good weekend

Its been a great weekend. It started well on Friday by me being able to leave work at 5pm sharp and more importantly, leave it there. Work hasn't visited once this week end.

Saturday was a rainy day, cue drive down to Bedford Commons with full intentions, complete with budget to buy a lamp for the downstairs bedroom. It NEEDS a lamp, we have a friend coming to stay next weekend and there is nothing worse than having to get out of bed to turn a main light off. So me, myself and I set off and found exactly nothing remotely like what I am looking for, which is something like the blue one below:

But I did find the Easter egg aisles in Walmart, again. I had made a decision in the Walmart in NB to buy only Lindt and Kinder easter eggs for the hunt this year, no more of that God awful North American chocolate, so price was not the driving factor, but rather quality of taste. So anyway, I bought all my Easter eggs and therefore managed to spend $70 very quickly - WTH! But quality was the focus, that Lindt will be savoured!

Last night we went to a friends house for our first NY road trip planning meeting. I so love that we can drive to NY. Its awesome to me to have that choice. No more planes required to go to the US, we can just drive! So we huddled around a Thai and Chinese takeout and planned., I know that we are leaving at 4am and have a breakfast stop planned at 7am the other side of Fredericton, NB. The rest was in a bacardi breezer haze so I am not actually sure of the rest, but hey I am not the only one in the roadtrip, I am sure all will be good.

Today has been a wonderful weather day and hence I have been OUTSIDE. We had a family bike ride and the dogs have enjoyed two walks. Its been wonderful to be outside.

my gratitude list.

Its been ages since I was last on here, I guess I lost my mojo but today I feel the need to write a gratitude list and here it is, all the things I am grateful for, in no particular order:

1. My husband, hes my very best friend and in the last couple of years I have come to realize exactly how very precious he is.

2. My children, my two girls fill me with joy and wonder. Its just incredible to watch them grow up and be part of it.

3.Bravery, I am  a pretty brave person in many respects (not the horror film variety though), I love to travel, love change, love all things new and fresh. I am lucky, I know.

4. My friends, I love them. I am so lucky and so grateful for them.

5. My family. For years I kind of viewed my extended family as being of the messed up kind. But now I see that I am indeed fortunate to have so many people, many who are unrelated to each other as such, that love me and are my family.

6. The summer. I LOVE the summer especially here in NS. Its amazing and today its warm and sunny out after a LONG winter and I am so very happy because of it.

7. Florida. I Heart Florida big time and my family do it, so that's even better. We all adore Florida and one day, hopefully soon we will have a pad there to call a second home.

8. Horse and dogs, I have a special affinity with these two animals. I had horses once, we have dogs now, maybe one day we will have both simultaneously.

9. My wedding and engagement and anniversary rings. Love them.

10. Books, stories, movies, blog posts. Every written or acted piece that gives me that escapism that we all need.

11. My house. I love it. Its got an amazing ambience and its my soft place to fall. My Sunday morning, my Friday night. It holds all my furniture that's been collected over the years and keeps us all safe and warm all winter...

12. Dr Phil. He rocks!

I could go on forever......

Happy Sunny Monday

Wednesday and our Third Canniversary

Oh my God its close to pleasant outside today. I simply HAD to get out there for a walk at lunchtime and although the wind was a little brutal at times, it was almost mellow March Nova Scotia weather. I have to add Nova Scotia weather because its like night and day compared to pleasant March UK weather which would be in the teens centigrade, flowers blooming and birds singing vigorously but I digress there….

March in Nova Scotia:

 

 

March in England:

 

 

The clocks went back at the weekend and we were plunged into darkness at my usual wake up time of 6am on the Monday morning and for some reason, I simply was not expecting it and it hit me hard. I was getting a little used to waking up to actual daylight and then lovely light through the blinds at 6.45am when I would go up for my shower. And all that was gone and we were back in darkness and it put me completely out of sorts.

Of course all this actually took effect on the Sunday but I was blissfully unaware as I got up so late and a little hungover from the red wine and cards late night of the night before. So the day just felt rushed with the loss of the hour. Anyway Monday wasn’t so good, I had to drag myself out of my funk about the dark morning, and I had to do it fast!

 

Its actually our Third Caniversary today, this time 3 years ago we arrived and it was exactly the same - from pretty bluebell woods to what was like the frozen tundra. Happy Canniversary to us!!!

I have just read online about Kim Kardashian dropping her Blackberry on the way to the gym, good old Daily Mail bringing us that very important world news. But I did read it because actually the Kardashians are my guilty pleasure and what sneaky advertising for the ailing Blackberry brand. I am not sure if they would be pleased or not…

I haven’t watched the show for a while! I need to put that right, I might start tonight. I love that they are not skinny women and they show off their assets in the face of all that ridicule and theres plenty of it after all (ridicule I mean) but they are also terrible females and their priorities are so way out from what mine and most peoples are, it’s a little like “real life” Dynasty. Always puts me in a good mood.

That and rodeo girls, what a show, what a bunch of diva badass riders with major drama, love it. Must get some more of that back in my life before the heat hits, the TV goes off, the pool is opened and my evenings consist of being outdoors again…..

 

 

 

What I am up to

I just had the best birthday but I shall leave that for another post. Right now I am dragging myself through minus 27 in the wind chill temperatures and it feels like Spring will never ever show its face and at the same time having to read on Facebook about how it will be 16C in the UK this weekend - pffft!

So in an effort to get through these cold hideous and endless months of January through to April without benefit of a trip down South, I managed to watch the entire Series 1 of Pan Am on Netflix and what a series!!! I am beside myself that theres only one series, they canned it so there is no more in existence - WTH?!!!

