Fall has Fell

It's the official first day of Autumn. Which I know, because last night we spent a while on google figuring out if it was actually YESTERDAY or today. And, so we're all aware, no two sites said the same thing. So whatever.

Point being, I'm in my element! Fall-born babies tend to love the fall season the most, and I'm no exception to that rule. I love the smell, the colours, the crisp leaves under foot, the sweaters and cute boots and leggings, and, most of all, the TV line-up every night.

So, yesterday, the last night of summer, I took the kids out to where Will is working on a cabin, about an hour away. We played in the creek and on the tire swing, sang songs in the car as loud as possible, and when it was all over, we went to Waterton to listen to the Elk calls. And, for what anyone cares, listening and watching the Elk like that was seriously AWESOME! Em told me, with a shrug and roll of the eye, that she's done it 'a million times,' and I thought, Holy Crap, kid, if you only KNEW how cool of a life you've lived. Living out here provides some pretty awesome opportunities for kids and adults alike, and, even though I come from a Scouting/Guiding (camping,outdoor,hunting) family, I have NEVER been that close to Elk and listened to the bellows.

Family Home Evening doesn't get much better than this.

Although, I hate to admit.... I committed an unpardonable sin last night. One I SWORE I would NEVER NEVER EVER commit!

Yes, (sadly) that's me.
Ponytailin' (oh the ears!!! Kill me now!),
short-donnin' (yuck.. I hate shorts.)
sweater-wearing (uh, with shorts?!)
CROC-walkin! CROCS!!! What in the name of all that is fashionable am I thinking? I friggen HATE crocs. And, this croc-promoting McSpanky family has totally taken over-- I swore I would NEVER own such hideous shoes. And yesterday, I sunk to the lowest of lows. *moment of silence as the COOL Debbi falls into fashion oblivion*

It's a good thing Will still thought I was cute...he was super cute too, all messy and painty and muddy from drywalling, but he refused to let me take a picture of his cuteness. This is the only one I snagged. Which, if I may say so myself, isn't too bad of a view either. tee hee.

So, on a Tuesday Tune tribute... (man, it's been a while since I shared a tune,)I thought I'd share this one. Found it on Facebook from a bloggy-friend, so, hopefully it's new to some of you. Will doesn't have this problem yet. But huney, just in case you read this, it's all very true.. take notes. :)

*Watch song here!*

Have a great Tuesday! :)

Six Word Sunday

Yikes, it's technically Sunday, but I'm still awake so I'm considering it still Saturday in my head.

So, today's six words:

First time to inherit a sister!


Yes, my brother and Nellie got married today. They're super cute, of course, and it was a great day. Even when it rained for, like, 1/2 a minute.

She's the first to 'infiltrate' the sorority of my sistas. And we're glad to have her. She's hot, we'll let her in! ;)

Now it's the final wedding---- MINE and WILL'S!!!! Very exciting--- photos to come on that one next week! So much to do in the meantime! Like, go to bed! I'm sleepy-- this three wedding, two baptism thing is TIRING.

In Point Form

• http://vimeo.com/1531870

I love this video! I loved it when I first saw it, and ended up playing it so often that now my kids sing along. Yes. My kids sing along to Queen. lol

• With my brother's wedding taking up the better part of this weekend, I'm down to some final time in order to get OUR wedding ready. You should see my planner-- CRAZY notes on notes on lists of lists. Seriously. It's getting to the point that I don't know what list to start with-- here I think I'm all smart and organized, but there's so much to do that my organized lists are overflowing! AHHH.

I never 'planned' my wedding to Chris, since we only had an 8 day engagement. So this is new to me.

• Having step-children, especially one who lives with me full-time, is a big adjustment. I am learning that, although Will's kids are seriously fantastic... and he's a super father to them AND my kids, we don't always agree on parenting styles. We agree ENOUGH. But there's going to be growing pains and a LOT of lessons learned--- and I'm mostly talking about just ME! I know I have lots to learn

There's power struggles with LL, who is used to being the oldest and now she has 'competition'.

