Sentimental Journey

Tonight I took a bit of a sentimental journey. I went to see my Grammie for the last time at 447 Baird Street. A house that she has lived in for 57 years...and before that they lived in what is now the garage, while Grandad built the house.

I'm a sentimental at heart, so naturally leaving behind this structure stirs up melancholy. So many memories reside here, not only for me but for my mom and her brothers.

I am happy for Grammie that she is moving to an apartment where she will be surrounded by other seniors with plenty of activities to keep her busy. This is a great move for her, but I'm sure there is a part of her that also is sad to leave her home. Although I will admit, she is taking it all in stride.

I have lots of fond memories of/with Grammie (found here, here, here and here) and look forward to many more trips down memory lane over a cup of her famous tea.

Great Expectations

The topic of managing expectations seems to have come up in one form or another with various people in the past little while.  It is interesting to me that the same concept applies in so many different areas of life.

I tend to be a bit of a dreamer and therefore, my expectations can be unrealistic in many circumstances. This is innately who I am, so I have dealt with the rollercoaster ride of disappointment most of my life. It doesn't seem right to me to not be a dreamer... however, in determining that I can manage my expectations, I can have a more predictable/realistic result or reaction.

People are people and they are they way they are. I cannot change how any one person is or how they will react to things. The only thing I can change is me. I have discovered that until you pin your own expectation onto someone or a situation, things are ok. But, once you start to formulate your own plan, you leave behind the reality of the situation and that person or situation will never live up to what you are now expecting.

I hope I am explaining this concept sufficiently. I wanted to share this light bulb moment as it has occurred to me several times in the past few months in so many aspects of life.

The Barcelona

Is there anything more appealing than the Barcelona chair? Really?

When I bought my house, I started thinking about the atmosphere I wanted to create in each room. I loved the idea of a light and airy, modern, sleek living room.

Purchasing new furniture is a daunting task: you need to consider size, style, colour... I'm glad that I took my time and lived in the house before making any decisions.

I knew that I did not want big, over-sized "bulbous" furniture. I prefer the clean lines of a modern home. The Barcelona chair had always been on my radar so when I found a set at a liquidator in Sarnia, I was very excited!

It has been a few weeks since the Barcelona has made my house its home and I must say, we are getting along well. It feels rather luxurious to sit on cream leather and it looks so sexy! Quite possibly the best aspect of my new furniture is when I walk in the door to the smell of leather. (sorry to all you animal-lovers, but it's true). Now...I just need to get that cow-hide throw for the floor.

Wisconsin

Another weekend, another date with my nieces and nephews. This time it was Madison's turn. Her birthday is actually in February but she was in Florida for her birthday. Then she returned when I was busy finishing up school...and then I bought a house...and finally we celebrated in October!

Our first idea was to make a scrapbook. Madison really likes crafts and I thought that would be something fun to do together. However, once I saw the forecast for the weekend, I knew we had to be outside. We opted to go apple picking at Apple Land. We had a great time with perfectly sunny skies. We picked apples, rode the train, had a picnic lunch, saw the animals and finally headed home.

We decided to make apple crisp with some of our apples and Madison did all the reading, measuring and mixing. All Auntie Janice did was use the knife to peel and cut the apples. It turned out great and she was able to take it home to share with Mommy & Daddy.

We had such a fun day together, I can't wait to do it again. Happy belated birthday Madison. I'm so happy you decided to join our family eight years ago :)

Liam's Big Day Out

As is tradition, I recently celebrated Liam's 4th birthday with a special day just for him. Jo-Anne brought both boys over for dinner on the Friday night. We had planned on having a fire in the back yard, but it was pouring rain, so we stayed inside instead. Having a wii makes Auntie Janice pretty popular with these boys and there was a lot of excitement while bowling, boxing and other wii games.

When it was time for bed, Jo-Anne & Jesse went home and Liam got to stay for a sleepover! In the morning, while we were having breakfast (and the day hadn't really started yet) Liam declared "this is the best day ever". LOL...cuteness. It turned out to be a beautiful sunny day and we hit the farmer's market before going to Green Lantern for lunch. You see, Jesse got to go to Green Lantern on his big day out (I think he just liked the name) and Liam had to do the same. He ordered a chocolate chip pancake...just like Jesse. It was cute.

After lunch we headed to Leaping Deer Legends Corn Maze. What a fun day! There is so much for kids to do here, we barely had time for the corn maze! Liam's favourite was the big slide, but other highlights were a wagon ride, feeding a baby goat, cheering on our favourite pig during the pig races, climbing on lots of straw, and of course a big (and I mean huge!) ice cream cone to end the day.

We had so much fun. Happy birthday Liam...can't believe you're four years old!! Love you so much. xo

House Warming!

