Saint John

I just had a wonderful visit with Noelyn in Saint John !!

She showed me around uptown, we had drinks on a patio, enjoyed a little shopping & a movie - and had a great time chatting & catching up !! I am so glad we got to hang out before she moves back to ON soon !!

A little topsy-turvey

We have one of these 'as-seen-on-tv' strawberry plant growers in our yard ... and I have to say - it really works !! The plants are growing, and there are many berries in the making on it !! This photo was taken the day we planted it, which was about 2 weeks ago now (the first weekend I was in NS I think). I look forward to snacking on the berries as they ripen.

Oh Happy Day !! (One Day Late)

Happy 10th Birthday to my cousin Ryan !!

And Happy Anniversary to his parents, my Aunt Deb & Uncle Paul !!

Alright ... so really these celebrations were yesterday - June 20th ... but I had some computer & external hard-drive related issues yesterday, so the post was postponed until today.

New Bling

 I found a new love-of-my-life website recently ... and while I have been browsing through the thousands of pages of goodies, I have found many inspirational ideas. This one jumped out at me b/c I had also seen it in Chatelaine magazine a few months ago and had wanted to give it a go then. I must have trashed that magazine, because I've looked through the ones on my shelf and cannot find the article. So I was delighted to find a link HERE to instructions on how to make this bracelet. Sure they are fairly simple, but I always like to read the how-to before trying something new. So I gave it a go, and am pretty pleased with the result !! I used leather instead of string, and silver  hex nuts instead of gold, and I put a lobster clasp & jump rings on instead of tying it on permanently. I can see making many more of these as gifts for friends & family - so let me know if you want one ;)

New Home

I am finally starting to feel like this is my home. 

No, not this birdhouse, though we can see it from the front porch. 

I have been here for just over two weeks now, which seems like such a short time, however I also feel like I have been here for ever now. It's a strange combo of feelings, but I am sure they will level out or catch up to each other soon enough.

New Tree Flowers

Yet another one of our trees has started to have fun flowers on it.

These ones are yellow, and sort of dangly.

We have no idea what kind of tree it is, but it sure is pretty.

High-Schoolers

I apologize for the slightly out of focus photo today ... Let me explain why.

This afternoon, I wandered out to the backyard to check on the robins. I walked up to the shed and saw them all in the next and thought "perfect!" ... I took this photo and then walked forward into the shed, admiring how BIG they are ... and took another step toward them and WOOSH they all took off "flying" right at my head !!


It was terrifying and amazing at the same time !! They fly for a little bit, then crash and hop around. Fly some more, crash and hop. Beyond cute.


I feel bad for disrupting them, and won't be going out to take anymore photos (mama robin is unimpressed with me to say the least). 


Hope you have enjoyed this little series : )

Whats Up Buttercup ?

A rainy, damp, gross day - the kind of day where you just want to curl up on the couch with a blanket and watch tv or read a book all day ... and I am at the office and in the city running errands - banks, insurance, drivers licence, home depot. I'd rather be at home ... mind you, if it were beautiful and sunny outside, I would also rather be at home then ! Haha ! 

Switch-A-Roo

My plan was to go into the city today, and take care of more odds & ends related to moving. Instead, I stayed in bed until mid-morning, the result of an overnight migraine. I blame the weather. It's rather stormy here, and we're getting a ton of rain the next few days, so I'm guessing that is the cause.

By mid-afternoon I was feeling more "human" again, and decided to tackle the remaining boxes and bins in the living room. I took 4 rubbermaid bins, 1 GIANT bin, and 1 large box down to the basement. Another two bins got emptied. And the boxes continue to sit there - as do 4 more bins and a few random items that just don't have a home yet.

Also on the productive side - I called about getting my insurance switched over, called and found out where to mail my 407 transponder back to, put my MacPass in my car, store away many reusable shopping bags in my car, hung my packs in my closest & store camping gear away in my closest. Oh and walked to the mailbox to drop my crafty cards in for delivery !!

Not bad for a migraine day.

All these things were what I had on my hit list for tomorrow ... Which means that tomorrow I will go into the city and hopefully tackle that to-do list !!

And ... here's a random photo from a week or so ago, taken in my yard.

Pre-Schoolers

It's starting to get crowded in that nest !! Four robin's growing fast as can be !!

Below is another shot, taken with Mom's zoom lens - they're hungry little robins !!

Crafty Cards

This afternoon into this evening, I hunkered down on the floor of the landing (aka my office area), and crafted some fun cards for friends and family. 

I have a long list of cards I want to make, today was only the tip of the iceberg.

I am happy to have crafted & to be dropping these in the mail tomorrow !!

Here are two tiny shots of the crafty fun I had. 

Many more will appear in the days and weeks to come !!

Just Follow Your Heart

" sometimes you gotta stop and remember that you're not going to live forever. be young. think smart. stay true. and just follow your heart ... "

As I have been unpacking, I am been looking at all my belongings with new eyes. Finding new purposes for things I've had for years, displaying forgotten treasures, and reminiscing about the past.

In all my unpacking, I have found so many items that were given & gifted to me and even made for me by friends ... these friends are all held so near and dear to my heart, even though I have grown apart from some of them over the years.

It makes me smile to think back on all the fabulous adventures we had, all the ridiculous inside jokes we shared, all the secrets we entrusted, and all the hilarious photos I still have in albums and boxes.

Friends definitely come and go from our lives, but I am so thankful to have all those past friends in my life while I did. They all still mean the world to me : )

*     *     *     *     *

And, as it seems it may never end, I'm still unpacking.

Down to the last bunch of boxes & bins, a fair number of which needs to just be taken down to the basement for storage.

That is my planned "task" for Wednesday this week - hopefully after that it will just be putting the last few odds & ends away, and hanging the last few frames & photos.

Full Bloom

Here they are in FULL BLOOM !! 

We have lots of flowers all around the house ... and they all attract lots of bumble bees !!

Ro-something

Here are a few shots of a pretty flowering bush - pre-bloom - in our front yard.

It's a ro-something ... rodendrine ? Something like that !

They are fully bloomed now, photos to follow soon : )

Toddlers Already !

These little cuties are no more than a week old.

I cannot believe how quickly they are growing !! 

I'm also anxious for them to start chirping & learning how to fly ... oh the adventures.

Apparently It's Flower Week

More flowers from the yard ... 

It's going to be a theme for the next few days b/c I took oodles of photos.

Sweet Smell

Lilacs are one of my favourite flowers.

We bought two bushes this past weekend, and have planted one.

The other sits on the deck in the back, between two chairs.

The sweet smell fills the air, and makes me smile.

I wish they flowered all spring & summer !!

Old Time Rock 'n Roll

At the Flea Market on Sunday, we saw a wide variety of this, that, and the other thing ... an interesting experience for sure !! Here's a shot of some albums I saw - in milk crates of course !!

Oh Baby

Oh Baby !! You are too cute and precious for words !!

These are a few shots of the baby robins that just hatched yesterday !!

They are in a shed in the backyard, and that mommy robin has been very kind, letting us go in and look, but not for long or she starts yelling at us.

The photo below is a little blurry, but you can still see how amazing they are !!