WHY I live in BC!!

My parents and I took the kids hiking today in Lynn Canyon in North Vancouver. GORGEOUS!! We went across the famous Capilano Suspension Bridge and hiked through the trails and down to the river. Just breathe taking. This is why I live in BC. You cannot get nature any better than this!!

And then we went to Bosa Foods and stocked up on the "essentials"!! hee hee LOVE it. Good day all around.

Ciao all.

Farewell for now...

...But not forever. That is to our dear friends the Glens. They are moving to Calgary. I am sad about this. I really don't allow that many people into my life. I always seem to get hurt... I don't know what it is about me. I must have SUCKER tatooed on my forehead because I seem to get the friends that use me and then leave me, and make ME feel bad - like I have somehow offended them or disappointed them or bored them and they just move on... But Sam and Christal have NEVER treated me this way. They have been nothing but kind and generous and oh soooo friendly - having meals together; dropping by and bringing baking with them; trading clothes from my Bella to her girls; sharing decorating secrets and shopping; going to movies; etc. etc! I have enjoyed each and every moment we have been able to have with them over these past years. Funny how you meet some people and just know immediately that you are going to get along. That was what it was like when I first met Sam and then later when he married Christal and I met her. I guess the one really bright spot in all of this is now I have a place to stay in Calgary when I come to visit!! Oh ya Christal - you KNOW I am coming to stay!! They have bought a beautiful house built in a community on a lake. Private parks and docks and beaches! Sounds like heaven to me. So I will be coming to visit. Get that basement finished - I expect my own suite!! hee hee

We love you guys and we wish nothing but happiness for you!! We will miss you. There is no denying that. Sam, what is Marc going to do without his movie buddy?? Who is going to show up at our house now on Sunday afternoons and stay for hours and yak with us??!! I had better stop before I just break down and cry.

So farewell for now my dear friends, but not forever.

What's up with Seattle??

I am trying to book a get away for my family for next week in Seattle. Do you THINK there are any available places?? Noooo!! Well, not for a good price anyways! Sure, there are tons of hotels at $220+ a night. Umm, no thanks. I am not going to Seattle to stay in a hotel. I am going so my kids can go to the Woodland Zoo and Pike Place Market and the Space Needle. I am going to do some shopping and walking around. I don't need to spend $$ on a deluxe place to sleep. Just need it CLEAN and SAFE. Really, is this too much to ask??

It was a long weekend...

Not so much the entire weekend, just yesterday (Sunday) really. It was one of those days where everything went wrong, and yet everything that went wrong was a blessing in disguise. Hard to explain, but here we go.

Came home from church and went to turn on the kitchen faucet to get some water and suddenly water started spewing everywhere! I mean EVERYWHERE. It was on the floor and ceiling... It was all over my wall and backsplash. My granite was soaked. My kitchen faucet died. Just died. And on a Sunday at 1 pm. Okay, now what?? My dad to the rescue. My dad is a certified plumber/electrician. He is a LIFE SAVER!! I called him over and he came and tried to fix my facuet. But alas, after much effort, it was no use. 2 years old, and dead. So for the rest of the day/night we had no working kitchen faucet. Do you know how many times a day I go to the kitchen sink?? It was quite the eye opener. So this morning off I went to Rona to buy a new faucet and spend $$$ that I did not want to spend. AND I didn't even get a sexy faucet. I just bought a Delta, utilitarian faucet. I was not going to spend $400+ on something that was much more exciting. Plus I think Marc would have had a heart attack if I would have spent that kind of money on something so unimportant.

But even though this was quite annoying, it was nothing that we could not handle, and my dad is the expert and he was able to do all the work. Just his time alone would have cost me close to $500 if I would have hired a plumber! So I know that Heavenly Father watches over us.

Then Marc's little car was giving him trouble on the way home from church. He said the choke was sticking and it was quite the harried ride home for him! So he just kind of parked his car in the middle of the alley and called his brother, who is a certified mechanic. AND who lives across the street from us! Oh ya. Sunday afternoon, here is Brian working on Marc's car, and again, blessing upon blessing. It was just a cable that was sticking and he sprayed it with some WD-40 and said that even if it has to be replaced, it is like a $10 part. Again, Brian's time alone was a few hundred dollars.

So on those days where I feel that I am being pushed too far, I look back and see exactly what I am being tested with, and realize that all my/our challenges are completely manageable. And completely within our scope of expertise. THAT is amazing. I am grateful for this life lesson. But I am tired. And I am ready for bed. hee hee

Ciao all

I am soooo out of the loop!

Hi all! Sorry, we got a nasty computer virus on the weekend and it has taken quite a few days to get it all sorted out. But I am back, and find myself quite out of the loop! Wow, the world really does not stop for you! ha ha

First of all, a HUGE congratulations to my darling friend Marina and her family on the birth of baby Nolan!! Yeah!! I told you Marina, EVERYONE needs to have a boy!! They bring a very different dynamic to the family. And the bond between mom and son is very special! You will just soooo enjoy having him in your family. And the girls will REALLY enjoy having a baby brother to boss around!! hee hee

Second, I have no idea where this past week has gone?? I only worked two days this week, but it seems like an eternity ago. My day yesterday was jammed packed with a birthday party for one of Bella's little gal pals and then I had an Arbonne party at my house last night. Cool stuff! And tonight we are out to a bbq and tomorrow my cousin Anthony and his girlfriend (whom I adore!!) are coming to dinner... It just seems I spent the first part of the week prepping for the last part of the week. And here it is. Where does time go??

