Update From A Lazy Gardener

Happy FRIDAY everyone! Its been a super busy but glorious week! Here’s to another weekend of working but I get to have a little extra time with Sam!

The weather has been so nice that after Sam goes to bed, I’ve been spending as much time outside as possible. I either go for a run, water my flower pots, take a swim or work on my veggie garden. One would assume because I grow grass for a living that I am a natural at taking care of my gardens. Ever hear that one about the shoemakers kids?

Truth be told, I LOVE the idea of growing a vegetable garden and harvesting all of my produce from it. In reality, they are ALOT of work.

Every year I faithfully plant my garden and tend to it as best as possible. Weeding, watering and watching as my plants grew and grew. The location of my veggie garden is in the back yard and the same level as the rest of the grass. EVERY year, the lawn mower has carelessly chopped up half of my garden.

NOTHING is more discouraging than spending so much time working on this garden to go out and a discovered my decapitated bean plants.

Last year was a particularly bad year for my garden. I didn’t have as much free time being that I had a little baby and work to attend to. But I plugged away and my garden wasn’t doing so bad! Just as I thought I was out of the woods, I went out to do more weeding one night only to discover all of my Dill weed plants had been chopped. I could have cried (I actually may have) and threw in the gardening gloves for the year. I didn’t weed my garden again and eventually the whole thing became a pile of weeds and I never produced one edible thing from it.

For my birthday I asked my husband to build me some garden boxes and he obliged! Ryan worked hard at building them and levelling the ground. This spring he mixed the soil and filled them up for me. We still have to sod around the boxes (shoemakers kids) but we will when we have a little more time.

I was cautiously excited to plant my garden this year. I planned what was going to go in which box. I have watched as things have sprouted and thrived and weeding has been SO much easier without lawn clippings being blown into the garden. There is also something about knowing that I only have to weed the certain amount of square feet of the boxes that makes the job less tedious.
The grass has been cut many a times already this year and I have yet to see one of my new veggie plants be cut off by any blades!

It is working and I told Ryan that this gift was one of the best ones I’ve gotten from him.

Here’s hoping for a season full of fresh-from-the-garden veggies!

Happy Friday!


xo  

If We're Going To Be Friends...

Happy Wednesday everyone! I hope everyone’s week is going by super quickly. I can’t believe this is the last week in May! We are finally getting some summer like temperatures and we’ve been enjoying lots of outdoor time!

I am very fortunate to have a great group of friends. When I think about my friends I think of how diverse every single one of them is. I would say that we are all pretty diverse but here’s something’s you should know about me if we are going to be friends (which I consider all my readers to be).

1. On time is late!

Growing up, my parents were ALWAYS late and running out the door with not enough time to get there. I have this one memory of being in Pre-K and getting invited to my first non-family birthday party. We were late, my mom got lost which made us even more late and by the time I got there, there were no more cupcakes left and the party games were over. I think it traumatized me because since then, I am on time for EVERYTHING. I was warned that once I had a child I would likely start to be late. Nope, it just means that I try to get ready even earlier. If I’m on time, I’m late. Early is the only way to be.

2. My work hours tend to suck and be unpredictable.

I love this farm and I love my job. But sometimes it gets a little complicated. Ryan also works on the farm which makes it worse. There are days that you just don’t stop working. Plans in the month of May and June are never set in stone. They are more like suggestions. Living on the farm also has it’s challenges. We can have unexpected customers stop in that want to be served anytime of day and day of the week! Come July and August our hours become 24/7. Watching watering, moving irrigation, just making sure that everything stays alive. I try to keep on schedule but sometimes in the growing months, we just have to be flexible.

3.  Night owl, I am not!

Want to go to a movie? Great! How about a matinee? I get up EARLY in the morning, mostly out of choice and sometimes out of responsibility. I am not someone who functions well on very little sleep. I don’t need a lot but a good solid 6-7 hours is a must! Any less, and I struggle to get through the day. I laugh when I hear about dinners starting at 8 or later. I’d be falling asleep in my soup!

