tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286730202024-03-13T08:05:08.687-07:00A Southern Girl Discovered The Great White North<p></p>Jen Websterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14218773378483660634noreply@blogger.comBlogger146125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-33335152445574317682011-02-02T10:04:00.000-08:002011-02-02T10:07:15.891-08:00Most days you can find me....I am spending all of my time on my craft blog Cariboo Butterfly Handmade these days. I will likely pick this blog up after the winter thaw and gardening season starts. I will probably be sporting a new blog design by then too. Hope your new year is off to a great start!<br />Cheers!<br />JenUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-14038714166393425132010-11-08T11:32:00.000-08:002010-11-08T11:48:34.402-08:00Lady of the WoodsAccording to the Celtic Zodiac, I am a Birch Tree. This is not too surprising to me considering that I have such a strong fondness for Birch Trees. I love their simple beauty. The most peaceful sound in the world to me is hearing the leaves of a Birch tree rustle in a gentle breeze. We cut down some dead Birch trees last year to have for firewood this year, and we got a lot of Birch bark. It is so beautiful, and versatile. My creative juices start flowing when I see a sheet of Birch bark, but I have yet to pinpoint that one unique thing to craft with it. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/TNhTbkaloBI/AAAAAAAANjU/apmtsdzHsPg/s1600/P1230134.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/TNhTbkaloBI/AAAAAAAANjU/apmtsdzHsPg/s200/P1230134.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537267474948792338" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/TNhS7di-LII/AAAAAAAANjM/GVbue9hwQ2Y/s1600/P1220761.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/TNhS7di-LII/AAAAAAAANjM/GVbue9hwQ2Y/s200/P1220761.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537266923349093506" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-61103193455043423922010-11-03T13:28:00.000-07:002010-11-03T16:39:50.382-07:00My year in Pictures! 2010I have been horrible in keeping an up to date blog for over a year now. <br />I thought it would be nice to a photo slide show summary of things that we did through out the year. :) I will add more pics as the year progresses. <br /><br /><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"><tr><td><a href="http://smilebox.com/play/4d546b354e7a637a4d7a673d0d0a&blogview=true&campaign=blog_playback_link" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="303" alt="Click to play this Smilebox slideshow" src="http://smilebox.com/snap/4d546b354e7a637a4d7a673d0d0a.jpg" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/?partner=smilebox&campaign=blog_snapshot" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="46" alt="Create your own slideshow - Powered by Smilebox" src="http://www.smilebox.com/globalImages/blogInstructions/blogLogoSmileboxSmall.gif" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center">Create a <a href="http://www.smilebox.com/" target="_blank">free digital slideshow</a></td></tr></table>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-61405760023664985102010-09-01T08:53:00.000-07:002010-09-01T08:54:05.970-07:00Um....I guess I let this blog fall by the wayside once again.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-84743099445446005722009-12-29T18:24:00.000-08:002009-12-29T20:30:41.681-08:00A new year on the way....a reason to blog!After a year on hiatus from blogging, I have decided it was high time I got back to writing about my adventures here in Canada. <br /><br /> A year ago we purchased our first house, my daughter was 2 1/2, I was suffering from depression, overwhelmed with grief at the loss of my stepdad, and the list goes on and on. Winter was much too long, and I suffered greatly for not having had access to more than one tv channel, and a whole whack load of children's dvds which I can quote from memory. This fall we got a satellite, and just purchased a Wii Sport, and Wii Fit expansion, so winter blues can go to hell!<br /><br />The year was a busy one for us, being that we we not able to do much outside until the snow melted late April, early May. We had a summer vegetable garden which would have been more enjoyable had I not been suffering from depression, and having a child that would not be corralled for any length of time. In May we got a 4 1/2 month old Black Lab/Shepard mix that is enormous! She also has a bit of Bull Mastiff thrown in for good measure, so we were told at the SPCA. We also spent a lot of time getting ready for the W word....lots of firewood to prepare, and yard maintenance, which included building a nice fenced in play area for Molly. By the time we got our dog, the ground was way too hard to manually dig holes to build her a run, but we ended up stringing a cable run until this coming Spring. We are going to have a run, or I will lose my mind! She hates being tied up, and since she is the neighborhood wanderer, we have got to get a hold on her misbehaving. She actually bolted on me 4 different times with me today, and the 5th she got out of her collar, and that was that. She will soon learn the hardship of being a yard dog only. <br /><br />The year also brought about that our immediate neighbors were going to be a problem, which is actually what sparked this blog post today!