Dear Brides of 2013…

 

Happy Friday everyone! I hope that everyone’s week went by quicker then mine, boo! I can’t lie, I am SO glad that this week is over! Take the normal intensity of “busy” for this time of year and give it steroids…That’s what it’s been like! A big and short tempered week. One bad move and you might get squished! It’s amazing none of us have killed each other…yet.

Ryan and I have a busy weekend ahead of us. One of the activities is a wedding reception. It’s getting warmer around these parts and summer is pretty well in full swing. With summer comes a lot of fun events like weddings!

It was a little over a year ago that Ryan and I said “I Do” which doesn’t make me an expert but certainly makes me think of some advice that I’d like to pass along to others who are getting married soon.

1. Don’t listen to anyone who tells you to “don’t sweat the small stuff”. Don’t waste you’re time listening because you are still going to worry. It is in a brides nature. You will learn for yourself how silly it was to worry for nothing. Because in the grand scheme of things, it really won’t matter. You’ll see.

2. Try to look natural. Your future husband fell in love with how you look now! Don’t go spray painting your face to look like something entirely different. Trust me, your groom wants to recognize the woman who is walking down the aisle towards him.

3. Focus on your husband. It is so easy to get caught up in trying to please everyone and see everyone on the day of. People don’t care if you have a long visit with them that day. And if they do, they aren’t there for the right reason. Being able to be with your husband and remember some special moments together is so important.

4. Eat! Don’t forget to eat and drink (something besides alcohol). It’s a long day and you can’t forget to take care of yourself. You don’t want to feel sick or hungry! You just want to feel the emotions of the day and not deal with something stupid like dehydration!

5. Have fun! Dance the night away! Get a little buzz on and enjoy your day with your new husband, your family and friends. It’s your (and your husbands) day and no body can make you enjoy it more then if you tell yourself to! It’s all about making the best of any situation because trust me, not everything will be perfect. But, those things that aren’t perfect will be the things that  you will laugh about when you tell stories about your day. It’s all about your attitude and deciding how much fun YOU want to have.

Happy Friday!

xo

So What Wednesday!

 

Happy Wednesday everyone! Today I’m linking up with Shannon over at Life After I “Dew” for her So What! Wednesday linky!

Today I’m saying SO WHAT if…

- Ryan and I never spoke yesterday. We both worked till 9 PM yesterday and we were exhausted. I knew that if we did talk that it would probably have started some sort of stupid argument that didn’t matter!

Seed delivery truck arriving at 8 PM last night…nice!

- I am ignoring the mess out at the pool place. I know I should be stepping foot in the door more often but I get anxious because of the mess. I hate the unorganized dirty mess. Makes me want to pull my hair out!

- I still like to color! I have a container of markers in my desk drawer and bring them out whenever possible! I love to color and even use stickers…25 years old turning 7? Absolutely!

- I forgot to shower yesterday morning. I had to wake up at 4 AM and was on the road by 5 AM. With 30 minutes of office work in between that. I was not functioning mentally enough to remember to shower! Woops!

- When I am tired I always wear my glasses. A sure sign to stay clear of me because I am tired! Sometimes I can’t open my eyes wide enough to put my contacts in! Thankfully, I have a new pair of glasses that I actually don’t mind wearing. Nerd alert!

- While on the road yesterday I forgot that I wasn’t suppose to be lifting anything heavy from surgery 2 weeks ago. Out of habit I lifted a 50 pound bag out of my car and immediately felt the pain and dropped it with a thud…on the gravel….in front of a client. The client kind of looked at me a little funny. Try coming up with an excuse for that one. “Oh I’m sorry Mr. Golf Course Man for dropping your fertilizer. I had surgery on my private area a couple of weeks ago and it’s still pretty sore”…NOT!

What are you saying “So What” to this week?

xo

Canada Day Golf Tournament 2013

 

Happy Monday everyone! A flurry of weekend fun made this weekend go by in a blink! It was the annual Canada Day Golf Tournament, one of the best events of the year! I have been golfing in the Canada Day Golf Tournament for many years! This was the first one since Ryan and I joined the committee last year! It was fun being behind the scenes of planning such a great event! All the profits going towards an epic Canada Day celebration in our small town!

