Liebster!

Thank you Megan for nominating me for a Liebster Award! It's meant for blogs with under 200 followers in order to help get your name out there. 

This is what you have to do:

- Give 11 things about yourself

- Answer the questions your nominator created

- Choose 11(ish) blogs to nominate 

- Create 11 questions or use the previous ones

- Let them know they've won!

About Me:

1. I'm very, very afraid of car washes. VERY AFRAID.

2. I put ketchup and hot dogs in my KD (mac & cheese for my american folk)

3. My cat Theo sleeps on my pillow & if he doesn't I can't fall asleep.

4. I'm a crazy insomniac. I never sleep.

5. I am a shopaholic. I can't go in malls anymore unless I'm with my husband or a friend who will talk to out of everything.

6. I'm addicted to Lush bath bombs.

7. I have to drink 3 or 4 diet cokes or coke zeros a day. Otherwise I'm a mean, mean person.

8. I hate milk. I can't drink it.

9. I never ever put my clothes away after washing them. They sit in the hamper until I wear them.

10. I also don't own an iron, so my clothes are mostly wrinkled.

11. My husband is my best friend & does anything for me.

Questions from Katie/Megan:

If you could do anything and money was no matter, what would you do?

I would buy a house, have a bunch of kids and get to be a stay at home mom. I also would travel everywhere I could. Oh, and I would decorate my house like a billionaire.

Favorite Holiday? 

My favorite holiday is Christmas. I'm addicted to decorating the house for every holiday though.

What goals do you have for the next year?

Have a baby & buy a house.

Favorite Movie:

I honestly can't choose! I love every movie I watch.

Who is your biggest role model?

My parents. They rock!

Who has made the biggest impact on who you are today?

My parents of course. They taught me everything I know.

What makes you happy?

Randy, Annaleen, my family, my friends and my cats

Nominations: 

Anyone who wants!!

It's a Christmas Meme!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? I'm obsessed with wrapping presents. I should do it as a job.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I love coloured lights!

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No, but maybe I should!!

5. When do you put your decorations up? Already done ;)

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Sticky buns!!!

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Spending Christmas Eve at my grandparents house when I was younger. It was so fun to wake up with my grandparents and open presents with them.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I was never told. I eventually gave up on it when I was 16. I was really naive.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?  Yes! Our pjs!

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? I bought some really cute ones from Ikea last year. They're reindeers, hearts, and then we have made ones mixed in. And we buy each other an ornament every year!

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? I hate it after a while. I LOVE the first snowfall though.

12. Can you ice skate? Nope!

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? My Samantha, the American Girl doll

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending time with family!

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? I love them all, as you can see from my waistline.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? My dad putting up the leg lamp and watched A Christmas Story.

17. What tops your tree? A gold star.

18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? I love both!

19. Candy Canes: Yuck or Yum? I love sweets.

20. Favorite Christmas show? A Christmas Story and Elf.

21. Saddest Christmas Song? Silent Night

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? Anything NSYNC. Hahahah

WE MOVED!

We finally moved out of our cave!! It was a really fast decision and move but it was a great opportunity. We moved out of Calgary and into a smaller town just south of Calgary called Okotoks. Our new place is a condo on the fourth floor. I've spent that last two weeks unpacking all our boxes and making it home. I can't wait to share pictures!! We do have a couple so here you go:

                                              Our new kitchen! WITH A DISHWASHER!!!

                                                         One side of our living room!

                                                              The other side!

                                          And the view from my bed watching Bones!


I hope you liked the preview! More to come!!

The Calgary Stampede!!

Let me tell you something, when the Calgary Stampede comes around the city is completely different. There's no work to be done, and all you need to do for two weeks is HAVE FUN. We decided to go to the Stampede three days this year. It was so much fun every single night.

The first night we went was the opening night. We went with a group of friends; Andrew, Chris & Monique. We went earlier in the afternoon and just enjoyed being there. We walked around the BMO centre which is a huge trade show. We ended up buying a couple things, but some of the stuff was hilarious! Randy's really good friend was also in the art show, so we went to visit him and his wife.  Then we hung around the stage until Our Lady Peace started playing!! They were so great live, and we had a blast with all of our friends.

 Eating a HUGE piece of pizza.

 A view of my walking shoes. These trusty Toms got me through two weeks of walking!

The Coca Cola stage!

My sister and I all dressed up and ready to Stampede!!

 Andrew and a bit of Randy

 Our Lady Peace

 Raine is so hot! His voice isn't bad either! :)

Monique and I attempting duck faces? I'm not quite sure.

After the show we all walked around finding all the great carnival food. Between the five of us we had deep fried oreos, pizza, corn dogs, pulled pork parfaits, and deep fried pickles! The oreos were the best! I definitely ate WAY TOO MANY.

The next night we met up with Elaine and Drew. Please don't judge me but I wore the same outfit as the night before. It was my best outfit!

 Elaine and I just taking some pictures!

 This describes our relationship to a tee. We are just random people!

Andrew put me up on his shoulders to watch Awolnation. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!!!

 The third and final night was actually the last night of the Stampede. We went with Andrew, Elaine, Chris & Monique.