I spent most of the day cleaning up my yard. I have a walnut tree in the back and it creates quite the mess, but I have to admit I like doing yard work! It was a beautiful sunny day and I raked and weeded while listening to some of my favourite music. It made for a great day.

Anyway, this reminded me that I never posted about my housewarming party. This summer was a bit of a blur with lots of things on the go and somehow that post got missed. A big thanks to my mom and dad who helped enormously in making the day a success. My dad finished all my little projects for him without any complaints...just painted, cut, drilled, hung, etc. Mom worked her little pitootie off in the kitchen, making sure food and beverage were constantly available.

It was great to see so many friends and family and I hope everyone comes back to visit. But not all at once... :)

A Nova Neighbourhood Discovery

I really like finding new little treasures in my neighbourhood and this weekend I discovered one more. On Saturday afternoon, I was meeting my friend Jodi for coffee and she suggested meeting at Nova Era Bakery. She had heard it had good food but had not been before. I had also heard it had good food, so we decided we should check it out.

It's in a very convenient location...just a 10 minute walk from my house and as luck would have it, Saturday afternoon was perfect weather for an afternoon stroll. Ironically, neither of us was hungry when we got there so we opted for drinks only but decided we would need to return to sample the food. The display case only contained a huge assortment of delicious goodies!

It was really nice to have a lazy afternoon of catching up over coffee with Jodi. This might just be my favourite thing thing to do...coffee with friends. So much, in fact, I spent yesterday afternoon doing that with my friend Kim and tonight I'm meeting up with Amanda and Sarah for coffee.

Do you have a favourite spot to meet up with friends?

National Coffee Day

It's national coffee day. At least that's what I heard in the twitterverse. Who knows what each day will celebrate. Just this week, I heard it was National Dental Health Day (wished my sister well as she's an hygienist) Chocolate Milk Day and now we are celebrating the java.

Well, I like coffee so I'm going to celebrate. I've already had 2 cups today and I'm planning a trip to Starbucks tonight. Coffee can have such a comforting effect...holding a warm cup in your hands on a cold day, the smell of it brewing in the morning, a good excuse to catch up with an old friend...the list goes on. I can't imagine being an anti-coffee person. (yep they are out there)

I started drinking coffee at a pretty young age, during many trips to my Aunt Peggy's house with my parents. The adults would always finish the evening off with a cup of coffee and I soon joined in. Since then, I have eliminated the sugar from my cup but despite my attempts, I'm still creaming it up.

So, how do you take your coffee? Where's your favourite cofffee spot? I gotta say my order at Starbucks is an Americano with room and I'm really digging a local haunt in my new neighbourhood called East Village Cafe.

Happy Coffee Day!!

Finding Time For Your Passions

 I recently attended an Elton John tribute show with a friend. Her husband played Elton, and did an amazing job! On the way to the show, Shelley was telling me about Ed's love of music and how after a bit of a hiatus he got back into it a few years ago. It's always been a passion and he decided to act on that. He has performed with various bands or on his own and is even teaching music lessons now.

What struck me when I saw the show was the effort that went into pulling it off. It wasn't just the 2 hour show that I saw that night. There were weekly rehearsals with the band, hours spent coming up with costume changes and hunting down just the right elements to create those costumes. A labour of love for sure.

And what did Ed and his friends get from this experience? Well, they certainly are not going to make it rich from the ticket sales. They will be lucky to break even after paying a sound guy, lighting guy and renting the theatre. What they will get from the experience is the satisfaction of doing something they love and fulfilling the passion that is within them.

I found this inspirational. Many times life gets to be so busy just keeping up with daily demands, you forget about the things that you once loved doing and that give you so much satisfaction. I know I have definitely felt this way.

So, when I got a phone call from a guy I used to do improv with, I accepted the invitation to join them on stage! Yes...it's true. I used to do improv, back in my high school/college days with a group called "No Laughing Matter". I never really considered myself to be the funniest in the group or the most outrageous, but it was something I really enjoyed doing. The group disbanded and 2 of the members reconnected a few years ago as "The Fidgets".

So, I agreed that I would be a part of the show. I was a little nervous before my first rehearsal as it had been 13 years since I had done improv in any form. (other than improvising my daily life) But after stepping on the stage with John and Dave I realized I was excited to be back at it.

I'm looking forward to the show on Friday night. It's at Victoria Playhouse in Petrolia at 8pm if you'd like to attend. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at the door.

September

Here I sit...hands poised over the keyboard, ready to post to my dormant blog and wondering where to start? This summer has been a whirlwind ...from buying a house and moving in, to working at a new job and all the extra excitement that summer brings! Now I'm carving out a few minutes to post and I'm at a loss!

