How I'm staying sane(ish)

I know myself well enough to know that I'm not a city person... I'm not even a town person. I need trees, need nature, and I go MENTAL if I can't be surrounded by nature on a regular basis.
This summer was pretty insane due to many different issues, so we didn't get to do nearly as much hiking, camping etc as we wanted too... But I remember this one hike... I was so stressed out over things that were happening with my family. For me, being surrounded by trees is soooooo calming. I feel like I can breathe and relax... Its hard to explain unless you're the same kind of person, but I just remember stepping into a clearing and knowing that I needed to be there. Again, hard to explain, and it might sound like I'm a crazy hippie...
Now, I'm close to being at my breaking point again, and its sooo fricken freezing outside. I can't get out with Nyla because its just too cold. So I stay sane by looking at some of my favorite pictures.
I absolutely can't wait to move onto the farm. Its like a little magic kingdom... I can't wait to share pics :) We're going to be having a work bee to get the farm and gardens to where they can be used, so if anyone needs to take a 'vacation' this spring (ha ha, vacation as in... work your butt off) let me know!! I'll even cook (don't let that scare you away, I'm actually a very good cook now).

Anyway, I hope if you're needing a breather these pictures help a little bit.
I stole them all from the internet... I'm not this talented with a camera.

My dream house

Wow, haven't laughed this hard in ages...

I went to get Nyla out of her crib after she napped and this is how I found her. She's been peeling off her clothes for a little while, but trying to get them on again is definitely new. When I first saw her I laughed so hard... ah, this kid cracks me up.
I have no idea how she got this shirt... she somehow got her new rubber boot in there too. She's magic baby :)
I can't believe what a ham she is.


She also loves to hoard her soothers...


And drive around in boxes...


It seems like every day her personality bursts out a little bit more. What a wonderful little girl, I loooooove being her mom.

Well, its a miracle :)

My Dad can now enjoy listening to his mp3 player. He keeps muttering over and over, " I just can't believe they can fit so many songs into a contraption so tiny". I just say "Yeah, its nuts alright..."
Now I have hundreds of OLD country songs on my computer. I'm actually surprised that listening to some of them didn't make me want to scream... some of them actually brought back some vivid childhood memories.
One song I will always love is 'The Highwayman' sung by The Highwaymen (Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson).



Now, in other news, I'm looking for snowshoes that will fit a toddler. I found a pair that are cute, but not very practical. If anyone has found some that are good, please let me know where you tracked them down (Right now she's in a size 5 boot). We'll be using them a lot so I don't want to waste money on crapola. I guess I'm just looking for reviews if you have any.
Check out these cute ones :)They're super cheap, so if you have kiddos who'd love to make dinosaur tracks in the snow I'll pass on the link.



If you're looking for really good quality gear check out http://www.msrgear.com/index.asp
Sucks that the kids snowshoes are too big for Nyla :(

MEC has a really cute set of little cross country skiis that we're going to get for Nyla for next year. Have I mentioned that I'm freaking excited to be moving far out of town??
I have a feeling she's going to be stuck in the backpack til spring. Poor little girl, she loves to explore. Unfortunately the snow out there is as deep as she is tall.
Anyway, let me know if you've found any great gear for small, but determined toddlers :)

I'm humming the time warp song...

Yes, I know the colorful nature of this picture lends itself to something much more... cheerful :)

The fact is, today is the day I leave my 20's behind. I'm sad because I had so many memorable moments with many memorable people, and wish it was possible to re-live these great years I've had. I laughed more then I cried and when I look back I get that warm fuzzy feeling.

I made some huge mistakes, but was fortunate enough to never live through the fallout alone. I know that the same things I loved about my 20's are what will make my 30's just as great... all the people I've shared these moments with.
So a huge thank-you to all of you who have touched my life, made me laugh, made me cry, and everything in between.

I'm surrounded by people that I'm proud to know. When I really start to think about the people I call friends, I'm amazed. I know this is really mushy... and I'm not that great expressing the mushy stuff... I just hope that each of you who have touched my life know exactly how much you mean to me. Whether we talk all the time, or not at all, I'm so fortunate to have shared this journey with each of you.

Now, the next part of my journey includes a beautiful little girl who gives the most amazing hugs and kisses, and makes me laugh harder than anyone I've ever known...
It also includes a man who has faced a lot of challenges this year but even though he feels like crap most of the time, and is usually in a lot of pain he still lives every day to be the best Daddy he can be... even when its really hard.

