Bare Bum Bay

This pontoon boat got a lot of use this weekend.  What did we do before we had a pontoon boat?  I guess we were young and into things like tubing.  But now we just want to lounge around all weekend.  And this past weekend that's pretty much what we did.

Bare Bum Bay has become a cottage tradition.  A small bay off the end of our lake, it has a narrow entrance and a no wake rule.  I think it got it's name because it's secluded and you can skinny dip there.  We're all family, so that would be weird, but we still call it Bare Bum Bay.  We drive the pontoon boat over there, anchor it and just sit.  For hours.  On Saturday for example we went out in the morning, went back for lunch for about an hour and then headed back out until dinner time.  Some people drink out there.  This girl isn't much of a drinker, so I sipped on lemonade and read my book.

 Oliver is quite the boating dog these days.  However, he's not a fan when we all go out onto the party dock and he's left alone on the boat.

 The other highlight of this past weekend was watching my three year old cousin water ski.  Have you ever seen such a thing?  I haven't!  

And next weekend?  We're going to do it all over again.

Expect the Unexpected....It Starts Again

I really want to blog today because I've been seriously slacking lately, but I just don't know what I want to talk about.  So I just opened up a new post and started writing....

Ok let's talk about Big Brother. 

It's weird for me because Big Brother Canada just ended a few weeks ago.  So honestly I'm kind of Big Brother'd out.  Plus when comparing last seasons's Big Brother and either season of Big Brother Canada, the Canadian version was actually significantly better with more likeable players.  Step up your game America!

But anyways, I've watched every season, so I can't quit now. 

Here are my picks for who will do the best after watching the first two episodes (I always like to make these predictions just to see if I can pick them right, which I usually can't)

Amber

I don't know if Amber will actually do well, but she seems fairly put together and likeable.

Cody

If Cody can make it past the first week he will make it far, because he's cute and people already like him.

Donny

I LOVE Donny!  He has the cutest smile and is just so endearing.  I think if he can get in with the right people he will be super trustworthy and will fly under the radar.  He also knows the game, and I think that his strategy to just try to come across funny is a great one at this point in the game!

Joey

Once again people like her, America likes her already and she seems smart.  I feel like she might run this show.

On the other hand, there are a few people that I think are going to do terribly in this game.

Zach

Zach's home interview stated that he hated people who talked, breathed and lived.  He came into the house and said that he didn't care what any of these people had to say he just wanted to win the game.  Well then bud, you need to find a new game to play.  Big Brother is predominately a social game, and unless he's a super good actor, it's the relationships that you make that win you this game.  I expect him to be gone very soon if anybody else picks up on his hatred for people.

Caleb

Winning the first HOH is generally never a good thing.  And being cocky from the beginning is also not good.  People will now see him as a threat plus he acts like he knows he's a threat, which is just annoying.

Are there any other Big Brother fans out there?  What did you think of the newbies on this season?

Living Together Before Marriage? No Thanks!

It's weird because I feel like I often have to explain to people that we didn't live together before we were married.  We are definitely in the minority these days and most people just assume that you lived together before marriage.  I think that you should do what works best for you, but I do have some fairly strong opinions on this as well.  

I wanted to wait to live together partially because this is just the way that I was brought up and my parents had fairly strong opinions on it as well.  

I wanted something to be special after our wedding.  If you live together, then you get married and it really is just a piece of paper.  You come home after the wedding and nothing has changed.  For us everything had changed, it was this whole new adventure and we both found it very exciting!  

I know people hate this opinion, but I truly believe that if getting married is important to you, living together first just prolongs it.  News flash, men don't care about weddings.  (Ok maybe some do, but I know a lot who don't.)  If you live together, there is no pressure for them to propose because they really don't see the difference between that and getting married. I have seen time and time again a girl moves in with her boyfriend and then gets frustrated when he doesn't propose for two years.  I also think that when you live together, real life takes over and you think more about household finances and less about finding money for that ring.  

And that whole you should live together before marriage to make sure it will work thing?  Before you get married you should probably know the other person well enough to know if it will work.  Sure we had some bumps when we first got married with learning to deal with the other persons habits, but it wasn't really a huge deal.  Plus it's been proven that the divorce rate is higher in people who live together first.  (Ok so maybe this statistic has been recently disproven.)  I think maybe because people rush into it because it doesn't seem like as big of a commitment as a marriage.

So there you have it.  If you did live with your significant other before marriage, don't be offended by this.  I know a lot of people do it, this is just my perspective from someone who didn't do it and my reasoning behind it.  Because these days, it seems like people don't really understand this reasoning!

Summer has Begun!

This was just a beautiful weekend.  We had amazing weather and a pool to lie beside.  It doesn't get much better than that.

Us Canadians get what feels like 2 weeks of summer followed by 16 months of winter, and so we have to take advantage! 

And then there are two year olds.  Oh how I love two year olds.  2-4 are my favourite ages.  I just can't get enough of them.  Ryan says those aren't good ages because they are in diapers.  I feel like I can look past that.  But then again, I'm not changing the diapers of the two year olds that I know.

