Settling in Oakville

So many of you may think I have given up on my blog altogether, well I haven't I was just a little wrapped up with the move and with Facebook around I am finding I am neglecting my blog a little. So we are all settled into our new place in Oakville, we love our home so big and roomy, cleaning it isn't all that fun though. We have some great neighbours so the kids have been playing lots. WE have seen some old friends from Alberta already and done some exploring as well. Maci is excited to start junior kindergarten in the fall at a school close by. She get to ride the little yellow school bus which I think is adorable. I am having to work a few feelings of anxiousness when I think of her on the bus but a teacher meets them when they get off and her's is the first stop on and off at home so it should be ok. Ryan is just finishing up his " professional Ethics Course" at Ryerson University in Toronto and then will begin his articles in August. We are headed back to Alberta in a few weeks for Mac and Jorie's wedding( ryan's bro) and then we will drive our mini van that we left out there all the way back to Oakville. Should be quite the drive with 2 kids!!!!! Talk to me after and see if I survived!!! Anyways, I have had a few requests to post pics of our place, so will do that soon. Just wanted to check in and let you know we are here safe and sound and love it so far.

one more small town craziness!!

So I need to share one Small town moment that takes the cake. Today I went up to the good ol' TC homehardware and bought one of those plastic kid pools. I got it to my van and found it way to big to fit in. So I am thinking "crap" I am going to have to roll this thing down the road all the way to my dad's house and look like a total moron doing it, when the sales guy who I have never met in my life hands me his truck keys and says' here, just use my truck" So I jump in this massive truck and take the pool home. I was in shock at his niceness and thanked him a bunch and probably sounded like a babbling fool but I was just so shocked by his random act of kindness. anyways that's all really. We are off to Edmonton to stay with friends on monday and anxiously await Ryan's arrival on thursday, then we do his convication of friday and then all fly out to Toronto on Saturday the 9th. Crazy!!! Meg

Small Town Simplicities

Well I have been in southern alberta for about 3 weeks now. I have spent more time here this last three weeks than I have in years. We are defianetly getting anxious and ready to have our family reuntied and start our next phase of lifein Oakville/Toronto but I haven't forgotten to use this month to unwind a little from the hectic hussle bussle of city life. I have had a few experiences in this last while that has reminded me of some of the diffrences in the rural VS. urban lifestyle. First off, I have finally been able to loosen those grips of maternal control enough to let Maci out the door to play with neighbour kids. When I first got here, I only let her play outside when I was able to stand in the yard and watch her the whole time. Last night a little girl asked if she could come play and I let her out on her own. She was so excited to go out and play like a big girl. It felt a little like a kid releasing a trapped butterfly from a jar. I did open all the windows in the house and turned off the tv and dryer so I could hear her without standing at the windows. This may not seem like a big step for most of you, but for an urban mom, not to mention a mom who has worked in Child Protection for the last 6 years and has a jaded and quite untrusting view of the world- This was a huge step. She came back safe and sound at the end of the playtime!! Another little small town moment happened the other day. Lesley was making Lasagna and had gone up to the Trading Company (only grocery store in Magrath) to get some cottage cheese, she mistakingly got sour cream instead. I went up to the store with the 2 sour creams in hand, and asked to exchange them . I had forgotted the recepit. I knew the sales clery( a classmates fathers) and he let me exchange them without the recepit and also told me not to worry about the small diffrence between the two prices. These are things that just wouldn't happen in my grocery store in Edmonton. I still chuckle as I drive around Magrath and EVERYONE waves at me, although I don't know most of them. Usually in the city, if you are not using both hands on the wheel , you are using one to honk with. One more thing, I was able to sign Maci up for soccer a few weeks late and now she is happliy playing on a little team for the remainder fo our stay.That would of never happened in Edmonton. A deadline is a deadline!!!! This is really my last example: I took Maci to story hour at the public library on Wednesday and the lady who was reading the stories is the very same one who read to me as a 4 year old at the Magrath library, Irene Gruiniger is her name and weird enough she looked the exact same even though 20 years had passed. Anyway, these examples are just a few simple things that have stood out to me while we have been here. Being here hasn't convinced me that a small town is where we should be. I feel most at home now in an urban setting, the slow paced lifestlye is ok to visit but doesn't fit for our family right now, especially for Ryan-he is a big city boy through and through but it has provided us a little respite and time for refueling and rejuvination, and for that we are greatful. Meghann