• I'm so excited about the wedding. But, moreso, I'm excited about having Will live with me. Although right now I see him A LOT more than I did when I lived in Calgary, it still sucks when he tucks me in to bed each night and walks out the front door. I look sooooo forward to sleeping with him beside me-- a warm body to keep the sheets from freezing, a rhythmic breath to lullaby me to sleep, a shoulder to 'pillow' me and a kiss first thing in the morning. I look forward to 'life' starting to settle a bit, where I can cook dinner for him, where I get to spend every other weekend dating him. I look forward to the MARRIAGE.

I am watching my two siblings get married within a week of each other, and, naturally, it's their first marriages. But having been married before, both Will and I come into this a bit tentitavly and jaded. We know marriage can be SUPER and fantastic, but we also KNOW it is harder than anything else. My siblings may HEAR and understand that sentence, but they don't KNOW it. Kinda like when you are pregnant-- you read and prepare as much as you can for that baby, but until it ACTUALLY comes, you realize there was NOTHING that could prepare you for the REAL parts. Like that wedding day euphoria...where you believe life only gets better from here with cake and flower petals all the way...I kinda wish i could go back to those days, but I'm grateful for a better idea this time around. And for a better partner for the trip.

I may be a realist. I may be jaded. But seriously, you guys... I am so in love with this man.

Now I'm off to get marriage licences and stuff put together. We have a bit of an issue because of the stupidity of Will's ex, Sarah, so we are in the middle of fixing that today. Good times.

Sometimes you give yourself a nose-bleed, but once in a while, it pays to be picky!

Today, my little sister marries the man of her dreams. And I mean that in every way.

Have you ever seen the movie, Practical Magic? In it, Sandra Bullock and her 'sister', Nicole Kidman, make a wish/spell where they imagine a man who won't exist. A man who can do fantastical feats that no normal man could do ALL of... ride a horse backwards, whose favourite shape is a star, who has one blue eye and one brown eye.. stuff like that.

They make a list. As children.

And then... eventually... that man shows up. That exact man.



Years and years ago, Kiki made a list like that- a fantastical list of qualities that no 'normal' man could possibly possess all of. A list that we mocked her for.
And today, she marries the man she looked for. A man with those qualities.


I couldn't be happier for her and Ken. They are wonderful together, and my heart is filled with hope and love for them!!

Glad to have a new brother, Ken.
Congrats to both of you!

Six Word Saturday- Last One?

It's Six Word Saturday, where you describe your week in 6 words. It's really fun to play- so visit www.showmyface.com if you wanna join in. Cate started it. Blame her. :)

My six for the week?

It totally sucks that summer's over!


This is my last 'free' weekend of the summer. Next weekend will be lots of fun, with the first wedding in my family, but it's not a 'free' weekend. I have weddings to attend and family to play with! That's work! ;) And the weekend after that? Wedding number 2! So, really, my Saturdays are gone for a while. Then, the Saturday after that? Will and I will be on a honeymoon! ;P Even if our honeymoon is ALONE IN THE 'NEW HOUSE' because I STILL haven't sold the old one.

And, bugger all, another neighbour listed their home for sale. MUCH cheaper than mine. crappy. So not amused.

Not Me Monday- Family

So, I did NOT spend the weekend with extended family members.

Friday after work, I did NOT drive to Will's birthplace where I met a LOT of his family members and friends for the yearly celebrations they have there. I did NOT forget probably 90% of their names by the end of the night. I am NOT so fired from good-future-in-law of the year position.

However, I did NOT have fun going through the 'Josephine' haunted forest- a family tradition based on a very funny and cute folkstory about the family farm's heritage. Something about being raised by cows and forgetting to moisturize your ugly elbows and brush your teeth....and..uh... somebody loved someone else and then they all died.

After that, I did NOT get the worst stomach pains and did NOT spend the rest of the night hurting and feeling yucky.

