When in 'Rome'

Jon and I are celebrating 2 years of marriage this year... funny how time flies, and yet sometimes I say to myself..'really!? it's only been 2 years?!'( and I say that with love haha )

Marriage has been really fun and easy so far for us. There haven't been any major learning challenges or disagreements and I chalk that up to good communication, that's always key. Trust is a big one too!

Anyways.... For our anniversary this year, Jon and I were going to plan something together, however the gears got to turning in Jon's head and he decided to plan it all himself and surprise me :) I LOVE surprises!!

Jon didn't tell me where we were going until we got in the car and started driving.  We left Sunday after church ...wait... let me re-phrase that... we left after church, after lunch...AFTER the baseball game.... (he sure knew how to 'ruin' a surprise before it even starts! haha) we had a good laugh at it though.

We started out on the highway and I instantly guessed...although I waited a bit to make Jon feel good ;) (Love you Jon!) We were headed to Edmonton for the night and we were staying at the Fantasyland Hotel at West Edmonton Mall!

I was really excited for it, I had always wanted to stay at that hotel and it had been 4 years since I was last at the Mall.  We got in to Edmonton just around supper time, so once we checked in, we changed our clothes and went out for a nice bite to eat.  We originally wanted to go to this dueling piano place, but they had a dress code in effect, and even though we were dressed up, Jon was wearing runners and wouldn't let him in.  Soooo...we ate at Moxie's.... Where, when I ordered my drink, they asked for ID which I had left upstairs and in the end she couldn't serve me! good thing I AM of age and Jon and I were able to celebrate our anniversary with some wine later on.



Our hotel room was awesome! we stayed in the Roman Room, Our room had a king circular bed complete with sheer curtains that went all the way around the bed...so cool.  we also had our very own Jacuzzi! I was pumped up about that, and after supper we enjoyed a nice soak in our own little hot tub. 

View from the front door when you first walk in the hotel room :)

The next day was dedicated to shopping :) after Jon and I enjoyed room service for breakfast. we hit the shops! while we didn't go super crazy with our spending, we did come away with a lot. 
we found some books and movies, and we even bought each other tennis rackets! ...No we don't play, but it's funny how much I want to play now that i have a racket...and yes, it's Pink! (for Breast Cancer).

We ate at a pub called Sherlock Holmes. The name is what drew me to it, but really nothing more than your average pub...good food and lots of TV'S with 'sports' on....mostly the boxing channel.

We left for home at around 5:30pm on Monday evening and enjoyed a peaceful drive back.  There weren't many cars on the road which was nice... all of the campers were going the other direction.  Made us want to own one ourselves and go camping on long weekends like this past one.

The hotel had this note and box of chocolates ready for us when we arrived!

All in all it was a great weekend spent with my hubby! shopping aside, it was great to spend time together and get out of the city even if it was just for one night.  I love you Jon! <3

Hawaii! April 19- 27 2012

This past month really flew by, and mostly because we were lucky enough to spend some time in Hawaii with all of Jon's extended family! His parents treated us and we are soo thankful!
We shared a lot of great times together (plus it SUCKED not going to Cuba... haha totally kidding!)

we had rented 2 condos just across the parking lot from each other, and it was split to 2 families in each. In our condo it was Mark and Mandee and their 3 kids and Jon and I , and in the other was Dan and Kare and their 3 kids and Mom and Dad.  Mandee, despite what you say about having noisy, screaming kids, I LOVED sharing with you guys :) I'd do it again any time!

We did a couple of beach mornings and days by the pool. We also took advantage of our 3 rental vehicles and road tripped around the island a bit.  It was really neat to see the difference between Kona and Hilo (desert and rain forest) just by driving across to the opposite side of the island.

