7luWL3NgCY5axITfq7yyPGkQGk7K8w354jW_K0HWcMMGtziNpif1LRENWMh-M4nUrPjvLDXCzoyz_aheRHqknDXOqz500jepVkCln_-bB20GIPplxn9j2fnNo8Inlk73110H6BEzuj7ZaTTqW/s362/Beatrix%20Potter's%20Garden.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="289" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo4y19Uq-9gYo3g5vcQ8KCuP7eU3UMW51r75lmYP5N8QT7luWL3NgCY5axITfq7yyPGkQGk7K8w354jW_K0HWcMMGtziNpif1LRENWMh-M4nUrPjvLDXCzoyz_aheRHqknDXOqz500jepVkCln_-bB20GIPplxn9j2fnNo8Inlk73110H6BEzuj7ZaTTqW/s320/Beatrix%20Potter's%20Garden.jpg" width="255" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">A month ago, I posted this sweet pic of a tiny "Peter Rabbits Garden" with the intent on recreating it in our Secret Garden this year. The story of Peter Rabbit will always hold a special place in my heart as I cast in the production back in kindergarten. I played one of Peter's little sisters. I think I was Cottontail but cannot be quite sure. I recall my sweet costume, complete with the fluffy round tail, and we all got Dairy Queen Dilly Bars once the play was done. We had to be so careful before the production to not get a spec of dirt on our costumes but once it was done, we all had chocolate smeared all over our faces, and I'm sure some on the material. My pink bunny costume with the ears and the white tail hung in my closet for years. So year, the story of Peter Rabbit has many memories for me. I hope I can recreate the tiny garden above. The biggest challenge will be the little blue jacket. I'm going to give it a good try!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">We woke up to heavy fog today. It's now burning off because the sun is shining but it was quite eery this morning. Today, for the first time in 42 weeks, I'm at home, all alone, with my thoughts and my worries. Dh has been beside me every day but today, he had a meeting and normally, I likely would have attended too but I have a virtual meeting in an hour, so staying home made more sense. Later today, I'm off to visit a dear friend but dh will come home in between and we'll have lunch together first. Then it's off to her house, then a stop in town to pick up dd who is working at our preschool today, then home for a virtual class, dinner and finally, our virtual board meeting. Many things to keep me busy. Helps when I'm all alone.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Hope your day is going well and the sun is out!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-2217208089112701592024-03-12T06:50:00.000-07:002024-03-12T07:56:13.019-07:00A Sister for Carys.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRaWLhULNiXtTfsOpRSzjF1HL0683Zvy5iwGBKtUG3Z02e1wax_LpB4puxa3V7hCF_0NVeKuYsJzMVyBDq-RPme-aSzreqcdfrVMVeiKHQxEHj2eR0aPUzmY6JtF7A83A9NmeBlnBNDG52GNd-N-im4biSGkmNMqBmqC3bp9PYNjXLeHXLVjWSGpkyeG34/s640/Carys.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRaWLhULNiXtTfsOpRSzjF1HL0683Zvy5iwGBKtUG3Z02e1wax_LpB4puxa3V7hCF_0NVeKuYsJzMVyBDq-RPme-aSzreqcdfrVMVeiKHQxEHj2eR0aPUzmY6JtF7A83A9NmeBlnBNDG52GNd-N-im4biSGkmNMqBmqC3bp9PYNjXLeHXLVjWSGpkyeG34/s320/Carys.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After a year of Carys, it was time to find</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">her a little "sister" but I promise, just 2</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Blythe dolls is all this cottage will have!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">New doll arrived on March 2nd after the</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">creator of Carys released her latest and</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I just happened to be looking that day.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The journey from across the sea was so</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">quick ~ not even 2 weeks. I will do a</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">reveal soon. Trying to figure out how to</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">create a video from what I captured on</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">the day she arrived. And working on her</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">name as well. Exciting times at the cottage!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">If you're a Blythe collector, how many do you have?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-12173804538166608012024-03-10T10:20:00.000-07:002024-03-10T10:50:44.942-07:00Right Here. Right Now.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK3KL2S1VN7Ia-6QvcBgq_MfCBPBLlhe-6xdpxmPyKVuxxe5-z5X4chgJXpf_y2iW6yiUtry6lfxgUJd-N4vu4u__1iMEmuFGgLlRlIaeufvey6KEX_98G13KZgGcm7aAYjewEF0e7fFedQCp8sRMdTBFisHZk3665glTJMlmxL9JaveFHf-QDp4NMw88/s1470/Spring.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1470" data-original-width="980" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGK3KL2S1VN7Ia-6QvcBgq_MfCBPBLlhe-6xdpxmPyKVuxxe5-z5X4chgJXpf_y2iW6yiUtry6lfxgUJd-N4vu4u__1iMEmuFGgLlRlIaeufvey6KEX_98G13KZgGcm7aAYjewEF0e7fFedQCp8sRMdTBFisHZk3665glTJMlmxL9JaveFHf-QDp4NMw88/s320/Spring.png" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... leggings and my Disney 100th Anniversary long sleeved shirt, with barefeet, and a single braid off to the side. We're having a lazy day as it's been a busy, crazy week and weekend. Tonight we have an event that dh is MC'ing and I'm trying to conserve some energy before a long, hot shower and getting all dressed up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my new English Home magazine for the Spring. This week, I'm going to start "A Work in Progress" written by Connor Franta. I'm also reading a LOT of grant applications for our charity ~ tis the season!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... quiet in the moment. Dh made us some amazing ham and cheese omelets. So good but I couldn't eat all of mine as it was too big ~ dd1 is finishing mine up. He promised me next time he'll make me one half the size. Love all of his cooking though.</span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span>.... sunshine and melting. We're at 0 C in the moment and will go higher this afternoon. All week is above 0 C but hoping the snow doesn't melt too quickly so there is no flooding. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... life, our sweet cottage, peace, good food and our amazing family, kind friends and co~workers. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the popcorn I just enjoyed, leftover from last night. We watched "Regime" while eating this salty treat. Always some left over for Sunday.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the tv is on "Blue Bloods" in the moment. Dh, dd1 and dgs are in the theatre room watching NHL hockey (so early on a Sunday morning) and dd2 is working on our new program that launches in a week, so there is a bit of chatter back and forth. Love her attention to detail as she ensures it's easy for participants to register.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... a new art journal that I'm making from a couple of duplicate magazines I ended up with.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... my mom's health, the many projects we're working on, announcements that need to be made this week, and our big anniversary in the Summer. A mix of good, exciting, not so great and lots of hard work coming up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the quote for today is above. So sweet! <span style="text-align: center;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; text-align: justify;"> </span></p></div></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-12518740523496052102024-03-04T08:08:00.000-08:002024-03-04T09:23:27.539-08:00Inside Views.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBoyOvGjzD5xbsBeBir2Z9RioQwhotahPM17DLiofq423dXZ3Rub3sfWBXLczcOeLUVpR3F1iDtSTuGt7OZTaedaBzAoQ1W1s0qXNgqWtS2r6uFKNO9i6M_j_DNinmXweH3Tcj3CIrJZv3EsmmJ54b5vFz32RJAcf4gZqwiIW7g0S5hUTOgbjK3dTm9lUY/s640/Feb257.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBoyOvGjzD5xbsBeBir2Z9RioQwhotahPM17DLiofq423dXZ3Rub3sfWBXLczcOeLUVpR3F1iDtSTuGt7OZTaedaBzAoQ1W1s0qXNgqWtS2r6uFKNO9i6M_j_DNinmXweH3Tcj3CIrJZv3EsmmJ54b5vFz32RJAcf4gZqwiIW7g0S5hUTOgbjK3dTm9lUY/w151-h200/Feb257.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiminxlefN8nLWSHYSYbFa0GFD44MnkuCvyJhZtpMBu_xp8owwXzF4RIhh_vlozaLSYykkm8HnuoUzZF63Fvc63p8rfHxoBXTVflfMCH47-uAb-GZTEV-vshJJ161RZ0SxmPNvnU7dz8E6bZaqJw4sxMgQC4WVDUrjzW7XYTWmZs_Y3Zh57a8d3JmymTthH/s640/Feb258.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiminxlefN8nLWSHYSYbFa0GFD44MnkuCvyJhZtpMBu_xp8owwXzF4RIhh_vlozaLSYykkm8HnuoUzZF63Fvc63p8rfHxoBXTVflfMCH47-uAb-GZTEV-vshJJ161RZ0SxmPNvnU7dz8E6bZaqJw4sxMgQC4WVDUrjzW7XYTWmZs_Y3Zh57a8d3JmymTthH/w151-h200/Feb258.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I'm going to start my video series this month of our little cottage in the big woods. For now, two shots of a view I had the other day when I was sitting at our dining room table. Both are at the front of our cottage. Our little living room is across the hall from the dining room. In our other house, we had double french doors on the living room and I loved when my kids were little, we always had a beautiful, sun filled tidy room. We lived in the family room that was just a step down from our kitchen and nook. It filled the entire back of our house and was comfortable and our favorite place. The living room was our special spot at the end of the day, or when guests popped in. Where our Christmas Tree landed, and the best place to read a book on a rainy day. The move for designers and home builders to delete formal living rooms and dining rooms from homes now may work for many. But not for our family. We had to design this cottage because every house plan we looked at had no living and dining rooms options, which was sad. I love these intentional, comfortable spaces and so glad we advocated for both.