So sorry

I know, I know. It's been a while. It's been pointed out to me several times by several different sources. I can't promise anything substantial to make up for my lack of blogging recently, but here's a brief (hopefully) update of what's been going on these past couple of weeks.

First was the MEI Christmas banquet. It was absolutely amazing. Unfortunately I have no pictures to show you. But you can take my word for it - it was an amazing night. The hosts were awesome and hilarious and the entertainment they had was great. The entire evening was amazing, especially when I went with the girls I hang out with to Lindsay's house, where we partied and stayed up all night. :P Just kidding. We had a blast, and we watched Phantom. I fell asleep somewhere in there, and at some point in the night after the movie had ended Lindsay woke up Hailey and me so we could move to our sleeping bags somewhere on the floor. I was comfortable in my position against Gabrielle's lap, but I think she was glad to have me move. Sorry about that, Gabe. In the morning Lindsay's mom attempted to wake us up, but Hailey and Lindsay, as we learned, are very slow to respond in the mornings. We had trouble getting Lindsay up until I jumped on her and shoved her off of the couch she was sleeping on. That was fun. The best thing is she was too sleepy still to really do anything to me. I love it.

Wow. Looking back now, the banquet seems like it was a really long time ago. Anyhoo, I think that's it for that time. Next was........geez, I don't remember. Did anything else exciting happen before Christmas? I don't think so. Hm.

Moving on.

I'm all better now. I'm not sick anymore, and I'm very happy about that. Being sick is not so fun. It's rather dismal, actually. I'm glad to be rid of the evil cold type thing. Bronchitis. That's what it was. Well, it doesn't matter now. It's over. Hooray for me.

We celebrated Christmas as a family on Boxing Day which was a blast as usual. We had a brunch of waffles and then played Settlers of Catan for quite a while before opening presents. What an awesome game. It's so addictive. The day was fun, as just about all times where our family comes together are. Have I mentioned lately that I have an awesome family? No? Allow me to rectify that. I have the most awesomest family on the face of the Earth. Yep. True story.

After that day, I don't think much else happened. I've been on Christmas break from school for the last week and I have another week to go still before I have to return. Good stuff. Last night Chryssie and I went to our cousin's house where Jared and Lisa are house/dog/cat-sitting and played Settlers for a very long time, with a hot tub break somewhere in there. We played until very late....well, I guess it should be very, very early. Oops. Like I said, it's addictive. And, happiness of happiness, I won my very first game! I was so excited. I'm very proud of myself. And again today I won two games in a row against Lisa and Chrystal. I'm so happy.

And I think that's it. That's my past two weeks in a nutshell. Although for some reason I feel like I'm missing something.....hm. What could that be? Oh yes. There is one more somewhat thrilling event that some people might be excited about. What is it? Well, I'm pretty sure that by now everyone on Earth knows. But whatever. Let's say it again.

On Sunday December 24, 2006, my sister Yvonne gave birth to her daughter!!! A baby girl named Kyra Makenzie Gronau. She's so precious. I love her so much. She's so tiny with little wrinkly fingers and feet and she's just so adorable! I'm ecstatic!!! It's so weird, though. Suddenly there's this whole new person in our family. Today Yvonne brought her over again and we watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding while Kyra ate for a bit. When Chryssie had to leave (ha!) and give her up, I got to hold her again. It's amazing how much joy I get just from holding her against me, watching her sleep and make her crazy faces. She's such a blessing. And she herself was blessed with some pretty darn awesome parents. If I didn't have such good ones myself I'd be jealous of her. Yvonne and Eric are awesome with her, and Kyra is going to grow to be such an amazing girl under their influence. But for now it's nice just to have her a little baby girl whom everyone can argue over whose turn it is to cuddle her. At one week old she's already growing. People always say that babies grow so fast, but I've never really seen it happen. It's unbelievable. She's still tiny, of course, but I can tell she's grown a bit. She's amazing. I think I've said that. I'm just so happy. A baby! What a Christmas present that was! Congratulations to Eric and Yvonne. May God watch over you and bless your little family. I love you guys!

Where has the time gone?

I swear it was Thursday just yesterday.... And yet here we are, at Thursday again. It's amazing to me how slowly the week seems to go by, but then when I look back I think, "Where has the time gone?". It's strange. Anyhoo, I'll try really hard to make this short. Although I'm sure we all know how successfull that plan will be.....

Last Thursday, the day that feels like it was yesterday, was the B.C. Loewen girls fondue. It was very fun. Almost all of us were able to attend, and we each brought different items for dipping. There was eating, talking, laughing, and all that fun stuff. It was great. Have I mentioned lately that I have the most awesomest family ever? No? Allow me to rectify that. I have the most awesomest family ever. They're the best. Loewen girls rock!

Um....hm. I think that's all that's happened this past week. That's boring. Maybe I should go burn the school down so I have an interesting story to tell. For some reason my friends don't agree with my plan. I don't see why. Flames are so beautiful. Can you imagine how magnificent an entire school of flames would be? I think it would be wonderful.

Um, maybe I lied. That's not all that happened. I got sick. I know, it's not a monumental accomplishment or anything like that. Actually, I wish I had never accomplished this feat in the first place. It's terrible. For the past two days I've my voice has been disappearing and coming back randomly. It's rather annoying. My throat is so clogged that most of the time I have to make a concious effort to breathe. What a blast. It has been at its worst for my Spanish classes yesterday and today. I couldn't talk at all, so whenever we had to call out our marks to the teacher (which happens often), the guy that sits next to me had to say everything for me. I felt bad, but he doesn't seem to mind. It just bugs me that I can't speak. It's getting better now, for today, because I've been drinking the disgusting mixture of hot water, lemon juice, and honey. It's actually not as nasty today as it was yesterday. I think it could become somewhat pleasant if I forced myself to drink it everyday. Which I'll probably need to because I need my voice for Saturday. Lindsay and I are videotaping mock interviews for Planning. Sort of difficult to answer questions on camera without a voice. Somehow I don't think that would get me full marks.

Jeez, I go on forever about stuff. I think if I had to read my blog I would get bored. What do you think? To be honest, I've never read over my blog after writing it. I have had comments saying that my blog is fun to read. Maybe I'm wrong. I hope so. Being boring wouldn't be very interesting. Hence the term.

MEI Christmas banquet is tomorrow. I'm excited. They're always so fun. Well, the one I've been to was fun. But according to Chrys they're always fun. My friends and I are all going to Lindsay's house after the banquet for a sleepover. We're gonna watch The Phantom of the Opera, which is the theme of the party. We thought it was fitting. It'll be fun. Any time spent with those four girls is a blast. I love 'em to death. I have the most awesomest friends, too.

I did warn you at the beginning that this would probably be long again. The sad thing is, I think this is one of the shorter posts I've written. Maybe not. I don't really know. Maybe I should stop judging myself so harshly. I haven't had any complaints about the length or mezmerizingness of my blog. Only good comments. That makes me happy. Okay, then.

I'm sure I'll have stuff to talk about after my seemingly busy weekend (things always seem like they're going to be really hectic to me but they usually turn out not so much hectic), so don't expect anything before then. And, I'm not going to make any promises, but I'll see if maybe I'll be able to post pictures of the banquet and stuff. We'll see. I'm doubting it.

So, until later, buh-bye.

Haha, Oops......

Okay, so it turns out we went to the Old Spaghetti Factory in Langley instead. It's not my fault, though! I didn't know they had put one there, and no one told me otherwise. I figured it out, though, when we arrived and it was a completely different place. I know, I'm so observant. I should become a detective. Anyway.....

Dinner was good. We talked and ate and all that good stuff. The highlight of the entire evening, however, was the hunormous (it's a word, don't mock me) dome shaped stained glass thing that our table happened to be situated under. Normally this wouldn't cause much commotion, we all commented on it's size and beauty and then attempted to ignore it. Unfortunately, this dome was so large it covered three tables. Along with this it carried the voices of three people at another table to the spot where I was sitting.

I'm not kidding. I could hear the older lady (who had a really annoying voice, by the way) and who I'm assuming is her husband, Bruce. It was Bruce's birthday, too. Every time either of them spoke I could hear every word. It was like they were talking right behind my shoulder, but as though they were talking into a microphone. At first it was just plain weird, because no one else could hear them. You can imagine how I looked sitting their complaining about the voices in my head that no one else could hear. I got laughed at a lot, although, as usual, I ended up laughing with everyone. Then, after a while, Yvonne could hear them too. It was hilarious. Whenever they said something Yvonne and I would repeat what they said to Lisa and Chrystal (the others were on the other end of the table and weren't really paying attention to us) and they got so confused. Then they realized why we said those things and we all burst out laughing.

