Weekending: Golden Rainbows Edition

"Golden Rainbow Edition" make it sound like I spent a lot of time with unicorns this weekend but (unfortunately) that is not the case. My weekend centred around two main events, my grandparents 50th wedding anniversary and our Spark/Brownie Enrolment ceremony. Now is also a good time for a friendly reminder that it was not Thanksgiving here in Canada...we celebrate Thanksgiving in October. 

Friday we were busy decorating the hall for the anniversary open house on Saturday. I also squeezed in a little bit of 'Black Friday' shopping on this side of the border. I took advantage of everything being half off at Old Navy and ordered a few more gifts (and a pair or pyjama pants feature kittens wearing boots for myself, because that is something I need in my life) and ordered some planner stickers on Etsy and cut myself off because I do not need anymore stickers. 

Saturday was the open house and even though it was technically only two hours it was a busy two hours. When we counted the names in the guestbook afterwards over 100 people had signed, which I guess is what happens when you're married for 50 years. When everyone had left and the hall was cleaned up our immediate family went back to my grandparents to watch them open their cards before we all headed home. I was exhausted and even though I had originally planned to Skype with H. & R. I cancelled and went to bed early. 

I had anticipated Sunday being a pretty low key day apart from Sparks/Brownies but as it turned out I went to the elementary school's Christmas Market in the morning and then to town with my grandmother, her friend and my cousin in the afternoon before Sparks/Brownies in the evening. It was a shorter meeting than usual but it was fun to have the girls' parents there to watch them officially become Sparks/Brownies and they were so excited to get their badges. Heck, I was excited to get some new crests for my camp blanket! We had cake & lemonade to celebrate and that was that. 

I was home with plenty of time to Skype with H. & R. who filled me in on Gilmore Girls, I had been seeing some "Can't believe the ending!" posts on social media and wanted to know what the surprise ending was, but didn't actually care enough to look into on my own. I stayed up way past my usual bedtime getting calendars finished for my grandparents and uncle before I missed out on the Black Friday sale and watching Oak Island.

I'm cautiously optimistic that I will be able to finish the rest of my Christmas shopping this week. And get some cards ready to send out.

Linking up with B Loved Boston.

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Pizza & Puzzles

This weekend was originally supposed to be jammed packed with fun. I had a sleepover at a historic site with the Rangers on Friday night and then a fall camp with the Sparks/Brownies on Saturday night. Then it was discovered some paperwork wasn't completed for camp so that was cancelled and since the forecast was calling for another rain storm the sleepover was moved to Saturday...but then the forecast changed again and the sleepover was cancelled all together. And just like that my weekend was wide opened. 

It was fairly stormy out on Friday night and Saturday and it ended up being good motivation to start a new puzzle. It's been far too long since I finished a puzzle and a big part of it is the cats have a tendency to steal pieces. The one I'm working on now is small (only 300 pieces) so it's a quicker process and I can cover it up with a large placemat that sort of prevents cat interference. 

Saturday I did some pizza experimentation and was super happy with the results (even though it didn't photograph well). There were some left over wings in the fridge so I took them off the bone and used them as a pizza topping. I mixed BBQ sauce and hot sauce for the sauce, added the chicken, topped it with cheese and 15 minutes later I had delicious pizza. I've started thinking about my 52 in 52 List for 2017 and I think one of the things is going to be make 12 different kids of pizza.

Sunday I spent more time working on my puzzle until it was time to head to Sparks and whipped up a quick thank you card for our meeting. Since we had to cancel camp we wanted to do something a little extra special with the girls to negate the disappointment so we headed to the fire department for a tour. The girls got a chance to try on gear and sit in the trucks and it was super adorable. 

It was far from the weekend I had originally planned and I was/am pretty disappointed all of those fun plans got cancelled, but it was probably for the best anyway since we did get a lot of rain. Next weekend my plans are still up in the air, originally I was supposed to go celebrate 'Friendsgiving' with H. & R. but the long term forecast isn't great and it's a long drive plus I need to be back pretty early on Sunday so that I can get ready for our Spark/Brownie Halloween party. Which reminds me that at some point this week I need to make a tutu. 

Linking up with B Loved Boston.

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Back on the Bright Side

If you happened to stop by on Friday it will come as no surprise that last week was not great. Big thumbs down to last week. The good news is that it's a new week and this week I'm back on the bright side. 

