MAYBELLINE - MAKE UP STUDIO

MAYBELLINE - MAKE UP STUDIO
Join the MAybeline club, then upload your own photo, and start having fun with trying on the MAybeline pallet of colours to see how they look on your eyes, and mouth and skin... HAve fun...burn up some more time on the computer...

"The Creator"

Feature: The 20 Best iPod Utilities

Feature: The 20 Best iPod Utilities
Got an IPOD, but hate that you can't get music OFF of it? Read up on how to do it ...Lifehacker will tell you all about it using Ipoddler and Floola...

"The Creator"

Happy 70th Anniversary to Auntie MAry and Uncle Paul

Happy Anniversary Auntie Mary and Uncle Paul! This was taken the day after their wedding, 70 years ago... Pretty gorgeous couple , don't you think? I talked to Auntie yesterday and she said" too bad it snowed so much on their wedding!" They had a quiet anniversary, as Uncle wasn't too well, but he should be feeling better today after a pint or two of new blood.
It is a milestone we could all hope to achieve someday, and if we turned out half as nice as they are, we would still be very lucky people! Thanks Ed for sending me the copy of that beautiful photo! On a side note, Ed, I finally framed up some of those beautiful old black and white photos you sent of my family, in the old days... makes for a nice wall of memories to cherish. Thanks!







So sorry to my dear readers , for not posting a thing for a long time. I am a sick pup these days with one heck of a sinus cold that is ttrying to turn into a chest cold. My big fear is that it will turn into pneumonia...that is what my boss, Chris has...and he is very sick. His son and daughter also had or have it. I am trying to hang in there for two more days to keep things going for , then I have Sunday off. Yea! I am so far behind with everything that I am still writing out Christmas cards, s o don't feel offended if you don't get one just yet...it is on its way. No Christmas letter...


My blog will tell you all of what we did this past year, the highlight being our trip to Vegas to celebrate Correna's birthday, in August. Oh yes, it was my birthday too! So it was double fun for us in Vegas and especially wonderful was our trip to the Grand Canyon. Our other high spot was having our beautiful grand-daughters here for the month of August! With Emil's new boat, it was lots of water fun for everyone!

The low spot of the year was the loss of Emil's mom...she ws a courageous ,beautiful woman, who didn't deserve to spend her last years a prisoner in her own body. Our other loss, of course ,was our dear neighbour, Bill who was a good buddy to Emil. On a happy note, his daughter, Deb and her hubby , Ashley, moved into Bill's house, and they have become wonderful friends , whom we never got ot know, while Bill was alive. Funny how things like that happen.

Our other good friend ,Brian, passed away rather suddenly after being diagnosed with a brain tumour. We had a celebration of his life at our Stan ALi golf tournament which ws held up in our neck of the woods for a change. We hosted it and at the same time had a nice memorial for Brian, who would have normally been golfing with us. Through many many donations from everyone, and numerous kind businesses in Nelson, we raised almost $1200.00 for Cancer research in Kelowna. The bright side was the three days when everyone gathered and camped out on our property, before and after the golf tournament. It was another grand yearly gathering of the Reese's Pieces and all of our/their friends!

The latest bout of celebrations have been for Emil, my sweety , who is definately going to retire on December 31st! Yahoo! We'll do the big party for him on the July long week-end, so keep it open and pencil us in for a lot of boating fun, and a big BBQ and what? Another PARTY of course! Emil will be well rested and up for some fun and visits from everyone! So have a great Christmas and a A HAppy 2008. It won't be the same without our kidlets this year, but maybe next, we can plan for a festive time in a hot country, altogether....and speaking of a hot country... oh---I'll tell you all about it, next time!

Happy, Sniff, Holidays!!!!








"The Creator"

Emil's new Toy

Well, there was plenty of snow when we woke up this morning.. Once he got it all going, there was no stopping him!

He'll be back at it Sunday morning, as it was once again snowing tonight.
Emil and I did a couple of "20's " in the hot-tub while the flakes were swirling around in the wind... and where did that come from?

My Frosty the snowman out front got a little heavy with snow and it caused him to topple over , carrot first into the snow. Part of his problem was that a tether had come unhitched... good thing he wasn't filled with helium!

