Hello! Has everyone survived the Christmas holidays? We had a splendid one although it was a green one, lol. We didn't get snow until Tuesday and boy did it make up for not having any cause we got tons of it! And we are getting more tonight. Christmas was good, everything was much more organized than usual and the kids were for some reason much more calmer than usual...not sure why why it was really nice not to hear shouting and screaming Christmas day, lol. In fact, the kids slept in til 7:30 a.m. christmas morning and it was nice for us, and we actually got to bed earlier than usual Christmas Eve so we were able to fit in 6 and a half hours of sleep:) We had a special visitor show up Christmas Eve, boy were the kids surprised! Santa brought each of them a box of toffee chocolates and James and I a box of After Eight mints. Wasn't that sweet?? Rhys was especially surprised when he went to the door and saw Santa ho ho ho'ing at the front door. I think his eyes just about popped right out of his head, lol. Anyhow, it didn't take long for all the gifts to be unwrapped and toys to be just a buzzing. Dinner was very nice with the inlaws and went off without a hitch. Nobody was sick like in past years thank goodness! (we have had the stomach flu hit just in time for Christmas and it sucked, lol). Boxing day we went into Peterborough to visit my mom and brother Jim. It was very nice and my mom is leaving for Florida on Saturday so it was a goodbye for a few months. Tuesday afternoon, we went and visited my inlaws again where James's brother and his family were down visiting so it was another busy day. James went back to work yesterday and poor me has the kids home until the 9th of January. I love them, but there are only so many things you can do with 4 kids home day after day, lol. At least the past few day they have been outside playing in the snow and tobogganing down the hilly driveway:)

Hard to believe it's almost the weekend again and the new year is just around the corner. Grandma and grandpa are suppose to be taking the 3 youngest kids for the weekend and Noah goes to his dad's house this weekend, Alexis is working on Saturday than staying at her boyfriends home so we should have a house to ourselves other than the animals. It's been a long time coming! well, that's it for tonight folks.

Hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Chrismas with family and friends! if I don't make it back here by New Year's eve, I am wishing you all the Best in 2012!!

Hugs, Trish

I made it back before Christmas Eve! Well, I knew I wouldn't have time to post tomorrow night, so here I am :) We may just have a white Christmas afterall. last night we got a bit of snow, it wasn't suppose to stick but it was way colder and windyer than the weatherman forecasted so the snow is still here...not much but enough to give the ground a light dusting. Now it seems more like Christmas time :)
Santa is stopping by tomorrow evening before the kids go to bed. The kind grandpa of the new neighbors asked me yesterday if he could come by for visit, he dresses up as Santa for his grandchildren every year. We have never had anyone do that for us before, so it should be a treat! The kids sure will be surprised! I got ahead start on my baking tonight, a blueberry pie and a lemon pie are baked, and my cranberry sauce is made. tomorrow night I will cook the ham, the less I have to cook on Christmas day, the better! I think I will bake some scotch cookies with the kids tomorrow as well, a simple recipe, but oh so good, and something for them to snack on :) I have all my presents wrapped, not under the tree yet due to Roxy..hmm, may have to put her in her crate over night Christmas Eve, or keep her in our room, so nothing ends up under the couch since that is where her stash of random items are found destroyed, lol. Hubby has yet to wrap his presents, hope he doesn't fall asleep early as usual or he's in trouble! He does that every year, falls asleep by 9 or 10 Christmas Eve and wakes up after Santa has stopped by and delivered his goodies...do you know hard it is to do all that stuff on your own without a lookout person to warn you if someone wake up?? I think we will have game night or rent a movie for the evening and if we have time before, visit Bowmanville to see a subdivision that always amazes the public with their wonderful lit up houses. Every year at Christmas time this occurs and there is a constant line up of traffic that goes through the subdivision to view the beautiful lights and hard work these wonderful homeowners display.
Well, I think my bed is calling me, will be a busy day tomorrow etting odds and ends done, cleaning, which I have already done alot of so I am delegating the rest to the kids to do :) And last minute food to buy etc.
So I am wishing all my wonderful blogging friends a Very merry Christmas, full of wonderful memories, time spent with family and friends, good food and don't forget what the true meaning of Christmas is! From our home tou yours, safe travels wherever you may be!

Love, hugs, and blessings, Trish,James,Alexis,Noah,Rhys,Brynn and Kaedyn Boyd
xoxo

Another late post,lol

Well, I am up late once again... seems to be the norm around here, while everyone els is fast asleep, i am surfing the net. Still no major snow here, just a few patches here and there and it looks like we are going to have a green Christmas. Now, althought I hate winter, I wouldn't mind a little bit of white stuff on Christmas day...just to make it feel like Christmas! but, I am not holding my breath. Tomorrow it is suppose to rain and get up to 6 degrees. I have all my shopping done except for a few stocking stuffers and a few things for Christmas dinner. I would love to make some pies but latelt the cost of food makes buying a pie cheaper than baking one :( my wonderful mother inlaw bought us a turkey that is already stuffed, it's a butterball... I haven't had a butterball turkey in years!! While I will kind of miss making the stuffing, I won't miss trying to thaw the bird out to remove the little packages stored inside in order to stuff the bird, lol. And my mother inlaw also sent extra stuffing that she made and froze so I just have to put it in the oven. Seems to me, everyone loves stuffing around here so I also bought some boxes of stove top stuffing just to keep them satisfied ! And extra cans of gravy because we go through it like crazy. tonight was the first time that I had turned on the lights on the Christmas tree, only because of my kitten Autumn and doggy Roxy, who have yet to experience A christmas and chew everything! I haven't put ant presents under the tree because of as well. Roxy steals things and takes them under the couch to rip apart, silly puppy. The kids keep asking where the presents are and I tell them they are stored at grandmas house so nobody snoops. Little do they know, the presents are safely stored in the nice antique cedar chest that my mom passed down to me with a lock and the rest are in the livingroom stored in the jam cupboard that I got at an auction a few months ago... I knew these things would come in handy despite my hubby's dismay when I brought them home, lol. The kids do not have a clue..for once!

