and now...a long, overdue update...

Would you look at that....it's November! Where the heck did October go??? It's been a busy month, full of fun both big and little....and of course, the day to day excitement of work, gym and the start of the NHL season!

Anyway....here are a few pics of some of what i've been up to in the last month. My friend Sue and I went to Whistler for the Thanksgiving long weekend. I have a facebook album with many more pics, which most of you have seen i'm sure...but here are a few highlights from the weekend....we spent our time riding the new Peak to Peak gondola, which connects the Whistler and Blackcomb peaks, and did some great hiking, taking in the amazing views. And of course, the Olympic spirit is everywhere!

The other main excitement of this month revolved around concerts....one band many people haven't heard of, and one band EVERYONE has heard of!

First...the David Crowder Band came to Abbotsford and 3 friends and i went to the show. These 2 pics are in the wrong order...but the point is that the concert was AMAZING! The other point is that someone randomly gave us wristbands as we stood in line, and so we got to meet the band and get autographs after the show!!

And...........then U2 came to Vancouver, and the Black Eyed Peas opened the show!! By no means did Pammer and I spend big money on tickets....so we were waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyy far away...but really, it's all about the experience! And they have big screens anyway, so you can still see the band...lol! Anyway the show was great, my ears were ringing for hours, and it was awesome to see so many people packed in to BC Place!

This was when they told everybody to pull out their cell phones...it looked pretty cool

There are some of my October highlights...keep scrolling to check out some of the amazing fall colours that have graced the lower mainland this month!

the fabulous colours of fall

The weather was nice for a good part of October...and brought out some amazing colours on the trees. Here are some of my favourite shots from some of my favourite parks around Abbotsford and Langley...enjoy the colours!!

ok so this one isn't really very 'fall-like'...but i've wanted to take a picture of this barn for YEARS...i don't know why i think it's so cool, but i like it...and especially the canadian flag painted on the front...!!

August and September

Finally....a long, long, long overdue blog post....be forewarned...this could be lengthy!! Summer was really really busy...hence the lack of posting, but not lack of picture taking!! Hard to believe it's almost the end of September already, but as long as the sunshine holds out a bit longer before the rain arrives and sets up camp, i will be a happy girl!!

So, what follows is a summary of summer since my trip to Winnipeg at the beginning of August.....I have tried to be very selective with my photos, just to give you a sampling of my adventures, and to not make this the longest blog post in history!!

Back in mid-Aug, Pammer and I went to Vancouver to celebrate Jen's bday. We did what we normally do when we stay with Mike and Jen...ate good food, stayed up late, played games, and made waffles for breakfast!! Here's the birthday girl with her late night ice-cream cake (no calories after midnight, right??!!)
And the birthday waffles the next morning!

Tagged on to the weekend of birthday fun was a somewhat nostalgic experience...Matt Epp, who i worked at camp with, back in the late '90s, is now a real-live-touring-musician, and was playing a show in Vancouver. Pammer and I went to check out his show, at Cocoa Nymph cafe, which is a cool litte venue, at which you can indulge in chocolate, ice cream and red wine, while enjoying the show...now that is a concert atmosphere i can get used to! I hadn't seen Matt, well, since those camp days...so about 11 yrs or so ago... but it was great to see him. He's a pretty talented musician (and check out that beard!!!!)

The following weekend (we are now at the end of August) 3 friends from work and I went over to Bowen Island for the weekend (you've seen some photos on facebook already). We had a great time relaxing, taking in the view and kayaking! This is the view from the house we stayed at...we were lucky enough to be housesitting, so got to stay for free!!

Beautiful day for kayaking!Patricia's got her skirt on and is ready to go

Ceiliah's got her skirt on too

Sue made sure we didn't get eaten by the orcas

and to prove i was actually there too, i stole this picture of myself from Ceiliah!