Ok, so maybe turning 30 isn't so bad. Just don't expect me to get all stuffy and boring!!!

Hugs to you all. You deserve it for putting up with me!
Mwah hahahahaaaahahaaa!

I was going to include a list of what I consider the highlights of the past decade, but I'm tired, and I'll probably forget way too many important things, so instead feel free to email me some of your favorites. We should take a tour down memory lane... probably not in the public comments though ;)

These cartoons are pretty great. There's a whole website of them www.toothpastefordinner.com

HEEEEELLLLLP!

This weekend I have to mentally and emotionally prepare for two different, but equally traumatic experiences... the first being........ teaching my Dad, who is 75, mostly deaf, has issues with concentration and has an intense dislike for new technology, how to use an mp3 player (don't ask me why he wants one... I don't know).
I'll pay someone to do this for me... really. Contact me, I pay well!

Yeah, that's right, we're moving again... wooo hoooo!

One great thing about living in a small town is the "its not what you know, its who you know" clause. Thanks to this, we have found an amazing place to live.

We went to look at the house today. It's about 30 KM out of town and pretty much in the middle of nowhere, (which is perfect for us. I hate being in town).
The house is on 25 acres, but the surrounding fields also belong to the landlord (no, we aren't buying because we aren't planning on being here much longer). There's a creek on the property that winds through the woods. The former owners built a little drawbridge over the creek so they could cut across to collect their mail. It's just really cute.
When you look out any window in the house all you see is trees and fields. I LOVE it. Even just being there today to look around did great things for my peace of mind.
The former owners were also part of the community garden tour, so the flower garden is INSANE! Its huge and elaborate with fish ponds and gazebos etc. I think Nyla and I will have a lot of fun playing around back there. It has been neglected since this new guy bought it a couple of years ago, so if anyone wants to come lend a hand feel free. There's lots of room for guests :)
The house itself is older, but really funky. There are lots of little hidey holes and interesting add ons. I think I would have found kindred spirits in the old owners. AND there's already a little workshop set up in the basement where I can do stained glass. It's just perfect.

I have never been so excited about moving somewhere. I didn't realize how much I missed living in the country.
Nyla and I will be there alone a lot, so I'm trying to convince Darryl we need a dog. It doesn't even have to be a big dog, just something to warn us if bears are going to come and bite us on the bum. So everyone should start mentioning to Darryl how wonderful dogs are!

( OH JOOOOONI!!!! I'm getting chickens :) Just a couple... and NOOOO roosters. You'll have to share all of your chicken wisdom with me ;)

This is a picture of one of the canola fields next door. I think its really pretty so I thought I'd share.



Darryl's mom sent an email with pictures of ice waves from antarctica. I guess its so cold that the water freezes the minute it comes in contact with the air. I thought the pictures were amazing, so I'll add a couple of them here too.






That's all the news for now. I'll update on Darryl next week because we'll have a bit more info.
I hope you're all enjoying this winter. If you don't live in the sub-arctic you should be very pleased with yourselves right now!

Nyla is a cool cat!

I know her hairdo is goofy, i do that to keep it out of her eyes while its growing.

One thing I really love about Nyla is her amazing coolness :) She has invented her own dance moves... hard to explain them, so I've been trying to catch her on video. No luck yet...
Her new favorite song is 'Immigrant Song' by Led Zeppelin.



I have the beginning of this song as the ringtone on my cell, so she gets pretty excited every time my phone rings. No matter where we go if she hears this song she'll completely throw herself into dance. This is no little rock back and forth dance... this is a full body dance :) it's almost like she does a bit of headbanging, and then scrunches up really small on the floor so she can jump up really high... then she starts stomping (I call this move 'happy feet') and stomps herself into a circle... My absolute favorite move is when she concentrates hard to keep her legs still and just dances with her top half. She waves her torso back and forth kind of like Stevie Wonder. This kid is amazingly cool:) I love that she has her own style already.
I REALLY wish I had a video of her. I'll add it when I finally get it.

I have more to update, but not the time to do it. I'll be back...

FINALLY PROOF!

I've been asking people for YEARS if they remember the craziest Muppet Show sketch in history...
Usually when I ask people look at me like I'm a crazy person... well NO MORE! I mentioned it to my brother a few days ago and JUST LIKE ME he was not only able to recall the sketch, but could still sing the song all these years later. This sketch was just that bizarre. So now I know I'm not crazy and actually found it on youtube.
So, now I'm going to share it with all of you who thought I was crazy. HA! Suckers!
Its not the best quality, but it will do.
And no, this is not my special one for Christy...