Homeless...floating.......whatever you want to call it

So me and the kids have been floating around southern alberta since them beginning of May. You can find us in Magrath, Taber, in our van(my mobile home) walmart, the park or wherever. We have been crashing between my family in Magrath and Ryan's in taber. They have both been wonderful to provide a shelter to my little vagabond family. Seriously, it feels really weird to not have a permanent place of my own. Well we do but it is on Ontario and our stuff is still on the moving truck for another week. Our whole routine is off and my kids are sleeping really crappy. It makes me appreciate the routine and structure we once had. Maci keeps asking when we are going home to Edmonton and then when I remind her we aren't she gets really sad. I know my last blogs have made me sound like a really wimp but this is all that is on my mind right now. Other things that are going on, Maci has joined a soccer team in Magrath. She will play every sat morning for 1 hour. She was super excited to go buy little cleats and shin pads. Cohen has figured out a new mode of transportation, it is the bum scooting boogie. He doesn't crawl he just bum scoots everywhere. He is getting pretty fast and has already managed to pull a shelf over on himself , unplugs some electrical plugs and dump over a big box of cd's. He is quite proud of himself and I am hoping it burns a few calories as well. I am going out for dinner to a yummy Japanese restaurant with some of my high school girlfriends tonight in Lethbridge so that will be a nice break. WE all miss Ryan and are counting down the days when our little family can be reunited again. To all our friends in Edmonton, especially all my fellow blogging mom's , we love and miss you all already. We loved Edmonton tons and will always have a special little spot in our hearts for our friends and time we spent there

I just need to Whine

There is nothing profound, amazing or really interesting about this blog, I just need to whine a little. SO Ryan left tonight for Toronto.......won't see him for5 weeks , waaaaahhhh...., single mom for 5 weeks, have to wake up with Cohen every night instead of every other now, sob, sob.... Our house is basically packed but still dumb things left to do(by myself with 2 kids). I'm trying not to feel too down about moving but it is hard. I love my friends, my work, SPA LADY. Just found out my SPA LADY membership won't transfer anymore, grrrr so now I have to pay$100, to get out of my contract. Alberta Health Care is harassing me.....I hate living out of suit cases.... There in nothing to eat in my house, well crappy stuff that there is a reason it was at the back of the cupboard. Maci is having emotional issues with moving and is acting out more than ever.... Don't get me wrong, I am excited for our new adventure it is just a hassle getting to that adventure.. I think I am just tired, so I should go to bed... Don't worry though I really am ok!!

Maci Balloon Dance party/good bye party

So yesterday Maci had 4 little friends over to have a balloon dance party( good bye party)We had a ton of balloons all over the living room( I made myself almost pass out by blowing up so many)They jumped around to kiddie music, played dress up, decorated cup cakes and had snacks. The kids had a ton of fun and it wore me right out, I fell asleep shortly after 7 pm last night. I never thought partying with a bunch of little girls would be so exhausting. Shows my good ol' party days are gone, hahaha......Today is also my last day volunteering at Maci's school. Everything is turning into the "last" of everything these days. Ryan leaves on Sunday to Toronto to study for the bar. We will be apart for 5 weeks. YIKES!! It'll be tough, especially on the kids( Maci in particular-she is a real daddy's girl) We have web cams in both locations so that will have to do. We will be down in Magrath/Taber for the month of May and then will be heading out east on June 9th( after ryan's convocation).

Our movers come in 6 days!!!!!

WEIRD!!!!

Anyway, here are some pics from the party yesterday!

Face Book

OK, so I have a confession- I have totally been cheating on my blog with Facebook. I have just been introduced to this crazy thing called Facebook and I have totally been ignoring my blog. For those of you who aren't familiar with it. It is this new social community that each person creates their own profile and then you can invite friends to join your network. It is crazy how many people I have connected with. Each person you connect with, you can then go into their profile and see who their friends with and connect with them if you want. You can also post pictures, join groups and so on. I have already connected with so many old friends that I haven't talked to in years. Anyways, I am having a blast with it and it is really easy to join. Just go to www.facebook.com Other than that, 13 days left till we move YIKES!!!!!!!! Meg

The Countdown is On.......Bye Bye Alberta....Hello Ontario

So I just got back from the post office. I went there to pay my $36 so Canada Post can connect our Edmonton address to our new Oakville address. It was a weird experience:kinda sad &kinda exciting all in one. It made it seem so final to be doing that. I finally broke down today and filled one box with my clothes, hey it is a start right. I have three weeks and I know they will fly by.

