Category Archives: Life

Gampa & Gampa Visit

To Calvin, there is no distinction between Grandpa and Grandma. But it is a big step up from Papa for Grandpa and nothing at all for Grandma.

A couple weeks ago, Tim’s parents came out for a visit and to help with some yard work. The yard work took up the majority of the time, but lots of fun was still had.

27 (3)

27 (7)

This is the part of the yard that got worked on.

2 (1)

They brought their camping trailer, and Calvin loved to spend time in there. Mostly because there were snacks.

2 (7)

2 (6)

If there were tools around, Calvin had to help out!

Thanks for coming and spending time with us!

Date Night

Tim and I don’t go out all that often. You could say that we are bad at dates. When (or if) we go out to dinner, we are done in 45 minutes. We can rarely decide on movies to see. Often we decide that something we might want to do isn’t worth spending the money on. Not to mention we have two small children who are hard to shed.

But tonight, Jordan and Amy graciously let us leave the house without the boys! What were our big date plans, you may ask? Errands, of course!

First we hit up Target where I got a few things for a craft room I’m organizing, restocked our home pharmacy, tried on some dresses (me) and checked out the Lego and Nerf selection (Tim)

20140606-230209-82929747.jpg

But because this was a date, it wasn’t all business. We stopped and played some Wii. I’ll give you one guess which character I was.

20140606-230354-83034198.jpg

The next stop was Dairy Queen. Mmm…Blizzards! Oreo for me, something too chocolatey for Tim.

20140606-230456-83096034.jpg

One of the main things we went out for was to look for a phone. Yes, we are stepping back in time and getting a land line. Future shop was closed, and Walmart was out of the cheapest ones. Neither of us were prepared for the price of these things!

20140606-230645-83205379.jpg

So no phone yet, but we did get some expensive light bulbs for our kitchen. Yay!

And that is how the Sevenhuysens date.

A Quiet Home

Today, after being here for a whole week, Tim’s parents left. It was a busy and fun week, with three extra adults in our small home the entire time (because Amy is temporarily living with us), and four on the weekend (with Jordan visiting), leaving the house in a natural state of disarray. But right now, as the boys nap, I will ignore the kitchen that needs to be tidied, dirty laundry that needs to be thrown in the washer, clean laundry that needs to be folded, floors that need to be mopped, and bathroom that needs to be cleaned, and enjoy some iced coffee and maybe watch a tv show or two.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we love having company and any of you are welcome any time! But as sad as it always is to see grandparents leave (and any company really), having our home to ourselves is quite nice.

Long Weekend with the Mortons

Our friends, Anna and Karl, who recently moved from Victoria to Regina, drove in to visit this past weekend. Aside from family, I have to say that they are the people who our boys receive the most loving from. And we love them too!

IMG_6100

I won’t bore you with the details, but in general, the weekend was full of games being played, balls being kicked, coffee being made, and food being eaten.

IMG_6117 IMG_6113 DSC_0035 DSC_0038

 

Thanks for coming!

Larissa Organizes: My New Venture

On Friday, 6 days ago, I had a fleeting thought that it would be fun to be paid to organize peoples’s stuff. That thought turned into a text to Tim that read “You know what would be fun? Having a home organization business.” Then we texted back and forth a bit about it, interspersed with a conversation about what to have for supper.

I couldn’t put the thought out of my head, and I took to Facebook to see what people thought. I know the profession exists, but I wasn’t sure if the market existed with my peers and families (or individuals) like them. It turns out the need is there!

So over the next bit I will do some work for friends to build my experience and portfolio. After I’ve gotten some paid gigs, I’ll get some professional branding and stuff done, and go on from there!

While it isn’t a necessity for me to work, it will be a nice bonus. We run our household on a tight budget, and having something extra coming in would just help us save up for the inevitable mini van quicker, or we can fund more house updates sooner than what we could have before.

Plus, it makes me excited! I haven’t really stopped thinking about the whole thing since my initial thought on Friday. I have loved organizing spaces for as long as I can remember, and what’s that saying about finding a way to make money by doing what you love?

Larissa Organizes will be my working business name until I come up with something better. I like 7 Houses – Home Organization (my last name means “seven houses”, the number seven is a great Biblical number meaning perfection and completion, and my work would take place in houses). What are your thoughts? Do you have any better ideas?

This is what I would love to be able to do for people (click for source).

This is what I would love to be able to do for people (click for source).

Our Wedding Day

Today is our 3 year anniversary. Yay us!

I am not a sappy emotional person, so I will spare you an ode to Tim or our life together. Instead, I will bring out the ol’ wedding photographs.

All photos are by Vanessa Voth Photography, and you can view her original post for our wedding here (there are different photos than what I chose for this post).

My Something Borrowed...earrings my friend wore at her own wedding.

My Something Borrowed…earrings my friend wore at her own wedding.

She had just watched the Royal Wedding the previous day, so she knew exactly what (she wanted) to do.

She had just watched the Royal Wedding the previous day, so she knew exactly what (she wanted) to do.

The flowers that lined the aisle later became the flowers for the reception tables.

The flowers that lined the aisle later became the flowers for the reception tables.

Right before The Walk.

Right before The Walk.

TimLarissa-266

Hello Fraser River! Hello awkward hug.

Hello Fraser River! Hello awkward hug.

TimLarissa-377 TimLarissa-361

The party.

The party.

The ladies.

The ladies.

The men.

The men.

TimLarissa-639

Super secret awesome photo location: the old Albion ferry dock in Fort Langley.

Super secret awesome photo location: the old Albion ferry dock in Fort Langley.

Killing time at Wendel's in Fort Langley.

Killing time at Wendel’s in Fort Langley.

There was a playoff game that night, so we had to come in like this.

There was a playoff game that night, so we had to come in like this.

TimLarissa-763

Thanks for coming, guests!

Thanks for coming, guests!

I may not remember exactly, but I think we aced this test.

I may not remember exactly, but I think we aced this test.

My Oma and I made our cake, and the topper was from my parents' cake.

My Oma and I made our cake, and the topper was from my parents’ cake.

Watching the slide show.

Watching the slide show.

I will forever remember this day, and look forward to celebrating many more years of marriage!

I love you, Tim!