Monday, May 23, 2011

Summer Rain

Well, I'm a little behind in posting and a lot behind in taking pictures, but what can you do? I'm in the midst of trying to finally FINALLY get my craft room all cleaned up and in some order in which I'll actually want to spend time working in there. I find I'm a much happier girl when I have some quality crafty time every day. Today I'm just crocheting another baby blanket for a friend (something I can do that doesn't involve needing a clean craft room).

I was however, able to do some sewing (which I haven't done in forever) with my friend last Sunday and made some fabulous baby items. I'm quite excited about that, and we have another date next Sunday, so I'm looking forward to it! It makes me inspired to open a craft shop with her someday. But for now I think we will just look into another Farmer's Market season. I'm in need of a new game plan, as jewelry was not a hot item but I'm sure it will be fun either way. It's a great atmosphere nonetheless.

That's all for now, I'm on my hubby's computer and he wants it back.

Love to you all.

Friday, May 6, 2011

Spring!

Spring is in the air, and it is truly delightful. I love spring, I love summer, I love fall. Each for their own beauties. I think spring still has to be my favourite though, short as it can be in Alberta. Maybe that's why it's so priceless, because you blink and then it's gone!

I'm heading off to the Butterdome Craft Show in a minute and I'm super excited! I will post pictures if I find any treasures.

My latest belly pic:


Friday, April 15, 2011

This One's For You, Mom!

Well, three years have come and gone without you, and I still feel like it was just yesterday we were sitting in your bed together chatting about life before I headed off to school for the day. I heard the song I listened to on the way to the hospital (the last day we were together) on the radio this morning before I was aware enough to know it was the 15th. God is good like that. He knows every detail about us, and cares enough to bring moments like that into our daily lives. We miss you mom, every day and it's so wonderful to know we can some day run into your arms in paradise!

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of mom on my new computer, but here is a picture of the house she grew up in on Prince Edward Island. My cousin and I went there last May and my mom's mom took us back to the old farmhouse:



Here is a little family picture Jason took last night while we had a dogpile (very rare.. June does not normally like being this close to Luke):


And yet another knitting project.. the pattern was taught to me by mom's mom when I was out there to visit:



Wednesday, April 13, 2011

home gardening

it's been too long, yet again! i've been busy busy busy converting the office into a baby space (since the baby related items were beginning to overwhelm the office stuff anyways) so now i have a baby room full of random things needing a home, and a desk at the bottom of my stairs with a flurry of paperwork engulfing it. i'm doing my husband's bookkeeping (eek!) and his uncle's tax stuff (double eek!) because apparently i will be good at it! ha.. we will see about that. so anyways, that has been occupying some of my spare time, and the rest is filled with excess laundry doing and knitting/crocheting..any form of yarnery i can get my hands on! i think i'm a bit addicted.

and as for today's theme: home gardening! my pictures for today are of the plants i have started on the basement window ledge. it might be too early for this.. but i couldn't wait to get my hands on some dirt. here they are: (it's vegetables in the long boxes and herbs in the small pots)






and why not.. a pregger self portrait for the road:

i went to the doctor with my wonderful husband this morning, and all is well, but she wants to do another ultrasound because last time the baby was hiding its head, so they didn't get a good look at the face. i'm not complaining! ultrasounds are awesome, minus all the noise for poor baby! sorry in there!

Monday, April 4, 2011

A few items..

