The new 4 wheeler for the kids.. I bought it off e-bay and Collin got it set up Thursday night for the girls. 
Oaksie is much more excited about it, but Millie likes it too. Just a few pictures, it is so cute to see them on it!
This is jus
t a few pictures from our drive home from the lake, Jolanda - although I know you are in your "deer hating" phase, I thought you'd still like to see these! They were right beside the truck... guess my hubby is just a better DODGER!!! J/K
This one is a look south onto Francois Lake.. it is so pretty though in the background you can see all the Mountain Pine beetle damage to the park area.. :( damn beetles.
And finally... this is an unnamed island that we buzzed by on the boat, we set 2 ling lines but ended up on catching one ling cod.. mmm.. yummy!
Well Millie is having such a rough time with Oma and Opa being gone. Last night she just poured her heart out and cried and cried about how much she missed her "Oma".
Millie: "My favorite thing about Oma is the way that she always snugs us on her lap, she is so good to cuddle with! I also miss how nice she visits and always sits in her rocking chair to talk, and she make the best gingiesnap cookies. I wish she was here... I want some of her homeade bread cause she makes the best bread.. and even CRUST."
Jen: "And what do you miss about Opa?"
Millie: "Well I always remember that he can never find me when I hide under the bed!"
So cute... It has really been alot harder on her than imagined. Oaksana was wondering why Millie had been crying so much so I told her all of that, she said.. "Maybe Millie is just thinking that Oma might die soon and it is making her real sad... but she doesn't need to cry..."
They are so innocent but still know so much. *sigh* Can't protect them forever, I guess!
Well this first one is from a sleepover that the girls had a while back with one of Oaksiy's friends from school, they were riding around with the lawn tractor.. it was pretty cute..
The girls are so close as friends so even when it comes to sleep overs - they all just have a great time.
The next is of my new project since I am not able to plant a garden with our moving going on - I have to have something to keep my mind busy.. I've made this sign for the end of our driveway at our new house. It is made with colored glass and floor tile.. .. I love it cause it's unique and no-one else will have one.
Phew - yesterday I woke up and was feeling really sketchy... my stomach hurt so badly but I thought maybe I could eat something and I would feel better. Um... NO. I only made it until 9:05am and then I absolutely had to go home. My stomach and bowels felt like there was a roter-router going through them. I was in such pain.. I felt so nautious but wouldn't actually get sick. Millie wasn't feeling well either so I went and picked her up from daycare and her and I had a nap for a few hours... managed to get a meatloaf in the oven, then Collin came home - THANK GOODNESS... I absolutely melted and stayed sickly.. had a hot bath.. and went back to bed at 7:00pm. I am feeling mostly better today but only about 72%... at least I am lucky that this is the first flu of the season for us...
Last night - driving in the truck Millie pipes up and says... "Mom, what is sound made of?" So since I have no freakin' idea.. BLESS THE INTERNET! This is what 
the WWW says...
sound 1 (sound)
1.
a. Vibrations transmitted through an elastic solid or a liquid or gas, with frequencies in the approximate range of 20 to 20,000 hertz, capable of being detected by human organs of hearing.
Not sure that this explaination would help me to explain it to her but.. still.. nice to know.
What a nice treat yesterday was. I woke up late.. almost 8am to the smell of Collin's specialty waffles w/ whip cream. YUMMY... then we went to Prince George for the day and did a bit of shopping for some new clothes for both Collin and I, and some new shoes for my girls ( & Collin) with a shoe fetish. Not sure how that rubbed off on all 3 of them but now we all have the disease!! We went out for lunch at Red Robin and I got a pink carnation from the restaurant. It was a great family day. Collin commented on how great the past few months had been for us as a family and as well how strong our relationship was too. It's so nice to hear him say those things outloud! We came home around 5pm and went to my mom's place for a hot dog roast and outdoor picnic. It was so nice and warm so we sat in the sunshine on her porch swing until about 7:30. Ahh.. so relaxing. Then we went home and the girls gave me their presents that they had made, which Millie made a pressed flower & popsicle stick translucent hanging picture and Oaksie made a tin of pine cone & muffin liner flowers. They were such cute crafts. What a great way to celebrate being a mother - I love Collin and the girls... and I love being a mother!
Millie has joined soccer this year, tonight is practise #2.. should be good. These pictures are from her first practise on monday. 
She had fun warming up, playing a small game of scrimmage, and learning a bit about the ball handling. She's TIMBIT #1 in case you can't spot her in the pictures.
