Hymn #674

Last week when I had my interview they told me I would hear from them early in the week about the second round of interviews. Monday and Tuesday have gone by and I haven't heard a word good or bad, so I'm not really sure where that leaves me. I do know that I've had "In The Bulb There Is A Flower" stuck in my head since Monday evening when it started snowing. All day yesterday and so far today the familiar lyrics have been on repeat:

In the bulb there is a flower,

In the seed, an apple tree,

In cocoons a hidden promise:

Butterflies will soon be free!

In the cold and snow of winter,

There's a spring that waits to be,

Unrevealed until it's season,

Something God alone can see. 

Maybe it's because it's a catchy song. Maybe it's because the song is a lullaby of sorts, I don't remember ever learning it but it was a staple of camp Christian Education time and vespers services. The lyrics were written in magic marker on chart paper above the piano in our main building complete with little doodles of tulips and apple trees. Whatever the reason it's a comforting song to be playing on repeat when I'm in the middle of season with more questions than answers. Just wandering around the proverbial forest setting off down different paths only to discover they're all dead ends. 

And as much as I appreciate a good adventure and generally enjoy the scenic route I'm kind of over it. I don't want to "savour my season" or "embrace the unknown" or "enjoy the journey" because those things are all fine for a while but regardless of how much fun you're having on vacation you always want to get back to your own bed eventually. 

While everyone is busy admiring the twinkle lights, eagerly awaiting watching their littles opening presents on Christmas morning and starting to set goals for 2017 I'm refreshing my e-mail every hour (that may sound a lot but it's an improvement over every 15 minutes) and wondering if somewhere along the line I took the wrong exit and am doomed to wander around the wrong forest forever. 

My goal, wish, objective, intent...purpose in life is to have a permanent, full time camp job. Anything past that is a bonus. 

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Tuesday Plus One

Remember back at the start of the month when I was all gungho about February? I have since lost all enthusiasm for the month.  #reallife I can't even blame the weather because compared to last year February has been almost tropical. It's still -6 and there are patches of snow on the ground but this time last year there was six feet of snow on the ground and I was convinced spring (or summer) would never arrive. 

I have made zero progress on by 52 in 52 list. I read one book (largely because I was forced to earlier in the month when we lost power for 2.5 days during a snow storm) and completely missed the boat on my plan to start a good habit during Lent. I'm not even sure I bothered to fill a single page in a notebook this month. I did get Valentine's Day cards mailed and made a few Project Life pages, I need to print some more Disney photos though before I consider that fully accomplished. I'm also failing to remember a time this month when I went to a new restaurant, tried a new food or made a new recipe. 

I was also anticipating knowing if my contract will be extended past March 31 this month, but so far there's just be rumblings from the rumour mill that nobody will be extended. Which is fine but rumours don't do me any good I need to know for certain so I can make pre-camp vacation plans. #priorities I've said it before and I'll say it again but this whole contract position situation is for the birds....or at least people who unlike me don't feel the need to plan ahead.

At this point I'm more or less ready to write off February's productive and focus on getting in gear for March. Dusting off my planner, perhaps making a list of blog post, definitely making multiple to do lists. In various colours, stamps and washi tape...or scribbled on the back of a post it depending how things play out. 

That's all I've got for today. I thought I had photos but as it turns out they're on my memory card in my camera and not on my computer. Wishing you a Wednesday more productive than mine! 

Little Celebrations

Hello, Friday! I am happy to see you. It has been a roller coaster of a week around here. Monday & Tuesday I worked half days because of the snowstorm, Monday we were sent home early and on Tuesday the office didn't open until later. Wednesday and Thursday were business as usual and today is mostly business as usual, except for the Valentine's Day pizza party. There also seemed to be a lot of bad news in the air this week so it's definitely a day for celebrating the little things this week. 

{one}

Spinach and salad greens are once again readily available! There was a huge recall a couple of weeks ago and the stores were basically wiped clean of salad ingredients. Now they're back and I've resumed my salad eating ways. Greens, red onion, sunflower seeds, bacon, feta, mushrooms and balsamic = delicious. 

{two}

The days are getting longer! It's still light out at 5:30 p.m. and the sun is starting to rise before 7:30 a.m.. Even if there is 40+ cm of snow on the ground as long as the days are getting brighter and longer it feels like spring could be just around the corner! 

{three}

Pinterest

I came across this quote on Pinterest and I love the sentiment. I've always been big on the wants versus needs but I like that this quote takes that sentiment a step farther. 

{four}

I finished my first Project Life layout! I decided to start with my birthday since I knew I had a limited amount of photos for that particular event. At first I was really overwhelmed and thought I had made a huge mistake. I just couldn't get it too look cohesive and had a hard time figuring out what size photos I needed to fill all the pockets. I ended up walking away from it because I was so frustrated, a few days later when I came back to it everything clicked. I stopped overthinking and it just came together. I think for a first go I'm happy with how it turned out, I still need to add a little bit of journalling but that's a weekend project. J. is gone to a work thing this weekend so I'm planning on spending a lot of time documenting January! 

