{fun for halloween}

what a fun costume idea! :D

www.familyfun.com
if you haven't checked out family fun yet, you should. they always have fun stuff for kids.

siennalla edelleen nuhaa ja kotona siis vaan lorvitaan edelleen. alkaa kayda jo vahan kuivaksi mutta eikohan me jotain keksita ajankuluksi. sienna jo "meikkasi" minut ja mina sen. :)

mulla on hyva olo silla pystyin auttamaan kahta ystavaa viimeisen parin paivan aikana.

nyt kun viela kekkaisin miten auttaa jayta jolla on menossa kova stressi opiskelun kanssa. liikaa opiskeltavaa ja ei tarpeeksi aikaa. miten pystya venyttamaan paivat pidemmiksi?

{this is amazing!!!!}

ps. nyt vasta huomasin tuolta vanhan kommentin jossa kysyttiin minkalaista kameraa/linsseja kaytan. mulla on pikkuruinen, nappara kamera joka minusta ottaa tosi hyvanlaatuisia kuvia. panasonic dmc-zs3, lumix. en kayta mitaan erikoisia linsseja. simppeli. mahtuu helposti mukaan. isosiskollani on iso "upea" kamera ja minusta mun kamera otti ihan yhta hyvalaatuisia kuvia kuin sen kamera. kun vertailin siis kesalla meidan lomakuvia. ilman salamaa sisalla otetut kuvat ei aina onnistu taysin. riippuu kuinka paljon valoa. mun kamera ottaa myos videoita.

sitten usein kaytan vaan photoscapen bloom actionia joka tuo ihanan "valon" kuviin. (www.photoscape.com, ilmainen ohjelma!)

i noticed a comment asking about my camera. my camera is panasonic dmc-zs3, lumix. it's small but takes really good quality pictures. videos as well. i don't use special lenses. sometimes i like to take pictures through my sunglasses. :) i also use a program called photoscape (www.photoscape, it's free!) and use it's "bloom" action. it gives a nice glow to the pictures.

{my favorite cookies}

3/4 cup (175ml) butter (softened) or margarine

3/4 cup (175ml) brown sugar

1/2 cup (125ml) sugar

1 egg

2 TBSP (30ml) water

2 tsp (10ml) vanilla

3/4 cup (175ml) flour

3/4 tsp (3ml) baking soda

1 tsp (5ml) cinnamon

3 cups (7,5 dl) oats

1 1/2 cups (375ml) raisins or 1 cup (2,5 dl) chocolate chips

1. cream together the first six ingredients. use an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.

2. add dry ingredients (use a sieve with the flour to prevent lumps).

3. stir in raisins or chocolate chips.

4. put parchment paper on two baking sheets.

5. drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto baking sheet. leave space between each cookie.

6. press flat for crisp cookies, leave mounded for chewy cookies.

7. bake at 350F (180C) for 12-15 minutes or until edges are golden brown. don't overbake.

{the help}

i read many books but only recommend the ones i really, really enjoy and have no garbage in them. this book has some mild bad language in it and quite a bit of taking God's name in vain. yet i still have to recommend it. i loved this book (minus the stuff i mentioned). i do cringe a bit while recommending it due to some of the language in it but i still have to tell people about this book. wonderfully written and a most interesting topic. i can't believe some people think they're better than others because of the color of their skin. there's still so much racism out there. books like these are poignant reminders of how things should not be. even though the topic is racism - this is not a depressing book to read. just so you know. ;)

this is kathryn stockett's first novel. she grew up in mississippi and her family has experience of "the help".

