Puttering through life

Last year Karen introduced me to an idea for a new family tradition originating from Andrea at A peek inside the fishbowl. Last year I chose not to create an elaborate calendar but focused on finding a unique and/or necessary activity to celebrate the days leading up to Christmas. I had so much fun, see my posts with the tag 25 days to Christmas that I knew I had to delve into this activity again.

This year I decided to create a visual display of my activities by adopting the envelope idea. Initially I wanted to make my own envelopes but in reality I work 35 hours a week, take care of two kids, barely get supper on the table and tend to walk around on a sticky kitchen floor because I just don't have time to dig out the mop. So I compromised. I found some cute little cards at Michael's and decorated the accompanying envelopes. The result was pretty sweet as you can see if you check out Karen's blog. I originally hung the envelopes from our mantle but changed my mind once I found the stockings and realized they looked better on the mantle.

Our activity today was to decorate the house. The kids and I pilfered through the contents of a couple of Rubbermaid containers. We managed to decorate the house with the small collection of items I own. Through this process I've realized that I need to start collecting some quality Christmas decorations.

Watching my children discover items from Christmas past, I was reminded of how special my mom made our Christmases. I remember rifling through the Christmas tins and boxes filled with ornaments, linens and decor items. It always seemed like a mini-treasure chest that held delight, sparkly items and memories. Mom often had a story to tell about where an ornament came from along with a plate of cookies at the ready for us.

Mom not only created a vast world of memories I can draw from but she continues to make Christmas special. Among the few good Christmas items I have is a nativity scene. Mom gave my sis and I the main set and then added onto it for us. It is a nice treasure to share with my kids and forces me to remember the meaning behind Christmas.

Keep posted for more Advent Calendar updates. Hopefully I can find time to post before midnight on a work night (then maybe I could add some pics as well)

I've been laying low lately. I have lots of reasonable excuses for not posting, check them out:
*managed to have a two week cold at the end of September; my throat was so bloody sore and the hacking cough was annoying (to say the least)
*my uncle passed away; cancer...nasty disease; went home to Alberta for the funeral; sad days (though always nice to be with family...missing my sis and her kids big time)
*thanksgiving feast done solo (missed having my mom or mom-in-law to "help" prepare the meal)




*work was crazy busy, learning a new job and yet not feeling it is yours because other people are currently doing the work is truly overrated (but it is improving as the contract person has left now)
*working 5 days a week versus 4 is a huge adjustment especially combined with a lengthier compute when picking up the kids without a bike cuz the weather is too chilly
*annual trip to Mackenzie King Estate in Gatineau for fall colours




*annual pumpkin patch outing to Miller's Farm & Market (included a fresh batch of apple cider)




*a walk around a bog at Mer Bleue





*spending an evening with friends...a certain delightful layer of chaos (courtesy of four children all 5 and under) mixed with good food and conversation
*Halloween (definitely a favourite holiday for me...especially jack o'lantern carving; we carved 5 this year)



*my lil bug's birthday (see future post for more details)

This week's You Capture photo challenge was happiness.

Happiness is universal and yet personal. My son came home with a project from school today. It was a piece of paper with a star at the top and a "poem" underneath it. The star had the phrase "I Wish" written on it. The poem read

Star Light, Star Bright
I Wish I May
I Wish I Might
Have the Wish
I wish tonight

Many of us have looked upon the vast night sky and recited this phrase, sending up a wish to the universe. My son's wish was "I wish I had presents all the time". A purely materialistic wish but it clearly spells out when he feels happiness.

For myself, my star wishes are simply for the feeling of happiness (honest). I experience happiness when I look upon the smiles (impish or pure) of my family. I'm filled with happy contentment when my husband's arms are wrapped around me. I delight in watching people letting loose and being a little silly. I'm giddy when delving into chocolate...cake, cookies, bars, beverages (you get the idea). I feel happy when I am close to nature.

This week I captured the smiles of my family.




But today on my bike ride to work, I felt happy. The air was crisp and smelled of fall. The trees are starting to display their glorious fall colours. The sun shone upon the earth making the dew twinkle and my heart rejoice. This picture captures the morning for me. My bike and nature.

SORRY if I sent you on a wild goose to find this week's Happiness photos, please go here

I want to take my photography one step further. My goal is to truly understand and utilize apertures, shutter speeds, ISO, etc. Thankfully I have a very adept husband who is willing to share his passion (and camera lenses) with me.

My desire to make some changes in my photography have been further peaked from all the information I find on different blogs. I specifically like some of the challenges out there. So I've decided to take the plunge and I will be attempting to keep up with the weekly challenges from



This week's challenge: Macro. Get up close to the object.



This is a close up of a spider web attached to our peony and lily plants in the front yard. I tweaked the pic in lightroom with a preset titled Velvia and played around with the brightness. I love playing with effects. Lightroom along with photoshop are becoming my new favourite tools. Hope you like my macro picture. I do.

The weather this summer has been downright crappy. More rain in July than normal and cooler temperatures for August except for one horrendous week that forced everyone into air conditioned buildings. September is upon us already and with the last rays of sunshine basking our land we embarked on a trip to a beach on Saturday afternoon. We piled the kids into the car and drove a mere 30 minutes to Rideau River Provincial Park. We dragged our friends into the adventure and found that we practically had the beach to ourselves. It was warm but not overly. The water was still and inviting. The kids and J plunged themselves into the water. They floated, swam, played, chased gulls, and tried catching minnows in the shallow waters. An elaborate moat system was created on the beach and overflowed from the buckets of water. We capped the afternoon off with a picnic supper. It truly was a wonderful homage to summer.

Spent most of the day orientating myself. First there was a session with human resources where I signed my name on the dotted line too many times to count. Next I meandered into the library and what may be the locale for the next chunk of my working life. I'm not sure what to make of my decision now that I have taken the plunge. I was so excited to remove myself from an insane situation and take on a new challenge that I forgot how taxing it is to try to absorb new material and figure out your place in a new place. I met with my new boss, received a brief run-down of library, took a library tour, and spent time with another person getting an overview of one aspect of position. Then the day was done. It was weird not actually doing specific work. I felt a bit out of my element.

It was also odd to be constantly introduced to people as Pam, the new reference services administrator, she use to work in interlibrary loans, do you remember her (egad that was 10 years ago and at the time I holed up in the ILL office). Makes you wonder if they were trying to justify my hire and make me an instant part of the climate. I think that may have been part of the case since there are two contract people on staff who applied for my new job, currently work in my new job but didn't get it. The reason is that they do not possess the Lib tech diploma, while I do. Talk about a potentially awkward situation, especially since I will be trained by one of them. Oh well, one day done and a few hundred more to go before I can retire.

I think the stress of the day was compounded by my lil bug having a nasty cold and fever. It was hard to leave her all day and not be there to comfort her. Thanks to J, she was in good hands though and managed to have a 4 hour nap...yep she must be sick cuz this girl does not normally nap. Ah, the joys of parenting while working. Not always the most ideal but a decision I have made for my sanity.

Attention, I would like to have your attention. You are now reading the blog of a Reference Services Administrator at a university library. I am no longer a federal government employee reduced to losing her job for a business model of shared services. I no longer need to worry about becoming bilingual. I am no longer stuck in a job with no room for upward mobility.

I'm a little anxious about adapting to a busy work schedule versus a laid back one. I'm quite worried that I may become overwhelmed with juggling work and home. But really I'm just plain EXCITED. I'm moving up in the world. I'm going to be in a interesting position dealing with reference staff and a learning disability centre. My salary has increased and the benefits are decent. Okay, maybe not as sweet as the government but hey I reaped those rewards already.

Wish me luck! I start on Sept 14th.