On Sunday morning we went on a big bike ride through a local park.  It's amazing that this beauty is right in our own backyard and we so rarely take advantage of it.  We travel all over the world to see beautiful sites and we just need to take some time to appreciate what we have 5 minutes from us. Plus, you know I love a good workout and that bike ride definitely felt pretty good.

It seems like we don't do it enough, but my favourite workouts are the ones that I can enjoy with Ryan.  Biking, hiking, waterfall hunting.  You hardly feel like you are working out because you are having fun and also sharing an experience at the same time.  Hopefully we have lots more of it to come this summer!

Suntan Lotion is Good For Me

Scent is our sense that has the strongest connection to memory.  When I was in high school, I participated in a three month exchange to France.  The house that I lived in there smelled a certain way.  I can't even tell you what the smell was, but every once in awhile I will smell that scent again and it brings me right back.

I have one Grandma that always smelled like Avon cream.  My other grandma like orange juice.  Those two scents remind me of my grandmother's whenever I smell them.

So this past weekend we were at a pool party and my sister says to me "you know how grandma always smells like orange juice? you always smell like sunscreen"

And that right there is the life of a Ginger.  I always smell like sunscreen.  Sitting out on the pool deck I'm not sure that anybody besides myself and the 3 year old were wearing sunscreen.  Because as the commercial that I keep hearing on my radio says "Nothing looks better than tanned skin and white teeth"  But for us Ginger's the probability that we will burn just makes it not even worth the risk.  So I lather on the sunscreen even if I'm only going to be outside for 10 minutes, because yes in that 10 minutes I can feel myself starting to burn. 

The jokes on everyone else when my skin looks great when I'm older...

Oh ya and my sister wants to invent sunscreen for gingers that smells like body lotion rather than sunscreen.  Good idea?  Maybe.  Or maybe then I would just constantly smell like vanilla or lavender.

Father's Day

If you are living under a rock, yesterday was Father's day.  So of course we spent the day with our father's.  

Sunday morning we went out to Ryan's parents house for a brunch.  Sunday afternoon we spent time with my family.

I don't do the cheesy "Happy Father's Day", "I have the greatest dad" "Thanks for always being there" thing.  We aren't the most openly affectionate family despite the fact that we do love being together.  So that's why the most appropriate thing for us to do on Father's day was to go see the Seth MacFarlane movie "A Million Ways to Die in the West."  (Completely inappropriate to see with your parents actually.)

The girls liked it and the guys loved it.  It was probably the dumbest movie I have ever seen, but I still laughed a lot in it.  I thought Ted was better because it had more of a plot and less randomness, but if you are a Family guy fan, you will love the randomness in this movie.  It has terrible reviews, but I'm guessing the people reviewing it just don't get Seth's humour.

Back in 1882 nobody smiled in pictures unless they were insane

Acceptance

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I'm a huge Michael J. Fox fan.  I read both of his books and find him so inspiring.  He has been dealt a terrible hand and yet he seems to try to find the positives in the situation that he is in.  

This quote can mean something different for everyone, and yet it means the same thing.  We are all going through something.  If your life is perfect, it's probably not going to be perfect for long.  But whatever it is that we're going through, the hard times that we are dealing with, there is always a way through it.  Nothing lasts forever and most often we will come out the other side a better person.  Perhaps a different person, but a stronger person who has learnt how to deal with situations in a different way.

You don't have to accept that these negative aspects of your life are your fate.  But learn from them and grow from them and figure out how these things can make you stronger.  What good can come out of it?  I truly believe that everything happens for a reason.  And you may not figure out that reason tomorrow, or a week from now, or even 5 years from now.  But at some point you will be able to say "if that didn't happen to me, then I wouldn't have this and this and this in my life".  And that is what makes all our struggles worth it.  

Summer Reading List

Ryan said to me this morning that I don't blog anymore.  I guess last week I just had nothing to say and didn't want to force it.  But the truth is, when I do blog I really do enjoy it.  I love the creativity that it provides me with and being able to share my thoughts with others.  I like that it forces me to think about my life in a different way than you usually do, to see the good in things because nobody wants to blog about the negatives.

Apparently summer is here!  So with summer, comes lots of summer reading (hopefully).  Beach reading, cottage reading, camping reading....I'm hoping to have time for all of it.  And I have quite the list of summer reading options that I hope to get through.

Crossed & Reached by Allie Condie

Another young adult dystopian series.  I recently finished the first book - Matched and so obviously I need to read the other two.  This is easy reading, so perfect for the summer when you just want to chill out and enjoy a book.

The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith aka J.K. Rowling

I've heard better things about this than The Casual Vacancy so I'm hopeful.  Plus my brother has this book and just finished it, so now it's my turn.

Where We Belong - Emily Giffin

Yes this isn't her most recent book, but I actually haven't gotten a chance to read it yet.  Emily Giffin writes the most perfect Chick Lit books, which again are perfect for summer!  Easy to read and just enjoyable.

The One & Only - Emily Giffin

This is Emily Giffin's most recent book.  And lucky for me, my sister splurged and bought it, so now I have a copy I can borrow.

The Fault in our Stars - John Green

I haven't read this yet and have heard good things about the movie.  Even though the ending has been spoiled for me I still want to read this book before I see the movie.