As you have probably figured out by now, I have a love for fashion. One of my other loves is for house design! I cannot wait for the day to come that I get to decorate and design my own house.
The things I buy now, I plan of taking with me, so I make sure that they fit the color pallet of my dream house.
What is that color pallet you may ask? Well my house will be a combination of shades of gray, black, white, and plum. Below are a few pictures I found that I love and resemble what I would love to have!
This bathroom is a little to white for me but i love the mirrored vanity!
The first and third pictures where taken from music producer Simon Fuller's house. I think him and his wife have great taste.
Round 2 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs started last night. 1/2 of the teams have been knocked out leaving us with 8 teams. Here are my favorites/predictions for this round.
Boston vs. Philadelphia Ha isn't this funny. The 2 series that I didn't care about are playing each other again... Boston had a good run last year, so lets hope for Philly. Get someone new to the cup final.
Pittsburgh vs. Montreal Montreal was a true underdog. They played the best team in the NHL in the first round and won! They have a lot of momentum going into this series and their goalies is HOT right now. I am still hoping for Pittsburgh and my future husband Crosby. They had a great run last year to win the cup, so lets try for a repeat performance.
San Jose vs. Detroit This series got underway last night. These two teams have become playoff rivals. San Jose is the team of recent poor playoff history, and Detroit is the team that seems to do nothing wrong in the playoffs. I like San Jose to win this series, but I definitely see it going to a game 7.
Vancouver vs. Chicago Ah and my favorite series of all! This is the only series remaining that I will watch the games on TV. I am sure you know my hatred for Vancouver, and my love for Chicago, so it should be no shock that I really want Chicago to win this series. I think that it will be a tough series, but they can do it for sure!
Oh so I will warn you right now that the title of this blog may be a little misleading. Let me show you some pictures to start.This is what Calgary has looked like for the past couple of days. And this is mild. Most places are reporting 20-30cm of snow, and the wind is blowing. Welcome to the end of April!
Here in Edmonton we have been getting a real good shot of rain. The wind too has been blowing, and making things really wet..... And I couldn't be happier!
Alberta is extremely dry. We got a dump of snow early in the winter, but nothing after that. We were short on snow, and last year was another record dry year. Without moisture, thousands of farmers would have been screwed... and that's putting it lightly.
As farmers who buy all of our feed, we rely on other farmers in the area to produce feed that we can buy from them for our livestock. This system is heavily influenced by supply and demand as most things. Because of the shortage of rain the last couple of years, the supply has been minimal, thus driving feed prices up, and farmers having to pay more. It really hurts our bottom line.
So I think I can say for all the farmers, and even the people in the city who enjoy green, lush lawns, that it can rain all it wants! Plus its a great excuse to buy a pretty umbrella!
This week as I was going back through some of my blogs, I realized that I had never blogged about our friend Marcus!
Marcus was our new friend that we found in Vegas. While out for supper for Brett's birthday one night, a balloon animal guy came around. He asked us what we were doing later that night, and as we were going to see Thunder from Down Under, he decided to make us a male stripper. We named him Marcus.
That night Marcus toured Vegas with us. It was our mission to show Marcus around and make sure he had a good time.
Marcus bought souvenirs, gambles on the slots, and also came to Thunder from Down Under with us. We also decided that Marcus would pose in every picture with us that night. Wait! Where is Marcus in this picture?
Oh there he is!
Marcus hanging out in the hotel room after a crazy night. He was a little hung over...
At the end of the night it was a pretty good time. There was lots of things that we can't tell you, because after all what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!
It has been a while since I did 101 in 1001 update. I have been making some good progress in my list, so here is what I have been up to lately.
4. Maintain my blog for a year
I have been blogging for almost 14 months now. I was a little behind in celebrating my 1 year anniversary, but I am thrilled that all of you have been a part of this journey.
13. Watch every episode of Lost
With only 4 or 5 episodes of Lost left before the series is over, I have almost completed this task. I must say that I am disappointed in this season and hope that the final season does not leave a sour taste in my mouth. The other 4 seasons have been nothing short of stellar!
