This is what happens when your sister-in-law gets a hold of your camera...

Life would be a little more dull and a little less exciting without Kylie around.

Christmas Brazieres

This is Craig reading his poem from their place in Victoria. See Shareen's blog to read more about our Skype Christmas!

Craig (Shareen's husband) had my name for Christmas, and here's the poem he wrote me to go with the gift:

An ODE TO JULIE

This is my first time
To try the family rhyme
So here goes
I hope the gift under your nose
Curl's your toes

Just to be clear
I was lucky to draw Julie
So I got her some gear
She can wear, while walking in the coulee

I want to keep it true
To make you aware
There is something blue
You can wear it with flair

It must seem deranged
To receive a Bra
In the gift exchange
From your brother-in-law!

Can you guess what he got me??

A funky, magentic do-up jacket thing and....

2 wicked awesome sports brazieres! (with some help from Shareen of course). Lowell is oh-so-proudly displaying one of them for you all:)

More Christmas highlights to come. I just thought the poem was too cute to wait...

A Word of Caution

Do not drive on those nasty roads between Red Deer and Nanton, Alberta unless you must. I hit the ditch today...and so did Marc and Kylie. We were going the opposite direction, but we hit the ditch at the same accident scene at about the same time. This morning the visibility was fine, but the roads were slick. It was no fun. Now I think the visibility is crappy too. Sooo.....PLEASE BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!!

My Christmas Gift to the World

There are plenty of excuses that could go along with this post, but tis not the season for excuses. Tis the season for spreading the love & joy and CELEBRATING JESUS' BIRTH!

Merry Christmas one and all. This is me spreading the love & joy. =)

Disclaimer: It's a bit painful at first, but it gets better in the end... really...

Merry Christmas Eve

Since there are no cute little grandkids in this family with cute little Christmas clothes to feast your orbs on, I present....NIKO and his jingle bell Christmas collar.

Top 10 Things I LOVE about Coming Home

10.This CITY.

A view of Lethbridge from an airplane (that's the U of L in the front)

The view from outside our window this morning.

I love Lethbridge. It’s not too big, it’s not too small… and best of all: it doesn’t have a rush hour! Well, it kind of does, but you definitely don’t have to factor in an hour extra of driving to account for rush hour like in Edmonton. Lethbridge has Chinooks, it’s pretty warm, and it’s easy to spend time outside- even in winter.

9.The hot tub.

Kylie relaxing in the hot tub.

I’m sure most people would agree that having unlimited access to a hot tub is a privilege indeed!

8.Our FRIDGE.


It’s amazing opening the fridge door and being allowed to eat WHATEVER I want from it. At home in Edmonton, we share the fridge with 5 girls, so I only have (guilt-free) access to 1/5th of it. Well, more like 1/4 because Carlynne and I share groceries, but that’s still nothing like 100% full access. The same goes for all the baking/cooking ingredients. I can cook all I want at home using whatever I want.

7.Hanging out in our new, beautiful, cozy home.

My room!

Our cozy living room.

My parents have made it into a very welcoming and homey place (both inside and out), and I always look forward to coming back. I’m especially looking forward to April when I get to live here with my parents until the WEDDING (in July)!

6.My Mom’s home-cooked and downright delicious meals.

She’s a superwoman that lady is. She always “experiments” with meals and trust me: it certainly isn’t punishment being guinea pigs for Mom! And for Christmas and Thanksgiving, Dad always does the turkey!

5.Going for family walks!


4.Lethbridge friends! It’s great to catch up with old and new friends in Lethy!



3.Having a dog around.

Tessie passed away in August at the age of 14. I miss her a lot.

Me playing with Niko.

Sadly, Tessie is no longer with us, but when Marc and Kylie are here, they bring Niko. He’s the only “grandkid” in the family and I love to run, snuggle, and play with him. He’s got a lot of energy, that boy!


2.My whole fun, quirky family.


I love when I come home and all the siblings come home too. I really look forward to when we all get together and reminisce about old memories and make several new ones! Rarely a dull moment with the G clan.

And the NUMBER ONE Reason why I love coming home: My parents.

The last picture taken with them before I moved away from home.

I love love LOVE them. They are so great and supportive, and the older we are all getting, the more fun they are to hang out with. They’ll always be my parents first and foremost, but they’re also some of my best friends.
Not only have they made it possible for us kids to have so many amazing opportunities, but they’ve been so supportive and encouraging in all that we do. Every time we have anything going on (i.e. exam, meeting, travel etc) they always let us know several times that they’ll be praying for us. Without fail, my Dad ALWAYS has our first initial written on his hand. Right before heading into an exam, I’ll get an email saying, “I’ve got a ‘J’ on my hand!” How great is that? This is an example of an email from my Dad:

I've got the big J on my hand already!.Will pray for you lots today,esp 9-11 and 2-4. Have a SUPER DUPER DAY Julie! "Have no anxiety in anything, in in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of god, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Phil 4: 6+7.
Love you kpishi Julie! Dad XXXXXOOOOO

There’s so much more to say about my parents, but it all boils down to this: I love them a lot and I feel SO blessed that I get to be one of their daughters.


