The Bennetts' Adventures in Blogging

Word Dump

2011-07-05T19:11:00.002-06:00

What, it’s been six months again? What can I say, I’m a bad blogger.

Okay, how to sum up the last six months...

Well, I changed careers. That’s a fairly large point, I suppose. I really miss my girls, and I miss the hilarity teaching can bring, but I like being out of the profession. The political aspects of teaching suck. Now I’m in a totally different field: land administration in oil and gas. It’s treating me pretty well so far, and it definitely suits the extremely detail-oriented side of me. On the other hand, there isn’t a lot of room for creativity. It seems like I move farther away from what used to define me with each educational or career change. I’m trying to balance that out by doing a variety of fine arts cont-ed courses. So far, so good.

What else... oh yes. I’m sure this has been the topic of speculation/gossip among various groups for a while, and while I wasn’t going to really post about it, I guess I will to make it easier for all. Really, those people who matter already know, I think. In case my slick new wrist tattoos didn’t tip you off, I opted to leave the LDS church. Not because I have anything against it, but because it just wasn’t right for me. When I first started dating Greg, I was made to feel like I somehow wasn’t good enough because I wasn’t LDS. Seven years later, I realise that’s absolute crap. I’m not particularly worried about the opinions of those people anymore (for so, so, SO many reasons), and what matters is that a) I love myself the way I am, b) Greg loves me the way I am, and c) I’d rather be happy in my own skin than living a lie and being utterly miserable. Believe me, people, I tried. Plus, it feels totally wrong to just be going through the motions for something so sacred to other people. I’m not so much into faking things.

Hopefully this doesn’t cause my LDS friends to run from me en masse – I’m not a bitter ex-Mormon who’s going to start frequenting hate forums, posting about how it’s an evil conspiracy and claiming I was brainwashed. I went into it as a well-informed academic, and I left the same way. I’m not a bitter divorcee. Really, I’m exactly the same: I’m still a potty-mouthed leftist who watches 18A movies and posts a lot about pro-choice and gay rights issues (um... was anyone ever fooled?), and who totally loves all her friend who feel way differently. So please don't feel weird around me - same person, just in a tank top. You can still talk church to me.

Onto more fluffy things... our extension is finally turning into part of our house! I’m so excited for my master bathroom it’s not even funny. But seriously though. It’s going to be awesome. While I’m not really looking forward to the actual *work*, I am looking forward to the results.

Greg and I have decided this is the year of sweet, sweet concerts. Okay, that’s spilling over into 2012... since we bought tickets to Coachella! Serious, so excited. I wish we could have gone this year (Hello, DFA 1979 reunion!!) but ah well. No idea who’ll be playing, but hey... it’s the experience.

Greg just turned THIRTY on Saturday. Seriously, what? When did this happen? To celebrate, we had people over for burgers and croquet. We’re wild like that. Greg also got the Firebolt of laptops, some fancy Samsung one that’s about as thick as an empty duotang but way, way cooler. I’d better be getting something sweet when I turn 30 next year, let me tell you.

I feel like there’s probably more (you know, since it’s been six months), but my parents are out tomorrow and I need to start doing that cleaning thing. Maybe I’ll even post some pictures next time.

Thanks A Lot, Judy Blume

2011-01-22T22:30:00.005-07:00

This postsecret made my night. Why? Because menstruation is weird.

I mean, really. It is.

I can't say that I get freaked out by it, or that I ever have been freaked out by it for that matter. Like every girl (I think), I was totally fascinated by this thing that would make me a *~*woman*~*. I poured over Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret.

Then, something happened to totally break the spell.

I got it.

Seriously, why do we get the short end of the stick all the time? It's been the better part of two decades, and I'm no fonder of it than I was about two days into my first one.

BUT...

I recently realised that I'm reaching the point you might call "the middle." The way time seems to pass, before I know it I'll be down to "maybe 10 years," then "maybe five..."

...then I'll get hit by "the Change" and will be reminded again how much it SUCKS sometimes to be a woman.

PS- Frank saved this image as "iwouldtoo.jpg"

Just Me and My Laptop

2011-01-21T15:29:00.006-07:00

I may have mentioned in the previous post that I've been doing some online shopping lately. There's a reason for that.

It's fabulously antisocial.

Now, I'm not going to say that I hate people, but I will fully cop to being a bit of a solitary lass. I like to read. Putz around my house. Do errands. Alone.

Sure, I can chat up a storm when I'm around people, but I'm always a little relieved when I'm back by my lonesome. I'm always worried that I'm somehow doing something wrong, or that people are seeing right through me and thinking "this girl doesn't belong here." Not that I'm really lacking in self confidence; I just tend to feel out of my element, being as how my element is, well, sitting by myself in a Starbucks with a book.

As a result, the idea of being able to buy stuff from the comfort of my couch, finding great deals along the way, is wonderful. No tracking down someone to ask questions? Great. Not having to fend off sales staff? Excellent. Being able to pick out a shoe and know that they'll have it in my size, instead of walking into the store and asking some pretentious employee if they happen to have a 10/11 in any of the 14 similar shoes I desperately bring up, knowing he'll probably return five minutes later, chewing his gum and saying 'sorry'? Priceless.

One of these days I'm going to wake up and discover I've become a full-fledged hermit.

A Funny Thing Came in the Mail Today...

2011-01-06T09:38:00.002-07:00

So, lately I've been ordering quite a few things online. Aldo shoes, for example. Clothing from the Gap. Books. Random baby gifts. As a result, when I found a package in my mailbox this morning, I thought it was one of the many things I'm waiting for.

But wait... Essex? I hadn't ordered anything from Essex...

Wait, what was that email address again?

Ugly Rudolph Slipper Socks? For real? BEST DAY EVER.

Oh, K-Tarns, you rock my slipper-socks off.

2011-01-02T12:19:00.002-07:00

In exactly six months, Greg turns 30.

Clearly I need to start planning his party.

Death Warmed Over

2010-11-06T11:00:00.002-06:00

Well, that certainly died. Sorry. The further I got in the meme, the older the pictures had to be, and it's a pain to have to dig out my photo boxes, find the pictures, scan them, etc... plus I've been working all the bleeping time.

Which is good. Most of the time.

Anyway, who cares, because tomorrow we're flying to Orlando for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter! Yay!

I'm so excited.

Except for one little thing.

I have strep throat. AGAIN. The problem with strep is that I can't have penicillin, so instead I get a different antibiotic every single time (since it's always a different doctor). Most of the time that's fine. Once in a while I'll take one that makes me break out or something.

This time? Blarg.

Total pukesville. Plus, I still have a fever.

Not particularly appealing, since I have to fly all the way across the continent tomorrow.

Back to the walk-in clinic it is, then.

Day Nineteen

2010-10-19T20:41:00.000-06:00

19. a drunk photo of you

There is a surprising dearth of drunken photos of me considering just how often I was, well, drunk (while in university, at least). I'm sure there are actually many, many photos out there, just not in my possession. I'm equally sure most of them are terrible. But, here is one I managed to dig up:

This night was hilarious. Hi.lar.i.ous.

Seriously, between breaking into other townhouses to write suggestive messages on whiteboards, post-it noting the hosts' entire place, and setting Toto's "Africa" to loop on poor Andrew's computer, it was an all-round great evening of ridiculousness.

Day Eighteen

2010-10-18T20:31:00.001-06:00

18. a photo of you at the last party you went to

Okay, so I'm going to list two parties here. One, the last party I went to (in theory), and two, the last party that I went to that I actually count as being a bona fide party. Very different.

Okay, first up: the 8th Ward Christmas Party last year

Second up, the last "real" party: Phoenix party, Halloween 2004

Good times, folks, good times. Keepin' it classy.

Day Seventeen

2010-10-17T20:23:00.000-06:00

17. a photo of your dorm room

Okay, so a bit old, but here we go...

My third floor corner room in Shirley Baker. Stylish, no?

Day Sixteen

2010-10-16T20:04:00.000-06:00

16. a photo of an animal you’d love to keep as a pet

Okay, so everyone knows I love cats. If I could, I'd have one for sure. They're the perfect pet to me. But, there's one other animal I love.

Scotties.

I still remember the first time I met the the cutie I'm manhandling in the above picture. We'd gone over to the Bakers' for an activities committee meeting, and were sitting in the dining room. All of a sudden, I felt a nose prodding me. I looked down, and there was this impossibly long nose attached to a tiny body. I knew at that moment that I had found something amazing: my very own Niffler.

I don't even like dogs, but these guys don't count. They're Nifflers, and no one can convince me otherwise.

Day Fifteen

2010-10-15T23:23:00.000-06:00

15. a photo of one of your favorite family members

Okay, confession time: I've never even met this kid. He's my cousin Scott's son... or is he? I'm convinced Ezra is actually the illegitimate son of none other than Ralph Fiennes.

Day Fourteen

2010-10-14T22:51:00.001-06:00

14. a photo of your best friend(s)

A few of my favourite people, in no particular order...

My lovely Christie :)

Brown

The wonderful Tanny Fernanny

Lindsay-poo

My darling Kat

My faux-sister

Day Thirteen

2010-10-13T18:09:00.000-06:00

13. a photo of a tv show you’re obsessed with

Um, obviously. Sure, I like lots of shows (House, Modern Family, Bones, Glee, Criminal Minds...), but do any of those have Alexander Skarsgård? An oft-naked Alexander Skarsgård? I think not.

...Is there a "favourite miniseries" question? Because if there is... hello, Generation Kill.

Day Twelve

2010-10-12T16:48:00.000-06:00

12. a photo of someone you’ve lost

Woo, tough one. Do I post about a family member who has died? A friend? Do I post Eva holding the last postcard I sent? Somehow none of those worked for me. In all of those cases, the world lost a person, not just me.

Okay then, who do I talk about "losing"? So many people, for so many reasons.

I decided on Rowan. Please ignore the fact he's wearing a ridiculous shirt and is in the middle of folding laundry. For a variety of reasons, I opted to collect very few pictures of him. Skipping over a long, intensely personal back story - Rowan was one of my best friends, from when I was 17 till right after I turned 22. Then, we weren't. The last time I ever saw him was when we parted ways at a bus stop on Douglas Street, after our thai lunch date was ruined by us fighting. After that, I had to make a choice. I'm glad I made the choice I did, but some days I still miss him so much, I want to call up every mutual friend we have to track him down just to say hi. Things don't really work that way in "adult world," though.

And yes, I miss a few days and am now backdating.

Day Eleven

2010-10-11T12:29:00.002-06:00

11. a photo of your favorite film(s)

I always hate having to choose a favourite movie. There are so many! Films you can pop in and watch a hundred times (Bridget Jones, Bend It Like Beckham), movies from childhood (Lady and the Tramp), movies that make you laugh (Airplane!), movies that are just plain fabulous (Apocalypse Now, Romeo + Juliet, a billion or so others)...