Now, tell me this isn't just a bit disturbing!!! No wonder it stayed with me all these years! Now, does anyone recall the tattoo lady song???

Quick update

I have to make this a quick one, so I'll leave out all the goofy details and just fill up the post with my wit and humor... OR, I'll add lots of pics of Nyla so people will stop sending me angry emails.

Christmas with Nyla was so fun. We put up the tree on christmas eve when she went to bed, so you can imagine how shocked she was in the morning. She had a lot of fun opening gifts and trying everything out.
I spent a good part of the day in the ER with my dad, but still managed to pull things off relatively smoothly (dinner was amazing... I AM a master chef!). Darryl's sister Laurie was here... I think she's the reason things went so smoothly so THANK YOU Laurie. You're a rock star! My bro Kevin and his girlfriend were here too, so we had a nice group for dinner.
We didn't get a family picture like I had planned because the day flew by so fast and before I realized it Nyla was in bed. I have some pics of Nyla in her Christmas dresses too. I'll add them later.





Nyla loves her Aunty Laurie. She calls her Gogaaaa (very cute). when she sees a picture of her and Laurie together she does her excited dance and screams 'GOGAAAAAAAAAAAAA' at the top of her lungs.
I played Nyla a video of her and Laurie together... I felt so bad, she was trying to get to the computer to give her Aunty Laurie a hug and broke down into tears when she realized she wasn't actually here. It broke my heart! It won't be tooooo long till we're back in the same area, so hopefully they can hang out lots.



H'mmm, what else.... My bro Kevin and his girlfriend are waiting not so patiently for their son to be born... we're all excited to meet this little dude.

Now, Darryls update. How blooody annoying can this get??? REALLY bloody annoying.
We're still no further ahead then we were a month ago. His tests show a really high level of tissue death, but they're not sure where its coming from. He does more tests toward the end of this month to check the levels again, and after that who the hell knows.
We've heard that its possibly cancer, but we just don't know where. So until I hear otherwise I'm choosing not to believe that. I have another appointment set up on Friday (i think), so I'm going to bust some heads until I get some answers... or I guess I can ask nicely...
I can't remember if I posted about his tard of a 'specialist', but that guy is an ass. We're still waiting to see where he'll have to go to see the next specialist (cross your fingers for Edmonton).
He's really tired and in constant pain, so I hope we can get some answers soon.

So, that's life in a nutshell. Nyla is growing like crazy. She learned how to take off all of her clothes, and is pretty darn proud of herself for it :) All of her teeth are in now so she's chomping away at anything she can.
I'm sure there's more, but I have a zillion things to do before I go to sleep so I better get shaking.

Why I love the muppet show

I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Years!

I don't have time to do a catch up post now. I'll do one soon I promise.
I wanted to do a quick one to let you all know that we're still alive and kicking.

Here's a quick video from the Muppet Show. This one is full of the weirdness that made the muppet show so great. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Soooooo excited!

We're not even close to being ready for Christmas... we haven't even put our tree up yet (ghasp!) I think since Nyla is so little I just want to keep things at a level where she can understand something great is about to happen. If we have all the decorating etc done reeeeally early, she'll just get used to it. This way she'll be completely blown away. (This is my excuse and I'm sticking to it).

I'm trying to decide if we should wait until Darryl's sister gets here so she can be part of the fun. I think leaving it to the 23rd is pushing it though.

Nope, I've just decided we're going to get on it this weekend.

I love Christmas, but usually I'm pretty low key about presents. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to give and receive presents, but it's just not the big shebang for me. This year though, is different. I'm beyond excited... I'm all twitchy excited. I feel like a little kid. I am very happy to share the news that I am now (well, I guess soon to be since I'm not allowed to use it till after Christmas...) the proud owner of my very own little stained glass studio. Absolutely everything I need is just waiting for me to get my hot little hands on. So, guess what you'll all be getting NEXT year :)

We've had some fairly mild weather lately so Nyla and I have been able to get outside to play. She's so cute in her abominable snowbaby suit. She can barely walk when she's all dressed up, but she still has fun.



Freaking crazy about her sled. She screamed the whole time we were walking (fun scream not scared scream).



She loved it. She decided that snow is 'YUCKY' to eat though when she faceplanted :) She's the bee's knees.

