less than inspired...

ok you must all be feeling less than inspired by me.. time to change that. just because you are dying to know what i am up too here are some things i am working on along with some faves of the week.

did a major clean and purge of my studio. decided to pile my current fave products in a basket for easy access.

New favorite layout from the last couple of thursday night crops


Been dabbling in beading lately. here are a few samples.

My fave blogs right now are Here and Here.

Been over at Etsy lots lately. Loving This one and This one.

Its back to school after being off all last week. It was a nice break but I also love my job so its good to go back too. I think my kids are happier with our current situation anyways.

The boys are good. Loving being outside. We got a new bike trailer/stroller which is fabulous. Today Ari fell in a huge mud puddle and it was horrible. Then he fell and bit his lip so it bled for about 15 minutes. Yea good times.

I have been consumed with my need for a new piece of furniture for this bare spot in my dining room.. have big dreams... or small dreams and it makes me need THIS book. Want this book bad.

controversy

if you are offended by this i'm sorry but i just had to share for those of you who may not be offended. last night jenny mcarthy spoke on larry king and gave a big point to those of us who are the minority of those who do not vaccinate or at least do early vaccinations. again if you are just going to get fired up don't bother watching but if you want to know more then this was awesome. and its not one sided.. good info on all. i especially like her points about the schedule and also the view of not being anti vaccine.. just watch it.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2008/04/02/lkl.autism.long.cnn

seriously...

so i've come across two blogs today that announced a twin pregnancy only to put at the bottom April Fools. You don't even want me to continue to write this post to hear what i have to say....

pieces of me

wink town is a pretty cool place to live. i've lived here all my life so i know my way around and stuff. there are certain streets i just automatically drive down and routes i always choose even if there is a "faster" way. i love the family type place it is and how there are people here who just make me happy. well wink town is about to get sad for me... someone is leaving. i find it hard to talk about and somehow even typing these words i am choking up. i have a friend. she is kind, soft, compassionate, witty, deeply loving, hip, generous and a dreamer of sorts. she knows how to bake well, cook yummy meals, put on a good party, she knows most of the jelly belly flavors and she is the kind of mom you want to be.. always willing to do fun projects even if they mean messy situations, she lets her kids run in, walk in, jump in and eat mud which i love. then there is the spiritual side which amazes me and even makes me a tad jealous.. its like lately she is sitting next to Jesus and He is just loving on her and giving her eyes to see exactly what He is doing. She exudes confidence, integrity and has an authentic, peaceful, crazy and lovely aura of worship all over her. I love her and although the people of Papa New Guinea are so blessed to have her live in their country my heart aches as i will miss her and having her live here in my country. sometimes i just want to say its not fair that she gets to leave and go on this crazy adventure i want her in my life but then i sit back and realize that life wouldn't be right if she stayed. this is her path.. the path her family is supposed to walk and the lives of the people she will encounter would not be complete without getting to experience her too...
then theres the daunting reality that we can't just go over and hang with Bill & Jester either. how will my boys ever learn the difference between a dump truck, a front end loader or a combine and a baler. how will we ever get by without their hugs and sharing a good snack of grapes, cheese and crackers. will we ever be able to eat freezies in the same way without shedding a tear. i suppose all this to say i am blessed to know that no matter how long they are gone or how far they go there are those people you just get to carry a piece of no matter what. a piece that is someday's visible and other days just quietly reminds you that you are loved and accepted no matter what.
so heres to the vbergs. in all you do pursue it with your whole hearts. lives won't ever be the same i can attest to that. i will miss you but carry you with me and can't wait to see you again.
i did think about the timing of my post and whether to wait till they are gone or almost gone and seeing as we have a month left should i wait.. but i wanted to express and maybe also remind myself that i get a whole month more with these guys and i hope to live it the fullest.

ugggg

This story brought to you in part by the letter I for Invasion of Space and the number 2 for yes there are two of them dang it.