Well - our house is finalized and the conditions should be lifted Friday... yeah - all signatures on those papers. And.... DRUMROLL..... we have the paper signed on the place that we wanted. We got a sweetheart deal and we are so excited.
We sill haven't nailed down any possesion dates cause the sellers don't have a place to go to yet. Collin and I are just absolutely TICKLED PINK and couldn't be happier with the outcome. So the place is only 6kms to town and in the direction of Collin's work ( so a bit shorter of a commute for him), the place is a 1700 sq ft rancher/bungalow style house (as in the pics), a 33x40 shop, dbl car garage, gorgeous view, 5 acres... *sigh* Can you tell I'm excited???? So unless the home inspection comes back scary... we are in like flin... :) :) :) :) :) 
We SOLD OUR HOUSE! How is that for excitement? We showed it to a couple on Saturday and they made us an offer Monday and we are signing the papers tonight. We have to be out by June 24th... YIKES. It is very exciting. We've also found a great property 
that we are hoping to buy. It is a bungalow style rancher on 5 acres with a gorgeous view and nice landscaping. (In the picture shown... and more pictures to follow soon!) We are meeting with them tonight to hopefully get some papers and an agreement signed.. it's big NEWS in the Hague house! YIPEEEEEEEEE....
I had my 30th Birthday on Sunday... I wasn't full of anxst(sp?) in the anticipation of this birthday or anything, in fact - something feels like I should be much more of an adult by now! Saturday night we went out to a pub night & auction that a friend was hosting (to raise money for a 1/2 marathon that she is running in Iceland this year). It was a really good time, we bid on some interesting auction item but only won one of them which was a $90 gift pass to the local gym - YEAH! So I will be starting up there again soon. I had way too much to drink and paid for it on Sunday... yes I can still party, and yes - I can still throw up. ENOUGH SAID.
It was a gorgeous day here on Sunday.. full of sunshine and kids laughter - what a great day. Thanks to everyone who called, it was nice to hear all of your voices! So on with another decade... I am ready for you.
Last night was extremely hard for us. Oma & Opa are currently on the road, moving to Abbotsford. Which in my head I know is a good thing for them. They need to get away from the snow and the ice and move to a warmer climate.. but too my heart, it just doesn't seem fair. We got together as a family (Mom/Dad, Tracy & the boys, Richard & us) and had a nice dinner out then had coffee and cake at Mom's house to celebrate mine & Dad's b-days and to say goodbye to Oma & Opa. I tell you, that was so hard. Maybe to most it would seem like nothing at all but.. they have been a part of my life the last 30 years.. and for the last 7 Collin has
really strengthened our relationship with them. I constantly get lost in how much I appreciate the time that he takes with them, he has gone over there so often to visit with them, help them, just to hang out. He constantly askes them over for dinner or tea or cookies or anything really. He has been a big part in bringing my Grandparents closer to my heart. * sniff ~ sniff * So anyway, last night the girls were just wickedly sad to have to say goodbye to them, at one point last week or so Millie was talking about people getting old and said, "I wish that Oma was new cause I sure like her!" I could hardly hold myself together enough to say the things that I wanted to say to Oma & Opa.. I think in the end I will have to write them a letter.
After we had gone home (and by the way - I cried all the way home, good thing Collin was driving!) we put the girls to bed and it was tough. I layed with Millie for quite some time as she cried saying Oma's name over and over.. wishing that she could "stay in Vanderhoof"! It was a rough night. So to all of you other Rempel family reading this.. if you have the chance to take care of them while you are now closer - PLEASE DO! They will need you, they love to be social, and most of all just need a friend. They are so wonderful if you just take the chance to let them into your hearts.
Ahh, my little baby... you know it is spring when I get my little baby blue love bug out on the roads again. I just absolutely love my car - and of course because it was such a wonderful gift from Collin, he is so good to me! The girls love to drive around in the bug.. it is so fun.
Ahh, the girls love to go over to the "depot" (bottle depot) by our place and ride around.. This was them over the weekend having a great time making skids with their bike tires! And of course Oaksie is jazzed to have her new bike.. it's so cute.
It amazes me all the time how the girls can go from blood curtling fights to hugs & kisses in an instant. No matter what happens between them.. they always love each other and truly rely on each other for support and friendship. It is so nice to see how much they really love each other!
Well, well, Friday hmm.. not too much excitement for that day.. in fact, can't even remember what the heck happened! Saturday we did some stuff around the yard and had a really nice day just enjoying the sunshine and some family time.
