Chris's Surgery Day

Early in the year, Chris found a mole on his leg that just didn't look right to him. He made an appt. with his doctor, who then sent him to a specialist. I was at work one day when he called to tell me that the specialist had cut the mole out and was going to send it to be tested. He pretty much told Chris right then that it was melanoma and further action would be needed. This would require him to see a plastic surgeon to cut more around the mole "just in case" and also to have a few lymph nodes removed to have tested to make sure the cancer had not spread.

Sponge Bob was a great comfort to Chris as he was being prepared to be put under.

This is Chris's leg post-op.

I'm happy to report that Chris's leg has healed just fine and most importantly...no more cancer!

My Little Piece of Paradise

When I can't get away for awhile, or have to work a weekend, I pretend I'm on vacation for a few hours in my own little piece of paradise...my backyard.

My hubby built a beautiful deck a few years back and we haven't had to do much to it over the years but we have made a few small improvements.

Last summer, we took the window out of our master bedroom and added on french doors.

This is the view from my bed. :)

This year, Chris added a few panels of acrylic to the roof area over the hot tub. This will come in handy when our beautiful summer is over.

My one little spot of colour...I mostly have low maintenance greenery in the way of a garden, so this is my little ray of sunshine!

Our newest addition is the fire bowl...the perfect way to make the evenings last a little bit longer!

There is a very good chance this is where you will find me if I don't seem to be anwering my calls....

BFF Girls Weekend 2012!

I try to make sure I make a trip up to Kamloops at least once a year to have girls-only time with my Best Friend, whom I've known since elementary school.

Pretty much every girls weekend is the same, but it's such a good formula that we stick with it!

A bevy of some sort...this year it was a Strawberry Dacquiri.

Lucky Larry's Lips (chicken strips) and Pacho fries...delish!

Dinner out is always followed by a chick flick, which was "The Lucky One" this year.

I highly recommend it...in fact I can't wait to watch it again soon!

This is a typical car ride for me and Sonya...in fact, it's part of the entertainment....

Enjoy!

Can't wait to see what mischief we get in to next year!

Decorating

Life has been busy, but I haven't gotten my camera out as much as I would like due to the dull weather we've been having lately. So, I thought I would share a few odds and ends.
The first pic is my solution to organizing some of my jewelry. I find that I have lots of nice stuff that I forget about because...out of sight is out of mind. I found this great set of wall hooks at Pier One and thought it was perfect for putting all my necklaces on! The rest of my stuff, like earring and rings, are in a jewelry box that my grandma gave me.
The second pic is of a beautiful pillow that I bought awhile back for my bedroom with a gift card from my BFF. Again...a great find at Pier One.
Hopefully, the weather will turn soon and I will be able to have a few more interesting posts. :)

Christopher's New Wheels

This winter it was time to trade in our mini van for some new wheels for Christopher. Chris has the use of a company vehicle so we didn't really need the mini van any longer and this is much cooler and cheaper on gas for a young guy. It's definitley been a great lesson for responsibility and budgeting since he is in charge of insurance and gas (although we have been helping with the gas while he is in school). We can always tell when his tank is getting empty because he spends more time at home with the fam!

Reflections and Happy New Year!

I am so thankful we get to have a new year every 365 days! 2011 was a year filled with wonderful milestones, but somehow as a whole it was also one of my most difficult years thus far.

My oldest child graduated from high school, got his drivers license and got accepted to College. My youngest entered his first year of high school. I finished my schooling and became a Licensed Practical Nurse. All great achievements!

A combination of things made this year difficult, but I have faith that this year will be much better! I plan on getting healthier in every way this year...physically, mentally and spiritually. I know many people close to me have also had a rough year and I pray for good health and many blessings for all my family and friends dear to me.

If I could narrow it down to one thing to focus on this year it would be relationships. Life is so short and I really want to work on my marriage, deepening my relationship with God and seeing my BFF more, as well as other good friends that our busy lives have prevented us from seeing as much.

Well, there you have it...a very broad sort of resolution...
Happy New Year everyone!

Me and Grandpa

Yesterday was the anniversary of the day that I lost my first grandparent four years ago. I remember the day so clearly...and thankfully I also have many memories of the love my "papa" had for me. The harder the whisker rub...the more you were loved. :) Papa always had a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face. We bounced on his knees, swung outside on the swing he made and made trips to A&W with him.

In his younger years, Papa made beautiful dresses for my Grandma and they went out dancing every weekend with their friends. My grandparents owned a motel together and worked hard so that they could retire early.

Me and Papa on his motorcycle...

I love you Papa!

Annual Bevy Stories

Please don't get the wrong impression of us...but every year it seems that some of our greatest camping tales revolve around a beverage.

Firstly, my BFF and I are always on the hunt for the perfect Bellini, so it was a given that the best way to kick off our vacation was to enjoy the evening with a treat at Hoodoo's.

