Sunday was my I don't have to run day

Tim had to blast out to the hobby store today for a part that broke when he was working on his radio control airplane. He got home and it was too big!! Oh was he ever choked! I worked on laundry, getting the trailer bedding completed and the whites, watched "Just Friends"... super funny rom-com with Ryan Reynolds... love that guy! Mom was over again and I made "Land of Nod Cinnamon Buns" for breakfast. We're back on the gluten free train on Monday!! It was super duper yummy. Had roast chicken and rice for supper... can't wait for Tim's payday on Tuesday, can go and get some real food as I feel like Mother Hubbard with my bare cupboard!! LOL!

Twin Boys!! Welcome John and Lander Sheather

My cousin Jennifer gave birth, via emergency C section, to two gorgeous boys last week. Mom came down last night and we went to visit this morning. I took an Lazy Lasagna from when Carmen and I did our Big Cook this spring. Since I am supposedly to be eating no wheat, it was a good idea to get the temptation out of my cupboard and freezer. With 6 kids, I am sure Jen and Rob are going to be busy. The good news is that 2 are in school full time, with a third starting Kindergarten this year so "just" 2 year old fireball Jaron and the twins will be home. Jen is pretty sore still, as the C Section was on Saturday (I think) and she keeps doing things she ought not to... but what can you do? I held both John (the bigger of the two babies) and Lander. They are both very sweet little babies. My Auntie Laurie, who is their Grandma, and I went to the Little Monsters Swap Meet at the Tri Leisure Centre and scored a bunch of sleepers as the boys are "blasting" through them with bodily functions at an alarming rate. They also have very sensitive tushies so much so that baby wipes irritate them so we also got a load of baby washcloths for keeping them clean. They are such precious little boys! I can't wait to see what their personalities will be like.

John has a birth defect called Amniotic Band Syndrome where a number of fingers and toes are banded together or were severed in utero. Luckily, one of the two surgeons in the world that can do corrective and reconstructive plastic surgery for this condition is located here in Edmonton (the other is in Germany) and was available shortly after John was born to come and see him. He was able to separate a couple of fingers on his left hand from the banding and further surgery will be forthcoming when he is about 6 months old. Our family is very thankful for the staff at the Misericordia Hospital for their quick response in instituting supports in getting consultations in a very quick manner with both the surgeon and a pediatrician. We are so fortunate that it was only fingers and toes that were affected as there are a number of children that are born without entire limbs or other complications from the banding. Other than that, John is very healthy and the doctors suspect that although his toes are somewhat melded together or severed, that it will not affect his balance or his ability to walk or run. He is still the most gorgeous baby next to my own of course!!

Oh my crazy life

I thought sleeping in my own bed would induce me to sleep in but no... the air conditioner noise bothered me, the cat bothered me... finally at 7:15 I got up and let Tim at least sleep in. Came downstairs and read the various newspapers and flyers that had come in when I was away.

Tim came down at about 9 a.m. or so, made a big pot of coffee and drank it in our BIG coffee cups (hold about 24 oz each); took our vitamins, ate a bit of breakfast then it was time to rock and roll!! I had to unpack to take a bath (ah sweet bliss, jacuzzi tub I missed you) and did not injure myself at any point (must be all the padding around this place... LOL!) Went and watered my plants on the patio, I think they may have seen a touch of frost maybe... the zucchini looks not so good... oh well, it was one plant, I got one small and one decent sized zuke out of it... what the heck. The grapes are coming along well, as are the tomatoes. The carrots have lovely leafy green tops but the orange underground roots are pathetic, although tasty. The pole beans on one side are climbing up the juniper. Silly pole beans! Don't know if they are going to set any beans but no matter. The apples are getting close to being ready. Usually a little touch of frost sweetens them up, might be a little bit for that though.The trees were already turning in Waskesiu, I was glad to see that the trees here are faring a bit better.

Did a few errands around town... picked up my chickens that my friend Jen Kosiorek picked up for me, picked up my dry cleaning (2 sweaters, 'tis getting to be that season), went to the newspaper office to pick up some stuff from the previous Mega Monday promotion (next one starts August 30th if you are looking for some deals in Devon, Leduc and Beaumont), picked up my Sears Christmas Wish Book!!!! Then Connor and I went to pick up the puppies at Awesome Pawsome Ranch. En route I noticed the rose hips were very plentiful in the ditches, I'm wondering if I should maybe make rosehip jelly this year since the cherry crop is so poor (as in non-existent). We could have boarded the dogs at Awesome Pawsome AND been able to look in on then 24/7 via webcam but we did not take that option this time. The boys were happy to see us as we were to see them. Apparently Bart used the Doggie Door fairly quickly whereas Gus took a few days. I think he was afraid of it as he is a bit high strung. Couple of goofballs! Other than the doggie door issue though, Bart marked some of the furniture (apparently they had been marked by other dogs before so it is to be expected, he pees on everything when we go on a walk) and ate Gus' food, but other than that, they had a grand old time. Once we got home, they started to use their "special" outdoor kennel that we have been trying to get them to use... so it was a great way to transition them. We are pretty excited about not having to trek all over the yard in the winter looking for frozen poop-sicles. They will all be on their nice vinyl decking in their kennel, easy to clean up!! Yay!!