Saturday night, after a pit of proding and pulling (and a few tears) Oaksana lost her FIRST TOOTH! It was just dangling by a thread but aparently the thread was still tough.. so here she is... grining from ear to ear that at the ripe age of "almost 7" she's lost her first tooth! And this is the note that she left for the tooth fairy that night... 
when she woke up the tooth fairy had written her a note that read " Oaksana, this was an especially shiny one so I gave you a bit extra!" And left a loonie! Oh.. the excitement around our house.. and then to top it all off.. MOMMY almost washed her first little tooth down the drain while I was doing dishes.. not cool. But we managed to save it and it is still in fine shape.
Okay now onto Sunday... Oaksie had her 7th Birthday Party! 
And what a cute party it was... she spend the morning with Tracy and they made all of the fixin's for a "puppy party"! 
They made each kid a cool little dog collar, a "doggie bag" of treats and rice crispie squares shaped like dog bones.. it was too cute! And they all ran around barking like crazy! They jumped around on the trampoline, played a bit of soccer, pin the tail on the donkey, open presents,
ate cake, and watched a movie Barbie "MERMAIDIA". (Super cool movie) . She of course got spoiled and had a great time. The rest of the day we just tried to wind down and relax from all of the excitement. It was a great day and everyone had fun... even Collin and I!! Can't beleive that our baby is growing up so fast.. already seven and having so much fun and growing so much into herself! She continues to develop into such a wonderful, thoughtful, beautiful girl... *sigh*... why can't they stay babies forever????
I have loved "stitch & flip" type quilting for a while, I just love the non-conformist air about the whole thing.. 
it's so scattered and random.. I LOVE it. So I finally took a one night class to figure out how to do it. And this is what I made.. 
I can now either make a bunch of them and then make a quilt or make a pillow out of it - or hot pads or whatever! And of course this one is made out of batiks which are beautiful as well so it really adds to the mood and movement of the fabric and flower'ish pattern.
Okay so the new news is.... I do infact have my job! I know - it will take some explaining for this to all make sense! 
My management and the BCTS team had a conference call with me on my day off, talking about some options that may still be available to me. Because I had passed the interview proccess (though the other "lady" got higher points) my manager did some work at getting BCTS to direct award me a full time permanent position with them. So I said "yes" because I still knew it was an oppourtunity for full time work that I couldn't pass up. But they said... "WAit... that's not all..." and asked me if my preference was to stay in the position that I had been doing for the last 3 years.. of course because I know the job, etc my preference would be to stay there. And I asked.. but what about the other lady? They said that it was there preference that I choose to stay with them and she goes back to BCTS. What a nice compliment! So although this whole thing is completely backwards, what this means if that I do end up getting my regular full time job and will just result in a lateral transfer my first day. So I will accept a job with BCTS and she will accept my job and then on the first day we will just "switch" the paperwork. Man.. the government is backwards. So aparently my 2 weeks of emotional 
H~Y~S~T~E~R~I~A were for nothing other than to cleanse my tear ducts and make sure that I still knew how to swear!
But.. all of this craziness has turned out to be for the best. I did get my job, and it has silently proven to the "smug "lady"" that it was managements preference to have me.. which feels nice that at least I know that even if she still things that she is Queen of the world!
Well this weekend I had all 4 kids cause Tracy was at a Girl Guide camp - yikes. No it was actually good, the boys like to stay with us and have fun. Though I don't know how well the 1981 Nintendo faired.. overuse is never good for something that old!.
So here are the 4 of them Saturday night, playing in Millie's room.. having a great time! This next picture is their best "funny faces"! So cute!
Well - the last weeks have been a serious roller coaster for me... let's start with the competition surrounding my job. As most of you know, I have been working for the Forest Service for the last 3 years in the draughting department. For the last year, I have been doing my job and fulling in another maternity position (so 2 jobs). Finally after all that, they were able to post my job permanently. So also - they have a BLEEPIN' stupid interview process that let's a person showcase their BS skills, so some dumb BROAD came in and BS'd better than me (I know - I didn't think it was possible either!) and now she get's my job. *sigh* So as of Mar. 31st I am out of a job. It took me about a week to stop crying and yelling and swearing and feeling sorry for myself but.. now I am just feeling sorry for myself so at least it's a little easier on those around me! I am possibly taking a 3 month term with another portion of my office, I will update you as things roll along. Just goes to show you that you can't take a job for granted!
Okay... well getting used to glasses is a lot like not having slept for 3 weeks and being motion sick at the same time.. bleck. I am hoping that one of these days.. I will stop feeling this unbalanced. The Optometrist said that I have Astigmatism. I am really noticing a huge difference in my vision - but now when I have my glasses off - I feel like I am legally blind! Yipes! I have lost my download cable for my camera and so thus far I am still unable to post a picture!
