OFF TOO THE LAURENTIANS

My boyfriend Cory and I took this incredible little road trip to the Laurentian mountains a couple of weeks ago. We were so relaxed and we had so much fun!!We just decided to get in the car one afternoon and drive. I was telling Cory about the amazing colors of the fall leaves in the Laurentian mountains. My grandpa owns a bunch of property in the Laurentians and it is my absolutely favorite place to go to. It is my get away place, the place where I can relax and be totally me and I wanted to share it with him. The drive was amazing! The colors were so gorgeous. We also went to Montebello and saw the hotel there. Every time I see the log hotel I am amazed at it's beauty. We just drove, sang, talked, listened to music and relaxed. It was amazing!!

Beautiful Sunday 10/29/06

Beautiful Sunday 10/29/06
Originally uploaded by dynamo_momof2.

My Favorite Things Saturday 10/28/06

My Favorite Things Saturday
Originally uploaded by dynamo_momof2.

One of my favorite things is the absolute joy my girls get in doing the simplest things - just in being together as a family.

2 Peas Saturday Blogger - Thanksgiving Recipes

Join us today/Sat if you blog. Challenge: Let's talk turkey. What are you fixin this Thanksgiving??? Re food??? Share your fave Thanksgiving fare on your blog.. let's share some recipes!
My absolute favorite parts of the Thanksgiving meal is the stuffing and the cranberry sauce. I'm not quite sure what it is but turkey does not seem the same without them. Here are two of my favorite recipes.

Basic Brad Stuffing

1/2 cup butter

1 large onion, chopped

3 medium celery, chopped
15-ounce bag cubed bread
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
3 cups homemade turkey stock or chicken broth
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and celery. Cook, stirring often, until the onion is golden, about 10 minutes.
Scrape the vegetables and butter into a large bowl. Add the bread and parsley. Stir in enough of the stock to moisten the stuffing, about 2 1/2 cups. Season with the poultry seasoning, if desired, add salt and pepper to taste. Use to stuff the turkey, or place in a buttered baking dish, drizzle with an additional 1/2 cup stock, cover and bake as a side dish.
Makes 10 cups.

Cranberry Sauce

1 cup (200 g) sugar

1 cup (255 mL) water

4 cups (1 12-oz package) fresh or frozen cranberries

Optional Pecans, orange peel, raisins, currants, blueberries, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice.

1 Wash and pick over cranberries. In a saucepan bring to a boil water and sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add cranberries, return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes or until cranberries burst.
2 At this point you can add all number of optional ingredients. We typically mix in a half a cup of roughly chopped pecans with or without a few strips of orange peel. You can add a cup of raisins or currants. You can add up to a pint of fresh or frozen blueberries for added sweetness. Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg or allspice can be added too.
3 Remove from heat. Cool completely at room temperature and then chill in refrigerator. Cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.
Cranberry sauce base makes 2 1/4 cups.

Saunders Farm

We have a family tradition of going to Saunders Farm every year. I have so much fun taking the girls. It is so neat looking back at pictures from past years and seeing how much the girls have grown. They have so much fun with all the activities. Amber loves poking her head through the cardboard cutouts and playing in the dollhouse. Emily loves jumping in the hay. Both girls loved the show that was put on the stage. It was awesome. We also went on the haunted hay ride, mommy should have thought that one through a little better as both kids ended up crying. Lesson learned for next time.

Once Again Amazed by God

Once again I am totally wowed by what God is doing in my life. I have learned that trusting God to make the things happen in my life that He desires is the best way to live my life. Because I have opened the door to letting God lead my life the way He chooses instead of me trying to direct it, amazing things are happening. I have been looking for work for the past month and God has allowed me to get two new jobs (one I started this week, then the other next week.) He is allowing my needs to be met because I turned to Him and asked for Him to lead the way.

I'm Back

Hello all - I'm back to the blogger world after my computer breaking down again. But I am now back and ready to blog away. I will update all when I get home from work today.

INFO Requested

I would absolutely love to compile a list of blogger buddies so that i can send out some RAK's and little notes. If you would like, please email me at scollins_7@sympatico.ca with your name, blogging id, address and birthday and then watch your mail!!

