The Ouija

via

 It all started when the oldest of three received a Ouija board for Christmas. No one thought twice about the game, until it was played that evening. The Christmas excitement had cleared. The youngest was sleepy, despite her objections to go to bed. The oldest sister was eager to play her new game and the middle child; the boy, was very reluctant to be involved. He had always sensed strange things but rarely spoke of them. Nothing too obvious, but little dreams when he'd stay at his grandparent's house about people that had long since passed. Or strange noises in the night that he didn't believe were just the soundtrack of a creaky house.
 The game was brand new, freshly unraveled from it's packaging. Candles were lit and the instructions were read. Ask the Ouija board a question and place your finger tips on the planchette and "it" will give you the answer. At first, everyone joked around. The boy pushed it to spell out "Uh-Huh-Huh" like it was channeling Elvis. But, something happened. The planchette moved on its own, with the six fingers hovering over, as before. The mother and her friend were enjoying the show and eventually decided to get involved. The friend was someone they all adored and loved, but the family didn't know her all of their lives. She was a new friend and because of that, they didn't know about her family life. They didn't know that her sister went missing. They didn't know that their friend had always wondered where she went. The friend tested the Ouija board and asked a question that she knew the answer to.  A question about her family life, that the three children wouldn't know anything about. She was shocked when the answer was correct. The children were unnerved but for some reason everyone was intrigued and wanted to continue. After a couple of glasses of wine, the friend got bold and decided to ask the Ouija questions that she wanted answered. The results were shocking and haunting, something the four of them would never speak of. Something that would stay with all of them, that Christmas night.

  The Ouija board claimed to be channeling the great grandmother of the three children. The grandmother of the children's mother. She had passed years before and was known for being a bit naughty. The day of her funeral, one of her granddaughters was talking about her and the handle of a china cabinet hit the back of the granddaughter's chair. Looking at where the china cabinet sat and where the chair was located- made the witnesses believe that the handle would have had to have fallen outwards to hit the chair and then down. A phenomena, really.
 The three children, their mother and this friend had all opened a door that night.. Strange things began to happen after that.

via

 The three children were up late one weekend, watching movies in the living room when they heard a loud bang from one of the doors closing down the hall. Their parents were both in bed, so they just assumed it was one of them being noisy. The mother entered the living room angry and asked the children why they felt the need to be slamming doors and banging around in the oldest sister's room. The children were confused and instantly unsettled. They had all been watching a movie. The door banging was supposed to be their parents. The mother's face grew pale as she realized that she had revealed to the children that there very well could have been something supernatural in the oldest sister's bedroom.
 Another case was an experience from the youngest and her brother. They were watching t.v. in the evening and a suction ball that was sitting on the top of the book case fell onto the floor. No big deal. But once it fell onto the carpet, it kept rolling at least two feet across the floor. The two children were perturbed and the youngest was mostly intrigued because this was the first thing unusual that she had ever seen with her own two eyes.
 The last case is from the brother. He doesn't like to talk about his experiences because they were too revealing. They were too unheard of to automatically be believed without some convincing on his part. He wasn't about sharing and convincing people of his experiences. He would rather just try to forget them. He was standing in the hallway talking to the youngest and their mother in the living room. They were discussing nothing of much importance but during the conversation the brother's eyes grew wide and he suddenly looked quite frightened. It took some coaxing but the mother finally got the boy to explain what had upset him. He was talking in the hallway and could see someone sitting at the dining room table listening. He assumed it was his step father, listening quietly in the corner. After all, the step father was a quiet man. But when the boy saw the headlights of the family car pull into the driveway with his step father behind the wheel, he realized that the person sitting at the dining room table was not who he had assumed it was. The youngest was very interested by his experience and interrogated the brother for more information. But the brother was finished sharing and had never spoke of it again.

 The family moved from that home. The basement of their new home was eerie. Nothing specifically happened, no paranormal activity was ever discussed at that home. The brother, however was uneasy in the basement because he spent the most time down there. But he rarely if ever spoke of any one situation that had occurred. The youngest sister once played the Ouija board in the basement with some friends and was scolded by the brother immediately after. She lent the board to some friends and then when it was returned to the family, she left it in the garage. Years later, after a family tragedy had occurred, the youngest sister came across the Ouija board again. She was packing the family home for a big move and needed to get rid of anything of no use to the family. She threw the board into a garbage bag without a second thought.

Do you believe in paranormal activity?

Would you believe me if I said I was the youngest in the story?

Have you ever experienced anything unbelievable like this?

Happy Halloween BlogLand.

Someday

 Today was one of those days I haven't had in awhile.. I knew it was "Write A Post" day but I hadn't gotten around to writing it. I didn't have any ideas and Alina was fussing a whole hour earlier than usual. Normally she plays for a good hour on her own and that's my chance to finish what I started writing. Today, today I wasn't sure what I wanted to write about UNTIL the Gods opened a big, fluffy cloud and a sunbeam shot rays of sunshine onto my computer. . . Two of my fellow bloggers; Helene and Erin posted the same link-up. Yes! A link-up! No creative thinking on my part?  Yes please!
 Tay from The Daily Tay is hosting a link-up called, "Someday I Will..." and I thank her profusely for saving my brain on a day that it needed saving!

