2012: Year in Review

It wouldn't be NYE without the annual year in review blog post, that sums up the year via month by month blog highlights.

While I am thankful for the overall health and happiness of my family and friends, I can't say that I am totally upset to see 2012 come to a close. Its been a stressful year... balancing family and work life,  struggling to see the upside of Budget 2012, a few unexpected visits to the hospital, and overall financial challenges of raising our young family.  There have been highs and lows like any year, but in the end I am home with my three favourite people tonight and looking forward to everything 2013 has to offer.

As I ring in the new year I want to be better organized in all aspects of life, so I can inhale the little things in life... mainly just spending precious time with my boys, and being present in their lives while they are at such a fun and inspiring age.

As I look back on 2012, I am thankful for all of the little moments I have been able to share with you via this blog, and I am thankful that you continue to check up on me every once and a while (minus the crazy stalker types)!

So here is 2012 ... in review.

January
Here goes nothing (back to work)
Birthday Wrap-Up

February
Fun on the Rideau Canal
Dramatic First Haircut

March
So long preschool!

April
Truly Blessed
Mixed Emotions
24 Pounds of Trouble (H starts walking)

May
Best job in the world!
We have a soccer player!

June
130-O Reunion Weekend

July
Everything happens for a reason
Poolside

August
A couple of firsts
Va-cay!!!

September
E's First Day of School
Lucky Number Seven

October
Emery: Age 4
The birthday project for Mom

December
Hudson: Age 2
E's First Christmas Concert!
Merry Christmas!

So long 2012... and all the best to you and yours in 2013!

 

2011: A year in review

Its tradition around here to review the year via blog posts... and you know how much I love traditions, so this year will be no different!

2011 has been a fabulous year... a year I got spend with my boys at home being a Mom and only a Mom. I loved it so much so that I am dragging my feet into the New Year (but I know returning to work will remind me of my passions before I became a mother). I feel like 2011 was a blur and that's why I like to blog... to keep a quick memory of days gone by.

So let's review!

January
Things I've forgotten in two short years
Aww Sh#t
I remember when 30 was old

February
Baby Huddy
My LOVE for Keurig
A day on the Rideau Canal

March
Family photo that I love
You're in the right place
Three months: first quarter down
Packing lightly... with kids!

April
Mama Bear pushes back
Walking on sunshine
It's Easter

May
The royal wedding: where were you?
Not just any bowls
Love to my Mom
A little dose of tulips

June
Old MacDonald had a farm... (an Experimental one)!
New purchase... NOT a Mini van
Six months: Teeth, Fingers, Toes
Happy Father's Day... Dear Old Dad

July
Cottage Life
Its hot so why not paint!
It was a Wiggley good time

August
R & R

September
6 Years BABY
E CAN-SKATE!

October
Emery: Age 3
Look at these kids!
Halloween Memories

November
Shop til you drop
Munchkin Music Graduation Day

December
2011: A visit with Santa (@Carlingwood Mall)
Hudson first birthday party: kinda a big deal
A letter to Hudson: Happy First Birthday
Baking Christmas Cookies
Have a holly jolly Christmas

There you have it.... 2011 was a good one at From the Desk of Sara! Thanks to all of my faithful readers and even my steady lurkers for stopping by every now and again.  I hope you enjoy your last night of 2011 and I wish each of you good health and happiness as 2012 greets us.

Cheers!

Trick-or-treat... give me something good to eat!

The spooky season is upon us... and while I'd love to go all out and say Halloween is one of my favourite occasions, I fall into that crowd that says with a groan 'gee, Halloween again?'.

I have mixed emotions on the actual date of Halloween... its my father-in-law's birthday, but its also the anniversary of my grandmother's death. Can you see the additional spook factor here?

On the upside of things, my grandmother was a fan of Halloween.  She was one of those people who always prepared special treat bags for her trick-or-treaters - she didn't just throw a can of pop or a plain bag of chips in your pillowcase, no, she shopped in States for the candy that you couldn't get in Canada (at the time) like Jolly Ranchers, and candy corn. She put some effort into her treat bags and it showed!

Now... with my own kiddies, I have a little more reason to get in the spirit of the season (this is the first year that I have actually hung some Halloween decorations). And while you won't find me dressing up at the door, you will see that every year I take pride in selecting what Halloween treats I give out at my door.  Just like my Grandma B, I want to have a variety of treats to give to our 300 plus customers!

When it comes to choosing treats, I am a HUGE fan of the Allan Candy Company treats. They've been around forever (like 77 years to be exact) and they still make all my childhood favourites like Big Foots, Green Thumbs, and Hot Lips.  The best thing is their Halloween candy is made in Canada, its individually wrapped, and its certified PEANUT FREE.