{five}

Speaking of J. we will be celebrating Valentine's Day with pizza and garlic fingers, which is exactly the what I requested. If the weather cooperates we'll add skating/snowman building and a visit to the walking trails near his house to the agenda.

Linking up here, here & here.

Forward to February

My weekend started a little earlier than anticipated. There was a storm forecasted for Friday but it didn't start in time for work to be cancelled, instead 20 minutes after I arrived at work we got an e-mail saying we were closing at five. The roads were far from ideal so it was close to six by the time I got home. I had grand plans to spend the evening catching up with TV and doing some crafting. Unfortunately we lost our power at 9 p.m. Friday night and didn't get it back until Sunday afternoon. Thankfully we have a generator so we had some power, enough to run the heat, water and a few electrical outlets for most of the day. 

I spent most the weekend reading, colouring and eating storm chips. I briefly went outside Saturday to take some photos but the adventure was short lived. We had about 35 cm of snow fall on top of the snow we already had from earlier this month. It was impossible for me to take more than a few steps in the snow without sinking up to my waist. It was also very cold out and I was much happier indoors with a blanket and a book. Except that half way through the book it stopped being interesting. Now I'm halfway through though so I feel obligated to finish. Maybe it will take another turn and I'll be interested again before it ends. 

Sunday afternoon when the power did come back on I took a nice long shower and set to crossing a few things off of my to do list. None of those things were particularly strenuous...I had some things to put in my online shopping cart and leave there until I decide if I want to invest. (Is anyone reading Savor by Shauna Niequist? I'm looking for a daily devotional type book that I has daily readings and ideally I can use year after year. Suggestions welcome!) I also got all of my January Project Life photos organized and ready to print. Ideally I'll get them printed this coming weekend and then craft to my heart's content! 

The snow was the wet and heavy type, perfect for snowman making...not that I made any snowmen but I thought about it a few times. I think this weekend J. and I will try to have some sort of outdoor winter adventure, unless the temperature rises and come next week all the ice is melted and the world is covered in slush. 

I've always had a soft spot in my heart for February. I think Groundhog Day is the best 'holiday' in all the land, my mom's birthday happens in February and regardless of the commercialization aspect I happen to love Valentine's Day. Plus, it's Leap Year! And I really love Leap Years. If you haven't seen the 30 Rock episode with Leap Year William you need to make that a priority this month. And of course the Leap Year movie with Amy Adams. And it just so happens I published my first blog post in these parts in February of 2013. All things considered I think February is going to be a good month.

Sharing my weekend here. 

Tracks, Snacks and Favourite Words

I'm not sure if it's all the Christmas hustle and bustle, the weather or my shrinking to do lists and countdowns but this week went by fast! 

{one}

I'm cheating a little bit here because there are going to be multiple favourites under this heading. It seemed to me that there was a lot of good stuff in Blogland this week and after a couple of weeks of endless gift guides it was refreshing to read some good old fashion 'this is what's going on in my life' posts. These are just a few of my favourites from the week.

Stephanie's 'You Are A Blogger' post  might just be the best thing I've read in months. 

We often wait until the new year to start reflecting on changes but this week Alex compared this Christmas to Last Christmas and it was a neat way to look at things.

Rachel had some wise words to say about The War on Misery. Not everything has to be a competition.

I loved this reminder from Amy that our work matters.

{two}

Some of you might remember this post from the fall where I shared my developing love of the apple trees that grow in my yard. Well I'm continuing the love into winter because I think that these apples, still on the tree and covered with snow are just the coolest. I spent a couple of hours outside yesterday with my camera, we got a storm on Tuesday night and by the time yesterday afternoon rolled around it had stopped snowing, the temperature had risen a little and the sky was crazy blue. I realized as I happily snapped photos of the snow that it's not the snow I hate when it comes to winter. It's the cold. Yesterday it was hovering around 0 and there wasn't any wind so I was perfectly comfortable wearing my Old Navy trigger mitts (I have no idea what these are actually called, around here we call them trigger mitts, they're the mittens that have flaps to make them into fingerless gloves), lightest winter coat and was not worried about frost bite. Getting back on topic, apples covered in snow are pretty and they earned a spot on my favourites list. 

{three}

I'm not sure if I've really made it clear that I really do live in the country. After the snow there were lots of deer tracks in the snow, which were cool but deer tend to walk in a straight line, these tracks however are clearly not in a straight line. I'm pretty sure these ones were made by a furry little squirrel friend. And squirrels always make me happy. 

