I know most of Ottawa is upset with what's going on with OC Transpo.
We've all heard that the strike is not about money, that it's about block scheduling: OC Transpo Union says that workers should be able to choose their work week day-by-day (e.g. i will work Monday morning, Tuesday afternoon, take Wednesday off, work all day Thurday, Friday morning and take Saturday and Sunday off etc. etc.) The problem with this, is that the Auditor General has found that this system is currently being abused and the city is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on over time and the like.
So, what do you think? Do you think workers should be allowed to choose their work schedule based on seniority? I admit that it's a nice perk and as the Union President says, a reason to achieve seniority. But, i can't think of any other profession (except when you work for yourself) where you get to decide your own schedule - seniority or not.
And if you're an OC Transpo worker, what do you think? Your Union President Andre Cornellier doesn't want you to be able to read the offer from the City. Wouldn't you like to be able to read it and maybe vote on if you like the offer or not?
Talk to me.
For those of you who would like to see Andre Cornellier (Union President) here are some links:
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/clip120101#clip120101
http://www.cfra.com/chum_audio/Ae-An…r.Dec09.08.mp3
my personal fav: http://watch.ctv.ca/news/latest/otta…ke/#clip120211
another good one: http://www.cfra.com/chum_audio/Andre_Cornellier_Dec10.mp3
Personally, if he was my union president and the one responsible for making decisions, i would quit. No really, i find this guy to be completely unprofessional and narrow minded.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Thursday, November 20, 2008
linkity-links
Mat and i have been busy (as usual) around the house. Last weekend, while it poured rain, we each tackled our own "little" hands-on project.
Ok, so mine was little and Mat's was... not so little.
I refinished a cutlery box (what else would you call those wooden boxes that you keep your good cutlery in with dividers that separate each kind??) and Mat built shelves in the garage.
The shelves?? They are AWESOME! all the junk is off the floor and onto the shelves all neat and tidy like. I'm a very proud wife and even more proud that Mat didn't lose any fingers with the scary saw. I swear - everytime he turned on the saw, i would stop what i was doing, frozen, until i heard it go off without any screaming like "OWWW I JUST CUT OFF MY FINGER!!"
Seriously people, i am a worry wart when it comes to these things and my stomach was in knots the whole time Mat was in the garage building these shelves. Even when i had to leave the house to get something i was worrying to myself that if something DID happen to him, he would be alone...who would drive him to the hospital? Would he know to put pressure on the wound? Would someone pack his finger in ice and bring it to the hospital?? I kid you not, this is what i thought about until i was back home. And then, when i was home, i worried about him cutting off his finger(s) while i was home because, honestly? I would have panicked and fainted and that wouldn't have helped anyone especially Mat and his severed finger....
Clearly you can tell i'm happy that the shelf-building is finished and the saw is put away for a good long while...
I'll post pics soon, but mine isn't complete yet, and i want to show you the before and after.
So you see how much i care about Mat (see above worrying) now i want to do something for him that shows how great of a wife i am. I want to prove my husband WRONG. Because what marriage isn't about who's right??
You see, La Petite Chic is having a giveaway. She's giving away a wii fit AND I WANT IT BADLY. I want it because it would be so cool and i could work out and have fun at the same time, but i mostly want it to prove Mat wrong. I have asked Mat for a wii fit for a while now, and everytime i do, he laughs at me and says "No, because you will never use it. Just like that treadmill we have sitting over there". But internets, i P-R-O-M-I-S-E you that i wiiiiiill use it :)
So keep your fingers crossed for me. If i win it, you can come over and work out with mii :)
Before i go, i want to say a few belated congratulations to Sara on the arrival of her adorable baby boy, Emery who was born on October 5 (one day after my wedding!) and to Lara who just learned she is having twins! Congrats ladies :)
Ok, so mine was little and Mat's was... not so little.
I refinished a cutlery box (what else would you call those wooden boxes that you keep your good cutlery in with dividers that separate each kind??) and Mat built shelves in the garage.
The shelves?? They are AWESOME! all the junk is off the floor and onto the shelves all neat and tidy like. I'm a very proud wife and even more proud that Mat didn't lose any fingers with the scary saw. I swear - everytime he turned on the saw, i would stop what i was doing, frozen, until i heard it go off without any screaming like "OWWW I JUST CUT OFF MY FINGER!!"