Lisa and Chrystal couldn't hear them, but for about a minute I switched places with Chrys and she finally realized what we were talking about. Bruce laughed a lot, which made Yvonne and me laugh. Then, near the end of dinner he laughed really loud and long, and Chrys and Lisa could even hear him through the dome. We all burst out laughing for the zillionth time that evening and we couldn't stop. We had just eaten, and laughing on a full stomach hurts a lot more than usual. Avoid it if possible.

Mom, Dad, Eric, and Jared all looked at us like we were crazy (which, I'll admit, we usually are) and then Eric started mock-laughing with us, which got us all started up again. It was a very interesting evening. It was disappointing to have Bruce and his family leave. They were a source of great entertainment for my sisters and me. We mocked them a lot. At first we were afraid that maybe they could hear us, too, but we tried talking directly to them and got no reply. It was fun.

When we got home Mom opened up her presents. Eric, Yvonne, Chrys, Tash and I got her a light up snowman that raises his hat. It's an outdoor decoration thing. Very cute. Jared and Lisa got her a picture frame that says "grandkids". It's very pretty. After the opening/assembling of presents, we had cake. That didn't last very long as it was getting late and everyone was tired.

It was a very fun day. I love our family dinners. They're always so much fun. My family is awesome. There is usually much laughter involved when we get together and although lots of it is directed at me, I enjoy it.

Jeepers. Every time I go to write a new post I know what I'm going to talk about, and I never think it's going to take very long to say it. Yet every time I look over my updates they're always so long! I guess I'm just making up for my lack of vigilant posting. Of course, it might also be a habit from English class. When I have to write an essay on something and I don't have enough to write about so I expand on a lot of things...... Well, whatever it is, it's just making this thing even longer. I shall allow you to stop reading now.

The Pretty and the Not So Pretty

On Monday while walking to the library for my spare (yes, I actually go to the library to do my work. Sue me.) it was impossible not to notice the HUMONGOUS Christmas tree in the grade 12 lounge. I'm not over exaggerating this time. It's huge! It's too big for the room, so it's sticking up into the skylight area in the ceiling. It makes the entire room and part of the hallway smell soooo pretty. It's decorated and stuff, too. I love it! The entire school is decorated, it seems. The best part is the Student Services lounge. It's completely decked out in decorations! There're red bows, lattice lights everywhere, and it's absolutely beautiful. I love it. I've said that a lot already. Oh well.

The not-so-pretty part occured today, when I arrived at school to find that the grade 10/11 lounge smelled disgusting. No one's sure what it is. It's not formaldehyde from any dissections, and it's not chicken manure, as some people believe. It faded quite a bit by the end of the day, but it was nasty. And I had to walk through there for half my classes! Yes, that's only two, but half sounds much more dramatic, don't you agree?

Today is my mom's birthday. We're going to the Old Spaghetti Factory in Vancouver for her birthday supper. I'm not too fond of the Spaghetti Factory, but Yvonne said that they have chicken strips. I can deal with that. I'm not much of a pasta person.

Anyhoo, I know you're all devastated that this isn't the 10 page update I usually post, but it's the best I can do for now. Until later, hasta luego!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas...

Everywhere I look now I'm reminded that the Christmas season is upon us. There's snow on the ground, there are decorations in the streets, and the nativity scene is being put up on Clearbrook. For a while now, my mom has had Christmas decorations all around the house, and Christmas music has often been playing. Now, on top of all that, WE HAVE OUR CHRISTMAS TREE!!!! It's amazing! It's so pretty and green and pretty smelling and IT'S SO PRETTY!

We went to a place in.....Langley? today where they sell Christmas trees. $40 for any tree in the field. There were a lot of trees, too. After wandering around for quite some time, my mom and dad and I finally found one that we really liked (well, okay we found a lot that we liked, but we settled on this one) and cut it down. When we got back to the main barn thing where we had to pay for it, one of the guys that works there asked if we wanted him to shake it off for us, so there's no more snow on it. My dad said yes, and the guy put the tree on this weird machine thingy that shook the tree so all the snow fell off! It was very fun. I love Christmas trees. Real ones. My mom was considering just getting a fake one this year, but I'm so glad we didn't. Fake trees don't look as good, and they don't smell pretty, either.

Our tree is now sitting in the garage, for some reason unknown to me. Ask my dad. But we have a tree! I'm so happy! I loved running through the snowy fields searching for one. Okay, fine, I wasn't really searching, I was just running through the field. I like running through the snow, okay? Sue me. Although, that was only when my dad wasn't making me drag the wagon through the snow, between trees, and over stumps. It was rather difficult. The snow made the process a lot harder than it should've been. But it was fun.

And now, my mom is making cinnamon buns! That just about completes the Christmas package! All we need is for the tree to be set up in the living room and decorated, have preents under it, and have Tasha home.

Christmas gives me the warm fuzzies. Warm fuzzies are good.

Hey, my toes have thawed! Yay for that!

Man, Jesus sure knows how to throw a birthday party.

Fun in the snow

Everybody knows. It's snowing outside. No need to repeat the same thing to the entire country when we already know what's going on. I will, however, take the time to tell you about the adventures I have had in the snow so far.

Last night, after it had snowed heavily for quite a while, Chrys and I bundled up and took off running outside. It was so much fun. Diego was attacking us the whole time, of course, so we each took turns holding him back while we made snow angels. It was a lot of fun. We just ran around in the snow, froze down to our toes, then came back inside and made hot chocolate and popcorn, the sat down for a movie. It was the perfect night.

This morning Jared and Lisa stopped by. Jared woke me up just after 9:00 by jumping on me, then told me we were going sledding. I got up and dressed, then noticed that they were standing in the kitchen and were too afraid to get Chryssie up. I don't blame them. She's scary first thing in the morning. But I woke her, and after telling her our plans she got up and joined us.

We then headed over to South Poplar and took our crazy carpets down the hill several times. Yvonne and Eric joined us after a while and although they didn't sled, it was fun to have them there.

After we had frozen ourselves once again, we went to IHOP for "breakfast". It was almost noon at that point, but none of us had eaten before heading out. The line up was long, but it was worth the wait. I got to have really yummy french toast with scrambled eggs and hot chocolate.

Eric had a burger. Typical.

Jared and Lisa headed home after that, but Fonz and Eric stuck around for a bit. While Eric was doing stuff at the shop, Yvonne, Chrystal and I watched tapes of old Christmases. It was fun. Of course, we had to watch Jared's barbie clip. If you don't know what that is, you're missing out. Jared got a Ken barbie for Chrismas when he was....five? Anyway, he was very excited about it. Chrys put it in his wedding slideshow. It was a big hit.

After that was done and everybody had left, Chrys and I got all ready again and went to go try make snowmen. Unfortunately, it's not very good packing snow. Oh well. Somehow we will find a way to make a snowman.

In the meantime, we stayed out there and played with the puppies (actually, neither of them are really puppies anymore, at 7 months and 10? years old) until we froze again. I was wearing my sunglasses to keep the snow from flying into my eyes, but they kept fogging up. Whenever I threw a snowball for Jewel, I just threw in her general direction, without knowing how hard to throw it or where it went after I did. It was a blast.

Now, again, I am sipping (okay, gulping) hot chocolate as I thaw out. I absolutely love the snow. Usually we just have the really cold weather, but without the snow. As long as we have the snow, it's worth the rough temperature. Then you actually have something to look forward to after taking the time to make sure we're warm. It's so much fun. I love it!!

I hope everyone else out there enjoys it as much as I do, and I really hope it'll be around for Christmas. Have fun out there!

Cookies

Yesterday I was picked up from school by Fonzi. We went to her house and baked really yummy cookies. They were oatmeal chocolate chip spice cookies. It was interesting, because Yvonne had never baked (successfully) before. So her kitchen was basically a hazard zone for those few hours. But they turned out great, even though we had some difficulties telling when they were done. The bottoms were a little crispy. Not sure if we left them in too long, or if maybe we were supposed to spray the pan. It didn't say we had to. Oh well. Next time will be better. We also made this disgusting peanut butter chocolate square thing. I say disgusting because there's peanut butter in it.

Need I say more?

Anyhoo, I'm not sure how the squares turned out, because they had to be chilled for at least 24 hours, I believe. But we packaged up some of the cookies and brought them to my house for a small dessert (only one cookie per family member), and they were a hit. Everybody loved 'em. It was very encouraging. I think we should get together more often and bake stuff. It was fun.

I also had an online Socials test yesterday. I'm not sure what I got on it yet, but I think I did well. I had a Spanish test yesterday, too, on which I got 101%. I was very excited to see that mark.I had some bonus points, but still, 101% is very good. Scrap that, it's amazing.

So, that was pretty much my day yesterday. It was very fun, excluding the whole double-test thing. I love Tuesdays. They're always so much fun. Yay for family dinners!