{four}

Avocados make me happy. First off all I love their green colour, secondly they are delicious and rounding out the top three reasons I love avocados is because they're healthy. This week my favourite way to eat avocado is creating a copy cat cajun chicken sandwich based on one I order all the time at a local restaurant. Cajun seasoned chicken breast, red onion, cheddar cheese, chipotle mayo and avocado on a ciabatta bun. I may or may not have eaten the same thing for both lunch and supper one day this week. And a honourable mention to the homemade oven fries that I've finally perfected after months of playing around with seasons and oven temperatures. 

{five}

I officially registered for Ali Edwards One Little Word class and declared my word of the year! I'll be sharing more next week about what my word is and how I'm planning to document my word through the year. I'll leave you with a hint that it starts with the letter 'R', has four letters and can be used in a lot of different contexts. 

I have a weekend jammed full of Christmas beginning with 'midnight madness' at the mall tonight with my mom to finish up the last of my shopping. Tomorrow night is J.'s Christmas dinner for work and Sunday J.'s parents are having their annual Christmas party. 

Linking up here and here.

It's A Fine, Fine Life {2}

I am so excited to be joining Allie again this week to celebrate some of life's finest things. 

There were many moments this winter when I looked outside and burst into tears because there was 5 feet of snow on the ground, it was snowing, it was cold and there was nothing but snow and cold in the forecast. The four days I've woken up to sunshine. SUNSHINE! I have my windows open, there are birds chirping outside. Spring has arrived!

I could go off into some sort of deep theology moment here about how long the winter was and how frustrated, tired and hopeless I felt the snow would ever start to melt. Now that the snow is melting and the sky is blue I feel such a relief and overwhelming gratitude that spring is here. I'm sure there's a parallel there about waiting and having hope and remembering that everything has a season.

I'm thankful for seasons in all aspects of life. Weather, relationships, interests, struggles, work, family. Everything has a season, some are definitely better than others but I there is a reason for each of them. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)

What's Up Wednesday

I've been playing with monthly Currently posts and while I like the idea of documenting things like that I'm not sure the monthly format is something that going to stick long term. So this week I'm joining the 'What's Up Wednesday' weekly linkup to make my currently a little more current.

What I loved about the past week// Four day weekend!! Time with my family, time with J.'s family, time by myself, time to get some camp work done. Lots of delicious food. All perfection in my book!

What I'm looking forward to// Vacation! Only 10 days until my current contract ends and I'm on a plane bound for a much warmer climate. And when I get back I'll still have two full weeks before I need to move to camp for the summer. I am really excited to have some actual time off and a genuine vacation!

What my latest obsession is// Bruchetta. I've been buying pre-made bruchetta mix from my local grocery store, piling it on fresh ciabatta bread, adding parmesan cheese shavings and sticking it under the broiler for 5 minutes or so. Totally delicious. 

What I've been daydreaming about// Sunshine and summertime. Plain and simple. Sometimes I get really carried away and think about sitting outside in the sunshine first thing in the morning before campers are all awake for the day. Sipping my coffee in silence, watching the camp groundhogs frolic in the field. Inevitably my daydreams get a dose of reality when I imagine running any sort of program with four feet of snow still on the ground. 

What I'm watching// I'm behind on every single TV show I used to watch religiously. The only exception is Hockey Wives, but that's only been on for four episodes so far. 

What I'm listening to// It has been ages since I updated my iPod or iTunes. I always have the country radio station on when I'm in the car. Now and then when I'm getting ready for work I'll turn on a country 8tracks playlist. 

What I'm craving// Sunshine, green grass, any indication that winter is going to end. You might assume the photos below were taken in December or January but both of them were taken this past weekend. There's still close to 3 feet of snow on the ground in most places and the water at the beach looks anything but welcoming. And Subway. I really want some Subway. With an iced coffee for dessert. 

What I'm doing this weekend// This is the last weekend before my trip! I've crossed the major stuff off my to do list (credit card, travel insurance, tickets) but I need to make a trip to the mall to pick up a new pair of TOMS and potentially another pair of shorts. I finish work on Friday and fly out on Saturday so I'll be spending some time next weekend packing so I'm not scrambling to do it at the last minute. 

What else is new//I'm working on a new blog series focused on camp, which I am super excited about. I can't believe my trip is coming up in a little more than a week. I've been reading up on the Bullet Journalling  system and think I'm going to give it a try. My current planner is one I purchased from Michael's and while I love it for somethings I still find myself keeping lists everywhere and looking for lists that aren't inside the planner. Stay tuned for a planner post in the near future!

Easter Weekend Love

I officially love Four Day Weekends. 