On Saturday morning we were up with the birds and so excited for the day ahead! By 7 AM this pic was taken in a golf shirt with the 300 Jell-o shots that I had made the night before – A sure sign of a good day ahead!

My team’s tee time was 11:10 and we were out of the course in perfect time! The team consisted of Jill, myself and friends Kelly and Sara!

Kelly and Sara on their cart! 

Our team on the traditional 4th tee photo op!

I can’t say that I was all too pleased with my actual golf game. I pretty much gave up after 4 holes! It was just too frigging cold! I had about 4 shirts on underneath my coat! Typically, people are complaining about getting sunburns on golf tournament day! Not this year as it was so cold and windy! Regardless of how cold it was, I still had a blast sitting on the carts out on the course visiting with the girls!

After a quick change, we headed to the hall to begin the evening festivities with a delicious steak supper!

The rest of the evening I spent bartending away! I did manage to take sneak away when the band started playing a couple of great songs! I got tossed around the dance floor by a couple of friends!

The whole evening is a blast catching up and having fun with friends and neighbours! It really is one of the best parties around!

Even though I didn’t have anything to drink (aside from a couple of Jello-o shots) I felt like I had a massive hangover the next day! What the heck!? I guess it’s a true sign that I am getting older because my head and body hated me the next day! Can’t handle the late nights anymore!

Regardless of have I felt, Ryan and I had to make a trek to the city to pick up some pool renovation supplies! But we weren’t home long and both decided to call it a night by 7:30, blah! A good sign of a great weekend!

How was your weekend?

xo

I Love Kids. Especially When They Aren’t My Own

 

Happy Friday everyone! I would say most people in my area are complaining about the rainy week we have been having around these parts. But you won’t hear any complaints of the rain coming from my lips. I’m a happy little farmer who remembers how hard the draught of last year was on the crop! Bring on the rain!

For those of you who know me, I have very important title. It’s Auntie or as the little munchkins call me, Ti-ti. I take this role very seriously. It is my goal to be that crazy aunt in their life. The one who fills them full of sugar, who they can run to when in need of a good time and who will insist on hiding the things she teaches them from Mommy and Daddy.

And, so far so good. I mean one of Faith’s first words was “Shit” after she heard me saying it in the office. – Proud moment right there…yikes!

And, on more occasion then one when she tells me “Mommy said no”. I will bring a smile to Faith’s face by saying, “What Mommy doesn’t know, won’t hurt her”. (Sorry Hol!)

Faith helps me as well by helping me take great pictures as material for this post!

To say that I love Faith and Clark (and Baby number 3 who is due in July!) would be an understatement. I finally understand a little piece of what a parent feels for their own children.

When they are fun and adorable I can’t help but get excited about the idea of having an ankle biter of my very own. I day dream about movie nights, walks hand in hand, sweet baby smiles. Then, moments like this happen that snaps me back reality.

Guys, I can’t handle the whining and crying and pooping and puking! It only takes a millisecond and I’m right back to popping the birth control pills and wearing my chastity belt!

That’s why I can officially say that being an Auntie is the best job in the world. You get all of the joys of children. And you can even claim them as (kind of) your own. As soon soon as you are ready for a good night sleep or some quiet time, you ship them back to their Mom and Dad.

Even our friends children…I ADORE them! But there is something so wonderful about that moment right after you leave! A sense of relief washes over me and I am so glad to have my own space again. Not to be attached to a child for the next 18 years.

I always say, I’d love to have children some day if I can. But I have a commitment issues with children. I love them but I am so not ready to be stuck with one, yet.