Most awesomest week ever

No, I wasn't abducted by aliens. Just thought I'd put your minds to rest. I know you were worried.

I already told you about the power outage at school. That was definitely a huge factor in making last week amazing. Especially since the day after the power first went out, school was cancelled due to lack of electricity. What a pleasant surprise. That previous weekend had been a four day weekend, with Monday and the previous Friday off. Then I get to go home early, and the next day there is no school! It was definitely fun.

Now, the topping on the cake: Friday night I went to the Sr. Boys' volleyball game. They were playing against Fraser Valley Christian for gold in the Fraser Valley. Normally I wouldn't be very excited about sports because, well, to put it plainly: I can't stand them. But this game..... I think I could start to enjoy watching volleyball. It was very fun.

The only reason I went to this thing was because Lindsay begged me to go. So I went, and we actually had fun. She had to explain a few things to me, like when I was busy talking to Hailey, another friend that went with us, and missed a play. Someone near us had pompoms. They let us borrow one. So, it turned out that Hailey, Lindsay, Jacqui(Lindsay's sister), and I took turns shaking the pompom. I love pompoms. They're so much fun. I'm going to see if I can get some for the next time I go to a game.

Anyhoo, about the game. It was the best three out of five. We won the first two games, then the other team won the next two. Finally, in the last game, we won. It's actually kind of funny, because we got the last point when one of the best players on the other team missed his serve. That kind of sucks for them, but very good for us.

And, something my friends practically forced me to do.... I sort of dumped my water on Mr. Opp. Again. I walkd up to him with the water in my hands, but I don't think he thought I was actually going to do it. I did. He keeps saying he'll get me back one day, but I don't believe him. Lindsay is plotting against both of us. She gets me to dump water on him, then tries to think up ways for him to get back at me. She'd better watch out, or I'm going to turn on her one of these days.

So, that was my amazing week. Again, sorry about the lack of updating. I'm trying. I could try harder, I suppose. But I probably won't. You'll just have to deal with it. Until next time, au revoir!

Gotta love electricity.

Who was this person who started a society totally and completely dependant on electricity? Pure genius. Maybe some people wouldn't agree, and at times they're right. But today I'm loving it.

During lunch time today the power went out at school. The effect was amazing. Immediately just about every student in the school was jumping and shouting for joy. Normally, the rule is that if the power goes out and doesn't come back on within half an hour the students are sent home. No such luck today. We were told to go to our afternoon classes and wait for further announcements. After about half an hour of this class, the announcements said that school would stay in session and we would finish the day off.

So why my joyful proclamations?

Well, after my math class ended we had only one block left. For me, that was a spare. Initially I was supposed to wait at school until 3:30 and work on my online stuff until my mom got there, but now that the power was out the computers weren't so much working, and I didn't have any homework to do. I called my mom and she came and picked me up. It was very fun. I love blackouts at school. They're so fun. Except today I fell down the stairs.

I was heading down to my locker when I guess my foot missed the last step. I pitched forward and fell flat on my face. Lindsay was a jerk and laughed. I can forgive her, though, because I was laughing too.

So that's my interesting story for the day. Sorry if I bore you. Maybe tomorrow I'll get abducted by aliens or something. Wouldn't that be an entertaining story?

Just checking....

Ok, I'm not really sure what's going on. I can't seem to view my blog. All that comes up is a grey screen, and I have received an e-mail from a friend saying that she can't get into it, either. I'm going to post this and see what happens. Hopefully it'll fix itself, because I don't know what to do.

I wouldn't do that if I were you....

A phrase I'm sure we've all heard many times. But do we ever stop to consider what it actually implies? Let's examine this.

In order to do that, let us create a hypothetical situation involving Kelly and Linda. Let's pretend that Linda was doing something and Kelly commented that it was really cute. Kelly might have said something along the lines of wanting to pinch Linda's cheeks because she was so cute. Linda would not be very happy about this, and would say to Kelly, "I wouldn't do that if I were you".

Now, let's stop to think about this. If Linda were Kelly, that would be it. Linda would be Kelly. Meaning Linda is Kelly, so really Linda wouldn't exist anymore. If Linda didn't exist and it was just Kelly left, as the phrase implies, then Linda would have Kelly's thoughts, Kelly's reasoning, and Kelly's silly little impulses, such as wanting to pinch her friend's cheeks. Linda would no longer have any control, making the above statement false.

So, in reality, Kelly wouldn't change at all. It would simply be Linda changing to become Kelly. Therefore, as you can see from my extensive study on the subject, that phrase makes no sense.

One phrase that would make sense, however, would be: "If I were in your position I wouldn't do that", or something along those lines. "If I were in your shoes" is just silly, because how could being in another person's shoes possibly affect the outcome? Other than it being incredibly uncomfortable and rather unsanitary, swapping shoes would have no effect. Kelly would still be Kelly, just in Linda's shoes. Linda would still be Linda, only in much smaller, tighter shoes. Kelly would still have the impulse to pinch Linda's cheeks.

So, going back to the original scenario, Linda should not have said that, because in the end it changes nothing and Kelly would go on pinching cheeks.



Hypothetically speaking, of course.

Flu Season

Usually this isn't a big deal for me, but this year my mom thought I should get a shot anyway, just in case. However, she neglected to tell me about this until 8:30 this morning.
I was still sleeping (duh, it's the weekend) when she opened my door. Normally this isn't such a big deal, but my door isn't just any old door. It's a very special door. Opening or closing my bedroom door takes a little more effort than usual. Because of this, whenever one of the two happens, it is very loud. That is what caused me to bolt upright in my bed the moment she opened the door.
Again, normally seeing my mom there wouldn't surprise me all that much, because whenever she wakes me up it's because I've ignored my alarm clock and am going to be late for school. Today, however, I had no school. That was my first thought in my moment of panic. Then she told me she wanted me to go with Chrys and get a flu shot. She left, and I lay down again, waiting for my heart to stop beating so fast. Don't mock me, it was very scary.
Anyhoo, I went upstairs to eat breakfast where Chryssie told me that we would be leaving in ten minutes. For anyone who knows me, this is not much time. I'm rather slow, especially first thing in the morning. We ended up leaving later that Chrys would have liked, but I really don't care.
We met Fonzi at the church (Seven Oaks Alliance, where the shots were being given). We were supposed to be there at the same time so we could wait in line together but....... Fine, it was all my fault, okay?
Anyway, Chrys and I waited in line together. She got her shot for free because she has a chronic illness, and I got mine free because I live with her. A very nice arrangement.
When it was Chryssie's turn to get her shot done, I started to go with her because she had told me that she always cries when getting shots. I promised her I would hold her hand (don't be ashamed Chrys, lots of people don't like needles). However, the lady that was telling people where to go for their shots didn't let me! I told her that I need to be with my sister because she's going to cry, but she didn't believe me. Finally she let me go, and I held Chryssie's hand, just like I promised. She didn't cry that much.
I was surprised at how quick hers was over. I saw the needle go in, then it came out. I was in the middle of saying: "It's okay, Chryssie. It's o - it's over?" Very weird. The really weird part was that mine took a few seconds. We had the same nurse, too. I could feel the needle go in, then I felt her pushing the vaccine into me. Chrys thought mine lasted a lot longer, too.
When we got home my mom told us to eat chocolate. Apparently if you don't then your arm will start to shake after a while. I didn't complain. I was quite happy about it, actually. Chrys was joking that I liked it so much I should go back tomorrow and get another shot.



You know, that's not a bad idea....

Define, please

Ok, I don't care how dense or idiotic this may make me seem, I need to know. I've been hearing a lot lately about emos. What the heck is an emo? I'm thinking that it's kind of like a goth... Someone help, please.

Product of constant badgering

This post has no plan for it, no events that inspired me to write it. It is simply here because people keep badgering me about updating, which I know I should do more often. Therefore, all you're really gonna find in this one is a bunch of randomness. Just a bit of a warning.

In response to Steph's comment on my last post...what exactly did you mean? When was I hiding behind "Anonymous"? and who is that, exactly? I'm quite a bit confuzzled.

Happy news: I got 98% on my last Spanish test. That's a relief because it was the biggest one we've had yet. Out of 223 marks, that one. I'm very impressed with my mark. Today we had a sub for Spanish. It was Herr Janzen, the German teacher. That was rather interesting. All we did today was watch Destinos, so he didn't really need to do anything. It was still weird.

Speaking of Destinos, I don't like watching them. Most of the time the people are speaking in conversational Spanish, so we can't understand what's going on most of the time. There are a few times in each episode where the narrator or Raquel speaks slowly for the uneducated audience, but that's just boring. According to Chrys that's the best way to learn. I know she's right, but it's so frustrating when we can't understand it.