new twin moment. took the boys out on an adventure this afternoon. had to mail a package so i decided to use Shoppers since its much easier to get the boys in and out of there and i am also able to contain them in a card as opposed to our small town post office... anyways quite the adventure lugging a box under one arm and holding onto two little arms trying to direct them to the door. you know toddlers have a mind of their own and don't nicely file towards the door across the big parking lot. we get within safe distance of the doors and i loosen my grip and look up to see a clan of old grandmas heading our way. i immediately wondered to myself how i will "protect" my children from these ladies.. too late to turn back. now my kids are pretty shy especially if you enter their space too soon. let me tell you these mennonite grandmas had no idea what space meant. "are they twins" "oooh they are so cute" "how old are they" the regular comments. my kids are slowly backing up as these grandmas are inching ever closer to their faces. ari has a look of panic and noah is too stunned to move. the clincher the grandma's (remember i have NO idea who these ladies are) reach for my kids soothers and pull them in and out of my kids mouths... ARE YOU JOKING ME?? I am trying to remain calm and smile all the while wanting to body check this lady away from my kid who is now starting to quiver. i explain nicely through gritted teeth that they are shy and they like their soother as i am inching closer and closer away from the crowd trying to reach the safety that is just behind the doors... finally they start to walk away.. as i get into the safety of the mall doors i look back and watch them pass by not one but two other cute kids (with two separate moms) and not even bat an eyelash.
i understand the whole twin thing can be a novelty to people but other peoples kids are super cute too..... spread some love their way.

death on the gambia

it was a long boat ride i never thought i would have to take and as i set foot onto The Christabel last Saturday night i had a feeling i would not leave the same way i got on. and thanks to Captain Sam aka Secret agent I did not.
The Christabel itself was a fun ride.. I met so many "interesting" characters. Although severely jealous of the classy Caroline Tanner I knew from the moment I layed eyes on her she was a phony. She did however have the best purse!! Then there was the very proper Peanut Buyer always whipping out her precious PB. She knew who I was from the get go but we decided to hold allegiance and not rat each other out. The Deckhand was so helpful just made me feel right at home and always had time to chat about anything. I found out right aways that the artsy Marie Renard was not who she said she was and decided in her murderous state it was best to steer clear of her. The smoke wielding detective was shady although so HOT... I can smell a dirty detective a mile away and he stunk! Never did help me with my travel papers. And who could forgot Vic the Jesus loving missionary who wanted Souls like most people drink water. And for what the queen was paying him for them I would have too. He was always quite forceful about inviting you into his cabin to "have a heart to heart". There were a few others aboard the Christabel that I won't soon forgot and although it did not end well for me I must say I did have the best time. Yes just about the best time you can have on a boat floating down the alligator invested waters of Gambia.

THE DECKHAND AND THE CAPTAIN
GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER ABOARD THE BOAT I DID END UP HOOKING UP WITH THE DETECTIVE. JUST COULDN'T RESIST. THE GANGS ALL HERE
DETECTIVE AND THE HEAD HUNTER
CAROLINE TANNER.. SUCH A BEAUTYI love these friends.. I was thinking of how blessed I am by them all. This dinner party thing we started has been so good for us. Lisa did the best job of getting this game together. I love that everyone really put themselves into their character. If you ever get a chance you should do it. Thanks guys!

it is a good friday

thankful for time to relax this weekend after a long and busy week. now that i am working the days blur together. things at my new job are amazing. i just love it. the boys are adjusting so well.. they love their time with arlene. we have been watching siding go up on our house... its so nice to see the end of the construction phase.. can't wait for our driveway (with spring it is MUCKY).
not much news to report just wanted to let you know we are all still here. i have some new pics and stories with ari and noah but am not at home right now so that will have to wait. hopefully a new and inspired post soon.. i will leave you with some things i am loving right now.
i have already shared my love for ETSY with you but in particular i am loving THIS shop right now. looking to order some fabulous fabric soon...such yummy things. especially this pattern.
Love this idea HERE.

And thanks to Arlene leaving her ipod at our place one evening I am loving Sarah Harmer and her intense lyrics especially the track "coffee stain". You must check it out.

Happy Easter.

shes crafty..

have had such a great weekend.. more posting on my saturday evening fesitivies but to tide you over i've been up to lots of crafty things this weekend. finally got some me time to scrap thur, fri and this afternoon... heres a peek.. you can always check out my gallery for more!

