Happy Birthday Canada!!!

It's Canada Day, boys and girls! It'll probably be a day or two before I'm back in here entertaining all of you. My brother, Timmy, is coming to visit and I'm super excited!  He'll be here for the weekend so I will come back after he's said his goodbyes, ok?!!!! 

HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!!

My Gift has Arrived!!

It came! It Came!!! YEAH ME!!!  I won a prize from Tots and Me!!

There was a time when we weren't sure I was going to be able to collect my prize. See, Canada Post decided to go on strike while I was waiting for my present to arrive. RUDE!! But they finally went back to work and I got my prize! THANK YOU!!!!

You can check out this awesome website and thier fantastic giveaways here!!

I can't wait to start reading the book. I haven't really told anyone, but I am trying to lose some weight. I did gain 35lbs in the last year, afterall, and I JUST CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE! I'm hoping this book will inspire me to shred some unwanted excess!!

Day 18 What you like best about each member of your family

I know, I know. It has been so long since I was here.  I have no excuses.  My husband has been working so I've been home alone with kids and they've been quite the handful. By the time they are in bed, I'm done for the day! Today, the hubs is sick. So although the boys are in daycare and I would normally spend my time paroooosing the blog world, instead I am watching movies and keeping him company.  It's not nearly as exciting as I'm making it out to be, trust me.

So, let's move on to something more interesting; ME!  Today's day #18 of our 30 day challenge.  It has been several days since I came in here and updated our fun little adventure, hasn't it?  It was interrupted by the Great Canadian Blog Bash, as well. It's fun to be part of a bash made up entirely of Canadians, want to know why?  Because it means I can join all the giveaways and know for sure that they include Canadians! Yup, that about sums it up right there.

Day 18 is What I like best about each family member.  I'm not sure if this is supposed to just be my immediate family or not, but I'm gonna just gonna gush on and on about my wonderful boys and husband, and let that be that. I hope that's ok with you.

First, let's talk about my first born, Isaac.  I love his laugh. I love the way he tells me KnockKnock jokes that aren't even funny. I love that he goes to bed with almost no fuss as the tender age of 5. I love that he requires "Mommy" time before bed. If I'm not here when he goes to bed, he has been known to stay awake until I get home so that he can have his much needed time with his Momma. I love that he loves to be smothered in kisses and yet hates to be cuddled. I love his independence.  I love that his hair gets curly if it gets too long and I love his beautiful blue eyes. I was told when he was born that he would probably lose the blue but he never did.  I love him for all his goofiness.

Second, let's talk about my second; sweet, sweet Gavin.  Gavin spent 27 days in the NICU after he was born. Doctors had no idea why his heart rate and breathing were so irregular, why he slept constantly instead of eating, why he wouldn't get better. There were days when I wasn't sure he would come home at all.  The first thing I love most about Gavin is that he one day grew strong enough to come home.  And from that day forward he has grown stronger and stronger.  I love his fiestiness. The way he never backs down from a challenge. I love that he's still so tiny for his age and I love that he likes to cuddle with Mommy when he's tired. I love that he will eat anything, try everything at least once. I love that he loves the same food as I do.  I love that he asks me constantly to go to school even though he's only 3. I love that he is shy around strangers and yet the most talkative thing at home. I love that he is so athletic. He can swing a hockey stick or kick a soccer ball with such precision. I love that he did lose his beautiful blue eyes and instead has grey eyes that change, just like his Mom! My wee little man! 

Lastly, my sweet Hubby, Kirk. I will call him Kirkalicious! We've known each other for a decade and a half.  We met at work and were friends forever before we started dating.  We've been married for six years now, celebrating our anniversary on June 4th.  I love him because he takes care of me. I love that he is light hearted. I love that he is loyal to a fault. He is a great father. I love that he can do whatever he wants with the kids and nothing scares him. I would never dare attempt to take the kids shopping at Wallymart by myself, but Kirk will do this a dozen times a week. I love that Kirk worries so much about them. I love that he loves to do things with them even when I'm too tired.  I love that he loves me even when I'm grumpy! 

And that's it my friends!  Those are people in my immediate family and SOME of the reasons that I love them so dearly! Don't get me wrong. They can be a handful at times! LOL. Having a 3 & 5 year old can be a pain in the butt sometimes, especially when hubs is acting like one himself! You know what I'm talking about!! LOL. But this family is fabulous!!!

I AM CANADIAN!

Bonjour!!!  I hope you're all having a fantastic week so far! Welcome to the Great Canadian Blog Bash!  My name is Nancy and I'll be your host for this post.  Ha!  We're having a party and everyone is invited!!