Saturday morning, I did NOT then head to MY family reunion 3 hours north. I did NOT enjoy the beautiful countryside as I drove, sunroof open, music blaring.

Family farm on the left

Although I miss British Columbia, Alberta is gorgeous. I really did NOT like seeing some family members I hardly see, and did NOT catch up with a few distant cousins. I did NOT also LOVE seeing my nieces and nephews that live in the centre of the universe Toronto, albeit for a short time.

Saturday was a birthday party to commemorate 7 of our family members who are NOT older than 90 years. I also did NOT eat a piece of each of the 7 birthday cakes. I do NOT have a bet with Sin (and Andy) about how much weight to lose before the wedding, and I don't NOT think that eating 7 pieces, albeit SMALL pieces, is very helpful to my diet. Oh well.

They did NOT have a pig roast dinner, and I did NOT also eat far too much of that. Thankfully, my stomach was NOT kinda better. This family farm is NOT a haven for kids-- playgrounds, trains, a zipline, and, check this out---- this car does NOT have only two wheels. Pretty cute, if you ask me. And me and my brother did NOT also try out the Segway. And, in true prairie fashion, I was NOT surprised to decide to go home while the sun was NOT still totally hot and still shining. Although, it was NOT, like, 10 pm. All in all, it was a great visit.

Driving home

I am NOT off the computer to go send out our invitations today, and am NOT dreaming wedding-mares already. It is NOT annoying.

Six Word Saturday - Family

Old people run in my family.


And by that, I mean it's hereditary to grow old, AND they run. Like... deer. Healthy brood, they are.

*I'm at my great-aunt's 100th birthday party today. It's a thing-- my dad's family all live until FOREVER, and hopefully I will also get to live 72 more years. As long as Will lives for 72 more years and a day, right Winnie?



For more Six Word Saturday, visit Cate at Show My Face dot com.

4/52

It's Find Mom Friday.

Which sux, cuz this week I didn't even SEE my kids, so I couldn't have taken a picture of me with them.

:(

Instead, we'll use one from last week, since that's allllllls I gots. As you can see, this is a pic of me with all my daughters (and daughters to be) working hard at setting up camp! ;P It's tough being a girl.


I'm off to family reunions with Will's family, and a family birthday party on my side tomorrow, so have a GREAT weekend and we'll chat Monday when I'll tell ya what I DID NOT do. ;)

For now,
peace out.

Checking in, checking out.

So, today is gonna be one of those OHMYGOSHWHEREDIDTHEDAYGO type of days! I'm taking off with ***my future husband** (squeal of joy) and the in-laws camping tomorrow, but I have a MILLION things to do today to get ready: laundry, packing, cooking, cleaning the house so it can get sold while I'm gone, calling the realtor, calling a few friends, hopefully celebrating the purchase of a new home Will bought, making wedding plans, watching kids, getting passport photos done for the kids.. all this withOUT my ring (which Will took back to get sized, and possibly exchanged for Palladium, as I'm allergic to gold)! :(

Last night Will and I took my kids to Costco to buy food for the week. For ALL 9 of us. And let me tell you, it was hilarious. We bought 9 loafs of bread!!! Bought 2 jugs of milk, spent 20 bucks on BREAKFAST cereal!! Spent a fair amount of cash, and we're ONLY camping until Sunday! It was a lesson on reality; that once we're married, we'll be doing this on a regular basis. yikes. lol

I'll be out with everyone until Sunday, after which, Chris will meet us half-way and take my kids and the van camping with his family for the week. I still have to work, so I'll be back Monday.

Until then, friends, I'll miss reading all about your lives, but I'll catch up with ya next week!!!
Just pray that the thunder and lightening storms ease up this week-- I'd LIKE to play outside instead of all of us crammed into my borrowed sister's trailer or my tent for 5 days! yuck. (and by borrowed sister's trailer.. I mean I borrowed the trailer, not the sister! )

Suddenly, I'm Craving French Loafs of Bread

So, this weekend was so much fun!

