Bloggers of Blogtember

 

Image source: (1)

I thought about making the list of my five usual blog read. Several of my faves from last year have changed. I will return occasionally to my old faves, but often I find myself turning to where there is interaction. 

I love it when someone comments on my blog because it reminds me of them. For instance, Rosie  whom I met last year on blogtember, has been really encouraging all year long. When Rosie comments I find myself looking to see what she is up to. Some of those who comment challenge me to go further, and look into something further. Even readers without a blog, I am often reminded of you or curious about you.

Best of all I love it when we are on the same page. Blog-tember has been fun because all the bloggers participating were responding to a similar prompt & interpreting it in their own way. I recently found a sewing blog where you can sign up to be part of sewalongs using the same pattern. How fun! I think this might be a community I join. 

I love the blogs where individuals share their lives, fashions/clothes they are wearing, books they are reading, projects they are tackling. 

Just the other day in blogtember someone linked a fashion blogger who was out shopping and had tried on some clothes at a store that I also shop at. I never thought of that combo. I made a trip to the store and tried on some of those exact items. Some I liked, some I didn't and I ended up buying a few clothes for fall. It was fun! Now if I was really following my own advice I would try on all the clothes I bought and create my own post and share it with the world. Because my size medium/large is a different fit than her extra small. And a few different items made it into my shopping cart than hers. 

Best of all I love it when we are on the same page. Blog-tember has been fun because all the bloggers participating were responding to a similar prompt & interpreting it in their own way. 

Sometimes in our social media driven world I feel we miss encouraging and getting to know one another.  This blogtember I tried to visit as many blogs as possible and leave comments. Sometimes I just read because my ability to make a witty comment on the spot is usually lacking. Commenting, talking, interacting, builds community. I really would like to be better at commenting and am trying to comment & interact more when I read a blog. 

I thought I'd revisit ALL the bloggers that participated in blogtember and comment here about a post I liked that I remembered. Also this would be a reminder for myself of many of the blogs I visited during blogtember and a reminder to revisit. Really I should have been keeping track earlier because there are a lot of bloggers participating. Let's hope for another blog-tember where we can all put what we learned here into practice hey? And so I started with just today's blog-tember participants. Perhaps in time I will revisit the linkups on the previous day's in the month and add to this list. 

I've really enjoyed reading everyone's blog. You all are lovely women. 

Here are some posts I enjoyed reading during Blogtember...

• Aimee's This Morning Post. All those photographs are just beautiful. The dew on the spider web is stunning. 

• Anna Angela's Icecream post. Vanilla bean is versatile but also classic. Sometimes we can feel so regular until we realize that is what we like & what makes us fabulous. 

• Bailey's Life In Five. I've enjoyed your blog posts since last blogtember and have been cheering for you as you graduated and found a job teaching. I liked this post because it sums up and projects a hopeful future. 

• Cathy's Favorite Posts so far & link to Wedding Dress for Jess. Oh wow! You are so talented. I am impressed that you sewed a wedding dress.

• Jessica's Adventure Time post. That sounds like one wild fun bachelorette party. I am uber curious about how you became friends with your favorite wrestler. That almost never happens in real life. 

• Lacey's God's Grace post. God's grace is overwhelming to grasp at times & amazing. 

• Lecy's Cheese Broccoli Soup. Oh wow! I will need to make this soup. & Memories post. I can't even imagine what it must feel like to lose a brother especially during the holidays.

• Melissa's Redecorating a Room post. All the heart eyes for the porch, lounge chairs, lazy river, tree house and swing. So fun! 

• Natalie's Day In The Life Of. It brings back good memories of when I used to work in an office. I miss that time. I didn't appreciate it as much then.  I'd like to try that roasted veggies recipe. They look delicious and colourful.

• Nelle's Five Photos That Have Captured Your Year. I love how your photos tell a story. I have enjoyed following your blog since last blogtember and seeing your little one in updates. I am excited for you for your new business venture. 

• Pam's Trading Places. You have a great sense of humor. Do you have those 50,000 words written about George yet? I was interested to learn George Washington started the American foxhound breed. 

• Regina's Another Day Another Life. I can just feel the love you have for your son oozing in this post. Your a great mom! You have a great writing voice.

• Rebecca's What I Wish People Knew. I didn't realize before some of the things you shared about Eating Disorders. Thank you for sharing. 

• Rosie's Summer's End post. Your photo of the rose that has grown planted in your grandma's memory is gorgeous! I like your cheery posts. I have enjoyed getting to know you since last Blogtember. 

• Sam's Guest Post: Starting a Prayer Journal. This is inspiring. I've been hearing this repeated in my life recently that listing the positives brings gratitude which brings joy. I should start. 

