Our vows

Dustin and I felt it was important to write our own vows for our wedding. Generic words just weren't going to be enough. We wanted to tell eachother how we felt, in our own words. I had mine figured out several months before the wedding and thought they were very touching and couldn't wait to say them to Dustin.

About a week before the wedding Dustin still didn't have his vows done and he was stuck! He asked for direction and I said that this was the time to tell me exactly how he feels, as it might never get said again.

Well for a guy that was having troubles, he did an amazing job. He made me a charm bracelet and his vows explained what each charm represented:

Heart – This heart represents my love for you, and I give it to you from this day forward
Key – This key represents honesty and trust, the ability for each of us to be honest with each other about anything, and the trust I hold in you with all of my dreams and fears
R – This R symbolizes respect and understanding, the respect that I have for you as a person, as a woman, and the respect we have for each other, and understanding that in times when we don’t agree we can still respect each others differences
Cross – This cross represents my faith in you, in us, and the faithfulness we will share in our lives together
Moon & Stars – These moon & stars represents guidance and our ability to lead each other through even our hardest times, and to share the direction of our lives, wherever it may take us
Leaves – Theses leaves represent our tree, growth and support, we will both continue to grow as individuals but we will also grow together, and as we grow I will support you and us in whatever life brings our way
Lock – This lock represents strength, we are stronger together than we are separately, and together we can take on any challenge that life throws our way, and I look forward to facing those challenges with you
Smiley Face – This represents your smile, there is nothing I enjoy more than seeing your smiling face, every time it makes me realize just how much I love you

WOW was all I was thinking! It was so personal, touching and simply amazing. There wasn't a dry eye there when he was done, as you can tell by the photo of me and the girls behind me doing the ugly cry.

Everyone was congratulating me on picking such an amazing man to do such a beautiful thing for our wedding. And all the guys were giving Dustin a hard time, saying he set the bar too high!

Once we got into the motorhome to tour around to take photos, Dustin gave me his wedding gift to me. It was a shadow box with his vows printed out and a spot to hang the bracelet to display it!

I am one lucky woman!!! But I knew that long before the wedding day!

The Old Married Couple

So, another Halloween has come and gone and we did our best to enjoy the most of it.

Dustin bought 2 pumpkins with good intentions of carving them.....but that didn't happen! Next year!!

We did do a little decorating this year. I clean-sweeped Canadian Tire and took advantage of a gift certificate I had from Christmas and updated my Halloween/Fall/Thanksgiving decorations. I got rid of the old and outdated decorations I had from when I first moved out when I was 18.

And....best of all this year, we got dressed up. Now last year we were fortunate enough to dress up twice. This year it was just the once, but we had a lot of fun and the costumes ended up looking great. We went to the NCC community family dance which was great to see everyone and watch the kids dance and enjoy the haunted house!

It wasn't until a few days before Halloween that I decided I was going to quite waiting for Dustin to decide what he wanted to be and went ahead with picking a costume. My initial thought was to go as an old housewife, the 1950's kind that would be in a home economics book. With a perfect dress and apron, perfect hair, and rubber gloves.

Well this idea got my wheels turning on a different type idea. So in the end, Dustin and I ended up dressing up as ourselves.....an Old Married Couple. We thought this was a great spin to take considering we've not been married for almost 2 months now!! ha ha

It was the easiest costumes. We used our own housecoats and slippers. I borrowed my grandma's curlers and scarf and I found a quick tutorial online on how to make our faces look aged. Add some glasses, coffee mugs and a newspaper for Dustin and we were set.
Some people joked that we were old Mr. and Mrs. Farr and some even went as far to say we were Lloyd and Laurangel. Guess we each can see what we have to look forward to. It'll be neat to look back on these pics and see just how true it comes.

The Proper Sneeze

Okay, so with all the viruses, germs and diseases that are flying around, threatening our livelihood, (you know the ones; the new viruses that are sure to wipe us out each year) they are teaching us to be more germ aware.