So, it was a slightly accomplished day. I cleaned and vacuumed and did some laundry, then I finished my wrapping and have a box ready to be shipped out to the kids...Just waiting for two more things...but if they aren't here on Tuesday, then it will be adios for the parcel or it won't ever arrive by Christmas.
My back was still achy this morning from who knows what...maybe packing two huge bags of garbage from the back to the front, the other day. Emil's back was sore by the time he finished all the snow, the reason for the hot-tub tonight. Now it seems like I have instantly caught a sore throat /sinus thing. Looks like it is even worse since I drank a neo citran... I hope it isn't Strep Throat, like Annette caught!
Might be time to hit the hay after this long day. I have to admit that I had a very good sleep last night. It is good to have Emil home again after being away for most of the previous month. He returned on Friday from his LAST road trip! Yippey KAY Yea!
The reality that he will be home 24-7 is slowly sinking in, but I guess we will have to live it ourselves before we know what it is all about. In the meantime, I'll continue to work! It should save my sanity!
Nighty night and have a great Sunday!


"The Creator"

The Best Kept Secret - Toronto's Resource for Women 40+

The Best Kept Secret - Toronto's Resource for Women 40+
I thought there were some interesting topics here for women over forty...that would be meeeeee!

"The Creator"

Holiday Train

Here she is.... going by lickedy split this morning..while it was still dark out. My camera had a hard time catching the shot, as you notice that I missed the locamotive.

It was a colourful site coming down the tracks at 6:45 or so... All trains should be lit up like this... probably there would be fewer collisions !


Thats Bonnie in the corner trying to snap a pic. Her camera never got even one. The train was gallopping along at quite a speed!


"The Creator"

Signature Cocktail

hmmmm...Lets see, for me that would be the jello shooters... just joking... here is a good idea... just find one great recipe and make it yours for a door greeter when you entertain... I love the idea and might have to work on a fab creation this Xmas season to be ready for the big New Years Eve party. Check this website out for lots of Seasonal PArty hints.
"The Creator"

Shrimp Ring 101

Shrimp Ring 101

And don't forget the Shrimp Ring...It is still the most popular nibble at a party and here is a website that tells you how to make it and make the Seafood sauce to go with it. Bon Appetit!


"The Creator"

A little touch of Christmas

The deer are lit up with joy

The snowmen are carolling

Not nearly so impressive with the flash

Decorated the tree, and look who's in the Christmas ball!
Time for tea. I got the rest of my lights up ,could do ( Emil gets to do the ones around the roof!)
Now it looks like it is time for bed... I am tired tonight for some reason... oh yes, Emil was up at 5:00 or so to get ready to go to Cranbrook. This is his LAST road trip before he retires...Yahoo! He is counting down the days now!
We are looking forward to a different lifestyle, that is for sure!
Have a good night...

Beautiful day on Saturday

How is this for a glorious Saturday in the Kootenays?

Soleil, making herself at home in the brown paper.Today was productive, all in all...did a little cleaning, then decorated the mantle, the top of my china cabinet, and even got the fake deer out in the front yard and the snowman family blow-ups... I still want to put the lights on my maple tree and Emil seems to be thinking about Xmas lights for the house... perhaps next week-end. I love when everything is decorated up, but sometimes it helps to have a helper.Emil put up our tree and I decorated it. Oh, yes, I put some garlands on the ledge behind the couch and decorated it all with lights and various angels and snowmen and odds and sods of decorations, including the tin icicles that Correna gave me last year. They are too funny...thin little twisted pieces of shiny tin, that hang as an icicle,about seven inches long...very cool indeed, but I think the cat has already launched a few icicle missiles onto the floor!
The house, at least looks Christmassy...now to continue with my other ten jobs! I did recieve the partylite, with the exception of the tapers,and a few styles of votive holders. With luck , they will arrive this week. The Epicure Spices also came ,as did Second NAture products. I have delivered some and now, await the Pampered chef stuff. UPS says it is on its way, s o perhaps early this week. It would be nice to get it all delivered, for sure!

Well, I think it is half past my bedtime, and I am half past tired. I got a lot done today, but now my baby finger is aching like heck from the arthritis in there...time for an advil.


My White bear family grew by two this year

The tree got decorated by about ten tonight... all good, as it looks beautiful in its red and gold theme.

Silky thinks the tree skirt is a bed just for her!