<br /><br />Our immediate neighbors are the poster children for low class ignorance, and all around "trailer trash" I really don't like using that term considering I am from Alabama, and I really don't know what else to call these people. I never lived in a trailer, and I had many friends that do or did, but there is a class of people that just don't fit in anywhere else. Whether it be by poor upbringing, or whatever these people are ignorant, and most unpleasant. It is a woman, her husband, and two young sons. Her father lives in a trailer off the grid off to the back of the property. He seems nice enough, but "she" is a total bitch. I really can't say too much for the kids, and the husband, because I really don't have a problem with them per se... I really rather feel sorry for them. This woman is deplorable, and she is offensive, a loud mouthed harpy, and just all around unpleasant person. <br /><br />The problem started after the weather started to get warmer, and we were outside more. Since we moved in Winter, we never really heard anything out of these people. Well, let us just say that it was an utter screamfest over there most days, with the f-word flying at all directions, and all other obscenities...it was really the only word we could make out. In fact it was so bad, that most days I had to go back in the house because I didn't want my daughter subjected to such crap. <br /><br />This went on off and on for weeks, and there was some late night partying going on as well. Greg finally had enough when he heard her threaten to punch her child in the f-ing face if they didn't clean up their room. We didn't call immediately, but the night before our daughter's 3rd birthday all hell broke lose over there, and during the night I heard some very weird screaming and carrying on. Alcohol is probably a major contributor. Greg called child services because no child should have to endure that kind of environment. They in turn did not have a record of this family, but according to our other neighbors they were known to police. So child services called the RCMP, and they immediately sent over 3 cruisers. They were there for about half an hour. We were in the middle of setting up for a birthday party, and I was dreading the outcome of this. You know you want to do the right thing, but then you feel strange, and worry about repercussions. We do have to live next door to these people. After the RCMP left, the woman yelled out the window...saying "Thank you very much" in her harpy voice. <br /><br />Well, things got a lot quieter over there now that child services was in the know. Occasionally , I will hear her screaming about something, carrying on, or unfortunately singing as loudly as she can to Janis Joplin in some drunken karaoke stupor. I could not tell you what this woman looks like, I have actually never seen her. I know what her husband, and kids look like. I know that voice though.<br /><br />Well, like I had said we have had issues with Tera taking off, and she does spend some time over at this trailer, since they do have dogs. The boys tend to keep her occupied when they are outside playing, and she will not come if I call her. Not to mention, I worry about this woman doing something mean to Tera. Well, I was just back from retrieving Tera from down the road, and this woman yells to me from the window that Tera has been pooping and peeing in her garden, and she was sick to death of it. I simply replied " I am very sorry". I then turned and got in my car because Tera took off while I had to briefly respond to this woman. <br /><br />First of all there is at least 8 inches of snow on the ground, and what garden was she speaking of?? Another thing that I really wanted to say is well, that is what you get for polluting our ears with your foul loud mouth. I could have said so many things, but I refrained. I understand that she doesn't want Tera over there, I don't want Tera over there. We will be installing an electric fencing system this spring, and until then Tera is leash, and cable run bound . She blew all freedom privileges out the window today. <br /><br /><br />I am really feeling sorry for those kids, having to grow up in this kind of environment, because unfortunately if things don't change you can just about guess their futures word for word. :(<br />Wow, do I feel a bit better for getting that load off. <br /><br />Hopefully my next posting won't be a total rant. :)<br />Cheers!