Trick-or-treating these days isn't as simple as it use to be... you have to be mindful of what you give out, and although I am not a parent who has to face the challenges of peanut allergies, I still like to know that I am doing my part to keep the risk of an allergy attack at a minimum for anyone's child. I want the candy I give out to be safe and edible after the door to door collection is over and I know that when I choose Allan Candy, I am getting safe treats that are good quality!

If you're like me, Big Foots alone are the candy you secretly steal from your children's bag when their not looking! I have also picked up a small addiction to Allan's Intense Jubes & Jellies, and their Fruit Addictions - hello watermelon slices!

I have a few bags of Allan's treats around the house already and keeping E out of them has been a real challenge so far. He's pumped up for Halloween this year, and I can't wait to take both my boys door to door.

I remember how exciting Halloween was as a child for me... it was a special night where we got to eat pizza and then rush to get our costumes on, so we could head out on the streets of our small town to collect the goods.  These small traditions are something I will carry over into my own family with my boys... and I can't wait to see them in their costumes this year! It's H's first Halloween and E's third, but technically his first when its comes to going up to the door and actually saying 'trick-or-treat'. He's excited and we are counting down the sleeps already!

Here's hoping your Halloween preparation is off to a spook-ta-cular start! What do you do to get ready for the big night? Do you have any favourite candies that you like to give out?


Disclosure – I am participating in the Allan Candy Company blog tour by Mom Central Canada.  Although I received compensation for my participation in this campaign I jumped at the chance to talk about Big Foots and all of the Allan Candy as they are my faves!  The opinions on this blog are my own.

Dose of M&Ms!

I never win anything... (or at least that's how I feel), but about a month or so ago I entered a little M&M giveaway over at LouLou's Reviews and I WON!!

Loukia notified me via email that I had won, but I had forgotten all about it, and then out of nowhere, UPS showed up at my door with a FedEx package (a whole other blog), and when I opened it this is what I found.

H was one happy little camper among all the M&M goodness! And when E got home he was LOVING the new M&M swag!

A few months ago, I stumbled upon the Pretzel M&Ms and man are they good! I love the mix of salt & sugar, so was extra excited to see a few bags of those in the mix, in addition to my other M&M faves. I just noticed at the grocery store yesterday they have peanut butter M&Ms ....ummm hello? Best combo ever!! I love them too... and although they weren't included in the prize pack, I am not complaining as we now have some awesome treats to take on our upcoming vacation - not to mention, I have some new reading material to dive into by the pool!

Big thank you to M&Ms Canada (@mmscanada on Twitter), and Loukia for hosting the giveaway.  I was very happy to receive the dose of chocolate, (although I doubt my hips will agree), and to actually WIN something! I think I better go purchase a lotto max ticket just make sure my lucky streak was a one time deal.

You're in the right place!

Don't worry... you're definitely in the right spot, just gave the place a little face lift.

I decided it was time to update the photos at the top of my header... and I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to do this... but I opened Photoshop and started playing around and an hour later I taught myself just enough to be able to replace the old pics with new pics! I have to say, when I actually uploaded the new header, I had my fingers crossed it would work, and when it did, I gave myself that 'uh-huh, oh-ya, pretty impressive' type nod! Back in University, I actually had to learn Photoshop as part of my degree, but do you think for the life of me I can remember anything everything it does? With this small feat, it could be the start of a new learning obsession.

Once I got the header done, then I started surfing around for a new background and came across one from Dotty Dot Dot that caught my eye.  It's still polka dots but has more of a boy feel to it, which I'm into these days because, as you know, I'm surrounded by boys all. day. long.

Then, just to be fancy, I added this fab little signature! It's been a full day at the bloggy office... hope you like it! Let me know if you have any problems viewing the new look, as it looks great for me in Firefox, but I know there can always be a few challenges if your using Internet Explorer or Safari.

Happy Friday!



(Editor's note: I got a little crazy last night and figured out how to change not only the look of the text in the header, but the background too... I LOVE Photoshop! Beside is what it use to look like - it was previously designed by Becky Squire of Creative Blog Designs.) 

Comments!

I just reverted back to using Blogger's comment system instead of Haloscan/Echo's system that I was previously using. I was finding a few problems with it, so I bailed on it. Thank you to everyone who previously left comments under the old system - they are not showing now, but I have access to them in my archives. Please be assured I appreciate every comment I have received, and did not just go and purposely delete everything you have said - as that is not the case.