To start off, here is the most recent belly pic:
18 weeks



















This past week was Spring Break, which just flew by, and sadly I didn't keep up with my photo-a-day assignment. I meant to take more pictures but I am sharing the camera with my husband.. so I need to be good and take turns! Here are some photos from the weekend:












And some literary brilliance for thought:

monet refuses the operation

Doctor, you say there are no halos
around the streetlights in Paris
and what I see is an aberration
caused by old age, an affliction.
I tell you it has taken me all my life
to arrive at the vision of gas lamps as angels,
to soften and blur and finally banish
the edges you regret I don't see,
to learn that the line I called the horizon
does not exist and sky and water,
so long apart, are the same state of being.
Fifty-four years before I could see
Rouen cathedral is built
of parallel shafts of sun,
and now you want to restore 
my youthful errors: fixed
notions of top and bottom,
the illusion of three-dimensional space,
wisteria separate
from the bridge it covers.
What can I say to convince you
the Houses of Parliament dissolve
night after night to become
the fluid dream of the Thames?
I will not return to a universe
of objects that don't know each other,
as if islands were not the lost children
of one great continent. The world
is flux, and light becomes what it touches,
becomes water, lilies on water,
above and below water,
becomes lilac and mauve and yellow
and white and cerulean lamps,
small fists passing sunlight
so quickly to one another
that it would take long, streaming hair
inside my brush to catch it.
To paint the speed of light!
Our weighted shapes, these verticals,
burn to mix with air
and change our bones, skin, clothes
to gases. Doctor,
if only you could see
how heaven pulls the earth into its arms
and how infinitely the heart expands
to claim this world, blue vapor without end.
-Lisel Mueller

I love this poem. I found it at the opening of Anne Lamott's "Plan B Further Thoughts on Faith" and I am so glad she included it, it evokes such beauty, so I thought I'd share it.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Spring Break!

This week is my Spring Break, but it already feels so full of stuff to do and places to go, that I think I might need a holiday after! Hopefully I'll manage to squeeze in a bit of time to clean the house. It could definitely use it.
Here is my photo for the day:
This is what I had for breakfast this morning, and boy was it fantastic. I might have gone a little overkill on the whipped cream, but it so tasty.

Here is another project I am working on:

My friend just had a baby boy and so I decided to learn how to crochet a baby blanket on youtube. It's actually turning out quite well so far, it's just taking me a while, so I'm looking forward to when I get faster at it. 

This weekend Jason and I had a date night on Friday and we rented Morning Glory, it was actually really cute, I recommend it. And it has great music too, it's a fun, pick-me-up kind of a movie.

And tonight's Dad's birthday so I better get dinner cooked so I can head over there.
That's all for now folks.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

finished toque for ang

My first baby toque! I took it out and redid it a few times to get the size right, but I think it turned out quite cute.. now we just need to wait and see what it looks like on the baby! Can't wait for Ang to have her little girl, she's going to be so cute. My next project is a crocheted blanket for a friend who just had a baby and then I think I'll start on something for our little muffin.



Thursday, March 24, 2011

excuses..

I've been meaning to post pictures of my latest creations.. but my husband keeps taking the camera to work. So that is my excuse! We apparently need to find his camera so we each can have one.
Off to work in five.. pretty exciting post, I know.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Self Portrait

SNOW snow snow snow snow. It has been snowing here like mad. I got the car stuck in the middle of the road in front of our house after work today. I was attempting to pull a u-turn to park on our side of the street, but ended up getting high-centered on the mounds of snow on the road. It wasn't that fun. 

In other news I had a great weekend with my husband. I went for a pedicure with my sister-in-law while Jason was at work in the morning on Saturday, then we went to the mall for a bit for lunch and then the afternoon was ours together! It was lovely. The "morning" sickness at the gas station on the way home wasn't so much fun, but we definitely got some much needed time together. Sunday was a lazy day. We stayed at home and slept in,  listened to some sermons, cleaned up the dishes around the house, then went for some groceries and Starbucks. 

Now today I have every intention of finishing the cleaning, then organizing my craft room so I can get in there and start creating! I have a few projects to finish off today so hopefully I will be able to post pictures of those later on.

Here is my photo for the day: (at this rate it will take me 4 years for my 365 pictures!)
I played with this a bit in editing because I liked how flat i could make the image while still retaining its 
interest. I opted for a self portrait because it meant not having to get out of the computer chair. Sigh. The joys of being pregnant! Just think of all the beautiful snow outside that is going un-photographed. I'm sure there's got to be someone out there working some magic..