• Thia's Geurtstagserinnerungen post. I love birthdays and the ones of your childhood sounded creative and fun. The cake decorated like a rabbit is great. Your 30th, 31st, 32nd and 33rd birthday sounds like the birthday I'd love to have traveling, relaxing & exploring. It's been fascinating translating your blog from German. 

• Tricia's Destination Getaway post. I am curious about what brought on the travel bug now after being a homebody most of your life. I wish you the best trip possible this December.

Hopefully in time, I will add to this list. Thank you all for reading & interacting with my posts during blog-tember. Thank you Rosie & Thia for your shout out yesterday. You both are beautiful. 

It was fun! 

#Collaboreads Banned Book

I love the idea of a book club & the Collaboreads link up is kind of like an online book club. This month the book selection was a banned book. It is Banned Books Week (September 25-October 1) in the States & while in Canada Freedom to Read Week runs February 26-March 4 I had a book in my cue that was once banned. 

 

The banned book I read is July's People by Nadine Gordimer. July's People was banned in South Africa shortly after it was written in 1981 until 1994. It was written prior to the end of Apartheid and presented a possible outcome of civil war as a backdrop to the novel where Whites have had to go into hiding to avoid being killed. From this place of refuge in the few days after their exit the story is told. It is a time of ambiguity. I found a quote as to why this book was banned, "the subject matter is questionable...the language used is not acceptable, as it does not encourage good grammatical practices...the reader is bombarded with nuances that do not achieve much...any condemnation of racism is difficult to discover--so the story comes across as being deeply rascist, superior, and patronizing." (1)While I do not fully understand South Africa's history or the end of Apartheid in South Africa I was surprised that this book was banned. (I didn't realize it was banned until I returned it to the library and then decided to add it to my bookshelf on goodreads as completed & read a few reviews.) It almost makes me want to re-read & then review this period in South Africa's history to see if I can understand why this book caused such an uproar. Almost.

RIVETING.

What part of the book could you NOT get enough of? 

I am in awe of the author utilizing tone so effectively. There is a strong sense of ambiguity "not knowing" throughout. Even the dialogue with its unfamiliar structure and lack of quotation marks & named speakers leaves the reader wondering. Much of the dialogue is ambiguous, those conversations that make one wonder what was meant. I am always fascinated by stories of escape. While the plot does not drive the book it is enough to keep me turning the pages wondering what happens to the family. Here the Smales, a white middle class liberal family of five, take flight from their suburban home and flee the violence under the direction of their servant to the village of his family. Displaced they find themselves dependent, living in his mother in law's one room hut. They do not know what is going on back in the city, if their home has been looted & burnt, they do not know if they can get out of the country or even if they should.  Even the ambiguous ending is fitting. Has Maureen run to safety & rescue or captors & her death & what of her family?

ELEMENTS.

How did you relate to/care for the characters? What’s your thought on the plot line and twists and turns? 

At first the lyrical language, alongside the cadence of the speakers colloquial tongue, made the book difficult to read. I was disoriented with nonlinear time sequencing trying to make sense of why this flashback was included here, and what it meant. Then the point of view shifted.  I wouldn't want to read novels like this on a regular basis but I gradually became accustomed & see how these elements mirrored the crisis of personal identity & shifts in balance of power. 

I liked Maureen's spunk. She was testy, tense, on edge, but also determined.

While the ambiguous ending stuck with me for several days and I found myself mulling over this book I also thought it was too abrupt. I didn't see the ending coming and much of the novel felt unresolved.  

ASSOCIATE.

What other books are like this one? If none, did it remind you of a particular TV or movie with it’s themes and characters? Does it serendipitous-ly line-up with things going on in your life or the news right now? 

I was reminded of A Blade Of Grass by Lewis DeSoto. A Blade of Grass is also lyrical & set in South Africa. It explores as this book what it means to be Black & White, entitlement, and the price of freedom. 

In some ways it makes me think of the Syrian refugees in Canada. What would it be like to flee? What would you take in those panicked last moments? What would the moments after include? Would life always feel like an interlude? I imagine even in Canada there is still a strain of prejudism, barriers they must encounter, 

DESIGN.

You know you judged this book by the cover. What did you think of it? How did it relate to the contents of the novel? And the font and layout of the pages?  

The copy I picked up from the library was a paperback. I love how paperbacks feel. After reading some thick hardcover books holding only 160 pages was welcome. I liked the cover design; this semi abstracted landscape & writing feel like school. Reading the author is a Nobel Prize Winner set this book up already as one I should invest my time in and consider i.e. not give up after the first confusing chapter. 

STARS.

How many out of five do you give this book? Would you recommend this book to a friend? 

I would give this book a solid 3.5. I liked it. To a literary friend I would recommend. 