There are so many things I will miss here and a few I won't- like the ENDLESS winter weather(yes we were treated to ANOTHER snow fall last night)gotta love waking up to that. I am not one to converse about the weather, I have always felt it is a rather shallow topic and doesn't say too much for your conversation skills, so forgive me for just saying that this winter has really sucked!!!!!As I say that, I am reminded of my little 3 year old shadow saying to me this morning in the midst of my grumbling about the snow( while we were walking to the van on the way to her school)

"mom the snow is beautiful" as she ran in circles fascinated with her boot tracks. I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying" no it sucks Maci" I just thought it instead.

I will miss my friends, some of them I have met through our ward, others I have met from previous wards, work, and just from the community.

I will miss my SPA LADY only 3 blocks from home.

I will miss my work- to all my crisis staff in the "pit"- I will miss those late late - like 3 am chats as we do the night shift," holding down the province", some crazy stuff was said in those wee hours of the morn. not to mention some crazy calls from intoxicated individuals and so on...

I will miss the beautiful Edmonton summers (even thought they are only like 6 weeks long).

I will not miss it getting dark at 11 pm though- very hard to convince a child it is bed time when kids are running all over outside and it looks like noon at 8 pm.

I will miss being able to drive home to southern Alberta in 5 hours.

On the other hand........

I am excited to be done the "school "phase of our life

I am excited to live in a real house

I am excited to meet new friends.

I am excited to be so close to Toronto but not actually have to live in it.

I am excited to like close to my mom and Joe and be within a days drive of all of my siblings.

I am excited to be in a humid place where my hands won't crack all the time.

I am excited to shop, there is some sweet shopping out east.

I am excited for my kids to be exposed to and learn about many different ethnic groups and cultures.

Those are just a few of my thoughts running through my mind tonight.............Well I am off to read my latest Jodi Picoult book while eating a bowl of key lime sherbet and then off to bed

My Own Private Easter Egg Hell

So I just wanted to start off by thanking all my family that contributed to my last blog on Grandpa. I really enjoyed hearing some more stories and felt closer to you all through the memories of him.

Nothing really earth shattering going on around here, well except trying to get ready to move across the country. I have packed a whole 1.5 boxes so far and am just procrastinating like crazy!!!

We are going home to my dad's and then Ryan's parents for easter. We are leaving tomorrow and will be back on Monday night. Maci is in full easter mode, just salivating over thoughts of candy and easter eggs. Today was her school easter party and I had the choice opportunity of being the parent helper today.

As I type, looking at my hands, stained with blue food coloring, I am reminded of the pure"gong show" of a day that easter party was. So I was put in charge of running the easter egg colouring station. Each kid brought 4 eggs to colour. We had about 5 buckets with food coloring and water mixture then stickers, sparkly glue, rubber bands and crayons to decorate. Anyways, at 10: 15 am, the class went to gym. Any kids who had not done their eggs stayed with me to dip ad decorate them. Well it turned out that at least 10 kids hadn't done them. So off the teacher goes and I am left with about 10 kids(the kids left over were the ones who didn't want to decorate during class, or the ones that couldn't focus on a task for the life of them) anyways( kids with issues), I have about 15 minutes to get all these kids to dye and decorate their eggs . Do the math=10 distracted 3/4 year olds + 40 eggs + 1 adult(me)+ 15 minutes= PURE BEDLAM.

I felt like I was in a horror movie!!!There were kids smashing their eggs,crying cause they rolled off the table and cracked, throwing them around, others wandering all over the room, little perfectionist girls that wouldn't hurry up and had to colour every last part of their egg. The clock was ticking. Kids whining to me to help them, kids taking other kids eggs, glitter glue spilling, ....I think you get the picture... So I have a confession... I totally squashed some of these little darlings creativity and took matters into my own hands. After trying desperately to keep track of whose eggs were whose, who still had to put stickers on, and failing miserably, I just started taking the eggs from the kids and making them all by myself , I found myself scribbling like a 3 year old would on their eggs and basically doing them for them while they stood there and looked at me like a mad women. I didn't even keep track of whose was whose. I just made sure that at the end, they all had 4 in their basket. By the end I wasn't even using the spoons to dip them, I was just dunking them in with my hand, holding them in the buckets and pulling them out.(hence the stained hands)

I know I sound like a terrible human and would probably not make a very good preschool teacher, but all I kept thinking about was those eager parents who would be looking in their child's little brown paper bag easter baskets and calculating exactly how many eggs there were and if they were decorated up to par.

