Stuck in Winter, Stuck in Snow

When I'm stuck in long winter months and I'm not pretending that I'm Elizabeth Manley, I like to think that I'm another famous Canadian female Olympian who took home the gold for Snowboard Cross last year in Whistler....

Maëlle Ricker I know, I know. I look just like her!

photo taken from here

relive her amazing race here

Help! I'm being eaten by a powder monster!

Get a Winter High

In my opinion the only way to do this in Alberta is with a Rocky Mountain High. In the second week of February, our family took a trip to the beautiful Columbia Valley. Therefore, let us proceed in the words of John Denver.

I've seen it rainin' fire in the sky
The shadow from the starlight is softer than a lullaby...

You can talk to God and listen to the casual reply...

I know he'd be a poorer man if he never saw an eagle fly...

...Rocky Mountain High.

Thanks for the wonderful week family. I love you.

For the full 2011 Almanac posting go here.

Winter Wishing

I suppose if I am going to choose to live in a place where winter arrives in October, and sticks around well into April, I might as well spend these months entertaining myself with fantasies of grandeur.

Last week I spent my time wishing I was the legendary Canadian Olympic figure skater Elizabeth Manley

I know, I know.

The resemblance is uncanny!

photo borrowed from here

The Assembly Line & The Aftermath

Seeing as I have been out of the country from September to January my car has been parked at my parents home waiting for my safe return. Over the winter months my small Toyota Corolla has suffered the steady abuse of snow, and more snow... and more snow. So Saturday was the assigned day for getting my car out. The first task I took on was to dig a trench the size of my shovel scoop all the around my car, and take off the majority of snow on top of my car.

Everything else required quite a bit of maneuvering. The tractor needed to get close enough to car...

...so that we could hook it up...

...but since the ground was icy under the snow, we needed to hook the truck up to the tractor so that it wouldn't spin out...

...the assembly line and the aftermath...

...my engine was a tad bit frozen...

...but with a new battery, it'll be just fine!

Happy Family Day everyone! Don't forget to enjoy the people closest to you on this day, and have fun!

Things We Say: Just in Cases

It might actually be the loveliest scene in Love Actually.
I've seen the film about two dozen times (although "seen" might be an exaggeration since it's one of those comfort-films that I put on in the background for white noise when I'm puttering around the house).

Without fail. No matter how distracted I may be baking in the kitchen, or chatting with company there is this one scene that always makes me pause. And - without fail - I catch myself beaming like an idiot through the entire five minutes.

Jamie & Aurelia are the cutest couple in the whole movie and, another blogger, Lindsey over on Character Flaw describes their best scene like this....

"Because of a language barrier, they never had an actual conversation until he proposed to her, yet they still had wonderful chemistry in every scene. We knew what they both were saying and could see how perfectly matched they were, but they knew in a more instinctual way, which is what I found so beautiful about their love. They didn’t need words. They just knew. They spoke each other’s language on a deeper level."

Watch it here



Jamie: You learned English.
Aurelia: Just in cases.

*photo taken from here

Hunting

Sorry about the late posting but I am on a mission. A mission to find a job!

*this photo from here

What should I do?

*this photo from here.

Who should I be?

*this photo from here

Where should I go?

*this photo from here

It's a hunt my friends, and I am in the middle of it!

*this photo from here

Things We Say: Whaaaaat???

What do you get when you take a weekend in the mountains,

add eleven family members

and a really good movie quote?

no voice - that's WhaaaaaaaT???