a house becomes our home

We did it! We bought our home. We moved in. And we couldn't be happier. Seriously...I don't know HOW we could get any happier...maybe the lottery? This place feels so good. It's so bright and lovely. I just want to run in it. Well, no, the kids want to run in it! I want to decorate it!!!


From the outside our house is plain-jane and looks somewhat small...but on the inside? This place is like a palace to me!! Before, it was brown inside....blech. Brown, taupe, dirt colours...not my thing! SO I repainted, with the help of great friends and Tim Horton's! It took four days to clean and paint the upper level. 


First of all, the cleanliness of this place was not up to par. Anyone who saw it would have agreed. The previous owners did squat to clean it, which was depressing, because I just wanted to come into a clean, fresh house! After two days of cleaning...washing food off walls, removing the disgusting amounts of dirt from under the stove, fridge and even on the tops of the walls where the ceilings are vaulted, I felt better about it. The carpets were...um, well...I could have puked. They were filthy! So we paid $200 to get them steam cleaned and sanitized. Well worth it! They came out looking two shades lighter! Next time...if we ever buy a used home, it will be in the conditions that the places gets professionally cleaned. Our city has really let that slip. In any other city the houses are be expected to be spotless. And speaking to my friends who have bought and sold, bought and sold...they are. I think Lloydminster needs to step it up. 


Anyways...after the grueling hours of cleaning, came the grueling (but entertaining) hours of painting. We went through countless coffee's and teas from Tim's, and spent time (probably more than we needed) standing around visiting! We got it done! And then, we moved in! My family rocks. And my husband's family rocks...and would have helped IF they lived near us! 


So here we are...in our new home, Jenner in his OWN room and sleeping wonderfully! Ellis keeps saying "I like my new house!" Or when he sees the school bus (which stops right in front of our place) he says "Looooook!!! The Fool bus! I can ride it when I am a beeeeeeg boy! Right mommy!?"
Yes, baby Ellis...you can ride the fool bus. He's so cute.


These two boys have not stopped running! They have adapted incredibly well to our new surroundings! But mu husband...who was born and raised in the city, had a few sleepless nights, worried about whether the doors and windows were locked or not. He is sweet like that. He slept with Ellis the first couple nights...I think daddy needed that more than Ellis!


Slowly but surely we will get this house perfect...to say exactly what we want it to say about us...once I clean the dog poop off our lawn it will be better. Much better.
Did I mention we don't have a dog?


Anyways...here is the onslaught of before and after photos...

Kitchen before

Kitchen after (but before we moved in)

Entrance before

Entrance after

Master Bedroom, partially wall papered

My sister and cousin painting the family room

The kids favourite spot...

The Hideout, under the stairs



Life is good. Our family is happy. We've already had so many laughs in our home and are ready for more!
We are also looking forward to all of the company that is planning to come over the next months. It's going to be awesome!!

Good night. I have a wee man who wants to go to bed.

a wack of a good week!

I still haven't started packing. But I have a really good excuse. It's my family's fault. We get possession in nine days! I still haven't settled on my paint choices, but have it narrowed down...I might as well blame them for that too! We have been having so much fun this week that I haven't just started packing, and decided on paint. Oh well!


I'm not feeling anxious about all of the work anymore, so thats good, I am just looking forward to moving in, settling in...and having family come over.


Our first gathering will be Jenner's first birthday, and I am so thrilled about it! I have a friend of my brother's who is going to bake Jenner's cake. (This is a huge deal if you know me...I love to do the cakes myself, from scratch, using my mom's recipe...but, I won't have time, so I am letting Dani work her magic!!)
The second, will be Easter. And if you are my family reading this...then here is your invite. Come to our home for Easter.


We've been so busy lately, Jesse has been working nights for a few weeks now, we've been visiting friends, and I purged out the baby stuff! Most of it sold, and the rest was donated! Big sigh of relief!

the morning of dad's birthday

we took the boys out on the sleigh

two cuties

jenner watching daddy

big brother pulling baby brother

mmmm, wiener roast on a beautiful winter's day

proud of their snow man

ellis and i made st. patty's day cupcakes

after all of the weeks' activities, it was necessary to fall asleep on daddy for an hour

This past week, we've had three birthdays we celebrated: Jesse's, dad's, and Grandma Clara's 90th! The weather has been a touch nicer...so we've been getting some fresh air, playing in the snow, all of the things we haven't been able to do because of the cold weather!


