O.K. I have been tagged by my great wise little sunshine Chelsi on the topic '6 things about me'
So here goes ! These are in no kind of important, count down kind of order ;D

1. I HATE to get into trouble!!! At the first sign, scent, vibe, what ever..of trouble that is going to be directed at me..ooooooohhh...I feel that feeling in my bladder like I am gonna peee! And the one in my tummy like ..the bad kind of butterflies! I will run away rather than get into trouble. I will make cookies and bring home black forest cake and make my hair really pretty ..so I do not get into what ever trouble I think might be stewing ;P Soooo silly I know but..??

2. I love to munch on stuff when I read or watch movies..it is like I cannot enjoy either without popping something into my mouth ..sugary usually! Chelsi nailed my fav..Chocolate mints!!
I suffer horribly though after as I break out from sugar in a weird rash on my body. :( Sometimes...well alot of times I just do it ANYWAY..HAHAHAHAAAA!!!

3. I have a stubborn -I can do it better than any boy- streak in me and it is bugging me that I don't get to prove it very often anymore!! :(

4. I cannot seem to throw away those annoying underwear that have NEVER fit !! You bring them home..and they just do not fit !!! But because they are new..I just cannot do it!! So I go and buy some more..again..most of the time they do not fit and now I have a huge collection of new undies that do not fit taking up so much space !! AND they always discontinue the kind that I finally find that DO fit!! GGGGRRRrr!!

5. I use mens deodorant ;D

6. I AM BIGGER THAN MY BODY GIVES ME CREDIT FOR..as long as I am not in trouble!!

MY BIRDS ..gave me wings :D

Birds are snugglers, smooooochers, and love to be loved.
Many people do not know that birds have huge hearts and massive, individual personalities. They have a sense of humor and their feelings can be hurt, they get jealous and can read you like a book and know when you need to be loved on. Sounds like a dog ?? Ya..kind of like that!
The larger parrots can posses the intelligence level of a child between the age of 2-5 in some cases. This is why they do not make good pets. You try locking a child in a cage while you go to work and see what kind of behavior issues start to develop? Yes children are cute, just like parrots, but you have to consider the time, consistency, knowledge, patience, and understanding ...well..parrots never grow up. They NEED ALL the time. Just like a toddler. It never ends. They are cute too but ..how many people out there could live that way for YEARS?!
The large parrots live into their 60's to 90's.
The Cockatoo you see in my pics, that is Moe. He was a rescue we took in. He would have died without us. He bonded to Gary my hubby and they were best friends!
But, then Gary started long haul trucking and was gone 5-9 days at a time. After over a year of Moe having Gary home every night, this was too much for him. I was his buddy too, but not enough to help him through this huge change.
He started pulling feathers out again, something he did when he first came to us through the trauma he had gone through before coming here. Then, he started refusing to eat on the 3'rd day Gary would be gone.
All of this was really starting to take a HUGE toll on poor Moe. We all researched as much as we could, contacted experts but were doing all the right things. Nothing was helping Moe. He was starting to bite out of frustration too. He was getting skinny and you could see the confusion on his face mixed with pure JOY when Gary would come home. Moe would go from saying "I love you!!" over and over to Gary, to bitting him within minutes. This was him telling Gary how he felt about the whole thing.
Well, after 7 months of trying, I was the one to finally bring up the topic ...make the choice to save Moe. We ALL agreed...and it was the hardest thing we have done as a family, but the greatest thing too.
I called a wonderful woman, an angel for these amazing creatures! Her name is Wendy Huntbatch and she started the WORLD PARROT REFUGE.
http://worldparrotrefuge.org is the link.
She and I e-mail a few times and we both decided that yes..it was time for Moe to come to there where he could be free to be 'a bird' .
So..Moe is there, has new bird friends and is doing the best he has EVER done in his life.
That place, the volunteers, and Wendy are the most selflessly giving humans I have ever met!!
You have to see these birds! Some of them just break your heart..the stories of where they have been. It just solidifies the reasons why large parrots should NEVER be pets. Thank goodness for this amazing place for them. They are in all different stages of recovery, and have formed bonds with each other and with the volunteers. Some have not reached that trust stage yet but there is no rush, no push, just freedom, medical attention when needed, love, patience, understanding, unconditional care! Check out the web link and watch the vid clips!
I met the Cockatoo 'Lester' that pronounces his name 'Ester'. He just passed away from the cancer that he was fighting for all his life. He had been with them for over 10 years and it broke every one's heart when he passed. He was charming and I got quite a face full of smooches as did my hubby. He was there to welcome Moe..like he knew Moe was afraid and needed to know it was ok.
It is all run off of donations. You can sponsor birds and virtually adopt birds.

