Is it March 31st or December 31st?

The calendar states that it is the last day of March, but looking out the window this morning, I'm not so sure. We went for a walk yesterday afternoon. It was a lovely day, a little crisp, with just a few fluffy snowflakes coming down. We remarked that if it was a day in November how exciting the snow would be. Sigh. It is pretty though.

I seem to remember sometime way back mentioning this was a CRAFT blog, but it seems that I written about every but crafts. I went through my work basket yesterday, the one that I keep next to my chair in the living room, thinking that I needed to tidy it up a bit. I discovered at least 5 unfinished projects, including this little guy. All his little bits were crocheted, I just needed to sew him together, which is the part I always hate. But I persevered and managed to complete him. He looks a bit deranged, I know, especially the whiskers, but I think he'll be an ideal companion for my friend's new baby boy.

Some of the other projects may be completely abandoned, but I am making it my mission to get some projects completed before starting anything new. Eek, I've got a lot of work to do.

Seattle Part 3: All the Rest

I promise this is the last Seattle post...and I'm doing it only for you MJ, my vicarious traveller. 

I completely forgot that we went to the aquarium on one afternoon. I neglected to bring the camera, so this is the only fish I can show you. This will be our 2008 Christmas ornament. The fish at aquarium were so amazing. I can hardly believe the wide variety of colours & patterns that originate in nature. We were continually pointing out this fish and that fish, and ooohing and aahing.

This is our obligatory goofy goggles photo at the IMAX.

I loved all the sculptures at the Olympic Sculpture Park, especially the eyes.

I didn't even realize that it was a bench!

We are not even close to have blossoms around here. Look at these trees!

This tree was absolutely amazing. I looked at it first thinking it was just a regular 'naked' tree and we see plenty of those around here. But then I realized that it was made of metal. This was another sculpture in the Olympic Sculpture park. Plus this is evidence that the sun actually does shine in Seattle!

I loved our trip to Seattle. There was so much more that we could have explored. I never had a chance to have sushi, though Javier and I shared a big crab pot. I wish that I had just taken an hour or two and just sat and soaked up the ambience in one of the local independent coffee shops, but alas, the desire to shop was just too strong. Oh well, just another excuse to go back.

Seattle Part 2: Shopping

I didn't realize exactly how much stuff I bought on my trip until I started photographing everything. The important thing is...I didn't go over my weight allowance for luggage, thank goodness. There was a moment when the scale started fluctuating that I thought we might have to pay. These pictures don't even show everything I purchased. I may have to resort to uploading pictures to Flickr.

As I said earlier, Lizzie doesn't like to shop. She's definitely not a browser and neither is Javier. I, on the other hand, am most definitely a browser. I like to take my time and consider my purchases. I enjoy window shopping, so frequently I don't even buy anything, which really frustrates them both. So one afternoon, we parted ways--Javier & Lizzie to a movie and the games arcade, me to any number of boutiques and stores.

My undoing was the Japanese bookstore, Kunokuniya. I was so excited I thought I was going to throw up. This is not an exaggeration. I went in and stopped at the display of craft books. I thought, okay I'll pick out one or two, no problem. Then I discovered the whole craft book SECTION. It almost blew my mind. 

Daiso was another of my favourite places. I love, love, love regular dollar stores. I could spend hours in my local Dollar Giant imagining what I could do with all sorts of stuff. This place was incredible. I bought paper clips and scissors and fun little packages of kleenix. I keep stocking up on stationery supplies, which is great, though Javier just reminded me that I only have 2 more semesters of school so maybe I don't need it all. Nah, I definitely need everything.

What will I do with 7 pairs of chopsticks? I see lots of Asian cuisine in our future.
There was no way I was leaving without one of these cute little bento lunchboxes. Actually, I bought two!

I've been looking for a cookie jar for ages. I found this owl in Urban Outfitters. I hated the idea of bringing back something so fragile, but he was desperate to come home with me. How could I deny the little guy? Although he's becoming quite demanding about homemade cookies!

I also added to my growing collection of monuments. So far I have two Eiffel Towers and now a wee Space Needle.