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-31159657041130271682009-12-08T13:13:00.000-08:002009-12-08T13:14:40.830-08:00<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"><tr><td><a href="http://smilebox.com/play/4d5449344e4467784e7a633d0d0a&blogview=true&campaign=blog_playback_link" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="303" alt="Click to play this Smilebox greeting: Season's Greetings!" src="http://smilebox.com/snap/4d5449344e4467784e7a633d0d0a.jpg" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/?partner=shareasale&campaign=blog_snapshot" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="46" alt="Create your own greeting - Powered by Smilebox" src="http://www.smilebox.com/globalImages/blogInstructions/blogLogoSmileboxSmall.gif" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/ecards" target="_blank">Make a Smilebox greeting</a></td></tr></table>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-27942352917643683552009-01-22T14:23:00.000-08:002009-01-22T15:05:39.089-08:00Beautiful and DeadlyIsn't it strange how the mind works? I would have never thought that taking a picture of a perfect little gift of nature such as a snowflake to cause my mind to overflow with thoughts. <br /><br />I often wondered as a child how adults knew what snowflakes looked like in real life, because one, I lived in the Southern U.S., and two, it is wet snow, and messy when we do get it. Living in the North Central Province of BC, Canada I have experienced Winter in a whole different perspective. Extremely cold temperatures, and more times than not, dry snow. Perfect powder. On a rare occasion such as today, you can actually see individual perfect little snowflakes, and wonder how? How is this perfect little wonder created? <br /><br />Now, this flooded my mind with all kinds of thoughts about snow. Some words I find to describe snow: beautiful,serene, perfect, peaceful, romantic,angelic,delicate,treacherous, vicious, unforgiving, and even deadly. Vicious, unforgiving...deadly? Wow, what happened to beautiful? Well, as with most things in the natural world with beauty also comes the potential for circumstances beyond our control. Events that change something beautiful, and in a blink of an eye can turn that beauty against you, and put you in harm's way, even causing death.<br /><br />I know that it is impossible for a single snowflake to inflict harm on anything bigger than itself. Lots of snowflakes can however, as with anything in overabundance. Wind, rain, bodies of water, trees,mountains, sand, earth,snow, ice... the list can go on and on. All these things are pleasing to the eyes, and people flock to enjoy their beauty. But these wonders of nature can turn vicious and unforgiving, and quickly hurt, or take a life without hesitation, without guilt, without remorse.<br /><br />That is why it is so important that we respect our earth, and it's beauty. Know her boundaries,her strengths,her weaknesses, and respect, care, and love her for in return we will reap the benefits for years to come. <br /><br />It is funny how the mind works, and this whole blog entry started with a single snowflake....<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SXjy3aHVKRI/AAAAAAAAE9Y/HbZok-EFKRQ/s1600-h/P1140835.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SXjy3aHVKRI/AAAAAAAAE9Y/HbZok-EFKRQ/s400/P1140835.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294248395690813714" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-29784824071800764182008-12-31T14:25:00.000-08:002008-12-31T14:28:09.498-08:00New Year's Eve day visitorsAfter a month in the house , and after gazing out the kitchen window everyday in hopes of seeing some wild life....we finally had some visitors. What I thought was just one doe turned out to be 3! They weren't took scared, and I threw some apples out for them.<br /><br /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" width="600" height="400" flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&RGB=0x000000&feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fokalasponsorship%2Falbumid%2F5286080430606793713%3Fkind%3Dphoto%26alt%3Drss" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-80738479439007242862008-12-31T10:52:00.000-08:002008-12-31T10:53:03.569-08:00Happy New Year!<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"><tr><td><a href="http://smilebox.com/play/4e6a63314d6a63354e413d3d0d0a&campaign=blog_playback_link&blogview=true" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="303" alt="Click to play Happy New Year" src="http://smilebox.com/snap/4e6a63314d6a63354e413d3d0d0a.jpg" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/?partner=smilebox&campaign=blog_snapshot" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="46" alt="Create your own slideshow - Powered by Smilebox" src="http://www.smilebox.com/globalImages/blogInstructions/blogLogoSmileboxSmall.gif" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/slideshows" target="_blank">Make a Smilebox slideshow</a></td></tr></table>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-43057157633282406582008-12-24T11:06:00.001-08:002008-12-24T19:19:11.500-08:00Season's Greetings!Well, Christmas Eve day is here, and Christmas Day is nearly here. We are spending a quiet holiday at home, and I can't be glad enough. The weather is frightful, and it is snowing, and I don't want to be the poor stranded travelers that are trying to get home for the holidays. We are looking forward to Molly's Christmas, as she is now 2 1/2 and she will be so fun tomorrow!<br />I can't wait to see her reactions to Santa's visit. <br /><br />I wish you a very warm, safe, and memorable holiday whatever your beliefs. <br />Season's Greetings!