If you've left a comment on other Blogger sites, you'll be familiar with this commenting layout, but if you haven't, leaving a comment is EASY. Below each post, there is a link at the bottom that says COMMENTS, when you click on that, a separate pop-up window opens.  Under 'Choose your Identity' you can either use your google ID, or if you don't have one just select the Name/URL option - you only have to input your name (and if you want your URL, but its not necessary).  Type your comment above and hit 'publish my comment'.  Voila - DONE!

Looking forward to hearing from you... anyone care to TEST it for me.

Thanks!

Hello 2011!

Welcome to 2011!

It's going to be a good year, I can just feel it!

I seem to like the odd numbered years for some reason... I don't know if its because I feel like I can let loose a little this year now that I am not pregnant anymore, or if its just because we just came off an even-numbered year that was full of hard work, and anticipation.  Either way, I think 2011 is going to ROCK!

Of course, 2011 was made ten times better because I'll be on maternity leave the entire year (sorry, it has just hit me!), and we have lots things planned for this year, family vacations, and road trips, not to mention just spending time at home getting know my newest little boy.

I have no resolutions for 2011... unless you classify ENJOYING THE ENTIRE YEAR as a resolution.  Either way, that's my plan.

Whatever 2011 is going to throw at me, I am up for the challenge (but if anyone is listening up there, don't mistake that statement for 'I want to be challenged' - I am perfectly comfortable not being challenged for a whole year, especially in the baby department - are we clear? good. great. wonderful. perfect.)

I hope this year brings lots of joy and happiness to each of you... and I can't wait to share all of the fabulous moments (and probably some pretty uneventful and borning moments too) with you via the blog.

Like take for example this post... pretty borning, but aren't you glad you've got something to read, instead of looking at the last post of 2010 again? !!!

Happy New Year faithful readers... looking forward to a wonderful year with you!

So long 2010

Well.. what a year that was!

Normally, I do a year-in-review on the blog, but this year, I didn't blog for like 3 months, so I feel like a recap post would be lacking a lot of content, but nonetheless, its a tradition here, so I'll stick it out!


In a nutshell I think 2010 was pretty good year, which ended on such a high for our family with the arrival of our  sweet baby boy, Hudson - much better than the close of 2009. At the beginning of 2010 I didn't foresee myself being a mother of two boys by the end of 2010, but it was one of the BEST events of my life to date! I will fondly remember 2010 as a wonderful year of my life, and I can't wait to see how 2011 plays out.

So, keeping with tradition around this place, here's a look back at 2010 on From the Desk of Sara:

January
Friday Night Lights - E takes his first steps!

February
Nothing but dust

March
The Golden Goal - where were you?
A trip to Sand Road Maple Farm
Big Money

April
This is what makes me laugh these days...

May - June
First trimester of pregnancy prohibted all blogging activities!

July
Big News
Home Project #307
On being the 'baby' of the family...

August
Taking some R&R

September
5 down, a lifetime to go!

October
Emery: Age 2

November
Big Boy Bed Transition
A letter to my second child
For better or worse, meaning for better or Movember!

December
The Sequel's New Room
What will Ho Ho bring you?
The Sequel has finally arrived!
Happy Holidays

Thanks for sticking with me during 2010 and for all of your comments and support throughout the year. I look forward to sharing 2011 with you!

Best wishes as you ring in the New Year!
See you in 2011.

Big News!

So... I haven't visited the blog in over 3 months... CRAZY, I know, and totally not like me, but I've had a very good excuse ... I'm pregnant with number 2 or as I like to say: The Sequel. This baby has been draining the life outta me for the last few months, or perhaps just the blogging life out of me.

Either way... while I love to write and rant, I just couldn't bring myself to spare a moment for the blog... and sadly enough I haven't even been reading any blogs lately. All things bloggy have just dropped out of my life. But... no more! While I can't promise to blog on a regular basis, I can promise to TRY to keep my little space of the blogosphere a little more interesting than the last little while.

For starters, I had my 20 week ultrasound yesterday and we found out some pretty exciting news. My first pregnancy we decided to do it the old fashion way and wait until the baby's arrival to find out it was Baby Boy. This time around... we did the opposite and utilized the fabulous technology to get to know the newest addition to our family a little bit earlier.

There were two choices.... BOY or GIRL, Baby Brother or Baby Sister for E....
After a lengthy ultrasound... we got the good news, E is going to have a...
Two boys for this family... and we are pretty excited! It's so weird knowing... because in my head I am already picking out the coordinating outfits they will wear to special events, and I am sure PC is thinking they will be close enough in age to play on the same sports teams! I think the bond of brothers is a special thing... and I am so happy it will be part of our family!

I have just under 5 months to finalize all the details for the arrival of: The Sequel - and I really can't wait. From moving E into a new room and picking out new things for this baby boy - its going to be a busy couple of months - yet a lot of excitement as we build towards December 6th.