I'm not going to update on Darryl right now. I just don't want to get into it all. If you want the latest info call me, or Diane (hope you don't mind Diane).

Oh, we aren't doing our fun Christmas cards this year. Time just got away on us! Sorry dudes!

That's all for now... I think.

Beautiful Kayla

My heart is breaking. Beautiful little Kayla passed away today. I'm sorry, I can't say more right now. I'll share the email I received. Please remember Julie and Jason - I can't imagine what they're going through right now.

At 2:53am on December 2, 2007 Miss Kayla Evelyn Weber went to dance in Heaven with our Dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Kayla was in her loving, beautiful parents arms with her friends, family and Doctors right by her precious side.
Not long before she passed I witnessed her open her stunning blue eyes one last time and look right into her Daddy's eyes.
All of our hearts are breaking and we are so thankful for the year with this child we never thought we would get.
Kayla has always been and was till the very end A FIGHTER! We are all better souls by having known Kayla! We will love deeper, laugh louder and dance longer just in honor of her.
God Bless you all! I wrap my arms around all of you as well...I know this hurts you as much as it does us.
Arrangements and further information will be provided at the soonest time possible.
In respect of their grieving...please contact me if you so shall need or wish.

Stew no more!

I'm sure as Nyla gets older I'll be seeing this look on her face more often :)

This is a NYLA ONLY update. She is no longer refusing to eat anything but stew... this deserves a huge HOOOOORAY because stew is no longer welcome in my home. If I never see stew again I'll be ok with it :) I've drawn the line in the sand... just TRY to cross it. It won't be pretty...
She all of a sudden became very curious and will try just about anything. She has only turned her nose up at bananas. She loves spicy or strong tasting foods. LOVES quesadillas with salsa, and was even excited about eating parmesan chicken that I had made. (Not the breaded kind...ewww). So things are good on that front.
She's growing so fast, and of course has a fierce mullet - but I can't decide if I should cut it or give it a chance to grow out. It seems like the top is starting to catch up a little bit... OY! Someone tell me if she starts looking like Billy-Ray Cyrus' lost twin. I view her with 'mommy eyes' so I might not be able to tell. I just don't want to cut it!
She was supposed to see a specialist about her hips, but at the visit with our family doctor before the appointment with the specialist, she (the doc) couldn't hear the click in her hips anymore. She said that's a really good sign, and although she still has too much flexibility she's not too concerned. When she's closer to 2 we'll get it looked at again just to make sure everything is really ok. It definitely doesn't slow her down at all. She spends most of the day running around the house... or we make up funny walks for eachother to try... so she's doing fine.
She's sleeping much better now too. She still wakes up at night, but nowhere near as often as she did before.

We're excited for christmas this year. I think she's going to go crazy for the lights and different fun activities we have planned. Darryl's sister Laurie is going to be here for Christmas so we're VERY excited about that.

Here are a couple of pictures of her first painting experience. I emailed them to most of the fam, but thought I'd post them here due to the extreme cuteness factor involved.

We met with the doctor today. Darryl doesn't have a brain tumor. They did some kind of screening test a while ago that showed that his adrenal glands are functioning, so that means its not Addison's Disease either. (I LOVE how they said it was definitely one or the other... Jerks).
Anyway, this means that we're right back at the beginning again. The specialist will be back in town next week, so I'm sure he'll have some ideas (this is what I keep telling myself anyway).
I can't even begin to explain how frustrating this is. We thought that we'd at least have a treatment plan of some kind after today. This is a huge blow... the thought of dragging it out for months is so CRAP!
So, my plan to preserve my sanity is to dream myself to a cabin in the woods somewhere when I need a 'happy place'. Otherwise I'm going to chant "I am calm" over and over while rocking in the fetal position (possibly hiding under the bed, but I haven't pinned down the specifics of this plan yet). I also may start drinking in the morning in order to stay mellow throughout the entire day (yes, I'm kidding about the drinking... or am I???)
So, if you see me twitching just walk on by cuz I'll probably go all 'crazy irish' on you... I can throw potatoes with superhuman strength - this is the only warning you'll receive :O

