Saturday, 2 August 2014

I loved her first...



I have spent my whole life wondering how she could do it,  How she did it... I took most of what my life had to offer for granted as she was so wonderful we didn't have to worry about anything.  I have and always will be close to her as I am convinced my heart is a large piece of hers.  Her smile and the way she composes herself make me so proud to know her,  and even more proud to be such a large part of her.  I was the gift she never realized was so great,  I gave her something she had never had before... I was the first person to call her mom and tell her I love her,  I was the first person she held and taught to eat, walk, sleep I was lucky enough to show her how it felt to have her heart walk around outside of her.     I had the pleasure of making her a very proud Nana,  but being the first for most things wasn't always as glorious as what it seems.  She made my life bright she taught me how to treat others,  she showed me how to love.  She has stood beside me my whole life and has always accepted me for who I am and has never tried to change me.  She listens to me daily,  she provides advice when I need it or ask for it.  She makes me feel better with just hearing her voice.  I am beginning to understand more and more everyday that these things that I took for granted many years ago were the greatest gifts I would ever receive in my life.  Loving her is the greatest feeling in the world,  listening to my little lady talk so highly and so amazingly about such an inspirational woman makes me even more proud to call her My Mom.

I love you Mom more than you will ever know,  & I loved you first :) oxo

Thank you for your life long experience, for your unconditional love, and for being there for me each and every day!

Love you xox

Until next time
~Coll xo

Tuesday, 22 July 2014

Take control of your life

Its been a long time since I have been around,  life has taken me in so many directions over the last few months!  Taking time out my day to have a tea seems to be a small insignificant event for some, for me its HEAVEN lately.  Today was a new day,  I am eating clean,  I am fuelling my body from the inside out,  If I don't make a change in my life it will continue to be the same routine with no time for myself. I guess today my goal is to share my new life style adventure with you all :) 

Please lets talk,  Lets join this life long change together starting NOW ,  not next week or the week after ... we need to live in the moment and our moment to shine is NOW...  

I will be the most successful woman I can be, and I will never forget that behind every successful woman is herself. 

Tomorrow is day one for me,  I promise to blog over the next 30 days as I cleanse my body inside and out, as I gain extreme mental clarity, while I start my new health routine...  Join me along the way in whichever way you can!!!!

Until next time 

Coll xox


Saturday, 4 January 2014

And the count down begins...





So many people will think I am totally Bananas however, I am so nervous for 21 days from now...

What happens when you turn 30?????   Does my hair start to fall out, do my breasts start to sag instantly???  Do wrinkles come in all shapes and sizes... Like what am I to expect....

If I had it my way I would be 29 forever, and obviously I can not control what is about to come...

I think that what makes me nervous is that it marks a big life event... half way to 60, 30 years till retirement, which I guess isn't so so bad.... however it just makes me so insanely nervous about what is to come.

So I have started to research what I need to do before I turn 30,  which seems like a lot to accomplish in 21 days...

The 21 day count down list is to come, just compiling the collection!


Until next time
Coll xox








Tuesday, 13 August 2013

My new nephew!!!


                                                                   Baby Blake :)


I am a proud Auntie once again,  however this time I was granted the privilege of being in the labouring room with my sister,  I was able to witness the miracle of birth in a totally different way.  

Thanks Stephanie and Bjorn for allowing me the opportunity to be with you both!  

I love this little Man so so much!!!!  I just can't wait to see him running around with his two brothers :) 


Until next time
Auntie Coll xox ;)


Tuesday, 30 July 2013

A spot light for a very special man....


I find motivation in everything around me and I always have, since a young girl I have found comfort residing by the lake, its always been a comfort for me and tends to send me to a relaxing place.  I find that no matter what goes on around me sitting on the beach and having a tea is the most tranquil place for me.