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Late Entry

Bellly, Week 16:

chilly march day

What a foggy morning! And I was running late so I didn't scrape my car windows.. I was definitely a hazard on the road! So this weekend was my birthday and I got a sewing machine! I'm excited to start using it and see what fun creations I can experiment with. In more unpleasant news, Dad has been in the hospital since Thursday due to kidney failure. It was pretty scary, but he has come along way since then and is looking so much better. It's unbelievable. God has definitely worked a miracle in his life.
I'm going to post a few pictures from the weekend and some crafts to catch up from my days away.
Birthday BBQ!

My dear husband with his "new rack"

Birthday ribbon :)

And... what Emily does in her spare time:




Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Two Photos for Today

Here is my completed blanket! I made this for Jason (my husband) who wanted something large. It ended up being 4(ish) feet wide and 11.5 feet long. I guess I got a little carried away. But it doubles over quite nicely and is super heavy and warm. He loves it, so that's the main thing. I chose two pictures to post because I like them both.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

i remembered!

so after seeing my brother's picture posts on facebook, i remembered again today (two days in a row!) to take and post a picture. this one's minimally creative (i didn't even leave the comfort of my computer chair, except to unplug a cord behind the cradle). here she is:
this is a hand-me-down cradle that my grandpa fashioned for my brother and his wife which is now ready for our baby. and just this past sunday grandma gave me the crocheted blanket seen inside the crib which she just finished making. it's pretty wonderful having such creative grandparents! i'm looking forward to seeing the baby room when it's all set up.













in other news, today was my first day of work at a middle school downtown. it's grades 6-8 and my job is to help the learning assistance teacher with whatever she is working on. the principal and vice principal were away at meetings so there wasn't anything actually set up for me to do today so i just had a tour of the school and then read up on autism from a teacher handbook. apparently tomorrow they will give me my schedule and i will have a better idea of what i'm doing. but it was a good day, everyone seems friendly and i'm hoping it will be fulfilling and challenging. i haven't met any of the students yet, so that will definitely add a different aspect to the job experience.
and.... i took june out for a walk again today! two sunny, warmish days in a row. it feels good to get some exercise and i think june is loving it.
yesterday i got a FREE! library membership at the local library. i guess someone sponsored the library to give out free memberships all year, which is a pretty great deal. i'm excited to sign out lots of artsy books to give me some project ideas. i took out a few on jewelry making, embroidery, and watercolour but haven't had a chance to open them yet. i also got a biography called 'riding in cars with boys' by beverly donofrio which was pretty depressing actually, but an interesting read that i finished today already. it definitely shows you a different side of life from what we become used to in our urban working-class canadia. i think i'm going to go online to find some more novels to read..

Monday, March 7, 2011

already slacking

So my plan to take a picture a day has already fallen off the wagon, so to speak. But I had a feeling this was a good possibility since I have lots to think about these days, so I'm not going to feel bad, I'm just going to do it when I remember. Here is my picture for the day:
This is what awaits me after I'm finished blogging. However, it speaks of fond memories, so this picture is more a testament to good times with family rather than chores left undone. Mike, Danielle, Ethan, and Alyssa came over for a bbq last night and it was so great to have them. It's definitely been far too long since we've had them over for dinner. Our life was in sort of a hold pattern for a while after starting the business, but things are levelling out a bit so I'm looking forward to the return of some normalcy. 
And once the dishes are done I am going to take June out for a walk!!!! This deserves so many exclamation marks because I can honestly not even remember the last time I took her out. It's a sunny day, still nippy, but blissfully sunny so today is the day! I could definitely use some exercise myself and I think she will be endlessly happy with me. So it's definitely worth it.
And tomorrow... I start my new job! Will post more details soon.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

"The Bump"

Ok.. so one more for you Christy! Clearly you can have any number of posts dedicated to yourself if you request something.. so keep the requests coming :) PS. These are never before seen (either than by Jason and I, because I find them kind of awkward) photos.. so feel special :)

Week 10 (ish)



















Week 12 (ish)



















Week 14 (ish)

365!