4. Everything has it’s place.

In my life, everything has it’s place and I will notice if it is out of that spot. We have friends over for supper occasionally and I cannot have dirty dishes sitting around until they leave. To me, those dishes need to be either washed or put in the dishwasher. The second Sam goes to bed? His toys are put in the designated spots! Want to drive in my car and we both have water bottles? Sorry, the top one is mine! I am particular when it comes to where my belongings go.

5. Foot meet mouth.

Sometimes I put my foot in my mouth and my words get mixed up. This is usually some good entertainment to friends but sometimes they have to decipher what the heck I am saying! Most times, I don’t think before I speak and that can get me in trouble. Thankfully, I know my friends know that for the most part, I am kind and if something seemed rude, it wasn’t intended to be.

6. Fiercely loyal.

Don’t bad mouth my friends in front of me because I will put you straight. If I think someone is getting unkindly judged, I will try to persuade you otherwise. I am not a confrontational person but I will stick up for something in a proper way. I am not going to agree with someone just for the sake of avoiding an argument. Basically, if we are friends, I have your back.

What are some of the things about you that I should know about, friend?


xo

Scenes From The Weekend–Because I’m Too Tired For A REAL Post!

 

Ugh. Monday already? Where has the weekend gone? I can tell you one thing I didn’t do much of this weekend, sleep. But it was so worth it because it was SO fun!

Oh sweet Fridays! Nothing makes me happier than and end of the work week and some time with my boy! He seemed pretty happy about the fact that it was Friday too!

This week and weekend was COLD! Good thing I got a new work jacket because I have been layering to battle this summer freeze! We even had frost over the weekend and I lost a couple of my veggie plants from frost.

Friday night I didn’t want to ask for a babysitter to help set up the hall for the Annual Canada Day Golf Tournament so I offered to make all the Jell-o shooters after Sam went to bed. This is a job I have down to a science! I am able to make all the 250 Jell-o shooters in under an hour!

It was a cold and overcast day but there were ZERO bugs for all the golfers. I opted to help at the registration desk and sell raffle squares. My goal was to sell them all because that would mean that 1000$ would go to our fireworks (as the prizes were donated). Happy to say that again this awesome community pulled through and we sold them ALL!

It was a great party that night after the delicious steak supper! We ran out of shooters, Bud Light and I had to make a run for more liquor! This community continues to amaze me with their support in making sure we are able to put on an amazing celebration for Canada Day!

Some of the female committee members!

A little committee shenanigans!

Ugh. This Momma is not use to going to bed at 2:30 AM anymore but thankfully my boy was in a good mood and made it easy for me! We had to head to the city after cleaning up at the hall so that Ryan could get his phone looked at. Sam and I walked around and did a little shopping and then we headed to Wendy’s for a quick supper. When did my boy get so big that he wanted to take the fries out of the container himself!?!

How was your weekend?

xo

Wonderful LONG Weekend With My Boys

 

Happy Wednesday everyone! It was one WONDERFUL weekend. It was so full of fun times and relaxing time. A great balance.

I had purchased all of my planting material on Thursday before the weekend and was excited to get my hands dug into the dirt and everything planted!

We had a quiet Friday movie night in Beechgrove. Saturday morning Ryan had to get up and go to work so Sam and I got dressed, ate and then loaded up the car. First stop was Nana and Poppas for a coffee and visit. Then we hit the road for a car nap and check out some garage sales! I am on the look out for a couple of things. An old paddle for a little pool bathroom reno project and used Tonka trucks for Sam’s sandbox!

We didn’t have any luck finding our list of needed things but we did find a couple of other treasures! A couple toys for Sam that were a big hit for the rest of the weekend!

Sam helped me BBQ some sausages for lunch.

