Resolutions

So I decided to make some resolutions around the word resolution. lol. I have come up with two lists, not for any particular reason. Mostly bc there are too many things for just one resolution word!

Remember both my Grandpa's every day.
Eat better.
Spend more time with family and friends.
Offer my time to help people more.
Love unconditionally.
Use my patience more, my voice less.
Talk to my parents on the phone more often. Even if it's just to check in and say HI.
Instill in my children to be polite, caring people.
Open my mouth less, my heart more.
Nourish my family. 

Read more books.
Educate myself more in the topic of Photography.
Scrapbook more.
Organize everything...There is still hope for me, right?
Lose 40 pounds. That sounds like a hefty (ha ha no pun intended) goal I know but realistically I only have 20 to lose bc I still have 20 pounds of baby weight on. lol.
Utilize the space in our new house to the max. Which goes back to being organized....
Travel to Red Deer, AB and Carrot River, SK to visit with family and friends.
Invite more family and friends over for supper.
Open up my camera case and take MORE pictures :) ha ha, my O creativity has left me.
Nuzzle my Hubby and kids every single day. Every time I feel the feeling of frustration coming on directed at one of them (when the kids aren't listening or Hubby gets home late etc), I just remember to be Thankful that I actually have them to be frustrated at!

Happy New Year! I wish you and your family all the best in 2013! Lots of health and happiness for sure!
Ashley

Merry Belated Christmas!

Ashley

Bunn vs. Tassimo/Keurig

So. While everyone else out there wants one of those newfangled coffee makers that only make one cup at a time (Keurig/Tassimo{I'm still trying to understand the purpose of these coffee machines....other drinking fancy coffees}) I longed for a Bunn coffee maker. Especially since I have been making so much coffee in the last month! We drink a lot around here normally but lately it's been about 2-3 pots a day. So I am super excited to be able to whip out a full pot of coffee in 3 minutes :D

So that is exactly what my Hubby got me for Christmas and let me open it tonight. He figured with family coming home tomorrow it may get put to good use in the next week.

This year I started a new tradition. Our kids get a gift that includes each a pair of PJ's, a book for each child and one Christmas movie to watch together as a family. So since we start to run like crazy tomorrow I let them open it tonight. (It's supposed to be a Christmas Eve type gift)

Movie: A Very Thomas Christmas (Tanner was over the moon!!!! He is in love with Thomas)
Books: Christmas Slide & Seek and It's Christmas David! by David Shannon (When Tanner seen this book he exclaimed - "Rory has this one!" lol.)

Anyways, Have a great night!
Ashley

Hallelujah - The Voice

This brought me to tears. Oh how my heart hurts for the families who lost their babies. I am struggling with the fact that this is supposed to be a part of the plan. Really? All we can do is pray for those families and everyone else affected. What else can we do? Hold on tight to our children always.

 I love you's, hugs and kisses DO NOT GET OLD.

Ashley

From cows to my kitchen.

Boy O Boy. I feel like I can't get any blogging in hardly. December is slipping out of our grasp faster and faster as the days go by. I try so hard to relish all the precious moments. Our son makes us laugh all day every day. What a blessing he is to us. And our daughter just gets more beautiful every day! Big blue eyes and such cute smiles. I love it.

We managed to get our Gingerbread House built this week! It turned out as lot better than last year. Last year we found a Gingerbread Barn when we were in Grand Forks. I thought - What a cool idea!!! Turns out not so much. It was designed as a hip roof barn so there was just too many pieces to the roof and it would not stay together lol. Anyways here is the finished product this year. Tanner was much more into it this time and so was his Daddy ;)

So it has been a solid month of feeding extra people at my table for morning coffee, lunch and afternoon coffee. I really can't complain (and I'm not) because the end result is a new house BUT I was really hoping that we were going to be done last week till after Christmas. So I would at least have one week to do some Christmas baking, cleaning, gift wrapping and finish Christmas shopping!!! Yeesh. But it sounds like I will have them again this week and that's ok. They are easy to please.  I put a chicken in slow cooker tonight so all I will have to do is make potatoes, veggies and gravy tomorrow. Then what the heck - we might as well just jump right into Christmas full-fledged. Starting on the 22nd we go to Grandma K., 23rd - Mom's, 24th - Dad's, 25th - In-laws and Hubby's Mom's family, 26th - Hubby's Dad's family and my Grandma F.

