Sunday, July 31, 2016

Infertility: Feeling Like A Failure

****I am apart of a group of bloggers who/that blog on a regular basis over at Fertility Matters Canada. Neither of us get (or take) any income from doing these posts. Hop on over and take a look!!****


I am not sure how to title/call this, but the jist is this....I often feel like a failure to family and friends, since we found out that we are not only infertile, but that we haven't adopted/fostered kids.

I know that it is a negative/wrong feeling, but I feel like a failure just the same.

I feel like a failure as a woman.

I feel like a failure as a wife.

I feel like a failure as a daughter.

I feel like a failure as a Christian.

I feel like a failure as a friend.

I feel like a failure as a sister.

I feel like I am not normal, like I have nothing to offer, like I have nothing worthwhile to talk about. I know these are all not true, but I cannot help but think this.

I think when I feel the the failure the most is around my family...and baby showers (but I rarely go to those anymore). Especially when we are having a big family gathering, and all of the kids and grandkids are there...I just feel...left out. I can't really explain it. I feel left out, but I also feel like I didn't try hard enough. I feel like I don't measure up. I feel like I am not a complete person. Again, these are all wrong thoughts. They come from/through (social) media...what the world "thinks" we should do and be. The world makes you feel like a failure for not having kids...whether you chose not to or not.

Feeling like a failure is exhausting. It gets me down and depressed. It makes feel that I did something wrong. Or, that I am not as important, or not as loved as my other siblings. It feels like I don't measure up; like I have something more to prove. It makes me sad. And it makes feel like I have try even harder to feel like I have accomplished something. I want to make sure that I make my family proud of me/us. I want them (family and friends) to think we are "ok", and "cool". 

Feeling like a failure is not an option. Because I am (we are) not a failure.



Thursday, July 28, 2016

Connection

As I have mentioned before, Anker and I are at an odd stage....or maybe are just odd..lol. I find that getting myself (ourselves) plugged in at church (I will stick with church, b/c that is where I mainly have most of my friends; I don't socialise a ton with my co-workers outside of work....and hubby and I don't socialise with my co-workers at all...and family doesn't count, since that is a given...we aren't involved with our community...and don't really connect with our current neighbours, though we have in the past), as our demographic is so varied, and so limited.

Let me explain...

Anker doesn't work (he is on disability), which doesn't leave a lot of room for having similar interests (things to talk about) with others. He has disabilities, which can also make interacting with others a bit challenging, and he also doesn't like to go out much. We have to really pick and choose our times that he needs/wants to go out. We also don't have kids...we aren't seniors, but we aren't in our 30's anymore, either..add that to the fact that Anker is 15 years older than me, well, it can be fun as to know where we fit in! We aren't young marrieds...we don't have kids...but we aren't seniors!!! I struggled to fit in before I was married..and it seems to continue. I am either hanging out with a bunc of moms, or a bunch of seniors!!! Now, please don't get me wrong...I go to our church's ladies coffee time, and I have a few church friends that I hang out, and I love it...and of course, I have been involved the ladies Bible Study as well. But even going to things like that in the last while have been tough...with me working shift work/evenings on and off for the last 5 years (actually, more if you count the time I worked at a Call Centre for two years before/just after we got married)..other than the time I went to school, I have worked evenings/shift work since 2010. How my aunt did shift work nursing for 40 years is beyond me!!

Anyway...the thing I think I have been missing the last while is two fold....one on one (or two-three ppl at a time) social gatherings (home setting, sitting at the beach, coffee, etc), and couple friends/small group gatherings. I need to have time where I am with Anker, and with friends socializing. Does that make sense? Of course, this does happen...please don't get me wrong, I do get together with my 6 friends from church, and it is great, especially when we visit at someone's house, and I am also involved in a home group every 2nd Monday with 3 other ladies, and it is great. But I really just want to BE with others, ya know? A couple in the church took us out for coffee in May, and did ask us last wknd, but we weren't able to do it, so we will try again the next few weeks. Like I said....what I am really craving is Anker and I hanging out with others. We did experience a bit of that when we helped out with VBS, which, to be honest, was partly why I wanted to help out...not just for Anker to have something to do, not even for us to work together (with others), though though are all good things!!...but so that I could re-connect with others in the church, and to be of service to others...and of course, doing some Church Ministry!!

