HuckleberryJunction

Oh Canada and Other Stuff

Oh my goodness, have we been busy! We have had the craziest summer so far. We have been to 2 weddings, 4 birthday parties, 2 showers, 2 stags/stagettes, and 1 trip to Vancouver. We still have, 1 concert, 1 wedding, 1 baby shower, 3 birthdays and 3 friends about to have babies! Crazy huh? It's been really fun though. I feel so lucky to be a part of so many peoples special days, it's really touching! Thank goodness for photographic evidence though, or it might have all been a blur by September!

Well, i'll start with the trip to Vancouver, which included one of the birthdays, my Mama's! As i mentioned in my last post, we had big plans for our trip, and was it ever fun! We spent the day at Stanley Park, which was a first for Colby, and had been a really long time for the rest of us.

This picture is special because i have one, somewhere, that is very similar to this, but 20 years ago! It's in the very same place, and my Mom, Darcy and i, all sitting on the same rock. I wish i could find it, i know it's here somewhere! If i find it, i'll be sure to post it for you!

We were walking along the sea wall, trying to find the aquarium, when we saw this beautiful blue heron just standing there, posing for pictures! This is my brother, Darcy, trying to get a close up.

This one turned out really cool! This is, Sydney, my Mom's step-granddaughter at the jellyfish tank. I posted a similar picture of my nephew, Kasen, in my last post.

This is the best we could get of the baby beluga. It was really neat to see. I saw the birth of a beluga whale when i was little, at the same aquarium. I wonder if it was the mom?

The rest of the day was spent having a BBQ at my Mom's with some family, and a little bocce tournament on the side. The next day we got a little shopping, lunch and a visit with my Nana in. It turned out to be a great weekend, lotsa fun!

Canada day was another great day that i got some great photos of. My best friend Shalea, and her husband, Aaron, had everyone over for a pool party. It was a blast!

This is the lovely hostess, Mrs. Shalea Wittich, looking very fine in the sunshine!

Our good friend, Derrick aka Shoop Dog, soakin up the sun!

Colby and my friend, Joelle, having fun with the pool toys. I swear, these two didn't come out of the pool all day, i thought they were going to turn into raisins!!

And last but not least, the Babe! I took so many pictures of her that i had to make a mosaic out of them to show them all!

Isn't she the cutest, i just love her to bits and pieces! We had so much fun swimming, eating, dancing and just hanging out. I can't wait until next year! Happy Birthday Canada!

Hopefully all the upcoming events are as great as these last ones! I'll be sure to take lots of pictures! 

#2

I couldn't resist, i had to make another! This little ditty is for my Mom's step-granddaughter, Sydney Mae. She's five so i didn't have to alter anything, it was a breeze! By far, funnest and easiest pattern i've ever had to deal with! If you didn't see my previous post, i got the Ruffle Skirt tutorial from Grand Revival, a blog i find great inspiration in. So, with no further ado, here she is, #2...

Isn't it cute? I know, i always ask that, but i can't help it! I just can't believe something so cute came out of something so simple. Sydney loves Tinkerbell right now, and it just so happened that i had fabric left with the Tinkerbell colours! It's not the most whimsical prints, but i thought they made a cute contrast, yes/no? I hope she likes it, i think i might make her a little flower barrette for her hair, it will be a lovely little outfit! I'll be seeing her this weekend when we go to Vancouver for my Mama's birthday. I can't wait, haven't seen my mom in a month and a bit and we have big plans for her this weekend!

We've (Colby, Darcy and I) have decided to take her to Stanley Park for the day and see the baby beluga whale at the aquarium. My mom used to take Darcy and i to Stanley Park all the time when we were little, and Colby has never been, so it should be really fun. That is entirely dependant on the weather however! We'll make do though. We've also decided that the Spaghetti Factory is the perfect place for her birthday dinner, which non of us have been to in a long time, or ever (ahem, Colby). My step-sister, Jenny, and her family is hoping to meet up with us for the day, which will be a nice surprise in itself for my mom because she hasn't seen my step-sister in 6 years and has never met her step-grandson! I can't wait! I hope to take lots of pictures and make a great big post of our adventure when we get home!

This is Kasen, my step-nephew. I just love this picture of him. It was taken the last time Jenny took him to the aquarium. This is what we'll all look like this weekend, our noses pressed up to the glass, in awe!

Tried and True

I have been fighting off a fever all day with Tylenol and sleep, and i just couldn't be in bed any longer. It seemed that i had the house to myself...strange, so i decided to make use of the little mess in my corner!