Happy Friday!

xo

Self Diagnosis– I have Portion Distortion

 

Happy Wednesday everyone! Well, I survived my first FULL day back at work yesterday. And although it was super busy, I kind of secretly enjoyed it! The morning SPED by in a whirl wind of phone calls and orders. The early afternoon allowed for some catch up from last week and then the afternoon becomes crazy. Typical 3 PM  stage 5 crazy. Ever in the area and looking for a good show? Come stop by our office at the hours between 3 PM and 4 PM and just sit and watch. Always guaranteed to be a good show filled with nail biting drama! Bring popcorn.

I think it’s safe to say that I am like 95% of woman. I am on a constant battle of weight loss. I am on the never ending tread mill effect of work out, eat less and then the weekend indulgence that brings the circle right back around. It’s common, it’s annoying but it’s kind of what life is like now. And why? Well, I believe one of the reasons is because the “normal” portion size to what it was for my parents is night and day!

While on bed rest last week (told you yesterday I was thinking of new blog posts! You had been warned) I began looking up some interesting articles about portion distortion. I was in utter shock! The changes in food sizes are dramatic to what they were not too long ago.  Check out a couple of my favourite examples;

 

Those posters are crazy to me! How can our food change so dramatically in the last 20 years and people still wonder why 50% of the population are considered overweight? The other funny thing, I remember a time where going to the store to get a bag of chips as a Friday night treat and the bag was half the size it is now. I remember my Mom’s reaction the first time she saw the new chip bags and how enormous they were. It’s a change that has happened within my life time. Small portions sizes are something my children will never remember. This is their reality.

But the truth is people want more for their money! Imagine if you went to a restaurant and paid $15.00 for that plate of spaghetti with only 500 calories? You would be complaining about spending so much on such little food. It’s what I would do. There is something comforting about a plate overflowing with food. Maybe it’s an instinct. Seeing all the food and knowing you aren’t going to starve.

There some things that I do to help my portion distortion disorder. For one, I use a much smaller plate for supper. Ryan get’s his normal large dinner plate and I get the bread plate.

Another is that I remind myself that I am not a male. I am not 6’3” and I do not want to be a 250 pounds of muscle. Sometimes I look at all the food that Ryan can eat and I can get a little envious. He gets all the treats and excess calories because his job is a lot more active and he is so tall. But, it’s something that I do have to constantly remind myself. I just keep thinking, I am SUPPOSE to eat less then him.

I measure what I need to eat. Yes, I am the one with a measuring cup pouring my cereal into it. I also use Myfitnesspal religiously. I like to have an idea of how much I’m suppose to input for food versus output in exercise. It’s all a balancing act and it’s good to keep an eye on exactly how much you are eating. Most of the time, people how no idea how much it all adds up to.

The whole idea of finishing your meal because of the starving children in Africa was drilled into my head. But in reality, I am not suppose to eat past being full. I now eat until I am satisfied. It’s a hard thing putting the fork down when there is still food on your plate. I highly recommend the book, Women, Food and God by Geneen Roth that was recommend to me by fellow blogger and yoga instructor, Namaste, Mother-Whoha. It talks of the messed up relationship that we as emotional creatures have with food. How eating when bored and stuffing a void with food is not healthy. How food is suppose to be something that is used to live and nurture your body. Not to celebrate or console.

It’s a difficult thing dealing with portion distortion. And I am far from figuring it all out. But, it is something that is a reality as a female living a healthy lifestyle in this food skewed world that we now live in. But with one step at a time I am starting to figure it and how to heal my unhealthy relationship with portions and food in general.

Do you have trouble with portion distortion? What are your tools?

xo

Back In the Swing Of Things

 

Happy Tuesday everyone! It was a glorious long weekend around these parts and I SO enjoyed the extra day off! I can’t really complain though because since surgery last Wednesday, I haven’t really been 100% at work.

Frist, I want to thank everyone for their kind words, prayers and thoughts. I really appreciate it! It was so nice to sit and read all the wonderful comments/texts/e-mails.

Last Wednesday morning I was at the hospital by 7:00 AM and was in surgery by 8 AM. Even though I was super anxious to have the surgery done, I was still a nervous wreck! It all started hitting me as I was lying in the hospital bed getting wheeled away and saying good bye to Mom.