Wherever You Are, Be Fully There.

 

 

I've been listening to the audio recording of One Thousand Gifts read by the author Ann Voskamp. If I were to answer what has brought me to tears lately this book would be it.  It is so heartfelt. Tears were leaking from my eyes the other day as we were eating lunch, listening, J looked at me perplexed & reached for me. I brushed the tears away and smiled, it's okay, baby. Because even though the telling in some chapters is sad, there is also so much hope, beauty, and joy in others. I am encouraged and inspired. "Wherever you are, be fully there." 

Lately J has been really clingy. If I so much as step out of the room or set her down to play on her own she's in tears. If I try to have someone hold her for a moment her lip quivers and she begins to cry. It is impossible to leave her at the nursery at moms group. Her tears lift in an instant when I pick her up & we dance around the kitchen. She babbles away happy. My floors need sweeping, I have boxes of books to yet haul in from the garage and go through, laundry to wash & fold, dishes to do, my to do list keeps growing. I've been holding her lots and was told repeatedly recently that I need to leave her, let her figure it out, work on having her be more independent. I was told I should go back to work, put her in daycare because this dependence was not good. It was bemoaning all this to my mom the other day and worried that perhaps what I was being told was true. I was feeling worn down. Where had my social butterfly gone? It was exhausting being needed so fully. My mom set me back on my feet in an instant. This is so good! It means she is forming healthy attachments. Really? Huh! And I remembered then a little of what we had learned when we were thinking about adoption. In a conversation my attitude shifted, I had felt close to tears myself, defeated, and now I realize what a gift this is. 

I read an article this evening on healthy attachment in babies. "Babies and toddlers who are securely attached will let you know it loud and clear... .So, while it may be disheartening to hear your baby’s cries, take heart in knowing it’s an indication they’re solidly attached... .If your baby seeks you out first when startled or scared, you’re on the right track... .Have you ever noticed that your baby continuously has their eye on you? While they may venture a little further when learning to crawl, or accept the arms of a stranger, they’ll only do so with your reassuring eyes... .Separation anxiety is distressing for everyone involved, particularly a new caregiver left with the daunting task of soothing a crying baby. While the upset may be extreme at times, your securely attached baby...will greet your return with smiles and reaching arms... .Parents of securely attached children tend to put in much more play-time than those who aren’t. ...While you may not enjoy hours of carpet time, simply chatting, smiling and stimulating your baby’s mind with books and music means you’re providing the social stimulation babies thrive on... .Some fear responding to their baby’s needs creates a dependent or “spoiled” child, but it’s quite the opposite. The trust that forms from healthy attachment leads to greater independence and a more self-assured older child." (1) Yay, to all that.

This book, One Thousand Gifts, and my mom's encouraging reminder have been such a boost for me this week. 

I love the photo above of the lioness with her cub. Beautiful. One day that little cub will be a lion. Lions are symbols of strength, courage, and leadership. I want my precious baby to one day be brave, a leader, a woman of strength & courage. 

So You Want Farm Fresh Organic Eggs: A Guest Post

One of my mom's loves is her hens. She calls them her girlies.

I decided to interview my mom about her chickens as my guest blogger.

Tell me, how did you get interested in having a flock?

I was interested in having hens that would lay eggs that I could bake with. My mom is an avid baker. I love having fresh eggs from my chickens. They bring me so much joy!

My first experience having my own chickens was not this positive. I was 28 years old. We were living on a farm. They were butcher hens. It was a bad experience for a first time flock as the hens had to die. They were scrawny. I was so discouraged. I didn't have chickens for many years after that.

No one admits to having a favorite child, but who's your favorite chicken & why?

My mom wondered if I wasn't really doing an interview about chickens after I asked this and if the question was metaphoric. I had to laugh.

I don't actually have one favorite. I have last year's chickens and this years. There are 60 in total with two roosters. They are all my favorites. They are so beautiful. The roosters even, they step out of my way and are very respectful.

Describe a day in the life with your chickens.

Early in the morning the chickens are let out into the first pen. The roosters are watching, waiting to crow. They know I will be giving them grain. When the rooster sees me coming with the grain he lets the others know. They like the grain. I soak the grain: wheat or oats first. Then they want to get out of the main pen and see more territory. I let them into the second pen which has a bigger terrain until 6 pm. Then they want the scraps. My dearest friend, she's one of a kind, she saves kitchen scraps. I wash out all their dishes they have had food in. When they see me coming out they just about jump the fence. I throw a piece over the fence and they run to it like it is gold. They scamper toward special pieces of scraps. At 7 pm I feed them more grain and oyster shell. Then I have my basket. It's a treasure hunt. I get up to 30 eggs. I tell them, "Thank you for the eggs". Then I say, "Good night, Girlies," and put them in for the night.