I had forgot that weeks ago I agreed to help chaperone a sleepover for a group of Rangers (the oldest group of Girl Guides). Help chaperone is probably a bit of a stretch, more along the lines of hang out with a group of incredibly awesome young ladies. Since I didn't have to be at the sleepover until 6:00 I spent my Saturday tidying up my make shift craft room and then I spent some time watching The Pioneer Woman and eating chicken wings in my most unflattering of $10 Wal-Mart jogging pants. It was lovely. 

The sleepover started with pizza and then we headed to do an Escape Room. If you're not familiar with the concept, the easiest way to explain is a giant, physical puzzle. Our group of six entered a room and had an hour to solve two questions related to the mystery we had been given at the beginning. There were about a dozen locked drawers, boxes and closets within the room and by solving clues found around the room you were able to figure out the combinations to the locks, which would reveal another clue or lead to more locks. It was so much fun! They seem to be gaining in popularity so if there's not one near by you now there probably will be soon.

We ended the night the way all good sleepovers should end, huddled under blankets in a dimly lit living room discussing insider info about various Guiding events and general life. Sunday morning we woke up and ate pancakes before going our separate ways. I stopped in to pick up a few groceries on my way home and then got to work on my to do list, but not before eating samosas for lunch which I've been craving for the past two weeks. 

I unpacked, put on a load of laundry, showered and had every intention of continuing the string of productivity. Instead I took a nap. It was lovely and I didn't feel even a little bit guilty! When I woke up I set to work making Sunday supper - roasted asparagus, roasted potatoes and cajun seasoned chicken breast. And cooked enough chicken to have for work lunches all week, which is always a win. I did a bit of Project Life-ing before watching Big Brother and crawling into bed by 10:30. 

So I'm going into this week feeling overall better about life. It's amazing what a weekend of tasty food, good company and exciting adventures can do for a person's mood. I've two and a half weeks left of my office job contract and then I'm off to visit H. for a few days before switching into camp mode for the summer. So here's hoping I can stay planted on the bright side! 

Linking up here & here. 

TWOsday!

Every Tuesday Stephanie  hosts a "TWOsday" link up and every Tuesday I forget about it and wish I would remember to participate. And lucky for all of you today is the day I remembered.

ONE

Last night was our last Spark meeting until the new year. I wanted to do something fun with them but also something that wasn't overly Christmassy. Girl Guides of Canada isn't a religious organization and even though all of the girls in my unit celebrate Christmas I still wanted to do something that was holiday neutral. So they each decorated a mini-gingerbread house and two gingerbread people and were the happiest five year olds in all the land as they piled on the icing and put gummy sharks in their front lawn. I snapped a 'Before' picture before the girls started and some in progress but I missed taking an official "After" shot. Just imagine the same set up but with much fewer sprinkles in the bowl and a lot more icing on the table. I also wanted to send them home with a little keepsake. I found gingerbread shaped tree ornaments at Michael's for 75 cents each and decorated them to look like each of the girls. I used sharpies to draw on their uniforms, used the hot glue gun to adhere some gems on their sashes to look like badges and then fashioned some hair our of yarn and called it a day. I'm super happy with the way they turned out! 

TWO

There are only 10 days until I am reunited with H. & R. (as long as the weather cooperates). And 11 days (as long as the weather cooperates) until we're reunited with N.. I was working though last Christmas so I didn't get to partake in the Christmas/New Years reunion, which meant I went a whole year without seeing anyone in real life. I still saw a lot of them on my computer screen, but it's just not the same. I am so excited to drink wine in the hot tub, bravely adventure to the mall for boxing day sales and eat excessive amounts of snack foods. 

That's all I've got for today. We may or may not be getting the first winter storm of the season today/tonight/tomorrow so I'm going to spend the day getting gifts organized, making to do lists and getting things done! 

Warm and Fuzzy Friday Favourites

{one}

I got this e-mail from a parent on Monday evening and it made my day/week. Parents are often the hardest/worst part of working with kids. To a certain extent, I get it, you want your kids to be happy. Sometimes the 'helicopter' parent thing takes over and it's just not good. So getting this e-mail was the greatest. I like when parents are happy, when parents are happy their kids stay involved and that makes me happy. You know that saying "happy wife, happy life"? Well I'm a believer in "happy parents, happy program". You might not be able to please them all but life sure is easier when you can. 

{two}

Someone posted this verse on Instagram this week and it stuck with me. 