I promise to keep you updated on all things baby, but also few pregnancy hormones stories. I don't anticipate flying tacos this time around - or anything too crazy, but ya never know when pregnancy takes over and my filter quits working... I've come close a few times this week!

At any rate.... thanks for checking back with me - and I am so happy to be able to share my exciting news with you!

Baby BOYS! Yay!

Nothing but dust!

Apparently the author of this blog... is MIA.

SHOCKING, I KNOW!

There is nothing but dust on the 'Desk of Sara' - its pathetic, even by the standards of the world's worst housekeeper (I'm sure)!

February has been a shit month. Sounds harsh... but its the truth. The nasty flu bug hit me at the beginning of the month, and then our daycare had a similar bug at her house, and last week E had it too. This bug has been around the block and back again, and has really taken the life right out of me.

Slowly but surely I am climbing back into regular life, but from a blogging perspective, I haven't felt like blogging in a while - and I haven't even felt guilty about it either. A bold statement I know... but I hope you aren't completely offended.

Lots has been going on. At the end of January, I attended the Scotties Tournament of Hearts opening weekend in Sault Ste. Marie and had a great time. The curling was good, and I just enjoyed being 'home', spending time with my family. PC and E didn't make the trek to the Soo... so it was kind of weird being their on my own, almost taking me back a decade - weird, but nice.

The first week of February was when I was attacked by the flu bug, and it stayed with me for a good 5 days. When I did come around, PC and I did manage to take E out on the Rideau Canal, for his first taste of Beavertails and Winterlude. He loved every minute of it, as did PC and I. We haven't skated on the canal since before we were married, so it was really nice to finally do it again, and with E - I want to make it an annual tradition.

Mid-February I got away for another weekend (PC if your reading, put down the calculator, I know I owe you a weekend or two - and I know you already have plans in the works to collect'!). This weekend getaway wasn't too far... just to Cornwall, for a fun ladies spiel. I curled with some old club mates from the Rideau CC, and we had so much fun... we lost in the final, but I did take home a great prize - a new fancy schmancy coffee station, that I LOVE. And, it was so nice to see some friendly curling faces that I have missed over the last two years!

Speaking of which... back in the day (Janaury 14th) I turned the big 3-0 (which to my credit, I drafted a post on 30, but haven't yet finish it, but I digress). So... the big 3-0 happened, PC threw me a surprise party, and I was surprised for sure - so much that I took it upon my self to become the party's designated shooter girl - not a good move when your 30 - you end up paying for it for the next day week month! Beyond the party, and just a little over a week ago, my 130-O crew reunited for our traditional b-day dinner, and they all chipped in to get me a Tiffany's bracelet. I LOVE IT!!! My most favourite piece to date, in addition to my wedding rings. These ladies are AWESOME friends, let me tell you! I almost can't wait to turn 40 - KIDDING!

Overall, February has just seemed run down yet busy. Work is busy too... and I guess when you are either off sick, or home with a sick child for a good third of the month, it gets even busier. I have also had play dates in there, 130-O activities, family functions... and when you put that all together in the shortest month of the year, plus two weeks of steady Olympic coverage on the tube... you get ... Dust on the Desk of Sara!

There may have to be a name change for the blog if this keeps up - but don't worry you'd be the first to know! Hopefully March is an all around better month... although I definitely don't like the sounds of March Madness - yikes!

***NOTE*** Thanks to many of you for inquiring about the status of blog in the last few weeks... and especially to Mr. Wall tonight for making public mention of it on Facebook! That really got me going Darcy! The readers owe this post to you my friend!

Happy New Year ... 2009: A Year in Review

Happy New Year!

What's that you say? It's a little late for that.
Thanks Tips - I know, but better late than never!

It's taken me a little while to kick off the New Year here at From the Desk of Sara because I was just not ready.

2009 ended on a pretty sad note for our family. PC's lost his two grandmothers in a span of two weeks. It was very bittersweet, in that its been forever since we've seen both sides of his extended family - which was so nice to catch up with everyone, but at the same time we had to say goodbye to two wonderful women. It kinda puts a damper on 2009 when you have to close it out with two visits to the funeral home, but aside for that, 2009 was relatively a good year.

Since the history of this blog began, I have always done a year in review... this year I feel as though the blog has slipped a little LOT. As I have said in the past, I always have good intentions of blogging but life as a working Mom doesn't really allow me the time to put in the effort I want for my blog. I have spoken with other bloggers who told me to ride out the storm, and I will get back to it, so that is exactly what I am going to do. After all I blog for myself, first and foremost, as I want to have a record of my thoughts and experiences, so that one day my children and my grandchildren, will have a little insight into who I was/am as a person in my 20's and 30's and 40's, etc.