Tonight, we went to my childrens school Christmas concert. It was fun and so cute to see the little ones get up on stage in front of so many people and perform. And of course I got teary eyed watching my Rhys get up with his class and do the dance they performed. He had rein deer antlers attached to his helmet and was right up there dancing a storm. He was the smallest kid in his class but has the most determination :) last week, Rhys's best friend lost his Opa who lived with him, he passed away during the night and I can only imagine how devastated his family is, especially at this time of the year. Rhys took a shining to this kind man during the summer on his play dates at his friends. As usual, Rhys, ot of all my kids, showed the most compassion for his buddy during his time of need. it always amazes me how my son with a severe disability and who is far behind what a normal child of his age is, can comfort and be there for those who are sad or hurt. Bless his little soul :)

Well I should probably get off of here, I have much to do tomorrow...icky cleaning, lol. The kids are done school on Friday, the latest they have have ever gone to school before the holidays. that means they don't go back until january 9th....yikes!! We are visiting my mom on boxing day to exchange gifts and have diiner since she has decided once again to go to Florida for the winter...4 days later. Every year she swear she isn't going to go back because the weather isn't so great ans she says she might as well stay home...and every year at the last minute she changes her mind, lol. Oh well, she deserves it, she will be 80 in February and if she can escape our Canadian cold winter, all the power to her!!

Okay, I am off of here!! I will try and be back before Christmas Eve, but if I am not, I am wishing all of my wonderful blogging friends a very Merry Blessed Christmas Holiday with their family and friends!!

Thanks so very much for stopping by and making the past year a wonderful one :)

Love and hugs, Trish

It's beginning to look like winter...

Hello friends,

It's chilly here and we are covered with the dreaded white stuff. I do believe winter has finally arrived and I am gearing up to be holed up in the house for a few months. As you can tell, I am not a fan of winter. You would think that being a Canadian, I should be used to it, but I'm not young anymore, and the cold weather bothers my joints and I hate driving on messy roads. I detest having to bundle up to go out and do the chores. If I had my way, it would be white for Christmas and than all the snow can disappear! I think I am complaining to much, lol. This year I am having my son Noah help me out with bringing in the wood when he gets home from school, it's too hard on my back. He hasn't complained so far and it's giving him some responsibilty on helping with the family chores. Brynn and Kaedyn like to help him too even though it's only one piece of wood at a time that they can carry.
Our Christmas decorations are almost all up, the tree is decorated, I had to finally do it becasue it was just looking too plain. Autumn the kitty is being not so bad with it, she has oonly climbed it a handful of times since all the decorations were put on. Our outdoor lights are up, not a whole lot ( trying to save on electricity), but the snow is making them look pretty. I wish I could figure out how to load pictures on this laptop... One of these days!
So what else have I been up too? Not much, lol. I am taking it easy, or trying to :) Just getting through the daily routine is enough for me. I did try to dry out sliced oranges and apples....on top of my wood stove and they turned out great! I did however get some odd looks form hubby and the kids and got asked why I was wasting costly fruit just to dry them out...they just don't get it :( My 16 yr old daughter looked at them and said they would be neat strung up on the fireplace....could it be, she is finally understanding the way I think and what I like?? There is always hope :)
It's going going to be a busy weekend and the next 2 weeks are going to be a blur. Saturday night we are going to a charity hockey game in Peterborough between the NHL Allumini and the local Police. The kids are excited and Rhys has been talking about it for weeks now. Than there are Christmas school concerts to go to and last minute gift shopping etc. I am hoping I will get everything done on time. I hate wrapping on Christmas eve cause I get no help...hubby falls asleep on the couch and doesn't wake up until all the presents are under the tree and Santa has made his visit :P

Well, I think I have bored you all enough. I need to get to bed, morning comes to soon. Hope you all have a fabulous weekend and I will be stopping by to read your blogs. I am having problems commenting on many of them but know that I am still enjoying reading them all :)

Take care, hugs, Trish

Rain Blah....

Well, Monday is over already, the weekend went by way too fast...it seems that this year has flwon by way too quickly! I am hoping that all of my American friends had a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving holiday with their family and friends!
The forcast here for the next few days is rain...yuck! Than possibly snow :P i know we have lucked out so far this November, it's been relatively mild with only a few really chilly days but I am sure not looking forward to seeing white stuff.
I was forutunate to have the house to myself on Saturday, hubby took the kids to the inlaws for the day since he was helping his dad put up siding on their new home. Although it was peaceful, it became kind of boring... I look forward to some quiet time without the kids but it ends up feeling strange not having to hear them bickering or pestering me every second for this or that. I must sound lame, lol. Oh well, I did manage to put the Christmas tree up minus the decorations. I am waiting for Autumn the kitty and Roxy the beagle to get used to the tree since this is their first Christmas. I am so glad I did that because the tree has been knocked down a few times with the branches pulled out ( thank goodness for artificial trees!) and Roxy is stealing scented bowl fillers and my Christmas picks that I have places in my crocks and chews them, especially the pinecones, lol. I can honestly say this is going to be an interesting holiday season :)
Little by little I will pull out the decorations and get them set up. I am almost finished my Christmas shopping...yippee, and its not even December yet!! Kaedyn is being a bugger and sneaking peaks at the presents and contantly searching for them. I think I will wrap them up and store them at grandmas ( well I already told the kids daddy took them there, lol) ...uggh, there always has to be one kid that tries to spoil it :(
my daugher Alexis finally got her first job and is working at the Durham farmers Co-Op, she started 3 weeks ago. She is so happy and works hard and the pay cheque is good! she has also been responsible enough to pay me back for some of the money she has borrowed lately and is excited to be able to buy Christmas presents with her own money. I am so very proud of her and things have been so much better between us lately :)

Well, I guess I should go put some more wood on the stove and try and get some sleep, listening to the rain fall on this old tin roof...it is comforting :) I am hoping to be back on here to post again this week if all goes well!

Have a blessed week everyone and take care,

Hugs, Trish

Hello my friends, it's been awhile! I have been without a computer and have not been able to catch up on everyone's blogs. I have a laptop now that my daughter told me was really really slow but I am finding it to be working not to badly so here I am :) I hope everyone is doing well and I have really missed being able to read everyones blogs. Things here have been busy for me and I seem to never have enough time. We had our first taste of snow Friday and I did not like it one bit!! It has all melted now but I am really looking forward to winter at all. Our doggy Roxy is adjusting well and being a typical beagle...it's like having another child in the house, lol always runing around to see what she is into. She likes garbage and we have had to do some hiding of the garbage can and she can jump a 3 and a half foot wooden half door gate to get into the woodstove room to get to the kids back packs with food in them. She loves to snuggle though and give loads of kisses, we just have to know what she has eaten before we let her kiss us since she loves the litterbox and mice :P Our kittens are growing fast and are ready for new homes already. We have found a nice home for 2 of them. I would love to keep at least one of them but they are male and we have all female cats so that would mean getting a male fixed...we shall see.
The big final NASCAR race is on Sunday and my boys will be glued to the t.v. hoping Tony Stewart will win! I may just have to watch some of the race even though I'm not into NASCAR too much, lol.
I have been getting to some auctions lately, every Friday evening at 5 there is one just 10 mins away from us. It's a bit of a scramble for me as I have to dinner ready early and I have to take 3 kids with me since James isn't home from work yet but we have fun! I have gotten some more enamel/graniteware and some primitive wooden bowls and mashers etc. I even got a wood jam cupboard that I am going to put our stereo system in to hide it, all I need to do is cut out some holes in the back for the cords. Much nicer than the ugly black cabinet with icky glass doors that I hate so much.