{three}

I had a bunch of photos of flowers and bees from this summer and I wasn't sure how to incorporate them into my album. They were too pretty not to use...but they also stuck out like a sore thumb next to action shots of soccer baseball and chaotic cabin photos. And then I happened to be searching my blog archives for something and came across a post from earlier in the summer when I shared the quote about the bees. And realized it worked perfectly because on the next page is a bunch of photos of people doing chores, moving furniture and working around camp. Memory keeping makes me happy. 

{four}

CBC

This article. I don't know either of these people but it's the cutest thing I've read all week. I'm rarely interested in elaborate wedding details and the process of how people begin their relationships is often kind of murky. Engagement stories are usually very clear cut, it's a moment in time when something very specific happens and is usually very unique. So this story gave me all the warm fuzzies this week. I hope they serve french fries at their wedding.  

I only have four favourites this week, I'm sure if I tried really hard I could come up with a fifth, but I don't want to and I'd rather choose four really awesome favourites opposed to four really awesome favourites and one thing that I kind of liked about this week. 

Somehow I've managed to find myself without any plans this weekend. I'm sure I'll figure out something but it's also nice to enter the weekend without any commitments! 

Linking up here & here with all of the other ladies in blogland celebrating Friday!

Remembrance Day

Via MacKay Cartoons

Today is Remembrance Day in Canada and in this corner of the world Remembrance Day is a big deal. In a lot of ways it is the only 'holiday' that has remained true to it's roots. People wear poppies, attend Remembrance Day services and observe a moment of silence in honour of all of those who have fought for our freedom. There's no 'Poppy Presents' or major sales the day is truly a day full of appreciation and thankfulness. 

Monday night at our meeting my little group of Sparks learned about some of the animals that have helped along side humans in the armed forces. The info packets are put out by Veterans Affairs  and they were perfect for my girls. They learned about a part of Remembrance Day in a way that was completely age appropriate, educational and fun. This morning we attended a service at the local legion and I was so proud of how respectful they were as they sat in their seats and watched the veterans and community groups lay wreaths. I love getting my Sparks involved in things like this because odds are if they grow up being involved, they will stay involved. 

On that note I am going to light my flannel scented candle and cross some things off my to do list. 

Conference, Cooking & Charlie Brown

I spent all weekend at a conference for Girl Guide leaders where I did all my favourite things. I carried my camera in my bag all weekend and didn't take it out once. The only photos I have are from my Saturday morning on outdoor cooking that I took with my iPhone. At least I took my camera? I always feel so awkward whipping out my DSLR in these kind of situations because people tend to ask questions and then I feel self-conscious anyway that's a whole different post for another day. 

We spent the entire morning cooking potatoes, apple dessert, egg in a hole, breakfast sandwiches,  and sandwiches with a box oven and buddy burners and finished off by making ice cream. In-between we made "Giggle Juice" which was basically extreme Kool-Aid and "Russian Tea" which involved mixed iced tea and apple juice and making a sort of hot cider. It was weird, but I'm pretty confident kids would be all over it.

I also did sessions about incorporating the Promise & Law (that one was kind of disappointing) and another great session about our twinning country. Where I drank more sugary punch, this time using a recipe from the Caribbean, and was given all kinds of great resources to use with my group. The next couple of meetings are busy with Remembrance Day, an active living challenge from The Heart & Stroke Foundation and our usual program work. Apparently I'm a lot more on top of the planning than I thought. 

Sunday everything was over by 11 so I was home by early afternoon. J. and I have started a bit of a tradition that when I've been away for the weekend we plan Sunday dates. Usually this also involves me showering and looking presentable for the outside world but the conference was at a hotel so I skipped this step. We had lunch/supper (what do call a meal you eat at 3:00 p.m.?) at one of our favourite restaurants followed by a Sunday drive and The Peanuts Movie. 

Now, I am a huge Peanuts fan. I love Snoopy & Woodstock (especially when they go camping) and Charlie Brown is my spirit animal. The movie was good, I loved some of the ways they incorporated the classic Peanuts drawings along the way but I'm on the fence about whether Charles Schulz would have approved of the whole thing. We didn't see it in 3D mostly because the 2D start time worked better for us. And also because I stand by my statement that the only movie I've watched in 3D that was worth the extra money was Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs. 

I then picked up my car and happily discovered that J. had cleaned it while it sat in his driveway all weekend. Which is super sweet and very much appreciated. My personal favourite was that cleaning my car involved gathering all the rogue crayons and putting them into the box in the backseat where they live. And also that he didn't question why I have a shoebox full of crayons in my car, which is good because to be honest I don't have an answer. They just sort of arrived there and I decided it's not a bad idea to have a box of emergency crayons. 