Ryan got home and joined us for lunch and then Sam went down for his nap. When he slept I got most of my planting done! Besides my 5 flower pots, I planted my veggies. This year I am going to (attempt) to grow, carrots, peas, beans, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, pickling cucumbers, dill, other herbs, peppers, kale and spinach. I was getting to use my new veggie garden boxes that Ryan made me last fall!

When Sam woke up from his nap he was all about wearing his new Firefighters helmet and getting on and off of his riding elephant! I hung out with my boys for a while before getting ready to head to a birthday supper with girlfriends.

Sunday, surprisingly…I have NO pictures! I guess we were having too much fun hanging out as a family. We went to church, working outside getting the pool ready and then headed over to visit friends, Rebekka and Josh for supper and ice cream! It was a full and fun day!

Monday morning I had the day off of work but Ryan woke up to go to work. I took a shower and went to go kiss him goodbye and he had made me a coffee! He was heading to work and still thought to make me a coffee. I thought it was the sweetest thing. My man sure does know the way to my heart.

Sam was in an amazing mood all Monday and I had SO much fun just spending the day at home with him hanging out. It reminded me of my maternity leave days and I’ve missed the easy going pace. 

I decided to take advantage of the nice weather and during Sams first nap I set up his water table. When he woke up I set up a little picnic for his snack and he spent over an hour playing in the water and was SOAKED by the time we came inside.

We BBQ some chicken for Caesar salad for lunch and we ate and played some more before nap time. Ryan got home shortly after lunch and we continued to clean things up outside and relaxing.

Part of the relaxing was actually using out pool area for the first time. We grabbed a drink and I had made a homemade Queso dip. I’ve been experimenting with making Queso dip that tastes similar to that of our favourite restaurant! Have to say, I ALMOST have it! Can’t wait to share the recipe with you!

I prepped some food for the week, made supper and Sam helped me in the kitchen. We all ate and  then played until Sam’s bedtime! It was kind of sad when the evening was over because that meant that the awesome weekend was over. But I am SO glad that we got to spend it at home together getting our outdoor paradise and gardens ready for the season.

xo

I Love Grocery Shopping

 

Happy Friday everyone! We are getting to celebrate a LONG weekend starting tomorrow! I am looking forward to a little extra time with my boys. Although I believe the only actual “full” day off we have together is on Sunday. “Make hay when the sun shines.”

I was lucky enough to get my groceries during the day yesterday so that it didn’t take any time away from my weekend and with Sam. For me, there is something peaceful about planning and executing a grocery list. Actually, I love to grocery shop in general.

Don’t get me wrong, I know it can be a chore sometimes. But mostly, I enjoy my experience at the store getting food for the week.

Recently, we have moved our weekly budget from $100 to $125-$150, which includes diapers for daycare and personal care items (deodorant, shampoo and etc.). With this new weekly budget we have a little more flexibility with our food options but I am still very careful with our planning.

Every week I sit down, look at our meal plan, add in any special things for weekends and lunches and then create the draft copy of my list. I then use this template to organize by aisle. This adds to enjoying my grocery shopping experience because I rarely have to go back to get something that was farther down my list.

I use to go to a grocery store that I liked because of their pricing. The problem with that store is that you have to pack your own groceries. One time Sam was having a melt down JUST as I started to pack my groceries. The eyes were all on me but not one person tried to help this frazzled first time mom. Since then, if Sam is with me, I purposely go to a store that packs my groceries for me. Is this lazy? Maybe. But I can’t predict what Sam’s mood is going to be like at the end and I don’t like the stress of trying to pack my groceries and deal with a tantrum. Thankfully, most of the time Sam is great at the store and LOVES shopping.

 

There is something relaxing to me about pushing a cart through a store and crossing things off of my grocery list. Shopping for our weekly supplies is usually never a stressful thing. I enjoy the outing and opportunity to look at new items and grab things to make up our weekly meals. I sent Ryan on this outing for the FIRST time a couple of weekends ago and it actually stressed me out more to send someone else. I got lots of texts with questions and he purchased items that were not our usual brand. I will have to be VERY busy to allow him to go by himself again! Ha ha!