But, I can’t say enough good things about the Shawville hospital! They really went above and beyond with giving me the care that I needed. They were comforting, gentle and kind. I also can’t say enough about the surgeon, Dr. Fred. He never once made me feel like I was inconveniencing him or that we was too busy to ask him silly questions. The post-op nurses were so patient with me as I was sick after surgery and took extra time to be able to function. I really can’t say enough! Thank you!

Wednesday afternoon, Thursday and Friday were all kind of a blur of pain medicine induced slumber. I literally can’t remember what I did those days. The days are all mixed together with images of bad daytime television and cat naps.

This is what my days looked like..

Tucker. My faithful companion. This is what he looked like as he stared at me lying in bed. He seriously wouldn’t leave my side! I think animals know when there is something not right.

My essentials. A baggie filled with 3 bottles of meds, new gauze, glasses case and a bottle of water. This was my survival kit. I carried these items around everywhere with me!

My bed side was beautified with this wonderful arrangement of flowers from my mother and father in law! They were so nice to smell and look at, thanks again guys!

I did still attempt to do some work. I tried to make it seem to my clients that everything was normal. Answering call, taking orders and making quotes. It would take me twice as long to do anything number related though because of the pain meds. Made all the numbers go topsy-turvy. 

I am so glad to be back in the swing of things now. I feel human again and I no longer feel so useless! I am back at work this morning and I have to say it is CRAZY! Just like it was last week! I felt so guilty taking those “sick days” when things were so busy at work. I am so lucky though to work with family and amazing friends that cover for me when I need some time off.

And the good news for all the blog readers? I’m back and after spending 3-4 days on bed rest, I have lots of blog content all thought out! ha ha!

I am so glad to be back in the swing of things and feel so ready for everyday life to begin again!

How was your weekend?

xo

1st Anniversary

 

Happy Wednesday! Today is surgery day. Actually, by the time you read this, it will already be over with. With the hopes that it isn’t rescheduled again! I have zero expectations. None. I have no idea what it’s going to be like during or after. People keep asking me about recovery and at this moment, I have no idea. I have no idea how long it is going to take to feel back to normal. But, I haven’t felt “normal” since November therefore I am so willing to take a little pain and discomfort to get back to my regular self.

With that aside, let’s talk about something a bit more happy! Ryan and I had such a  wonderful time celebrating our 1 year anniversary together! We got showered with so many warm wishes from family and friends on our first year as husband and wife. We are so blessed!

While away for the weekend we were talking all things wedding. One of the things that came up in conversation was as idea. I suggested that we take one of our wedding pictures are re-take a new picture every anniversary in the same location. Watch how to change over the years.

It was pretty simple to pick our favourite location. While we loved the uniqueness of the old car in the bush, we loved the pictures on our porch best. It was just “us”. We love our home and the farm. We love our rocking chairs and will be spending many years rocking together on our front porch. So, we recreated a couple of those pictures!

Wedding Day- 2012

1st Anniversary – 2013

Wedding Day – 2012

1st Anniversary- 2013

It was fun to re-create and I think it will be nice to look back on all our pictures in many years from now!

As first anniversary traditions go, we also decided to take out the top of our wedding cake for dessert last night after supper! Besides a couple of wilted flowers, it looked pretty good!

And guess what? It wasn’t as horrible as I thought it would taste after a year in the freezer! There was a little bit of a sour freezer taste but it was definitely edible! In fact, my “I don’t like dessert” husband had a second slice!

 

It was a fun night setting up our mini photo shoot and polishing off some wedding cake. A great way to spend a Monday evening! It was a fun to commemorate our first year together and the wedding day that made us a family! 

Happy Wednesday!

xo

An Unexpected Weekend of Celebrating

 

Happy Monday everyone! I’m sure that my blog title may come to a surprise to some of you. And that the fact that I am indeed writing this post at all may be a surprise. Don’t worry, it is to me too.