For Jesse we went out to Boston Pizza with our immediate family, usually, we have a big supper at home and I bake a cake, but somewhere amid the business of doing I-don't-know-what and Jesse working nights, I just didn't get it done. Next best thing...a restaurant. No cooking, no cleaning but we still had great company! Next year will be different handsome husband, I promise!


Dad's day was a great one...my sister came out with her family and we were outside enjoying the sun for a couple hours. We almost had to kibosh the wiener roast...as dad and my brother-in-law FAILED miserably at starting a fire...and once I saw the gas can come out...I took matters in to my own half-breed hands and started a nice little blaze in the other fire pit. Success. Wieners, marshmallows, hot chocolate, giggling children, and SUNSHINE made it an even greater success!


I spent the next couple days going through that baby stuff, sorting, organizing then selling and donating. I made a good enough amount to head to the city and spoil myself and the boys, and I bought all new dishes for the house! I went with a girlfriend of mine, with out children, and it was marvelous! We needed that...we had countless conversations where the only interruptions were our ridiculous laughter, cackles, snorts, etc. So fun. We felt so awesome, we hit the mall, went and ate, then headed to Ikea. We had our agenda, we stuck with it, and we got everything we wanted and more!


The day before that was Grandma's birthday, and it was such a good time...so many kids, so much family...mom's house was overflowing with the sounds of laughter, catching up, squealing from the kids and of course the amazingly delicious smell of the food...oh the food. Food is such a big deal at our family gatherings....it. was. a. feast.


I'm still full.


Although there was only a handful of us there compared to the usual family gatherings, Grandma was still so pleased. She was surrounded by most of her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and one great-great came. She is so lucky. She tells us that she is so rich because of all of the little people she has been blessed with in her life!


I see what she means.


All I can do is look back at this week and think how lucky I am to have such an incredible family. We rule. No really...we do. In a big way. 

coming of age

In the beginning, we are all just a thought. 


Just a dream of someone's yearning for something new...that little twitch in the heart that tells you now is the time for change.


We are built by the hands of some higher power, someone watching over, carefully, so that we are constructed just the way we are meant to be. Our blue prints drawn out by our parents, we are masterfully manipulated in to the tiny little person who will carry our soul and spirit over this earth. And over 40 weeks, clenched in the tender grips of our mother's womb, we are protected, fed, nourished and loved until we make our first appearance, our first breath, our first hug, our first gaze into another's eyes. And from that moment on, we grow. We learn. We change. We evolve in so many ways...physically, emotionally, mentally. We grasp at the good and try to let go of the bad. We try to hold true to what has been instilled in us by our parents. We try to rationalize everything. 


I am seeing this in my boys. Each as his own individual. Jenner, wandering around after his brother, but not a follower in the least. He is full of determination...the kind that all small children have. He exudes it in grunts and smiles. He is always taunting Ellis...grabbing at any and every toy Ellis places his hands on. Then they both squawk and squeal and get angry with one another. No matter what, one is crying in the end. We try to explain to both the importance of sharing, and try to interest them in other toys. But then the fight is on again...


Ellis, like every other two year old out there...he is adorable, compassionate, sweet, endearing, then show's you his "crazy eyes" and turns into a little rat. He will brush right up against Jenner, almost knocking him over. This is beyond frustrating. But this is how kids are. You take the good with the not so good. So, time outs are what we use. We take toys away. We show him the consequences when he is bad. Praise him when he is good.
He is also at the age where he is quite capable of doing certain things himself, but insists we do them. Like "I need Puppy. Go get him!" I say, you can go to your room and get him Ellis and he shrieks back "Nooooo, you need to go get him! I can't!" 


Our days are filled with so much love and laughter, but among all that there are tantrums, there are moments where my nerves are all twitching...and among all the tantrums and twitching nerves are moments where I need to remind myself that I AM THE ADULT. They are the children. I gather my thoughts, direct my negative energy in to cleaning, and I talk to my kids. I try to explain to them how this is going to work. It is not fun to fight all the time. There has to be happy times. We can share toys, we can run and play, we can read books, and if we are tired and grouchy then we can nap. 