<br /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" width="400" height="267" flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&captions=1&RGB=0x000000&feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fokalasponsorship%2Falbumid%2F5283559596615914465%3Fkind%3Dphoto%26alt%3Drss" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-55972218406585933242008-12-24T10:47:00.000-08:002008-12-24T11:04:18.483-08:00A little bit of history...My mom sent me a package with a clock that my grandmother cross-stitched in the mid-sixties. My granddaddy framed it for her. It is now proudly hanging in my kitchen. It actually fits the color scheme quite well. So that is great. :) My grandmother, and granddaddy have been gone from this earth more than a decade, but a little piece of them is always with us. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SVKDusNolyI/AAAAAAAAEjY/DiGHiMlW0lw/s1600-h/P1140352.JPG'><img src='http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SVKDusNolyI/AAAAAAAAEjY/DiGHiMlW0lw/s320/P1140352.JPG' border='0' alt=''style='clear:both;float:left; margin:0px 10px 10px 0;' /></a> <div style='clear:both; text-align:LEFT'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-37950077868062757872008-12-20T07:39:00.000-08:002008-12-20T07:53:02.234-08:00Living in a Deep FreezeWell, the past week, and a bit we have been in a deep freeze here in Quesnel. It is currently -30C/-22F this morning. That is some kind of bitter cold. It is life as usual though because you have to keep on keeping on. Where I am from, if it got this cold, everything would be shut down. Milk, and bread fly off the shelves at the smallest mention of snow. Here is it life as usual for the most part. We just bundle up , and go. Greg, and I had to bring in some more fire wood, and shovel a different path for our wheelbarrow yesterday, and by the time we were done we both looked like victims of the Titanic, or some frosted over explorers of Mount Everest. My breathe froze the hair surrounding my face, and Greg's goatee, and mustache was full of chunks of ice. I got a vision of what I would look like with white hair, and what I might look like in 15 yrs. I would have taken a picture, but didn't really want to bring the camera out in that kind of cold. <br /><br /> It is going to be this cold for at least the next week. It is amazing that it has to be at least -40C for a week or more to kill off that stupid pine beetle....they apparently make their own antifreeze from the pine sap.<br /><br />Well, Christmas is nearly here, and we have just gotten our tree last night. I am going to decorate it today. We were going to just cut a tree off our land, but there is so much snow, and so cold that it is too brutal a task. So we purchased a cut tree from a guy that had been bundled up all day, and in the cold since 7:30a.m at the Walmart parking lot. Poor guy....the things people do to earn a living.<br /><br />We are going furniture shopping today, and I hope to finish up the last of the unpacking in the kitchen today,and all I will lack is my craft room, and a couple of things in Molly's room.<br /><br />We hope you have a safe, warm, happy, and peaceful holiday!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-18798411108596043522008-12-17T09:46:00.001-08:002008-12-17T09:46:53.687-08:00Cheers!<div style='background-color:#e9e9e9; width: 425px;'><object id='A63188' quality='high' data='http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=Pd1Wy2WLkUNfxYSM&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself' pluginspage='http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' wmode='transparent' height='319' width='425'><param name='wmode' value='transparent'></param><param name='movie' value='http://aka.zero.jibjab.com/client/zero/ClientZero_EmbedViewer.swf?external_make_id=Pd1Wy2WLkUNfxYSM&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='scaleMode' value='showAll'></param><param name='quality' value='high'></param><param name='allowNetworking' value='all'></param><param name='allowFullScreen' value='true' /><param name='FlashVars' value='external_make_id=Pd1Wy2WLkUNfxYSM&service=sendables.jibjab.com&partnerID=ElfYourself'></param><param name='allowScriptAccess' value='always'></param></object><div style='text-align:center; width:435px; margin-top:6px;'>Send your own <a href='http://www.elfyourself.com'>ElfYourself</a> <a href='http://sendables.jibjab.com/ecards'>eCards</a></div></div><img style="visibility:hidden;width:0px;height:0px;" border=0 width=0 height=0 src="http://counters.gigya.com/wildfire/IMP/CXNID=2000002.0NXC/bHQ9MTIyOTUzNTU2NjI1MCZwdD*xMjI5NTM1ODkxNjI1JnA9NDE4ODEzJmQ9MjAyNjY*Jm49YmxvZ2dlciZnPTImdD*mbz*xM2M1YWNlNDI2Mjk*NWE5ODYxMDYzNWE2NmY4YzRlMQ==.gif" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-76274224587091551502008-12-11T13:53:00.001-08:002008-12-11T13:53:59.773-08:00Seasons' Greetings from Quesnel, BC!