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The second photo is looking thru the french door to the butler's pantry (aka the tea cupboard) and the kitchen. My apron is hanging on the right side. I'm so thankful we again advocated for what we wanted. In this case, a vintage inspired kitchen, with solid wood cabinetry painted a sage green, with ivory accents to match our AGA range from England. Black granite to keep the look with the black top of the range. We continued the cabinets in the laundry room, which is the sliding door at the back of the hall, as well as in our bathrooms, the desk under the stairs and the bookcases in the family room. The only cabinet that is different is the half bath on the main floor. We bought that unit and painted it to match the other cabinetry. A uniform look with a vintage style. And our own eclectic design all over.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">More to come this month as Spring begins to emerge.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-8696876974325462002024-03-02T13:26:00.000-08:002024-03-03T13:31:22.688-08:00Hello, March.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukTMjIgu03iIVhq8TSI5YW-C8UoqYJrR9sXstXvPv9G6KNVjIKGIgaLbRSHK-RFRWkAY3ZGqOvB5CTGMw7vZoQzr9A82ACvVur5EQ5w2cm317Pd2mYBVO0791jGbkWbOZvh7MAMF-8GmlUaggPZIUXEE-oElb4WOqCpQCfotzPelE_S9cmcrQznYJSni-/s500/March.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgukTMjIgu03iIVhq8TSI5YW-C8UoqYJrR9sXstXvPv9G6KNVjIKGIgaLbRSHK-RFRWkAY3ZGqOvB5CTGMw7vZoQzr9A82ACvVur5EQ5w2cm317Pd2mYBVO0791jGbkWbOZvh7MAMF-8GmlUaggPZIUXEE-oElb4WOqCpQCfotzPelE_S9cmcrQznYJSni-/s320/March.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">March always brings some hope. As the snow starts</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">to melt and Spring begins to emerge, it always feels</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">lighter. We don't have to bundle up and wear heavy</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">boots. Less sweaters and no mitts! Can't wait for it!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-6370528443603537632024-02-29T22:52:00.000-08:002024-03-02T17:36:28.566-08:00Goodbye February.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA6UkoafnhgGwaBKHfqn4ILGjyS5TPVI1HZ2jbSLamfU1PIvEkF-abPgI28U775O-MzuQZUA_T8OA_f9q8LR3nP9Ozd7fQYnIilUseBOoUQdRw2xwJnSe3KnpFQ461ARxmlMonErfTiq5Hb_tW1wKP9xYs2JA8bUuNnL-8EE9NWkYMF9tSFSuu-CXl0Kpg/s280/February.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="191" data-original-width="280" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA6UkoafnhgGwaBKHfqn4ILGjyS5TPVI1HZ2jbSLamfU1PIvEkF-abPgI28U775O-MzuQZUA_T8OA_f9q8LR3nP9Ozd7fQYnIilUseBOoUQdRw2xwJnSe3KnpFQ461ARxmlMonErfTiq5Hb_tW1wKP9xYs2JA8bUuNnL-8EE9NWkYMF9tSFSuu-CXl0Kpg/s1600/February.png" width="280" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It was unseasonable warm, without any snow,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">until this week. So now we're starting to leave</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Winter and get ready for Spring, only to have</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Winter finally show up! Thankful our region</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">is not being hit as hard as down south but also</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">thankful the snow may help us have less fire</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">concerns this Summer. More storms in the</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">next week. But Spring will soon be here. Yes!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Are you ready for this next season?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-59273888299774441302024-02-28T16:25:00.000-08:002024-02-28T21:11:16.925-08:00Bedtime Reads.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5S0ArMLqPjNul7qxjnrKnU_x4p32ZH_LMCRM-1tTLaOen2nIBpk8vioYcJ7XqMc5vEU3k7SN4ztT7B7wMEwaTHxsk3eVnCnN9yzMS0Hpob3E9YA-R41ZUa5LReyOBBVuxX2Nz2gnOXUDEIft8L4QMXzhKve7rkdEdQR4mC5mHUwMHB6JFbPn8v1S4GKkV/s640/Feb225.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5S0ArMLqPjNul7qxjnrKnU_x4p32ZH_LMCRM-1tTLaOen2nIBpk8vioYcJ7XqMc5vEU3k7SN4ztT7B7wMEwaTHxsk3eVnCnN9yzMS0Hpob3E9YA-R41ZUa5LReyOBBVuxX2Nz2gnOXUDEIft8L4QMXzhKve7rkdEdQR4mC5mHUwMHB6JFbPn8v1S4GKkV/s320/Feb225.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9IeRo21eTqyDH3w6XexjevGVwqFUQWJ5coxq3N0-vMkIMt9lsjA0g_xiVPJF5qK8ocmNGlcfH4c3_UtXIyWYVe4cSeb9yec2g_cdjMy9bBFmQGMT0ZaTyetXGPp6Ytg5tPffj164RDbFlOgU6qkMrUJNxWlnxAX-61kL4WWNkOGx4Ss_w0pNLGqdnFWt/s640/Feb226.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9IeRo21eTqyDH3w6XexjevGVwqFUQWJ5coxq3N0-vMkIMt9lsjA0g_xiVPJF5qK8ocmNGlcfH4c3_UtXIyWYVe4cSeb9yec2g_cdjMy9bBFmQGMT0ZaTyetXGPp6Ytg5tPffj164RDbFlOgU6qkMrUJNxWlnxAX-61kL4WWNkOGx4Ss_w0pNLGqdnFWt/w150-h200/Feb226.jpeg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI8eiVgty6M3KASoy8ug_u83BIv9ee6B7dU_kbIa0hiwK9eQMutNqMQTxTExQGzCQNNzCye87oHUfzkfv3rEk6TgO_QH-tx2Dq76Cvn_61HJVjBbPKK6g55p7JCQ1i5aEpmBYl3gDM1vH-Ijo6JaUWojq7AEes4vNYC03Iu2D8xu9ARBlwNCv31JKHtcWP/s640/Feb227.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI8eiVgty6M3KASoy8ug_u83BIv9ee6B7dU_kbIa0hiwK9eQMutNqMQTxTExQGzCQNNzCye87oHUfzkfv3rEk6TgO_QH-tx2Dq76Cvn_61HJVjBbPKK6g55p7JCQ1i5aEpmBYl3gDM1vH-Ijo6JaUWojq7AEes4vNYC03Iu2D8xu9ARBlwNCv31JKHtcWP/w151-h200/Feb227.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Dear grandson sometimes sleeps upstairs if his mom</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">has to work a night shift. He wanted to read the other</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">night, and while he was down in their apartment, I</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">grabbed these 3 books that we gifted him as a baby</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and a toddler. He was surprised but did read them!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The first two on the pillows have his name in them</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and really special as his name is not super common,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">so it's hard to find things that have his name. And the</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">big one below the pillows is actually the first book we</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">bought for him after he was born. It's got some moving</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">parts in it and he loved when we'd read this to him. I</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">love that we've instilled our passion for reading in him.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-79331436981168653222024-02-28T12:12:00.000-08:002024-02-28T12:12:05.992-08:00Homemade Cookies.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoDgZVPjb26yUJac7TFX2ax5iOMZdvKq2U5osJpaGZ6whNXXjTX-aSNuvkebsc4HhkLbI5gQ7fufFSlI7-7v9aKxe-jNgZxWW4vb8SBvDzQiFay4x513qGCCz7K_FrdCtXV4uTUTzOc512GNJ1p7mEbaW78tIO9T_nW8LZzM7-CPxwb-lzGWkezxGzScT/s640/Feb238.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDoDgZVPjb26yUJac7TFX2ax5iOMZdvKq2U5osJpaGZ6whNXXjTX-aSNuvkebsc4HhkLbI5gQ7fufFSlI7-7v9aKxe-jNgZxWW4vb8SBvDzQiFay4x513qGCCz7K_FrdCtXV4uTUTzOc512GNJ1p7mEbaW78tIO9T_nW8LZzM7-CPxwb-lzGWkezxGzScT/s320/Feb238.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKZx92vDpInmmVXnMuYiP5M7uEb-K46A_1zltyf4GuktH3Tc4tuALGQRFE86URRWR4vzQzgE1uYwoWrTofxI-jloNFFFqlbrJfiX1tZtfRPf-GHrVIYhjcSbn13EA1_QiSDGGNKbImaqdPy3EO9D32QH9Nnd8VG9wxl-qTf6Z5Z2haUq92zGvwIFpcG_r/s640/Feb237.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRKZx92vDpInmmVXnMuYiP5M7uEb-K46A_1zltyf4GuktH3Tc4tuALGQRFE86URRWR4vzQzgE1uYwoWrTofxI-jloNFFFqlbrJfiX1tZtfRPf-GHrVIYhjcSbn13EA1_QiSDGGNKbImaqdPy3EO9D32QH9Nnd8VG9wxl-qTf6Z5Z2haUq92zGvwIFpcG_r/s320/Feb237.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKzRBKBTo5cV1osUrsOXphyphenhyphenbCkQ3uFcI4UOZkpJnXy6BOtmMErVRVh960G5RTf7V9Wl1QF0x-zzkpufVAd8ER2r_mhlrhjThJCK3pi7QMgEzBRUq5PAOOgPbKYi1PU4_5q0NWTF29ir7bVK8kllwvlvEcKV9dre2E53lbivk6HhlE7q5L4JHXfvrsA1EQ/s640/Feb239.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKzRBKBTo5cV1osUrsOXphyphenhyphenbCkQ3uFcI4UOZkpJnXy6BOtmMErVRVh960G5RTf7V9Wl1QF0x-zzkpufVAd8ER2r_mhlrhjThJCK3pi7QMgEzBRUq5PAOOgPbKYi1PU4_5q0NWTF29ir7bVK8kllwvlvEcKV9dre2E53lbivk6HhlE7q5L4JHXfvrsA1EQ/s320/Feb239.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Baking homemade cookies is something</div><div style="text-align: center;">I don't do very much anymore. Part of it</div><div style="text-align: center;">is time ~ when I was a mom at home,</div><div style="text-align: center;">baking fit in to my day with my littles.