After a quickie sandwich lunch, I popped back on to the computer to work on the family finances, paid a few bills, etcetera... did up my last Blue Cross claim for my former employer (benefits ended on July 31), ran over to photocopy it at the former employer then off to a Doctors appointment.

After getting my prescriptions refilled, I zinged in to Leduc to pick up cat food from PetPro's, pick up my zipper repairs at Leduc Tailors (1 down filled jacket, 1 nylon/fleece jacket, 2 pairs of pants = $96!! Cheaper than replacing just the down car coat!) and then to Safeway to pick up a few groceries. We can not get Soy coffee creamer here in Devon for love nor money. Ridiculous! Came home, put some laundry in, checked out the Continuing Education Guide for Fall (most things you can sign up at the Community Awareness Night)and then it was time to make supper.

We had soft Corn tacos, I found the corn tortillas at Safeway in Saskatchewan at the deli counter. They were so good! Gluten free!!! Connor even enjoyed them. YUMMY! Cleaned up the mess, folded a load of laundry, put in another load... and here I am, working on my blog... yet again... This is my crazy life and I wouldn't change it for anything! Oh, gotta go, my mom just showed up from Rocky. Tomorrow we are going to see my cousin Jennifer Sheather's new twin babies!! Eeee! Twins!!!

On the Road Again and Home Again - Day 12 - August 26, 2010

We got up before the alarm because my Blackberry rang at 7:15 a.m. Turned out to be the chickens I had ordered at the Farmer's Market back in May were now ready. I frantically texted my friends the Kosiorek's in Devon to see if they could pick them up... they could so that was great. We then ate breakfast then started tearing apart the trailer... took our showers then finished the job!! We got out of the RV park about 11:40 p.m. Promptly put Harry Potter: The Deathly Hallows on ... stopped for Gas and lunch in Prince Albert, then hit the happy highway again. Time seemed to fly by as the sky was clear and blue, the story was engrossing and we were headed home!!! Stopped for gas again in Lloydminster, grabbed a few snacks and forged on home. We got home at 8:40 p.m. or so, and it was looking like a storm was going to come in so we scurried and hurried to unload. Other than extreme winds, nothing really happened but it felt good to at least have it all in. The cat was starved for attention, although the cat sitter says she did get enough. I guess with no puppies around, she wants to hog all the attention. What a hoser!! Tomorrow we pick up the puppies and attempt to get back to real life!

Grey Owl's Cabin - Day 11 - August 25, 2010

So today was the day we have been waiting for all holiday, our trip to Grey Owl's Cabin. We got up bright and early to be at the marina before 10 a.m. We paid for our trip and got our instructions on how and where to meet the boat. That was an adventure in and of itself. From the parking lot, it is a 1.5 km hike to the South End of Kingsmere Lake. Lots of tree roots to trip over and the rail cart system makes up part of the trail if you were to take a boat from the Waskesiu Lake Narrows over to Kingsmere Lake (a bit long for a portage!) Everything is still pretty saturated but there were some great sites to see en route.

This is the rail cart which is used to move watercraft between Kingsmere and Waskesiu Lakes. There is a river that joins them but it is very narrow and has rapids, so this is the easier solution to portage.

Check out my purposeful stride at the beginning of the hike. Hoofin' it!!!

So we arrived at Kingsmere Lake and promptly got in to our boat. Kingsmere Lake is interesting because it  is shallow for quite a distance than really deep all of a sudden, there is a shelf where the lake suddenly drops off.  Sheltered in the bay, and at a low speed, everything was hunky dory but once in deeper water, our pilot opened 'er up and we were flying across the waves and got soaked!!!

You certainly can not tell how rough it was. It jarred our teeth sometimes!

Our pilot and the "beach" where we disembarked on the North Side of Kingsmere Lake

Once we got to the other side, we immediately hit the trail as it is 3.2 km to Grey Owl's cabin from the shore. It was a beautiful hike sometimes in the woods, sometimes along Ajawaan Lake. Finally we came to Grey Owl's cabin "Beaver Lodge". It is so named because it has a beaver lodge inside of it!! Grey Owl was reintroducing beavers to the area and wanted the lodge very near his home. It is quite the site to behold.