But the one I always, always list is The Shining. I love everything about that movie. The set, the story, the acting, the soundtrack, the directing... love it.

Plus, it has that 30-second scene that most people don't remember but is a nod to plushophilia... weird, creepy, and totally fascinating. Marvy.

Oh, PS... Happy Thanksgiving!

Day Ten

2010-10-10T20:48:00.003-06:00

10. a photo of your family

Last year, we took my parents to the Stampede for the first time. We'd been to the Ex in Saskatoon about a zillion times, but hey: you still need to go to the Calgary Stampede. Greg introduced them to corn dogs as well - a little bit of the midway I will never partake of. Barffffff.

Day Nine

2010-10-09T20:45:00.002-06:00

9. a photo of you as a baby

Who doesn't love a ridiculous little ginger kid?

Day Eight

2010-10-08T16:11:00.001-06:00

8. a photo of your favorite band/musician

What? Just one? That's impossible. Here are some favourites:

My beloved Black Keys, obviously.

The fabulous Tori.

Jack, in all his many incarnations.

The always wonderful Sam Beam.

Sorry, Tanya, no Rascal Flatts :) And yet somehow, we're still fabulous friends.

Okay, I have to leave it on this note, just because it's so cute:

Aww.

Day Seven

2010-10-07T19:57:00.003-06:00

7. a photo of someone you love

This picture always kills me. Isn't little Greg the cutest?

Day Six

2010-10-06T10:01:00.002-06:00

6. a photo that makes you laugh

My time spent student teaching at Pearson back in 2007 may have been pure hell, but there was one tiny ray of sunshine. That, my friends, was this box of tampons in the staff washroom. I have no idea how long it had been there, but seeing as how it wound up having pantyliners instead of tampons in it by the time I took this picture, it's obvious it had become a permanent feature.

Whoever wrote that on there is my hero.

Day Five

2010-10-05T12:54:00.000-06:00

5. a photo of your dream wedding

(Stolen from http://www.heatherwardphotography.com/)

I have, of course, already had my wedding, and it was a lovely wedding at that. My dream one, however, would probably look something more like this... my groom, me, and a few other select people, on a beautiful day in the mountains. And how gorgeous is that shot? Hopefully I'm never faced with getting married again, but if I do find myself in that position... I'm so doing that.

Day Four

2010-10-04T15:42:00.001-06:00

4. a photo of the last place you went on holiday

My last "holiday" - to Disneyland with three fabulous ladies. The guy in the picture was this random South African-transplant who was also down from BC. He hung around us for the duration of the day, and is now married to Andrea, the one whose shoulder I appear to be gouging with my nails in this picture.

Hey, what year was that? 2003? Why yes, yes it was. I'm sure you're thinking "but what about your honeymoon?" The answer to that, my friends, is we didn't go on a honeymoon. We went out to Vancouver for a day (saw friends), went out to Victoria for three days (stayed at his aunt's place, which was a huge gong show), and then drove back to Kelowna, where we spent several more days with family. I refuse to count anything involving visiting family as a holiday, since it is often anything but. Other than that, we've gone to Saskatchewan for an internment and to Banff for three separate one-night stays.

All that will change come November, though - Wizarding World, here I come!

Peas in a Pod

2010-10-03T19:34:00.003-06:00

I'm going to take a brief break from watching Generation Kill to post this fabulous bit of fabulosity.

A certain Joe K-Tarn last night:

Now, here was Greg two years ago, also in Walmart:

No wonder these two are BFFs. Or, boyfriends, as I like to say... but I'm not here to start spreading rumours.

Day Three

2010-10-03T09:08:00.001-06:00

3. a photo that makes you happy

This picture will look familiar to those of you who have been to my place. I have a small version up near our front door. So what's the story behind it?

A couple Christmases ago, Jeremy decided to do an homage to the "Timeless Art of Seduction" picture from Seinfeld. To give as a gift. To a coworker. At an office party. Amazing, no? I had to beg, but I got a print for my gift that year.

I'm pretty sure it will be up till we die. Or at least until our teenaged daughter snags it for her locker.

Day Two

2010-10-02T14:02:00.000-06:00

I'M ON A ROLL, HERE, PEOPLE. Just kidding. It's only day two, I'm getting ahead of myself.

2. a photo of yourself a year ago

Crave cupcakes for my birthday? Yes please! This year was a slightly-less-thrilling-yet-still-very-tasty ice cream cake. No pictures of that.

Day One

2010-10-01T15:48:00.004-06:00

So, several peeps I know are doing a month long photo meme, and I decided to be a follower. I offer no guarantees as far as quality of photography, interest of subject, or even extent of participation. I could peter out by next Tuesday. So, here it is, day one.

1. your Facebook profile photo

It's from spring 2009, and I was showing Greg my fabulous new mug. In case you can't read it, it's says "That cheating tramp. Give me a double." (It should be noted that the second app I installed on my smartphone was the I Can Has Cheezburger? one. I'm that kind of person.)

2010-09-23T22:46:00.003-06:00

Back in high school, my friend Lindsay and I spent pretty much all our time hanging out at one or the others' house. I'm sure our parents got pretty sick of the pair of us. Then, a few months after grad, something came out of the blue... well, for us at least. Lindsay's mom and step-father split up.

Brian had been in Lindsay's life since before we knew each other. He was quiet, but would bust out the most random jokes. He'd ask you to pass the starchy tubers instead of the potatoes. He had kick-ass photos of Mick Jagger that we sorely under-appreciated. He sold tiles and was particular about his ironing. And the suddenly, poof! He went from being my friend's dad to being a guy we occasionally saw walking the dogs in the schoolyard behind our house.

A couple of weeks ago, he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and given six months to a year. He was going to spend time with family and do some travelling. Instead, he died yesterday.

It's funny, the things you remember about people after they die, even if it's been years since you last thought about them. Personally, I like to think my classmates will remember me as the one used to wear a cumberbund to school, but hey. I guess I can't be picky.

Goodbye, Brian.

Annabelle Ahlin

2010-09-22T15:54:00.005-06:00

So, apparently I forgot to blog about this... anyway, as of August 29th, I have another niece! That day is getting pretty busy... that's my nephew Michael's birthday as well. Anyway, here are some pictures:

I like to think that last picture she's thinking "Thank you, Auntie Shannon, for making me something that isn't pink."

CCC

2010-09-20T16:51:00.003-06:00

So, this past weekend was Calgary Corporate Challenge. Greg was captain of the Suncor bocce team (does that surprise anyone?), so Sunday morning we dragged ourselves out into the pouring rain and headed down to Shouldice Park.

His team was mostly made up of women who had never really played bocce before in their lives. One of them was a natural, but the others weren't so much. But hey, that's cool! It takes commitment to actually come out in crappy weather to play a sport you aren't that great at.

Team huddle
Sadly, they were eliminated before the finals :( Ah well, there's always next year! And hopefully next year involves a bit more sun.

Oh! I almost forgot - Greg also designed the Suncor shirt for this year's CCC. Sadly, you can't see it in any of the pictures because we were all so bundled up! I'll try to stage one and post it later.

Pretty Shabby, Shabby Apple

2010-09-09T07:16:00.006-06:00

So, I'm pretty sure only LDS girls read this blog for the most part, so I'll spare you all an explanation of what "Shabby Apple" is, and instead go straight to the kvetching.

A year and a half (?) or so ago, my lovely friend Tanny Fernanny and I ordered a couple of dresses. Mine was pretty great, although I had to contend with my usual dress difficulties: tight in the shoulders and hips, super loose in the chest area. Ah well. Hers, however, was not so great. In fact, it was pretty craptastically made - and it was expensive. After a while, she finally just wrote them, said it was junk, and got a credit.

Flash forward to this spring. Tanya finally ordered a new dress, and, coincidentally, I did as well. We're hanging out in her kitchen one day and she tells me her new one is way too big. Like, wayyyy too big. In the chest. While that may be a common complaint for me, it's not for her, so I was surprised. I hadn't really tried my new one on yet, so I promptly did. And found that while the fit was okay (sort of), the dress itself was just really unflattering. It hit at the worst possible part of my calf. Oh, and it was absolute crap quality. One of the belt loops ripped off before I even had it on! Boo to that.

After much rigmarole, I got my return period extended, and off it went, in exchange for a dress I'd been eying for years: the Nine to Five. I'm a redhead, it's green; the pairing is obvious.

The description said "Fits Generously," so I went to the fit guide and ordered accordingly.

Actually, that's a lie. I ordered a medium, and while yes, I am a size 10 90% of the time, I'm actually bigger than a few of their measurements. Specifically, the hips bit. So, if anything, I expected the top to be huge, and the bottom to be tight.

What arrived in the mail bore more than a passing resemblance to what Liam Gallagher wore on the red carpet last week, minus the stains:

It was a tent! Seriously, the only place it *did* fit was on my chest. And the weirdest thing - the absolutely weirdest - was the length. I have a ridiculously long torso. Honestly, you might not notice it right off, but I have the hardest time finding clothes. And yet, somehow, the hips on the dress hit me at mid-thigh. Was it designed for an 8" tall woman? According to the "length guide," the medium was supposed to be 42" neck to hem. Well, that should hit me right below my knee if I was flat as a board and didn't have a motor in the back of my Honda (thanks, Sir Mix-A-Lot). The dress they sent me? Sagged down to almost the same unflattering mid-calf length as the dress I'd just returned.

Needless to say, it went back. I almost ordered a small, but crossed it out and wrote in "XS."

Yes, a dress that's supposed to fit 2-4. Sizes I haven't fit into since I was 11 years old.

It came yesterday. And fits.

Of course, since it was my second return, they charged me $32.96 shipping. Then, you factor in the cost for shipping back the first two dresses, on top of the fact that their stuff is way overpriced for the quality... and you get one big "not worth it."

Needless to say, that was my last foray into Shabby Shopping. Totally overrated, totally overpriced, and totally underwhelming.

...and I absolutely hate that I'm drawn to one of their new dresses. Sequoia, you're beautiful! But I know you would only disappoint. Sniff.

Shmores

2010-08-24T14:49:00.005-06:00

At some point a few years ago, Greg mysteriously started calling S'mores "Shmores." Maybe he heard that I used to go for Jewish guys. Anyway, much like how I can no longer say "pap smear" any way other than "Pahpshmir" after watching Naked Gun a few too many times, "Shmores" it now is.

Since the summer is fast drawing to a close, we figured we should have at least one fire before the snow falls (face it, it could happen any day). The K-Tarns were good enough to come over for some shmores - I know how much Joe hates spending time with Greg. Ohnowait.

