Will this ever .... MELT !

Views from the backyard and I am beginning to wonder if it will ever melt and if we will ever see green grass again ...and so are the dogs ! DH is talking about having to start shoveling off the roofs if this stuff gets much deeper and hope we don't get a quick melt or a heavy rain that will add to much stress on the roof ( which could collapse under too much weight ) . I am sure this is the most snow we have ever had in this yard since moving into this house 11 years ago .... I dread to see the lake we will have coming when it does melt ! So today is the last day of January so we have at least 2 months maybe 3 of this stuff !!! Oi Yeah !

i never get good photos of my boys

So when I do , I have to scrap them ! This was a layout that just fell into place ( thanks Jenn for the progressive challenge ! LOL ) ...... the subject isn't one I would usual consider scrapping but look at those boys faces ! They are both in there element and the happiess when they are in touch with nature . This was the annual hunting trip / male bonding in November with their dad ...who didn't get his deer but not for lack of trying !

" You can take the boy out of the country , but you can't take the country out of the boy ! "

A weekend to scrap .......

This is Tucker and he was mad because I wouldn't pick him up ! Nothing but attitude ! LOL !

This was the start of our winter .............

Call us crazy .... and cold !

Are we crazy ? Probably ! The owners of our favorite quick get-away campground invited a bunch of us summer campers down for a hot dog roast and campfire last Sunday afternoon . After a week of -20+ weather and snow , none of us were too sure what Sunday would bring . Well Sunday brought SUN and warmer temperatures ( -8 C 17 F when we drove into the campground ! ) ..... and NO WIND ! A BIG bonus !!!

It was a beautiful crisp day and everybody seemed to enjoy themselves . More curious was the fact that campfire seemed to stink and cling far worse then any summer campfire we had ever had ! LOL ! Great company and other then the fact the wieners took forever to cook over the fire and the hot dog buns froze ( can't imagine why ! LOL ) it was FUN ! Merv even put a heater in the outhouse and dug a path to it so we didn't have to trudge through waist deep snow to get there ! As my feet were freezing , it wasn't a bad place to warm up ..............

Only 3 more months ( some are saying or wishing 2 ) before the camping season starts again but I sure hope the snow and cold weather leave before then as I have definitely had my fill of winter and I can't see the picnic tables so I am not camping until I can ! I don't think I am that CRAZY !!!!!

" Find fun in everything and make do with what you have ! "

Later with more snow !

The dogs don't seem to mind the snow ...as long as they have paths dug ...would hate to lose one of the little devils in a snow drift though !

The temperature is hovering around 0 so it is actually quite pleasant outside ...cooler temperatures by next week though ! YUCK !

Even the birds need to be fed ! Have to keep the snow off their hangers !

I was just playing with the "SNOW " setting on my Canon ELPH and I am quite impressed ! Sure never got these photos with the Sony Cybershot !!!

ENOUGH !!!

It seems that Mother nature has decided we need just a bit more snow ! It started early this morning and just kept coming down and down . It has stopped for now but we are supposed to get more by morning !!! I just want it to stop as winter has been far to long already and it is only the middle of January ........................................... guess we will see more of the white stuff before it ends though :-(

ICE JAM on the Nachako River

I didn't get many photos of our ice jam on the river on Sunday ( well I did but had the camera on the wrong setting ! DUH ) ...but these are the ones I did get . This is looking across the river to the businesses on the other side of it . That field of snow is the ice buildup on the river that keeps building up more and mopre because it has nowhere else to go .
Not great photos as they were taken through the truck windshield !
The old Cameron Street Bridge with the ice building up under it .

Crossing the John Hart Bridge from North to south ...that is the frozen river stretching from bank to bank !

Apparently there may be some ice movement in the next day or so as they are trying to cut the ice with a machine ( large boat I do believe ) and forcing it towards the Fraser River which the Nechako joins with ... I have no idea how they expect this to work but they say it should help ...............