Friday my day started with a trip to the nursing home with J. and his family to celebrate his great grandmother's 92nd birthday. It wasn't anything elaborate but I enjoyed eating cake & ice cream and chatting with his family. When we left the home we headed to Easter Dinner #1 at J.'s parents. Even though it was Good Friday they had a big turkey dinner that day because J.'s sister had to head back to university Sunday morning. While we were waiting for supper to cook we were entertained watching a group of deer that were hanging out in the backyard. 

Saturday I had a really low key day. I woke up feeling really well rested and felt totally relaxed and fulfilled as I drank my coffee and ate my breakfast while reading through so many blog posts about 'Silent Saturday'. This is definitely this first year I've done any reflecting about Saturday as a waiting day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. I spent a lot of time journalling and I finally joined the She Reads Truth bandwagon. I'm still on the hunt for a new Bible though. I would love something soft cover, with margins and I'd like it to be around $20-$30. Almost all of the ones I've seen on line have been well over $50 and that's just too far out of my budget.

Since we had Easter dinner with J.'s parents on Friday he joined my family for our Easter dinner on Sunday. I did J. up a little Easter basket using a baking dish instead of a basket because I knew he needed a new one. There wasn't anything super elaborate inside, chocolate, chips, gum, his favourite protein bar, sunscreen and a few travel sized toiletries he can use during our trip. I was pretty happy with how it turned out. This was J.'s first time meeting my extended family and it was nice that it happened over a meal. We had birthday cake for dessert as a belated birthday celebration for my grandfather. I had my camera and planned to go for a walk after we ate to take some photos but it was so bitterly cold outside that it turned into a pretty short walk. There wasn't much to take photos of anyway. Everything is still covered in snow and ice. I heard on the radio last week that based on the mathematical equation for figuring out snow melt we can expect to see snow on the ground until May 18...

I also accomplished one of my April Goals and revamped my blogs About Me page. I'm really pleased with the change. I will probably tweak a few things about it over the next little while but it's a big improvement on what used to be there and I'd love for you to check it out and tell me what you think! Today I'm working on crossing off some things on my pre-camp list such as making a Facebook group for the staff and sending out an email to introduce myself to the new counsellors. Nothing strenuous but it's nice to have an extra day to focus on that kind of stuff. 

I'm linking up here & here to share my weekend! 

Spring Weekend

I got a new lens for Christmas but between work and weather I really haven't had a chance to put it to use. Saturday was the first full day of spring, but you'd never guess it was March based on the photos. Everything is covered in snow and the sky was grey never the less it felt good to spend the day outside.

I found it interesting that this sea gull was so inclined to sit on top of the pile of snow and ice rather than the rocks. I took it to mean seagulls don't get cold feet? 

I don't like snow. There is something kind of magical about foot (or paw) prints in fresh snow.

I'm not sure what kind of birds these are, ones that don't mind cold ocean water. I really appreciated that they organized themselves in a pattern. And then I thought maybe they were out on a double date. And then I decided I should stop thinking about the courting rituals of birds.

Last year around this time I went through a phase where I was really big on the colour purple. This year I have similar feelings towards orange. The orange bouys against the white snow made me pretty happy. 

I took a lot more photos of my grandfather's boat and more identifying scenery that I'm not willing to post online, when all was said and done I snapped close to 200 photos. It served as a great reminder how much I enjoy taking photos. And it's a hobby I need to make more time for on a regular basis. 

My goal for the week is to take more photos, follow some prompts on instagram, experiment with some tutorials on Pinterest and exercise some old fashion trail and error. 

Linking up here & here!

Snacks & Snow Storms

Lately it seems like my weekends revolve around snacking and storms. This one was no different.

J. invested in new pots and pans so I throughly enjoyed showing on my domestic skills Saturday evening and Sunday morning while christening a few of his new pots. Saturday night I made us chicken parmesan. Which was pretty tasty, but would have been tastier with regular pasta noodles opposed to the whole wheat/whole grain ones that J. had bought. There's no photographic evidence of this meal because neither of had eaten all day so by the time supper was ready there was no time for pictures just eating. Sunday morning we woke up to what appeared to be a meteorological miracle, only 5-10 cm of snow had fallen opposed to the 30-45 cm that was predicted.

We were mistaken. By the time I made pancakes (side note: does anyone else struggle to make perfect pancakes that are cooked all the way through and not burned??) & bacon for a late breakfast it was clear what we had witnessed earlier was just the beginning of the storm. It didn't look so bad outside so J. determined it was safe enough to drive me home. I live "out in the country" about half an hour away...let's just say that there was a lot more blowing snow and drifting near my house than there was near his and I was really glad when he texted to tell me he made it back to his house. It was also a good thing he took me home when he did because the storm really did keep getting worse and the high winds lasted all night so there's no way I would have gotten home if we hadn't of left when we did.