</div><div style="text-align: center;">But now they're grown, life is so busy</div><div style="text-align: center;">with work and projects, and cookies</div><div style="text-align: center;">have taken a back seat without littles</div><div style="text-align: center;">in the cottage to gobble them all down.</div><div style="text-align: center;">I was excited last week with our "down</div><div style="text-align: center;">the lane neighbors" coming for dinner as</div><div style="text-align: center;">they have 3 kids and the cookies would</div><div style="text-align: center;">be so needed. They loved them and I</div><div style="text-align: center;">did send home some goodie bags. The</div><div style="text-align: center;">cookies were a hit but I wish I had sent</div><div style="text-align: center;">home more as we still have cookies a</div><div style="text-align: center;">full week later! Next time, more will go!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Do you like baking homemade cookies?</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-49954431207078302472024-02-28T07:32:00.000-08:002024-02-28T07:32:31.599-08:00The Storm.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_XPjjx-ZUh64zYNyP6n4Q0I5A-Hj5OzuzS0Cnv_Zghf_i0M6NOw5Ph_fWoGDEJvEdnafgFO2U8HfkXAAECPOe6F9FtgTGb-abjDFNNSnGXseQV0GNHGy5ZXsyryo1MaEzDm0HJXNE5lye6wpOTml6Z0JNW9QXy999KyreD2_oTMDoF2GpMAXRDpeKzri5/s640/winter1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_XPjjx-ZUh64zYNyP6n4Q0I5A-Hj5OzuzS0Cnv_Zghf_i0M6NOw5Ph_fWoGDEJvEdnafgFO2U8HfkXAAECPOe6F9FtgTGb-abjDFNNSnGXseQV0GNHGy5ZXsyryo1MaEzDm0HJXNE5lye6wpOTml6Z0JNW9QXy999KyreD2_oTMDoF2GpMAXRDpeKzri5/w150-h200/winter1.jpeg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2q579nSL1gCGF9mYPjQeoFQVMFrUbfAq3rDyYakAVzSUAPSdCcOpuy33e6CdX1E8kma8MndaPtFoP_UzRPAA6nt7TR4yIenyO-kghc7sgOpKiM7P5DLhdNGxFMwjAUKthoRFQhYAKX-M003YlT-2ufc3uafWV0Y838rqiJf8deUqy0c7BbSYAIzxxge9/s640/winter2.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC2q579nSL1gCGF9mYPjQeoFQVMFrUbfAq3rDyYakAVzSUAPSdCcOpuy33e6CdX1E8kma8MndaPtFoP_UzRPAA6nt7TR4yIenyO-kghc7sgOpKiM7P5DLhdNGxFMwjAUKthoRFQhYAKX-M003YlT-2ufc3uafWV0Y838rqiJf8deUqy0c7BbSYAIzxxge9/w150-h200/winter2.jpeg" width="150" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn8fgAt1If47FvkmjnrenjIQOzztHAIG14wnyQmrk8hM9rPO0Xo4ZStdvuZr2vnMyL-UBgl9sIlRVtaL5LQu8wA9Fu3JQWHAJXX2tH-MwFW15YWiFEa6lIpTZxSzdLlRAXqlxJU8w8-Dzy_zpl4ShKxYG1Gxnn02OTIY_h1_EiJ4RWrD91ipebxEuE0ECy/s640/winter3.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn8fgAt1If47FvkmjnrenjIQOzztHAIG14wnyQmrk8hM9rPO0Xo4ZStdvuZr2vnMyL-UBgl9sIlRVtaL5LQu8wA9Fu3JQWHAJXX2tH-MwFW15YWiFEa6lIpTZxSzdLlRAXqlxJU8w8-Dzy_zpl4ShKxYG1Gxnn02OTIY_h1_EiJ4RWrD91ipebxEuE0ECy/w150-h200/winter3.jpeg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1AAC_EM4lj-hW4Nac2VQIp7aEwPu7ZTPxa4UbSWiOlmx84ppsbg7S5XBY90pfr2WpqE6DESWjhOEEBdx3UHHHyg4rhtsU5FqsmWscdHUJAQDJTaDtbVfKrV8Uns_20Vr9DszK-UtIq_DCLi_HtTKKMnn2TZ0RS1pqTDcBjT_Dw9_dz4GKp2g3iHif5j1v/s640/winter4.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1AAC_EM4lj-hW4Nac2VQIp7aEwPu7ZTPxa4UbSWiOlmx84ppsbg7S5XBY90pfr2WpqE6DESWjhOEEBdx3UHHHyg4rhtsU5FqsmWscdHUJAQDJTaDtbVfKrV8Uns_20Vr9DszK-UtIq_DCLi_HtTKKMnn2TZ0RS1pqTDcBjT_Dw9_dz4GKp2g3iHif5j1v/w150-h200/winter4.jpeg" width="150" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjStKdNQq-6dtpnVYQKUbFfYclLCcm5OFkcAD8tkFvpMLvBA7jCQpRkcz5NM18-Uh5k_TfZscECiCcZUuIdHcPSrsC9OpgjgXleQfAnyKJYQ9bRhUIgyyAu5CN5Zk3nwzcgd_wdO5VYyUnBShsePVEBkHg5B2N9olkgelPJ2WmExdFIjvAIPjqlzCEoTq-w/s640/winter5.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjStKdNQq-6dtpnVYQKUbFfYclLCcm5OFkcAD8tkFvpMLvBA7jCQpRkcz5NM18-Uh5k_TfZscECiCcZUuIdHcPSrsC9OpgjgXleQfAnyKJYQ9bRhUIgyyAu5CN5Zk3nwzcgd_wdO5VYyUnBShsePVEBkHg5B2N9olkgelPJ2WmExdFIjvAIPjqlzCEoTq-w/w150-h200/winter5.jpeg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9RPrUESNFRaWf7T4smxdgtgiqO6-_AXHPR0pCiSezJjioGX381Jw2pakE3edjmT4wA43oExDtIrnGty_JtjeVLF4dd99Ps4rSgFwQ5xJ4X6jF9rwm5x9757N7yvqwQZYMqrqH6q-wgRlSyYsKglEjRo8MlLIaSu1OvQElg4QK1cs4DFOdL9lEKWyWIrI/s640/winter6.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9RPrUESNFRaWf7T4smxdgtgiqO6-_AXHPR0pCiSezJjioGX381Jw2pakE3edjmT4wA43oExDtIrnGty_JtjeVLF4dd99Ps4rSgFwQ5xJ4X6jF9rwm5x9757N7yvqwQZYMqrqH6q-wgRlSyYsKglEjRo8MlLIaSu1OvQElg4QK1cs4DFOdL9lEKWyWIrI/w150-h200/winter6.jpeg" width="150" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">We've been getting ready for a big storm that was predicated to hit our region over night on Sunday night and continue in to Monday. However, I was heading in to town yesterday afternoon to do a few errands, visit my mom and then go to an event meeting at 2 pm. As I started down our country road, the snow started to fall. The ground was bare and earlier, there had been some sun. By the time I finished my errands and visited my mom, the snow was a bit thicker. I headed to the meeting but did decide if it got too bad, I would head home early. As the snow continued, we all did decide to head home while it was still light and manageable. The photos above show the progression in about a 4 minute time span. Please note, I was on our lane and pulled over to take these shots, with no traffic around me at all. The snow got thicker, the fog set in and visibility was so poor that I'm glad we ended early. The last photo was of the cottage, which is not visible with the fog and snow fall. So crazy how quickly this came on. We were at +10 or 12 C on Friday (different weather reports have different recorded temps for the day) and basically no snow on the ground, to - 30 C today with the winchill and over 24 cm's of snow falling in 24 hours. Crazy! But happy for snow. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Last Summer was the first time we've ever been on alert for a fire close to us. The dry weather we've had all Winter has been a big concern, so this new and huge snow storm is quite welcome in our area. I truly hope it helps to cut down the risk of fires this year. We've worked so hard, like everyone around us, to live in a beautiful area, in a sweet cottage and to lose all of this to a fire would be devastating. For now, while it's freezing outside, we're cozy and warm inside the cottage, with lots of tea, movies and books to watch, and my Lego to build. A quiet work week helped as well.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Where every you are and whatever weather</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">you're experiencing, wishing you well today!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-42121133198725990122024-02-26T16:38:00.000-08:002024-03-02T17:17:55.378-08:00Christmas #4.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC48vrcJYO_s2x00eFW0af-kDHituXPDe2-HDmOjeMESof7qiKzfk8ah9kZ9JrEDoZijs7Qbb8s9ih7GjGeJE4RskjF1aBciyrAFGIoHlY7vkQ51Ag16L-KE4iTzZ6vt90QDsQdQV0pDPbXS3hOxTQfaocAWlbUZ1WlCEpBurStiU4twnk6WjtLljbuGYl/s640/Feb241.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC48vrcJYO_s2x00eFW0af-kDHituXPDe2-HDmOjeMESof7qiKzfk8ah9kZ9JrEDoZijs7Qbb8s9ih7GjGeJE4RskjF1aBciyrAFGIoHlY7vkQ51Ag16L-KE4iTzZ6vt90QDsQdQV0pDPbXS3hOxTQfaocAWlbUZ1WlCEpBurStiU4twnk6WjtLljbuGYl/w151-h200/Feb241.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLeWL6SCaJcAz4u4eia9d0Rjym1H0UJ7bHw_IWArquu-z92DOeZreTQPpMOvvupcAbXXGBIPBl7SRcVYaRAOyb7NK_HGoshSjfEqH1mUUluJsj_oPZmPtCuNIFBKZwyEosnQOxU8FjIiK8IQgbcTFUR4jRfEtv0ZXbK1I5wXvP8nyD2pPeCbKpoSL2vWs/s640/Feb240.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLeWL6SCaJcAz4u4eia9d0Rjym1H0UJ7bHw_IWArquu-z92DOeZreTQPpMOvvupcAbXXGBIPBl7SRcVYaRAOyb7NK_HGoshSjfEqH1mUUluJsj_oPZmPtCuNIFBKZwyEosnQOxU8FjIiK8IQgbcTFUR4jRfEtv0ZXbK1I5wXvP8nyD2pPeCbKpoSL2vWs/w151-h200/Feb240.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrm1xI2S2_b-iAluocVZZM7so49lctvYht7XuWU-G8rHKwfk7K2NKlRdprlIKEjakT0uSwKn0iJFLJBuQUFjWHhZWpqEUPW6TciGDpKOXwi0GPaYiU5JxP6Ues8wAKShcuD43Kw7q5hUSJyTl6SuYM4diBGy0LKRZYg3lvLScpuX8kWXGQlW27q54TVGE1/s640/Feb250.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrm1xI2S2_b-iAluocVZZM7so49lctvYht7XuWU-G8rHKwfk7K2NKlRdprlIKEjakT0uSwKn0iJFLJBuQUFjWHhZWpqEUPW6TciGDpKOXwi0GPaYiU5JxP6Ues8wAKShcuD43Kw7q5hUSJyTl6SuYM4diBGy0LKRZYg3lvLScpuX8kWXGQlW27q54TVGE1/w151-h200/Feb250.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BIcwVIc1fftQQxXL1b-GL0uyHEgKYiFp6DNJEYdEvJisbenby5cbOHsojZxvH1W7CSUoYDnCClWOUwNSmK2wUGBgz1DaNcPlGnL_wqaVXCN7Ycn7K0MD3mX7Jde4HZONDYPYDWrszCOK2NY3JQllgx5vmcGozdoz1vheS0aR22gNfbhOcwV5CuDZ9oUn/s640/Feb252.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BIcwVIc1fftQQxXL1b-GL0uyHEgKYiFp6DNJEYdEvJisbenby5cbOHsojZxvH1W7CSUoYDnCClWOUwNSmK2wUGBgz1DaNcPlGnL_wqaVXCN7Ycn7K0MD3mX7Jde4HZONDYPYDWrszCOK2NY3JQllgx5vmcGozdoz1vheS0aR22gNfbhOcwV5CuDZ9oUn/w151-h200/Feb252.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We had our neighbors from "down the lane" over for</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">our 4th Christmas Dinner. They had company over</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">the holidays so we all decided to gather after. And then</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">there were some illnesses, crazy hockey schedules</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">and school. But we finally found a date and time that</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">worked well ~ Family Day in Alberta! We created a</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">very lovely "Pasta Bar" and followed that up with a</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">sweet and fun "Dessert Bar" which included icing</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">cookies. The food was amazing but the company was,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">as always, the best! Excited for the next gathering!