I suppose I could remember my house warming party and post some of the projects I've worked on around the house. I could recap my star-studded weekend in Toronto at TIFF. Perhaps an update on the craziness that has been work the past few weeks while switching to CTV. All future posts, I'm sure. But tonight, just some reflections on September.

Yep, my favourite month of the year. The days get a little shorter and cooler but there is still plenty of sunshine. Something in the air changes after Labour Day...and I like it! Schedules go back to routine and things start to settle in for...no...I'm not going to say it, but you know what comes after Fall.

A walk through the mall or even flipping through a magazine gives me the urge to update my wardrobe to cozy sweaters in rich browns and oranges, tall boots of soft leather - maybe a buckle or two...hats, scarves (for fashion...not for warmth)...yep...all great aspects of September. Other things I love about it: apple picking, corn mazes, pumpkin flavoured everything, raking leaves....the list goes on.


For this reason, I have booked all Fridays off in September and will have a long weekend every weekend!

Face Lift?

I'm toying with the idea of a new "look" for my blog. But, after six years of the same...I kinda feel like it's an institution. What do you think? Time for a fresh new face? Or keep the "brand"? Hmmm. (yes, I know...need to post!!)

PLEASE STAND BY...

OK faithful followers...don't ditch me now. Sorry for the delay in fresh posts at My Place In The World. I have a gazillion in my head, but finding the time to actually compose and post them has been tricky. We just launched a new station re-brand at work which has had me working long, stressful days. The dust is starting to settle now and perhaps this weekend I will find some time to sit on my porch with my laptop and share some of my thoughts! Until then...can you believe it's September 1st???  (shout out to Mr. Conway Twitty who would have been 78 today.)

Road Trippin'

Hanging out with my friend Laurie is always a hoot. We love a lot of the same things (like Vinyl Cafe, pumpkin lattes, photography, blogging, country music, CBC, etc) so when we get together, we always have a good time. Those times, however, are few and far between. We live in cities about an hour away from each other and with the demands of daily life, it's hard to connect our schedules.

We dream of the fun we can have: road trip to Nashville, an afternoon of exploring with our cameras, concerts, etc. It's fun to dream. Well, this summer we decided to put our plans into action. A little too much action perhaps! We picked a day and cleared our calendars. We were hitting the road. To do what was a little unclear but we were determined! The list of ideas grew and soon we were creating a mosaic of all our plans into one day!

Laurie picked me up and after a quick tour of my new house, we hit the open road. Our route included St. Marys, Stratford, Shakespeare and possibly Elora...ummm, ya. We quickly narrowed that a bit! We landed in St. Marys and promptly got a coffee and started poking about in the quaint little shops. What fun! We discovered some real gems and picked up a few treasures as well. Soon enough we pulled our cameras out and took some "artsy" shots around town. Trying to combine our photo excursion with other adventures was spreading our focus too much (a little photog humour!) and soon we decided to leave the cameras in the car. That would be for another day.

Simply meandering through Stratford (my fave!) and lunching with Laurie made for a delicious day. We eventually ended up down by the Avon river, amongst the swans discussing the ups and downs of life. That is what I truly love about Laurie: I can open up to her and be real without feeling vulnerable. She understands.

Already looking forward to the next adventure Laur!

This Is Country Music

I had the radio on, tapping my foot and singing along to an old-style country song. Sure it was Brad Paisley, but it had the styling of old-school country. For some reason, it got me to thinking about how we determine what is music to our ears and what sounds we'd rather avoid.

I love a variety of music and can often be found driving with the windows down listening to anything from Tony Bennett to Johnny Cash. Instrumental jazzy tunes or the melodic sounds of James Taylor, Jack Johnson or Reid Jamieson. Foot-stomping country or smooth crooning.

However, there is just something about country music that hits my sweet spot. This is what got me to pondering. Why does this twangy and sometimes sappy music make me happy? I started to wonder if this is perhaps because of the constant infusion of country music when I was a tyke. My dad firmly believes there is no other kind of music :) Do I associate it with happy times as a kid? Is it in my tight-fittin' genes? Or am I over-thinking this? Perhaps it's just good music.

I know most of my contemporaries would not consider cranking Conway Twitty when they're in the car but when he sings about those tight-fittin' jeans, my hand instinctively reaches for the volume. Yes, I may seem like an urban/modern woman but underneath it all, I'm just a country girl at heart!

The Peanut

My nephew Jesse recently turned 6 and as part of the celebration, he got to do something really special with Auntie Janice. Since Jesse has always been a huge fan of Lightning McQueen and the Cars movie in general I decided to take him to see real race cars. Actually, it was HIS idea and I thought it was a great one.

My friend Kim's brother races micro sprint cars, so I asked if we could go and see him race and get a "behind the scenes" look. Kim's dad was all over that and sent me free passes in the mail. Jesse was going to love it!