I spent the afternoon watching the storm outside and making one of my favourite meals. I am definitely not a big sandwich person, but I discovered a delicious combination of things a while back and it's so tasty that it doesn't even matter that it's very sandwich-y. Chicken breast with cajun seasoning, red onion, cheddar cheese, some mixed greens and spicy chipotle dipping sauce all on a ciabatta roll. My mouth might be watering just thinking/typing about it. I made a small portion of homemade fries to go along side it and it was a very satisfying snow day supper.

The snow was still coming down steadily and the wind picked up again making for a very messy Sunday evening. I've reached the point where not only am I tired of all the snow and cold, I'm also tired of complaining about the weather. I just want to see some dirt/pavement in my life rather than snow and ice. 

The bight side of it all is I made a blogger leap and installed Disqus! I'm hoping that I did it correctly and it's fully functional. I was getting really frustrated with no-reply bloggers and glitches resulting in people's comments being erased once they press publish. I was also able to plan out some posts for this week so check back tomorrow to see what's on my reading list!

I'm linking up here to share my weekend!

Thankful

It's been a strange week around these parts. I got some fabulous news and also had a few incidents that were not so fabulous which made me feel a nauseous kind of anxious. I definitely need to take a step back and focus on the things I'm thankful for over the past few weeks.

I am so thankful I have good studded winter tires on my car. I live out in the country and work in town at least once a week I find myself driving to/from work in snowy, icy and way less than ideal road conditions. It's not enjoyable, but I'm glad I have good tires because it makes me feel more secure and a little safer.

I'm thankful that my contract was extended by two weeks taking me to mid-April. It's perfect in that it gives me time to keep making good money before I go pack to camp pay cheques and it gives me enough time to prepare for camp. Last year I was in the office from February-May before living on site for the season. There was a rumour going around that our contracts could get extended until May, which wouldn't have given me zero time to prepare for staff training & camp.

I'm thankful that not only will I have some time to prepare for camp I also have time for a vacation. J. and I booked a trip! I got a passport two years ago and have never used it, so I'm excited to finally add a stamp. Not to mention soak up all the Vitamin D my body can hold! (While wearing  copious amounts of sunscreen because I'm not in the market for skin cancer.)

I'm thankful I have the ability to pick up the TV remote and change the channel when "Dr."Phil or "Dr."Oz come on. 

I'm thankful for the first few minutes in the morning when I stay in bed, slowly wake up and take time to pray about the day ahead. 

I'm thankful for the first hour of my day when I can sip coffee, watch morning news shows and start the day stress free.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to link up for the Thankful Thursday Party so I can share my thankful moments and read through others.

Friday Thoughts

{one}

I came across these prints on Etsy a few weeks ago and just had to ordered them.  They're from Water in My Paint and I am totally in love with them. I can't even pick a favourite. What I love about them is for now they fit in just fine on the gallery wall I have happening in my bedroom. And in the future I think they be totally acceptable to hang in a kitchen or pantry area. Because what's cuter than squirrels eating donuts & sipping coffee while wearing their hair bows and think rimmed glasses? I might be borderline obsessed with them. The artist has tons of quirky water colours for sale, the squirrels were my first choice but there are so many others that I love. Plus, the price was super reasonable ($10 for each 5x7) and she is a Canadian artist so shipping was also fairly cheap. 

*This woman has no idea I exist and I was in no way, shape or form compensated for my fangirl-ing. I love the product I received and love supporting Canadian and small buisness.

{two}
Maybe it's the fact I'm done with winter and longing for summer with every cell of my being. Or maybe it's just me being weird. Either way I am compelled to eat anything BBQ flavoured. Mostly chips but I won't discriminate. I would also love to eat some BBQ steak and baked potato. Or simple burgers & hot dogs with a side of potato chips. BBQ chicken and some potatoes in tin foil...that being said I'm not willing to bundle in 50 billion layers to stand outside long enough to cook meat or ruin my mittens by getting BBQ sauce all over them.

{three}
Some of you may have already read this Buzzfeed article; 25 Truly Terrifying Pictures Of The Snow in Eastern Canada Right Now. That's my neck of the woods friends, our massive quantities of snow have made Buzzfeed. And we're forecasted to get about 20-30 cm on Sunday. C'mon spring...hurry up!

{four}
I working 8 hours of overtime tomorrow. I have mixed feelings on the one hand I'm thankful that I have a good job and I'm thankful for the opportunity to earn a little extra money. Especially when I know that working at this job will allow me financially to work at camp again this summer. On the other hand I'm definitely someone who needs down time so working 6 days a week isn't exactly conductive to down time. I will figure it out though. And if we get those 30 cm of snow on Sunday I will certainly be spending the day at home in my comfy clothes watching Netflix.

