3 Reasons Why ....

 I decided that our 21st Wedding anniversary coming up Friday July 14... does matter the most.

I profoundly love, respect, trust and admire the Dad in these pictures below. And I get to call him mine. 

After one hell of a year (and a few years) and a hell of a ride with many bumps and obstacles, we are still kicking stronger together as a couple.

And that deserves to be celebrated doesn’t it?

If ever anyone needs to ask themselves if it is worth it? Take a look below; these pictures are worth a thousand words to me.

The Truth and the Trust is right before my eyes.

Life Lately

Note : I posted a few blogs same day so scroll down to read if you want more!

I am finding my blog very hard to keep up with lately . For a few reasons as work and life are getting more and more busy but also I will soon be launching a new book in 2018 and a lot of my focus is and will be doing on that . This is on top of course full time current career .

That being said lately I am devoting any blog entry to capture family memories as that is all I seem to have time for . I really want to do this mainly to preserve our family memories and it is a great way to be disciplined with pictures too . Each time I consider giving up the blog I feel sad .

So I am not giving it up ! More and more often will be a few  monthly posts often in rapid sequence and all with pictures capturing at least some snapshots of life around here .

June and beginning July was filled to the brim with fun stuff . Stuff that makes us so happy and fulfilled. With work can be hard to juggle to do weekend and evening stuff but all is worth it .

We had Father's Day and had all 5 at cottage for 6 hrs ! And dinner out at a great Greek resto . These days with the kids jobs 8 hrs all of us is precious and sacred !

These two left for their summer jobs working as lifeguard and bike instructor at 8 weeks sleep away camps 

This girl got into advanced math !!!! Was so wonderful as has struggled in math a lot this year and then final exams got both exams in the 90's ! We got a personal email from the director telling us they were putting her in the scientific advanced math for next two years ! She leaves for 2 weeks of camp on Sunday and has been working hard and daily babysitting 

We had a great visit from Savvy and Zandra from Toronto for a cottage weekend . Had a cool  mini version of PG 2017 in the jacuzzi with some interesting topics! Fun ! And visit was short and sweet but amazing as always . Savvy and I had so much to talk about live but also so connected daily or weekly by text that it's icing on the delicious cake when we get to see eachother ! Love that girl :)

Had a couple  of visits from soulkeeper and family  to use  new seedoo at cottage . Was so fun !

Celebrated early my moms 67th bday with a few of her friends . Was such a lovely and warm summer evening and wonderful to spend time with these great ladies 

Few other things to remember :

A great Visit with Savvy mom who has not been well lately and who lives close to me . Felt good to take time out of schedule and just be able to find time to do something that matters . Was such a nice visit and conversation and lifted my heart !

Had to go get Bear from his lifeguard job as being tested for mono :( I pray not that !

I stayed at cottage for 4 days alone between two long weekends and wrote the  skeleton draft of my book ! ( very very draft ! )

Hubby fire to himself in an extremely stupid and dangerous accident!

This burn got like a million trillion times worse . On both legs. this was only day 1. We cant decide if we should call him Ash or Puff

Happy summer  everyone !

My Favorite Use of Time

I have been analyzing the way I spend my time lately and specifically what brings me joy ( since writing a book on this ! )

I love the cottage 

I love reading at the cottage

I love napping at the cottage 

I love spending time with my family anywhere 

I could go on and on 

But there is one thing that seems to surpass it all in terms of joy :

Spending quality time with my children and their friends 

My Vanilla Beans

I have loved this little lady for so long

Since they were very young we have made this a top priority in our lives for all three of them. We will put aside work , have the kitchen piled with dishes , skimp on sleep, have a freshly cleaned home messy within hrs by having lots of kids over with their shoes on and wet towels from the pool - to prioritize having a houseful of kids with us 

It is both a prime value of ours to really know whom our kids cherish and also a massive sense of pleasure for us to be involved and cherish them too.

We can tell the summer really begins when our home has no routine at night for meals and we end up having last minute guests. Chase has been off and working for 6 weeks now before his bike camp job. After working until 7:30 hubby and I opted for a nap outside since nobody seemed to be around to eat. 9:30pm we wake up to Chase and his two BFFs saying “want to hang out near the pool together and eat?” (Aka can you make dinner and we will sit with you?) 

