Back! And I wasn't even Away!

Ok.. I'm Back! And I wasn't even Away...

and my Miracle!!!!!

I can't believe I haven't posted on this for so long. I've been busy. Honest. I've actually joined 2 Design Teams.. and they're both Kit teams. I feel more pressure on a kit team.. not sure why. LOVE it.. but I feel more pressure.

I think I'm stuck... scrapwise. I need to get my mojo going. First of all.. the camera is in the shop. How bad does that suck??? And I'm putting so much pressure on myself to do better.. that I can barely do at all. Today.. I've been playing at 2Peas. It's the big Wish you were at Cha, but having fun here, replacement day... and these ladies are so awesome. I hardly miss being at Cha. I never win at these things.. but that's ok. I'm having fun.. and working on my mojo. Although.. I did do a circle layout... blah.

I'm WARM Again!!! or... It's a Authentic Honest-to-goodness Miracle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So.. in -18C weather.. our furnace died. We had no furnace for 4 days.. in that cold. brrrrrrrrr. We had 2 space heaters.. but that's it. This body needs more heat than that. And you wanna hear this? We had an honest-to-goodness miracle
Here's the story...

Last week, we smelled gas around my furnace. I didn't worry about it. Neither did Gary. We figured it was just the furnace firing. Then the smell got worse. Monday came, and I called. It was bad. The smell of gas was everywhere. Yikes. They wanted me to leave the house until an emergency response unit came to handle it. I couldn't because nowhere for my dog to go. He's a 90 pounder, and they won't enter the house if there's a dog there, and no owner. SO.. stuck. They arrived. IMMEDIATELY shut down the furnace. Ok.. no worry. It's not like I live in Ontario, and it's the dead of winter or anything. SO.. the emergency response unit left and had the furnace tagged.. which means, it can't be re-fired, until it's been fixed. They couldn't come until Tuesday. SO.. we WERE going to a hotel.. but again.. nowhere for the dog to go.. and it was going to be too cold in the house for him and the 2 cats. so.. we stayed. We got 2 space heaters, and pulled out a ton of blankets and hunkered down. We didn't much leave the livingroom... cuz it was just too cold. Hence me not being on the computer. THEN... today.. the repair guys comes. He can't repair it. Know why?????????????????????????????????

We were SO INCREDIBILY BLESSED... it's unbelievable. Why was our furnace smelling of gas? The gas leak? Sure. but that's not even the BIG issue. It was complete carbon backup. He said that the fire from the furnace, filled with carbon backup, and burned BACKWARDS and OUTSIDE of the unit!!!!! AND... caught fire, and burned all external wiring on the unit, and burned the inside and the heat return. It's astounding that it didn't explode, and demolish the house. $5,000 and a whole new furnace unit had to be bought. It couldn't be repaired. He said.. "Wow. I'm not a religious guy, but if I lived in this house, I sure would be. I cannot figure out how this didn't cause a catastrophe."

??????????????????????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We just stood there silently looking at him. My heart in my throat. All I can think of is my son, sleeping peacefully in his bed, me thinking he was safe there... and it could have been the end of him. OMG . 4 days with no furnace.. but it's in now.. and ... I'm warm again.. and grateful for the miracle!!!

Aside from the Pain

Aside From the Pain


Aside From the Pain
Aside from the pain, life is. I convince myself sometimes, that tomorrow isn't going to mean what it does today. Tomorrow is going to be a today I can live in. A today that holds promise. That's alright. I have my family. And I have my scrapbooking. I'm nowhere near caught up with either. So much to do. I would like my son's story told, so that he has that balance. He can be a firsthand witness to a magnificent life. I've been the lucky witness of that life of his, and it's been the greatest blessing in my world. It's scary and magnificent, to love another human being enough, that at any given minute you would throw yourself in front of a train for him. Throw yourself into a burning building, if you had a moment's thought that he might be in there. Without question or thought, you would die for that person. Scary and magnificent.
I've been inspired today. Ispired to clean out my space. Get rid of *things*. I'm the queen of clutter. My Mom, God rest her soul, was the queen of clutter... and I acquired her clutter, and it had babies and grandbabies. I'm decluttering my life. I know where the clutter comes from. I know why I hold it. But it's time to let go. Hold onto better and brighter things. Throw my energy into better, purer, cleaner areas. Throw my energy into life, and not clutter. That's my project. I'm setting aside so much time each and every day, and getting rid of it all. Whew. I cannot wait.


Resolutions.
Did I share my resolutions? These are them.. all set up in a nice, orderly, uncluttered list...
This year, I resolve to:
1. MOVE
2. Unclutter my life and home
3. Lose weight
4. Regain some of my health
5. Open myself up to love more
6. Finish my book
7. Cook more, better, and healthier
8. Exercise, even when it hurts
9. Scrapbook every day
10. Get more of my pages published.
Some of these are easier than others.. but they'll each, in their own way, make my life better. So.. why would I not want a better life? I DO want a better life. And I will resolve to fight for that better life.
Yay me.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year.......... 2007!!!!!!!
I cannot believe how fast the years go, once you are past 35. Honestly... it's like one minute it's New Years Day.. and the next.. I'm planning Christmas again. Just yesterday, my baby was a baby.. and now? Now he's not. I'll come back and post all kinds of deep thoughts on 2006, and 2007. For now..
So... I haven't done much of anything here for a couple of weeks.. but I've been tagged by my friend Jessica...
A - Available/Single? Nope. I'm married forever to my love, Gary.
B- Best Friend? Gary
C- Cake or Pie? pie. (can't I say both?)
D - Drink Of Choice? WATER. I live for water. I drink bottle after bottle of water. Ice cold.
E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? Lipstick. I gotta have it.
F - Favorite Color? Pink
G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? Definitely Worms
H - Home or Homesick? I'm always homesick. And I'm always Home
I - Indulgence? Scratch ticket. I'm a bit of an addict
J - January Or February? January. A new start. A new beginning
K- Kids & Their Names? Dana Joseph Maximillian. My life
L - Life Is Incomplete Without? My husband, my son, my faith
M - Marriage date? May 21st, 1988 (My Mom's birthday. We got married the year after her death)
N - Number Of Siblings? I have 2 brothers and 2 sisters. I'm the youngest by far
O - Oranges Or Apples? Ohhhh... Oranges all the way.
P - Phobias/Fears? Spiders and painful death. I'm stealing this answer from Jess, cuz it's perfect for me.
Q - Favorite Quote: Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.
R-Real Hair Color? Red.. no really.
S - Season? Spring
T - Tag 3 or 4 people? Chrissy, Dorothy, Mellie
U - Unknown Fact About Me? I was tested with an IQ of 147. Crazy eh. That should be all the proof you need that IQ is no indicator of smarts.
V - Vegetable you don’t like? Beets. Who on earth found beets were edible???
W - Worst Habit? My housekeeping. It's not so good.
X - X-rays You’ve Had? Geez.. there's not enough time in the day. Let's just say yes.
Y - Your Favorite Food? Well done, but moist steak... baked potatoe with toppings, and a roll with butter. I'm salivating now.
Z - Zodiac Sign? I'm Scorpio. And I'm a Tiger in the Chinese horoscope. Did you know they used to kill baby girls born as Scorpio OR Tiger??? They thought they were too strong. Hmmm. Odd