I guess it’s part of growing up and getting older. Getting the groceries is just one of those things that you HAVE to do. Thankfully, I’ve found a way to actually make grocery shopping not seem like a chore but a fun activity that I look forward to. Now, if only I can figure out how to do that with laundry…

Happy Friday!

xo

3 Year Anniversary

 

2012

2013

2014

2015

In 3 short years our lives have changed so much. But one thing has remained the same, we have been through life’s highs and lows, side-by-side. I kept going through the day yesterday, imaging what I was doing that time on my wedding day.

We had a quiet evening to celebrate our anniversary yesterday. Ryan got to come with me when I left work early to first grab pizza for supper and then get Sam. We made Sam an easy supper and opted to enjoy our meal alone (and in peace) once he was in bed at 6:30-7.

And what is our idea of a fun anniversary date at home? Pizza, wings, beer and a competitive couple rounds of Mario cart! Ha ha! Totally us but it was so fun!

Here’s to many more memorable and fun years ahead! 

xo

Special Mother’s Day Weekend!

 

Happy Monday everyone! I have to say that I feel rejuvenated after a wonderful weekend with my boys! My heart feels full as I begin the week.

Friday night Ryan and I had the afternoon off so that we could take Sam a check up with his neurologist. We got some FANTASTIC news! As long as everything keeps going in this direction, he won’t need to see Sam anymore! Woo Hoo!

We beat traffic and got home in great time. We hung out and then I got ready for Ladies Night, a fundraiser in the next town! It was a great time visiting, eating, and watching the impersonator.

 

Saturday morning it was my turn to work. I had a quiet morning at work which allowed me to get some paperwork done. Thankfully, the dreary morning cleared up to sunny skies and I got to hang out with Sam before his afternoon nap. We went into the field behind out home and threw the ball for Tucker.

It started getting cold and cloudy again. But we got to work at setting everything up and cleaning everything in the pool! We had the pool opened last Wednesday and we can’t wait for it to be ready so we can take Sam for his first swim of 2015.

It had started to rain JUST as Ryan got the BBQ set up for our supper. I set our places in the sunroom so we could listen/watch the rain during supper.

Ryan got soaked making our meal but it was SO worth it! I have missed BBQ season! There seems to be less dishes and the house doesn’t warm up from the stove! We had sweet potatoes, asparagus, salmon and steak. Yum! 

Sam was a complete goof after supper on Saturday! He was giggling and playing without taking a moment to breath! He wanted so bad to sit on his little rocking chair just like Ryan and I were doing. It was hilarious watching him try to “rock”.

Some days I feel like a personal jungle gym for Sam to crawl all over. But he was laughing and giggling so much that I can’t help but feel blessed. I cherished this sweet moments before he went to bed!

Sunday was Mothers day and I got spoiled by my boys! Last year Sam was just a little over a month old and this year I got a little boy who spent his day giving me kisses. Ryan really went above and beyond this year. Taking Sam duty, making all the meals, and just going with the flow as to what I wanted to do for the day.

We headed to church that morning where Ryan took Sam down to Sunday School so I could sit and enjoy the sermon. Sam was a goof before Sunday school! Waving and giggling at his friends across the way. I got some sweet Mother’s Day surprises from Sunday School and a new flower for one of my pots from Rev. Best!

It was a cold and yucky day but I was glad. I got to do what I love most, nothing! We watched Netflix, I read, and even took a little nap. It was heaven! Ryan BBQ us another supper and we relaxed together and played. My heart was so full and my boys made me feel so loved and appreciated!

Sam having his pre-bed milk in his lazy boy.

I hope that you all had a wonderful weekend as well.

xo

I’ve Become A Boy Mom

 

Happy Friday everyone! I get to have a short day at work today because Sam, Ryan and I are off to the Children’s hospital for a check up for Sam!

There was a part of me growing up that always knew I wanted to be a Mommy. It was just a path that I knew I would be taking one day. When I would imagine what my future life would look like, I imagined a baby girl.  It’s not that I had anything against boys, but being a female myself, girl stuff was what I knew.