Someday I Will . . .
 .. learn how to drive a standard. That's right! I will try getting behind the wheel of any vehicle that requires using a stick shift. I will NOT get discouraged and angry at Rob because he will be patient, kind and a good teacher this time around.

Someday I Will . . .
  .. be a better than just average musician. I have a guitar that Rob bought for my 27th birthday. I know how to play three or four songs, sort of well. My problem is that I get really excited about something and I have the best of intentions to keep up with it. Then life happens and I just don't have the patience and desire to sit down and try to figure out a new song. Plus, I like to sing along to the songs that I play, so learning to sing the song well and play the song well creates quite a challenge for me. Not to mention that my husband is a ridiculously amazing musician and singer. He is beyond humble about it. So much that I want to scream from the rooftops for people to come and hear him play when he is on a roll, singing up a storm around the campfire. I deserve to be able to brag about this. I'm being serious, he's that good. So it's intimidating trying to learn new songs with him around.. I'm super paranoid that I sound like crap. So I hope to be able to play better than I have been.. one day.

Rob playing the acoustic bass, Me on my birthday in pj's and Us years ago; Rob is teaching me how to play.

 Someday I Will . . .
  .. have a career to proudly brag about. If I had to have a regret in life it would be that I didn't go to secondary school. I wasn't driven enough in high school to get there. I wasn't educated enough to know how to even begin looking into college. (That was all on me though. I'm not blaming anyone for that.) If I could go back and go to school I would, as long as I still got to meet Rob somehow. My step dad passed away in March, my mom and I moved to get away in July. Rob moved in July and we met in September. So, if I was in school I wouldn't have met Rob.. I know that things happen for a reason. But it would be so nice to have a career to go to once my maternity leave is over. I'd like to work with children, but I'm still not really sure what I would go to school for.

Someday I Will . . .
  .. write another children's story. I will submit it to somewhere, once I figure out where.. and  I hope to high heavens that people like it! I pray that it is just so fantastic that "they" want me to write more! Then I won't have to go back to school and I can just stay home and write. Oh, wouldn't that be a dream? I would start with children's stories because they are shorter and once that built up my confidence I would definitely begin that novel I have always dreamed of writing... Someday, someway.. it will happen. It just has to!

My children's story that was published. It gave me the 'writing itch' again!

Someday I Will . . .
 .. go somewhere gorgeous and tropical and NOT in Canada or the USA! I have never been anywhere else besides Canada; Alberta, B.C and Ontario. USA; Louisiana, Florida, (drove through some states on our way to Florida from Louisiana, but that doesn't count!) It's sad and pathetic that I am 28 and I still haven't been on a real holiday. Anytime that we go anywhere is to either Alberta where I grew up. Or, to Thunder Bay, Ontario to visit Rob's family. Those are not holidays by any means. We're going to Thunder Bay for Christmas so that Alina can meet all of her relatives but after that, I wouldn't mind not having to go back for a long, long time. Anywhere gorgeous and tropical will do. I feel so deprived and must, must, must make time to get away, truly get away.

1. In Alberta on my way home. Taking a picture in front of Pocahontas Mountain.
2. At Rob's parent's camp outside of Thunder Bay. A beautiful place to be.
3. A typical scene you'd see in anywhere besides B.C. - beers, ice and snow. Our typical "holiday".
4. Outdoor skating just a block up from Rob's parent's house. A true Canadian Christmas!
5. Rob with a pike he caught fishing at the lake by his camp in good ol' T.Bay

 See!! That is the extent of our "holiday pictures". Rob and I seriously have to go somewhere together. It will be the best holiday we've never had!

Someday I Will . . .
  ..  visit my sister on her side of the country. The East Coast of Canada is always a place I hoped to visit. Now that my sister lives there with her family I am sure we'll end up seeing her coastline. I hear that the people are really friendly over there and that music, fun and beautiful sights are to be enjoyed.

My sister and I with our girls, two pictures of the East Coast that I found off of Facebook. Thank you Facebook Friends.

  Someday I Will . . .
  .. learn to keep my mouth shut! I get together with some girlfriends and I can't seem to keep the very thing I didn't want to mention from coming out of my mouth. It's ridiculous. I just get excited and spill. I don't tell other people's secrets, just mine. One day I'll have better self control.

  I would love to add more to the list, but I have some flu shots to get this afternoon. Lucky, lucky! Tis the season to get the flu and not if I can help it!


 

 

Remember When..

  It's funny how certain objects can make my heart skip a beat at just the sight of them.. Like a favourite toy that I used to play with, that I haven't seen in years. Sometimes I get into nostalgic moods and start googling things that make my heart go boom. Once I get started, I can't really stop.. Soon I'm no longer looking up old toys, but t.v. shows that I used to watch as a kid, then I'm looking up whole episodes of these shows and their intro's. I've tried not to get too out of control with my findings, but I've compiled a little list to share...

//1  Garbage Pail Kids-

 You could buy these from any convenient store in the nineties. I would spend all of my allowance on these garbage bags of candy and a toy. I don't really remember the trading cards. I think in the mid to late eighties the trading cards and t.v. show were really popular. There are another series of toys that my brother collected but I specifically remember the colourful toys, pictured above. I had every one of those toys and played with them often. The Garbage Pail Kids were revolting and just plain gross, but for some reason I was obsessed. I think it has to do with the idea of collecting as many as you can and that exciting feel you get when you purchase your sixth garbage bag in hopes of getting the toy you don't have yet. When I remembered these toys I squealed with delight because I knew I'd be able to look them up and have a flourish of memories fill my mind once I saw my old toys again!

