Update-I've been busy!

I really really want to catch up on my summer, in fact I meant to post at least once a week (just for myself so that I can remember everything), but that will have to be done at a later date (hopefully not too late!). This summer has ended up being a much busier season than all the rest, so I wouldn't exactly call it relaxing this time around. Don't get me wrong, it's been fun, but more the busy kind of fun. Between my good friends wedding that's coming up in a week (I'm a bridesmaid), family visiting for a month, major furniture re-arranging and de-cluttering in our apartment and a new roomate (my sister moves in next week!), I pretty much feel like the road runner-full speed ahead, always moving. 

This week coming up will be our busiest yet- we move two new (to us) couches from my parents in tomorrow (which meant we were up late all week re-organizing, moving furniture, getting rid of thing's and just cleaning like crazy), and our futon goes back to them. Honestly we are so psyched! Having a futon was great in the beginning, since it meant we always had room for extra people to stay over (in addition to the guest room), or could pull it out into a bed if we just wanted to lie down to watch TV ourselves. That got old fast though, since it's an IKEA futon with side cushions that don't attach, so we can't rest against the sides, and people who don't know wind up falling off!  It was funny a couple of times...

So once we get the couches in and the living area back to normal, we then have to clean out our guest room for my sister! She's moving in during the week with us for the school year since it's more convenient for her, and we get a bit of financial relief:)  The guest room closet looks like world war 3 happened in there however, so that will be a project! I'm hoping to take before and after pictures;)

Sunday were driving up to Kingston so that we can deliver our old entertainment unit (that no longer fits) to good friends who want it. Not gonna lie, I'm excited both for the spontaneous road trip and the chance to see our friends Morgan and Dan. To be honest, I think just the time alone in the car with Ben with no distractions will be awesome:) Oh, and in my opinion we don't see Morgan and Dan enough and I will continue to bug them to move closer to us until they tell me to go away;)

After the weekend it's going to be a juggling act between work, more home projects and lot's of wedding stuff! I'm so excited to watch my friend get married, I think there's going to be quite a few tears shed at this wedding! There's going to be manicures and dinner for the girls on Thursday, rehearsal and  rehearsal dinner Friday, the ceremony and reception Saturday and a brunch for the wedding party and family on Sunday. So I'll be well fed:) I cannot wait to dance with Ben at the reception, how many opportunities do couple get to slow dance together any more, unless it's at a wedding? I'd also be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to getting all dolled up! I will try to be diligent and post a few pictures when it's all over. 

So that's my next week in a nutshell. To be honest, when I think about everything that has to get done I start to feel a little panicky. So I'm only allowing myself to think of one thing at a time. Come September I might not know what to do with all my free time...oh who am I kidding, I've got a long list of all the little thing's I've been ignoring all summer;) Another thing I'm excited for come September? The arrival of Fall! I have so much to say about that though, that I think it's going to be a separate post- I'm off to start my weekend!

Summer Date Ideas

Yesterday I posted my Summer To-Do List, and one of the items on there was more date nights. Well I love planning such things and so I thought today I would do a little post with some of my ideas (many approved by Ben of course:)


Summer Date Ideas:


1. Reading at Chapters with Starbucks drinks.


2. Walk down by the beach, bring a picnic:).


3. Picture outing- Find a nice place to take pictures (beach, park, old buildings etc).


4. Spend a day (or evening) at a museum.


5. Dinner at a small cafe down town then to a bakery/cupcake shop for dessert.


6. Go see a concert, play, etc.


7. Make a nice dinner at home, play board games, drinks on the balcony.


8. Thrift store shopping, then go get ice cream.


9. Spend a day at Le Nordik Spa.


10. Do something creative together (craft, write, etc).


11. Sunday morning breakfast at a cute diner.


12. Road trip to a small town a couple hours away, spend the day there browsing the shops, eating in local restaurants, taking pictures etc.


13. Go on a boat tour of the Ottawa river.


14. Paddle boating on the Rideau Canal, get nachos and drinks after.


15. Make our own pizza's, go see a movie (or watch one at home).


16. Make our own pasta, then enjoy on the balcony with candles and music.


17. Cave spelunking (we went for Ben's birthday and would LOVE to go again!)


18. Spend a night making travel plans, play lists etc, and baking yummy treats.


19. Bike ride by the Ottawa river (need to find a cheap bike for Ben first!).


20. Go fishing- Ben's never been, and insists!




Some of these were old faithful's (like going to Chapters) but good ones, and some I tried to put a new spin on. I'm confident we can do most of these this summer, and I'll try and document all of them. I'm really excited!

Hello Blog, It's Me Again!

Oh boy does it feel good to be blogging again! I just had a glance over some old posts, and realised that I have actually had this blog since 2010, with only 22 posts! Not that I see myself blogging every day of the year, but come on, that is lame! I also noticed that I seemed to blog more often when I was home sick (then claim that I am rarely sick, which is true, but not the impression you get from reading old posts!).

It was also funny to notice that my struggles from the last couple years haven't changed: diet, exercise, money. I guess those thing's can be daily struggles in most people's lives right? I have been making decent strides in the diet department lately however, just in the choices I make and portion control, and noticed a difference! Now that summer is here I shouldn't have too many excuses for lacking in the exercise area of my life right...right?


In terms of life updates, thing's are pretty much the same! I'm still a nanny (to two little ones instead of 3 now, the two little girls I used to look after moved to Peru), and I will be staying with this same family until at least the end of next summer. By then the boys will be school and pre-school aged (crazy!) so it will be time for me to move on. That is both scary and exciting at the same time for me, because as of now I have no idea what I will be doing after that! I've toyed with the idea of taking my Early Childhood Education online this year, (so that I can actually apply to day care centres etc where my Sociology degree alone doesn't cut it), but have yet to make a final decision. I would also LOVE to take a photography course, because that's one of my big passions right now. For now, I'm still unsure of my next step, but at least I have a whole year to really think about it!

Life at home hasn't really changed, but has been wonderful. Our apartment has really come together over the past year, and now I'm just working on getting rid of the extra clutter! Ben and I are both settled with great jobs and regular hours, this is actually the first year since we met that we've had the same schedule! So I guess that's one new thing:) I've found that in the past year or so I've come to feel so much more content with what I have, something I wish I would have figured out earlier. I have to say though, that I am not just content with Ben though, I am extremely happy! It's so crazy to think that come September I will have known him for seven years! (We've been dating for about six and a half:) I know I need to write our story at some point (if he was ok with me sharing it, and if not, just for us), because these memories are important. I used to keep a regular journal in high school and stopped after graduation. Oh how I wish I hadn't, because that's when thing's started getting interesting;) I'll always treasure that time in my life, and I'm so grateful to be where I am now.

One thing that did change this year, was our travel plans. In previous posts I mentioned that a big trip to Europe was in the works for this summer. Well, between scheduling conflicts and some unexpected financial issues, that trip has been postponed. We were super bummed about that, still are, but we are hoping it will work out next year, and plan to save from now until then! It's important to us that we travel, and Europe is high on our list. For me specifically London, (because my cousin is living there until next June and I want to experience it with her), and Italy, (because I am IN LOVE with everything about it!), are top priority. If we had it our way, we'd also get to see Ireland, Scotland, Switzerland, Spain, Greece and more! Who knows how thing's will work out next summer;)

Well, that's all for now. This next year is shaping up to be a really good one, and I'm excited! I'm already cooking up plans for each season, and hopefully our travel plans for next year pan out! But I'm just lucky to have my partner in crime by my side either way;)