<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" bgcolor="#ffffff"><tr><td><a href="http://smilebox.com/play/4e5467334e5467334e673d3d0d0a&campaign=blog_playback_link&blogview=true" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="303" alt="Click to play Season's Greetings !" src="http://smilebox.com/snap/4e5467334e5467334e673d3d0d0a.jpg" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/?partner=smilebox&campaign=blog_snapshot" target="_blank"><img width="386" height="46" alt="Create your own photobook - Powered by Smilebox" src="http://www.smilebox.com/globalImages/blogInstructions/blogLogoSmileboxSmall.gif" style="border: medium none ;"/></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center"><a href="http://www.smilebox.com/photobooks" target="_blank">Make a Smilebox photobook</a></td></tr></table>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-666753052766167212008-12-03T07:54:00.000-08:002008-12-03T08:11:20.939-08:00Life in the BushWell, I guess you could say we live in the bush, there isn't even a street light near our place . So at night it is truly dark!! I remember the first night, that I couldn't even see my hand in front of my face until my eyes became adjusted to the dark. I get around ok now, and I think we sleep a lot better now because it is dark, and soooooo QUIET! No street noise, no show offs racing down the street, no sirens, no noisy drunks, just peace and quiet. It is heaven. The sun rises through my kitchen window and it is so beautiful. We haven't seen any big wild life yet, though I hope we see a moose at some point, definitely deer. I have seen a very large red headed woodpecker a few times. <br /><br />I am slowly getting things sorted out with the unpacking and hope by this weekend I will have most of it done.<br /><br />We don't have cable here, and opted not to get satellite. So we pick up one channel on the antenna, and that is E channel. Of all channels why the heck is it Entertainment tv? You would think it would at least be PBS. So Molly watches a lot of DVD's. I am getting sick of the same old ones, and I have got some ordered, and a friend is suppose to burn us some dvd's of 24 hrs of Treehouse TV. In the warmer months, we will be spending lots of time outside, so no need for the tv at all really....though Molly gets bored with playing sometimes , and wants to watch her "deedle d" as she calls them. :)<br /><br />We have a gizmo we use through Telus to get our high speed internet over cell signals, and it is kind of pricey, but since the internet is my link to the outside world, it is important to us for personal stuff as well as business.<br /><br />I have ordered a steel jeweler's block and hammer, and hope to learn to work with wire more, and explore my creativity. <br /><br />So many plans ahead!<br /><br />Cheers!<br />JenUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-61364002229978166422008-12-01T17:50:00.000-08:002008-12-01T23:08:08.135-08:00We are moved in finally!!!Well, after 8 days of moving stuff from our old place to our house...we are officially MOVED! We are officially house owners!! :)<br />YEAH! You can't imagine how happy I am to finally after many many years to have a place of our own! I can hardly wait to get this place organized, but I am going to take it easy for a day, just to recoup from the move. I was never so glad to be done with that. There came a time when I just didn't have it in me to move another box or thing. I told Greg to help me move a reasonably sized box, just because I couldn't bring myself to pick it up. I was sooooo tired!!<br /><br />It is all good now, and the house looks like a tornado hit it, but I hope not for long! <br /><br />Winter has set up shop in Quesnel, though by this time last year we had lots of snow already, and it was freakin' cold!! So far it has only gotten down to -8C at night. It has been hovering around freezing for the high. <br /><br />We are trying to get accustomed to a wood furnace, and oil furnace.....no wood or oil, no heat. <br />So far the furnace hates me, and I have difficulty getting a fire going, but usually get it going after fighting with it. I am loving the wood fire smell though, and since where I came from having a fire going was more for ambiance than warmth for the most part, I wonder if the romanticism will soon wear off every time I have to trek down to the basement to load the furnace with wood, or crawl under the deck to retrieve more wood when it is -30 outside. I think we will have to store more wood indoors. We do have a cool trapdoor in the basement we can bring the wood through though, and not have to bring it through the house. <br /><br /><br />I took Molly for a walk around the yard today, and down to where the two out buildings are....boy there is a lot of junk that we now own!<br />I guess come springtime we will be doing a lot of clean up.<br /><br />We are on well water now, and that sure has been a blast from the past. The look, and the metallic smell of the water reminds me of my summers as a kid on Lake Martin. It has been interesting. I think we can get some kind of filter for that, but we are still learning. We have a water softener too....so much to learn!<br /><br />We are loving it here though....for the first time in a long time we can actually see the stars at night. It will be so cool this summer to sit outside at night, and stargaze. I will have to brush up on my constellations. I wish we were able to see an Aurora Borealis, but I don't think we are quite far enough north.<br /><br />Well, I am looking forward to having a lot more to write about with having started a new chapter in my life. For so long, there wasn't much to write about. Interesting times ahead! :)<br /><br />Cheers!