2 Peas Friday Blogger Challenge - Excitement

Here's the challenge!!! Blog about something that has really excited you.. something you were really anticipating perhaps.. blog about it.. share your excitement!!!!!
The thing I get the absolutely most excited about is the love I have for Christ. I have been a Christian for just under a year now and I get more and more excited everyday!! I love learning about Christ and about the love I have inside me for Him. I am so humbled and so blessed to have His love and His acceptance. It means so much to me to live each day in the excitement that He is the one guiding my day. I love being able to just praise Him and say "Please show me what you want from me today, show me who You want me to speak to, who I am to share You with." I love seeing what happens after that and just opening myself up to whatever may happen.

2 Peas Thursday Blogger Challenge - All About Blogging

Join us today/thurs if you blog. Challenge: Blog about how you feel about your blogging. Is it too time consuming? Do you love sharing? What are the benefits of blogging? and the negative things of it? With Rhonna's and Cathy z's blog ending, I am wondering why both of them are doing it... it's just interesting to me. how about you?? blog about it...
I too was disappointed to hear that Rhonna & Cathy Z's blogs were ending. I often look to these (and many others) for inspiration. I love journaling and often feel better being able to put my thoughts down somewhere concrete. Sometimes when I journal in a notebook, I tend to forget to go back and keep at it. When I discovered blogging I was so excited because I could journal in such a creative way. I love photography and fonts and colors. I love computers. Being able to blog gives me a chance to release the many thoughts (and sometimes emotions) that are going around in my head. Blogging does take time, but to me it is time set out just for me. Time to figure out what's going in in my head, time to share the joys and hurts in my life, and time to praise God for all He does in my life. It gives me a release, a chance to just be 100% me.

2 Peas Wednesday Blogger Challenge - Favorite Holidays

Join us today/Wed if you blog. Challenge: The Holidays are coming. Blog about the things about the holidays you are looking forward to.... no matter what they are!

There are 2 holidays I really focus on with my family. The 1st is Christmas. I believe this is the most important holiday of all because it focuses on the birth of Christ. I can't even begin to imagine where we would all be without this event occurring. God allowed Christ to be born so that He could eventually die in order for everyone's sins to be forgiven. Imaging the love that God has for all of us for Him to have made all this possible. I would hate to see the world if this had not have taken place. Sometimes I have a hard time comprehending the amount of love that He has for me. This then, brings me to my second favorite holiday to celebrate, Easter. Easter is the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus so that we can all be forgiven. Imagine living a life solely for the purpose of saving others. That is what God sent His Son to do so that all of us could be forgiven of our sins and develop a more intimate relationship with both the Father and the Son. Because of these holidays I know I am blessed and forgiven and I know that I will have a place in Heaven because I choose to follow Christ in all I do. I look forwards each year to both so that I can celebrate the love I have for Christ and so that I can use these to teach my girls about Christ.

Beautiful Sunday 10/15/06

Taken on Thanksgiving Monday at Otty Lake on our final boat ride of the year.

My Favorite Things Saturday - 10/14/06

My favorite season is fall, simply because I absolutely love the colors that are present in this season. The weather is great, the smells are great, and the sights are more beautiful than words can describe. I am amazed at the beauty that God has created with this season.

AWESOME MAIL DAY!!

WOOOOHOOOOO!!!!! This book that I ordered off ebay finally arrived yesterday!! I am so excited!! I have always loved Elsie's Style, but have been afraid to try lots of the techniques that she uses. I have also been having trouble getting motivated to scrap at home, so the challenges will hopefully get me off my butt, making pages and documenting the lives of my girls & I. I can't wait to get started!

2 Peas Friday Blogger Challenge - Thanksgiving

JOIN US TODAY/FRIDAY IF YOU BLOG. Challenge: Describe your favorite Thanksgiving gathering. What made it special to you? Blog about it.
I have so many fond memories of this past Thanksgiving. I am getting to know an amazing member of my my church, Sue. She is helping me through some things that God has brought to my attention and is there for me all the time. This woman is so full of love for God and for others. She and her husband, one of the pastors, invited me to have Thanksgiving with them this year because they knew that I was going to be alone because the girls were at their dad's. I was amazed that in just getting to know me they wanted me to be a part of their family time. I was honored and felt so accepted. I see in them the qualities that I so desire. The way they live their life totally for God inspires me to do the same. I am blessed to know them both.