What do your chickens love to eat?

They love the kitchen scraps best of all. The kitchen scraps include carrot peels, potato peels, cored apples. They love banana peels. One will pick one up and run with it and they will all chase after. It is kind of like a game. They also love bread; that is a special treat.

What are your top tips for an aspiring backyard chicken farmer?

• Find a nice house. Make your own or buy one that looks cute.
• An egg nest that opens up and one you can collect the eggs from the outside is ideal.
• Order 5 or 6 hens for your backyard not 60 like I did.
• Make yourself a little fence to keep out predators. It is great to give chickens an area to free range.
• Go to a local farmer and get some organic grain.
• If you have a good friend, a friend who will keep scraps for you, this is great. It is embarrassing to ask for scraps from a friend, but a special friend will keep these for you.

Oh hey you can purchase this lovely chicken coop on Williams-Sonoma. 

It's a little expensive at $1499.95. 

Or you can always make your own. There are a number of cute plans linked on Pinterest. 

Here is one of my favorite chicken coops- The Cape Cod with a link to purchase plans. 

What has been your biggest challenge keeping chickens?

The biggest challenge I face is having to be home everyday to care for them or find someone who will let them out, feed & collect eggs. Also having a fence secure enough so that predators will not come and kill the chickens.

What are some of your happiest chicken moments?

Picking up the eggs, seeing them scratch around, listening to them talk. They give me so much delight. Sometimes I just watch them. It is as if they are talking, when they are clucking, eating the kitchen scraps, "This is so good."  It is so much fun listening to them talk. 

Sometimes I think I would like to have chickens. The thought of having 2 or 3 fresh organic eggs each day sounds appealing. My mom laughed when I asked her if I should get a few for my backyard, and said I would have to stay home unless I had a good friend who would take care of them when I came to visit her.  So no, I don't think I am ready to have chickens.

Thanks mom for being my guest blogger! xoxo 

Have you you ever flirted with the idea of having backyard chickens? Pinned a chicken coop diy or two? When you grew up did your parents or grandparents keep chickens?

An Autumn Card DIY

Today's blog-tember prompt was: Re-create an outfit or project from another blogger. 

It was fun to pull out my scissors, glue stick, paper, ink, and pens and craft this afternoon. I realized as I was making it that I had not used my ink pad since 2008. And it still worked great. Yay!

My inspiration was this Autumn Blessings card from the blog I'm in Haven:

Here is my attempt below. I did not have all the scrapbook supplies this blogger suggested, but I still think it turned out great.

K's Favorite Gingersnaps

Yesterday I was thinking of my brother K & hoping great things for him on his job interview. These are his favorite cookies & a recipe we made often when I was growing up. They are best right from the freezer. The chewy centers when slightly frozen are amazing! 

This recipe can be found in the recipe book that almost burned my apartment down. At first I could not find the recipe book when I wanted to make these cookies. Where could it be? I use this recipe book for all my favorites. I searched high and low; until finally I found it in my bedside table. Haha! Great bedtime reading I guess. 

Okay y'all are waiting for directions right?

Cream 3/4 cup margarine, 1 cup sugar, and 1 egg.

Add in 1/2 cup molasses. 

Note: This time I warmed the molasses for 30 seconds in the microwave to have it pour easier.

Mix in the dry ingredients: 2 1/2 cups of flour, 2 teaspoons ginger, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/2 a teaspoon of salt, 

It is best if you refrigerate the dough here before rolling into balls. 

Note: If you do NOT wish to refrigerate the dough, the dough will be super soft. You may add up to an extra 1/2 a cup of flour. Rolling in sugar will also help to add structure. 

Roll the dough into balls, and then into sugar and place on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-12 minutes. 

(Note: I did not refrigerate mine for this post, warmed the molasses, added an extra 1/2 cup of flour and baked for 10 minutes. I imagine if you did not warm the molasses you might not need the extra flour, or if you refrigerated the dough you would likely need to bake for 12 minutes. )

Yield: 2 1/2 dozen cookies of the best goodness possible! 

Mmm yum I cannot wait for these to cool and eat!

Autumn Favorites & Plans

Today, the first day of Autumn, the air is crisp. The sky is bleak & in the park behind my house the leaves on the trees have changed to gold. I love the changing of seasons. 

 

I am looking forward to decorating for fall. This past week painters have been here painting my front door. It's such a long process waiting for varathane to dry. They have let in a thousand flies with the door wide open to dry and I have been swatting flies. I am hopeful that the last coat of sealer will be applied today & I can put up my autumn wreath by this weekend. I picked up the cutest tea light jack-o-lanterns at the dollar store earlier this week. I want to crochet these pumpkins for a garland for my fireplace mantle.