My mantle...

More of beautiful Saturday...














"The Creator"

Mataya's Baby shower

On Saturday afternoon, the gathering for Mayata's baby shower turned out very nice indeed.
In the above photo, Phoebe is wanting to give the knitted baby blanket a touch. It looked so beautiful. Jorge's mom, seen holding it up, is the one who did the fancy knitting to make the blanket for her future grandbaby.The theory is that it is a boy, so you guessed it...most all of her gifts came in the colour blue!

Mataya is chcukling over Lori's gift of a Reba tape...something she always used to want to watch... Reba and her family... Now Mataya will be making her own little family!

Aren't these the cutest? teeny weeny cowboy boots ! That was one of many teeny sized pairs of shoes that Baby X received.

Here is Mataya and her cousins... the fat tummy vs the flat tummies!!
That is Jami, second in line, followed by Kendal, Chris and Kim... Cute eh? So , do you think there is a baby boy in there?

It was good to see Ronda and John and Mathew, and of course, MAtaya... Jami has long hair now and looked terrific too. We had some good laughs,all in all. The one thing is that the L. family makes you feel like one of them...and they are one big happy family. We ate until we were stuffed, and then inhaled the lovely cheesecakes. Kim made a delicious lemon one that was to die for... I ate a slab of that and savoured it all the way home!

John and Ronda popped over this morning for a coffee before they left back to Vernon, so that was nice... The snow was starting to flutter down,s o they decided to head home before the roads turned ugly.

Welcome to SeatGuru! Your Guide to Airplane Seats and In-flight Amenities

Welcome to SeatGuru! Your Guide to Airplane Seats and In-flight Amenities
Ever wonder which are the best seats to book ,when you fly. This sight lists the various airlines and the planes and the best seats... Check it out before you fly again.

New Photos

An old friend of ours, Joanne...AKA Ruby..Looks like she's gone to the birds! Taken on the Hawaian Islands somewhere during a recent Cruise. Her hubby is a cruise specialist with Cruise Ship Centres

Trina, Annette's friend with her new baby, Bradley

My clean baby, Silky, after her bath on Sunday.


Oh my...the ice age has descended upon us. Finally the roads get ploughed and then the remaining slop turned to an ice rink. Silky took me for a walk tonight and I took a skid and fell and hurt my pride... nothing too damaged.. I'll let you know tomorrow.

So Ronda has always been telling me about Korma Chicken , and one day on my travels through the President's Choice store, I found myself a jar of Presiden's Choice Korma Chicken sauce. So... last night, being that I was eating alone, I decided to crack open the jar and give it a taste... not so bad after all. I cut up my chicken, floured it and then browned it in some oil in the pressure cooker with some chopped cooking onion. After the chicken was nice and brown, I dumped in about half of the Korma sauce, and added a little more water, then put it on to cook in the pressure cooker.. for ten minutes once it was brought up to pressure. I cooled off the cooker and opened it up and the aroma was divine! While it had been cooking , I chopped up some red and green pepppers, some mushrooms, celery and carrots and cauliflower. I added all the veggies, and the remainder of the jar of Korma sauce and a little more water, then I replaced the lid and let it simmer for ten minutes until the veggies were just cooked to a crunch stage.

I served it over rice ( to myself) and savoured every bite! I must say it was tasty, but not at all spicey. Next time I might add a few red pepper flakes to give it a little more zing! There are plenty of Korma recipes if you google it, but it seemed like the reviews were mixed for each one, and almost in every case, the reviewer said it didn't taste like the real stuff you get in Indian restaurants. The sauce always was made with something creamy...either buttermilk, coconut milk, light cream, or yogurt...hence the delicious mellow flavour that makes you want to eat another helping. Anyhow, I'd recommend the Korma sauce ,particularly if you are in a hurry. With chicken breasts , it would cook very quickly and any combo of veggies,including zuccini, could be used. Deb, served up a variation of it for dinenr on Sunday night and served with warmed Naan bread... that was also very yummy...Thanks again Debbie, for the much appreciated dinner after shovelling snow forever!

