And this is why you DON't Want too eat cookies at our house...

Visit with Santa

Cute kids...

Santa Visit!

 This year Santa pictures were done a little differently..

The Southland Mall had you schedule it in, 

and then the kids had half an hour where they were able to sing some songs,

dance and have a story with Santa.

I think it probably worked with most kids..

but maybe wasn't so good for my high energy children... LOL!

Gracie didn't want to sit for the story time,

and Jeremy pulled shy and had a tantrum, 

because he was nervous....

but at least we managed to get them on Santa's lap for a picture..

(which by the way.. you do yourself now...)

Glorious!

 When I see a day like this..

How can I possibly question the existence of an amazingly creative

and awe inspiring God.....

Terrible Beauty!

Terrible Beauty
Robyn Jones ~ 2009

Intricate snowflakes, frozen in place...

balancing carefully...

not a breath of air...

to send them shimmering to the ground

like fairy dust.

Visible one moment and gone the next...

Every branch, every blade of grass, every seed,

for as far as the eye can see,

wearing a jacket of frosty snow..

cocooned against the elements, 

keeping alive a spark of life,

For springs first warm breath.

But sleeping for now..

Terrible in their frozen beauty,

As silent as death...as deep as a thought,

Dreaming silently under gray skies,

Shivering in anticiapation, 

for the seasons to change their fickle favors once again...

Christmas Lights Across Canada...

For the past four years, Kendal and I have been trying to make it to the Legislative Building 

to watch them turn on the Christmas lights..

Tonight we bundled everybody up..

grabbed our SIL Esther...

and finally did it...

I didn't realize what a big event it was,

There was Santa and his reindeer...

prizes, hot chocolate, crafts and face painting...

and all without me and my camera...

(How's that for a first!)

My hubby did- however

take one of this very cool gingerbread house of the Leg

made by Safeway...with his cell phone.

When we got home, I did take some pictures of our facepaint..

unfortunately the kids was pretty messed up,

Mine was still pretty good...

The Wedding 2

If you're fat and you know it drink green tea......

A while back I said that I would keep you updated on some of the healthy changes
I was going to make in my diet...
So far, I have done pretty good..
One of the changes was to change from Cow milk
over to Almond milk...
(For more on that click Here ... or Here )
Another change I have made is to drink green tea...

Now I know a lot of people LIKE green tea...
I can't profess to be one of them...
To me it just tastes like dirty socks...
HOWEVER...
that being said...
I am now drinking two cups a day...
no milk and no sugar...

In my research of green tea.. I found these possible benefits....

University of Purdue researchers recently concluded that a compound in green tea
inhibits the growth of cancer cells...

other possible benefits

• rheumatoid arthritus
• high cholesterol levels
• cardiovascular disease
• infection
• preventing diabetes  
• cavity prevention
• immune boosting
• conception aid

Apparently this is due to the fact that it has high concentrations of polyphenols and flavenoids
Please click on the link if you would like to know what these are..
I haven't a clue... LOL!

What I DO know is that after I started drinking the stuff...
I started to lose weight!!!!
So far in a fairly short period of time,
I dropped ten pounds..
At the time, I didn't even know that green tea could help with that...
but I checked into it, because there hadn't been any other significant weight loss before that!
Wow.... so cool.

The health benefits at this point seem far more dramatic then the side affects..
which seem minimal...
The only thing to keep in mind, is that if you are pregnant,
it is probably better to stay away from it,
as it can effect the way your body uses folate
which is needed during pregnancy.
It also contains tannic acid, which when consumed in excess amounts can
increase the risks of miscarriage.
For that though, you would have to drink 8 or more cups a day...
For more info about green tea and pregnancy ... click here

It also has a reputation for helping with fertility...
A study done by the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Oakland, California revealed that the chances of conceiving doubled for woman who daily drank more than one- half cup of green tea containing caffeine (American Journal of Public Health, 1998). Because this wasn't the case for the other tested caffeinated beverages, caffeine wasn't deemed the causing agent. Some credit was given to the possibility that the polyphenols and hypoxanthine, compounds found in tea, resulted in a greater number of viable embryos, and increased maturation and fertilizability of oocytes.


Green tea also has far less caffeine in it then coffee does...
there are approximately thirty to sixty mg. of caffeine in six - eight ounces of tea
compared to over one-hundred mg. in eight ounces of coffee...
However, if you are going to add green tea to your diet,
it would be best to limit how much coffee you are drinking...


So far as I know there have been no documented cases of death by green tea...
so drink to your health...
(and if you don't like it... plug your nose!  :)

Note of interest..
For those of you who really CAN'T stand the stuff,
and can't handle the taste
They do sell green tea capsules at the health food store..
(follow the directions...)

For more information on the health benefits of green tea... please click here

This just looks wrong.....LOL!

Santa Parade!

The Christmas season is here!  Once again we headed off to the annual Santa Parade....
However.....
This year was far colder then normal.. -25....
Good thing we brought blankets...
and extra clothes.
Not only was it colder, but the parade seemed much longer then normal as well...
My 18 year old...in typical teenage fashion
didn't have a coat. or gloves. or a hat.
My two year old...
in typical two year old fashion...
was refusing to wear her gloves...