I had so much fun and I didn't spend, er,  that much money. And everything was completely necessary, right? I also stopped at the yarn store and the fabric store for some supplies. There are lots more small things that I just had to get you know and I haven't posted here, plus many more stores I wanted to visit. Oh well, I'll just have to go back again. 

For the time being I have enough books to give me inspiration for years, so I'm putting my self on a book/magazine diet, which should make Javier quite happy. We'll see how long that lasts!

Seattle Part I: Family Time

Oh my. I started this post a couple of days ago, and I'm just now getting back to it. So much for feeling relaxed from the holiday. Life is busier than ever.

One of the main reasons why we decided to go away for Easter is to have some family time. We are just so busy all the time with school, work, and extra-curricular activities, that we hardly have time to eat together. Forget spending quality time.

We headed down to the Pike Place Market for our first afternoon for some lunch and to explore the area. This wasn't Lizzie's favourite destination because it involved shopping and lots and lots of walking. For some reason, my girl hates shopping. I know, it's a sad sad state of affairs.

Just look at these beautiful flowers for $15! The same bouquet around here cost more than $50. I wanted to buy some for our hotel room, but I figured they wouldn't be dead by the time we left and I'd be too sad to leave such beautiful flowers behind. We did buy a bunch of fresh fruits & veggies and some other goodies from the deli for our dinner. I love the market. I'd go there everyday.

We visited the Pacific Science Center for our second day. What a fantastic place. Lots of outdoor exhibits and hands on stuff. We took lots of goofy photos.

And some pretty ones too. The butterflies were so beautiful.

And of course, here's my own little butterfly.

We also took a ride to the top of the Space Needle. It was fun but kind of pricey. However, we felt we had to do the whole tourist experience. And it was a great opportunity to view all of Seattle.

Lizzie helped out this crusty old sailor at a local crab shack.

And of course, we had some fun in a photo booth.

Javier is making a cameo appearance in some of these photos. Partials are allowed, right Javier?

It was a great holiday. I'll post some of my wonderful shopping finds tomorrow (or as soon as I get another chance).

Home

1 family + 5 days + 2 plane rides (to & fro) = 1 fabulous trip to Seattle (& 3 pairs of tired feet)

I'm busy unpacking & its back to school today, but I've got lots of adventures & future projects to share in the upcoming days. 

We had a wonderful Easter & no, I didn't eat too much chocolate (unlike some of you).

P.S. Thanks for all the birthday love for Lizzie. She was so excited to read all your messages! She had a great birthday.

Happy Easter

We are all taking a few days and having some family time. I hope you all have a lovely, sunny weekend! Happy Easter.

P.S. - Don't eat too much chocolate! You'll get a stomach ache.

Image Source: www.gorbould.com

10

Happy birthday, my sweet girl. I can hardly believe that you are 10 years old. I remember when I found out you were a girl in the delivery room. The doctor was placing bets with the nurses about whether you were a girl or boy. You came out and all I could say was "I wanted a girl, I wanted a girl" to whoever would pass by. They all looked at me and said, "we know, lady".

Our first few weeks went by in a blur. I know we both slept a lot and I think I cried a lot too. I do remember just sitting and holding you in my arms for hours and hours. I hardly did anything except look at you, my perfect little doll. 

You grew up a bit and became more independent. Around age two, your favourite phrase was "I do it" for anything. It was frustrating but I knew you'd never have problems speaking your mind. You still like to do stuff for yourself, but it's always more fun when we work together, right?

We married Daddy when you were four. You were our flower girl and held your arms up to daddy to be picked up midway through the ceremony. We have a wonderful picture with daddy and I kissing, and you also making a kissy face at us. Dad and I went on our honeymoon for 2 weeks and you stayed with grandma and grandpa. We missed you so much, but when we called you, you didn't feel like talking. You were "busy" watching cartoons, I think.

At age six, we went to Disneyland for the SECOND time, you lucky girl. We found out you were a dare devil and preferred to go on the roller coaster instead of the merry-go-round. Your favourite ride was the "Tower of Terror" and it's still your favourite. We finally convinced daddy to go on it with us last year, so now we can all have fun together. I can't wait to try new roller coasters with you, especially if you will still hold my hand.

We went on our first long hike when you were eight. I think we hiked 12 kilometers. You were so tired at the end, but your strong little legs held out. I think all the figure skating helps. We've got to try some new hikes this summer when we go camping.

And now you are 10! I'm so glad you loved your party. I had fun planning it with you and daddy, but it was even better watching you spend time with all your friends. Everyone just loves you so much. You make the world brighter with your smile. I especially like hearing you laugh and make jokes with your girlfriends.

Your dad and I are so proud to have such an amazing, kind little girl in our lives. We've enjoyed watching you grow from a little baby to a willful toddler to a lovely young lady. We can't wait to see the person you become in the next ten years. We know it will be a wonderful adventure.

Have a great birthday, little darling. We love you so much.

Love, 

Mommy

They partied like it was 2008

Yesterday was the party day. Miss Lizzie declared it "the best birthday party ever", which is saying quite a lot because she's had some great birthday before. We had 9 little girls, including Lizzie, but it was not too out of control.

We started the event with lunch. Actually, the whole thing started with an impromptu dance party. Lizzie had her ipod playing, so the whole crew danced up a storm to Alvin & the Chipmunks, Hannah Montana, & Avril Lavigne, while we were putting the final touches on lunch. The girls arrived in their regular clothes and sat down to a lunch of mini-burger, chips, & veggies (the veggies were boycotted by everyone).

I forgot to take a picture of "Wardrobe". I set up our spare bedroom to look like the costume department on a movie set. I pulled out my old party dresses and borrowed stuff from a friend and set it out along the walls. I got a bunch of boas and tiaras from the dollar store and had a selection laid out on table and on the bed, so they could choose what they wanted to wear. Many girls brought their own dresses, but I wanted to make sure they dressed how they wanted. The girls headed up there after lunch to get ready for the "Red Carpet".

Our bathroom became "Hair & Makeup". I bought a bunch of lipgloss and sparkly dusting powder and set out a bunch of colourful eyeshadows. I bought extra lip brushes and eyeshadow sponges, so we didn't share germs. We also had a bunch of fun hair accessories. We planned to use the curling & straightening irons, but everyone was feeling pretty independent, and I was worried someone would get burned.

Once everyone was ready, each girl had their turn strutting their stuff on the red carpet. Javier was the paparazzi. This little girl is one of my favorite little divas. She's a neighbour and one of Lizzie's closest friends. Dressing up and acting cool is a regular thing for her.

I was the red carpet interviewer and "fans". I stood at one end and shouted out names, and screamed for autographs until my throat hurt. I tried to ask the hard hitting questions, like "What new movie are you in?" and "Are you having fun?" My sister-in-law, did the pre-Red Carpet interviews as the girls were waiting to come downstairs.

I just love this picture. I wanted to show her face, because she's so lovely, but she just looks so cool heading down the carpet. I think she did a little twirl just after this shot.

Of course, here's the star of the show, Miss Lizzie. I found her dress at Winners, and she looked like a princess. I think she felt like one too! We decided that we could probably recycle the dress for recitals and stuff.

After photos, we screened "Ice Princess" in our home theatre. The after party started a bit early with a mocktails bar. We offered Roy Rogers (pepsi & grenadine), Beetlejuice (orange pop & grape juice) & spritzer (strawberry or cherry syrup and club soda). Gummy worms and maraschino cherries were garnishes.

This is Miss Diva's older sister, and another very good friend. Lizzie is their adopted sister & spends many hours at their home.

The cookie decorating station was very popular. We had lots of icing, sprinkles & some very cool icing "writers".

Everyone had turns on Dance Dance Revolution for PS2, and played sports on the WII in another room.

We decided against a fancy cake in favour of our favorite, cherry cheesecake. Lizzie made cupcakes (completely by herself!) for girls who didn't like cheesecake.

I forgot to take a picture of all the goodie bags. They were one of my favourite parts. I had some red & white striped popcorn boxes that I filled with Lipsmackers, small Lindt bunnies, temporary tattoos, candy necklaces and ring-shaped lollipops. I wrapped up the whole thing with cellophane & gold ribbon with a thank you note. I was going for the "bling" factor. They each also took home a framed group photo that I printed on our printer & a feather rose.

Lizzie had time for a brief snuggle with Auntie Ducky.

We sent 8 happy children home with their parents. Everyone wanted to stay longer, of course, and I don't think there was a bored moment the whole afternoon.

Lizzie was a sleepy girl last night, but oh so happy. I think this picture sums it up perfectly!

Signs of Life

Quick! Look outside. Do you see that crazy woman out there taking pictures of an empty flower bed? Yep, that's me.

Actually, look what I discovered yesterday. We've had a couple of weeks of very spring-like temperatures and the earth is starting to respond. It will be slow, probably a good month before I can take pictures without using the close up. These are the beginnings of some much hated day-lilies that were planted by the previous owners. I'll tell you about why I hate them another time. However, green is green and I celebrate whatever I can get at this point.

I can't even tell you what these are, but they are green. I don't know half of what's in my flower beds. I've accidently weeded out more than a few things, so eventually I will just need to start over from scratch. Yet another thing for the list of what I will do when I have more time and money.

This little guy I recognize. I just love ladybugs. So does Lizzie. She used to spend hours collecting them in jars when she was little. For such a girly-girl, she loved to play in the dirt.

Lizzie's birthday party is this Sunday. She's so excited. I skipped class this morning so I'd have extra time to prepare the house for the party. So far all I've done is visit my bloggy friends, drink coffee, and eat a bagel. I think it's time to get to work.

Have a great weekend, my lovelies. I'll post pictures of the party next week.

Update: I'm sitting at my computer on a Friday night, working on yet another term paper. I have quite the life, I know. I just found out that I passed my Ethics course, the course I have hated more than any other one I've ever done. It made me cry a few times and caused me more than a little amount of grief, but I did it...and I'm just so happy I could cry some more, but I won't. I'll go to bed instead. Good night.

New specs

I think it's probably considered a bit vain in the blogging world to continually post pictures of oneself, but I wanted to show off my new glasses. They were, of course, the first pair I tried on, but I still needed to try about 100 other pairs to make sure they were THE ONES. I never expected glasses to be so expensive. My last pair were certainly not that costly, but apparently 7 years makes quite a difference. My prescription also changed, so I feel a bit like I'm stumbling around everywhere...and I'm never very graceful at the best of times! However, I'm "looking" much better (translate: I can see without squinting & tilting my head to one side to avoid my scratched lenses), so that's all that matters, right?

For comparison's sake, here's a rare picture of me in my old glasses. Normally I rip them off for photos. Javier absolutely FORBID me to get glasses in a similar shape. I think he's happy with the new look.

Favourite Corner #3

My crafting room.

It may not be the grandest space. It certainly isn't as beautiful as this, this or this. It's in the basement, but it gets quite a bit of light. And it's quite big too. Plus I can always shut the door on the mess if I don't feel like cleaning up.

I need to fix up the ceiling and sand down the wooden floors, but it works for me right now. I have a place to put all my junk and it doesn't get in anyone's way. The only downside is that because I have a place to put everything, I accumulate much more than I should. 

Our purchase agreement lists this space as a 'summer kitchen'. It has a sink and cupboards, but not much else. The previous owner also used it as her studio, only she made stained glass pieces. 

I'm pretty lucky to have this space to myself.

P.S. I may not be able to post for a couple of days, so I'm compensating by doing two posts in one day!

Family

I love this photo. It was taken when Lizzie was about 4. She's the only grandchild in the family and is adored by all, especially her two aunties. As you can see, Auntie Ducky is patiently painting each tiny nail oh so carefully. I can't remember why Lizzie is wearing a heart on her head, but I'm sure it was very important at the time.

 

This same Auntie, my sister-in-law, has started her own blog--two in fact. One about life and the other about movies. If you have a chance, stop by for a visit.