Now that the weekend is over I have a pile of laundry that needs washing and I need to put the final touches on plans for tonight's Spark meeting (i.e. I need to make some play dough). 

Sharing my weekend here.

October Coffee Chat

The end of October really snuck up on me, and it's been a weird month. Which is what I'll say when you ask why I don't have a photo of coffee for today's post and why I wrote 'coffee date' instead of the usual 'coffee chat' on the photo of leaves. Anyway, let's justify the leaves by assuming we'll drink our coffee outdoors so we can admire the leaves. When it inevitably gets too cold to be outside we can head inside, for more coffee. This has been a month that requires more coffee.

I'd tell you all about the chaos of Sparks and how much I hate paperwork. I'd also tell you that my little sparks are hilarious. Last night we decorated pumpkins and one informed me, "I'm going to decorate my pumpkin with ribbons! Ribbons are youthful!" So in case you're wondering how to make your pumpkin look younger, ribbons are the answer. 

I might ask for your opinion about my latest obsession, which is watching Project Life process videos on YouTube. It occurred to me the other day as I happily watched a nice lady from New Jersey record her grandson's birthday that watching other people scrapbook might be weird. I need some crafty friends. Not artsy friends, those are the hip 20-somethings who eat kale chips and take black and white photos while they listen to records. I want crafty friends, 30-40 year old women who drink tea and scrapbook while they watch the news. 

While we're on the topic I might tell you about how excited I am to venture into Project Life next year. And am being cautiously optimistic that it's a project I'll both start and finish. And then I might try and convince you that should should take up Project Life too! 

I would let you know that I don't care about Adele and am so glad that the country is done being interesting in baseball. Then we could get that out of the way and move on.

I'm hoping that November will be a more organized month. J.'s birthday is next week and next weekend I'm going away with Guiding. Originally J. and I had planned to go on a trip in November but we decided to postpone until January. I'm not the least bit disappointed because after a busy October I can't imagine planning a trip along with everything else, my do to lists were pretty full.

Now, I need to go finish reading the longest book ever written so I have something to blog about on Thursday. And you should go check out some of the other ladies linking up their October Shenanigans with the Blogging Elite. 

Fall Camp Weekend

Friday afternoon I packed my bags and set off to Girl Guide camp for the weekend. First I stopped to appreciate the hilarious contrast of my camp gear and my Michael Kors purse. I am nothing if not a well rounded individual. 

There was a little hiccup  major problem Friday when we got to camp only to discover that the fly wasn't with our tent. Normally I would never go camping (especially with girls) without checking and double checking all the gear before hand. This weekend though I was just filling in with a group whose leaders couldn't go to camp. Luckily another group had an extra tent and saved us. Shortly after getting our site all set up it started to rain. And then it poured. And then there was some thunder and lightning. It was good times but the tents didn't leak and the girls did awesome. None of them were the least bit bothered by the who ordeal and continued on giggling in their tent, I'm not sure at which age girls realize that tents aren't soundproof but I do know it doesn't happen between the ages of nine and twelve. As a result of this I am now well versed in all the latest teeny bopper news. I also found myself saying, "Girls, please stop doing gymnastics in the tent. You're going to knock it down."

Thankfully the weather cleared and Saturday was a nearly perfect fall day. Sunny, bright and as long as you dressed properly being outdoors was wonderful. This camp was a little bit of learn to camp type camp. The girls learned how to choose gear,  properly pack a backpack, practiced putting up and taking down tents and a bunch of other useful and essential stuff. Added bonus, I picked up a new Ice Breaker game (that's basically equivalent to gold in my life) and not one but two super, duper awesome packing tips. 

I haven't done a whole lot of fall camping but I've determined it might just be my favourite tenting weather. The days are nice enough that you can be outside and sleeping in a tent is perfectly comfortable as long as you dress appropriately and have a sturdy enough sleeping bag. Plus, the scenery is pretty awesome. The leaves were pretty spectacular and the rainbow of dish bags also made me smile on a regular basis. 

Sunday morning we packed up and headed home. I went to J.'s and made myself presentable before we went out to eat. I should note that I showed up at J.'s in my finest camp attire sporting long johns, camp pants, tank top, long sleeved t-shirt, my high school grad hoodie and my bright red rubber boots. Accessorized with my camp toque and hair that hadn't truly been brushed since Friday afternoon. Once I looked more presentable for the world we went and ate. I happily ate a bacon cheeseburger and french fries that had some kind of magic delicious spice on them. And then drank some coffee because it was only 4 o'clock and I was ready for bed. I rallied and kept my eyes open until 9:30 but then I was more than ready to climb into bed.

