Easter 2016/Let's Be Friends Blog Hop

Almost every child in Canada is on their second week of Spring Break. That means, kids everywhere...ALL the time :) 

I went to the ranch (aka: my parents' house, the place where I grew up) without my laptop. Epic, I know. I was only KIND OF missing it yesterday (Monday), so I guess that means I can go without it for a few days. That's a good thing. B/C my parents have very little Gigibites (or whatever they're called), and bc there are about 10 - 12 devices (not including when visitors come), and because they were almost out, I just left it at home. I am only wishing that I had brought to jump on Trainstation for a few minutes, and to maybe watch Friends or Big Bang the last two nights when I was alone.

So....here is our Easter Wknd with the family:

I didn't take a ton of pics, b/c well, I didn't feel like it, and I don't post pics of H on SM much anymore, and one can only take so many pictures of scenery and animals.

Because Easter is usually in April, when the sheep have their lambs, they don't usually do much in the way of a big dinner, etc. The last few years, we may have something, but this is the first time in a LONG time that we have had a big dinner, egg hunt, etc.

Friday: Anker and I left at around noon. We went into CW to grab a few things for Mom, and then got to the ranch at around 3. The trip (both ways) was beautiful! We weren't there five minutes, and hubby found a project, which delighted everyone :) I hung out with whoever was around, and H and I played with the dogs on the hay wagon for a bit. He went feeding with Dad, and I think I went to help out with supper. We had a lamb dinner at around 6 or so. As always, it was delicious. I don't remember what we did after supper. I think we all hung out and visited. Or something. Oh ya...we tried to Skype my sister, but we were having Internet issues, so that was short lived. H went to bed, and we played Taboo, and probably watched some TV, then we went to bed "early". This was the day that I gave H his Easter gift. He loved, and one of the toys I bought him kind of became somewhat of a fascination for the adults.

Saturday: Woke up at around 8:15, had breakfast, and started on the turkey. It was a lazy morning (of sorts), of wandering around. Everyone was busy, and I had already done my part (at least for awhile) for the dinner. We started getting things ready for the weiner roast; K and I started on the stuffing (Mom wanted us to do stuffing in the slow cooker...a great idea), then we all had the wiener roast. It was a BEAUTIFUL day. We are sure that it hit 20C. After the roast, we all hung out doing various things, and then it was time to get started on the dinner. We were supposed to eat at 6, and the turkey was ready at 4:30. Go figure. I knew I put it in too early. Just sayin`. Anyway...we sat down to/for dinner at around 6:30. We also ended up inviting both sets of aunts and uncles, and a friend. It was a great evening. A few people had to leave early, so that they could finish up preparations for the next day (Sunday), but a few of us sat and visited for awhile. H wasn't feeling well, so Gramma (my mom) gave him a bath, and K put him to bed :) The rest of us either watched TV, and/or went to bed. Cause we're exciting, like that.

Sunday: I had breaky, and then helped Mom hide eggs for the kids (my cousin, Charlene was also there with her kids), and then I got ready to go, then went to church. The place was packed, which was awesome. Helped serve sandwiches in the kitchen for a snack, then went back with my parents, and helped Mom make bun-wiches for lunch. We had ham and turkey. Yum! I had a little visit with Mom, and then laid down for a few minutes, then Anker went home with A and K. He wanted to come home, and I didn't. So, there you go! Mom and I had popcorn and watched Dateline, and then watched Cinderella. I was super tired (I was having an "off" day), and went to bed at around 9, but I didn't go to sleep until 11 or so.

Monday: I woke up kind of early, and talked with Mom for awhile, which was nice. Then, we went for a walk. It was SUNNY, but WINDY! We had a lovely visit during our walk, which was great. I had brunch, then I may or may not have had some Cadbury Creme Eggs for a snack. Then, Dad came in, and I got him lunch, and then, since my brothers were coming in, even though I had just had brunch, I ate lunch. Ha! We had a nice visit, then I helped clean up, and visited with my cousin for a few hours. Came back in, and relaxed for a bit (read a magazine), then shredded cheese for our nacho supper. Watched Dateline with Mom, then I went to my aunt and uncles for a visit, then came home and played on my phone and read magazines until I went to sleep.

So, that was my/our weekend!

Here are the pics:

 The lamb dinner.

 The trifle.

 Turkey ready to go in the oven. I tried something different and smothered margarine all over it.

 K made Resurrection Buns on Sat. Yum!!!

 This was the project that Anker helped my family with. Covering up the BIG ruts made from/by the tractors.

 Slow Cooker stuffing. It was really good. I would def. make it again.

 K made homemade marshmallows. We roasted them on Saturday. They were fabulous!

 C made this. Death by chocolate. It was delish!

 I read my Canadian Living Magazine while eating Cadbury Creme Eggs yesterday.

