Banana

Sometimes it's necessary.

2012-01-26T21:52:00.000-08:00

But to be honest, my day wasn't bad at all, just one little thing...

It already feels like the weekend, though.
I guess it might have to do with the fact that I have started the to do list already, which is usually a strictly weekend task.

But since it happens to be Thursday, I'll leave you with a little bit of happy.

1. Baking chocolate chip cookies for the thousandth time.
2. Impressing my mother with my singing skills.
3. Taking bottles back to the recycling depot. It feels like free money, even though technically you actually paid that money.
4. $2.99 kids combos from Wendy's. Such a great deal. And just the right amount of food for my little stomach.
5. Being able to fix something, and make it work like it's supposed to.
6. Friday.
7. Planning and anticipation. (let's just say...I'll be posting some before and after pictures after all the planning and doing are done)
8. Sunshine.
9. Sunshine melting away the snow so I don't have to shovel it anymore.
10. Romantic snowfalls. But it isn't very nice that they always happen while I'm working so I can't stop and take the time to enjoy.
11. Washing my car and making it pretty.
12. Enjoying the little things.

Sticking with tradition.

2012-01-25T21:08:00.000-08:00

One year ago today, I posted a belated happy birthday post.

This year I promised myself that I would actually remember on the right day, and I planned for it weeks in advance, but...I forgot...again.

So I figured I could try and at least make thing semi consistent by posting my belated birthday wish on the same day as last year! Yes, I know I'm a sad, sad girl.

Here is to 5 years in the Blogger world!

And we want to make this sentiment short and sweet, so I will not go on a speech about how good the years have been to us.
But I will be enjoying a celebratory dessert tomorrow.

Yummy Chocolate Chip Cookies.

2012-01-22T10:24:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Hannah's Notes: Either I'm getting to the point where I can make anything taste good, or these cookies really are the "Best Big, Fat Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies".
Since I was just making normal sized cookies the baking time was probably lessened, but I didn't use a timer.
Remember the trick to making a chewy cookie is taking the pan out when they have just browned a little bit, cause they will continue cooking when you leave them on the pan for a few minutes.
To help make them super light, I creamed the butter and sugars for a lot longer than is probably normal.
Original Source Found Here.

You are invited.

2012-01-17T10:24:00.000-08:00

You are cordially invited to:
My Funeral.

Now, there is no specific date or time for this event yet, since it actually hasn't happened yet, but the end is near, folks.
You see, I work outside.
And it is cold outside.
Right now temperatures are resting at -22 c. with wind chill making it -33.

At work yesterday it was -14 or something around there and I was doing pretty good. There was a lot of snow to shovel so that was a good way to keep warm. But my fingers almost didn't make it.

So, I was overjoyed when I got to work this morning and they told us all that if we didn't want to work we didn't have to. But don't expect this to happen again.
I stopped at Princess Auto on the way home to buy some insulated work gloves, spending the big bucks.
I'm going to try and enjoy this unexpected day off while staving off the worry of having to go back out there tomorrow, which will be about the same temperature.

Hopefully, you will hear from me in the next week to assure you I am still among the living. But if not, I would prefer my funeral was more like a party, so bring the bottles of bubbly and thudding bass tunes!

The reveal.

2012-01-15T21:25:00.000-08:00

So.
I will not mention names, but apparently some people were getting impatient waiting for the revealing of the big excitement I had a while ago.
Now, to be honest, I wasn't doing this to keep you in suspense. I just have a habit of promising things, and then forgetting to follow through, no matter the fact that it's staring me in the face every time I visit my blog.

You probably guessed it by now, but just for the satisfaction of the much loved 'before' and 'after' pictures, I will post the big news.

Yes, I got my braces off!
Only about 7 months late. But now that they are off, I'll stop being bitter about that fact.

Of course, there was really no point in having the braces at all. They were put on for a specific reason, that was not straightening my teeth, and they didn't fix the problem.
That's kind of a bummer, but there's not much I can do about all that.

I'm just so happy. I can eat apples again!

Tales from the work site.

2012-01-13T20:49:00.000-08:00

For all you girls out there, who thought that working on a construction site would be helpful in growing up and showing the world what you are made of, think again.

Instead of feeling grown up, you will feel younger.
Because you will have a whole list of father-type men who will be looking out for you and trying to prevent you from spreading your wings.

Or maybe it's just me.

Lance asked me to help him in the scaffolding yesterday. Lance being a young guy, knowing that I was fully capable.
Of course, I didn't make him aware that I was scared of heights until I got to 3 stories off the ground.
*pause* Okay. I'm not totally scared of heights. Heck, I was cliff jumping this summer. But, the scaffolding was sketchy. Of course it was. The whole reason I was supposed to be going up there was to secure it.*

But we were doing the job and I was remembering to breathe and everything was just fine.

Until Fatherly figure #1 came along and told me that if I was not totally comfortable with doing this I should come down, because if I fall, I will not be living to tell the tale after.
Pf. I had the hang of it down and I was good to go.
But FF#1 must have told FF#2 who happens to be my boss, who came along and told me to get down.
:(. So much for trying to prove my worth.

Haha.

Okay. So I was semi relieved at not having to be up there anymore, but..
Sometimes I wonder if these guys think the only thing I am good for is sweeping?

They didn't have a problem with the other guy doing the same job and he was taking even more risks.

I guess I should just enjoy being a child while I still can.

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Today, I was going out after work, and since I didn't want to be trying to get ready in my car in the freezing cold, I made up my face and put contacts in before I left for work in the morning.

Boy, was that a bad idea.

Apparently going from no make up and glasses, to heavy make up and contacts is quite the difference.
I was getting comments all day about it.
I'm not very good at accepting compliments.
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There is this one guy who keeps calling me Hailey. I answer to it now, because I know he means me. I haven't tried to correct him. I guess I am just seeing how long it will go before he figures it out or someone tells him.
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TILT

2012-01-12T20:49:00.000-08:00

1. My favorite meal for dinner.
2. Free money from the government.
3. Okay-ish looking passport photos.
4. Whispering.
5. Great sales on Fruit Gushers.
6. Rae's new little sister. Yet to be named. I'll give you a little more back story at a later date.

Like new.

2012-01-08T14:02:00.000-08:00

Something really exciting happened this week.
Like super duper exciting.
*Not being able to sleep like on Christmas eve* exciting.
Want to take a guess?

4 ways to stick to your New Year's Resolutions.

2012-01-02T19:35:00.000-08:00

"Some 44 percent of Americans make New Year's Resolutions, but although resolutions are fun to make, they're hard to keep. To help yourself keep yours, try these strategies:

1. Be specific. "Make more friends" and "Strengthen friendships" are vague resolutions. Make yours more concrete: "Remember birthdays," "Make plans," or "No gossip".

2. Write it down.

3. Review your resolution constantly. If your resolution is buzzing through your head, it's easier to stick to.

4. Hold yourself accountable. Tell other people about you resolution, join or form a like-minded group, score yourself on a daily chart-- whatever helps make you feel accountable." -The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

I needed a new calender for the year 2012, so I stopped by the calender store in the mall which was of course having big sales. I spent a lot of time in there. There were so many that I wanted, but I couldn't narrow it down. For some reason I felt as if this was a huge deal. I spent so much time in there that the cashier even made a remark about it. Boy, did I feel silly.
I treated myself to a daily flip calender as well, because it seemed like something that would help me on this whole road of appreciation and thankfulness.

Of course, I've cheated and looked ahead already to get an idea of what it's all about.
Some are applicable, some are confusing but I'll work them out as I get to them, such is life, no?

I won't be writing down each one every day but I'm sure throughout the year I will be posting some of the really good ones, like yesterdays:

"Happiness comes not from having more, not from having less, but from wanting what you have"

I think that was perfect advice, for anyone, but especially for me, going into this season of trying to save every penny for traveling when I feel like going out and buying things every weekend.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T19:21:00.000-08:00

Here's to the many adventures ahead in 2012.

Counting down the hours.

2011-12-31T13:41:00.000-08:00

Today it the last day of 2011.

I'm not a big believer in the whole 'it's a new year, fresh start' deal.
Sure, it's good to make resolutions if you are the type who will actually persevere and see them through. But if you are the person who just makes them because that's the thing to do, and then a week later you quit, well then, what's the point?

I looked through my January posts of this year and couldn't find my 2011 resolutions, which might be a good thing because I only vaguely remember some, and I definitely did not complete them. Did I attempt, and go for more than a week? Yes. So I think it's safe to say I can try again this year.

Looking back on 2011, I had some fun times, but I wouldn't say it was a spectacular year. Just a normal one. This year I moved away from home, applied for Bible School and made some new quality friendships. But it also just felt like a waiting year. Nothing big was happening and I was always just wanting to be at the next step already. I don't regret anything I did, though. And I think that's a pretty good sign.

Towards the start of the year I found a song that I made into my 'song of the year' and I tried to remember to play it whenever I was feeling down and discouraged. And when it did randomly play on my ipod I used that time to think about life and just be glad for where I was in it. I'm sad this year has ended if only because that means I have to leave that song behind and pick a new one.

It even has a focus on England, which is neat because it's my life goal to live there.
Oh p.s. I found this song BEFORE it became a top 40 hit. just an fyi.

So, my goals for 2012 are these:

1. Spend more time with Reggie. I thought I'd start out nice and easy with a light hearted one :). But a little more seriously. The idea of stopping what I'm doing, taking a seat and spending time without distractions.
I know I have been spending more time at home so it might not feel like I am as busy, but even when I am at home I fill that time up. Usually with the computer, or watching movies. So I need to learn how to clear my head, and think about things that really need to be addressed. I am not so great with that.

2. Get baptized. My pseudo sister has actually already drawn out a contract and forced me to sign :) so expect that to be happening very soon.

3.Start my post secondary education. I don't try to hide the fact that I hate school, and I'm not very good at it. Partner that with the fact that I have no idea what I want to do, and it makes it an impossible situation. But I'm hoping that in my time at Bible school I will be able to learn enough about myself that I will have an idea what should be happening next.

4.Write 1 original song and record it. There is back story behind that, but I don't feel like going into it.

I'm going to stop there.
I feel as these things will give me enough on my plate without adding any more.

Happy New Years!
And let's all try and get used to writing a new year down instead of 2011, I know it will take me a couple weeks at least.

Layered Pumpkin Loaf Recipe.

2011-12-30T23:27:00.000-08:00

Yumm!

1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 egg whites, divided
1/2 cup low fat buttermilk
1/4 cup canola oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
1 package (8 ounces) Neufchatel cream cheese (1/3 reduced fat), softened
1/4 cup pepitas, chopped (optional)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, stir pumpkin, 1 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, 3 egg whites, buttermilk and oil, until combined.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Add to pumpkin mixture and fold gently just until moistened.
In a small bowl, beat cream cheese, remaining granulated sugar and remaining egg white until well blended.
Spoon half the pumpkin batter into a 9x5-inch loaf pan sprayed with cooking spray. Spread the cream cheese mixture in a layer over that batter. Top cream cheese layer with remaining pumpkin batter (You will want to spread the top pumpkin layer a little bit with a silicone spatula, but it is ok if a little cream cheese is still visible).
Sprinkle the top layer with chopped pepitas, if desired. It helps to gently pat the pepitas into the batter
Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 5 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Loosen bread from sides of pan; cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan to wire rack; cool completely.

Hannah's Notes: I didn't add the pepitas.

There seemed to be a little too much cream cheese mixture.

Also a little too much batter in general. Maybe do two small loaf pans

instead of the one 5 by 9, or risk filling it too full and having it rise way

too high and falling a lot.

I will definitely be trying this recipe to make muffins at a later date.

Original recipe source here.

Rolled Sugar Cookies Recipe.

2011-12-30T21:36:00.000-08:00

You can find the original source here.
I encourage you to click on the link and check out her blog. She has lots of other yummy recipes.
But I made a simplified look for those of you who would like to print the recipe out and try it.
You can find that here.

It says only to cook them for 5 minutes or they will brown and turn crunchy.
But personally, I like them crunchy :).
And if you are like me, you will open a tub of store bought icing rather than making a homemade one. Icing has never been one of my specialties.

Cranberry Bliss Bar Recipe

2011-12-30T18:01:00.000-08:00

I'm doing the recipes on different posts for sake of short posts and easier referencing later.

Have you ever been to Starbucks and tried their Cranberry Bliss Bar?
To be honest, I never have. But I figured if it's from Starbucks it must be good.
Now, I'm sorry to the person who originally pointed me in the direction, but I've completely forgotten who you were/are :).

Of course, I've never had the actual thing so I don't know for sure this is what it should taste like, but it tastes pretty great to me, anyway.

Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed

3 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup diced dried cranberries

6 ounces white chocolate, cut into chunks

Frosting

4-ounces cream cheese, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

4 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup diced dried cranberries

Drizzled Icing

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

2 teaspoons vegetable shortening

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Make cake by beating butter and brown sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, ginger, and salt and beat well. Gradually mix in flour until smooth. Mix 3/4 cup diced dried cranberries and white chocolate into the batter by hand. Pour batter into a well-greased 9x13" baking pan. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly across the pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until cake is light brown on the edges. Allow cake to cool.

3. Make frosting by combining softened cream cheese, 3 cups powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. When the cake has cooled, use a spatula to spread frosting over the top of the cake.

4. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of diced cranberries over the frosting on the cake.

5. Whisk together 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and shortening. Drizzle icing over the cranberries in a sweeping motion or use a pastry bag with a fine tip to drizzle frosting across the top of the cake.

6. Allow cake to sit for several hours, then slice the cake lengthwise (the long way) through the middle. Slice the cake across the width three times making a total of eight rectangular slices. Slice each of those rectangles diagonally creating 16 triangular slices.

Makes 16 bars.

Click here for recipe source.

T.I.L.T. Christmas Edition

2011-12-29T21:37:00.000-08:00

1. Taking a walk down the road early Christmas morning before everyone else has woken up.
2. Not working for 9 whole days!
3.Hanging out with my family. That great sense of happiness and perfection when you are all gathered around, joking and laughing over things that happened years ago.
4. Boxing day shopping. Hah. This is only the second time I have been. And I don't mind it that much. It's all just a bunch of waiting in lines, which I might have liked better if I had though to bring my book. But then I would probably have looked too nerdy.
5. The great things that come from boxing day shopping. Example: A scarf with giraffes on it!
You cannot imagine the rush of excitement I got when I saw this thing. There was a never a doubt in my mind about buying it.