I arrived at the hospital at 8 AM sharp last Thursday and was escorted to my room and given a gown. Butterflies were starting to build and the more nervous I got. There is something about getting put under general aesthetic that freaks me out. About 15 minutes later, a nurse came in and asked to speak to me. I was kind of a little taken aback. She seemed very serious like something was wrong.

She informed me that the doctor had 2 emergency c-sections the night before at 2:30 AM had hadn’t slept since the day before. He had asked her to approach me to see if it was o.k to reschedule to next week.

Immediately, my heart sank. Of course I wasn’t mad but just slightly disappointed. It’s been a long road since November and I was anxious to finally have it all behind me. The good news is that the surgery is rescheduled for this Wednesday! I really appreciate everyone’s kind words from last week!! Love you’s!

With the surgery postponed, it meant that Ryan and I could celebrate our anniversary! 

The weekend started out on a rainy Saturday morning at a yard sale in order to raise money for the Relay For Life team that I am apart of! It was fun morning and I was glad to sell some of the stuff that I don’t need anymore!

Jill, Sharon and I keeping out of the rain!

Later that morning I headed to Shawville for a wonderful bunch bridal shower for Amanda! It was the first wedding event for Amanda and it was so fun to watch her open all of her beautiful new presents!

Later that afternoon, Ryan and I packed up the car and left for the start of our anniversary celebrations! First stop, The Marshes Golf Course to play on their short course! It was a rainy morning but the skies had cleared that afternoon which made for a perfect game! First game of the year for me and I think I definitely need more practice! ha ha! 

We checked into our room at Brookstreet hotel in Kanata and decided to head down to the hot tub to relax after our golf game. It was so relaxing to just sit there, soak and relax!

We got dressed and headed out to do a little shopping. We then picked up a pizza and brought it back to our room where we rented Silver Lining Playbook! It was actually a very good movie! I could see that it could be confusing if you were not paying attention but the story line was interesting!

We were up early (we both can’t sleep in) and just vegged and slowly got ready for the day. We had a yummy breakfast at the hotel and then headed for a movie in theatres!

It was Ryan’s choice of movie this time and he picked Pain and Gain. To be honest, the movie wasn’t horrible, but it felt long. At the end of the movie they showed pictures of the real criminals and I kept saying, “I can’t believe this is a true story! How stupid can they be?”

We ran around for some errands and then headed to the driving range where we split a bucket of balls to hit. It was freezing though and so windy that our clubs kept falling over! I was so happy get back into the warm car!

We headed over to The Keg for our anniversary supper! We decided to go to the same Keg that we went to the day after our wedding. It was such nice supper! We were going over some highlights from the wedding. It was nice to just sit and remember the wonderful day that we had.

It was time to head home after the nice time away. When I got home a special little puppy had a nice Mother’s day card and gift for his mommy! An anniversary and mother’s day all in one day, I’m a pretty lucky girl!

It was an unexpected weekend of activity but I am so glad that we actually got to celebrate our anniversary after all. Although I was sad at first with not being able to get surgery over with, I am happy with the end result. We got to be together, away from the farm and just relax and celebrate 1 year as husband and wife!

Hope you had a great weekend!

xo

Happy 1 Year Anniversary

 

It’s hard to believe that a year ago today we were getting ready to meet at the church to say our vow’s in front of all of our friends and family.

It’s hard to believe that a year ago today I was holding onto my Daddy’s arm as he walked me down the aisle to you. My soon-to-be husband.

It’s hard to believe that a year ago today with one look at you standing at the end of the aisle brought me to tears.

It’s hard to believe that a year ago today we committed our lives together in front of friends, family and God.

It’s hard to believe that a year ago today we finally become husband and wife. A year ago today we started our new life together as a married couple. We have had our ups and downs but one thing is for sure, we love each other more and more everyday. We are committed to one another and so look forward to many years to come.

Ryan,

Thank you for being my rock, my everything. I can’t imagine life without you. I thank god everyday that he blessed me with someone as wonderful as you to spend my life with.