The day of "the big day out" as I like to call it, Jesse came over before lunch. First on the list was to play the wii. He LOVED it. Especially the boxing game. It was hilarious to watch him fling himself around like a wet noodle! When it was time for lunch, we consulted the Urban Spoon app on my iphone. Jesse thought The Green Lantern sounded cool so that's where we headed. He was quite thrilled to get a chocolate chip pancake for lunch...and he ate the whole thing!

The rest of the afternoon we spent making our way to Grand Bend Speedway, making stops along the way to meander through some interesting places. Of course, ice cream was on the agenda!

Once we got to the speedway, we walked around and found Mark. He was doing some maintenance to the car and explained a few things to Jesse. We decided to look around at the other cars and Jesse even got the chance to sit in one! Soon it was time for the races to begin. Exciting! They were loud, so we pulled out the earmuffs. The look on his face was priceless. We had a lot of fun.

Jesse had his first sleepover at Auntie Janice's that night and he did great! No tears or anything. In the morning I made chocolate chip pancakes as per his request and that was a big hit!

I had a blast hanging out with Jesse. Six year olds are such a great age....they are full of questions and everything is fascinating. During our drive to Grand Bend he didn't get bored once. He just looked out the window and gave me a running commentary of factoids he has picked up in his young years. He is quite hilarious. So, happy birthday Peanut! xo

SHOUT OUTS

I have awesome friends. I already know that. But, in the six weeks since I got possession of my house, I've had so many people offering to help in lots of ways, I thought I'd give a shout out.

Sue Leckie: Sue offered to help me clean before I even moved in. We worked all afternoon scrubbing from top to bottom. It was a good feeling to know that when I moved all my stuff in, the house was CLEAN! She also helped me discover that my windows tip out for easy cleaning. Oh ya!!

Connie Berry: My sister Connie came for a full day of organizing, moving furniture, shopping for furniture, hanging things and brainstorming ideas. Master of the ideas.

Marj MacGregor: What a sweet friend. Marj came over for coffee one morning on my patio and brought Cinnabons! (yes, the real deal) While she was there we decided to go furniture shopping the next week. What fun to toot around with coffees in tow, checking out options and getting inspiration.

Murray Barnett: Even before I got my house, Murray was helping me out. He actually went through it before I made an offer - to get another opinion. After it was official he helped me by picking up, storing and then installing my rain barrel for me (on the hottest day of the summer no less). Always dependable, Myrrh.

Jodi Wildschut: Jodi used to be my roomie and has done the house thing herself, so she has been able to share her experiences and lessons learned with me. She also came over to help me hang some stuff on the walls, come up with ideas and even toted away some boxes for Goodwill for me. Thanks Jod.

Josh Murray: My cousin Josh thought he was just coming for a visit. What he didn't know was that he'd be helping to move a couch and hang some curtains! But he never complained once. In fact, I think he had fun with it :)

Dean Bates: For some reason, Dean has the ability to make me laugh, no matter how crazy the control room gets. So, the evening I bought my couch and told him it's officially called a "click clack" we had uncontrollable laughter! He also offered to help me move it as he has a pick up truck. So nice of him since he was officially starting vacation that day. Thanks Dino.

Things are starting to come together and feeling like "home". Stay tuned for more updates!

Bruce

I have a friend and his name is Bruce. (ok...singing a Johnny Cash song in my head...) Bruce and I have been friends for a long time but I don't actually remember meeting Bruce, he's just always been around. We work together and just clicked as kindred spirits do. We have spent many breaks together either at the picnic table or in the lounge at our corner table with a view.

During these dinner-hour conversations I have learned a lot about Mr. Bates. I've heard stories of his childhood and how he met the lovely Mary Ann. We've discussed family - the good, the bad and the ugly. He has offered up fatherly advice and I have entertained him with tales of my frivolity. We have laughed together and cried together and I dare say, at thirty years my senior, he is one of my closest friends at /A\.

I was devastated when he told me about his cancer and relieved that he seems to have kicked it. He had a very understanding ear when I discovered my sister had cancer. He was the first person I showed my MLS listing to and the first to see my home the day I got the keys. He is also the office lottery coordinator, sending out updates when there's a big jackpot and collecting funds for the pot.

Bruce will soon be able to retire and spend lots of time at his beloved cottage, so Mary Ann hosted a party to celebrate. The party was on my moving day and if it was for anyone else, I wouldn't have gone. But, how could I miss? The setting was perfect! Their cottage overlooks Lake Huron and is gorgeous. The day was filled with outside games, fabulous food and great friends. Dinner was served at a long family-style table overlooking the lake and I got to sit beside the guest of honour!