I knew dolls, dresses, bows and princesses. I imagined tea parties, dress up and frills. When I found out I was pregnant, I wasn’t certain a girl was in my forecast. My gut instinct was actually boy. But, I was carrying very high and most people were convinced it was a girl! Over and over I got told that it must be a girl. Being that we were not finding out the gender before the birth, I began to believe people that it may be the case.

I was pleasantly surprised when on April 3, 2014, a baby boy was placed in my arms. One look at him and my whole world changed and so did my idea of having a baby girl.

It’s been an adjustment. I had to learn the names of a lot of different types of equipment. Backhoe versus loader. Cement truck versus dump truck. I’ve also had to work on and improve my “car driving” sounds. It’s been all about the blue, dinosaurs, sports and anything with a motor. And, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

I’ve begun to love being the only girl at home. I am loving the new world my little boy has brought me into. I love the ease of dressing a little boy. Sam is ALL boy and I intend on fulfilling all that comes with that (aka: all the gross boy things) but I also intend on teaching him to be a gentleman. Teach him exactly how a woman should be treated and how to do things for himself.

Sometimes I feel like little boys get a bad rap. The items in stores for boys is half of what it is for girls! But I love my little man and all the “boy” things that has come with it. 

Happy Friday!

xo

Clean Eating Is Turning Me Into A Bitch

 

Happy Wednesday everyone! I hope your week is going by super fast! I have to say, this week has had it’s challenges and it all revolves around what I am putting in my mouth!

My brother is a Beachbody coach and fitness/nutrition expert. I am at the total opposite end of the pole. I hate to work out, I love my sweets and treats and 13 months later, I’m just now at my pre-pregnancy weight which is larger than I want.

Through Jared’s online fitness community, he started a challenge group. This weeks challenge, Clean Eating. I like to THINK I eat pretty clean but now that I am actually doing the challenge I have come to realize that I don’t. I love my breads, store bought salad dressings and sweetener in my coffee.

“Give me carbs!!”

I am hardly three days in and it has been easier than I thought. I loved the planning portion! Figuring out what my snacks and lunches were going to be this week and how I would alter supper to suit everyone. For the most part, I’m actually not feeling hungry. I eat breakfast with coffee, 1 snack at 10, lunch, another snack at 3 and then supper. But the biggest side effect I’ve had is my mood.

I find myself easily irritated and irrational. My mood swings are all over the place. I feel like I could easily bite someone’s head off in an instant and yet cry at the drop of a hat. Maybe a sugar withdrawal? I think I may have been more addicted to preservatives and sugars than I originally thought.

One of my favorite things is my morning coffee. I like 1 milk and 1 sugar in my coffee and I’ve been drinking it that way for almost 10 years. This week, I’m attempting to go cold turkey and have been drinking it black. It’s been the worse thing for my mood. Something that I use to LOVE now makes me gag from the bitterness. No longer do I get that jolt of caffeine in the morning when I am sipping on my creamy and sweet warm coffee. And it just starts my day out wrong!

I am hoping that this side effect is short lived and soon this clean eating thing will give me more energy and feel better overall, like everyone keeps assuring me it will. For now, I am going to continue to eat my SUPER healthy ways this week and let you know how all this kale, plain greek yogurt and almonds work out for me (or don’t).

Happy Wednesday!

xo

Most Of The Weekend I Can’t Tell You About

 

Wow! My weekend flew by, too quickly! To me, this was the first weekend that felt like SUMMER! There was lots of time spent outside, enjoying the beautiful weather and each other.

Ryan, Sam and I had big plans on Saturday. Ryan and I would be going on our FIRST real date where Sam would be with staying with someone all day and overnight. It only took 13 months! Ha ha! But because I knew that Sam and I would be apart all Saturday, I wanted to get in a little extra play time on Friday afternoon/night.