So.. I actually remembered to take another photo today and post it.. it's a miracle! Here it is:
Exhibit B: Our other dog.. the completely "camera oblivious one." So yesterday we had June, today we have Luke, see the difference? Luke's a wonder behind film because he's not at all intimidated by the mysterious black box (unlike black bum over in the background) and so he poses with wonderful puppy faces. Too bad he can be so rambunctious, otherwise he's pretty much the perfect photography subject.

In other news, today was actually quite productive. I finally got the dusty mound of paperwork off the floor in the office and into files and binders and folders in a somewhat recognizable order. Phew, that feels good. Now to get the floor swept, laundry folded, and pretty much the entire rest of the house clean. I guess that's what the weekend's for!

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

From the Desk of Mrs. McNichol

My dear friend Christy told me she stumbled upon my blog and encouraged me to keep writing, so this one's for you Christy! Now that it is nearly a month after my last post.. my attempt to keep track of daily happenings has not quite panned out. And my excuse: hmmm, laziness? Disinterest? I don't really know. It's freezing cold outside and I'm currently working super part time for my husband. So I'm going to just go ahead and say I have no excuse. Aside from that.. some exciting news! I got an orchid from my brother about 2 Christmases ago and it only lasted through one bloom, so I was worried growing orchids in Alberta wasn't possible. Which is sad, because I think I had three in my room when I was living in Ireland. However, now that I'm living in Blackfalds with my husband and we have an awesome en-suite bathroom with huge windows (and also the possibility for a more humid climate due to periodic showers) I have been able to have an orchid bloom twice already! And after cutting it back I was worried transplanting it would do some harm, but the other day I noticed TWO new stems, which means two new sets of blooms. In some relation, Brad was here for the weekend for his birthday and told me about a photo challenge him and his friends are doing called Foto 365. I thought this was a great idea and have always meant to do something similar. So my picture for today is the following:
Not the most brilliant or inspired photo ever, but there is one of my little buds that I'm so proud of. You can do it little buddy! The other one is on the other side of the plant, and they say not to move them around too much, so I'm leaving it alone. I didn't take this picture today.. so I guess I should maybe take another one and attach it as my photo of the day. I will be right back..
Ok, so this is what you call the "camera-shy dog." I thought what better subject for my pictures than the creature I spend my days with. She is my little companion and follows me from room to room. I feel guilty that I haven't taken her out for a walk in so long. It's just so cold! Clearly I haven't spent enough winters in Alberta lately and have become a softy. I think I'll have to throw the ball around for her in the basement for a while. Anyways, the brilliant thing about taking a photo a day is that they don't have to be a masterpiece, but it forces you behind the lens and makes you see the world as you truly see it. And if something brilliant results, wonderful! 
And then there's the title of this post. The other day I went to LCS to help Mrs. Vandergrift hang and display her students' art for art night and was thinking that if I was a teacher the kids would have to call me Mrs. McNichol. Crazy! I have never thought about that before. It's a pretty weird thing to think of yourself as a Mrs. Not that it's weird to get married, but becoming a Mrs. seems like a huge rite of passage. Soon I will have a kid and then their friends will come over and call me Mrs. McNichol, and some day I will be trying to encourage them to call me by my first name like my friends' parents are now doing. Ah the sweet cycle of life.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Musings

Well, I've fallen under the weather the past week and a bit, and so haven't done a whole lot. Having a cold can really knock the wind out of your sails, but I'm so blessed to be feeling better. I'm looking forward to trimester two of the pregnancy and hoping the levelling out of the hormones will result in feeling much better all the time ie. energy, no headaches.

