Welcome to my first ever Blog post! Who would have thought that this type of thing would ever be possible? Certainly not me. I guess I should start with a little about how I decided to do this, and who I am. I hope you’ll join me in a whole new adventure!

I am a 48(gulp!) year old woman who recently underwent life saving open heart surgery. More about that later. I come from 7 kids, ( I’m the second oldest). I married a man who comes from ten… yep, ten! He’s number 8. Between the two of us, we are Aunt and Uncle and Great Aunt and Great Uncle 79 times, with 2 more coming , and probably more!!! I KNOW, right!? Craziness. I lived in southern Saskatchewan until I was 4, then moved to north central Alberta, to a tiny village called Evansburg, where I lived until I was 17. I met my husband when I was in grade 12, and we’ve been together ever since. We have 2 adult daughters, who are the light of our lives. We have been so blessed to be surrounded by a huge loving family, and have an incredible group of friends.

So, why am I blogging? And what type of blog will this be…hopefully a good one! I decided to blog, because, like so many of us, I’ve always dreamed of writing the great Canadian novel, but in reality, didn’t have the courage or dedication to do it. So… here I am. I worked retail my entire adult life, starting at 17. I worked for one company for nearly 18 years ( left for a 2 year stint, but went back).Long story short, On March 16, 2015, I found out I need life saving open heart surgery due to a genetic congenital heart valve defect that I knew nothing about. The next day, I was laid off from work after nearly 17 years with the company. Talk about a crappy start to the week! I was 46. The condition is called Severe Arterial Stenosis caused by a defective aortic valve. My dad had the same condition and had surgery for his in Dec 2013. We had no idea either of us had this, and never dreamed we would need life saving surgery for it. From March until the end of May, I went through a massive amount of tests and exams, from ECGs to echocardiograms to angiograms etc,and when I was booked for my pre-op day ( June 5),at the Mazankowski Heart Centre in Edmonton, we discovered that I also had an aortic aneurysm on the aortic wall, which was even more life-threatening than the defective valve. My condition was bumped to urgent, and my surgery date moved from sometime in the next few months, to less than 2 weeks, June 18. We realized that day how serious this was. Even though the cardiologist had said ” you need to do nothing, or you will die”, I didn’t really grasp exactly how deadly this was, but after my surgery when the surgeon said…” the valve would have given you maybe 6 months, but that aneurysm, maybe a month”, I realized it really was bad! So… my life has changed drastically in the last 2 years, and I have decided that life is incredibly short, that only I get to decide how I’m going to live it, and that I am going to try things I’ve never done before.

I spent the first year after my surgery recovering from it and from complications. On June 18, 2016, exactly one year from my surgery, my husband, two daughters and my one daughters boyfriend and I hiked to the top of a mountain in Jasper, just to prove that I could do it. We had an incredible time. From then, I have spent the last year doing things I’ve never done before. I’ve been experimenting with healthy alternatives to recipes, low salt, lower fat, sugar free and gluten-free. I took an online course and received a Medical Administrative Diploma, with Highest Honours, just because I wanted to. I also took painting classes and photography courses, and started journal writing and doing woodworking from my garage. I have thoroughly enjoyed the creativity that I have been able to show, and though I most definitely would not call myself an artist, I can now say that my creative side is as strong as my business side.

When I look at the blessings that have come from this, I consider myself incredibly fortunate. My doctors saved my life. I have to believe that there is a purpose, it can’t have been for no reason. What that reason is yet, I’m not 100% sure, but being creative and having gratitude ( which I always did, but even more so now), for the people in my life, and for the many good things that have happened; that’s got to be the “why”.

So, that’s my story. Each post I’ll share some of my photography or I’ll share a recipe that I’ve used or adapted. I hope you enjoy this blog, and please let me know if there is a specific recipe you’d like me to experiment with and adapt to either Gluten-Free or low fat etc.

This first picture was taken in Niagara Falls in April,2015, at about 5 in the morning. We had gone with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law, and wanted to see the sunrise over the Falls. That was not to be as it was incredibly foggy and misty, but I took this shot and absolutely love it!

Enjoy!