The beaver lodge was in the corner next to the bed... you could hear the waves lapping just under the logs.

The outside of Beaver Lodge, Grey Owl's cabin.

We also went up the hill to the guest cabin which was also Anahareo's cabin as she could not tolerate the nocturnal habits of the beavers.

Anahareo's cabin, which also housed guests when they had them.

We then visited the grave site of Grey Owl, Anahareo and their daughter, Shirley Ann.

We returned to the Beaver Lodge, had a snack, drink of water and after brief rest which I allowed my socks and shoes to dry and was visited by the local butterflies, we then hit the happy trail again back to the north end of Kingsmere Lake.

My new friend. It kept tasting me with it's little butterfly tongue. So cute!! You can't tell in the picture but it's body was a lovely shade of fuzzy green and when it's wings were in the closed position, it appeared like pine bark. Clever disguise!

Connor and I enjoying the deck and the scenery of Ajawaan Lake.

From the south end of Ajawaan Lake, you can make out the grey form of Beaver Lodge through the trees.

Coming back in the boat, I thought I was smart sitting in the back with the pilot but a wave came back off the shore and soaked my back side from the waist down. I also had to do some bailing as lots of water had come into the boat. Tim was sitting up front but after a few of the larger wind whipped waves, the bouncing that Connor enjoyed so much was hurting his back so I had to change positions with him. The pilot took it a bit easier after that, not quite so fast or hitting the waves quite so hard. It was fun and we did get wet.

Finally we got to the South End and disembarked, walked back to the parking lot and returned to our trailer to change. We had cookies and milk, then Connor put on his trunks and we headed out to the beach!!

It was a beautiful warm day so Connor hit the waves while Tim and I caught a few rays.

After an hour or two, we'd had enough, put our stuff back in the van and went to the "Angry Taco" restaurant for really excellent Mexican. Who knew in the middle of northern Saskatchewan they would have excellent Mexican food. Super cute place too, and reasonable considering.

It's hard to believe that we are packing up and leaving tomorrow. We are a bit sad now that the warm weather is finally showing up but, that is life and we must get back to reality!

Tuesday Transitions - Day 10 - August 24, 2010

Well, this day started off windy, a bit of cloud but it soon cleared off. We could hear the saws going in the morning, dealing with the crazy wind damage from the gusts overnight. I made french toast for breakfast using a gorgeous loaf of cinnamon bread from the Waskesiu bakery. I added vanilla, nutmeg, and cinnamon to the egg/milk mixture and boy was it ever good!!! We decided to take a bit of a cruise out to the Marina to see what was happening with the weather and if it looked like our trip to Grey Owl's Cabin was still a go... and it was!! We then went in to town and did some shopping. Connor was cold and I found a Waskesiu sweatshirt for just over $15 for him and a Mexx long sleeve hoodie for school also for $15. SCORE!!! We also walked down to the weir after having a delicious, albeit expensive lunch at the Asian Station. Here is Connor getting splashed with the waves that hit the concrete weir.

In the evening the wind had died down considerably and a family of elk came through. 

First there was BIG DADDY!!

Then he called in the rest of the family! He had two adult females, what appeared to be a year old or better and a baby not yet fully out of it's spots.

Later, one of the females came right by our tent trailer so Tim snagged a good photo of this girl...

That is the pole for our awning in the picture. She was that close!!

Seeing the elk was a great end to a fairly great day.

Miserable and cold windy Monday - Day 9 - August 23, 2010

Oh me, oh my... this day is cold and overcast, rainy and windy. Stayed in the trailer most of the day reading.

Connor played lots of DS/DSi while we were indoors and Tim read some magazines he had downloaded. It was a two movie kind of day. We ventured out in the evening to go and get some bread for breakfast but other than that, it was too yucky to do much of anything!!!

Laundry Day - Day 8 - August 22, 2010

The laundry bag was getting full and we were almost out of underwear so today is laundry day! We packed up our Santa worthy bag of laundry and headed into town to the laundromat called "Wash-Ka-Sou" -- very clever! $20 poorer and 4 loads of laundry later... headed back to camp to make lunch. I took a nap, the boys went for a bike ride, I read a book then we decided to play a game of "Life". Connor had 3 career changes, Tim and I both had 2 career changes and we all had a tonne of laughs. I made Cajun Chicken Ceasar Salads for supper, we did dishes then watched a movie. Very relaxing day and with the weather being less than ideal, it was fantastic just to take it easy.