As far as my job interview went.. it's done and so I really feel well about that - they said that I should know next week. Seems like much to long for me to have to wait. But I will survive!
Well after the last 6 months or so of me squinting and leaning forward at my desk and dealing with tonnes of headaches, I decided to make an optometrist appt. As suspected, I need glasses - which really, I should be thankful that this is just coming now as I am not sure how many other people on the REMPEL side can say that. Possibly they were all born with glasses! (Ouch) So.. next week I will be sporting my new beautiful, SUPER FUNK glasses. They are so cute! I am sure after a month, the romance of the new glasses will have worn off and I will just be Jenny "four eyes" Hague. I will post a pic of me in them once I get them!
Tee hee, guess that some people just can't hack the pressure! 2 People have dropped out of the competition for my job! Which of course is great news for me. One of them already got the job in Clearwater that I was applying for and the other was one of the ladies in this office. I am pleased with that because that means that it's just between me and 2 other ladies, both of which don't have nearly the experience that I do. :) Things are lookin' good! My interview is March 7 @ 8:30am ~ I will keep you all up to date once I know anything.
It started off with Collin (I think - too hard to tell these days) being sick with a cold that seems to be hanging on for dear life. We all tried to maintain a "keep healthy" parimeter around him so that we would catch it. But.. of course, the inevitable has happened and the girls have definately got it. They are both sniffly and coughing.. Millie has lost her voice but will die trying to get the last word in! LOL..
As far as anything else here, my interview for my job here in Vanderhoof has been finalized, mine is March 7 @ 8:30 am. Wish me luck. Although I feel pretty good about it. Collin has been working a bit of overtime so he's pretty tired.. as are all of us just trying to maintain our health!
Cheers for today.. must get some lunch.. oooohh and ANOTHER COFFEE~~ !
Let me just start with: "WHAT THE HELL kind of weather is this??" It's just rude to wake up to temperatures like that. My truck sounded like I was pulling and 18 wheeler behind it and was driving on square tires. It was insane.
Oh how I long to go to Mexico...
I just downloaded these pictures from a sleepover that the girls had! They had so much fun, I picked them up from school and we went shopping for supper stuff & snack. We ate personal pizza's, watched a movie, played Jr. Monopoly (I can't actually take any credit - Collin played the whole game with them - BLESS HIM!) The girls all slept in 1 bed - yes all 4 of them! It was quite funny. I sure remember the fun I used to have on sleepovers and I'm sure glad to be able to let my girls do the same!
Well this has been all the drama that our backyard could take this year! It began on a day where we all felt like getting on our skates and doing a little something outside. Much to our dismay and "hose thawing" efforts, this was a much bigger task than any of us could have imagined. 
It took Collin and I at least an hour to twist out all the frozen ice cubes in the links of the hose and then we flooded the rink. After quite some time of flooding Collin said we could just leave it to flood while we went to get groceries. So (under diress) I said, ok dear, and off we went. Upon our return we had a small lakeside resort that we could now call home, as aparently the 2x6 construction will not hold that much water!
Thanks to Collin though - over the next week or so, he diligently flooded the rink and we now have a lovely skating area. Of course the girls love it and Oreo as well. Nothing sweeter than a project that takes a lot of effort to get to the end result. Maybe next year we will just drive to the ARENA!
I just got off the phone with the lady that oversaw the interview, she said that although I did extremely well, someone else got more points and so -- I was not the sucessful candidate. :( Boo - hoo, I have to go now, I'm late for my own PITY PARTY.
Well today my spirits are down, still no word from Clearwater district. I normally am the one that never allows myself to get excited about stuff cause I am so damn practical but this time, I really wanted to move, Collin and I have been wishing and dreaming about this move non stop since we came back from Clearwater. We have thought so many things and are really excited. I think that if this falls through, we will have to take a step back to look at whether we want to stay here in Vanderhoof or not, so hard to say. There are lots of things here that I like, my parents for example, plus Oaksana has great teachers/friends. But, a change would be lovely as well. *sigh* what to do... I will keep all of you up to date.
Well let's see, the last couple of weeks have been nutty, I had the interview in Clearwater, BC. It went really well, it was quite nerve wracking as there was a panel of 4 people that I had never met before drilling me for 2 hours, oh well - hopefully will hear this week. 
