loves, life, and big smiles

1 I spent three days working at the fire hall. What a great place to work. Another learning curve, mostly data entry but technical and interesting in a  non dramatic way.

2 Izzy celebrated her 5th birthday this past week. Is it possible that time really goes this quickly? 

3 Her mommy made her the most amazing cake from scratch. She told us that it took her three days to create all of the edible decorations. Just amazing.

4 Kes is making more eye contact these days. Things are progressing and it's a joy to see. 

5 Mr P is away for a few more weeks. Last night he tells me he's packed up and ready to come home. It's a bit early but so sweet.

6 Lots of drama at work, none of it good but still we manage to make the day worthy.
7 A few conversations with friends and the world feels right again.
8 Tula is a busy girl some days.  A few of her newest activities include, climbing into dresser drawers, climbing the umbrella pole, drinking from the tap and sleeping in the bathroom sink. 
9 Does it make a difference if I soak in the hot tub in the morning, afternoon or evening? Hmm, well, morning is with coffee, afternoon is tea and in the evening definitely with a glass of wine!

visitors, kids and more

1 Two days of training and I'm feeling confident in my ability to handle the job. A few tweaks and a lot of notes equals ability.

2 Theresa is a great trainer. I really appreciated her willingness to teach, mentor, advise, correct and cheer lead.

3 They are managing to get a bit of a grip on the jet lag. It's never easy when it's this big of a time change. 

4 Izzy and Kes come for a couple of night's. Sleepovers are so much fun with them. 

5 They have sniffles and coughs but manage to make the best of it despite that. What a couple of tough cookies we have.

6 The two brothers and their wives have an early Valentine's day dinner while we have mac and cheese followed by sugar cookies for our dinner.

7 Shenanigans at the switchboard. Nuff said.

8 A fun hike on Knox Mountain. The fog is as thick as pea soup in spots. We can watch it from our vantage point and eventually thins and finally disappears.

9 Sara has taken classes in nail painting. I love that she's so enthusiastic about life and isn't afraid to step out of her comfort zone.

10 It's Chinese New Year and Nick brings a little of China to our home. He's managed to get a few stickers for the front door into their suitcase without Sara knowing about it. Mr P puts them on the door while we are out and she's suitably surprised to see them there. 

11 I love how she wears her heart on her sleeve. It's so endearing to know such a genuine person.

12 It's G's birthday today. I'm hoping it's been a great one for her because she's spent it with her mom and dad. Love ya hon, happy birthday. 

the day, mac and cheese, little, wrapped up, tea, how many more sleeps?

1 My birthday is quiet and gentle. The kids come for a visit in the late afternoon and we have a chance to visit and watch the kidlets play.
2 Kesler loves mac and cheese. His face shows all his emotions and the anticipation is pure excitement.
3 Izzy and I share the chicken noodle soup. She says she's happy to have a little bowl with a little spoon for little girls.
4 I love the look of a package covered in simple brown wrapping paper. Crisp, clean and tidy.
5 Egyptian licorice tea. A nice big teapot that lasts the evening.
6 The countdown has started. Mr P is laid off as of Sunday night. I'm so looking forward to having him home. 6 more sleeps.

Friday fun and not so fun

1 A busy day at work with a head cold. ugh, but I am grateful it's over and I made it through~
2 Our sweet Kesler turned 3 today! He had a small party with his family and I'll go over tomorrow and have some time with them to celebrate just a little bit more.
3 There was a lovely invitation to an Christmas party with one of the other jobs that I do as a casual. How very nice to be included even if I had to say no because I was working!

Sunday through Tuesday

1 The family is over for Father's day and Mr P's birthday. We share a feast of bbq hamburgers, spicy chorizo sausages, salads, apple pie and chocolate cake! Everyone was stuffed!
2 The kids have a new dog. A Welsh corgi. He's rather adorable, more brown that yellow and very fluffy for a corgi. They've named him, Kuma. <It's the name, Bear in Japanese>
3 Kuma has fun chasing Izzy trying to nip at her dress hem. She squeals and runs faster, laughing and wanting him to stop yet wanting to keep going.
4 Monday is a cold dreary day. The rains have come and the clouds are settled over the mountains and into the lake valley.
5 We putter about fixing this and that. Mr P is hard wiring the office for internet so it's bits of cutting and pulling and patching and suddenly it's done and smokin' fast.
6 The winds start to howl and lying in bed it sounds spooky and with the rain louder than usual.
7 A decision needed to be made and it was made. It wasn't easy to have the conversation but in the end it's about competency, confidence, safety and vulnerabilities. I walked away from the hospital job because I wasn't prepared for a diet of steady graveyard shifts. It was a good decision.
8 A mistake by another driver means we have a dent on the right side of our car. She wasn't looking and backed right into us. Hopefully insurance will cover all the repairs. She was nice enough to apologize and say to Mr P, "Sorry for the inconvenience." We manage to get our groceries and head home without further incident.
9 I start re-orientation at the union office next week. Sure look forward to that. It's a brand new office and new staff to meet and greet. Yay!