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Kylara

"This is Homemaker Haven, reminding you to help control the pet population;"

Quote: "This is Bob Barker, reminding you to help control the pet population; have your pets spayed or neutered."

Today I was going to blog about my creative space in the new house.  But I am not prepared with photos and such.  It's never as simple as writing up a blog post.  There are so many other things involved in preparing a post for you guys.

So without further ado, let's talk about my babies.  We have 6 kids between G and I.  He has 2 girls and a boy, and I have 2 boys and a girl.  We are the Brady Bunch lol but mixed with a large amount of Roseanne and Dan.

But when I refer to my babies,  I mean my four legged friends.  Our 'furry' children.  We have had Phoenix for 6 years.  He is a really cool combo of breeds.  Whenever we get asked what he is , we laugh a little before revealing his hilarious DNA.  He is part Corgi (the Queen's dog) and part Husky.  Now just that mash up is hilarious to think of but the best part is the husky  was the mother.  She had to been taking a nap when the little short studly corgi gave it his best shot (no pun intended, really LOL).

We got him from a rescue agency that goes to Moosonee to rescue any of the 'loose' dogs.  Due to massive overpopulation, they have what they call "hunt days".  Any dog they find that is not tied up or contained gets shot.   They have to do something to keep the feral dog population down.  The organization we used, goes up and grabs pups all the time.  Anyway, when we got together with them they brought 4 pups with them out of the litter of 9.  One of them immediately went off exploring our house.  One cowered under a bed almost the whole time they were there, another one was just a bit indifferent, and lastly the one pup, went and snuggled and played with us the whole time they were there.  It was a very easy decision as to which one we would adopt.

Phoenix, is a very special dog.  He is extremely intelligent, and intuitive.  Due to my ailments, he is always super observant of me and stays really close to me on the days that I am very sick.  He truly is my best friend.  He is super gentle in nature.  Every vet we have ever taken him to , falls in love with him.  He is a huge bright light in my sometimes dark days.

Our other dog is a shih tzu that we got from my aunt, who rescued him from a young couple who supposedly was being evicted and not able to keep the dog.  If you noticed the way that sentence ix worded you will understand that that is not what happened.  A few months later, a friend of my aunts, who originally brought the story to my aunt, saw this couple out walking down the road with a brand new pup.  Well I heard they got quite an earful and lecture about their actions.

What I believe happened based on my work with the dog the first few weeks we got him is that he used growling all the time, but I am guessing they let him do or behave the same, due to not disciplining the dog to behave properly.  His growl never frightened us and we quickly turned that behaviour around.  Don't get me wrong, he still growls, but it’s a dog purr that he does when cuddling , he is a strange dog lol.

We have had Smudge now for 3-4 years and he is our comedian in the family.  He just is so wound up all the time and he does before thinking things through.  Like going for a massive leap onto furniture and misjudging the jump and slamming into the couch front with his chest.  He also whips his toys around so hard that he has actually knocked the wind out of himself.  He is a cute but wild dog.  He keeps us on our toes and laughing along the way.

Anyway the reason that I write this post is because today they got fixed.  It has been a long time in the making due to the costs associated with it.  When we lived in Barrie, Ontario, we were quoted $500 per dog to be neutered.  It is ridiculous.  Here we paid less than $500 for both dogs.

They came home all loopy, and with those darn cones on their heads.  They are bumping and getting caught on everything.  They have both been super quiet all night long.  It is so unlike them it's kind of unnerving.

Look how depressing they look LOL  Is it normal to feel a little guilty for putting them through this???

Deck The ...Halls Doors with a Home-made Wreath

Well I started off this wreath project with another idea completely.  I was planning on making the Christmas candy wreath I saw over on Pinterest HERE.  I tried about 7 times to make this but I was having a huge brain fart and was unable to understand how to tie on the candies so they would look full even after pushing them together.  I was super frustrated and had already promised my son I would be making him a wreath for his new place. 

So after much deliberation I used a small Styrofoam wreath form I had and covered it with Green yarn I had laying around.  To do this I would hot glue to the start of each 3 foot length of yard and place all glued start and endings on one side so the other side is neater and better to use as your 'front'.  Keep doing this till the wreath form was covered.  Please note that when doing this wrap around, that the inner circle is smaller so you will have to push the sections over a bit and there could be some overlapping on the inside.  Try and make sure that the overlapping is not too noticeable. 

Then I went to a few shops in my area to look for small decorations for the wreath.  I found a bunch of supplies that were meant for larger wreathes but I cut everything so it would be better proportional.  I hot glued my center leaves and decorations first as they are the focal point of the wreath.  I also used some of the glittered stems from the leaves as décor for the top of the wreath.  Waste not want not right? LOL

Then I gathered some of my colored craft wire and using the red wire I glued a small glittered red ball to the end and then wrapped the other end around the wreath form, so it would dangle in the middle of the wreath.  I also added one gold ball with gold craft wire to either side of the red ball.