Inspired yet?

1. in my living room., 2. on a cloudy day, 3. Folded Prettiness, 4. Another Blue Cup Photo, 5. Simple, 6. Purple Micro-suede handbag purse, 7. Sarah Richardson, 8. crib with linens, 9. art every day...4/13, 10. Untitled, 11. Corner of my Kitchen, 12. vintage kitchen cannisters
these are favorite shots i have found in flickr... so inspired. not sure why #2 didn't work but white space is good too...

lets back up...

(this post has been started for awhile now so some of it is old news that most of you have just not heard yet)
its hard to put into words what i am feeling. granting myself permission to accept all this - feeling undeserving of all the incredible blessings.
a few weeks back i listened to my uber talented, spirit led, cousin, encouraging, teacher friend Chris give a message at church. He's one of those people who speak the heart of God. He challenged me to remember how life giving it is to remain in the center of God's will. daily i go back to this and the desire in me is growing deeper.. and with recent events just begging me to remain there. i accepted a job offer a couple weeks ago (since writing this i have completed a week of work) its a job that i have wanted and waited for. i feel sometimes letting go of my own agenda is what places me back in the centre. i will be working at a school literally steps from my house part time as an admin assistant (the new word for secretary) i have felt incredible peace in this process - not nervous too much just knowing that God will work out the details. my kids of course have been my main priority having good care for them... i kind of thought it would just show up at my door step if this was the path i was to take and yea it basically did. a girl we know from church and also one of my good friends sister in law. offered to come over and watch them.. amazing right? yea totally amazing. arlene is great... she is so good with my kids and they love her already... now when i leave in the morning they don't even cry they just play with "leene" i am blown away...
and my job.. well i am in love. its more than i thought it would be. i just love it. and even better. life just seems like it makes more sense to me. my relationship with my kids is 100% better and even with dave... its not them.. its me. i am happier and just really sure that this is whats best for us all right now. my relationship with the boys is a much healthier one... all over its lovely.
granted life has looked just different to me since Renee's passing. the world is just such a different place and more than ever just believing that i can and am the recipient of all good blessings.... deserving in fact. I just want to soak it all in and i am drowning in a puddle of gratefulness. hopeful that i will remain floating in the center.

i owe you..

i owe you all a good post.. so much has happened in the past few weeks and i am painfully reminded of the beauty of life. i will try to get a post finished this afternoon. but for right now i am so thankful for my boys.. watching them play cars on the coffee table and all the great sounds they make ok not quite honest they are playing cars and with necklaces... just keeping in touch with the feminine side. i also love that i got to spend time with these two gorgeous people this past weekend. although the circumstances sucked it warmed my heart......

LIVE this life full...

the events of yesterday have left a deep imprint on my heart... deeper than I thought. we attended Renee's funeral yesterday. surreal is the best explanation I can offer. an intimate, authentic, deeply sad, joyous, life changing memorial to someone who has left her mark in this world. in our hearts, in nations and in the justice she sought. i loved the visual picture wade painted as he reminded us of the tattoo Renee had on her ankle.. the Khmer word for hope. a painful reminder of a young, vibrant, uncommon, beautiful woman who knew the meaning of pain and suffering yet saw so much hope in herself and her world. she truly is promoted to glory as her dad has so eloquently said. the whole service was just what Renee would have loved. the quirky read poems that she loved, those she was closest to giving their tributes in language that Renee spoke. joanna spoke only as eloquently as she can and gave a deep tribute to the woman we knew in ywam. she played a video of Renee giving her testimony and also the readers theatre that Renee has written for The Rendevous in 03. It was a powerful picture of how gifted she was. I think that the angels are probably practicing her Earth, Fire, Water, Wind piece.. the drums must sound fantastic up there.
I could just see Renee in heaven worshiping with her king as we were lead in songs that meant so much to her and her mom. I found myself feeling so closely the presence of God...
somehow her parents mustered up strength to give tribute to their beautiful Renee... my heart is broken when I think of them having now lost three children to this savaging disease.
wade broke it all open as he gave a message of hurting and healing. he spoke right from the heart of Jesus and I know that I know that I know Renee loved every minute of it as did we. i appreciate his honesty and his no need for sugar coating.
he ended with the prayer of St.Patrick set to techno that Renee would have loved. i have no words to express the feeling in that room at that moment as we all realized that she was truly gone. that she wasn't going to get up and dance to wades kick ass techno this time. but that she did arise through god's strength to pilot her, through His might to uphold her, through His wisdom that guided her. that now His eyes were looking at her, His ears were hearing her, He is speaking to her.. Christ be with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit, Christ when I arise....