{mun kunniaksi}

just because
i am NOT allowed to buy house of brussels' hedgehogs from costco.

i am NOT allowed to buy house of brussels' hedgehogs from costco.

i am NOT allowed to buy house of brussels' hedgehogs from costco.

i am NOT allowed to buy house of brussels' hedgehogs from costco.

i am NOT allowed to...
and i'm NOT telling you how many of these i've eaten lately. oy oy oy!
needless to say these are my favorites.
tykkaan jopa enemman kuin fasun sinisesta! tuliko nyt sanottua jotain ihan kamalaa? jotain mita ei koskaan saisi kuulua suomalaisen suusta. :)

villa kanervaan paljon, paljon positiivista energiaa ja haleja. tanja lahetti mulle nain ihanan PIF:n ja viela extra kirjankin. nyt spice saa pitaa mulle seuraa kun lueskelen. Y
minun syntymavuoden kunniaksi :) tapahtui muun muuassa seuraavaa:
makkaratalo valmistui hesaan.

sibeliusmonumentti paljastettiin.
ruotsi vaihtoi oikeanpuoleiseen liikenteeseen.

ensimmaiset pankkiautomaatit asennettiin englannissa.

the beatles lauloi all you need is love.

nicole kidman ja julia roberts paattivat syntya samana vuonna kuin mina.
:)

{noel 1v}

{pumpkins, pumpkins and more pumpkins}

you don't have to carve pumpkins.

you can glitter them.

www.marthastewart.com

or glue stuff on them.
www.ivillage.com

or paint them.

www.bhg.com

www.countryliving.com

www.goodhousekeeping.com

www.kellypurkey.typepad.com

www.parents.com

i'd like these last ones better with cuter faces instead of ghost faces. no scary stuff in our house allowed. one very sensitive little girl lives here.

so many options. how can i choose what to do with our pumpkin this year? :)

{s-w-e-e-t}

it's been awhile so needless to say i totally enjoyed scrapbooking last night.

i found the poem online. author is unknown.

{eye candy}

so here are the rest of today's pictures. the romantic colored ones are the ones i took using my sunglasses. fun. :)

what was fun too was the water spray park they are building next to the pond. it'll be a fun place to go to next summer. yey! :)



this picture doesn't do any justice to this tree. i see these trees all over the place and i think they're my favorite ones. they look gorgeous.
same picture taken with my sunglasses as a filter.

gotta love days like today Y

{gotta love fog}

today's been awesome! it's not very often we get fog here (too dry of a climate). today was one of those rare days. i absolutely love fog so of course i was very camera happy today.
late this morning we headed to downtown to pick up my new permanent resident card.
canada place is actually right on the outskirts of downtown, close to a yucky rundown area. jay and i used to deliver newspapers to newspaper machines in this area plus in downtown when we first got married. we saw all sorts of "interesting" things in this area. i'm glad we did that though as downtown doesn't intimitate me at all. i know all the streets and know where to go.
after i got my card, sienna and i rode the elevator again. it's a must when we go to canada place. the elevator is very fast and goes to the 16th floor. up and down we went many times. it's fun because one wall is a window so you can see out.
after that we went for a walk outside (away from the yucky area i might add) since i had paid for the parking for an hour. first we saw this big inushuk.
this pink building is the canada place. it's where i usually have to go if i go downtown.

a colorful art installation. it wasn't amazing but it was fun enough. the colorful wooden slats spelled "dream".

ex-president george w. bush is in edmonton and will be speaking at this conference center to all the rich people who can afford the tickets. i'd love to be there but i'd never pay the crazy amount of money for a ticket. it would just be interesting to hear what he has to say. why do people pay so much money to hear him speak, you know.

there were a bunch of kayakers on the river.

the rundown part of downtown includes the chinatown.
lots of eye candy today due to the fog. i even enjoyed the fall trees as i was wearing my sunglasses and everything was cute brown in color.
we stopped at our nearby pond on the way home. took more pictures so more to come. like i said, i was camera happy today. :)

ps. as usual, click on the pictures to see them bigger.