Nyla learned another new word... BOOGIE!! Bahahahhaahhaaa! She's such a nerd :) She always blows her nose but thinks its funny so can't usually contain herself enough to wait for a kleenex. She ends up blowing boogies all over me (nasty I know). I usually ask her a few times a day if she has any boogies as a kind of pre-emptive strike on the stream of snot that could (and has) hit me full force in the face. A few days ago she came up to me and said "Boogie", so I asked her if she needed to blow her nose... sure enough that's what she wanted. Unfortunately she still lets it fly, but she kills herself laughing and saying "Boogie boogie" over and over (usually with snot hanging out of her nose). Besides the actual snot, I think this whole thing is pretty cute.
Who knew kids could be so entertaining :)

Today is the day

Darryl's cat scan got changed to today. I'm nervous but glad it's earlier than originally planned.
I'll try to post some news later, depending on what happens. If something shows up we'll be out of here pretty quick, so I'll post again when I can. Otherwise you can look forward to reading more posts full of my great wit and charm... :)

*PS Any more emails with wisecracks about my taste in music will just cause me to add a new Bjork video EVERY DAY! You'll just have to accept the fact that I don't tap my toes to your country tunes... geesh, can't we all just get along :P

UPDATE: We have to wait till monday for the results.

Another one

Another great one by Bjork.
Yes, I will start posting Nyla pictures again. Get off my back jerks!! :P

'Unravel'

How can you tell I have insomnia??

a post about jeans, stained glass and Ashley

I'm so excited... A few years ago it was REALLY hard to find jeans that were long enough for me. I usually had to buy men's jeans - which aren't that great for women due to the whole HIP issue... Anyway, thanks to the '80's high heel with jeans' craze coming back into fashion it is now EASY to find jeans with a 35" inseam. They're everywhere... and I'm happy.

So there you have it, there is at least one good thing about the return of 80's fashion. (I guess it sucks for you short people... unless you like wearing heels with jeans, then you're set).

I finished my stained glass class tonight. I'm pretty impressed with my project... I may even post a pic sometime. I'd do it now, but I'm tired and I have a headache from huffing solder fumes all night long. I've decided to invest in some equipment and set up a little 'studio'. Next on my list is oil painting... I have a feeling its going to be great.
* Edit... I'm adding pics. I'm so proud of myself :)












So, in the midst of everything going on around here I've been trying to focus on at least one thing everyday that I can be grateful for so I don't become all crusty and mean.
Today I'm sooo completely grateful for my big bro's girlfriend Ashley. This girl is stellar... I'm still cooking and cleaning for both households and she just came up to me a few days ago and said that she saw I was tired and would like to help out. Now, lots of people (including family) have said this, but nothing much comes of it so I was completely floored when I went over there and she had made a bunch of meals for my Dad and put them in the freezer for him. She had also cleaned and done some shopping. Its not a one time deal either, she made dinner for them tonight too! It may not seem like a big thing to you, but it makes a world of difference to me. This girl is the bees knees... here's hoping Kevin doesn't screw it up!

Great days and chats with good friends

Today has been a great day. It seemed like everyone, everywhere was laughing... a lot.
Things have just gone really smoothly for the most part, or at least we dealt with things smoothly. My stained glass class starts tomorrow... so I'm pretty much ready to rock and roll.

I chatted with my great friend Mike Fernando tonight - we were reminiscing about funny things that happened throughout the years of our friendship. We did a lot of crazy things, but man we had fun :) Our humor is very similar so we'd pull stunts that we thought were bloody hillarious, but usually people would end up staring at us like we were crazy...
Anyway, the point of all this is that it made me all sentimental. I started thinking about how amazing it is to have great friends who have shared so many different experiences with me.
How incredible is it to be able to look back on life and realize that all the great/not so great/generally crazy moments have been shared with incredible people who are (for the most part) still close friends?!
Life can never be that bad when you're surrounded (even if its just in spirit) by friends like I have. Man, how did I get so lucky? Who knows, but I'm sure grateful for each and every one of you.


In this world, where everything seems uncertain, only one thing I wish to be definite, you will always be my friend, beyond words, beyond time and beyond distance.
Anonymous

Life in a small town.

So, we finally got the date for Darryl's cat scan (November 30), and the tests he was supposed to have done this week had to be put off because there was a mix up between the specialist dude's nurse and the hospital... Boooo on those clowns!
Nobody told us that a team of people has to be there, so since it wasn't booked we have to wait and see when they're all available.
This is normally when I'd have the brain fog brought on by severe rage, but it just so happens that I walked past an art gallery and saw some really amazing black and white forest pictures. I'm not sure if you know what its like to have some kind of object that just brings you instant calm, but trees/forests do it for me, so I went in and stared at these pictures for waaaay too long. I saw the woman who was working start to creep up to me so I knew I had worn out my welcome and was just starting to look like a crazy person. (Yes, I'm used to looking like a crazy person, so save your smart remarks people).
I've been having a lot of dreams about running away to live in this little cabin in the woods (Don't worry, I heard that it burned down so I won't really be running away to the middle of nowhere). I think its my brain's way of taking a mini vacation while I sleep, so I think seeing those pictures was just a nice little bit of a breather for my brain. Now I feel much better... I probably won't even go bust any heads or go ninja crazy on anyone.