We gave them money to get Lebanese and we sat and talked and talked into late evening outside under the stars. Pure pure fun and happiness for all . They left at midnight to begin their evening at a bar dancing after:)

Then this long weekend first official of school out us had Beauty’s three friends at cottage. One has come twice before and the two others never. She has been hanging out more and more with this squad and was top priority to get to know them much better. So glad we did!

Beautiful people. With such diverse personalities and lovely souls. Each so unique and wonderful in different and beautiful ways. And we talked and talked and talked and laughed! Very very chatty girls . We learned more about Beauty’s life in these three days than we have in 15.5 yrs. !! Everyone cooked and cleaned and helped and planned meals and took turns 

We seedooed and tubed and went on boat. The girls hung out with the Harleys in village. Lol!

We watched late night fireworks from the boat. We got caught in a big storm. They poured over my blog books and got us caught up on our daughter’s life. We shared long fun meals.

Dea fell in the lake !!! Such a funny, beautiful girl and sweet and full of life and ideas

Jade washed and washed dishes! What a  lovely and unique and beautiful this girl is. Beauty shining inside and out

Molly laughed and laughed at the tube rides! Mature, so much wisdom and beauty and strength

One spoke of how amazing one of our sons are and wants to marry him! (any guesses who?)

Another spoke of how handsome the other son is!

I was just so impressed by their youthful ways and mature souls 

Their beauty shone and hearts glowed 

All authentic and truthful with nothing to hide 

So much insight on life is bundled up into such sweetness 

A beautiful weekend. So so weather ( at best !! )  but nobody really noticed or cared 

Just like all the weekends we have spent with Beauty's friends her for so many years. Vanilla Bean and Livvy Bum Bum I hope it all works for august as that is the highlight of the summer too spend that time with “our girls “of forever too. Countless years of spending precious time with this gang who we know so well and love deeply. So many fun times at home and at Trent. We love  all you girls and are so excited to spend time again soon and see you.

It’s fun to watch our children grow and change and develop into the adults they will become. And there is no better way to see this than through their friends. Whom they choose to spend their time with and share their lives with 

And no higher honour and privilege as their parents to be included in journey. To be part of it with them all.

Bears Prom 2017

No time to edit sorry!!!

Well togue ceremony is one thing but prom night is another !

I won’t say much and let the pictures do the talking but just a few highlights:

• was so fun to see Bear all dressed up and his big bro helping him with finishing touches with music blaring 
• big photo shoot we did before he left  and did came too 
• bears girlfriend Catherine is not at same school so bear took a very close friend as his date 
•  
• There was a cocktail organized by the parents of one of Bears close friends and over 40 graduates and their parents were invited to their beautiful home on the lake pre prom from 3-6pm. They had it catered and tents and everything! A professional photographer. Was so incredibly generous of them 
• Was so fun seeing all of Bears friends so fancy and gorgeous. He has a HUGE group of friends boys and girls and all so close and connected 
• It was almost time for the kids to leave for prom at 5:30pm and about 9 boys went out to the dock. We were just about to take a picture as reminded us of the pre wedding scene from mama mia with the tuxedos and suits and corsages and lake and mountain background..... and then !!!!!!!! .....

THE DOCK COLLAPSED AND BROKE !!!!!

WITH ALL OUR BOYS ON IT . FULLY EMERGED IN THE LAKE

And yes of course our boy was on that dock and in the lake . Has he ever not been where friends and action are ?

Silence for many moments as a hundred people watched from the horrifying sidelines

Blow drying shoes , suits in dryers ! Prom boys in nothing but underwear. Minutes before prom! Grad gifts of watches ruined . All cell phones ruined . Disaster. Nobody knew whether to laugh or cry .

We were just thankful was the boys and not the girls !

And still of course very first world problems!

 Bear found this all hysterically funny until he realized his cell phone was finished . That he bought with his hard earned money and researched for months.

So they were all damp and late for prom and pants a bit shorter from dryer but went to prom 

We went out with three other couples for dinner and talked mostly about this crazy event!

• No boys except one from our gang had cells so was a worrisome night with no sleeps as they only of course came home at 7:30am the next morning. Prom then after prom then all night poutine place and then watching sunrise at mountain

• Then home for sleep 4 hrs like a literal zombie. Then up and packed for grad camping trip night!

• Then home for 2.5 hrs and left for summer for lifeguard job at a sleepover camp! ( will be home 32 hrs a week some weeks )

And that was grad 2017! I am not sure any of us can forget it! That i image of the dock collapsing and all the proudly dressed boys for prom in lake will be with me forever.