March On

You know it was almost a week into March before I turned the calendar.  The time flies so quickly that before you know it, it's a week, a month, a year later and you wonder ~ where on earth has the time gone?

I feel that way about this little piece of me.  The place where I posted pretty pictures and poured out my heart and rambled away for the past 9 years.  The people I have met through this page are many.  Friendships that I carry with me today although most are now via Instagram and Facebook.  I will admit that Instagram is my app of choice although I do miss my Friday Potpourri posts here ~ putting everything together was a creative outlet for me that I just may need to get back to.

When I left off in September, Samantha had packed up and headed across the bridge to PEI and college.  Gord and I took a day trip over and saw her new digs, did some shopping, had supper and headed home again.  It was a great day.

Katrina and her beau came home for Thanksgiving in October and decided they were both moving back from Saskatchewan.  There is no reason to stay in a place where you are not happy and what is that old saying about you can always come home.

October also brought wedding celebrations when Matthew and Morgan got married.  

Matthew is my best friend's youngest ~ the wedding was stunning.

we had a good time!

My brother landed in the hospital again in October and required open heart surgery.  

He gave us another scare and had quite the stint in the hospital again but he's still here.  

He's like a cat with 9 lives.

The rug was pulled out from under us in November when our cat, Cooper, was diagnosed with acute renal failure.  It was like he was fine one day and went downhill so fast that it tore my heart out.  We are still missing him, Molly the most as he playmate for the past 10 years is gone.  Trev has been hinting and mentioning about getting another kitty soon.

When the little miss came home for Christmas break we were off to the book store ~ a little evening out.  Missed her so much.

Christmas the family came together here for dinner Christmas Day despite an ice storm and then a snow storm on top of it all.  We are blessed with those that sit around the table.

New Years we did nothing and we were ok with that.

We have actually been low key for the new year.  I am not a wintry outdoor person so I pretty much go into hibernation mode when it is cold, snowy, icy ~ well pretty much winter!

So I am content inside whether it is puttering around, nesting, organizing, creating

like my cute little pillows I made out of tea towels.  I am actually quite proud of them!

This past week I was sidelined with a pretty bad cold.  I usually don't miss 3 days of work but the sinus pressure was horrible, like a vice across my forehead.  Thankfully I am feeling better and was out of the house today for the first time since Tuesday.

We had a birthday to celebrate ~ 50 candles for my girlfriend, so it was out to dinner and home by 8:30, in my jammies with a cup of tea with honey.  

I know ~ my wild life and on St. Patty's Day to boot!

As my last post ~ not sure who is still out there reading.  I do most of mine on Bloglovin now so the days of leaving comments are few and far between.  Documenting more for myself and dusting off the blog more than anything I guess.

Until next time

xo

11:11

OK - here I am - the once a month girl

no excuses though

I had some news to share

and wanted to get it out

3 weeks ago today

my brother was taken to the hospital

he had texted me on Tuesday saying he thought he had bronchitis

while he was at dialysis on Wed, the doctor gave him a prescription

then Saturday he was weak and his cough was bad

texting back and forth that night with his girlfriend

they admitted him, put him right in ICU and on oxygen

he had pneumonia

I did not go in on Sunday as he needed rest more than anything

and I planned to go in after work on Monday

Monday morning I was just leaving the house for work

when the phone rang

it was Stella - Gord's girlfriend - his breathing was bad

they are putting him on a respirator

I rushed to the hospital - scared for him

That first week I spent many hours in ICU

praying - crying - hugging

he was in bad shape - double pneumonia

acute respiratory distress syndrome

and scariest of all - sepsis

with his existing health issues - diabetes, kidney failure and a heart condition

this was not good news

he was so weak - could he fight his way back

all we could do was keep the faith

and pray

we would get good news, then bad news

it has been an emotional roller coaster

prayers pouring in from family and friends

I am thankful for Facebook as I could just post an update

every couple of days

there have been little things happen

they lower the sedation so he opens his eyes when we are there

and he was giving my hand a squeeze

then one night last week I was on my way home

I was feeling down

broken

losing faith

driving in the car - I started talking to Mom

asking her - no telling her - I need you now

I need you to step up - we cannot lose him 

it is not his time - I knew that deep in my heart

feeling what I probably needed was just a good cry

that night I was getting ready for bed

I picked up my phone

it was 11:11

I smiled - looked up and said - ok

you got my message

the next afternoon at work I get a text from Stella

she had met with the doctor

he had said that Gord has just started showing signs of improvement

last night and today

Trev picked my up after work

I said do you really think - was it a coincidence?

no - not a coincidence

we have to believe and keep the faith

I am happy to say that when we went in today

he was awake

we were talking to him and he started to cry

I wiped his tears and told him how proud I was of him

he is a fighter - he fought for his life

and came out the other side

he still has a long road ahead of him

and when he found out the date he could not believe it

I told him I loved him and he mouthed the words back to us

both Trev and I cried in the hall leaving the hospital

but this time they were tears of happiness

a relief that he is coming back to us

with a little help from our angel.

xo

Out of the Shadows

Yes - here I am 

after 3 months away

truth be told, I did not intend to stay away this long

I have formulated a post in my mind many times

but never pulled the pin to actually sit down and type down the words

until tonight.

When I last posted I had a huge case of daughter guilt

feeling bad that I was not missing Mom

as much as I thought I should

I talked to a few people about how I was feeling

and they all helped in their own ways

but I felt it was time to pull out the big guns

and actually talk to a professional

we have an employee assistance program at work

and it is free, so I made the call

they gave me a choice of sitting down with someone face to face

or I could do it over the phone

I had visions of me laying on a couch with the doc smoking a pipe

and jotting down notes on me

so I opted for the phone call

Did he help me - absolutely

after one hour long conversation he asked questions

and I poured it all out

he asked - so you are feeling guilty because you are feeling some relief that she is gone?

OMG - I am a terrible person if I do admit to that!

seems that I am not so terrible - I loved my Mama deeply

and was there for her through so much

but she was tired ~ and existing 

no longer really living the life she wanted

so it was time for her to join Dad where she has wanted to be

the last 15 years.

So I had 2 phone sessions and felt better

I think I just needed someone to say - hey - it's ok

you don't have to curl up in the fetal position and cry day and night

I threw myself into holiday prep

lists were made, shopping was done

baking and decorating

wrapping and singing Christmas songs

I took a week off in November and got lots done

bought myself a new baby - a Kitchenaid stand mixer

thanks to some money Mom left me

everyone thought I should name her Linda

but I knew something would come to me in time

one night while cooking dinner

the song Ruby Baby by Dion popped into my head

well that was a sign from above and Ruby she became

Mom's birthday is in July with ruby as her birthstone

so it was very fitting

We had a good Christmas - I hosted so it is a lot of work

but I love having everyone gathered around the table

it just makes me happy

New Years Day we always got together for Chinese food

so I wanted to honour the Stiles tradition

and do it again this year with my brother, his fiance and the girls

we raised our glasses and toasted to a life well lived

2017 will be a good year.

Belated Happy New Year

to you and yours

xo

The Holiday Season

I always tell myself that I am going to do better

and maybe throw a post in at least once or twice a month

then I don't and I used to feel bad

but then I don't ~ how is that for honesty

I love having this place to come to ~ it is like a little journal

so here I am back again and sharing 

Christmas seemed to sneak up on me this year

I had the last week of Nov off and I had planned to get

everything done and get ahead of the game

then I got sick ~ not the flu but a nasty cold that kept me sidelined

most of the week

I did get some decorating, baking and shopping done

but not everything that landed on my ever growing list

oh well ~ we know everything will come together and it did

after church on Christmas Eve we all came back here for some finger foods

and drinks ~ we were a small group this year with both Moms along with 

my brother and his girlfriend

after a busy week both at home and at work ~ I fell into bed and did not open

my eyes again until 8:30!  

with no dinner to cook this year I did not have the added stress and responsibility 

of getting the turkey prepped and in the oven so it was a nice break

Our mantle

Sam, Gord, Mom & Kat

we picked up my MIL and went to Mom's for dinner

the girls arrived and they truly make the day

even though they are older now and way past the believing stage

they truly make things more fun!

Sam, Lori, Trevor & Kat

Sam, Lori, Kat

of course we needed to take some group shots and be a little silly

home for a bit and then off to Trev's Moms for a late supper of more appetizers

and gift opening.  Barb usually goes overboard and this year was no exception

she teased me the first of the month that she knew what she was getting my SIL and me

and that was it ~ yes I have heard that song and dance before

when I opened the above and heard the story behind it ~ my eyes welled up with tears

you see she took her Mother's diamond and also her Mother in Law's diamond

and had them set in pendants for my SIL and myself

well you know how I love things with a history ~ well family history is the best

something that I will cherish forever

Boo

Barb's tree

Boxing Day was back to her place for seafood casserole

which is oh so good then we stopped in to visit my Uncle on the way home

we ended up staying there for over 2 hours ~ told stories and laughed

love my peeps

our tree

last night the best neighbours ever came over and we exchanged

gifts and I made Pad Thai

we are getting together for New Years Eve and having fondue ~ so we are 

looking forward to that along with Cards Against Humanity

so wrong but so much fun!

