Friday, March 30, 2012

huatulco, mexico





So we're going to be staying at the new Secrets Hautulco Resort in Mexico for our Honeymoon. We're going from April 10 - 18, and I am so excited! It's only been open since December 2011. At first we wanted to go to Cuba, but like our Travel Agent said, you really don't get your money's worth in Cuba, and suggested that we give Mexico a chance. She suggested this resort, and I am so thrilled with our choice! I just can't wait to get away with Nick and be on a beach doing absolutely nothing!
It's between two smaller towns, and so it's not too touristy, which is great. The resort is also a smaller and it's adults only. We also have two hot tubs! One in our room, and another one our balcony.
I'll be sure to share our personal photos when we get back!

Thursday, March 29, 2012

accepted!

Nick decided that he would like to go back to school to go from an EMT to a Paramedic this year. So earlier this year he applied to both SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology) and PMA (Professional Medical Associates), which are both located here in Calgary and they both have Paramedic programs. Before dating Nick, I had no idea there was even a difference between EMTs and Paramedics, and what those differences entailed. Basically the EMT program is about a 1 year program depending on where you go. Once you have graduated and passed a provincial exam you can work on an ambulance. Most Rural locations have 2 EMTs working per ambulance and they are considered a basic ambulance. In the city, basic ambulances do the patient transfers between hospitals. This is why Nick has worked in the small town of Coronation for the last few years, because most rural sites only hire EMTs. To become a Paramedic, it’s about another 2 years of school depending on where you go. For every Urban ambulance, there must be at least 1 Paramedic per ambulance. Paramedics can administer more drugs, perform more advanced procedures and just have a wider medical knowledge.

We both knew that he would get into SAIT easily, but Nick really did not have a desire to attend school there. Nick really wanted to get into PMA for a few reasons. PMAs Paramedic program is only 16-18 months long instead of the full 2 years, and instead of starting in September, they start sooner like at the beginning of the summer. So instead of not being done until July 2014, Nick will probably finish around October 2013 (give or take). They don’t take a summer break and he would go to school 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off. SAITs program is Mon-Fri and they have the normal evening, weekends and holidays off. Another thing we like about this is Nick will be able to work more while in school because of the 2 weeks off. If he went to SAIT, he would only be able to work a few evenings and weekends and I don’t like it when he works on Sundays. The main reason Nick wants to get into PMA is because it’s just a better school. You have to maintain really good grades to stay in (you can’t get below 80% on any test and you only get 3 rewrites a year), and they have a higher success rate of passing the provincial exam which you have to pass in order to obtain your licence to work as a paramedic. The only thing is, PMA is extremely hard to get into. You first have to qualify to write an entrance exam, and then you have to do well on the exam. This year about 26 people qualified to write the exam, and PMA only has 12 seats available. Nick has already been to PMA for his EMT, and really wanted to go back for the Paramedic program. Nick qualified to write the entrance exam for the Paramedic Program, and a few weeks ago he went and wrote it. Nick was there for over 6 hours! He had to write 3 tests, 1 scenario and have an interview. He was so tired when I saw him after. I tried to get him to tell me how it all went, and he told me that he felt like he did alright on tests, really well on the scenario and he was the only person there dressed for the interview! Nick wore dress pants, a dress shirt and tie, and everyone else was just wearing regular clothes. In the interview, the interviewer complimented Nick on his tie, and Nick said he felt like he was overdressed. The interviewer said that he wasn’t, but that everyone else was underdressed. Lol! They told him that sometime in the beginning of April he would get a phone call letting him know if he got in or not. Well on Tuesday (March 27) Nick got a phone call, and they offered him 1 of the 12 spots! I’m so excited for him – even more excited than he is (but he never really gets excited for anything). I am just so proud of Nick. He just works so hard and is so passionate about what he does.

Nick will start school now in June, but we don’t know the exact date yet. So basically we are just very busy for the next little while! The wedding is just over a week away, and then we leave for our honeymoon and get back April 18. We move into our new place sometime in May, and in June Nick will be finally quitting Coronation and starting school! So excited!

wedding sneak peak


I don’t want to give too much away, but here is a peak of what my hair is going to look like, as well as my beautiful handmade lace bolero that I'm going to wear over my wedding dress.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

lady antebellum

So I know I haven’t posted for a little while, but I have a very good excuse – my Wedding!! I am just so busy with all the planning, but it’s almost here - only 10 days left! I’ll try to post when I can, but between now and after the honeymoon, please excuse the lack of posting. However, I promise that once the wedding craziness has died down and life returns to normal, posts will go back to normal and best of all – I will post everything from the wedding:)




A couple of weeks ago, Nick’s mom (and my future mother-in-law) took me to see Lady Antebellum in concert. I was so surprised that she asked me to go with her, but I was so happy that she did. I do like Lady Antebellum and knew a few of their songs, but I am now obsessed with them. Their concert was amazing! Since the concert I listen to Lady A all the time and have downloaded almost all of their songs. They are just an amazing band and seem so down to earth. I really hope they come back to Calgary again because I would love to see them again, and up closer as well.

Monday, March 12, 2012

wedding nightmares

Source: http://amandacastleberryphotography.blogspot.com

So it's less than 4 weeks until the wedding, and the wedding nightmares are starting to come at full force. Recently in my dreams I'm forgetting to tell my dad that he needs to pick up the flowers and the cake. In another dream there is only 30 people at the wedding, and no one is dancing (I really hope people dance all night at my wedding).

I also am getting really emotional (good emotional), and the littlest things set me off and I become a crying mess. I even started to cry at work last week over a situation that occurred and I was not even in trouble! The Manager told me (in a very nice and caring way) to take the rest of the day off and get some rest. In my defense I was extremely exhausted and just starting to feel overwhelmed.

Well almost everything is done. There are a few odds and ends left to do and just a bunch of phone calling and confirmations to be made. I hate chasing down RSVP's! Just wish people would tell me yes or no and make my job easier!

The funny thing is I usually love planning and the whole planning process. Let's just say that I am done. I don't want to plan anymore! I also hope I never have to get married again!!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

headboard love


I love these headboards. I want one exactly like this, except Nick does not like them at all. We've been starting to look for furniture for our new house, but the one thing we can't agree on is a headboard. I think at the moment I am just going to stick with the one I'm currently using - but a girl can still dream.