Family Around The Table..Boogie Men Under The Bed?!

As you may gather from the photos above, Easter was pretty fun. It was so nice to be able to spend some time with our kids and grandkids. We were a couple short of a complete set, but considering everyone's busy lives, we were grateful it was only a couple.

To sit at the table and listen to the chatter, watch my 2yr old grandson feed his Auntie ever so carefully and gently, to sneak my 6 yr old grandson some dessert, even if he didn't eat his peas, to have our 6 month old granddaughter practice her sitting skills in the middle of the dining room table....to do these things, to be able to do these things, feeds my soul. I am beyond grateful.

Soooo, after the festivities, it was back to the shop.....................

Another very busy week flew by in a blink. Foot traffic through the shop is definitely picking up, as well as people calling to book their trailers in for service and repairs. We are officially back to being open 6 days a week for the the season, so let the games begin!

As for the upcoming week..............

Well, tomorrow will include a little road trip to do a service call, hopefully getting caught up on laundry and house stuff, and maybe kick back a bit.

The rest of the week is booked up with trailers, bookkeeping, my ongoing battle with my favourite courier service, and with any luck, a baby snuggle or two.

Sidebar: How ironic is it that the driver for said courier service stopped in our shop this past week in desperate need of a repair for the roof of his truck? Yep, raining cats and dogs, and the last 3 feet of his cube van roof was waving like a beauty queen in a parade. Of course we helped him out, but just for a fleeting moment, a few different scenarios were taking place in this very fertile, sometimes dark, imagination............................

But, in the end, you have to do what's right, and let karma take care of the rest, right? Well, I guess, unless you want to be "that guy", and I don't wanna be "that guy."

Hopefully, very soon, I will be able to send my new book off to the illustrator. Having it in hand by the end of this school year is a bust, but I'm still shooting for the end of July, wish me luck!

So, that about does it for me, this time around. Except for a shameless plug... Mother's day is around the corner, and I've been told that receiving a copy of "Everyday Wishes For Your Extraordinary Life" has been a much appreciated gift..........just sayin'. (I have copies at the shop, if you are around Rosetown, they are currently sold out at McNally Robinson in Saskatoon, but I'll make sure they get more copies quickly, if they are requested. You can also always order online at www.margyreidbooks.com)

Until next time, I'll leave you with this wish.....................

May the challenge that causes the most nervousness and anxiety be seen for what it really is, instead.

May you see that it is the adult version of the boogie man you were so sure, as a child, lived in your closet, under your bed.

May you fight the urge to pull the covers over your head, swaddling blankets so they don't, in any way, dangle off the side.

May you, instead, jump up, throw on the light, swing open the closet door, revealing only disappearing shadows, who dared to make you want to hide.

May you see you are your own boogie man, for all he is, is self-doubt, that grows and festers in the dark, feeding on your confidence, making you feel small.

May you keep your confidence, nurture your confidence, starving him out, until you find yourself wondering if he ever existed at all.

Until next week............................................

Chocolate For Breakfast!? Yes, Please.......

Ahhhhhhh.....Easter,



Spring weather, just not here....... yet........, tales of a mysterious rabbit, pictures of adorable baby chicks, lambs and ducklings as far as the eye can see, and the one day out of the year you can eat chocolate for breakfast, guilt free.... cuz the Easter Bunny said so.........


Oh, and I believe I may have read somewhere that Jelly Beans become an official vegetable for the day........it was on the internet, so it must be true!


As I sit here writing, the sun is having it out with the clouds, trying to poke through and bathe us with some much needed warmth. It's been very gloomy in this neck of the woods for a while now, and I, for one, find my mood wanting desperately to follow suit.

I was very grateful to have the splash of spring cheeriness depicted above come through the shop doors! Thanks Dana! It was certainly a great pick-me-up!



Soooooooooooo.....


This week went pretty great...

On the courier front......getting stonewalled a bit.....not too worried....always another wrung to climb ....

My marbles seem to have returned to the nest after my run-in with the ladder, last week. Ok, maybe not completely, cuz I'm pretty sure marbles don't live in nests......or at all......oh well, moving on.........

The Author's Showcase in Biggar was fantastic! The kids were adorable, and it completely blew me away when at least half the kids in my second group knew the stories well enough that they were telling them along with me!

The staff and kids went out of their way to make us feel welcome, and the lunch was incredible.

Thanks again to all of the people involved, it was a great day.

The rest of the week flew by, as the shop is hoppin'! We are so grateful to be so busy!

So, tonight, our kids start to descend  upon the homestead...

The pork loin is marinating, the cookies are baked, the candy has been procured, and tomorrow, the home made strawberry shortcake will be topping off a treat filled, fun day. There may be evidence of mud in the entryway, a few dust bunnies hiding out, and a bit of laundry left undone, but, hey, sometimes ya just gotta do what you can with the time you have. Besides, the queen rarely comes to visit, so I think we'll be okay....