Have you had enough requests for donations and subscription renewals lately? I just whittled my way through a pile of mail about a foot high and came up with ten serious things to file. The rest hit the recycle.. a whole pail full of it now.Wow, every organization is out for your Christmas buck, thats for sure.
Time to carry on here...some serious sleeping to do....and I thought I'd wrap presents... I did the mail instead.
Oh yes here is another link to some fab fabrics, especially of the outdoor types. Check out their sale items at Textile Outfitters, located in Calgary.

S'now place like home

This is what it looked like on Sunday morning...before it actually started to snow much...

It just kept on all day

I shovelled once, then I shovelled twice

Then I shovelled again before bed. Good thing, as it warmed up and slushed out another two inches of goop overnight. I shovelled that last night... One could hardly push it...so heavy. Our Mugo pines, in the lower part of the photo above ,were so weighted down with snow , they became flarttened to the ground! I tried to shake off some of them last night so their branches wouldn't break. We had two power outages early Monday am... I was wondering how I was going to get my car out of the garage! It came back on, which was a good thing.
Well, I better head to work. I think people are stating to be in the Xmas mood.
PS.
I had a note from PAmpered Chef and 2nd NAture, that both have been shipped... I'll calll or deliver when it arrives... Love ya...hope you aren't getting flooded out... It is supposed to warm right up today.

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Bidz.com - Online Jewelry Auctions. Shop for diamond jewelry, engagement rings, designer watches, and much more.

Bidz.com - Online Jewelry Auctions. Shop for diamond jewelry, engagement rings, designer watches, and much more.

I take no responsibility for anyone going to the Bidz.com website and spending a bunch o'loot! This looks like an awesome jewellery site...All you need is patience and a little luck...but first you have to register...then go crazy! Check for shipping to your location, before bidding...but it looks like most shipping is by UPS and isn't bad if you choose ground, rather than express. Good Luck...

Our Snow...

From the bedroom deck,this morning

Note the blue sky...It was pleasant for a good part of the day, despite the chill factor.


Looked pretty pleasant this morning, after a good dump of snow yesterday.
Fortunately, it wasn't enough to make the roads too mucky, just lumps of ice here and there... Our road out here still isn't plowed. Okey, I'd love to yap, but I am starved...10:00 and still no dinner...
I was talking to Sonia and Annette... there is a big open house at Annette's Van City Location, with lots of Prizes, so go see her , if you are in Victoria. It is the little hidden Credit Union somewhere up past the MacDonald's.


Meanwhile, Sonia did have to take charge and evacuate her building after the fire bells went off yesterday. Like she said... if you smell smoke...somewhere there is fire. Turned out to be a small explosion in a business under and behind their office.
Doesn't that just boost your confidence in the Provincial Emergency system? Luckily they have a secondary sight that can be set up in minutes where the whole operation can run from.
Two days into her new position as Super, and she has to deal with a fire in the building!
There was no serious damage and no one was injured, but it was a good wake -up call. When the alarms go off, get everyone out of the building...and that is what Sonia did. Way to go girl! Maybe she will get another promotion!

Have to try for an earlier bedtime tonight! I ws up late getting all of the PAmpered chef and Epicure stuff in order to mail away... and it went off today by Express post. With good luck, it should be back in time for Christmas parties!

Oh yes, it was the big win for Chris and I at work today...$10.00 on the 649 and $10.00 on Super Seven, plus a free play! Yahooo... So we celebrated with capacinos! Took me till Wednesday to check the tickets, but hey, it all turned out good... to the food now!

World Clock

World Clock
Check this out and then go on to do the Life Expectancy calculator found in my post below...

Life Expectancy Calculator

Life Expectancy Calculator
My cousin Mildred or her hubby Phil sent this to me... a calculator to see how long you'll live and how old you are virtually... You have to do the questionaire to get the answer .

.... Says I'm 42 and I'll live to be over 90.... believe it or not...so it made me feel good because I sort of feel like I am a hundred and forty -two...but if they say I am virtually 42, then that is ok by me... My blood pressure is awesome and I eat three meals a day which counts for something.... Yeah, yeah, my big butt!
...although, on the questionaire, eating three meals a day lowered your virtual age.

In fact, once you answer the questions, you feel terrific, unless you are some lazy fat-butted McDonalds freak who drives a MACK truck for a living, while he smokes a pack a day and drinks four or five gallons of coffee each day.
Wait a minute, I feel a little pain in the neck coming along...
I better redo the questionaire.

Ok, enough dilly dally or in Spanish...Basta Ya!

I am going to complete the Pampered Chef order and the Epicure orders tonight , now that I have them all...and mail them off tomorrow. The Partylite orders will be submitted tomorrow and so, with all good luck, everything should arrive in time for Christmas!

And speaking of Christmas, it looks like Christmas is a coming outside... a good six inches of snow! Silky is in her glory , playing SNO-Mole...her own game of burrowing her head into the snow, pretending she is hot on the trail of a rodent just seconds ahead of her nose! Have a good night... I'm freezing cold and need tea... Love ya all...

Party Success

\
Can't you tell we had some delightful fun today! Lynn, was a gem to help me get all the food prepared..thank-you thank-you, thank-you! I couldn't have done it without you! A huge thank-you to every last of my dear friends who came out on this beautiful day to my Partylite party... Of course it didn't stop there! We finally all got to meet our newest neighbour, Alissa... who, unfortuneately, has her eyes closed in the bottom photo, but is there, next to Bonnie,( our other neighbour to the west of us.) It turns out that Alissa likes to fish, and her and her hubby makes wine, so they will blend right into our neighbourhood... Nice to finally meet her.

And the funny thing that happened is a lady came to my door today, who said... "You don't know me, but...Connie said you were having a candle party..." So we met Doreen today... She lives on the Harrop hall side of the peublo.

Joyce brought Connie M., and Anne popped in for awhile and chatted it up with Elli.
Leah our newest Partylite consultant, did an awesome job,despite not being well these days...
and my sweet Phoebe, brought her neighbour , Mary... thanks Phoebe... and its good to hear that Mary and her hubby have moved here totally now, from Manitoba... they are on a huge property next to Phoebe and Ron...Mary's hubby is turning the grounds into a park. He is building five huge ponds on the property. It should be spectacular once it is all done!

Even Ron, popped in, and had a glass of wine when he came ot pick up Phoebe.. and guess what... Phoebe gave me a beautiful card and a pretty treasure...just to say that enjoys the old bloggy... so to Phoebe... thank-you so much.... I try to get a few words in a few times a week, and if it makes just one person's day shine a little brighter,then I am happy for that! I apologize for not being here every day.


So did you hear that Martha Stewart's mom passed away? Martha was going to have her cremated at 5000 * for 20 minutes...

Sort of a sickie, but it made me smile!


Here are the two Sues... both getting all geared up for Cross country skiing...

Leah and Sue's friend, another ski buddy... Pearl...

Joyce was kind enough to bring Connie...whom I hadn't seen for a long time... so that was fun... They enjoyed a non-alcoholic beverage...some kind of new Peach product, that they said was yummy... from Longueville... where ever that is...( made for Loblaws!)

Our neighbour Bonnie, on the left and our new neighbour, Alissa on the right... Nice to finally meet up.


I must say, I am ready for my beddy now... eyes and brains can't think. Thanks to all who came and made orders from Partylite, PAmpered Chef, Epicure Spices, and 2nd NAture... It was fun..

And thanks to my neighbour , Deb for coming over. We were sad to hear that they had to put down their beautiful big yellow lab,after it attacked her hubby,leaving four big puncture wounds on his wrist. Ashley ,himself, hated to do it, but felt he couldn't trust the dog anymore... too bad. All because the dog wandered off and found a big bone of some animal, then wouldn't give it up. When Deb finally told the dog to drop the bone, the dog did, but turned right around and jumped on Ashley and bit him on the wirst. Debbie had to kick the dog off Ashley. Scary huh?

Sad things happen when a doggey is on its own out here in the hinterland...


Here is the yummy cream cheese dip recipe that Lynn asked for after I made it for the party and everyone loved... Still not too late to order the Red pepper Jelly and the 3 onion spice dip!

1 pkg. regular or lite cream cheese
1 Tbsp. Victoria Epicure 3 onion dip mix
1/4 cup VE Red Pepper Jelly
1 tbsp VE Red Bell Pepper spice, combined with 1 TBSP hot water ( optional)
Blend until smooth. Use as a bagel spread , or on pumpernickel, celery, cherry tomatoes, crackers, cucumber wheels, sliced peppers, or for stuffing Jalapeno peppers. You could also form it into a ball and roll in VE parsley for a cheese ball.







"The Creator"