The day will come when Bruce and I don't share our breaks at the picnic table, but I know that we will always be friends and look forward to the day he calls to tell me to do my "happy dance" :)

Ms. Fix It

Last week I experienced my first home repair project. Sure, I've done some things since moving in, but most of them consisted of making a list and having someone else complete the task. Not this time!

I was in the middle of my morning shower and I had just finished rinsing the shampoo from my hair (fortunately!). I had just squirted some facial cleanser into my hand and was lathering it up when all of a sudden the spout where the water comes out FELL OFF! At the same moment, the water which was being redirected up to the shower head started to gush at me at a 90 degree angle! I was able to finish my shower by using the force of water similar to that of a fire hydrant. As I dried off, I tried to gather my thoughts about what I was going to do about this problem.

I picked up the spout and examined it. The end was threaded and it appeared it would just screw back on to the tub. However, when I tried to do this, the taps were in the way. So, I went to my tool box and returned with the appropriate screwdriver. I removed the taps, screwed the spout back on and returned the taps to their rightful place. I was feeling pretty proud of myself....until the next morning during my shower.

Yes, it happened again. As soon as I pulled up on the knobby that makes the water go to the shower head, it fell off again. This time I took the piece with me in a ziploc baggie to Home Depot. I was a little surprised when the man working there suggested a roll of 75 cent teflon tape. Seemed like an easy enough fix...and it was! I repeated the same steps but this time I applied a few rounds of the tape before putting the spout back on. Five showers later, it is still holding up.

There is a certain sense of accomplishment in problem solving and fixing something all on my own. I'm sure this is the first of many experiences like this and I promise I won't blog about them all!!

Remembering Jim

It might seem like a strange thing to say, but today I attended the best funeral. Jim Teskey was friends with my dad "back in the day". Years later, after Jim had married Lynda and Dave had married Ellen and they had 6 kids between them, the Teskey and the Mills clans would hang out.

There were games nights and camping excursions, campfires with smores and watching movies on a BETA player at the Teskeys!! Jason and John were older than me - more the age of my siblings. So as the "older kids" got older, I was left tagging along with the adults. I didn't mind. Lynda didn't have a daughter and is definitely a girly-girl so having me around was like a surrogate daughter for her. We had lots of good times.

Memories of the Teskeys:

• hearing stories of the trouble Jim & Dad used to stir up
• camping at United Church Camp
• pop and chip parties
• seeing "The Nations"
• Jim's ever-present suspenders
• going to London Dairy
• JIMLYN licence plate
• Jim's love of the song "Lynda...Do You Wanna Dance" (and inspiration for me singing it almost every time I see her)

Jim was an easy-going, laid-back kind of a guy and a big ole teddy bear. He had a permanent post outside the back door at church where he would greet everyone going in. After giving him a hug and opening the door, you'd find Lynda inside asking where her hug was! He was the first person I knew that had hearing aids and I remember his constant leaning in and saying "eh?". He loved to joke with people and had a constant smirk on his face and twinkle in his eye.

We were all sad to hear that Jim had developed leukemia and even more sad when we learned that his days with us on earth were numbered. I went to see Jim one week ago. Lynda and I had a little cry when I got there, but she informed me that Jim didn't want any of that. In his last days he wanted all laughter and good memories and true to his word, he was still joking around as he sat on the edge of the bed.

The comforting thing about today is that Jim planned every last detail. He didn't want any suits and ties at his funeral...dress comfortably, casually and wear suspenders if you can. (Jim's trademark) The sanctuary today was a sea of suspenders :) Jim was able to ask each pallbearer, personally, if they would do the honour. He picked the music and scripture. The service was the most uplifting and inspirational funerals I have seen. It has "Jim" written all over it. My favourite details:

• the family entered to the sounds of The Grundy County Auction
• Jim exited to Louisiana Saturday Night
• singing "I'll Fly Away" and "When We All Get To Heaven"
• the poignant words of his sons
• the pastor in a golf shirt
• playing his & Lynda's song "Lay Me Down" by Conway Twitty (who else would play this song at a funeral? I was a puddle)
• the funeral procession passing their house and the purple truck parked out front
• the squirt guns pulled out at the grave site!

During the service, they played a song called "Jesus Laughing". The pastor explained this is how Lynda saw Jim entering heaven. As I listened to the song, I could picture Jim walking up to Jesus and asking what took so long or something of the like. It was such a great mental image to think that he is in a better place with those that have gone before us. So many times at funerals we get caught up in how we are feeling and how we will miss our loved one but Jim made the most graceful exit of anyone I know.

She Moves On

(some of you smarty pants will recognize the title as a Paul Simon reference)

As I type this, I am soaking up the sunshine on my back patio! Yep, that's right...my patio. It's a gorgeous day filled with sunny skies, the birds are chirping, the neighbour's dog is barking (yikes, hope that is not a constant) and I am enjoying my new address.