 Chris, Randy and I representing some theChive shirts!!

 We also got a caricature drawn of us. It's so cute!! Andrew and Elaine got one too!

After we watched Awolnation we just walked around and enjoyed the fireworks!!! I miss the Stampede so much, and I can't wait for next year!

Part two coming up next...

Summer Part One! (Plus a whole lot of pictures!)

 Welcome to Summer Part One! We had a blast this summer. First, I started it off with RED HAIR!

 Then I took cute pictures of Theo. What can I say? I'm a happy cat lady.

 We hung out with Tanner, Desiree and Maclin as much as we could. We went to Joey Chinook to celebrate Desiree's birthday!

 I watched, and Randy played a lot of baseball! I'm the official scorekeeper, and it kept me busy all summer.

 We also had as much fun as possible with Annaleen this summer. This is a picture of her "ice skating" at an indoor play place here in Calgary. This time we met up with some friends and had a blast!

 Elaine and I went walking as much as we could. This night we walked way too long but walked all through the park here in Calgary. It was really beautiful, but a tough walk!

 I took a couple pictures of myself. This has to be my favourite of the summer!

 TANNER AND DESIREE GOT MARRIED! They surprised everyone and eloped. They looked so amazing and were really happy! Randy and I were the only people there with them and it meant a lot to be the ones they chose to come be the witnesses. I love this couple so much!

 The happily married couple! I've been waiting for them to get married forever!

 Cutting their cute little cake!

Randy and I at the afterparty. We had a blast! I'm so excited to post about the rest of summer!

Currently.

I've seen this all around the internet lately so I decided to give it a go. Leave a comment if you do it too, I would love to read them!

Loving: I'm loving the fact that I make my own schedule. I love having the freedom!!

Reading: I'm JUST about to start the Sookie Stackhouse books. I'm really excited to start since True Blood is one of my favourite tv shows.

Watching: The first season of Pretty Little Liars. My sister-in-law got me hooked and I've already watched season two so now I'm going to back to watch season one. This show has me hooked!!

Anticipating: My baseball game tonight. I love watching, and I'm the official scorekeeper. I love being around my team. They're awesome!

Listening to: A lot of old school music. I recently acquired a ton of music from when I was a pre-teen. I have NSYNC on blast in my car.

Planning: My schedule for the next month. I've booked myself solid for work! I'm really excited that my business is doing so well!

Working on: My relationship with Randy. I strongly feel that in a marriage you continuously have to work at it and it's never perfect. I love that guy a lot.

Wishing: That I didn't have to wait for my dang Permanent Residency card. We decided that we can finally start a family once I have it. I'm horrible at waiting.

Megan's Dry Grad Party!

My baby sister graduated! She had her fake graduation ceremony at the beginning of June. Her best friend and her family threw a Dry Grad for all the kids. I helped out quite a bit, and it was an epic party! It was rewarding seeing all the kids have fun!

 Root Beer Keg! It was sooo tasty!

 They had a prize wall. I blew up all those balloons. I pretty much couldn't breathe after.

 This was the backdrop of the stage and photobooth. I helped Ruth make it. It was sooo easy! Maybe I can do a tutorial!

 Amanda, Ruth and I. They are the best party planners ever!

   Randy and I. I love him!

It was such a blast, and I'm glad we could do this for the kids. We had a concert, blow up boxing ring, video games, food and lots of fun.

Where has the time gone?

I really haven't blogged in a long time. I'm not sure why I wasn't, but now I have more time! My life has been absolutely insane lately. Here's the update to where our life is now:

1. I STARTED A BUSINESS.

Yes, a legit business. A cleaning business. It's been a rollercoaster and a half, but I'm loving it. I love being my own boss. I work crazy long hours, but it's so worth it.

2. I'VE BEEN WORKING OUT LIKE CRAZY.

I decided I wanted to do a 5K. Well, I was training like a nut, but then I went on vacation and I haven't gotten back into the groove. I've been eating really healthy though, so I've been able to keep my weight down. At my heaviest I was 184 lbs, now I'm at 172 lbs. It's been a slow process with lots of dedication and giving up my favourite food, but I'm so ready to be bikini worthy in the summer.

3. RANDY STILL HAS THE SAME JOB.

I thought I would add in an update about Randy, but he's kinda exactly the same. Oh wait, he plays dodgeball with a league, and he just signed up for slow pitch. I'm so excited to go watch and (hopefully) play when they need an extra player.

4. ANNALEEN TURNED 8.

I threw a luau for her and it was great! She got so spoiled by all our family and friends. It was such a fun party. I think I'll throw in a full post just on her party.

5. WE WENT TO UTAH

My big brother graduated as an honoured student with the Exercise Science program at BYU. He's heading off to medical school in the fall in Virginia. We're so proud of him. He's a rockstar. We also got to visit with all my nieces and nephew, my grandparents, and we had the chance to go see my grandma's headstone which I hadn't seen yet.

I could catch you up with everything else, but I'll take it step by step. Right now I'm going to go play with Annaleen. We're teaching her how to play chess!