Well, ok, it's not exactly a mess, but it was out, and i wanted to take my mind off of my burning head, so i started perusing through the many blogs i so love to read every day, for some inspiration. I was surfing my way deep into Grand Revival, which i love, when i stumbled upon the cutest little skirts! Well, it turns out, this was my lucky day, sort of, because i came across the Ruffled Skirt Tutorial just waiting for me to try! Now, of course, the first thing i thought of was,"Rianna would look so cute in one of these!", and so i decided to try one out for my little babe! The instructions were beautifully done and so easy to follow, i managed to whip this up in 2 hours!

That was while watching TV and trying to eat a half of a piece of pizza, so i think my next one should be substantially faster without the distractions and sickness! I just love how this turned out. I just hope it fits her! I reduced it by two inches all around because the instructions said the skirts are usually made for a five year old, and Rianna is only two and a half. I'm the worst at judging size. I should probably work on that if i plan on sewing very much more, hey?

For material, the turquoise was a linen tablecloth i found at a second hand store and the paisley print was a linen duvet cover i also found at the second hand store. I love how the two flow together. I can just see Rianna twirling about in it (if it fits her!). She just loves to dance! I do believe i have found my new sewing niche, kids clothes! It's so easy to make them and the possibilities are endless. I tried making bags and purses, but they just don't seem to be my thing. I like how kids clothes are so quick as well, i can't stand leaving projects until they are finished, i have a little bit of the OCD! I can't wait to make more stuff, i have a ton of cute ideas just twirling and bouncing around in my head! Rianna will be my little test model, and by the time i have kids, i'll hopefully be a pro! Well, we'll see how that goes!

One Rainy Morning...

Today wasn't the nicest day, so i decided to make some good use of it and do some sewing. That's right, i hauled out my machine from the storage and went to work on a few long awaited things! I hemmed one pair of jeans that i bought 2 months ago and haven't worn, because they were way too long! I also turned another pair of jeans into some cute little capri's, i desperately need summer clothes! On top of that, i decided to start a summer dress for my baby-girl, Rianna, and managed to finish it!

Didn't it turn out super cute? I can't wait to see her in it. I made it from a bed sheet i found at a second hand store! I love colour, even though it doesn't look the best in this picture. It was actually a lime green, nice and bright for summer! I'm already brewing up another one. I have a really cute paisley print from a table cloth and i think i'll add some pockets or an applique. This was a super easy pattern i got from here. It was really easy to follow. I can't wait to see the next one. Rianna is going to be the talk of the playgroup her mom takes her to!

On another note, this was another rainy day, Colby and Charlie having a moment...

...aren't they cute? Here's to rainy days, who says they have to be a bad thing!

What I'm Thankful For...

I have been seeing some beautiful mosaics on some of the blogs i religiously read, and i decided to give it a whirl! Now, most of these beautiful mosaics have been compiled while playing a game, but i decided to incorporate a mosaic into a list of things that i am most thankful for at this time in my life. I also decided to use my own pictures, so they aren't the greatest quality and you see a lot of me in them, but otherwise i think it turned out good!

I should probably explain a little, or else you might think i am most grateful for myself, which is and isn't true! Let me explain...(i will go from left to right in order)

Love-My boyfriend, Colby, and his undying love for me and all of me.

Family-My Mama and my brother, Darcy. I love them both very much.

Charlie-My golden retriever, constant companion and biggest fan.

Friendship-My best friend, Shalea. She is always there for me no matter what and i love how i can tell her anything and know i will never be judged, i love that, you're a rockstar Shae!

Health-For everyone's good health, especially my Nana. She's playing Dance Dance Revolution, not bad for a 77 year old, hey?

Nature and Pretty Things-No explanation needed!

A cold beer-One of my favourite things to do is have a nice cold beer or good glass of wine on a Friday or Saturday night with my friends.

Home-The beautiful place i am fortunate enough to live,The Okanagan.

The Good Fight-My Mom had breast cancer 5 years ago and i am very grateful for anything and everything that supports breast cancer.

Humour and Humility-I love that i, as well as, all of my friends and family have wonderful sense of humours. Always good company and never a dull moment!

Mmmm-Cupcakes and all that is sweet!

My happiness-I am most grateful that at this time in my life, with all of my hopes and dreams, that i am truly a happy person!

Pretty Pictures In My Head

I just watched my new favourite movie last night...do you need a hint? I know, i know, i can't believe i hadn't seen it yet either! It was one of those movies that i had to watch when Colby was out or away because there was no way that he was going to sit through such a girlie movie! He just doesn't appreciate beautiful imagery or things that don't get blown up! I just loved the imagery and the acting. The story line was a little hard to follow for me, because there was so much silence in the movie. Ok, so was her husband gay? And their son, was he her husband's or the Swedish soldier's? I think i'm going to try and find the book to read, it's normally better anyway! It may also explain more. I guess it would have to, it wouldn't be much of a book if there was just silence in it! Teehee, i'm a geek! Wouldn't you have loved all those wonderfully colourful clothes and shoes? And all those cakes they were eating, how on earth would she have stayed so skinny? That is if she was an actual person and not just a character in a movie! Well, i've also rented Vanity Fair, with Reese Witherspoon, i know, i know, i haven't seen that one either. I don't get to get the girlie movies very often! I'll see how the two measure up and keep you posted! That is to say that anyone is reading this? Anyone? Anyone?... Bueller? Bueller?