{five}
I'm still so sad about Target closing. And honestly even sadder that the clearance isn't all that phenomenal. Everything did get marked down another 10% on Thursday so maybe I'll try to check it out again early next week. There are a few things I have my eye on but aren't discounted enough yet for me to justify buying. I did score a sweater for $8 when I was there this week along with packages of tea for 98 cents and a couple of treats that were discounted. I'm hoping to get some new bedding for camp and there's a bedside table that I happen to think is super cute and will totally be snatching up if/when it ever goes 50% off.

Linking up with Oh Hey, Friday & Bright on a Budget

Winter Weekend

My weekend was a very satisfying mix of adventure & relaxing. Saturday I slept in far later than I intended. When I did wake up I spent the first few hours of my day watching The Pioneer Woman, sipping coffee and reading blogs. Once I motived myself enough to shower I headed to town and ran some errands. I went to Wal-Mart and was deeply disappointed when I couldn't find a single thing I went there to get, once of those things was a new set of dishtowels. Not an item I would expect to have difficulty finding, alas there was none to be found. 

When I was finished my errands I headed to J.'s and then to a hockey game. We chose a good game to go to since our team ended up winning in a shoot out which made for an exciting game to watch. Afterwards we went out to Boston Pizza with J.'s parents. By the time I got home it was after midnight and I was thrilled to climb into bed. 

Sunday I didn't leave the house or put on a drop of make up all day and it was glorious. I don't remember the last time I truly had the whole day to myself and it wasn't because I was sick and felt miserable. I watched Oprah and drank coffee, did meal prep for the week, made myself a delicious lunch, changed my sheets and did a load of laundry. Followed by finally clearing off my old laptop so I can pass it on to my cousin and organizing my planner for the week. All that was done by supper time which allowed me to do the unthinkable and spend the evening working on blog posts for the week while I snacked on chips & dip. By the time 10:30 rolled around I was ready for bed, enjoying my freshly washed sheets and absorbing information from a Netflix documentary. 

It was exactly the weekend I needed. Enough doing to make me feel social and enough just being to ensure I feel refreshed for the week ahead. Balancing those two things is about to become more of a priority in my life because I can really feel the difference it makes!

Linking up my weekend with B Loved Boston!

An Airing of Grievances

This is the first cold/flu season since I was a teenager that I haven't been around little kids. My work schedule doesn't allow me to volunteer in the evenings with Girl Guides and my job has nothing to do with children. The logical assumption would be that I would be in tip top health. That assumption is incorrect. The combination of central air system, carpeting and dusty files has resulted in me being a steady stream of sick this winter.

A sick me, is a cranky me which means I've got lots of complaining confessing to do this week.

I usually avoid taking medicine for common colds but I have a brutal cough so I've been taking cough medicine steady so as to not drive my co-workers crazy with the cough. Because I'm on a short term contract, I don't have any sick days so I'm forced to fill myself with cold meds and cough drops and anything else that might help me get through my shift.

At one point last week my purse resembled a small illegal pharmacy. Cold medication, sinus medication, cough syrup, cough drops, throat lozenges, regular Tylenol, Aleve...Don't worry, I wasn't taking it all at once, just enough to get me through work. 

Why can't the powers that be make a cough medicine that doesn't taste absolutely disgusting? Cough drops come in all sorts of nice flavours but cough medicine comes in orange and cherry. Neither of which taste anything like oranges or cherries.

I am done with winter. It's cold and snowy and every time the sun comes out and I can start to see grass it storms again.

I would like to do yoga, go for long walks, drink tons of water and eat veggies and balanced meals. Except that it's cold outside so all I feel motivated to do is watch Netflix and eat #stormchips.

Last night I decided to have "Snacks for Supper". Instead of eating my usual chicken, rice & veggies I was feeling too sick to do any real food prep so I ate a banana, yogurt, granola bar, fruit snacks and crackers. It was a poor choice and I need to accept the fact I am someone who needs to eat actual meals.

Sometimes I feel like the only female between the ages of 20-40 who has never watched an episode of Girls and (based on the handful of interviews I've seen) finds Lena Dunham incredibly annoying.

This past weekend in the midst of being sick and feeling miserable J. made a comment about missing him and I then proceeded to burst into tears because it made me think about how much I miss. H. & R.. It was not a proud moment in my life or my relationship, but I haven't seen either of them since the end of August. As steady as our group iMessage is updated and as frequent as our Skype dates are, it's still hard to be apart. Especially when we experience exciting stuff or sad stuff or stuff in general. I miss my friends. 

The last two mornings I've been forced out of bed to answer the phone only to have a call centre/scam artist greet me on the other end. This morning was my favourite after informing the person on the other end of the phone that I did not own any Windows operating systems, I use Apple products she hung up on me.

I didn't set any January goals or February goals. I don't plan to, the goal is to make it through winter.

In this moment making it through winter means drinking some coffee, eating some lunch, preparing something for supper and doing my very best not to cough up a lung. 

Linking up with Melissa for Humpday Confessions!