The start of 2008 creations

A couple layouts with Taylor ( granddauther #3 )





And a couple of cards . The first is hand-stitched and not my favorite idea of a fun time !
These are from a kit I bought from CTMH and were fun and easy to do though I still like making my own creations and not following directs !

I just don't follow directions well !! LOL !

Take a deep breath ......

now exhale ! LOL ! I can't believe how time is moving so quickly ! Hard to believe we are already into the second half of the first month of a New Year ! Where did it go ? Life has been busy here with a few things happening and so far only good news :-) Makes you wonder when the second shoe will drop but I am hoping it stays on that foot for a LONG time !

The biggest and most fun thing happened last week when DH & I went to see BIG & RICH with some good Canadian talent , Emerson Drive and Terri Clark as they came to our town :-) It was a totally amazing concert ( though the accoustics could have been better but we were in an arena and I guess that has to do with the crappy sound ! ) , the talent was second to none and the light show was something that this town will probably never see again ! Our Canadian talent was worth seeing just by themselves and we would have gone to see them ! Terri Clark is an amazing performer and she well deserves all the awards she has won . Emerson Drive is just starting to be recognised for the group they are .... simple wonderful ! They have been nominated for a grammy this year . We are proud to clain these guys and Terri as Canadian born and raised and they make no bones about it ! BIG & RICH were something to see as they really are spectacular . They had 2 surprize guests with them , Cowboy Troy and his hic-hop kind of country music ( rap with a country flair ! ) and 2 Ft .......... Totally a fun packed concert that went on for over 3 hrs ! No photos though as the ticket said no cameras or video equipment ...only to get there and they announce cameras are okay just not audio ..... and I had left my phone at home too so I couldn't get any pictures with it ( though they would have been 1" square regardless ! ) .

Other then the excitement of the concert , there isn't much to report . I have managed to do a bit of scrapping which is great as I miss not creating . The Cricut that DH bought me is getting a workout and I am still waiting for the company to get back to me and help solve a problem with the Design Studio so I can get to play with that too ! You have to lovew these companies that don't respond to their EMs ....maybe I will try phoning there and finding out if they even answer their phones !

Winter is still making it's regular appearence here and the snow just gets deeper and deeper . Today we hit 7 C though so that was fantastic as the sun shone ! Ice jams on our rivers are creating a lot of problems for some of businesses along the river and a fire at one of our mills a couple nights ago .... We are safe though as we live up " the mountain " and not down in the bowl area . If we flood then there are a lot of people in serious trouble ! DH & I drove down the River road to see the ice jams last Sunday and they really were something to see . I had my camera and took mega photos only to find out after I had it set wrong and every photo was super blurry ! Think I have learned my lesson on that one ! LOL !

Until the next time " Don't forget to inhale , exhale and enjoy the beauty around you as life is too short to sit in the dark "

New Years Resolution

My aunt sent me this via E-mail !

A Wonderful Resolution for the New Year!
What amazing gifts the new year brings! An entireyear's worth of wonderful opportunities, given to usone sunrise at a time. Many of the moments ahead willbe marvelously disguised as ordinary days, but each oneof us has the chance to make something extraordinaryout of them.
Each new day is a blank page in the diary of your life.The secret of success is in turning that diary into thebest story you possibly can. Have pages on understandingand tales of overcoming hardships. Fill your story withenthusiasm, adventure, learning, and laughter. And make each chapter reflect time doing these things:
Follow your dreams. Work hard. Be kind. Do what you can to make the door open on a day that is filled with inspiration in some special way. Remember: Goodness will be rewarded. Smiles will pay you back. Have fun.Find strength. Be truthful. Have faith. Don't focus on anything you lack.
Realize that people are the treasures in life, andhappiness is the real wealth. Have a diary thatdescribes how you're doing your best, and... the rest will take care of itself. - by Douglas Pagels
Have a Wonderful Year!!