In other news, Nyla got her snowsuit in the mail from MEC. She's sooo freaking cute! She's tall and thin, so the length is good but she's not chubby enough to fill it out, so she's just one big puffball. I loaded her into her baby backpack and we went for a little hike a few days ago. She loved it, so there will be many more winter adventures to come. I didn't get any pictures because it was just me and her, but I'm sure I'll have some new ones to post soon.



She doesn't look very impressed but she was nice and toasty outside!

Well that's all the news for now. Hope you're all enjoying our lovely winter!!

Yaay for Bjork

I've always been a big Bjork fan. I just thought I'd share this video since its a great one. I love her ideas... its nice to see something completely different.

OK, The specialist has spoken...

Too bad he didn't really have much to say. He's leaning towards the brain tumor (which is actually good news). Darryl has soooo many more tests to do, and he'll also be having a cat scan (FINALLY!!). Poor guy, we left the office and he had a stack of requisitions in his hand. BUT hopefully within the month we'll have a definite diagnosis and a treatment plan.
It's a bit frustrating still being in the dark, but Darryl has a really great sense of humor, so we're keeping things pretty light. He's hoping that if he has brain surgery they'll either give him some bionic bits, or give him some 'Rain Man' abilities. Yes, he's a nerd.

Nothing else is new. I've been going nuts buying things on the internet. We had planned to go to Edmonton to do some shopping, but with everything going on we just don't have the time. I bought an AMAZING dress (well, amazing in my opinion. I realize that most of you think I dress like a crazy person). I'll try to post a pic...




I love the colors. I'm just crossing my fingers that my somewhat... um... ample bosom fits discreetly into the dress. I don't like the belt thing, so depending on how its all rigged up I might take it off. sigh, so many fun dresses in the world just calling my name... Good thing we now have a dressmaker/alteration whiz in the fam (yaay for Dawn!).

I also ordered this...

Perfect for fall/winter. Cooooomfy :) 3 cheers for organic cotton!!!
I can't remember everything else that I ordered... I shouldn't shop while stressed. I hate the act of actually going somewhere and spending hours looking around at stuff... sooooo bloody boring, so I think I went a bit crazy with the online stuff. Short and sweet is the best way to shop.

Now, if Birkenstock made winter boots life would be grand ;)


I raided MEC for all of Nyla's winter stuff. She's going to be one toasty little puffball this winter. It's going to be so nice to get out and do some fun winter stuff this year. There are some REALLY great cross country ski trails that we're planning on getting quite familiar with. They have these cute little huts at different intervals where you can go in and start a fire if you're cold or need a break. Very kid friendly. We're crossing our fingers that Nyla learns to love her baby backpack. I think she'll have a lot of fun as long as we're moving. She has no patience for standing still... especially when she's tied into something like a backpack or carseat.
My brother's girlfriend is making him come with us :) You have no idea how funny this is to me. I'm going to take lots of pictures... Did I mention that he went camping... for FUN?? Is the world spinning off its axis or something? Sigh, I know this is only funny to those of us who know him. If you don't know him just imagine someone with the disposition of Red Foreman (that 70's show) frolicking in the wilderness. Still not funny?? well, you'll just have to take my word for it then.


OH! We just installed a new version of Photoshop (CS3). I'm getting the instructional DVD this time too since I didn't ever have the time or patience to figure out the last one - then in a fit of rage I uninstalled it... So, if anyone has brilliant ideas on how to make this work better, ie: work at all (coughcough CHRIS???? cough cough...) Note to Christy: that was a not so subtle request to share the wealth of Chris' computer brainiacness... tell him I'll pay him with a big ol' high fiver, AAAND a super cute Christmas card featuring NYLA :)
I'm determined that I'm going to get Nyla's photo albums put together this winter. I haven't printed out pictures AT ALL. I just keep saving them to discs.
I'm going to take some fun courses too. My first one (stained glass) is at the end of the month. Then I'm taking an oil painting class... This looong descent into the black hole of sub-arctic winter will hopefully pass much faster if we're busy busy busy...