Conversational is a very long word to type. It's rather fun. Conversational. Hm. What other really long words are out there that would be fun to type? Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. That one's not as fun though. Mississippi is fun. I can't think of any more.

Hm. I'm sorry, I can't think of much more to say. I'm not quite as skilled as the Queen of Randomness, miss Stephanie Chiu. She's very entertaining. I'm gonna leave now. Sorry this post was so boring. I'll try harder next time. Right now I just don't care.

Dear Stephie

Today had a bit of an interesting twist to it. My dear friend Stephanie Chiu was brushing her hair out after I messed it up but it was getting staticky(no idea how that would be spelled). She was going to put some water on her brush to keep it from becoming more static-y. Her water bottle was then sitting next to her on the floor, open and inviting. Who could resist such a temptation? I took that water bottle and held it above her head. She looked at me, and kept brushing her hair(her long, gorgeous black hair; I love it; I want it; Maybe not the black; I wouldn't look very good with black hair; I like brown). I drizzled some of the water on her head, and again she just watched me. I did a bit more and she finally flipped. She freaked out and told me to give the bottle back. She then proceeded to chase me down the hallway, up the stairs, and around the school.
I went back downstairs to where our friends were sitting waiting to see the outcome of our little....tiff. We waited there, but Steph didn't show for a few minutes. I was getting scared because I didn't know where she was or which direction she was going to come from.
But I knew she wanted to kill me.
Finally she got back and she pursued me around the lounge for a bit before the bell rang and Lindsay, the life-saver that she is, hid the bottle in her locker. Later on in our spare(here comes the best part), Lindsay informed me that Steph had blogged the event. Unbelieving, I looked over to the computer screen Linds was sitting at and sure enough, there it was. Short and sweet, but I couldn't believe it. She had actually stopped in the middle of hot pursuit to BLOG it! What a nerd! Sorry Stephie, darling, but you are one screwed up little ducky.
Interesting lunch hour, eh?

A night with Bartok and Earnest

This is a little late, so you'll have to forgive me. Again, I've been procrastinating. Deal with it.
Friday evening was one filled with laughter. First, Chryssie and I carved out our first pumpkin.
The pumpkin we carved was the smallest one we have. We carved a bat into it and named him Bartok. That's the bat from Anastasia, in case anyone out there is unfortunate enough to not know what I'm talking about. I love carving pumpkins. You get to just reach in there and pull out all its guts, preserving the seeds so you can bake them and eat them later. Mmm. Anyway, the bat turned out really well.
After we finished that project, Chrys and I went to Trinity to see The Importance of Being Earnest with her friends Vanessa and Sandy. I had never even heard of this thing before, but Vanessa had an extra ticket and invited me to come. I'm so glad I did. It was one of the funniest things I have ever seen in my life. It's an awesome play. Afterwards Vanessa told me she had the movie, so I borrowed it from her and will watch it sometime this week.
Then Saturday or Sunday (can't remember which), we carved out our last two pumpkins. I carved a witch holding a Jack-o-lantern, and she did a werewolf. However, my pumpkin was huge and the saws we were using didn't quite cut all the way through the skin. I ended up having to go inside the pumpkin, find the lines, and cut from the inside to get the chunks out. It wasn't very much fun. But in the end it looked good. I can't wait to do more next year.

Jack 2.0

Well, I finally did it. Today Chrys and I went to Neufeld Farms and picked out another pumpkin. They have an amazing selection there. If you're still looking, you should stop by. We found so many good pumpkins. But the one we found is even bigger than all three of the other ones we have bought. It's amazing. It's kind of flat on one side, but the other side is nice and round. It's perfect. I can't wait until we actually carve them. It's going to be so much fun. I havn'e carved a pumpkin in forever. I'm so happy with Jack 2.0. I just really hope he doesn't rot like his namesake. He looks sturdy, but I guess you never know. Thanks to Chryssie for carrying him for me. I couldn't even lift him. It's amazing.
Sorry about ranting on about this, but I love pumpkins. I think most people do. They're fun. And their seeds taste good when you bake them. I love pumpkins.

Links

Chrys has just shown me how to make links in my post. I was trying to figure it out before, but I couldn't get it. She's so smart. I'm so jealous of her. She can do just about anything on a computer, yet it seems that all the computers of the world are out to make my life miserable. I can't figure them out for the life of me. Yeah, just wanted to share my happy news and test this thing out. It's pretty nifty.
Until later, tchus.

In my defense

You know how when something really embarrassing happens and your family constantly bugs you about it(jokingly, of course)? Well, people have been bugging me forever about that stupid butter thing, and now Yvonne is getting on my case about my pumpkin rotting! Something I have no control over whatsoever! How rude! Anyway, there are a few things I would like to get straight about each occasion.
First, the whole "butter" thing was not my fault! I did everything exactly how Chrys told me to. I did nothing unusual, I put all the ingredients in(although with whipped cream there's not really much to add), and I mixed it. Somehow, it didn't turn out the way it was supposed to. But it has nothing to do with my culinary skills! For dessert that night I had made the chocolate cake, which turned out amazingly, thank you very much! I can bake!
Second, I had no control whatsoever over the deceased pumpkin. And it wasn't even mine! Chrys and I had both chosen one and when we put them in the wagon, we forgot whose was whose. I remembered which one was mine, but Chrys said that it was hers, too. We argued for a few seconds, then I just took the other one, because Chrys is stubborn and never admits when she's wrong(love you Chryssie). So really, it should have been Chrystal's pumpkin.
Finally, it's not my fault!!! None of it! So I would greatly appreciate it if everybody would stop bugging me about it.

On a side note, Chrys now has current pictures of Diego on her blog, if anyone wants to see our cute "puppy".

A lament to Jack

I have devastating news to report. Today I discovered that the beautiful pumpkin, for which I had searched so ardently, is deceased. It has rotted, and caved in. It caused my basement to smell horrid, and I had to get my dad to carry it outside for me. It was big. Now it's mush. I'm so sad. How does that happen? Chrystal's pumpkin is perfect, yet we bought them at the same time. I can't believe it. Poor Jack shall now never see the dark of night. I was gonna carve him out and everything. I suppose I'll have to go look for a new one tomorrow. I miss Jack dearly, but his memory will forever hold a special place in my heart.
Goodbye, Jack. May you rest in peace.

Animals and chocolate - what a day

As I said in my last post, I have no school today and tomorrow. So, today I went to visit Chryssie at the Apple Barn. My mom drove me there just before two, and I stayed until Chrys got off at four. When I first got there, it was super busy. I think there were three school tours there, so I had to wait until Chrys was unoccupied before I talked to her. She was still sort of busy, so I went to the petting barn. There was a baby goat. It was so cute. It makes its tiny little goat noise and it's so little. So cute. There were also sheep, big goats, pigs, llamas, and bunnies. I liked the bunnies. They're really soft.
I stayed in there a while, but then a school group came in, so I decided to leave. I went back to Chrys, and from that time on it wasn't really that busy. We just hung out with two other ladies that work there, and talked and stuff. It was fun. I had hot apple cider, too. It was really yummy. I love hot apple cider. Actually, this was basically hot apple juice, but you get it.
I bought myself some chocolate, too. I got a Caramilk bar, and Bear Droppings. They're really cute. It's just a bag of chocolate covered almonds, which I love. But they call them Bear Droppings. I thought that was fun.
I talked to Tash when I got home, on msn. We only talked for a few minutes because she had a meeting with one of her friends, but it was good to talk to her. It's been almost a month since she left. I miss her. But I'm glad she's having this experience.
Anyway, I just wanted to tell you about my fun day, so now I'm going to go do something that is 100% unproductive. That's what weekends are for, right?

Needles and a hay stack

Actually, there were quite a few hay stacks. Yesterday was Western Day at school. Most people dressed up as cowboys/girls. Then during lunch time there was a hay ride! I absolutely LOVE hay rides! They're so much fun. This one was cool because it was driven by one of the twelfth graders. He went really fast over speed bumps and whipped us around corners. One person even fell off! It was so much fun! He took us from the front doors of the high school, down and around Downes Rd., then up past the elementary and middle schools back to the high school. My friends and I only found out about this near the end of lunch, so it almost made us late for class. But we were on time. It totally would've been worth it if we had been late.
Today I had another interesting experience, though it wasn't quite as fun as the hay ride (honestly, what could beat a good hay ride?). Although this one takes a bit of explaining. I have a fungal infection underneath the nail of my big toe, so I have to start taking some pills. I have to take them every day for three to four months. However, these pills can cause damage to the liver, so everyone who takes them has to have their blood taken before they begin, then once a month during use. Just to make sure it's not harming me. My doctor says in ten years he has never had a patient who had a problem with it. It's just a precaution.
So, today was my very first blood test. I'll admit I was freaking out before hand, because I was sure it was going to hurt really badly. But it just pricked when it first went in, then I didn't feel anything anymore. I looked for a second or two, and I saw my blood filling a vial slowly. It was cool. Next time I'm gonna try to look for longer. It would be interesting to see. Sorry if anyone is really squeamish and didn't like reading that so much. So, that's my story for that past few days.
Oh!
Today was the last day of school this week for MEI, because there are parent/teacher interviews Thursday and Friday. I'm so happy. There was one more thing I wanted to mention....Oh yeah! I got a new library card today. I tried to put a hold on a book online today with my old one, but it said there was a problem with my account and to see a librarian. Chrys was going to the library anyway, so I went with her and the librarian gave me a new card. It's an adult one, so I don't have my mom's signature on the back anymore. It's great! I am very excited about this.
Ok. I think that's really it now. Talk to you all later!