Supply trip to Prince Albert - Day 7 - August 21, 2010

The day started overcast and cool and by 11 a.m., it was pouring rain. Rather than hang out in the trailer, we decided we would trip in to Prince Albert for groceries and supplies rather than waiting until Monday. We hopped in to the Blue Rocket (as in our Navy Blue Saturn Relay) and boogied in to town. We drove around a bit, looking for a place to have lunch and decided on Ricky's. After lunch, we popped in to Value Village in search of one of those stir top stove top popcorn makers, then the local Wal-Mart for a few of our groceries, then to Safeway to get the rest. Armed with Starbucks coffees, we took the scenic route back to Waskesiu. It is really different to come in to the park this way, definitely recommend it if you ever visit this way.

After packing up the groceries, I made hot dogs for supper and we relaxed the rest of the evening away...

Fish Tales With the Filtz's In the Narrows - day 6 - August 20, 2010

We had reserved a boat for 10 a.m. so we quickly ate breakfast, got dressed and headed for the Narrows. As I had yet another accident the previous evening, I was a bit trepidatious returning to the scene of my first "incident". Deciding to steer clear of the boardwalk, we rented our boat and headed out. As I sat in the front of the boat, I was in charge of the anchor while Tim piloted our vessel. Connor sat in the middle and dreamed of fish...

Luckily my camera is now dried out from my previous splashdown and able to take pictures.

Adding our lures to our rods, we cast them into the lake...

The wind whipped up, making the water quite wavy, carrying our lures into the weeds and pushing our boat around, making it all more challenging. We changed position quite a few times then...

The world's smallest Perch!! Caught by yours truly!

Well, at least we didn't get skunked! We tried our luck for another hour or so then Connor announced he had to go to the washroom so we decided that we would troll on the way back to the dock.

As we were proceeding, all of a sudden my reel came off my rod and landed in the lake. I tried to pull it in but I couldn't as my line was tied up on something. "STOP THE BOAT!!" I yelled at Tim. Meanwhile he had problems of his own, his line was wrapping around the engine prop. He killed the engine, I recovered my reel, put it back on my rod and tried to get my lure back. My reel fell off again! What the????!!! I was frustrated at this point, blaming it on Tim as he set up the rods. I did not know I was supposed to tighten it every once and a while. Anyhow, I managed to get my reel back together and proceeded to reel in my line which was pulling and jerking in what I thought was weeds but wait, that's not weeds, that is a FISH!!!

I handed Connor the camera and this is the shot he too of my "big" fish. He jumped off the hook into the bottom of the boat, causing me to scream (I am such a chicken!) so I grabbed Tim's fish gloves and picked him up for another photo op.

Happy with my fishy!! Threw him back in the water after this.

Connor still had to go pee, so we hightailed it out of there for the dock and that concluded another edition of Fish Tales with the Filtz's

Accident Report - Day 5 continued...

So, it is pitch black, dead of night... we just finished watching a movie and I had to go to the biffy before climbing in to my pajamas and getting in to bed. Getting there, not a problem. Coming back it was very, very dark with only a small amber light on the outside of our trailer to guide me... I failed to take the flashlight with me. I didn't need it the 4 nights previously... famous last words! As I am stepping from the pavement to our gravel pad, I inadvertently step in a low spot, twist my right ankle, land abruptly on my left shin and come to a stop with my right butt cheek in  what feels like a puddle. SERIOUSLY??!! I am having serious issues with gravity in this neck of the woods! Of course I was wearing shorts and scraped my leg but good. I cleaned the wound with soap and water but felt it needed a little more TLC so I went and got the first aid kit out of the van and wiped it with hydrogen peroxide. Sigh. Wish I had brought my tube of Polysporin with Novacaine in it to numb the stinging. Oh well, off to bed I go...

Hamburgers and Hanging Heart Lakes Fish Tales - Day 5 - August 19, 2010

Well, we had a slow start this morning, didn't get showered and out of the trailer until 11:30 p.m. Since it was lunchtime, we went to the Patio Cafe and sampled their hamburgers before heading out to try our luck fishing at the Hanging Heart Lakes.

After purchasing our licences, renting our boat, getting our dockside instruction... we were off! And guess what? Tim and I both caught 2 fish each. Here are the pictures!

The biggest fish of the day, and the first catch of the day, Northern Pike.

I caught this kicka$$ walleye. First of my fishing career... a real beauty!! So excited. Please note the awesome lucky fishing hat. Do I rock that look or what??

Daddy's little pike. No fish stories here!! It seemed that each time we moved to a new spot we could only catch one fish at that spot then nothing... but then...

I caught a teeny tiny pike in amongst the reeds. Connor hadn't caught any fish so I let him hold this one with the orange glove on for the picture. This was a little wee fish.