Snow, Snow, Snow

Since I started dating J. about a month a go my weekends have gotten a little more exciting. We certainly spend our fair share of time hanging out on his couch watching documentaries (such exciting 20-somethings) but we've also ventured out to hockey games and restaurants and other date like things. J. is gone on vacation with his family for two weeks so this weekend the introvert in me celebrated in style. (Style implying I spend the whole time in jogging pants & a hoodie.)

Friday my weekend started with a brutal drive home from work. They let us go 45 minutes early because the roads were so bad. It typically takes me about 25-30 minutes to get home from work but Friday it was close to an hour. Earlier in the day it had snowed, then warmed up so things started to melt, then the temperature dropped again so all the melted stuff froze, then it started to snow again. Making the roads a mess of snow covered ice. Not a good time.

Saturday I slept in way later than usual, but I didn't feel too guilty clearly my body was trying to tell me it needed some rest. So keeping with the restful theme I lounged around the house until mid afternoon when Mom & I made a quick trip to the mall to look for a birthday gift for my aunt and then had supper at Swiss Chalet. On our way home we stopped at Target where I got an awesome winter jacket on sale for half price, I wore it to work yesterday and it's my new favourite.

I can't seem to find a photo online but the new coat is black which is great because the new winter coat I got last year is white. And I don't know what I was thinking when I decided that a white winter coat was a good idea, but it was not. It constantly has bronzer all over the collar from it rubbing up against my face, the other day I spilled coffee on it while trying to get into my car plus what could be more impractical than dressing in white in the middle of a snow storm? When I first brought it home my mother half joking half serious asked if I had gotten a neon hat to go with it so they'd be able to find me in a storm.

Sunday I had the first official camp meeting of the season. Official invitations went out yesterday to last years staff who are invited back this summer. While on Skype I also devoured almost an entire bag of my newest food obsession: Chicago Mix Popcorn.

You might think that carmel popcorn & cheddar flavoured popcorn all mixed together in the same bag would be gross, but you would be wrong. It's delicious. I'm obsessed.

Yesterday I had another slippery drive home from work. I realize it's only January and there's still at minimum 3 more months of winter ahead, but I am done. Now, excuse me while I go stalk the weather report and highway cams in a feeble attempt to determine if tonight's drive to and from work will be as stressful as the last few nights.

Linking up here for Tuesday Talks!

The Week Ahead

I had a pretty great week last week. Which is probably why I didn't blog much. Does anyone else experience the bizarre effect that more happiness = less blogging?

My favourite part of new Taylor Swift albums is choosing a favourite song and listening to that song on repeat. This time around it's Wildest Dreams. T-Swift understands. When I haven't been listening to 1989 I've been singing along to Leave The Night On by Sam Hunt.

More often than not things in my life happen very fast and all at once. So when things don't happen that way, when they unfold slowly it is a pleasant change of pace. And since there are so many seconds to enjoy I'm enjoying everyone of them. That's a pretty cryptic statement but y'all are just going to have to deal with it.

This week is shaping up to pretty fabulous as well. Even if I spent all day Sunday being extremely unproductive rather than my usual Sunday routine of choosing outfits for the week and doing meal prep. The time change had me all sorts of messed up and I found myself showered, PJs on and ready for bed at 8:15. It worked out well though, it was nice to end the weekend and start the week reading a good book. 

I'm not mentally prepared for fewer hours of daylight or snow so I'm trying to focus my attention on enjoying this season opposed to forcing myself to panic over winter driving, cold and never ending snow. I was excited for sweaters, scarfs and boots but it turns out my office is part sauna. I wore my favourite sweater to work one day last week and endured 8 hours of unbearable heat. Of course when I left work it was near freezing and I drove the whole way home with my heated seats on full blast. 

On that note I need to go piece together an outfit that will keep me warm outside and cool inside and maybe justify a second cup of coffee.

Snow Day Roulette

During university whenever there was a snowstorm in the forecast my friends and I liked to play what we called "Snow Day Roulette". The game was pretty straight forward - you could have a few drinks/stay up late/not do the assignment all in hopes that the next day classes would be cancelled and you'd be free to recover from your few drinks/sleep in/enjoy another full day of procrastination.

So when the weather forecast looked like this Tuesday night I was faced with a new grown up job version of Snow Day Roulette.

Except that in Grown Up Land my choices were more along the lines of not choosing my outfit or packing a lunch the night before. I know. Livin' on the edge.

Wednesday morning I woke up at 7 and checked my phone to be greeted by the glorious message that work was in fact closed for the day.

My Snow Day was exactly what a needed I wore my favourite extra grubby $10 Wal-Mart jogging pants all day long, drank two cups of coffee and at least 3 cups of tea. Enjoyed homemade waffles and played board games with the roomies. 