In case you're interested.. here's a link to see what the town is like. http://ntvalley.com/clearwater/ . It was quite nice there, Collin and I looked at some real estate - this is the house that we liked... http://www.mls.ca/PropertyDetails.aspx?vd=&SearchURL=%3fPage%3d3%26Mode%3d0%26vs%3d1%26rlt%3d%26cp%3d%26pt%3d0%26mp%3d100000-200000-0%26mrt%3d-1-0-0%26Beds%3d2-0%26Baths%3d1-0%26f%3d%26ft%3dall%26o%3dA%26of%3d1%26ps%3d10%26ptgid%3d1%26aid%3d5532%252c1085%26MapURL%3d&Mode=0&PropertyID=4222284 So I guess we will have to see what happens after we hear from the Interview panel.. it would be quite a change for us! Which could be good. We will certainly keep you posted!
Well - when my life gets interesting - it sure doesn't mess around. I just got a call 2 days ago that I have a job interview in Clearwater, BC. And I am still waiting to hear if I get the interview for Vernon. Jeepers, wouldn't that be nice! So I have a practical portion to do in Prince George next Wednesday and then I will be in Clearwater on Feb. 2nd. The plan is to also spend the weekend in the Kelowna area. (Vicki/Jolanda - maybe we can get together?) I also have to be at a meeting in Kelowna for Feb 7/8 so... I would love to see all of you. Let me know! So I am a studying machine now for my interview as it is so intense! Wish me loads of luck - I may need it!
It is also kind of a neat idea to think that we may be moving. There is so much involved in doing that but... it's nice to have a fresh start and meet some new people, etc. I would love to be in sunnier Vernon rather than here some days!
I finally borrowed a cable from a friend so that I was able to download the newest pictures of the girls. They are always such snuggle bunnies, poor mom - I get jipped now as they are always cuddling each other and not me or Collin! 
This is Millie - doing her best pajama pose for us.. she can be such a card at night time.. I beleive we have a serisou class clown on our hands. Guess payback really does happen! 
And this one is Oaksie - playing and loving her new Mrs. PACMAN retro arcade games! Santa did a good job on that as she loves this thing! I swear if it wasn't for Collin stealing it from her to play it himself, we'd never see her!
Further to my "Yo-Yo-Jolanda" post, this is the quilt that I made for myself. 
It's a funky log cabin design and of course I've chosen the funkiest fabric imaginable. I had a great time making this quilt and although it started out being my first - it was the one that I finished last.
It is still facinating to me how exactly it is that someone who loves this kind of quilt can be so head over heals in love with someone who likes the REDNECK man quilt! Funny how it seems that all of this is sumed up in a few scraps of fabric!
As some of you know, I have been working for the Forest Service on and off for about 5 years as auxillary staff. Which has been fine - but as the years roll on, I would really like a bit more job security that only knowing my employment more than 3-6 months at a time. So... as of yesterday, my job has been posted. Which is extremely exciting but.. at the same time very nerve wracking as this doesn't mean that the job is mine. I will have to go through a formal interview process with all the other sucessful applicants. The government interview are "competency based" which also equals a lot of studying to be sure you follow a strict format for answering questions and proving your competancy. So... the posting is open until Jan.30th and then there will be interviews and .. etc. So although it's a long way off - I have a lot of work to do until then. Keep your fingers crossed.. hopefully my nerves won't win me over.
Per your request.. here's some picutres of my quilts.. the first one is a table runnery thing and I made for my mother in law . Close up it's actually quite cute - it has "Merry Christmas in all sorts of languages all along the inner border - I had lots of fun making this one.
And the second is the secret "MAN quilt" that I made for Collin as a surprise for Christmas - he loved it. It has camo fleece on the back so it's nice a cozy... 
I also made myself a VERY FUNKY log cabin design quilt but.. I have yet to take a picture of it but I will and then I'll post again. I am amazed at myself that I enjoy quilting and seweing - I never thought I would be such a domestic godess!
And of course to play "hairdresser" with their cousins! The two younger ones(Kameron & Millie) sure do look alike - it's amazing.
Well, our Christmas holidays were good, the went by fairly fast and with no major mishaps! The girls were of course spoiled, and I was too. Collin bought me a sewing machine, which I am so pleased about cause I have taken up quilting this year. So know I can turn into my mother without too much holding me back! The girls got new skates and an organ.... let me tell you.... Mary had a little lamb has been heard by all for about 140 straight hours. I am starting to think.. hmm - was this really a smart idea??? Ha, ha. I hope that SANTA found you all and that you were spoiled silly. HAPPY New Year to all of you... :)