Well it's late here and I should be off to bed. Just wanted to post to say that I am still alive!
Hoping you are all having a fabulous weekend and take care!

Hugs, Trish :)

Good rainy Wednesday morning :)

Can't forget our beloved Zoe! She looks a little wild, lol
P.J., Indigo, Dragon and Wiggles...don't ask about those names, it was the kids idea, lol
Our new family member...Roxy
Hello all, I have been away for a bit, not having much computer tome. Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers on the passing of our dear Sam. He is buried in a nice spot with fall hardy mums planted by his grave and a rock which I am going to paint his name on it and my 13 yr old son Noah made a cross out of sticks and tied together with vines. We had a nice funeral with the kids each saying something nice and than we had a salute to Sam. He will be dearly missed but always remembered.
So with that being said, the week after we found our kitty Autumn, our cat Spyder gave birth to 4 healthy kittens! Oh my, we have 8 cats in the house!! They are now 1 month old, 3 boys and 1 girl. Oh they are sweet :) but no, we are not keeping any of them, lol. And last week, the kids and we so sad about losing Sam, and I was just browsing on kijiji and saw the sweetest beagle girl, 10 months old being given away as the owners didn't have enough time for her and not a big enough yard. I had showed the ad to James, fully expecting a firm "no" since he said earlier no more dogs once we were down to 1. Well, he took one look and said surprisingly "yes". I told him that could be my anniversary present from him since our 10th anniversary is tomorrow :) Anyhow, we went to see "Roxy", and couldn't help but bring her home. She's a handful for sure, being a beagle and getting into everything her nose can smell out, lol. But the first thing she did when we went to bed the first night we had her was smother us with kisses, and I mean there was not one part of our head that wasn't covered, lol, than she burrowed under our blankets and slept between us keeping us warm. Oh how I was missing that from Sam. So I have been busy with her, getting her trained to go out to the bathroom instead of on the floor, I know she is still a pup, so it takes time, and our Aussie sheppard Zoe is showing her who is boss and where not to go in the house but in no time they will be great friends!
And you know what cheered me up greatly the week Sam had passed away? I got my pumpkins that I had won from Melissa when she had her contest back in August, I think. Oh they are sweet and arrived just in time for Halloween!

So James and mine 10 th wedding anniversary is this Thursday, we did it, we made it!! Oh how that first year was difficult with us being in the hospital with Rhys and being so stressed out with him almost losing his job because of the long hospital stay, and all the medical stuff that Rhys went through. We sure did have our share of spats and could have easily given up on each other, but we didn't, we stuck together and were each others rock. I couldn't have married a more perfect man, he showed me what real love was and took my 2 oldest kids under his wing and raised them like they were his own. We had 3 more beautiful children together and I know that we can make it through anything! Since he lost his wedding band a few years ago at work, I decided for our 10th anniversary to replace it. I have finally been able to spend the money on him like has for me in the past. I hope he likes it and doesn't lose it, lol.

Well, that's it for now, I know I was babbling alot. I will try to post pics of the kittens and Roxy if my computer co-operates! I hope you are all having a blessed week!

Take care, hugs, Trish

R.I.P. Sam Boyd

I am so sad to post that our beloved Sam passed away overnight :( He had started to make a comeback last week and was actually eating and walking around pretty good. On Thursday he stopped eating again and by Friday he could no longer walk. I had him by my side at all times since he whimpered for me when I was not in his sight and when I would sit down beside him, he would put his front paws on my hand and give me the look like he knew he was not going to be with us much longer. I told him how brave he had been and that we loved him and that it was okay to let go. When I went to bed last night, I put him in our room and wrapped him up in a warm blanket and he quietly passed away while we slept. I am devastated, he was my "baby"and was always by my side. I am missing his wonderful hound howl that he would let out when we came home and the snuggles he gave as he buried himself under all our blankets at night to keep me warm on chilly nights. He will always be loved and remembered and he wouldn't want us to be sad, but right now it is all I can do to hold back tears. Of all the dogs we have had, Sam was mine, and I am blessed to have had him in our lives for 7 of his 10 yrs of life. If ever we get another dog, it will have to be another beagle as they have the best personalities! So the sun shined this morning long enough for us to bury him, and than it got cold and windy and rainy. My son Rhys wants to have a funeral for him so we are going to place a rock on Sam's site with his name on it and plant some flowers. We miss you dear Sam, Love MOM ,xoxo

I have some happier news from last week, but I will share them in a bit. Hope you are all having a good weekend and staying warm!
Hugs and blessings, Trish