25. Scrapbook Vegas May 2009
This week I got all my photos printed from Vegas, and now can start to dive in Scrapbooking. It is supposed to rain all weekend (thank goodness! We are so dry that I will gladly take a rainy weekend), so it may be the perfect time to start.
29. Take a girls trip somewhere every year (1/3)-(Bethan & Stacy's roadtrip to Canmore/Kananaskis)
You can read all about Bethan and my girls trip here.
30. See a Broadway performance in NYC
We are less then 1 month away from being in NYC (insert happy dance here). We are definitely going to see a Broadway show; we just need to decide which one. Any suggestions would be great.
42. Have another Marcus type adventure
We are planning on having another great adventure when we are in NYC. We just need to find Marcus’s brother/sister in NYC. I have a feeling this may be a couple day journey with the new Marcus. After all NYC is a big place.
63. Plan 20 events in 1 year (20/20)
With this new job I have easily done this. I think it only took 2 weeks!
65. Plan an agriculture event & 66.Complete a contract job
I am in the process right now. You can read all about it here.
Working as part of the City Centre mall, I see a lot of interesting things each day. When you step out of the entrance to the hotel, into the mall it really is like you have entered another world.
The Mall itself is really quite interesting. There is a main Avenue that cuts through the mall, and a sky pedway that connects it on either side. The mall is also the north point to the downtown pedway that connects pretty much the entire downtown core.
Throughout the mall there are many different sections. Yes it is all stores, and restaurants, and things that you would find in the mall, but it is the people in these areas that really make it interesting. Let me give you an example.
On my way to get something to drink from Second Cup this is what my journey looks like:
I exit the hotel on the 3rd floor and take the escalator down to the mall’s 2nd floor. I walk along the mall taking my time to look in Calvin Klein, Aldo, Jacob, and take a smell at the Body Shop. I then ride the escalator down to the main level where I find Second Cup.
This may not seem like a very interesting journey, but stick with me. I then walk along the main floor back to the hotel. Except this time it is packed with business men that are in a hurry. There is no time to smell the flowers at Bunches, or do some window shopping at BCBG, this is a extremely different pace. If I venture to the food court 1 level below to pick something up at the dollar store, I find myself in another world yet again. This one is filled with “white trash”. Today I saw a man wearing large cow horns on his head. See what I mean when I say it’s another world…
Another common walk that I will take is to Starbucks. This is a little bit of a longer walk, but much more interesting. Again I start out the hotel and walk along the 2nd floor of the hotel. I reach the sky pedway, and walk past the 20-50 person line up for Tim Hortons. This area I refer to as Asia. It is filled with well dressed Chinese, and Japanese. After you make it through Asia, I find myself in the Bronx as I call it. This place is filled with black people, who look like your typical hip-hop video. I feel like the whitest girl ever walking through here. I then take the escalator down a level (well actually I stop to look at the custom leather purses and custom made gowns and wedding dresses first) to find myself in the business world again, and take 1 final escalator to the basement to Starbucks.
It never is a dull walk, and great way to take a few minutes out of my day to get my mind off work.
For the past 10 days the NHL Playoffs have been going on. For those of you not up to date on your NHL, here is a little recap of where things are sitting.
Western Conference
San Jose vs. Colorado
Personally I hope that Colorado dominates this series. San Jose has some of the best talent in the league, yet they can never get it together in the playoffs. Colorado is a team that has flew under the radar this year, and thanks to superb goaltending all year, there are in the position they are now.
Vancouver vs. L.A.
As a true Edmonton Oiler fan all I can say is GO LA!! I HATE Vancouver with a passion. And hey why not give a team like LA a chance to go to the 2nd round of the playoffs. There is a ton of Oilers Aluni on the LA team, including my old favorite player Jaret Stoll.
Detroit vs. Phoenix
This to is a story of David and Galith. Detroit is a hockey power house, and they always have been. On the other hand we have Phoenix. They were sold due to bankruptcy, have not excelled as a hockey club, and were the centre of rumors and controversy with the ownership of the team. Phoenix is also a team who had outstanding goaltending all year, and I hope that they knock Detroit off their thrown!
Nashville vs. Chicago
Chicago is my pick here for a couple of reasons. Not only are they my favorite team outside of the Oilers, and not only did I meet and hang out with the team last year, but I also really like this team for its youth. I do wish that they had a better goalie, however, with some super stars on the team, things have really started to click here. They also just got 2 of their main defensemen back.
Eastern Conference
Washington vs. Montreal
This too is an easy pick for me. I am not a Montreal fan. I know I should cheer for them being a Canadian team and all… but I just can’t do it. Plus who can cheer against Ovechkin, Green, and Backstrom? P.S. ladies, take a look at David Steckel, he definitely makes any game worth watching!
Pittsburg vs. Ottawa
Yet another series that I should be cheering for the Canadian team, but I just can’t. Who can cheer against Captain Canada in Sydney Crosby. They are running into the same problem as Washington and Chicago in the lack goaltending with the team. I have a feeling this year the Stanley Cup winner will be a game of offence and mediocre goaltending, unless someone really steps up!
Boston vs. Buffalo & New Jersey vs. Philadelphia
I have lumped these two series together as I really have no interest in them. I do not care who wins or loses, it will just be another speed bump in the road to see who wins the cup.
Almost 2 years ago I started to golf. It was very natural for me as both my parent’s golf, as do most of my family members on my dad’s side.
Now 2 years later, I am gearing up for year #3 of golfing. In that time I have never taken a lesson, but have become pretty good, or what I think is good anyways.
When I started to golf, I was not going to always have to rent clubs, so after my first round I purchased my clubs. As with anything in my life, I didn’t want ugly or the cheapest ones. I traded up my bag, bough a matching glove, tees, balls, everything had to match!
My skills have definitely improved over the years. I no longer cheat when I am playing, and I have taken the foot club (kicking the ball out of the rough) out of my bag. I think it has made me a better player for it.
This year my goal is to do 18 holes. This is something that I have never done before. It is one of my 101 in 1001 to score under 100on 18 holes. I know that doesn’t seem like much, but when you shoot 45-60 in 9 holes, it will be tough.
We also have a work golf tournament that I am gearing up for. I have never played in a tournament so it should be fun! Of course I have no doubt that there will be plenty of booze and laughs along the way. I got tipped of that they had several tequila shot stations throughout the course last year!
I will keep you posted with my golf progress. I am looking to get a new putter so we will see how that improves my game!
I have mentioned before my love of the Edmonton Oilers. Yes, go ahead and laugh, I know we were the worst team in the NHL this year, but trust me we are coming back!
As a kid we always grew up watching the Oilers. My dad was a huge hockey fan, and Edmonton was his team. Mom on the other hand grew up by Calgary, and was a Flames fan... (insert booo's here).
I can remember as kids getting Oiler jerseys for mine and Crystals birthdays. They were the best gifts that we got that year! The sad part is that they still fit us!
For those of you that are not overly familiar with hockey and the Oilers here are a few tips about the team:
We have one of the best Dynasty teams in all of sports. Through the 80's there was no team like the Oilers.
Yes we finished in last place this year, but we also have the 1st overall draft pick in the June lottery
We have a socially famous player in Mike Comrie on the team. Or Mr. Hillary Duff. His family also is the founder and owners of The Brick furniture stores.
The best looking player on the team is Dustin Penner, no question about it.
Our top 3 rivals are the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks, and the Dallas Stars
Although the Edmonton Oilers season is over for another year, and they have hit the golf course, don't laugh to hard Calgary fans so has your team, there is still lots of great hockey to watch in the playoffs. And maybe next year we will make it to the playoffs again!
Ever had a bad day, or need a laugh, a distraction from life, or to remember the days when you were wild and crazy in college?
Well do I have a cure for you!!
Text from last night is the most genius website invented. Yes it wastes time, and is silly, and some may say a waste of time, however, it does all of the things i mentioned above (makes you laugh, makes a bad day a good day, and distracts you for a few moments)
Now Canadians are just catching onto this site. (Yes I know it has taken us a little while). Most people are still not understanding what it is all about.
The idea behind it is to send it our texts that you sent to other people and post them on the website. Then other people read them and have a chuckle about what you said. The posts are anonymous, other then the area code that you are from is show.
My friend Shaun and I have recently submitted our first post, and no I'm not going to tell you what one it is, other then it is a good one!!
The next time you are down in the dumps and needing a laugh, check out TFLN. Trust me it will brighten your day!
A few weeks ago I mentioned that there was a Temple Grandin movie that came out on HBO. Since that time Temple has gained a lot of outside awareness on her story and what she does for a living.
Temple really has revolutionized the way we handle animals, not only on the farm, but primary at feedlots, and slaughter plants.
I was tipped off about this article the Washington post. My favorite part is when she is talking about her current projects. Some pretty interesting stuff!
Although I love my job at Delta, I still wanted to keep doing some side event planning contracts on the side.
A couple of weeks ago my good friend Robyn suggested my name for a contract helping run and organize a miniature donkey show. Yes I know I have no experience with miniature donkey's, however, it is an Ag contract and I thought it would be great to expand my horizons beyond cattle and horses.Wednesday, I got thrown into the contract with a meeting about what I would be doing and a bit about the show. I am really excited about this project, and think it should be pretty fun along the way.
One of my first projects to complete is designing trail and jumping courses for the donkey's! In my previous days as a show jumper in Pony Club, I did my fair share of jumping courses. However, there ones are a bit different, with some classes only allowing them to jump 10". I will keep you posted along the way. The show is the end of July at Westerner Days in Red Deer. I'm expecting to get a few laughs along the way, and an eye opening experience.
VBH has easily became one of my favorite brands when it comes to purses and handbags. Most of their line is made out of some kind of animal skin. It ranges from stingrays to crock to lizards.
Now along with these comes a pretty hefty pricetag... But then again doesn't everything that I post on this blog!
Last week these purses were on one of my favorite websites GILT. They were regular $2500- $4500, but were on sale for $1250-2500. It really was a great deal if you have that kind of money to spend.
These will go into my wish books long with Louboutin shoes and a Victoria Beckham dress...
This weekend my best friend and guest blogger Bethan and I ventured out for a girls weekend. It was long overdue, and so we made the most of this trip!
We started Friday night heading to Calgary to celebrate a friends Birthday. We all loaded up and went to the Back Alley for a night of dancing and a few beverages. There was lots of laughs along the way, and it was a really fun night.
The next morning we ventured back onto the highway to head to Canmore. The Rapunzel Salon in Canmore was our destination for a Spa afternoon. We had 1 hour hot stone massages, pedicures, as well as having our hair and make-up done. It was a great way to relax and just have a fun weekend.Our next stop was the Delta Lodge in Kananaskis. Due to a wonderful employee discount we had some great food, and an amazing stay. We did not want to get out of bed to check out the next morning!On our way back to Olds, we kept seeing all of these people pulled over on the side of the road taking pictures. Now this is not an unusual scene while driving in the mountains, however, it was not deer and mountain goats they were taking pictures of, it was swans!
It turns out that there rare swans have made there home in the Rocky Mountains right now. No one really know why they are there, but we seen hundreds of them. It was really neat.
We had such a great time that we are now going to do this every 3 or 4 months. We have developed a rating system to find the best Delta and spa's. I think it should be a fun journey!
Now I know you are probably saying where are your pictures from the weekend!! Well... Bethan and I both forgot our cameras. So the pictures you are stuck with are some stock photos I found. I know, I was event told before I left not to forget my camera....
I hate babies breath. No if, ands, or buts about it. I think that it is cheap, tacky, ugly, and just plain wrong.
I have been know to be the girl when a bouquet of flowers, especially roses, come to the office or for a friend, i pull out all of the babies breath. It just looks so much better!
This morning as I was going through my blog roll I came across a blog about wedding flowers. I clicked to read to find myself in absolute disgust.
Take a look and see for yourself. Trust me you will never find this at any of my events, no matter how cool and trendy they think it is!
Marble Slab is easily one of my favorite places for a snack. About 3 years ago I was introduced to Marble Slab, and have not looked back. Marble Slab is a gourmet ice cream shop. There are over 20 different flavors of ice cream, along with over 20 different mixings for you to chose from. This leads to endless combination of awesomeness. Last night I went to Marble Slab for my first ice cream experience of the spring. I was welcomed to the goodness that I have come to love. My snack last night was a scoop of peanut butter and a scoop of chocolate swiss ice cream with chunks of cookie dough, and graham crackers. Healthy I know, but man was it good! This morning I found a little blurp on Marble Slab and who the company was created.
Marble Slab Creamery began its story in Houston, Texas in 1983. We started with an unusually high set of standards and a goal to bring the exquisite taste of fresh-made gourmet ice cream to fellow aficionados. This dedication led to our development of the now famous “frozen slab” technique for ice cream preparation. Today we have stores in 35 states, along with locations in Canada, Puerto Rico, and The United Arab Emirates.
With a chef-driven vision, we’ve made sure every batch of our super premium ice cream is created with loving care right in-store. We hand roll and bake our waffle cones on-site. For mixins, we offer some of the freshest fruits, the finest nuts, the sweetest candies and the most delicious cookies available. So whatever you order, you can be sure it’s fresh and filled with fabulous flavor.
The Marble Slab Creamery experience starts when you enter one of our stores and are immediately greeted by the aroma of our freshly-baked waffle cones, available in a variety of flavors ranging from Vanilla Cinnamon to Dark Chocolate with Butterfinger®.
Then comes the moment of choice—discovering which one of our delicious, homemade, ice cream flavors is perfect for you. Will it be a traditional favorite such as Sweet Cream, Chocolate Swiss or Strawberry? Or perhaps a more unique flavor like Cheesecake, Chocolate Amaretto or Butter Pecan?
Once your desired flavor has been selected, the magic begins. We scoop the ice cream onto a frozen marble slab, where your choice of fruits, nuts and candies, known as Marble Slab Creamery "mixins," will be skillfully blended in with the ice cream, then finally piled high on the delectable waffle cone of your choosing. The result is your very own, one-of-a-kind dessert. From there, repeat as desired, which will probably be often.
It isn’t just dessert. It’s the world’s freshest ice cream, made just the way you like it, just when you want it. Create your experience today.
I highly encourage you to stop in at Marble Slab next time you are near. But be warned... it is extremely addicting!
My good friend Nicole posted a new website that she is working on. I was pleasantly surprised to find a awesome website developed by Nicole and her 3 friends.
This website is all about food!! And who does not like food. It is reviews and recipes about the girls food adventures in Calgary.
I took a quick look today, and there are some great recipes and restaurants that I am dying to try now.
I wish Nicole the best of luck with her website and can't wait to keep reading about all of their amazing adventures!
A few weeks ago I announced that I would be having my first guest blogger! Well here is here first post.
You may have heard me talk about Bethan before. She is one of my best friends, and a young woman who as wisdom beyond her age. Hope you enjoy her points of view.
Kindness--
I can honestly say that I would never see myself as a being a guest blogger, but when my good friend Stacy asked me I jumped on the opportunity! It took me awhile to decide what to write on and it came to me as I was at school last week....
I am currently attending OldsCollege, I am married and I am quite a bit older than my classmates. I have tried to be as helpful to my classmates as I can throughout the year: explaining different aspects, or helping them with a question or even studying with some students that are struggling. I got asked the other day why I take the time to help others, doesn’t it slow me down and doesn’t it not allow me to finish my work as quickly? I am a very talkative person and at that moment I found myself dumbfounded, I didn’t really know what the person meant or how they wanted me to react.This got me thinking...
I do not think of myself when helping someone or even how they are slowing me down. I look at it as I help others and they help me. A lot of my classmates do not feel that they help me; they do not realize that it is a great feeling for me to help them. If I needed help I know someone will be there to help me, and even if it isn’t an action that I can explain, by allowing me to help them they have helped me. I like that kindness in contagious, if I show my kindness others may pass it on.
This quote says it best by Barbara De Angelis,
“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver.”
This takes me to a time when I needed help... I was about 2 hours away from home in the truck. I realized that I was low on fuel and was not going to make it home so I pulled into the gas station, I just put in 20 bucks enough gas to get home. I got the till and realized I didn’t have my wallet in my purse it was in the car, I knew exactly where it was. I explained the gas attendant my story and was curious if I called my husband if they could take his VISA number and charge the card for the gas I had already put in the truck. The gas attendant said it wouldn’t work and I was mortified at this time the man behind me stood forward and paid for my gas. I asked if I could get his address I would pay him back, he told me just to pay it forward.....
That man, which I never did even get a name from, had a huge impact on my life that day and from that day on. I didn’t make my life about creating these heart warming stories, but simply to just bring kindness into the world. If it is helping a student in class or just by sending a random text to a special friend or smiling and saying hello to a stranger. I don’t think there is anything bad about bringing happiness into the world.
Here is another quote to explain what I mean, by Leo Buscaglia,
“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”
So as I write this blog and you read it I hope that it has made you think twice about being kind to others. Here is a list of 10 simple acts of kindness maybe you could consider and may change someone’s life and not even realize it:
1.Send someone you care about a random message telling them you are thinking about them
2.Tip 100% for good service at a restaurant
3.Tell someone how much they mean to you
4.Smile and say hello to a stranger as you walk by
5.Let the person that is such a hurry behind you just go in front of you
6.Give your seat up to someone else in a public place
7.If you see someone elsein trouble...stop and help
8.Pay for the person behind you in line at Tim Horton’s
9.Send an random card to someone in the mail (everyone loves getting good mail)
10.Donate to a charity
11.Just Smile...it will spread and bring a smile to others around you.
I hope this blog leaves you with a perspective in life that being kind can make a difference. Anyone can make a difference in this world I will leave you with one final quote by Theodore Rubin,
“Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom.”
It is funny how your week can change in a matter of hours.
Yesterday, I was dead tired. I have a really poor sleep the night before, and was not looking forward to the week. I went home, made a good supper and went to bed before 7:00pm. I didn’t even stay up to watch the Finals of the NCAA Basketball!
Today I woke up and felt great. I am by no means a morning person, so for me to feel great in the morning is a rare occurrence. I have a quick drive to work and had a full day of stuff to accomplish.
Throughout the day I have had 3 fun and exciting things happen:
My old 4-H club has asked me to come back and do a showmanship and grooming demo and their mini-show. My last few years of 4-H were pretty touch and go. Our family helped out our clubs and the other clubs that we showed with a great deal, and were never really appreciated for doing it. So this was a huge surprise for me.
My mom got an email that she shared with me from my aunt Gaylene. My aunt shared how proud she was, and how proud my parents should be of me and what I was doing with my life. Gaylene talked about what a great job I had, how I had matured into a great young adult and how proud our whole family was of me
My great friend Robyn passed my name on for an Agriculture event planning job in July. It is one of 101 in 1001 to complete an agriculture event planning job, and so I am looking into this opportunity further. It seems like something that would be really fun to do!
I hope that everyone else’s Tuesday is going great as well, and that the rest of the week keeps on going just like this!!
Ah that day again. All I can say is I am glad that I am not home for Dad to play some dumb trick on me and have me fall for it as usual!!
Earlier this morning my sister shared a story about one April Fools. This is one of my favorite stories, however, there is another one that stands out.
Usually in April we still have a good foot of snow left, or we hope we do anyways. We had a friend that came and stayed over for the weekend. Dad ran downstairs and woke us girls up saying the house was on fire. We had no time and had to get out of the house as fast as possible!
We ran upstairs and out onto the snow, we just had enough time to grab some shoes and get out of there. So there we were in the foot of snow, and below 0 temperatures thinking that our house was burning down.
A few minutes (yes it took us that long) later we realized that Mom and Dad were not with us. They were still inside the burning house! As we looked a little closer, we seen dad sitting in his chair laughing at us as we stood outside freezing out butts off!
We stormed back in the house and not a second before we stepped foot in the door he yelled April Fools!!
This bathroom is a little to white for me but i love the mirrored vanity!
The first and third pictures where taken from music producer Simon Fuller's house. I think him and his wife have great taste.