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-85065773761412100822024-02-25T19:02:00.000-08:002024-02-25T19:15:35.440-08:00Right Here. Right Now.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYqQaB3PDb5AJwhGcNeUxO4JfuTxWVM1nYgASBFEyfwAfnjhvH_D9LR8oiLEFl-1q4iZTg8OFD7Ej0GnivSqevdQmuKlfVtenha8oUQTZyMY7Wu-g2Kb3tS8LH1bHXr3rq-opyffaOwn56xptfPlVfsWyb78kwyAWsTxwgT0yj_ANufzp_ZwTjDJSpxDA/s960/poem.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYqQaB3PDb5AJwhGcNeUxO4JfuTxWVM1nYgASBFEyfwAfnjhvH_D9LR8oiLEFl-1q4iZTg8OFD7Ej0GnivSqevdQmuKlfVtenha8oUQTZyMY7Wu-g2Kb3tS8LH1bHXr3rq-opyffaOwn56xptfPlVfsWyb78kwyAWsTxwgT0yj_ANufzp_ZwTjDJSpxDA/s320/poem.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my clean but ripped jeans, a warm Winter sweater in light green, light gold and ivory. Matching socks, hair loose, my new Celtic necklace and my earrings.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; color: #6d906a; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... still reading ADHD 2.0. I can only do one chapter at a time but it's a good read.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... dinner is done but so magnificent tonight. Now the dishwasher is on and the only light is the one over the range.</span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span>.... we are in the middle of a true blizzard. Finally, a Winter storm! It was supposed to start late tonight and last thru the next 24 to 48 hours. But it started this afternoon, when I was out at a meeting for our gala event in the Fall. It got so bad, we all left a bit early to travel home safely before it became impossible to see. I struggled a bit and my 10 minute commute quickly became 20 minutes. The fog, the blowing snow and the light made it hard, but thankfully, there was very little traffic and I took the back roads home to avoid the highway. Today, I visited a friend for signatures on our society bank account, then drove over to visit my mom and take in some supplies as we won't be coming in to town all week, then stopped at our office to drop off paycheques, then to the meeting. I left at 1 pm, and was home by 4 pm, with the snow was piling up.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... my family, my home, my friends and our community. Feeling blessed, safe and loved. And so thankful to be home after a scary drive home in the snow.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the scent from fresh folded laundry.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the dishwasher making our dishes sparkle! We had to wash dishes by hand for years, so I'm still so thankful for this hard working appliance.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... nothing today but I do plan to work on Cary's IG account this week and style out her little closet. Her pile of clothing and boots is starting to take over her space and I need more hangers. But for now, I'll try to get everything back in her little clothes cabinet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... my mom's health, the many projects we're working on, announcements that need to be made this week, and our big anniversary in the Summer. A mix of good, exciting, not so great and lots of hard work coming up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span> <span style="color: #38761d;">.... the quote for today is above. I found this on FB and plan to take it and create a sign for our office. So sweet! <span style="text-align: center;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"> </span></p></div></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-51244392396545235712024-02-24T15:55:00.000-08:002024-02-24T15:56:47.775-08:00New Baby.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCSL-7dt_05mjF6nmLwIzQPdUnuR5HoMUt3psMqjGJ_uCnSp7WLkcNEM4gON-4BUBm9p76A0Pax_8JPbs5WwH92uGzNh6WHfGbtvfitgrQAEMqz1uguysOCODbuY5vTTMPK2EX1nFhyphenhyphenV5XLCNvLgg-TxEOhgrNFDGFXOvFdCJH2brLPlDuN0cESz3MXFL/s640/Feb220.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCSL-7dt_05mjF6nmLwIzQPdUnuR5HoMUt3psMqjGJ_uCnSp7WLkcNEM4gON-4BUBm9p76A0Pax_8JPbs5WwH92uGzNh6WHfGbtvfitgrQAEMqz1uguysOCODbuY5vTTMPK2EX1nFhyphenhyphenV5XLCNvLgg-TxEOhgrNFDGFXOvFdCJH2brLPlDuN0cESz3MXFL/s320/Feb220.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">We have an incredible volunteer at our</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">centre who recently had a sweet, new</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">baby girl. This was after much loss and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">heartache. It was such a privilege and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">honor to hold her little one at a meeting</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">she attended in our little office. I'm truly</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">looking forward to having this one in our</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">space and watching her grow from tiny</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">baby to curious toddler, and beyond. I</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">had fun finding a little gift to welcome</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">her to the world and hope she loves this</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">musical soft toy. Her mom loved it! Yes!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Have you had any little ones visit recently?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-9256947211709401882024-02-24T07:53:00.000-08:002024-02-24T15:57:27.091-08:00A Night Out.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisnQxheAD50XtU08t3Ql-cIAElJJDMQ57DxFEnn5Tp5a35VYqwW2JUV7mJ4dPMTJrApPoSDlJYHnRTGqsafyGVhfB9QjxTaZsr1a36qEUDF7NybXtMUEfywk5PG2xho4X5I-PpmLCGUAo1bKkOhXFy-pF7CnhcG1C_ZuNm8piuyHBRJwcOG01nNpOFf-I5/s640/Feb228.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisnQxheAD50XtU08t3Ql-cIAElJJDMQ57DxFEnn5Tp5a35VYqwW2JUV7mJ4dPMTJrApPoSDlJYHnRTGqsafyGVhfB9QjxTaZsr1a36qEUDF7NybXtMUEfywk5PG2xho4X5I-PpmLCGUAo1bKkOhXFy-pF7CnhcG1C_ZuNm8piuyHBRJwcOG01nNpOFf-I5/w151-h200/Feb228.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvNLTbtUisZM4u4fF2RzO5rtMDvj86zpKK_mhrfUeIElU5Zg7NF_UhbC4mDmVQUyYYf7UNOfCnXMjWxBkDc-kNpvkCt5RIV0S3sDu6JAyEUveYg4QYaikaYvp8Fvz_fko604skHZp2P38Qu5-K4YMg-tyUftsPV7NjEnMgqdUXT-Na0VGREosrydXiZ7M3/s640/Feb229.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvNLTbtUisZM4u4fF2RzO5rtMDvj86zpKK_mhrfUeIElU5Zg7NF_UhbC4mDmVQUyYYf7UNOfCnXMjWxBkDc-kNpvkCt5RIV0S3sDu6JAyEUveYg4QYaikaYvp8Fvz_fko604skHZp2P38Qu5-K4YMg-tyUftsPV7NjEnMgqdUXT-Na0VGREosrydXiZ7M3/w151-h200/Feb229.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">We went out with some of our board members from our festival society the other night. A chance to relax and enjoy the company, but also talk about a few items that need our attention. We chose a local pub that the guys have been to but I've only ever had lunch outside in their patio area. So it was a new experience. We timed our arrival so we had some dinner, drinks, our chatter and then stayed for the open mic night. Great music with local talent. A ton of fun for the night. We solved a few things and gained energy.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">I have a salty Margarita, lime flavored. I usually like raspberry or strawberry but this establishment only had lime and they don't make the slushy ones. It was good but not my favorite version for sure. My dinnner was amazing: a chicken breast, with mushrooms, onions, lettuce, pickle, mayo and cheese. So delicious. I had this one other time and at that time, opted for a Cesar salad. Amazing! This time, I chose the house salad and it came with a balsamic vinaigrette. Equally amazing! Next time, I'll have the Cesar again, and switch it out each time. I think I prefer the outdoor experience as well. Being in the sun and noshing!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Today we're off for a quick drive in to the Big City to pick up a sink I ordered yesterday for our new centre. It's from Ikea and on sale and the sale ends next week so wanted to ensure we didn't miss out. It's a similar version of the white porcelain sink we have in our kitchen, also from Ikea, but it no longer has the back piece where we place our dish and hand soap. Which is just fine for this smaller kitchen. Such a great deal ~ couldn't pass it up. Once we have that secured in our car, we'll drop it off at the office for safe keeping, then head over to the grocery store for food, take that home and put it all away, have some lunch and then I'll head back to town for one counselling session. After that is done, my dear friend and her little daughter (another "grandbaby" for me to love!) are coming over for a visit. We're planning to launch a podcast together so we need to sort out our name for the series, our topics and our schedule. Looking forward to our visit. After that, I'll head home, just in time for dinner, and then we'll likely just chill tonight. I have a meeting tomorrow afternoon for our baby loss gala that will be held in October. If the predicated snow arrives earlier than shared, I'll stay home and connect by Zoom. But if it's clear, then I'll drive in to town and meet in person. Hoping the later. We are supposed to get about 15 cms of snow by Monday and the temperature is going to plummet by 25 degrees. So we'll be going from plus 10 C yesterday to - 15 C by Monday, and with the windchill, it will hit between - 20 and - 30. A small deep freeze. We need the snow, just not the freezing temperatures. Knowing this was coming, we're stocking up on food and making sure things are all done around us so we don't have to come back in to town this week if it's a bad storm. Haven't had one all Winter, so we'll see what happens. I am very worried about forest fires ~ we're going to attend an Open House in March that is focused on how to protest our property this year. Never had to do this before but the climate has changed in our region. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Well, that's our day today. Hope yours is lovely and amazing!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-65568910628092085962024-02-23T19:30:00.000-08:002024-02-23T19:30:42.238-08:00Morning Sunbeams.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPAkdvdkGi0TrDgKHDuCK_0HvwJjCFW7WzKEOlRtJstZwZb4rKOpVga1aak9Ytb9_C0RudQ13O24L1H34sDyHreAHVkfSznKXI-ndaTrEM0ugEkHeRWMlc6cowJDE-kNPRx_oHO7Bd8RIn-9zFm1uu0CQc9FPhDD8gPbe60gVomWWrRQ7X0w0osVSmtf2o/s640/Feb253.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPAkdvdkGi0TrDgKHDuCK_0HvwJjCFW7WzKEOlRtJstZwZb4rKOpVga1aak9Ytb9_C0RudQ13O24L1H34sDyHreAHVkfSznKXI-ndaTrEM0ugEkHeRWMlc6cowJDE-kNPRx_oHO7Bd8RIn-9zFm1uu0CQc9FPhDD8gPbe60gVomWWrRQ7X0w0osVSmtf2o/s320/Feb253.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGqHg7Qx-DzFjnUiEqlrU6sUFfKMWI4FlQ2-8Is6H2EZI4Jw8ABIZ1Fu1i6INNrC7GJbuEYGap36Y5TYCHsDdAzOnBfD0LiPfRaOXi63CdpgqYzJBey_tWH1q4x-rSWvt1elR_Ekf25h0qDAOtt1C3hVzwu8byJhi1kPgZgV1R7QkZ1fQ_k2EKxvRFisge/s640/Feb255.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGqHg7Qx-DzFjnUiEqlrU6sUFfKMWI4FlQ2-8Is6H2EZI4Jw8ABIZ1Fu1i6INNrC7GJbuEYGap36Y5TYCHsDdAzOnBfD0LiPfRaOXi63CdpgqYzJBey_tWH1q4x-rSWvt1elR_Ekf25h0qDAOtt1C3hVzwu8byJhi1kPgZgV1R7QkZ1fQ_k2EKxvRFisge/s320/Feb255.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">I've written before how much I love how</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">the sun casts light and shadows on our</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">lavender walls. I forgot of how often it</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">is a different look when it hit furniture.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-57527941724481337192024-02-19T09:32:00.000-08:002024-03-02T17:30:12.005-08:00Family Day.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkkkzBuGejIVpu2MMy8Hj81IIu_fCPpNBHbHGiuBsE92LM5SNIowFk9_eV027zmXoq21hq-BKFUmYkGluLFVnkT2iopkwhP7J-KIgNRwkXLlSAZiojvWsi7b9MZmyFd719AKTospViGqhZZKn8yO9G6s5LGs1NXWNW6fr5gmFK10Lx4WhOhPJM1iVjYGOU/s600/family.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkkkzBuGejIVpu2MMy8Hj81IIu_fCPpNBHbHGiuBsE92LM5SNIowFk9_eV027zmXoq21hq-BKFUmYkGluLFVnkT2iopkwhP7J-KIgNRwkXLlSAZiojvWsi7b9MZmyFd719AKTospViGqhZZKn8yO9G6s5LGs1NXWNW6fr5gmFK10Lx4WhOhPJM1iVjYGOU/s320/family.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Today was Family Day in Alberta. An extra day</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">off to take time with family and enjoy each other.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Happy Family Day!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-59024975008745357412024-02-18T16:28:00.000-08:002024-03-02T17:25:28.578-08:00Grocery Costs.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLAyYISeQiveKPUgANz29KJaEdwamtqxLlpFGq5_BN1LFPg7g5nuqHbpeQrt-ydlUTV_oMXxqtzhNzSeGbnEI0oTOCR1RVR4b0gijfOi4y-tqrVk8gTOA4S_Ik88wEniIu3Tif44r-TsRsbPLGGaq7PBBtdcAyX5mcEL4APNh31_jmdgKfwDACk0zxe7u/s640/Feb249.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLAyYISeQiveKPUgANz29KJaEdwamtqxLlpFGq5_BN1LFPg7g5nuqHbpeQrt-ydlUTV_oMXxqtzhNzSeGbnEI0oTOCR1RVR4b0gijfOi4y-tqrVk8gTOA4S_Ik88wEniIu3Tif44r-TsRsbPLGGaq7PBBtdcAyX5mcEL4APNh31_jmdgKfwDACk0zxe7u/w151-h200/Feb249.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHqUgnnIUu-4boRT70QdBOQbn2-YRepZekjCkWkUIIPOz4POysRmyoGA3I5-s4-06BOaOHJCr_84dhWGHOXuJmDaproCN3R4Sieu0mPtXA2hvjEBq18Uvx-h-p6D25EqhKH4WY7cQViCeLdJNEpiOT2qcynSx_dVqDNh7sRWL0UlX6iGA2q53YhGqNBie/s640/Feb231.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMHqUgnnIUu-4boRT70QdBOQbn2-YRepZekjCkWkUIIPOz4POysRmyoGA3I5-s4-06BOaOHJCr_84dhWGHOXuJmDaproCN3R4Sieu0mPtXA2hvjEBq18Uvx-h-p6D25EqhKH4WY7cQViCeLdJNEpiOT2qcynSx_dVqDNh7sRWL0UlX6iGA2q53YhGqNBie/w151-h200/Feb231.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU8s9ImgA7NjV2IBl_IEMZ2212Ilhke6_FD350UKTnV8TLqJqx3bzF4dF0V9pA6QyFQSAOptYpHuujB5vvCEuuOBQk0SpbJOTzDDQMaj_O5dr45KFLuKAH8xgs-6I1rH-36KZ2V_NKywP-skK8x71-Gj78l1JQI0yoMjWredV5IRFgqjYyEN-FqbeiI3Z/s640/Feb233.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU8s9ImgA7NjV2IBl_IEMZ2212Ilhke6_FD350UKTnV8TLqJqx3bzF4dF0V9pA6QyFQSAOptYpHuujB5vvCEuuOBQk0SpbJOTzDDQMaj_O5dr45KFLuKAH8xgs-6I1rH-36KZ2V_NKywP-skK8x71-Gj78l1JQI0yoMjWredV5IRFgqjYyEN-FqbeiI3Z/w151-h200/Feb233.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2s-nDcYO5p_ovoGdQNnyOItR3YfE8i6iJkguJA0-qmKoM0Si7bpl4yfI28PtZuZcnTcHXO6scaAgYmEwDtJaN6wGMyCunID5YlMX8kpw_WHAlMWbSy_eAXbrCSftP-EBrkFvKM74evJ4TAkkkbrV2hOc3WDOjP46oERe12hINQoYYPF7PjgxHUNccYBnY/s640/Feb234.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2s-nDcYO5p_ovoGdQNnyOItR3YfE8i6iJkguJA0-qmKoM0Si7bpl4yfI28PtZuZcnTcHXO6scaAgYmEwDtJaN6wGMyCunID5YlMX8kpw_WHAlMWbSy_eAXbrCSftP-EBrkFvKM74evJ4TAkkkbrV2hOc3WDOjP46oERe12hINQoYYPF7PjgxHUNccYBnY/w151-h200/Feb234.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUgUnhNg7blShSEg1Fn8BVP9rtjnCzVCf-Wm-XNnRWfSdoKdLnjMQDsthpud9lMz_yly8lT5l3RKeHSqpTGjpISduqiii9K7AtKseAWB0eM3pUAHu2WXUZh3YfnjU2nENfUsg3DSoPGYYRHTSh7nJjKjnSgmYeoCTmYTeA0-9KqQWwGI3kfMB1PNnZRWO9/s640/Feb235.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUgUnhNg7blShSEg1Fn8BVP9rtjnCzVCf-Wm-XNnRWfSdoKdLnjMQDsthpud9lMz_yly8lT5l3RKeHSqpTGjpISduqiii9K7AtKseAWB0eM3pUAHu2WXUZh3YfnjU2nENfUsg3DSoPGYYRHTSh7nJjKjnSgmYeoCTmYTeA0-9KqQWwGI3kfMB1PNnZRWO9/w151-h200/Feb235.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFrEkk0JxSdZbsAAL_rBuqZ_NMngoe09dEK2I42ygCn895fUiEFlbU-oWLjwpLPEHi8hgeOKZ0MZAaDm17Rr75qUWiuEDRDAm1Qmdmvef-nS_AfeZ0jt1oY84BPuzFX0rOEiz0EXhPWAuyvvrU42dkO83OT8X3NdhmE2A69orQIW7esMw7zTg4o2FYQ5L/s640/Feb236.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKFrEkk0JxSdZbsAAL_rBuqZ_NMngoe09dEK2I42ygCn895fUiEFlbU-oWLjwpLPEHi8hgeOKZ0MZAaDm17Rr75qUWiuEDRDAm1Qmdmvef-nS_AfeZ0jt1oY84BPuzFX0rOEiz0EXhPWAuyvvrU42dkO83OT8X3NdhmE2A69orQIW7esMw7zTg4o2FYQ5L/w151-h200/Feb236.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Our grocery haul for the week. Dh is in charge of our</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">shop and he set a budget of $135 per week. Most weeks,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">he does really well, staying under that amount or even</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">hitting it right to the penny. But some weeks, like this</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">one make it go higher ~ we have guests for dinner so</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">there is no way to feed 10 people within our typical</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">budget for the week. So thankful we are comfortable</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">enough to go over without being worried. But we have</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">really noticed a big increase in the cost of the items we</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">like to buy. It's harder to eat healthy. I'll never really</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">understand why junk food is often cheaper than food</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">that is nutritious. Food is survival and should be free!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">How are you coping with higher food costs?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-15673834126989808562024-02-18T15:08:00.000-08:002024-02-19T10:13:51.945-08:00Right Here. Right Now.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF0OfbM7kJ_Oal3Ia37-RkPlN-mOh82G2q9gmceBNfzMzcjOpEanbchOPizcWPrzTRgDRWJLUQuzPv9jb0TGKEKKWAlJJ_nP8vyPLiJr425Srs6n5FnwXuuu1yOGszRA7pNE5w23LRUnHIv3dprdsoTjmGPCgt9o3xVB_YntDjpU4a5-H9TzLS6ehEY27J/s680/climbing.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="510" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF0OfbM7kJ_Oal3Ia37-RkPlN-mOh82G2q9gmceBNfzMzcjOpEanbchOPizcWPrzTRgDRWJLUQuzPv9jb0TGKEKKWAlJJ_nP8vyPLiJr425Srs6n5FnwXuuu1yOGszRA7pNE5w23LRUnHIv3dprdsoTjmGPCgt9o3xVB_YntDjpU4a5-H9TzLS6ehEY27J/s320/climbing.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">"When climbing a mountain, what is the secret?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">You must never forget to keep looking up, and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">never lose sight of your destination through</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">keeping your eyes fixed on your goal. So too</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">it is with life: you must make it your mission</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">to find what is truly important in life and keep</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">your focus on that alone, for you may think that</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">the outside world is where you exist, but your</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">thoughts are where you truly live."