The Redneck

The glorious absence of sophistication!

My good friend, and Redneck, Chad Dietz. This is about as unsophisticamated as it gets! I've had my moments though...

...pretty sexy, hey? Oh well, if you can't laugh at yourself...

The Great Outdoors

  We went camping at Peachland Lake last weekend with our good friends, the Wittichs. They have a 2 year old, Rianna, whom i just love to bits and pieces. How couldn't you? She just so darn cute!

My little love dressed herself this fine morning, and decided that gum boots and bubbles go best together!

 

She also felt this was the ideal outfit for quading, with the addition of a very stylish Dora the Explorer helmet!

We had so much fun! It was such a beautiful day. Shalea, Mrs.Wittich, and i spent the day playing with Rianna and our two dogs, Charlie and Sadie, and just relaxing in the sunshine!

I'm not really sure why we are seated around the unlit fire, but i guess it just doesn't feel like camping unless there is a fire pit involved, even if it's way too hot to lite!

The dogs spent the day swimming and sunbathing...

...and the boys, Aaron and Colby, were off quading and fishing. They took Rianna on a evening fish, she had a blast, i think it's almost time for her own fishing rod! I do believe i saw a Dora one at Walmart!!!

I just love this picture, i think i might make it greyscale, blow it up and frame it. It will go great with my cabin theme and i think it will make a really interesting piece!

All in all, the weekend was fun, relaxing and memorable. Unfortunately, it all had to come to an end, and not a very good one! We woke up to pouring rain and our camper leaking a little. My wonderful boyfriend, Colby, sprung into action fixing leaks and packing up. I especially love his cute little outfit he made for himself!

We managed to get everything patched and packed up before any significant damage was done. I suppose it wasn't too horrible of an ending, nobody melted or washed away! And things like that are what make us remember, aren't they?

For the Love of Lilacs

Oh how i love the smell of lilacs! I wish i could have fresh ones in the house all year round! They're so refreshing and pretty and last for quite a while in a vase. Here's my bouquet i swiped from the bushes outside my house. They look so pretty in the sunlight, i just had to share!

I wish i could pass the wonderful scent through the computer. Here's a close up, not the same, but you can imagine it can't you?

I can't wait until i have a back yard that i can fill with these bushes in all the colors i can find. Until then, my little bussells will have to do!

Space to Grow

I decided that i was not going to let the fact that i live in a squishy old townhouse deter my desire to grow things! Last weekend i marched (actually drove) my little green thumb down to my local nursery and bought myself a patio garden! I decided to go with a wrought iron railing box, to save on space and i love the look of the flower waterfall. Unfortunately, the clamps to hang it were too big for our railing, so Colby needs to make some minor adjustments. This means that it will probably be hung August of next year! Perhaps if i "ask" just enough, he'll get around to it soon. This is what it looks like on the ground...

I chose a Geranium in Bravo Dark Pink as the center flower of the box.

Doesn't sunlight do wonders for the amateur photographer? Much nicer than my nighttime photo of the whole planter!

On either side of it, i planted some yellow and purple calibrachoa.

I mixed in some pink Nemesia in the front and sides...

... as well as some Pacific Merlot Star, or Ivy Geranium, in the same color as the big Geranium.

On either end i chose some Mini Outback Daisies in Mauve, because they grow out beautifully and they're so darn cute!

I decided to also purchase a large pot and three strawberry plants (my favorite fruit) to support my little addiction from home!

I can't wait for those plump, juicy little treats to be just falling off these little babies!

I had an old tin bucket in our storage, so i decided to transfer my poor, long awaiting herb garden into it...

I had some chives, oregano, parsley and chocolate mint all growing in the house. (Oh i should have taken this picture in the daytime!)

Unfortunately, the oregano isn't doing so well. I don't think it's enjoying it's new home very much! I fear i may have to omit or replace it!

Anyways, that was my little patio garden. I'm hoping to have the box up and running soon, and i'm going to do my second fertilizing tomorrow. I'm wishing for lots of sun and significant growth for the rest of the week!