I could have taken pictures of the scenery forever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The streak in the sky is a time-lapse of an airplane

And now...on to Labour day weekend...where i jetted off to Toronto for a couple of days, for my cousin Jen's wedding! My brother and sister-in-law have also recently moved back to the Toronto area, so it was fun to stay at their new house with them (my parents were there too). We all went for a little hike on the Escarpment and enjoyed the sunny weather.

Wedding day!!!! The weather was perfect for the outdoor ceremony at the Old Mill (amazing place for a wedding, by the way)All smiles!! Congrats Jen and Shawn!!

Cousins!! Jen (the bride) and my other cousin Susan (who, lucky for me, left her kids and husband at home in Winnipeg for the weekend and so was my date for the wedding...lol!!)After my whirlwind weekend in Toronto, complete with jetlag, do you think i came home, worked a couple of days and then just chilled out for a weekend? Noooooooooooooooo!!! Susan (the cousin you just saw in the photo above), flew back to Wpg after the wedding, grabbed her kids, and flew out to Courtenay to visit her sister (Karla...the one who i often go to visit too). So rather than spend a weekend relaxing at home...i hopped on a ferry and went to join in the fun (and chaos...!!) The weather was beautiful, i must say....which made the ferry ride even more enjoyable...i can't get enough of the scenery, and i think i take the same pictures every time i go to the Island...but whatever.However....this ferry ride was cooler than most, because we were lucky enough to have a pod of whales frolicking nearby as we set sail! they move pretty quick, so i didn't get any really good shots, but at least this shows more than a splash of water!

And here are my favorite kids! It was May when i last saw the Zan-Man...and he grows so fast (and his hair is cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurly!!!!) The sailboat on his cheek is courtesy of the children's festival they frequented earlier in the day

I saw Susan's kids when i was in Wpg earlier this summer, but i'm sure they've still grown since then!!

cousins!!!! For a brief moment, they all got along and no one was crying!!!!!They even shared some love!!!

And that brings us to this current weekend.....Pammer and i went hiking yesterday but pics of that will come later...i didn't lug my big camera up the mountain, so a few pics are on Pam's camera, and i will get them from her at some point. Today, I've flopped myself on my couch...it's my first full weekend at home since July (meaning that this weekend, i've slept in my bed both Friday AND Saturday night!!!!)....did some much needed housework and laundry, and lets be real, it's mid-afternoon and i'm still in my pj's....i needed a day like this!! So there you have it...a brief synopsis of life over the last while...busy but fun!!!

Cottage Country

Just got back from a visit back home! The main reason for my trip was to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday....we had a big surprise party planned and it went off without a hitch (which is pretty amazing, seeing as how there were 60 people there!). My mom was totally surprised and i think she had a great time!
However, after the festivities were over, we took off for the cottage. Pammer came to Wpg also, as she has a bunch of family out that way too, and after she fit in her visits, she came to the cottage too. My brother and sister-in-law were also home.....which meant with 6 of us, it was time we bought the expansion pack so we could get in some good games of Settlers of Catan!!!!!

So, here are a few highlights from the week....i took a BILLION pictures, so it was hard to pick just a few to show (there will be a bigger album on facebook). Spent lots of time relaxing, canoeing, swimming and playing games and as always, time went too quickly!

The weather was a mix between good, bad and ugly and changed at a moment's notice. There was always the chance you'd get caught in a downpour if you ventured out too far. However, the up side was that there were a few amazing rainbows that appeared!! I like this shot because the rainbow seems to come right to our dock!!

Spent a lot of time in these chairs just soaking up the scenery

Pammer and I went for a couple of canoe rides, on the hunt for interesting wildlife

And we even got up early to catch the sunrise

late afternoon sky

I stalked this guy for a bit, he was pretty mellow and would look at me and then go back to eating leaves, but then the "click" from my camera finally sent him scurrying off!!

And these guys sure move quick!!

These loons were so funny! They kept looking at eachother and having some sort of conversation through head gestures, and always made sure no one straggled too far behind!! And then they got into this lovely formation to have their picture taken!