</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words by Tahlia Hunter</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... golden brown cord leggings with my favorite April Cornell soft, velvety short dress. Curly hair today, and a touch of make up. All brought together by my lovey's Valentine gift to me ~ a sweet heart shaped necklace. Warm socks on a sunny Family Day Long Weekend.</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... ADHD 2.0. Suggested by my counsellor.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span>.</span><span>... we have invited our neighbors down the lane for dinner to celebrate Family Day. We're having a Pasta Bar, followed by a Dessert Bar ~ can't wait to enjoy yummy food and great company!</span></span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><span>.... a sunny, warm February day.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my family, my home, my friends and our community. Feeling blessed, safe and loved.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... dinner cooking. And a candle burning.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... laughter as dh and dd cook together.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... a tiny document to put in a sweet frame listing dinner options for tonight.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my mom's health, the many projects we're working on, announcements that need to be made this week, and our big anniversary in the Summer. A mix of good, exciting, not so great and lots of hard work coming up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span>.... the quote for today is above. Tahlia Hunter is my favorite. </span><span style="text-align: center;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="color: #6d906a; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></p></div></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-25416566521469001582024-02-14T16:24:00.000-08:002024-02-28T12:16:53.657-08:00Valentine's Sweets.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaMKNOuf7SuWNMvHNp_cU7CnSlv-8NM9qRZ4Kk5NR4J4lN3v7eLHoHLeZLT1zPoM5wC9sbaM2loYkahafQL8O1JHOrmAvKHV66B04c4m7nAQS5vwR-bHqWxtbfJd9Lq7XrfkeQ7Cn1wPCDo46LpOReNPD1VNywTLedRObHHXB9mC5pod5CA5BrCsIfODXQ/s640/Feb224.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaMKNOuf7SuWNMvHNp_cU7CnSlv-8NM9qRZ4Kk5NR4J4lN3v7eLHoHLeZLT1zPoM5wC9sbaM2loYkahafQL8O1JHOrmAvKHV66B04c4m7nAQS5vwR-bHqWxtbfJd9Lq7XrfkeQ7Cn1wPCDo46LpOReNPD1VNywTLedRObHHXB9mC5pod5CA5BrCsIfODXQ/s320/Feb224.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjwnK-kxv8txE-lqqXzbnaT0JEIOrQp_oMpSQq_4rxnkEiBbx0x9-Vt7SWSlarx13ICItUEbClYIOlYU5Iq8TkcnRiseEWLljyIqewbUXczcJra8q9QNA80GgGQUK03LChEkdEELTvH_RY8aCgVSJz3R-Z4YDx2nbBILMWOr9ePNpkJx6zzUiO6yN1j6u/s640/Feb221.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjwnK-kxv8txE-lqqXzbnaT0JEIOrQp_oMpSQq_4rxnkEiBbx0x9-Vt7SWSlarx13ICItUEbClYIOlYU5Iq8TkcnRiseEWLljyIqewbUXczcJra8q9QNA80GgGQUK03LChEkdEELTvH_RY8aCgVSJz3R-Z4YDx2nbBILMWOr9ePNpkJx6zzUiO6yN1j6u/s320/Feb221.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GvJHWGIHA5PUja4XvkmPpUnWQQuUyZqAvHB1wvKzxukPxA1WrmD53yp49WE2-ZrwLGiWqIF37WQYey4h_M32ViPBqR2iKipefDnZMuyKuHiCj_pfGxWaO1W_vobJQMVeZfyMeBckwvvjfW6-iyQ83WMljDD-Z15SqKo7pWY_T4m3kVju86CnJqy8dKUp/s640/Feb222.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GvJHWGIHA5PUja4XvkmPpUnWQQuUyZqAvHB1wvKzxukPxA1WrmD53yp49WE2-ZrwLGiWqIF37WQYey4h_M32ViPBqR2iKipefDnZMuyKuHiCj_pfGxWaO1W_vobJQMVeZfyMeBckwvvjfW6-iyQ83WMljDD-Z15SqKo7pWY_T4m3kVju86CnJqy8dKUp/s320/Feb222.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGcWdvFgDcnvxL_DY-BXGD7HWk6jnphllVEfj1u5_79m1TN68dP9HSh-qfilqIaPE3IeDHlYDF4z1dHfRpPXhb0gCEmmSf_gqMWvndw4w_0qvCavEP9xOERc8WJ4gCOnTdUVDz5OlnlrcYJx9GtUOb1G9ltMH0EI65MfV3sCk-fT-VXDj1TD-qOduBbP9/s640/Feb223.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGcWdvFgDcnvxL_DY-BXGD7HWk6jnphllVEfj1u5_79m1TN68dP9HSh-qfilqIaPE3IeDHlYDF4z1dHfRpPXhb0gCEmmSf_gqMWvndw4w_0qvCavEP9xOERc8WJ4gCOnTdUVDz5OlnlrcYJx9GtUOb1G9ltMH0EI65MfV3sCk-fT-VXDj1TD-qOduBbP9/s320/Feb223.jpeg" width="241" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Treating my staff has always been a</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">special thing for me to do. I'm sure I</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">get this from my mom who loved to</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">have treats in her office. Seeing them</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">smile when little gifts show up or a</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">special day is honored makes it so easy!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div> <p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-15049777344269710452024-02-14T08:08:00.000-08:002024-02-24T16:02:43.498-08:00"All You Need is Love."<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65FZw2gnAPdhPOGe-AlGIw7o_c_rIhLLAPC3q-O7aaMsi-53W02GQTZlEp4l80JRJ0g1qluiWNhIS7WLijGWRBLhYyWBjhIY6uCQt0pRy3f_MLZrMArENACjc13vaFP3vHDxKyqrJIBl_Jtv5exefu0zdYS8Y0kId18TXG5q9rJaNZupozBGs73xUJMj9/s367/vd%20-%20us.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="367" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi65FZw2gnAPdhPOGe-AlGIw7o_c_rIhLLAPC3q-O7aaMsi-53W02GQTZlEp4l80JRJ0g1qluiWNhIS7WLijGWRBLhYyWBjhIY6uCQt0pRy3f_MLZrMArENACjc13vaFP3vHDxKyqrJIBl_Jtv5exefu0zdYS8Y0kId18TXG5q9rJaNZupozBGs73xUJMj9/s320/vd%20-%20us.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Two kids got married, with a whole life ahead of</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">them. He promised her a life of "adventures" and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">he has delivered! She hoped for calm and quiet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">But life continues to be a roller coaster all the time.</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghxf8rlVrRS-FXIDZp7RwIIflMhB3M6qT0Smk5lBVnM0Y9X7HpiKu4OnLhbp9h1ryp1k8Dws9eHP1siAVSLYVidGiG6ITQ6xugVP9Kj-sNiQtUErNvcZxp_W6BOTQHCxVocAr7rZywCKZRuISYxihXht0G0QK83gEFDC1aTkvROh71BdbgvPnM1NgHURez/s206/VD%20-%20babies.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="206" data-original-width="206" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghxf8rlVrRS-FXIDZp7RwIIflMhB3M6qT0Smk5lBVnM0Y9X7HpiKu4OnLhbp9h1ryp1k8Dws9eHP1siAVSLYVidGiG6ITQ6xugVP9Kj-sNiQtUErNvcZxp_W6BOTQHCxVocAr7rZywCKZRuISYxihXht0G0QK83gEFDC1aTkvROh71BdbgvPnM1NgHURez/s1600/VD%20-%20babies.jpeg" width="206" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">They had a total of 12 very wanted and hoped for</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">pregnancies, but ended up with just 4 healthy babies.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Their lost babies have never been forgotten and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">created a journey of helping others along the way.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhkOSoVn_P84TXa454vkwjaEGLysw08OZfyBTTZDbvGWm5o5NWyGQD_NiRKw2n7E_duh8jPrL8SDsb6bd-hh1J-I1YBeMUjckoESxhzbPbvaYwHxrv4HQR7apeL19_d9GFUskUXXcf0UNov84iQEvpzH4AWo8LMk5PLHzocmVuQw2iglz7vdlW6JNG3dZ/s960/vs%20-%20family.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxhkOSoVn_P84TXa454vkwjaEGLysw08OZfyBTTZDbvGWm5o5NWyGQD_NiRKw2n7E_duh8jPrL8SDsb6bd-hh1J-I1YBeMUjckoESxhzbPbvaYwHxrv4HQR7apeL19_d9GFUskUXXcf0UNov84iQEvpzH4AWo8LMk5PLHzocmVuQw2iglz7vdlW6JNG3dZ/s320/vs%20-%20family.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Now everyone is grown up and living their own lives</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">but still hang out with the mama and the papa for</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">special days and holidays. Not always all together</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">because of distance. But "all you need is love ...."</span></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwfbMWsvlOrLb9gSGqGwGpkZ-fDX6cMc6AfVDNEXVqR-2PPp7R2Rbvaoz6sXsbSDQew6JBHnlUVv2UEm_X1rUXWJsVm9aOTejdpyX5WUmRIR6VINMBH3PxvejvZ2FfoKFClkdjJ0WmJGmFvmVg4PnCSTd5AWFJ8Iwqu_ReoyLdhgIMGEgXtp3n0KWb9E0/s640/vd%20-%20grands.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="640" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwfbMWsvlOrLb9gSGqGwGpkZ-fDX6cMc6AfVDNEXVqR-2PPp7R2Rbvaoz6sXsbSDQew6JBHnlUVv2UEm_X1rUXWJsVm9aOTejdpyX5WUmRIR6VINMBH3PxvejvZ2FfoKFClkdjJ0WmJGmFvmVg4PnCSTd5AWFJ8Iwqu_ReoyLdhgIMGEgXtp3n0KWb9E0/s320/vd%20-%20grands.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Our motto and a favorite song from our childhoods.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Now with 2 sweet grands and many grand pups</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">and kitties, life is full. Hurts, trials and tribulations</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">mixed with hope, hard work and love all around.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Wishing you and your sweet family a very</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Happy Valentine's from our little clan!