Life has been a little crazy lately to actually post to my blog, but today I'm taking a time out from unpacking, organizing and cleaning to sit out on the patio and actually enjoy my new home! So far, I'm loving it!

I officially moved in on Saturday with my "crew" of family and friends arriving on the scene about 9am. (I might take a moment here to comment that when people help you move, they definitely love you. It's a lot of hard work and I so appreciate the people that helped out!) Anyway, things were pretty smooth sailing until we tried to get the couch into the basement. That was not going to happen. It's ok though...I want to get a new couch anyway, so this will push me to start looking (measuring tape in hand)

Despite the misty morning, we finished up around 2pm and I was left with mountains of boxes to sort through and decide where everything was going to go. Well, I'm still sorting but definitely making progress.

As my apartment at the nunnery emptied out, it looked so sad, bare and hollow. I know I'm a bit of a sentimental but I had a lot of good memories from my time there. As with every major change, as a new chapter begins, we must close the book on another. Today I made one final trip to get my mail and do a sweep through all the cupboards. As I closed the door for a final time I was definitely feeling a little nostalgic.

However, my mood has not been overly melancholy! My first night at my new house already felt like home. Things are starting to take shape and I even cooked in my kitchen last night! I now have a dishwasher which is a great addition to my life :) My neighbours are all super nice and I think it's going to be a great little spot for me.

I had my first guests on Tuesday night. My friends Sarah, Amanda and Mallory came over to hang out on the patio. Unfortunately it got a little chilly after about an hour so we headed to the basement but it was nice to play host. Already looking forward to my first par-tay in August. Not sure I want to call it a "house warming" as I don't want people to feel like they need to bring a gift. I will need to give this some thought.

OK...that is enough about my transition into my new house. I'm going to go and enjoy the sunshine.

PS no photos yet as things are still a mess!

Celebrating the Man I Call Dad

The month of June always brings my dad's birthday followed by Father's Day. So, naturally it's a time to reflect on one of the most important men in my life.

My dad is many things: a farmer, a butcher, a carpenter. He's a jack-of-all-trades, therefore he can do pretty much anything that needs to be done. (at least in my eyes!) He's quiet and shy but can speak his mind. He dropped out of school at a young age to help out his aging father on the farm...but can do mental math like no one I know.

As a kid I can remember riding in his pick-up listening to an orange 8 track cassette of Johnny Cash. (still a favourite) Helping on the farm was just part of the deal, so spending time with Dad usually meant picking up rocks (with thrilling rides in the front end loader), hoeing milk weed, handing him tools or just catching a ride to the mill when it was time to pick up or drop off. One of my most memorable chores was waxing the combine. Yes...I waxed a combine!!

As a farmer, Dad was an early-riser and expected you to be too. Many Saturday mornings I woke to the sound of the constant clink of his spoon in his coffee cup - not so much to stir his morning java but to ensure the household was rising from their slumber. Occasionally he'd really out-do himself and ring the doorbell, which would ring in every room in the house. (thanks to our 80's state-of-the-art intercom system!)

My dad has gone through a lot of personal challenges in his years. He had lost both parents by the time he was 40 and three siblings by his mid-fifties. He has endured the ups and downs of depending on the land to make a living and survived raising four kids. (including three girls!) Although we don't always agree on every issue, he is my dad and has made me who I am today.

Yesterday I had the great pleasure of walking the aisles of Home Depot with Dad as we shopped for things for my new house. I was a little surprised at the great nostalgic feeling I had as I pushed the cart and listened to him explain where we needed to go next. Perhaps part of me remembered those trips to the hardware store or "Websters" in Wyoming as a kid and perhaps part of me realized how much has changed in those years.

So, this June I wanted to pay tribute to my dad...John David Mills.
Love you dad.

Lunching with Murr

Lunching With The Bag Lady

For quite some time, I have heard people talking about a little place called The Bag Lady, here in London. It is a very small but funky restaurant that I often pass on morning walks. Urban Spoon recommends it and it's popped up on Twitter as well. I decided it was time to check out this Bag Lady.

However, I think I chose a rather humorous time to check out The Bag Lady. My friend Murray and I had plans for lunch and catching up. I thought TBL would be a good place to go...and it was. It was just hilarious to see the juxtuposition of Murray there.

Picture, if you will, a burly man with "beefy forearms" (as Nick Paparella likes to say) picking me up in a rather large pick-up truck. We had to park on the street as the parking lot was a little small for Murr's truck. We walked in and I had to chuckle. Besides being small, the place was stacked with retro chotchkies. Not being one to make a fuss, Murray took it all in stride and walked up to the counter to order his sandwich.

