Safeway vs. Price Smart
Holy crap Safeway is expensive! How in the world do people actually afford to do their weekly grocery shopping at this place?? As a loyal Price Smart shopper (no, I'm not anti-union, nor am I pro-union, nor do I neccesarily love Jimmy Pattison, they just have better prices and us being on a single income it's the bottom line that counts) I was really shocked! I shop at Price Smart (Save-On for years prior to the closer Price Smart location that opened this past year) and can get a whole heck-of-alot more food there than I did at Safeway. We all have preferences on where we shop; my sister-in-law only shops at Safeway as well as one of Greg's aunts because they deliver, my sister goes to Ralph's Market, my mom shops at Superstore and anyplace else that has sales (she has a very small car and the gas wasted to go to 15 diffferent locations is minor compared to my gas-guzzling truck), so I guess we just get used to a certain place. And I have to admit that I don't buy my meat at Price Smart because I happen to like the meat better from Costco, and I try to get to Two E's as much as possible because the produce is so fresh and cheap, but the weekly shop for the regular stuff is always done at Price Smart.

This year Greg recieved a $50 gift card for Safeway from his work for Christmas again, and today I decided I would buy a few groceries with it. We didn't really need alot of stuff; a little fruit & veggies, some sandwhich meat and bread. I figured the gift card should more than cover the total (it would have at Price Smart!) but it was twice as much! My total was $105 and change! Now I know my prices at PS and I can guarantee that almost everything I picked up today at Safeway was close to $1.00 more. One example is the Eggo Fibre waffles that I buy for Benjamin - at Price Smart they are usually around $2.69 (which I personally think is too much, but any opportunity to get extra fibre into my kid is never overlooked!) unless they are on sale, and today at Safeway they were $3.50 per box! Two boxes for $7.00 if you wanted. I just about cried buying one box, but Ben loves them and we're all out. That's almost a whole buck extra. Now, if we had 2 incomes, I wouldn't give any of this rant a second thought, but holy cow - that's highway robbery!

Aww, come on, who am I kidding? I know that when I do go back to work, having that extra income will not mean I'll be going to Safeway. My truck knows the way to Price Smart without me even having to steer and that's where we'll continue to go.

Short & sweet

I love the build up and all that goes with the holiday season; shopping, baking, visiting family and friends, festive music everywhere, eggnog lattes and in the end, yes, just a little, even the gift wrapping. But then it's all over so darn quick. One minute you're writing your letter to Santa, then you're leaving out milk & cookies on Christmas Eve, then the big guy delivers and now here it is Boxing Day and Christmas is so yesterday. Literally.

Ah well, at least we can begin the countdown for next year.......

Our little family had such a nice Christmas; Ben wrote a letter to Santa and Santa wrote back - he was over the moon about that! Yay for Canada Post and their letter writing program! We made a gingerbread train, and some glittery tree decorations and counted down to Christmas with an advent calendar (I found this great wooden calendar truck with drawers; I put a little gift in each box for each day. It was pretty cool and it's going to be a wonderful family tradition). Benjamin was totally spoiled and I don't even care! It was definately all about him, and in my books, that's what Christmas should be about - the kids.

I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas and I wish you all the Best for 2008!

Ben's letter from Santa

Advent calendar

Christmas Eve at our place (l-r) My mom, Greg, Lil, me, Ben, Aunty Jenn, Cousin Kinsey, Uncle Steve

Leaving goodies for Santa (milk & cookies) and the reindeer (carrot & apple juice). Ben made sure to leave the fireplace door open so Santa could get in! Working on the gingerbread train Finished product....minus several candies that disappeared into Ben's tummy! Christmas morning.....My mom trying her hand at Benjamin's remote controlled loader Ben and his favorite gift - the crane that he asked Santa for! Christmas Day at mom's

Other stuff.....

Me and my shadow

During the freak snow storm Horsin' around A visit to Aunty Teresa's house

My husband rocks......
Can I just say that I love my husband? I mean, it's more than the obvious. Women all love their husbands (or at least they should!), but there are times when I really appreciate mine more than I remember to tell him.
Like on the days when I am sick (which luckily are few and far between) and he comes home from a hectic day at work and just takes Benjamin off my hands for awhile so that I can maybe have a short nap.
Like on those cold, (sometimes snowy) winter mornings when he leaves for work just a little earlier to chisel away the ice from the windows of my truck.
Like on the days when we're all heading out somewhere and he (always!) remembers to bring 2 bottled waters that we both love to drink after we've stopped at Timmy's and have had our coffee & tea. The list goes on, really.
But today, when, with this cold spell we've had recently, our house is colder than ever (god bless this drafty old house!), and because we're renovating the upstairs bathroom and have to shower downstairs, Greg did the kindest thing; he took our floor heater downstairs and "primed" the bathroom for me. When I went down to have my shower in the usual ice-box, the bathroom was instead all toasty and warm. And I when I emerged from my steamy shower, I didn't freeze my butt off. I mean, it was just a simple gesture, and I'm not saying that my husband is the only guy in the world that does these kinds of things for his wife, but boy, did it ever mean the world to me.
That's only one of the many reasons that I love my husband.
He's definately a keeper.