Anyways, there are lots of things I would like to do around the house here since I'm home all day everyday (just about). I'm still waiting for things to get into a routine with the company so that we have a regular paycheque coming in each month because I'd really like to spend sometime doing finishing work around the house. We still need to have shelves installed in all the closets, which I think will increase the organization factor around here a lot, and I want to get hardware on all the drawers, and tile for the backsplashes in the bathrooms and kitchen. And I would also LOVE some window treatments! I love the sun, but every once in a while you just really want darkness.. especially when you're trying to sleep at night with a street light shining in the window. But I guess we take all these things for granted, so it's a good lesson in knowing that we don't NEED them, but they are really nice to have.

I also want to start working on some art projects. I have a large canvas that I would like to paint to hang on the large wall above our entry way, I think it could be a great focal point. I would love to do something in shades of blue and maybe green and yellow, in acrylic, but with a watercolour effect. I think I need to solidify this idea a little more before I start or it may turn disastrous, or I guess could be even more fantastic than I hoped.. you just can't always tell with paintings. I also have this dream to do a cityscape using mixed media. I'm thinking a magazine collage on canvas with the sky painted, and splashes of colour added on top. I just get thinking about city life sometimes, and I kind of miss it, not that I don't love living in a small town, but every once in a while I feel nostalgic about the city and I feel like this would be a good way to have a piece of city life with me.



I would also like to start on some baby projects. I'm not sure exactly what yet, but something I can make for the baby to use after they are born, like a toque or blanket or something. I think I will knit a baby blanket for starters as I already have an idea for that. The rest is left to inspiration...

Friday, January 21, 2011

There's a Little Heartbeat in My Belly..

Well, it's been quite some time now since I last posted on here. 8 months! And a lot has happened. But first, as promised, I need to post some pictures from my PEI trip:















Wow, it was hard to choose.. I have so many pictures and it was so beautiful there. Everything is so cute and picturesque. I would love to take my husband someday! Speaking of which, I got married this past September, another reason the posts have not been so frequent. It was a beautiful fall day we were able to share with most of the wonderful people in our lives, we are truly so blessed. 




And... since then, we got a new puppy! He is truly the most adorable little guy, but definitely a puppy! I don't know where he gets the energy from. His name is Luke, and he tries my patience daily, but we love him.




And since Luke, even more news! My husband has recently started his own business! It's definitely been a learning curve and a lot of work, but we both feel like the Lord is leading us and will bless us in this endeavour. It has been a leap of faith! However, we are looking forward with great anticipation to all that 2011 holds! 

At the moment I am not working. My contract at RDC ended at the end of last June and in the summer I worked for Jason's dad doing reno's. After the wedding I worked at Michael's for the month of November, but decided it wasn't my dream job, and now I am hoping to learn the in's and out's of office management in order to help Jason out with his shop. I'm a little nervous about the prospect but I think it will be good for me to acquire new skills, meet some new people, and to have some more challenge in my daily life. I do enjoy learning, so this will definitely be a lot of new things to learn. 

And more great news! On Dec 15, 2010 we got some of the best news of our lives... a baby! This is where the title of this particular post came from. I had my first ultrasound today, determining that I am almost 10 weeks along already! And we saw our little baby "bear" (the baby looks like a teddy bear because of the large head and short little limbs.. so cute!) I could have watched the screen all day, it was so amazing. And so amazing to hear the heartbeat as well! I could have cried. We also saw the baby nod which was so surreal. Hard to believe that tiny thing in my belly can move! I will perhaps post the ultrasound photo at some point. I just feel like it's so personal so I didn't want to post it on facebook before I've told everyone the news. I know that this blog doesn't have a huge following, it's just a nice place for me to write down my thoughts. I thought about erasing it and starting a new one, but I think I will just change the focus. It started as a blog about business, but now it's just going to be about life in general as I haven't put too much energy into anything business-related as of late. But since I'm not working now it's nice to spend some time reflecting on all the blessings in my life. God I am so thankful for all you have given me! Forgive me for taking life for granted too often.