 

I am thinking of thanksgiving when family will come to my house for Thanksgiving. What recipes to try out? Maybe this Starbucks Pumpkin Pound Cake  or this Pumpkin French Toast Bake  Will I make my own pumpkin pie from scratch? I have already put a jar of my mom's canned crabapple juice in the refrigerator in anticipation even though Thanksgiving is weeks away. But more than just the turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, crabapple juice, and pie I am thinking of gratitude. 

I have started the book One Thousand Gifts  and while the first chapter brought tears, the following chapters have ushered me into a state of reflective gratitude. It is a perfect book for this season. You really should read this over Thanksgiving. 

I have painted my toenails in keeping with the season. It is a deep burgundy and if you are looking for a great fall colour, Carry On by Essie, never disappoints, it's edgy and deep. 

I cleaned out my pantry & organized it yesterday afternoon. It felt good. You should clean out a closet or pantry each season. (Yes, I know I said I was going to clean out my closet this September...I am getting there.) I am thinking now of buying some baskets & labeling to house the loose items like pasta, crackers, oils & vinegars, sauces, peanut butter & syrups, jam, snacks. I need to think more about categories. 

 

I love fall styles. Mostly I just spend all my clothes budget on J, but I have purchased a pintuck popover top for me for fall from the Gap. It's so cute. I also want to purchase a sweater or two for fall & maybe a pair of boots as I ran a hole in the sole in my last pair from wearing all the time. Here are some cute fall clothes I purchased for J this fall from the Gap & Old Navy. 

 

J has woken up from her nap so I really must go but other fall thoughts I have include editing a costume I found for J (it's too big), making a fall playlist, visiting the pumpkin patch, and carving a pumpkin. 

If I Were A Flavour of Ice Cream

I was surprised to learn you can google if you were a flavour of icecream and a personality profile comes up based on your favorite flavor of icecream. There are also quizzes that provide you with a flavour of ice cream based on profile based questions.

I love most flavors of icecream but by far my favorite when L and I go out is vanilla icecream with huge chunks of peanut butter cups & cookie dough. 

 

This pic above is from the blog How Sweet It Is ... I love this foodie blog & whoa this recipe is my favorite ice-cream only a hundred times better. 

I couldn't find the flavour profile of vanilla+cookie dough+peanut butter cups exactly. So here is a mix of what I found: 

• Vanilla = you are dapper, debonair, and loyal. You are a compassionate, understanding and agreeable person. You enjoy the simple pleasures in life and are a universal romantic. However, you are also an impulsive, stubborn, emotionally expressive and idealistic risk taker who relies more on intuition than logic. (2)

• Cookie dough = you are a free spirit who is always keen on adventures. What's your dream? To travel the world? Optimism is your thing, and you always see the bright side of everything even when nothing is going the way you wanted it to. It is quite difficult to bring that smile off your face. (3)

• Peanut butter = you like to be helpful, you are patient, thoughtful and generous with your time. But don’t try to walk and chew gum at the same time. You don’t have to worry about relationships because people will stick with you through thick and thin. (4)

All of that, yes. 

• What is your favorite flavour? 
• Have you ever looked up what your favorite flavour says about you? Is it illustrative? 
• What is the worst flavour of icecream you've tried? 

Modern Conveniences

I thought about products that simplify my life & the only thing I could think of beyond the dishwasher hallelujah! & washing machine/dryer was a crockpot.

Crockpots are amazing! I can sing their praises. The thought of putting a few ingredients together in the crockpot in the morning, all afternoon being enticed by the smells wafting through the house, by evening lifting the lid to a tasty meal. The only thing I struggle with is finding a yummy crockpot recipe. Often I look at crockpot recipes and think ....hmmm I'm not sure. Sometimes they are divine & other times a flop. 

Before we get to crockpots & let's have a flash back to last year (during blog-tember) when we were living in the historic Bartleman. This is a journey into the bowels of the Bartleman...where I shlepped my laundry. 

It terrified me every time descending those three flights to do laundry. It was like the set for a horror film in the basement.  I jumped a mile every time I encountered someone in the dingy hallways.

I am ever grateful for the modern convenience of my own washer & dryer in my own laundry room now in our new house. Not having to remember to pick up quarters & loonies at the bank everytime I want to do a load of laundry is also grand.

Anyways, back to present & crockpots...so yesterday in preparation for this post I thought I should make something in the crockpot. What to make....I decided on pulled pork. I had some leftover rootbeer & read online somewhere that you could put the pulled pork in rootbeer & barbecue sauce in the crockpot. Hmmm it was okay. A little tough. I am hoping the leftovers get better as they soak in the fridge today. I mean $24.40 for a pork loin is an investment. 