Chilly, wet night and update on Sam and Autumn

Well, it's a rainy, windy, chilly night here, down to 8 degrees so far, brrrr. Not cold enough to start the woodstove yet though! I want to thank you all for your kinds and uplifting comments for Sam and Autumn. They cheered me up greatly and I am truly blessed to have so many wonderful, kind blogger friends :) We had a rather rough week with Sam. He is still here with us, surprising, he doesn't want to give in! I did some internet research to see what I could possibly find and thought I would try some holistic remedies first. I know it could be anything with him being a senior dog and vets charge so very much.... I decided to try some turmeric mixed with water to help his tummy and it stopped the throwing up thanks goodness. Since he lost so much weight in just a week, I had a suspicion that he may have worms (eww) and the kind that are unseen, even vets have to use a microscope to see and diagnose. So with that in mind, I found that using DE ( dianthemicus (sp?) earth) food grade of course, is a non toxic way to get rid of them. You can use it for mites, worms, fleas etc. and it won't hurt humans or animals. I also started giving him Pedialite childrens replacement fluid to help with his electrolytes and give him back some strength. I was doing all this through a medicine syringe( without the needle) and I can tell you, that despite his weakness, he was not too happy with me prying his mouth open for any of this, lol. I am even spoon feeding him wet dog food. Today, he has been the most brightest that he has been all week, he is now drinking lots of water on his own and he even ate pepperoni eagerly. Last night was my son Noah's 13 th birthday, and we had pizza and chicken wings, and Sam actually sniffed the chicken wing with interest, so I cut the chicken up and he ate it! Noah was so worried that Sam would die on his birthday :( But he is happy now that Sam is still here with us. So, I now have Sam in cloth diapers( I knew I had kept them from when my kids were babies for a reason), and because Sam is still weak and can't get up in time to go out to the bathroom, I have put these on him and it is much easier to change them instead of cleaning up a massive mess of poop and pee, hehe, I don't know why it took me all week to come up with this idea, lol. I carry Sam upstairs at night and when I have a rest since he wants to be upstairs with me and climbing 13 steps is too hard for him right now...Can you tell I love my dogggy bunches?? :D
So this week has been busy...my oldest daughter turned 16 on Tuesday, and I took her 45 minutes away to get her G1 licence( that's the first written test), and we drove all that way just to find out she need another piece of identification with a picture and her signature. Ugh, what 16yr old has all this I.D. on them? We didn't have to have it when we took our drivers test. So now, I will have to take her back again since she had to have a form filled out by her principal at school stating that they have known her for 2 yrs and that they confirm who she is. What a pain, lol. Oh well, on her birthday, she took in a resume at our local Co-op country feed store, and they called her the next day for an interview! She is just waiting for them to call her back with news of a job, but it would be perfect for her, as she can take the school bus there after school and get picked up when they close and work Saturdays as well, and it's less than 10 mins away from home!! Keeping our fingers crossed that she gets the job :)
And now onto Autumn...I think she has found her home...here :) Although James was adamant about having no more pets, she is winning his heart over and she even sleeps with him... I told him tonight how our 5 yr old son Kaedyn had said to me one day..." you know mom, if we don't say anything to dad about keeping Autumn, maybe in awhile he won't notice that she is still here". I had to smile about that! She is such a sweetie, typical kitten getting into everything, but she is standing her ground with our older cats and letting them know that they are not going to boss her around. I'm just happy that we found her in time and that she has a warm, safe home and I love her when she cuddles up under my neck and purrs loudly while she sleeps.
Well, I guess I'd better go, hoping to once again catch upon everyone since I have not been able to all week. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and thanks for stopping by!!

Hugs and blessings, Trish

Autmun, our stray kitten and some goodies from Kristine over at APP :)

Towels that go so well with my kitchen!!
YUM! They smell wonderful!!

Meet Autumn, the stray kitten we found on the first day of "autumn", :)


It's Friday! Not sure the time has gone but the week has just flown by! Luckily we have had some summer like weather but today it's a little cool and rainy with spurts of sun poking through...sleepy weather! On the first day of autumn, we had a little stray kitten show up, she can't be more than 8 or 9 weeks old. Poor thing was hiding in the raspberry cane bushes but my daughter went in, prickles and all and rescued her. We named her Autumn , isn't she sweet? She was covered in dried dirt and oil(well that's what it smelt like), someone must have dropped her off around here and she found her way up to the house. This occurs just days after my kids begging for another kitten and my husband saying flat out "NO MORE PETS!!", so just imagine what he was thinking when he found out about this little sweetie, lol. Of course we are just taking care of her until we find her a good home, we already have 3 cats and one is pregnant :P For now, Autumn is staying in Alexis's room until she gets bigger and can manage escaping from our aussie shepperd dog Zoe who likes to terrorize the cats...

On Tuesday after checking the mailbox, I found a surprise...and no bills! lol. I couldn't wait to open it, it was from Kristine over at APP magazine. She sent me a Random Act Of Kindness package, how sweet of her to think of me! Inside the box were 3 prim dishtowels and a prim dish cloth, and a very nice package of potpourri bowl fillers...yum, do they ever smell nice and just in time for my autumn decorations! I have to find a special place to put my dish towels, they are too nice to use! I can honestly say, this surprise brightened my week as it has been wishy washy to say the least. Thank you so much Kristine for thinking of me and cheering me up :)
Okay for the wishy wash stuff, I've had to go into the highschool and deal with my daughters principal...not a fun thing to do at all! Ugh, they way they run the school it's no wonder kids want to drop out and I can't get my girl outta there soon enough! Next week she turns 16 and than she can transfer to a school where she will actually get help for the subjects that she is having a rough time in without being made to feel intimidated and stupid... And now for the next thing...our 10 yr old beagle Sam has not been eating and is getting weak, I think he is sadly on his way off to a better place soon. He is my baby, I picked him out from The Peterborough Humane Society 7 years ago, and he has always snuggled in my bed when it's cold, howled when I come home and wagged his tailed so happily..He's just not the same now, he still follows me from room to room, and lies down by my feet, but he's not even stealing food like he always does..So I am bracing myself for the inevitable :( Okay I am about to cry just thinking of it...
Well, I must get some lunch and go snuggle with my Sam, hope you are having a wonderful Friday,

Take care!
Hugs, Trish

Auction finds....

Thermometer for $1
My no sew make do burlap curtains....

Wooden crates...need ideas what to do with them, lol
Large crock on the far left $6
Crock jug for $1 and large flour sieve for $2

Well, it's Monday again, where is the time going? It's the middle of September and fall will be officially here in just a few days! I like fall, but the way time has being going by so quickly, I don't like what is just around the corner after... I shudder at the thought of it...
This weekend I went to another auction. I tried to get hubby to come with me but he told me to go on my own :P Luckily my 8 yr old daughter Brynn wanted to come and we had fun but it was alot of standing and our feet and backs were getting sore! I did score some nice things and only spent about $28 dollars total... The jug crock was covered in black/brown gooey oil substance and nobody wanted it so I grabbed it for a dollar...with a little elbow grease it came out fairly clean even though it has some faint cracks on the sides, I don't mind. The huge crock has a bigger crack in it but I just turn it around so you can't see it. I was happy to win the flour sieve, I have been wanting one for awhile now!
About a month ago, I went into our local Co-op feed store and found some burlap sacks for $2.99 each and decided to try and make some curtains with them. Since I don't sew very well, I carefully picked the seams out and than placed rusty safety pins on them and hung them up with jute twine. I think they turned out quite well :) I want to do the same for our living room windows, but the sacks are not long enough, so I have to figure out how to attach the sacks together to make them longer but not have them look goofy, lol. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know!!
Well, I think I'm going to go curl up in bed, it's a rainy night and I have the sniffles and we are holding off on starting the woodstove up, it's been quite chilly here at night! Hope everyone had a fabulous day!!
Hugs, Trish

