Goodbye summer.....

Ok seriously, where has the last two months gone? Fall is certainly in the air here in Canada -- ok well maybe just the west. This morning when I was walking to my office from the parking lot I could see my breath! It's too soon for that Mother Nature!
But in all honesty, I love fall. It's probably my favourite time of the year. All of the different colours, the changing of the leaves, the crispness of the air, the warmth of walking into your home when the fireplace is crackling. I love it all. Oh but my favourite thing about fall is pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks -- yumm-o!

I can't wait to start decorating my home in its fall decor. Some of my favourite pieces come out in the fall. I'm going to hold off for a couple of more weeks before decorating though because it does seem a little early.
I was shopping this weekend and some retailers are beginning to get out their Christmas stuff already -- whoa Nelly! That's a little early! What about Thanksgiving and Halloween? Can we please get through that first?

Speaking of Christmas though, I have about half of my shopping done already! Wow! I have even shocked myself by doing that! :) Now, I have to make sure I don't over buy because I have stuff stashed away in closets and corners here and there.

Ok, so I'm rambling....sorry! :) I didn't have anything specific to talk about today, this kind of just happened!

Oh yes and tonight I'm getting my fall haircut. I'm thinking something different, although I have long hair and love it. Maybe bangs for fall? Lots of layers? Stay tuned.......

I am truly blessed!

I am feeling so blessed and lucky these days thanks to my new found outlook on life!
I picked up a brand new SUV (a 2010 Ford Edge) today and I am sooooooo excited! I'm not overly excited for the payments over the next several years, but I am so excited and feeling so very lucky to have the opportunity to purchase a new car!
Here's my new beauty!!!!!



My only concern is how tight it will be in our garage! :) We forgot to check that out when we took it for a test drive and when we measured it's pretty tight! I think it'll all work out though.

On another note, I forgot to post a picture of the wedding cake I made a few weeks ago, so here that is too!



The bride was thrilled with it and I was so happy she loved it. The transportation was a little hairy but it all turned out in the end!

Practicing what I preach!

I've really tried to take my last post to heart and make an effort to be grateful for the things I have. I can't tell you how awesome it has felt to stop comparing my life to others. Don't get me wrong -- I still have my moments and this is something that I really have to concentrate on doing at the moment. But I'm hoping this will become something easier as time goes on.
So, here are some things that I'm grateful for in my life at the moment:

* Having a roof over my head and a pretty cute one at that!
* Having food in my fridge.
* Having someone to come home to.
* Having someone who loves me unconditionally - trust me I can be a handful at times! :)
* Having my faith and having good morals and values.
* Having a secure, full-time job.
* Having money to pay all of my bills.
* My sweet, sweet puppy who I love so much!
* Having the freedom to do what I want, when I want.
* Having the option to purchase a new car.
* Having such a loving and supportive family and group of friends.
* Being able to have a personal trainer.
* Being able to go to the gym period!
* Having good health and those that are important to me having good health too.
* My niece and nephew who I love so much.
* Having my own yard to grow my own flower gardens.
* Having relatively low debt.
* Having no student loans!

I'm sure that there will be more to add once I finish writing this blog, but those are some of the key points I suppose. I have so much to be grateful for and it's so easy to forgot what those are. But when you write them down, there's actually quite a bit!

What are you grateful for these days?

Wanting more

Over the past few weeks I've caught myself thinking about wanting more out of life. Sometimes I feel as though I'm just living on the surface and going through each day without giving it much thought.
Could this be it? Is this the life I'm supposed to lead? I don't think so. There has to be so much more. And I'm prepared to do something about it.

First of all, I need to stop comparing myself to others. I'm often envious of my friends who have gotten married and started having children. As many of you know, or may not know, Noel and I have been together for 11 years. No, we are not married -- yet. But if it were up to me, this probably would have happened eight years ago! Unfortunately I'm old fashioned, so it's a little out of my hands. I really want to get married and start a family more than ever and I often think how unlucky I am and how I wish I was the one with the little wee babes running around. But I need to remember how blessed I am to have a great person to share my life with. He takes great care of me, he loves me unconditionally and he is my best friend. This is more important than anything.

We also built a beautiful house about four a half years ago. It's a starter home, 1,400 square feet. It's cute. It's perfect for us right now and I love it. But why do I want something bigger? Some of my friends have all upgraded into homes with garages on the front, bonus rooms and big yards. Is it silly to want a bigger home because people around me are buying them? Absolutely! So then why do I feel this way?

We are also currently searching for a vehicle for me as my lease is up at the end of Sept. I've really limited my choices by only wanting SUV's and this has driven Noel crazy. Why do I only want an SUV? Because I want to feel like a soccer mom when in reality I'm not a mom and I don't like soccer! :)

I need to start loving the person that I am inside and out. I'm never going to look like Angelina Jolie or Megan Fox. Someone is always going to have nicer and newer things than me. I need to love what I have and be grateful for that.

I'm glad that I came to this realization because I would hate to continue my thinking this way. It's not what life is about! Comparing yourself to others is not going to make you happy. Being content and grateful for what you have will.

Back to reality!

Holidays are over! :( So sad! I had such a great time on my week off. The funny thing is, we didn't do a whole lot! But it was soooo nice! I honestly think that I am destined to be a housewife! Ha! I'm totally in my element when I'm cooking, baking, gardening and even cleaning! I really do love it! And surprisingly there is so much to get done. I was never once just sitting around for the day.
Noel was home for most of my week off too and we were able to spend lots of time together. We haven't had that much time in close to nine months. It was long overdue! And now he's away again for two more weeks! Booooooo!
This week is a busy one as I'm doing a wedding cake for a friend. Her wedding is on Saturday and tonight I have to start baking! It's pretty simple though. Three tiers, white fondant, pearl beads around the bottom of each tier and fresh flowers to finish it off. It's going to look great!
Now I'm off to meet a girlfriend for lunch at a cute little Italian place downtown! So fun!
Oh yah, and what do you think of my new look? I'm still playing around with it, but I like the idea. It was time for a change!