Hello!

Hope you guys are doing well.

Things have been good!

I've spent the last couple days with dad - we're building my buffet and hutch! I'm pretty excited about it. :D Dad wants to have the base unit (buffet) finished before we go to McBride on the 8th.

I'm getting pretty jazzed about the trip. Aunty Bev has asked me to do a few flower arrangements for the party on the 9th. I'm going to bum around the Library later next week to pick up a few books on floral arranging to use as study/reference material. Will take pictures and let you know how it goes.

Yesterday I had Lynne and her girls over for tea in the morning. Claire came, too! It was SO much fun to watch the girls play. They're just too adorable. We had lunch here (chicken salad sandwiches and veg soup). I'd never made chicken salad before so I gave mom and quick call "what goes into a chicken salad?!"... Claire went home and then Lynne and I took the girls to the park for a little bit before they had to head back to the city.

Last week I went to Superstore for the first time. I don't think I wrote about that yet. (Maybe?) It was quite the experience. You're pretty much on your own there. The lighting was ok for the most part... it kinda felt like death row in a few parts. Its definitely less expensive then Safeway and Pricesmart! I think I'll go there for some things, like meat - a tray of 30 boneless, skinless thighs for 15 bucks - but I like the service at Pricesmart better since things are easier to find and the store is smaller. Superstore was an interesting experience all 'round.

Tomorrow is Thursday. Jen and Jenny are coming over tomorrow for tea. We have a surprise for Jenny which I will tell you about and hopefully post pictures of in the next few days. I'm looking forward to seeing them! Jen got good news today - Elie (her husband) has his interview at the Canadian Embassy (or some other Canadian Agency) which is one of the last steps in the immigration process, Jen tells me! This is exciting for both of them.

Just got a call from mom - dad is on his way to pick me up for my Guitar lesson. Should get my shoes on!

Talk to you soon!

Hello!

Here's my set-up desk and work-station! I still have to get things organized on my desktop, etc but I'm *loving* all the extra drawer, cabinet and cubby space! Its great! I've managed to throw out a black garbage bag and have an apple box of stuff for the Sally-Ann. Woot!

Thought I would share this with you guys.

Talk to you soon!

Alright.

So! My desk is set up and I'm merrily typing away to you from my new work station! Woohoo. :D I'll take some pictures when its nice and bright tomorrow and will post them then.

And now that I have a tidy desk, I'm getting to some of the jobs that I haven't got around to yet. One of them was to change the picture in my blog's banner. Done!

Another is to post pictures that were taken about a week ago when Jill, Jen, Jenny and I went up to Cultas. Here are a few:

And that's all for now folks.

Talk to you soon!

Yellow!

Here is a pic of my new desk!!



The bottom pedistals were actually from my Grandma's bedroom. They were blacker than night and the varnish was crackled and were just disgusting looking. The top on them was an ugly old piece of battleship plywood. Dad resuced the desk after Grandma passed away because he could clearly see the potential. Dad and I washed them and the varnish was coming off... we could see a little bit of wood grain! We took some paint stripper to them and there was beautiful wood underneath! Not sure if its Maple or Oak.

The desk top is two clear (no knots) fir boards and the trim around them is cut from a fir 2x4! The boards were about nine feet long and served as a work bench for the previous owners of mom and dad's property. Dad cleaned them up (they were covered with oil and had nails pounded through them). Once we finished the top, we stained it a dark walnut with watco oil. It matches pretty good, I think.

The hutch part is actually made of a pine waterbed frame that dad bought from Bibles for Missions, which he took apart and stripped. He also bought a spruce board from Pioneer... that was the only piece of new material in the whole project. We also stained it a dark walnut and it doesn't match perfectly but its pretty darn close!

Then we gave the whole works a coat of natural watco oil, just to make it a little shiny.

I LOVE IT!

What more can I say? tee hee

Total cost: $40! (not including the hours dad - and I - put into it)

I've decided to make it my computer desk so I'm currently in the process of moving my living room around - a major job. I took a break while Jill and I went to Superstore (what an experience that was! My brain is still on overload). Time to put away the last of the groceries and get my livingroom sorted before the chaos overwhelms me!

Just got a call from dad. He's going to come rescue me... will help me move my computer desk and get things more or less sorted.

Will post a pic of my newly arranged computer desk.

Talk to you soon!

Hello!!

Oh man! I can't believe its been almost a week since I wrote here. Whoops. I haven't fallen from the face of the earth... have just been kinda busy. Sorry to worry you guys!

And now that I think about it, I'm having a hard time recalling what has kept me away from my computer this long. Yeesh!

I can only remember back as far as Saturday.