Blogging

It's amazing to me how popular blogging has become. It seems everyone is doing it now. It's kind of creepy when you think about it. Random people can just look at your blog and see what's going on in your life. Oh well. That's one of the things us bloggers have to deal with, I suppose. We chose to do this.
Anyway, I do have stuff to say other than my random, pointless blog talk. Although it's mostly just ranting on about my crappy spanish project, so you probably don't want to read it.
Today in Spanish class we did a fashion show. It was to help us learn our clothing and stuff. It was really fun, but it would have been way better if I had had a better group. I was forced into a group with two guys. That in itself peeved me, but these two guys were especially annoying. We had an entire class to plan and prepare for this thing, and they just sat around and talked about the most outrageous outfits that they could wear. The outfits were supposed to be funny and entertaining, but what they were talking about was just completely pointless stuff. It was dumb. I just sat there, while they chatted, and wrote out what they would have to say about me. They kept saying that they were done everything, which really bugged me because they had only planned what they were going to wear, and hadn't asked me for anything at all. Finally I got so frustrated that I just shoved my paper at one of them, told them that's what I'm wearing, and sort of told them how frustrated I was without really saying it.
That didn't make sense.
Um, I don't know how to explain it. I asked them if they had my stuff on there and they said no, and I told them that they weren't finished and needed to work, instead of goofing off the entire class. I'm sure they got the message.
On top of all that, one of them apparently told the other one to get a song because we had to have music playing as we were walking down the "catwalk". We didn't have music. Needless to say, I was very frustrated. But, we did it today and it wasn't terrible. I'm just really glad it's over.
So yeah. That's my frustrated ranting for the day. I might have something else tomorrow. Who knows? Bet you can't wait. Talk to you all later!

For real this time

Sorry about that last post. My friend Lindsay had been bugging me for a while to update, so I just did that to make her angry. It worked :P
Now for an update on what's been going on with me for the past week and a half. Last week my school had Thursday and Friday off. Then we also had this Monday off. In that glorious five day weekend, I took a trip to Saskatchewan to visit my cousins. It was a blast, as usual. We saw Employee of the Month on Friday. I thought it was going to be really stupid, but it was actually really funny. Stupid too, of course, but not in the totally dumb, Napolean Dynamite way.
The rest of the weekend we just hung out, walked around Warman (not a huge task) and watched movies. It was great. I love visiting Saskatchewan. And I love flying. Flying is so much fun. When you're above the clouds, it seems like a whole different world. It's amazing.
Anyway, back to Sask. On Sunday we went to the race thingy. It was really fun. Cars crashed into each other and stuff. Once, a tire came off a car just as it was flying around a corner. The tire bounced so high. It was fun.
Other than that, my Socials online teacher is really dumb so that course is really sucking right now. Oh well. That's life. So far school hasn't been too bad. I'm actually enjoying this year. Which is weird, because usually after the first few weeks teachers become cruel and evil. That hasn't happened yet. Yippee.
Well, I'm gonna go now. I will try to be more consistent with my updates, but I'm only human after all. Until later, auf wiedersehen. I think that's how you spell it. I could be wrong. Oh well. Toodles.

For Lindsay

This post is to get Lindsay off my back.

Not a Free Moment...

Wow, yesterday was quite a day. After I had gotten ready in the morning, I barely had any time before my mom and I had to go pick up my cousin's kid and take him to his soccer game. After that was over, we had to pick up his sister from where she was waiting for us. She had come back from a soccer game as well. All this time we had their younger sister Alyssa with us, at Matt's game. Once we had Rachel, we took the three of them to our place and played outside with a soccer ball and Diego. During this time Nolan and Megan, two kids I babysit, arrived. We then had five kids between the ages of two and eleven to look after. At around 5:00, Matt Rache and Alyssa left, leaving just Nolan and Megan.
We kept playing with them until it was time for Chrys and I to leave for church. We teach 3 & 4 yr. olds in Kid's Quest, so Nolan came with us while Megan stayed at home. With Nolan there, we had t h i r t e e n kids. That's insane, because the kids were all between two and four. Needless to say, that was rather hectic.
After that ended, we took Nolan and Megan back to their house for bedtime. In the end, we didn't end up getting home until after midnight this morning. It was a busy day, but very fun. However, I wouldn't want to repeat it in the very near future, as entertaining as it was.
Until later, have a good life.

BusyBusy

Okay, I know I broke my own rule about updating my blog at least once a week, but it wasn't my fault, I swear. This past week with my classes and my online courses, I had so much homework. I haven't had much time to do anything else. But I'm finished all my online assignments that are posted, so I'm not as bogged down as I have been. Oh yeah, in case I haven't mentioned this already, I am taking two online courses this year. Socials and Planning. Because of that I have one spare in my day. I like it. It gives me time to work on homework so I don't have to take it home. What makes this semester difficult is that I'm taking five classes instead of four, and four of them are academic. I think. Math, Science, Spanish, and Socials. Maybe Socials isn't. Oh well. It's still a lot of work. But I'll try to keep posting more.
My mom is still healing, but she seems to be doing a lot better. As usual, she does too much at times and has to lie down for a while, but she should be all better soon. I hope.
Tasha is still packing for Australia. She is only allowed to bring one backpack, so she has to stuff everything into a red hiking-type backpack thing. Yeah. I'm great with describing things. She leaves on Thursday and won't be back until the day after my birthday, I believe. I'm gonna miss her bunches and oodles and stuff. It'll be hard to be separated from her for that long. I'm missing a day of school to bring her to the airport. Actually, I'm missing two days of school this week.
Tomorrow is a work day for tenth graders. Instead of going to school, we go straight to our work site. It's the same length as a school day. Because of this I'm missing two days of school in a row. That is a good thing, but at the same time I'm dreading it. I have to miss math, which is grade 11 so there will be a class that I'm missing tomorrow. I hate missing school. It's so hard to catch up. Oh well, I'll manage.
Another sad story is that I'll be missing pyjama day on Thursday! That's, like, my favourite day of the school year! I'm quite upset. Maybe I'll wear pyjamas to the airport in honour of this glorious day. That would be fun.
I think you're just about caught up on my week. Hopefully you'll hear from me again soon.
Oh! I just remembered...I can't believe I forgot! On Sunday we had a Loewen Faspa. It was a big dinner for all the Loewens to come together before Tash leaves. It was a blast, as all Loewen get-togethers are. Of course Rosanna had to come up with something outrageous. She brought a green sweater decked out with Christmas decorations, because Tasha's going to be gone for it. She also had a little game. We weren't allowed to say the words: baby, Australia, or fun. Whoever caught someone saying one of these words got to pick a Christmas carol for everybody else to sing. It didn't last very long, but it was fun. I love you Rosanna!
Okay, I think that's really everything now. If not...too bad. Talk to you all later.

DC4K

Tonight was the second night that I helped out Chrys and her friend Vanessa in DC4K(Divorce Care for Kids). It was so much fun. We've only had two girls the past two weeks, but they are so much fun to be with. Tonight we had a very special activity amidst all the other things we did. We painted. But not with paint. Vanessa brought shaving cream and put five dots on the table, one in front of each of us. We each spread out our spots so they were flat. They were our canvases. We drew different things, and then to erase we just mixed it all up again.
But that's not the end of the madness. Somewhere along the line, one of our girls got the idea that we should spread it all out so it covered the table. And we did just that. It's amazing to me how much space five spots of shaving cream can cover. We covered that entire round table, and once we finished we drew one big scene on it. Trees, flowers, birds, a beautiful nature scene. Of course, it wasn't nearly as much fun to clean up afterward, but it was definitely worth it. Unfortunately, no one thought to bring a camera, so we don't have any pictures for you. But you can take my word for it, it was a lot of fun.

Not terrible...

