Y Neighbours Sale

A month ago, my good friend Anita asked if I wanted to share a table at the Y-Neighbours sale. (A local children's toy and clothing garage sale)

Since I had a basement full of toys and a storage room full of too small clothes - I eagerly agreed.

Unfortunatly the past few weeks have been hectic and stressful, so I didn't have a chance to get everything together until I got home from work last night at 10:00pm.

With only 9 hours before the sale - I was a bit rushed to say the least. However I managed to get a few boxes full of clothes and toys together.

I sat at the sale table for 3 hours this morning - and made over $150.00!!! WOOHOO!!

I am *totally* doing this again in the Spring with all of the too small summer clothes we have.

Thanks for the great idea Anita!!

Now - I must run. I am hosting a Girl's Night tonight and I have 40 minutes to tidy my house!

Canada Contests

A friend told me about the Canada Contests Yahoo Group in August. She had joined in the Spring and was winning contests left right and central. (Movie passes, gift cards, etc.)

So- I figured, what do I have to lose? And registered myself. I receive daily emails of contests going on that are open to Canadians. I downloaded "Roboform" which stores my information and fills out the entries with the click of the mouse.

I spend about 15 minutes a day entering contests .. and I've won twice in the past week.

1- Grill from Quick and Simple Magazine
2- Pet Prize Pack from Modern Dog Magazine (no, I don't have a dog, but my Mom is happy LOL!)

So - I urge you to sign up for this Yahoo Group, it's a great way to win!

Sarah

Try This!!

This is a new recipe that I tried and loved!! Even Allan requested I make it again soon.

Bruschetta Chicken Bake

1 can (19fl oz) stewed tomatoes, undrained
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pkg. stove top stuffing for chicken
1 1/2lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite sized peices
1 tsp. dried basil leaves (we didn't have this)
1 cup mozzzerella cheese shredded
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.

Place tomatoes with liquid in medium bowl. Add garlic and stuffing mix. Stir, just until stuffing mix is moistened. Set aside.

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper to season

Place chicken in 13x9-inch baking dish; sprinkle with basil and cheese. Top with stuffing mixture.

Bake 30 min. or until chicken is cooked through

Enjoy!!!

If you try this recipe - let me know what you think!

*GROAN*

Why does something always come up just when you manage to get your loans paid off??

The brakes on the car went today. With no warning either. Sunday they groaned a bit, today they are officially crapped out. They sound *horrible*. Sigh .. off to the car doctor we go.

You're Welcome

I went through the girl's drawers today and took out all of their tank tops, sleeveless shirts, shorts, etc. I didn't put them far, but I wanted to make room for their fall clothes. And since there was frost on the cars the other morning - I think it's time to bring out the sweaters.

So- tomorrow when it is +32 and I have to pull the clothes back down from the top shelf of the closets , you can thank me for the warm weather that Mother Nature threw our way just to spite me.

:P

Ballet/Tap/Jazz

Today was Madison's first dance class of the season. She is going to a new studio, Royal Dance South. It's nice and close and we went to Royal Dance at the Forks her first year of dance and were very pleased with the program.

She is in a ballet/tap/jazz combo class and she just loves it. She is also starting to really develop a taste for music. She always wants her CD player on ... and LOUD!

Her favourite song is Get Your Fash'on by Fannypack. (The jingle from the Old Navy commercial.) It is driving me crazy - but she LOVES it. I will try and get a video of her dancing to it.

Here is a link to the song so you can see what she tortures me with ;)

Click on LISTEN beside FannyPack Fash'On ...

Madison's Favourite Song

Videos

Just a few videos of Madison and Annika taken yesterday.





Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing


Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing

Kindergarten Pictures

**Sniff** Madison is now a Kindergartener!!!

Today was Madison's first day of Kindergarten. She went for an hour to meet her teacher and do a few activities.

First, let me say that the classroom is *huge*! I have never seen such a big classroom. The Kindergarten class has it's own hallway, it's own bathrooms outside of the class, as well as two bathrooms inside the class, it's own fenced playground, all for 18 children!

In the classroom they have art centers, tables, a jungle gym, the list goes on. It is very impressive!

