I'm alive!!

Hot diggity - it's been wayyy too long. I got a comment from Tanya a month or so ago saying "you're next! No, not to get knocked up - to update your blog!"


So true, so true... on both counts (sorry, MIL, no babies for a while yet). How do I sum up the last six months? And why have I gotten myself stuck in such a situation?? Gah!


I'll blog about the recent renos lately, but what's new besides the house... hmm.


Well, Greg's no longer at CMP! It came out of the blue, but we're okay with it. His current manager was a bit of a douche, so work had become a form of slow torture. Right now Greg's just figuring out what path he wants to go on next. I, meanwhile, am still subbing. I'm hoping my H1N1 shot puts me in a good position to get lots of shifts! (Is it bad that I'm wishing illness on others?)


We finally got new tenants a few months ago - Deniel and Christina. They're great. Very quiet. Fabulous smells of Chinese food drift upstairs regularly, and I've found myself tempted to go down and knock on the door to ask for some.


As I'm prone to doing, I've already got 95% of my Christmas prep done, minus decorations. I've got almost all my gifts, wrapped and out in Kelowna, I've done all my canning, I've got my cards written up. Life is good! At least, for an OCD person, this life is good!


Halloween has come and gone, and I'm still pretty happy with our costumes. We went as Matt and Brina. I'm a little sad that I didn't get any pictures of my tooth jewel, but ah well. Now I need to come up with something for next year...





Well, I'm going to pry Greg off the phone so we can go for our standard Friday night Vietnamese (pho has replaced Montana's)... I promise I'll update again before long.


I hope.

Happy Birthday, Tanny Fernanny!

So, today happens to be the birthday of my "BFF," Ms. Tanya Fernandez! I had to steal that picture from her blog because a) it showcases what a great mom she is, and b) as she will readily attest to, my camera has never taken a flattering picture of her. So, theft it is.

Calling her my BFF has become habit, but I should clear up that I'm not a total dweeb... we were shopping a couple years ago and I spotted some ugly "BFF" jewelry and suggested we buy it. It just sort of stuck... we're such tween-wannabes.

Anyway, hope you have a fabulous day, my dear BFF!

Banff Weekend 2009

At the beginning of the month, we went to Banff for a night. We'd seen an ad for a relatively new B & B, and decided to give it a try. We'd had some lame hotels during previous stays, and I didn't feel like spending $225 for a night in a room that was last decorated in the mid 80s.

It was great! The only improvement I'd make would be for there to be a hot tub or something. Anyway, here are some pictures:

Too bad we could only stay for one night... maybe one of these years, we'll have to go for two.

The April Update

As is so prone to happening... I suddenly realised it had been more than a month since my last update. Major fail on my part. So here's a quick run down of events:


First, we had a little family dinner:

Then, we had an "Easter Eggstravaganza" at the church:

Then we had Easter dinner with M & B:

Doug, Janine and Sunniva came to stay for a bit while they worked out some vehicle stuff:

Then Tyson and Bryn came:

Now things have settled down for a little while... Greg's enjoying his new position at work. Right now he's studying for his Land and Legal exam, and I'm watching a guilty pleasure movie (*cough*What Happens in Vegas*cough*)

Life is good!

Happy Birthday, Matt!

Yesterday was the big 2-6 for my BIL Matt. Which, of course, meant a party! And, of course, included in every Matt and Brina party are a number of things, including cheese balls and pictures of the four of us. I didn't get any shots of the cheese ball this time around, due to the fact we were late arriving and it was half gone, but I did get the following:



Apparently the "gut sticking out intentionally" pose Matt's doing is a patented Bennett manoeuvre, because I have numerous shots of both of them doing it. Classy!

Therapy

The other morning I got in my car to drive to work, and... nothing. My car wouldn't start. I wound up having to take a cab, and then bum a ride off the lovely Tanya (thanks, Tanya!)

When I got home that afternoon and found that it still wouldn't start, I decided to get my frustrations out...



...by baking a carrot cake. Unfortunately I forgot that I now own a food prossessor, so I grated all the carrots by hand. And now have a bum wrist! This happens regularly to me, but still.

Ill-planned, Shannon. Ill-planned.

Smatterings

This weekend my favourite cousin-in-law came out with his lovely girlfriend. Visits from Tyson never fail to add to my life, and this one was no exception. Paige was also great. I later discovered she's pretty much the queen of gingerbread houses. Seriously, I'm in awe. The one I saw was a castle! It was in a whole different league. Mine always turn out très ghetto.

Less fun was the GIGANTIC BLIZZARD that sprung up while we were inside. Which, of course, we then had to drive home through. Brutal! It was pretty craptastic. But we survived. Winter is definitely back in town - the past few days have been all about the minus 20s with the minus 30s windchill added on for good measure.

Oh, Calgary, how I love you!