{aarre}

mina olin suunnitellut etta sienna askartelisi kukka jutun mutta kun kerran laittoi kukat riviin noin niin oli tilaa jopa perhepotretille. vasemmalta oikealle: sienna, jay, mina, robin (huomatkaa miten pidetaan toisiamme kasista) seka africa ja spice. eiko olekin ihana? mika aarre! en antaisi tata kenellekaan vaikka joku lupaisi sen sijaan timantteja tai upeita autoja tai mita vaan. tama piirustus symbolisoi minulle mika elamassa on tarkeaa.

what a treasure this family picture made by sienna is to me! notice how we all hold hands. Y

miten voi tykata kirjasta jota ei edes ymmarra 100%? niin kavi taman kirjan kanssa. vanhaa enkun kielta jota en aina taysin ymmartanyt outoine sanontoineen. mutta todella tykkasin kirjasta. 877 sivua meni melko nopeasti iltaisin lukien ennen nukkumaan menoa.
how can you enjoy a book which you don't even understand 100%? i did. old, sometimes hard to understand language in this book yet i still totally enjoyed reading it. all 877 pages of it!

{new look}

it was time for a little change. hope you like it. :)

ps. iittalan tarrat viela tuikuissa. jostain syysta en ole niita poistanut viela. nuo pikku i:t muistuttaa mua suomesta. mutta kai ne voisi jo poistaakin. :)

{ :) }

{this is so cute and funny}

star wars according to a 3-year-old. awesome clip! :)

{ihanaa musaa ja ihanat suunnitelmat}

this is what i was listening to today while driving. might as well since we skipped fall and it looks like winter out there. love this kiddo and his angelic voice. this became my favorite christmas album right away. yep, i'm a 41-year-old david archuleta fan. :D

eipa mulle sen kummempaa. mita nyt alan jo olla ihan innoissani ensi kesasta. mita luultavimminkin suomi loma tiedossa. jei!!!!!!!! :) vihdoinkin jopa naen sitten mun siskon lapset ekaa kertaa. Y

{ :D }

this is how it all started
and then it evolved into this :D
fun project to do with those women's magazines.
can you tell we had fun?

hullulla on halvat ilot :D

{ :D }

this activity is not recommended if you want to avoid swine flu :D

i just had to share this picture i found via crib candy.
:D

{thankful}

happy thanksgiving!

it's actually tomorrow but we're celebrating today so...

thanksgiving is when people think of all the things they're thankful for. there are always the obvious ones - family, friends, health, home, faith...

i'm going to try and be a bit more specific today and come up with some sort of list that reflects my thoughts on this day.

i'm grateful for...

...18 years (today) of being married to an amazing guy whom i love more now than when we got married. i'm so grateful that i have always believed in marriage. i love being married. i love my most awesome husband who puts up with a very imperfect wife.

...a daughter who loves to do art and crafts. it would suck if she didn't enjoy it. :)

...living in canada. of course i miss many things about my home country. but i honestly love living here. canada feels like home to me and i'm grateful for that.

...the internet and how it helps me to stay in contact with my family. i'm grateful for all the memories i have with them and love them all so very much.

...being able to stay home and be a full-time mom. not everyone has this priviledge and i don't take it for granted.

...the church i belong to. today specifically for the opportunities it gives me to serve others. our local food bank is in great need of food. more people go to the food bank as many people are struggling financially. but less food is actually being donated. our church has organized a food drive to collect much needed food. we picked up our 300 flyers and our flyer route today. first we deliver the flyers and then we go again later to pick up the actual food people hopefully will donate. it will be hours of volunteer work but i already look forward to the good feeling that will come from the service. our church has the perfect organization to get things done when things need to get done. i'm grateful to know that giving of yourself and your time makes you happy.

...yummy food! :) ikea's blueberry soup, nachos, oatmeal cookies (and for a little girl who loves to make them with me), nanaimo bars, homemade soup...

...a new thai fast food place at southgate mall. yummier than yummy food and great price.

...jay's mom who is making thanksgiving supper for us all today. it's great to get together as a family and celebrate special days together.

...any of you who take the time to read my blog and leave comments now and then. thanks for sharing my life with me.

...my bed. i'm off to take a quick nap and to cuddle with jay and sienna. i am so tired. many poor sleeps lately.

