Today is my friday!

Today is my Friday, and I am sooo happy!!! I had to work all last weekend, and working 11 days straight with no break to relax has really drained me. I am not sure how Joon does it, as he has been working straight since January 4th with no break in sight until the end of March.  He is a superstar!!!

I am off to see the wizard this weekend!  No, not really, but I AM off to Edmonton to chill with my sisters, and celebrate my nephew Noah's 3rd birthday!!!  So excited!  We are heading to the waterpark to enjoy the fake warmth, water, and slides!  And pretend we are on the beach  for the day.  Of course there will be birthday cake and presents.  However, I am a bit stumped on my gift. What do you get a 3 year old??  He is hooked on Buzz and Woody from A Toy Story, as well as Dinosaurs, so I am sure my gifts will be of that nature!

From a little nugget who barely weighed in at 7 pounds to a mischeivious little monkey who shows his hilariousness everyday...

Happy Birthday Buddy!!!

A sad day for my family...

Saturday afternoon my dad's brother passed away.  Yes he is my uncle, but I feel the grief more for my dad and his loss than for myself. 

My uncle helped raise my dad when his parents passed away when he was just a little guy.  The bond that these two felt crossed time, space and sickness.  My dad is a little lost right now, and headed to Newfoundland to be with family and for the funeral.

Alzheimer's is a horrible disease, and took my uncle much too soon and way too quickly. 

You will be missed, you were loved, and we will remember you.

xo
L

Making granola bars today!

So we are in money saving mode in 2010... The time in the states was awesome, but all the exess of awesome stores and stuff and shopping and outlets was a little hard on our bank accounts!!  So, instead of buying protein bars (which are $3.00 each) to munch on my way to the gym, I have decided to try and make my own... So after a bit of googling, I found a recipe that looks halfway decent.  I'm planning on modifying the recipe slightly as it calls for protein powder and I am not a huge fan, but I will let you know how it goes!

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
•1 cup oats
•1/4 cup all-purpose flour
•1/4 cup protein powder
•1/2 cup liquid egg whites
•1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
•1/4 cup raisins

Directions:
•Preheat oven to 350*F
•Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well
•Spray an 8 X 4 loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray
•Spread batter into pan evenly and use a spatula to flatten
•Bake for 12-15 minutes
•Allow to cool before cutting
 
I am also excited to try out my new KitchenAid Mixer (I have the cherry red one).
 
Happy Sunday, and I will let you know how the baking extravaganza goes!

No more Negative Nancy for me!!!

I feel really hopeful today... I think all my Negative Nancy purge from yesterday really helped... I have rid myself of negative and am trying to be positive and hopeful.  I am not moving back to DC, and all the time spent made some awesome friends.  I am trying to be grateful of the opportunity to go to the states, and the time we spent there.  I am happy I met the people I did, and need to stop moping and feeling sorry for myself, and today I decided that was what I would do.

And, lo and behold, I have THREE job interviews scheduled for the rest of the week.  I guess that is all I needed, and good things are coming in triplicate!!!  Hopefully they keep coming so I can make the best choice career wise, and more good things will begin for me.

Happy Wednesday Everyone!!! It's almost the end of the week, hope your day is going as great as mine is!!!

xo
L

Spring has sprung??

Happy February 2nd Everyone!!! 

Today is Groundhog day, and Balzac Billy has apparently seen his shadow.  Which means that Spring has Sprung!!! Balzac Billy is the official groundhog of Alberta that determines weather spring is here, or if we have another few months of winter...

 I sure hope so, because I don't know how much more of the cold and snow I can handle... Not that it has been all that cold, only -5C ish, which is really not that bad... But the weather has felt so dreary and grey all the time... Which is really doing nothing for my mood... I feel like since we have returned from DC, I have had a hard time.  It's funny, because I wasn't the one in a work program, but I did have time off, and I met some really awesome people.  And we lived in a really cool, fun, interesting, culturally diverse, politically powerful, and historically rich.  And coming back to Calgary has been difficult.  I've come back to a minor career crisis, and am in a job that I am really not enjoying.  I don't have control over all aspects of my life and I am struggling with it... I can't control everything and this is not in my nature...it is not who I am!  I know I keep moaning and whining about this, but I am hoping that I will get it out and be able to focus on the positive.  I am not the kind of person who is this negative.  I don't really even want to be around myself, but unfortunately I can't escape myself!!!  I feel like I am drowning in despair. And I haven't a clue what to do about it.