I was born in London, Ontario.  I have lived in Canada all my life (obviously) and I love this place!  I currently live in Barrhaven, a subdivision of Ottawa.  Living in Canada's capital is spectacularly fun!  All those awesome pictures you see of Ottawa, I've been to!  During my 20's, I lived downtown and enjoyed the Byward Market as often as I could!

Byward Market

Parliament

Although I've lived in Ottawa for almost 17 years, I only visited the Parliament buildings this past year. My husband took me there for our 5 year wedding anniversary and it was pretty cool.  I love walking around the Parliament grounds because they are so beautiful. Behind the mail building is a huge winding staircase that leads down to the Rideau River.  So stunning to see!
 This is a picture of the Rideau Canal,  the world's largest skating rink. It's over 7km long and I've skated it a few times.  Fun Fact: The actual skating surface is comparable to more than 105 National Hockey League rinks, or more than 90 Olympic-sized hockey rinks!!

 Yes, it's cold here in the winters. Sometimes it's as low as -40C. But you dress warmly and you survive! The summers are warm and sunny and beautiful! The weather is always something to talk about at least!


 

My mother was born in Holland and came to Canada when she was a toddler.  I, however, was made in Canada!!

 I'm a huge hockey fan, and my favourite team is obviously The Ottawa Senators.
 
 This is me and a fellow Canadian, Mike Fisher. He was an Ottawa Senator!
 
 Well, that's all I got for tonight!  I hope you're weekend is fabulous! And I hope you're just loving this Great Canadian Blog Bash!!!! I plan to spend my weekend in my backyard under my new gazebo....
 
We got this new gazebo a few weeks ago. Speaking of crazy Canadian weather, we endured a crazy wind storm in May and it tore apart our first gazebo so we had to replace it! But here is a new one and this is where I plan to be all weekend long!  Enjoy Yourself!!

Day 17 Family Picture

Hello once again. I was wondering if you were getting tired of me talking about me yet?? I rarely get tired of talking about myself, but I sometimes get tired of listening to myself. Does that make sense. So today's challenge is easy, cuz all I have to do is post a few pics of my family. I wish I had a picture of my Mom and my brothers, but it seems all the pictures I have are really old. Guess I will have to remedy that.  Anyway, here's some pics....

This one is pretty old. Gavin is still a baby in this one. And I love the "devil" eyes. He was a handful!

This is probably the most recent of us. I use "recent" loosely!

This one is of us and the Hubby's family at Easter.  We're under the gazebo we lost in the storm. Miss that gazebo!

My wonderful husband, Kirk with Isaac and Gavin. My world in one shot.

Me and the boys.

Day 16 Favourite Food

Hello my friends. How is your week going so far?  Mine has been one big test.  I worked two full days in a row. Both were horribly busy, tiring days. The first day, I had a major panic attack half way thru the day.  It was a struggle to get thru the day because of the pain in my legs and feet (it's hard to work on your feet when you've been off as long as I have). I had to take a break and recollect myself and it wasn't easy.  Today wasn't much better. I did some work sitting down (which is hard to find when you work retail) and that helped with the pain. The stress is constant where I work. The store I'm at is extremely busy and it takes its toll on my mental state. By the time I get home, I'm cooked!  Thank goodness my kids were mostly good tonight!

Speaking of cooked, I had the greatest lunch today! Know what it is?? Lebanese, of course. My fav!!!  I went to the Lebanese place next to my work (convenient!!) and took a long lunch to get myself together. I had the most delicious chicken shawarma sandwich *YUM* and some tabbouleh!! Here's some pics!  Careful, it'll make you hungry.....

Yummy hummus and pita!!!



tabbouleh



And some fantastic dessert......baklava!!

Well, that was short but OH SO SWEET!!! I know it's only 8pm, but I think I'm gonna go take a long, hot bath and then go to bed!! What a day!!  Hope I didn't make you too hungry!! See you tomorrow :)

Day 15 Celebrity Crush

You can't let the little things get ya down. I reading this awesome book right now called "God Never Blinks" by Regina Brett.  When I'm finally done it I'll come back in here and tell you all about the really awesome parts in it but for now let me just say this. This book is filled with short stories that fill you with warm, squishy feelings inside. I'm gonna read it, and reread it to make me happy!

I thought since I'm trying to be in such a great mood, I would come here and hang out with you fine people. Let's talk about the 30 Day Challenge again, shall we?  Today's is fun, fun, fun!!  Day 15 is my Celebrity Crush's.  Let's check out just a few, shall we??