Anyway, here are a few pickypoos, some of which Greg took on his fantabulous new phone - which, by the way, deserves a whole post of its own.

As you can see, their phones were never far from the action.

Natalie wasn't really sure about the whole marshmallow thing. She didn't seem too sold on the idea that they're "food." Don't worry, Nat, neither am I.

How picturesque. It almost makes you forget how ghetto the back alleys of Bowness really are.

Geekout Time

2010-08-13T16:04:00.003-06:00

iiiit's the mmmmmmost.... wonderfulll tiiiiiiime... of the yeeeear!

Well, it is if you're a total preserves dweeb like me.

Oh, canning, why do I love you so? Oh, and I don't want to toot my own horn... but I made an absolutely gorgeous suspension jelly a few days ago. Art in a jar, people, art in a jar.

Convalescence Tales

2010-08-04T14:37:00.003-06:00

My mom's been on a wait list in BC for bunion surgery for oh, a good four years. After much nagging from my dad and me, she finally opted to pay to have it done here in Calgary. Okay, yes, I'm a big supporter of socialised health care, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.

Much to my mother's dismay, she's been stuck on our couch wearing a giant boot for the last two weeks. She gets to go home on Friday, but the boot has to go with her. I'm sure she's going to be thrilled that I put that picture up, but I love it so hey.

Needless to say, it's been quite the last two weeks. Greg took advantage of her captivity to force her to learn chess:

Then yesterday I took her on a "field trip" to meet the Mibster. My mom loves carting around babies (although, unlike other people previously alluded to in my last post, I don't think I've ever heard her utter any desire for me to reproduce), so I think she should just hire herself out as a baby-holder. Need a shower? Need to make dinner? Need to spend an afternoon baby-free? Just rent Linda.

Mibs has just started laughing, so she was showing off her new talent. I think she was secretly just laughing at my mom's gigantic boot.

I can't stop laughing at Molly's expression. Shortly after this picture was taken, she expressed her opinion of being in the same place for so long (via the cutest little pouty lip you've ever seen), so I got to carry her around to see the sights of M & B's house. Twist my rubber arm, let me tell you.

Oz wanted to remind us he still exists as well, so he decorated my mom's pants. Oh, dogs.

Tomorrow: the zoo! (Hopefully.) Weather permitting, we're renting a wheelchair and pushing mom around. I'm excited.

An Ovarian Affair

2010-07-28T21:07:00.003-06:00

I posted this on my facebook, but I felt like putting it on here too. It's been eating away at me for a while now, so I thought, "hey! time to over-share!"

Lately I’ve been feeling... a little put upon, if you will. I feel like there have been a lot of personal questions asked about something that is absolutely no one’s business. And that, my friend, is the state of my uterus.

To give everyone a quick lesson in anatomy, boys and girls develop different bits while they’re percolating. One of those bits unique to the ladies is the uterus, which basically exists to cause a lot of pain, and occasionally grow a miniature human or two if the owner of said uterus wants to.

What I didn’t know was that being assigned this particular anatomical feature gave everyone and their dog the right to fixate on when I’m going to get around to using it. I wasn’t aware I was violating some law by making it to the ripe old age of 27 (okay, almost 28) and not getting knocked up.

Apparently, however, my failure to do so means that I am one of them there modern wim’n who has lofty plans to have a career and go sunbathe in the South of France and eat bon bons and so on and so forth, but no plans for children. Which is, of course, all that I’m really good for. If I haven’t started by now, after a whopping four years of marriage, I likely never will. Really, my ovaries are probably shrivelled up like two little dried raisins by now, anyway. I’m surprised my husband hasn’t divorced me for someone more fertile.

Point being? Stop asking. Stop pestering those who are close with us. Stop acting put out that I haven’t provided you with... well, nothing, since any children produced by me will, of course, be mine. Nagging us about it is totally counter-productive. The more you ask, the less I want to have kids. Perverse and immature, perhaps, but every time you pester me about it, I push it back by another year. And after this last trip to Kelowna, that means I’m somewhere in the neighbourhood of 63. When you badger me about it, it takes away the potential excitement of it. Having a baby no longer seems like something special that my husband and I decide to do, and now is just me fulfilling some obligation I didn’t even know I had. Like having to clean the stove or write a crap paper for a class I hate. Boo to that, folks.

So basically what I'm saying is, worry about your own uteri. Mine’s a sovereign state.

Stampeding It

2010-07-27T21:39:00.003-06:00

Many of you know that Greg is ridiculously allergic to anything warm blooded, other than humans. Cats, dogs, hamsters, birds... you name it, it makes him sick. And not just a little sniffle - we're talking full on respiratory failure. Good times!

Sadly, this also includes horses. And cows. And sheep. And every other farm animal you can think of. I, of course, happen to consider those things the best part of the Stampede. I could spend all day in the Ag building, enjoying the stinky goodness. Greg, on the other hand, starts to wheeze the second we step in the door.

Fortunately, we were able to meet in the middle this year. The Budweiser Clydesdales were on display in a tent outdoors! They were gorgeous, as expected. Heavy horses are my favourites, so I was thrilled. Greg was just happy that he didn't have to have an asthma attack. Happiness all around.

Vamping It Up

2010-07-27T21:32:00.003-06:00

So, is it weird that I can no longer see anything to do with Elvis without instantly thinking "Bubba!"? Yes, the Sookie Stackhouse books have taken over The King for me.

I admit it. I'm a sick, sick addict.

Backtracking

2010-07-27T21:17:00.004-06:00

So, I give Mibs a lot of face time on this blog, so I guess it's time to give my nephews a shout out too. I hadn't seen these guys since Christmas 2009 (or, ever, in Benji's case), and it was great to get to see them when we were out in Kelowna earlier this month.

How can you not love those kids? They're going to be giants in a few years, so I need to enjoy them while they're still wee ones.

(Mini) Melon Head

2010-07-15T21:27:00.003-06:00

Since a certain Ms. Brina Bennett loves watermelon, my mom thought it was apropos to buy watermelon themed clothing for the Mibster. So we picked out lots of stuff, including a teeeensy little hat.

Which, judging by these pictures Brina just sent me, she's swimming in:

Dying.

Seriously, by the time I have my own babies, I'll be totally over taking pictures of them.

Greg's Twenty-Ninth Birthday Spectacular!

2010-06-27T11:19:00.006-06:00

When I started dating Greg oh so many years ago, one of the first things I discovered was that this boy loves his birthday parties. Maybe it comes from having a birthday the day after Canada Day... it's like a party guarantee. Whatever the case, we're polar opposites in that department, but it is fun to plan one for him every year.

This year we had a bit of a mix as far as people go - now that Greg works for a company that doesn't make him want to set random things on fire, he actually invited some co-workers! Aw.

Teo put the candles in. Don't judge.

After copious amounts of food were consumed, everyone headed over to the park to play some bocce. I like to think our proclivity for playing bocce ups the class factor of our neighbourhood. I got Greg a croquet set for his birthday, so maybe we'll start wearing our whites and playing a little six-wicket to distract from the ghetto vibe of Bowness.

Certain people seemed to feel the swings were more exciting than some stupid bocce game.

There was also a large collection of cute babies at the party. I think they were there as a concerted attack on my ovaries. I mean, look at Enzo - the poor kid's sick, and there he is, cute and smiling.

Or Natalie, with her dainty little painted toenails.

And Mibs, who may have gained more than two pounds in the last month, but who still seems teensy-weensy. Almost... Lilliputian, if you will.

One of my favourite ladies, with one of my favourite babies, with my one of my favourite beverages... this shot is full of win.

Apparently Natalie has a thing for blondes. Personally, I think Alex should just get a wig.

And now it's all over for another year. Next year... it's the big 3-0.

Bring it, Kutarnas.

2010-06-13T17:49:00.002-06:00

Greg has a tape measure especially to measure Joe's shots during the upcoming bocce-fest. Ooo, zing!

Shower for Mibs

2010-06-12T17:19:00.002-06:00

This past week has felt like a whirlwind. I don't even know what I spent half the time on - but, I do know what I spent the other half of the time on. Brina and Molly's shower!

How cute are those little eyes peeking out? She's almost three weeks old there, and she's still sooo tiny. Totally not the size I've come to expect from Bennett babies. Maybe I'll luck out as well...

Anyway, I was asked to do the food, since apparently there's a rumour going around that I enjoy cooking and baking. Normally true. But let's share a little story, shall we?

About a week ago, I turned on the oven to make my usual morning dutch baby. You know how you get to know your appliances? The sounds, the timing, the smell... Well, something seemed off that morning. My dutch baby turned out fine, though, and it kind of slipped my mind.

Then, Tuesday rolled around. I had decided to make a grapefruit chiffon cake for the shower: pretty, light, girly. Good choice, right? Since it was for a special occasion, I put extra effort in. Separating the zillion eggs, beating everything by hand, carefully folding everything... this baby was going to be perfect. PERFECT.

Except, it wasn't. The top burned, and the rest was goop. WTF. This never happens to me. It was like I was a Casanova who found himself impotent one night. So embarrassing.

The next morning, I decided to make an old standby. A bundt cake. I can make those in my sleep, so clearly it could not screw up.

Except, it did. Burnt on top, goop inside.

On the plus side, I now knew it was my oven, not me. After some detective work, I figured out that the bottom element was shot, and the top one was over compensating. I think it was kicking the bucket too, though, because its heat output was dwindling by the minute.

What was a girl to do? Well, this girl opted to make another bundt cake using convection. Totally not a good match, but hey. It may have taken two hours, but I ended up with a perfectly baked cake. I'M BACK, BABY!

It did kind of eat up my time, though, and I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off, but in the end... everything got prepared.

...except the cake isn't even in this picture, so I feel like that whole story was kind of beside the point. Oh well.

I spent pretty much the entire shower talking to Brina's cousin Carla. I think I have a girl crush in her. She's so damn funny.

Anyway, the shower was a success, Brina got a huge [pink] haul, and Molly totally loved being snuggled by Auntie Ham. Okay, that last bit is a lie, but I blame it on the fact she was hungry and my boobs just weren't cutting it. Sorry, Mibs.

Molly Time!

2010-05-21T20:26:00.000-06:00

So, it turns out Brina wasn't just gaining weight. She actually had a baby in there!

Yes, today the absolutely adorable Molly Irene Bennett - who I think I'm going to be calling Mibs for the foreseeable future - popped into the world at 5:10 am. She's super teensy (6lb 2oz) and super cute!

Not going to lie, I thought about running off with her. Too bad Matt and Brina know where I live.

What's That Smell?

2010-04-27T16:14:00.003-06:00

It's that time of year.

Compost time.

Yes, two yards and four trips later, our front lawn and garden beds have been thoroughly enriched. My beds are ready for planting, my perennials are coming in, and Greg has reseeded the grass.