Today I'm off to vote, pick up a package at the post office, get some groceries, drop off a cheque for Sparks and cross everything off of my to do list! 

Linking up with B Loved Boston

Planning & Preparedness

I'm going camping this weekend, so you can imagine my delight when I checked the weather this morning and saw this:

At least it's not snow? 

I'm not sure why this week felt so chaotic and disorganized. My Type A personality loves the process of packing, making a list (okay, multiple lists) checking each item off the list, it's a good process. Except that last night when the district finance meeting was over at 9:00 I found myself in the little boys' section of Wal-Mart searching for splash pants. And at 9:15 I found myself in the frozen pizza aisle because I didn't have time to eat supper before I left for the meeting in the first place. When I got home I realized I had forgotten to pick up hair elastics, luckily I found a package hidden in the back of a drawer so the crisis was adverted. I still have to track dig my winter jacket out of the closet (and probably shed some tears in the process) but other than that I have managed to check everything off my packing list. My master to-do list still needs some work, but I'll deal with that after coffee.

I learned this week that my love of Girl Guides might come from an unexpected place...

I spent a lot of time this week working on Sparks meeting plans and came to the realization that my Type A personality really influences my love of Guiding, especially when it comes to badges. If I got a badge or a crest every time I followed a set of rules/instructions I would be a happy camper all the time. My little Sparkies are working on their "Being A Spark" badge but we're almost ready to move on to some more advanced program work. And by advanced I mean I've been fielding a lot of requests to "make a volcano", so stay tuned for that disaster adventure.

I've finished my coffee so that means it's time to tackle the to do list. And then reward myself with more coffee because that's just the kind of week it's been. 

October Weekending

Friday night I laid  low. I watched the first part of Human. The cinematography/photography and music is out of this world. It's stunningly beautiful. The movie itself though is a little disappointing (I watched Part 2 Sunday afternoon. I'll watch Part 3 eventually.) I was expecting it to be similar to BBC's Human Planet doc-series that aired a few years back but it wasn't like that at all. I was left wanting more information about what exactly was going on during all those amazing shots.

Saturday morning I drank my coffee and replied to e-mails. I met J. at three and we went to the afternoon showing of The Intern. I'm not a huge movie go-er but this movie was worth seeing! I thought it was wonderful and J. liked it just as much as I did. It was funny and sweet and I would highly recommend it for a date night! After the movie we went out to supper at a local restaurant and had a delicious meal. J. had ribs and I had an amazing Cajun chicken sandwich with avocado, chipotle mayo, hot peppers on a homemade bun. It was so good. I can't wait to go back and have it again. After we ate we went on a quick trip to Wal-Mart to pick up a cord for my printer and then headed back to J.'s, he watched the Blue Jays game while I read because baseball is boring. #realtalk

Sunday I got sucked into a 90 Day Finance marathon on TLC which took up most of my morning. When I finally pulled myself away from that train wreck I got to work on prepping some things for Sparks tonight. We're making rainbows with cotton ball clouds and playing a rainbow toss game. I do as much prep as I can before hand and I make sure that I can do the craft in about 5 minutes. If I can do it in five they will be able to complete it in 10-15 minutes. When I had that straightened away I spend some time scrapbooking. I'm really making more of an effort to include journalling and better explanations about what's going on in all the pictures. Yesterday I got out my favourite black pen and wrote on some of the journalling cards I've been sticking in along side the pictures. It's also motivated me to learn to love my handwriting and get better at calligraphy.

I spent some of the afternoon updated my MacBook to El Captain, which seemed like a good choice but this morning I'm having an awful time getting edited photos to save to my computer.

While my computer was updating I made Sunday supper. Steak, roasted potatoes & carrots (fresh from the farmers market) and broccoli. There are photos but every time I try to join them together and save them Safari freezes. My frustrations are mounting and I really hope I can get it figured out, otherwise I'm going to really regret updating. Has anyone else updated and experiencing similar?

October Goals & September Successes

I accomplished 4/5 of my September Goals! 

When all was said and done I participated in 23/30 Blogtember prompts and I blogged a couple more times during the month that weren't related to Blogtember. I published 26 posts in September meaning I only took 4 days off, October will be a little lighter on the blogging. 

I read five books in September. One was pretty short (The Giver) but I would still consider it a novel of enough substance to make my reading total five.