Now of course we catch and release. Connor was taken aback with the fish bleeding a bit from where the fish hooks were, or if the gills were touched. Flipping around freaked him out too but all part of the experience. He is learning to be more patient which, for a kid with ADHD, is a challenge for sure. Tomorrow we will be trying our luck at the Narrows, which is part of Waskesieu Lake but narrow... (I know, lacking imagination but what the heck) Hopefully I don't slip and fall down again!

A Day at the Beach - Day 4 - August 18, 2010

Well, believe it or not, I was able to sleep with my various injuries although I mollycoddled my right wrist. Found that I also bruised my left arm and the fourth toe (next to the pinky toe) on my left foot. How I manage to do these things to myself, I will never know.

The day started off rather fresh, but the sun was out and we went for a drive up to Kingsmere Lake. This is where you, if you were so inclined, would launch to paddle across the lake and up to Ajawaan Lake, which is where Grey Owl's cabin is located. As it is a big lake, and a two day canoe trip, we have opted instead to take a power boat next Wednesday the 25th to get there. We will have to hike up to the cabin and we think this is more conducive to our current level of fitness. After that lovely drive, since the day was shaping up to be quite nice, we decided to take Connor to the beach. He brought along a large bag of beach toys with ambitions of building the Ultimate Sand Castle. So we packed up the camp chairs and headed for the beach.

Waskesieu Lake has a beautiful beach. After a few hours of fun in the sun and a lovely swim, Connor decided he had enough and back to the trailer we went. After a delicious supper of Soy Pork Loin Chops, rice and diced cucumber and peppers, we decided to take a bike ride downtown for an ice cream. Mmmmm! It is about 1.5 km each way and on the way back we visited the concrete wave break and biked the trails along the beach. It was the perfect end to the perfect day... Love being on vacation!

Gravity of our situation - Day 3 - August 17, 2010

Today's plan, after pancakes and sausage, shower and dressed... drive out to the Narrows to see if we can reserve a boat for Friday when the weather is supposed to shape up and we can go and catch us some fishes. First run in with gravity was in the morning, Connor slipped in the mud AFTER his shower and got his pajamas dirty. I hand washed them and hung them up before we zipped up and left for the Narrows. It is about a half hour drive from Waskesieu, lovely and scenic. We saw a gorgeous male elk, I wanted to get a picture but Tim went by too fast for me to snap it. I got a bit cranky as I had rolled down the window and gotten the camera ready and he didn't take that as an indication that he should STOP. Apparently mind reading isn't part of his repertoire after 15 years of marriage... LOL! Anyhow, we got to the Narrows, talked to "the guy", reserved for Friday and then went for a lovely walk on the dock.

I love lilypads and the delicate little flowers they have.

Anyhow, after the walk on the dock, the boys wanted to go walk on the boardwalk that lined the shore. It was at about a 20 degree angle, partially under water but it looked safe enough. About three quarters of the way down, all of a sudden my feet flew out from under me and I landed face down on the boardwalk submerged in water. My purse and camera went into the lake, although still attached to my wrist. I think I must have slipped like a cartoon character, feet right out behind and spread eagle on the ground. Tim laughed as I stood up sopping wet, both wrists abraded, the right one more so and squashed duck poop on my right leg. It hurt!! Damn Gravity ANYWAY!! Connor thought it was Karma as we "tortured" him by making him dry dishes earlier in the day. I'm not so sure, but my right wrist has a purple bruise the size of two loonies.  Needless to say, I didn't make lunch (Tim made sandwiches) or supper, we visited Pete's Terrace for Pizza, and are now at the Patio Cafe using the internet and having a coffee. Always and adventure with us!

Connor liked the blue dragonflies that were all over at the Narrows. We hope catch to lots of fish on Friday!

Waskesiu Day 2 - August 16, 2010

After a quickie breakfast of cereal, hit the showers (FYI, clean, warm, sufficient water pressure... very important in a campground!) we decided to reorient ourselves with the town. We went for a bit of a drive, looking for where we could obtain internet signal (for Tim's iPhone and laptop), visit Pine & Fancy candy store (for Connor, honest!) and just recover from our previous day of drama. I read in the afternoon, Tim and Connor went for a bike ride, played a little football and chillaxed.

As it was so cold the previous evening, and this evening was not forecast to be much better, when we went to town after suppertime for "dessert" of ice cream at Scoops, I popped down the street and bought myself some toasty warm sweatpants. I also got Connor a long sleeved T-shirt as a momento and just in case it stays cold as he brought mostly short sleeved t-shirts.

The ground here is quite wet from large amounts of rain before we came, and night 2 it poured all night. The inside of our trailer sounds like a really loud rain stick when it rains really hard. Musical white noise, great to fall asleep to.