New piggy pictures and my drysink redo :)

hmm, what can we find in here?
What are you looking at?
Meet Petunia and Petals....oops, just discovered it's Porky, lol :D





Good morning!! The sun is shining, it's a little cool today, fall is definitley on it's way. Before we know it, it will be time to start up the woodstove to stay cozy warm at night. Which reminds me that I need to cleanup the woodstove room and paint it before we start using the woodstove. So much to do and not enough time! Today is the first day this week that I am on my own, My daughter Alexis was sick on Monday with a sore throat and swollen glands, and it wasn't Kaedyn's day to go to school, than Tuesday Rhys was home sick, than yesterday Alexis mussed the bus and I had a flat tire and couldn't drive her school, so I had 3 kids home...and I got nothing done, lol. Today, I don't know what I am going to do, putter around and clean and maybe try some crafting, or just sit outside and enjoy the animals and sunshine :) As you can see, my husband completed the pigpen last night so we tested it out this morning and the piggies love it! They are already trying to dig in the dirt around where the post were put in, lol, so I have to keep a close eye on them. I need to get myself a pair of farmers coveralls because every time I go in to feed them, they come running at me and get me with their dirty noses and my clothes don't look so great, lol. I love having the pigs, they are like dogs, coming up for a pet and following me wherever I go in the pen. I don't know how it will be when they get up to 250 lbs though, it could be interesting to say the least. Well, I thought I would pop in and say hello and hope you are having a lovely Thursday! I will be on later tonight when it's quiet to check in on everyone!

Hugs, Trish

Piggies,chicks and flowers...

A few flowers from my garden in which I do not have a green thumb!
Baby chicks were scared of the camera, lol
Piggies dirty from rooting through the shed :)

Our newest farm critters, back to school and annual Durham Central Fair!

Good Saturday evening everyone!!
Well, school has started back and everyone is enjoying greatly (me too!), just my daughter who is in gr 11 is not so happy, she's having a few problems and I am frustrated with her school!
Anyhow, with back to school, comes with it our annual Durham Central Fair which opened on Thursday. It was cheapie night so we took the kids, you all know how much it can cost taking 4 kids to the fair right? Well we all got in for $10, kids 13 and under got in free and it was 2 for the price of 1 for adults and parking was free thanks to Tim Hortons for sponsoring the Fair!! The rides were 1 ticket each ($2 a ticket, but considering on any other night the tickets are like $3 each and each ride takes 2 - 3 tickets), so we actually did pretty good. I feel so old knowing that I cannot go on those wicked rides that the kids go on these days, seeing as when I was younger I could handle them, lol, now I just get queasy looking at the kids on the Ring of Fire, and The tomahawk and The Salt and pepper Shaker and the Zipper...makes me want to throw up just watching,, hehe. We made it back home by 9:30 and the kids went straight to be and slept all through the night. The next day was for all the local schools to gather at the fairgrounds and compete in the Farmers Olympics consisting of the manure throw ( with bean bags :D), the tractor pull( riding a tricycle and pulling a square bale of hay), the round hay bale push( where 2 kids had to push a large round bale of hay a certain distance under a certain amount of time), tug of wars and many other events! There was also floats from each school that paraded down the main street in Orono to the fairgrounds, lots of agricultural tours where students got to learn all about farming and making butter and cooking and raising animal etc. All in all, the kids had an awesome time and once again returned home happy but pooped! Nothing says Fall like the tradition of The Fair!!
So the Sunday before we had gone to Lindsay area to pick out some cute little piggies to raise for meat ( sorry kids, don't get too used to them, lol) So we now have Petunia and Petals( yes they are girls). They don't stink like I thought they would and now that they know who's feeding them ( me, lol), they come right up to the front of the shed and snort and look at their food dish and look at me than snort again as if to say " come on feed us we're starving" My hubby has been working so much he hasn't gotten around to making a pen yet and this weekend he is working the Oshawa RibFest, so it's just another task being put off, what else is new!!
A few weeks ago we got a surprise from one of hens that we had thought went missing. We heard some chirping going on inside one of our portable garages, so we took a peek, and low and behold, under our Speckles was some really cute chicks. She had 6 but 3 of them did not make it :( I had to put them in a pet crate in the chicken coop til they get bigger. I'm trying to load some pictures of our piggies and chicks so hopefully it will work!
That's it for now, hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend!!
Hugs, Trish

My apopogies for not being around...

Happy Friday everyone!! I haven't been around blogland much lately, not that I haven't tried, but my internet really sucks lately and every time I go on to read a blog or post a comment I get server cannot be found etc... really ticks me off! I am actually surprised that it is working right now!! It's a long weekend, labour day weekend for us and the kids go back to school on Tuesday!! They are eager to go back and I think I will let a little sigh of relief as well even though I love having them around :) I'm not even going to try and post pics today cause I know it won't work, lol. I have had a trying week, lol. I almost broke my toe when my foot got tangled up in the livingroom chair cover Monday night and the carpet runner slipped under me... you should have heard the thunderous thud! Hubby thought I broke my leg, hehe, but I just ended up bruising my middle toe very badly and it was very painful, along with the huge bruises on my knees...looks like someone beat me, lol. Than this morning when I went out to meet the neighbor who was knocking at our door, I tripped on the same foot, my shoe flew off and I cut the bottom of my foot on the concrete porch. I was so embarassed :( So I am once again hobbling around the house. It looks like it's going to be a busy weekend for us, last minute back to school shopping and hubby wants to buy a couple of pigs to raise for meat, some one has some for sale so we have to build a pen etc. And in between I am going to try and catch up on everyone's updates on their blogs :)
So that's about it for me right now. Hope everyone has had a wonderful week and enjoy your weekend!!

Many hugs, Trish

Stay safe everyone!!

I'm getting off of the computer real quick as we have a severe thunderstorm in effect and we are under a tornado watch! Just wanted to pop by and say hello since I have been on all week due to internet problems :( And of course the one night that it's actually working, we get this nasty weather. So, for everyone who is having horrible weather, please stay safe and know that I m keeping you all in my prayers! Lets hope we don't get this tornado since a small town in Ontario about 3 to 4 hrs away from us got hit pretty bad with one on Sunday, an F3 category tornado which was devastating but luckily only one person was killed. We have no real basement to take shelter in so keeping fingers crossed we don't get one! Well, it's lightening and thundering really good here now, so I'd better get off of here! Hope you all are having a wonderful week!
Hugs, Trish

Just have to share some more of my excitement!