I printed photos and got to work scrapboking my summer!

I didn't mail any packages. Or even purchase anything to put into packages...this is going to be an October goal. 

I got all my paperwork sorted out and this year I'll be Girl Guide leader for a Sparks group! I've also volunteered to help out at a Girl Guide camp in October and possibly at a couple of other events. 

With September gone it's time to focus on October Goals!

I got through four books last month so I'd like to challenge myself to read 5 this month. Reading for 15-20 minutes before bed instead of scrolling through Buzzfeed and social media is a habit I want to maintain. And knowing that I want to read five books will help keep me motivated to read instead of scroll!

This will be the month I'll get those packages in the mail and en route to their destinations! Or at the very least some 'just because' cards.

This is the loftiest goal on my list but I would love to have Spark meetings planned and prepped up until Christmas. We only meet for an hour each week so planning that many meetings isn't all that over whelming. Especially once I factor in a Thanksgiving Day theme,  Halloween Party, Remembrance Day, regular badge work and some fun activities it should be pretty easy to figure out the rest!

Two dates doesn't sound like a whole lot, but there's going to be a lot going on in October. Including a couple of weekends when I'll be away so two dates seems reasonable. And to clarify by dates I don't mean watching whatever happens to be on TV and eating ice cream on the couch. I'm confident we will see each other more than twice this month, I just want (at least) 2 of those times to be planned dates!

After Blogtember I'm experiencing a little bit of blogger burnout. I don't want to lose momentum though so I think 15 is a good number.

I was feeling pretty anxious in September and I found myself journalling more regularly again. I'd like to make this a daily habit because it really does help me to process things and move things out of my head. 

Blogtember 2015: A Day In The Life

Yesterday I remembered to take pictures for most of the day and document my Sunday! So grab your favourite beverage and welcome to my day!

I woke up on my own just before 8:30 a.m. I took a few minutes to read through Twitter and Instagram before getting up for the day. The first thing I do every morning is make my bed. I didn't always used to be that way but over the past couple of years it's become a necessity. I think it makes my room look so much tidier and it's nice to pull back the blankets and get into bed at the end of the day opposed to untangling covers and throwing them over myself. Once that's done I quickly brush my teeth, while I do that Peyton likes to get a drink out of the sink. Then I come downstairs and make coffee. I usually check blogs, watch the morning news and text J. or the girls while I drink my coffee. 

Yesterday I had a district meeting for Girl Guides so after I leisurely sipped my coffee and felt up to date with what was going on in the world I went upstairs to get ready for my meeting. While I was there Peyton was being kind of adorable so I snapped a couple of photos of her before I realized I needed to eat lunch before I left. 

I made a quick lunch with rice, veggies and chicken and ate that while I watched a cooking show. Then I headed to my car and drove to the meeting. When I got to the meeting we realized the hall had been double booked so while we waited for a group to finish we spent time outside and then headed in for our meeting. After the meeting I had to go pick up Girl Guide cookies for my unit and by that time it was 5:00. Since I was in town anyway I decided to pick up a pizza for supper. Once that was ready I headed home and enjoyed every bite of my spicy chicken pizza!

After supper I had dessert with my mom. I had an instant cappuccino I had leftover from camp and a brownie with carmel sauce & sea salt. Needless to say I was very satisfied and very full after last night's supper and dessert! I watched some HGTV and occasionally peeked out the window to look at the super moon. Around 10:00 p.m. I determined I was ready for bed so I headed upstairs to brush my teeth (Peyton helped herself to a drink out of the tap) and then climbed into bed. I wrote in my journal, read a chapter in my book and then turned on an episode of Good Eats to listen to while I fell asleep. 

Blogtember 2015: Tunes & Tales

It's been a hectic week and my to do list keeps growing instead of shrinking! So before I tackle a few more things on my list I'm going to take a minute to share some meaningful music and a few other favourites. 

{one}

Bailey Jean is asking us to share three songs that we're connecting with right now. This was a pretty easy question for me to answer. All summer long I have been loving John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16 by Keith Urban. I love High Valley and lately their song Country Line has been one of my favourites. Lastly a song I've been listening to for well over a year but has remained one of my go tos when I need some upbeat inspiration My Lighthouse by Rend Collective.