I must admit, the food was great and the atmosphere was fun however, Murray was the only testosterone in the room. We both had to laugh when 8 ladies wearing purple and red hats pulled up seats in the table next to us. No doubt they belonged to the Red Hat Society.

Later that day, I texted Murray to say thanks for being such a great sport. He wrote back to say that the food was great and it would be a good spot for the next Teamsters' meeting :)

A Rewarding Experience

In a previous post, I wrote about winning an award from IABC and London Life. Well, last week my friend Amanda and I attended the Virtuoso Awards. What a fun night!

When I saw that the ticket said "cocktail attire" I had planned on wearing a new dress I had purchased on a recent excursion to Great Lakes Crossing with Kim. However, the day of the event, the temperature dropped and I was reluctant to wear a sleeveless number. I tried on a few other options but just wasn't happy with them. I texted Amanda to complain about this and she suggested using a scarf/shawl. Great idea! I was all set.

I picked Amanda up and we headed for Museum London. It was a very funky atmosphere with being at an art gallery, swanky hors d'oeuvres, chill music and lots of people! We made our way around the room and saw a few familiar faces from Fanshawe. When it was time for the awards presentation, I was one of the first ones on stage. One of the instructors from Fanshawe presented the award and she was very excited for me. I got some nice hardware as well as a cheque for $500 ...sweet!

Here are a few pics from the evening...

Surprise!

Tonight I had an unexpected surprise. My sister Jo-Anne had suggested the two of us go out for dinner to celebrate my completion of the CCPR program at Fanshawe. To me, it was simply making it to the finish line. But Jo-Anne thought it was important to celebrate all my hard work, long days and determination. Sure, I thought...why not?

She emailed me yesterday to say Nick decided to join us as well. So, they arrived in the family mini-van to pick me up. Since I'm moving, they brought lots of boxes for me and as we were transferring them to the house, I noticed a balloon bouquet in the van. I didn't think it was a good idea to take it with us to the restaurant...that would be embarrassing. Jo-Anne seemed a bit disappointed, but brought it inside. Awww, had I known what she had planned, I would have just let her take it with us.

When we showed up at Foolini Koolini's, we were walking up to the door and I suddenly saw my mom & dad. I knew something was up because they would not be just hanging out downtown London on a Saturday night! So, Jo-Anne had coordinated the whole family to go for dinner in my honour.

Wow, I felt so special. After all my work over the past year it was so nice to feel like it mattered and that people were actually proud of what I had done. I really hadn't thought a lot about it, but tonight I certainly felt like I had accomplished something. And as a little reward for this, they got me a wireless magic mouse! It looks so fantastic in the box...in its own acrylic case. Sleek and stylish. I can't wait to get it set up and start using it!

Thanks to Jo-Anne & Nick, Mom & Dad, John & Karen and Connie & Steve. Love you all.

House Photos!

Finally...some photos of my house.

What A Week!

So, they say that things happen in threes. To follow up on my last post about my new house, in the same week I also started a new job AND won an award!

"A new job?" you may say? I thought she still worked at the TV station. Well...I do. This is a part time job that more or less landed in my lap around the same time the house stuff was all happening. It started when I attended a "thank you night" at Fanshawe for all people/businesses that were involved with our program this year. As I walked in the door, one of my teachers was standing there talking to someone and said "Oh, there's Janice now." It turns out that Jackie was speaking with Marc (my new boss) about a position he had available and she thought I'd be perfect for the role. I just happened to walk in at that moment.

So, I spoke with Marc for a few minutes and he gave me his card. I followed up with emailing him my resume and after a few emails back and forth, I had landed myself a part time job! This works out perfectly for me as I can keep the security of my job at /A\ while I gain experience in the communications industry. The Achievement Centre is very flexible with what days/hours I come in so it works well with my existing schedule.

My first day on the job was the day I bought my house, so it was rather surreal! Since then I have been learning the ropes and will be facilitating a weekly newsletter and managing web content. Last week I was already designing a new brochure for them! I know there will be other duties added to this, once I am familiar with the operations.

On my third day on the job, I got an email from Fanshawe College that I am the recipient of The London Life Fanshawe College IABC London Award of Excellence for 2011. I wasn't exactly sure what the award was or why I was receiving it, so I emailed one of my teachers. She replied back that indeed, I had won the award which is for the student with the top marks. Wahoo! All my early mornings and long days had paid off...literally! Jackie informed me that the award comes with $500 cash. Perfect timing for "found money" with lots of things on the list to buy for my house.

Home Sweet Home

This week I became a homeowner. What an exciting plunge I took, but it doesn't come without a great back story!

I had been casually looking for a house for the past year and a half. However, with returning to school, it was put on the back burner.With two weeks left in my program and lots of end-of-term projects looming, I discovered a house that looked absolutely perfect for me. My friend Kim went with me to check it out and it lived up to my expectations. So much so that I called my parents to see if they would come and look at it.