Now..to my other little friends.. ;)
After sitting for over 3 years in a recliner, on disablity due to my back, watching TV, going crazy with boredom, I was desperate for company. I was so LONELY!!
I found this little yellow Cockatiel in a pet store. She ran to the side of the cage to me and that was it! I came home, begged my hubby, and after he gave in..hehe...she became my first sweety that saved me! Mustard is her name. Then it started. I took in some that were abandon and tried breeding but that was very short as I could not stand it after I saw how many ended up at the SPCA. So many budgies, cockatiels, conures..oh...and I was just making more! I stopped.
So..now I have these wonderful spirits around me that call to me in the morning, kiss me, snuggle into my neck and basically saved me from a very dark hole called depression.

If you ever are looking for a bird..pleeeeeese check the SPCA's first! If I had of known..I would have first!!!
:D

Chronic pain..my stand up comedian and clown suit

Chronic pain.

I have it. I have a sense of humor bigger than it and that is what it takes most of the time I have figured out to get through.
But not without my Topamax, stretching and amazing family.
Not in that order by the way! ;D
Oh..I broke my back and have a bunch of hardware in my spine.
There is nerve damage and a worn out facet joint.

It is amazing how everything starting from the tiny things all the way up to the biggest things are effected. How you let them get to you and move you around almost puppet like is the key. Yes...I have had to change EVERYTHING I do. But..on the inside is where I am talking about. I do not let it take ME. That was the toughest lesson of all to learn
To figure out that all that stuff that I could 'do' before..that I thought made me who I was..well, was just stuff I could do.
Digging really, really deep into my guts to find out who I was again without all that stuff because I had no choice, I discovered that I was lost. I had a bunch of crap I had not dealt with, that I thought I had. I found lots of dust that was swept under carpets that I did not even know I owned!! ;P

Boy..did I become busy!
I had nothing but time..so ..I started working on me. Don't get me wrong. This was not a pretty or easy discovery. I was suborn and in denial and sad and frustrated over not being able to do the things I wanted to do! But..that was never going to change so it was either sit and stew and get depressed falling deeper into a hole or, get 'me' back and figure out how my life now was going to be.

This was years and tears. I met my hubby thank goodness!! He helped me through the roughest parts and now I am dealing with some new ..how do you say..age related pain issues on top of the back and legs.

My kids, my hubby. They too are the reason to be strong and keep going and they give me shoulders, ears, and arms when needed.

My horse..well..you can read about that...

Chronic pain is a very lonely place because no matter the support at home or else where, it tends to feel like no one understands because the pain in upon you in the moment..and because it is Chronic..every moment!

Just remember..everyone usually is feeling this way that has it..so you are not alone ;P

Humor....and sporting a good clown suit we call it around here. That means, not wearing your pain or letting define you.

Tell me what color your clown suit is if you have one!? :D

P.S. My daughter Ashly is an artist and is so good with many different mediums(sp). This is one of her Photographs!! She wanted to be a Photographer but is choosing a career in Culinary Arts instead. She rocks at that too!!

Lady bugs..sent from heaven.

Let's start with my Mum. She moved into her mother's house with me as a baby. My Grandmother, being the hip, young soul she was, would not have anyone age her with the title 'Grandma' so ..I called her "Mom." I had a Mum and a Mom.

Now...my nick name from Mom's sister, my aunty Mary, was Ladybug.
This stuck. Aunty Mary called me this and Mom. Mom also called me Little Bugger at times ..hehe..dunno why ;P

Lady bugs were very special from that time on. I got things for birthdays, and Christmas with Ladybugs on them. Just special. :)

My Mom was extra special to me. She was the one who taught me how to dance before I could walk, to sing before I could talk. She always provided me with endless art supplies and gasped at every new drawing, sculpture or painting, no matter how it looked ;D She made me feel like I was something!!
She never got to see me with my band...on stage, but I never turned down her requests and burst into Patsy Cline whenever she wanted. She seemed to glow..my biggest fan :D

Anyways...always said the greatest things when the boys and girls at school started the bullying.
She was so hip with fashion and music and loved to dance around with me.
Just such a crazy, boisterous buddy. We even played baseball in the hall a few Christmas's before she passed away, with my Mum yelling at us as we giggled our evil giggles and continued to bash away at the ball! She was GREAT!!!

Then a stroke hit her and took about 1/2 of her away, putting her in the hospital. It took over 2 years..I cannot remember exactly how long but it felt like forever, for her to finally pass on.

We were all there when she did which was good.

2 Days later I had to go to Sechelt to play a gig..I was a singer.
I lay in the tub above the bar where we played, eyes closed.
We stayed upstairs.

I was crying and thinking there is just no point to doing this, I can't. How am I going to sing when I don't even want to move. What is the point. That was all I was thinking and I was crying to the point of heaving.

It had been an hour and the band was knocking on the door telling me it was almost time to get on stage. I did not answer. They could hear me crying.
I just went under the cold water and kept my eyes closed.
I came up and was shivering and opened my eyes. What I saw next sent me flying out of the tub and has changed my view of life forever.

Water was everywhere and the band was banging on the door again because I was screaming!