Seriously people, i am a worry wart when it comes to these things and my stomach was in knots the whole time Mat was in the garage building these shelves. Even when i had to leave the house to get something i was worrying to myself that if something DID happen to him, he would be alone...who would drive him to the hospital? Would he know to put pressure on the wound? Would someone pack his finger in ice and bring it to the hospital?? I kid you not, this is what i thought about until i was back home. And then, when i was home, i worried about him cutting off his finger(s) while i was home because, honestly? I would have panicked and fainted and that wouldn't have helped anyone especially Mat and his severed finger....
Clearly you can tell i'm happy that the shelf-building is finished and the saw is put away for a good long while...
I'll post pics soon, but mine isn't complete yet, and i want to show you the before and after.
So you see how much i care about Mat (see above worrying) now i want to do something for him that shows how great of a wife i am. I want to prove my husband WRONG. Because what marriage isn't about who's right??
You see, La Petite Chic is having a giveaway. She's giving away a wii fit AND I WANT IT BADLY. I want it because it would be so cool and i could work out and have fun at the same time, but i mostly want it to prove Mat wrong. I have asked Mat for a wii fit for a while now, and everytime i do, he laughs at me and says "No, because you will never use it. Just like that treadmill we have sitting over there". But internets, i P-R-O-M-I-S-E you that i wiiiiiill use it :)
So keep your fingers crossed for me. If i win it, you can come over and work out with mii :)
Before i go, i want to say a few belated congratulations to Sara on the arrival of her adorable baby boy, Emery who was born on October 5 (one day after my wedding!) and to Lara who just learned she is having twins! Congrats ladies :)
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Well that was fun, wasn't it??
Things seem to have sorted themselves out with the car....or at least my dad did most of the sorting out for me.
I left the car back in Oshawa because i didn't want to risk damaging the engine by bringing it back to Ottawa.
We weren't sure exactly what we were going to do with it, but our options were to get it fixed or cancel the deal.
Cancelling the deal seemed like the safest answer, but it definitely would have been the most difficult and time consuming. I spent a good chunk of Monday morning trying to figure out what my rights are as a consumer (very hard to tell) and seeking advice from my lawyer colleagues.
Cancelling the deal would have had the most repercussions including the bank having a lien on the car because they gave us the loan. I was also worried about being charged with theft since i had the car in my possession (i would have returned it obviously) but cancelled the cheque.
It was all so very confusing.
In the meantime, my dad took the car to a mechanic to have the etest redone (he was suspicious that the results the dealer gave us had been doctored). The etest came back exactly the same as the results the dealer gave us. Afterwards, they hooked the car up to the car computer thingy and determined what the problem was.
In the end, i talked with my dad and Mat and we decided that the repair that needed to be done did not indicate that the car was a lemon or that it had been abused or misused. It could have happened to any car and it was probably (hopefully) just a terrible coincidence that it showed up the day i drove it away.
We decided to go ahead and get the car fixed (still hadn't heard back from the dealer at this point) and try to get the money back for the repairs from the dealer.
I know it was very hopeful and naive of me to think that the dealer would pay me back for repairs that i did to the car before giving him the opportunity for him to fix it himself, but i didn't want him to fix it anyway and if he wasn't going to reimburse me the $380 for the repairs, then i could - if i wanted to - take him to small claims court or swallow the cost and still have the car for a decent price.
When the repair was done, i called the dealer. He answered my call (!) and i started to explain everything that happened. How the misfiring started before i even got back to Oshawa, how the check engine light was on, how we tried to call him and left 3 messages, how i had to leave the car in Oshawa, how we took it to a mechanic, what was wrong with the car, and how i decided to have the car repaired. I told him it cost $380 and just as i was going to tell him that i expect him to pay for the repairs, he interrupted me and said "not a problem. Please send me the bill and i will send you a cheque for the cost."
Ummm
That was not what i was expecting. I was ready for a fight and an argument. It had taken me almost 10 minutes of staring at the phone and deciding what my argument points were before i picked up the phone and called him.
"ok...." i responded. "thanks".
He apologized and again said to fax him the bill and he would send me a cheque.
After that, it made me feel a lot better. I sincerely hope this guy is as honest as he seems and now i'm just glad to have a nice new car.
Thanks for all your support, guys. It means a lot :)
I left the car back in Oshawa because i didn't want to risk damaging the engine by bringing it back to Ottawa.
We weren't sure exactly what we were going to do with it, but our options were to get it fixed or cancel the deal.
Cancelling the deal seemed like the safest answer, but it definitely would have been the most difficult and time consuming. I spent a good chunk of Monday morning trying to figure out what my rights are as a consumer (very hard to tell) and seeking advice from my lawyer colleagues.