Will and I headed out on Saturday morning, and decided to just have a fun "date-day", no kids, no schedules, no plans. Thankfully, he brought his Rollerblades, and so we drove downtown to blade through Prince's Island Park. It was funny, Will hadn't been on his Rollerblades in YEARS, so it was hilarious to watch him nearly biff it once. I'm sure the passing cars enjoyed the visual too. We had a lot of fun, although our feet were sore by the time we decided to go back to the car! Totally, the best part of the day!

Then we drove up to Peter's, shared a milkshake, onion rings and burger. And HOLY CRAP I love Peter's. Forget the exercise, I think PETER'S was the best part of the day! ;)

We headed back to the Stampede grounds, and after finding parking (not the easiest to do on the last Saturday of the Stampede), we got into the gates. Walked around a bit, taking in the million smells and sights. We went on this one ride, The Skyscraper, where they strap you in nice and tight and then spin you around a massive circle at 4Gs! Will and I were screaming and laughing our heads off, and, suspended 160 ft in the air was exhilarating!!
It topped ANY ride I had ever gone on with ANYONE, and was DEFINITELY the highlight of the day, as everywhere we went you could see that ride and we'd just laugh and remember how fun it was.

My favourite part of the Stampede is the agricultural buildings with the goats and animals, so we headed into the buildings to check out the huge horses and uh...cows and sheep.

And, of course, to defile the livestock!

At one point, we left the buildings, and ended up slightly outside the grandstand where the chuckwagon races are held. We found some bleachers there, and decided that since we were both tired and fighting off a bit of a headache, we would sit there for a bit.

I sat on the bench in front of him, leaning up against his knees. Although it was getting later in the day, and slightly cold, when Will asked if I wanted to go get his coat from the car, I declined. It was too nice to sit and I didnt' want to walk all the way back to the car. We were playing with our little mood rings, and he had mine and I had his. It was awesome, we got to see some horse-pull teams come RIGHT in front of us to 'warm up', and just chilled on that bench for a while. I was holding Will's hands, on his lap, which was kinda behind my back, when I gave Will back his ring. He put mine back on my finger, and we sat there for a while just holding hands. He must have been getting cold, though, as he was starting to shake when he pulled out his camera, and we took this HORRIBLE photo.

Then, he let go of my hand, and I saw his hand.

There were two mood rings on his hand: his.. and... MINE?!!!!!

That's when it clicked in!
I looked at my hand.

He was already on his knees behind me, and said "I've talked with your Dad, and he thinks it'd be a good idea if you said you'd marry me. All you have to do is say when and say YES!"

Of course, I said "It's about Freaking Time!" And then. after saying yes, we kissed and I fought back tears. We talked about how he had tried to talk to my dad a FEW times, we talked about when, we talked about how his kids helped him pick the beautiful ring and gave him suggestions on "how" to propose in a fun way.

We're ENGAGED!!!!!!! I am sooooo freaking excited!!!!!!!

It was soooo fun telling our kids. His daughters were so excited, Em especially. When we told MY kids, LL was screaming and soooo excited!

My brother and sister are both getting married at the end of Summer, within a week of each other. And seeing as all my siblings will be there, we figure it's easiest to just plan our wedding around that time, when everyone can make it already.

So, although we're not decided on a DATE yet, we have two dates in mind. I'll keep you updated! For now, I'm gonna have to admit that getting engaged was DEFINITELY the best part of the day! And, of the year.

Engaged on July 11th. Oh Thank Heaven, for Seven Eleven! ;)

Six Word Saturday- Ye Hawwww

I'm Off Stampeding with My Cowboy

For more SWS (Six Word Saturday), click on the button and join Cate!

My sister Kiki and her fiance Ken visited last night. They went to the Calgary Stampede and reported back: Good times. Ricockulous outfits prices. Bad food. Shiny fireworks and flashing women lights, Horrible line-ups, and smelly fat men farm animals. What more could one ask for!?