Giraffes? Brilliant!

6. Inviting non related friends to the Christmas dinner and giving them the third degree the entire night.
Poor Brian. I guess since we all know each other, dinners like this get a tad old, so we bring in new comers to spice things up. We pummeled him with questions about his life pretty much all night.
7. Turkey Sandwiches. Bread, mayo, cranberry sauce, turkey and just the right amount of salt and pepper. It might sound less than delectable, but to me it is the ultimate combination of tastes.
8. Doing Christmas baking AFTER Christmas. Less stress, and then you don't have to share with your holiday guests :D.
I will be posting recipes for three yummy recipes as a follow up later.

In the case of this post, I believe less is more,
you get just a little hint of what makes my Christmas happy.

Back to work blues...

2011-12-18T21:26:00.000-08:00

My weekend was amazing.
What makes it so great, you ask?

Answer: The absence of everything.

Once upon a time I was a social butterfly that couldn't imagine spending 5 waking hours at home, much less a whole weekend. But I've grown up, and now it's my favorite thing to do.

It's not that I sleep the day away.
Oh, no.
Being a 'mature' adult comes with a mature internal alarm clock that wakes me up at seven thirty on a Saturday. But I read in bed for hours, which is a luxury that is unimaginable on a weekday.

And when it comes to Sunday night, the thought of having to start a new week does not lift my spirits one bit. It makes me quite cranky.

So here are five happy things, since in a round about way this post has been a complaint :).

1. 9 days off at Christmas.
2. Tuesday dinner with the Pseudo family.
3. Expensive, almost-never-been-used hand me downs.
4. Eating fatty foods all day Saturday but not gaining a pound.
5. Sleep. Goodnight....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Every day I'm shovelin'

2011-12-17T19:32:00.000-08:00

I guess one of the reasons I have been avoiding this post is because there is so much I could say, but it also seems like there isn't anything to say at all.
I'll give it a whirl anyways.

I have a new job. Well, been at it for 3 weeks now but it still feels pretty new.
I work on a construction site.

*pause for astonished gasps and questioning looks*

Yupp.

Okay, okay. I'll try and explain myself.

Rewind three and a half weeks earlier.

While still happily working away in my Arbys occupation, I get an offer to work on a construction site as a cleaner (I'm not sure there is an official term for what I do). They didn't really give me much description of the job or really anything information about...anything. But all I did know was it was full time hours and a heck of a lot more than I was getting paid at my current job. So I agreed to go in for an interview.

Pretty sure what I experienced cannot be considered an interview in any way.
Kind of went like this. *yes I admit I will be exaggerating but not by much*

Bossman: We need someone to clean, and pick up nails.
Me: I love to clean.
Bossman: You'll be getting paid ~~/per hour, is that alright?
Me: Yupp.
Bossman: Can you start tomorrow?

Honestly that was it. That and a little speech about how if any of the guys were to give me problems I should tell him straight away.
I didn't even give a resume.

So that was on a Wednesday but I didn't start until the Monday after. And the whole weekend I was just a bundle of nerves seeing as I didn't even really know what I was going to be required to do!
I had no clue what cleaning a construction site would entail.

I got the cutest boots though. Haha, listen to me being all girly. They are steel toed because it's a requirement. A high visibility safety vest and a hard hat are also requirements, which is why you will not be seeing a picture of my day to day work 'uniform'.

The cuteness of my boots only lasted the two days before I started work though, because all I did the first day was sweep the underground parking lot. And by the end of the day, those boots looked like they had already been in service for years. I was quite disappointed.

I don't want to bore you with details of that first day of sweeping.
But I'll tell you that that is what I do the most.
Sweep.
Because of course twenty minutes after I sweep a certain spot it just gets dirty again. So it makes for a never ending job.

I have dabbled in other things as well.

Vacuuming.
Stripping. Hah. Funny story. I was taking some nails out of a board and one of the guys walks by and he asks if I had gotten any stripper jokes yet. And I was just so confused, until he explained that the job I was doing was called stripping.

On that side note: The guys that I work with are really nice. I know the cliche construction man is rude, inappropriate and all of that but the only thing I have had a problem with so far is their language. Oh my, do these guys swear up a storm. Not pleasant to listen to at all.

Shoveling.
Since it has snowed the last couple days that it what I do all day, instead of sweeping. I guess it makes for a fit body at least. Cause that snow is sure heavy.

So that is just a little hint of what I am doing right now, I'm sure as the days go on I will have many more little stories that may include some of the nicknames I have created for the guys in my head, such as 'Creepy man', 'Gramps', or 'Dobby'.

Oh. By the way, it is a hotel construction site. Building a new Sandman hotel which is apparently going to have a 4.5 star rating. If you ever want to check out the building, you can find us on Lorne Street across from Riverside Park.

P.s. I bought a tool belt yesterday. It's getting pretty official.

Things that are yummy.

2011-12-14T19:25:00.000-08:00

Michael Bublé

Sometimes you just have to remember that I'm a teenage girl :).

To be honest, I've never really listened to his music. But when you get a free song from Starbucks 'Pick of the Week', you go for it. And I actually have been tempted to buy his Christmas album.
We shall see.

Iris = Message.

2011-12-10T14:06:00.000-08:00

A mesmerizing, moving, and elegantly written debut novel, The Language of Flowers beautifully weaves past and present, creating a vivid portrait of an unforgettable woman whose gift for flowers helps her change the lives of others even as she struggles to overcome her own troubled past.

The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in communicating grief, mistrust, and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings.

Now eighteen and emancipated from the system, Victoria has nowhere to go and sleeps in a public park, where she plants a small garden of her own. Soon a local florist discovers her talents, and Victoria realizes she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But a mysterious vendor at the flower market has her questioning what’s been missing in her life, and when she’s forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it’s worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.

(review from Amazon.com)

Thursday.

2011-12-08T16:38:00.000-08:00

1. *sometimes* I get the urge to write sentences sans capitals. I think it looks cute. But only sometimes (read: almost never). All the other times I can't stand not having capitals. I 'm confusing like that.

2. saying the word sans instead of no. It makes me seem more french, oui? :D

3. Dressing up on the weekends. When you work a job like mine, and you feel nasty and unattractive all week it's nice to slip on a dress and look good for a change.
4. The boss letting you off an hour and half early.

5. Spending a little time before bed each night, with the lights off and my little fake candles flickering in the darkness.
6.Crossing off the to do list.

7. Getting texts that ACTUALLY make me 'lol'. (That's the best you are going to get, buddy.)
8.Unexpected happiness.

9. My purple pen. Strange, since I don't like purple.
10. My new Visa!

11. Peppermint Mocha's. Okay, I know I have already gone on about these things, but seriously? They are the best! I sat in Starbucks for a while after work yesterday, reading my book and sipping my PM and it was just a delightful time.

Ravings of a Tuesday.

2011-12-06T18:51:00.000-08:00

Something that I dislike:
Politeness.

Hah.
I better explain myself here, before I lose all of my followers.

I dislike the forced politeness, the kind that doesn't really mean anything, and doesn't help at all.
Case in point:

"Hey, how are you?"

Now, if you are friends with the person and they honestly want to know how you are, that is one thing.
When the person is just asking out of 'politeness' and doesn't even really stop to hear the answer, that is when it annoys me.

And nobody ever really tells the truth anyway. It's always "Fine", "Good", "Great", etc.

I would rather we skip all that and go with just a nice "Hello" instead of going through the stages of common courtesy.

*Moving on to next segment*

Today at work, Sparky*, asked me how I was doing. Now this is a guy who actually stops to talk to me so I knew it was more than just going through the motions. I paused, and said "Good, I guess.". He replied with, "Good? A 'you are alive and here' type of thing?". And I agreed.

Which brings me to my main point of the day.

A lot of us when we reply to this question say something neutral, usually tending to go with the "Fine"s and "Not too bad"s. Because in our mind, we aren't doing too great, although we don't want to admit it in polite conversation.
But honestly? We are doing way better than we think we are.

Here are some #Firstworldproblems that we face, click on the link if you want to laugh at how needy North Americans are.

Now, I wasn't expecting this post to go in the directing of 'the glad game', but why not? (if you have never read or watched Pollyanna then I'm disappointed.)

I could say I'm not doing so well because I had to wake up at six in the morning to drive twenty minutes to work only to get there and have to work for 8 hours in the cold.
Or I could be thankful for the fact that I am alive(!), have a job, a car, and a body that is able to work. The list could go on but I'm just giving you an example here.

Living here in Canada, we are blessed with SO MUCH. But we don't even realize it. It's sad really.
I have been privileged to travel to Haiti, Jamaica, and Mexico and I have seen people living in desperate situations. My heart was saddened by this, but not enough apparently, because I still complain when Tim Hortons messes up my order three times in a row.

Over this next week. every time I complain or think I am having a bad day, I am going to challenge myself to think of five things I am blessed to have.
I encourage you to do the same, or just take moment now to.

*Names have been changed to protect the innocent(or not so)

P.s. One of these days I'm planning on writing a post on my new job. I keep having great ideas for it, but by the time it gets around to writing, I have forgotten them all.

Sometimes...

2011-12-04T13:29:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to decide why you read my blog.
There are a couple categories that you might label yourself as.
1. My mother, trying to find out information about my life, since I withhold it from her in 'real life'.
2. My stalker. People always warn you from saying too much personal information online just in case someone is collecting that info and using it against you. But I really can't be bothered with thinking through everything I say. Maybe I'm hoping if I say something too personal, you will warn me and I can remove it before I am murdered in my sleep.
3. The friends that feel obligated to read just in case I ask them at any given moment "Did you read my blog?"
4. Then, I like to believe there is a small group of faithful readers who read my thoughts because they actually enjoy them. Maybe not to learn new things, I hardly think I am teaching you guys anything, but to laugh, because laughing is good for the soul.

The most wasted of all days is that in which we have not laughed. ~Nicolas Chamfort

If you have any other categories you would like to share, go ahead. Maybe you will be able to make me laugh as well.

Second day at work.

2011-11-29T16:41:00.000-08:00

Boy at work: Hey, Hannah. Do you like to party?
Hannah: No.
A couple minutes of him trying to figure out why not.
B.A.W.: Well, I'm having a party at my place in Saturday if you want to come.
H: Uhhhhhh. No, thanks.

Then B.A.W. gets in trouble for talking to a girl instead of doing his job.

Things I love Thursday.

2011-11-24T18:35:00.000-08:00

1.peppermint mocha
2.free stuff
3.I want you-Andrew Allen
4.ranch dressing
5.the post it note feature on my laptop
6.sleeping for almost eleven hours, but all before the hour of 10 am
7.packages that come right to the door(doesn't matter that they aren't for me)
8.excitement
9.peanut butter cups
10.Taylor Swift. She just fits every mood.
11.Can't Breathe- Fefe Dobson
12.making other peoples birthday special
13.Organizing and cleaning.
14getting three dollar tips
15.long weekends
16.payday

things to know about me.

2011-11-23T19:43:00.000-08:00

1. I like watching movies with subtitles. Not foreign films with English subtitles, but English movies with English subtitles.
2.I use black ink pens. And I would go out of my way to find one before having to settle for a blue, or horrors, RED!
3. I prefer Goodhost iced tea. And I've been having cravings for it all the time.
4.You know all those hair product/dye commercials with all the super shiny, smooth, soft hair? I have that hair. But I don't need computer editing or a special shampoo to achieve it. I'm not trying to be arrogant. It's just truth.
5.I'm not a huge fan of cats. But I do enjoy owning black cats, as long as I get to start from kittenhood. And they are all named Merlin.
6. I don't watch horror movies, scary movies at all really. That's two hours of your life that you will never get back and they aren't enjoyable. I make an exception for zombies. You've got to keep informed.
7.I am very orderly...in some departments. It drives me nuts to have emails in my inbox, so almost immediately after being read they either get sent off to the deleted, or one of my many folders designated for certain people or topics. Also that way if I need to reply to a message it shortens up my procrastination period since I get frustrated seeing them in my inbox waiting every time I log on to hotmail.
My texting inbox used to work the exact same way. Only now with my new black berry I can't do that anymore since I have "threads"(one of the reasons I do not use gmail). I'm still getting used to it. The fruit technology and I are not yet in a happy place with each other.
8. To say I'm picky when in comes to food, could possibly be an understatement. There is a list longer than my two arms length put together of food that I do not touch. Included in that list is: Raisins, Olives, Rootbeer, watermelon, pineapple(exceptions when eating it in a country where it is grown.), Pie and icecream, blueberries, cream soda,
9.I dddddooonnn'tt like water on my face. Like being splashed, or going underwater, or even washing my face. I still do that last one :) I just try and get it over and done with as quickly as possible.
10. I cry. I am a sympathetic crier. Whether it's in a book, movie, tv show or real life...if it is sad, I will cry.
11. I don't like being judged. Apparently I'm not an open book, and people can't read me right. Because I am frequently surprising people who didn't think I would 'do that' or 'say that' or 'like that'. It upsets me.
Just because you know me, don't think you know every little detail about me.
12. One of my biggest pet peeves is people spelling names without capitalization. Especially my name.

New toys!

2011-11-22T23:18:00.001-08:00

The night I got home from hanging with Kelsey, I found a surprise in the kitchen, and I could not wait until the next day to test it out.

My new flat top oven.
This baby has features ‘to die for’, although I don’t see the point for some.
Who needs a warming drawer? You might use that once a year at Christmas, if that.

But I definitely do like the convection oven. Even more so now that I have tried it out.

I never expected my best batch of cookies to be gluten free.
If this oven can turn gluten free items into glimpses of heaven, I can only imagine what my cookies will taste like when I return to eating normally.

For the interested, here is the recipe I used this time. Similar to my last cookie recipe seeing as this one calls for Tahini but since I didn’t have any I just substituted peanut butter .

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip & Tahini Cookies .

Embarrassing secret time?

2011-11-17T22:36:00.000-08:00

The title was just to hook you :).
It's not actually embarrassing.