{first snow and money down the drain}

yep, this is what we woke up to this morning. gotta love it. no use whining about it anyways. it's still hard to believe that couple of weeks ago it was still +34C.

i decided that since i can't avoid this white stuff, living where i live, i might as well embrace it. time to buy snow pants for me too. sienna had so much fun playing in the snow (and eating it :)). might as well join her and make the most of it. aren't you all proud of me for not whining and having such a super attitude? :D

for those of you who might be dreaming of a house of their own...

sometimes it's no fun owning a house. like when you have plumbing problems. that's what we've been dealing with for almost a month now. our main sewer pipe kept backing up (try to imagine what that is like, no fun i tell you that much). called a plumber right away when it first happened. $335 later we thought we'd be ok. wrong! jay then decided to snake it himself instead of paying again for a plumber. he did it twice as the problem kept persisting. all in the middle of trying to study for exams. we thought we were finally ok. wrong! last night the lovely old problem returned. so i called for a different plumber and asked them to auger it and then do a video inspection. $700 later - they found out that some kind of flap was blocking the way. they fixed it. hopefully that's it! they also found out that one part of the piping is sloped and water pools in there. i think it's on the city's side of the property line. i'm praying that it is on the city's side, otherwise it'll cost us thousands more for them to dig and replace the piping. jay will be able to tell when he gets home. i'm not 100% confident i'm reading the property report correctly.

so, if you are not a home owner and someone else is in charge of fixing your plumbing etc problems - today is the day when you can think "i'm so glad i don't own a home!". :D

{aivojumppaa}

Kun tämän palkinnon saa niin täytyy tehdä seuraavat 7 kohtaa:

Kiitä sitä jolta sait tunnustuksen.

Kopioi kuva ja liitä blogiisi.

Laita linkki keneltä sait tunnustuksen.

Kerro seitsemän asiaa itsestäsi, mitä muut eivät vielä tiedä.

Anna tunnustus seitsemälle.

Linkitä nämä blogissasi.

Kerro näille seitsemälle tunnustuksesta.
***

kiitos suville tasta tunnustuksesta ja haasteesta.

on tosi vaikea yrittaa keksia 7 uutta asiaa itsestani niin kauan on jo tanne blogille kerrottu vaikka mita. yritetaan...

1. lukioni oli Torkkelin taidelukio. oli ihana etta sain skipata kuivia aineita ja sen sijaan valita taide tunteja. mulla oli ihastus eraaseen pitkahiuksiseen taiteelliseen vanhempaan poikaan mutten koskaan kertonut siita kenellekaan. kaukaa vaan ihailin hanta.

2. olin aikamoinen flirtti aikoinaan. naimisiin mennessa olin huolestunut etten osaa lopettaa flirttailua mutta ihan helppoahan se sitten olikin.

3. mulla on alysti luomia. hauskimmat/karseimmat on isot luomet jotka ymparoivat napaani. minulta on poistettu kaksi luomea.

4. kerran pienena mokilla leikkiessani huomasin etta muurahainen oli pulassa, yritti uida rantaan jarvesta. kurkotuin sita pelastumaan ja tipahdin itse jarveen vyotaroa myoten. mutta pelastin sen muurahaisen!

5. en ole juonut maitoa nuoresta teinarista lahtien. hyva kun siedan sita murojen kanssa.

6. kavin pienena aina napsimassa pullataikinaa sen ollessa kohoamassa.

7. heitin mummon tekemasta lihakeitosta lihat ikkunasta ulos kun mummo sanoi ettei ruokapoydasta saa lahtea ennenkuin ruoka on syoty. mummo asui kuudenessa kerroksessa.

***

en jaksa linkittaa nyt ketaan. taman listan tekemiseen kului jo tarpeeksi aikaa. 7 nimea joille laitan taman tunnustuksen eteenpain:

clarissa, suzhouren, kato nyt tatakin, mannukka, tanja, tuikku, paevi.

{vali vali}

saako valilla valittaa?

no valitan vaikkette antaisikaan lupaa. :)

kuva napattu netista silla...