Well, I have officially survived through a full week of school. However, at this point I find it hard to believe that it hasn't even technically been two weeks since I went back. I'm already settled into a pattern and have my routine. To be quite honest, I rather like this semester. I like my classes (Spanish, Math, Science, Socials, Planning) and my teachers. That is quite a change from last year, when I hated all my teachers (bad, I know, but they don't exactly make it easy to like them, even a little bit).
I thought I was going to hate the semester system, but I rather like it. I can't explain why, I just do. I'm glad that I have all but one class with my friend, Lindsay, but I would like to have classes with my other friends as well. Maybe next semester.
My mom is doing okay. She's still at home, and still taking it quite easy, but I think she is regaining her strength. She's been going for her "walks", which are just laps around our property. I think she did three one day this week. But now Chrystal is really sick, and not feeling good at all. Jeepers. My family can't seem to go one week without someone being sick. That needs to be fixed. Especially since I'd probably be next.... I know, I'm so considerate of others. Talk to you all later!

Home again, home again.

Once again, my mom has returned from the hospital. She is still recovering from her surgery, however, so she will be taking it very easy for a few weeks. That means no working, no lifting heavy objects, no bending down to pick something up. She just needs to heal. I'll try to keep you more updated on her progress than I have been. Sorry about that, but Chrys usually keeps her blog updated, so you can check that out as well.

1:10 a.m.

Take a moment and read this title again. That's a.m., not p.m., people. Now, what does that time mean for you? Well, for me, it usually means that I'm lying in bed sound asleep dreaming sweet dreams. However, last night my body had other ideas.
I woke up for some reason, and my nose felt runny. It took only a second to realize that it was bleeding. I rushed to the bathroom and then had to stand there for ten minutes waiting for it to stop. I noticed, while waiting, that I had gotten three rather large spots of blood on my pyjama pants. What a great night, hey? But what can you do? These things happen.
Although I'm quite tired today because of that little incident, I am thankful that I woke up. Otherwise I would have bled all over my pillow and sheets. Also, I may have had difficulty breathing, seeing as most people usually breathe throught their noses when they sleep, myself included. These little details make me wonder at the amazing God we have. He planned us without any flaws, and thought of everything down to the way our toenails grow. He made it so that my body would wake me at the first sign of that nose bleed. That he loves us enough to pay attention to those things blows me away.

Bad Beginning

As many may know, today was the first day back to school. I am entering grade 10 this year. when I received my schedule, they had forgotten to put Math 11 in it. I am taking Math 11 because last summer I took grade 9 math so I could get ahead a year. I tried to book an appointment with a counsellor to get it changed, but when I called they were completely booked. I was told to wait after orientation today to see one, but that line-up was so long that not everyone could get in. Now, I have to get to school early tomorrow morning to see if I can be one of the first ones in line. Unfortunately, the councellors won't start seeing people until 8:30, which is when first class starts. I guess it doesn't really matter, because my entire schedule might get changed around in order to fit math in there. I just prefer to know exactly which classes I'm taking and when before school starts. Oh well. That's life, I suppose. Things aren't always going to go my way, and I need to learn to deal with those times when they come. And God's plan is perfect, so how dare I feel sorry for myself. I'll just sit outside the student services offices and read my book until 8:30. I like reading. Maybe this isn't all bad.

Well, it's finally happened. Yesterday I received my school schedule in the mail. I was very excited to see it come, because I had been waiting for it for a week. Yesterday's wait was extra special because I knew that it would be arriving, but the mail came three hours late. It truly almost killed me.
However, its arrival was bittersweet, because it also meant that school is starting soon. A week from today. I have been dreading this for the past month. I really don't want to go back to school, but there's not really anything that can be done. It's going to happen. I just don't want it to. I want to be done with school.
Ok, I'm starting to rant now, so I should go and spare anyone who is actually taking the time to read this. Please pray for me. The beginning of school is always so stressful for me, and this year seems to have a little more added to it.

Not Over Yet

My mom may be home from the hospital, but she is far from being 100%. After two weeks without eating, her stomach is having trouble digesting the food she's eating. She has been throwing up and having bad stomach aches. She has managed to keep down the last few things she's eaten, but the aches continue. Please be praying for patience as she goes through this healing process, and that it will pass quickly.

She's Home!!!

It's finally happened. My mom is finally home. After over two weeks in the hospital, my mom arrived home yesterday between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m. She looked relieved to be home. Yet at the same time, she is incredibly tired. She hasn't been allowed to eat anything the entire time she was in the hospital, so her nourishment was lacking greatly. She's taking it very slow, and rests a lot. I think she said she's planning to go back to work on Thursday, but I could be wrong. She definitely needs to work up her endurance again. In the mean time, we are glad to have her home again.
Actually, she was home on Wednesday night already. She got my dad to take her out of the hospital for a few hours so she could get home. She was completely unattached to any machine, and just had the central line sticking out of her neck. The nurses didn't know if she was wandering the hospital, walking outside, or at home, so my mom escaped for the evening. I think she enjoyed that immensely. Aunt Ellie and Uncle Gary went to visit her in the hospital, but she wasn't there. They came to our house after calling us, and soon after Yvonne and Eric joined us as well. It was a party.
For now we are glad to have her home, for good, hopefully. But I guess you never know what could happen, right? She has to go back for a checkup on Wednesday, I think, so hopefully things will still be clearing up by then.

HOORAY!!!!

Yesterday we found out that my mom will be coming home TOMORROW!! They took out her nose tube which was draining her stomach, and her catheter. As far as I know she still has the central line in. I think they may be taking that out today. After that, as long as nothing goes seriously wrong, she will be coming home tomorrow. So I need to go now because the house is a mess....

In case anyone is wondering, there are pictures of my mom in the hospital on Chrystal's blog. So for anybody that doesn't usually look at her site and wants to see them, you can go check those out. It's gonna be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A Week Late

Sorry about this, but I tend to be quite lazy with keeping up with things. You know how you think about doing something but never really get around to doing it? That's me most of the time.

What I have been planning to write about was the Phantom of the Opera. Yvonne, Chrys, Tasha and I saw it live last Saturday. It was absolutely amazing. We own the DVD and I've watched it many times, but I have always wanted to see it on Broadway. I had a chance to do that a few years ago, but I got sick the morning we were supposed to leave so my sisters had to go without me.

But last Saturday, it finally happened. I was there, sitting in row 12, seat 62. Amazing seats. There were certain scenes that I had wondered how they would perform them live, such as the underground lake scenes in the Phantom's lair. But every bit of it was spectacular. One thing that did bug me, however, was the voice of the girl who played Meg. I can't really explain it, but it was really annoying.

Everyone else in the cast was impressive. It was everything I expected and more. I am so happy that I was able to experience this at least once in my life (which I think everyone should). I loved every minute of it.

Third Time's the Charm...

This morning at 10:30 my mom went in for her third CAT scan. She had two yesterday, but apparently they couldn't get a clear enough picture, or something. Hopefully they will be able to help her better after this one.
It's been a week now, since she left for the hospital. It was last Wednesday. I'm amazed that she has been able to tolerate this. She has never lain around during the day for more than four hours, according to her.
What to pray for: That the doctors will know exactly what is going on this time, and that they find the best solution possible if this surgery doesn't work. Also, that my mom will have patience because it doesn't look like she's going to be coming home any time soon. Finally for us at home, that we will be able to cope without her. We've been okay, but we miss her and worry constantly.

Puppy Pics

Just to let everyone know, Chrys has pictures of our new puppy, Diego, on her blog. It's listed in my links on this page. If you want to see pictures, go there.

Misdiagnosed

Sorry about the lack of updates recently. Yesterday we found out that the doctors misdiagnosed my mom. Apparently nothing going on in her body made sense with the twisted bowel. Now they said it's diverticulitis, which is when little pockets/bubbles form in the intestine. She is now on antibiotics for it, as well as morphene. According to my mom, it is working.
We are hoping that she will get better soon, but according to the huge medical book we have in our kitchen, diverticulitis can take up to two weeks to heal. She still can't eat anything in case she has to go into surgery. Again, we are praying that it won't come to that. We are visiting her as much as possible, but it would be nice to have her home.

This evening my mom went to the hospital because she had been in severe pain all day. After several hours and updates from my dad, we finally learned that she had an obstructive bowel. I think that's what it's called. It means that part of her small intestine is twisted, which caused her pain. Apparently it can untwist itself, but if it doesn't, then she'll need to have surgery. We're praying that it won't come to that, but we don't know what's going to happen right now. She's staying at the hospital overnight so they can keep her hydrated because she can't eat or drink anything. She's on morphene for the pain, and apparently she's quite out of it. I'm not sure whether that would be interesting or disturbing to see. I don't know if we us kids are going to visit her in the hospital tomorrow, but I would like to see her.
Any prayers sent her way would be greatly appreciated.