{two}

I've been eating some great food this week, both in taste and nutrition value. Earlier this week I had farfalle pasta and broccoli with meatballs and marinara sauce. Making leftovers tasty is a bit of a challenge for me so I was super pleased that I used leftover meatballs and sauce from the night before to make this lunch. On the middle you'll see a happy kitchen disaster. I set out to make a smoothie but  I ended up making sorbet of sorts...I added some chocolate chips and it was delicious. Kitchen experiments are always fun, but sometimes you just need a big plate of broccoli & carrots. Because broccoli never disappoints. 

{three}

I almost didn't invest in this planner. The one I used last year was good until 2016 but it really wasn't working for me so I was pretty much just writing notes on post-its and calling it a day. When I found this one the end of July I wasn't sure I wanted to spend the money, but I did and I'm so happy with it. Best $20 I've spent in a long time. It's become a complete necessity to keep track of Guiding stuff and blogging things and family commitments. I'll probably do a full post dedicated to how much I love this planner, but this week it is one of my favourite things and deserves a shout out. 

{four}

It's not often I include links to articles in my favourites but this article published in The Guardian "Why The Queen of Mommy Bloggers Had To Quit" is worth a read for anyone who blogs regardless of your niche. I think it's a reality many bloggers don't consider when they are driven to create a blogging empire. Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with being a business blogger and finding ways to make your blog profitable. I just liked that this article showed a different perspective of the phenomenon that blogging has become. 

{five}

Our first Spark meeting is Monday and I'm excited and anxious to start the year. I'm eager to get organizing and come up with some fun activities to do this year. I haven't been in Sparks since I was a Spark, all of my leader experience has been with the older girls. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole process, but I'm sure once things start I'll be more at ease.

On that note, I am off to send some more emails. Turns out tracking down the key for our meeting place is more of a challenge than it should be and seeing as how it's almost noon I should really get dressed and out of my pyjamas!

Linking up here & here.

October Goals

 

I'm linking up again this month with Erica for her Monthly Goal Link Up! I love this link-up, it forces me to think about what I want to accomplish during the month, gives me something to blog about and I've gotten some great ideas for future goals from browsing other bloggers posts!

My main goals for last month were to blog, find a Girl Guide unit to volunteer with and complete a Bible study. I only blogged 9 times in September, which is pretty pitiful. I'm blaming my lack of blogging on computer troubles. I'm going to give myself a pass on Guiding, I did talk to a lot of people about it but right now I can't commit to a unit when I could be moving away. However, I am on the volunteer list for special events and last week I went to a Ranger meeting when a leader couldn't make it. I did join a Facebook Bible study group and the first 3 weeks were great but I started to fall off the wagon (it's hard to participate in an online study with computer problems!) there are still 3 weeks left so hopefully I can participate more and make up for the time I missed.

This month I actually took the time to make SMART goals. (SMART goals = Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time bound) 

Blog 15 times in October

Participate in 2 new Link-Ups/Blog Hops

Try 3 new recipes

Read 2 books

I'm excited about October. I have a few fun things planned and by the middle of the month I should know whether the organization I work for is going to get funding to make my position year round. If you could send some extra positive vibes & prayers that the funding will come through it would really be appreciated!

 

 

Fall Bucket List

 

Linking up with Erica to publicly declare my monthly goals!

 

I'm combining my September goals with my Fall Bucket List. I'm really not sure what the next few months have in store for me which means some of my goals may not be fully attainable but between September & December I'm sure I will be able to accomplish them! Goals with a * are ones that are for sure September goals. The others are less time sensitive. 

 

1. Cut & Donate my hair.  I've always wanted to donate my hair to an organization that makes wigs for cancer patients. My hair is pretty long right now and I'm ready for a change so I need to do a bit of research to make sure I have enough to donate and then make it happen!

2. BLOG! There are some fun blog challenges and link ups happening in September and I really fell off the blogging wagon during camp so I'm jumping back on! *

3. Find a Guide Unit I really want to stay involved with Girl Guides even if I can't commit to taking on a unit for the full year. *

4. Read! Again, something that got neglected over the summer! But I want to read at least 12 books between now and December 1st.

5. Complete a Bible Study it's been far too long since I did a study start to finish! I don't have any in mind so recommendations are welcome!

Five on Friday!

Now that I'm home from camp I'm working on getting back into a routine, which includes regular blogging! Today I'm liking up with Five on Friday

{one} I came across this quote a while ago but recently rediscovered it and I love it to bits.