I'm looking very forward to having most, if not all of our kids under one roof again, even if it's only for a short while. I'll take it!



Off topic....................


Someone very close to me suffered a significant loss this week. It was unpreventable, unpredictable, unforeseeable, came out of nowhere, and hit hard. A million cliches come to mind, a thousand well-meaning anecdotes, a hundred inane phrases. All useless.

Until next time, I'll leave you with this wish................................



May you know that even as words fail to comfort, we are there, in silence, arms ready to embrace.
May you know we will patiently stand by, no clocks watched, no judgments passed, set your own pace.

May you understand even though we can empathize, sympathize, we can't really know how you feel.
May you know we'll do our best to help, though our efforts may seem clumsy, the concern is very real.

May you, in time, rediscover your smile, your joy, may laughter once again come quickly to your eyes.
May you find your way to the other side of this sadness, no longer paralyzed by grief's cries.


Until then.........


www.margyreidbooks.com

Never Get In A Fight With A Ladder! Trust Me On This One!

Hi!


The  above photo was taken at the reading I did at the library in Luseland, this morning. There weren't a ton of kids there, but the ones that were had a pretty dang good time!

It's always so much fun! I love library readings for 2 main reasons. One, there is usually at least one baby present, and today was no exception, AAnnnnnd, the parents come! It's fun to watch them try and keep the "kid" out of their faces, as the stories get told. I especially love it when the Dads catch themselves giggling!

In that minute, you get a glimpse of the munchkin they used to be before the grown up world got such a hold on them.

To bring that back to just one hardworking, busy, stressed, sometimes frazzled adult, even if it is only for a silly second, is always worth any drive.



Sooooooooo, it's been an interesting few days...............................



On the courier front.....long story short, I'm up to vice presidents, moving on and up further.......................


Otherwise, at the shop........


You can definitely tell Spring is officially here!  The phone is getting busy, people are needing things looked at and fixed before camping season begins. Some bigger insurance jobs are still trickling in, and we are gaining customers from further and further away.

Yup, looks like it's going to be another busy Spring/Summer! Bring it on!


Tuesday, I got to be "Grandma" all day, and take care of our two youngest grandbabies, while their Mommy went to a class.  I have to say, it was kind of nice to slip into diaper changin', snack gettin, snot wipin' mode again. crazy, the things you catch yourself missing......

Wednesday was......well.....pretty much the day from hell.

I woke up with a highly unsettled tummy and had to time the commute to work between bathroom visits........fun..........

I was plugging away at work when we heard a bang from outside....

The wind was gusting up to 70km/hr at this point, and knocked our hugely obnoxious sign over, missing our car by inches!

Now, this sign is BIG and HEAVY! We managed to wrestle it upright, and then I stood on the edge of the leg and held on for dear life, trying to think heavy thoughts and anchor it down while my hubby cabled it to our sign post.

It was like trying to stand on a mechanical bull, with a sadist at the controls!

When my hubby secured the top, he moved on to securing the bottom. At that very second, as luck would have it, an extra hearty gust of wind blew the ladder he had been using, over. Not that big a deal, except it whacked me on the head on it's way down.

Now, if sign-riding while getting whacked in the head with a 30lb ladder, and NOT getting knocked off, or knocked out, was an Olympic sport? I'm pretty sure I would have been hearing the national anthem and seeing some fireworks at some point. But, seeing as it is not, I'll have to settle for the slight humming in my ears, and the random bits of vertigo I am enjoying at present.

Slight concussion, probably. Fatal, I hardly think so. There are people out there with real problems.

I was less than a great work partner the rest of the week, I'm afraid. It took twice a long to do anything, as trying to harness any level of concentration and focus for customers was like trying to put drunk, angry kangaroos into tutus for the queen. Not as easy as it sounds.........................

Anywho,  I am thankful that I was still able to do the reading today.........and I don't think anyone was the wiser.

Tomorrow, I'm going to try and rest this melon.

The rest of the following week will be business as usual.................but for the great thing I get to take part in on Tuesday!

Yep, on Tuesday, I am honored to be part of an Author's Showcase being put on at the elementary school in Biggar. A couple of other authors will be participating as well.

I get to do 2 sessions. One just before lunch, and one after. They are even providing lunch for us! So fancy!

I better be careful, or all this fanciness might go to my head, and right now, there's no room......................


'Cuz of the kangaroos.




It's gonna be a great week!

Well, that about does it for me, this time 'round.

Until next time I'll leave you with this wish....................



May any and all humming you hear be external, pleasant, on key, and in tune.
May any fireworks be intentional, also external, all rides voluntary, and....prune...yeah, prune rhymes with tune.

