Happy Birthday to my BFF, Vicki

Everyone has friends, even best friends, but do they really know how much they mean to you? Even though you don't live just down the road or just around the corner from them they are always with you. Never take them for granted, and never forget to tell them how much they mean to you and how much you love them. I like this poem written by Annie Hall and I wanted to share it today to wish my best friend in the whole world a very happy birthday.

Through Thick and Thin
I could skip a heartbeat, and I would survive,
I could be in a car crash, and still be alive.
The clouds could fall out of the sky,
The oceans could disappear, and all turn dry.

These things in life are all bad I know,
but there's far worse things,
just though you should know.

Life would no be the same without someone like you,
You're there when I need you to help me through.
Through the good times and through the bad,
Be them happy, or be them sad.

I don't have to be with you, to know you're there,
We don't have to see each other, to know that we care.
We could be apart for years upon end,
and still remain the best of friends.

Life goes on, and people change,
And through it all, our friendship shall remain the same.
That's such as a life, and how things come to be.
Just thought you should know,
HOW MUCH YOU MEAN TO ME.

I love you Vick, have a happy birthday. Chow for now. Jacqui

Western Fair 2011

It's been a few years since I've been to Western Fair. I think the last time was when Courtney was still showing her sheep in 4-H....that was a while ago...she's an old married woman now!!!! Actually, not an old married woman...she's only been married for 9 days! My work gets deals on things in and around London some times so this time they had tickets for Western Fair. So I scooped up 4 tickets and then planned on going on the last day of the fair because that's when Brian, Jade's boyfriend, was driving in the Demolition Derby. It was fun to watch. Partly cause I knew someone who was racing and partly cause Joe used to work for the Hell Drivers so he got to see a few familiar faces as well. They had a competition at the beginning of the derby for the best looking car - they narrowed it down to 3 and then the audience had to cheer for the best looking car. Brian's car won!!!! So he got a trophy for that before even getting hit by anyone! Then they all came in and they park around the outside with their tail ends pointing at each other - that's how they start - then they do the ready set go thingy and then they can start smashing each other! Brian got a few good hits into a few cars...but we were especially glad when he smashed into one particular car and pretty much rendered it useless....there's a story behind why we were so happy...but it's not my story to tell...just chalk it up to we were really glad he kicked the orange cars A**!!!! If you look really close at this picture - you can see Jade's name pained on the roof! click on it to get a bigger picture and there is an arrow pointing to her name! Then he toured around a bit - but got hung up on another car and no one hit him to jar him loose so he got counted down and was done. I think there is probably proper demolition derby lingo to go along with this....but I don't know it...so you are stuck with my uneducated rendition! We were proud of him though. He did great! I hope to get to see him again this season. When I got the pamphlet about the fair in amongst all the junk mail/flyer's we get - there was a thing called Vine to Vine or I think they called it Living Vines. I wanted to see it - so we walked all over the bloody place...good thing NONE of the people who had the "fair" shirts on....or the "police" uniforms on...knew where the heck the North park was.......but Joe managed to find it and they were very cool. They were standing in amongst trees and things and then they would move...and then they walked around the place. She saw Joe wanting a picture so she kept slinking down closer to him! It was pretty cool. You can see in some of these pictures the girls face and how they would go up against a pole or something and look like vines climbing the pole - it was neat! Chow for now, Jacqui

Happy Birthday Bob!!

One of the great things about Facebook is you can get in touch with old friends and make new friends. I have made a new friend on Facebook in the last little while. Not just someone who "friended" me on Facebook, but someone who I now consider my new friend! He is a friend of my sister, Courtney. She met him while participating in Music Mania - this awesome musical show put on in Stouffville. He made a comment about one of Courtney's comments on Facebook one day...I in turn made a comment on his comment and that is where our friendship began!! We started chit chatting back and forth and this past weekend at Courtney's wedding I met him in person! His name is Bob Jones and it is his birthday today. I just wanted to use today's post to wish him a happy birthday and I hope today is full of health and happiness for him. Happy Birthday Bob!! Chow for now, Jacqui

Some more pictures from the big day!

I promise not to be as long winded as yesterday, but I wanted to share some more pictures from Courtney's wedding. I got a whole bunch of pictures, because I took some and Diana took some and Jade was a little paparazzi girl and took a whole bunch!!! Thanks Jade! So here are some more with just a few comments!


This was after the wedding ceremony and after all the family pictures were taken, Ciji and Johnathon started taking pictures of the bride and groom and the wedding party. I can't wait to see what they came up with. They are awesome photographers.