Unfortunately, that also means I feel like I've suddenly been transported to Chilliwack every time I step outside. It's been four days. It's bad. Really bad.

So, let me take this opportunity to apologise to any of you who may find yourself overcome by the smell of "farm" when you come over.

Trust me, it will be worth it when everything is lush and in bloom. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.

The Girl's Alright

2010-04-14T14:07:00.001-06:00

Ever have one of those people who seems unnaturally concerned with your life? You know, in that suffocating and intrusive type of way? Are you my family? Are you my spouse? Are you my friend by any stretch of the imagination? No? Then I probably don't need your input. Haven't seen me in Relief Society lately? Not really your problem.

Maybe I just need to say something. "Hey! You! MYOB!" Of course, that would result in more unsolicited advice... "Shannon seems... testy. I think she needs an intervention."

Sorry, sorry, I know I'm kvetching. And maybe being a little petty. But seriously...

Anyway, onto peppier things.

My bestie Brina has been down in Florida having a bit of a babymoon with Matt and her parents. As a result, I have gone to call her about 50 times a day before realizing she's a zillion miles away. But tomorrow, she'll be back. Which means I will instantly have way fewer funny and entertaining things happen that require a call to her. It always happens that way. Sigh.

What? I have finals to study for? Huh.

Dreaming

2010-04-05T20:35:00.004-06:00

#5865764 on my wishlist:

A designated crafting area.

I'm hardly a hardcore crafter, but I dabble. I scrapbook. I make cards. I sew. I do up an occasionally wreath.

Unfortunately, I currently do all those things in one of two places: my kitchen table, or my living room floor. Convenient? No. A pain in the butt? Yes.

There are some more nieces and nephews on the way, so I've been doing up some blankets and burp cloths. As a result, my kitchen was in absolute chaos! Things kept interrupting me, so it wound up being there for longer than expected. By the end, I was cursing myself for starting the project.

One day, one day...

The Latest Ovary Tickler

2010-02-26T16:58:00.005-07:00

So, my friend Tanya is pretty darn awesome. She finds the best birthday gifts for me every single year. She always has a nice diet cola waiting for me in the fridge. She can accessorize like it ain't no thang.

Another thing she's awesome at?

LABOUR!

Yes, my totally amazing BFF had a 43 minute labour yesterday. Seriously, the girl is gifted.

Excited little Enzo was finally here (almost a week late!), I decided to do a covert gift drop at her parents' place. Let me tell you, I miss being able to drop stuff off at her door... somehow it just doesn't make a lot of sense to drive out to Cochrane, drop off something, and not spend the whole day with one of those previously mentioned diet cokes, shooting the breeze.

Mission accomplished, I took off, planning on spending the rest of the afternoon studying at Starbucks before heading to my chiro appointment. Instead, I got a call from Greg, who'd gotten a call from Tanya, telling me to get my butt back there. Twist my rubber arm, why dontcha.

Yes, I got to spend a glorious hour and a half sitting in the Glenn living room, chilling with a couple of my favourite women, holding yet another unbelievably cute Fernandez baby boy in my arms, a mere eight hours after he was born.

Jealous? You know you are.

Congratulations, Tanya, Mat, Mateo and Bruno!!

Shoe Love

2010-01-28T21:15:00.002-07:00

I bought a pair of Clarks back in 2008. They were pretty great, but I felt a little... old. I mean, really, buying shoes at Sole Comfort? Buying Clarks?

As a result, I went to a few other places this time around. I wandered into Feet First, asked for about eight pairs in my size... wound up having them bring out a different (ugly) style because it was the only size 11 short boot in the store. Yes, did I mention that I need an 11 in boots there?

No thanks.

I sucked it up and went to Sole Comfort. Where I found a sweet pair of Looby Loves, in my size, in the last chance section. A sweet, sweet 50% off.

And the best part?

I fit a size 10 in Clarks.

End of an Era

2010-01-08T15:32:00.002-07:00

A few days ago, I parted with something very dear to me.

My sweet, sweet Barista.

Back in the day, pre-Greg, my friend Lindsay worked at Starbucks. As a result, I was able to get a $500 machine for significantly less, due to a combination of her employee discount, a seasonal sale, and her lying through her teeth and swearing up and down it had been a demo model.

We had two amazing years together. We laughed, we cried, we steamed milk. Well, I laughed and cried while using it to steam the milk. I started off every day of university with a lovely latte, minus the days where I ran out of the house and accidentally left it sitting there. It saw me through some tough times.

Then, however, someone else entered our lives. I was forced to choose: Greg or coffee. Deep down, I knew that Greg could give me so much more than coffee. How could you procreate with an espresso machine? And so, I packed up my baby.

Five years later, I knew I had been selfish for too long. How was it fair to my Barista to keep it boxed up, stuffed away in our shed, unused and unloved? It wasn't. So I listed it on kijiji.

The next day, a lovely man came and took it away, but not before I'd lovingly primed it and polished it up, one last time.

Farewell, sweet Barista. May you have a wonderful life with your new owner.

One Last Update Before 2010!

2009-12-31T16:39:00.004-07:00

Ahh, Christmas. The most wonderful time of the year! Except when I'm halfway through decorating 250 sugar cookies. Then, Christmas time kind of sucks.

I'm sorry, that was negative of me. Anyway, Christmas was good this year. I got some totally sweet gifts, including the lovely sweater featured above. I was happy with all the gifts I gave, and I think I managed to budget fairly well (well... fairly).

Dad was stuck up in Cigar Lake for Christmas, which was pretty suck-tastic, but I got lots of mom time! I may get older, but I never get sick of being a big baby around my mom.

Greg disappeared downstairs for a day and a half with the puzzle I gave him. He's an intense puzzler. Good thing I didn't get a super crazy one... I may not have seen him till we got back to Calgary!

Anyway, we had the Bennetts over for Christmas dinner... since there were only three of the six siblings there, it was pretty small. I'm hidden in the background behind the gravy. Nice. Note the stylish hats (hey there Dunlop tradition!)

Well, since it is, in fact, 7:56 PM on December 31st, I guess I should get off the blog and get to celebrating! I hope you all have a smashing New Year!

I've Been Waiting Since September to Post About This...

2009-12-14T10:26:00.005-07:00

My bestie Brina is pregnant again!

This pregnancy seems to be going smoothly, minus the fact she found out a few days after having a bunch of dental surgery (delightful!). Super exciting! Soon we'll be Uncle Egg and Auntie Ham - and will have to spend a lifetime being called that.

Congratulations you two!

(Yes, I put the bow on)

Christmas Parties, Church-Style

2009-12-14T09:52:00.004-07:00

Now, as many of you probably know, Greg and I have been on the Activities Committee at church for what seems like forever. Actually, it's been 3.5 years, but that means four Christmas parties.

Glarbarkenfffsgsdkfh.

That sound pretty much sums up my feelings about doing Christmas parties. This year, however, while it was still a tonne of work, it really felt like we pulled off something pretty awesome. The pictures don't do it justice, but suffice it to say - it turned out great! Plus, it was catered, which means for once I didn't have to spend all day in the kitchen... ahhhh.

Look at all those Mormons dancing! The spell only lasted a few songs, though... then everyone exited the floor almost simultaneously. Sigh.

Anyway, I was pretty stoked. Our party was on November 14th due to some scheduling conflicts, so I was looking forward to a blissful, party-free remainder of the season.

Then, I got called to the Relief Society Activities Committee (former Enrichment). Just in time for the Christmas party.

BLEEP.

Oh wait, I'm supposed to say how great service is, right? Yeah... ah well, c'est la vie. On the plus side, it too is over now, and my decorations turned out pretty nicely (but really, how can you screw up Christmas decorations?)

Please ignore the ugliness of the room itself... it looked a lot better in the evening. I dream of one day being in a beautiful new building.

One day.

I'm alive!!

2009-11-06T17:52:00.002-07:00

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!

2009-04-20T06:00:00.000-06:00

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

2009-04-18T23:06:00.005-06:00

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

2009-04-18T22:45:00.003-06:00

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!

2009-03-15T10:37:00.001-06:00

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

2009-03-14T14:58:00.002-06:00

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

2009-03-10T18:44:00.003-06:00

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!

A Miracle!

2009-03-09T21:15:00.000-06:00

A few days ago, the lovely Amanda Bartel mentioned on her blog that she misses Keg nights. Tanya and I shed a tear over that one - while Keg nights still happen, the Bartel presence is sorely missed. We happened to be going to the Keg for Mat's birthday (happy 28th!), and we were shocked - SHOCKED - when, lo and behold, guess who showed up?

Why, none other than Amanda herself!

We were a little surprised - I mean, she wasn't wearing a coat even though it was winter, and she seemed oddly tiny next to us - but who were we to look a gift horse in the mouth? Who cared if she seemed almost... photoshopped (and badly photoshopped, at that)? The Keg group was back together!

It was great seeing you, Amanda!

Dinner With Friends

2009-03-03T08:43:00.000-07:00

In celebration of Tyne moving down to Calgary, we decided to have a little "Welcome to Calgary" party (or, as I called it behind their backs, "The Living in Sin Shindig"... hahaha, just kidding folks). Anyway, we invited some friends along... it was Andrew and Ashley's first time meeting Chris, so hopefully they weren't too scared.

Anyway, the night was enjoyable, and Mat and Tanya's kids definitely added a certain something to the evening. I had purchased some little suction cup alien glass identifiers, but Teo decided he needed them all to himself. Chaos reigned supreme... whose glass was whose? No one knew what to drink. Insanity.

Bruno, meanwhile, was breaking hearts all over the place, as per usual. Crazy little ovary-tickler. I keep telling him that if my first child is a girl, he's obligated to marry her, but I don't know if he takes me seriously. Usually he just drools a bit and looks around the room. Hmm.

Oh, and before I forget... on Saturday Tanya and Mat had a "Potty Party" to celebrate Mateo kicking the diaper habit. These are the cupcakes she made:

Seriously, she's amazing. I'm telling everyone about them.

The Downstairs Bathroom... Take 2

2009-03-02T18:05:00.005-07:00

Remember this monstrosity? Well, back when we were first overhauling the house, I opted to go for blue. Don't ask me why... I'm not a huge fan of blue. Anyways, I did, and this is what we wound up with:

I know, it looks super washed out in that last picture. Anyway, I wasn't really happy with it. I had cheaped out and just bought a quart of paint, so I didn't do that great of job, the colour looked horrible with the almond sink, and it just didn't go with the rest of the suite.

So, when our tenants moved out in February, I decided, now was the time. My Dad installed a new shower door (once again, thanks Dad!), we replaced the gross puffy toilet seat (yuck), and... I painted! Yay!!!

I like this version *much* better.

Ahh, green... why did I ever turn my back on you?