I have a thing for...black and white polka dots.
And this was confirmed to me when I walked into Value Village today, and spotted these beauties.

It didn't matter that,
1. My feet hate flats. Legitimately. They are either too loose and rub, or too tight. Never a happy medium. And already I was feeling a bit of rubbing, but I convinced myself that these shoes were different.
2. I have so many shoes! And some have not even trotted out of the house on my feet yet!
3. I really am not supposed to be spending money at the moment. And I have been doing a good job of that, until today.

The second I laid eyes on them, I knew they were coming home with me.

This will be added to my collection which includes: two bathing suits, and one finely accessorized Rae (my Canon Rebel. Should my love for naming inanimate objects be another blog post?).

My spread might seem small, but even I, the very fashion illiterate, know that not every polka dotted item is a find. And going through the racks of the second hand store today proved to me that it can be super cute, or super hideous.
It will take years and a cautious mind to round out the hoard.

P.S. Well, it's a good thing I procrastinate publishing my posts for hours, because it gave me time to find another dotty item that I possess.
It's a purse.
And please forgive me for buying something name branded. It is not usually my custom.
But it was on sale and I love the colours so it was a must. On that side note: I have never been a fan for pink but I have fallen in love with salmon-ey pinks recently.

Hey, soul sister.

2011-11-12T17:47:00.000-08:00

Now, I know I don't have a legitimate sister, and can't say I've ever had a deep craving for one.
But I have the closest thing next to that. And it is definitely more than I could hope for.

Meet my 'sister' Kelsey.

Photo Credit: Rebekah H.

I love this girl, and the accompanying family that comes with, so very much!
She is the kind of friend who, it doesn't matter if its been days, weeks or months since you last saw her, she is still as close as ever and you can talk about anything with.

She makes me feel good to just be around her, and she challenges me to be a better person.
But when I haven't been 'the better person' that doesn't stop her from loving me the same.

Not only is she special and fun, she is also has celiac disease which makes switching over that much easier since I already have an idea of what to do and what not to eat thanks to years of making Gluten free meals with her.

I spent my Friday night with her. It's amazing how quickly time can pass without having much to show for the hours. We made some cookies, and they are amazing.
And this is well deserved praise coming from the girl who rarely eats her own baking and had not eaten a cookie in months just because I don't like them enough to.

I ate three! And then another two in the morning (by the way, morning after tasted almost as good).
Maybe I just enjoy GF more than I ever would normal food.

Unbelievably fabulous: Gluten Free Peanut Butter & Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
From Gluten Free Gobsmacked

Download a copy of this recipe here.

Recipe makes 24 -28 small (1.5 inch) cookies or 12 -18 large (2.5 inch+) cookies
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, cold but not hard
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter)
1 egg
1 1/12 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup GF Flour OR 2/3 cup millet flour + 1/3 cup sweet rice flour
1/2 GF-certified oats (OR 1/2-2/3 cup sliced almonds)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (OR peanut butter-chocolate chips, or chocolate chunks, etc)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F if baking (not freezing) the cookies.
Cream together butter, white sugar and brown sugar for 4 minutes on medium.
Add vanilla and egg. Beat mixture again for 2 minutes on medium-high.
Add peanut butter. Beat again for 2 minutes on medium-high.
Add flour(s), oats, baking soda and salt. Mix again. Dough will be exactly like regular cookie dough.
Quickly and carefully (so as not to mash them) mix in the chocolate chips and chocolate chunks.
If you are freezing the cookies, form in to the size ball that you want. Place the balls on a plate so that they are not touching. Place the plate of cookie balls with a loose covering of plastic wrap in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. When the balls have hardened and are no longer super-sticky, move them into a freezer-ready package (freezer bag or other type of freezer container). Use as you would any other frozen cookie ball. Remove as many as you wish and bake at 350F for 15-18 minutes (small cookies) or 22-25 minutes (larger ones). Watch the baking time as it will vary based on the size of your cookie, how frozen/cold the cookie dough, and your oven. The photo above shows the golden brown tinges that you are looking for to determine “doneness”.
If you are baking the cookies right away, shape into balls. (I use my ice cream scoop when wickedly lazy and wish for large cookies. It works great with this recipe. I might just have to invest in the little cookie scoops.)
Place the cookies on a cookie sheet covered with a silpat or parchment paper. Bake for 11-13 minutes for small cookies or for 15 – 18 minutes for large ones.
Remove from the oven when the top begins to turn golden brown. (See the photo above.) Allow the cookies to cool for 3-4 minutes before attempting to move them on to a cooling rack. Cool and pack for transport to work (or to a hiding place in the kitchen for your secret stash of goodness).

*If you visit her website she has a recipe for her GF flour, or just use your usual method of flours.
Kels handled that part so I don't know which ones we used.

General Report.

2011-11-10T22:36:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys.
So my posts have been so all over the place I really don't know what YOU know.
Which means I will just ramble on about my life of late, and you can skip the parts you already know about.
Because I realize that some of you might get duplicate messages sometimes since you talk to me in person and read my blog.

At the very end of August I packed up my car, and drove back to Kamloops for the time being.
Even from the start of September I was already job hunting since that was one of the biggest reasons I was excited to be home. Working at childrens camp can be really fun and rewarding but it never felt like work to me. And I sort of need that feeling.

But the job market here has not been so swell. That, and the fact that I can be pretty picky.
Well, the time for pickiness was over as the weeks crept by and still there were no 'perfect' prospects for me. So, one day, while on kijiji.com scouting out the latest job postings, I noticed an ad for Arby's.

The Job
I was at a low point.
And they were hiring full time.
I applied.

I got the job!
Only they tricked me and it wasn't full time.

So for the last month, I have been working at Arby's. And I enjoy it.
I was just realizing that I love customer interaction, and I get plenty of that there.
Also 50% off all Arby's food. (confession:before starting there I had never had any of the food except for the milkshakes and curly fries, oh and a potato. So I'm a pretty big newb.)
One thing I have had to get used to it the change of pace.
Tim Hortons is always go, go, go. And there is ALWAYS something to do.
Arby's has its rushes. But it also has a lot of down time, where there is nothing to do. And it's hard for me to just stand there and not be working. And it makes the day go that much slower.

The Work Out!
Um. Where are all my accountability partners? Because the work out has come to a halt and I need motivation.
But honestly, since I have slacked off and not done the physical exercise, I have felt worse. And guilty.
So..tomorrow I will get back on that horse.

On a maybe somewhat related note:

The Diet!
No eye rolling, people!
I am making wise, healthy choices.
And I am on a wheat free/gluten free diet for a while.
Don't actually know how long I will be able to keep it up, but hopefully somewhere along the lines of a month. Or longer, but I already told my mother I'm calling it quits for Christmas.
I don't know if I should be feeling the difference, already. I haven't really thought of noticing differences yet. So we'll just leave that for a while.

Other than that..nothing much goes on in my little life.
I am pretty reclusive outside of my work life. And I tend to spend my weekends at home instead of out and about. I read a lot, and I keep up with quite a few tv shows.

The brother is away on vacation in Mexico right now, but once he returns I will forcing him to work on those renos every waking non-working moment until it is finished.

Forgotten Appreciation Syndrome.

2011-11-06T00:13:00.000-07:00

Today as I was driving home sipping my melted iced capp from Tim Hortons it brought memories.
When I lived on the little Quadra Island I had to drive 5 minutes to a ferry, take a ten minute ferry, then walk 5-10 minutes to get to my nearest Timmies. Quite the hassle for a frozen beverage, especially when you factor in that it is now costing you five dollars more(the cost of a ferry ticket).

But I would make that trek. And if I knew somebody was coming back from Campbell River I would request that they bring me an iced capp because I would rather a warm melted one over nothing at all.

While I was living there, I had to go without many things and each of those things seemed so important at the time I kept telling myself that when I got back to living in 'civilization', I would be constantly thankful for being able to get or get to everything so easily.

But it rarely happens.

Or like when you have a cold and your nose is all stuffed up and you are just generally feeling quite horrible. And you think that once that is gone you will appreciate every uninhibited breath you take in.
It doesn't happen.

My mind just went blank, so I don't really know where I was going with this. Maybe I didn't have a point in the beginning...so I'll just end here.
Next post up will be a general life post seeing as it's been a while since I told you what I'm up too.
I will unveil the exciting new job news and how my workout plan is progressing(or not progressing)

Stay tuned.

Birthdays are all about:

2011-10-31T23:46:00.000-07:00

Free drinks from Starbucks.

Dressing up with your bestie.

Flowers from your boyfriend.

Treating yourself to something you usually wouldn't buy.

Feel the burn...and do it anyway.

2011-10-28T22:31:00.000-07:00

*Disclaimer: I'm sure as some of you read this, you will scoff, and do a funny little pained laugh. You might even mutter under your breath, "This little teeny, stick-like girl has no idea what weight gain and fatty issues are!". So I want to be sure that you realize I'm past wanting to lose weight for the sake of looking thinner and I'm in the game to make myself healthier. Basically, I want to be able to run a kilometer without stopping to gasp for breath, and also crave good food instead of junk.*

Before I left for the island, I was a nice comfortable weight. I was happy with myself, and I even decided that I would use this time away from home to make myself even healthier and happier.

HA!

Reality hit.
A reality that is eating three meals a day, plus snacks! Oh, and the cook's specialty was bread so there was plenty of grains (CARBS!) every day.

My metabolism had never been put to the test that hard before. And the thing about my homeschooled self is, we aren't really familiar with tests...point of the matter is...it failed, hard.

I gained 17 pounds.
Every time I think about that, I shock myself again. 17 pounds. How is that possible?
It didn't show that much. But I was just a little thicker all around.

In May I tried to fix it.
I set up a schedule, ran every day. Put myself on a food plan that included: No caffeine, no white flour, limited sugars, no food after eight.
But living at camp and trying to have a restricted diet doesn't work that well, and it was hard to find time to squeeze in my runs.

So here I am.
I have the time, the lack of funds for eating out, and (what I hope will be) dedication.
Oh and the motivation now that I'm posting this online where all my readers can see.

I will be biking/running on even days and working on my core on odd days.
Hopefully, we'll see results in time.
But don't worry, I will not be doing one of those horrid before and after pictures where I display myself in a minuscule bikini.

A night of orange.

2011-10-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

To tell you the truth, I am not a big fan of Halloween.
So what if I was born on the day, maybe that in part is one of the reasons I don't particularly like this holiday(if you can call it that.)

North America spends millions of dollars on candy, decorations, and costumes just for ONE DAY!
And unlike Christmas you can't even dig into down to the actual 'reason for the season' cause there is none. Well, not a very important one at least.

Okay maybe I'm just bitter because I was never allowed to go trick-or-treating and there never seems to be time for a birthday dinner ON my birthday. But I like to think its a less selfish reason than that.

Or maybe I'm just stressed over my birthday. I do believe I am the only eighteen year old out there that can't sleep because she is hyperventilating about her birthday. Don't ask.

Now, although I might not like America's reason to spend more money, I do apparently love fall.
I've never really been enthused about fall before, because I guess it's back to school, and it's only reminding me that winter, and SNOW :( is coming.

But the photographer in me has been rejoicing this autumn. It seems almost every day I just glance outside and am compelled to run out with my Canon and snap a few photos of the colour change.
It is SO beautiful!

Another thing I enjoy about this season is pumpkin. As soon as the Pumpkin Spice Muffins are in stock at Tim Hortons, you know I will be slipping in there more than my usual. But the lack of funds have made me reconsider my bakery visit. So instead, I've made it my mission to find the perfect muffin recipe, so I can eat my fill and not worry about paying 1.29 a piece.

Last night I found one at The Pioneer Woman.
She calls it a moist pumpkin spice muffin, but to me it seemed a little too moist.
So after your toothpick comes out clean you might want to wait a couple extra minutes.

I also candied the seeds that came out of my pumpkin, so I could put some on top of my muffins.
I'll tell you one thing, it might work for Starbucks and Tim Hortons, but it does not work for me. So next time I will stop trying to be fancy and omit that part.

It started as a pumpkin. (his name is Progie)

Which then turned into tasty candied treats.

And finally ending on my yummy muffins.

But no pumpkin muffin would be complete without it's cream cheese icing.

I'm a sucker for romance.

2011-10-18T21:45:00.000-07:00

Sean said."I wouldn't have sent you red roses."
She opened her eyes and looked at him. He reached out and put his hand on her cheek, then ran his fingers through her hair.
"I would have sent multicolored daisies, dozens of them in yellow and white and blue and purple and pink and every color I could find."
"Why daisies?" she whispered.
"Because they would make you smile, then laugh, and you would smile again every time you looked at them.
Everytime you saw a daisy, you would think of me. Because no one else would give you such a whimsical bouqet of flowers."

I'd tell what book it was that I read this in...but I cannot remember the title. Maybe it will come to me.

Nostalgia is...

2011-10-17T21:50:00.000-07:00

Chestnuts.

I grew up with a Chestnut tree outside my front door.
We climbed in it a lot.
We played in the dead leaves in the fall.
We had the most fun with the chestnuts when it got to the season when the hard greeny spiky shell could be cracked open and inside was a little brown chestnut. So exciting.
Or just throwing the whole green spiky chestnut at someone. Also very exciting.

So, fast forward six years (at least).
Me and Superman are walking through the park when I kick something in front of me on the pathway.

I looked down.
A small spiky green ball.
It took me a moment to clue in, but when I did I got intensely happy and I promptly stomped on it.

And out shot one of my most favoritest things.

Take a moment to reminisce your childhood.
Or don't.

Just please don't dwell on the fact that I just had a twenty minute photoshoot with a nut. A real nut.