Adventures in Vacationing - Day 1 - August 15, 2010

So we got up at 7:30, showered, got dressed, finished packing and hit the road at about 10 a.m. Quick stop at McD's in Nisku for breaky then on the road. It was funny getting used to towing the trailer again, it has been two years and even Connor commented on "it's really bouncy". We listened to Harry Potter: The Deathly Hollows audiobook en route, in preparation for the movie this winter (November release of part 1). We stopped briefly in Lloydminster on the Alberta side for fuel and a quick Subway break. Onward to Prince Albert where we again fuelled up, grabbed some snacks and went the last stretch to Prince Albert National Park. We checked in, pulled into our site and this is where it began to get interesting...

We figured we were close enough to the plug ins for our services, unhooked and began to set up the trailer. When we went to pull out the pull out, we ran in to a little trouble. The kitchen pullout hit the water post. Quickly, we buttoned up the trailer enough so Tim could hook back on and pull it forward a bit. When he hooked on the trailer to the ball, the trailer was too low to lock on to the ball properly but he figured it was good enough to pull it forward. Famous last words you say, you would be right! Pulling forward wasn't a problem but we wanted to back the van on to blocks and get the trailer on a block to level it left to right. When Tim backed up, the trailer bounced up, off the hitch and promptly hit the ground. Being tired from the long trip and frustrated with our predicament, Tim asked ME what to do. "Where is the jack for the van?" I asked.

Quickly we unloaded the back of the van, no easy feat considering that we had beach toys, extra shoes, food, suitcases, games (bocce, badminton), and a plethora of other camping gear. Tim got the scissor jack out, under the hitch and started jacking!! We got it high enough to put the hitch dolly leg down and used it to get us high enough to hook back on to the van, locked onto the ball and actually got the trailer situated and set up without further incident.

Connor, now 10 years old, is finally strong enough to crank the trailer up.

We finally got the trailer up, made organic beef bratwurst for supper and watched "Over the Hedge" before collapsing into bed... long day!

So much for that idea...

I am always amazed in the evening at what little of my plan from the morning actually got accomplished. Did Connor get to swimming on time? Yes. I multitasked and took the dogs for their mani/pedi and was back to pick him up in 1/2 hour. Off to a stellar start. Once back home though, had a snack, sorted through the receipts and a plethora of other junk I pulled out of the van. Glued a seashell together and loaded in a glass jar (from last years trip to the coast, just getting out of the van now... almost 1 year later!!!) Got the stuff put away that I wanted to in the master bedroom but the vacuum just didn't make it. There is always tomorrow... and the day after that, and the day after that.

My Saturday will be full with taking the van to Bubbles Carwash for a good wash and vacuum for vacation (the last few weeks it saw some sod and some plants fall down so there is some dirt in there), get the remaining groceries and get them home by 11:30 then pack up the dogs and have them to the kennel by noon. I am tired just thinking about it! Tim has to mow the lawn, get the fridge in the trailer working so when I return with the groceries, I can pack them in the fridge...with the trailer down, I get to crawl in to do this charming task...I will empty the cats litter box, take it outside to wash it so it will be perfectly clean and dry for Carmen the Cat when we leave on vacation. Our friend will be looking in on the Princess Diva Cat and changing the cat box once while we are away so we want it to be as clean and sweet smelling as humanly possible. Nothing like fresh kitty litter...okay, lots is better but have you seen that nutbar lady in the commercial that eats the cat litter made from corn. Holey hannah, she is crazy. Doesn't she know that bugs crapped on that corn before it was fit for cat butt consumption. Ewwww!!! But I digress...

We need this vacation! It has been a very busy summer so kicking back, going fishing, canoeing and bike riding... wait a minute, that sounds busy... hey, whose idea was it to go on this "vacation" anyway... ha ha! No, we love having the time together without a TV, playing board games, meeting our camping neighbours... we may even venture into a canoe to visit Grey Owl's cabin... 3 hours across Kingsmere Lake, 600 m portage to Ajawaan then on to the cabin... sounds like a full day of work! I don't mind but the boys might. LOL! We shall see. We will most likely have wifi in the campground and are taking Tim's MacBook with us so stay tuned for updates as we go!!

