Let's dust this puppy off!

I've been so missing lately! With the wedding planning and a surprise visit from my mom, who lives 1800 kms away (!), life has been pretty crazy, in a great way!

I've kept up with my Photo-a-Day project though, so here are a few faves from the past few weeks. If anyone's out there reading this, please say hi!

jan 05 - My sweet, sweet Sammy. She'll be 12 in August, and is still as frisky as a kitten!


jan 06 - Perfection is overrated.


jan 10 - Just a lamp. Not sure why I like this image so much. The texture and lines, I guess!


jan 13 - Sweet, sweet doggies!


jan 14 - A few screws loose.


jan 16 - Mom's chicken stew. My mom, who lives 1800 kms away, showed up on my doorstep unannounced on Thursday night. Her fiance gave her a plane ticket to visit me, for Christmas, and she and my fiance concocted this huge scheme that culminated in my being a sobbing wreck when my mom, who I haven't seen in seven months, walked through my front door. I've taken a few days off work, to just hang out with her, doing wedding stuff, and yesterday she taught me how to make chicken stew. It was the most delicious chicken stew I've ever had, though I'm sure it was the experience that made it so delicious.


Jan 17 - A quick photo excursion with my mom to Morningstar Mill, despite the brutal cold.


jan 22 - I ordered my dress today! And took another picture of Harley. Shocker! I just love his little grey beard. If you look closely, you can see remnants of his breakfast stuck in his whiskers. :)


jan 23 - A dead fern in our backyard.


I'll try to post more often from now on, so I don't do one big photo dump once a month! :)

Happy new year!

Yikes, I haven't posted since Christmas Eve, and here we are in 2009!

dec 25 - Christmas in Cottam with Brian's family. This is Nana, Brian's grandmother, opening a gift from her daughter, Brian's mom, Pam. It's a framed photo I took of Pam and her brother, Bill. *warm fuzzies*


dec 26 - Sam, Brian's nephew, telling me all about his favourite Christmas presents. One of the highlights of this Christmas, you know, aside from getting engaged, was this conversation I had with Sam:
Sam: Tanya, can I ask you a question?
Me: Sure, bud. What's up?

Then he climbs up on my lap and asks in a very serious and quiet voice...

Sam: Can I call you Aunt Tanya from now on?
Me: Buddy, I would *love* that.

*warm fuzzies*


dec 28 - fiddle - I was so psyched about our engagement and my gorgeous new ring, that my other amazing present has been neglected! Brian also gave me a brand new 4/4 Menzel fiddle and all the trimmings! I really am the luckiest girl ever.


dec 30 - A horrible picture by most standards, but it's just so classic "Daddy and the dogs" that I love it. Brian can't lay down without the dogs climbing all over him, so this is a pretty accurate picture of them.


dec 31 - Happy new year! We went to an Ugly Sweater party tonight for New Year's Eve, and I got my resized ring back from the jeweler today, so I thought I'd showcase those two things in my pic today. I know, I broke my "no cameraphone pics" rule, but I won't make a habit of it. :)


Posting! Stay tuned for more!

My workspace

Just thought I'd share this pic of my workspace.



It's okay to admit you're jealous.

 A few pics with the  new camera.

Our sweet girl, Princess.

Our handsome boy, Harley.

My honeybear (Don't tell him I told you I call him that. He'll deny it.):

Funny story. I was sitting on the floor playing with (and obviously taking pictures of) the dogs, and noticed my reflection in this doorknob. It's funny what grabs your eye, but I think this is one of my new faves! Yup, I'm a weirdo!

I love autumn! I love the colours, the sound of the leaves crunching under my feet, and Hallowe'en!

Brian surprised me by picking up costumes for the dogs! Say hi to Princess Snow White, and Spiderman! Aren't they hilariously adorable? (Click on the pictures to see bigger versions!)



We went to a doggie costume party slash fundraiser for the rescue today, at the off-leash dog park. So many dogs, and so many people adoring each and every one. See on the far left, the black, red and blue dot? That's Harley. Part 1 of 3.



See on the far left, the black, red and blue dot about to whiz past me? That's Harley. Part 2 of 3.



See the tiny black dot smack dab in the middle of the frame? That's Harley. He LOVED being able to just run his brains out, and man, did he sleep when we got home! Part 3 of 3.



Not one to partake in such frivolous things as running one's brains out, Princess Snow White was content to hold court and receive adulation from her loyal subjects.



I tell ya, I was hoping to get some great pics of all the dogs today, but they moved so fast I usually ended up just getting their butts on their way by me! There were so many cute costumes, including Aunt Jemima, a caterpillar, a taxi, and this bumblebee.



Both our dogs came to us via Pugalug Pug Rescue, in Toronto, Ontario. Today's event was to raise money for one pug currently in foster care and in desperate need of serious medical care. The donation jar was full to the brim, so hopefully Winnie will get all the help she needs before moving on to her forever home. We did our part today by making a donation, and buying the super cute shirt Harley is modeling here. Unfortunately, they only had the shirt in a Medium, and nothing more Rubenesque for Princess. Maybe next year.



And, last but not least, I thought I'd share this one a friend took with my camera tonight. I was demonstrating the wonders of my new Gary Fong Puffer pop-up flash diffuser. Hee!



Hope everyone had a happy and safe Halloween! I can't believe it's November already!!!