//2  The Disney Movie Viewer

 My grandparents had one of these. I ended up looking into all of the the 'movies' that we watched on this toy. I still remember them vividly because I loved playing in their toy trunk. There's nothing better than someone else's toys growing up. I bet everyone remembers a specific time when they played at someone's house and loved the toys that they played with and didn't have.

  I specifically remember these two 'movies' that my grandparents had that went along with the movie viewer. This collage alone, holds a lot of memories for me..! I love childhood memories, they make my heart swell with warmth. To be a kid again!

//3  Chip and Dale - old school, when they first started out with Mickey Mouse. But then they got their own spin off ; Chip and Dale; Rescue Rangers. I loved that show and had a book that I specifically remember to this day. I don't have the book anymore, but I love the bright colours and shiny pages in this book.

 I loved the Christmas episode with Chip and Dale when Mickey and Pluto cut down the tree that they live in. I also always loved Gadget on the Rescue Rangers. She was all bad ass and good at getting the boys out of messy situations. Mouse Girl Power! (Speaking of "remember whens.." remember The Spice Girls and "Girl Power"?)

//4  I may be dating myself quite a bit, but I just loved these shows as a little kid. Not everyone remembers them. I asked Rob about some of them and he doesn't really remember many from my first collage and we're only fourteen months apart in age. I suppose it all depends on what you watched growing up and what really stays with you as an adult.

  I feel like I'm the only person that ever watched "Zoobilee Zoo" because everyone I've asked claims to have never heard of this show. The fox used to scare me because of his makeup. To be honest, all of them were kind of creepy but I loved it anyways. Pooh's Corner was runner up for my next favourite show when I was little. It just brings back so many memories, the stories and the songs that went along with each episode. I loved it. Are any of these t.v. shows a mystery to you?

//5  Obviously we all have our favourite Disney movies and our all time favourite kid's movies. But this movie was one of my favourites and the difference between this movie and say, "The Land Before Time" (the original, also a favourite of mine) is that it's a movie I haven't seen that often. So the very thought of it gives me "childhood excitement butterflies".

//6  I loved the Goofy "How To" videos that old school Disney used to show. I remembered some of my favourites and then it lead me to remember Jiminy Cricket's "I'm No Fool" episodes. The "I'm No Fool" theme song has been stuck in my head ever since I heard it the other day. Take a look if you want to walk down memory lane with me...





 I left out a lot of favourites of mine; Polly Pocket, Barbie Fold In Fun House, Little House on the Prairie, The Wonder Years, Fern Gully and Dennis the Menace to name a few.. But the idea of today's post wasn't to share all of my favourites growing up, but to share all of those things that get me excited again, like when I was a kid. I loved looking up all of the t.v. shows, movies and toys that excite me and link me to some really special memories.

What childhood memories give you "childhood excitement butterflies"?!

The ABC's of Boobies

  Welcome to Booby Town- population ME! The rumour is that once you have kids your boobs go downhill, as in literally. I have never been a large busted girl. But I have always been a fan of my Twin B's. They've been perky and bouncy since I grew them in the summer of 2000. Well, I had boobs before then but they weren't anything to really brag about until that summer.
 I remember it well.. I was visiting my cousins in Lafayette, Louisiana and it was by far the best summer I have ever had- to date. I turned fifteen that summer and found that the boys were paying attention to me! I left a  scrawny, little girl and came back with curves and a pair of boob-ays. My parents probably gasped when they saw me get off of that plane. I had a nose piercing , hips, boobs, I was wearing makeup and new clothes.. (the kind that may or may not show off a little bit of cleavage.)

 I think it's obvious in the two photos that I changed during that summer. In the first picture, I look innocent and sweet. I'm wearing a plain, lilac coloured tank top that I bought specifically for my trip, with a bathing suit underneath. In the second picture I'm wearing makeup, my shirt is tight and there is some cleavage showing and even the smile on my face is a little bit cocky. In the first picture I am posing with my older cousin's best friend and in the second I have two 'older' boys sitting with me and the one boy that doesn't have his arm around me, (the boy that lived next door to my cousins that I had a huuuuuge crush on) is pinching my bum. (Maybe that's why I'm smiling so hard....) The point is that I changed that summer. I grew me some lady boobies and have had them ever since.

 The one thing that I love about my body without a question are my twins B's. They are were perky and my preferred kind of porridge. (Not too big, not too small; juuuuust right.) I've never complained about them and have always been quite content.

This is me the day after my wedding AKA- the best shape I've ever been in. My Twin B's looked their best that day too. And, yeah I wanted an excuse to show off how smokin' I looked!!!

 One summer day, in July of 2012 I was sitting across from my husband and he was like, "Wow.. your boobs look HUGE today." I was sitting on a patio and could see my reflection in the glass and I saw them for the first time and agreed. My girls had doubled in size. What the hell!!?? Fast forward two weekends later and bingo bango- we find out that we are pregnant. We're having a peanut and that's why my boobies were so big!