 Our car this morning.

Linking up with:

It's Friday, But Sunday's (A) Coming!

I love this video. I watch this ever year...And I still get goose(God!)bumps!! I will let it speak for itself.

Happy Good Friday! May you all have a blessed weekend.

Friday Faves

1) I bought some cheapo flats from a local thrift store yesterday (Wednesday). I haven't worn them yet, but they seem like nice shoes, and greatly needed!

2) I had a sore on my chin for a week (partly due b/c it started out as a pimple, and I started picking at it), and it was getting quite unsightly. I went to my drugstore to ask the pharmacist what I should do. She advised me to use an OTC antibiotic ointment, so I used their brand...and in less than 24 hours, it has almost healed!! This makes me happy.

3) My EI payments came this week. Both of them!!! Sadly, this will effect on how much disability hubby gets during this time. This does NOT make us happy!

4) Hubby has started on the garden boxes/yard. He actually started on the yard a week or so ago. The weather has been warm enough so that he can do this. He loves being outside, building things, planting things, etc. Oh, AND we found some Sweet Pea plants the other day while we were shopping in CW. Hubby just planted them :) We also found peanut seeds!!

5) I don't normally buy gifts for my nieces or nephews during Easter, but this year, I felt like it. I already have his package all ready. AND, I also have bought his Bday gift. My neighbour is an Avon rep, so I bought a few things (makeup..yay!) from her..including something fun for H. I actually don't buy him a lot of stuff (though he has equated me with going out for coffee/lunch...lol), so I thought it would be fun to give him a little Easter gift. I was hoping to find some books or something about the real meaning of Easter, but since we don't have a Christian book store here anymore (we do have a Catholic store, which I just might go and check out today), but they do tend to be a bit expensive, so I didn't find anything at Wal-Mart (though Dollar Stores will often have Bible-related books, etc). So, he got some Spider-Man-related items, and a pair of PJ's, cause, he needs them.

BONUS: I have had my fair share of Starbucks this week..too much, actually (and that didn't include last week, but, whatever). Monday, Starbucks was doing a bonus star thing,where if you place an order on their app, you get three bonus stars. So, naturally, I HAD to do it :) I got my Caramel Machiatto. I also was in the dollar store, as I couldn't find my sunnies anywhere in the car, and I saw (though not for the first time) Picards Chips Nuts. I had these YEARS ago, but I had no clue on where you could find them, or if they still existed. I had seen them, and wondered if they were it, ...aand they were! For $1.25 for a small package, I don't think I will be buying them all the time, but they were SO GOOD!!

 I met up with friends for coffee/fraps on Tuesday. I tried their Caramel Honey Frap, which was ok, but I am not sure that I would get it again.

I also got a special deal, where if I try a Frap (see above), and an Iced Tea (already done), and a breakfast sandwich by the end of March, I get a bonus 12 stars. I am not a huge Starbucks food lover, but I do like some of their sammies...I tried their cheddar and egg one, which was good. So, yes, lots of Starbucks this week (and too much money spent on it).

Sanding, and Painting, and Cooking, Oh My!

Before we get into the Easter Wknd, and all of its shenanigans, I should highlight last wknd :)

So, awhile back, Mom asked me if I could help her out on doing some projects on their B&B. The floor needed to be entirely redone. She wanted me to come and help her sand and paint the floor. Anker ended up wanting to come (yay!), so he actually did most of that, while I ran btwn the two houses. I also started painting the batton that is going to on the front of the building, but they changed plans the last minute, so I had to quit that. I didn't feel like I did too much, but it was a fun wknd, anyway.

Thursday: After some errands in town, we left at around 1:30, and while we were grabbing things for hubby to work on the car, we saw a local food truck (which isn't that popular here, yet). He sells hamburgers and hotdogs, and the onions smelled SO GOOD! We each grabbed one, and it was DELISH!

 Oh, and, yes, I did wear green...and my super cool pink SPD socks!!! I even wore some green earrings (can you see?) and a green hair band. You can also see the start of my sore that I talked (or rather, will talk about) in my Friday post.

We arrived about 3:30 or so, and went straight over to the B&B, and hubby started doing what he had to do, filling in the nail holes, and then sanding, and I went back to my parents' house to start dinner....well, to continue what Mom started. We had a nice late (ish) dinner, and then relaxed and watched a few episodes "Everybody Loves Raymond", and we chatted, and hung out with each other. Some of them went to bed early, and others (like myself) went to bed late.