Stretching the wings

I had some fun setting up the tripod at night and experimenting with a variety of manual settings on my camera, trying to figure out exactly how to shoot photos at night. Still need to learn a lot but i am pretty happy with how a couple of shots turned out! I especially love this first one, of the cottage....click on it to see it larger....cuz if you look close enough, that's the big dipper in the sky....

Almost full moon and the evening bonfire

moon through the trees

Peaceful sunset

And finally, full moon!!

So there you have it, a few highlights of the amazing scenery I soaked in last week!!!!

Tina, Smitty and Steven

One of my dear friends came for a quick visit at the end of July. Tina and I became friends back in the late 90s when we worked together at one of the best places on earth, Red Rock Bible Camp. Tina now lives in New Zealand and has been there for a few years. She was just back in Winnipeg for a visit, and lucky for me, she planned a layover through Vancouver on her way back to NZ!! We packed as much as we could into 2 days and had a wonderful time catching up (we figured it's been at least 5 yrs since we've seen each other), sightseeing and playing photographer with our respective SLR's! (Tina's quite an amazing photographer).

Here are a few quick highlights of our time! We went and checked out Cascade Falls, near Mission BC (i stole this picture of the two of us from Tina)

And then headed up to the Monastery (in Mission) to get a view of the valley

Now, one of the highlights of MY weekend was planned way before Tina decided to come to visit. Pam, Theresa and I had tickets to the EPIC Steven Curtis Chapman/Michael W Smith concert that was coming to Abbotsford. It just so happened that Theresa couldn't shake the flu in time, so Tina joined us for the concert...while she isn't the MWS/SCC fan that I (secretly) am, I think she still had a good time!! Anyway, i was very excited because we had row 5 tickets and though the lighting made it difficult to take good pictures, i think Pammer snapped a few!
Here's Pammer and I

And Tina and I

Steven was great!But I was most excited for Smitty!!

And he looked very handsome from my row 5 seat :)

Yay! what a fun concert! and what a fun weekend!! Thanks for visiting Tina!

weekend at Beachwood

I spent some time camping at Beachwood this weekend with Pammer and the Unrau's. The weather was great, so we spent lots of time lounging by the pool catching some rays during the day, and enjoying the sunset and campfire at night (mmm...s'mores....). Here are a few highlights of the amazing scenery.

The colours were beautiful...we were a bit late for the sunset this night, but the remaining colours in the sky were pretty sweet

i spent a bit of time playing around with the manual mode and shutter speed on my camera...don't really know what i'm doing, but whatev's, it was fun! Here's the giant tent Pammer and i slept in...this thing is huge, you could fit 2 queen sized mattresses inside...needless to say, we had plenty 'o room for our 2 single air mattresses!

"Stars...In your multitudes...Scarce to be counted...Filling the darkness...With order and light...You are the sentinels...Silent and sure...Keeping watch in the night...Keeping watch in the night"..........sigh..."Stars" is one of my favorite songs from Les Mis....anyone else love that song?? I think of it when i see a sky like this

i love campfire! we roasted hotdogs, marshmallows and just enjoyed the flammage

Chad had fun skipping rocks at the ocean

And the sunset was outstanding!

sigh...i heart the west coast....

end of june update

Sheesh....it feels like just yesterday i wrote my last blog that was stating i couldn't believe how fast time was flying by...and here it is almost a month later! Well, it's been a busy month, but just not a lot of pictures that have been taken. A few rousing games of Settlers, the first time out to the driving range for the season, a few trips to Vancouver, getting back into the swing of things at the gym, dinners with friends etc etc....i'm ready for a vacation! (that comes in a month). And i also bought a new computer this month....today was my first time trying to figure out how to upload pictures...it was a bit of a process, but i got 'em on here!

These pictures are from today...Pammer and I spent the afternoon with the Unrau's enjoying the weather and celebrating Father's Day. We went to Campbell Valley Park, had a picnic of the KFC variety and walked some trails (and of course took some pictures!)

Allie showing off her sitting skills, with hope for a tasty snack....

And a very happy dog dancing big for some KFC!

pretty flowers in the park

Butterfly!!

i like how this flower looks like it's floating in midair...