I then looked for some more greenery and found these holy pieces.  They were originally part of a Christmas bell ornament that had these holly glued to the front.  They were super easy to take off and if by chance the red holly berry popped off, its super easy to glue them back on.

I also found some cute small ornament balls that  I attached to a 20 gauge gold wire and inserted into the foam wreath at the bottom. 

The inspiration for this wreath was actually the "Believe" sentiment I found in my crafts.   I painted it gold as they came in silver glitter and that would not work well with the colors I have going on.  Also my  son and his room-mate want mostly red and gold Christmas décor.  Can you imagine 2, 22 year old's, being so specific with their decorating wishes.  LOL I am getting such a kick out of how proud they are over this home and the pieces they put in it.  My boy is finally growing up!  Which is awesome, and a huge stress off my shoulders let me tell ya.

So I waited and waited overnight even, for the gold paint to dry but even after completing all but this step on my wreath.  I finally decided to just use the gold glitter glue on the wet gold paint.  I used Crafts Fine Glitter Glue and a small paintbrush to spread the glue to the edges of my word. 

I am sorry that I didn't take any pictures during this craft but I didn't think it would be such a process LOL.  In all honesty it went quick once I changed my plans and figured out the design. 

Have you ever made a wreath? Have you blogged about it?  Leave me a link in the comments below so I can go drool over your wreaths and others can get inspiration for their wreath making this year.  If you haven't blogged about a wreath but have pictures, please feel free to share them with us also.

OMG its December?!?!?!?

December 2,

Wow where did the last week go?  Seems I have been sleeping for most of the week.

So with my short absence I thought I would post an about me post for you all so you can understand my sometimes abrupt absences here on the blog.

Where to start…

When I was 15 I was hospitalized for a few months while they tried to figure out why I was extremely skinny and having tummy issues.  After 2 months they finally diagnosed me with Crohn's disease and I was operated on the day after.  My surgeon removed 3 1/2 feet of my bowel.  It was pretty rough to go through at such an early age and I was at the time in foster homes and my hospital stay was so long that my 'spot' in my previous home was full and they had to find me another foster home for when I was discharged…so not only was I going through recovery, my life was also disrupted by learning my new place in a new home.

After my surgery I was still sick but not horribly.  It seems like I never went into remission like a lot of the other people with this disease seem to experience.  There were some years where I spent upwards of 3-4 months total in hospital each year.  It was extremely hard to have a 'stable' life.

Well the last few years things have been a bit more rocky with my disease and then last year around the new year, I got extremely ill with a blockage.  As the surgeon came in daily for updates on my condition, G and I discussed the opportunity of having an ileostomy to see if that would help me out.  We agreed to try a temporary loop ileostomy to see how my life changed and if it was for the worst or better.

The day after my surgery I went into renal failure.  I don't think I have ever been that sick and if I have I have forgotten it.  I was for sure it was the end of my journey.  But with the grace of a higher power, I made it through and while I am still struggling with my disease, I personally feel that the ileostomy has some cons, but they in no way come close to the pros of this operation to my daily life.

Not only do I suffer from Crohn's disease but I also suffer from Fibromyalgia.  This disease is very hard to understand and I often use the "Spoon Theory" , click HERE to read what that is, to explain to people how my life is played out.  Just to clarify, this theory was initially written about lupus which is in some way quite like Fibro.  It is actually misdiagnosed often.

A few weeks ago I started to get more pain in the site of my ostomy.  Also my tummy started to extend a bit which caused us some concern.  Well it appears that I might have what is called a parastomal hernia.  I have a CT scan scheduled for this week on the 5th.  If I do in fact have this hernia, it will probably require more surgery to fix the issue.

So during the last week I have been exhausted.  So exhausted that I have slept pretty much for the last 50 hours.  I am forcing myself to get up today and get a few things done before my PSW shows up today which should be in the next 1-2 hours.

I hoping to be able to complete my first set of 6 Christmas cards today.  I also would love to be able to finish R's Christmas wreath I have started. 

Well this was just a short peek into my life and I hope that it helps you to understand my absences.  It is by no means me forgetting about the blog but I need my spoons for other things.

I hope that everyone is enjoying this amazing month and spending time with family and loved ones.  Are you making homemade DIY gifts this year?  If so I would love to hear and see what your making for your loved ones this month.

To & From Holiday Guide 2013

As I was doing my normal morning routine which consists of checking emails, playing my favourite Facebook games (Bingo Blitz, Royal Story and Hidden Shadows), and reading a few blogs, I came across a fabulous gift guide.