I had the Shaw Cable guy over at around 9:30am to set up my new phone, internet and cable TV connection. I'm so jazzed. The internet is faster, the phone is the same but cheaper, and the Cable TV is delightful - I can watch the news the til cows come home! The only downside to the TV thing is that I don't have a remote that works with my TV. I've tried programing two different universal remotes and haven't had any luck. I have a system, though! I sit in front of the TV and watch Channel 3 (the channel with the circulating list of what's on which station) and figure out what I'm going to watch, then I put it on whatever channel I want to watch and go sit on the couch. I've watched SO much news (noon, five, six, eleven and midnight news casts!) Woot!

I also worked with A in the afternoon. We baked brownies, much to everyone's delight. She likes torturing them and said that they had to wait until dessert before any of them could have a taste! What a stinker. Such a doll, though!

Sunday was good... went to worship practice at 9:15 and then set up the sunday school room (I was teaching the lesson). I sang with our little group and then headed upstairs with my one kid. We flew through the lesson and then spent about 15 minutes drawing Super Mario characters on the chalk board. He was amused and I had the satisfaction that I taught him what I needed to out of the curriculum.

Jones and Skittles were at church promoting Camp Douglas (Jones is interm director). I went to coffee hour (for the first time in an eon) and chatted with various people and got a bit caught up with Skittles. Afterwards the three of us went to Carebear's house for lunch which was delicious! We traded stories and had a riot. Jones said he missed my 'random profanity' and they both invited me up to camp this summer. I'm really jazzed to go. Mom and dad said that they'll come across with me and go camping up around Powell River, visit our cousin near Sechelt, etc. I can't wait!

Today I spent with dad working on my sewing desk! It looks fabulous! We got the desk unit done and tomorrow we'll assemble the shelving unit for above it. I'm really looking forward to the storage it'll give me! Plus its beautiful. I kick myself for not taking pictures as we were building it. It was so rough but it looks so lovely now!

Ok. Bed is calling me.

Talk to you soon!

Hello!

What a beautiful day, eh!

I got to enjoy the sun and breeze on a walk to the dr's office this afternoon. I've been having trouble with my left hand - he says that there's some sort of inflamation so he's given me some drugs for it. I didn't have time to get the perscription filled (will pick it up tomorrow) because Jen, Jenny and I got our pictures taken at Cultas by Jill!

Jill took 250+ pictures... we're bound to get a few good ones out of that! The pictures are really important to me right now. Jenny's leaving in July for Nova Scotia (for good) and Jen's leaving for Haiti in June (for at least two months but she wants to stay til her husband can immigrate to Canada... and who knows how long that'll be). Jill suggested we go to Cheam Wetlands next for some more pictures at a later date.

I got home from pictures with enough time to down a bowl of mushroom soup and head out the door for worship practice. Practice ran late but fortunately dad ran later so I was home for about five minutes before dad picked me up for my guitar lesson. I was worried I had kept him waiting and wondering where on earth I was. That worry was unfounded.

Guitar is coming along nicely, I think. I was getting discouraged but I then I thought back to when I started playing flute... it was a good three to four years before I could play anything worthwhile. I could play simple stuff... but it took years before I could play regular music. I've been doing guitar for just over two years now and I think I'm making good progress. Practice, practice, practice.

Time for a bed though, I'm one tired cupcake.

Talk to you soon!

Hey there,

Hope you're all having a good Easter Monday!

Things here have been pretty darn good.

Church yesterday morning was good. Dad and Jill came out and we had a good ol' time. Poor Jill was SO bored (she's not used to Presbyterian services). I caught her texting someone during one of the longer prayers. And why, might you ask, were my eyes even open during a prayer? Because... if I'd closed them I probably would have fallen asleep. Not that our Minister's sermons and prayers aren't inspiring (usually they are)... but... oh well. Anyway. The service was good for the most part. Praise practice went fine and much to our collective horror, Lynn figured out how to record us and play us back. She seemed pleased with herself but the rest of us were agast at how we sound! Yikes. The kids handed out the crackers we made to the congregation's enjoyment - it was a good time. I think the candy was just about the only thing keeping Jill awake.

I went home and had a nap... dad picked me up at about 3 to go over to their place for supper. It was a lot of fun - 18 or 20 people for supper. The living room was bustin' at the seams. Lots of good food and good conversation.

I went home around 12:30am after Jill and I finished updating the songs on this blog. My apologies to those of you who have bravely read this blog through the Kingston Trio's version of The Rev Mr Black! Jill showed me how to make the player shuffle the songs, plus we created a new play list that doesn't include the Kingston Trio. There are nine new songs to pick from. Hope that suits everyone.

Today has been a quiet day. I took out my garbage which has pretty much been the extent of the excitement. The cabinet that I painted is almost dry so hopefully either tonight or tomorrow I'll set up my aquarium and get it running! I've been reading up on Betta fish and Goldfish... Jill's best-friend Jess is going to buy me a fish but I have to know a few things about them before I make my decision. Three cheers for wikipedia.com!

Anyway. The rest of my evening looks quiet... Might go for a walk before it gets dark out but it looks like more rain in those clouds. Will see.

Talk to you soon.