When I think about life, nine years ago...it was so different. I had just ended a bad relationship...bad all around. I moved to Calgary. And that same day, Jesse had moved to Calgary. Both of us were basically running from what our lives were. And we happened to run right in to each other. We met. We spent every day together after that. And have been together ever since. We did the whole jump-in-with-both-feet thing, we didn't care about anything else, just spending time with each other. It was all so new. So exciting...so freeing. We moved in with each after about a month of knowing each other. It doesn't work for everyone, but it was in our cards, and it worked for us.





In the last nine years we have grown. My, how we have grown. Together we have created a life that we knew we always wanted. It was like building a spider web. We started on the outside, working our way in, joining each aspect of our then separate lives together, and forming them in to one. We had to work around obstacles, sometimes change paths, but in the end what we have made is beautiful. 
And it has stood up against winds and storms. 

We have an incredible support system, our family, our trees and branches that have guided us to take shape in the way we have. We have grown in ways I never thought I could. My heart throbs with love when I look into the eyes of Jesse and my boys. How incredible it is to see the little faces we have created. Jesse and I perfectly divided in to their looks...it makes us both grin to see. What an amazing addition to our life together. Everything is perfect. 




Everything is as it should be. 
Everything is in it's place. 




From this point on, there is nothing to do but go forward, together, as one unit. We will all grow, age, change, and live in each other's lives for as long as we are allowed. And in the time granted, I hope that we can flourish and spend as much time with our loved ones as possible. I hope to have all of the amazing people that have surrounded each of us in our lifetime, surround each of our children in the same way. 


I hope that we can weather it all together, like an old farm building in the country, on a hillside, still standing after years and years of pounding rain, blistering winds, harsh cold and soothing sunshine. Sturdy. Strong. 

pass it on!

OK, OK...perhaps I was a little harsh on myself in the last post...I wasn't hoping to seem that way, but I did!


I received a handful of messages and phone calls about it...and you all made me feel very good.


My beautiful friend Jules sent me a very sweet message this morning and I have been on cloud nine ever since...you really know how to make a girl feel special! And I have to share it...because I feel that all women should read what she said to me, so here it is!


"I'm not saying this just to be nice. You are one of the most stunning, naturally beautiul, perfectly shaped women that I know! I hate diets because they take the focus off lifestyle, and become something else.. something hard on self esteem. Eating healthy should be about eating good food. Wholesome, delicious, "doesn't taste like I'm on a diet" food. It hurts to hear a friend being hard on themselves. You do not deserve that! 
In the last year, I've been trying to cook things that are new to my tastebuds, and I always find.. friends are the best people to ask about recipes and food! (A good friend) told me about a great blog called Dinner With Julie (and she's a Calgarian!!! No wonder I like her!). She's fantastic, hilarious, and makes a lot of no-fuss, great tasting, wholesome meals.. shares the recipes and the most mouthwatering pictures!
I recently tried this one.. and since you mentioned the "no white stuff".. I thought you might want to add it to your supper table one night. This came out of the crockpot, and I ate it for a week!

PS Love your blog. I think you should write a book, and then someone will make a movie.. like they did with Julia & Julia!

CrockPot Turkey Chili with Apples

1 each: onion, carrot and celery stalk, chopped
2 cups each: apples, cored and chopped and butternut squash, diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb (454 g) ground turkey, cooked
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp (15 mL) ground cumin
1 tsp (5 mL) dried oregano
¼ tsp (1 mL) each: salt and freshly ground pepper
1 can (10 fl oz/284 mL) undiluted chicken broth
1 can (400 mL) light coconut milk
2 tbsp (25 mL) tomato paste
1 cup (250 mL) canned black beans, drained and rinsed
cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Combine everything in your CrockPot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Garnish with fresh cilantro, if you like."

I love her...she is wonderful for saying this, for sharing the website, and for reminding of my own beauty....which I sometimes forget about...like most stay at home moms!

So, now I can move forward...and try new recipes!

Oh, and as for moving...I am proud to say that I have one box packed. HA! That's one more box packed than yesterday! I have also gone through my baby stuff and have two boxes set aside, ready to be sold in a "Bye Bye Baby Stuff" sale next Thursday! I can not wait!

I still feel like I am standing in front of a mountain, but at least there's lots of sunshine! And lots of friends standing there with me!

Thanks for the support!


And pass it on! It always helps to share meal ideas with friends...so here's a few of mine...very normal...but still, I'm sharing!

Beef stir-fry (no rice)

Yummy breakfast! Scrambled eggs topped with salsa, steamed asparagus and fresh veggies! 