The leaves were so green...this pictures doesn't do it justice

walking trail

delightful daisies

So there you have it....a bit of an update, a few pictures and the weekend is over and i'm need to sleep....so off to bed i go!

a Pampered weekend

Pammer and I headed over to the Island this weekend to visit my dear cousin. The purpose of our visit was two-fold; fold one being to hang out with my cousin and see my favorite little boy (of course there are pictures of him!) and fold two was so that Pam could do a Pampered Chef party for Karla and a bunch of her friends! So, Friday after work, we headed to the ferry and thanks to our trusty reservation, were the first car on and the first car off!!! Check it out...there's Mazzy, front row!!!!

We caught the 8:15pm ferry, at the end of a hot sunny day, and the sky was beautiful for the ride over. Of course, that meant i took a million pictures!!!!

(who knew the ferry terminal could look so good?!! Amazing what a sunset can do!!)

And here's my little man!!! I saw him 6 weeks ago, but he grows so fast!!!!! I didn't get to spend all that much time with him this weekend, as he went sailing with daddy (i don't think Brian wanted to be around for the girly party!!) but i still got a couple of cute pictures!

On Saturday afternoon we headed down to the ocean for a bit, to enjoy the sunshine before getting ready for the party. Here's Keeva the wonderdog, who greatly enjoyed playing in the water and getting very sandy!I don't know if someone helped this shell look like this or not, but i thought it was cool anyway

Karla and me

And a starfish!

Saturday night we had a great Pampered Chef party, ate some good food, and enjoyed some good company. We stayed up far too late but hey that's what weekends are for!!

And then on Sunday late afternoon, it was time to head back home. Again, the weather was amazing and so i took pictures until my battery died...lol

It was a great weekend! I love going to the island and seeing my cousin and her family...just wish the time didn't go by so quickly! Weekends should definitely be longer!!

May days

Seriously...where are the days going? Is May really 3/4 over already? Well at any rate, here are a few highlights from the last few weeks.
Pammer and I decided that this year we were going to expand our artistic horizons and take advantage of more of the concerts that come to the lower mainland. At Christmas we went to Holly Cole and then in January we went to Bjorn Again. And the last 2 weeks have been concert-worthy again! On May 9, Third Day came to town, with opening acts Brandon Heath and Revive. This was the first concert to grace the stage of the newly built Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Complex and we had row 7 seats!!!!! We went with Theresa and Chad and had a great time (despite the Canucks losing their game that night - Chad and I kept up to date on the score via his blackberry)
Less than a week later, Pammer and I headed into Vancouver and spent a delightful evening with BC's own Diana Krall! She was a phenomenal entertainer, quite hilarious in her story telling, and even jazzed up the Hockey Night in Canada theme song (much to my delight!!). I'm pretty sure Pam and I were the youngest in the audience, but it was a fun time none the less!!!!

(sorry i don't actually have any pictures that actually PROVE i was at these concerts...for Third Day I didn't take my camera cuz i didn't think they'd allow pictures...and surprisingly, they encouraged photography! At Diana Krall i took my camera, but photos were strictly forbidden - i saw people get in trouble...lol) And so you may be asking "what concert is next?" Well make fun all you want but Michael W Smith and Steven Curtis Chapman are touring together and are coming to Abbotsford in July....and I have ROW 5 seats!!! It's gonna be great, probably a bit cheesy, and i'm gonna love every minute of it!!! Pam and Theresa are coming too, and aren't nearly as excited as I am, but they are being good sports...lol

Anyway, those concerts were the highlights of the month so far. The long weekend just passed, and it was a mellow one by most accounts. Pammer and I hiked Teapot Hill, which indicated very strongly that I need to get back to the gym and kick it up a few notches! (and i disagree with the websites indication that this is an 'easy' hike....) At any rate, it was good to get out and enjoy the scenery, and here are a few pics from along the way and up at the top.

So there you have it....some highlights from the past few weeks....!! And a post full of links to boot!!