Her teacher is very kind and inviting, Madison warmed up to her right away. And those who know Madison, know this isn't always the case. She can be quite shy and reserved.

Madison has two of her closest friends, Kaylyn and Callie, in her class. She also knows about half of the class from daycare or dance.

And, so far so good, she is the only Madison in Kindergarten. There isn't even a Madison in the morning Kindergarten class. There are 3 Sierra's though! (2 in the afternoon, one in the morning.) I had no idea Sierra was such a popular name!

Tomorrow and Friday Madison goes for 1 hour with half of the class, same thing on Monday. Then Tuesday is the first official day.

They have phys. ed three days a week and music twice a week. I am quite impressed :)

Enjoy the photos!!

~Sarah

Annika's First Day!!

Ok, not really, but she was feeling left out that Madison had a big "first day" (those pics are yet to come!) so we took pictures of her before she left for daycare. I think she looks so grown up, definitely older than 27 months!! But she is tall, that's for sure. She's wearing size 3T and size 9 shoes.

Misc. Pictures from September 06

Madison and Annika washing the car. September 4th '06

Daddy came home from Saskatoon and the car was a mess. Madison and Annika decided to help Dad wash the car.

The Devil Wears Prada

Last night I went to see The Devil Wears Prada. I'd been wanting to see the movie since it first hit the theaters but with Allan being out of town all summer, I never got the chance.

Well, when I noticed it had hit the "cheap theaters" I knew it was time, so I called up a friend and we went last night.

Great movie!! I really enjoyed it. The movie is about dealing with a horrible, demanding boss and how your personal life can suffer. How far do you want to go, to get ahead? Being about a high fashion magazine publisher and her assistant, quite a few names were dropped. It was fun to see how many I knew. LOL!! I also walked out of the theater with a need to hit the Magnificent Mile in Chicago LOL!

If you're in the mood for a funny chick flick, check it out!

Trifle

I received this in email, thought I'd throw it on the blog ..

10 LAYERS OF YOU

LAYER ONE:
ON THE OUTSIDE
Name: Sarah
Birth date: June 27th 1982
Current Location: Winnipeg, MB
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Red
Righty or Lefty: Righty
Zodiac Sign: Cancer

LAYER TWO:
ON THE INSIDE
Your Heritage: Welsh and Polish
Your fears: Violence
Your weakness: Chocolate
Your perfect pizza: Meat lovers
Goal you'd like to achieve: Obtain my driver's licence

LAYER THREE:
YESTERDAY, TODAY, TOMORROW:
Your thoughts first waking up: Already??
Your best physical feature: My eyes.
Your bedtime: 10ish if I work days, midnight if I work evenings.
Your most missed memory: Being a hop, skip and a jump away from family.

LAYER FOUR:
YOUR PICK:
Pepsi or Coke: Coke
McDonald's or Burger King: McDonald's
Single or group dates: Like both
Adidas or Nike: Nike
Lipton Tea or Nestea: Neither
Chocolate or vanilla: Chocolate
Cappuccino or coffee: Cappuccino

LAYER FIVE:
DO YOU?
Cuss: Not often, but yes.
Take a shower: Uh - yah. I prefer long soaks in the tub.
Have a crush: Does my husband count?? Or Mark Ruffalo?? ;)
Like(d) school: Usually.
Believe in yourself: Yes
Think you're a health freak: No.

LAYER SIX:
IN THE PAST MONTH
Drank alcohol: Yes. Had a rye and coke on Friday and Candy Apple martinis the Sunday before that.
Gone to the mall: Yes, to exchange some shoes I bought Madison at Gymboree.
Been on stage: No.
Eaten Sushi: Three times!
Gone skating: Not even in the past year!
Dyed your hair: Nope, not since last Christmas.

LAYER SEVEN:
HAVE YOU EVER
Gotten beaten up: Nope
Changed who you were to fit in: Maybe tweaked ;)

LAYER EIGHT:
GETTING OLD
Age your hoping to be married: I was 18.
Age you plan to retire: 40?? ;) Lets aim for 60.
Where do you want to spend the rest of your life? B.C.