www.

a life to touch many... read the article HERE.

seriously..

i have so much to say that its making it harder to blog... new changes. i started a new job today!! yea i know most of you just had no clue.. i will blog later about details. its been incredible... child care miracles, just such good stuff.. i'll be back with details my child is wanting to get up from his nap.

see you on the other side

Renee went home to be with Jesus today. Now she is resting in his arms.

don't leave me..

coming soon.. new post. so much going on. its crazy. hopefully tonight.

and the book goes too....

I loved reading your lists and hope you were encouraged to try creative writing in some way. Dave selected (randomly) two numbers and I have two winners... Karla and Dixie! Congrats. I wish I could give you all the book.. so maybe you should stop by Kim's site and order it for yourselves. I have Karla's address so Dixie if you could email me yours that would be great. I want to try to put up some kind of creative challenge more often. so stay tuned!

live lusciously

if you are a regular reader you will remember me mentioning Kim McMechan a brilliant writer, singer and life coach. i was given a phone session with her as a gift and have been living life differently since. she encouraged me in my creative life and in light of that the rest of my life as well. she has a website HERE. i am greatly inpsired by her. i was also given her book as a gift which beautifully titled Tripping Into Daylight has become my most used book. Its a journal of stories, poems and life reflections.
Just today I was reading in it and this part spoke so softly to me.

"The more I live, the more my heart calls me to live one day at a time.
It is deeply needed. Otherwise there gets to be too many questions you
can't answer, will probably never be able to answer.
You start holding on, and holding on makes you loose the very things you were trying
so hard to keep all that time. I know it is only by living from this place
of letting go that you really live, really get to take life in."

She is generous and has given me some books to give away. I have been trying to come up with some clever blog giveaway that would encourage you to expand your mind and your creative life but have not come to any real clever conclusions. So I am just going to pick a winner at random. But first heres a challenge taken from her book. I challenge you to write a list of 10 beautiful things. There is power in writing things down. You are able to see more clearly that which you write down. It gets it out of your head where things usually stay vague and irritating.

You don't have to share in order to win. Just leave your name in the comments.
But heres my list.

10 beautiful things
1. the smell of coffee brewing
2. the sound of ari & noah when they chatter to each other
3. the feel of fresh sheets
4. seeing my favorite coffee mug on the window sill in the morning light
5. the way the sun shines in my piano window around 1pm
6. a clean picked up house
7. the smell of vanilla laundry sheets lingering on clean clothes
8. dave saying i love you
9. the way i feel when my clothes really fit
10. pages in my journal full and messy

alright so ready set go.. leave your name.. i will pick a winner this weekend... you really want this book.

for the pallisters...

you know those friends who you don't get to see very often but it doesn't matter they just will always be life long friends because you share so much more than a postal code... today we got a package in the mail and i will let the photos speak for themselves. thanks guys. we felt the love.

want to make heather happy buy her coffee.. oh wait even better buy her good vancouver continental coffee.

want to make dave happy send him a home brewing magazine.. his words were along the lines of "this is the best magazine ever" "i need like five of these in my garage" "wow" "i love this magazine" good job guys.