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #a64d79;">~ Chy</span></b></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-22118772985420235462024-02-11T15:23:00.000-08:002024-02-24T16:01:50.521-08:00Right Here. Right Now.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Cm4ck8_iBXP9mGgiA5glGHmogwP1BLNVQRvywxoBTDIGYl0wm86yQ_x5zYZCq3SkwJAYfEI9dcQe8TpywJekjMe7m5bb_nPmEA5pD3BVFKZNYSfWc-xeIxOAY6nSbQ4vKYyhZD_-SvI2lRR7uHNZ1QoP61Mgl0VkUdo_IEOj1zrxHfL6SI3lTPKjvF_y/s591/feb%2011%20quote.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="274" data-original-width="591" height="148" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Cm4ck8_iBXP9mGgiA5glGHmogwP1BLNVQRvywxoBTDIGYl0wm86yQ_x5zYZCq3SkwJAYfEI9dcQe8TpywJekjMe7m5bb_nPmEA5pD3BVFKZNYSfWc-xeIxOAY6nSbQ4vKYyhZD_-SvI2lRR7uHNZ1QoP61Mgl0VkUdo_IEOj1zrxHfL6SI3lTPKjvF_y/s320/feb%2011%20quote.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... jeans with a hole in the knee, a teal tank under my light hoodie, and matching socks. Two long braids to keep my hair out of my eyes while I replace some wallpaper and work on paperwork. A very busy Sunday!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... "The Many Faces of MAiD." I'm doing a lot of research and watching community reactions as MAiD becomes more common in Canada. When I worked in Palliative Care, assisted deaths were welcome in our hospice. But outside of that setting, it seems there is growing concern for how far MAiD will go. I'm here to support families and not be an outspoken advocate on either side. On a personal note, with my mom's dementia, if she could have when she was first diagnosed in 2017, I know she would have chosen to have MAiD ~ she's alive and we're grateful but I do often wonder "what is her purpose now" as she progresses and has lost most of her language and many of her abilities. A sad story to share but worth it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span>.</span><span>... we went for the first time ever to a new butcher shop in our hamlet. We thought the pricing was much better than we thought it would be. For dinner tonight, two super thick pork chops are now marinating in an Onion and Thyme rub from Salt Spring Kitchen. Some veggies and a salad will accompany this lovely dinner that we can't wait to eat tonight. Hopefully amazing!</span></span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... beautiful sunny, cloudless day. It was so warm and we went for a lovely walk down our lane. Waved at some of our down the lane neighbors. topped to see if our trees are going to try to bud early this year. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my sweet family, my home, my friends and our community. Feeling blessed, safe and loved. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... the fresh smell of newly folded laundry in the basket. After all these years, I still love doing laundry.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... dh just put the Super Bowl on for a bit to see the opening. We cheer on the CFL here in Canada so this doesn't mean a lot to us but he likes to watch a bit and see the half time show. I'm not really watching but enjoying the company in the room while I relax on the couch after a busy and productive day. Sundays are never dull around here.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... this week, I'm going to start repainting the cottage ~ all the walls need to be done and the trim. Today, I replaced some of the wallpaper in the main floor 1/2 bath ~ turned out great and now we can do the board and batten in this very small space. And start the crown moulding now that we've figured out how to make the cuts for the corners. Not really crafting but a break from the dollhouses to work on our own little dollhouse. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... we're making a big to us announcement on Wednesday and then on Thursday, it will show up in our local newspaper. So excited to see if we get good feedback. This is a big move for us but it's also so very scary. I trust it will go well but anxious too. Fingers crossed!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... the quote for today is above. Hope you like it as much as I did. I love finding a new quote each week.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="color: #6d906a; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></p></div></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-22422956172539441132024-02-10T09:34:00.000-08:002024-02-24T16:00:25.681-08:00Teapots and Trees.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLS_0y7JRiYdxn6ndM1ScbvjhgC9RuQaZYqhG1fSkAE73h7ZEyc6tyx_xNTJVGs-gBDvO42IRjcYmP1kNngF4jY59GMrfS_xpObBeeXSw39Qy2RWcKgcC8TEN6J8nbP7eXs2TDEcytBHTKK5ycqB_gY61Ar_RK697UYF-2rOI_AYRJwInzefzdMD4Kvyg/s709/tree%20in%20teapot.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="709" data-original-width="526" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLS_0y7JRiYdxn6ndM1ScbvjhgC9RuQaZYqhG1fSkAE73h7ZEyc6tyx_xNTJVGs-gBDvO42IRjcYmP1kNngF4jY59GMrfS_xpObBeeXSw39Qy2RWcKgcC8TEN6J8nbP7eXs2TDEcytBHTKK5ycqB_gY61Ar_RK697UYF-2rOI_AYRJwInzefzdMD4Kvyg/s320/tree%20in%20teapot.jpeg" width="237" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Two my favorite things in this print ~ a teapot for warm tea and beautiful trees that grace our Earth. We have many teapots in our tiny cottage ~ I may have to do a post one day showing each of them and why we chose them. And of course, the cottage is surrounded by trees. We literally live in a little forest. As I look out my window, I see snow on branches for the bit we got the other night and it looks like, a bit from last night. So pretty! When we lived in town, we always chose houses that had trees so we could imagine we lived in the country. Now we do and I love their towering presence, though sometimes when the wind is high, it can be a bit scary. We watch our trees all the time and have a company that comes in to cut down the ones that look like they'll fall over in a breeze. Hate cutting them. Safety is key.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">It's been a busy week and today is a bit quieter, but still busy. While I have a counselling session this afternoon with a lovely client, dh and dd are going to get our groceries for the week. Then they'll pick me up and I need to find my Country Living magazine for January, then shop for a baby gift for a friend, then back to our centre to drop off the supplies from our Music Club that we had last night. Home to unpack, make dinner and then another Oilers hockey game tonight. That's my sweet spot to cozy up on the couch and write. Or dream. Or nap. The possibilities are endless!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">What are your plans on this fine Saturday?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-34674910069476565022024-02-06T15:04:00.000-08:002024-02-24T16:00:09.857-08:00An Eclectic Winter.<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHosEpRfMcV66Vjtjsgdmyg9VNiNtcRkVeqjHsbfdkS_CvXrFqPia3X4ljwqEoQ11dWnpm_hDZB-UWc0_1IlFt8DJk9eBnLPxGiCR9S1LqU1EZfs2e7Gm7ZIShxFtuaNRViphPfPVURP7O4wIGNjbwdzEHPoMn_NFdG9Ho1yJMQK3ase85Li2Edg3lwq-c/s640/0204.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHosEpRfMcV66Vjtjsgdmyg9VNiNtcRkVeqjHsbfdkS_CvXrFqPia3X4ljwqEoQ11dWnpm_hDZB-UWc0_1IlFt8DJk9eBnLPxGiCR9S1LqU1EZfs2e7Gm7ZIShxFtuaNRViphPfPVURP7O4wIGNjbwdzEHPoMn_NFdG9Ho1yJMQK3ase85Li2Edg3lwq-c/w151-h200/0204.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRA7ZvZnq14SG-9HyLwICTuBqRg-zQgPWglKqiHbZtEZl2gEV29osVPvkHUUF5zMUgLSUbLbGN0Z7wFRvUbP13TsN0394R5dJBcTH2HeMNltd1fH7xcywx73nI1Qr8k_X-kHrvjFwfBMfxn2SJuMl2vohil4sR9AhcfXTou5lTstaa-VTyBZMHLfDY8_A/s640/0205.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIRA7ZvZnq14SG-9HyLwICTuBqRg-zQgPWglKqiHbZtEZl2gEV29osVPvkHUUF5zMUgLSUbLbGN0Z7wFRvUbP13TsN0394R5dJBcTH2HeMNltd1fH7xcywx73nI1Qr8k_X-kHrvjFwfBMfxn2SJuMl2vohil4sR9AhcfXTou5lTstaa-VTyBZMHLfDY8_A/w151-h200/0205.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoXe2U1g2XlwqexfA0KoeSAytB_GAz_p7p9pJ4Pbk2VcOvMPe4kN342ragWg9r-FyLaMWGbF759xF8FlJBhbzrCzg7NIDeSrDjNbZnHBseVB8ZJJWEuF5xMFKVqqu2td9wf1SaVCV62BQjKBLAe8qj-CkW9TRlExKV2qfyWv18g8l3eslTSo9ygvwIHBhR/s640/0206.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoXe2U1g2XlwqexfA0KoeSAytB_GAz_p7p9pJ4Pbk2VcOvMPe4kN342ragWg9r-FyLaMWGbF759xF8FlJBhbzrCzg7NIDeSrDjNbZnHBseVB8ZJJWEuF5xMFKVqqu2td9wf1SaVCV62BQjKBLAe8qj-CkW9TRlExKV2qfyWv18g8l3eslTSo9ygvwIHBhR/w151-h200/0206.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2_3L9s82wvAgYiwU2xCJht_JFAbl9ARyFG5q1Lb6CSPfWsQ6qs25ss3heYJnEUvUvif-wjdMJIbcQhqY1qHYENIs6ky12qSPVVez43erybnoeNK4OxAcjZ3jsMJ2jSwx-YrLM7Un540BX54RMAW1zXuWOFltRzWoAl2NU3Fj0NETH97OCTtZEWTb8IOz/s640/0207.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2_3L9s82wvAgYiwU2xCJht_JFAbl9ARyFG5q1Lb6CSPfWsQ6qs25ss3heYJnEUvUvif-wjdMJIbcQhqY1qHYENIs6ky12qSPVVez43erybnoeNK4OxAcjZ3jsMJ2jSwx-YrLM7Un540BX54RMAW1zXuWOFltRzWoAl2NU3Fj0NETH97OCTtZEWTb8IOz/w151-h200/0207.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMqZpTMfnU6iDNLo7yp2JEJMMQrIGIg2Jrul7vU9e6PZkfySRz-lhhRP3qQjnVIWGRIIVvU7zEgTUa572794GYINhSWjTLkVKC8NHNy1oRTBG4_kwX3h_l4U0utS4RhzM_WHeI8lNQTw8ZwyYbSLzkmYnYP0aipSaMMc-IysrAhC2RITw88_-fkhx32aY/s640/0208.