here's what's up...

Right now I am driving across the continent with my Dad and making a few stops along the way while creating wicked memories that will last a lifetime.

In a nutshell. 

Tonight we are currently staying in some el cheapo hotel in Vicksburg, Mississippi because our usual hotel is full. I’ve turned into a hotel snob during this trip but what’s killing me the most is being away from my little family for so long that I get text updates like these…

1^st update was a sad one…

I received an email from my local scrapbooking store announcing that they will be closing their doors in the New Year. This is so sad. 

The scrapbooking industry is ever changing and every time I hear about a local store closing it really is a sad day for the scrapbooking world. This is super duper sad for me 'cause now I will have to shop online and pay redonkulious shipping rates just to keep up. Of course I could just use what I’ve got but what’s the fun in that? I mean come on?  

2^nd update is another sad one…

My kitty Bijou hasn’t been eating much since I left. 

It breaks my heart to hear that since she doesn’t usually come out of her hiding spot unless I’m there so I had this bright idea to call the house phone and leave her a little message on the answering machine. You should have seen the look on my dad’s face while he listened to me leave the message…needless to say he had different feelings about my message. I believe his words to me after I hung up was, “ Do you really think your cat is going to think, “Gee, my mistress is telling me to eat, maybe I should start eating because my mistress asked me to? …” OK so it was a little silly….

And the most recent update which isn’t a downer for a change.... 

My little onion lost another tooth!!!

She is writing a note to the Tooth Fairy to ask if she can wait until I get home to come pick up her tooth. This melted my heart into a giant puddle. I already miss her so much like nobody's business and when I hear things like this it just makes me miss her THAT much more....*sigh* Just 3 more days until I get to squeeze the boogies right out of her! But in the meantime I will be hitting the sac so the Sandman can pay me visit and sprinkle some of that sleepy dust over me. 

Oh hey, speaking of the Sandman, doesn't that new movie The Rise of the Guardians look cool? I'm thinking this might be our Christmas movie we will see when I get back....ok I better get to sleep for real this time or I'll be in a rare form to drive tomorrow. 

in a blink of an eye

This week has flashed by so fast, like a blink. Thankfully I had my phone on hand so I would be sure to capture  every little detail...

1) my Monday button
2) I swear that wasn't how I left her this morning...
3) our newest member of our family, introducing June a Florida Box turtle
4) practicing pin curls for the upcoming graduation
5) gotta protect those curls
6) all that hard work and bazillion bobby pins paid off

7) free flowers from Publix + washi tape tags = last minute teacher's gift for Maribel's last day
8) so proud of our preschool graduate
9) celebrating at Golden Corral. they. have. cotton candy...
10) determined to get wet despite the constant threat of rain
11) it was a popsicle for dinner watching Teddy Ruxpin with Teddy Ruxpin while nursing a scooter scrape kind of evening
12) a new found drink that has swiftly become a favourite. I hate lemonade so this should say something...

13) morning photo to start the day thanks to my mini photosnappin me
14) someone stole me seat *cough* Milo
15) hiding in my scraphaven debating whether reorganize or just leave it where I know where everything is
16) my weekend score of vintage teacups and silver platters
17) second breakfast. she eats like a teenage boy..................
18) finally brought out a few of the scrapcubes from the closet. this was by no means an easy feat

And speaking of blinking...this is what happens when you do just that... She graduates from preschool. I'm still in shock of it all....

Hopefully this week will slow down a little so I can catch my breath. Well I'm a 'glass is half full' kind of gal so what ever this week has in store, I say BRING IT!

weekend fever

There’s something about working out the rest of a week from a long weekend where it’s that added bonus of working a short week but then you get weekend fever. The workweek is never short enough and the weekends are never long enough. Why is that?

 Well I do know one thing, this weekend while Joe is busy learning new work duties (yay for a sort-of-promotion) I plan on playing with this chickie-poo.

Our weekend agenda:

-Boring old errands (gotta get them out of the way first thing)

-crafting with some of the fun stuff she got from her birthday

-reading library books while eating freezies

-watching movies inside a fort lit up with bulb lights whilst eating theater snacks like popcorn and Mike and Ikes

-scooter rides around the neighbourhood

-bubble time

-and last and most certainly not least baking and decorating cupcakes. 

It’s gunna be busy and maybe a little messy (note that cleaning isn’t on the list…) but it’s gunna be fun. Happy Weekend everyone! 

Happy Muver's Day

My mummy who is watching me from up above...   

It's the end of the day and as I began posting my daily photo for the Instagram thread Photo a day May, so many thoughts and emotions came flashing by as I thought about Mother's Day and motherhood. Warning this may get a little sappy...