...meidan syksy ei tunnu talla kerralla olevan kovin haappoinen. tuntuu etta puut eivat ole yhta kauniita kuin viime vuonna esim. vahan kellertavia mutteivat sellaisia kirkkaan keltaisia kuten viime syksyna. minut tama saa valitustuulelle silla syksy on lemppari aikaani ja odotan aina innolla kauniita puita. nyt tuntuu etta tuuli vie lehdet mennessaan ja en ole saanut nauttia kauniista syksysta. ihan epista!!! :) ei mut ihan oikeesti olisi ihana jos puut olisivat taas upeita. mulla on fiilis etta kohta on ensi lumi tulossa ja en saanut nauttia taysin syksysta ensin. me not likey! :(

sitten voisin viela valitella laakkeiden sivuvaikutuksista kun kerran on valituspostaus menossa. aloitin taas astmasuihkeen ottamisen (mun hengitys on usein tosi surkeeta) ja siita johtuen kadet tarisee. oli vaikea laittaa ripsaria tana aamuna. minka takia kadet tarisee kun laakkeen pitaisi auttaa hengitysta? mita astmasuihkeella on kasien kanssa tekemista? en oikeen vaan tajua naita laakkeita joskus.

sitten aloitin eraan toisen laakityksen ja siita on ollut seurauksena aly vasymys ja tuntuu ettei aivot oikeen pelaa. kuulenko jonkun sanovan etta sittenhan tuo kuulostaa normaalilta sanskun menolta? :D ei mut ihan oikeesti. olen jo muutenkin vasy fibromyalgian takia, en tarvi viela lisaa vasymysta laakkeiden takia.

eli odottelen laakkeiden sivuvaikutuksien loppumista. loppuuhan ne joskus, eiko lopukin? lopulta laake tajuaa etta mihin sen pitaisi vaikuttaa eika johonkin ihan muuhun? elan toivossa ja kiittelenkin ettei taman kummempia valituksia sentaan tanaan.

ai niin, viela yks nopee vali vali. ruoka on ollut kovin tylsaa viime aikoina. mulla on kausia kun tuntuu ettei mikaan oikeen maita. kaikki tuntuu tylsalta. no, nautin sentaan letuista murskattujen banaanien ja kermavaahdon kanssa (meidan yleiskonffa traditio). mutta muuten ruoka on ollut kovin plaah:ta taas kerran. mitas keksis ruokavaliota piristamaan? kuka tulisi meille kokkaamaan jotain kivaa ja herkullista?

(image via google image search as our fall colors s-u-c-k this year)

(and my english speaking friends, you didn't miss anything at all) :)

{what do you see...?}

this is what i see when i'm blogging.

what do you see when you're blogging?
this is what's on my computer screen.
what's on yours?

africa was so cute this morning. just chillin' with his belly up.
he's been so funny lately. when we go to bed, he goes to the bathroom and grabs something he wants to play with, carries it to our bedroom, then meows like crazy (low and loud) to let us know he wants to play. the other night he brought jay's toothbrush to play with. needless to say we're closing the bathroom door now after we go to bed. :)

{favorite weekend of the year}

i'll never take it for granted that i can watch our church's general conference on tv. the spiritual feast has begun once again. Y

(all images via google image search)

{the good and the bad}

Y

Y

gotta love fall!

the only thing i don't like about this time of the year is that stores are full of horror stuff for halloween. there are some majorly scary stuff out there. i can't take sienna to certain stores right now. i like the cute pumpkins and fun costumes. i don't like the scary part of halloween. so many kids are sensitive. why bring anything scary in their life to cause nightmares or fears? i don't get it. kids don't always say they are scared but many of them are. i never told anyone that snow white etc scared me so bad. hello! "bring me her heart so i know she's dead"

i wish they'd tone down halloween and make it more of a fun holiday, not a scary one.

i'm even worried about taking sienna to her playschool on halloween when the kids get to dress up. what if some of them dress up in scary costumes? i just don't want that kind of thing in her life. no thanks!

{good day}

today was a good day Y

fun, mellow day playing with sienna and even got the car washed and all the receipts entered in quick books.

tama kuva omistettu merjalle kaliforniaan.

(en voinut uskoa etta samana paivana otin naista kuvia kun sina kaipasit niita)