Delicious!

Secondly, each trip must involve a slushie drink that requires a blender.

Provincial parks are top of the list for beauty and peacefulness, but unfortunately do not have power to each site. Us being the resourceful people that we are, loaded up the truck with all our drink making gear and headed for the public washroom...Yes, that's right....the public washrooms have electricity!

Chris is checking out the situation...Gary is MIA...something about checking on some meat....hmmmm...

After all of our hard work we meet at the tailgate...oh, so refreshing!

In another bevy story....the first night we were playing cards outside when we started get dive bombed by bugs! Ewww! Sonya's solution was to tighten up her bug helmet and find a cover for her straw.....

I think she may be on to something here....

Can't wait to see what stories we will have to tell in the years to come!

Annual O'Donnell/Larnder Camping Trip

 After missing our annual camping trip last year, this year's trip was very much anticipated. I'd have to say it was one of the best ever, but I'm sure I say that every year. I'm just so thankful for the friendship our two families have and how great everyone gets along!

                                                      Here are the Larnder's packing up!

Our camping trip is filled with traditions...

one being to go for ice cream...

Another...spending time at the beach catching up on gossip magazines...

Playing cards...apparently the adults have more fun than the teenagers!

Chillin' in the shade...

Load 'em up!

Ahhhh....just relaxin'...

By the end of the weekend...even the two oldest promised they would be joining us next year...although we will just have to wait and see where their lives lead them this next year.

I do believe this camping tradition will be something our two families appreciate even more in the future!

Rolley Lake

I grew up camping so it's something that my whole family enjoys...that's why I take any chance at  making a camping tradition. We try to go camping with my brother and his family once every summer. It just so happens that each time it's been at Rolley Lake, out in Mission. I really like it there because it is so quiet, it's close by and there are so many beautiful trees. There is a lake you can swim in if it's hot enough, but this summer got off to a bit of a slow start so we used the lake for fishing. My dad took off from work early one day and drove up to spend the afternoon with us. It was pretty cold and the rain forecast looked iffy so my mom decided to sit this one out. The fish weren't biting that day anyways, but we all got lots of fresh air.

Hopefully next year we can wear shorts instead of parkas!

Birthday Bumps...

Okay, sorry for the bad quality and the sideways pose that I just can't seem to turn around....

but....here is my gift to you, my BFF...hope you enjoy!

BFF NIGHT!

Here's the two BFF's getting ready for the show!

NKOTBSB

Last night, my BFF and I took a trip down memory lane from our teenage years. Twenty five years ago, we lived, breathed and dreamed of NKOTB...literally! All of our love for them came rushing back as soon as the lights went up. :) We were happy to discover that we still remember every word to every song.

Here was my crush...Mr. Jordan Knight!

Awww....little Joey McIntyre!

Yumm! Need I say more?

Awww....what a guys!

Here's a little sneak peek of one of our faves....

You guys still have the right stuff after all these years!!

Convocation 2011

 Our next celebration around here was convocation...it really does feel different having one of your children graduated and finished with school forever! All of a sudden it seems official that I have another grown man in the house...

What a handsome young man!

We look forward to seeing what the future holds for Christopher as he continues on his life journey!

New Look!

I wanted a nice and colourful new look for my blog, but just couldn't get any of the backgrounds to work for me...so I'll just insert my own colourful pics for now and have fun with the fonts!

This weekend we finished a project that we've been trying to do for quite some time now...took out our bedroom window and installed french doors. We had bought the doors from craigslist last year and it took until now for it to work out that my dad could help Chris install them. Some moulding still has to go up to cover up the drywall that was ripped off, but for the most part the project is complete, which is a record around here that Chris is extremely proud of!

Grad 2011

This weekend was one of the milestones in every persons life...graduating from high school and seeing your first child graduate from high school. Christopher does not get excited about things too easily, and grad is no exception. He's relieved do be done with high school, and I suspect that participating in a few of the grad activities was for dear old mom's sake. Although school has not been Christopher's thing, we're still very proud of his accomplishment and look forward to seeing what the future holds!

Boohoo!

I was very saddened to discover the other week that someone else had discovered by babies...and enjoyed them in a different way!

This is how I found my shrub...so I'm guessing that either a cat or raccoon got to them. :(

Somewhere in the mess of the top picture (if you look hard,) you can see the nest totally upside down. So, here I am trying to find the babies...sadly, I found two of them bloodied and dead at the bottom of the deck. No pic...and I wasn't about to touch them either, so this is their final resting place. Later that day, Chris said he found one more in the grass and we don't know what happened to the last one. I guess he either made a delicious entree or, more hopefully, he survived...

I have kept the nest as a souvenir because so much hard work went into it and it's a piece of art to me! I think maybe I will purchase a birdhouse so that next spring my babies will be safe and sound. :)