I first was woken with "Mummy, Happy Muver's Day, check under your pillow!" I guess I was sleeping on this card the entire night and didn't even notice. She's so sneaky. 
While we were getting ready for Sunday service she practiced the song that the primary children would be singing later that morning. I always melt into a blubbering ball of tears every year that I hear the primary children sing. I get so overwhelmed with emotions of how blessed I am to have been given such a precious and wonderful gift. 

We live so very far from our birth mothers so while I called mine on the phone, Maribel made this special card for hers. We delivered it the fastest way possible, posted on her facebook wall. Gotta love technology and social media.

After tucking my little red head into bed safe and sound with her favourite stuffies and sweet music, I recluse back to my room to take one more look at my Mother's Day goodies. 
I can't help but be grateful for this wonderful gift of motherhood. 

Today in one of the talks a mother related a story about how a mother was in a shopping line with her kids and while being typical kids in a checkout and a lady behind her says, "Aren't you just loving every minute? Treasure every precious moment because they grow up so fast." 
It's so true. As I look at how much my little onion has grown in these short years I really do try to enjoy as much of it as I can. I mean, I'm not perfect and yes there are days that I countdown til bedtime, but overall I have heard and have been told that they grow up so fast so I am doing my best to really enjoy this journey. I have been given this gift. Such a special gift she is to me since she was literally given to me to raise as my own and to love so deeply.
Adoption is just another word for More to Love. 
And so now I will bid you all a wonderful Mother's Day or "Muver's Day" as Maribel says it and take to bed a very full and happy heart. 

beach bums

There's one thing to be said about living in Florida and that is you gotta love the beach! Either way you drive (other then north-ha ha) you are bound to hit sandy goodness. I guess it's only natural that Maribel loves the beach as much as she loves blueberries. I mean she's a Carlberg and it comes with the name.

On Saturday I loaded up the car and my little onion for a little trip to our family favourite, Cocoa Beach. We love this beach with all of it's natural beachy goodness of shells, sea weed, sea foam, jelly fish, crabs and feathers. And I can't forget to mention the perfect sand for turning anyone into mermaids.

Luckily we never got hit with any rain so we were able to catch some decent waves and sand time. Even if it did rain nothing was going to spoil our special mommy/daughter date. We had a nice picnic on our blanket. I filled the Tiffen box with sandwiches, crackers, pretzels and some delicious strawberries and grapes with yogurt for dipping.

My niece Sherry sent me her little Flat Stanley for a little vacation so this is him enjoying what Florida has to offer. So naturally you can't go to Cocoa Beach, Florida without paying a little visit to Ron Jon Surf Shop.
This lucky fella gets to accompany me everywhere I go like the beach,church,  my place of work, I even have a little Disney planned for his visit which will be fun to document.

I only wish that when it came time to send him home that I could go with him. I'm running out of Canadian Smarties and yes, I do eat the red ones last...

superheros are righteous

Saturday was our church’s primary activity celebrating superheroes and how they choose the right. I was asked to help with one of the activities and because I love primary so much I jumped at the chance to assist. I was given a story to reenact about choosing the right and instead of trying to round up a bunch of friends I went another route. Take a look...

Of course there are outtakes…that's half the fun of film making isn't it?

Thanks to my awesome sister in law, the video was a hit and I haven’t laughed so hard in so long. I mean, the soccer ball never moves during “game play” but their feet are going a mile a minute. It makes me laugh everytime and the kids loved it too. After Maribel's group watched the video she said,
"You're awesome Mommy!"
Gawsh!

Naturally I think she's pretty awesome too.

Brownie points if you can guess who my ALL TIME favourite superhero is. Your clue is in my costume...

one more day

I figured since it’s Easter Monday back in Canada I would carry the Easter celebrations over one more day with a bunny inspired bento that I made for Maribel last week.

For the top some yummy grapes ripened for nibbling along with some cherry Jell-O in a flowered cupcake cup.

And for the bottom box a little bunny cut from a classic pb&j with a few fruit leather carrots surrounded with bunny tails-aka mini marshmallows. 

Funny tale about these fluffy little balls of confection…when I went to add them to M’s lunch the bag was nowhere to be found. I mean NOwhere. I searched high and low quite literally and even in my #1 suspect’s room while she still slumbered only to come up empty handed and a little defeated. So when the little sneakerella woke up I had to ask…

Me: Maribel, do you know where the marshmallows are?

M: No

Me: Are you sure? I wanted to put some in your lunch today

M: Oh wait! Maybe they are in your (bed) room.

(after a brief moment and some rustling coming from under my blankets at the foot of the bed)

M: Oh here they are. How did they get in there?

M'yesss how did they get in there???

As pictured here we had a similar instance with the parmesan cheese that mysteriously disappeared. I still haven’t found the empty container.