I am living in hope that my running is getting back on track, today I ran 3km with hills and some of it was hard, it was also outside and I did it in celebration of our temperature of 1C today. The wind was icy but once I got into it, it was do-able and last weekend I managed a 4km track. It wasn't too too hard, it was definitely achievable but not easy as such. I hope to do it again this weekend, and a bike ride. I want to get on my bike again, damn this weather!

I am starting to sound obsessed with the temperatures here.

The girls started spring break this week and thank God we are not yet into the years of teen spring break and spring break trips that I can then worry about. We started the break in style with dinner at Pizza Delight last night where Chloe announced that it reminded her of Olive Garden - ah Olive Garden and Florida,... how I miss thee. She says their garlic mash potato rocks.

In my lost moments after I watched the last Pan Am I wondered around Netflix in a berefit fashion and found a series called Happy Endings. Its amusing. I like the title, I like the word Happy.

The weekend there is too much drinking planned for two nights in a row but who cares, its the weekend, wine is meant to be in that picture, oh and coconut shrimp, that's planned too. I feel the need for it!

Still haven't been skiing yet this season gggggrrrrrrrrr

20 Questions

20 Questions

I saw this on Rainy Saturday's blog and thought - how marvellous and I must do the same....

 

1. What brings you the greatest joy? – My children and a family holiday down on the water in Florida. Theres something magical about the ambience and the destination.

2. What are your vices? Chocolate, coffee and wine

3. What is on your nightstand? Books, a lamp and last nights glass of water

4. Do you have a secret talent? I can sing really badly, even my children ask me to “mummy please stop”

5. What is your greatest indulgence? My first flat

6. What should every woman try at least once in her life? To travel alone. To really understand what you want to do and be free to do it. To take the time to really take the pleasure in that trip. 

7. What makes you laugh? Pinterest Fails and autocorrect messages

8. What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I wanted to be a fighter pilot and fly Harrier Jump Jets

9. What is on your bucket list? Watching the sunrise on the Grand Canyon, doing a cattle drive in Montana, owning a Florida escape.

10. What is on your feet right now? Taupe ballerina shoes (tired of the boots)

11. How did you make your first dollar? Paper round, that was in Pounds Sterling though. My first dollar was as an Accountant in my first NS Job.

12. What superstition do you believe in? Karma, what goes around comes around 

13. What items in your closet do you wear the most? Jeans, leggings, scarves currently

14. What is the best gift you've ever received? My dads help with our last UK home

15. What is on your liquor shelf?  Nothing, no liquor in the house – damnit!

16. What is on your kitchen counter? Keurig machine, coffee pot, keurig cups (coffee weakness) Toaster, bread bin, Disneyland Paris tray

17. What would you never leave home without? My phone and my purse

18. What movie has the greatest ending? Frig I don’t know… I am particularly touched by emotional endings where all things come good in the face of adversity… like Apollo 13, The Incredible Journey…..

19. Who is on the guest list for your ideal dinner party? Kate Hudson, Reese Witherspoon, Harrison Ford, Robert Redford, Demi Moore and Tom Cruise. I am really interested in what these people would have to say.

20. What is one thing you wish you had known when you were younger?  To be more confident, say no when you have to and not concern yourself with other peoples issues so much. Not everyone has to like you and that’s actually ok.

 

so over it

Ok, so I am done now (along with thousands of others no doubt!) and I feel a little pissey about it all right now.
Outside its minus 100 or something stupid. And I know its only the end of February so frankly this weather aint going nowhere fast and I KNOW this but honestly I am done with this malarkey.

Yes I love the good book in front of the fire combo, alongside my cup of Stash camomile and spearmint tea but I am missing out on the TV, that big old 50inch screen in the family room that's not got the fire blazing in it and it therefore quite a few degrees cooler than it is in our front room. I want to be back into HGTV and rodeo girls, not hanging out on Netflix on the Ipad anymore, bored of it all.

Yes the snow is beautiful and the way it crunches underfoot is a delicious sound but so is the heat and the smell of sunscreen, I am ready to swop!

I am tired of being bundled up to the nines to go outside, I want my t-shirt and flipflops back so I can stroll about in the evening feeling at one with the humidity.

I appreciate the running track at the sportsplex but I want to be back outside now seeing the early morning sunshine as I get out there for a 5km before work..

I want windows down, ceiling fans, AC, pool pump, smell of chlorine, beach days, grilled food out on the deck, laundry on the line, sand everywhere in the car and picnics back.

I want to want salsa and fish again and salad with everything.

I almost welcome the first mosquito that bites me, we shall high five and share a cocktail!

Back to the UK

So I went back to the UK for a week to see my family and friends and it was a surprise in more ways than one, but the main reason was that I liked being there.

Yes it rained….ALOT!, There were flood warnings in abundance and I experienced endless wet stuff and gusting winds of 80mph which were a surprise. The trees are in a mess, let me tell you, after months and months of heavy rain theres not much support holding them into the ground anymore and they can do without wind like that.

It was insanely busy, especially Heathrow T3 which was a nightmare of people.

It was warm, yes it was wet, but at 10C it was warm to me

I actually really liked being there. I was comfortable. I shared waves with other drivers when we let each other out and gave each other space to negotiate some flood across some road, or some pothole and there were many. I knew were turns of phrase meant all the time and what a raised eyebrow might indicate, along with slang terminology.

I spent happy hours shopping in M&S with one of my besties and am finally cured of Next. There was nothing in there at all to buy.

I had a shandy in a pub, chip shop chips, Tapas, a roast dinner, a Chinese and spent cheaply in Tescos.

I spent precious time with my family and my friends and crammed in every spare moment with people that I love. I partied with an excellent drag queen on the last Friday night and I slept a lot on the flight home.

 Now I am back and happily so, in Nova Scotia and I still love living here but you know what, I love England too. It’s a wonderful place to be.