The February Post

2009-03-01T17:00:00.001-07:00

Ahh, I see that another month has come and gone without an update. Whoops.

Well, February was a pretty dandy month. Valentine's was low-key but enjoyable. I got some shifts near the end of the month. My flu decided to leave town after an extended stay. Oh, and my dad came out. Yay!

When he was out, we were able to go to the World of Wheels carshow, which was perfect timing! We always say we need to take him to one of the many car shows we get free tickets to, and it finally worked out.

The show was pretty cool, although Dad was sorely disappointed by the lack of a '57 Chevy. I just cared that I got to "meet" Ironhide. Oh, Transformers, how you shaped my generation.

Dad's main task for the trip was to cut out a new window in one of the rooms downstairs. When we start the extension, the other window will be blocked, so we needed a new one to keep the bedroom up to code. Unfortunately, we seem to have the hardest concrete in the world, because it was brutal to cut through. And there wasn't even any rebar in it! It took him twelve or so hours. Fortunately, he had his Mary Tyler Moore suit to keep him warm.

It looks great, though, so thanks again!

The other big event in February was New Beginnings. We put on a "Values Pageant," and had each girl representing the different values. Well, by the end they do... first, they go by great names like "Miss Phoney Baloney" and "Miss Loose Morals" (my personal fav... maybe because I wrote the part?). Tanya and I spent what seemed like ages stressing over every little detail (seriously, don't get me started on tracking down tiaras and trying to make a banner that blends in with ones from the mid-80s), but in the end it, too, was worth it. The girls did great, and fun was had by all. Just ignore how tired the leaders look.

The Quick Overview

2009-01-13T14:36:00.009-07:00

Oh my goodness, I just realised it's been a full month since I updated. Lest that give you the wrong idea, no, I haven't been particularly busy. Things are definitely picking up in the TOCing department, but my December was really quite lazy.

Christmas was good, aside from a bit of drama. We both got lots of goodies, and it's always a blast giving people gifts. Plus, it clears up space around our house, considering I start buying around September.

We also got to see our nephews, which is always fun. Maybe someday Samuel will be at the point where it doesn't take hours every day to convince him that he really is safe with me. Someday...

After we came back, we settled back into the standard routine. Greg went to work. I drank diet soda with Tanya. You know, the usual.

Since it had been more than a year since Greg was in the hospital, his Crohn's decided enough was enough. This healthy crap had gone on for too long! So, he got to spend a few days down at Rockyview, living the life.

Now he's home and on prednisone, so I'm eagerly awating the appearance of a chubby face. Pictures will follow in that event.

Edited to add a picture of Greg with his fabulous get well card:

Thanks, Mat and Tanya!

The Catch-up Post

2008-12-11T23:50:00.002-07:00

I feel like I haven't updated in forever! Christmas is a mere two weeks ago, so I'd better get cracking.

Okay, first in order:

TWILIGHT!!!!! Seriously, this movie is my own personal brand of heroin (see what I did there, using a corny Twilight line to describe my own pathetic addiction?) I got to see it with my lovely Tanya and her mom. It was spendid. I may have gone and seen it by myself at a later date as well, but let's not talk about that.

Next up...

Matt and Brina's ugly Christmas sweater party! Let me tell you, I have had about a billion requests for those sweaters since I put these pictures up on facebook. As if I would ever part with them. I could, however, sell them for fat cash on ebay. Hmm... I'll keep that in mind if we're ever short come mortgage time.

I'm going to finish things off with some pictures of our lovely tree. Every year I set it up, Greg does lights, then I do everything else. Well, this year Greg took his part of the procedure very seriously. Like, 1500 mini-lights seriously. He must have spent at least six hours on that thing. You'll notice that it's even gradated. Maybe we'll just strap it to the ceiling of the shed instead of dismantling it...

See you in two weeks... there will be gift pictures. Oh yes.

Christmas in November

2008-11-17T17:29:00.002-07:00

Ah, Merry Christmas! Oh, wait, it's November... Yes, Greg's workplace decided to have their staff party a bit earlier than usual. For the most part the night was pretty lame (possibly because a certain BIL opted to go to Mexico instead of attending?), but let me tell you - there was some great feta served. We also enjoyed a run-in with a totally smashed former employee who somehow manages to attend the party every year despite the fact she hasn't worked there since like 2005. It was by far the highlight of the evening.

So, enjoy the first of many Christmas pictures that will probably adorn this blog! Oh, and sit and stew in envy: I'm done all my Christmas shopping! Mwuahahahahaha.

The Birthday Blog!

2008-10-10T12:58:00.000-06:00

This is coming a few days (11?) late, I know... oops. What can I say, I ran out of steam by the time I finished uploading pictures to facebook...

Anyway, the big day has come and gone, and not only am I now a whole year older (well... number-wise), I'm now the happy owner of all kinds of great things. Food processors, electric skillets, aprons, fans, whisks, etc... not to mention gift cards! Oh, and some chocolate items that somehow didn't make it into October... oops.

Thank you to everyone who treated me, whether it came in the form of a gift, a card, a cake, or your company (or a mix of all of the above!)

PS - it's only 75 days till Christmas!!

Happy Birthday Debby

2008-10-09T15:06:00.000-06:00

I recognise this blog has been a bit one-sided, since I'm the only one who maintains it. Blogging's not really Greg's "thing."

So, with that in mind -

Happy Birthday, Debby!

Hope you have a great day!

The Furry Little Problem

2008-09-27T13:41:00.000-06:00

So, I have a confession. We have mice in our shed. Again.

About a week ago I walked in and felt like I'd walked into Petland and stuck my nose in a guinea pig cage. There was no denying it - we had a rodent problem.

Yesterday, Greg put out traps. When he went back out three or so hours later, he found the first casualty.

Today, I went out to get my canner and the jars I had stashed out there so they weren't cluttering things up for our dinner party last night. I walked in, eyed the area for traps, and saw a few empty ones. Then, I grabbed my stuff and turned around to exit.

Then I totally screamed and pulled a girl moment. Why?

Here's the area I was standing.

Wait... what's that in the bottom corner?

Oh, yes, it's a trap with a big dead mouse in it. Inches away from where my foot was.

GAH.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2008-09-27T12:56:00.000-06:00

Today's my mom's birthday, so of course that means... birthday post! Plus, it's been way too long since I've updated. Don't worry, I'm sure I'll update again on Monday to give you a play by play of my own birthday.

Anyway, happy birthday mom! You've always been a great mother (at least you certainly have in my opinion, and I don't really have any siblings to confer with...).

And check out those gams! I'm not going to lie, they're way nicer than mine.

Anyway, hope you have a great day - and you'd better like the gift! Now everyone thinks I like Nickelback!

Fencing Lessons

2008-08-10T14:43:00.001-06:00

This weekend, a big ugly eyesore had a makeover.

Feast your eyes on the badness of the fence:

My favourite part was how the neighbours sprayed their paint all over our gate:

Friday morning, the family busted out the brushes and about eight gallons of paint...

And voila!

We've gone from this:

To this:
It looks so... normal! I love it. Oh, and after that picture was taken, Dad fashioned a gate, so that ugly lattice on the left side is gone.

Tears, I know.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

2008-07-14T22:39:00.000-06:00

Today was our second anniversary. Last year was very low-key: we hung out at Matt and Brina's. This year, we opted not to go to Dan and Patience's hot dog roast, and instead go to the Keg.

Lately I've been finding the Keg to be very hit-or-miss, and tonight was definitely on the miss side. My steak was so rare, I swear it was still mooing. And I can eat some pretty rare steak. I'm not even going to get into Greg's lobster. So, all in all, we probably would have enjoyed the hot dogs more! Ah well - what matters was that we had a good time and spent a lot of time laughing. Marriage so far has definitely had its ups and downs, but we're each others' best friend, and we're very lucky to have found each other. And not just because I put up with his snoring and he puts up with my temper!

So here's to many more years of laughing over bad, over-priced food!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

2008-07-07T11:00:00.000-06:00

Today my dad turns 62! I can't quite believe he's actually in his 60s... my parents are very "youthful", and it's hard to picture them ever matching the stereotypes that go along with the various age groups.

The vast majority of the "home improvements" you see on this blog are a direct result of my dad's hard work. Greg and I do little things, but we just don't have the expertise (and in Greg's case, the time) to do the big jobs that my dad takes on. Let me tell you, we appreciate it greatly! For those of you who haven't met him, he's may be serious about his work, but he's always up for a joke. Whether it's prank calling me as a telemarketer trying to raise money to save camels, or graffitiing profanities on the front of our house with an electric sander (which he quickly painted over), he can always make me laugh.

So, happy birthday, Dad... and here is a little montage of pictures through the years.

Hope you have a great day!

Greg's Birthday Week Extravaganza!

2008-07-07T00:12:00.000-06:00

Yes, that adorable boy you see above this turned the big 2-7 this past Wednesday. To be honest, I don't think he really looks much older, even though it's been 17 years...

His birthday was really spread out over the course of a week this time (lucky guy!). So be prepared - this is pretty picture heavy!

Last weekend, his brother Chris took Greg on the zipline at Canada Olympic Park. He's been wanting to go for more than a year, so it was a great gift, although they both feel the claims of "100+ km/h" were wildly exaggerated...

I had Young Women's camp out in Kananaskis, so we decided to go out to Banff Monday evening. Banff is always beautiful, although I think I prefer it in the winter... a little less crammed with tourists. Monday night we went out for an amazing dinner at Bison Mountain Bistro. It was incredible. Very West Coast, and very, very good. The next day we wandered around town, which was okay, but it was very rainy, very mosquito-y, and very crowded.

Greg went to the Stampede on Thursday night with Matt, so he got to go on all the rides and get that out of his system. Saturday, he went with me. His dealership sponsors chuckwagons, so they were having a banquet type deal that evening before the races. We headed down to the stampede grounds around 3:00, partook of the unhealthy midway-food goodness, then made our way to the Rangeland Tent to enjoy the "real food." Afterwards, we watched the chuckwagon races. Chuckwagon racing is a big deal in the more northern part of Saskatchewan (not way up North, but up around the Prince Albert/Battleford area), so it was neat to see drivers from all the towns I know. My aunt's brother- and cousins-in-law were there, so that was exciting to watch. All in all, Stampede was fun.

To finish off the week, we had a barbeque. Greg's family had been talking about coming out for the weekend, but the plans fell through. Instead, we wound up inviting a whole bunch of friends. Our backyard finally got some use! I spent most of the afternoon preparing food, which is always fun - minus the fact I had potatoes in the oven, so the kitchen was a tad warm. I did regular burgers, souvlaki burgers, onion potato wedges, roasted peppers, a tomato and orzo salad, and the spinach and pear salad everyone seems to love. For dessert we had carrot cake, rootbeer float cupcakes and watermelon. One of our friends' daughters loves jello, so I made some of that as well. So, lots of food! Brina and Matt got there early, and Brina was nice enough to help with some last minute things. It went really well - Greg had some fun with an apron my friend Melissa brought me back from Italy a few years ago... you've been warned!