I won!! I can't believe I have actually won something! :) Melissa at Prim In The Country had a giveaway and I entered at the last moment thinking ya sure, I'm never going to win after all the wonderful entries. My luck at winning anything is next to nil, lol. But to my surprise, I was the lucky winner of her awesome giveaway! My week just keeps on getting better and better :D Thanks Melissa for hosting such a wonderful giveaway and I will be sure to post pics when my goodies arrive!
Hope you are all having a wonderful evening and don't forget to stop by Melissa's blog, she is having another awesome giveaway!! P.S. tell her I sent you!! :)
Blessings, Trish

I got spoiled!! :D

Good morning everyone! Another beautiful sunny day here and the windows are temporarily wide open again before it gets to hot out. There is a beautiful breeze blowing and I'm trying to air the house out from painting my drysink,lol. Yesterday was a nice surprise again waiting in the mailbox just for me! And no, it wasn't bills!! (for once). I had ordered another bonnet from Lecia over at Farmhouse Prims. I had asked for Lecia to pick one out for me to surprise me. And she didn't disappoint me!! :) Of course I knew she wouldn't because all of her bonnets are beautiful and perfect! And to bot, they arrived in just one week! The postal service was kind to me not to make me wait too long :) And she even sent me a cute little ditty bag to hang with the bonnet and a beautiful card with a sweet note in it. And the picture on the front of the card was of her bonnets hanging out on her clothes line to dry( You have probably seen this pic on her blog!). I am so proud to be a Canadian who owns 2 of Lecia's wonderful creations! And you all warned me about how addicting her bonnets are, and you were all right!! Well that topped my day off and made my Monday turn around since it wasn't going so great before that. Thank you Lecia, my prim friend, you are truly special! The pic of the bonnet is on the left hand side, of course it's hanging beside the other one she made me. I have to find a better place to display them!
Hoping everyone is having a delightful Tuesday. I'm off to chase a coyote out of the barnyard and put my chickens and ducks back in the coop before they get snacked on!
Have a fabulous day!

Prim hugs, Trish

Melissa over at Prim in The Country is having a giveaway!

Hurry, time is almost up! Melissa is having a giveaway over at Prim in The Country. Head on over to sign up and tell her I sent you!! :)

Dough bin?

So I finally got my treasures home from the auction! Hubby has been working late all week and he had the truck, lol and on top of that the weather has been rainy until today so after work tonight we sped over to the auction building and loaded up the 2 items. I really don't know what this is but it does resemble a dough bin. It's too deep inside to have been a cradle and it is solid and doesn't rock. I think I will display some of my quilts on it for now :) Hubby asked where I was putting it...since I just got through getting rid alot of junk in the loft area upstairs, thanks to the help of my 16 yr old daughter, I now have space up there for it. I can just see her eyes rolling when she spies something cluttering up her "cleaned area" :D
I think I have decided to paint the wash stand black, hubby actually agreed with me this time, hehe, so since it's supposed to be a somewhat rainy weekend, I think I will make that one of my main projects. If anyone has any ideas of what I think is a dough bin really is, feel free to let me know!
Have a wonderful weekend every one!
Hugs, Trish

Found a pic from the auction website of the washstand/dry sink that I got for $22.50. It's on the left hand side. Don't know if I will keep it that color, would love to paint it a more "prim" color, any suggestions? :)

Hugs, Trish

Happy Monday evening :)

Hello everyone! I hope everyone's week has started off good! Mine was not so bad, at least we did not need the air conditioning on for once and I was able to open the windows up wide and let refreshing air in. I hate having the house closed up with the a/c's on, it gets so stale inside.
Well , weekend went well. I can't believe my hubby let me go to another auction, lol. I had mentioned on Thursday and he rolled his eyes at me. So I didn't mention it again til Sunday morning around 7:30. I looked at him and asked him if he had any money since I wanted to go and since he was still half asleep, he said okay :) So I dragged my 13 yr old son Noah outta bed ( much to his dismay, but he needed to get out of the house and do something since all he does is lay around and watch t.v. and pester his younger siblings) and off we went. And hubby had to get up and watch the rest of the kids when he wanted to sleep in, hehe. It wasn't a huge auction, but oh my it took forever for the little things like jewelery and figurines to be sold, like 1 1/2 hours and we got tired of standing so we took a seat for the good stuff to begin. I won a wood box or so that is what they described, but it looks more like a big antique cradle that doesn't rock, lol, so I'm thinking it might be an old dough or flour box without the lid?? Oh well, i got it for $2. I also finally got a washstand/dry sink for $22.50 and another crock. I don't have any pics yet as they are still at the auction hall because it was raining so hard and I could not get the darn tonneau cover for the truck off to put anything in it, so I have to make arrangements to go and pick it up when hubby is done working sometime this week. I can't wait to get them home and when I post pics, maybe someone can tell me what the big wood box thingy is, lol. I also got a brand new unopened mitre box kit for $3, was thinking of hubby when I got it and how he might be able to make me a few things :) and I can use it too when I make my homemade soap which I really need to make more of...I only spent $52 outta the $100 hubby gave me so he was happy to get money back! I really wanted a set of Salt Box houses pictures that you hardly ever see around this neck of the woods but it got too high in price and I knew my limit, but after I was done I was kicking myself for not getting them cause I still had money left over, lol. Oh well, next time, hehe.
Well, that was it for my adventure this weekend! Hope everyone had a great weekend and a good start to the week,

Lots of hugs, Trish

Good Thursday morning everyone! It's a bright, sunny beautiful day here in Kendal. After yesterday's much needed rain (although it was quite heavy for awhile!), it's nice to see Mr. Sunshine again and the humidity isn't too bad... yet :) Yesterday I received a wonderful parcel in the mail... I've been waiting for it for a bit and our postal system can be very slow at times. So after being completely soaked from the rain because our van window won't go up( I really hate automatic windows in vehicles and would much prefer the wind up ones, I eagerly opened the mailbox door and to my surprise, a brown envelope was just waiting for me! I knew it, I knew it! So rushing home and drying off, I carefully opened the envelope, boy was it taped good! lol, and than unwrapped the sweet prim tissue paper, and this is what was inside! A beautiful handmade prim bonnet made by Lecia over at Farmhouse Prims. It is stained just perfect and I love the colors. Thank you so much for creating such a beautiful bonnet and for making me smile on such a rainy, stormy day!

Have a wonderful day everyone!

Blessings and hugs, Trish

Fire Cracker Kid Primitive's is having an amazing giveaway so go ahead and pop over to their blog and enter to win!!

Picnic in the park...

Well I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend and for my Canadian followers, a happy Civic holiday long weekend! It was nice to have 3 days off for my hubby to spend time with us and we got some really good family quality time together :) Saturday began with an early wake up from the kids eager to start on our road trip and we were outta of the house by 10 a.m. , right on time! We headed up north and were in Huntsville by 12:30 taking the longer route but way more scenic but unfortunately we were not able to get out and take any pics as the 2 lane highway was very curvy and there were few places to pull over. We passed by so many beautiful peaceful lakes and hubby wants to win the lottery so that we can get a cottage up there. In Huntsville, we stopped at McD's for lunch and got to stretch our legs and sore bums from sitting. Than we headed up to Burks Falls, another beautiful small town and we searched for the house that my grandparents lived in. Couldn't find it lol, but I think I was 8 yrs old the last time I was there so it has likely changed alot. I knew it was near a railroad track and a river but dang it we just couldn't pick it out even though I remembered what it looked like back then. We probably drove by it a few times and just didn't recognize it. We were only 80 KM's away from North Bay... truely up North!! Thought about continuing to go there but decided to head back home because we didn't want to be getting back too late and we didn't want any accidents from the dogs when we got home! So we drove back through Gravenhurst and Bracebridge and Orillia which by the way took us alot less time because it was a different highway and we were home by 5:30. Next time we will leave earlier in the morning so that we can get out and walk around and see the sights! Sunday we were planning to do some more things but Rhys was feeling icky and had the runs so we didn't go anywhere but by Monday he was feeling much better and he wanted to go on a picnic. We went to Orono, a town 10 mins away and went to the park there and the kids had a blast playing in the creek and hiking up the trails and than we had a bbq with the portable charcoal bbq Noah won a few years back. I forgot how good hamburgers and hotdogs tasted on a good old charcoal bbq! After some creek splashing and crayfish huntin we packed up or stuff, went and picked up our oldest daughter from her friends, grabbed some Timmy's coffees and $1 milkshakes for the kids and went home. The kids said that this was the best day of summer so far :) We will definitely be going back to the park again and stay longer and it's free!
Well that was our weekend, time to start a new week and look forward to any adventures next weekend! We have PT again this week for Rhys and lots of driving back and forth taking the kids here and there. Can't wait for Friday to arrive :) Blogger is being slow at uploading pics so I will try again tomorrow!

Hope you all are doing well and take care,

Blessed hugs,Trish

More goodwill goodies...now where am I going to put them on my counter top??
My youngest son Kaedyn after a long fun filled day playing outside...check out that mischievious grin...little does he know it, it's bathtime!! lol
Some goodwill finds... and a curious kitty named Spyder Monster...don't ask about the name, lol
Rusty our new banty baby, not sure if it's a boy or a girl
Charlie our EE chicken and Martha our banty hen
My new crock from the weekend, didn't have one of those yet!
Finally got my plate rack done and up on the wall...had to do it myself, lol


Road Trip!
Well another week has whipped by! Last weekend on the spur of the moment we decide to go on a little road trip on Sunday so we loaded up the kids and off we went. We wound our way through many little towns within a 2 -3 hr radious from us. Many of which I had never heard of before...isn't that sad that we have lived out this way for 11 yrs and never travelled in that direction. Anyhow we started out on a whim and went through Port Perry( okay we've been there since we got married there, lol), and kept on going stopping at a few small and very cramped antique stores. Oh that was not fun with 4 kids who wanted to touch everything! Anyhow, we went through Blackwater, Sunderland, a few more towns that I cannot remember the names, than Beaverton where we wanted to stop near the beach but couldn't find a road that went there, lol, and than we drove back through Cannington and Lindsay ( been there many times!) and because it was nearing suppertime we decided to get a bucket of Mary Brown's Fried Chicken...yummy! Better than KFC and no gas for me, lol. So this weekend we decided to pack a cooler with lots of food( so we don't spend loads of money) and go for another drive...this time we are heading up to Burk's Falls, where my grandparents lived and although I was very young, I had many, many wonderful memories of there. Than we will tour around Huntsville ( there is a pioneer village there we'd like to take the kids to, and than Gravenhurst, and maybe Bracebridge( Santa's Village is there, I remember going there when I was a kid!). We want to do something fun for the kids since we haven't done anything yet this summer. And maybe scope out some campgrounds for next year and maybe, just maybe peek at some antique stores as well. It's a long weekend here and hubby has Monday off so we may even go somewhere on Sunday as well and the weather is supposed to be perfect! Oh and I almost forgot, a dear friend of mine was trying to get rid of some of her chickens because she had too many and I gleefully took some off her hands! So I have 6 more chickens, 1 bigger EE or Americauna, a 2 yr old banty hen and some little ones which I'm not sure what they are yet. Unfortunately that evening something got my handsome banty rooster Rocky...why oh why do I always lose a rooster right before I get more chickens? ... this happened last year when I brought home more birds too :(

So I wanted to stop by and say hello and hoping you all have a wonderful and safe weekend! I will take lots of pics of our road trip and post soon!

many hugs, Trish

Michele over at a Bushel and a Peck has reached her 75 follower goal and has a giveaway all ready so check out her blog to enter!

Brenda at The Rusty Thimble is having yet again, another wonderful giveaway! Go take a peek!!

TOO HOT!!!