IMAGE (ine)

taking a page from Ali's book and tried a mosiac using my fave photos right now from flickr. embracing my desire to be inspired by images is not only getting my creative juices flowing but i find it healing as well... encourage yourself today. try something.1. my favorite chair., 2. tiny space, big pattern!, 3. Little green colander, 4. tiny little clothes, 5. fo: anna stockings, 6. aug17, 7. Untitled, 8. 2nd purse, 9. Taking a Flickr Break....!, 10. a beautiful morning..., 11. Just For Show, 12. ::

what hell would be like

today on a online multiples group i am a part of someone who has two singletons under 5 and a set of twins who turned 2.. she is expecting another set of twins. seriously this is my worst nightmare, my biggest fear, the thing that makes me want to barf just thinking about.. and people are congratulating her and so excited..
i get this alot when people ask "if we are done" like life will be over once you stop having kids. i usually say "we'll probably have one more" and then they always look at me with this sly smile and say "or maybe another set?" seriously could you be any more insensitive.. could you really hate me that much that you would wish that upon me. don't get me wrong i am happy with my twins and i love them but there is only so much one person can handle. so don't say it, don't even think it for fear that your thoughts will escape into the atmosphere and jinx me....
oh and on a unrelated issue i have had to put my comment moderation back on because of a stupid spammer i have had.. sorry but you'll have to put in those stupid codes.

all things a & n

thought it was high time to write a post dedicated to telling you about ari and noah these days.. its been awhile. at 20 months they are busy... each day has its ups and downs of course. i am sitting on the fence.. this stage is easier then when they were babies yet harder in some regards. maybe it helps that i don't really remember the first 6 months. i find them more frustrated these days as they struggle to communicate but they know what they want and when i don't get it.. they are mad. we are in the tantrum stage.. some days much worse than others. currently they are both sick again... when this cold hit dave commented "well they've been healthy for a long time now" i looked at him and said "three weeks dave its been three weeks" took noah in for a follow up from his croup hospitalization and he had chest xrays done and has a mild case of pneumonia.. and to top it off an ear infection which surprised me i had no idea.. so we continue with the puffers we are on with the hopes that when they hit 4 all these wheezy asthma type symptoms will go away.
i decided to give you some highlights/lowlights from the past few months and hopefully give you a bit of insight into their little blossoming personalities.
* watching them learn to "twirl" and their realization of how fun it is to not walk strait and bang into walls. hilarious.
* walking in on Ari after a nap where he promptly handed me his diaper and showed me the pee on his mattress.
* Ari is a bit of a brute when it comes to his brother. he tends to hit noah alot these days.
* favorite things: buses, sitting on chairs alone, you tube, dancing and grandpa
* they have now tried jello and think its fun
*Ari eats ALL things ALL the time
* Noah doesn't really like meat.
* They love books - not much for having you read to them but they love to flip the pages (fast)
* They have a fave book that they fight over all the time. I got another one like it (just different stuff inside) yea they figured it out and won't have it. It has to be that book.
* They still love taking baths.. constantly at any closed door saying "bath"
* Words so far: Mom, Dad, Grandpa, Pa, Ball, Book, Bus, Truck, Cheese, Nana (banana), Train, and Baa for backyardigans of course.
*diaper changes are the end of the world right now.. its hard to do because they are usually screaming and writhing around. you'd think they would catch on that its much faster if they don't put up a fight.
They currently are not into sleeping all through the night. Noah is pretty consistent but Ari loves to drive me nuts waking up.. usually for his soother.
I love them I really do. Life would be dull without them. Although most days I am tired and just plain done.. I realize the gift they are in my life. Its the cuddles and the laughter that get me through and just those little things only they do. There is the good the bad the ugly but thank God they are mine.

canadian content

for my un-canadian friends we have a national broadcast station called CBC (tv, radio..) they are host to something called Hockey Night in Canada.. big deal NHL stuff. they also host something once a year called Hockey Day in Canada where they go on location somewhere cool (small town, hockey history..) still with me. So this year Hockey Day 2008 is held in Winkler (thats where I was born and raised and reside) its a big deal.. lots of big names in hockey and every time CBC goes on air its from Winkler this weekend.. cool publicity. anyways yesterday the place I work hosted a private VIP party after the game last night... the night started off a big rocky. people were late and we were beginning to think it might be a bust... slowly the celebs start trickling in.. I think the first to "stumble" in was Wendell Clark (Toronto Maple Leafs), Cassie Campbell (Women's Gold medel Olympic hockey team). There were a few too many of us staff on and at first Jen, Kristen and I were standing there kind of greeting people as they made their way to the bar... I'm first in line and all of a sudden I turn around and its a very friendly Ron Maclean. "Hi, How are you. I'm Ron" holds out hand to shake. I take it and say very diplomatically "Uhh yeah." long pause with red cheeks "I'm Heather" Jen and Kristen busting out laughing. It was quite hilarious. I am unsure of where my star struckness came from but it was just so surreal for me that he was shaking my hand and telling me his name...
The rest of the evening was fun... Kelley Hrudey and I were friends by the end of the night. The guy was always at the food table... every time I would go to pick up his empty plate he'd say "Oh I think I'll get more" I would smile and say "Kelley you can just get a new plate" He'd smile. It was nice.
The highlight was when Ron came to the back servery and posed for photos and signed autographs.. he really was just so nice. and way skinnier than you would have guessed when you see him on TV. anyways it was a good night and I am happy to have brought you this Canadian content.oh the last photo (bottom right) is where Don Cherry was supposed to be but he didn't make it