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHMqZpTMfnU6iDNLo7yp2JEJMMQrIGIg2Jrul7vU9e6PZkfySRz-lhhRP3qQjnVIWGRIIVvU7zEgTUa572794GYINhSWjTLkVKC8NHNy1oRTBG4_kwX3h_l4U0utS4RhzM_WHeI8lNQTw8ZwyYbSLzkmYnYP0aipSaMMc-IysrAhC2RITw88_-fkhx32aY/w151-h200/0208.jpeg" width="151" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNM5QsWvGXA2Ms1Z7hATMoP4l67GoRg3-BeVgv6ppPP_1mZqsSlvJyz00Dh0NAUh1VxTDYoEFotyLZ7Aeu9MA82Ysp0n6U87s35M6eWbO5UZkvtFaN3Q_clNPJcopBMzjovcMXreSz47n4-cGyDJF4lyxIYbeWtK2Wh1MDnqZGkyFSlHIehaHW-mtabEpr/s640/0209.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="481" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNM5QsWvGXA2Ms1Z7hATMoP4l67GoRg3-BeVgv6ppPP_1mZqsSlvJyz00Dh0NAUh1VxTDYoEFotyLZ7Aeu9MA82Ysp0n6U87s35M6eWbO5UZkvtFaN3Q_clNPJcopBMzjovcMXreSz47n4-cGyDJF4lyxIYbeWtK2Wh1MDnqZGkyFSlHIehaHW-mtabEpr/w151-h200/0209.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">This Winter has been the most eclectic Winter that I've ever experienced. From no snow, to a bit, to a warm trend that felt like Summer, to a bit of snow, to a week of bitter cold, followed by another warming experience that meant we all have had messy cars as the bit of snow had melted, creating muddy country roads. On the weekend, we had some snow again, not much as you'll see by my photos, but enough so the mud was less. And then yesterday, warm again, so out came the mud. In between all of this, we've had warmer than normal temperatures (I still haven't put my - 40 C Sorels yet!), some rain (in Winter?) and a ton of fog (spooky and scary!). As much as we've loved that we haven't had any blizzards and travelling into town and even into the Big City has not been a challenge at all this year, the big worry is with very little snow cover, we run such a big risk of more forest fires this coming year. After being on alert last Spring for the first time ever, this has created some stress for us. Fingers crossed we get more snow and have a rainy Spring. We're hiring a tree company soon to come in and ensure that our little forest can be cleared a bit to decrease our risk. We don't want to take trees down but I do worry the brush under the trees is too much right now. I'd rather have this taken care of then be worried every time there is a fire near by. Please keep our region, our whole country in your thoughts and blessings. Thank you for this.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">You may be wondering about my photos above. The top left is the sweet branches we were gifted by a client for our front steps. I loved placing these as a welcoming path for guests who visited us over the holidays. There were smaller branches too and I put these in our dining room on the table, surrounding the big candle, as well as on our vintage cabinet in front of the windows, and a bit on the tea wagon. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">The second photo on the right is Bruce the Moose and Santa Claus, sadly, resting on the ground with a bit of snow cover. I'm glad they are not buried but they look so sad when they are not inflated. I love when they are up. With the higher cost of electricity this year, we haven't had them up as often but when they are up, I feel like a kid excited about something as simple as an inflatable!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Third photo is our new Hydrangea bush. I didn't cut all the blooms off as I wanted to see what it looks like in the snow. I love how this looks, even with the little bit of snow.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Fourth photo is showing our little girl and boy statues on their seesaw, in the snow, in the snowy forest.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Fifth photo is our stone bench right by the statues. Looks so empty and needing some company. I look forward to the Spring when we have flowers growing close by. A sweet spot to sit and reflect on a warm Summer day.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">The final photo shows a bit of green that has popped up. Some of our plants are a bit confused by above normal temperatures and lots of sun. Today was cloudy and foggy but the sun should be back soon. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;">It will be interesting to see if we end up getting a blizzard or two along the way. Hopefully not, though some steady, frequent snow would be so very helpful. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Hope all is well where you reside!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></div><p></p>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6420789516107092243.post-6375769745768322652024-02-04T14:24:00.000-08:002024-02-24T15:59:44.964-08:00Right Here. Right Now.<p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMrAWIVjMSxP_k4KGv2uN30JAMM84vh6mBfqf7_pW8NvtvEipeFoHosMN3QQqjszFxnZ8Z8Vu10QebmTXXh5W02yb6suE9MENP4d-fs3UYZTKyz2C08lrp3-XJazNILQqCyEP9n1ohjqQJW2cZk3Wg1uCNGNntZ5aVhZ5L-eu_ORp3Zc_y3wyJ7AIciFY/s362/Beatrix%20Potter's%20Garden.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="362" data-original-width="289" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMrAWIVjMSxP_k4KGv2uN30JAMM84vh6mBfqf7_pW8NvtvEipeFoHosMN3QQqjszFxnZ8Z8Vu10QebmTXXh5W02yb6suE9MENP4d-fs3UYZTKyz2C08lrp3-XJazNILQqCyEP9n1ohjqQJW2cZk3Wg1uCNGNntZ5aVhZ5L-eu_ORp3Zc_y3wyJ7AIciFY/s320/Beatrix%20Potter's%20Garden.jpg" width="255" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm wearing</b></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... jeans with a hole in the knee, a light t-shirt with lace trim, my black zip up hoodie, black socks with flowers, and my warm slippers. It's a messy hair day!</span></div><div class="separator" style="background-color: #fdfafe; clear: both; font-family: "Coming Soon"; font-size: 20px; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What I'm reading</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... the following magazines so I can return them to the library on Tuesday when I'm in town: Dollhouse Miniatures, Mary Jane's Farm (x 2 issues) and Country Living U.S. Edition (x 2 issues). The CL I'm trying to see if it's anything like the Country Living U.K. Edition that I buy each month and love, love, love! So far, I like the U.K. version better, probably because of how we designed our cottage, things I love in life, some British ancestry and our lifestyle.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's happening in my kitchen</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span>.</span><span>... dh has our scrumptious Sunday dinner in the crockpot. I skipped lunch just so I could have lots of dinner tonight. Can't wait to dig right in!</span></span><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79; font-weight: bold;">What's outside my window</span><span style="color: #6d906a; font-weight: bold;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... a very cloudy, foggy, misty day. Feels so good to be home, in our warm and cozy cottage. It's supposed to snow but so far, we've not seen any flakes today. Other parts of our Province have had snow and ice, with many warnings to not travel. Will see what happens.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm thankful for</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my family, my home, my friends and our community. Feeling blessed, safe and loved.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm smelling</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... dinner in the crockpot. Smells Heavenly!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm hearing</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... a documentary on Netflix, while we both tap away on our laptops. Once we're done, we're going to build another bit of our new Lego project we started.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What I'm crafting</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... playing with paints today to see what color to paint the exterior of the big dollhouse I received at Christmas. Difficult to figure out the correct shade.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>What's on my mind</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... my mom's health, the many projects we're working on, announcements that need to be made this week, and our big anniversary in the Summer. A mix of good, exciting, not so great and lots of hard work coming up!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #6d906a;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>Words to live by</b></span><span style="color: #6d906a;"> </span><span style="color: #38761d;">.... the quote for today: "There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you." ~ Beatrix Potter. I love her words! As I continue to write as much as I can, these words swirl in my head. I also chose Beatrix Potter today for my quote because of the image above, a sweet little garden scape that I hope to create in our Secret Garden this Summer. Spending time today to figure out how and where to find, or maybe even try to make the items needed to create this. Wish me luck with this new creative project!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Hope you enjoy this week's quote.</span></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Having an amazing week!</span></p><p style="color: #6d906a; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><b>~ Chy</b></span></p></div></div></div>Chyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09612160129616190092noreply@blogger.com2