Having a coke with you

2011-10-12T21:36:00.000-07:00

is even more fun than going to San Sebastian, Irún, Hendaye, Biarritz, Bayonne
or being sick to my stomach on the Travesera de Gracia in Barcelona
partly because in your orange shirt you look like a better happier St. Sebastian
partly because of my love for you, partly because of your love for yoghurt
partly because of the fluorescent orange tulips around the birches
partly because of the secrecy our smiles take on before people and statuary
it is hard to believe when I'm with you that there can be anything as still
as solemn as unpleasantly definitive as statuary when right in front of it
in the warm New York 4 o'clock light we are drifting back and forth
between each other like a tree breathing through its spectacles

and the portrait show seems to have no faces in it at all, just paint
you suddenly wonder why in the world anyone ever did them

I look
at you and I would rather look at you than all the portraits in the world
except possibly for the Polish Rider occasionally and anyway it's in the Frick
which thank heavens you haven't gone to yet so we can go together the first time
and the fact that you move so beautifully more or less takes care of Futurism
just as at home I never think of the Nude Descending a Staircase or
at a rehearsal a single drawing of Leonardo or Michelangelo that used to wow me
and what good does all the research of the Impressionists do them
when they never got the right person to stand near the tree when the sun sank
or for that matter Marino Marini when he didn't pick the rider as carefully
as the horse

it seems they were all cheated of some marvelous experience
which is not going to go wasted on me which is why I am telling you about it

—Frank O'Hara

I'm thankful for...

2011-10-09T19:16:00.000-07:00

Reno projects that actually start to look good!

For the two days I didn't report, there was nothing to say. The stuff he worked on was not very exciting and blog worthy. But now things are shaping up and beginning to make it look like a normal bathroom. I won't be going over there every day anymore, but I will hopefully be able to snap a few more pictures for you. An 'After' picture at least.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Renovations day 5: Just a short update tonight.

2011-10-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

We had been laughing and joking about spicy ketchup, eye doctors and Tim Hortons regulars, when Behn saw a drop of water hit the linoleum.
His eyes slowing traveled upward to the ceiling, where there was water coming through from upstairs.
If I had not been raised right, this would have been the part where I started muttering expletives
I did not.

I just followed Behn upstairs, where we somberly started singing together...

"Every town,
has its ups and downs.
Sometimes ups,
outnumber the downs.
But not in Nottingham."

Goodnight everyone.
Better luck tomorrow.

Renos day #4: God provides.

2011-10-04T20:37:00.000-07:00

I love it when prayers get answered.
There is warm tingly feeling in my soul, which has been there for most of today now.

A couple weeks ago I lost my ipod touch. This was upsetting since 1. I had just purchased it in the last year and it was quite expensive and 2. I remember exactly where I had it last and since it was not there half of my mind believed that it must have been stolen, although I ALWAYS lock my doors(of my car). It made me sick to think about it, so I tried not to as much as possible, but every time it did run through my head I would go through that day again trying to remember each little detail wondering where I went wrong.

Fast forward to today.

I'm in a pretty good mood, I mean come on, I have an interview! That's enough to brighten my day all by itself. And I woke up and hour earlier than usual so I had plenty of time to do some cleaning, feed the animals, and even bake a couple batches of cookies.

I really had no reason to bake the cookies but I tried to make myself feel better by creating reasons.
1.I have so many eggs, I need to get rid of them somehow (eggs, anybody? Still have a dozen or so.)
2.My new spatula! iloveitiloveitiloveit. I needed to test it out.
3.The working man. What better way to put Behn in the mood for renos than home baked goodies??

Thee Spatula. Works like a charm. Tupperware, everyone.

Even I couldn't resist these treats.

I can never stop multi-tasking so while I was making the cookies I was getting ready for the interview. Must have gone through five different outfits, but other than that my nerves were fine. Very surprising seeing as I was just a quivering mass of jello for the last interview and I had known that guy for at least two years!

*pause* Getting pretty annoyed with the amount of 'I's' in this story, but there is not much to do about it *

I(!) went to my closet to get out a purse that I was switching my stuff over too and as I pull it out, something heavy drops out onto the ground. MY IPOD!
The sense of relief I had. I cannot even explain it.
As soon as I saw it I let out a "Thank the Lord."

With a light and even happier heart I left for the interview.

The manager was busy, so I sat down at a table to wait. Thinking about how awkward it would be if I got a call during the talk I turned my phone to silent. And waited..
All of the sudden I glance down, I'm receiving a call! I shouldn't answer, but I don't have caller id so I won't know who to call back. I answer it. Just as I say hello I see the manager walking towards me.

Awkward.

I tell him I'll be a second.

It's the manager from another store that I have been waiting to hear from, asking me if I'd like an interview.

The whole situation was a little hilarious and doubly awkward all at the same time.
What are the chances.

The interview went well, I should be getting an answer back either today or tomorrow.
And who knows, maybe I'll end up having two jobs. I think I can manage.

I drove to Behns feeling just so incredibly happy.
I wanted to tell my mother right away! But...figures, she is always out of town when I have something important to tell her.

Oh right. Renos. :).
Nothing really major happened today.
We got the tub put in! Not totally but hopefully the drywall, tub siding and all that jazz will be in tomorrow.
I put a little time in Matthews room again. It frustrates me so much though. So much stuff crammed into a tiny little room so I have nowhere to put everything. And he paints miniatures. I will a get a picture of those next time and explain a little about how much they are a pain in the ass for me when I am trying to clean.

A nice little before/after of his carpet. Probably hadn't been vacuumed since I did at least a year ago.
P.s. Vacuuming has got to be one of my most favorite activities.

Meal of the day. See? I put some health in there.

Behn decided to play some ball hockey tonight so I have the night off!

Psalm 118:24

King James Version (KJV)

²⁴This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Renovations #3: Little by little...

2011-10-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

I woke up with a splitting headache and I just don't know why.
But I forgot about the headache after the rain starting pouring down, I got a job interview and I received two letters in the mail (one being from my favorite superhero)!

I spent awhile zipping around town doing errands. That's one of my favorite things to do. Nothing like having a full list and being able to check off every single item.

I got a lot done today.
Tidied up the front porch so we would no longer be an embarrassment to the neighbours (I'm just guessing that fact, I haven't actually heard anything).
Filed all of Behns papers. The worst.

Started Matthews bedroom..even worse than filing papers.But sorry, no pictures. It will have to be an ongoing project since it is so messy and it makes me sad to even be in there.

Our dinner was less than elegant. But hey, it was in the freezer and since everything has to go at some time or the other, why not? Although I might think about adding vegetables to the menu tomorrow. I am supposed to be the good example.

The male half of our team did... a lot. It just might not seem like a lot.
He is an electrician, not a plumber so this is all a first time thing for him.
Spent a while soldering everything together only to have it leak when he turned the water back on.
So back to undo everything so he could tighten some stuff.

I keep telling him that this is all the hard stuff and it only gets easier from here.

For myself I have the motto "Everything must get worse before it gets better". I must have said that to myself at least 5 times while working on Matthew's room tonight.

Now onto another sleepless night! At least I have the sound of rain pattering on the roof.
Such a lovely noise.

Renos day two:total fail.

2011-10-02T20:44:00.000-07:00

Remember that optimism I was talking about yesterday? It never arrived.
And just walking into Behn's house and seeing boxes of stuff everywhere barely even giving me space to walk across the room...well, my mood wasn't pleasant and I just wanted to turn around and go back home.
But of course I'm a work-a-holic so the show went on.

Another hour and bit spent at Home Depot. I recognized some of the staff from yesterday, it was almost like we are regulars.

Then we took a little break from the hard stuff and played soccer for a while.

We might as well not even gone back the house. Behn figured out he is missing a crucial part so he ran back up to HOME DEPOT. I could not stand going into that store one more time so I stayed home to make supper.
Oh! But the best part happened next. Right before Behn left I went to turn on the kitchen tap and water started spraying EVERYWHERE.
I told Behn it was a test to see how strong under pressure we are. Let's just say we(and only certain parts of we) are pretty weak. But I made him keep going. And it got fixed.

Dinner! This is one of the new projects I'm starting. It's called the 'get rid of all the stuff in the freezer' project. So rather than use my two can dine for 8.99 coupon for Burger King, I burrowed my way through the freezer trying to find some edibles. It was a combination of perogies, italian sausage, tacitos and chicken wings. Not the greatest of meals, but we aren't looking for style and health points at the moment.

So, that's that.
Tomorrow will be better.
We will get lots of work done.
And I will have more pictures for you.

But I have to tell you. This whole running two houses at one time is catching up to me already.
I am going constantly all day. And having really bad sleeps.
And not really taking much time to just relax and enjoy life.
Hopefully I'll find a way to fix this dilemma.

Renovations post #1:What the heck did we get into?!?!

2011-10-01T21:52:00.000-07:00

Something you might need to know before we start this adventure. Us, Lefebvres, are not the DIY type of people. We need to buy it ready to go, or hire somebody to do it for us. So I did not grow up learning out to reno because it just didn't happen at our house. If you can recall the bathroom project of '09.
So, this project is a big deal. It's going to take a lot of work. A lot of money. A lot of "don't you dare take another coffee break, you have only been working for ten minutes!". And since we don't know how to do any of this stuff it might be a little trial and error as well :).

Behn and I had been planning these renovations for a very long time. Well, I've had it in my mind for probably about a year, but I made him aware of it last time I was home for a visit :).
We put it off until now, since our family(part of it at least) is out of town so we didn't have to worry about Matthew being in the way and Behn can come over to the main house for showers.

A couple reasons why this needed to happen.

1. The bathtub. I usually have a pretty good stomach when it comes to cleaning the boys house. But the tub is one thing I couldn't handle. I only remember cleaning it once in the fourish years Behn has lived there.
2. It has carpeted floors. Need I say more?

My morning started a little bit rocky. I woke up at five thirty and could not get back to sleep for a couple hours. When I finally dragged myself out of bed at 9:30am I told myself Behn deserved to sleep in so I wouldn't go over until later.
I texted him at 10:50 giving the half an hour warning.
When I showed up at 11:30 the lights were on and tv was going but he was no where in sight.
I went upstairs to find this:

I gave him a three minute warning and went back down the stairs.

I'm actually not really a part of the reno crew. I'm just more like a cheerleader. I also clean and am very supportive when picking out bathroom appliances, we'll get to that.

So, for the first 4 1/2 hours, he demolished, and I cleaned.

I would now like to introduce you to my best cleaning friend.
Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of great friends that have helped me clean before (the fact that they would clean this house proves how great they are.), but this one tops all.

Today I discovered a relative of his, let me tell ya, we hit it off quite nicely.
*pause* the fact that I am talking about a bleach's family might show you how much of this stuff I inhaled today, wasn't pretty.*
I used that stuff EVERYWHERE. Not too sure if it was meant for linoleum though, so we might have to redo the main floors too :D.

A cautionary note though.
Your best friend does have the capability of back stabbing you, it's the hard, sad truth. So before you get down to work please change out of that new shirt you just bought yesterday :( :(.

About ten to four we had to get the show moving since we had a truckload full of garbage and the city landfill closes at four thirty. It is kind of satisfying getting rid of all that stuff.
Out with the old, in with the new.

The next part, I don't even want to think about.
SHOPPING.
Not my favorite activity.
Especially when in a place like Home Depot. Boring.

We spent two hours in there.
I had a headache within the first ten minutes.
That's all I really want to say about that.

When we came home, I then had to make dinner. Now I know what it feels like to be mother. I am definitely willing to hold that off for a couple more years.

I don't really have any energy to type out all the funny little anecdotes that I was planning while I scrubbed the counters so I will just leave you with the before pictures and go curl up with a chick flick and ice cream. Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow with maybe a little bit more optimism.

A before of the vanity.

Before: The tub.

The carpet. Ew.

:) a nice little 'during demolition'.

"Oh my gosh, I don't know if we can do this!"

All ready for the new.

Not looking so bad after all?

To be continued...

These shoes.

2011-09-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

These Shoes.
(a Haiku* by Hannah)

these shoes like to dance.
these toenails like going out.
they are very sad.

*haiku in the very loosest of terms. I am sure there is more to it than 5/7/5.

Guest post from Reggie.

2011-09-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

Things are getting pretty bad over here guys.

First she buys a water filter for me. Disguised as a gift, but I've noticed this way she doesn't have to spend as much time catering to my every need.

Now she's forgetting to give me my three square meals a day. She tries to make herself feel better about this by providing me with a new tank seeing as she broke the last one.

And now this! She's been fraternizing with the ENEMY!

I don't know when or how everything will be going down but, trust me, you'll be the first to know.

My brain is smarter than I am?

2011-09-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

I guess it possible, and probable.

While texting someone today I wrote out a word.

I didn't know what that word meant.

I had to look it up in the dictionary.

FYI: Dictionary.com is one of my favorite haunts on the world wide web.

To my surprise, the word meant exactly what I had wrote it out to mean.

I guess this comes from my years of learning new words through crossword puzzles.

I'm definitely not a "lol haha :):):) how r u?!" When it comes to texting.

My word?

adjective

full of twists, turns, or bends; twisting, winding, or crooked:a tortuous path.

not direct or straightforward, as in procedure or speech;intricate; circuitous: tortuous negotiations lasting formonths.

deceitfully indirect or morally crooked, as proceedings,methods, or policy; devious.

My day.

2011-09-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

When you have the time like I do, you just have to learn to enjoy it, rather than stress.

Relax.
Enjoy your favorite tea.

Pull out your camera and take a couple shots of your favorite model.

Take the whole afternoon to bake a batch of cookies.

From the personal notes of H. Lefebvre

2011-09-07T17:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Diary,
Today I was super excited about life since I had a hair appointment to get a dye job.
Would you like some back story first?

My hair grows super slow. Imagine normal hair growth and then press slow motion x5. (note:this may be a slight exaggeration)
So, I should really think long and hard about ever permanantly dying my hair since I have to deal with the effects of it for about three years, that being around the amount of time it takes for my hair to grow out a decent amount.
But do I ever give it much serious thought? Well, meh, maybe some.

For the past 8 ish months I have been dealing with layers. Not the good kind of layers that you want a hairdresser to put into your hair. No, I am talking about the very defined layers of color that can show you the recent history of what I thought would be a good idea to have atop my head.

Starting at the very bottom we have the remnants of the black of many years past. Then a very dark brown, followed by a red, followed closely by a blonde which really should never have been there but I got crazy with the sun-in for a couple of days. And at the very roots you could somewhat(or I thought) see my natural which is a lighter brown.

All year I have had to deal with the mess of different shades, and all year I have been waiting for the day I could come home and book an appointment to get it corrected.

That day was yesterday.

I go in, she somewhat explains what is going to be happening. I really have no clue how this all works so I took her word and sat down to enjoy the process.
The process was enjoyable for the first half and hour while everything seemed to be going as planned but once things started to take a turn for the worse, I was not finding everything as relaxing as before.