Lemon pepper pork, steamed carrots, rice, and spinach salad with pecans and mandarine oranges!

Myself...no make-up, bags and all, but still feeling beautiful thanks to amazing friends.

it's all happening...

Here I sit, taking a breather, from the very hectic, hair pulling, high stress day. It seems that no matter how much laundry I do, I cannot keep up. No matter how many dishes I do, I cannot keep up. No matter how much I try to please my two children, I cannot keep up. I wash the floors twice a day, but still...can not keep UP!


The next four weeks are a huge, daunting mountain, standing before me, casting a shadow. I am ever grateful for what is to come, but terrified of the amount of work.
In the next four weeks I must go through baby stuff, as we are quite happily done at two, and I am going to sell it at a local "Bye Bye Baby Stuff" sale. Yay! So glad to have the chance to sell it, instead of give it away! It all cost so much, and used for so little time, that some return (other than baby use) will be made!


Right now, my Ellis is on the deck, playing in the mild, sunny winter's day...and little Jenner...ten months old, is walking around like he's been doing it for a long time...he stands at the window, waving and cooing and screaming at Ellis out of sheer excitement.


It's nice, considering how this day has been going, to have a break...where everyone is happy, doing their own thing.


Now, I got sidetracked a little...my list. My giant, never-ending, scary, once-was-little list. 
I need to start packing. Like, yesterday...even thought our current place is small...it is jam packed full of STUFF. Ugh. Stuff. Some will be sold, some will be donated, and the rest will come to our new home. Our new home. That feels so good to say. Our first, real, grown up home. Where our children will flourish and grow. Where I will have a room....a beautiful master bedroom without a crib, and WITH a husband. My man will sleep WITH me, where he should be...instead of with Ellis or on the couch. (He can't sleep in the same room as Jenner, they both wake up)
We will have five bedrooms...so even when daddy comes home from working nights, he can go downstairs, to a quiet room...or even stay in our own room, and I can play with the boys in the kitchen, then downstairs, so he can sleep in peace.


I will have kitchen...where the carpet of my living room will not be spattered with chunks of food that Sir Jenner is casually tossing around. It will all remain in the kitchen!


My living room...once the boys are a little older will be transformed into a wonderful, adult place where I will sip tea with my family and friends...or drink wine. Which ever, it doesn't matter! On my feature wall, I will have two comfy, beautiful chairs framed with a beautiful picture on the wall, a small table between them...perhaps a lamp. I can not wait. Can. Not. But have to.


My bedroom will become a sanctuary, where Jesse and I will have conversations, morning kisses, late night snuggles...and just time. to. be. together.


The boys' rooms will be comfy, casual and playful. They will spend hours upon hour playing, sleeping, reading, jumping, running, squealing...and being little boys! I have material picked out for Roman blinds that hopefully my sister will make for me. I have paint colours picked out. I am just so excited to make them each their own little room, that suits them as individuals...that will help them grow and evolve. 


Our basement will have, which I have seen a number of times now, a playroom under the stairs...I am going to paint it bright green and blue, put the foam squares on the floor and also put some chalkboard paint on the wall. It is going to be a place where they, with their friends and cousins can go crazy, scream, run, play...do whatever...it will be the kid cave.


Then, Jesse will have his area, the big screen tv, the leather couches, the poker area...what ever he dreams up, I don't care...I just want him to have his own place! (That he can share with us, of course!)


Now, the other thing I am dealing with, is my baby, walking around...holy smokes! Two kids, just in the way when I need to get stuff done! HA! Of course they are not in my way...but you know what I mean...so I have to save organizing for nap time...the time I would love to crash! But I most likely won't. I need to get boxes, organize things, wrap them up, pack them up, store them somewhere, decide what to keep, what to donate...my mind is spinning. Spinning, spinning, throbbing...clouding over! Maybe I am overwhelmed!?


And the other thing I am dealing with...is a diet...why, at this point in time would I choose to add yet another stress?? Maybe so I learn that high stress doesn't mean I need to snack...or whatever. I usually eat as I am feeding the boys...and I feed them very healthy foods. But, this diet that I am on, sees these foods as bad. I see them as nourishing, tasty, lovely foods.