Oh, but don't you think that's all there will be! I have big plans for my little patio, whether Colby, the BBQ King, likes it or not! I still would like a few more single potted plants, and i've been eyeing up a cute little wrought iron hanging basket that would match perfectly! I just might have a whole green arm and a jungle by the time i'm through!

Only In Canada

This is what i woke up to on Saturday morning. I know..."are you freakin' kidding me?" is exactly what i was thinking too! I mean, it is very pretty and all, but come on, it's the middle of April! Luckily it melted by the end of Saturday and the days following were relatively nice, aside from the piercingly cold wind. We did have sun though! I'm just a little tired of hibernation and ready to enjoy some "sociables" on the patio and warm nights down by the beach. Colby just recently purchased a little aluminum boat, so i get to use my fishing rod that's been sitting in storage for two years! But that definitely won't be until it warms up a bit. I am far too clumsy to be gallivanting in a little boat in the middle of a lake when it is below 20 degrees outside! Anyways, i've been getting the crafting itch a little more too, so hopefully there will be some stuff in the making soon! Until then...TTFN!

Hello, it's me again...

Holly smokes has it been forever since i've posted anything?! Excuses, excuses...let's see...well, i've been pretty busy starting a new job as a Medical Office Manager for a brand new doctors office, so i've been working long days and simply too exhausted by the night to even look at my computer, much less thinking about hauling out my sewing machine! That's the other thing, i now have to haul out my sewing machine because my brother has moved back in with us and has taken over my sewing room. It's so much work to take everything out and then put everything away. And i don't trust leaving it out because i live with two boys and an 11 year old giant dog, something is bound to get wrecked if i did!! The weather has been pretty nice lately too, so i've been trying to do more outside and camping season has officially begun as of last weekend! We went to Idabel Lake at Big White, BC for our twin friend's birthday.

There was a homemade hot tub up there that worked almost too well! At this point it was just right, but the boys got it up to 130 degrees Celsius! It was pretty neat, too bad only the boys were brave enough to go in it!

It was such a beautiful day, i think it reached 22 degrees Celsius, we even got sunburns on our faces!

In the evening we had some "sociables" around the fire. This is my boyfriend, Colby (left), and one of the birthday boys, Luke (right). All in all, it was a successful first camping trip of the year! Nice and relaxing, with little effort and beautiful sunshine! I feel a great camping season coming on!

Happy Valentine's Day

Love, free as air at sight of human ties, Spreads his light wings, and in a moment flies.
- Alexander Pope

       

What I Love About Sundays

There's a country song called "What i Love About Sundays" by Craig Morgan (i think), and it's such a wonderful song because it depicts perfectly what a Sunday should be like, like it was in the old days. I long for the time when everyone took Sundays off, no stores were open except the occasional convenience store, and everyone spent the day with their families and friends. You can't even count on Christmas Day being like that anymore! Well, Colby and i made our own olden days this past Sunday. We slept in, had a nice homemade breakfast, hopped in the truck with Charlie and took a drive up the mountain. It was lovely, nobody around, except the occasional snowmobiler or ice-fisher, and the weather was perfect. Here's what we found...

This is Bear Lake, it's covered in snow, and at the far end there were about 10 people ice fishing.

Colby taking a peek at the ice fishers with his new binoculars he got for his birthday from his best friend, Chad.

Charlie absolutely loves the snow, he becomes a puppy again in it. He loves to run and slide and make doggy angels.

Colby and Charlie stop for a pose.

My poor puppy tried to jump down onto the lake with Colby and the snow was so deep that he sunk and got stuck. Don't worry, Colby got him out!

All in all, it was a wonderful day. It's exactly what i love about Sundays, and i can't wait to enjoy the old days again!

Thank You

Thank you to everyone who sent me birthday wishes, it was very nice. My birthday was great, I had to work during the day, unfortunately, but we went out for dinner with 14 friends, and we had a great time! I seem to have forgotten to bring my camera with me last night, so i have no pics of the fun, but perhaps i can scrounge something up. I hate leaving a post with no visuals, don't you?

This is my friend Derek. He passed away this past summer. He was the sweetest, funniest redneck you'd ever meet. As you can see, he had an unbelievable likeness to Larry the Cable Guy, sounded just like him too! It would be his birthday this Saturday. I'd like to take this time to say "Happy birthday Big Boy, we love you and miss you very much. Wish we could have celebrated our birthdays together again this year. You are in our thoughts and in our hearts."

My friends and i will be celebrating Derek's birthday on Saturday with his family.

Again, i'm terribly sorry for the downer of an entry. But i guess it could be looked at both ways. I suppose if you didn't know Derek, this would be a sad blog entry. But, it makes me feel good to be able to introduce you to a great guy, and a great friend, and to be able to say Happy Birthday!

I promise, no more sad, negative entries :)