May you be aware that ladders make crappy kites.
May you know, getting one on the head, well, bites.

May you know, if this was serious, I would take it seriously, and not laugh.
May you completely understand, in round two? I'm gonna kick some ladder ass!


Kangaroos in tutus............just sayin'...............................


See you next week!


www.margyreidbooks.com

Shorts When It's Barely Above Zero? Absofreakinlutely!

That's right, folks! If you look closely at the guy on the walking bridge, you will observe the fact that he is, indeed, wearing shorts.

Now, for my friends who read this blog from exotic lands, where a snowflake rarely, if ever, falls, and who may become concerned or confused by this photo, you must understand that this does not mean that this corner of the planet we call home has suddenly become tropical, and somehow jumped seasons in some strange phenomenon.

No, this simply means that residents of this part of the world are so desperate for Spring, or weather that event remotely carries a hint of Spring on it's breezes, that the second the temperature rises the slightest few degrees above zero, the shorts come on and the bikes come out.

On our way to Saskatoon, where this was taken, we saw swarms of bicyclists riding on the edge of the highway, miles from anywhere. We saw people standing and socializing outside of restaurants.....outside! On purpose! Just standing and chatting! Not running from warm building to car or vise versa, or shuffling along at an Olympic speed walker's pace with their faces wrapped in enough yarn to keep any crazy cat lady''s collection of felines occupied for years! Standing outside, just hanging out, loitering, for lack of a better word.

It's like the veil of hibernation was officially lifted today, and we were all given the go ahead to come out to play.

This winter was particularly, and unusually cold, which also made it seem unusually long.


So bring on the shorts, Captain Barely Above Zero Man, bring on the shorts!



It's been a pretty great week! When I left you last time I was headed to a trade show, a visit to my Mom's house and gearing up for a busy week at the shop.


Well, the tradeshow went pretty well. Some family showed up to take a look around and grab a quick visit. This included getting to meet our newest grand nephew who is almost 2 months old, and tiny, and so sweet.

My daughter sold all of her baked wares and quite a few people were picking up cards and showing some enthusiastic interest in her cakes and cupcakes.

Happily, a few more copies of my books found new homes, as well. It's so nice to hear that wee ones are asking for my books to be read to them. Still tickles me to no end, I'm not gonna lie.

After we packed up, we headed to my Mom's house for some much needed catching up. As a bonus, my older brother and some of his family were in town too, so it was kind of a double catch up!

Then it was back home and back to work.

If you remember, last week, you may have sensed that there was a bit of frustration involving the delivery of a part for one of our customer's trailers. If you recall, I decided to take a stand, and in doing so, I have now realized, I have begun a journey that may be even longer than I first thought.

It seems that reaching anyone with authority is more difficult than expected. I'm not sure exactly why the person in this position is so incredibly difficult to get an audience with. After all, all I want to do is talk to this person, find out what the deal is, and help them to see that doing the right thing is always the best thing in the long run. Even if it's not the easiest thing at the time. This is something we were able to instill in our daughters as children, surely, a mature, grown adult shouldn't find it such an impossible lesson to learn, right?

I think they think that if they simply ignore me, I'll just go away. Ummmm.....no. And I've made that pretty clear, I think. maybe I need to call again tomorrow.........yeah, I'm pretty sure I do.........................

I've explained to them that I've raised four daughters very close in age and ran a day home for years, they will never out wait me, if that is their thinking. I can pretty much guarantee I have more patience than anyone they have on staff, and I'm happy to prove it if they so choose to go that route.

I'm really hoping they don't choose that route, I don't want this to turn into a time sucking, joy eating thing.

Then, today, as I mentioned earlier, we went to Saskatoon. Yep, we needed to return a motorhome ladder that had been mistakenly sent to us.

We decided to take advantage of the trip and get in some visits with our daughters and their boyfriends, my sister, her hubby and kids, and get in some shopping for grandbabies.

As for the next week........................


There will be several phone calls involving the search of the mysterious "person in charge" at the courier company..............

There will be baby snuggles...................

There will be assisting in trailer repair....................

Preparing for, and then attending a reading at the library in Luseland, on Saturday.


Well that about does it for this week.......Have a great one!



Until next time, I'll leave you with this wish.......................


May everyone you need to speak with be available, willing and gracious on the other end of the line.
May you be prepared to wait, playing phone tag, no one said it had to be without at least one glass of wine.

May every Goliath that stumbles upon your path be made aware that the big guys don't always win.
May they be made to understand, that the Davids of this world, though small, carry mountainous might within.

May they come to understand that they simply don't create the rules for Everyone's game, only their own.
May they understand their "policies" aren't laws, I'll explain it, I will, if you'd just answer your damn phone!


Until next time!

www.margyreidbooks.com