 During my pregnancy my belly grew, my appetite grew and my Twin B's were no longer considered B's but definitely C's... As I neared my 39th and final week of pregnancy those puppies were so engorged and huge that I was beginning to get a touch nervous. Alina arrived one gorgeous, sunny March morning and with her, came a whole different boob experience. Now, people are quick to tell you that your 'fun' days are over and that you can kiss sleep goodbye for the rest of your life because babies are hard work, blah, blah, blah. But one thing that people don't really warn the mother about; is how huge and foreign your boobs become to you. I'd like to take you on a ride.. to a place where nipples are always protected inside of soft, cushioned bras or satin material nightgowns. The nipples are just minding their own business, as the rest of the breast is growing enormous in size. They say to each other, " I don't know about you, but I feel like I've gotten bigger, as in my size all around has doubled?" To which the other nipple replies, "Yeah, you and me both and our colouring has changed too... Something's up and I don't like this feeling I'm getting.."
 Well, the poor nipples don't see it coming. Baby arrives and out comes the boobs along with the nipples in public and there is this needy, gnawing, wet mouth suctioning onto the frightened little gals.. Once the ordeal is over, the nipples feel relief. But sadly, it is not the end for them. Oh no, this awful gnawing happens often, very often, nearly every three hours sometimes more! It doesn't help that the creature sucking away and her mother have no idea what they are doing at first. So, things get pretty rough for the nipples.. Lanolin is applied to heal the damage that has already been done in the first three days. The owner of the Twin D's at this point, is crying because it is all too painful and she is just about ready to call it quits..

I'm sure my mom's intentions were to capture Alina but I mean LOOK at those BOOBS! This would be the same time that we were having most difficulty.. (Alina's about 3 days old.)

 Then, something wonderful happens, mother and baby learn around the same time how it is all supposed to work and there is relief on the nipples.. The boobs aren't as engorged if they are pumped and the nipples are much less tender now that they are used to this sort of daily treatment.
 Today, all is right in the world of boobs and nipples. Alina is still breastfed, but not as often as she used to be. She can go for four hours without having to latch on desperately for food. Today marks the first day that I put on a REAL bra again. That's right, a bra that is for a woman that doesn't have to breastfeed, a bra that teenage boys hope to snap off with a couple of fingers, a bra that gives my now Twin C's a bit of a lift!  I still have my nursing bras for at night and for when Alina and I don't go anywhere, but as for today; today I'm just like everybody else.

Yeah, I took an all boob photo shoot .. and then yeah, I made a boob collage. It's my blog.. I'll put my boobs out there if I want to... Ha!

 So today, today is about celebrating Haley's boobs! Hurray to my boobs for being normal again! Hurray for not jiggling like crazy in public because their is literally zero support in a nursing bra. Hurray to me for having a sexy looking bra on today. Finally, I can claim my Twin C's back to their rightful owner. Well, Alina no longer gets them full time, just part time. It's a glorious, booby filled kind of day.

Sick Day

 I read some blogs yesterday morning and felt sorry for myself for bit. I was up a lot during the night, plugging Alina's soother in. Her button nose started dripping heavily a half hour before her bedtime and the realization kicked in, that she had a cold. I felt pretty tired yesterday morning and then my girl decided to wake up an hour earlier than usual. Once she was up, fed and back down for a nap, I decided to jump in the shower quickly. As soon as the shampoo was in my hair she started crying again. I raced through the motions; shampoo, rinse, condition, barely rinse and I was out. I dried as quickly as I could, pulling on clothes that were sticking to my wet body. Suddenly, Alina decided she didn't need me as urgently as she thought because she fell back asleep. S-I-G-H. . .
 So I looked over some blogs and read about a girlie getting up slow, with a cup of coffee and a cute puppy by her side, a blogger reminiscing about a holiday spent eating delicious food and surrounding herself with great weather and history and a young lady that went to a clothing store; bought a bunch of wonderful items for herself and had to ditch looking at the rest of the clothes, to avoid spending another penny. So, after reading I looked down at my ensemble and saw my favourite casual long sleeve shirt from Costco, my dad's pair of Oscar Meyer Weiner p.j. pants and my comfy mocassins on my feet. I like to call it my "Tired Mom Uniform".

  Normally I get up, shower, put on make up and real clothes. Yesterday, I sort of felt like it was my sick day too. Alina and I spent the day, hanging out in our living room. She played with her toys for a bit, but eventually, she couldn't find the strength to keep her head up. So I plucked her out of 'her office' and sat her down beside me. I ended up having to dab at her poor little honker constantly while she played and drooled. She wasn't as busy as she usually is, so it was nice for the two of us to sit quietly together and play nice.
 I snapped a few pictures of her to show how sick she looked. Then, near the end of  her "I'm Sick Photo Shoot" she perked up and returned to her smiling self.

1. My poor girl looking very, very sad early this morning.
2. Oh, enough sad- Alina is not known for being unhappy!
3. Making sure to have lots of fluid in her body- such a good girl.
4. In the evening, playing with her new blocks from Baba. Still sick, but very happy.

  I love being Alina's mom but sometimes it gets tiresome and that's okay. I can admit that and not feel like a bad person. I love my baby girl- every snotty inch of her! I did enjoy our one on one couch-play time today. Plus when she's sick, she cuddles me more and I will always be up for mommy-daughter snuggles.

 Before I know it, Alina will be a teenager that is too busy and into her own life to have time to sit and snuggle her mama on the couch. I'll take all I can get now, while she's still my little baby.