I had made the pizza the night before and just threw it in the oven while I Sam and I played in the living room. I didn’t even bother changing out of my work clothes.

We ate our pizza (Sam ate 1.5 slices all to himself, geesh!) and the headed outside to enjoy the last of the beautiful evening before we put Sam to bed.

Friends Amanda and Josh got Sam this little car for his first birthday and he is OBSESSED! He can open the door and climb right in all by himself! He then stays in the car and “drives” for a long time. It is such a battle to get him out! ha ha

After Sam went down to bed I started packing! I got everything set out and ready for the next morning. Before bed Ryan and I started a new TV series on Netflix, Breaking Bad. We aren’t sure if we like it or not yet.

Saturday morning we dropped Sam and all his stuff off at Ryan’s parents. We got him settled and then hit the road to do our May date. For most of the drive to our first location I cried. Please tell me that the Mommy guilt eventually goes away? I felt this overwhelming guilt almost all day. I drop Sam off at daycare Monday to Friday and only get about 1 and half hours with him each night. The weekends are suppose to be the days that I get the extended time with him and one of those days I was dropping him off and spending the day and night away from him. I felt awful.

Eventually, our date took my mind off of it. I know Sam was having an amazing time with his grandparents and Ryan and I had a great time too. This date was WAY overdue.

Sunday morning Ryan had plans so I went and picked up Sam and then we headed to church. Sam had a great time down in Sunday school watching his buddies and clapping away to songs.

We got home, had a quick lunch and the Sam went down for a nap and I got to work on some meal prep and garden work. I guess I was ahead of schedule because I eventually got to spend about 30 minutes rocking on the front porch reading a book. It is my definition of paradise.

Sam eventually woke up and we played, ate supper and got ready for a big week ahead!

How was your weekend?

xo

Year of Dates–March and April 2015

 

Happy Friday everyone!  We have some big plans coming up this weekend and so I am anxious for it to get here! We have been having a great week here! Really spending every night enjoying some family time outside.

I feel a little bad. I’m sure some of you assume that we are not doing our year of dates anymore. When in fact, we still really enjoying opening up our date envelopes every month!

I guess the thing about these dates is that because they have involved Sam, they haven’t been very exciting. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed taking the time to have a “date” with my husband, even if it is in the comfort of our own home. But I feel like the dates have been done before.

I guess there is only so much that you can do inside the home.

But even though they are not exciting, I want to make sure that I document it. I don’t want to look back on the year trying to remember what our dates were and assume we didn’t do anything because it wasn’t written down.

March was my month to plan. I like to make sure that I plan the date in March because it is Ryan’s birthday. The only problem is that March is the craziest month for our family! Work is getting busy, Sam started daycare, birthdays and other celebrations! It always just feels like one activity after the other.

I wanted to make Ryan feel special but I also knew that it had to be a pretty low key event. So, I made him his favourite meal, SNACKS  (wings, cheese sticks, pizza fingers, chips) and we settled down for a night of Netflix where he would have 100% control as to what movie we watched.

The thing is that lately Ryan and I have are spending more and more Friday evenings as home. Before Sam, we would always have plans on a Friday night. Now we find ourselves at home for a quiet Friday evening and movie nights have become more and more of a regular thing. So, unfortunately I think my date was a bit of a bust.

April was Ryan’s month to plan! And he decided a trip to one of my favourite restaurants was in order! I LOVE the Prescott in Ottawa. Their square pizza, homemade creamy garlic sauce and the deep fried cheesecake, yum! We actually had no issues getting this date done, which was a surprise! We actually ended up having it one Sunday for lunch in April after I had gone for a facial.

We have a new Prescott pizza lover in the family as well! Sam LOVED it.

So, we did our dates and we really did have a good time while doing them but they just didn’t feel blog post worthy!

I am proud at the fact that life is getting busier and busier with Sam but we are still taking the time to at least carve out a little bit of time for eachother.

Really looking forward to our May date. The first without Sam!

Happy Friday!

xo