Check out the stylin' shirt Mat and Tanya surprised Greg with! Yes, it's a shirt from girls' camp! Bet you're jealous. No word yet on what he's buying with the Safeway gift card from Dan and Patience... I really hope it's not the 3000 cotton balls they were joking about.

All in all, it was a fun week. Maybe next year I'll get a chance to update this on his actual birthday... no promises!

A Mini One

2008-07-04T08:04:00.000-06:00

Last night, I was putting some stuff in the recycling box, when I noticed that the "Mrs." on an envelope from my MIL had been covered up by "Ms." I go by Ms. Bennett, not Mrs. Bennett, for a variety of reasons, but I don't push the issue with my in-laws. So, I was a bit confused. Then, I looked closer at the printing that covered up the 'rs.'

I walked into the bedroom where Greg was more or less asleep and asked him if he'd changed it. He smiled, eyes closed, said yes, then went back to sleep. It was cute. I know it's a silly little thing, but it still made me smile that he would change the title on an envelope for me.

By the way, the envelope was ripped because I tore part of it off to write a joke ransom note for Mat and Tanya's 4Runner that we took at 1 am last night (albeit with their consent). I'm not a crazy lady who frantically tears into envelopes, ripping them to shreds in my rush to get to the card. Just so you know.

Flower Tales

2008-06-25T19:43:00.000-06:00

So, I recently contracted the plague. Out of sympathy (or perhaps guilt, since he's who I caught it from), my husband brought me home these beautiful flowers tonight! I love them.

They look like they smell great, but I can't really tell because I lost that sense a few days ago.

Speaking of flowers, Greg and I pulled a bit of a prank and dropped off these lovely planters at our friends' homes:

Mat and Tanya caught on right away. Apparently we haven't initiated Dan and Patience well enough, though, because June told me Patience came to her and asked if she thought we were offended that they didn't like it. Sigh.

And on a final flower note, a miracle occurred! Early last week, my newly planted blue Himalayan poppy keeled over and died. It lay, wilted and browning, on the ground for almost a week. I eventually bought a new one, but I still kept watering the poor thing, just in case. Then, Tuesday morning, I went out to water and - it was alive! Truly a blessed event.

Random bits

2008-06-19T16:05:00.000-06:00

This past weekend, I completed my trilogy of awesome shoe purchases by finally getting a sweet, sweet new pair of asics. Tragically, they were out of the Gel 1120, so I had to upgrade to the Kayano 13. What a bummer, hey?

Seriously, they're fabulous. It's like walking on air.

Also, I noticed that all my pictures of renovation stuff involve other people, since I'm always the one taking the pictures. So here it is: proof that I actually participate in the whole project! Please ignore the fact I look like I'm five months pregnant. It's just the t-shirt, I swear.

To round out the mishmash, here are a couple pictures of Greg and I working on the mosaic we made my mom this spring. She'd had this set of chimes that were beautiful, but a few pieces had broken years ago. One night my insomnia was kicking in, and I decided "Chimes! Broken! Break more! Mosaic for Mother's Day!" After spending two days dealing with black grout, I was seriously questioning my plan. But it turned out well... no pictures of it framed (it's in a barnwood shadow box). but here are some shots along the way:

Black grout = huge pain in the ass!

Dining Details

2008-06-08T22:54:00.000-06:00

I know I bitch about living in Calgary a lot, but I always forget to mention one of its perks... great friends! Tonight we had Mat and Tanya ( and Teo, of course) and Dan and Patience over. It was rainy, so we couldn't stretch out outdoors as originally intended, but ah well. The food was quite tasty, if I do say so myself (thanks for braving the elements to do the grilling, Greg), and the company was even better.

Here are a few pictures of the boys for your viewing pleasure.

That last one is my favourite.

Thanks for coming over, guys!

Tea Tales

2008-06-06T18:23:00.000-06:00

A couple of months ago my dear Tanya bought me a box of peppermint tea. I put it in my rather stuffed tea cupboard, and it soon became buried behind my everyday tea, the delightful Numi Ruby Chai (fair trade! organic! kosher! halal! delicious!).

Well, today I finished my cup of chai, and I still felt in a tea mood. Perhaps it was because it was raining and thundering outside. Whatever the case, I decided today was the day to bust out the peppermint tea Tanya gave me.

OMG. That is the best smelling tea IN THE WORLD. I just keep inhaling. It smells like I'm getting an herbal treatment at a spa.

I can never go back to Tetley. Never!

The Great Outdoors

2008-06-04T23:14:00.000-06:00

Now that spring/summer is finally here, our yard has been getting a lot of use. I'm not sure my fingernails will ever be 100% dirt-free again.

Tanya brought "the boys" over the other day. By "the boys" I of course mean her son Teo and her nephew Seth. Apparently Tanya and I are sisters, because a couple months ago Teo stopped calling me "Shannon" and started calling me "Auntie." I think he's just sucking up so I'll get him something super-cool for his birthday.

Anyway, for now, Auntie's place is cool enough. Why? Because I have the magic bucket of childhood goodness. Yes, you know what I'm talking about...

A bucket. With rainwater. And a yard full of random crap to throw in it. The best part was when Tanya caught him trying to sip on the stick he was using to stir it... thank goodness he didn't get his hands on a real straw! Oh, boys.

Greg and I have been having our own fun in the yard... like when we lifted up some long-forgotten landscape pavers, and found a huge ant colony! We actually have like ten different types of ants on our property, but this was the "coolest," just because they started FREAKING OUT and trying to move all the larvae as quickly as they could.

Speaking of the insect world... I walked into the bathroom a couple days ago, and lo and behold:

Hmm, what's that on my toilet seat?

GOOD LORD. Let's just say I'm thankful I didn't discover that, late at night, in the dark... via my butt.

Speaking of unfortunate discoveries... have I mentioned the fabulous time I had yesterday, cleaning up a pile of old lumber beside our house? I've yet to decide if the highlight was having the rusty nail jam through my shoe and into my foot, or if it was breaking open the wasp nest and having to sprint - limping - across my neighbour's yard. Good times, good times!

Good riddance, burgundy paint!

2008-05-15T17:19:00.000-06:00

Sorry this is a day late... yesterday we bought pizza and watched the fifth estate... how could I tear myself away to blog?

Anyway, yesterday morning dad broke out the sander and went to town on the nasty, nasty paint that was on the front of our house.

Have I mentioned that apparently, the siding was originally painted grass green? I'm sure that went well with the emerald green chips in the stucco and the burgundy fake rock. Oh, 1960s, you were so stylish.

Anyway, then he broke out the primer:

And voila! We went from this:

to this:

Sure, it's not going to win any beauty pageants, but at least it looks like the owners can afford a new can of paint. That's all I needed.

Thanks, Dad.

Deck Destruction, Pt. I

2008-05-13T19:19:00.001-06:00

Yesterday, my dad arrived at noon. By this point, I imagine you all know what that means.... progress on the house! Yay!

Attached to the front of our already fairly unattractive house was an ugly deck. If it was just a matter of looks, I might have gotten used to it. But no, it was also really badly constructed. I recall Tanya looking a little green when Greg rammed into the railing one evening, Teo in his outstretched arms, and the whole thing wobbled and creaked. I believe her exact words were "please don't do that while you're holding my son."

Well, fear no more, Tanya... as I type this, the deck is going bye-bye. Here are some pictures in progress:

Don't you love the stash of old crap that they dumped in there?

As you can probably tell from some of the photos, the former owner knocked off the top of the steps, but left the base in. So, my dad framed it in, laid out the rebar, and poured a new top step:

Being my dad, he even built a cement mixer:

Good times. It was handy that he did, because we used a tonne of cement! We filled a whole shopping cart with empty bags!

Just kidding. That's actually a little kid-sized one Elina and I made off with the night before I moved to Victoria. Ahh, memories.

Anyway, I leave you with the following picture... tomorrow I hope to update with some tales of painting.

Woo-hoo!

2008-05-04T20:03:00.000-06:00

Last year, I was won over by the Ikea PS Betsö barbeque. It was cute. It was tiny. It was $50 and looked like an adorable little spaceship. It also sucked big time as far as actual cooking went.

So, yesterday we decided to, in the immortal words of Beyonce, "Upgrade u." And oh, did we! Yes, we are now proud owners of a barbeque that probably cost more than Greg's first car. But, he got to pick it out and pay for it with his stash of gift cards that's he's been squirreling away. As long as he's happy with his choice, I'm happy. Plus, he's already made me a fab little meal on it.

He could hardly wait to put it together. He made it about... 14 hours.

The best part? The lock and chain. We do live in Bowness, after all...

A random smattering of things

2008-04-19T16:54:00.000-06:00

Lots of updates... hmm, where to begin?

Let me start by saying "IT'S OVER!!!"... yes, degree #2 is complete. I convocate in June, but other than that.... no more U of C! (for now)

Next up is a horrible picture of me. Why am I putting it up, you ask? Why, to show off the beautiful necklace my rad friend Tanya got on her latest trip down to New Orleans! It's a lovely green colour... does she know me or what.

Contrary to what you might think, I am not just getting around to posting up pictures from December. Nope, I took these this morning.... Yes, April 19th. I love Canada sometimes.

Today Greg and I took a man from our church to Supertrain 2008. Martin *loves* trains, so what could be a better Saturday excursion that going to a huge model train show? He really enjoyed it, but unfortunately he was more interested in the books and other memorabilia than the actual models. So, I didn't get to see too much of them either... but I did take pictures of some of my favourites.

Despite the fact he doesn't look too thrilled, Martin had a great time.

As did I.

And... this has nothing to do with anything, but hey... it's Edward Cullen. He adds to any blog.

Reclaiming the yard

2008-03-26T21:22:00.000-06:00

So, most of you who have been to our house have seen that eyesore that tops all the other eyesores. Yes, I am talking about the "greenhouse" that was attached to our shed.

In typical "Andy" fashion, this was one ghetto creation. It was assembled out of random crap from all over the place. Old screen doors, old windows, random lumber, some plastic sheeting, etc. The floor was old pallets... classy.

Well, thanks to my father... it has ceased to exist!