Going into detail in a blog post is not really my idea of fun so I'll just give you the gist of it.

I went in to have her match my natural colour as close as possible and get rid of all the different shades I have. While at the same time getting rid of as much red as can come out.

I came out over two hours later. With a dark brown in my hair that is so dark it is black..and when the light shines on it it goes red, way more red than I had before.

I'm disappointed to say the least. But more than that is the fact that I will have to put up with it for the next three years while I wait for it to grow out.

It doesn't look bad. But it's just not what I wanted.

Before

After(!)

Hello Kamloops! Goodbye Kamloops!

2011-09-01T22:33:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought I liked solo road trips.
But. Yesterday was agony.
Maybe it was the fact that all I wanted to do was get home.
Can't lie, I definitely went faster than is legal...in any province.

Another thing I didn't like about it was the amount of time I had to just think.
I mean, having time to think is probably a good thing. But not when you are coming off the tail end of summer camp with so many memories and having to leave so many good friends behind.

But I made it through. With the help of several things.

My new little friend.

LISTS! Can't live without them. Definitely would have forgotten one to do one of these vital (or not so vital) things.

I haven't gotten very far so this is not a recommendation at all.

I tried to start unpacking last night but my stuff which seemed like the equivalent of a small elephant when in my car grew to a giant elephant when in my room. There is just not space to put everything. And I really just want to downsize and get rid of most of it, but the sentimental/packrat side of me cannot let go of all the 'things'.

So if you were to walk into my room right now it would like a bomb went off. And there is no semblance of order. I'm not going to worry about it. Instead I'm going to head off to the cabin for the long weekend.

So. Excited.

I have not been out there in the summer for a very long time.
Exactly a year. And even then it was just for a night.
This time I get to spend four days out there.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cannot contain my happiness right now.
I'm going to learn how to wake board.

P.s. Three hours later: I couldn't deal with the mess anymore so I cleaned and unpacked everything and now I will finally post this.

Happy long weekend everybody!

The little things (version two)

2011-08-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

Not only can little things make me very happy, but they can also make me very upset.
Maybe a little explanation is needed on this one.

Have you ever had one of those days where technically you should be happy cause nothing majorly bad has occurred but on the other hand, a whole bunch of little things went wrong and they stacked on top of each other and by the end of it you just want to crawl into bed for a couple hours and cry?

If it's not the fact that I stupidly gashed my thumb it could be...
People giving other people stupid haircuts just to annoy me (you don't deserve to have your name mentioned,hun)...
Or maybe having to stay awake 'til two when I wanted to go to bed at nine...
Getting pushed into the ocean with my clothes on...
With my cell phone in my pocket...
Being told(and honestly at that) that I look like I'm 8 years old.

Sometimes it's just too much for a little Hannah to handle.

On a day like this I just want to take my car and drive really fast for a really long time.
But the fastest you can legally go on Quadra would be 60 and I really don't want to make my day that much worse by getting pulled over and ticketed.

So this is me in my grumpy pants.

P.s. Mom, if you read this...my cell phone is not working. I put it in rice but...it might be dead. So I prolly won't be calling you until the day before I leave. And it will be call collect. Be ready.

These are the facts.

2011-08-21T23:17:00.000-07:00

I was in a bad mood.
For most of the day.

I am terrible at starting fires.

Here is the story.

So, we as support staff(story on that coming later) had to make fires around the camp for hobo dinners.

*pause*
A hobo dinner is where the children put together potatoes, carrots, meat and a few other items together into a fire proof tin foilish type dish and they put it straight into the coals of the fire to cook.

Again I repeat, I am terrible at making fires, so I had to get a CIT to help me.
The bell had just rung and I was freaking out because our fire had not even been started yet and to properly cook the meals you need just coals.
I sent the CIT to start the fire with the little kindling we had made and I would chop some more and follow.

Again I repeat, I was in a bad mood.
A lesson for all you kids out there: Please don't try and chop kindling while you are mad and frustrated.
I really can't recall how it happened exactly, and the fact that the axe I was using is quite dull scares me.
But all I know is I gashed my thumb with the axe, and it's a good thing that Josh was downstairs cutting wood with me or else I might have just crumpled into a ball instead going to get it cleaned and checked out.

Blood freaks me out. This is coming from the girl who when she was 9 wanted to become a nurse. I guess it's a good thing that in the 9 years since I have convinced myself otherwise.
When it is my own blood it is made just that much worse, I have to deal with the pain and blood at the same time and I always blow things up to be bigger than they seem.

Maybe not so much in this case, cause apparently they were that bad. Not as bad as they could be, of course. But bad enough that both Josh and the nurse agreed that I needed stitches.

So that started the adventure of three friends hanging out for the last time.

Me.

Joel.

Jolene.

Although for this story I almost feel as if I should call them Mom and Dad, cause they certainly acted the part.

We managed to leave camp with enough time to catch the ferry(one of the down sides to living on an island, you kind of have to plan your accidents around the BC ferries schedule.

Straight up to the hospital we went.
I had been doing pretty well up 'til that point anxiety wise, but arriving at the hospital kind of got my heart racing again.
It's not really the stitches I was concerned about. It was the Anesthetic. I have a pretty big problem with needles. It didn't help when he told me it would hurt alot. Haha, what kind of doctor says that! He already knew I was uncomfortable with the idea of him sticking a sharp object into my body. But once the freezing took effect I was fine and dandy, and I actually spent the time he was stitching me up...laughing.

As a nice consolation prize for getting 5 stitches in the side of my thumb, we went to McDonalds for supper.
Let me tell you, a hot fudge sundae has never tasted so good.

Waiting for the Doctor to work his magic.

P.s. I really wanted to show you a picture of it, but I felt that might be to much. It does look pretty bad.

Also, blogger is not being my friend so I'm sorry if there are large gaps or the pictures are all over the place. I'll try to fix it once I have more sleep in me.

It's the little things...

2011-08-12T22:33:00.000-07:00

Its the .83 cent blow up water toy that you just can't get over.
It's reading a book for the second time but still enjoying it as much as the first.
It's having naps everyday.

It's receiving a text that really isn't all that spectacular but it still makes you smile for the whole day..and several days in a row.

"When you are embarrassed you smile and I like when you smile."

Happy Friday Everyone!

Things I love Thursday!

2011-08-11T19:44:00.000-07:00

1.Clannah
2.Seeing friends after a long time.
3.Cleaning.
4.Reading.(rereading a Harry Potter, so good.)
5. Discovering new music that I fall in love with.
6.SLEEP! A big hurrah for two hour naps.
7.Daydreaming.
8. 10 painted toe nails.
9. My loverly tan line.
10. Original Burts Bees.
11. Mail. Especially the unexpected time. (is it just me or does it seem that I blog about loving mail alot?)
12. Swimming in warm lakes.
13. Surprising people. Like me..surprising people, in case you were confused.
14.Inpromptu dance parties with myself...brb :).
15. Crayola Scentsations.
16.Panic season discussions in the kitchen.
17. Rice Krispie Squares.
18. Canoeing at sunset with super calm water.
19.Working.
20. Well, I was going to say reading Harry Potter, but apparently I already have that covered.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm very sorry that I have not been keeping you updated.
I don't really have an excuse.
As a matter of fact, I have sat down and opened the computer several times for the very purpose of blogging, but I never actually post my writings. Just not in the mood.

The thing I like the most?

2011-07-23T09:52:00.000-07:00

K, a little bit of a lie since I have many, many things that I like as much as this.
But this is the one on my mind right now.

MAIL!

Especially when it includes my new drivers license AND a Starbucks card.
Thanks mom!

I think getting fun stuff in the mail is going to be the thing I miss the most when I move back to Kamloops.

I heart Ranch Camp.

2011-07-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

We are almost done July already. Crazy.
And it doesn't even really feel like I have been a part of many camps yet, but I know is HAS been a steady stream of busy, and I'll try and give a brief update here.

The first camp was Eager Beavers. Roughly ages 6-8, although why any parent would want to send away their 6 year old is beyond me.
I was so excited for this camp.
Ask anybody here, I had been talking about it for all of spring pretty much.
But then it came.
And it wasn't really as great as I had hoped for.
Okay, to be honest, it kind of tanked.

I'm not sure if I just wasn't prepared in the right way, but it just seemed for the most part that I was always have to deal with problems and never had time to just enjoy my girls and have fun.
So by the end of that short week I was feeling pretty discouraged. And when the opportunity came to be Crew Chief rather than be a counselor for the day camps, I jumped at the chance.

As Crew Chief I did my favorite thing, CLEANING! And I even got to boss people around, so I thoroughly enjoyed myself during the rest of the week.

The next week we had our first family camp of the summer. And it was a lot of fun. I didn't really have much to do besides helping out in Chapel group ages 5-8, oh and I taught my new favorite activity PLASTER MOTTOES. Pretty sweet since it's pretty straightforward how to paint them, so I just sit around talking. Best. Job. Ever. :D

But also during the week I was able to see some familiar Kamloops faces which of course made my week that much better. Nothing like seeing a little bit of home to make you smile.

But in the way of best weeks of camp ever, I would have to say that this week might top the list. Although I better not say it now since we are only two days in and I might jinx it for myself.

Before I explain how sweet Ranch camp is I will pause here for a commercial break.

"Have you ever wondered how it possible to run a summer camp on a tiny island that is only commutable by ferry? Wonder no more! With just one simple click you will be redirected to the camps very own blog written by the one and only Rita Harder who just so happens to be the wife of the camp director. In the particular post you will be able to read about all of the four different camps going on right now, and how we manage to keep it organized."

So. Horses.
Before I came to camp I had not been around horses much at all. And I was quite fascinated by them. I would up to the barn as much as possible to help out and to ride them. Then in April I had a not so pleasant experience and I hadn't been up to the barn since. Quite sad if you ask me.
But Monday I went up there for the first time. It was...a bit of a stretch but I made it through and I even petted some of the horses. I hope slowly I will be able to get back to being comfortable enough to ride again.

But yeah, my girls are super sweet. And for the most part well behaved. And they are old enough that I don't have to be worrying about them or instructing them through a step by step process of getting ready in the morning. I've had so much fun already and we have not even had two whole days together yet.

Probably my favoritest wrangler ever.

Wearing my own cowboy hat. Thought I would never see the day.

A little bit of an addiction?

2011-07-06T23:09:00.000-07:00

I brought this game to camp.
It's called Munchkin Booty.
We have played it every night this week.
It's just that fun.

p.s. I'm sick.
p.p.s. Mom, I tried phoning you once but I think you were having bible study.

Vents? Yes please.

2011-06-28T23:34:00.000-07:00

Girls frustrate me so bad.

Okay, don't misunderstand me. I am not frustrated with any particular girl right now, but the gender in general. Especially me. Actually just me.

Dripping taps also frustrate me. The place where I am living right now has three sinks and two showers and no matter how hard you twist the faucets when you go to turn them off they will always start dripping, but not at first of course, it has to be ten minutes later when you are already in bed and then can't sleep because of the continual dripping.

I guess in general I am getting frustrated with just seeing all the qualities about myself that are less than pleasing that I would dearly love to change in an instant but it just isn't that easy.
And the way I keep telling myself I will change things but it never happens.

Okay, Debbie Downer, enough negativity.

Happy side of life:

I sent the down payment of my bible school tuition today. It was a big moment. And now my bank account is feeling a little bit...emptier.

One of my bestest friends came home today after being gone a week. And I hadn't really realized how much I missed her until I heard her voice and saw her face. And I couldn't stop hugging her for the rest of the night :).

I cleaned today. That always makes me feel good. Although it makes me miss cleaning my brothers house, cause that is one of my most favoritest things to do.

I realized today that I am super shy.
Well, when I am getting to know people. And it's a little annoying cause anybody at home would not believe that I'm like this. But anybody here would not believe that I am as outgoing as I am in Kamloops. It's just a complicated mess of things.

Anyway. This is probably the last time I will post anything for a couple weeks. Eager Beavers starts up in two days and then the summer is just jam packed with all sorts of crazy adventures.

I will just end with one positive statement.

The last 5 1/2 months have been interesting for sure. Growing up, moving out, learning to deal with things whether I want to or not, sticking it out even though all I want to do is give up. Let's just say it hasn't all been happy happy happy. And even now I'm not far enough past it that I can see the all positives but I know that day is coming. Day by day I am learning a little bit more and even though it might not look like it at this exact moment, I know those good qualities I'm hoping for are getting formed.
So, yeah. I know that God is working in me as I write this and I am super stoked for this next year because honestly, traveling in Europe for 2+ months...I don't think there is anything much better than that.

Except babies. I was holding Tate today...and my love for babies was just huge.

p.s. I'm ready for my braces to be taken off. Too bad I have to live with them for another couple months.

Possibly the worst...

2011-06-20T22:40:00.000-07:00

So, if you know me at all, then you know I love to cook, and bake.
But not for large amounts of people at one time. I found this out today.

Our cook went away for the weekend and a bit and he left his 'favorite kitchen helpers' in charge.
I just happened to be a part of that happy lot.
So we divided up the meals and all that.

After which I realized that whilst everyone else had the easy things like premade lasagna where all you have to do is stick the pan in the oven, I had the only thing that required at least two hours of work. Great.

Let's just say I have a deep respect for chefs. I actually did have this respect for them before but it has only deepened with actually experiencing what they go through.

I was definitely freaking out the whole time. Worrying there wouldn't be enough, or wasn't cooked enough.
And Dan, who was helping me, just laughed at me the whole time. I guess I'm glad that I offered entertainment.

Yahoo!

2011-06-19T23:56:00.000-07:00

Now you see it.

Now you see me looking especially happy. Because...

My car needs a wash!
Or because I have officially been removed from the graduated licensing system!

I actually passed that stupid road test.
Not without worry or frustrations.
But I told myself I would only talk about the bad stuff if I didn't pass (trust me, I had started that blog post in my mind before I took the test.)

So I will only talk about good things right now.

Like the fact that I got accepted to the Bible school I applied for. SO STOKED! There is still a lot I have to do for that before everything is completely worked out...but I'm at camp so I'm not going to worry about that right now.