I wouldn't confess this but it has been bugging me all day, so I am using this as a place to confess my sin of "creativity squashing". I know there are some parents out in Edmonton that are probably bragging up little Tommy's eggs, thinking he has some amazing newly discovered artistic ability, when little do they know that it was made by me.

Anyway, I don't think any of the parents read my blog so I feel I can vent.

Well that is enough for now. SHHHH..........this is our little secret

Remembering Grandpa Mark- 10 years later....

My Grandpa Mark Dahl passed away on March 29, 1997-ten years ago today. I wanted to write something special about my Grandpa. I have so many vivid memories of him, they have not faded with time.

I was 18 years old when he passed away. He was only 74. We lost him because of a rare form of cancer had developed in his lungs. He flew airplanes in World War 2. He was a pilot and flew a Lancaster Bomber. These planes were lined with Asbestos and he inhaled it. The asbestos lay dormant in his lungs for almost 50 years and then turned into lung cancer. I can't remember the technical name of this cancer but apparently other veterans have also lost their lives with the same form of cancer- still a causality of war so many years later.

Anyway at 18 years,I was "young and confused" in so many ways, I had so few constants at that time of my life that losing Grandpa was really rough- he being such a "rock" for me. He was always around for us.

Don't get me wrong, he was a very busy man. He was a doctor in Magrath for 45 years. An article in the Lethbridge Herald referred to him as," a quintessential country doctor, a Marcus-Welby-type physician who typified the traditional country doctor".I knew that I could find Grandpa in obvious places like the Magrath and then the Dahl Clinic or the Hospital,on a house call or out to one of the hutterite colonies( often Rockport or Old Elm- I had the chance to accompany him on numerous colony visits). If he wasn't at work then it was a pretty safe bet I could find him at home, downstairs sitting at the end of that little orange couch with the coloured Afghan on it. He was either watching the news or Star Trek or snoozing away. If it was nice out, there was a good chance he would be on his ride-on mower in his yard or in one of his kids yards( either my dad's, Allan's or Dennis's). If he was in the kitchen, he was always sitting at the end of the kitchen table with his back to the fridge .He might have been eating or reading the paper but there was ALWAYS a bright red can of coke in front of him,(compliments of that old white freezer in their garage with the never ending supply of coke and sometimes chocolate bars.).

Other vivid memories of grandpa are as follows:

Suspenders, briefcases with RMD on them,nice leather coats, walking sticks, chocolate malts in Cardston, doctors bag, the spontaneous coyote call he made with his hands and mouth, watching basketball games, going to movies , collection of sports illustrated, rocks- he loved rocks, dairy queen treats, going out to eat, at grandma days he would say" are your eyes bigger than your stomach", picture books of bomber planes from previous wars, waterton, hiking bears hump and hearing his infamous coyote call somewhere along the trail and for sure at the top, his black framed old person bike, (the one that came in a matching set with grandma's), his named stamped into all his books, oh I could go on..........

Grandpa was an example of selflessness. He had such a humble and quiet way about him as daily served his family, his patients and the community. I learned a few things about Grandpa (from people seeking me out to tell me stories of him after he had passed). I learned that Grandpa was known to drive into Lethbridge(from Magrath) in the middle of the night after receiving a phone call from an intoxicated person to drive them safely home. On the day he died, we were all at his house looking at pictures and grieving together. The doorbell rang and an older Native women was standing on the door step. She told me that she had just driven all the way from the reserve because she had a bad feeling about"Dr. Mark" and needed to know if he was ok. I told her that we lost him that morning and she just stood on the steps and wept.

I also remember a time when I was doing my practicum on the Blood Reserve( for my social work degree). I was participating in a community march through the town of Standoff( Family Violence Awareness). I was walking with a Native women and we were just making idle chit chat. She found out I was a Dahl from Magrath, and that Dr. Mark was my grandfather.She began to cry and then proceeded to tell me how much she loved him and how difficult it was for her to find another doctor after he passed, she then decided that she needed to tell everyone around who I was related to. For the rest of that march people kept coming to tell me more and more stories about Grandpa. That women from the march always came and gave me a hug and was sooo kind every time she saw me after that day.