Housework makes me mental

As we prepare for our annual summer vacation, my to do list is always intensive and because we have someone checking on the cat and watering the plants, we of course have to keep the house presentable. Today's task is just that, make the house presentable. As Carmen the housecat lives primarily in the master suite, and this room is always the last to get any attention, the seemingly insurmountable task of tidying, dusting, vacuuming and overall cleaning falls to today. I have been slowly picking away at the clutter; taking the mending in to be mended, packing up and putting away the renovation supplies that still remain from last years renovation; packing up garage sale items that seem to accumulate in odd spots and need to be together. As I always sort and fold laundry in my room, there is a stack of odd socks in the corner, a bin of out of season clothes that hasn't made it into the closet and our small weekend bags that never quite made it back into the closet either. I also have an ongoing blue bag of clothes destined for the thrift store that must get full before I take it in. I would take a picture but I am consumed with shame that the room I sleep in, my sanctuary, which I dream of as my European escape, is kind of a disaster. I kept waiting for a new closet system so I would finally be able to get everything off the floor in there (I do not have a dresser due to the lack of wall space so I have a series of shoe boxes for socks and undies in there, stacks of pajamas, t-shirts and jeans). The new closet system still hasn't happened so I must just close the door on that for now and get the main area looking fabulous. Today is a cloudy cool, rainy day, perfect for lying down with a book or busting my butt cleaning the house. My trusty sidekick, Rosie the Roomba, will take care of vacuuming the main floor while I tackle the upstairs. By the end of today, I hope to shampoo the rugs up there. Wish me luck!! I will post photos of what the sanctuary should look like all of the time when I am fully finished. My only other distracting tasks today are taking the dogs for their mani/pedi and giving them baths so they are gorgeous when they go to the kennel tomorrow. I am supposed to take myself for a pedicure too ... I may just take some time to do that as well but with my cat watcher/plant waterer coming over this evening, I will wait and see how I make out before I commit to time for myself today. Have a great day!

Shauna

This is a blog about my crazy life

We all have them, crazy lives... enough so that some days you feel like you are going to lose your mind. For those of you who feel this applies, follow my blog. Chances are it will make you laugh or at least shake your head in agreement or chagrin. I would like to thank Uncle Bob Murphy for encouraging me to write because he thinks my Facebook posts are hilarious and my girlfriend Karen whose blog www.urbanwhyte.blogspot.com is so inspiring.

The summer of 2010 is so far a memorable one in that it started off with me losing my full time job. I was left with a severance package, my gym membership and an extra 100 lbs of booty to unload. I had already paid for Connor to go to a 1 week summer camp, swimming lessons are a no brainer for him and he is just happy to have me at home. Meanwhile, I have been experimenting with my inner DIY Diva, a side I had previously neglected. In the past, the honey-do list was pretty much my husband's domain if it involved a power tool. I am now proud to say that so far this summer I have wielded a paintbrush -- not once, not twice but three separate projects! I have also employed a hammer, a battery powered drill (eee!! Power tool!), and plumber crack tackling a sink. Here is the summary of my projects that I have completed since I was laid off.