 One of my all time favourite bands is The Tragically Hip. I love so many of their songs but for some reason I am in the mood to listen to this little tune called, "The Last Recluse".

Halloween Link-Up Part II

  I am linking up again with Helene and Sarah today even though I did yesterday. BUT I was watching an episode of Ellen today and I had to share this video with everybody. It is two people that work on the Ellen Degeneres Show that are terrified of haunted houses. Well, Amy is afraid of haunted houses and Andy is afraid of everything. He is really jumpy normally and he always gets mad when people scare him. I was laughing so hard at this video I cried. Please, enjoy... (And yes, I had Alex in mind when I posted this because she is a haunted house queen. I wanted to show everyone how badly I would react if I had to go into a haunted house.. I'd be a combination of Andy and Amy.. no joke!)

The Conjuring Conjured The S*** Out Of Me

Well it's official. I let Rob convince me to watch the scariest movie I have seen in a very, very long time. I don't want to say it was the scariest movie I've ever seen. I still have Pet Semetary haunting me for the rest of my life. (Thank you Dad.) But this movie is definitely at the top of my all time "Scare The Shit Out Of Me And Haunt Me For Days Afterwards" list.
 I have recently confessed to hating it when people ruin movies or tv shows- so I do have to give out a big SPOILER ALERT to any big scary movie fans out there that still want to see "The Conjuring". If you haven't seen it and you don't want to know anything about it before seeing the film; play it safe and stop reading. I don't think I'll reveal too much but everyone is different when it comes to what they consider 'spoiling' a movie. Anyone that hates scary movies as much as me; another warning, the shit I am about to reveal isn't only terrifying but it is also 'pop into your head at the worst moments' scary... You know, when you wake up at four in the morning and have to pee but then for some reason you remember that part in the movie where 'something' is yanking the legs of unsuspecting, sleeping girls..? Suddenly, you don't have to pee in the middle of the night.. ever again.

 The movie is set in 1971 in Rhode Island. The Perron Family moves into a farmhouse and it isn't long before strange things begin to happen...

The Arnold Estate; Copyright Andrea Perron 

 I hate watching scary movies and I can thank my Dad for that. He always liked watching movies, it's what we did when we visited him. We'd go straight from our house, drive two and a half hours to his town and we'd pull into the movie store. He loved scary movies and so did my sister. My brother endured them because he probably just wanted to be included and I whined because I hated them. They scared me and I was young.
 Once this movie was put in, I instantly started feeling the familiar feelings I get when I know the movie is going to be good and by good I mean scare the hell out of me. The backs of my knees get sweaty, I clutch for a blanket or pillow; anything to have something in between me and the t.v. (like the movie itself is threatening to me..) I actually get anxiety when I watch because the anticipation really gets to me and especially the anticipation in this particular film was intense. But, this movie wasn't just your average  horror film, like "Michael" or "Friday The 13th", it was based on a true story. That is what makes this movie so terrifying. The things that were happening to the five daughters actually happened to them. If there is one thing that I am, it's a believer. I don't believe everything I read or hear, but I do believe in paranormal activity. Hell, I've experienced some on a small scale. That is also what intrigued me about this movie and what probably kept me watching it.

 Even though I was totally freaked out by the events that happened to this family in the 1970's I am also very intrigued by the phenomena behind it all. I ended up doing some research and the eldest sister, Andrea has since written two books about her and her family's experience living in the farmhouse. There is a great  Q and A with Andrea where I found a lot of my information about the family and the daughters. 
 The five daughters were; Andrea (12), Nancy (10), Christine (9), Cindy (8) and April (5).  (Those were their ages when they first moved into the house.)  I am 28 and would have serious issues now if anything like what they experienced happened to me. I can't imagine the nightmares and awful memories they all carry with them, after having experienced such horror. 

The Perron daughters with the actress that played them in the movie. Left to Right: Cindy,Nancy,April,Christine and Andrea.

 In the beginning of the movie, Christine is sleeping beside her sister Nancy. She is half asleep and tells her sister to stop pulling her leg. After awhile, Christine is abruptly yanked nearly out of her bed by something and it is then that she realizes that it isn't her sister. She sees something in the darkness behind the bedroom door and when Nancy gets up to investigate, the door slams in her face. Andrea, the oldest experiences her sister Cindy sleep walking in the night. It's a problem she's had before, but it seemed to intensify after moving into the house. She ends up leading her sister Andrea to an old wardrobe in Andrea's room. Later Andrea is attacked by something jumping off of the top of the wardrobe. April is the youngest and actually talks to a boy that lives in the house. Andrea later explains in the Q and A that April was the most open to what was happening to them at the time. She was young and liked the boy that visited her. The mother Carolyn seems the most affected by what happens in the house. While the girls are in school, she is playing "Hide and Clap" with her daughter April. She is blindfolded and April hides. She gets to use three claps, to help find her daughter. She is lead into Andrea's room where the wardrobe opens on its own. She asks for the third clap and a set of hands comes out of the closet and claps right there beside her. As she pulls her blindfold off, she hears April giggling and running by the doorway. Very eery shit, I'm telling you. I'm writing about it now, in the early afternoon alone with Alina and my palms are sweating.