We wandered through the house with other possible buyers during its first open house. My dad (who tends to be a pessimist) could only say that it had squeaky hardwood floors. Indeed, it was the perfect little house for me. However, my head was spinning with the end of school looming and wondering if now was really the right time for me to jump into home ownership. I decided that perhaps it was best if I waited. There would, after all, be lots of other houses for sale.

Several weeks passed, I finished school, and I happened to notice online that the house was still for sale and the price had actually dropped! Hmmm, my interest was rekindled. I drove past it again and around the neighbourhood. I talked about it with my friend Duane, thought about it some more and went to look through it once again. This time I took my friend Murray with me, who has been my go-to guy about such matters since I have known him. We discussed over lunch and after going through the house, Myrrh gave it a solid thumbs up. I was on the verge...but actually making an offer was a big decision. I needed the weekend to think about it.

Over the Easter weekend, I thought about it some more and crunched the numbers. I considered the pros and cons and by Monday, I emailed Lisa to say I wanted to make an offer. I was so disappointed when she emailed me back to say someone had put an offer on it THAT DAY. I couldn't believe that it had sat on the market with no offers for four weeks, and as soon as I was ready, someone else was ready too. This was the beginning of a roller coaster ride of hopeful optimism and then disappointment.

As the rules go, I wasn't allowed to make an offer until the buyer decided to accept the counter-offer or sign it back to the seller. Lisa was convinced he would sign as he knew someone else was interested. (disappointment) However, she emailed me to let me know that he signed it back with another offer which opened it up to me. (optimism) So, as was Lisa's suggestion, I went in with my best offer. Later that afternoon I found out that a third offer had entered the mix. So, although my offer was beating the first one...the second one was competition. I increased my offer as high as I felt comfortable, but in the end it wasn't enough. The other offer won out. (disappointment)

Lisa reminded me that the offer could always fall through - you just never know. But, that doesn't happen very often. I was convinced that the house was gone, but was awaiting the final word. In the meantime, I was pretty disappointed to have missed out on the perfect property. Anything else I looked at just didn't compare.

Nearly two weeks passed before I got a call, text and email from Lisa while I was driving to see my mom on Mother's Day. The offer had fallen through and the house was available again! I couldn't believe it. I knew at that point it was meant to be. In fact, I had said that to my friend Bruce...if this deal falls apart, I was meant to live in that house!! So I texted Lisa back to say YES!

The next few days were again filled with ups and downs as I had a verbal agreement to my offer when another offer came in. Unfortunately, they had to bring it forward to the seller and it was higher than mine. But, since the house was meant to be mine....the seller decided to go with me. She just felt like that was the right decision.

So, after a week of appointments, paperwork, home inspection, more paperwork and even getting my very first lawyer...I am the proud owner of my first house. I will post more details about the property itself soon. Stay tuned! (but I will say... front porch and hardwood floors!)

Tribute to Mom

I'm sure that most people think their mom is special, and I am no exception. With today being Mother's Day, it's a time to celebrate moms everywhere. I'm pretty sure that when you become a mom, you gain super-hero powers. Moms require less sleep, can fix anything, have a healing touch and seem to know all the answers...until you become a teenager anyway.

My mom fits this criteria and then some. Long after everyone had gone to bed, she was switching a load of laundry from washer to dryer, packing lunches and making sure all was set for morning. She seems to have the ability to fix/mend/alter/clean/create ANYTHING...sometimes making me wonder if she actually performed a micro miracle. (one Christmas comes to mind when I was creating a Peter Pan costume for my nephew and we were up late into the night on the 24th. Sweat was beading on her forehead when I asked what I could do to help. She told me to pray. lol. Well...she pulled it off!)

I'm not sure if it's because she's a nurse or just part of being a mom, but she could always make me feel better when I was sick - knowing when you needed an ice pack, a band aid or gingerale. She had endless patience in the early years with teaching the alphabet, numbers, reading, tying shoes, etc. She always had time to sing a song and listen to how my day was. She drove me to piano lessons and then waited while I fumbled my way through. She navigated through many family vacations, reading the map while finding a campground WITH A POOL. She stayed up countless times, helping to finish school projects or book reports. She sacrificed so much for her four kids. Thanks Mom!

Of course, there are other moms in my family too... My sister-in-law Karen was the first to have a baby and we were all so excited to welcome Abby into the family, followed by Josh and Kaelyn! Some moms have more obstacles to overcome than others. My sister Connie had lots of those, but we were all delighted when she was able to adopt Madison. And a few years later, Jo-Anne added two adorable boys to the mix. I hope that some day I will have the privilege of being called Mom as well.