I love you.

xo

Tough Week

 

I have to honest. I don’t really feel like blogging. It’s only Wednesday and already it’s been a tough week and it’s not about to get easier. Because of this, this will be my last post of the week.

Yesterday, we got news that my (great) Uncle Lyle has passed away after a difficult couple of months of bad health. I heard this news via text message and instantly burst into tears.

My grandpa on my dad’s side got into an accident and became ill when I was very young. I actually don’t have any childhood memories of my grandpa when he was well. My grandpa’s sister was my Aunt Elaine. For as long as I remember, while my other grandparents weren’t there, my Aunt Elaine and Uncle Lyle were there for every holiday, birthday and just random visits. We were very close. That’s why when we got married and had the “grandparent” picture, I insisted they were in it.

I can never thank Uncle Lyle for all those years that he was in my life like I was his blood grand daughter. He was a great man to look up to and I am so thankful for all the years and memories I have with him. I love you and I’ll miss you.

While we are being together as a family and going through the emotions and events after someone you love passes, I have to also prepare for surgery tomorrow.

Back in November, shortly after my birthday, I went through a traumatic experience at the hospital while there for a Bartholin’s cyst. It has been something that I have been battling with ever since and has continued to worsen. On Thursday, I will finally be having it dealt with as the wonderful surgeon will be operating to remove both (yes I have developed a second cyst) Bartholin gland cysts. It will just be a day surgery and I am both nervous yet excited. It will be such a relief to not have to deal with this issue anymore.

Since I will most likely be drugged up come Friday, I will not be doing another post this week. For the rest of the week I am signing off to be with family and to deal with some personal issues.

I hope the rest of everyone’s week is great.

xo

A Summery Weekend

 

Happy Monday everyone!! I hope that everyone’s weekend was as good as mine! I can’t even put into words how awesome it was! It was relaxing yet fun and it was the first full activities that made it feel like summer!

The weekend started out right by hanging out with my little buddy (aka niece) Faith. We played, raced and laid down in the cool grass.

After a quick pizza supper we headed to my brothers for an impromptu bon fire! The kids were so excited and were a hoot to be around! They were giggling, playing and just being silly! Just a lot of fun!

 

Grandpa was being silly too!

It was such a relaxing evening sitting by the fire with family. After a couple of s’mores and a snuggle with the kiddos, it was off to bed!

Saturday morning I had to work but it was a quiet morning and I got a lot of catch up work done! That afternoon, I headed into Quyon to meet the girls and then we crossed the ferry to head out for supper celebrating Sara’s birthday! It was awesome getting together with all the girls chatting and visiting!

That night, I headed to Bristol to meet Ryan at a stag. This stag was on the happy couples home/farm. They cleaned out their barn to hold all the partiers! It was one of the coolest party locations I have ever been to! It felt like a true summer party! Warm night, sand floor, live band and cold drinks! I think someone needs to host a barn party every weekend! It was so fun!

Sunday morning it was a relaxing morning and then I headed to Shawville for lunch for another group of good girlfriends for Amanda’s birthday! We stopped in at the ice cream shop for an ice cream after lunch and then sat in the warm sun visiting.

That afternoon, I came home to a surprise from my hubby! I have been bugging him for a new clothes line for over a year! When I was away for lunch he went a purchased the stuff and set up my new clothes line! I immediately went and did a load of laundry JUST so that I could hang it on the line!

Ryan and I put out all our flower pots and bird feeders! It really feels like spring now! I can’t wait to get planting some new flowers!

This scene was a common one around these parts this weekend. Me, rocking on the porch reading my new book! I started reading the first book of The Mortal Instruments on Friday and haven’t been able to put it down since! I can’t wait for the movie to come out in August!

 

It is getting too warm to cook inside so Ryan and I have been BBQing most of our meals! Last night was BBQ ribs with homemade sweet potato fries and homemade coleslaw! Yum!

Overall, it was a summery and fantastic weekend! Bbqing, soaking up the sun, barn party, supper/lunch with girl friends, family time…perfect summer weekend! Can’t wait for more! I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!

How was your weekend?

xo