As much as we did things as a family, we also had a chance to do things just Jon and I.  On the Monday night we went to a Luau! I loved it, it was so cool to watch the dancers and hear the live music and the FOOD! soo good :) they cook the pig in a big 'Earth Oven' about 3 feet deep and cover the pig with banana leaves, then cover it back up with dirt and let it cook for 8 hours (kind of like a slow cooker) everything tasted really good! Jon's favorite part was the fire dancers, which I admit was pretty cool!

I think our money was well spent (it was a bit pricey) and I'm so glad we got the chance to experience one!

On one of the days, Mark and Jon got to go golfing, so the rest of us stayed by the pool or went on a road trip to Volcano's National Park (Dan and Karen's Fam) Once they got back, Mom had discovered that at the Hilton down the road, they had a dolphin discovery area and they did a 15 minute show for people to watch! I am in love with Dolphins for me it was an automatic yes! When we got there, we found out that there was a baby dolphin!! It was so cute and I could have stayed there forever watching them swim around together.

As a Thank You to Mom and Dad for taking everyone on this trip, I thought it might be nice to arrange to have a photographer take some professional photos of us all together.  I found a guy who was awesome! so great to work with and he had a lot of good ideas.  It was a bit windy, which made me a little grumpy cause I had done my hair...but I think the photos still turned out really well!

The trip was awesome, and I'd definitely go back again, maybe next time though I'd want to check out the other islands, just to see what each one has to offer.  Thanks again Mom and Dad! and congrats on your 35th Wedding anniversary!



Easter with the Wiens'!

You may say that I have too much time on my hands... which may very well be true! (it took me 2 hours to make this video!)

But what's the point in having too much free time if I don't have anything to show for it?

(It might be easier if you click "watch on YouTube"... it's a little small on here)

HAPPY EASTER!!

Family Weekend

(3 months since my alst post...yikes...)

Over the Family Day long weekend Jon and I decided to drive to Winnipeg (yes, drive!) to visit both Jon's family and mine. Jon's mom also came along as both Jons' Mom and Dad's side live out there.  My mom has relatives out there as well, mostly her cousins, but we're all really close, and my sister is going to CMU for school.

We left Thursday evening around 6:00pm... Jon still had to work and we had limited vacation days so we had to drive through the night.  I stayed awake the whole time, mostly because I knew someone had to be awake for Jon while he drove the first half of the way, and then when it came my turn to drive I just had a good ol' energy drink that got me most of the way... I was a little sleepy for the last hour of the drive... it was about 8:30 am so I was ready to crash.

Once we got to Winnipeg we got a couple hours of rest and then we were out and about again.  We visited his cousins out in Steinbach for a bit and then later that evening we met with Jon's Mom's side, the Dyck Family.  It was really great to see everyone again, and still get to know them as the last time we saw most of them was for our wedding almost 2 years ago.  It was a great evening spent with family and building bonds that hopefully will last for years!  On Saturday Jon and I went to go see his grandparents who all live in a care home called Donwood.

It was my first time meeting Jon's Dad's Dad (ha ha... Grandpa Wiens) and even though it was hard to understand him at some points (strong German accent) it was nice to meet him and hear a little bit about his life during the war.  Jon mentioned that he's never heard his Grandpa Wiens talk that much, let alone about the war, so that was pretty special.

Grandma and Grandpa Dyck live there as well so we visited and played some yahzee, and even though Grandpa Dyck can't talk, he was very sweet to just be in the same room with him.  At the end I gave him a big hug cause he looked just so darn cute! such blue eyes that feel very calming when you look into them.  He enjoys hugs and gave me a big smile :)

Later we had dinner plans with the Wiens side.  I was a little more nervous about this gathering because I hadn't met any of them yet! only 2 aunts were able to make it to the wedding and the others were at a graduation for one of Jon's cousins that was on the same weekend.  Turns out I was nervous for nothing! everyone was really welcoming and great to talk to.  I am more on the quiet side but I enjoyed listening and just taking in this new side of my family. 

