Screen Free Week....The Results & A Break from Blogging

I failed. I would love to blame it on the weather...it did rain a lot this week, but the truth is, I failed, plain and simple. I came to realize a few things in my failure. I could do without television completely, even movies, but I can't live without the internet. For me, the internet is:

• a way to connect with friends who live close or far from me
• somewhere to meet like-minded people
• somewhere to find inspiration (photography, quilting, running)
• somewhere to find support for homeschooling
• a place where I can find free and helpful resources for our homeschool
• a virtual cookbook filled with unlimited recipes
• a place to log my running (I use dailymile)

I just can't give that up. I don't sit at the computer for hours and hours, I am more of a grazer. I spend a few minutes, walk away, take care of other things, then come back. I do spend longer periods of time in the evening, especially if my husband is working late.

Now I know that my time online isn't something I can do without! I can limit it and also make sure that it serves a purpose for me (like the ones mentioned above).

~ Earth Day 2011 ~ 

I have decided to take a break from blogging as a result of this past week. If you read my regular homeschool blog, this won't be a surprise. I have always told myself that when blogging becomes something I have to do, then it's time for me to take a break. I have come to that point, especially on my main blog, where I make a point of blogging at least twice a week. I also want to make sure I am able to enjoy my children and the spring weather that is finally arriving! I will be back soon and I will still be online, so you can contact me via e-mail or facebook.

See you soon!

Screen Free Week Starts Tomorrow!

Wish me luck! I might really need it! I will let you know how it went in 8 days. For now, I will leave you with a self portrait. I haven't done one of these in a while. I wanted to play around with picnik today and decided to take a quick portrait of myself. I was surprised how much fun I had and realized that I actually missed the weekly self-portrait challenge I did last year.

I posted these on my flickr and asked for people to let me know which one was their favourite. So far the first one in the series is the winner. Let me know which one you like!

I wish you all a great week :)

Pillow ~ Pretty in Pink & Purple

Pretty in Pink & Purple ~ Celeste's Quilt

I finished Celeste's birthday quilt a few days ago.

I can't believe I am finished already!

I was so happy with the quilting, doing the loopy quilting was so fast and fun.

I am planning a pillow to go with this quilt. More to come soon!

Day 10 :: 100 day photo challenge

Day 10 -A picture of your favorite sport or favorite athlete. 

I love running.
I love how I feel afterwards.
I love how running makes me push myself all the time.
I run mostly on a treadmill at home right now, but I still love it.
I am hoping to enter some more 5k or 10k races this year.
I realized while looking for photos that I haven't done any in a while!

~ July 2008 ~

~ June 2009 ~

Days 7, 8, 9 :: 100 day photo challenge

Day 07 -A picture of you and someone you'd be lost without .

Day 08 -A picture that makes you laugh.
Day 09 -A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most.

These three days all have the same person. My husband. The day 7 is a little hard for me, I am a very independent person, but I have to admit that I would be lost in my heart without him. I would be able to function, but not happily. He makes me laugh, daily. And he has gotten me through a lot.

August 2010 ~ Mitchell's Bay, Ontario.

Screen Free Week is Coming!

If you follow my homeschool blog Canadian Home Learning, this will seem like a repeat, but I hope you will read on still!

My family and I have made the commitment to participate in Screen-Free Week from Monday, April 18 to Sunday, April 24. That means no TV, no video games, no computers, ipod touch, etc...

I am really excited about this and we have participated in this challenge (used to be called "TV Free Week") in the past. I know my kids will do really well, but I am not so sure how I will do!
I rely on the computer a lot! I visit my blogs daily, write posts a few times a week (especially on our homeschool blog). I visit Facebook several times a day, I am on Twitter, and I also visit a couple of homeschool boards. I am always reading about homeschool related stuff, googling, etc.. I also use the internet for inspiration for my quilting and photography.

The internet and I have a close relationship. Quitting it for a week is do-able, but it might not be enjoyable.

So to survive, I am planning a list of activities to do with my children, but also for myself. Projects I have left unfinished, books I haven't had the time to read, and things like that. I will continue my running program too, so I will have to use the iTouch for that purpose, but it's not for entertainment.

My husband is also on board for this challenge. He is a gamer. This might be difficult on him too! We also enjoy watching episodes of Lost or other DVDs we have once the kids are in bed. I think we will survive for one week.

I am looking forward to a break from the computer and internet, really I am! I will let you know how it went for me on April 25th!

♪ ♫ Happy 2nd Birthday Orion ♪♫

I guess I have become one of those people that celebrate their pet's birthday!! Orion is our Siberian Husky and our fourth baby. He is big in size and has a big heart. We have never had a sweeter, calmer dog before!

Happy Birthday Orion ♪♫

We love you!

Puppy:

Now:

Going Loopy ~ Celeste's Quilt

Thanks to an awesome quilty friend, I decided to try loops for quilting Celeste's quilt. Usually, this part is my least favourite in the quilting process. But not now! I love doing these free-motion loops!! They were so much fun and quick too. I have now finished all the quilting and just need to put on the binding. Two days of quilting is all it took. I love it...and so does Clara (seen here on the back of the quilt).

Day 5 :: 100 day photo challenge :: best memories with...

Day 5: A picture of you and the person you've had the best memories with. My husband. That top photo is when he proposed to me, in September 1994 and the bottom one is from only a couple of months ago. The middle one is from 2001, I think.