That little tree you can see was actually growing up inside the greenhouse:

While it may be gone, it left its mark: nasty, water-damaged stucco on the side of the shed:

The dismantled remains:

So, there was one huge picture window that we suspect may have inspired the whole creation. It weighed a tonne, so my parents smashed it up so we could take it to the landfill:

When we got there, my mom was really happy that we were directed to the "Throw N Go," because she's heard my stories of the giant mountain of garbage where anything and everything is deposited. Coming from BC, that's like a horror story out of the 70s. When she saw that we were going to an area where things appeared to be sorted the way they are in Westbank, she grew hopeful that there would be a glass recycling area. Those hopes were dashed, however, when the guys who direct you to the right bin paused, said "glass? huh." and then directed us over to "bin four.... just find a hole somewhere to dump it." Bin four was full of EVERYTHING - even drywall! We're pretty sure they just empty the bin out into the general landfill. My parents were horrified.

Ah... Alberta.

Pie time!

2008-03-17T13:18:00.000-06:00

Sunday night was the first activity put on by the "new" activities committee in our ward. By "new," I of course mean no more Fernandez, Baker, or Bartel involvement! There are a few other people on the committee, including a family we aren't even sure exist, but for this one we decided to just do it on our own.

The theme was "Dentists and Dessert" - come for the pie, stay for the slideshow! Basically we had a dentist come in and talk about the work he's done in countries like Cambodia, and we provided pie.

As it turned out, we had WAY too much pie. Better too much than too little, I guess. I wound up eating a piece of each while I waited in the kitchen for the presentation to be over... which wouldn't have been too bad, except there were 6 varieties! My excuse is that they were the "fall apart" pieces that I wasn't going to serve anyway. Fortunately, I love pie.

Next up... who knows.

Celebrating the escape of my friend from the YSA ward!

2008-02-17T12:42:00.000-07:00

Last night we got to go to the reception of my lovely friend, Patience, and her brand-spanking new husband, Dan.

They'd gotten married that day down in Cardston (apparently there was some hail - it's like Mother Nature's confetti), and I must say, I'm very impressed that her hair survived the Southern Alberta winds:

Doesn't she look beautiful? Her bouquet was also beautiful and smelled sooo good. I kept going in for hugs just to smell it. Underneath her dress were huge heels, and she still was miniature. I had to take my shoes off and crouch in that picture of the two of us.

They showed an absolutely *hilarious* video based on the Office that apparently they're going to post on YouTube. It was really well done. My two favourite parts involved a scene in which she described how tall he seemed when they first met, which then flashed to him walking down the hall and coming upon a seemingly 2' tall Patience looking up in horror, and a scene where Dan's brother is talking about how much he's looking forward to not being mistaken for Dan anymore. Funny, because Patience's mom went up to him at the temple that morning, hugged him, and started talking to him like he was Dan. To be fair, this marriage is like a merging of the two most identical sets of siblings imaginable.

When we got there, we discovered that Brina's brother was there doing photography, and his girlfriend had done the cake. Dan's Best Man was a guy Greg had grown up with in the Okanagan, Brina and Tanya's cousin was there, etc - Mormons are a little *too* interconnected. So disconcerting! Anyway, Robyn's cake was quite delish:

The reception itself was laid back but really nicely done - lots of greenery and beautiful white roses. Candles, nice tablecloths, etc. But the one thing I just had to take a picture of was the fountain:

Intense!

The bouquet toss:

As you can see, some people were more enthusiastic than others.

I feel somewhat cheated, since I never got to try to catch a bouquet, so I decided to try to steal it. My rings kept me from picking up, though - all the guys knew I was already married.

The (former) Gimbel Gang had to pose for a shot (please ignore the fact I look like crap):

After a while things began to wind down. When there were pretty much just us and the families left, we thought it was probably time to go (Dan sure seemed anxious to get going... for some reason). When we went to get our coats, we came across this little guy passed out below them:

I felt his pain. My feet were not happy by that point. On the other hand, my taste buds were. Why? Because my favourite snack showed up on the buffet table:

My mini pickles! I was thrilled.

And that pretty much sums things up. Greg and I are trying to claim the newlyweds for Activities Committee... wish us luck!

Valentine's Day Mumbling

2008-02-15T18:55:00.000-07:00

Growing up, I observed that my father always seemed to buy "big" cards for my mother. You know the kind - large, bright coloured, several pages, lots of writing. Often with a rabbit or some other animal reflecting on how much his wife means to him.

Greg quickly adopted this "big card" method. This Valentine's day was no exception. I took him to the mall on Tuesday to go buy one (those of you who heard about the Christmas gift purchasing fiasco will understand why), and left him in the card shop. Apparently when he went in, there were men EVERYWHERE. It was like a swarm of males, all trying to pick out cards for their significant others. So Greg walked up, did a quick once over of the rack, and grabbed the biggest, brightest, cheesiest card he could find.

Not only was it covered with fancy script and bright red roses:

...it also contained multiple sheets of fancy, scalloped-edge paper:

Someday I'll hage a huge box of these to show the grandkids.

A brief introduction to our living room

2008-02-12T09:12:00.000-07:00

One of the first rooms we worked on when we took possession of the house was the living room. It needed the least work, although, like everywhere in the house, it required multiple coats of both primer and paint to cover up the dark colour the previous owner had chosen. We had it painted in the first two days, and then we began moving all of our worldly possessions in, so we had a place to store it while we worked on everything else. Eventually we got it all emptied out, and then not much happened. We did a few things here and there. The main task is yet to be completed: refinishing the hardwood. That will take place this summer. Still, I felt it was time to give the living room a little love here on the blog, particularly since we just got some new furniture so it doesn't seem quite so empty.

Anyway, onto the evolution of our living room.

This is how the previous peeps chose to decorate:

When we moved in, the ugly furniture was gone, but the bad paint, wood, fan, rugs, and blinds were, sadly, still there. The fan, rug and blinds were easy to dispose of, but the paint and wood took some work.

As much as we loved the ragged bamboo blinds, we decided to upgrade:

As mentioned, the room became a bit of a storage room:

Slowly, it began to clear out:

This is how it stayed for quite a while, plus and minus some junk, depending on the day:

And now, the current state:

When we have a bit more disposable income (read: when I'm out of school and get a job), we're getting a large wall unit for that blank wall there. Hopefully then I can de-clutter everything else and consolidate stuff on there.

For now, though, my end tables are a little... full.

These aren't really in the living room, per se, but they are on that little wall between the kitchen and the living room.

I'm particularly fond of my little ivy trio (sorry so dark):

And that's it, till we refinish the floor and buy a wall unit. Someday, someday...

The long-promised bathroom post

2008-02-06T19:42:00.001-07:00

I've been promising to update with some pictures of our newly-completed bathroom for quite some time, so here goes.

When we first moved in, I was incredibly irked by the bathroom. No one else seemed to be as bothered by it. Sure, it was ugly, but there were other, far more urgent things to attend to.

I, however, felt it like a festering sore. That colour! Those horrible tiles! That painted ceiling! That awful add-on cupboard! That disgusting toilet that was crammed in next to the vanity! That huge gap between the tub and the tile! And even worse - that smear of what looked like blood on the wall!

My mom was kind enough to prime the walls, and my dad moved out the awful cupboard. For a couple weeks, we got used to a stark white void of a bathroom.

Then I decided to a) paint it for real, and b) paint the medicine cabinet white. The oak addiction the previous owners had was not for me.

When I removed the cabinet to take it outside, I discovered some little treats that had been left behind:

I was lucky enough to find a linen cabinet and a matching shelf at Home Depot. The white versions would have cost about $250. The ugly yellow versions I bought cost $70 all told. So I took over the back yard, and turned the yellow dark brown and the oak white. It took forever.

After that, not too much happened for a few months. Then, just before Christmas, my dad stopped in, and he and Greg set to work finishing things off. First, they had to get rid of a few ugly leftovers:

I thought about leaving them there... you know, creative landscaping:

Just kidding. They made their way to the dump very quickly.

New tiles on the wall and floor, a new vanity, and a new toilet, and voilà! A beautiful little bathroom retreat:

This last picture is just so I can brag about what a great job my husband did of cutting the tile to fit around the ridiculous curved tub the previous owners installed. I'm so ticked, because I just realized that I never took a picture of the huge gap that had been there. I swore I did... but I guess the image just burned its way into my brain after sitting there, staring at it bitterly so many times. It was awful! But fortunately, those days are gone:

I'm not going to lie, though - I made them save that windmill tile scene that had been above the toilet. It's out in the shed now.

First update of the year

2008-01-15T12:02:00.000-07:00

So, we were feeling some pressure at the last gathering to update this. So here it is, folks.

Greg was released, sans appendix, on Christmas Eve. He was rather eager to escape (I can't understand why - who doesn't like cheese and cauliflower soup that looks like orange glue??). As per Wiegers tradition, we opened our gifts that night. I got a little excited:

The next morning we woke up and did our stockings, then went over to the Bennett house to do the gift exchange. It was kind of a gong show, as things always are with that crew, but we emerged with some funny stories, and my very own paraffin wax hand spa! (Thanks, Katrina) I also got to hold Michael, who I love. Samuel got to play a lot of basketball, and walk around with a bow stuck on his head (courtesy of moi).

We went home to my parents' place for a delicious meal, and some hat fun, then Greg's family joined us for dessert.

Sadly, all good trips must come to an end, so we headed back to Calgary on the 27th. Since then our tenants have moved in downstairs, we've set up our office and finished our bathroom (pictures will be coming soon), and I have - reluctantly - returned to university. Sigh. We had an enjoyably low-key New Years with the Fernandez family (bed by 12:15!), and are in the midst of saying goodbye to two of our favourite families - the Bakers and the Bartels. Tragic. I'll leave you with a few shots of our last get together. Really, it's just a bunch of pictures of kids.

Mikayla:

Walker, demonstrating his law-breaking ways:

Mateo:

And who could possibly forget Jackson:

R.I.P. Greg's appendix: 1981-2007

2007-12-21T23:25:00.000-07:00

Shannon and Greg: An Appendix-Free Family

Yes, we made it to Kelowna, just in time to take Greg to the hospital! Yay! He had surgery this afternoon, and seems to be doing dandy. They hope to let him out by Christmas, so fingers crossed! My poor husband.

Hope everyone else is having a less hospital-filled holiday so far!

Christmas decorating, Pt II

2007-12-16T21:51:00.000-07:00

As mentioned earlier today, we got to put on the ward Christmas party. This was our second year doing it, and I must say, the food was a lot better this year. Well, it sure seemed a lot better - I never actually got to eat any. It's probably just because I'm a massive fan of Russian Chicken, and that was what we served. That, and my Pear and Curried Cashew Spinach salad, which, sadly, not nearly enough people ate.

Anyhoo, here are some pictures from the set up and the evening itself. Enjoy!

Prepping the stake centre Thursday night:

Greg spent oh, two hours fluffing that tree on the right out so it would look just perfect.

Here are two *horrible* pictures of us. Greg is mashing potatoes with an absolutely enormous masher, and I'm pretending to cry from the onions.