Some of you may remember the beautiful German song that dozens of Hutterite women stood up and sang in the middle of the funeral. I also remember the funeral director telling us that this was the biggest funeral they had ever done.The lines wrapped around the entire stake center (during the viewing) and the chapel and gym were filled to the back. I was also told that the year that Grandpa died, there was more than one little hutterite boy named Mark after him.

My little boy is also named after him.

I love my Grandpa, I think about him often and love to tell my kids stories about him. Maci says that she knows she met him in Heaven and laughs when she hears stories of him eating worms and making coyote calls. I miss him everyday. I love you Grandpa Mark-

love Meghann

Please feel free to post in the comments section any thoughts , feelings and memories you have about Grandpa Mark . Also pass on this link to anyone else you may have want to share in this tribute. I want to send this to Grandma Helen .

Best Friends-Maci and Ella

So I just wanted to share some sweet little pictures of my Maci and her best friend, Ella. Maci and Ella have been friends for a few years now and Maci just adores her. She loves playing with her and is always wanting to call her and often asks what I think Ella is doing at any given moment.Here are some pics of their latest play date, they made binoculars out of toilet paper rolls and went outside to go "bird watching".

Mcfamous!!!!Click on Mcfamous

So what I am about to tell you is not a joke. My dad and step mom(Lesley) can be seen on Mcdonald's bag's and cups all over the world starting this month. I will attach an article from the Calgary Sun so that you an hear the story from Lesley. She tells it better than I.

Say cheese! The new face of McDonalds Story about love of hiking put couple's photo on chain's cups and bags Calgary HeraldPublished: Friday, March 16, 2007 MAGRATH - When Lesley Dahl sat down at her computer last April, she was just looking for information about global warming. Now she and her husband are part of a global marketing campaign, and their faces can be seen on McDonald's cups and bags all over the world. Their journey into the fast-food nation began when Dahl, who lives in Magrath, did a computer search and came across a website for the McDonald's Global Casting Call. Email to a friendPrinter friendly Font: * * * * "There were a lot of features of people and their passions all over the world, and I thought, 'Hey, I wouldn't mind writing about ours,' so I did," says Dahl, 55. Restricted to 100 words or less, Dahl submitted a story about herself and her husband, and their love for hiking. Months passed, and Dahl was contacted by McDonald's, informing her that she and 23 other people from around the world had been selected out of more than 13,000 entrants to become the new faces of the restaurant chain's "I'm lovin' it" campaign. Lesley and her husband, DeVar, were in Chicago this week for the unveiling of their packaging. "It's hard to imagine it, really," says Dahl. "Initially, I just wanted to get our kids and grandkids to see it, and they were so excited. But in Chicago it was quite amazing to be in the restaurant where people actually had our bags on their tables, and were walking out the door with us. It was quite a shock." The new cups and bags will be available at McDonald's beginning this month and throughout the year. The Dahls were the only Canadians selected in the Global Casting Call.

See I am not kidding around. Maci thinks it is hilarious that her grandparents are on the bags. She wants to go everyday to try to see we can get their bag.They went to London last summer for a week and did the photo shoot there. They were wined and dined by Mc D's the entire week.

So if any of you are doing some high class dining, check your bags and cups and see if you see two people sitting on the side of a mountain. Lesley's global casting # is #9.

Look in the link for this blog and you can see a collage of pics from their Chicago trip

Black Gold Rec Center( Leduc)

Last night we took the kids to Blackgold Rec Center in Leduc. The kids pools were amazing and so much fun. Maci was in heaven and Cohen was amused and intrigued by the water. It was his first time swimming. Then we went to dinner at a friends house with another couple where they BBQ'd(no it is not really warm here but Graham was willing to stand out in the cold. The steaks turned out great). . We had a great time and it made me realize how much I love our friends and how I am going to miss that part of our life soooo much here. Anyway, here are some pics from swimming.(Cohen didn't swim in his PJ's. I just changed him first and then I took the pics).

Mission Completed

I am writing to y'all from the Marriott at Eaton's Center in downtown Toronto. It is a beautiful hotel attached to one of the biggest mall's in Toronto.

So I arrived in Oakville on Wed evening. My realtor took me out for dinner and then on Thursday morning we began the house hunt. I saw a few places I liked and some that I didn't and some really nice brand new town homes but they were surrounded with dirt and mud as lawns had not been planted yet and weren't going to be for quite some time, not to mention construction people everywhere , so anyway in the afternoon I had about 2 I was waffling between when Garry(the realtor) said "let's go back to my office and see if there are any new listings" so we did and that is when we found the house we have now rented. We are renting for the first little while (lease is a year)while we get settled in Oakville and learn the areas. We will then buy within the year.