My first cup of tea was with a man I have loved all my life, and a man that has always and will always stand by my side.  I have always wished I would find someone to love me as fully as he loves.  My granddad is a gentle and kind soul.  I will never forget the days sitting with my grandfather listening to stories of when he grew up and moments in his life that were uplifting and astonishing.  He still to this day is the greatest story teller of all time.  He even can carry a tune or too, he used to sit us on his lap and sing the oooolllie goolie song, about a bird and it would make us cry as it was so funny, and maybe its his brit accent but nobody can sing a song as well as Granddad can.  I am lucky that I was able to spend many years living with my grandparents and I learned so much from them,  They have strong religious beliefs and although they are not my beliefs they have taught me that passion and compassion are two very important things to have in life.  I have always admired the love that my granddad has for my grandma,  he has a love that will never ever fade,  he admires her more than anyone knew could be possible.  Even if she fell in the mud he would still call her beautiful, of course he would probably try to take a photo or too and perhaps forget to buy or add the film... not saying this has ever happened to him before, the love he has is strong and never changing.  My granddad worked at Maple Hurst prison in Milton Ontario for many years and he would share his experiences with us, and always had a way of relating everything back to a wise old tale, and I would just love sitting with him for hours listening to him talk.  My granddad is someone who no matter what I could and can go to, I can tell him about the amazing things in my life and I can also share the heartache that also does come with life.  He would always start our conversations in this way,  Well Coll lets see how we can work through this.... and usually I had to set aside a few hours to have our chat but he always has had the way to make me smile at the end.  The funniest times with my Granddad were always watching him watch Football (Soccer to us Canadian's) he would and still does scream at the TV when the wrong plays were executed. I just loved watching Ronaldo take off his shirt to claim his victory goal... such a wonderful Grandfather granddaughter moment. The love and the admiration you have taught me over the years has resulted in me being able to love fully, to trust fully and to be the best I can be every single day of my life.  I know so many people have been touched by being in your life.

This man has always remained #1 in my heart and in my life, and Grandad you always will be my #1 man.

I love you xox

Until next time
Coll xox

Monday, 29 July 2013

Love is you...


                

I am certainly not an expert on the subject of LOVE, but really who is... 
I was browsing the web the other day and came across this amazing quote and I giggled to myself for a few moments because Bob Marley wrote it,  I was taken by the pure innocence it reveals... Most people try to find the "perfect person"  what does that even mean???  


“You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She's not perfect - you aren't either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break - her heart. So don't hurt her, don't change her, don't analyze and don't expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she's not there.”        Bob Marley




How can this make such sense,  the truth of the matter is that sometimes we make life so complicated and truthfully if we don't take time to admire and love someone for who they are, we will lose out in life,  we will spend our life chasing a dream instead of living in the moment...  Life was not intended to be so complicated, so commercial, so virtual, life was not meant to be a family sitting around a table texting their friends or updating their facebook status, life was meant to spend time with people, to take in the small moments, to enjoy one another in the best of times and to be there for one another in the worst.

Life is simple, it tends to be over complicated and I know even myself I make life complex at times,  take time to appreciate the small things,this makes life alot more precious.  Meaningful relationships need to be charished and worked on daily, we can not take people in our lives for granted.


You can not give yourself to anyone fully until you take time to get to know yourself, take time to breathe, take time to be alone and be okay with being totally alone and feel comfortable being alone, and continue to breathe... At the end of the day if you look in the mirror are you okay with who you are, Then once you are smile and know that you have finally found true love deep within your own heart. 

This love will never be forgotten or mistreated, this love will be strong and true.  

The moral to this post is...Take time for you, 


Until next time, 

Coll xo





Coming soon...

                                  Good Afternoon fellow Bloggers :)

A new post is coming soon!!!!  I have been super busy with kids and life and work so I promise tonight something new will be up :)

                                                 Until next time, 
                                                        Coll xo

Friday, 17 May 2013



What are your Goals in life?

What motivates you to succeed in reaching your goal?

How do you measure your own personal success?

What is the underlying factor or fear blocking you from concurring your goal?


They always say patience is a virtue; this is true however if we do not have a plan or a call to action patience alone will not assist in concurring your goal.   Goal for the purpose of this post can be anything that you personally want to attack with a plan or call to action something that you want and need to change in your life this year.