Speaking of camp, we just finished Homeschool Family Camp. That was a delight. I had some great times teaching Riflery and hosting talent shows and having great slip and slides.

We are starting staff training tomorrow. I'm pretty excited to learn how this camp works, and to get to know all of the new staff coming in.

But I should probably go now...since the weekend is supposed to be the time to catch up on sleep.

Sunburnt and happy.

2011-06-04T22:48:00.000-07:00

What is not fun: Drunken men paying way too much attention.

What IS fun:
A Saturday that I actually sleep in.
Doing nothing ALL day.
Suntanning.
Getting burnt.
Iced coffee and watching shows.
Getting dressed up.
Eating yummy desserts.
Laughing. Lots of laughing.

Hypocritical speech, anyone?

2011-06-02T11:53:00.000-07:00

So, I'm not very good at this sort of thing. But I have had it on my mind for...like months now and my theory is that if I actually write it down and get it out there than it will float away and never return again.

It's like a combination of God and spelling...okay and pet peeves.
Bah.
This is already going downhill.
:).

I would have to say that English was my favorite subject in school. Either that or History. And I like to think that I am pretty good at spelling and words and such. So, it's pretty annoying to me when people misuse or misspell words.

There is one word in particular that when misused I want to stranglehold the speaker. And this is where to hypocritical part comes in because, honestly speaking, I use this word all the time too. But I do usually cringe when I say it, and I say it for lack of a better exclamation.

Awesome.

There. It's not that big of a deal, eh?
But let's pull out some Greek and Latin.
Just kidding. Maybe just some dictionary

awesome
[aw-suhm]
-adjective
1. inspiring awe: an awesome sight
2. showing or characterized by awe.

Okay...so what's Awe?

awe
[aw]
-noun
1. an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like: in awe of God; in awe of great political figures.
2. Archaic. power to inspire fear or reverence.
3.Obsolete. fear or dread.

Pictures!

2011-05-30T17:05:00.000-07:00

My life update through pictures.

Applying for school and thinking about sailing.

Having my first dip in the Homewood Ocean.

Playing guitar, taking pictures.

Playing lots of hearts. And I mean the card game when I say that.

Wishing for my Kamloops library.
I went to the Quadra one and was disappointed. So I tried the Campbell river one...more disappointment.

Making some fun new friends.

Watching people play Settlers of Catan ALL THE TIME.

Pet peeve.

2011-05-21T19:59:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to say much on the matter.
One simple question should suffice.

Does it not annoy the crap out of you when you find the perfect scent of deodorant and you get all comfortable with it and then All of the sudden they go and change it on you?

I'm very upset about this. But I did find a dwindling supply of the old stuff at Superstore tonight so I stocked up. That should last me while my complaint letter makes it to Colgate-palmolive canada headquarters.

TILT on Thursday.

2011-05-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

1.Cleaning to j biebz. (it's like an angel came by and took me to heaven,cause when I stare in your eyes it couldn't be better.)
2.Serious conversations...when I'm in the mood.
3.having time to nap.
4.watching twilight with friends.
5.hanging out with kids.
6.getting mail.
7.going to bed at a reasonable hour.
8.the uncertainty of the future.
9. discussion
10. make sweet random cards for people.
11.LAUNDRY
12.Having weekends off.

2011-05-15T19:26:00.000-07:00

...Sometimes I get homesick.

Okay, that's a lie.
I don't get homesick.
So this is a first for me.

I miss my fam jam.

Knock on wood?

2011-05-05T12:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I jinxed myself.
I told someone in the morning that I was really happy and nothing could change that.
I spoke too soon...way too soon.

I had to instruct some children on Archery in the afternoon, and while I was stringing one of the huge bows it sprung back and smacked me in the face. It hurt so much that I thought I was going to have a huge egg stucking out of the side of my chin. If that wasn't enough I starting playing with a hangnail and it began bleeding. Of course it didn't stop bleeding for like another hour and a half. On the way back down to the lodge I tripped and stubbed my toe really hard, and later when I was playing games I collided with another girl full force and all of her weight went itno my stomach and left me breathless for 15 seconds, scary stuff. Oh, and I went for a run after that so my body was sore from excercise and my shin splints starting acting up again.

Some days just aren't my day. Hopefully today will end better.

Happy Birthday/600th post!

2011-05-02T18:06:00.000-07:00

*Reggie with his bd present in his new residence 'the bunkhouse'.

One year later and the babe catcher is still alive.
This is definitely an item to put in the history books, folks.
Hannah actually kept a living thing alive for an extended amount of time!

Now, I know I don't treat Reggie as well as I should.
Heck, I joke about eating him every other day.
But in my heart of hearts I have a deep love for him. Not deep enough that I would cry at his death, though. We haven't gotten there yet...maybe at two years.

Oh, and 600 posts. W00T.
I sure only about 50 of those are decent, but what can you do.

The calm before the storm.

2011-04-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was sort of the last couple days off we will have for a while.
On Sunday we will be moving downstairs to the Bunkhouse with no kitchen and no private bedrooms, so that will be fun getting used to.

The weekend was pretty relaxing. The beginning was at least. Today was so busy and tiring that I feel as if I need another 4 days just to recuperate, unfortunately I don't get that so I'll have to make do.
Friday was really low key. Just hanging out around camp, tanning, breaking up my garden bed, having a pizza night. Saturday I went to town and spent a couple hours in Starbucks. Made a couple pies..sort of a fail.

Sunday I went over to CR for church, it was my first time doing that. The Baptist Church there is quite large, it was an enjoyable time but maybe a little too big for me. I came home, cried along with 'P.S. I love you', planted my garden and then had an amazing easter dinner at the Harders house(camp director and family).

Today I woke up at 7. Who does that on the last day of a long weekend? Silly me. I paid for it all day too.
Then me and Linn finished up our awesome signs for the ball hockey game. Hid some chocolate eggs for the camp kids easter egg hunt.
We took the ferry across at 4 and me and Linn hung out in CR having a pretty great time, getting stoked for the game.
I don't really want to talk about the game itself. They played well, for their first time together. I expect better things next game, although they are playing the best team to it's a guaranteed fail :D.

The product of ~~our~~ Linns hard work. Almost 4 hours worth.

Note: next time let tshirts air out before you wear them. I feel sick from the sharpie fumes and I still smell it even though I took the shirt off an hour ago.

What's up and cool right now? Reese's new chocolate bars! Check 'em out, they are quite delish.

So stoked on life!

2011-04-23T12:18:00.000-07:00

I'm happy.

the kind of happy that comes from realizing as I'm going about my day that I'm blessed, content and just okay to enjoy where I am in life right now.

you should try it, it's quite the feeling.

Of course there are other reason for being so happy. There is excitement for what is to come. Let me tell you. I have a two/three year plan in front of me. Not totally sorted out, but in it there is 'school', traveling, living in other countries and branching out from the norm. of course the excitement of now will turn into the panic of tomorrow, but I'll deal with that when i come to it.

For now I'm just STOKED. thinking about future plans and also enjoying the moment as I putter around creating my tiny flower garden.

Happy Easter Everyone!

What make a Sunday a happy day.

2011-04-18T10:13:00.000-07:00

1. Not working.
2.Sleeping in.(only half an hour, but any extra sleep is always a good thing.)
3.Taking two hours to get ready, cause I can.
4.Not getting ready in enough time so there is a panicked frenzy right before I leave.
5.Church on Quadra. (Definitely something you need to experience, if only for the worship.)
6.Free Starbucks internet that actually goes relatively fast.
7.Watching my long awaited TV show.
8.Shopping for Birthday presents.*note* MAY 1ST! Mark it on your calendar. It is Reggies FIRST birthday, and also if I did the math right my half birthday. Now you all probably think that these things are trivial. But I love making a big deal out of nothing especially if I get presents because of it.
If anybody would like to send some birthday greetings for us we would love to hear from you
our address is,
Hannah and Reggie Lefebvre
Box 40
Heriot Bay
British Columbia
V0P 1H0

9. Feeding my incurable addiction to buying dresses.
10.Shortening was on sale!(at walmart, $2 for a block, quite the deal.)
11.McDonalds fries for the first time in almost 4 months. It felt so good.
12. Hot. Fudge. Sundaes.
13.Getting in bed at 8:00.
14.Sleeping at 9:30.

Stay tooned for the next in the series, 'what makes Monday a happy day'...

on the subject of readers.

2011-04-15T07:36:00.001-07:00

Lately I have been pondering how many people actually read my blog. Of course there is no way to know for sure, and I'm not about to ask for a round of comments just to give myself a pat on the back at my extreme blogging talent(can blogging be a talent?).

I have noticed a few of my blogging 'buddies' have tried a different ploy in order to surface their closet readers, some people might have noticed the way they entice you with free books or other such goodies if you only comment on the post.
We all know what you are really up to... But I would not stoop to such a level in order to make myself feel better about myself. Well, that and the fact that just because it would be free for you does not mean it would be free for me. Price of book, add in postage and the effort to actually put it in the mail, what can I say, I'm a procrastinator, you would probably never even see the prize in real life (hey, now there is an idea :).

Another new clever feature blogger has set up for those of us paranoid writers...STATS.
The best thing to be invented since automatic car starters!
A page that shows you how many visitors you have had that day, week, month etc. And it can even pin point what website they came from.
Now that is the scary part.
I have actually had people I know find out I creep their blog because of this...so really it's not all genuious.
But alas there is another flaw, it doesn't seem to be all that accurate since I have been on quite early in the morning before and it tells me that 17 have already viewed my blog that day.
I'm not that popular, folks.

So, since I'm not the begging type I will not plead with you to leave a comment. In fact, please do not write a pity comment.
I will just delight in the fact that I have 25 followers.
Of course since I actually only 'follow' about 5 people and I do read a great quantity of blogs I can only assume that 25 really equals 75.
Now I feel good :).

A peace offering.

2011-04-13T22:19:00.001-07:00

It's nice to be reminded sometimes that underneath there is a little bit of gentlemen hiding in every guy.

Sometimes you just need comfort.

2011-04-10T11:02:00.000-07:00

This whole living away from everything that I love is getting to me.
I love where I am right now, and I'm having as much fun as possible, but still...I'm not a ten minute drive from my brothers house and I can't text my best friend to sneak into a friends hot tub with me.
So, in comes the comfort stuff.

Books:
When I was home on break I was going down memory lane by revisiting the boxes of my books that I packed away a couple years ago.
Wow, every new one that I grabbed out of the box was an old friend and there was a lot of screaming and dancing around remembering fond memories. Some of them were just too good and I had to bring them along with me for another reading.
And while reading them I was amazed by how a little ten year old girl had been able to read these books and comprehend them. But I was always ahead of my time.
I've done a lot of reading in the two weeks I've been home.
5 books to be exact.
But I think I will start slowing down now or pretty soon my stack of unread ones will be gone.

Pastry cookies:
A very familiar food around my house. And so easy to make.
Just make up some pastry like you would for a pie. cut it into cookie shapes and bake until slightly browned. For the icing, mix water, icing sugar and a couple drops of almond flavouring. BAM! a delish snack.
I have eaten way too many this week.

Can she bake a cherry pie, Billy boy?

2011-04-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

Oh yes she can.

Maybe not as fine looking as she would have wished, but apparently it tastes good.

But you can't blame the girl, when she has to deal with knives as pastry cutters and a glass jar as a rolling pin.

I've got a feeling, that tonight was a good, good night.

2011-04-01T23:46:00.000-07:00

Today in general was pretty agreeable.

Trail clearing, forest cleanup, huge bonfires.

And then it was the weekend.
I put a dress on right before dinner, just for fun, and convinced the girls to dress up too.
Then I went for a mini photo shoot and we did our hair and went out to a fancy restaurant for dessert.
We came home and had another photo shoot. It was so fun.
Everything was happy happy.

These are days that I love more than fruit gushers and pepsi put together.

Irony is...

2011-04-01T13:57:00.000-07:00

when the couch set that you and your brother picked out, the one that was supposed to arrive the week before, arrives on the same day you leave to drive nine hours away, not to return again for an extended period of time.

I am not a big fan of change, but I am very good at adapting. Which means I do not usually get homesick, at least, not when I am away from home. However, I do get quite homesick when I am at home realizing that I have to leave all that I love behind.

Are you ready for the amazing list of all that I set out to accomplish this past week and a half?
And barring one I did accomplish?

hem brown sweatpants(k, well I cut them shorter.)
make:
coffee cake muffins(yum)
carrot muffins(they looked super healthy, but tasted really good.)
potato bacon chowder(YUUUUUUMMM. So worth the time it took to make it.)
icecream(Hmm, I'll need to try that again sometime.)
rice krispie squares(it was a family affair. *note*never let mom be in charge of the vanilla)
japanese chicken salad(a good late night prep session before taking it with me on the way back to camp.)
raspberry jam(homemade goodness)
put new bible on spuds ipod
buy:
black leggings
hoodie
one day contacts(what a pain that was, but I no longer have four eyes.)
drink champagne (that was a let down.)
give Nadine money for road trip $50(hehe. The road trip that happened 1 1/2 years ago.)
Road trip to Vernon
catch up on all shows
fix ring
watch Audrey Hepburn movies
put all my music on computer
go through clothes. be strong.
taxes
bring back guitar strap
knit dishcloths
watch a sunset (it didn't happen. But it wasn't really my fault.)

So, suffice to say I had an amazing time at home. Too good maybe. Now that I'm back I'm just getting into routine and trying to be happy in everything I do. So far it's been okay.

Ooooh, and today I rode a horse all by myself for the first time ever. It was fun.

tilt

2011-03-24T22:53:00.000-07:00

1.)Ice cream and
2.)chick flicks
after a long stressful, tiring day.

Honey, I'm home!

2011-03-20T22:13:00.001-07:00

*NOTE* This post was written over the course of...3(?) days. So it might seem a little wonky.
The internet here is ridiculous. You click on the page and it appears just as quickly as you click. It still is amazing me 24 hours later.
Ready for a tale of the last couple days?

Wednesday morning I went to bed late. That's right, I was so excited about coming home that I didn't get to bed until very very late. It didn't help that I had to wake up early which meant that my internal alarm clock starting waking me up starting at 4:30.