That is the thing about blogging ...haha you have a great idea to share with the world and it kinda flops.  

Stressed?

So apparently sweating drops of blood is a real thing. I thought it was figurative when I read about Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. "Hematohidrosis is a very rare condition in which an individual sweats blood. It may occur in an individual who is suffering from extreme levels of stress." (1) That is some extreme stress. 

My levels of stress do not even compare.

 

I was thinking about ways I de-stress yesterday: 

• Usually I make lists when I am under stress. But then again I also make lists when I am extremely relaxed too. I love planners & planning. On my little mini trip to my in laws this past week I found myself in Michaels. I wanted to buy some fall/autumn decor or crafting materials for Thanksgiving. Since I did not come armed with a project in mind I was entirely overwhelmed and found myself in the planner aisles and ended up only buying some planner stickers for $7. Not that I need planner stickers or anything planner related at Michaels since I actually mostly bullet journal  nowadays.

• Sometimes I also clean/organize. This is the type of stress that I can't relax where I am until the space is ordered. Actually perhaps relaxing is not the right fit for this instance- this is the type of stress when I am trying to think/focus or study. It is as if the disorganization around me is taking all my attention subconsciously. See I intended to write this blog post yesterday but upon arriving home there was bags to unpack, a meal to prepare & clean up after, baby to care for/feed/bathe/put to bed. The evening I spent organizing Js toys, organizing the plates/bowls in the cupboard alongside actually cleaning the kitchen & living room. 

• The best way for me to de-stress is to get outside & go for a walk. Being outside in nature is very calming. And the walk generally works out what I am mulling through. Sometimes I don't even realize I am carrying a bundle of stress until I am halfway along my route that I feel my burden beginning to lift and start to notice how incredibly beautiful it is outside.  It's just the actual lacing up of ones sneakers which stands in the way of this. 

• And finally sometimes I need to journal, which becomes a prayer, which becomes a good sob. Or sometimes I just skip to the tears and then after I have weeped & L has rubbed my back or gave me a big hug & he has listened to all my woes I need to blow my nose which has morphed into a sinus headache. That is the worst stress equation but minus the sinus headache my stress is usually relieved. 

How about you, how do you relieve stress? 

My Greatest Adventure

Five years of waiting, wondering, praying, doctor's appointments, fertility specialists, blood draws, internal ultrasounds, needles, medication, everything that brought me my beautiful J, was worth it. 

We love her. She is such a delight & joy in our lives. 

While I wouldn't wish infertility treatment on anyone God must have known I'd find it fascinating. 

That little thawed embryo in the centre was once a growing follie monitored daily, then one of twenty eggs, then one of fifteen that matured & fertilized by ICSI, then one of six that made it to day five blastocyst, then frozen and several months later thawed and implanted. The top right picture shows where that little embryo was implanted. Even with several bumps in the road including one weeks of bleeding while traveling internationally, a blood clot that required injections of lovenox, gestational diabetes, and low amniotic fluid this beautiful baby was a survivor. 

I can only thank God and all the many people who prayed for me on this incredible adventure. 

And eeek now we are embarking on round three. (Our first round of IVF was a bust.) We received news this week after all the preliminary tests have again been updated that the IVF intake nurse would be calling us within the next week for our next FET (frozen embryo transfer) dates. Here's to hoping & praying for a little brother or sister for J in 2017! 

Bedroom Mood Board / Colour Scheme

This is my current mood board / colour scheme inspiration for our Master Bedroom.

What do you think? 

Trading Spaces

Tuesday, Sept. 13: If you could switch lives with someone for a day, who would it be? Why?

Today's blog-tember post is the question of long drives, miles upon miles, anything to fill the time. We left on a road trip this morning. I really should have asked L this question this afternoon in preparation for this post. These are the types of questions we would have exchanged when we were dating six years ago. Now we mostly just ride in silence thankful that J is asleep, content to wander our own thoughts, occasionally puncturing the silence with an observation, a remembrance, a question, a request. And yet, these are the questions that allow us to surprise one another & quizzically view the other, curious at the layers that we hadn't yet discovered. 

There are a number of women really I'd switch with for a day. This is a rabbit hole question really and if we had hours upon hours I'd spin a tale of each, and each path would take us somewhere different. Perhaps Mary the Mother of Jesus...I mean really whoa! Or Mother Theresa. Or Laura Ingalls Wilder. Or Kate Middleton.

Awhile back I said I have a girl crush for Joanna Gaines on Fixer Upper. I love her style. But that I also adored Jillian Harris. At the time I said but that was for another post. Today is the day for that post. 

 

If for one day Jillian Harris.... I would I think have a blast. I hope in being her I could try out her smoky voice. I would love her team Jilly to work their magic & while doing so hopefully glean all their tricks: a nutritionist, hairstylist/makeup artist, and managing editor specializing in fashion, strategy, business and digital content. Truth be told I'd likely be overwhelmed taking all that savvy successful branding in over the course of one day. I mean really it is the accumulation of a lifetime of moments & choices & opportunities & fate & God that bring each of us to a certain place and just plopping myself into her life on one day would I imagine never translate into my own life. However in true Jillian fashion I'd try to have fun, laugh, play. I'd like on this day if we were filming an episode of Love it Or List It Vancouver. That would be fun. I love Jillian's design esthetic. It would be fabulous to have a behind the scenes view of one of my favorite shows. I'd hope the day would also include travel to some exotic locale, or relaxing in a Kelowna vineyard with a great glass of wine. Oh and let's not forget the fashion. I'd love to explore her closet. I mean parading around in her shoes alone would be worth trading spaces for one day. This lady has style, business savvy, and is hilarious. 

How about you if for one day who would you choose? 

3 Books: Recently, Currently, & Future Read

I am joining up again today in the Blogtember Challenge. In the Blogtember Challenge the challenge is to blog every day in September. I skipped yesterday because the prompt was favorite instagrammers. My favorites are my long time pals, some of whom only post once in a blue moon, it is with great joy when I finally see their hilarious antics. Pals if your reading my blog, I'd love to see a new update on Instagram soon.  The other one of my favorites is an infertility/IVF comrade in Vancouver who is one sassy lady; I relish her sass. So I won't do shout outs for you all to follow these. 

But today is a prompt that is near to my heart. Reading.  For Monday September 12, the Blog-tember prompt is: 3 Books! One you just read, one your currently reading and one you want to read. 

Just Read: Looking for Lovely by Annie F. Downs

I listened to this book read by the author herself. I think listening to her voice made the book so much richer. It was if we were sitting in the living room just chatting about nail polish, sushi, men, podcasts we had just listened to, etc. Annie is so real. Annie is all about exploring the broken-crazy bits of herself in a conversational way, letting God show her the lovely where she has seen ugly & pain & and encouraging her readers to look for lovely in their own lives.  It is ultimately a book of transformation --a transformation that has begun and is not yet finished. I like that aspect  of incompleteness. It is like we are on a journey together. Annie is not saying, hey everyone this is how you do it because I've done it and I have it all together. I feel like I know Annie in a way after reading this book and I am excited for the next chapter in her life.  I resonated with Annie because I too am a quitter. It's not a particularly admirable quality. It shouldn't be hard to lose the 20 pounds I've gained in the last five years since being married but oh it so is! If I just followed myfitnesspal right and committed to losing a pound a week for 20 weeks I'd be there. That's only 5 months. Easy peasy right? I continually lose and regain the same five. Oh and we both have PCOS. Joy. And yet in this book is the reminder to not give up, to persevere, to face the hard things, that the pain is worth it, & the other side glorious.  Ladies this is a great read--and if you have a small group of ladies that meet up or something of that type such as a bible study group I would recommend as it has looking for lovely challenges at the end of each chapter & is great subject matter for taking about real life: our issues, insecurities, challenges, relationships, achievements, etc.

Currently Reading: Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

So early in the summer I was in a book store. I love books stores. I wanted a book for our getaway that was a light read & fun. I had been struggling through a book, that I have yet to finish, and wanted to be swept away in a book. So I picked up Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. It is a young adult fantasy novel. It was kind of like Hunger Games meets Game of Thrones PG version meets Carebears. I finished it in two or three days. I was hooked. It was such a fun read. So of course there is a sequel and now I just have to read that to learn what happens next. This one is not as gripping as the first probably because the main character is getting a little annoying and the betrayals are never ending, but I am a third of the way in and I think I am rounding the corner to where the plot thickens & I just have to keep reading to find out what happens next.

Next in Line to Read: Room by Emma Donoghue

This year I set a challenge for my self to read 26 Books on GoodReads. I thought I would read through the alphabet, with each letter of the alphabet being the start of the title of a book. I also thought I would read more books that would challenge my faith and so looked to the Influence Network for a list of books. These I am finding are not fast easy reads however. Do you know how hard it is to find books that start with the letter z that I actually want to read? Reading challenges are a great way to get us out of our comfort zones of reading & also to spur us on to read more. Last year I read 38 books out of 50 (or 52 if by trilogy category it meant all three) in the popsugar reading challenge of 2015. Currently I have only read 6 of 26 books with 2 more almost finished. So... I am not sure if I will actually meet my goal this year.

That all said, my next book in line is Room. When I was watching the Oscars, for the fashion, I was fascinated by the trailers for Room and have decided to read this novel of resilience before I watch the movie. That is also what I said about Still Alice, which I loved, and have yet to see.