Next week I only work a few days and then I am off until mid September. Financially, probably not a great move. Since I contract myself to the firm - no work = no pay. But I am tired. And I need to get the kids ready for school (I have serious shopping for clothing to do!! LOVE IT!!), and I need to get a schedule organized - Ethan's taekwondo time has to change - just not working for us anymore - and I need some time to work on this Emergency Fair that is coming up mid September, and I need some time to organize Ethan's 8th birthday party... So I will suck up the $$$ for some sanity. Pretty fair trade in my books! We will see, though, if I am singing the same tune come mid September...

Well, the kids and I have some errands to do and then we are off to see "Underdog". Looks really good. My kids have suddenly become movie theatre junkies. They like the whole experience. They take after their father. Thanks Marc. Just what I need - another two movie junkies in the house! Sigh.

Ciao all.

News regarding Manj...

MP was in court yesterday and Manj's sister was there. This is from the email she sent us:

To fill you all in on the details of what’s been going on…

1) MP’s older brother from Merritt and his wife are now putting an application forward for custody of Maya. They have retained ****** from Surrey as their counsel.
2) MP does not have a family lawyer nor does he have a criminal lawyer. ****** does not represent him anymore but has given him the names of a few other lawyers.
3) Suk’s bail has been reduced (amount unknown presently) and his curfew has been lifted. He is still not allowed to have any contact with Maya and is residing in Merritt.
4) Manj’s house is up for sale because they cannot get insurance for it. The legal registered owners are the only ones that can get insurance apparently. We don’t want them living in Manj’s house anyways so we are happy to have the house be sold.
5) The trial for the custody (of Maya) will continue in the second week of October.

This whole thing has been a mockery of justice, right from the very beginning. I am sick to my stomach.

Something is not right...

That is how I am feeling today. Something is not right with me... I feel a bit blue. Life is busy and I have many projects on the go (I have an Emergency Preparedness Fair to put on for 100 people in September; Ethan's 8th birthday for his friends and then our family; Ethan's baptism; and that is on top of Ethan going back to school and his new taekwondo schedule, and Isabella beginning her new year at pre-school and ballet and my work schedule having to change to accomodate all of this...), and things are not going well for the school we are 1/4 owners in (Marc is 1/4 owner and not equal quarters - low man on the totem pole - but deals with all the crap all the time...) and frankly, I feel a bit scared. I know that God does not give us burdens more than we can handle. But sometimes I am surprised at what He believes we CAN handle!! So I guess I need your prayers now. I need you to pray that I can have the strength to endure and the strength to get done all I need to do and be watched over and guided every step of the way. Me and my family.

My week of injuries in review...

It has been a rough week in the Officer household. Let's recap:

Monday: Ethan comes running down the stairs and slips on the new floor and cracks the back of his head on the floor. Half an hour later he comes to me and says that he does not remember what happened to him, and then he vomits. Okay... Time to head to the ER. Ethan has a minor concussion.

Wednesday: I am late for work and go running into the firm and fall down the flight of stairs that leads to our office. My too high heels caught on my wide leg cuff of my pants and I went tumbling. But it was all in slow motion - I could feel myself falling and I could do nothing about it. So I was swearing in Italian, both my knees and shins scraped down the metal staircase. Do you think that anyone came to see what was happening?? NOOOOO. I limp down to the office and one of the other lawyers comes out and asks if I hit my head. No. Then he asks if I am going to sue the firm. Ummm, NO. Thanks for that vote of confidence.

Sunday: I am late for church and Marc has already gone ahead of me and Ethan is camping with his grandparents and so it is just me and Isabella. Again, I turf it down the stairs and land on the same knee that I injured on Wednesday!! Ahhh. Needless to say, the left side of my body now is totally black and blue. Nice....

I am REALLY hoping this week will be better - and injury free!!

Ciao all.

Blast from the past

Marc was cleaning out Rubbermaid bins in the garage and came across this...

Taken for the front cover of the local newspaper - Grade 12. Hilarious!! The 8 of us were all totally best friends and we represent the Grad Committee and the Student Council. Marc was Student Council President and I was Grad Committee President. Can you find us in the pictures?? hee hee heee

Oh, and please take note: I was a fashion diva back then also! Everyone else is in jeans and what not. Not me! My shirt and shoes (dark green suede) came from California (my parents had gone to Santa Monica for a mini vacation and all I said to them was bring me back clothes!). And my pants were from Le Chateau. They were a cream coloured cotton mix pant with a waistband that had to fold over... Oh ya!

Addition to our Family

Of CARS that is! hee hee

Last night Marc picked up an '89 VW Fox. Totally cute. Fire engine red. In perfect condition. It does not have power anything but it does have a kick butt stereo system in it! Too funny. It is our new "beater" car for Marc to get around in. We have been married for 13 years and we have only ever had one car. Mind you, we have always had brand new cars - VWs only. Thank you very much. But with the kids at the ages they are at, life is too hectic now to have one vehicle. And with Marc working in Coquitlam and me in New West, all we do is commute. Not to mention adding on ballet and taekwondo and church committments and social committments... So I feel as though a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Now, the car needs a new clutch and something else to do with the CO2 filter (??), but we got it for a steal and so if another $500 has to go into the car, so be it. It is worth it. It is worth my sanity!! It is worth my time!! And the totally funny/karmatic part to this story - we have always named our cars. And our cars have all had "B" names - there was Betsy (Golf diesel), then Butch (Golf Turbo diesel), then Bella (Golf TDI), and now Babs (Jetta). Ethan asks the old owner of the car if the car has a name. The old owner blushes and says "Yes". Ethan asks what it is. She says "Bee"!! How great is that?!! We now have BEE!! Meant to be! hee hee

Ciao all