creative wednesday

i did a collage exercise with my small group on wednesday morning. being creative lets life flow. i asked the question what do you want more of in your life? (thanks kim) and we ripped and glued and came up with beautiful masterpieces.... i've been consumed with thoughts of everyday creativity and have a giveway coming up and more thoughts on this... stay tuned.

most heard question

where do they get those curls?

three posts in one day

Follow The Leader!

saturday creative

spent alot of today being creative. ahh the feeling of letting it all go and just being inpsired by the things around me... made some baby shower invitations which are simple (cause there are lots of them) but lovely. spent the good part of the day making a gift for a friend which came out so well that it made me have a moment of wanting to keep it myself. i was encouraged to be inspired "prophetically" and man what i got for her was speaking right to me.. so maybe a second gift for myself is in order. it felt refreshing to sit in my space and craft... listening to an uplifting and inspiring cd mix a friend gave me last night. i feel i am really me when i am inspired. inspired to create and just be.

for real

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that frightens us. We ask ourselves 'who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? Your are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
Marianne Williamson

the back half

well here is the master bedroom as well as the boys room. only thing you haven't seen is the bathroom which is not done as we have been waiting for bathroom accessories to come for 3 weeks. so irritating. anyways here it is.. there are still things to be done but it sure feels like home!

finally

nice enough to get out for a walk.. they had a great time exploring the open road. what a good day!

the front half..

the start of your virtual tour starts here...

home

well we are in! it is lovely to be home. the move went really well, we had fantastic help which made is go smoothly and more quickly than we anticipated. slowly things are finding their place and we even hung things which helps so much. i will take some pics later this week and give you a "tour". my new favorite thing is the vinyl wall art i orderded from treasury of memories a little store in Bellingham, Washington. It looks amazing in my entrance here is a shot of it. (the hanging thing is a little Jenni Bowlin inspired project)

Its been a busy last few weeks and we were blessed with a visit from Dave's mom this past week. It was perfect timing and it allowed me time to get things done. The boys are adjusting ok.. they have been waking up quite a bit earlier which is hard on them. They have been a bit more cranky but who can blame them with all the adjusting they have had to do. Hopefully they will settle into our new digs quickly. I must say they have a blast with the big space now and especially love to run and play downstairs in our unfinished huge play room. its nice to have at their age.
And me.. well I've been good too. Feel frazzled at times and have some very tired moments but for the most part I am ok. Anyways like I said I will try to post some more house pics soon. Thanks for sticking with us on our crazy journey.

thanks lydia

lydia hooked me up with a gc for a new look for christmas.. got around to doing it yesterday. feels so good.. heres the before and after. thanks lydia! (i'll be back with an update hopefully tomorow)

before.. mousy brown dryness...

after... luxurious, brown with plum highlights goodness.

hi

pretty much moved in.
totally exhausted.
no phone.
no internet.
be back when i can.

before and after

not sure if i mentioned it to all of you but i started a project with my kitchen table. my ugly, old, pine, hand me down table with only three chairs. i told dave i could not move into my swanky new pad with such an dilapatated table... so insert paint here. i fell in love with a color and a few days later tada a brand new table. i also found interesting love it fabric and covered my chairs... just enough fabric left over to make a pad for my bench.. when i find it. please bench hurry and fill my home. so here are the before and afters... let me know what you think.