:: Whistler ::

:: We had the fabulous opportunity to head up to Whistler for a beautiful Fall day and night, we met our friends M&L up there to enjoy the time, we had a beautiful time enjoying the last bit of sun that the Fall had to offer ::

:: Beautiful Fall foliage ::

:: My man ::

:: M&L & the girls in Whistler village ::

:: My boys playing in the village ::

:: The a visit to Whistler wouldn't be proper if we didn't hit Rocky Mountain and get a treat, the kids loved it and I wasn't about to complain! ::

:: Here are a few shots from the drive up, it was amazing! ::

:: Thanks for letting us stay over M&J and thanks for sharing the day with us M&L, it was a great way to take in our beautiful land! ::

:: Just Because ::

:: Paul bought these for me "just because" ~ I hate that I forget these little things that he does for me, it's at times like this that I worry that I didn't say thank you! ::

:: Babe, if you read this and in case I forget to tell you, I loved them. You are wonderfully sweet. Thank You ::

:: Our Birthday ::

:: November is a really busy month for us, we have Cole's birthday on the 1st and then Paul's follows on the 4th and mine is on the 11th. I think I am blessed to have my birthday a week apart from my loves as it's great to have a full week of celebrations! ::

{I received flowers delivered to my door from Jennifer, so sweet Jen, thank you!}

:: We had a few celebrations for Paul, one the day after Cole's 1st Birthday {yeah, that was one crazy weekend} then we went out on a date to dinner and a movie, it was a great time celebrating Paul's birthday....it's hard to believe that the first birthday I celebrated with Paul was his 23rd, that's almost 10 years ago! ::

:: It was great to have T&C & Denay along for the celebrations, thanks for coming out guys! ::

:: We headed over to Paul's family home to celebrate our birthdays double trouble style, we had a great dinner of Me 'n Ed's Pizza, DQ Ice Cream Cake and individual little desserts for each of us! It was a special night with a lot of love and fun ::

:: We then did a celebration at my parent's place for my birthday::

:: We had a lovely traditional dinner and a favorite for me, my Mom's homemade ice cream pie...do you see a trend, yes I LOVE ice cream, so much so that I can't have it in my house! ::

:: Thanks for a great night M&D! ::

:: On the morning of my birthday we woke up to the sound of rain, no that's not rain, water..no no that's not water! Ugh, it's rice...all over baby brother and the floor...oh what fun a full ice cream bucket of rice can be when dumped on brother's high chair! Jacob had a great time swimming in the sea of rice. Happy Birthday to me! ::

:: Once the rice was all cleaned up Paul and the boys gave me my gifts, I got a super cute willow tree ornament from the boys and a beautiful Fossil watch from Paul {I'll post pictures of that on my wrist tomorrow}. I LOVE it! ::


:: Paul and I went out for dinner for my birthday (thanks T&C) to Earls and had a lovely night out (thanks M&D for taking the boys) ::

:: Thank you all for celebrating Paul and I in such sweet ways, we are truly overwhelmed and blessed! ::

:: One more year down, and one more year older...ouch, just kidding, it's great I'm just glad to have November almost over! My goal was to have our celebrations posted by the end of November, so here I am 20 minutes left in November...posting away ;) ::

:: Bye Bye November, hello December! ::

:: Hello, anyone out there?!?! ::

:: Hello All (if there is anyone that has still kept up on reading this dusty old thing!), sorry for the delay in posts! It's not that I don't have anything to post about it's just that I'm too busy living to actually sit down and write it out ::

:: I have actually been really torn at posting things for a variety of reasons, I love being my candid self and being brutally honest but not at the cost of others feelings. If I were to write something or an opinion or something that we did in our lives I wouldn't want it to hurt or offend anyone. Well, we all know that is an impossible task! So I have had to think long and hard about doing this blog and having it be so personal ::

:: I don't want to shut this down or stop blogging, heaven knows I have enough to talk about, however I don't want to be guarded at what I do and don't say. I don't want to come across as being perfect or having a perfect life, Lord knows I have my issues and struggles just as much as anyone else ::