So, guess where Will and I are excitedly headed for the day!? :D

Not Me Monday- Waterton

Alright peeps, it's Monday again. Time for Not Me Monday. hosted by someone, but I can't remember who started it seeing as so many other bloggers do it and we're all clearly sheep! :) So yay to whomever started Not Me Monday.

This weekend was NOT beautiful-- I love summerish weather.

Friday we did NOT celebrate LL's 8th birthday here at the house. 8th birthdays are big in the LDS faith-- it's the age when the child can decide to get baptised or not. She won't be getting baptised until later in the summer, and we'll have a bigger 'party' with family and friends at that point. But for now, we did the whole pizza/cake thing at the house. I did NOT invite Chris's girlfriend, Kay, to join us, and we met for the first time. It was NOT a nice visit, and she is NOT a lovely girl. I am NOT happy to have met her and her two children.

After saying goodbye to my monkeys, I did NOT drive down to Lethbridge where I did NOT hang with my brother and parents for the night. I did NOT need that. I miss Uncle Kannie, so I made him sing with me while I played the piano. Him and his girlface sang along- my piano skills are SLOWLY improving, so I enjoy playing for him to get more practice. It may also help that my mother has a baby grand, and who wouldn't want to play on it!? Visiting with my parents and having their undivided attention is rare in a family of 9 kids, so I was grateful for the LATE hours they spent with me, in spite of their need for sleep. (old people. Sheesh! ;) )

I then did NOT sleep in the basement, where it's like a cocoon... dark, and SILENT. I did NOT freak out when I woke up the next morning at 11!!!!!! I was supposed to be out helping Will paint the Prince of Wales Hotel an hour away... and I hadn't eaten or dressed, and wasn't even showered yet! OUCH. As I'm contemplating my time to get there vs. the shower, I skip breakfast all together, dress, and rush out the door. The good thing is that Will and I are NOT being good and keeping our physical relationship down to holding hands or kissing like 'gramma', so me not showering is a good reason for him to have to stay a safe distance away from me! lol But I tell ya, if he called me gramma one more time... somebody gonna get a hurt real bad! I swear, I was getting a saggy-boob complex!

I did not rush to Waterton, where...*hangs head in shame* I did NOT get a speeding ticket. I SOOOOOOO can not afford a ticket right now, so I was totally unimpressed! And the cop was hot, and yet, I still couldn't get out of that one! Saggy boob complex exponentially increased! (haha, kidding. mostly)

After arriving in Waterton, I did NOT enjoy painting with Will. He is NOT talented at what he does, and didn't even get angry with me when I messed up his paint job like, a bagillion times. You know he loves me when I can mess up so brutally! It was fun on the lift, way up high. But man, it was windy!

A few hours later, we went back to town, showered the paint out of my eyes and the stink off the rest of me, changed, dropped in at a wedding reception, and then headed out to Lethbridge again for some Japanese dinner. I do NOT enjoy doing that as it totally brings me back to my days in Japan. Then we did NOT have a visit with my parents again, and I did NOT receive advice, support, and a blessing from my father. My parents do NOT give good advice, and it was NOT wonderful.

Sunday was church. I don't know how, but I TOTALLY did NOT gimp-up my knee one night last week, and walking in heels SUCKED! And, lemme just add, that walking in flats is not an option--- I LOVE heels. And these ones are way cute, so NO, I would *not* be wearing anything else. It's painful being this beautiful, but I guess I'll suffer! ;P

Sunday afternoon after a yummy fish dinner, we did NOT go with Will's parents (and niece) to Waterton again for a picnic and some pictures.

Seeing Will was NOT exactly what I needed to get out of my funk from last week. It fills my 'love tank', and I always hate driving away. And, he'll be busy painting again for the next weekend or five, and I'm poor.. so who knows when we'll see each other again. Long distance does NOT suck.

I May Not Be American

Yes, it's Memorial Day in the USA. And, no, I'm not American.

But, I figure that a post about this weekend is in line with the whole 'remembering lost loved ones', seeing as that's what I did.