Ian Somerhalder.....YUM. I only watched like half of the first season of the Vampire Diaries cuz I lost interest but DAMN. This guy is super HOT!!!  I even watched Lost City Raiders just to see him in it. And that's saying something if you've seen the movie. LOL.

Bruce Willis.  He's one of my 'older man' crushes.  I just think he's so good looking and I find him HILARIOUS....especially in The Whole Nine Yards.  Just ridiculously, sarcastically funny!

When I was a teenager, I had the biggest crush on Joe McIntyre.  I went to see New Kids in concert, my room was covered in pics of Joe, I was obsessed!

MMmmmmmmmmmm, Gerard Butler. This is a true story, but I've loved Gerard since he played in Dracula 2000, which I thought was a pretty interesting Dracula story! I even saw it in the theatre!  And in Reign of Fire.....WOW is all I need to say. Grrrr, baby. Very Grrrrr!!!

Jeff Goldblum.  I've always thought Mr. Goldblum was sexy, dispute the massive ears!!  Just something about him. I really enjoyed his character in Powder.  I loved that movie and maybe that's why I like Jeff so much.

Ahhhhh, Paul Bettany. One of my all time favourites.  He's just so damn hot all the time.  I particularly like him in movies where he's all dirty, fighting bad things and such.  He's just sooooooo DIRTY!! Yummy dirty....you know what I'm talking about.

Sam Worthington. Oh, Sammy. You know what movie I liked him most in? It's not Avatar! I loved him in Terminator Salvation.  I loved him when he was so upset about being a machine. Makes me wanna reach thru the camera and give him a big ol' hug.  Sometimes I just fall in love with a character and I just can't help myself.  This is definitely one of those times.

Adorable Timothy Olyphant. Maybe you don't know who Timothy is. Maybe you do. I do, that's for sure.  He's actually been in a lot of movies, but not often as the leading man.  I liked him in Hitman, which I only just saw a few weeks ago. And I find him adorable in I Am Number Four.  He's just the most perfect teeth! LOL.

How about a man with some freakin' muscles!!????  I can't explain my small obsession with Dwayne Johnson, but I'll watch any movie he's in (yes, Honey. Even Fast Five). I just think he's so damn funny and uber-hot at the same time. Have you seen Gridiron Gang? Ooooh, yah!

So what did you think? You must like at least one of them. C'mon?? Oh, and hubby, if you're reading this, you look just like him!!

Can I Skip a Few Days?

Happy Father's Day to all the awesome fathers out there. On the 30 day challenge, today was supposed to be pics of my celebrity crush, but I was wondering if you minded if I skip ahead and do something sappy here for Father's Day instead? On Day 23, you're supposed to write a letter to your parents and I was hoping I could come in here and post some old pics of my awesome father!!

My Dad's name is John Paul Ducharme. Early in his life, everyone called him Jack. Late in life he made some major positive changes and one of them was his name. Everyone who knew him well called him JP.  I always called him Daddy. My Dad and I didn't know each other well growing up.  My parents were divorced when I was 5 and both my parents remarried.  But as an adult I like to think we became friends. He died on July 14th, 2010.  Today is the first Father's Day that I have been without my Daddy.

Although this Father's Day was a bit sad, I do still have an awesome Husband who is a fantastic father to our two boys. In fact, my husband, two boys and my fatherinlaw are currently out strawberry picking right now, which my kids just love.  I haven't been feeling too hot today. Mostly because I drank too much last night and a little because today is a wee bit sad. So to cheer me up a bit, let me show you some awesome pics of my father who I miss so much!

My Dad as a young boy......heehheeeee, I love the bow tie!

My Dad, me and my brother John

My favourite pic of my Dad, brother and I.

My Marvellous Mother and My Fantastic Father, walking me down the aisle!

He was such a proud Papa that day. 

So Day 23 of the 30 Day Challenge is supposed to be a letter to a parent. So here goes....

Dear Daddy,  
 We never got the time to know each other better but I know we would've been the best of friends. I want you to know how proud I am of you. And how much I miss you every single day. I feel you smiling down on me and I hope that I am making you proud.  One day we will be together again, but until then I hope you can feel what's truly in my heart and know that this world just isn't the same without you.  I love you so much.
From your Kiddo.


Ooohh, that was sappy, wasn't it.  So I'll come back in....maybe even later.....and post some pics of my celebrity crushes, new and old. We'll see each other soon.