So... this year in review, might seem a little dull, but nonetheless its tradition and I love traditions!

To me 2009 was a lot of fun. I spent a good portion of being a new Mom, and learning and experiencing all the ups and downs of parenthood - happy times, scary times, tired times. PC and I were able to spend much of the summer together, as he took some time off to spend with E and I. We shared so many laughs together, just over the everyday things E would do, his expressions and smiles are the highlight of every day. We went to Florida on our first family vacation... and then in the fall, I took a ME trip to Texas, which I never got to blog about ... :-( ... because when I got home, it was E's first birthday party, and then *BAM* I was back to work! The real world came knocking in the form of H1N1 madness, and from that... came the holiday rush, two funerals, and hello 2010.

It was an exciting year... no matter how you slice it. So here it is in blog posts...

2009 A Year in Review!

January
-3 Months and on a roll!
-Forever 29
-Bloggy Makeover

February
-4 Months ...
-25 Random Things About Me
-Has anyone seen the milk man?

March
-5 Months ... already!
-This and That
-Do I mumble or is he hard of hearing?
-Taking off the socks - Pee-wey!

April
-Back in time .... rewind, fast-forward!
-6 months ... cuts like a knife tooth!
-It won't be like this for long!
-A day at the beach!

May
-7 months has arrived - slow down calendar!
-Nothing solid about solids!
-Good news, bad news!

June
-8 Months Already!
-The Kidney Update
-Rights and Wrongs

July
-9 Months = BIG CHANGES!
-I'm Alive... but on the go!

August
-10 Months and Personality!
-Don't touch, stop, NO!
-We went out last night...!
-A change in tone!

September
-11 Months... and a Busy Boy!
-10 Years for 130-O!
-Now Approaching: Back to Work

October
-Happy Birthday Sweet Baby Boy
-Working Mom of 1
-No time to blog!

November
-First Hair Cut

December
-Life is too short
-Merry Christmas to YOU!

Now... onto 2010! I hope 2010 proves to be a prosperous year for all of us!
Cheers!

No time to blog!

September was a BAD month for blogging - you know that, and I know that. I was just so absorbed with getting ready to go back to work, and planning E's first birthday, not to mention a fun-filled trip to Texas (which I have yet to blog about). I thought that September would be the off month for the blog, but now as we are quickly approaching the end of October ... I am thinking the final quarter of 2009 isn't looking good for the blog either.

I want to have this wonderful witty blog, that I am dedicated to, and that I have no problem keeping up with, even though I am working long hours, doing the daycare thing, making family dinners, doing extra-circular sports, and squeezing in a few episodes of my fave shows - I really really want the label, but these last few weeks have sucked the life out of my blogging ability... and the future is looking bleak too!

I wish I had a PA in the car (that is personal assistant)... you know, someone I could just talk out loud to and they would transcribe my thoughts onto the blog (kinda like Boyder and I use to do with each other for University group papers) . In the morning... I am so full of awesome blog thoughts, I mean really great stuff - stuff that would make you laugh out loud at your computer. I sometimes even talk to myself (between my country music performances), and I write the first paragraph right then, out loud in the car.

I think to myself, I will roll into work, organize my in bin, work efficiently all morning long, and then spend 10 or 15 minutes on my lunch just flushing out my blog topic of the day... and BAM - I'll have a post, while still having plenty of time to eat, pee, grab an afternoon coffee, and finish the day out with a smile.

But... nooooooooooooooooo!!! I never get the in bin organized, and while I might get Blogger open on my desktop at lunch, I never get a line written, let alone an entire post flushed out.

I still have ideas.... good ideas for the blog, and I think that with all of my draft posts that are sitting on my Blogger Dashboard, the day has to eventually come when I will finish them, and post them - and won't that be the best of your life as a faithful bloggy reader? You'll surely be in bloggy heaven, probably have to call in sick a day or two just to catch up on all of the posts that I am gonna post on that one magical day!

Right. As in ya right.

I don't blame you, if you go off to a far away land, and never come back... I have been neglectful of you, and trust me, your not the only thing that's feeling neglect in my life. This whole working Mom thing is quite the adjustment... and going from one day to the next is a challenge in itself... so I am going to try to work more on my planning skills first, before tackling how to blog efficiently and effectively without neglecting my family/working duties.

That was long drawn out way of saying... I'm not firing myself, I just reallocating the blog resources (ME) to another priority area for the short term (can you tell I have been writing government speak all. week. long.). However, from time to time (like tonight), I may get the notion to whip off a post... so if your still interested in the new terms of our agreement, check back at your leisure... but with (extremely) low expectations of there actually being something new here.