Sunday was dedicated to spending time with my side of the family, so after breakfast we made our way to CMU to visit my sister and her fiance'.  They are getting married in August and one of the reasons to get together with her was to go dress shopping.  Thankfully it was successful and I was able to order a dress that I think will look great for the big day. After shopping we came back and had lunch just the 4 of us before going to have supper with my mom's side later on.  Again there was such great conversations and of course FOOD that it really made me thankful for all the family we have.  It's a big one! and it's crazy to think that I still haven't met all of Jon's relatives. 

So our Family Day long weekend was spent with... Family! It was great and I wouldn't have had it any other way ...except maybe the drive ;)

In Need of an Update!

Sorry for being so delayed with all my updates, since not working full time and being on a computer ALL DAY LONG, I am really loving the fact that I don't have to be on it everyday and try to not be on it as much.

Our Christmas was really great this year, although it did feel like we were being back and forth A LOT between our families.  I still had to work during that week between Christmas and New Years but I'm not complaining about all the time spent with family.   It just feels like we need a vacation from Christmas haha!

This year my Aunt Susan came and spent Christmas with us, which was awesome :) it was great to have her over such a hard time for her - the first Christmas without Uncle Carl.  We spent many nights playing games and hanging out and we had her over a few times as well to watch movies and play games and have dinner with everyone.

With Jon's family we did a lot of the same, we had our big Wiens Christmas on the 23rd and it was so much fun having everyone together, it doesn't happen very often with conflicting schedules, but I am always so excited to know that everyone is going to be there to hang out.  We had a big cousin/family get together as well which was fun. We played games and had lots of snacks and munchies which are crucial holiday requirements (for Jon haha).



Katie, Sitting on Jon's lap ( a very rare occurrence!)




Lots of gifts!




Mark got  a Logan in his Hockey bag! Sweet Gift




I gave Karen a pair of slippers for Christmas, and I happen to be wearing mine the same day, :)



This was Jon and I''s 2nd Christmas being married and even though it was interrupted by a few spouts of food poisoning (Jon - not me) it was still really great :) .  We woke up Saturday morning and before heading over to my parents place for breakfast and Christmas with them we opened our gifts to each other. 



Presents wrapped by Jon - they made me smile :)




Jon got me another Ferrari, while I got him a Mustang




Our Christmas Tree!




Can you tell I didn't sleep at ALL that night? haha!




Archie joined us for the festivities, although there were no presents under the tree for him.



Tracey - getting new boots!




Tracey & Shelby




Auntie Susie and Mom




On Susies' last night in Calgary, we all headed out to the Airdrie Festival of Lights. It was chilly, so we maybe lasted 30 minutes, but it was a fun way to end the week!



Getting in the Christmas Spirit

These posts should have been posted on 2011, but we all know how busy the week of Christmas can be!

Last year was our first Christmas in our house and in our new community, so to help get to know our neighbours a little more I decided to make little gift boxes filled with home made baking.  This year I did it again only I switched it up a bit!

This year I wanted to be able to give to more of our neighbours, to broaden who we knew on our street, so I made jelly!  I am not about to brag about my great jelly making skills because I definitely needed my mom's help.  I made Crab apple and plain Apple Jelly, I've tasted both however and they're not bad... so maybe I can brag a little.

I made 12 cans of jelly, and then as it got closer to the Christmas holidays I made mini lemon loafs to put with the jelly.  I found a baking sheet at Superstore that looks just like a Muffin tin but they were in the shape of little loafs, pretty cute I thought!

Once everything was put together the last touch was the card! it was so much fun putting these gifts together and we were able to see most of our neighbours, only leaving 2 on the doorsteps because people weren't home.



The mini Lemon Loafs!

 

Just to give you a size comparison...that's a loaf next to my cell phone!



8 gifts ready to go!




The finished Product :)




I've really enjoyed being able to do this for my neighbours, we are by far the youngest ones that live on this street, so I think it's important that we try to reach out and be a part of the community.  Hopefully this summer will bring more opportunities to have BBQ's and great talks on the driveways!