Man, I can sure ramble even with nothing much to talk about. I'll post updates as we get them.
Thanks for your kind words, thoughts and prayers. We appreciate them.
Hugs from us

The rest of the update.

This part of the update isn't as fun, so I'll get the crappy stuff out of the way and end with some news that's more fun.
So, we found out that Darryl either has a pituitary (brain) tumor or Addison's disease. He's been going for non-stop tests, and has a whole load more infront of him. There is a specialist in town now that Darryl will see on Tuesday. This guy is basically the man with the plan. He's going to order all the more specialized tests and cat scan, so hopefully it won't be too much longer till we know what exactly we're dealing with. We don't even know what we're hoping for because both have positives but super crappy negatives as far as illness is concerned.
I'm just pissed off... Those of you who know Darryl know that this is SO BLOODY UNFAIR for him to have to deal with. He's the kindest and generally best person I know. I have never seen a man more dedicated to his family, and he works SO hard. On his days off he takes Nyla for Daddy time uptown. They go for breakfast and have little adventures together... he's just amazing.
Thank God I know how strong he is, because I don't believe for a second that we won't get past this. This man will kick ass regardless of whichever disease he has to battle. He's being awesome. I know he feels like complete shit all the time, but he's still as funny as ever. You'll never catch him moping around feeling sorry for himself! Please keep him in your thoughts/prayers etc!!

Now, the other difficult news. My Dad is in end stage Parkinsons. Parkinsons dementia is beginning, which makes him very confused and overwhelmed and usually pretty irritable. He can't make decisions very well and is often too overwhelmed and tired to cook or clean etc. He has about a year to live, so we're hoping that his mind will stay as clear as possible and that he'll be strong enough to stay in his home. (By the way, there are major grants for elderly people to help them make their homes safe enough so they can remain in them for as long as possible. One grant covers medical equipment and another one covers renovations. Let me know if you know someone who could benefit from this and I'll pass on the info).

NOW, the fun news!! First of all, I'm very excited to inform you that Kevin, my older brother, has found an amazing girl... (believe me, that news alone is super) AND they are in the process of buying a house AND are expecting a baby in February! We were all shocked, like jaw to the floor shocked! He has never been one to want family life. I'm excited because this girl is AMAZING!!!! We get along sooo well. We love the same things and have so much in common. Yaaaaay! Now I'll have someone to do tons of fun stuff with!

The other fun news is just that Nyla is super cute, so I thought I'd post a little video of her in her cute, hot pink long johns. She's usually much more vocal, but as soon as the camera comes out she gets pretty quiet.


I think that's about it for now. I'll update when we have more info.

The cutest Lion around.

Oh my goodness, this little girl is just too cute. She was sooo excited to be a lion, she was strutting around while we were uptown and waving at everyone like she was the queen. She grabbed hold of her tail and swung it around - which she thought was incredibly funny so she would swing it and crumple on the floor in the bank in a fit of giggles.

Nyla's grooming buddy. Molson didn't want to let Nyla go uptown with her fur out of control... (yes Molson is Darryl's cat from his bachelor days... who but a bachelor would name a cat Molson??)

So incredibly proud of herself :)


Just Cuteness.

Just before her nap, getting upset because she wanted to see her picture on the digital camera but have her picture taken at the same time.

And MELTDOWN!

We didn't go trick or treating but we had a pretty great day.

Nyla has been so much fun lately. She's full of kisses and cuddles and makes up silly games. She loves books and being outside. She still looooves stew... I wish I could say everyone else was as excited about it :) Now we're experimenting with every kind of stew under the sun.

She's eating well, sleeping pretty well, learning new words everyday (her latest word is 'cool'). She loves to play bongos on her tummy, and when we're trying to get her to sleep its not unusual to find that she has 'jerseyed' herself so the bongo playing can be louder. She goes craaazy for dogs and ducks... she's just an all around amazingly cool kid.

I'll update on everything else another day.