See where all your bitching gets you!

I was originally going to call this post 'THANK YOU', but PC's sarcastic comment when these arrived via delivery service yesterday was just too funny.

Apparently someone read my post 'The one about the vase!', and was feeling mighty sorry for me as I received a bouquet of fresh flowers, delivered yesterday, with a card attached that said:

'Sara... because PC never will'

PC was the one who received the delivery, and when he read the card... he took one look at me and said 'Who'd you bitch to? See where all your bitching gets you'! That to me was priceless - and the appropriate title for the post!

The flowers are beautiful and look lovely on my coffee table, but the funny part was... my biggie *crystal* vase is still in use at the neighbours, so I had to put the bouquet into my smaller, non-crystal vase - but they still look lovely, don't they?

I don't know who my secret sender is ... but whoever you are, just know that I do very much appreciate the flowers... it was a lovely gesture, and every time I look at the bouquet I just smile!

I think my next post will be about how PC never buys me anything from Tiffany & Co. ... I have a lovely jewelery box with no jewelery in it!

No pressure, secret sender!

Helping out a fellow Blogger!

My friend and former co-worker Dani over at Postcards from the Mothership, is one of the main reasons I got into blogging. She started blogging after she returned from the mat. leave of her first son, Tristan, and I have followed her from the get-go through the birth of her second son Simon, and most recently Lucas!

She is a such a great writer.... down-to-earth, funny, and not afraid to put anything out there in the blogosphere, and I love that. Now that I am a Mom, I relate to her posts even more so than in the past. I have her on the highest of high bloggy pedistals, and I would like it to stay that way with your help!

Ahem... to the point... she is a finalist in a contest that will send her to the 2009 BlogHer Conference IN CHICAGO if she receives the winning number of votes for her post on why blogging means so much to her, and I really want to see her go, so I am asking you, all of my faithful readers, to get the heck over to Mabel's Label blog and VOTE for her entry:

Dani@Postcards from the Mothership
'The one in which she counts her bloggy blessings'

It's mid-way down the list, and it would mean so much to her if she won - trust me, Mabel could not be sending a better candidate if Dani actually wins!

You have until February 23rd to do so, and just as a side note you can vote more than once before they cut you off!

So as a favour to me... please get over there and VOTE VOTE VOTE!
THANK YOU!

Ready for V-Day!

You may recall back in January, I decided to participate in a Valentine's Day swap that Claire over at Life of a Southern Belle was hosting.

I was matched up with Claire herself... and I received her package in the mail this week. It did not disappoint. It was a HUGE box... and I was so pumped to open it.

Inside was a nice little letter from Claire explaining the contents....
As I dug through the packaging ... I was loving each individually wrapped white bag sealed with a heart sticker on it.... there were 5 in total.
I had so much fun unwrapping each bag of goodies... in addition to the bags, there was also a bubble wrapped heart-shaped plate, a food magazine, and some organic Hershey's milk chocolate. After I was done opening everything, I felt like I had hit the Valentine's jackpot.

Here is a pic of my loot....I am loving everything, but especially the heart-shaped ice cube tray... my fav!

Thanks so much Claire for organizing such a fun swap, and for putting together a great package. Thanks to you, I am officially prepared for V-Day on Saturday.

Bloggy Makeover!

Hold up... you don't need to go searching for the back button, you are indeed in the right place. I thought it was time for a little makeover here at From the Desk of Sara, so I asked for a little help from a creative mind (Becky Squire) and this is what she came up with.... polka dots and all!

I hope you like it... as I am really please with it!

If only all makeovers were this quick and painless!

The wonderful world of blogging!

In the last few weeks or so, I, Sara Coleman, have become addicted to blog surfing. I am not sure if its a new Mom thing... or if its just me in general, but lately I have spent a lot of time surfing blogs and coming across some new ones I really enjoy.

You may have noticed my 'Blogs I like to PEEK at' list (to the right) has expanded quite a bit in the past few days... and that's because I have been lurking around other blogs and thoroughly enjoying it!

I am almost in awe of how many people blog - all types of people - some like me, some very different from me... some bad bloggers, and then of course some very good bloggers - much better bloggers than me (I know... your shocked, but believe it or not there are many a couple good writers out there who are better than I, and I'm not scared to own up to it!).

Since our purchase of the MacBook... I seem to spend a lot of my feeding time with E, just reading and clicking and reading more and more blogs.