a) Front Door - taped, primed and painted 4 coats of burgandy latex paint on the yellowing trim.
b) House numbers which were brass - Removed them, used acetone to clean them, primed them but had the honey use our Black and Decker Paint Sprayer to put the same burgandy latex on the numbers (3 coats). I then followed up with a latex clear coat. Tim used his Dremel tool to get the rust off of the screws and painted the screw heads as well. He reinstalled the numbers. They now kick booty!
c) Bench - this has been on my front porch for years, it was a relatively inexpensive bench, the wood gets dry and although I have used Tung Oil previously, I thought staining it might really make it pop on the porch. Tim was trepidacious but I persevered and with a little help from Connor, put 2 coats of stain on the bench. It now rocks!
d) Shed Door Frame - since I had done the front door trim to match the aluminum cladding on the rest of the house, I figured I should give the shed the same treatment. Taped and painted the frame. I was just builder primed and after the 8-9 years it was out there, most of the primer flaked off so I gave it a going over with a wire brush, a light sand, wiped it down and 3 coats of paint later... voila. Zee door frame is also done.
e) Basement Bathroom Reno - this one was pretty much all me! I removed the brass fixtures, went shopping (such a hardship as everyone knows) and bought a new porcelain sink, new faucet, towel bar, TP holder, towel ring, etc. in chrome. I also found a funky shower curtain and a light fixture that matched the changes we made on the main floor (that reno was mostly Tim and my hired hubby Derek). I started by demo-ing the old sink which was a pot metal sink that was rusting a bit near the drain because the enamel had chipped and never came spotlessly clean. That was so much fun, using tools, climbing under the sink... I bought the first sink at Totem but even though it said it was 20" wide, it did not fully cover the opening so I returned it. Then I went to Rona, no luck there... Home Depot was the winner!! In one afternoon I installed the sink with the plumbers putty (it took 3 tries before I figured it out and was happy with how it was sitting) and installed the faucet. I connected everything but it leaked a wee bit by the drain so the spousal unit had to have a look and tightened everything a little more for it to be perfect (knew he was good for something!). On another day, I installed the TP roll holder... it just barely holds in place as I inadvertantly placed the ends too far apart (durn WalMart accessories didn't have templates or install instructions with them at all!) It works and it is only a guest bath, it doesn't disintegrate when you use it so I guess I did okay. Where I had removed the towel bar behind the door was about 10 holes for some previously unknown reason (the towel bar was on a piece of oak that was mounted to the wall with 2 screws so what was up with all the extra holes behind it, I do not know. I repaired them with putty, light sanding, little more putty, a bit more sanding then washed the wall with Home Hardware's wall prep solution that does not require gloves (gentler than TSP and still gets the job done). I employed my girlfriend Karen's artist eye to match the wall colour to a paint chip... then taped as necessary, cut in and rolled paint for the first time in my life!!! My hubby was so impressed as it was a perfect paint job and just on one wall! Since I had such troubles with the TP holder, the hubby did the installation of the new towel bar. He also did the silicone seal around the new sink. Thank you honey, I love you!
f) Water Fountain Rehab - just put the final coat on this beast yesterday!! I have been procrastinating on this one for a few months, it just was sitting against the wall near my kitchen table in primed state waiting for paint. You see I was all gung ho to fix the crumbling plaster water fountain but after the above projects...kind of lost steam on this one. Now that the downstairs bathroom is pretty much done, my excuses were gone and I was tired of moving it to vacuum. Here is what I did to rehab it. 1) Brushed the debris off, removed crumbly bits of plaster 2) Sprayed all parts with a paintable vehicle undercoat (yes, such a creature exists. I prevents rust and water penetration to the underside of your vehicle, why not use it as a waterproof coat on the fountain??) I did this to both the inside (after stuffing tape into the hose end to keep it from getting gummed up) and the outside to waterproof the structure. I let it cure for about a week 3) Sprayed all outer surfaces with a grey primer ensuring all the undercoat was covered on the exterior of the structure only 4) After my project sabbatical, I used a brush and put a coat of Quaker Grey Ceramcoat paint on the entire structure. Didn't have the depth I wanted so back to Michael's I went and purchased Charcoal, Black, Toffee and Dark Brown paint. I sponged on the Charcoal,

This is the bottom "bowl" of the fountain. Here it had the quaker grey which is in the centre and very light. Charcoal is the darker colour and looks more like stone.

brushed then sponged the black into most of the creases, although I did use the dark brown in a few (to make it look like natural oxidation) then put a few light toffee schmears to add interest to the structure overall. I then I put on a coat of Ceramcoat Glossy Latex Interior/Exterior Varnish. This deepened the colours greatly but was a bit too shiny to look as close to nature as we wanted our fountain to look so back to Michael's I went to find the latex clear coat in a matte finish. I put 2 more coats of the matte varnish on the outer surfaces and added 2 coats of the glossy to where the water will be so even if there is no water in the fountain, it will look wet. All in all, I am proud of my handiwork. When we get back from vacation we will reattach the pump and put it outside so we can enjoy it for what little will be remaining of our Alberta summer.
g) Staining the Shed Deck - this has been another ongoing project in that I started strong then it got delayed by rain, rain and more rain. I would then do another step and get delayed by rain AGAIN. This deck was never stained and I think it may be pressure treated wood but it did have some mildew and I wanted to prep it properly to hold the stain. Using the garden hose, I wet it down, used the Home Hardware Wood Prep, scrubbed it, then rinsed. Since that didn't remove the mildew, I went back to Home Hardware and bought the Mildew Remover product. Same steps, wet everything down, put on the mildew remover, let it sit 10 minutes, scrub and rinse. I did both these steps twice to get the wood grain as open as possible and remove as much of the mildew as possible as well. Tim used a pressure washer on the wood, got a bit close in some spots so I had to do a bit of sanding then rinsed it one last time. Yesterday it was finally dry enough and I had a block of time I finally decided to go out and put some stain on. I got the entire deckside of the railing done and about 1/3 of the lawn side of the railing done. Tim has stuff stacked against the railing to keep the puppies from going behind the shed and I wanted to check with him on what I should do to get the stain on that area. He says to just move the stuff and keep on keepin' on... but of course, today it rained! So I may have to finish it when I return from vacation.

In the interim, I have applied for a number of jobs, one interview only and no viable job offers.  My GST return for 2008 still waits for me as do my 2009 taxes so once I return from summer vacay I will have to get after those "projects" to get some cash in the door to supplement the EI income that supposedly will arrive at some point. Thank goodness I saved for a rainy day because I have a feeling, we have the potential for torrential downfall soon!

Thanks for being a part of my life story,

Shauna