 Later on in the film, Ed and Lorraine Warren are contacted to help. In reality, the Warren's actually seek out the Perron family, but the details of that don't seem to matter much to the story. The Warren's were paranormal investigators that were best known for their involvement with George and Kathy Lutz and the Amityville Horror case. Lorraine was a professional clairvoyant and medium and her husband George was a self taught, self proclaimed, expert Demonologist.  (Not something that most people would nod with approval on a resume...)

Two of the bravest people...! Ed and Lorraine Warren.

 In the movie, they come to the Perron's aid and help exorcise the witch, Bathsheba Sherman out of Carolyn Perron. The entire ordeal is beyond terrifying and at the same time; it's touching how Lorraine gets the demon out of Carolyn in the end. Who would think that a horror movie based on a true story could somehow be touching in the end?
 Andrea Perron decided to write about her experiences thirty years after the nightmares she survived in the old farmhouse. She is a strong believer in; what happens, happens for a reason. She claims that all of those things were supposed to happen to her and her family and she wouldn't change anything if she could. Now that is saying something. She is very protective of her mother's privacy. I get the feeling that Carolyn has put all of the haunting behind her and just wants to live her life in peace. That is what I would want to do. But who knows what anyone would do when faced with something so awful and unheard of.
  Oh and this morning, the day after watching one of the scariest movies I've seen, I am greeted with this creepy scene in the backyard...

There has been a fog hanging over our town for the last few days.. Everywhere else it's beautiful.

 Well this has all been very creepy and I think I've set an uneasy mood .. I had a feeling I was going to do that with today's post, SO I made sure to snap some cute pictures of Alina in a Halloween outfit just for today's link-up. Speaking of today's Halloween Link-Up- check out  Helene and Sarah's blogs to see what spooky, Halloween-related stories they have to share...

Crazy Shit Rob Does! Chapter One.

 I ended up getting quite a few pageviews on Friday for my "He Bites" post. It was fun to write and I'm proud to say that I ended up getting a lot of positive feedback from my readers. I can't deny that it probably had a lot to do with it being about my husband.. Rob. He is one hell of a funny character. So having said that; I want to ride this 'Rob Wave' a little longer..
 With some help, I came up with an idea for a recurring blog post:

 

 Chapter One:   "The Crazy Shit Rob Does... with the Baby:"

 I did a little feature on this topic when I did a Guest Post at Rhyme and Ribbons. I researched a bit more into this topic and ended up finding a lot more goofy pictures to share.. 

Every single picture is a result of Alina's Daddy's imagination and boredom.

 The Moon:  Alina's Auntie Buggie (Auntie Erin- Rob's sister) was visiting and when she jumped into her truck to go back home Rob cheered her up with a little naked baby bum. These are the kinds of things to expect when sharing the wheel with Rob as a parent. Her pants and diaper may be removed at any given time in order to get a good chuckle from the receiving end of the moon. 

 The Swedish Chef:  This particular discovery happened by accident. Alina's thighs grew much faster than the rest of her body. She has a "thick" set of thighs and all of her cute little shorts that go with a bunch of her summer tops became way too tight for her to wear. Rob's solution was to pull the elastic out of the shorts to make room for her baby thunder thighs. Once the shorts were fixed, it was obvious to Rob to put them on her head, instantly creating a chef look. He eagerly instructed me to grab a wooden spoon in the kitchen for the spontaneous photo op. Another key with being Rob's co-pilot in life; always be prepared to grab props for impromptu photo shoots. 

  The Goat:  Another person to thank for Alina's funny pictures is her Nonna, Rob's mom. Nonna will never pass up an opportunity to put something cute or goofy onto Alina's head. She saw a goat headband at the market a few visits ago and just had to scoop it up for a future photo op with baby. I was napping and woke to a text message from Rob.. with a picture titled; Goat Baby. 

 The Gangster:  I actually forgot about this one. I was looking through Rob's Iphone Picture File he has on the computer and came across this beauty. I can't lie; she looks pretty bad ass as a baby gangster. I wouldn't mess with her. 

  The Pilot:  This one was featured on my guest post a little while ago. But I can't help but love the expression on her face. She looks like she actually thinks Rob is going to start up the plane and send her on her way. Mind you, I don't blame her for this fear because anything is possible with a daddy like Rob. 

 There is never a dull moment when Rob is home and that is what makes me love him so much! He's loads of fun and my life would be very boring without him. Plus I have a weird side that needs attention too.

 This little trick started pretty much as soon as she wasn't a puddle of mushy newborn. As soon as she had good control of her neck, she was up in the air held by her daddy's legs. I freaked internally because that is just a long way down if she decided to moved suddenly. But something I have learned being a parent with Rob is that I need to trust him and believe him when he says that he won't let anything bad happen to our little girl. Now I know he means that with all of his heart, but I still like to monitor "the crazy" that he bestows upon our little one. She's only wee for so long, so I'd like to keep her as unbroken and limber as possible. !! I think he's creating a little thrill seeker though. He can throw her in the air and I think, "Oh my goodness she's going to be terrified..!" and her reaction is always the same. She's ecstatic with a wide a gaping smile on her sweet face. So, Mommy chooses to back off and let the two of them have their fun...

 This was my first edition of "Crazy Shit Rob Does!".. Thank you for joining me and oh, I will have much, much, much more to report on soon enough..!