<br />Jen<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf" width="400" height="267" flashvars="host=picasaweb.google.com&captions=1&RGB=0x000000&feed=http%3A%2F%2Fpicasaweb.google.com%2Fdata%2Ffeed%2Fapi%2Fuser%2Fokalasponsorship%2Falbumid%2F5270087804370707217%3Fkind%3Dphoto%26alt%3Drss" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-27340580050903071582008-11-02T15:59:00.001-08:002008-11-02T16:17:27.227-08:00Dealing with grief,and getting on with life...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SQ5CpMEb6bI/AAAAAAAADTk/TUSNZwvgRz4/s1600-h/n185467_1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 256px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SQ5CpMEb6bI/AAAAAAAADTk/TUSNZwvgRz4/s400/n185467_1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5264218289824590258" /></a><br />The last week has been a roller coaster of bittersweet emotions. It has only been a 8 days since my step dad succumbed to fatal injuries from a tragic tractor accident, and yet it seems like so long ago. We are finalizing the purchase of our very first home, and trying to gear up for a short move to the new house in a couple of weeks. I am trying to come to terms with my family's loss, and beginning a new chapter in my life all at the same time. It is a very confusing time.<br />I was in Walmart shopping, and they were playing Christmas music, and I became very sad, and began to cry. I am sad for my mom who lost the love of her life, and I am sad for myself, for losing my Daddy Jerry, I am sad for Molly for losing her granddaddy whom she is too young to remember. I am sad for LeAnn and Jay who have lost their dad, and for my whole family. It is so unfair. :(<br />I keep trying to remember that he is only away, until we can meet again. <br /><br />If things couldn't be complicated enough, I am also planning on selling Christmas crafts that I have been making for the local Christmas markets coming up at the end of the month. <br /><br />I am also scheduled to have a laproscopic procedure with cystectomy the 2nd of December. I will be looking forward to a calmer December, and hoping that aside from being away from my family at Christmas we will have a good holiday with Molly. <br /><br />Here are some pictures of our new home<br /><a href="http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=58956&l=bef0d&id=549365894">pics</a><br />Cheers!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-23890307406231868872008-10-28T08:33:00.001-07:002008-10-28T08:33:56.341-07:00Life can be cruel, and unfair...It is always hard to lose the ones you love. It is hard when it is expected, and it is even harder when it is not. My stepdad was fatally injured, and died over the weekend from a tractor accident. He was loading the three wheeled tractor onto a trailer to take to a tractor show. The tractor toppled over with him, and pinned him. They were not able to save him, and he died in my mom's arms. He was such a wonderful man.<br /><br />It is not very easy to put into words how you feel about someone, and how do you summarize 21 years of memories? There are not enough words to describe the person Jerry was, or what he was to me.<br /><br />I first met Jerry when I was 16 years old , and I believe it was he, and my mom's first or second date. They came by the place I worked so that my mom could introduce me to him. Being a skeptical, and very opinionated teenager, I wasn't sure what to think of this man sitting in a Mercedes Benz with a gold chain around his neck. I am sure that I was thinking, what on earth was my mother thinking? My first impressions of Jerry were definitely not the best, but over the last 21 years I grew to admire, and love him as if he were my own biological father.<br /><br />The last 21 yrs are flooded with so many good , and wonderful memories, and I am happy to know that I can share those memories with my daughter. Molly will know through those memories what a wonderful man her granddaddy was, and still is.<br /><br />Jerry wasn't just a father figure to me, he was also my friend, and he played a huge part in the woman I became. I will be forever grateful for his guidance, his immeasurable advice, his support, and for his love. He is, and always will be my Daddy Jerry. I love you, and I will miss you.<br /><br />JenniferUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-57985824238062951132008-10-19T09:47:00.000-07:002008-10-19T09:54:34.846-07:00Huge change in plans!!!!!Been super busy in the house of Webster. I have been getting ready for the Christmas Fairs the last few weeks, been sick, and been a traveling....then<br />the last week has been a whirlwind of activity! We came up on a wonderful offer very suddenly, and we are going to BUY A HOUSE!!! I am so stoked about this. We sign the papers on Tuesday at the bank, and just waiting on the inspections which we are expecting to be just fine.... then in 1 month we close, and we will be house owners!!! The house is on 5 acres, so we will likely sell our other land, and the great part is that it is a 10 minute walk, and a 1 minute drive from the land we already have!!! More details once everything is in place. You can't imagine how happy I am about this! I have only been waiting a zillion years for a place of my/our own. We got a great deal, and we have slowly realized that building was going to be way more than we could afford. Details to come, stay tuned.....Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-24217388252324221792008-09-23T10:33:00.000-07:002008-09-23T10:43:45.005-07:00Graphic DesignsI have been wanting a really nice banner image for my new etsy.com shop, and I was referred to a fellow Etsy member who does amazing work!!<br /> <br />She is Lyn Lloyd of <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5991175">LynLlloydDesigns</a><br /><br />If you are in the market for a banner image for your etsy shop she is the person to get! She also does video editing. Lyn will make you a one of a kind custom banner! She understands how hard it is looking for that perfect design for your shop! So she will work on your banner until she get it<br />exactly how you want it. <br /><br />So take a visit over to etsy to see what Lyn has to offer! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-45099712764604596752008-09-18T14:22:00.000-07:002008-09-18T14:48:59.352-07:00Making use of the land...Fall has begun here in Quesnel, and thus the rosehips are ripe, and ready for the picking. Who knew that rosehips were really good for you?? Molly, and I went today, and picked most of an ice cream bucket full!! She is quite the rosehip picker helper :) I plan on drying them for tea.<br /><br />The benefits of rosehips are fantastic, and our land is full of them! :)Rosehips have long been valued for its refrigerant and astringent properties. It is very well-known for its high concentration of Vitamin C. It has 20 times the amount of vitamin c than an orange.<br /><br /><br /><br />The following are some of the health benefits of drinking rosehip tea:<br /><br />*Rosehip tea is considered strengthening to the stomach;<br /><br />*is useful in combating diarrhea;<br />*fights dysentery;<br />*is valued for its pectoral qualities that is good for coughs and spitting of blood;<br />*can be used to help treat distempers of the breast;<br />*can also help break the stone and to ease and help the colic.<br />*is good for fighting colds, and flu<br />*helps lower blood pressure<br />*helps lower cholesterol<br />*is an anti-inflammatory<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SNLJxyCoa_I/AAAAAAAABys/DMK9b540pzU/s1600-h/P1130078.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SNLJxyCoa_I/AAAAAAAABys/DMK9b540pzU/s400/P1130078.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247478372923632626" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SNLKQr9u3JI/AAAAAAAABy0/zHd3jZqCzFI/s1600-h/P1130079.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SNLKQr9u3JI/AAAAAAAABy0/zHd3jZqCzFI/s400/P1130079.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5247478903868415122" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-53117814323278180192008-09-15T10:13:00.000-07:002008-09-15T10:14:59.895-07:00My Etsy Shop<script type='text/javascript' src='http://www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js'></script><script type='text/javascript'>new EtsyNameSpace.Mini(6159395, 'shop','thumbnail',4,1).renderIframe();</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-75409167048983103462008-09-12T13:20:00.000-07:002008-09-12T13:22:57.690-07:00Gas CouponI got this in my in box today. :)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SMrPUTR7gZI/AAAAAAAABr8/5neanH2ofIc/s1600-h/gascoupon.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SMrPUTR7gZI/AAAAAAAABr8/5neanH2ofIc/s400/gascoupon.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5245232663706173842" /></a><br /><br /> I didn't realise this but these coupons are good for<br /> one litre of gas at most retailers. I have seen them<br /> around lots but never knew what they were for.<br /> You probably have one lying around somewhere now.<br /> Make sure to use it before it expires!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-2354928869014313792008-09-10T08:07:00.000-07:002008-09-10T09:03:29.200-07:00Where did the Summer go, and did it even show up?Well, our Summer is gone here in the Cariboo for the most part, not that it really made a strong appearance. The leaves having been changing for a couple of weeks now, and Fall will be here in full swing very soon. This is very fine by me, as Fall is my favorite time of year. I have been really busy, and therefore no time for posting blog entries.<br />I decided I should do an update since it has been nearly 2 months again since my last post.<br /><br />We are still in the talking stages with a contractor about building us a house. We have been having to do a lot of legwork to get him the needed figures he needs to generate us a proposal. We will not be building until the Spring at the earliest. Winter will be here much too soon, and even though this contractor builds in the Winter, it will be too much for us to keep the 5 ft of snow we will get under control. I hope to post very soon that things are in motion, and we will be in our house finally next year!!!<br /><br />I have been working hard on our website <a href="http://www.myjobtips.com">myjobtips.com</a> hoping to generate some more traffic to the site. It has the potential of doing really well if we can just get it to where people can find us easily.