Hooked

Over the past few months, Chrystal has been playing nothing but the soundtrack to Rent in her car. I'm not exaggerating, that's literally all she played since she discovered the musical over three months ago. Every time I rode with her in her car, she has had that soundtrack playing, and she just about threw me out of the vehicle while it's moving every time I tried to change it. I absolutely hated it. I couldn't stand listening to it at all. I hated the music, the words, the names of the characters (Mimi? Seriously?), and just about everything about it. It was pure torture.

Now, my opinion of this particular musical has changed drastically. I have listened to it so much, I know exactly which voice belongs to which of the eight main characters. I know the general plot, and have watched a few clips of the movie. I want to watch the entire thing with Chrys now, because I want to understand everything that's going on.

Tash thinks I've gone to the dark side, and until now I would have agreed with her. Now, I can see all the amazing features of the musical. It's story line is realistic and emotional. The voices of the cast are unbelievable. When they sing together, it sounds unbelievably beautiful. When I actually watch the actors perform the songs on the film, it makes them so much more emotional. I love it. There are a few songs that I listen to over and over again, because they are so emotional and beautiful that I just can't get enough of them. It is now one of my favourite musicals, possibly up there with Phantom of the Opera. For those who don't know me, that's high praise.

Fiesta in the Sky

Last night I went to see the Vancouver Festival of Lights. I went with all of my siblings but Tasha, and a few of Yvonne's friends. Mexico performed for 25 minutes, and after that there was a six minute finale. Mexico won the competition against China, Italy, and the Czech Republic. It was really cool, but there were parts of Mexico's performance that were boring. They just did the same thing over and over again for a few minutes, and it was all yellow. There wasn't enough variety. But there were parts that were really cool. A few of the fireworks that were set off were circles with stars in the middle. It was cool. It makes me wonder how these fireworks are made. What gives them height or shape or colour? However they do it, it was fascinating to watch. There was music playing along to the fireworks, and that made it even more spectacular. It was a fun night, as these events usually are. It was really good to actually be able to watch them this year, though. Last year at the finale my Jared proposed to Lisa halfway through, so we didn't see much of the fireworks after that. I can't wait to see next year's performances.

Tasha

I suppose congratulations are in order for this particular sister of mine. She has been accepted by YWAM in Perth, Australia. She has her flight booked and everything. She's flying out there with her friend Dania, whose family is out there for schooling and missionary work, I think. Tash will be gone for six months, leaving in October. That is really crappy, because she will be missing a lot. The birth of our first neice/nephew, Christmas, and five birthdays. However, I think it's good that she is going now, because she really wants to, and if she were to keep putting it off, there would be even more things that she would miss.
I'm happy for her, even though I know I'll miss her more than even I can imagine. When Chrystal went to Spain for one month a couple years ago, I missed her a lot. I can't imagine what six months separation will feel like. On the other hand, I know she will have a lot of fun down there, seeing those penguins, koalas, and kangaroos. Also, when she comes back the day after my birthday, it will feel like she never left. Maybe not right away, but after she's told us everything that we haven't heard already, and she's all moved back home and settled in, it will feel that way.
But no matter how much I know I'm going to miss her and want her back, I really hope she'll have a great time, because this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. At least I hope it is.

Joyous Return

Jared and Lisa returned from their honeymoon on Friday. They didn't tell anyone, because they were supposed to come back yesterday, which was the day of the gift opening. They were really lucky that they came back early, because Friday night a bunch of us were planning to prank their house. I can't tell what we were going to do, in case either of them read this, but we were all disappointed at our loss. Oh well. I suppose there will be other opportunities.

Puppy!

I am so excited. Two days ago my sister and I bought a new puppy! He's a rottweiler/golden retriever cross, but he just looks like a rottweiler. His name is Diego. At first we were concerned that our other dog, Jewel, wouldn't like him. When we got Cocoa a few years ago, she kept attacking him and we had to keep them separated until she got used to having him around. But with Diego she is protective. She won't let him out of her sight when he's out of the barn. We think that may be because she has had her own puppies and reacts to them differently now. But it's really cute. He always wants to play, and nips at her chin then runs away. Then he does it again. It's so much fun to watch. And he's such a sweetheart. Today I was just sitting/laying with him for an hour, and he always snuggles into me as far as he can go. He's adorable. I love him. It will be fun to see him grow older into a humongous (not sure how to spell that) dog. He's only twelve weeks old and he's already huge. I love him so much. He's my new best friend.

Congratulations

Hm, that word always looks so weird when you write it out. Anyway, at the Loewen brunch Sunday morning, Cassandra read a letter from our cousin Jocelyn, who lives in Saskatchewan with her husband Jeff, and wasn't able to attend the wedding. In the letter, Joc announced that she is pregnant, and expecting a baby in February. Congratulations to Joc and Jeff. That is such exciting news. This is such a happy year for my family. Yvonne is pregnant, Rosanna, Darren, and Jared all got married, Jocelyn is pregnant, and my cousin Tamara from my dad's side is engaged to be married in October, I think. What a year.

Wedding Bells Ringing

Well, it's all over. On Saturday, July 22, 2006, my only brother, Jared Unruh, got married. It was a beautiful wedding. Lisa looked beautiful, and everything was decorated beautifully...even if it was all purple. I cried, of course, but can you really blame me? My only brother was in the process of getting married. It's a bittersweet moment.
Everything went along smoothly in the ceremony, until they got to the signing of the registry. As it happens, it wasn't on the table. My mom went running out in the middle of the ceremony to go find it, along with two of my aunts. It was quite funny, actually. Jared and Lisa waited a few minutes, then just decided to to the unity water while they were waiting. Since it was an outdoor wedding, and I had bad experiences when trying to light the unity candles at my sister Yvonne's wedding three years ago, Jared and Lisa decided to pour red and blue water together instead. It was really cool. When they finished that, they went back to the empty table and waited some more. Finally our aunt Betty came running out with a folder in her hands. Everyone cheered. My family and I knew, however, that it was probably just a blank sheet of paper that they would sign so the ceremony would end. Apparently Auntie Betty had written on it: This is a fake. Sign here. She is so fun.
After the ceremony, everyone just sort of hung out, drinking water and iced tea, which were supplied due to the ridiculous heat of the day. The immediate family and the wedding party went off to some abbey to take pictures. When that was over, the reception began.
It was a blast with supper, speeches, and dancing to end off the night. My three sisters and I all did a little tribute to Jared. Each one of us wrote a little speech to say at the reception. I was really nervous, but it really wasn't that bad once I got up there. The evening ended with dancing. Jared's friends were on the puny little dance floor all night, and my cousins and I were out there for a good chunk of it as well. But two of Jared's friends, Sunnee and Woody, kind of scared us. They just randomly came up to my cousins and me and started dancing with us. It was scary, because at the time I had no idea who these people were. My sister Yvonne told me who they were after they left. For the rest of the evening, Woody was having a blast. He even danced with my omi. He actually wouldv'e been really funny if I wasn't so afraid of him.
Other than that, the reception was fun. We requested songs from the dj, and danced until our feet were aching.
After we arrived home from the reception, two of my cousins, Chrys, and I popped popcorn and watched a movie. Oh yeah, we know how to party.
Jared and Lisa are on their honey moon right now, and I think they get back on Sunday. That's all I have to say for now, I think. I'll probably remember other stuff later.

HOORAY!!!!

Today, in about half an hour, I will be heading to the Abbotsford airport to pick up my cousin Karisa. I'm so excited. Even though it's only been five days since I last saw her, I really want to see her again. Then tomorrow her family is coming. It's just her parents and her sister, who I also can't wait to see. It's going to be so much fun while they're here. We always have fun, as I think I may have mentioned in my last blog.
Well, I think I should congratulate myself on the length of this blog. It's actually short! Quite the accomplishment for me, eh?

(sigh)

I absolutely love small children. They are adorable, except when they are doing things that we would rather not have them do. But then they go and they do something so childish and innocent and hilarious, and you can't help but love them all over again, completely forgetting all their...not so innocent moments. Until the next time it happens, that is.
I suppose you may be wondering the reason for this particular blog, which would be that This mornig I babysat Nolan and Megan Wall. They are the only two kids I babysit, really. But this morning I had to be there before they were awake. I was to wake them up, feed them breakfast, and then entertain them until their mom got home. It was so fun. After they were both fed and dressed and ready for the day, we just played. Somehow both Megan, age 1(almost 2), and Nolan, age 3(almost 4), ended up lying on the floor next to each other. I tickled them both, and they just burst into giggles. They didn't stop, even when I wasn't tickling them anymore. They just looked at each other, touched each other's faces, and burst into more giggles. This went on for a few minutes. It was so cute to watch. Just the simplest thing that either of them did would set them off again.
They were adorable. I love how children can laugh and have fun at the simplest things. I think my friends would tell you that I am pretty close to being like that, seeing as the simplest things seem to set me off into laughter that I can't seem to control....but they don't understand that it is really funny in my mind. Just the way something was said, or whatever. But it was just so special to see the two of them like that. Brother and sister, hanging out and having a good time. Not stealing toys from one another, not arguing over who gets to sit in the fluffy red chair, just having fun with each other. It was so special.
Looking up again, I can see that this blog is already longer than I wanted it to be. I really need to work on that.....