 Oh and I was just about to push PUBLISH, when I saw on Facebook that Rob posted a new picture of Alina with this as the title:

"Something's off about Alina lately. She's been really mopey, sensitive to sunlight and she keeps trying to bite us. Is this normal for a 7 month old? Maybe I'm just imagining things."

 

He Bites

 Alex from Let Life Be Like Music inspired me with a link up post called; Boys Behind The Blog. The first Thursday of every month a list of questions is posted. Ask your husband, boyfriend, brother, dad, etc. the list of questions and then you post the answers on the third Thursday of that month, linking up with everybody. It's a cute idea and I was anxious to join in on the fun.
 I cheated a little bit because there were five sets of questions that I missed out on. So I took one question from each set and had my husband Rob answer those questions.

Blogland, this is my husband Rob. He is not only my hubby, my person, my co-pilot and partner in crime, he's my best friend and the only person I can think of that I want to spend every single day with. He's an absolute genius outside, with tools and in the yard and at work but a total reject in the kitchen with a stove, all thumbs in the bathroom with a toilet brush and a complete and an utter fool with a mop and bucket. (As in; I love him and he is extremely handy and helpful at everything, but when it comes to picking up after himself, being organized or making meals, he is seriously lacking.)

I'll ask Rob the questions with ZERO filter, folks! So no matter what his answers, I'll be posting exactly what he says.. and I think I'll take a page from Alex's book and add my own commentary into the mix!

1.  If you had a blog what would the title be? 
  Rob:  "Rob's Blog" .. no wait, "Bathroom Musings".
 
 This is why men don't blog. They're just gross...

Yeah, I made him a button.. Just in case.

2.  List three random facts about yourself...
  //1  Rob: " I like to bite things. You know, I grind my teeth a lot.. You know how you want to squeeze Alina when you're holding her sometimes..? It's an animalistic thing. I'm not the only one.."

 Sounds like somebody feels a bit weird about that one. He's trying to make it sound like everyone likes to bite things. I'm sorry, that is not the case Mr. Weirdo Bitey McBitersons. But I can admit to everyone that he does like to bite things. Don't stick your finger by his mouth and expect it not to be bitten.. This all comes from experience... (I warned that we were weird..)

//2.  Rob: "The result of a Maple Leaf's game can make or break my night"

 Yes! This is so true. I find myself willing the Leafs to just WIN so that we can have a happy night. When they lose and believe me- they do, he gets all down and disappointed AND mad. It's annoying and luckily this year (so far!) they have been winning more than losing. But their starting goalie just got rocked yesterday by his own player and I believe he has a concussion so he may be out for awhile. See how much I have to care about a hockey team I don't even cheer for? (Side Note: I DO cheer for them now because they are always on my t.v. But I will always be an Edmonton Oiler's fan at heart.)

//3  Rob: " I really enjoyed the t.v. show, "Traffic Light" and was very upset when it was cancelled after only five episodes."

 Hey, we said random.. I agree with this one. I also enjoyed that show and thought that it was going to be part of our new show line up last year.

3.  Who is your celebrity crush? 
 Rob: "Minka Kelly in my dreams and Natasha Staniszewski on a daily basis... wait, say day to day. On a daily basis sounds like I masturbate to her everyday..."

 Hahahahahaha! Oh, I really enjoyed that answer. Then I told him that I was writing what he said word for word and he thought that was pretty hilarious too. He has a serious crush on Natasha which kind of bugs me more than his crush on Minka. Minka is a hot celebrity that is far, far away. Natasha works at Sports Center and she is cool. She knows her sports, her hockey and I think the two of them would hit it off big time if they met. Natasha is certainly more of a threat to me.. So, I hate her.

4.  What is your favourite social media? 
  Rob: "Twitter On The Shitter."

  I feel like I need to explain this one. Every time that Rob has to 'go' he is always searching for his phone. He once referred to this bathroom time with his phone as, "Twitter On The Shitter." Now, whenever he is looking for his phone I just say, "Twitter On The Shitter." Yeah, we keep it classy over here.

@JoeStewart17 waking up on the bathroom floor at 8am isn't so bad if you're a used to it as I am. #ipukealot
— BobbyJunks (@BobbyJunks) August 14, 2012

@Kyli_Stewart @JoeStewart17 @HJunks do you think hand sanitizer works as well on feet? #workbootsstink
— BobbyJunks (@BobbyJunks) August 14, 2012

@JoeStewart17 yeah I hate hockey. be nice to just curl up with a book and a cup of peppermint tea on Saturday nights #fuckyougarybettman
— BobbyJunks (@BobbyJunks) September 18, 2012

(That last one is a conversation between my brother in law and my husband about the NHL lock out last year... Dink toucher? I am telling you, boys are just gross! Imagine if I started calling my girlfriends; Hey ya dink toucher, how's it going!?" Actually.. I should, that would be hilarious!)

5.     Who is your favourite hockey team? 

 To be honest, I didn't even ask him this question. It was more of a given.. and I knew that I had a ton of pictures of him in his Leaf's jersey over the years so I used this question. (The actual question was who his favourite football team is. But in Canada we don't really care too much about football. Canada's hockey is like America's football.)