Seriously... if you read my blog, then go to my list of blogs I read, and click one, any one blog... you'll find yourself at someone else place for five or 10 minutes, and then if you click just one, any one blog for their list of blogs they read, you arrive at another place... and then if you REPEAT REPEAT REPEAT... before you know it your baby is fed and fast asleep and your still checking out new blog after new blog after new blog! It's addicting and time consuming, yet wonderful and eventful all in the same breathe.

Sometimes if E is showing off and feeding without the assistance of both my hands, I can sometimes muster up enough patience to type out a one-handed comment on other blogs. I find myself commenting more and more these days as it feels like some form of adult contact when I can chip in on someone else's conversation rather than the one I have with E everyday where I ask him a question and answer for him and then ask myself a quesiton on his behalf and answer for me! Its A LOT of me talking to me all. day. long. so its nice to feel like I've participated in another coversation even if it doesn't require me to open my mouth (if PC is reading this - I am sure he's wondering how he get in on that... me giving my two cents without some much as a whisper)!

If your stopping by here today or in the past few days, because I have left a comment on your blog and you are wondering who the bleeeep is SC.. while it's just little old young and vibrant - under 30 - me.... Ottawa civil servant on mat leave, new mommy, wife, with a bit of mixed bag for a mouth piece! You never know what your getting over here... lately its been mostly Mommy stuff all. the. time. but I do hope to get back to my famous rants on underwear lines and Tim Horton's drive thru, money, customer service and all that fun stuff very soon.

But for now, I am just in sheer amazement of just how many GREAT blogs there are out there... how other peoples lives can seem so exciting compared to my own - especially on days when its -40 out in the middle of winter, and E and I are confined to the walls of our home!

I just want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the men and woman of the blogging world who take the time to update their blogs on an almost daily basis - for this cat on mat leave, who regularly surfs the net these days - I am LOVING you.

Keep up the good work and thanks for stopping by!

2008 A Year in Review

I did this last year... and I thought it worked well, so I am going to do it again (and probably every year).

It's the titles of a few posts from each month of the year.... that quickly sum up 2008 in a nutshell! If you only joined me half way through the year, this may be a good way to catch up on what you missed, and if you have been a faithful reader all along... this is just a quick refresher of what we've been through via this blog, during the past year.

So ... here we go, a quick look at 2008...:

January
-2008, The Year of Getting What I Want
-Mamma Mia
-Update from Sunny Punta Cana (Toubi & Vicki's Wedding)

February
-Rascal Flatts Concert
-Ba-hum-bug!(rant on Christmas lights)
-Déjà 20 ans! (Elizabeth Manley wins Olympic silver)

March
-The Big Storm
-T.O isn't such a bad place after all (trip to see good friends)
-It was a good Friday indeed! (Carrie Underwood concert)
-A picture is worth a thousand words! (Baby Coleman is on the way)

April
-Throwing Caution to the Wind (our decision to start a family)
-Random Grocery Store Sighting (spotted by one of my readers!)
-Baby Belly # 1 (first belly pic)
-Second Look at Baby Coleman (ultrasound #2)
-Grandparents are a gift! (remembering my grandparents)

May
-Prenatal Classes
-Baby Belly Update
-Back from the Big Apple (our trip to NYC)

June
-A trip to Yankee Stadium
-Snapshots from Halifax
-A new addition to the family (our new Escape)
-Here's a tip (find out the sex of the baby!)

July
-Belly Update #3
-And the rings come off!
-PC's Big 3-0 Party!
-Baby Coleman @ 30 weeks
-A letter to my first born
-King-Nelles Wedding, Evolution of Dance

August
-Nesting
-I thought breastfeeding was the cheaper option

September
-Belly Update 36 weeks
-Not working... weird (maternity leave begins)
-Presenting Baby Coleman's Bedroom Suite
-The last child free anniversary (PC & I celebrate our 3rd Ann.)
-Overdue: Day 1

October
-Our New Baby Boy!
-My Labour Story
-Happy Halloween (E's first)

November
-Things I have learned in a month (E is 1 month old)
-Phantom Crying
-Easy my ass!

December
-Household appliance meltdown
-2 months and counting
-Malls, strangers, and shopping with a baby!
-Christmas Traditions
-Merry Christmas

Well... there you have it! 2008 here and gone. It was an exciting year... there have been lots of highs this year ... a trip down south, finding out PC and I were having a baby, our trip to New York City, pregnancy in general but none as exciting as the arrival of my baby boy, and and being a new Mom... nothing will compare to 2008 for these reasons, but I am looking forward to 2009 and everything it has to offer!

Cheers to '09!

Christmas the size of Texas!