This is a picture of my Mum and her sister, Aunt Donna and her husband Uncle Ron. I have not seen them in quite a while. They have not changed much at all! I was glad they were able to come to the wedding. I didn't get to chat with them as much as I would have liked, but I did get a bit of a chat in.
This is one of Courtney's bridesmaids, Sam. She is pregnant and I think it was a long and tiring day for her. I like this picture of her getting some rest. She, as well as everyone else, looked beautiful that day.
This is pretty much the "look" that Courtney gives to Diana any time she talks!!!!! She calls Diana the "crazy" sister . ( which I would tend to agree with!)
Here is a nice picture of us...a bit of a different angle so you can't see how large I am...good Lord...pictures tell the tale..don't they.
I can't believe I didn't put any pictures of Jay's family on yesterdays post! He did come from somewhere! Here is a picture of Jay's parents, Tom and Shelley.
This shows all the fellas! They look pretty sharp. I think they are contemplating how long it was going to take to get the pictures done so they could dip into the cocktails!
This was Jay's dance with his mom.
This was a memorial that Courtney and Jay had sitting at the entrance to the reception. Sharon, Courtney's matron of honour painted the scene on the paper. The memorial was for all those people who have passed and who were missed at the wedding. It was a beautiful tribute.
This is the poem that was on the one side of the memorial.
This is the list of people who were being remembered.
Here's a good picture of me and Diana at our table! Thanks Jade for taking this one!
Another little kiss with the bride and groom.
Here is Jay's sister Stacey and her husband Charlie.
These pretty glasses were at Courtney and Jay's place setting.
The Fox cousins - minus representation from the Babinsky's and the Hasketts!
Courtney's dance with Dad.

I love this picture. This is when Courtney came around the corner of the aisle where she could see Jay and he could see her. You can see the love she has for him in her face.
A cute picture of Courtney of Diana when we were setting things up at the Winery.
Aunt Gloria and Dad. I'm sure Dad was making a smart alec comment to Aunt Gloria. When Ciji (the photographer) asked him to stand with his sister he said...."my sister - I've never met her before in my life"!! Typical Dad comment!
Diana pretending she was gonna eat her wedding favour!
All the Britton Clan!
I hope you enjoyed today's pictures!
Chow for now,
Jacqui

Whirlwind visit and the "Royal" Wedding!!