Hope that your Christmas was merry and wishing you 

nothing but the best for 2016.

xo

1965

This post is way overdue but I wanted to share it anyway

since it was so great and brought a huge smile to my face

In April I turned the big 5-0

we had a party and I was surrounded by family and friends

I am truly blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life

there are those of course that wished they could be here

but were too far away to come

namely my best girl ever ~ aka my cousin Gina.

About a month or so after my birthday I came home to a delivery

the box was huge and I was scratching my head wondering what was inside

So ripping open the big box I pull out this beautiful memory box

you know that I am a word girl so when I saw this I had tears in my eyes

but I sure wasn't prepared for what was inside

it was FULL of goodies under layers of tissue paper ~ all wrapped in paper and tied with ribbon

and this note:

these were right on top along with instructions

the time, thought and effort behind this gift blew me away

every time I pulled another thing from the box I wondered what the little tag would say

who knew I shared my birthday with the Pillsbury Dough Boy!

I did know this one

this one made me snort laugh ~ Green Acres debuted on tv!

Diet Pepsi, Nutrasweet, Cool Whip, Apple Jacks, Shake n Bake,

Gatorade, Cranapple Juice & Pop Tarts all debuted in 1965

I checked the box for a key to the Mustang in the box but it was not there

maybe she will drive it here?  no?  Oh well ~ can't blame a girl for trying!

of course she knows I am all about the music and along with a list of the top 100 songs

of 1965, there was a flash drive with some videos and a key chain

I opened the tweezers and went ???  couldn't wait to read the tag on that one!

I still watch ~ of course she knows this so seeing the hourglass made me smile

and chocolate ~ yum!

There were more items ~ all with their little tags and ribbons

I texted her this pic when I was all done just to prove I did read and follow 

the instructions!

When I was talking to her next we talked about the gift and I asked her 

where she came up with the idea...  Pinterest of course!

For the end of the school year they did "Orange you glad it's Summer" 

and had a buffet of everything orange

she was working on a "Box Full of Sunshine" for her besties birthday

which was coming up at that time.

I love this idea and will be using it in the future

and luckily I have 2 years to plan before she turns 50!

Happy Sunday.

Summer So Far

So Sunday I posted about Canada Day 

and I thought I would share some more happenings around here

I forgot to share my picture of the "cheese ball" I took out to Sam's party

after trying to make a giant maple leaf ~ I turned to my trusting cookie cutters

and arranged mini ones around the plate

I forgot to get a picture once the crackers were added ~ but it was fun and festive!

Although we have been to the cottage for day trips

we had not been down overnight once so far this summer

until last weekend that it is

can you believe it?

there has been so much going on ~ good things too

that we don't like to miss out on ~ so we stay put

things like ribfest ~ oh my Lord ~ hubby loves them

and I must admit ~ I like the not cooking part

and do enjoy a rib myself

there were 5 vendors and we bought from 4 of the 5 and shared

so we could try them all ~ well almost them all

we went last year for the first time and marked it on our calendars this year

it is a can't miss event

then the following weekend was the Atlantic Nationals

Friday night downtown is always a blast

Trev goes for the cars and I go for the social aspect

we tend to go early as there is usually a good crowd of people come 7 o'clock

and this year was no different

one of the big draws this year was a fav Canadian band was playing

so it brought even more people to the event

I shared a couple of pics on Instagram of the night

but this was when I gave Trev my phone and he held it up at arms length

and took a shot of Main Street ~ it was wild ~ so many people

April Wine still sounds as good as when I was a teen

so glad we went.

Saturday morning we got up ~ packed up and headed to the cottage

the lawn needed mowed ~ I cleaned up a bit and put stuff away

took over and did the rest of the mowing then we sat on our butts

and enjoyed the quiet

I read and napped and took pics

we ate well ~ played crib and slept sound

when we got up on Sunday there was nowhere we had to be

we visited with my uncle and I wandered through the fields

with my camera so I could get some shots of this

a sea Devil's paintbrushes ~ so pretty ~ so much orange

I don't think I have ever seen that many there at one time

we enjoyed the rest of the day ~ had supper then packed up and headed for home.

This past weekend was Mama's birthday

so we scooped her up on Saturday and went down the the camp

Trev's Mom was down so we busted in on her ~ put her gazebo up

and had some quality deck time with family and good friends.

Hope your week is going well!