I will not lie, I am not a ‘germ-o-phobe’ so being germ conscious isn't always the first thing I think of (after all, I'll be out moving cattle, riding, and branding and then will break for lunch and probably not wash my hands).

But....I AM aware that other people are ‘germ-o-phobe’, so I try to be thoughtful of them. 'They' tell us that if we have to sneeze in public, to do so into our elbows.

MY question is.....what do you do when you are wearing short sleeves??? The other day I was trying to be conscious of my germ spreading so I sneezed into my elbow, which happened to be bare. Afterwards I realized my elbow, forearm and upper arm were all slobbery wet. So I wiped it all off with my other hand and proceeded on my way. ha ha. Realizing later that all my germs were then transferred onto my other hand and onto everything else I touched.

So, what is the proper way to sneeze with bare arms?!?!?!

Thank you

Well I was thinking about this blog post as we were driving the 4 hours out east to my cousin’s place where we celebrated thanksgiving with my mom's side of the family. As we were driving, I was checking my Facebook and reading everyone's post saying how thankful they were this weekend for their friends and family.

I decided to update my status, and I changed it to "Jody is just as thankful today as I am each and every other day'.

It got me to thinking, yes it is amazing that everyone takes a moment on Thanksgiving weekend to realize what they are thankful for. To realize what they are blessed with: health, happiness, family, friends, etc....

My challenge for you....don't be thankful just on thanksgiving. But sure to give thanks everyday for everything in your life you are grateful for. Have a extra good day, say thanks!. Arrive at your destination save and sound, give thanks! Finally get over that nasty cold that has held you hostage the last few days, give thanks! The kids only fought once today, give thanks!

The more you are thankful for, the more abundance you will draw into your life. And the best way is to start and end each day with acknowledging all the blessings in your life. Even if it is simply, thanks for the breath in my lungs!

This morning I was thankfull for:
- my headache being gone
- Dustin having a great time at the hockey game
- Friday and I'm looking forward to a quiet, productive weekend at home
- my two treatments yesterday and feeling more healthy and directed
- my health
- all the special people in my life

No more excuses

Well, it's been 4 months since my last blog entry and now that wedding planning is over and life has started to get back to normal, I no longer have an excuse for not blogging.

I have to admit, the thought of trying to update my blog during the summer amidst the wedding planning was not something I was willing to tackle. I felt like every waking moment and thought revolved around planning that day. It is a lot of work to plan a wedding. It is a lot of work to plan a wedding in 3 months. It is a lot of work to plan a wedding in 3 months in the middle of an already busy summer. I struggled a fair bit with the stress of it all and mostly did not love the process.

That is until I gave myself an attitude adjustment. It took an early morning out camping, to sit quietly by myself along a river to gain some perspective. How could all the activities leading up the most special day be CRAP! (Which were my thoughts exactly, all that planning was CRAP!). I realized that although they may not be my most favorite activities, they were all an important part to making that special day special. And I knew that it didn't matter what happened that day or leading up to it, as long as I got married, that's all that mattered!

After that 'self attitude adjustment', I was in a much better frame of mind. I took on the planning tasks with a much happier outlook. When an issue did arise, I took it in stride and dealt with it without getting stress (other than 1 issues which honestly at one point almost brought tears to my eyes and even spoke the words 'this is ruining it for me'). I swore I wouldn't be a bride that got that wrapped up in her day, but it happens. I resolved to not let those issues bring me down and to just 'let them go'. I felt much better after that! Nothing was going to wreck my special day.