<br /><br />I have also been crafting, and selling at the local farmer's market. I did ok with my sales, but not enough to keep it up for a few more weeks. I have decided instead to take a break from going on Saturday, and get ready for the Christmas markets in late November, and early December. I have however set up an online shop on etsy.com to sell my handcrafted items. I am currently making barrettes, zipper charms, pins, and some fridge magnets. All of the pieces are made with buttons. I am really enjoying the time to create, and express my creativity through my work. You can view my shop here- <a href="http://www.CaribooButterfly.etsy.com">Cariboo Butterfly Crafts.<br /></a>I have only added a few items,but have a lot more to do yet.<br /><br />In addition to doing all this, plus keeping house, and being mommy to Molly, and wife to Greg, I have also been doing a lot of charity work online as well. We donated our services, and built a website for a foundation we are now a part of as board advisers. I volunteer my time to do all the website maintenance and update the site for them. It has been a rewarding experience, and It makes me feel good that I am doing some good in the world. If you want to see the work I have done, and see what Okala Foundation is all about, take a look at <a href="http://www.okalafoundation.org">Okala Foundation</a><br /><br />Molly turned 2 in June, and is now 3 ft tall, or taller, and at least 35 lbs!!! She is going to be much taller than her mama that is for certain!! She has started back to StrongStart which is a free government provided program that is held at the local school. It is a structured program that prepares the kids for kindergarten. They have free play time, snack time, circle time, crafts, gym, library, and story time. It is really neat, because it is a drop in program, and you go when it works for you. We have also signed Molly up for a toddler gymnastics class. She starts on the 18th of this month. It will be for 13 weeks. We are looking forward to this ,as Molly loves to do flips. She really loves to play with balls, so we know for sure she will be into soccer. I recently purchased her a toddler basketball goal, and she loves it! She has several different size balls, and she will try to gather them all up at the same time, and then she will toss them, and try kicking them around. <br /><br />Molly is really advancing in her language skills. She has known her abc's for quite some time, and she can count to 12 in Spanish, and 20 in English already. She also knows several words in Spanish,and can say hi in 4 languages. What is interesting about the Spanish is she knows it is different. If you ask her to count in Spanish she will do so...she knows the difference. Last night in the bathtub, she had 3 turtles, and 3 frogs, and she lined them up on the tub and counted them out in English, and then in Spanish, all on her own. She has so many words in her vocabulary, and knows some words by sight. She knows that c-a-t spells cat. It is really amazing to see her grow. She knows some shapes, and colors already as well. It is funny though, we still sometimes have no idea what she is saying!:) Especially when she gets excited....which is a lot. I just wished I could potty train her! <br /><br />Greg is busy with work, and is doing really well. He has traveled a lot this year, but that has slowed up for now. He is also going to start taking some classes online with Athabasca University next month to get a degree in business or something. I can't remember exactly. <br /><br />So, you can see why you don't hear from me that often. I certainly wished I had more time to keep in touch properly. These days you will find me updating, and posting pictures on Facebook. It is a great tool for keeping in touch.<br /><br />I hope that this finds you all well in your parts of the globe.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28673020.post-15421989400897964392008-07-25T07:59:00.000-07:002008-07-25T08:05:52.738-07:00On HiatusWell, it has been a busy 2 months, and it is still busy. We are no closer to having the house, than the last time I posted, so I don't think we will have a house this year, unless we buy one.<br /><br />I am busy working on a new venture. I am crafting, and selling at the local farmer's market. Last weekend was my first Market. I did ok, but not fantastic, but at least I got some marketing done, and I had lots of compliments. I am hoping that if I do well locally, that I might try to sell online. I might do that anyhow.<br /><br />Anyhow, I am simply way too busy these days to blog, and I hope that next time that I get to post that it will be great news about selling lots of my creations. :)<br /><br />Hope all is well in your parts of the world!!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SInrh4IbHUI/AAAAAAAABDE/03-kXo29gM4/s1600-h/n549365894_1062377_3915.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_acgL6-sj4e0/SInrh4IbHUI/AAAAAAAABDE/03-kXo29gM4/s400/n549365894_1062377_3915.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5226967809776098626" /></a><br />A sample of Cariboo Butterfly CraftsUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0