I am not a junk food addict. I am a milk addict. Seriously. Milk. It's ridiculously delicious. And that does not help me lose weight. So, I read the Four Hour Body, and am doing the slow-carb diet, where you can lose up to twenty pounds in four weeks, just by omitting dairy, fruits, and white foods (i.e. pasta, rice, potatoes, etc.) And you must increase vegetables, water, legumes...and eat organically where ever possible.
This is all fine and dandy. But today, I feel as though I am missing something...my head is not clear at all. I have already had so many typos in this blog. So now I am thinking, is this realy for me, at this time? Or should I wait until all of the stress is gone...or should I do a combination, and just lower my intake of dairy and pasta...but still allow myself a little. 
And once I am in town, I will be, WILL BE, getting a membership and working out. Three times a week is all I need.


I just want to feel normal, while all of this abnormal stuff is going on. Our little world is going to be turned upside down for then next month and a half...Ellis, who is very territorial, will be missing his things. And these things will be in boxes, some to be taken to the new house, others not. I will be dealing with a little  man who will be asking about his stuff...over and over, because this child, does NOT forget. 


So...today is a very confusing day...I feel completely overwhelmed and stressed...and cloudy. I really am feeling cloudy. 


Perhaps I will trek on with this diet...which, by the way, I am not a yo-yo dieter. I have never tried a diet...I have worked out and seen results. And I know that THAT is the way to do it. And I will do that...once we live five minutes from the gym.


Well...it is nap time. The boys are grouchy...I need to go tend to them. Then call a friend. I need to know that IF i decide to continue my NORMAL healthy eating, or stay on this diet, which I really think will work...I need to know if I am making excuses, or being lazy...and I know exactly which friend to call. Leanne...have your phone ready, and you ears open!


Please...let me know if you have struggled with this...which as a mother, I know you have at some point.


(If this blog is not making sense, I really do apologize...I really am foggy, kind of confused feeling!?)

the greatest rewards

So, a couple girlfriends and myself have been emailing back and forth about life with kids...how incredible, rewarding, intimidating it can be. We are currently on the subject (one of many) of basically self-respect, self-acceptance and what we want to put forward to our children. 


We want what every parent wants...for our children to be strong, independent, respectful, compassionate, helpful, confident, to "teach the child to be giving but not to give away the essence of self" (to quote my friend).


She is absolutely right. We have to try and teach our children to be all of these things, with out jeopardizing their SELF.


As parents, we know what it is like to give, give, give, sacrifice life as we used to know it...because basically, for the next X number of years, we serve our children. We dedicate morning, noon and night to them...and as I said in my previous blog, we can lose our personal relationship...with ourselves AND our partner. 


So as we work, work, work we must set aside time for ourselves, for our partners, for our children, for our friends, for our family members. We must try to enjoy one on one activities, get involved, get our children involved.


When I cook or clean, I try to have Ellis help...he is two and a half...and loves to be included. This gives him such great pride...the look in his eyes is incredible...he relishes in any activity we do together. We also try to include Jenner...but being ten months old, he's a little tough to wrangle! He goes from one thing to another in a matter of seconds!


Ellis has helped me do laundry, scrub floors, wash the bath tub, shovel the deck, do dishes, bake cupcakes and cook supper. He helps me grind the coffee beans in the morning and gets Jenner his yogurt. I want him to know that he CAN do these things. I want them to be second nature to him. I want him to know that HE. IS. CAPABLE. And I am also instilling in him that all who live in a home together, nurture that home together. Everyone has shared responsibilities. We all make the home work together.


We were taught this growing up, and are continuing to show it to our children...we include them, they include each other...

Helping to water flowers

Baking with Grandma (while her kitchen was being reno'd)

Waiting for laundry to be done!

He loves watering flowers!

If you help make a mess, you help clean it up!

Decorating cupcakes...he picked green icing!

Baking buns with Gaga, Jenner is helping too!

We are team Smith's! When my boys are older, you can bet that they will be telling me and Jes to sit back and relax while they make supper together. My siblings and I did that for our parents, and they appreciate it. It's one less thing to do in a day.


I am pretty pleased to have both sides of my family involve one another in everything. It's awesome...my Thunder Bay family loves being a part of each other's lives...there is always time for tea together, there is always a big family supper around the table, there is always good conversation that everyone is involved in. Many stories have been told in that little house...Suesue and Papa G's house...Ellis always talks about it. And it is because they have created cherished memories in it for him! He knows that every time we go there he will play with them, watch movies with them...and you can bet he will tell Papa G to "bring me my suppoo" while we sit downstairs together.