And I won't lie this morning when work wasn't closed I was pretty annoyed. The roads were really sketchy and I absolutely despise winter driving. Plus it was kind of a long day at work.

The good news is tomorrow is Friday which means I can wear jeans to work and I have no plans to work this weekend! Depending on the weather I may go on an adventure to visit with H. on Saturday but we may be getting more snow. (Seriously, I am SO ready for spring!)

My snow day also seemed to have re-kindle my blogging inspiration! I've got some post ideas planned for the next few days and have been taking steps to contact folks about a new design. 

Life is looking up! 

Snow Storms & Bravery

{one}

In my efforts to Be Brave in 2014 I took another step in the blogging world yesterday and made a Twitter Account! I decided to make a new account that is more anonymous, I'm just not ready for the "real world" to know about my blogging. I might be someday, but today isn't the day. So if you're into the Twitter scene and are just dying to read my Tweets about how cold it is around here these days and whatever else strikes my fancy, follow along!

{two}

My anxiety has been way out of control the past few days. The grant situation still hasn't come to a conclusion but it needs too. The reality of the situation that is as much as I want to return to that camp and appreciate the effort that has been done to complete the application process, I can't wait any longer. This was a job that was supposed to start on October 28th. It's January 3rd and I'm still unemployed sitting on my parents couch.

{three}

I know it's only Day 3 of the 2014 but so far I've journaled everyday, read my Bible and am on my third book that I'm reading for pleasure! It's all about keeping momentum and making everything into a habit! It seems like the popular opinion is reading the Bible and reflecting should be done first thing in the morning but I've never been able to get into that habit. I prefer to end my day with Bible, blank paper and a handful of markers and felt tip pens. Maybe someday I'll join the ranks of sunrise Bible readers but it probably won't be this year. 

{four}

To my lovely blog readers who reside in the South (or anywhere where the temperature is above 0) enjoy your ability to venture outside without 10000 layers. It's cold here. Really cold. And it just won't stop snowing. 

{five}

If you follow me on Instagram you've already seen this photo but I had to blog about too, because it's ridiculous. I cleaned out my sock drawer after Christmas and was left with this. There are FOUR purple/black socks and none of them match. Same goes for the two pink/black, blue/black, and the three beige coloured ones with three different coloured heels/toes. So frustrating. I haven't thrown them out yet because I'm trying to convince myself that I can make "pairs" out of them,  but my OCD just won't have it. Back in jr. high I refused to wear matching socks and now I can't even wear two socks that are nearly identical but not. A phycologist would probably have a lot to say about that. 

I'm linking up with the lovely ladies for Five on Friday!

Monday Musings

I was originally planning on posting my "Word of the Year" post today but then I realized that today is one of those days where I just need to share my random thoughts about life and its happenings opposed to anything even remotely thought out with lots of pictures and (mostly) grammatically correct sentences. So bare with me and tune in tomorrow for my word of the year reveal. 

I have my word all ready to go but then I started thinking I should have a verse too? Does anybody else choose a verse for the year? I'm obviously familiar with choosing a word. And I know of people who choose life verses for their children or a verse for their marriage but I've never been exposed to a verse for the year. I like the idea, but it's also overwhelming to try and choose a verse for the entire year in a day or two. 

Last night I was totally on top of things and portioned out a bunch of fruit and spinach to make a smoothie this morning to sip on while I read through blogs. This morning I got up and was magnetically drawn to the Keurig where I brewed myself a cup of French Vanilla coffee and have yet to make myself truly regret said decision. Points for trying right?

I was supposed to hang out with one of my best and oldest friends last night while he's home from university. Then his parents decided to head to the city a day early because of the impending snow storm so he wouldn't miss his flight back to school.

Speaking of snow. There are 160 cm of snow down. That's over 5 feet for those of you on the imperial measurement system. There's another snow storm in the forecast for tomorrow. We are 30 cm away from beating the previous snowfall record in December that was set back in the 60s. I know Canadians are supposed to be snow-loving people of the north riding around on our polar bears, but I'm done. Summer please come soon. (And for those who are curious summer means June, because it still snows in May.)

On the flip side all this snow makes everything absolutely beautiful. Which is great because I've been taking lots of pictures. Come May I will be an expert at taking photos in the snow. Saturday I was at my grandparents and took some great ones of my Papa's boat and the warf all covered with snow. (My Papa is a lobster fisherman and my grandparents live in a tiny little fishing village.) 

The internet at my house has really sucked the past few days. It makes it difficult to do all my important Tweeting, Snapchatting and Instagramming. #firstworldproblems

I just read through this post and feel a little embarrassed to push publish because it's just ridiculous. But I'm doing it anyway. I promise my posts for the rest of the week will be much more interesting. Or at least less all over the place. 

I'm sharing all this randomness with the lovely ladies participating in Mingle Monday at the Life of Meg.