Friday: We woke up at around 8 or so, and had breakfast, and then Mom and I got ready go vacuum the floor from the sanding from the previous day. Well, we ran into a bit of a snag (which has now been fixed), so that prolonged things a bit. We went into CW around 1:30, and since Mom had people working in her kitchen (long story), she took us out to lunch. We had DQ, then went to the local (and only!) really good hardware store in town. Came home and Mom and Anker went to start priming the floor, and I continued making supper. Of course, I probably hung out on my computer, blogging, FB'ing, etc, and I read magazines, too. Anyway...we had a late supper,and while Mom and Dad were out for a bit, Anker and I watched "Raymond", chatted, and did various things. I went to bed late, as usual.

Saturday: I slept in a bit, and then I had a late breakfast, then did a few errands (I can't remember what), then I started on priming the batton.

Since it was too cold to paint outside, Mom and I had to get organized in the furnace room. After I had painted one, I went over to my aunt and uncle's for a smokey roast. Yum! I was on my 6th one, when, as I was taking a break, Mom told me that they were planning on going a different route, so my painting services were no longer needed. LOL. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted. Just spent the rest of the aft/eve relaxing. Hubby changed the spark plugs and did an oil change on the car, and then we had a lovely gourmet supper of popcorn and pudding:) Mom made butterscotch pudding from scratch! It was SO GOOD! We watched Dateline from the night before (Mom PVR's it), and I watched another one about the OJ Simpson case.

Sunday: Since church starts at 11, hubby and I had relaxing morning. Dad, him and I had a nice visit, and we had breakfast, and then went to church (well, we obvs got dressed first..lol). They had a first of two-part documentary called "The Easter Experience". It was really good, and presented by Kyle Idelman, and it is really good. They are showing the second part this week. We stayed at church for awhile, and then went back and started getting ready. Hubby was really wanting to come home, as I think he was missing the kitties :) We got a sub on the way home, and then that is when I started to get really sick. I had gotten a sore throat on Saturday, but I was feeling relatively ok. By Sunday night, however, my throat was getting SUPER sore, and I my head was starting to get compression in my sinuses, and my whole body started to ache. Hashtag #theweirdestcoldandfluever. And that was all that I seemed to have gotten this round, which was odd. I watched "The Passion Live", and it was well, interesting. I had some mixed reviews about it, but all in all, I think they gave out the correct and clear message; That Christ Rose again!!! I went to bed stupid late (esp since I had a cold), but I slept well, which was great. So that was our weekend.

Here are some more pics....I didn't take as many as I usually do, which is weird, but I did take a few.

 Looking south. I love this. I never tire of the scenery.

 I love my gum/rubber boots :)

 It's Smokey time!!

                                                                    The horses.

                                                                 This is Cap.

Make up Artist/Let's Be Friends Blog Hop

Linking up with Tiffany for this weeks LBFBH (when she posts, that is!).

 

This what I wore over the wknd. For the eye shadow, I wore Avon's Smoky Moonlight, and Wet N Wild's Petal Pusher. For lipstick, I wore Avon's Iced Cocoa, and I also wore Silver Plum (I didn't post it). And I wore the Glazewear Lip gloss that doesn't have the name on it anymore. For eye liner, I wore Emerald Glow, and Ultra Violet, both from Avon. I wore Maybelline's Brownish Black Mascara.

Friday Link Ups

How does everyone like the extra hour of light? I do!!

Happy Monday!! I hope you had a great wknd. We did! I will write more about that in another post.

But first, here are some of my five faves from last week:

1) We got our income tax refund back, in just under two weeks! We were/are VERY thankful for it. It was a fair amount of money (for us), so it is nice to have a little "extra".

2)..And with that money, we both got hair cuts. Anker REALLY needed one, and I wanted something different. I love my new 'do! And, we also had a date day/afternoon, which was totally fun, and much needed.

I bought this chocolate bar from the bank as they were doing their fundraiser for BC Children's Hospital. It was SO good!!! And I was helping out the kids...:) I have three friends who had their kids/grandkids who were/are at BCCH, receiving treatment for cancer, and they were in my thoughts when I bought it. AND I also bought a new eye shadow pallet, which I like, but it is really hard to open. I also bought magazines :) I bought this weeks US Weekly, and April issues of Canadian House and Home, and Cosmo.

3) Anker fixed my computer cord again this past wknd. It came apart Saturday night, so he quickly fixed it before church on Sunday. It works!!!

4 I got a shirt for $5, and a pair of jeans for $5 off/from one of the local Facebook groups. I LOVE the jeans, and the shirt was dirty, so I will have to wash it, and then I will try it on later this week.

5) BOTH of us went to my parents' this past weekend. Yes, Hubby came too. He hadn't been out since October. He had a good time, but was super tired, b/c of all the projects he did, but it was good for him to get out. And wouldn't you know it, that while I was away, I got TWO invites to go out! That NEVER happens! Oh well, it was fun to know that my friends were thinking of me!!!


That's all for this week. What are YOUR faves from the week?