LAYER NINE:
WHAT WERE YOU DOING1 MINUTE AGO: This
1 HOUR AGO: Watching Devil Wears Prada with Rebecca at the theater.
1 WEEK AGO: Missing Allan and Madison, and sleeping.
1 YEAR AGO: Visiting with my MIL Joan, Allan was out of town for University.

LAYER TEN:
FINISH THE SENTENCE
I LOVE: My family.
I FEEL: Content.
I HATE: Bugs.
I HIDE: In the closet when I play hide and seek with Madison.
I MISS: my Mom.
I NEED: to lose 40 pounds.

1 down ... 24 to go!!

I am doing a Christmas Weight Loss Challenge with some friends on a message board I visit. The goal is to stay active, eat well and eat less for the 18 weeks leading up to Christmas.

My personal goal is to lose 25 pounds by December 25th. (To gain them back between Dec. 25 and January 1st I'm sure LOL!!)

Week one has come to an end and I am down 1 pound. My goal for the week was to eat less, and I did.

Now, on to week 2. My goal is to continue eating less and to make healthy choices while I am at it.

So, wish me luck and tune in next Sunday to see how I've done ;)

End of week 1 (17 more to go) total weight loss: 1 pound (24 more to go).

Cheers!!

Ahh .. I sit down at the keyboard with a rye and coke and offer a "Cheers" to everyone who has made it through the summer.

For us it has been ...

60 days of waking up at 5:30am, getting the girls up, dressed and fed, walking them to daycare, walking to the bus stop and making it to work for 8:00am.

60 days of working with the day team at work and the unique frustrations and expectations that brings.

60 days of getting on the bus at 4:30 and anxiously checking the time as the bus crawls through the traffic on Pembina where a three lane highway is cut down to one lane during rush hour for construction.

60 days of getting of the bus, walking to the daycare, picking up the girls and walking home.

60 days of making dinner for two girls who don't eat a bite.

60 days of playing outside after dinner.

60 days of helping the girls learn to ride their bikes.

60 days of cuddling in front of Treehouse TV after bathtime.

60 days of reading bedtime stories to two tired girls who want 'just one more'.

60 days of bedtime hugs and kisses.

60 days of not sharing the bed and sprawling out each night.

Ahh .. summer has come to an end. It is September 1st.

What a challenging, yet wonderful summer it has been!!!!

Cheers!

Madison spent Sunday-Wednesday at Granny & Grandpa's cabin at Manitou Beach.

As you can see, it wasn't much of a vacation. :P

Madison's Vacation

A to Z

I was sent this survey to include in my blog .. so here goes :)

Getting To Know Me ... A to Z

A - Age: 24
B - Band listening to right now: I can't recall the name of the band, but it's the "Hey Good Lookin'" song from the Zellers commercial.
C - Career: Customer Service Supervisor
D - Drink or smoke: Drink on occassion.
E - Easiest person/s to talk to: Allan and Anita
F - Favorite song/s at the moment: Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield
G - Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms: Neither
J - Junk foods you like: Anything chocolate
L - Longest car ride ever: Coming home from Regina
M - My favorite Sport/s: Soccer, Baseball, Football
N - Number of relationships you've had: Hard to define, I've had a lot of "relationships" in my life. Friends, co-workers, etc....
O - One wish you have: My family to live long, happy lives.
P - Phobias: Bugs
Q - Favorite Quote: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but the number of moments that take our breath away
R - Reason to smile: My husband, my children.
S- Song: I Hope You'll Dance
T- Time you woke up: 8:00am (which is considered sleeping in in this household!)
U - Unknown fact about you: I want a tattoo
V - Vegetable/fruit you hate: Onions
W - Worst habit: Eating out of boredom/compulsive shopper.
X - X-rays you've had: wrist, knee and MRI
Y- Yummy food/s: Vegetable Tempora, TNT Rolls
Z- Zodiac sign: Cancer

Save The Ta-tas!

I ran across a really cute site the other day. The website is called "Save The Ta-Tas" and is all about promoting celebrating women and helping to find a cure for breast cancer.

My only complaint is that only 5% of the proceeds go towards breast cancer research. Personally I would choose to donate a larger amount, but it's better than nothing, right?

I think these tops would be perfect for CIBC Run For A Cure!!