My Beautiful New Camera Strap

I just love it! Thanks Andrea, just received it in the mail today!! A reversible, hand sewn, gorgeous shoulder and neck strap for my Canon!!! What a great idea!! It sure adds a touch of personality to my camera instead of the black standard "canon" strap, and it feels absolutely wonderful. These straps are designed and manufactured by Andrea in southern British Columbia at http://mycameracouture.com/, and she has a variety of fabrics and styles available. They are all so beautiful it is hard to pick a favorite!

Corporate Challenge Cribbage!

This was the first corporate challenge event I've ever done and it was loads of fun. I was asked to join the cribbage team for Agrium, and because twenty years ago I was reasonably good at the game, I agreed! I had to practice a little bit with my hubby and reread the rules, but it quickly came back to me. In the old days, I used to play a fair bit of cribbage, especially on airplanes to kill time on long flights. It's a great game. Anyway, my partner Darcy and I finished with 3 wins and 3 losses, not enough to win anything, but not embarrassing either. I think I might try it again next year!

And we got funky new orange shirts..................... :-)

Scrapbooking Oasis Retreat

I was fortunate enough to be able to join an amazing group of women at a scrapbook retreat at the Bull River guest ranch near Cranbrook on National Scrapbooking Day. It was absolute paradise! I didn't get much scrapbooking done (I never do, I talk too much), but I would go back in a second. In fact, I've already signed up for next year, even though it is about a 7 hour drive from my house.

The accomodations were wonderful, the scenery beautiful, but it was the food and the companionship that made it so special. It was such a happy and upbeat atmosphere, every single person there was super friendly and helpful. I was really happy to get to spend some time with Sylvie and Denise, fellow Scraptivity designers, as well as hang out with Jackie Ludlage, her mom Donna and sister Carmen, and Katharina Doyle and her MIL Aline. Just wonderful people to scrapbook with.

I had heard rumors about the food (Sylvie told me to bring stretchy pants), and the rumors were not exaggerated. Wow!!! The presentation of the meals had many of us first timers whipping out our cameras to capture the moment before we ate up all the art on our plates. One night we had individual chocolate fondues for dessert, another we had huge slabs of cheesecake with cinnamon whipped cream and poached apple slices. Sunday afternoon, three kinds of fresh baked cookies were brought around to our work tables with tall glasses of milk. And the brunch before we left on Monday? Yummmmmmmmmmm!!!

Planting Time

I think is probably my favorite time of the year. The air is warm, the birds are chirping and I am up to my elbows in dirt. I love the joy of putting plants together in different combinations, planting small seeds, trying new varieties. The summer holds such promise..............

Summer Canadian Scrapbooker is out!

The summer Canadian Scrapbooker is hot off the presses, and it is another amazing issue!! I took it to Drumheller to savor in the hotel room, but every time I pick it up, something else catches my eye! The stampbooking article by Cathie Allan has me in awe! Wow!!! I had a lot of fun writing my article for the frugal scrapbooker - I think I am permanently addicted to using felt on my layouts now. So easy, so inexpensive! Here's my favorite layout from the article, it makes me smile every time I see it. Goofy Rusty! He is a very entertaining cat!

A Dash to Drumheller

I love Drumheller. The badlands just amaze me everytime I see them, and I could spend all day admiring the hoodoos and geological strata in the area. It takes almost three hours to get there, so it's a bit much for a day trip, so I booked a room in the Ramada for a night. The water slide is a huge hit with the boys, who love staying in hotels, and the free breakfast is not too bad either. We had time to tour the museum, take a guided fossil hunting expedition called DinoSite, admire the Hoodoos and swinging bridge and get soaked at the aquatic park. It was a hot weekend, and unfortunately the air conditioning in the car had committed suicide sometime over the winter, so it was a windy and noisy drive with the windows rolled down!