Here are a couple pictures I grabbed before locking myself in the kitchen for the rest of the night:

(It looked better in "real life")

Tanya found this rather entertaining party game idea online. Basically, tables got balloons and a pair of pantyhose, and they had to blow up the balloons, stuff them in the pantyhose, and make one member into a reindeer. Here are the results:

All in all, it was quit successful. And now I'm thrilled to say it's over for another year.

Christmas decorating!

2007-12-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

Christmas is my favorite season, and this year has been no exception (so far, at least). We got our house decorated, and we also managed to transform the stake centre into a winter wonderland! Go Activities Committee. First, our house:

Greg is a master light hanger:

And finally, one of our lights - night option on the camera combined with arthritic photographer = bad idea, so please excuse the blur!

That was a little picture heavy, so I'll include the tales from our ward Christmas party in a new post.

Also, I need to get back to my baking - so let me leave you with a picture of my only mildly chaotic kitchen. Picture me standing there with one of my many tacky aprons on.

Our escape to Edmonton

2007-12-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, Greg and I escaped Calgary and made our way to the other big city in Alberta... yes, we went to Edmonton. The trip had two purposes: we wanted to (finally) do our sealing in the temple, and we wanted to have a little mini-vacation.

Friday, we got in the car, and the adventure began. Winter has made its presence known, so Greg got to do lots of fun little tasks along the way, including putting air in the tires with the slowest pump in the world:

and cleaning off the headlights with some paper towel from the DQ in Innisfail:

Fun times.

When we got to Edmonton, we made our way over to the Hilton Garden Inn.

We were quite pleased with our room. It looked so clean!

So clean, in fact, we had to pose on our bed for a picture. There's just something about a bedspread that doesn't have to hide behind a bad floral print to disguise the dirt.

After unpacking, we went over to Boston Pizza for dinner. Here's a shot of Greg.

What you can't get from the picture is that there is a table of obscenely loud girls right beside us, separated only by one of those glass dividers. It was a birthday party, and apparently one of them could communicate only in loud squawking laughs and enthusiastic hand clapping. The waitress was even mocking them.

When we got back to our hotel room, however, we discovered that we hadn't escaped the noise. Directly below us was the banquet facilities, and apparently the DJ of that particular party really liked to blare loud disco and shout into his mic. So we lay there, getting increasingly angry as we heard the bass thudding during "Born to Be Alive", and listening to our wall rattling. Greg phoned down multiple times but they were pretty useless. It went on till one, and we were not pleased. The next day, though, Greg bitched and got us free breakfast buffet vouchers, which we used on our last morning there.

Saturday morning came way too fast, considering we couldn't go to sleep till one. So we dragged ourselves out of bed and drove to the temple, stopping for bagels at Tim Horton's at the way. The sealing went well, with a few funny moments. The sealer commented that he'd done a lot of sealings, but ours was definitely the "most intimate" ( there were only six of us in there, sealer and witnesses included). Greg saw several people he knew from his mission, all of whom seemed confused by seeing him "in real life." We had to get our certificate redone because they put "West Bank" instead of "Westbank." And finally, I just had to sit next to a woman who burst into tears in the front waiting/coatroom area, because she'd forgotten to book ahead and the session was full. It was really awkward, because her husband was bitching about how much he hates the Edmonton temple, and the couple they were with kept trying to be like "well, we can always come back later." I just tried to act like I was looking at my shoes.

Anyway, here are some pictures of us outside. No pictures of me in my temple clothes (sorry, Debby, it was like -20), just my standard black. Oh, and the jean pictures are from later, but I thought I'd group them all together.

Greg got me a third ring, but forgot it in his coat. So he gave it to me later, outside in the freezing cold. How romantic!. That finger's feeling a little clunky now, so I need to get them soldered together.

After that, we went back to the hotel, talked to his family for a bit, then headed off to West Ed. First up: getting something to eat. I hand pretty much the grossest sushi I've ever had (and I have had some gross sushi). It was just sort of goo. You can't really tell from the picture, but the rice was just a mush, wrapped around more mush. Mmm!

After the gross food, it was time to hit up Galaxyland and the water park. We just had to buy all the pictures from the rides of course. I don't have a scanner, so here are some bad pictures of the pictures:

That night, we went out for dinner at the Keg (no goat cheese this time... but at least my steak was done correctly!). When we got back to the hotel, I was so exhausted that I passed out. I think Greg was watching UFC. He fell asleep with the tv on, so we woke up at 3 am really confused.

The next morning, it was time to leave :( Our room was looking a little "lived in" by that point:

We packed up, put our stuff in the car, then went for our (free) breakfasts. The buffet was quite enjoyable. They even had a granola station. As we were sitting there, we noticed a guy throw a banana at people by our car. Greg thought it hit the car, and sure enough, we found it sitting right next to the car later. Jerk. anyway, before leaving, we had this kind of crazy waitress take our photo:

Then, we were off. Well, not before Greg brushed a bunch of snow off the car at me.

The banana:

On the way home, we had to have a pee break (I was in the car, after all), so we stopped at the same DQ in Innisfail that we'd stopped at on Friday.

Then, Greg had to drive me around and point out interesting spots from his childhood, like his old house, and the convenience store Andrew showed up at with no pants on. We just took a picture of the house.

So that was our weekend! Christmas pictures will soon be posted. Ah, this not being in school thing is fabulous!

Tales from the weekend

2007-11-18T21:53:00.000-07:00

Hello all – I know this has been a disgustingly long break. I do apologise. This practicum has really kind of sucked, so I haven’t had time to make my bed, let alone update my blog. I’m down to two weeks left though, and things are slowing down a bit. Plus, my parents were out for the weekend which means: progress on the house! Yay! My parents are lovely.

Anyhoo, I thought the progress deserved an update. This weekend’s mission was to get the kitchen looking a tad less ghetto. We’d been going to tile, but we just haven’t had the time, plus we’re probably going to rip it all up in two years anyway. So linoleum it is. I don’t know if any of you have shopped for lino before, but it’s generally a pretty depressing experience. Most of the patterns are – how do you say it – “dated.” We finally found one we were okay with at this place out in the Northeast. Plus, the people working there acknowledged our existence... sold! We also decided to do away with the hideous countertops and tile them instead. As a bonus, my parents got us a new sink as an early Christmas gift. The old one appeared to have been used in a WWF match at one point or another. Here are the beginning stages:

Old sink, anyone?

In the midst of things, my dad’s truck died, so we all got to hang out in the Rona parking lot waiting for CAA to arrive. Here’s the truck being deposited back at our house:

It was just the starter, so he took a trip to Bowness Auto Parts, picked up a new one, and put it in. Phewf. He put on his coverall to do the work, and he announced that he was putting on his Mary Tyler Moore suit... we were confused until he turned around:

So anyway, we got the flooring in, as you can see...

Doing the exciting "push the air bubbles out to the edge" dance...

When suddenly, disaster struck:

Noooo! I had a mild breakdown. There were tears. Fortunately my dad was able to do a lovely job of patching, and you can barely see the seams. It's a temporary fix, obviously, but for now it looks dandy.

That more or less sums up our weekend. I’ve been avoiding the crappy essays I’m supposed to be marking because they kind of depress me. Much more exciting for me is the fact that I’m almost done Christmas shopping. My goal is to be done shopping by December 1st. I’m not joking, either. Greg’s family does an annual gift exchange, and if I haven’t found out who we both are shopping for by the end of the month, we’re shopping at the gift card stand at Safeway (or the one at 7-11 if Safeway is too busy). I was in Zeller’s today buying felt pads for under my table legs, and a baby was screaming it’s head off next to me. At that moment I realised it was already too close to Christmas to be in the mall. Apologies in advance to my gift recipient if you wind up with a $50 blockbuster gift card, but that’s just the way it will have to be.

Oh, and here’s a fuzzy yet cute picture of Greg with his fake son from our babysitting adventure the other day, just for kicks:

Pictures of the (more-or-less) finished kitchen to follow...

2007-10-08T22:31:00.000-06:00

Greg and I were flipping through the channels when we discvered this gem... you know how Shaw plays the yule log during the Christmas season? Well, apparently they now also have a turkey version for Thanksgiving. We almost died.

Sorry for the long hiatus

2007-10-08T18:48:00.000-06:00

Nothing too crazy to report. Dad was out a few weeks ago, and he got lots of little things done, as well as overhauling the entire electrical system. I'll put pictures of some of those things up later. Right now I'm bouncing between three computers, so it's a bit of a pain.

Today is, of course, Thanksgiving, so in the spirit of "the long weekend," Greg did some work around the yard on what will probably have been one of the last nice weekends of the year. In between school tasks, I wandered around and took pictures. So here they are:

As you can see, our trees have decided to give up and go naked. So, Greg got to bust out the rake and go crazy.

We decided to add a festive touch, as you can see. Yes, it's like I'm 5.

Just for Greg, I decided to add a picture of his beautiful woodpile. When we moved it, there was this huge pile of old logs lying around. Greg and Matt had a "guy day" ("hey, bring your ax!") and chopped it all... the things guys find fun. Anyway, now the pile is all neatly chopped and nicely stacked.

Oh, and just for kicks, here's a picture of the bench Matt so nicely decorated... it's worn away a little, but it says "Red Hot." We had a fire a few weeks ago, and the entire time he kept saying how "red hot" the fire was. Brina and I kept making fun of him, so he decided to leave a little reminder. Thanks Matt.

That's all for now... hope you all had a great Thanksgiving weekend!

Finally!

2007-09-25T21:37:00.000-06:00

We have window coverings! We actually bought them a few weeks ago, but they had to be cut to size, and Greg just got doing that this weekend. He's putting up the bathroom one as we speak.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we can now sit on the couch watching tv and not be on display for the entire neighbourhood.

Random tidbits...

2007-09-20T22:11:00.000-06:00

Currently no exciting house updates, but I do feel the need to update the readers of this blog on three important things:

1) It snowed yesterday! Good grief.

2) I had a full-blown fist fight break out in my class on Tuesday.

3) It's my birthday in eight days! Yayyyy.

Okay, I'll try to update soon. My father is coming out on Saturday, so needless to say... things will speed up again.

Oh! And we had our first dinner party with a few friends... thank you all for coming, we greatly enjoyed it. I'm not going to lie though, the dessert bowls took a while to get washed. One day I'll own a dishwasher. One day. Since picture free posts are boring, here's one of a certain child making himself comfortable, tucked away on our couch:

He kind of blends right in with all the pillows.

More house updates soon, I promise!

The following is an absolutely true story

2007-09-13T14:43:00.001-06:00

I was at Winners, minding my own business, when suddenly a door mat and a wreath forced themselves upon me and told me that if I didn't purchase them, they'd have my entire family offed.

So, I gave in to their demands and brought them home.