I absolutely love involving my kids, I love teaching them responsibility...but not too much right now...they are kids of course! So there is lots of time to play, read books, colour, etc. 


We have many years of "real responsibilities" ahead, so I don't want to rush them right now. 


Both sides of our family nourish the spirit. We compliment one another, give each other a pat on the back when needed....we make sure to let each other know that we are doing a good job.


I like to think that I have always had a good head on my shoulders. Sure, I've made some mistakes, but I don't regret them. They have made me who I am. I can look at myself and feel good about who I am, where I am at in life, and I can say that I have no regrets. 
I think that is a great, positive way to feel. I hope my husband feels that, I hope my friends feel that, and I hope my children feel that.


If you are living life with a positive outlook, an open mind, an open spirit and not laying so much importance on things like looks, how "much" you have or how much money you make, then you will be a happier person.


We live within our means. If we can spoil ourselves a little here and there, then we will. We do what makes us feel happy, good. We do what makes us feel beautiful. As a whole. And when something is thrown in our way, we work at it together, and get by it. We don't need a lot of things in life...we just need to be able to look in our childrens' eyes and see happiness, confidence, honesty, pride, and spirit.


That is the sweetest reward.

revitalized!

Ahhhh!
I feel refreshed! (But still a little tired!)
The hunny cam home finally! This week went by 
so
slowly.


I am so glad to have Jes home. It's like the missing piece of the puzzle was found! The boys little faces were lit up with joy and excitement when they heard daddy's voice...and saw the little surprises he brought home for them.


After a long couple weeks for all of us, yesterday and today were great for our souls!


I headed to the city to pick up Jesse, but before I met him at the airport I had supper with my cousin. We had such a great visit and supper at the Outback! Mmmmmm....Aussie Cheese Fries! We cackled, laughed, caught up, cackled more, looked at pictures and videos on my cell of the boys....and laughed even more.


What release. What an amazing way to revive yourself! It perked me right up! Got me out of the slow, grumpy groove I was in. I love how a little bit of girl time does that for me! While we were eating we made plans to go out. We went and picked up Jes then went and booked a hotel. Jesse, who was exhausted and hungry after a day of traveling, was excited to get showered and gussied up in the new clothes I had bought him. So, he ordered in room service, layed on the bed and watched tv and waited for his food. Stace and I laid on the other bed and talked and talked and got lost in our conversation, as we always do!


The food came, Jesse ate, then we all decided we were to tired to do anything, and basically we went to bed! 


The next day, we got up, got ready, went for breakfast and went shopping together! I was so grateful to have some time to spend with just Jesse. JUST US. It was so nice...we walked around the mall, holding hands, he spent lots of time outside stores on the bench waiting for me...
We spoiled ourselves, nurtured our spirits, joked around...and just had fun. We laughed and joked and enjoyed being in the company of one another. 
Don't get me wrong, we always do...but it's extra special when there are no interruptions from our little men!
Funny thing was, we spent most of the time talking about the boys...the silly faces they make, the funny things Ellis says...it made us miss them!


We know the importance of having alone time...we try our best to make it happen, but we just don't get it enough! Jes works...a lot. He has missed countless family functions, and he feels bad...but that's life. Work is kind of important...but when your family is asking if you even exist anymore, it might be time to cut back on the hours! Right?


Anyways...what I am getting at, is that we were so care-free...just roaming around, at our leisure, talking about when we first met and how crazy it is that we have ended up here.


Here being married, with two kids, and now waiting (impatiently) to move into our new home. Our first house! 


We are elated. We are anxious. We are finally real adults! Haha!


As I have said before, I am learning to become a more grateful person...not one that takes others for granted.


I am so thankful that I had time to spend with Jesse alone. It took us back to a place...a place where fun, flirting and free spirits roam!


I think we are going to have to make that a weekly thing. Just the two of us, out from our four walls...


We feel uplifted. And appreciate our kiddies that much more. And we appreciate all who have helped us along the way...and today, we are thankful that my mom was watching the boys. (Don't worry Smith's...your days are comin')


So, have a look at your calendar, pick a day, book a sitter and take your man or woman out on the town...whether its just to go shopping or a supper date, it's amazing how revitalized you can feel! Especially after a week of not seeing each other.

Have fun lovers...remember, it's not just one day out of the year you need to make special! It all of the others too!