Much to the stress of many (perhaps even some guests as many of them said they had their fingers crossed), we decided to get married outside. I always knew I wanted to get married outside but wasn't sure if I could handle the stress of the weather. Yet as soon as we choose our ceremony location and the decision was made, I was very calm and at peace with it all. We made a backup plan (just in case) but I never put much thought into it, somehow knowing it wouldn't be needed. I was calm and trusted the weather would be perfect. Everyone was telling me the forecast, but I never looked at it myself or stressed. I trusted the weather would be perfect. As the week went on, the forecast was getting worse, I trusted the weather would be perfect. When the wedding day arrived and that morning was cloudy and a bit windy, I trusted the day would be perfect. My dad asked me "Well, are we playing like we got it?" (which is his way of saying, are we going ahead with the ceremony being outside), I trusted the weather would be perfect.

It ended up being about 12 degrees and cloudy, with bursts of sun throughout the day. Only a bit of wind and a few spits of rain came during one part of our photos that afternoon, but all in all, the weather was perfect!!!

Well those are just a few of my wedding thoughts that ,although it is all over with now, still occupy my mind as I reminisce and relive that most special moment of my life.

Don't be surprised to hear more post wedding thoughts from me. Hopefully I can keep the blogging up to date now that I have no excuses!

Engaged!!

Okay, so I’ve had enough people ask me about the details of the engagement that I figured I’d better tell the story. Plus it’s definitely worth sharing. Dustin did an excellent job pulling it off.

So it started off earlier in the week by Dustin suggesting that we go hiking if he got a day off on the long weekend, since we wouldn’t be camping. Of course I loved the idea.

Friday after work he informed me that unfortunately, he wasn’t getting a day off. So I went about planning my weekend and was to go help friends move cattle with my dad Saturday morning and had it all lined up.

Saturday morning, 6:20am, Dustin’s alarm goes off for work. I made a comment about how crappy it was he had to get up. Then he quite excitedly announced that he didn’t have to go to work today.

I was half asleep and groggy with my eyes still shut. I think the conversation went like this:

Dustin: I don’t have to work today!
Jody: What, but you said you did.
Dustin: I was pretending.
Jody: (after a pause) Are you serious?
Dustin: Yes
Jody: You aren’t being teasy?
Dustin: No. We get to spend the day together.
Jody: But I have to go riding.
Dustin: No you don’t
Jody: Yes I do, I told dad to catch me a horse in the morning.
Dustin: I called him and told him you weren’t coming.
Jody: WHEN?
Dustin: Last night.
Jody: Really? You aren’t just being teasy?
Dustin: No! I’m seroius
Jody: Oh yay!!!
Dustin: I figured we’d go hiking!
Jody: Oh yay!

So we had a bit of a sleep in (although I didn’t sleep well after that), hit Tim Hortons, hit a few garage and were on our way. I was surprised when Dustin didn't head west for our hike, but was happy to just be along for the ride, wherever he was taking us. Next thing I know, we were south of Calgary. He has an area out there that he likes to fish at so I figured that was where we were going. Then I realized he was taking me to my uncles land SW of Nanton. Which is my most favorite place on earth!

Once that secret was out of the bag, he said he felt bad that he was sick the last time we were there and didn’t get to go for a walk. And since I’d helped him out this spring while he’s been busy, he thought this would be a good way to thank me. So needless to say I was very excited!!

Looking up to the top of Old Stormy

So we hike up ‘Old Stormy’ hill that my family usually rides up each summer. We got to the top and just looked around, chatted, ate our peanut butter and jam sandwiches and just simply enjoyed the view.

I was a little cold so he sat behind me to cuddle and warm me up. He grabbed the camera and took a picture of both of us. It must not have turned out because he went to take another one (or so I thought). He actually was taking a video. The next thing I know he whispers ‘Will you marry me’ in my ear and pops the ring in front of me!! I was so shocked! And the video shows my surprised look. It took me a second to comprehend it, then it sunk in and the water works and the ugly cry started!!


He said I took a little longer to say yes than he would have liked, ha ha

I was amazed, shocked, excited, emotional, ecstatic and overwhelmed all at once. We just sat and held each other for a bit and took in the most amazing moment in the most amazing location!!