I think things are about to change, in a good way! Anker has started coming out of his 1yr (plus) funk. I will try to share about that in another post. Exciting things are happening!!!

Anyway...I guess what I am trying to say is that I am longing for some small group (in home) connection, while alongside my hubby. A couple of us went to a music festival the other day, and while we were there, we started talking about maybe doing a small home group with a few other couples and families from this side of town. This excites me. I want and need to be with others...even if it does mean hanging out with young moms and "older" people!!! I hope that we will be able to get even more (re) connected with the church. I cannot wait!!

Can't We All Just Get Along?

This post won't be long....but my heart hurts for all the violence that has been going on around the world the last couple of weeks...from the TWO attacks in France, to the knife attack in Japan, to the shooting in Edmonton, AB (that was more domestic, but still), the to hostage and priest killing in France, another attack in Germany, and yet another attack in Somalia...to yet ANOTHER night club shooting in FL, and yet another in LA, and yest ANOTHER in TX!! Heck, there was even a shooting in our town, a few streets down from us! And those are what we hear about...there are countless others don't even make the news. I won't go into the why's or maybe's of why they are all happening...no use in talking about the political or religious reasons, either. I will say, that this makes me long for heaven! I don't understand why we just can't get along? Can't we put aside our differences, and just be? Why do we have to # hashtag certain movements, all in the name of bringing awareness...which, really, is all in the name of peace? Why must we hold rallies, and walk for peace? I am glad that I live in Canada. No, we are not immune to violence IN THE LEAST, but there are WAY less mass acts of violence in Canada, then there are in other parts of the world. But, I am sure we see these acts of violence in the not so distance future. Let's not forget the RCMP officers that were killed in Moncton, NB, a couple of years ago. Did I mention that I cannot wait for heaven?

Sunday, July 24, 2016

A Tale of Two Weekends

Well, it's actually supposed to be three, buuuut I will do another post about this weekend another day...or not. Who knows?

First off..TWO weekends, ago...Friday...we finished our VBS with a bang....it was a lot of fun...and lots of kids and their families came. We had a bbq after, which was fun. Anker and I stayed to help clean up. We left around 2:30, and came home and relaxed for the rest of the day. I don't remember what all we did, to be honest. I think we watched tv/movies.

Saturday, we went the VBS Leaders' Appreciation Brunch and wrap up meeting.  I dropped off Anker, and I went to work for 1230. I worked until 330, and then I think I went to the library...or something. I watched three movies, and hubby watched TV.

Sunday, I worked 8-11, and then came home, and grabbed some things, and went to my parents' for my brothers graduation from home-education. Anker wasn't feeling well, and I was stressed from the busy week, that I didn't care if he came or not :) The ceremony was at the church, right after service. I got there juuuuust in time. I actually had missed the food, but I was able to grab some while everyone had dessert. So, it worked out. Came back to the ranch, and had a swim with Dad in the pool (where I got to try out my new Bathing suit!!), and watched movies in the evening. I ended up staying the night, and came back Monday morning.

Now, LAST weekend...Friday, I worked 10-2,and I got my hair cut, then I came home for a few minutes. I met my friend for coffee at a local coffee/bakery downtown, and then ended up buying some goodies. I met up with my friends for supper, which we haven't done (going for supper) in awhile. It was a nice evening. I came home, and hung out for the rest of the evening.

Saturday, Anker and I had high hopes of going to the Farmers' Market, but we slept in, and just hung out at home. I went to Starbucks for a bit, then to the library. I think I went to my friend's house for a bit. I think we watched a couple of movies :)

Sunday, Anker and I went to church, then went for a quick lunch with some friends. I came home, and I had a nap :) I think I watched a movie, or some such nonsense (or watched tv, who knows?), then went to my friends house for a little bit.

So, those are my (our) last two wknds! I know...super exciting!