I wasn't scheduled to make a blog post today but I had never heard of this gift guide before and I love it and want to make sure that as many people as possible get a chance to see this.  I grabbed it from a post on House Tweaking called "To and From Holiday Gift Guide".

It gave the link to the guide itself which you can find HERE.

Some of my favourite picks are:

Peacock and Ice Custom Agenda - Page 8

Netflix Annual Subscription - Page 22

Ouch First Aid Kit - Page 25

Cuyana Low Back Tunic - Page 27

Single Hammock Chair - Page 30

Doorbot - Page 52

Xbox 1 - Page 55

Gem Magnets - Page 207

Target Deer Head - Page 211

What would be your favourite picks this year from the magazine?  Go take a peak and let us know which are your favourites in the comments below.

Best Gluten Free Christmas Cookies

I must admit that this article started out with just your best of Christmas cookies till I found a gluten free one and this idea blossomed.  I do feel bad that a lot of the time those with Celiac end up missing out on holidays and goodies due to their very limited diet.  To bring a bit of holiday spirit to those suffering this holiday I bring you the following post.

We found out this year that one of G's kids has Celiac disease.  If you have never heard of this or don’t really understand what this disease entails I will leave a few links below for you to check out.

Canadian Celiac Association

Celiac.com

Celiac Chicks Blog

Jennifersway Blog

Normally my plan each year is to make Christmas cookies to give the kids each year but my health has always stood in the way.  This year since I am feeling much better, I would love to make cookies but time and the holiday uproar may make this impossible.

So I am going to make a small recipe book for her with some of the best gluten free Christmas cookies recipes.  Below are some of the more traditional cookie recipes I found.

 1. Molasses Spice Cookies - Recipe from Celiac.com

2. Lofthouse Style Sugar Cookies - Recipe from LynnsKitchenAdventures.com

3. Snickerdoodles - Recipe from BettyCrocker.com

4. Cinnamon & Brown Sugar Icebox Shortbread - Cookitallergyfree.com

5. Gingersnaps - Recipe from Gutenfreegoddess.blogspot.ca

6. Coconut Macaroons - Recipes from Theprimalist.com

7,  Chocolate Snowballs - Recipe From Themommybowl.com

8.  Peanut Butter and Jelly - Recipe From elanaspantry.com

9.  Chocolate Crinkles - Recipe from heythattastesgood.com

10.  Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies - Recipe from glutenfreeonashoestring.com

Do you know someone with Celiac?  Remember that a lot of people these days have dietary restrictions.  I hope that this round up will help you to include them this holiday.  If you try any of these recipes I would love to hear how they went and your critiques. 

I'm making my list, and checking it twice...

November 23,

Today I figured I would get my Christmas list done!  Such hard work really LOL .  Usually we have been unable to have the traditional holiday due to finances, and it's virtually impossible to get all the kids under one roof. 

But this year is a special year for me.  I am here to enjoy this year, and even though there may not be tons of presents, or tons of people, I want us to have a brilliant day in our own way.  I also want to start some holiday traditions that we will be able to teach the grandkids to do one day.

One of my favorite posts that I saw last year was about a Christmas Eve Tradition.  Now please remember that the 'kids' are between 14-26 so no little ones around but I think this year we will do this with G and then as kids get married and have little ones, we can just add them to the traditional festivities.  Here is the link to the article I found at MomFab Fun 

First thing I want is an embossing gun. I found it at Walmart .  Of course then I need embossing ink and powders to go with it lol.

Next thing I am hoping to get is an envelope punch board.  This device is used to create envelopes at home with any paper.  Another gift that can be found at Walmart.

While surfing around Walmart's craft section I also found a Pink Die Cutter Tool Kit and Case.  This will go perfectly to aid in my vinyl work. 

Another crafty Item that looks interesting is the Silhouette Sketch Pens 24 Pack.  So far you only  need to hit one store to get all my goodies lol.

Any Glitter packs as I have none at the moment. 

I want Pajamas this year!

As usual I hope I get one fairy.  G has got me at least one of these every year.  I love them and have a special glass case they are kept in.  I have no preference as to which one, as long as I don’t have it already.

I have a broken PC Monitor that needs to be fixed.

I need a new external drive since both of mine are no longer working.  Would love to get the information off them too as a gift.

Gift Cards at Lens Mill Store, Dollarama, and Walmart would be easy options too.

And last but not least, I would love to have a shelf built 1 1/2 foot from ceiling on 3 of my 4 bedroom walls for storage and magazines.

Well I am too tired to keep this list going lol so will stop for now.  Have you all thought about what you would like this year?  If you could get one thing (make it affordable lol) this year, what do you want most?  Have you made your list?