Yep, Life at home is good.

Mrs. Glover: Wonderwoman

Mrs. Glover made us fancy shmancy dresses, and I've worn mine at every opportunity since then:

My sister Shareen's wedding (as that's what they were made for!)

(This is Carlynne and I with Aunty Wilma)

OUR ENGAGEMENT DAY!

My graduation from U of A.

(This is my Spa 900 group (which is basically alternative to the thesis route). Left to right: Melissa, Kelly, Lesley Ann, and me)

Whatever would I do without this woman?!

As you can probably tell, Mrs. Glover is a very talented woman! This week I'm planning on diving into the wedding dress shops and when I have a better idea of what I want for myself and my bridesmaids, I'm gonna give Mrs. Glover a dingle. Y'hear that Mrs. Glover?? You'll be hearing from me SOON!

When it rains it pours!

Tis the month for birthdays, birthdays, and more birthdays. And today is ANN-MARIE'S BIRTHDAY!
Ann-Marie is a great friend from school and I love love love her and hope she had a great great birthday!

From left to right: Christie, Nancy, Kendra, ANN-MARIE, Lyndsay, et moi.

Stacey G - Totally Dependent

My Aunty Wilma and Uncle Vern told me about their daughter Stacey's (my cousin) music video, but I hadn't seen it until Marc and Kylie put it on their blog. It's very entertaining and I rate it a full five stars!

It's the Twins' Birthday!

And I don't mean Carlynne and I!

Yolanda and Yvonne have been Carlynne and I's twin friends for a long time. In a class of 66 students, there were 3 sets of girl twins (there's something in the air in Lethbridge let me tell you- it must be that wind!). Yolanda, Yvonne, Carlynne and I, in particular, have been excellent friends since Junior High....and today is Yolanda and Yvonne's birthday!! So HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THEM!!

From Left to right: Yvonne, me, Yolanda, and Carlynne at Yolanda's wedding 2 summers ago.

Happy Birthday Sisses

Today is the birthday of not only my super wonderful and fantastic sister-in-law Kylie, but also my super wonderful and fantastic sister-in-law-to-be Julie Anne aka Julie Taylor the First. Wahoo! Happy Birthdays Girlies. I love you both to bits and pieces.

Kylie & Niko

Marc and Kylie

Kylie wearing the giant duck towel I made her for Christmas last year.

Julie Anne and a truckload of bagel mulch.

Julie Anne preparing the bagels to go through the mulcher (this is a post in and of itself. Later folks...later)

I hope you both have super wonderful and fantastic days because you're both super wonderful and fantastic!

PS- Kylie, you really seem to be getting on in years. Perhaps you should start seriously considering giving me some mini Marc and Kylie's before your fertile years are over...

Cheesy Farewell to Corbett

Picture of Corbett Hall courtesy of Christie

Corbett Hall is a building at the U of A
Where I have spent all day every day
I learned a lot in this building
And that knowledge with me I hope to bring
A lot of new friends were made
I hope our friendships never fade
In this building, many smiles and laughs we did share
But come exam time, fun and relaxation were rare
Corbett Hall treated me well this last couple years
And as I leave it, I may shed a few tears
Today my last exam I did write
And now I shall spread my wings and take flight

Fruit Drawers & Christmas Decor

Carlynne has been very passionate about creating a new fruit storage system and making a “tea corner” in the kitchen. After an intense little shopping trip on Saturday morning, we now have……fruit drawers. And a “tea corner” to boot! It’s quirky, fun, functional, and let’s face it: it looks good.

There's the tea corner (on the table) with the fruit in the drawers underneath the table.

Oh you wanted a closer up view of the fruit drawers? Here they are (with the tea department on top)!

You wanted to see the tea even closer up?? HERE IT IS!!

Here are also some pictures of our Christmas decorating. Once again, Carlynne is to thank for 99% of it, and Dan’s Mom is to thank for the other 1% because she bought us the Charlie Brown Christmas tree. Thank you Daniel’s mama! (PS- she deserves more than 1% of thanx).

Please note: these pictures definitely do no do the coziness and prettiness justice. Just imagine when it’s dark outside, the candles are lit, the Christmas lights are on, the fireplace is blazing, and Christmas music is blaring. How I love this season.

No Christmas decorations are really obvious from this view at all, but what the heck: here's the dining room and half the living room!