From the author's website: "Room, is the story of a five-year-old called Jack, who lives in a single room with his Ma and has never been outside. When he turns five, he starts to ask questions, and his mother reveals to him that there is a world beyond the walls. Told entirely in Jack’s voice, Room is no horror story or tearjerker, but a celebration of resilience and the love between parent and child....Room was inspired by… having kids; the locked room is a metaphor for the claustrophobic, tender bond of parenthood. I borrowed observations, jokes, kid grammar and whole dialogues from our son Finn, who was five while I was writing it. Room was also inspired by... ancient folk motifs of walled-up virgins who give birth (e.g. Rapunzel), often to heroes (e.g. Danaë and Perseus).  Room was also inspired by… the Fritzl family’s escape from their dungeon in Austria – though I doubt I’ll ever use contemporary headlines as a launching point again, since I didn’t like being even occasionally accused of ‘exploitation’ or tagged ‘Fritzl writer’."

Reader Response:

1) Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

2) Are you on Goodreads? Do you know how to follow someone who is also on Goodreads who is not a facebook friend? For instance if you have a favorite blogger who is also a reader and is often talking about their Goodreads?

3) Is there a book you read because it was also being released as a movie but cannot bring yourself to now watch because the book was that good?

A Day in the Life

When I was younger I used to like to read fashion magazines (what am I saying, I still do!) and sometimes there was a column where the model would walk the reader through her day with pictures. This post will also be a day in the life of, just not the glamorous running around New York kind. 

So here is a snapshot of our day on Friday. 

7 AM  

Time to wake up already! 

All before this hour:

J has been singing/talking for awhile.

Way before this hour L has left for work. 

Sorry L I couldn't make it up at 5 AM to make you your lunch.

8 AM  

Making Coffee. 

Having Cranberry Almond cereal for breakfast. 

J is hanging out in her Bumbo chair playing with a lime coloured plastic Easter egg that my aunt put dried beans into and taped closed with packing tape. It is one of her favorite toys. She loves to shake it & it's the perfect size for little fingers. Does this mean she will be musical? 

All before this hour:

Have fed J & changed her diaper. 

Have changed J into a day outfit.

9 AM

Folding Laundry.

Talking to my mom on speaker phone.

All before this hour: 

Have changed J.

Added toilet bowl cleaner to toilets.

Dressed.

Made bed.

Combed hair.

Made a telephone call.

10 AM

J goes for her morning nap.

It lasts 1/2 an hour.

I look for bedding.

Oh West Elm! My heart swoons.

11 AM

All before this hour:

Have fed & changed J's diaper.

Put away 1/2 of load of folded whites.

Rinsed out washing rags with bleach.

Put in second load into washing machine.

Now, dishes from breakfast & last night's supper.

12 AM

Making lunch.

Lunch is lentil soup that I made & leftover quesadillas.

I ground up a quesadilla for J.

Last night she loved it. Today... well we resorted to pluots.

Mmm we love pluots.

All before this hour:

Dishes are washed.

Cue all the baby anger for me doing housework instead of playing with her. 

So 1/2 an hour of undivided attention playing with J.

1 PM

Off we go for a walk but not before another diaper change & outfit change.

J sleeps half the way.

2 PM

Home again.

Change diaper & outfit.

Take out fish from freezer for supper & loosely plan what I am making for dinner.

We post a picture on Instagram of our walk.

Play with toys & listen to a novel.

3 PM

Snack-time: I make a London Fog.

J has a messy cookie.

Playtime.

Listening to novel.

4 PM

J goes for a nap & I do some financial work in office.

5 PM

J is awake.

I try to eke out a few more moments of office work by putting J in the jolly jumper.

J is not amused.

6 PM

Making dinner.

7 PM

L is home for work & it's dinner time.

I made salad, fish, couscous, & toppings to add to couscous (feta, green onions, peppers, raisins, fried mushrooms, and chili flakes. L will add sriracha sauce to his. He adds sriracha to almost everything. You can almost pretend its Korean is his reasoning.)

J blows out the couscous. Its hilarious and messy. Couscous is not a hit. 

The white fish however she loves. Yay! 

8 PM

It is normally Js bedtime.

I am finishing up a blog post on the laptop at the island.

And then this happened. 

Chocolate sauce & frozen yogurt.

J was bouncing off the walls.

L changed her & washed her up.

We changed her into her bedtime sleeper & she took almost an hour to calm down before her bottle, stretches and bedtime.

No more sugar before bed from now on.

I sound like a grouchy grownup.

9:30 PM

Finally.

Bedtime.

Lights out.

For the count J had 6 outfit changes in this day (including the 2 sleeper changes). 

Obviously she is the model in this column and not me.