I had gotten everything ready to go the night before so all I did was get dressed, brush my teeth and I was out of there. A kind soul had woken up early to drive me to the ferry(love you, buddy) and I conversed with a boy on the trip over. All the while feeling like death since my body is getting quite used to going to bed early..and sleeping late.

On the other side I had some time to kill so I had my first mcdonalds meal in over two months. Yumm. Normally I wouldn't eat there, but I am a sucker for their breakfast menu.
And I got a cocoa cappucino from Starbucks to keep me going through the day.

Can't say there was much in the way of interesting events on the trip, and I don't want to bore you with all the little details. I did have a 3 1/2 hour layover in Vancouver, but I spent almost the entire time in a mcdonalds staring into space. So no excitement there.

I got in to Kamloops at 11:20 pm. Mama picked me up. Got home and..nothing had changed.
Just a little bit disappointing. I tried to go to bed as quick as I could but when I finally settled down I could not sleep. I don't know if was because of the three cups of caffeine I had drank that day or the fact that my mattress here is way softer than my mattress at home(camp) and it was actually so comfortable it felt uncomfortable for me. So I got back up out of bed and starting organizing and decluttering my room. At about 2 am I crawled back into bed and managed to drift off.

BAM!
Do you know what is wrong with getting into a healthy sleep pattern of going to sleep at a certain time and waking up at a certain time? It means that even when you go to sleep really late one night your body will still wake up at the early hour it is accustomed to, even if you feel like death!
I started the death off right with a nice breakfast and began to plunk away at the massive to do list that I started writing as soon as I figured out I was coming home last month.
One of the biggest things on this list was all the food I wanted to make.
You see, I live in an apartment to technically I could do alot of baking and cooking but A. It's sad cooking for one. B.I don't want to go out and purchase all the ingrediants myself. Here I can just use the neverending supply of product that my mother keeps in her kitchen.

After lunch I went into town to..SEE MY NEW CAR! My lovely brother Cade works at a mechanic shop in Valleyview and one of his clients decided that they didn't want to pay for all of the work to be done to a car, so they sold it to Cade(in a round about way) and Cade managed to find a way to fix it for basically nothing. Of course he is still going to do some work on it but it's like the cheapest this car could possibly be for the year and make it is.

I then went to the Orthodontist. Yay. That's always fun. He told me that my teeth are where they should be and my jaw is where it should be but for some reason there are still problems so I will stuck with my brace face for at least a couple months longer. I'm okay with that.

I had only put 3 quarters in the parking meter and I was already 20 minutes late so I picked my sandals up and hightailed it back to the van in my barefeet. Thankfully there was no ticket. Wouldn't that be ironic if I got a ticket my first day back driving after two and half month.

I ran a few errands and then headed to the University. I had a reserved table for one at one of the Bistros the culinary arts programs puts on as a sort of test for the second year students.
Of course it was not by accident that I went on the night that my best friend would be cooking.
I would have had some pictures of the food I had, but...someone I know came in and sat at a table next to me. And although taking pictures of food in front of strangers is okay, in front of people you actually know is a big NO :).

It was actually quite fun. *Almost* all the food was amazing. And the appearance of it was so elegant, it was like dining at a five star but only paying for half a star.
And don't worry, Bestie didn't cook the one thing I had a problem with.

Thursday night after the dinner I did shome shopping and headed over to my brothers house to pop and in say hello before heading home for an early bedtime. But what was supposed to be a quick hi turned into a long discussion so I didn't go to bed for awhile even though every part of my body wanted me to be off in slumber land already.

Friday morning I finally went for my car. I got it transfered to my name and bought insurance but then spent an hour just wasting time in the waiting room of Cades shop. I don't know if it was because I didn't want to attempt standard after being off it for so long, I didn't want to exhert the energy of screwing the license plates on, or I actually like hanging out in a dirty, stinky mechanics shop? But being back in a standard didn't feel weird, it actually felt pretty good.

Later that day I went out shopping with Behn. Oh my gosh. Just thinking back to that trip drains me of energy. A little bit of back story:
I am the caretaker of the boys house. I clean it, organize it, take away the recylables, tell them to do things. So before I left in January I got this fabulous idea that Behn should buy a cutlery set. And MATCHING DISHES! So I told him this before I left, thinking that since I got the ball rolling he could continue on his own. But that so did not happen.
I texted a couple weeks later to see how it was going, this is the reply I got, "I think I am just going to wait until you come home, I might end up picking the wrong ones". Um, they are for your house, buddy, how can you go wrong if you are picking the kind you like?
I didn't say this to his face...or to his phone, but you can now see why my brothers need me in their lives. So, all this time I have anticipated coming home and going shopping with Behn when just a few weeks ago a thought dawned on me. Behn is pretty well off, and the couches and table are not so well off, so maybe I can weasel him into replacing those too!
I am an excellent lawyer, I made an amazing case, and those items were added to the list.

Although four lines on a to buy list might look small, when you are actually in the process it takes a long time. Like 3 hours long time. The couch part was pretty fun, even kind of like a cardio work out. Walk, walk, sit, walk, walk, sit. I had it down to a science. I sit down, give it about two seconds of consideration and if it isn't holding my attention I move on. Ironically, we ended up choosing the first couch Behn sat down in...but we didn't come to the decision until three stores and 2 gazillion couches later. We got a table and chair set at Jysk. I already made up my mind that we were going to look there and only there for a table so if we had to settle we would have to be okay with that. And it was a good deal, although when we stupidly checked prices at Citywide we found a better deal. Oh well.

The cutlery set was a steal. Like literally a steal. Awkward pause..ha ha just kidding, we aren't that poor. And the dishes look simple amazing on the new table (can you tell this sort of thing makes me super excited?).

The rest of the night was pretty much just building the table and chairs, it's harder than it looks, folks. Oh and trying Champagne, cause that's on my spring break to do list.
Except Champagne isn't really called champagne it's called sparkling wine, and so it didn't seem as magical. I stayed up 'til 2 am purposely cause even though I was beyond super tired, I really really really wanted to sleep in the next morning so I had to push myself as far as I could.

Luckily I did sleep in. It was nice. And the rest of the day I just chilled out. And hung with Bestie. We had fun, like always. And watched a classic movie for the first time.
Who even enjoys 'Breakfast At Tiffany's'? I just could not get into it.
But like before, it was on the to do list so I had to suffer through it.

And now, here we are at Sunday. I went to church, played soccer, hung out at C&C.
You are officially caught up on my Spring break so far.
At the end of the week I am going to post my to do list. Everything should be crossed off by that time.

L.O.V.E.

2011-03-17T22:41:00.000-07:00

There is someone I love very much. He's not quite grown up and ready to assist in day to day trials, but I like him that way and he is a good companion when going pumpkin picking or wildlife park viewing. But wait, if your day to day trail has anything to do with star wars or canucks trivia he would be a great help.*

There is someone I love very much. He's good to hangout with when we arrive at an event and nobody else shows up for 45 minutes. Or laugh together about groceries, cutlery and tuesdays. And he is kind enough to rebuild fences for me when I knock them over with my bad driving skills(heh heh funny story...).*

There is someone I love very much. He is good for anything in the way of car maintenance really. Or a good person to call when your co worker needs a car part delivered right away but the car part stores only deliver to auto shops, he will order it and drive it over on his break just for you. Oh, and if you are ever in the need of partner when you are playing the pretend sermon game he would be the one you should pick(don't ask, it was a VERY long time ago).*

There is someone I love very much. He's good for cheering you up whenever, going to concerts with, being there to hold you when there was no one else to call on your darkest day. He'll drive anywhere to pick you up, and buy anything you think his house needs :).*

There is someone I love very much. This one can make you smile just by saying that crazy nickname that was born one day after eating too much of one type of candy.
He's a great companion when climbing intense mountains and knowledgable on all things related to outdoor equiptment. And I do believe one of these days he will make a wonderful traveling buddy.*

There is someone I love very much. SHE is probably the best thing ever. Someone you can vent to about the same things over and over and over and over again but she still at least pretends that she is interested. She would probably knit anything in the world for you. And is pretty good about paying for the things you sneak into the buggy while she isn't looking.*

There is someone I love very much. He volunteers for hours each winter just so you can ski for free(well, thats the story I made up for myself and I'm sticking to it :).
He has a nickname for me that makes me feel like I'm five again, but I'm okay with it.
Oh and a very lame sense of humour sometimes, all you can do is roll your eyes and say "oh, dad."*

So as you might have guessed by now...I'M HOME!
And being home has gotten my emotions going so of course I had to blog about the enormous amount of love that I have for my family.

I have a lot of to say about a myriad of things that are going on but I'll leave that until tomorrow.
My sleep-o-meter needs to get caught up.

*this result is not intended for all viewers. ~~some~~ many restrictions ~~may~~ will apply.

I have been holding out on you guys.

2011-03-14T23:16:00.000-07:00

So I actually have this huge piece of information that I have been withholding from you.
I'm sorry.
I did want to mention it, but blogging just hasn't been at the top of my list for the last...month..and a half..so you can understand why I haven't gotten around to it.

Okay, here goes nothing..

Roomie left.
March 4th

Figures that only roommate I have ever had would leave after living with me for only two months, doesn't look too good for future hope of marriage.

Okay, so it wasn't all my fault.
Actually it wasn't my fault at all. But of course my ego would want to be at least part of the reason.

She left for good reasons, and I'm happy for her although I'm sad she is gone.

On the other hand I do enjoy having a room to myself.
I have arranged it to my liking and surprise surprise I have managed to keep it clean ever since.
Partially because there is not much else to do beside clean here. That's mainly what I do...clean and early bedtimes. I need a hobby...

Anyway before I say goodnight here is a picture of the *updated* living quarters.

I think I would do quite well at the 'student living in a tiny dorm room' life.

Well, minus the student part :).

Happy Monday, Everybody.

What makes a day?

2011-03-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

Rain. Lots and lots and lots of rain.

Waking up to the sound of that rain pounding on my roof.

Dancing in that rain.

Playing hockey for the first time in months.

Drinking pink,bubbly juice.

Having Swedish coffee time with Linn.

Korean Elvis.

Being incredibly excited for some amazing things that are about to happen.

Going to quaint little churches.

Linn's Life Lessons.

2011-03-07T23:59:00.000-08:00

Lesson #1: How to make Swedish pizza. (really, Swedish pizza is just regular pizza made by a Swede, so I'll never be able to perfect this recipe.)

Spooning on the homemade pizza sauce.

Leaving plenty of space on the edges so's your fingers can have room to hold on.

Sampling the cheese, must make sure we are using only the finest ingredients.

Evenly distributing the cheese.

A little bit of health food to make it a well rounded meal.

The only way to make it easy and efficient.

Passing the time waiting for the pizzas to cook.

Yumm. Enjoying the finished product.

The recipe for anyone who is interested.
Packets means yeast.
Linn is from the states so she does things a bit differently
For all you Canadians out there: 1 packet= 2 1/4 teaspoons.

Do you see what I see?

2011-03-05T18:32:00.000-08:00

For the most part these days, I read books to relax or unwind, so rather than hit the heavy thinkers I prefer lighter, happier novels. An area of books that my mother labels as fluff books.

Well, the last book I read was as 'fluffy' as the rest of them but it did have some interesting information as well. I learned about the Romany and Anthropology and a bunch of other things.

The girl from the book had some trauma happen to her as a girl which caused her to go totally colour blind,
Which is why I did all the pictures like that.
Can you imagine having to live life with no colour?
Makes me feel a just a little more thankful for everything I have.

Btdubs:The book in the picture is the one I'm talking about in case you are interested.

Maybe a little bit o...c...d...

2011-03-04T12:50:00.000-08:00

I love order.

I like organizing.

Guess what I did today?
I cleaned and organized.
I really wish I had taken before and after pictures since the effect is really quite amazing.
But luckily I have some back up before and after cleaning pictures so just imagine this was an office instead of a dining room.

There is something about cleaning and making things pretty that gives me a thrill.
I admit it's one of my favorite things to do at any time.
And in a way I think it calms and relaxes me.
Although I don't think I could ever work at at job that that would be my main objective.

I should probably give you a update of my life one of these days.
Just not today, cause I'm bored of typing on a computer already.
Just know that I'm healthy and for the most part happy.

And fishy is doing better than ever.
If I could only capture his excitement when he sees me coming with his food.
He actually recognizes me and understands I will feed him, I am sure of it.

The Confession: My addiction.

2011-02-28T20:46:00.000-08:00

Now, this addiction might be a little rare. Not one you really hear much talk of these days.
But that does not mean it isn't a serious problem and should not be dealt with.

I am addicted to.........dying my hair.
Don't laugh, this is a severe issue.

Let's look at the facts:
1.My hair takes at least twice as long as the average person.
2.I get bored, so I like to switch things up frequently.
3.I am sick of having the same black hair that has been around forever due to fact number one.
4. I have like an inch and a half of roots right now.
5. RED! EW.
(I don't even know if those facts make sense. I'm tired.)

So once again I have recoloured my hair. Although I never make the mistake of permanently dying it anymore. I only do temporary ones that will last up to 28 washes.

Anyway, here is the latest turn out.

BEFORE

AFTER

The inspiration just isn't there.

2011-02-26T15:10:00.000-08:00

So.
I have been asked to put up more pictures.
But.
They won't be amazing.
I just haven't felt very creative with my camera lately.
And being stuck in the same place for a long period of time isn't helping.
Don't get me wrong, Homewood is a BEAUTIFUL place.
But I'm getting cabin fever.
And taking a picture of the same view for the fifth time is getting old.

It started snowing this morning and it has been snowing ever since.
There is so much of it everywhere and it is the best for packing.

I went sledding with the Harder boys at like 9. It was great.
I felt five again.
I ate snow, made snow angels, facewashed people, facewashed myself and went on a stealth mission. It was so fun.
That is all.
G'night.

A little confession, anyone?

2011-02-19T19:18:00.000-08:00

Do you know what I love?
When listening to a song that I have heard hundreds of times, I hear a certain line of the song that I have never been able to understand what the singer was saying before, and all of the sudden everything makes sense. It makes me laugh.

Speaking of music.
I'm sort of a music blogging hypocrite.
Okay, that isn't the right term for it but I'm not too sure there is a term for it.