Monday, July 18, 2016

Random

These are things that I could have put on my Friday posts, but there would be too many...:)

We have some odd weather for July lately. It was nice on Canada Day, and pretty much since then it has been cloudy...there were a couple of days where could have worn either pants or capris and it still would have been ok. Oddness!! Yesterday was the first nice day since July 1st....and even then, it clouded up. We have had some Thunderstorm warnings, including one today, but nothing really seems to have come out of them. We did get some rain, and some heavy clouds, but not much else. It was fun to storm watch, though.

I downloaded some apps last night, and one a wk or so ago..one is called COUNSEL, and other two are Recipe/food ones. I am not sure on how much (or if) I will get to use them, but they seem kind of cool. On another note.. I am very sad that the BC Lions don't have their app anymore :(

I have been actually pretty good on not buying stuff that we don't need (mags, cds, movies, coffee, food we shouldn't eat, etc). That being said, though, I did spend some money this wknd. I did try to be careful, though.

I also have a serious magazine problem. Thankfully, the library has taken care of most of my addiction, but I still tend to go a bit cray-cray about it. At least I am still able to do normal things, like eating...lol.

...and speaking of eating...(and saying that I have been good at not spending money)...

Hubs and I went on a sort of date yesterday after church. I asked our friends if they wanted to meet us at McD's, so we ate lunch together and had a nice chat. It was nice.

The Olympics are coming in 17 days!!! For someone like myself who doesn't play any kind of sport..I absolutely love them!! I am THAT PERSON who wonders where the next Olympics will be held...seriously... this should be an Olympic event :) I do like the Commonwealth Games, and the Pan Am Games as well. I found this little ditty from one of my many plethora of magazines, and I thought it was funny...and pretty true!!! Sadly, I don't remember where it was found...I think it was in EW Magazine, but please don't quote me, and please, no one running after me saying I didn't quote this from the correct magazine, b/c I honestly can't remember...but it was Jimmy Fallon who said it..

I actually lol'd at this :)

My blog post went live on the FMC Website last week. I am expecting Ellen to call me soon :) Seriously, though, that makes me very happy. I love spreading the word about infertility.

We are getting new neighbours Aug 1. They are an older couple from the Island, and this makes us happy. Hopefully, they are nice ppl..who don't smoke or party.

K, well, I think that there was more, but I can't remember, so I will just publish this, and will probably add to it later :)

...and here is the first thing I will add...

Since getting my hair cut..oh..two days ago...I started (ok, I did this once) to put some curling stuff on/in my hair. I totally forgot that I had had it...it is Avon's Curling Gel, which I just checked to it to a link, and they don't seem to carry it anymore. Sadness!!! Anyway, of course, I had used the gel previously, but it had been awhile. Loved it, and I will use it again!!




Five (Eight!!) on Monday!!

Happy Monday, Friends!!! I hope everyone had a great wknd!!

Here are my 5 for the wk:

Aunty Time:

I got to spend some time with H on Tuesday. His dad wrecked his ankle while playing soccer (again, it just goes to show that playing sports is not worth it!!!), and his mum called me and asked me if I could take H for a bit. I was already meeting up my friend with her two boys, so it was perfect. We spent an hour in the park, then we went to the library. It was a fun couple of hours.

Downtown Time:

I had to drop something off downtown, and since I had to pay for parking, I thought I might as well wander around for a bit. It was super fun!!! The Downtown Merchant's Market is this wknd, and I hope go for a bit. I love our downtown!!

New Hair Cut:

I was sick and tired of my hair; it still feeling too hot, despite my getting it cut shorter a couple of months back, and the way may hair looked, so I cut it, again...:) I love it!!!


New Starbucks Drink:

Yes, I caved, and I went to Starbucks on Friday (or, whenever it was). I had their Very Berry Hisbiscus Sangria Refresher, bc I had had a sample of it the day before (I was there for my free drink), and it was really good. I am not sure that I liked it as well as I did the other day, but it was still good. FYI: I have actually been pretty good in not spending as much fun money...not going for coffee as much, not buying magazines...ok, I have said I have been sort of good...I haven't said I was perfect..lol.

                                                                         source

New Pastor:

He started officially on Sunday, and his sermon was awesome! He challenged us to read more of God's word, to pray, and to reach out to others. Like, really challenges us. It made both of us think and talk about it. His wife even remembered me (we are friends on FB, but still..she remembered my name), and she gave me a hug :) That made me feel special.

Popcorn Twists:

Yes, more than 5 this week...that's a good thing, right? I am loving popcorn twists. Too much. Like, I- may-have-eaten-a-full-large-bag-in-two-sittings-much.

Back To Routine:

I am actually happy to be back to work. I am really surprised at that, and I know that it is God!!! I am happy that I am back to a routine (whatever that is, when you work shift work..lol). And the money is nice, too. That being said, I have written a list of things that I need to do this week...cleaning, and errands...it is gonna be busy :)

God-Things!!:

Apart from my being happy at being back to work, I am so happy on what God is doing with Anker! He is coming to church, and he is talking more about God again, and seems actually happy when talking about doing things for the church. I am SO HAPPY! I know that there will be Good/God things in store for us!!!

Yes, it's 8 things...so sue me!!! :)

Linking up with :








Tuesday, July 12, 2016

I am SO OVER Infertility (Fertility Matters Canada Edition).

****I am apart of a group of bloggers who/that blog on a regular basis over at Fertility Matters Canada. Neither of us get (or take) any income from doing these posts. Hop on over and take a look!!****

*****Ok, so I did my first blog post over at the site, and I missed June 13th, as I didn't have one fully ready on time. Then, I didn't have this ready in time for TODAY's deadline, soooo, this will be ready for Thursday.This is a version of a post that I did on my blog last summer...I am going to re post it, and will edit it for for Thursday.******

I am SO over infertility. There. I have said it. I am not ashamed of it, either. I hate it. And NO ONE talks about it (in general and to me). NO ONE asks how I am feeling (ok, very rarely...and it' s usually my SILs who have/are dealing with this as well). I am over infertility. And, I am pretty sure that people are over me being over at it. So, I try. I try to not dwell on the sad/bad parts. I try to think of the positive side of/to not having kids. I can sleep in, eat whatever/whenever I want...go out, spend hours at a coffee shop, at the mall..go for a drive...car rides without screaming, crying kids....the list goes on. But still...there is a tiny bit of me, a tiny part/bit of my heart that will always yearn for a baby.

My heart breaks sometimes. My heart yearns to hold my baby in my arms. My heart yearns to be called mama. My heart wishes that I was a "cool mom", doing all the "cool mom" things. I wish I were getting my child ready for school. Or having trouble getting my baby to sleep. Or having the "terrible two's" with my toddler. I wish I was involved in kid-related outings, and play-dates, and activities, but sadly, God doesn't seem to have that in store for me. There are definitely days where I feel that I have made my peace with it, and then there are other days when I am just plain tired of being infertile.

I am "over" being asked "why don't you adopt/foster?" I am over being asked if have any kids (and having to respond, "no, we can't), I am over being told "you will make a great aunty". I am over being the only oldest child of we three (there are two sets of kids...three older, 4 younger) kids who don't have kids. I am over feeling like a failure. I am over people asking us if we have kids. I am over feeling like I am not at peace with it (on the days when I don't feel at peace with it!!). I am over being sad that we don't have kids. I am over people not understanding infertility; how we feel, telling us to "get over" it; telling us that we don't want to be parents bad enough, if we aren't fostering/adopting; the list goes on. I am over having health issues, that even if could get pregnant, would overextend me.

I may be "over" infertility, but I also think that I am over it :) I feel like I am (most of the time) at peace with not having kids. Or, at least that I have come to a point where I am not as stressed or sad about not having kids.


Friday, July 8, 2016

Friday Things

 Happy Friday! I hope that everyone had a good week!!! Ours was BUSY!!! Here's why:


Back to work:
I started back to work on Tuesday. It feels odd to be back after 5 months, but kind of nice, too. I am slowly working back up to 12 hours (when I work my wknds).

VBS/Ministering with Hubby/Other People:
The BIG part of why I was so busy this week, was that hubby and I helped with VBS. It was SO FUN, but SO BUSY...coupled in with other things that I had to do. It was a great week, and I think that I will do a post just on VBS alone; it was that good!! At any rate...I don't remember the last time that I did church ministered with Anker...probably the last VBS, which was in 2011. I love that we not only did the work bees together (he went a few times alone, but mostly, we were together, with others), but we also went together (almost) every day this last week! He ended up doing the lighting, which was a last minute thing, and I think he had fun. I love that we had this week together...a memory, something to talk about, etc. That goes the same for ministering with others. It has been awhile since I have done anything like that...I haven't done Sunday School in ages...nor have I done any other church ministry in awhile...and I loved working and serving along side others. You really get to know someone better while/when doing that.

Little Brother's Grad:
My little brother is graduating from HS (home-education) this wknd. I am not 100% sure that we are able to make it, as I am working this wknd (just a few hours each day), and it is juuuuust a little too far to for a few hours in/and just one day. We shall see, though.

New Pastor:
Our new pastor is coming this Sunday! I already met his kids (and saw him again) on Tuesday, and his first official Sunday is this Sunday. Sadly, we probably won't be there, due to either my working, or being out at my parents'.

Stuff selling on the bidding sites:
 A few of my items have been selling on some of the bidding sites the last couple of weeks. Not for a ton of money, mind you, buuut a few bucks here and there.

I also found out that I a featured blogger on Bright on a Budget , which I sadly just found out a few minutes ago!!! I guess that is what I get for not doing email on my phone...lol. I hope that it isn't too late...buuut if it is, at least my link is up on her blog :)

....AND, I have been a very good girl and not bought any expensive magazines...and I even found a few new ones at the library today!!! I did, however, went to a free money seminar, and bought a book about money. #adulting

....a new follower. I am at 35 now! I am still waiting for Ellen's call :)

....Hubs and I just watched Zootopia, and I actually really liked it! I really loved Shakira's song...TRY EVERYTHING!! Love it!!!

....I just noticed a few minutes ago that the pages on FB have changed...ugh...annoying!!! #firstworldproblems







Weekend Wrap Up

Yes, it's Friday, and yes, I am doing an update about LAST weekend. Do I care? Nope!!

So, last wknd was Canada Day Long Wknd. Last Friday was actual CDay. We slept in and just hung out all morning. We were debating on whether to go to the park to take in the festivities. Anker didn't really want to, but I wavered on and off all day. I ended up going down about 4. I wandered around, and enjoyed the day. I texted a friend as I was leaving, and asked her if she wanted to join me. She said yes, after she ate her supper. I had a bite to eat from one of the vendors, and I had to have my mini-donuts. Yum!!! S met me around 6 or so, and we visited, then grabbed some ice cream. We visited for probably an hour, then we headed home. I hung out for an hour or so, then we ended up watching the fire works. We chose to see them just close to our house, and though it was far away, it was in perfect line of the fire works!!! I think I need to take a course on taking action shots, b/c I always am horrible at taking firework pictures!!!

Here are some pics from Friday:
                                                  The only red and white thing I did/wore.

 Hanging out at the park...
 The mini-donuts...I tried them with the bacon/maple. It was weird. LOL

                                                          My firework pictures!!


Saturday, I ran some errands, and then hubby ran up to the church to do some more prep for VBS. I sat outside and read magazines, and I enjoyed the sun. I haven't enjoyed our yard in awhile, so I thought I probably should. After Anker came back around 4, I got ready, and headed out to my friends for our other friends' birthday party. We had a lovely evening; eating on her deck, and having a lovely visit. I came home around 11, and pretty much just collapsed into bed.

Sunday, we had good intentions of going to church, but Anker wasn't fully ready to leave, when I was, and since he was needed more than me for the workbee, and since we live too far to make two trips, well, I stayed and waiting around. We got in for the last 10 minutes of the sermon. Oops. We had hamburgers, etc for lunch after, and then it was off to the races! We were there until 5 or so getting things ready. It was a loooong day! But it all turned out SO well!!!


Here are some pictures from our final VBS work bee....

 We usually have in the sanctuary, but we had in the fireside room (opening and closing sessions), and I think it worked out well!!

 Hubby did 90% of the stage/prop work. He did AWESOME!!!
 Most of the stations were set to look like caves. I think this is pretty Pinterst-worthy, don't you?

 This was from a couple of weeks ago...Mawtha and Radar!!

So, that was last wknd!!! Maybe I will get this wknds done before Wednesday next week!!!



Monday, July 4, 2016

Friday Things (on Monday)

 Happy Monday!! I hope every is having a lovely 4th of July Wknd! Our July 1st was very nice...but I will talk about that in another post. I was going to not link up this week, buuuut, I have a few things to share (which would turn into more for next wk!).


New Shirt
 My friend bought me a new shirt for my birthday, and I love it! The picture that I have here doesn't do it justice, but it is the only one I have...so that's the one you'll get! It is purple and long, and roomy. Love it.


New Sandals
 I bought a pair off sandals from off of one of the bidding sites a couple of wks ago. They were 5 bucks, and I love them...but man, are they ever uncomfortable! Oh well....they are pretty!!!




Hallmark Movies
I am on a serious Hallmark Movie kick right now. I am not even sure on how I got it...I think I just saw a few sitting on the library shelf, and I got them, and then I realized/remembered on how cheezy, but fun they are!! I may or may not have reserved them all from the library.


Free Date with Hubby
 Anker and I went on a FREE dinner date a couple of wks ago. Dinner and pop/coffee were included. It was SO fun! And how can you beat free??


VBS

VBS is this week!! We are doing Group VBS' Cave Quest. The first day was today, and it was awesome!!! Cannot wait to see what this week brings. I haven't helped the last few years, and I actually kind of missd it. Hubby (usually) does the stage/backdrop stuff (at least a good part of it...a lot of ppl pitch in), and I help during the week with being a crew leader. I also got roped into helping with the work bee, which was actually kinda fun!!











Friday, July 1, 2016

Happy Canada Day, Eh!!



I was going to link up this week (esp since I missed last wk), with the Friday link ups, buuuut today is Canada Day, soooo I wanted to talk about our great country!!! It is 149 years old today!!! For a country this old, it looks pretty good!! I wonder what its secrets are? :)

Sooo...I thought I would talk about the 149 reasons why I love Canada!!

1) I Was Born Here
2) I have lived here my ENTIRE life!
3) There are only 10 provinces, and three territories. Makes it so much easier to remember!
4) Our PM is a rock star (his wife is pretty sweet, too!!)!!
5) Free Health Care
6) Blue Skies
7) Lakes and Rivers
8) Mountains
9) Prairies
10) Deserts
11) We have 4 seasons
12)  Everyone wants to move here (judging from the Google Search!!)
13) Coffee Crisp
14) Ketchup Chips
15) We say chocolate, not candy, bars
16) We say pop, not soda, bars
17) Rachel McAdams
18) Paul Brandt
19) Dallas Smith
20) Nickleback (yes, they do have great music)
21) Pamela Anderson
22) Ryan Reynolds
23) Nanaimo Bars
24) Alexander Graham Bell (ok, he wasn't born here, but he moved here at 23).
25) Ryan Gosling
26) Insulin (Frederick Banting)
27) Smarties
28) Mr. Dressup/Romper Room/Polka Dot Door
29) Film Colourization (Wilson Markle)
30) Dean Brody
31) Shay Mitchell
32) John Candy
33) Hello Canada Magazine
34) Canadian Living Magazine
35) Chatelaine Magazine
36) Style at Home Magazine
39) HGTV Canada
40) Food Network Canada (TV Network and Magazine)
41) Discovery Canada
42) Hudson's Bay (store)/ Penningtons (store) Addition Elle/Reitmans (stores)
43) Hockey
44) Basketball (invented in Canada)
45) CFL (Go, Lioans!)
46) George Ratzliff (inventor of instant replay; you're welcome)
47) Thomas Ahearn (inventor of the oven, and the heater, you're welcome, again).
48) Shanea Grimes
49) CBC
50) CTV
51) The Weather Network
52) Poutine
53) Michael Shanks (he was raised in Kamloops...from Saving Hope).
54) We Love our Neighhours to the South (and do the West!!)!55) Free from persecution.
56) Freedom of Religion
57) Aaron Lines
58) Bambi Bucket; to assist with Aerial Fire Fighting (Don Arney)
59) The Snow Blower (Arthur Sicard)
60) High Valley (the Canadian Country/Christian band)
61) Beautiful British Columbia
62 Alberta Strong
63) Friendly Manitoba
64) Anne of Green Gables
65) Haida Gwaii
66) My Family's Sheep Ranch/My Hometown (duh!)
67) BC Lamb
68) BC (and Alberta) Beef
69) Calgary Stampede
70) Northern Lights
71) Awesome Atlantic Canada
72) Crazy Quebec (We love you!!!)
73) Maple Syrup
74) Alaska (yes, we should have bought you...just sayin...You're an honourary Canadian)
75) We know how to spell..(centre, colour, Saviour)
76) Northern Nunuvant
77) NWT &Yukon
78) Polar Bears (I mean, where else can you see them??)
79) Okanogan (it's like a little bit of Europe just an hour or so away!!)
80) BC-grown fruits n veggies
 81) (Virgin) Ceaser (the drink, not the ruler; I believe this is better than the Bloody Mary)
82) 5-Pin Bowling
83) The Electric Wheelchair (invented by George Klein)
84) Trivial Pursuit (invented by Chris Haney and Scott Abbott)
85) The Jockstrap (hey, you can't make this stuff up!!!)
86) The Light bulb (some guy actually invented it, and sold it to Edison)
87) Caulking Gun (Lewis Urry)
88) The Jolly Jumper (Olivia Poole)
89) The Modern Plunged Wonderbr* (Louise Poirer)
90) Easy Off Oven Cleaner (Herbet McCool)
91) (Land of the Living) Skies Saskatchewan
92) We are always so friendly, and polite, well with our saying sorry, excuse me and all :)
92) Saving Hope (TV Show)
93) This Hour Has 22 Minutes (TV Show)
94) The Rick Mercer Report (TV Show)
95) Pablum (Frederick Tisdale, Theodore Drake, and Allan Brown)
96) The Paint Roller (Norman James Breakey)
97) The Robertson Screw (P.L. Robertson)
98) Canada Dry Gingerale (John J. McLaughlin)
99) Butter Tarts
100) McIntosh Red Apple (my Favourite kind!!)
101) Instant Mashed Potatoes (Edward Asselbergs)
102) Standard Time (Sanford Fleming; again not born here, but moved and died here)
103) Tim Horton's (Coffee Shop)
104) Canola Oil
105 Jann Arden
106) Rick Mercer (TV Personality)
107) We Thow Great Sporting Events (Olympics, PanAm Games, etc)
108) Gordie Howe
109) Wayne Gretzky
110) Princess Di (ok, she wasn't Canadian, but she was born on July 1..I say close enough!)
111) The Pacific/Atlantic Oceans
112) Victoria (Capital of BC)
113) Our Ethnicity, Diversity and Culture
114) We know on how to throw a great, big party/we know how to celebrate!
115) Tim Hicks (The "Stronger Beer" singer)
116) Our First Nation Community
117) Malin Akerman (wasn't born here, but was raised her...again, close enough)
118) Peanut Butter (the earliest form of it was invented by Marcus Gilmore Edison)
119) CMT Canada (NetWork, and I think they have a Magazine, too)
120) Bordertown (TV Show)
121) Jason Priestley
122) We Open our Arms to Refugees/Immigrants
123) Celine Dion
124) Shania Twain
125) Will Arnett
126) Paul Gross (Actor)
127) There is no Talk of Building a Wall
128) Gord Bamford (I just found out that he was born in Australia, then moved here..funny)
129) George Canyon (Singer)
130) The Amazing Race Canada
131) Canadian Idol
132) You Can't Do That on Television (TV Show)
133) Due South (TV Show)
134) The Beachcombers (TV Show)
135) Danger Bay (TV Show)
136) Vancouver Island
137) SCTV (ok, I never watched this..but it is Canadian)
138) Alanis Morrisette
139) Avril Lavigne
140) ET Canada/E-Talk
141) Corb Lund (Singer)
142) Everyone Comes up Here to Make Movies/TV Series
143) We band together when the going gets tough
144) Kamloops
145) Giacomo Gianniotti (was born in IT, immigrated here; he plays on GA)
146) Most of our Cities are under a Few Million (TO, Van, and MNTRL are exceptions).
147) Red and White!!!
148) Our Anthem is short; easy to learn, and Pretty!!
149) We have great beer (apparently, I never drink beer), and Wine!!