I have always had so many goals and so many ways of reaching them, and at times in my life I was extremely successful and at other times I was hitting road blocks which just started to shut me down inside, I became a very different less confident version of myself, which those who know me knew something was just not right and they could tell I was silently struggling with sorting life out.
I knew I needed to isolate the items in my life that needed to change and things that I could easily control. 

I reached out to an amazing woman, a woman that knew and saw her passion and she is extremely successfully in so many areas of her life, because she took control of her life.  I asked her to come over with her husband to help me understand the method to her madness…they told me that in order to get to my goal no matter what the goal is or was, I needed to isolate the goal and put an attainable plan in place to achieve the goal, something realistic and something I could stick with. This was not a plan I just voiced, I was told to write down my top 10 goals for 2013, as once they were on paper it meant that I have identified and the items that were obviously important enough for me to target them one by one.  Truthfully at times I can start 10 things and finish 3 of those 10 things “well” the other items have been on my “list” for years and has never gotten anywhere, until now… and I am VERY successful, yet not as efficient as I possibly could be.

So first I want to share with you my top 5 goals for 2013, and share with you where I am at with these goals…

1)    I need defined “Family time” blocked on my life calendar- this may seem overly basic for many of you… this was an area I was lacking balance in…I have taken the time to block family time in my calendar, as an example Monday’s I have allotted to the afternoon and evening as for my daughter for her swimming lesson, I am there with her and take her to each lesson and we have quality time each and every morning as this job allows me the flexibility to take her to school each day.  ( my life calander is one calander that pulls work and life all together to keep me in one spot and to maintain the focus I need)

2)   I made my office space my own- I work from home, so I needed to set up a business area that would magnify and motivate my success daily so I feel motivate walking into my office and leaving it each day.  I have set up a huge calendar to physically track my success which has kept my vision alive daily and I have changed my filing system to keep me more organized.


3)    Start eating a cleaner diet for me and my family- which ultimately goes back to making sure that I can address health concerns I have and nip them in the butt by planning what I eat, and taking the time to eat, which in a busy lifestyle that can be tough.  I am making improvements in this area, but I need more focus on this to stay extremely consistent.

4)   Increase my household income substantially for 2013- I want to travel, I want to really increase my savings and be debt free if possible this year.


5)   I want to look in the mirror and feel amazing, may sound very VAIN, its not, I want to be able to look myself in the eyes and know that I am kicking butt with the focus and the dedications I have in place for my 2013 Goals.

I will be honest my list of goals is about 50-75 items, silly items to really cool things I want to do one day…. It can be a bucket list, my advice to you is not to leave it as a bucket list, place a call to action, and take it in small strides.  You need to measure your success along the way consistently to make sure you are headed in the right direction.

My passions in life are what keeps me going on a daily basis, my “why” is my daughter, she is the reason I want to share this blog with you.  We have so much fun everyday and we laugh and we joke and we make silly faces and say crazy things, however at the end of the day when I am reading her a story, in that moment I am all hers, I am not thinking about anything else but that moment in time and I am savoring that moment.  She needs to know consistency and how as a parent can we teach something we may not be very good at ourselves.

I challenge you to writing down your goals, talk to me, talk to anyone who will listen, make a coffee group or a wine group or a book group and keep your list with you and add to it daily Share your lists with those in your life.  Trust me this has dramatically changed my life.
But before you make this life-changing list… Give yourself a moment or two and figure out what your “WHY” is…. Understanding your reason for motivation will give you the disciplines and the passion required to make your dreams realities.

And the best advice I can give is… Smile, Smile all the time, Smile at or to everyone, the worst that can happen is they don’t acknowledge your gesture, but the health benefits and the mood elevation you will feel will flood you with emotions. 

Wednesday, 8 May 2013

My Inspiration...

 
 

To most this looks as just a lady in a red coat, to me she is much more than that, she is a sister, a daughter, an auntie, a granddaughter, a niece, a great niece, and a wife.

 

Stephanie is my sister, and she is also my inspiration. Since such a young age I was blessed with her in my life, I did however try to pick her up and drop her on her melon, I still loved her every single day and I still do.