We snapped a few more shots then decided to head back down and hit the road. We knew we needed to tell our immediate family in person and needed to do it before it hit Facebook so we were on a mission.

As we were hiking down, I was asking him all sorts of questions, about the logistics of how he pulled it off. He said he had called my parents earlier in the week to ask them for their permission, which of course they gave him. A few days later, my dad called Dustin back and said that it wasn’t his business but if he didn’t have a plan as to where he was going to propose, up in the hills would be a special place for me. My dad knows that I’ve cried up there before and that’s as close the Maker as you can get. As soon as Dustin told me what my dad had said, emotion ran over me again and I said, ‘Aw, I now have 2 special men who’ll love me forever!’.

I also told Dustin that one time I was up there I thought to myself what an awesome spot that would be to be proposed to! And boy was I right!

Every few minutes it would hit me and I’d tear up. And still do. Every time I watch the video, I tear up. I can’t describe how happy I am! I can’t wait to officially start my life with him. He’s been well worth the wait!!

Tag your it

I have been tagged by my friend and avid blogger Robyn in her post today. It's a fun game of questions and answers.

Where were you five years ago?
- I was working for a oilfield consulting company and commuting to down town Calgary everyday
- I moved back in with my parents which, although was meant to be temporary, turned out to be for 3 years. I loved having them as roommates and miss sharing my day to day stuff with them.
- I had a waitressing job at a friends pub which was a lot of fun and made a lot of fun memories
- I did some major growing and learning from a fairly major heart break (and funny looking back on that time now - THANK GOD FOR UNANSWERED PRAYERS!!)
- My niece Sheya was born 5 years ago this year and has graced us with her presence ever since.

Where would you like to be five years from now?
- Married with a kid(s)
- Own our perfect acreage west of Didsbury on a river/creek
- Own several rental properties
- My airbrushing business being full time (or as much as I want)
- Continuing my goal to be healthy and in shape

What was on your to-do list today?
- Get through work (ha ha)
- Mow my lawn (depending on weather)
- Get my glasses adjusted
- Get groceries
- Figure out plans for this long weekend

What snacks do you enjoy?
- cereal
- ice cream
- popcorn
- craisens
- any candy or baking

What five things would you do if you were a billionaire?
- Have my dream home, land, holiday property
- Travel anywhere I want
- Contribute my time and money towards charities and groups that I'm passionate about
- Share my wealth with friends and family and splurge on myself
- Buy a Yogen Fruz franchise so I can have frozen yogurt anytime I want!! ha ha

And I’m tagging:

Anyone who is interested, especially fellow bloggers to post on their blogs!

Pinocchio

Spring has sprung
And the garage sales are on the riz
I wonder where all the deals is?

Ya, so like I said before, I’m not much of a poet. But….garage sale season is upon us. I love garage salein’. You always find the neatest things! And sometimes, when you are really lucky, you find that one specific thing that you’ve been needing (or wanting) and can get it for a steal of a deal! That’s what garage saleing is all about!!

On the other hand, you always seem to find something that you think is just AWESOME at the time and you just HAVE to have it…….only for it to be thrown in your ‘junk pile’ and end up in your garage sale next year. The old saying ‘one person’s junk is another person’s treasure’….isn’t always the case. Sometimes one person’s junk is EVERYONE’S junk. Ha ha

Anyway, I’m quite the Disney movie fan. I have quite a few in my collection, all of which are still in VHS form. Well I came across a box full of Disney movies for $1 each at a garage sale last week and just HAD to check them out. I happened to find 3 movies that I didn’t have in my collection that I was pretty excited about. I got The Fox and the Hound, Sword and the Stone, and Pinocchio.

I watched Pinocchio the very next day and had actually forgotten a lot of the story line. I was impressed with the moral of the story and thought I should share it with all of you who also don’t remember it all that well.

Well…..the Blue Fairy comes to bring Pinocchio to life. She tells him in order to become a real boy, he has to show that he’s a good boy by proving that he doesn’t give into temptation, tells the truth and shows bravery. When Pinocchio gets himself into trouble by giving into temptation, the Blue Fairy comes to help him. When she asks how he got into trouble, he lied and told her that monsters made him do it. Well, as we all know, his nose started growing as his lie grew.

When he ask the Fairy why his nose grew, she explain that a lie is as plain as the nose on your face and lies just keep growing and growing!

So there, there’s your moral story for the day!

Patience

I came across this write up in a local community paper. I just love it. I think I am naturally a pretty patient person in some aspects and I strive to improve my patence in other aspects of my life. I think there are many people out there that could stand to have more patience!! Maybe this will help:

Patience is quiet hope and trust that things will turn out right. You wait without complaining. You are tolerant and accepting of difficulties and mistakes. You picture the end in the beginning and persevere to meet your goals. Patience is a commitment to the future.

You are practicing patience when you....
- Calmly tolerate a delay or confusion
- Are willing to wait for things you want
- Set goals and persevere until they are met
- Do somethig now that will helpe you inthe future
- Accept things you cannot change with humour and grac
- Are tolerant when mistakes are made

Afirmation:
I am patient. I am gentle with others and myself when we make mistakes. I wait calmly. I trust that things will turn out right.

Hallmark says it best

Something I strive to do is to make sure that the people important to me know how I feel about them. Unfortunetly, my deep, meaningful poem writting skills need a little fine tuning. Unless you consider this a deep meaningfull poem:

Roses are Red

Violets are purple

You're as sweet

As Maple Surple!

Anyways, I am a fan of greeting cards. I am NOT a fan of how expensive they are, but if you can find just the right card that says exactly how you feel, it is definetly worth the money and the feeling of knowing you are sharing your feelings with that special someone you are celebrating.

I quite often find the most perfect cards that I buy and keep on hand for when that certain occasion arrises.

We recently celebrated my dad's 61st birthday and I found just the right card. I couldn't have said it any better and was very happy to get to tell my dad just how I felt. I think many of us 'little girls' would agree with this card:

First guy to ever love me.
First to sweep me off my feet
or plant those scratchy whisker kisses gently on my cheek.
First man to take me seriously.
First pal I ever had.
First guy I ever gave my heart to

My daddy will always be my friend, and will always have my heart!

Mush!

As much as I can, I try to expand my horizons and try new things. I've got quite a long list of things that I'd like to go and do and see, unfortunetly I need to work harder at getting them off my list rather then leaving them on the 'some day' list.

For several years, I've wanted to take in the local sled dog races hosted in Didsbury. Fortunetly, I was finally able to go and check it out this year and am so glad I did. It was very entertaining and interesting. I was surprised at the different mixes of dog breeds. I'd highly recommend anyone to go and check out the races next year.

Cowboy Knee boarding

We were very fortunate this year with gorgeous weather on family. We spent the day with Dustin's family at his parents house. We all made the trek down to their coulee and spent a few hours tobogganning down the hill. It was great fun and every one of us took a turn taking at least one trip down. I took more than my share of 'turns' and was a bit sore the next day, both from wipe outs and from hiking back up the hill so many times. Here's one video of me going down backwards.

We had the horse saddled up and was pulling the kids around on the sled. When all of a sudden, I had a great idea....getting pulled behind the horse and going over some sweet jumps!!! So Dustin and I each took a few turns. This definetly turned out to be my highlight of the day.

Snow fun is sooo fun!

Well, I"m finally making myself take a minute and update my blog. I apologize for my absense and thank those of you who are interested enough in reading my blog to give me a hard time for not updating it. I will do my best to stay on top of this.

So,

I am not a fan of winter, to say the least!(Notice how I didn't say hate. As per my friend Robyn, it's a cold and negative word that isn't in my best good of positive energy). Since I usually don't partake in many winter activities, I realized I don't even give myself a chance to enjoy even a portion of our everlasting freezing season. This year I made sure to do my best to enjoy winter while it was here. I did do a few activites in the snow that was a ton of fun!!

For those of you who don't know (but let's face it, only my friends and family that know me well can love me enough to bother following this blog and so already know this), I grew up right next to the Olds overpass. I remember being younger and thinkin what perfect tobogganing hills the overpass had. However, as they should, my parents wouldn't let me as it wasn't safe.

But, as Dustin put it, I am now a grown up and can make my own decisions! So, while putting the safety of myself and all Highway 2 drivers aside, I finally was able to take advantage of the perfect tobogganing hill. Or as Dustin said it, the hill with the perfect fun-to-workout ratio. Explanation: The amount of fun going down the hill is directly proportionate (and worth the effort) to the size of the hill you have to haul your tired, lazy, over dressed carcass back up each time.

We had a great time and went up and down many times, forwards, backwards, sitting, laying, kneeling, etc... We moved to one spot that was close to the big light pole so we had to keep a pretty close watch so we didn't toboggan out butts right into it.

Here's a few pics and videos.

Doing my part

About 4 years ago I decided that I wanted to do more to give back. I decided one way I could do that is to donate blood. I know a lot of people are almost shocked when they know that I donate blood. They say 'I could never do that', or 'I don't like needles', or 'I don't have time'. Well my answer to that and reasoning why I decided to donate is because being scared of needles or not having time aren't options when you are the one in dire need of blood. So, praying that the day doesn't come that I'm the one that needs the blood, I will be so thankful that other people have so graciously donated, forgetting their fears and finding time in their schedules to save my life.

It's not like donating is all fun and games, but it's a sacrifice that I'm willing to make and hoping that many other people will too. I still remember how scared I was the first time that I donated. I wasn't sure what to expect and from my bad experiences with IVs during surgery, I was not looking forward to that needle. I was pleasantly surprised at how well they look after their first time donars, making sure to explain the process and make your experience as pleasant as possible. The nurses are great - I wish those nurses worked in hospitals doing IVs. They have that needle in there in no time at all!

I'm not the greatest donater. I take a long time to fill my bag. Which I think is probably a good thing for myself that I"m a slow bleeder, ha ha. And I can struggle with feeling faint afterwards, but have learned to be sure to eat and drink lots of water before donating.

Even with my little fears or experiences, I still feel donating blood is worth it to try to do a little something for someone else. Please think about donating next time a clinic is in your area or find a local clinic. It's worth it! And you'll be extra glad you did if you or anyone close to you ever needs blood.

Oh, and p.s. Drinking and eating lots after donation is a great idea too. I found out this week that an early and light supper + donating blood + early morning workout the next morning = feeling faint and queasy on the treadmill.

Happy donating everyone!!!

Positive Thinking

Are you a fickle fan? Do you jump on the bandwagon when the going is good?

I don’t know if being a positive person is something that I’ve necessarily strived for, however I have been told that it is a trait that I possess and I am thankful for that. I don’t know if I have to remind myself to stay positive or if it just comes natural. Believe me, I have my moments: moments of self pity, of sadness, of defeat. However, they never seem to last very long for me. I naturally find it easy to see the bigger picture and that things could always be worse! Granted that I’ve been blessed to have an amazing life that with only minor incidents, I am a firm believer that you don’t have to look very far to see someone worse off than you.

It’s as simple as sports fans. I went to a Flames game a few weeks ago and was appalled when at the end of the game (which by the way the Flames did basically hand the win over to the opposing team) the Flames fans began booing. What kind of a fan is that? You say you love the team and you’ll be the first guy whooping it up on the Red Mile when the Flames make the playoffs, yet here, when your team just faced a defeat, you boo them for it?!?!?

The world of Facebook allows us wear our heart on our sleeves, or should I say, on our profiles. I find it so interesting to read everyone’s status. You can get a real understanding of a person’s true personality and overall outlook on life if you take a look at their status history. Are they always complaining? Do bad things ALWAYS seem to happen to them? Or are they always upbeat? Do they have positive statements and thoughts? The ones that I get the greatest kick out of are the ones that praise positive thinking when the going is good. They are thankful for everything in their life that day because it’s a good day. (Which by the way, being thankful for everything you have is the way to attract more positive energy in your life). Yet, the very next day, when the going is not so good, these people are the first to get down on life, be mad at the world and to blame everyone around them and complain about how crappy their day is, their week is, their year is!!

Want to know what I feel is the best way to attract positive energy in your life? Be thankful for what you have, even when you are feeling down. Even when things have crumbled, be thankful for what you do have, even if it’s the simplest thing: Today, I have breath!!!!

Ever start your day off bad and you say to yourself, this is going to be a crappy day. And surprise, surprise!?! The whole day turns out to be crappy! Best way to confirm a crappy day: tell everyone on Facebook! Ha ha Have you ever said to yourself, okay, that sucked, but this is going to be a good day and make a conscious effort to look forward to it being a good day.

A friend’s recent status caught my eye recently and it really struck home. Her status said ‘took off my grumpy pants’!! YAY!!! Why can’t we all do that!?!?!? I love that she acknowledged she was having a bad day and made a conscious effort to remove her ‘grumpy pants’ and to commit to making her day better. We all have ‘off’ days. So why not try this next time you are having a grumpy day. Commit to taking off your grumpy pants. Now just think how pleasant and upbeat the world would be if we could all make that commitment!!

So just some food for thought, don’t be one of those fans that jump on board only when the going is good. Be thankful for what you have when you know you have a lot. More importantly, be thankful for what you do have, even if you don’t feel like you have anything. Realize positive thinking is most important when the going is not so good. And remember thoughts are things and words have power!!!

You can decide what kind of a day you are going to have!!

What kind of energy are you going to attract today?

The Matriarch Grandmother

I have been so very blessed to have grown up with both sets of grandparents. I was lucky enough to live only a few miles from my mom's parents so spent a lot of time with them. My grandparents are the most special people and are truly the pillars of our amazing, strong, fun family and have set a great example of how to live a full life with values and to respect everyone around you.

Last week my grandma, the still vibrant, active, quick-witted 84 year old suffered a stroke. She was very fortunate that it was fairly minor (in comparison to several other patients in her ward at the hospital). She's had her ups and downs and as of most recently - up! She can walk, talk and is still just as sharp as ever. She has lost use of her left arm but as of yesterday could wiggle a few fingers. We are definitely hoping for further recovery of her mobility.

**Just a side note to share her still quick witted mind, as she was sitting in a chair one day and my aunt was curling her hair, her non-mobile left arm slipped off to the side. As she was reaching over trying to grab a hold of it with her right hand, she was saying 'You get back here'!**

I was blessed to get to spend some time with grandma in the hospital. That afternoon she was very tired and was not having one of her best days. She mostly slept and I spent quite a bit of time just looking at my amazing Grandma that I love so much! I can remember her saying one day that if she's ever in the hospital, to just play with her hair. She loves it. At one point, as I was stroking her hair to help her get back to sleep, I had a weepy moment. Just thinking about her strength, her love, her understanding, her compassion and her never ending giving to all those around her. Now, in this moment, it was her turn to let someone give to her.

I came across this on a website with the posting 'The Matriarch Grandmother' by Russel Mosley and thought it was ever so fitting. She will always be the Matriarch Grandmother in our family.


The matriarch grandmother has been the glue and support of the family structure for thousands of years. Her strength exist in her ability to bring clarity to the challenges and blessings encountered by her family. She is often a silent leader. Bypassing the opportunity to pass judgment on those that have chosen to perform less than she would expect of them. Instead she offers them love and guidance during those times most needed. Encouraging the quality efforts of those that have chosen to lead their life in way that honors her expectations.

She is a proud grandmother, that will do anything for her family.

She has faith in the ability of her family to achieve greatness. Though the world may sometimes offer a difference in opinion, to her the world has no control over the ability of her family to prosper when they are joined together as one. The challenges of the world are minimized at her kitchen table. Her meals bring refuge in a way that only her family and friends have had the benefit to appreciate. Through her recipes, the sun shines brighter, the birds sing louder and the flowers bloom quicker. Even in these amazing feats, the effects of her love can still not be measured.

Through her love she shares her wisdom on such topics as finance, relationships, health and faith in a way that brings joy and hope into the lives of her family.

From her meeting place, the kitchen table, she prepares more than just meals. She shares the wisdom of life as it has always been, still is and always will be. She creates an atmosphere that makes you wish that time could both, stand still and rewind in an instance.

When you visit this matriarch grandmother, her arms are always opened wide, her smile is always shining bright and her love is always flowing. Though she will not always be physically present in our lives, what she has taught us will never die.

For many of us that have become great leaders in our lives, she was our first example of how leadership can effect another persons life.

What a blessing it has been to be a grandchild of a matriarch grandmother.

What a way to end!

First of all I must apologize to all my blog followers (like the whole 2 of you that read this, ha ha) for not updating this for the past few weeks.  I will however try to be better and doing regular updates.

Well another year is in the books and it was ended with another holidays season full of blessings.  Dustin and I were very busy with lots of fun family gatherings.  We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives and were joyed to get to celebrate the holiday season with them all!!

The 19th was spent with my mom's side of the family.  It was our usual loud, busy, fun, food filled get-together.  We had a great time catching up and had lots of laughs over our gift exchange.  The new generation of kids (as my generation still feels like the kids even though most of us have their own kids) got to partake in one of my favorite activities as a kid.  Being pulled on the toboggon by a real powerful, one horse power machine, ha ha  My dad used to pull us behind the horse a lot when we were kids and I loved it.  I'm sure he wasn't pulling the kids as fast as we used to go.  There were 2 horeses and 10 kids

The 24th was spent with my family.  We had a yummy lasagna meal (trying to switch up the usual traditional turkey dinner).  We opened gifts and got spoiled.  Played some games, watched a movie and got ready for Santa with the kids.  I got to read the kids The Christmas Story before they wisked off to bed before being seen by Santa.

After watching the kids open their stocking, we headed to Dustin's parents house to spend some time with his family.  The tree was overflowing with gifts.  We were all spoiled!  Then we headed to his aunt and uncles house in Calgary for a yummy turkey dinner.

The 26th we went to Dustin's aunt and uncles house for the famous Boxing Day party with a bunch of his family and family friends.  It was heaps of fun and I can see why it's something Dustin looks forward to every year.  Dustin took part in the poker game and I enjoyed a copule reall fun games that required blurting out answers.  So of course I was good at that!!  Any game that cane make use of my big mouth is always a good time!!! ha ha

The 27th my mom hosted my Dad's side of the family Christmas.  It was great catching up with everyone that we don't see very often.  And in tradition, we played a game of Scatagories.  It was lots of fun with many laughs.  At one point I thought my mom was going to loose it she was laughing so hard at one of Dustin's answers (it made her blush a bit).

The 28th we got to celebrate my favorite little guy!  Cayden is 7!!  He had a awesome cowboy themed birthday party and was spoiled rotten.

We rang in the new in year in fine style.  We went to a friends place for a Super Hero themed party (which we remembered only that afternoon.  Unfortunetly for me, it takes me a month to be creative.  So I was Super Sport and just wore a sporty outfit with a towel as a cape.  Dustin on the other hand is very creative, even last minute.  He went as Captain Canada.  Our other friends planned ahead and had great costumes.