FIVE days of Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't know if I'll survive!!!! ha ha. By the 26th my Hubby will have to roll me home. Between eating too much kids getting minimal nap time not sure what will happen. Well the kids will get naps because we will just miss out on some gathering time for that to happen. I cannot live with a napless Tanner. It just is not fun.

Anyways, an update on the house. All the walls in the house are up except the pantry, windows and doors are ALL in and the electrical has begun!!! I still cannot believe how much work has been done in the last month! Very exciting.

Our two front doors have an oak finish on them so we will be staining them yet. So they will  be a darker wood color yet.

 One piece tub in.

 Patio doors. These have built-in blinds. I'm quite tickled about that!

 Installing door nobs.

 Entrance.

 Doors from the outside.

Entrance door.

Saturday morning the Hubby and his Dad decided we needed to make time to Ivomec the fall herd. It was long overdue. My Mother-in-law came over to stay with the kids so I could go help them. I miss going out to do chores and mess with the cows all the time. Before the kidlets came along we used to do that stuff together ALL the time. After we are done having babies and the kids are grown up a little more, I will be outside more again. 

Tonight we got a distress call from our neighbors. They needed a cow picked up. So we all piled in the truck and away we went. It was nice little evening ended with a Christmas drink and visit with them. It was nice way to spend our Sunday evening seeing as we don't get to see K very often :)

Anyways, I think that is plenty long enough. See, this is what happens when I don't get to blog as often as I feel like it! You just have to make sure you sit down with a cup of coffee when you come to read about our happenings!!

Good night!

Ashley

Windows in.

Most of the windows are in. We do not have our doors yet, when they come they will go in right away. We have to keep the birds out! Today's menu: muffins from the bakery for coffee, spaghetti and meat sauce for lunch with salad, and maybe texas sheet brownie for pm coffee.

Have a wonderful day!
Ashley

Life as we know it. Where is the time going?

 I do not even know where the last month has gone??!! We have been hard at work building our house, doing chores, trying to get ready for Christmas, saying Good-bye to my Grandpa, cooking, baking, cleaning and on and on. I am missing my Grandpa lots. I think of both my Grandpa's everyday. I can't wait to see them again one day.

So on the weekend we went to celebrate our nephew's 4th birthday! He is two pictures below. Very excited boy he was. The first picture is his little brother and Ali. He is 6 wks younger. Can you tell? LOL. He is a big boy. I love his expression here!

 Opening a present!

 Miss Ali in her cute new toque.

 Ali with her newest friend Kadence! They will grow up together and also go to school together! Many good times and memories to come right here.

 Ali with her Grandpa. She has been making shy with him but lately is doing better!

 I found this little kit at the Dollarama to paint Christmas tree ornaments. Tanner LOVES to paint so he loved this craft and then also got to hang them on the tree tonight!

 A work of art! he he.

 Yes, his Daddy is cutting his hair! He just needed some long pieces trimmed up. He did a pretty good job! Then I took the clippers to the Hubby! I did not too badly for cutting his hair for the first time. It was in dire need as you can see in the pic above.

 Sunday afternoon we drove around the country side and found the perfect tree. I think it is one of the best ones we have cut down yet! This is a tradition that we have started since Tanner was born. We are going to do our best to continue this for years to come!!! I want to instill the meaning of traditions into my children. I believe they are such an important part of family. This is the first year that he actually enjoyed helping me decorate the tree or even cared enough to help.....that is until the candy canes came out!

 Miss Ali! I love this girl. She has been pretty fussy for the last few evenings...pretty there are teeth on the horizon!

 Tanner in his Santa hat!

The finished product! 

I believe we are close to being done Christmas shopping. I still want to bake. I will try to do some tomorrow. Sugar cookies, caramel square, butter tarts, shortbread cookies are a few of the things I would like to make. I am super excited for Christmas this year because Tanner is actually into it this year and can learn what it's all about. I have nothing against Santa and I will implement that part of Christmas into our traditions BUT it will not totally take over my house and my children. I want them to know the true meaning of Christmas. The birth of Jesus Christ. I am trying/learning how/where to find our happy medium. We do not go to church, I have nothing against it, it's just something I have not done for years. I think I would like our kids to participate in Sunday School. I don't know when or where but sometime in the near future. Also the other thing that is super exciting this year is that my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and their girls will be out from Alberta this year!!! Very pumped to them.

Anyways, there are some of my ramblings for today!

Have a great night!

Ashley