I am Officially Divorced

Yesterday I received my Divorce Decree in the mail. It's one of those things that I knew was coming but that hit me very hard. I didn't know what day to expect it so opening my mail was a shock. I've known for so long that the divorce was going to happen and that it is for the best. I am happy - in a relationship, and my ex husband is happy and has found love. I'm not shaken at not being with my ex anymore, I guess it just felt like I had failed. I am turning 30 next week and I am now divorced before 30. That hurts. I always grew up wanting to have an awesome family with a mom and dad together and now I feel like I have failed at that. I know my girls are happy and that they have a mom and a dad that love them very, very much - but I also know that it is not quite the same. I guess the best I can do now is to continue to love them unconditionally, to teach them of the love of Christ, and to make them feel secure.

2 Peas Thursday Blogger

Join us today/thursday if you blog. Challenge: Blog about the struggles you face as a scrapbooker. What are the challenges in your life, related to this craft? Anything you have trouble doing/understanding? Blog about it.
Most of the time my biggest trouble is just doing it! I am always filled with ideas and thoughts about scrapping, but I never just start it. I gather so many ideas on 2 Peas, from magazines and in my favorites and then I don't get started. Sometimes I wish I had a better area for scrapping but I know that the one I have would be great if I kept it clean and organized. I think I might just see a challenge in the next few days - I will clean and organize my scrap are and get off my butt and get something done.

Thanksgiving at the Lake

We had Thanksgiving at the lake with my mom and dad this year. It was awesome. We ate out on the porch with a fire nearby. The air smelled so amazing and fresh. I loved every minute. We also went on our last boat ride of the year. The lake was almost empty. It was so peaceful and so quiet. The colors were so amazing. Bright color everywhere I looked. When the kids are on the boat they enter their own little world. Amber went into her space where she was thinking about Eva (the Canadian Idol winner.) She was saying she was so happy that she was pretending to fly. It was beautiful watching her. Emily turned into a little comedian constantly sticking out her tongue and making funny faces. She tries constantly to make other people laugh and when she succeeds she turns it up even more. It is hilarious to watch her. I had so much fun and was so relaxed.

My Computer Broke!!

I came home on Tuesday after being away overnight to a broken computer. I didn't realize how much I rely on having a computer available to use at all times until it was no longer working. I had no use of a computer for 2 days and thought I was going to go crazy. GOOD NOTE though: I cleaned my house. It's amazing actually how much I was able to do because I wasn't sitting at the computer!!

Join us today/Wed if you blog. Challenge: What is the last thing you created? Could be anything.. scrapbook related, papercraft, artsy, whatever.. share on your blog about what you created and post a pic if you can!
I went to a crop this past weekend and started an album of my trip to Niagara Falls with my girls. This is the title page I did for the album. I completed 16 pages, but still have to journal them. I will post more pages as I get them done.

2 Peas Monday Blogger Challenge - I am Thankful

Join us today/Monday if you blog. Challenge: Thanksgiving is drawing near. List 10 things you are most thankful for, in no particular order.
I AM MOST THANKFUL FOR:
1. Having a God who loves me unconditionally
2. Amber
3. Emily
4. being clean & sober
5. having somewhere I love to live with my girls
6. finally loving me just as I am
7. having family close by
8. finding happiness with a new man
9. being creative
10. being able to support my girls

God Is So Incredible

I am doing this course right now at my church called Discovering the Real You by Ron Susek. It is amazing! The more I learn about God and the more I learn about His love for me the more I am humbled and in awe. It is so incredible learning of His unconditional love for me. He is so patient and it is so amazing that He waits for me and understands the many screw-ups that happen in my life. He knows everything that is in my heart and mind and still He loves me unconditionally. I am the absolute luckiest girl in the world to have a God who loves me so unconditionally and waits for me to come to Him.

October a new month. Join us today/Sunday if you blog. Challenge: What's your fave restaurant and why? Share about your place in your area/community that you love going out for a meal! My absolute favorite restaurant is a restaurant in Perth called Maximilian's. It is German cuisine and makes the absolute best ever wiener schnitzel I have ever had. I have been going to this restaurant with my family since I was 5 years old and I have never ordered anything but the schnitzel. I always order the exact same thing. i start with beef soup. It is a beef broth with a beef dumpling. Absolutely scrumptious. Then they have rye bread and a small salad made with tomatoes, onions, and celery with a vinegar dressing. Then I have the schnitzel. The plate is always HUGE. It comes with the schnitzel and then a choice of buttered potatoes or dumplings. I usually can't decide between them so I get both. I am absolutely telling you, this is the best meal in the entire universe. Absolutely amazing!!!