Saturday I drove out to Edmonton with my sister and nephew. Driving up there, might I just say, is NOT fun. I would rather drive to Lethbridge, which is pretty much the same distance (a tiny bit less) than up to Edmonchuck. Really. Something about that drive is BORING!

We stopped in Red Deer, where my big brother is buried. I've never driven to the cemetery, so I had NO idea how to get there. But my sister had, once or twice, and so we went PURELY off her 'spidey senses'. She claimed she could feel it in her 'guts'. gross. people shouldn't feel the way to a cemetery in their guts. Amazingly, she was exactly right. We got to the cemetery, and she was so excited to see it! "There it is!! Dead ahead!!". I gave her the 'har har' look, and she realized what she had said.Graveyards are pretty cool to genealogists like us. We looked at other people's epitaphs, at their birth and death dates, speculated over who was buried beside whom, (of course, made fun of those less fortunate whose names sounded funny!) and took a few more pictures. Found a few tombstones of people that may or may not be in my family line (the Barber side), so I'll be looking those up today online. FUN!

Off to Edmonton, where we joined up with Kiki and Ken and my BFF MC, and went to the Relay For Life. There was a luminary 5K run in my cousin's name, so we were happy to go support my family and remember him. We also remembered other family members that were affected by cancer. There were deeply moving moments where I choked back a tear or two, but it was a SUPER experience, and one I would HIGHLY recommend. Next year, I plan to join the relay part.

Six Word Saturday- a few to chew on

• Running for Cancer. Hoping for Cures. Other than spending time with family whom I seldom get to visit with, I get to also see one of my bestest girls. And I get to run for cancer whilst remembering family members who are missed. Yay for me, I have a new iPod, so I'll have my tunes too!
  
  
• Masticating on elephants, morsel by morsel. I'm not letting my 'peace' go. I know how to get what I need and want, and I know that, when I need to, I'll know what path to follow.
  
  
• Missing my profusely attractive, hand-holding inamorato. First weekend in a while I don't get to see Will. :( that sucks. Just in case you wanted to know what I think about that. ;)
  
  
• House is a mess. Don't care. Besides, maybe, if I have to sell it and move into a cardboard box because of Chris' no-job sichee-ayshun, I could sell the house with grimy hand prints 'custom artwork' and moldy diapers 'one-of-a-kind aromatherapy'. Or burn it. Yah. That'll be better for EVERYONE involved!
  
  

Weekend Wecap

(don't know if you can see, but it says Debbi *heart* Will. Will's daughter did a different one, which was way cuter, but I realized it used his real name. So we made this one just for you bloggers! Don't say I never give you anything!)

This weekend had a few interesting lessons within its pages. I'll touch on a few this week, if I find the time and motivation to write about them.

I spent the weekend again with Will. He had his children too, so the *9* of us spent lots of time laughing and playing and enjoying each other.Saturday morning, my sister and I took our kids to her Bishop's house where they were having "Breakfast With Bishop". Complete with jammies (who wouldn't want to see their bishop in jammies?!) and breakfast and scripture study. It was a great turnout, and I spent the time helping with the bookmark craft. It was a great idea, and a good time, and who doesn't love a 'free' breakfast!?

Right after that, there was a free 'clinic' at the Firehall.



My sister and I met up with Will and his family, and the *19* of us practically overtook the whole place! There were draws for lots of free things, and let me just say, that when there's 19 people from 3 families, it's hard not to clean up on the prizes! ;)

They had a blood-typing station, and a hamburger/hot dog BBQ, and a carseat test to ensure proper installation. Which, might I just say, I passed!

(doesn't "Em" look super impressed? lol)

Then, Will and I took our blended brood to the park.




We played, went for a walk, spat loogies over the side of the bridge (by the way, that's SO a guy fascination! lol) and just in general had a relaxing afternoon together.

Sunday was wonderful. Went to church, home to his parents' house for a great lunch, and cuddled with the kids and Will.

Going home is always tough- I enjoy being with Will so much and watching him and his children interact with mine in such a heartwarming way.
I always look forward to the next time.