I looked up and .....the ceiling was covered in LADYBUGS !!

They were not there before. They were just sitting there. About 30 of them or so.

After the room stopped spinning..I wrapped a towel around myself and let my then boyfriend in who was also my guitar player and knew about what Ladybugs meant. He gasped.

It was Mom.
She was kicking my ass!!! She would slap me silly if she knew that I was laying there refusing to sing especially over something to do with her. Oh...man.

Needless to say..I sang my heart out that night and at the end told a short version of what happend. I got 3 encores all in the name of Mom!!!

So..now..every time my life is going through hard bits, when I am hurting, and when my daughter is in the same boat..there are Lady bugs. No matter what time of year..there they are.
There will be one landing on me. They land on my Daughter too. :)
I have had one land on me out in the middle of no where on the ocean.
For 3 days before I had Skye my Percheron put down, there were Lady bugs on me and one landed on him too.
Again..no matter what time of year.

Thank you Mom..for coming and kickin' my ass when I need it..and for the smackors when I need them too...those are Mom kisses...

Julie -aka..Lady bug..or Little Bugger when I am being bad..not me!! ;P

My new horse..and the search to find... :O

This beauty is my new sweet friend Danika. She is a 15hh, 12 year old Fjord mare. She does have a tiny bit of Arab somewhere in there which is why she has the white on that darling face.

Let me tell you, my search for a new horse( Draft horse ) to love took me to so many places. I did look here in BC, but ended up turning to the US as finding a Draft horse of sorts in BC, proved impossible on a budget such as mine.
I went to Yakima WA, Salem Oregon, Sisters Oregon, and then my pot of gold, Forks WA to where I had the pleasure to meet the very first Fjord of my life Danika. Soon to be followed by her brother and father. Her father by the way, is 35 years old and still producing!

I have to say, I have been owned and owned quite a few different breeds of horses, and love them all, but was unprepared for what these fuzzy, walking Teddy bears did to my insides!!!!
They were so sweet and wanted to be touched and loved and snuggled. They had no problem with kisses and hugs, not pushy, just giving soft noses up to my cheeks and lips and crook of my neck. Resting their heads on my shoulders waiting for my arms to wrap around to complete the hug. Where have these babies been all my life!!??
I now call them 'Julie sized Drafts' as they allow my 5'4 self perfect access to climb aboard, put the saddle on, you name it.

I am waiting on pins and needles for my Danika to come home here. She is getting the Coggins and Vet stuff done for the border and then I will be hauling her with the help of some great and generous friends of mine by the end of the month...hopefully. Feels like forever!!!

If you ever get a chance to have a horse in your life..check them out!!

Julie :D

Did you know about this???? It is bad..

Hello all. O.K. This right here..is my hubby. :) Cutie pie! But..he is nicked named Mc'Gary! He is off to you know where..to get you know what more than once a week, sometimes up to 4, which at our age..over 40, without ANY form of exercise, is bad enough, but then he tells me that he read a wonderfully honest sign they had posted. It read, and I cannot quote EXACT wording, but it went something like this..due to the process in which we cook our fries, they become carcinogenic! That means CANCER CAUSING!!
Apparently, when you brown a potato, it does something to it to make it so. It does not matter how you cook it...as long as you take it to the point of making it brown, be it slightly, or golden, you have done it. :P

So..I know you are probably saying " ya but if it is not the browning potato's it is the ......!" but I feel a bit more concerned about this one.
I have eaten soooooo many fries, fast food and home, potatoes that I have made into patties, hash browns..think about it. Yikes!!

Just thought I would send that out there, in case you did not know that.

;P

My horses, my therapy

I learned from a little girl, that using my voice to communicate was not the way to go.
I grew up on a farm you see and was always surrounded by animals. They seemed to know everything every time without my words. So, those were the perfect friendships for me.
When my Pony Poppy came along, she was even more in tune with my heart, soul and mind. I could just count on her every time to save me without a word. She was my best friend even when I reached the age where I could not ride her, she was still the keeper of all my secrets and my heart.

That desperate need to stay connected with an Equine has remained all through my life, my worst times had no horse by my side, and now that I am in my 40's, it has only intensified.
I find that the more I accept about myself as a person, I think that comes with age, the more I am needing and wanting to wrap my whole self around my horse, in heart and soul. They in return do the same for me in the bond I develop and the trust they give.

My Percheron Skye, who passed away this summer (08) pictured above, taught me the amazing stoic abilities of these already blessed creatures. He was my angel and gave me so much more of my heart when I fell in love with him. It destroyed me for quite some time when he went, but when I healed, I discovered a bigger heart because of him.

There is no one and nothing that gets inside like my horse...my family..my hubby accepts that and love that part of me which speaks of their wonderful hearts and non -judgmental souls!

So..my self without my horse..that is a poisonous place and that may be a bad thing in the eyes of the therapists, some of which I could name from my past, but oh well..it is working for me :D
How about any of you???
Julie :)