Oh my, I think I'm melting! If any of you are having cooler temps and rain, please feel free to share!! Today was the worst...Toronto hit 48 degrees celsieus ( that's 118 degrees farenheit) with the humidity...ugh! Needless to say we have been staying indoors with 3 a/c 's going and I'm afraid to see my next hydro bill :( For some reason my 2 youngest kids kept wanting to go out and play and got mad when I said no. I can't imagine how our ancestors survived in this heat in this house before a/c was invented! The heat seems to get trapped upstairs where all the bedrooms are and with a tin roof, it's not pleasant!
So, summer day camp for Rhys has been going great! He loves it and has met some great friends, a few in wheelchairs and some with other disabilities but it makes no difference to him. He is so social and greets each of his buddies every morning with a big smile and endless questions, lol. I must say, of all weeks to have this day camp, it had to be the hottest, and our a/c in the van decided to quit! It has not been fun but we have been lugging water bottles for the trip back and forth like crazy. Today my wonderful father in law took us to the Go Train in Oshawa for Rhys's trip to Toronto, thank goodness cause it was 28 degrees at 8 in the morning and he had a/c in his car! Despite the nasty heat, Rhys had a fabulous time but he sure is pooped tonight. Only one more day of the camp and Rhys is going to surely miss it when it's over, he has learned alot. Hopefully he will be invited next summer to go to it again!
So anyways, with all the heat I haven't gotten much accomplished, my house looks kinda messy but I'm not in the mood to do too much housework, lol. On the weekend I did manage to go to 2 thrift stores and find a few things and on Sunday, my daughter Brynn joined me at an auction where I also picked up a few things. The good items were going too high so I spent a measely $16.75 but that's okay, my hubby was happy that I didn't fritter all his money away.
My oldest son Noah was helping with putting square bales of hay in the barn on the weekend and he learned what hard work is all about especially in the heat. It gave him some exercise as well and got him away from from the t.v. and he earned $35 and best of all he enjoyed helping out! Now my 15 year old daughter wants to make money but since she was not around she missed out on the opportunity, lol and she was not too happy! Maybe next time!
I am hoping to share some pics of my latest goodies maybe tomorrow if all goes well.

That's it for tonight! Hope you are all staying cool, it's going to be a hot night again here, it's still 29 degrees out!
Take care and many hugs, Trish

Michele over at A Bushel and a Peck is going to have a giveaway once she has 75 followers, she only needs 2 more to reach that goal, so head on over, join her great blog! :)

Tolen Treasures is having a wonderful giveaway to celebrate her 500 th post! So go visit her blog and help her celebrate!!

What makes my heart skip a beat! Well, so many things so, but today I will say it's seeing my 10 yr old son Rhys with a rare genetic disorder called Hurlers Syndrome, continue to flourish and embrace life with all that he has. This week, we came across pictures of his 4th birthday party in which we had the pleasure of having his amazing and generous Bone Marrow Donor here to celebrate that special occasion. If it were not for this incredible, unselfish individual, we would most likely not have our precious son with us today. And because this past Tuesday was Rhys's annual bone marrow transplant checkup at The Hospital For Sick Children in which he got the thumbs up that everything is still going great and how amazed the doctors are with him after everything he has been through, I find it fitting that this be my "what makes my heart skip a beat" post as an entry over at Old Lady Morgan's blog for her wonderful giveaway!
Many hugs, Trish

Help Cyndy at The Crafty Stitchers celebrate her birthday!! Pop on over to enter to win this cute giveaway!

Been so busy!...

Hoping you all have had a wonderful weekend! Life around the Boyd Homestead has been hectic to say the least... School has been out for almost 2 weeks now and keeping 5 kids occupied has been a bit challenging since my husband works fulltime during the week and quite often on the weekends and with gas prices so high I can't take them really anywhere, lol. First week off we were looking forward to sleeping in but no, my eldest daughter had summer school which meant waking the kids up and being out of the house by 7:15 am to drop her off in the next town 15 mins away for the bus pickup. Lets just say the kids were not thrilled! ( I wasn't either!) and spending more than $80 worth of gas for both morning and afternoon pickups left my wallet empty :( Than on Tuesday, my son Rhys had a 3 hr assessment at Grandview Childrens Center in Oshawa so that he could get braces for his ankles because his feet turn outwards and he needs them straightened out. We met with the peadtrician there who was wonderful and has worked with children with Hurlers( at least 5 in the Durham area which is cool because Hurlers is so rare), and than he met with OT and PT and they were all so very outgoing and encouraging! And best of all, Rhys got invited to go to day camp there for a week to learn life skills and fun stuff and they were all booked up but they squeezed him in! He was so thrilled when he found out that they wanted him to go that he was shouting " I got in!!" to everyone he saw :) There is also a trip to Toronto on the last day going on the GO Train which he ever so looking forward to. It's hard for us to loosen up and give him some independence since we have had to look out for him every step of his last 10 yrs and it's going to be a tough one for me dropping him off first day of camp and probably a few tears will be shed by me but seeing him so happy and looking forward to this will balance it all out! It's not easy having a child with a disability and learning problems and having to worry every minute of the day but this will be a new beginning and challenge for Rhys and his zest for life and meeting new people and learning new things will great for him!
I wish I had pics to share this time but honestly I don't think you want to see fried grass and plants that have no flowers on them thanks to my wonderful free range chickens who have eaten almost every single petal of all my plants :( It's been so hot here and no rain that the grass is brown and crispy. I did make a makeshift barrier for my gardens with netting and sticks and whatever I could find to keep the silly birds from digging in my flower beds and trust me it looks horrible! I'm trying to find something that they won't eat :P Even my digitalis plant which is suppose to be poisonous had all the beautiful flowers chewed off. So if anybody knows of plants that will deter chickens and ducks, please let me know before my birds end up in the stew pot!
So, tomorrow is a slow day around here( I hope!), than Tuesday Rhys goes up to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto for his yearly Bone Marrow Transplant checkup and echocardiogram( oh that outta be fun!), and he wants us all to go, lol. I don't know...taking 4 kids up there in a truck in rush hour traffic for the 1 1/2 hr trip there does not sound fun especially when we have to leave around 6 am. But... it would be nice for his docs to see his siblings( 2 of which they have never met and one that they got to really know back in Rhys's transplant days. I myself am a little hestitant to go because as much as I know how wonderful that hospital is, I have spent way too much time there in the past including the 2003 SARS breakout when I was 9 months pregnant with Brynn and being made to wear those horrible thick masks etc. Can't forget spending over a year off and on there during transplant time and VP shunt replacements( a 1 month stay there too) in 2007. I dread walking through those front doors because so many memories good and bad keep flooding back and knowing that so many of our wonderful friends that we met back in 2002 lost a child while we were there. Maybe I should just be brave like Rhys and suck it up and go...if he can go back how many times a year to be poked and prodded, I guess I can go too :) Than on Wednesday I take him back to Grandview for physio at 1 pm and he wants me to go at 11 am, lol, can you tell he's going to love this place!
So this weekend was good, warm but nice and got to sit out by the chimnea for a fire and drinks :) Went by some nice looking yardsales that hubby wouldn't stop for ( and they were ones that actually looked worthwhile but instead he stops for the ones that weren't so great...I guess he didn't want me spending money, lol.
Oh well, I wanted to post before we get any storms which are due tomorrow. Hopefully I can post again before the week is over with some pics!
Have a wonderful week everyone and thanks for stopping by!

Many hugs and blessings, Trish