Julie over at Abbily Ever After organized a blogger's secret ornament swap for the second year in a row. I participated last year, but after all of the hustle and bustle of Christmas I did not receive my ornament. I was kind of disappointed, but I did have so much fun sending my ornaments to my swap partner, that I decided to throw caution to the wind and do it again this year, in hopes of better luck.

The ornaments were to be mailed on December 1st... so that they would arrive in good time for Christmas... and with enough time to get overseas and across borders as the blogging participants are all over the world. My swap receivee (that I mailed my ornament to) lives in Texas, and by coincidence, my swap sender (that had me) also is from Texas. It was a big ol' Texas swap exchange for me, so I think its only fitting that the ornament I received have a Texas theme!

My package came today... just in the nick of time, and I was so excited. J from Musings in Leftfield (love the name) had me... and she really put together a nice package... when I opened it there was a lovely card, a photo snowman holder, and my TEXAS ornament.

Its pretty cute, and looks great on our tree:

Thanks so much "J"! You did a great job... I have a good friend moving to Texas in the New Year, so who knows our paths may cross in the future sometime!

I thought since I was snapping a pic of my ornament on the tree, I would also take the liberty to show you the entire tree, and our stockings hung by the fire with care (and Little E in front swinging away)! I think this may be the last year for a while that we have a half decent looking, non-kid proof, Christmas tree... next year, I don't imagine we will have any ornaments hanging under the 2 foot threshold!Now, enough with the blogging I have to finish wrapping the gifts for the big day!

Fragment Friday

It's been a while since my last installment of Tid-Bits Thursday ... so my apologies for those of you who have been visiting faithfully every Thursday only to find a post that is probably three or four days old. I wanted to do Tid-Bits Thursday but got side-tracked yesterday, so this post turned into Fragment Friday.


So... without further ado, here we go!

• The entire pregnancy thing has thrown my blogging dedication way off kilter...because of the fact that I am going to bed way earlier than I use to. No longer can I blog at night before bed... its now become something I try to cram into my lunch hour, or early in the morning before work. I also have far less energy than ever so even when I do have an ounce of free time, I have no kick start motivation that fires me up and allows me to accomplish anything. All of the books I am reading now say that I am entering the honeymoon trimester.... so let's hope its a little more blissful with far more energy than the first trimester!

• Welcome Spring... I absolutely love this season: warm days, cool nights, and frankly much better fashion out and about on the streets. Today its 23 degrees in the nation's capital, and people are loving it (me included). I spent yesterday's and today's lunch out and about on Merivale Road, just walking in the sunshine and pretending like I didn't have a care in the world. By the looks of forecast, I have feeling spring isn't going to last long... as summer temperatures are approaching by end of next week (30 degrees - yee-haw!).

• Senators Hockey.... the Sens have bit the dust hardcore this year! What a disappointing season after all of the excitement that was in the city last year. Today... coach/GM Brian Murray held a press conference in Ottawa and without making any formal announcements he did indicate that my man, Ray Emery will not be in a Sens uniform next year. That kind of breaks my heart... I knew it was coming, and its the best decision for the team, but I've always loved reading about Razor in the entertainment section of the Ottawa Sun! He was a flashy individual that created drama... and I loved that about him, although none of his off ice shenanigans ever helped the Sens on the ice. It looks like the Sens may have a hard time finding another team to take on the likes of Razor... but I hope someone steps up to the plate and does, as I will always love reading about him.

• Work.... since I have taken on a new challenge in a new team at work just over a month ago, I couldn't be happier. I am back to feeling confident about my work, and feeling that I actually bring an important piece of the puzzle to the table. The health-field is full of interesting people, a much different work dynamic than the tax-field... but almost a year since I made the move from tax to health, I am finally feeling settled in, and somewhat of an expert on a few issues I never thought I would ever grasp. Life is good at work... and that makes life outside of work even better!

• Blogging! The entire month of March has past, and I forgot to mention that I celebrated my second blog-o-versary! Two years and counting, I have been blogging. Time flies... doesn't it? When I first started blogging, I didn't know if this was something I would stick with, but I have come to love the world of blogging, and everything that it has to offer. The best reward for blogging is of course - you - the readers... your comments, your advice, and general care and concern are really what fuels my love for the blog. As we are in the second quarter of 2008, I have no idea how the blogging will go once the baby comes... but I do vow to blog as a new Mom... when the time comes. I hope you will be patient with me, and give me a chance to adjust to this very foreign world I am about to embark on, but hopefully by Christmas of this year, I will have figured out a way to blog and breastfeed like its my full-time job!

• Alright... sunny weekend ahead, and I have lots of spring cleaning on the agenda! Perhaps not everyone is enjoying this fabulous weather we are getting in the nation's capital, but is anyone doing anything exciting this weekend.... do share! You know how I love comments!