You know how everybody always shares youtube videos of their favorites songs on their blogs?
I, myself am guilty of this.
What I am also guilty of is never actually listening to these musical selections.
I know that a lot of people don't, though. So I don't beat myself up about it.

However, that does not stop me from posting my own suggestions since maybe somewhere out there one person might actually press play.

So, here is the song of the week:

I have the CD that this song comes from, 'Save Me San Fransisco', and it is actually one of the best albums I have heard to date.

Oh, and don't feel compelled to listen to the song now that I've guilted you into it..

A Friday morning in the life of me.

2011-02-18T07:37:00.000-08:00

I had a ~~bad~~ dream.
I don't think it was bad, but I woke up because of it and usually when I wake up it means my dream was alarming.
Now, looking back maybe it was on the unusual side.

I had a dream about Lions and Tigers and Joel...oh my.

I scrambled around my bed hunting for my phone when I woke up because I'm on kitchen help this weekend and I was panicking that I was late for duty.
But it was 6:30.
Now, a smart person would have gone back to sleep for a whole 'nother hour.

Hannah got up and made coffee for the quilters.

The day can only get better from here :).
HAPPY FRIDAY!

T.I.L.T.

2011-02-17T22:14:00.000-08:00

1.Jet smoothies. Not only do they make wonderful take home smoothie packets, but they also give said packets to Homewood employees for free! (I would suggest the 'big bean mocha'.)
2.The confused weather that goes from rain to hail to snow to rain all in the short time of 30 minutes.
3.Having an escape from madness.
4.NEW CARS!!!! I'm so excited!
5.Cheap new cars! (sorry, it's all I can think about)
6.Baking!(now this is just a memory for me now. But a very fond memory.)
7.Warm.
8.Dancing like there is nobody watching.
9.Playing with children.

10.Surprising people.
11. Google images.
12.Working in the kitchen.
13.happy things coming from unexpected places.
14.strange random conversations with strange random people.

If you're happy and you know it, smile.

2011-02-15T23:54:00.000-08:00

Today was another day off.
Two whole days off in a row!

I didn't really do anything.
Just read my online book and slept.
And at the end of the day I was actually getting mad at myself for having been so lazy but then I remembered that this entire time I have been complaining about having days off but never actually resting, that made me feel a little better about the situation.

We started a bible study today.
This makes me so very happy.
But it also reminded me of how little time I have actually taken to study the bible.
Sad.

I am looking to purchase a copy of 'the message' though.
I understand it's not one of the greatest translations but I think it's the best for spelling something out plainly in a simple way I can understand it.
But then again sometimes it is even more confusing then my normal translation.

Some verses that stuck out to me tonight:
(they were all from Galatians.)
1:¹⁰ Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

^2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. ²¹ I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

^6:1-3 Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived.

Ways to make a Valentines Day enjoyable.

2011-02-14T22:12:00.000-08:00

1.Dress up and look good just because you want to.
(can't say this is the best I could have been looking but there was a boy around when we were having the shoot and it made me feel awkward to be posing for a camera..cause he was laughing..and being a jerk.)

2.Get the holiday started early by have yummy desserts the night before.

3. Add a little love to everything you do.

4. Go out of your way to make your loved ones feel special. (Reggie enjoyed a nice bath today as well as the redecoration)

5.Pamper yourself, and just do random little things to make yourself happy.

6.Forget societies idea that Valentines Day is for couples and show love to everyone you care about.

7. Watch a super amazing movie that can only get better with every viewing.

8. Use this as an excuse to eat all the stuff that you shouldn't really be eating.

Well everyone, my V-day was thoroughly enjoyable.
And I think it was just my mind set, really.
I went into this day telling myself I was going to be happy no matter what.
And I did everything I could to keep it that way.
Now, normally that wouldn't really work, but today was the exception since it was a day off and I didn't really have to be around people if I didn't want to, or be doing things I didn't want to do.

Happy Valentines Day to everyone out there!

Is the weigh scale even?

2011-02-13T22:17:00.000-08:00

And no, this has nothing to do with the unwanted 6 pounds I have put on since moving here.

Today has been a terrible day in some aspects. Resulting in many headaches. Many, many, many headaches.

But other the other hand I had a delicious dessert and a delicious drink that would not have happened without at least one of the headaches.

So, is it worth it?

All I know for sure is I will be having a lot of alone time tomorrow, and the day after.

The thing I love the most.

2011-02-12T22:45:00.000-08:00

Getting mail!
And do you know what is even better than that?
Getting a package!
And do you know what is even better than that?
Getting two packages two days in a row!

We got home from the conference on Thursday night and there was something from Bluenotes waiting for me.
And then the next day I'm hanging out in the lodge and Ann the secretary comes up and she asks "did you get your second package?"
I did not believe her.
But she assured me there was another package and it was even too big to fit in my mailbox. So I tore out of the lodge and started running across the field as fast as I could, regretting not having put my rain jacket on first because it was pouring buckets.
I got into the office and there it was.
And I *might* have done a happy dance right then and there.

And it had real fruit gummies which made it AWESOME! And they are shaped like toys!

So. I was happy. And now, in one of my many moments of being frustrated and upset with the world, I am trying to remember back to that happiness because it's very hard to smile with all the stupid people* around me.

*They are not stupid, I just feel that way when I'm in a bad mood.

Ain't no mountain high enough..

2011-02-03T23:47:00.000-08:00

I am in a thoughtful mood right now.
Also a very tired mood, but since this is probably my last chance to blog for about a week I am going to quickly type some stuff out.

Hi, my name is Hannah and I want to learn to be sincere.

–adjective, -cer·er, -cer·est.

free of deceit, hypocrisy, or falseness; earnest: a sincere apology.

genuine; real: a sincere effort to improve; a sincere friend.

pure; unmixed; unadulterated.

Obsolete . sound; unimpaired.

It's very hard for me to open up to people. Extremely hard.
And that makes it very hard for people to get to know me, (and with the risk of sounding cliche) the real me.

But I'm not very good at understanding myself and so most of the time it's not really my fault.

I'm going to make it my goal over the next few months to begin to get to know myself, and therefor make it easier for other people to be my friend.

In the process weeding out the less desirable qualities I have let myself develop, such as being extremely judgmental and sarcastic.

I'll check back in a while but in the mean time, I've had way too much serious talk for one night.

T.I.L.T

1.Listening to music while writing messages to friends all while sitting at a corner table in Starbucks.
2.Roomie coming home.
3. Having a major hug fest just because Jo-Yo is leaving to go work in the morning, and we were all going to miss her.
4.Texting somebody in the same room as you but pretending nothing is going on.
5.NEWMUSIC I discovered this amazing CD today. It made my heart happy.
6.Being comfortable enough with myself that I go for days without wearing make up.
7.Clean water. I really miss it. The water here tortures my hair real bad.
8.Sleeping in. Anybody dare try and text me at 8 again. I will hunt you down and hurt you. You know who you are.
9.Challenge.

Cuts on the hand are the worst. Since you use your hands so much it takes double time to heal.

We have a group coming in tomorrow, there is 162 of them. This is very major since up until now the biggest group we have had(at least while I was here) was around 70.
So they are here for the weekend and then right after that on Monday we head down to Abbotsford for a Camp Conference thing.

I am seriously considering buying another camera. Heh. I love my new dslr but the problem is it's huge. I am used to having one that I can slip into my back pocket and pull out in a moments time to snap a picture. So, I'll think on it some more.
I am still trying to get an understanding of how that thing works.
I haven't totally slacked off in the learning department, I did read the manual which explained some things but I still have to go through the huge photography book Matthew lent me.

For the most part I am not a neat freak. Well. I don't like to think I am.
But sometimes I just get fed up with anything that is messy.
Which is why I clean my brothers house so much.
Since I don't have a brothers house to clean here, it seems that I have just shifted over to the next available outlet: the guys house.
I was hanging out on the guys side the other day and I just couldn't stand to be surrounded by mess any longer so I cleaned. And then I went back to my house and cleaned. And then I went to my room and cleaned. I guess it helps me? Maybe physically cleaning helps me mentally clean.
I don't know. Sometimes I like to pretend I can figure out these psychology things.

I do need a day to recharge though.
Today WAS supposed to be that.
But Blondie convinced me to come to town, and don't get me wrong I had tons of fun. But this entire time I have been getting more and more worn down. I have had some mini crashes along the way but I'm sure if I don't take some time to chill there will be a major explosion coming up.
I think one of the problems might be that I don't even know how to relax. It's never been a huge issue because I have never been in this situation before. But I am always surrounded by people here and always doing things. Hanging out with people takes a lot out of me. And when I am in Kamloops all I have to do is go home and I get away from it for as long as I need. Here even when I come home there is people and so I never get that away time that I need. I am learning to live with it, and I think I am doing pretty well so far.
I think tomorrow since I will probably wake up pretty early I will take my Bible and some music and go out and practice resting.

Click the link. I promise it will be great.

2011-02-02T20:19:00.000-08:00

Is it Christmas?

Picture post for Jill.

2011-02-01T13:01:00.001-08:00

Well, mostly for Jill :), I won't mind if other people view them as well.
I forgot that you don't have facebook anymore so you haven't been able to see all the pictures.

A furry looking tree we found while taking a walk out by the ocean.

It hurts more than it looks.

An update from the Regster.

2011-01-31T22:42:00.000-08:00

I would like to report that Reggie(better known as Fishy) is settling into camp life quite nicely.

He gets along great with everyone, a real crowd pleaser.

And he doesn't even seem to care that *sometimes* I forget that he needs food to survive.

Something I have noticed is this: He doesn't like being clean.

Whenever I clean his tank he stays depressed for a few days, and even adopts darker scales and fins.

He is definitely a sport. Although he is very nice to everybody, everybody is not very nice to him.

Joel has tried to burn him with a lighter, Kezi and Ben have forced him to be a cannibal and eat salmon, some people put some popcorn in his tank and just today Josh tried to snip him with scissors.

I would like to go on record and say that we have a very healthy relationship.

He brightens my day...and I feed him.

We do this cute thing sometimes where I trace my finger along the side of his tank and he follows me around.

I really do believe his IQ is considerably higher than the normal fish.

Our nine month anniversary is tomorrow.

I cannot believe that it has been so long.

Dance like it's the last night of your life.

2011-01-29T00:06:00.000-08:00

Today was extraordinary.

Of course there was a few not so enjoyable moments(e.g.:My phone slipping down the side of my bed during the night so when the vibrating alarm went off it made the worst racket ever, and since my bed is solid wood and filled with stuff I couldn't move it for like 5 minutes, not a good way to start the morning. Or: Hearing a depressing song that made me eat a chocolate bar and sit in the cold rain for a while.). But that made the good moments that much better I'm sure.

p.s. the other day me and roomie googled this because we were confused as to which meant which.

i.e. means "that is"
it's from the latin "id est"
I like to eat vegetables (i.e. I enjoy their taste)

e.g. means "for example"
it's from the latin "exempli gratia"
I like to eat vegetables (e.g. carrots and broccoli)

I think people get them confused alot. But now we go around saying exempli gratia instead :).

Anyway, things that made this day great.
Roomie left for a week.
Now, to make this clear my heart is very saddened that we must be parted, but I do love having the place to myself for a while.

I went for a walk to take pictures this morning. But it started raining. And this might seem like a bad thing but in fact it was good. Because that forced me to put the camera away and I started enjoying creation without my eye being pressed to the view finder.
It was gorgeous.
I encourage you all to come to Homewood at some time or another. Every day I go outside I am thankful that I am here.

I played music with Jolene.
And I played music with Josh.

There is just a ton of music going on everywhere.

And then we had a dance party.
:)
Not usually something I like to be a part of, but I'm trying to break out of my shell here.

k, night.

Friday, January 19th.

2011-01-24T20:50:00.000-08:00

I missed a very important anniversary, everybody.
Although I have been waiting for this day for a couple of month now, the busyness of the past couple weeks overtook me and the date slipped my mind.

I would like you all to take a moment and celebrate a very Happy 4th Birthday to my blog!

Four years? Seriously.
Who knew I could keep up with it for that long.
Of course looking at what I have posted on occasion shows that I didn't really put much thought into it. But this blogging this is for me, so I'm not going to apologize.

Some people feel obliged to post, and even guilty if they haven't.
But that's just nonsense.
At least, in my case it is.
I don't really have anything to tell the world.
Most of what I write is silly ramblings or trivial things about my day that in actuality nobody really wants to read about =D.

Although I do sometimes have secret hopes that I am gathering a huge fan base out there, and it's not just the crowd of my mothers friends that have recently taken up following my blog.
Haha, don't worry, I really don't mind.

Anyway. Happy Birthday to haelle.blogspot.com.

A blog-worthy day.

2011-01-21T21:42:00.001-08:00

I could do it in story format.
But I'm really tired.
So point form will have to do.
(not in any order)

1. Had the most amazing carrot cake ever.
2. Started kitchen duty.
3.Put a red hoodie in a wash with 3 white shirts. 1/3 of me forgot, 1/3 didn't really believe and 1/3 thought that since I've washed that hoodie several times already that all the red dye that would come out..had already come out. So..yeah. Little rattled by that. But the next one is even better.
4.A pen started leaking on my bed. Black ink on my favorite green blanket. I was so mad at myself. But I put spray'n'wash on it and most of came out, so hopefully the rest will come off in the wash.
5.My ears seem to be permanently plugged. So annoying. The left one sometimes clears up, but never for long. It's been wayyy too long!
6. I found a perfect spot. I can't wait to go tomorrow and see if it is just as cool in the day time.
7. The weather just cannot make up its mind. One day it's like spring and everything is green. The next day its snowing and freezing cold. And back and forth.
8. It's Friday night and I am going to bed at ten thirty. What is the world coming too?

Pick-me-up.

2011-01-18T20:23:00.000-08:00

I had forgotten how much music makes me complete.

Today was not such a good day.
I am slowly getting over this stupid cold but just a combination of things had me in a pretty bad mood by dinner time.

So I decided to have some alone time, something I haven't really done since I got here.
I took my ipod and went out walking in the woods.
I blasted the music so I could sing/yell and not be able to hear myself.
Such an amazing feeling.

It has definitely put me in a much better mood, so I will be remembering to do that every couple of days from now on so I do not get as down from now on.

The songs that most spoke to me tonight were these: