Danika's Baby Shower - Part 2

The Professional Photos!

 Crystal made some fabulous welcoming drinks!

 Bev and Christine

 The Lybbert Girl's

 Crystal, Danika and Bev

 Ashley, Bianca, Me and Whitney

Again, thank you so much to everyone that came, it was a wonderful afternoon, and little Alexa sure got spoiled!

Happy Birthday Danika

Happy Birthday to new mother and my sister Danika! Hope your day is amazing as you are!

Edmonton Road Trip

I had such a great weekend two weeks ago. It’s Bev’s birthday at the end of this month, and because she currently lives in Edmonton, she usually comes down to Calgary for her birthday. Last year we had the Shipwrecked party to celebrate hers and Danika’s birthday, which was so much fun.  This year however, Crystal, Bianca and I decided that instead of having Bev come down here for her birthday, that we should go up to Edmonton to celebrate with her.

The three of us left really early on Friday morning, and drove up to Edmonton. After stopping at Bianca’s store we grabbed some flowers and put the rest of our gift together. We then drove to Bev’s new place and the fun began. The afternoon was spent watching movies and getting ready for our big night out.

We ended up going to The Red Piano at West Ed on Bev’s request. OH. MY. GOODNESS. What a great pick. Seriously, it was one of the best nights I’ve had in a long time. If you ever go to Edmonton, and need a place to eat – you must try this place! We had reserved a table earlier in the week (they only reserve with a minimum of 4 people), and got there around 7:30pm. The food was amazing. We ordered lots of different dishes, and just shared between the 4 of us. From what I remember, we had the alligator popcorn (yup, that’s right – alligator meat), a chaudhry board, meat board (that had the yummiest asparagus), salad, etc. My favourite part was the Junk Food Platter! Boy do I love my sweets. It came with 1 chocolate shake, donuts, chocolate chip cookies, cotton candy, red velvet cakes, etc. 

 The Red Dueling Piano's

 Birthday Girl - Bev

 Sexy B

 Me and Crystal - yup we're cool!

 Crystal, Bev, Bianca and Me

 The Four - reunited for the weekend!

The show started at 9, and I really didn’t know what to expect. Well, I was in for a treat. It’s basically a show featuring 4 people (2 guys & 2 girls) all taking turns in pairs performing. They played the piano and sang along. They took requests, but you usually had to send money ($10 - $100, the more you pay, the more likely they’ll sing your request).  They sang everything from Eminem, Shania Twain, The Eagles, John Lennon, Pink, Rihanna, The Lumineers, Thrift Shop, etc. They played everything from the old classics (Sweet Caroline, Don’t Stop Believing, etc.) to Top 40 (Girl on Fire, Just Give Me a Reason, etc). It was seriously an awesome night, and I didn’t want it to end. We stayed until 2:30am, and I can’t wait to go back!

We got home Saturday afternoon, and with less than an hour to spare, I quickly got ready to go for dinner with Nick’s family for Kris’s birthday. Crystal and Bianca decided to join us, as they are practically family and I know Kris appreciated having them come. After yummy chocolate cake made by Grandma Elsie, Bianca, Crystal and I left for another house warming party.

The weekend ended with Nick writing his very last exam on Sunday, followed by a get-together with a few of his classmates and his old partner Tia from when he worked in Coronation. It feels great knowing that Nick is done school, and all he has to do is concentrate on is getting through this summer and completing his practicum.

1st Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to us!! Can you believe it’s already been 1 year!?! Crazy – I know! At times it feels like our wedding was just last week, and at other times, it feels like we’ve been married forever.
I once thought that when I got married, I would understand the phrase “the 1st year is the hardest”, but honestly, I still don’t think I understand that statement. Yes Nick and I have had a few disagreements, but every couple has disagreements, and ours don’t happen that often or last very long (and we usually come up with a compromise). I think it’s because Nick is so quick to end a fight and will pull me in for a hug while refusing to let go until I hug him back (such a sweetie).
Nick likes to joke that the reason we haven’t got sick of each other, is because he isn’t home enough for us to get tired of each other. It’s true though, while it’s been a great year, I am so looking forward to the next year as Nick finishes up school and he’s not always studying for exams. While we dated, whenever I went over to see him, I got his undivided attention, and I think he was worried that once we got married, it would be the same, and he wouldn’t get any time to study. So he was surprised that other then a few trips to the basement (that’s his area where he has his things set up and studies) every night to say hi and get a kiss, I leave him alone most of the evening. Sometimes I want more attention then Nick is able to give me, so Nick has to sit me down and explain how busy he is and that this situation is just temporary. I give in and wait for him to finish studying (this has only happened like 3 times). I’m usually pretty good though at entertaining myself with party planning, girl’s nights, coffee dates, zumba and most recently – lots of Alexa time. I have probably been to Okotoks about every other day for the past two weeks just to see my little niece.

Some thing’s I have learned these past 366 days (it was a leap year):

- Nick has about 10x the patience that I have.

- Even though Nick and I had great communication before we got married, we’ve had to work at it a little bit harder since we got married.

- Now that we have joint accounts, it’s weird (and sometimes I don’t like it) that Nick knows everything that I buy. Oh well, I’m getting use to it.

- I’m a terrible housewife. Seriously. Yes I currently work full time, but not only is Nick a full time student, he also works as many shifts as he can, and yet he somehow finds time to clean, do most of the cooking, and take care of the cats in between his studying. I guess I’ll be pulling up my socks a lot this year.

- I hate cooking, but I don't mind baking.

- Nick hates my sweet tooth.

- I like going out and seeing people. Nick really just wants to stay home and watch a movie. We compromise and do both. That means saying no to some things. 

- Little Moments: I have really grown fond of the little moments we have. Sometimes I can’t help but smile when it’s just me and Nick sitting on the bed or the floor, laughing about something silly or even having a serious conversation. We’re usually snuggling or playing with Freddy (our cat), and nothing else is distracting us. It’s just me and him. I love it. They make me the happiest.

In all, it’s been a great first year. It’s amazing how more in love you can fall with someone, even after you get married. Nick makes me feel safe and loved every day, and I can’t help but smile and feel blessed when I think of everything that I have in my life. He works so hard to provide for me, and seriously puts 110% into our relationship. We have learned and grown from our mistakes, and we’re both learning what it takes to have a happy marriage. Yes we have some bad moments, but not compared to how many awesome ones that get to share together. I’m looking forward to the future, and I can’t wait for what comes next! 

 Honeymoon - April 2012

Calgary Stampede - July 2012

 Wakeford Christmas Party - December 2012

 Sealed in the Calgary Temple - January 2013

Fernie - March 2013

Nick always studying (Freddy likes to keep him company)

Easter - March 2013

Sparwood

 

 Kris being silly!

 Nick and Me

I was not looking forward to Monday when we had to leave Fernie and the cabin. It was seriously an awesome weekend, and I didn't want it to end. I took a few photos of the cabin just before we left. Isn't it beautiful??

Anyways, on our way back to Calgary, we stopped at the Sparwood Truck to take a few photos. As you can see, it's a very big vehicle. 

The group had so much fun, that we're already planning another ski trip for next year, and we're thinking Whitefish, Montana. I'm already excited!

Cabin Relaxing

Day Three

Resting my injured leg by the fire

Crystal making her awesome breakfast

Visiting the crew at lunch

Playing multiple rounds of Catan on our last night

So on Sunday morning, Nick and I stayed back at the cabin nursing my injured leg. I was kind of bummed out on not being able to ski on the second day, but there was nothing I could do. I could barely put any weight on my left leg, let alone walk. 

The morning started with Crystal making caramelized bananas on pancakes with ice cream. It was one of the best breakfasts I have ever had. Yum-my! Then everyone left for the hill, and I poured myself a nice hot bath and took my time getting ready. Carus, Nick and I left around 11am, and we meet up with everyone for lunch. I was so glad that we did, because it made me feel like we didn't miss out on much. By the time we got back to the cabin, everyone followed within a few hours and supper was made. After supper, Carus, Andrew, Kurtis and Sean packed up and left back to Calgary as they either had school or work the next morning. Braden and Shalene left soon after, so it was me, Kris, Nick, Crystal and Bianca for the rest of the night. We played soo many rounds of Catan and I introduced Crytal to the awesomeness of Killer Bunnies (we already have plans to play it again at the end of this month). 

Finally, after a long night (but a really fun one), we all headed to bed. It was probably one of my favourite nights spent at the cabin.

Ski Trip

Day Two

 I'm making waffles!

 Driving to the hill

 Nick Snowboarding

 Bianca!

 Couple Shot - Nick and me.

Crystal

Saturday morning was our turn to cook breakfast for the group. So I made my cinnamon waffles, Carus got up early to make these really cool waffle hash browns and Nick made the garlic sausage and eggs. Around 8:30am we all headed to to the hill, and it felt so good to be there. It's been years since I've gone, and Nick and I have talked about wanting to make a hobby out of this and also do this with our kids someday. It was a great day, and we all meet up for lunch before doing a few more runs. The only incident that happened was I had a bad fall on my last run...which eventually meant that I couldn't go skiing the next day. Oh well, at least I got one good full day.