Stephanie is now expecting her 3RD child... some many think she’s bananas I think she is stunning, she radiates always, and she makes my heart so happy and so proud. I love her more than anything and I know she knows that. 

 

I do have to say the day she was married was a happy day for all, it was a hard day for me, She changed her name, which sounds silly but we have always been the 3 Ranger girls.  I hugged her and told her for my own selfish reasons I didn’t want her to change it, and she smiled and she said Coll, I am still a “Ranger” just don’t tell Jay.  That’s who Stephanie is... and who she always will be, she is my sister and she is one fabulous woman.  With a smile and a few words she shows her love for everyone.

 

The day she became a mom, was one of the proudest moments I had ever experienced with her, she embraced motherhood in the most beautiful manner, and she was and always will be such a stunning mom. 

 

My daughter loves her Auntie, and she has more photos of them up in her room than of me... She speaks to them often and sees them as much as she can.  She talks about her cousins and her Aunties every single day.

 

Her husband is one lucky man, as she is one amazing lady and although I may be biased as she is my sister... she can be tough and she can have an opinion but she always has LOVE and she will stop what she is doing always to be there for me and anyone who needs her. Even during the night when I wake her up to just chat!!!

 

With Mothers day approaching I feel it is best to highlight the best mom I have ever known.

 

Stephanie I love you,  xox

Love in the finest fashion ...


                                                           
It’s a day that is so bright and so sunny and so peaceful.  This is a date that will never be forgotten, and a day for others that will always live on in their hearts.   Today was the birthday of Donna Haller, a woman who I will continue to admire, she was a woman that gave me such a wonderful gift, She gave the world and me included the most caring and loving daughter.  Shannon has been in my life 15 years, and since December 31st 2012 her heart has never been the same.  Shannon I wish to dedicate this blog post to you, you have always bought me love and compassion when I have needed it most. ( and I hope this brings you laughs, as you had this love with Chuckie)  I love you xo


In the photo above you will see me and my gentle giant, this is Bruce, he is the perfect man and I know ladies he’s taken.  So why is he perfect... He never talks back, he always snuggles, He walks beside me every single day and is so excited to do so.  Some days if the door is left open he will stroll the neighbourhood, and when I locate him he looks at me like”oh man I need a drink ”... I have a 5 year old daughter that I have mentioned previously and she used to treat him like a brother and get so mad at him when he would try to watch TV with her in the back seat of the car as his head gets in the way.  To others Bruce is a massive pile of HAIR... to me since mother’s day 2007 he has been the most calming being in my life.  We all need to take a life lesson from Bruce, all he wants to do is be loved, and he doesn’t care what the weather is or what’s the latest gossip all he wants is to be greeted a few times each day, of course breaky, lunch and dinner are a must, and at the end of each day he needs his daily cuddle. 

When we are faced with LOVE we expose ourselves which to so many that have been hurt before is such a scary thing to do, you have to start small, maybe buy 2 dwarf frogs and name them Sam, and Ross and try to keep them alive, feed them and love them... let your heart heal, and let your love grow.  Then take it to the next level, think of this... STOP looking for love... let love FIND you... sounds foreign I know... trust me, trust in those around you who many have found love.  

Let me tell you that the love that my 6 year old golden retriever has shown me, has been innocent and pure and it is a love that will never end.
 
 

Monday, 15 April 2013

Hello Spring...

So finally spring is here???
I feel compelled to word this as a question instead of a fact! 
With spring here and double warm digits in the forecast,  I cant wait to open the pool and sit on the deck with a glass of wine in hand...
I think its so important to enjoy the life we have and to make sure we enjoy the people around us. 

As a sister to two wonderful women, we can look back and recall the many insanely crazy days where our mother chased us around to put warmer clothes on as it was not warm enough to be wearing short shorts, It was never warm enough for our parents to allow us to wear those shorts, and now Karma is such a beautiful thing, my 5 year old is letting me know her shorts are much to long... of course they are.

14 hour work days are starting to be my new norm, which to most would seem rather awful, yet to me this drives me to work harder, I may be trying to add hours to an already busy day :)

I will be back soon with a post I am quite excited about!!! Stay tuned

xo Coll