Day One: Well this is gonna be a long one. Partly cause I haven't blogged in so long and partly cause I have lots to say and show you! Diana came home for Courtney's wedding. Mom and I headed out at about 9:00 AM on Wednesday, the 7th, to head to the Detroit airport. Diana's flight was not due to arrive until 4:10 PM, but we didn't want to have any issues at the border and we figured we would rather wait in our around the airport so we could pick Diana up on time, instead of her having to wait for us and be wondering if we remembered she was coming in today! We made a stop at Meijer, which was good for me cause I managed to get two new pairs of running shoes for cheaper than I would have had to pay for one pair here. They are Dr. Scholl's shoes and they are so comfy! I need to get out walking so these will help for sure. We also had lunch at Meijer too. We both had a breast and a wing of chicken, a choice of one side, a bun and a huge honkin drink and together it was less than $10!! I love Meijer. I'm gonna take the kids shopping there this month. Then we headed on to the airport. We arrived at about 1:10 PM so we had a little bit of a wait, but Mum and I love to people watch so it was all good! We sat down in the baggage claim area, as there were more seats there and we could people watch good down there! Finally we headed up to the area where Diana would be coming in. We were sitting on a bench that was kind of hidden by this big pillar so Mum would keep peeking around the corner of the pillar. Then all of a sudden she jumped up and ran, saying "she's here, she's here" all the while waving a Kit Kat chocolate bar!! (Diana cannot get some of the same chocolates and treats in Arizona as we have here - so when she comes home - we fill her up!) So we got her bags and got in the car and headed home. We stopped in at Cracker Barrel for a delicious supper and then shortly after we were back in Canada. Mum and Diana dropped me off at my place and they headed home to get some sleep. Day Two: This was the only day that was really a "free" day. One of Diana's friends from high school came over for a visit. It was a short visit, but fun just the same. She brought over some Tim Horton's and some home made tarts - so we liked her even more!!!! We went in to have a quick visit with Granny, as the next day we were going to be heading to Stouffville to hang with Courtney. Granny looks great and was excited to see Diana. She even introduced her to her table mates, which is something she has never done for any of us! Then off to Bender's Foodland to grab some food and snacks, then back home to BBQ some good Fox beef (steaks) for supper! We finished up supper and then headed to my place, as my dear friend Kim was coming over for a visit. She actually ended up being there before we got there! We had a great visit with Kim and then she left and I took Diana back home to Mum's to get some sleep. Day Three: Diana and I headed for Stouffville. We left about 9:00 AM as we were planning on going out for lunch with Courtney. She had asked if we could come up the Friday before the wedding to have some "sister" time before the big day. We stopped in London at a few places as Diana was looking for a specific item for Courtney and Jay's wedding present. She did not manage to find it, but told Courtney and Jay what she was going to get them and they thought it was a cool idea. So Diana will ship it to them when she gets back home. We ran into some traffic on the way to Stouffville...bumper to bumper...and some JACK A** in a little red rocket who though he owned the road and could cut people off at will.....he got a nice view of both my fingers....I won't share which ones! We made to Courtney's safe and sound and then we headed into Markham to have lunch. Courtney took us to the hotel we were staying in and we dropped off our stuff and then went to Kelsey's for lunch. As we were waiting for our order, Diana pulled out 3 little bags from her purse and we each had to pick one. Then we all opened them at the same time and she got us these adorable "Sisters" bracelets. They are made by Brighton, which makes wicked silver jewellery. Then she pulled out presents that Mum had got each of us as well. We opened them and oh my gosh, they were these beautiful bracelets. Each one was different and they were beautiful. I didn't have any gifts to share, but Courtney had asked me to bring something "blue" to put on her garter. So me....being the "creative" (that's short for smart ass) person that I am...I brought a few "blue" items for her to chose from! She got a chuckle, but ended up choosing the 3 blue brads that spelled the word "FOX"! Mum attached them to her garter. We then headed back to Courtney's as she had to pick up her friend Bethany at the train station and we had some last minute things to wrap up at the Winery before the big day and before the rehearsal. We helped Courtney set up the beautiful lanterns that a close friend Mary Walker painted for them and to set out the caramel chocolate apples that were their wedding favours. The Winery looked beautiful. The building itself is very pretty, but out back it looked so pretty with the big droopy willow trees and overlooking the vineyard. We got everything all set and then we returned for the rehearsal later on. Day Four: We got up early and met Mum and Dad in the hotel restaurant for our complimentary breakfast..(I should have paid money and got a real breakfast). Then Mum was off with Courtney to the hair/makeup salon and Diana, Dad and I were left to fend for ourselves. We both had some Internet work to do, so we went to our hotel rooms, and Dad off to his. Later we got back together for lunch, but we couldn't find Dad, so we lunched without him. We went to a place called Frankie Tomatoe's which was awesome. It was an Italian buffet...and very tasty. We headed back to the hotel where I caught up with my hubby and kids and we all got ready for the wedding! Diana and I drove back to Courtney's with Dad cause his vehicle had to be there to deliver the bride! So he dropped us at the Winery and went back to Courtney's to dress. We took another look to make sure everything was still good inside the Winery and everything looked great. The guys showed up early to get some pictures taken (they cleaned up pretty good). Then we headed to the seats and got comfy! Then the music started - I saw Dad bringing Mum to her seat ...and well then the tears started!!! I'm such a mush ball. But Mum and Dad looked AMAZING! Dad looked quite dashing in his suit and Mum looked beautiful in her new dress. Then of course when Courtney came down the aisle with Dad...she looked absolutely beautiful. She looked like a princess (hence the reference to the "royal" wedding in my title). It was very special because Courtney recorded herself singing "Songbird" and she walked down the aisle with Dad to that song. I MUST get a copy of her singing! The minister was awesome. She spun the whole ceremony around music and love and it was just awesome. Pictures were taken at the Winery. Ciji followed Courtney around all day and Johnathan followed Jay around all day, so I cannot wait to see the fantastic pictures. They took their engagement pictures as well and they were wonderful. We headed inside the Winery for some cocktails and dinner. The room looked beautiful. The speeches were wonderful....more tears were shed there. The dance started and people started partying! Courtney's wedding present to Jay, was she got his favourite band, Casey Roberts and the Jazz Revolution to come and play for an hour at the reception. Jay was very surprised and overwhelmed. We left around midnight to go back to the hotel and get some sleep (we got lost - but I'm not gonna share that story with you). Day Five: We headed home from Stouffville. My hubby left really early to go home and get the dog out of the kennel he put her in for the night. So Diana, Jade, Joel and I headed to Cora's for breakfast. We had a huge breakfast there and started heading home. When we got to Woodstock we texted a friend, Tami Coyle, to let her know we were in Woodstock for like may 30 minutes! So we stopped at Fritzie's got some Poutine and Tami came there for a quick visit. We left Woodstock and then got back home. Shared all our pictures with one another and then Diana went back to Mum and Dad's for another nights sleep before heading back to Detroit in the morning. Day Six: Mum and Diana came over at about 11:30 and we headed back to Detroit. We had an hour and fifteen minute wait at the border, but other than that it was a pretty uneventful trip there. Diana's flight was on time, so she headed into the security gates a little before 5:00. It's always bittersweet when she comes home. It is great to see her and we have a lot of laughs, but it is so hard when she goes back to Arizona again. I never know when I will see her again. We talk almost every day, whether it be through email or texting or Facebook, but it is not the same as the real thing. I love her so much as really do wish she lived closer. Mum and I headed back home. Our trip home was pretty uneventful as well, although there was a warehouse or something on fire as we were coming down I94 so all the rubberneckers were checking it out and driving slower, causing a bit of a back log. But the border was quick on the way back. We zipped into the Hiawatha Casino for supper and to spend our $20 gambling. I was unsuccessful at winning! But it's still fun to try. Then we were back home and I went to bed....only to get up at 4:00 AM and head into work....and here I sit... on my lunch break.....wishing I was still on vacation!!! It was a whirlwind trip and I put alot of kms on the vehicles, but it was a good time all around. Hope you enjoyed the pictures! Chow for now, Jacqui