 “I’ve learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I’ve learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you’ll miss them when they’re gone from your life. I’ve learned that making a “living” is not the same thing as making a “life.” I’ve learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I’ve learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I’ve learned that even when I have pains, I don’t have to be one. I’ve learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I’ve learned that I still have a lot to learn. I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

{two} Today is my first full day back in the real world. Instead of being productive by working on my end of summer report or unpacking I made the executive decision to take the day off. So I'm going to sit on my couch with my laptop, watching TV and only leaving to visit the fridge. Tomorrow I will return to productivity!

{three} I got an e-mail this morning asking me to be a Brownie leader again this year. This is a tough one because I love being involved with Girl Guides but the unit I was with last year is a 45 minute drive away. I spent more time driving to the meetings and events than I did at the actual events. I'm hoping there is a unit closer to my house that needs a leader. There's also the possibility that a job opportunity is going to mean I will be moving to the city in a few weeks. The job is dependent on funding though so nothing is set in stone.

{four} I have over 300 pictures from this summer and I can't wait to get back into scrapbooking! Scrapbooking is going to be one of my fall goals, I have so many pictures just sitting in boxes and drawers overflowing with scrapbooking supplies begging to be used. More on that goal tomorrow though!

{five} I am obsessed with www.thoughtcatalog.com I could spend hours reading through articles and thinking about the words, situations and the people who wrote them. If you happen to have some spare time in your day or need something to scroll through while you enjoy coffee at your desk be sure to check it out!

In-Tents!

I made it 17 days into the Blog Every Day in May Challenge! 18, if you want to count today even though I'm not blogging about the assigned topic.  However, tomorrow morning I leave for camp and I can guarantee I won't be able to blog everyday. I'm not entirely sure what blogging will look like over the summer, I'm going to keep up with it as much as is possible when basically working 24/7 and having a very undependable internet connection!

 

I spent yesterday at and this morning at an annual Girl Guide & Scout Camp for our area. It's one of my favourite Guiding events and I look forward to it all year. I'm leaving bright and early tomorrow morning for the camp I actually work at so this year I just went out yesterday to help set up and left today around noon. It was pretty cold weather for camping last night (-2 at the lowest temp!) so when I got home I enjoyed a warm shower and had a nap in a cozy bed. 

When I got up from my nap I got ready and met up with one of my best friends for our trademark Iced Coffee & Wal-Mart dates. It was good to catchup with him. I was thankful I was able to see him before I left. We went to different universities and then when I moved home he moved away to work on his master's degree so it's been almost six years since we lived in the same province! When we're both away it's not often are schedules match up where we're in the same place at the same time.

On that note I am off to bed! I'm hoping for a really good nights sleep so that I feel awake and refreshed for the long drive tomorrow (7 hours!)

My Apologies

Dear Future Donna,

I'm sorry that instead of hauling out my suitcase that is currently hiding in the closet behind 3 old prom dresses and really starting the packing process I am leisurely watching Live with Kelly & Michael, sipping on some Pepsi. I realize that if I want to be fully packed for camp on Thursday night so that I can go camping with the Girl Guides Friday and Saturday and hang out with D. Saturday night before leaving for camp early Sunday morning, I should not be sitting in front of the TV/computer. Unless I am working on PowerPoint presentations for Staff Training or watching TV as background noise while I finish assembling staff welcome bags. This is turning into more of a guilt trip than an apology...which is good, because now I am feeling the need to rush this post and go be as productive as possible before I have to leave for Brownies at 5. Let's see how much I can accomplish in 3 hours (including getting dressed in something other than jogging pants & tie-dye t-shirt.)


Love,
Present Donna

As usual linking up here!

10 Words

Today's Challenge is to sell yourself in 10 words (or less):

• passionate
• creative
• thoughtful
• caring
• stubborn/determined
• faithful
• compassionate
• quirky

My Saturday morning stared off in my favourite way: Coffee, Everything Bagel wtih Herb & Garlic Cream Cheese and catching up on blogs. In an hour I'm leaving to go sell Girl Guide cookies with my Brownies for a couple of hours and then go through camping gear before taking a group of Girl Guides camping next weekend. Our last Brownie meeting is Monday night so we're having a pizza & ice cream sundae party which means I also need to make a trip to the grocery store. And finishing crafting end of the year gifts for the girls, and find some cute 'Thank-You' gifts for my two co-leaders. And have I mentioned I leave for camp a week from tomorrow?  Which means a whole lot of packing needs to be done, plus finish planning sessions for Staff Training...I feel like my to-do list is multiplying by the second. It will all get done All of the important stuff will get done and if a few things don't get crossed off the list then it's not the end of the world!