 I'm making this collage a bit big and obnoxious, just so it's easier to see the small pictures.. Rob has been a Toronto Maple Leafs fan since he was a kid. He has been religiously cheering them on since he can remember. They haven't had a very good run in the last oh.. ten years, so it just goes to show how dedicated he really is. We live in B.C. and we're surrounded by Vancouver Canucks fans. We hate the Canucks with a passion, so it is very hard for us to be here with all of 'their fans' around us. We do what we can to represent our teams, in our own small ways. The baby boy in the pictures is my nephew Quinn, when he lived here. My brother in law Joe is the other guy in the pictures. (You know, the one that referred to my husband as the 'dink toucher'..) I swear Rob was more excited to have a baby so that he could dress her in Leaf's paraphernalia. It's pretty cute though.

 I really enjoyed this link up! Go visit Mallory at Mal Smiles and Stephanie at Never The Same Spice Twice to link up with "Boys Behind The Blog" next month!

Oh and it's Friday! Linking up with Yoga Pants today with a great new band that Rob introduced me to; Imagine Dragons. Their song "Radioactive" was an opening song for one of the Boston- Toronto play-off games last year and ever since, he's been hooked. These guys are really great and one song he's been singing a lot in the house lately is "Hear Me". I hope it gets stuck in your heads too! Happy Friday everybody!







I just read the requirements for linking up with Sarah at Venus Trapped In Mars for her Fan Friday Link-Up and I am SO eligible with this post just because I talked about hockey several times, celebrities, hot Natasha from Sports Center, Rob's hatred towards Gary Bettman and I created my husband's button to his fake-imaginary blog. So basically I am Sarah..

The Past, My Present, The Future

 In high school I remember having to write down where we thought we'd be in 10 years, in 20 years, etc.. I wish I had a copy of exactly what I wrote down.. This class wasn't English, or  I would still have a copy of that lesson, or at least what I jotted down. Believe it or not, I've kept every single binder from my high school english classes. It's the only work from high school that I have held onto. I was proud of my work, my projects and my journal entries.

 I do remember what I said I would be doing.. I will assume that I was fifteen when I was presented with this question, so ten years from then I would be twenty-five. What did my fifteen year old self expect from her twenty-five year old self?  One fictional woman; Carrie. Bradshaw.
 I remember it well. I wanted to be independently living on my own, without roommates. I wanted to live in a big city like New York, but to still live in Canada. I imagined Toronto, as a comparison. I would live on my own, in a small but cozy apartment, downtown Toronto. I would write in a column of a newspaper or a successful magazine, just like Carrie in Sex in the City. I wished for someone to be a part of my life, romantically but not to be my main focus. I wished for friends and a great social life, but to be mostly focused on my career. I would be working secretly on my first novel on the side.. when I wasn't writing for my column. I would be beautiful, bold and in charge of my own life.

 In reality; at twenty-five I was a newlywed. I married Rob six days before my twenty-fifth birthday. My best friend, confidant and sister moved the day after my wedding, so I was still a bit heartbroken when I turned two-five. My spirits were high because I was freshly married but part of me felt sadness at the loss of my best buddy and my baby nephew. Work wise I was most definitely not doing what fifteen year old me expected. I worked and still work at a pharmacy, as a pharmacy technician, no school required. General job description is receiving, processing and physically 'filling' prescriptions. I manage the inventory of the front store and ensure that we have the proper amount of prescription drugs for the following day. I am basically a secretary to the pharmacist and make sure that people get what they are asking for. It's not a bad gig, but it couldn't be further from what I envisioned.

The collage I created obviously doesn't cover everything that was going on when I was twenty-five. But it shows an idea of what was going on that year. I work, everyday normally, so there's the one picture I have of myself at work. Rob and I enjoyed our summer after we were married, going camping and spending lots of time together as newlyweds. The picture at the bottom is the day after my wedding, when my sister and her family moved to the East Coast.. A sad day, but a vivid memory when I think back to being twenty-five.. Other big things happened that year, but I choose to focus on mainly the good stuff..

 If fifteen year old me could have looked into the future to see where I would be at twenty five; owning my home, living with my newly married hot loving husband, working at a successful job (not career)... I think that fifteen year old me would have been disappointed that I wasn't writing and that I lived in a retirement community instead of the bustling, busy city of Toronto. But, really.. what did fifteen year old me expect? I didn't have the drive to go to secondary school because I became all swept up in myself and what I wanted to be doing, rather than what I needed to be doing. Without school, little girl- careers are scarce. But I will say that fifteen year old me would have been pleased to see that I was married, with someone that made me happy. She would see that my life was fun and that I was doing things that fulfilled my wants and desires. She'd also see that I was beautiful, bold and in charge of my own life, but with a co-pilot holding my hand and walking beside me along the way.

Oh fifteen year old me.. the things you will learn...

  If I was asked to envision ten years from now I bet I would have a better idea of what I would be doing.. But it is still quite a mystery. So much can happen in ten years. Alina will be ten, in grades five or six. I imagine I will have another child, possibly two more.. I hope that I will be happy wherever I am working. In all honesty, it would be ideal for me to be writing, for money. I'm not too sure how I'll pull that off. I have ten years to figure that one out though. I imagine we'll be in a bigger house.. something with a big tree and swing out front. I'd love to have a big, wrap around deck like in the movies for plenty of family gatherings.

 I would be thirty-eight and I hope that we have traveled to four different places that we've always wanted to go. I can dream big! I did when I was fifteen, I can when I'm twenty-eight. But most importantly, I hope that we all have our health, we all have each other and that we are all happy with life, like we are now.