succulents

love my little year round succulent garden. fascinating to watch grow!

gram katie

gram passed away tonight . . . even though the past few months have been rough it's always a shock when you get the call. she lived a wonderful life & touched so many people. i came across a quote in an unexpected place that kinda says how i feel. . . "don't cry because it's over . . . smile because it happened." i feel so blessed to have had her apart of my life. i'm going to miss those big blues eyes.

our day in whistler . . .

a town car picked us up at 6:00 am in the front lobby of the hotel. a deloitte staff & our personal driver for the day were waiting with two containers of continental breadfasts. it was dark on the way up so couldn't make out the incredible views we were passing by . . . but did get to see a lovely sunrise. we were dropped off a little early for our event at starbucks at the base of the mountain. we each had a big cosy chair & hot drinks. bri read the paper & i knit . . . it was heavenly & we just kept looking at each other & smiling :) we then headed up the mountain by foot & then caught a gondola up to our event. we were early enough to get good seats as it filled up quickly. the sun was out & it was warm! the first event was the blind going down & then athlete's with one leg or no arms . . . absolutely incredible! we watched our event until around 2:00 pm & then headed back down the mountain. we took a shuttle into whistler & spent the rest of the day strolling through the shops & hanging out. out driver picked us up at 4:00 pm & we headed back to vancouver. our driver was a wonderful guy . . . very friendly & an awesome tour guide. he stopped at a few landmarks on the way back to the city. we got back to our hotel around 6:00 pm & were out dining shortly after. really exhausted but enjoyed our day in whistler . . . definitely one of the highlights of the trip!

curling & hockey at paralympics

curling was our first event . . . a very loud arena as lots of school kids & we had a couple of rows of west germany fans . . . yikes! the final hockey game was sunday afternoon . . . a long bus ride & walk & couldn't stay for celebration afterwards as had a plane to catch. still thrilled to be a part of the games . . .

more paralympic holidays . . .

we stayed at the hyatt downtown which was great because there were so many great places to see & things to do that we could just walk to plus lots of great restaurants to choose from. the city went all out with the festivities. we spent a morning at the deloitte office which was fascinating to hear the role they have been playing at the olympics. the office was renovated & the olympic theme shone through right down to the cutlery & dishes! it was so neat to be a part of the excitement & support!

easter treats . . .

wanted to make something special for the girls this week to share with their friends. they loved them & so easy to make. i made one batch with white chocolate & the other with milk chocolate & butterscotch mixed. just melt in microwave at 50% so chocolate does not burn & mix with fibre one (superstore blue line is the most nest like & cheap too). . . scoop onto waxed paper, make an indent & add micro mini eggs. cool in fridge/freezer & enjoy! they are kinda like a healthy fancy haystack!

easter treats . . .

i love this background . . .

the vancouver art gallery was just a couple of blocks over from our hotel & i went nuts the first time we passed it & i saw the incredible back drop they put up. what it has to do with the olympics i have no idea but it sure put me in the spring time mood & i finally asked bri if he would snap a couple . . . wish i was wearing a pretty dress or something . . . would love to have shot the girlies in front of this . . .

running in vancouver . . .

i've been dreaming about my running days in vancouver . . . even the hotel's treadmill was a nice change with buildt in tv's & a view of the rooftop pool & the downtown city below. on two mornings we got up early & rented bri a bike & while he biked i ran around the sea wall & stanley part (12k) . . . some of the incredible views along the way . . .

we usually started or ended at a starbucks as there was one everywhere you looked :)

a strange resemblance . . .

ran into this very cool little work of art in the calgary airport

& right away it reminded me of my darling husband & how

i picture some of his busy days at work or his mornings trying

to get out the door or dashing between meetings & clients in

attempts to get home on time at the end of the day . . .

vancouver holiday . . .

well it's taking me way to long to go through the photos from the paralymics & our trip so thought better post something as is already becoming a forgotten memory! after all the reading about security & line ups i decided i would take my little lumix point & shoot camera. it would make life a lot easier & i must say i was impressed with it's output! so this photo was taken just coming over the granville bridge as we were pretty tired at this point as bri had biked & i ran stanley park & the seawall (12k) & we had walked through downtown with hopes of lunch at granville island & market area. we did have a lovely lunch & then strolled up granville street stopping at our favorite stores along the way . . . restoration hardware, chapters, pottery barn, meinhardt's grocery & bakery & a few art galleries. our final destination was karl & diane's for supper & evening. it was so great to see their new pad & hang out with baby kaitlyn. we also were delighted with the news that another baby is on the way!

happy 10th birthday claire . . .

can't believe ten years ago you came into this world! you have been such a joy to see grow & can't imagine our little family without you! i love your tender & caring heart for those around you & the way you get excited about the little things in life :) i love your imagination & your need to create. we all appreciate the music you make each day & the hard work you do on your violin. i hope you continue to share your gift of playing for others to enjoy & thank you for filling our home with music each day. i pray you will stay close to jesus & continue to look for ways to love him & those around you. happy 10th birthday sweetheart . . . looking forward to celebrating with you today!