Good Times

First off, I need to apologize to everyone. I was the world's biggest idiot when I left for Saskatchewan, and I forgot to pack my camera. Therefore, I have no pictures for you. However, there are a few pics on the blogs of two of my sisters, Tasha and Chrys. I have links to their sites.
Other than that, all I can do is describe a few of the things we did while visiting those lovely prairies. I believe the one thing that every one of us did while there was be eaten alive by mosquitoes. When I came home, I had four bites in one area of my leg, three in one area of my back, two more on different areas of my back, plus many more in various places on my body. The entire week I was lathering myself in after bite stuff. Sprays, lotions, liquids, anything that said it would help ease itching. Thankfully, they helped. I am now just about cured. I still have bites, however, and continue to scratch occasionally. But it's not a constant itch. I am healing.
Beside enduring those rather persistent pests, The entire week I spent in Warman was a blast. I baked brownies with my cousins, swam in their back yard, went for bike rides, went for ice cream, and so many more things. I absolutely love spending time with my Loewen cousins. They are always so much fun, and we never run out of things to do. We can make fun out of just about anything. My cousins Kaitlyn and Karisa(sisters) and I watched one movie three times in one weekend. It was a really cheesy movie, but it was so much fun to watch it over and over just to laugh endlessly.
We also had a blast at Darren's wedding. There was a live polka band there, and it was really fun to copy the dance steps from the (ahem) more elderly in attendance. I was shocked at the number of people that knew the different dances. There was the three step, seven step, butterfly, and many others. It was amazing to watch, and fun to join in. Some people were real party poopers, however, and refused to dance because they thought the music was stupid. The way I see it, if you think it's going to be dumb, it's not going to be any fun. On the other hand, if you look at it with an optimistic heart, you can create fun times out of just about anything. For this theory I have to thank my dear cousin Rosanna Toews, who is always just a bundle of sunshine. She was constantly pulling cousins out to the dance floor and forcing them to dance. And when you're dancing with Rosanna, it's difficult to not have a good time.
So these were just a few of the adventures I had while visiting Saskatchewan for that particular wedding, and I'm sure I'll have plenty more to share with my brother's wedding approaching quickly. It's this Saturday! We're all bursting with excitement and tension as last minute details are falling into place. Even through all that, I know I'll have plenty more good times to report. Until then, have wonderful days.

Congratulations to Me

Well, I must say that I am rather proud of myself. Yesterday on Thursday, July 13 2006, I , Kaeli Unruh, flew all the way from Saskatchewan to B.C. all by myself. That may not seem like a huge accomplishment to some, but I had never travelled anywhere by myself before. This was the very first time. And it wasn't even that bad. I'll admit, at the beginning of the first flight, from Saskatoon to Calgary, I was near to tears. This was partly due to fear, and partly due to the fact that I always cry whenever my cousin Karisa and I are separated, yet again. (hey, can you blame me? We live two provinces apart and rarely get to see each other.) I didn't cry though. The reason for this was that I knew I would be seeing Ris again in just five days, when she would come out to Abbotsford for my brother's wedding. Another reason for my courageous lack of tears was that I remembered two bible verses that really helped me. The first one was: I can do all things throuh Jesus Christ who gives me strength. I'm not sure what the reference was for that one. The second was Joshua 1:9-Be strong and courageous, do not be terrified. Do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. I said these verses to myself over and over in my head afterward I realized what I big baby I was being. There was absolutely nothing complicated about flying on an airplane. Unless you're the pilot. I had nothing to be afraid of, because on the way to Saskatchewan my mom had shown me how to find my gate and stuff. Also, I knew that God would be with me, and that even if something did happen, He would still be there, guiding me.
After that point, I was perfectly fine and was able to enjoy both the flight, and the exploration of the Calgary airport. Alright, it wasn't all that interesting, but I bought a candy necklace at the candy store. That was fun. Also, while waiting for the boarding announcement, some guy came up to me and asked if I had just attended a wedding in Saskatchewan. I said I did, and he asked if it was Darren and April's. Again, a confirmed that fact, and he said that he had recognized me from the wedding. I found that strange, because I can never remember new faces, especially at a wedding where I will never see half the people there again. But maybe that's just me. Apparently this was one of April's cousins. He was a really nice guy, and we talked for a bit, which sort of took away some of the boredom of waiting for our flight to be ready.
The flight from Calgary to Abbotsford was interesting, because the two ladies that sat beside me didn't stop talking to each other. Understandable, but somewhat annoying. They also had each ordered a beer, and they smelled nasty. Oh well. I just read my book the entire flight. When I got to the Abbotsford airport, I looked around, expecting to see someone from my family waiting to pick me up. There was no one. I just went to wait for my luggage, planning to call home if no one was there by the time I received it. Just then I saw Tasha and Lisa, the future sister-in-law, burst into the airport, looking around for me. I went up behind them and scared them both. It was quite fun. They screamed then laughed then hugged me. After I had my luggage, I asked them why they were late. Apparently they had been at the airport on time, but the computers had said that my flight was going to be delayed for an hour, so they went home. But when they got home, my mom checked the internet and it had said that my flight had already landed. They rushed back to the airport, and that's why I found them looking quite frazzled. It was a fun day.
I would love to tell about my experiences in Saskatchewan, but looking at the length of this blog already, I will wait and spread out my posts over the next few days. In the meantime, enjoy the blogs I have up. They will get more interesting, I promise.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

I'm so excited! I leave for Saskatchewan in thirteen hours! I can't wait to see all my cousins out there again. I miss them, even though I saw some only two months ago for another cousin's wedding. My family seems to be full of happy news this year. My cousing Rosanna got married in May, my cousin Darren is getting married this Saturday, and my brother, Jared, is getting married on the 22nd. On top of all that, My oldest sister, Yvonne, is pregnant, and due on December 13th. What a wonderful Christmas present, hey?
I should probably start packing my bags. I'm there for one week. I have a checklist ready this time, because whenever I travel anywhere, I tend to forget something. It doesn't matter how many times I double check, I still manage to leave something behind. I pray that won't happen this time.
I don't think I'm really going to be able to blog stuff while I'm in Saskatchewan, so this may be my last blog for over a week. I know, you'll all miss me terribly. I promise when I get back I'll have lots to tell, including my adventures in flying and navigating airports all by myself for the first time ever. I'm flying home on my own next Thursday, so that should be interesting. I've never done this before. I'm kind of scared. Oh well. What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, right?
Right, I was going to go pack my bags, wasn't I? Guess I got a little distracted. I'm really leaving this time, so I will talk to you all when I get back. Until then, farewell.

Home Alone

For the past few days, I have found myself home alone. The reason for this is that my two sisters, Tasha and Chrys, who still live at home have gone on a road trip to West Edmonton Mall. They are stopping there for a few days with my oldest sister Yvonne, and her husband, Eric, on the way to Saskatchewan for our cousin's wedding. Since both of them are gone, and both my parents work during the day, I am completely alone. I must admit that I enjoy this solitude. I get to blast Disney music in the kitchen without anyone complaining, I get to have the computer completely to myself instead of fighting over it with my sisters, and I can just hang out with myself, no interruptions. I know that sounds really dumb, but I enjoy having time to myself, just thinking about stuff and being me. I'm sure everyone can admit to pretending sometimes when around other people. Sometimes you just want to be alone. I have been alone, and I have enjoyed it. It's fun to be able to play the piano downstairs, knowing I suck, but not having anyone there to comment on it. Not that they do, anyway. But there's no way my family can enjoy it. I have four songs memorized, and I just play them over, and over, and over. Whenever I try to learn new stuff, it sounds terrible, and I'm scared to annoy other people.
Although I do enjoy being alone every so often, I miss my siblings. They make life more interesting, more fun. I can't wait until I see them in Saskatchewan on Thursday. But until then, yay to alone time with me.

New Blogger

Yippee, I've started my very own blog. My life seems to have suddenly developed some interest to it. For example, my cousin and my brother are getting married, two weeks apart from each other. It's going to be very a very fun two weeks. I can't wait to see my brother standing up at the altar in a suit, waiting for my future sister-in-law to walk down the aisle. I don't think I've ever seen him in a suit. If I can figure out how to put on pictures, I'll try to do that every now and then. I'm a new blogger, so you're going to have to bear with me as I figure out exactly how this all works. For now, though, I'll say goodbye.