:: That is another reason I haven't been around. I have been trying to find balance in my life. I am a "keep everyone happy" kinda gal. That's great and all but that isn't necessarily the best way to be. It sounds good, sometimes feels good but the tower can come crashing down pretty fast when you are through with making everyone happy but yourself. So I have had to measure my life and all of the things I'm involved in and decide what kind of role and precedent they are going to take in my life and at what cost? ::

:: So there you have it, my heart on my sleeve...yeah, I know, that's so unlike me...well it actually is. I'm outspoken but not argumentative or confrontational, which is a bad way to be but remember I'm a "keep everyone happy" kinda gal ::

:: I will finish this and get on with posting all of the running nothingness that I have had saved on blogger for well over a month now...and then we'll get on to Christmas. I'm going home for Christmas, I'm staying right here focusing on the heart of the matter, my home, my love, my boys and in that I will find myself ::

:: To better things... ::

:: Happy Birthday Cole! ::

:: On November 1st Cole turned 1 ~ Unbelievable, my baby is ONE!!! ::

:: We had a great Autumn fest with pumpkin everything {I figure I can only milk this one for a few years, then he will be sick of all the pumpkin stuff} ::

:: We enjoyed great friends... ::

:: And family ::

:: We opened presents, he was a pro...it seems like big brother has taught him a thing or two! ::

:: We blew out candles on a single pumpkin cake just for him ::

:: We had some good laughs... ::

:: And some great conversation ::

:: Thank you all for joining us in celebrating our sweet boy - We are blessed to call you all our "family" ::

:: To my sweet, tender, dramatic little boy, you have my heart. You are a blessing from your yells from your crib in the morning to your over dramatic response when your brother runs by you. I love you through and through. My heart delights in your spirit and joy. God has truly blessed us with your presence and I can't wait to see what He has in store for your life ::

:: "And now thus says the Lord, your creator, and He who formed you, fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine." Isaiah 43:1 ::

:: Halloween 2008 ::

:: We had a great Halloween, we spent the evening with my parents and the "B" family. It's so lovely to go to my parent's place, they prepare dinner, so we can focus on going out knocking...it was a great time! ::



:: We had a race car driver ::

:: And a giraffe ::

:: Thanks M&D for hosting a great night, it's always so fun to have traditions! ::

:: Pumpkin Patch ::

:: Back at the end of October just before Halloween we headed out to the APPLE BARN ::

:: It is a great little farm with lots and lots to do without costing a cent! Just my type of fun! ::

:: There was a petting zoo & fabulous slides in and out of the barn ::

:: Apparently Jacob wasn't too fond of the animals! ::

:: Cole's a whole different city - Ha Ha! ::

:: Here goes Emma down the slide...look at that excitement! ::

:: My boys heading down the slide ::

:: You can't get better colours than this! ::

:: They also had a super cute measuring board for the kids to measure themselves against ::

:: The pumpkins all lined up ::

:: The acreage ::

:: Cole and Me in front of the "Mater" truck ::

:: Paul and Jacob checking out the Pumpkins ::

:: The boys picking the pumpkins ::

:: How cute is this!?!? I think this is the first time Jacob didn't actually tackle Madelyne to the ground! Hopefully we're past that stage! ::

:: Picking his pumpkin ::

:: Paul made a pumpkin topiary..I want one of these for our front door next year! ::

:: Perfect Pair ::

:: Madelyne with Daddy & Emma ::

:: So until next year...we'll be back at the Apple Barn again, it was a fabulous time and wonderful memories! Thanks for joining us the "B" family! ::

:: Falling Behind ::

:: Yes, that's me...behind in so many area's in life! So sorry for the lack of blogging going on around here. I have set my mind to getting so many other things completed that blogging has to take a back burner {although in my heart of hearts I'd rather be blogging}, but I guess we all need to have priorities! ::

:: I have been enjoying life and this wonderful season that we are in, our Fall here in BC has been amazing! ::

:: I'll update you as soon as I have time, but for now you can check out the outstanding photo shoot that Miss. Jamie Delaine did for us over the weekend. She rocks and we love her for more than her talent and her creative eye, she is truly a sweet sweet daughter of the King ::

:: Thank you Jamie for using your gift to the glory of our Lord. You my friend will have a fabulous crown waiting for you! ::

:: I'll be back with some exciting news and no, I'm not expecting #3...more on that later ::