I do love Oakville, it is a gorgeous little city and so much shopping and 1/2 hour drive to downtown Toronto.It is on the shore of lake Ontario and even has a lighthouse. There are tons of trails, ravines and parks too.

I also got Maci registered in junior kindergarten. I love the school. She has a science, drama and art room. The school is built around a Reggio philosophy-the thought being that kids are treated as individuals-for example-each kid brings a snack to school but they get to choose when they want to eat it. There is no"snack time" allotted. Also only a few kids will go on a field trip at a time, depending on the child's specific interest. For example, why would a kid go to a circus field trip if they were scared of clowns. I am so impressed with her school. They also have a pet guinea pig that the kids get to take turns taking home each weekend to take care of it.

Anyway,now that I found a place we are in Toronto all weekend to shop and play(my mom and I).

Here are pics of the house.

Sorry for the repeats I can't figure out how to delete the pics without deleting the whole post???

I love the toy room/family room-that is a fully finished basement. It even has a cold room in it.

Another cool thing is that the island in the kitchen is portable. I forgot to take pics of the bedrooms but there are four upstairs and the master bedroom is huge!!!!

Off to Oakville

So I am flying to Toronto tomorrow morning. My realtor is meeting me at Pearson airport and taking me to Oakville and I will then begin the house hunt. Since I am only there for two days( the weekend, my mom and I are staying in Toronto) I have to find a place in such a short time, I also have to tour Maci's prospective preschool as well. I am excited to see the town and have a glimpse of what our new world is going to involve. Ryan's mom has come up to help with the kids while he is in school. She will be here till friday night but he will be solo with the kids friday night to sunday night( hehehe....whoops did I type that...shhhh!) It will be a great experience for him a and I know he will do just fine. I will take my camera and takes some pics of our place(when we find it). Meghann

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

So tonight I went out with some of my favorite girlfriends, we all met and worked together at the North Central Office for Children's Services. We have known each other for a 5 years and have stayed quite close. We try to go out to eat on a regular basis but hadn't done so for a while.It was fabulous to spend 3 hours chatting our hearts out. we first went to a yummy Thai restraunt and then to Joey Tomatoes for desert. Here are some pics

The Grand Explosion and a father's love...........

So this evening was just a regular night in our home, I was upstairs getting ready to go on a "girls night out" with some of my closest friends from work when I heard Ryan yelling desperately for help in the kitchen. I come flying down the stairs to meet Ryan and Cohen on their way up, both of them covered in one of Cohen's finest masterpieces from the diaper. We only had a few split seconds to think and so Ryan thought it would be easiest to keep the mess contained to the tub so we dumped Cohen in and then Ryan realized he might as well join the poop party as he was already covered in it. I think I fell in love with Ryan a little more tonight as I saw him sitting with Cohen in poopy nasty water trying to deal with the mess. I was on my way out the door and not wanting to get dirty, left this one up to him....Here are some pics of the special father/son bonding...

"Shut Up and Sing"

Ryan and I have always loved the Dixie Chicks. We went to their concert in Calgary in November 06. We love their music, Natalie's voice is addicting and they are just sooo funky and REAL. We rented their new documentary "Shut Up and Sing" on Friday night. It evoked alot of strong feelings and thoughts regarding to the concept of "Democracy". If you don't remember what happened in 2003 when Natalie Maines made a joke at a London concert about Bush being from Texas, all you have to do is Google it and you will find a plethora of info regarding her "alleged crime". I find it despicable with respect to the way the media, american country music and SOME of the american public treated them after her comment. Their music was banned from many country radio stations, there were organized cd burnings/dumpings, one hick even brought his John Deer in and ran over a bunch of their CD's. A death threat was made against Natalie and list goes on and on..... The irony in all of this is the idea of democracy and freedom of speech that America professes to stand for. Isn't that what thousands are dying for in Iraq?? This concept of Democracy.......hmmmmm...... Oh I could really rant but I won't........not now anyway, just go out and rent or buy this enlightening documentary... Once again, I am so content to be living right where I am!

Maci In RED is Sassing me!!!!

We did these pics yesterday when we were just messing around. It made me think of the song" Lady in Red" by Chris De Burgh.... These pics are actually a true reflection of her little personality. She is soo incredibly sassy, spunky, assertive and adorable all in one....I love her sooo