Nyla's update

Just a quick one since it's early and my brain is still asleep...
Nyla is doing so well. She was pretty overwhelmed with all the activity and visitors last week. She decided that since people were always here it meant that she should be able to party all night... this kid can go for DAYS without sleep. She's back to her normal sleeping schedule now, which is very good news for Darryl and I.
She is no longer a crawler. She decided one day that the crawl/walk combo was trash and is now officially a walker/runner. Poor thing, her upper body gets a bit carried away when she runs... but she's determined :)
AND the best news of all for right now, she has FINALLY discovered food. We've been trying to get her to eat anything/everything for ages, then one day she decided that she wanted to try some stew that I had made... she gobbled up my bowl, then had more. She usually hates lumps or anything with any texture but she's pretty excited about carrot and potato lumps. So, I've been making pot after pot of stew since its now the only thing she'll eat. I can't give it to her fast enough by spoon so she drinks it out of a cup :) Funny girl.
She's talking a lot more and understanding soooo much. It's nice to be able to ask her questions and get answers. It makes life sooo much easier. I'm thinking about starting potty training soon... she asks for her bum to be changed, so I think if she's aware of a dirty diaper she might be ready. We won't be hardcore about it...
Anyway, as we speak she's saying 'poop, peeeeew stinky. Bum bum bum', so I'm off to change a diaper. I'll post pics soon (not of the diaper, don't worry).

Well, it's been one hell of a week. Things are scary and hard and I'm fighting my usual urge to run as fast and as far away as I can...
I won't get into too much detail, but I spent the last week in a blur of a sewage soaked basement (my Dad's), dealing with insurance dudes, visiting my Dad the ICU about a zillion times a day in order to make decisions regarding his health and future, and then trying not to freak out about a scary bomb dropped in my own house.
I feel weird. I'm not organized in any sense of the word and I'm quickly learning that organization is now going to be my 'friend' while I try to keep everyone's lives in order.
I don't like being the one people look to for an answer... what the hell do I know?

But, we're getting through it one day at a time. Eventually this will be the new 'normal' in my life. I will make decisions for my family and for my Dad and not even feel strange about it. I'm sure I'll learn a whole heck of a lot that will make me better than I am.
There's a quote I love... it doesn't make sense to a lot of people, I guess its one of those ones you have to live to understand...

Rainer Maria Rilke:
Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language. Do not now look for the answers. They cannot now be given to you because you could not live them. It is a question of experiencing everything. At present you need to live the question. Perhaps you will gradually, without even noticing it, find yourself experiencing the answer, some distant day.

Letters to a Young Poet

So, things are getting solved and I'm breathing again. AND I'm not breathing sewage fumes, so that's a bonus :)

Anyway, I know a lot of this doesn't make sense. I think there's only one person on this planet who understands my mixed up brain in regards to what I have to do... I wish I could trade a kidney to go back in time and be able to hash it out with them. Booo on growing up and screwing up :)

PS, no I'm not drunk, I'm just scattered and I promised some family that I'd post an update... if you can call this an update...

Greatness

I found these by accident today and thought I'd share since they're so funny.
I miss Ireland...





This one is Australian, but probably one of the best beer commercials I have ever seen. He's my hero...

Happy Birthday Nyla!!

We've had such a great day! When Nyla woke up and saw her birthday decorations she was so incredibly excited. I wish I had the video camera out to catch her expression :) Her eyes were huge and she had the biggest smile I've ever seen. She kept pointing at the balloons and screaming "LOOK!" at the top of her lungs. Ahhh, what a cutie :)
She powered out before we took family pictures, so those might have to wait till tomorrow.
She gets to pick out a fish tomorrow, so I'll post some pictures of her with her new buddy too.

This is a montage of Nyla's first year. It was hard to keep it a reasonable length... I had to cut about half of it out :) I hope you enjoy it!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

In happier news, Nyla's first birthday is on September 24th! We're shocked and amazed that the year has gone by so quickly. I'll post a birthday thing on Monday, but I thought I'd add a picture or two, just because she's so cute.

We're baaaack!

Well, I'm back and ready to blog again. Unfortunately this isn't how I wanted the posting to begin, but it's an important one.

Ages ago I told some of you about a friend who's baby was diagnosed with cancer. After many surgeries and treatments they were told the cancer was gone, unfortunately a few months ago they found out that the cancer is back, and has spread. The Weber family is trying to raise awareness for childhood cancer and are also trying to fundraise to help with the enormous bills that keep piling up.

This youtube clip is one of the ones they're trying to spread around, so feel free to share it if you're so inclined.

They have a myspace page set up, there are some technical difficulties, so there are two addresses with a little bit of different info on each one.

www.myspace.com/babykaylaweber2

www.myspace.com/babykaylaweber

Some of the images are incredibly heartbreaking, so make sure there aren't little ones around.