Bonus.....

Dan Akroyd
Erica Durance (Actor/producer)
Ricardo (Cooking Show and Magazine)
The Weeknd
Drake
The Pacemaker (A couple Canadians and Americans invented it)

Honourable Mentions (not 100% sure about these, thought I would put them in anyway)
Velcro (not sure about this...I have heard different stories)
Zipper (I think the person who invented this was Canadian, but they never sold the patent)




Of course, there are more...but that would defeat the purpose of 149 (I already put a few too many in here). Hope everyone has a wonderful (Canada) Day, and a great Long Weekend!!




                                       


                     HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!


Show and Tell Tuesday: Show Us Your Pets

Linking up with Andrea for this weeks STT :) This week it is Show Us Your Pets :)

I have never really been a pet-type of person. I grew up on a ranch, and while we obviously had tons of animals, we never really had many pets. Now, that being said...my brother had his turtle, and I had a bunny..they all died. We also each had a few pet lambs, and I had two ponies (not at the same time), and of course, the dogs...my family wasn't (and still isn't) pets-in-the-house people. They love animals...but they belong outside...and that is totally ok..cause that was me...for the longest time. When I was single, I never really thought to get a dog or a cat...it just wasn't in my realm of thinking.

When I met hubby, he had a cat. Hubby actually grew up with cats nearly all of his life. I think he almost always had a cat in his house. I wasn't a cat person. They shed, they went to the bathroom inside and stunk up the house...buuut he had his cat...so, I had to accept him as well :) So, the first pet we had for the first 7 yrs of our marriage was KitKat...who was Siamese.
 I gotta say...I miss him!! He was certainly a one of a kind kitty! He was was about 14 (?) when he died, and it was so sad to have to let him go. I gotta say, though, that it was nice to have a cat for a couple of years.

K...well, it is now OVER a week since the blog post went live, and about a week since I started this post...soo, it won't go in the blog link up, but I will share it in our comments :)

Ok...back to pets.....:)

So....we were cat-less for a couple of years, which was actually quite nice...then, last August, we got a line on a free 5 yr old cat...and we were kind of missing having one...so we took her :)

Isn't she cute! She definitely loves Anker more than me, but she will tolerate me..barely! Well, we all lived in peace and harmony until December 28th, when the next door neighbours cat moved herself in. Her name was Sahara.


Isn't she adorbs?

And yes, they even got along :) Kind of.

Then, one day, Sahara got out, and she got her self pregnant....then and her kitties. That was a happy time :)






Yes, it was a fun and busy 8 wks with them, that's for sure!!!  When they got walking, then running around, well, that was special :) They were VERY loud at night :)



The time came for us to give them away to good homes. We will miss them all, but our house is sure cleaner, less smelly, and quieter for it.

We also had to give up Sahara. *****PLEASE, NO JUDGING!!!***** This wasn't an easy decision, but we just couldn't afford to keep her (getting her spayed, etc), as our finances were (and are) not very good right now. We miss her, but again, our house is quieter, cleaner, and less smelly for it. So, we are back down to one kitty. We might get a kitty next year, or even in the fall if our finances allow for it...but right now, we have one cat, and that is how we like it :)

Oh, and we also used to have a fish, Nemo, that we got from my brother, who got him from our wedding (we had blue beta fish as the centre pieces at our wedding), and he had had him for a year, then he decided that he no longer wanted a fish, and gave him to us. Nemo (and Kit Kat) lived with us for a year (?) before he died on our second (?) anniversary. For the record, I LOVE having fish, and I would actually have them again. Maybe sometime :)

So, that is our pets. Hope you enjoyed reading about them. Oh...and FYI...I am against declawing cats (for the most part). KitKat was declawed, which I did like (less scratching!!), but when Anker got him, KitKat was declawed already. Calico isn't declawed...and we don't plan on doing it. I just think it is too cruel to/for them. Though, I do admit, that it IS nice to not have to worry about the front claws :)

A Little Catch Up & A Small Rant(and a Surprise!)

Howdy! Well, as my aunt says, "I'm so far behind, I'm ahead", so I think I will take a page from her play book and just st...