Cancelling the deal would have had the most repercussions including the bank having a lien on the car because they gave us the loan. I was also worried about being charged with theft since i had the car in my possession (i would have returned it obviously) but cancelled the cheque.
It was all so very confusing.
In the meantime, my dad took the car to a mechanic to have the etest redone (he was suspicious that the results the dealer gave us had been doctored). The etest came back exactly the same as the results the dealer gave us. Afterwards, they hooked the car up to the car computer thingy and determined what the problem was.
In the end, i talked with my dad and Mat and we decided that the repair that needed to be done did not indicate that the car was a lemon or that it had been abused or misused. It could have happened to any car and it was probably (hopefully) just a terrible coincidence that it showed up the day i drove it away.
We decided to go ahead and get the car fixed (still hadn't heard back from the dealer at this point) and try to get the money back for the repairs from the dealer.
I know it was very hopeful and naive of me to think that the dealer would pay me back for repairs that i did to the car before giving him the opportunity for him to fix it himself, but i didn't want him to fix it anyway and if he wasn't going to reimburse me the $380 for the repairs, then i could - if i wanted to - take him to small claims court or swallow the cost and still have the car for a decent price.
When the repair was done, i called the dealer. He answered my call (!) and i started to explain everything that happened. How the misfiring started before i even got back to Oshawa, how the check engine light was on, how we tried to call him and left 3 messages, how i had to leave the car in Oshawa, how we took it to a mechanic, what was wrong with the car, and how i decided to have the car repaired. I told him it cost $380 and just as i was going to tell him that i expect him to pay for the repairs, he interrupted me and said "not a problem. Please send me the bill and i will send you a cheque for the cost."
Ummm
That was not what i was expecting. I was ready for a fight and an argument. It had taken me almost 10 minutes of staring at the phone and deciding what my argument points were before i picked up the phone and called him.
"ok...." i responded. "thanks".
He apologized and again said to fax him the bill and he would send me a cheque.
After that, it made me feel a lot better. I sincerely hope this guy is as honest as he seems and now i'm just glad to have a nice new car.
Thanks for all your support, guys. It means a lot :)
Monday, November 10, 2008
We are stronger than me
I am not a strong person, probably in any sense of the word.
I rely heavily on the people in my life to help me through most of life's situations.
Yesterday was no different.
Everything was going so well. I had done my research, i had test-driven the car, i had brought my dad out with me to ask questions, look it over and give me his opinion. And then yesterday when i picked it up, hoping just to drive it straight home, my worst nightmare was realized.
The car has problems. I called the dealer right away and told him that the check engine light was on and that the car was misfiring. He told me to bring it right back and he would look at it.
"It's just bad gas making the car misfire" he said. "I'll just put some gas line anti-freeze in to dry up the water that's causing it to misfire". He did, it ran fine and the check engine light went off.
~phew~ i thought as i drove away for the second time.
The trip back to my parent's house from the dealer was 2 hours. By the time i got home, the car was misfiring again and the check engine light was on.
I felt like i had been kicked in the stomach.
I rely heavily on the people in my life to help me through most of life's situations.
Yesterday was no different.
Everything was going so well. I had done my research, i had test-driven the car, i had brought my dad out with me to ask questions, look it over and give me his opinion. And then yesterday when i picked it up, hoping just to drive it straight home, my worst nightmare was realized.
The car has problems. I called the dealer right away and told him that the check engine light was on and that the car was misfiring. He told me to bring it right back and he would look at it.
"It's just bad gas making the car misfire" he said. "I'll just put some gas line anti-freeze in to dry up the water that's causing it to misfire". He did, it ran fine and the check engine light went off.
~phew~ i thought as i drove away for the second time.
The trip back to my parent's house from the dealer was 2 hours. By the time i got home, the car was misfiring again and the check engine light was on.
I felt like i had been kicked in the stomach.
I felt like i had been had.
For most of the ride home the hairs on my body were standing on end and the back of my neck felt white hot.
"What have i done??", i thought to myself.
Needless to say i was very upset. I felt powerless.
Over and over i asked myself "what have i just done??"
I was so upset, i knew i couldn't call the dealer again. I would not be able to stay composed. And although my Dad said he wanted me to fight my own battles, he could see how upset i was, and called the dealer for me.
There was no answer, so my dad left a message and called the dealer two more times and left messages.
My dad called his friend who is a mechanic and explained the problem. He advised us not to drive the car because you could cause further damage.
My sister was there and i asked her for a hug. A hug that i needed badly. She told me it would be ok in the end and wanted me to explain why i was so upset.
I couldn't really explain it, except for the fact that i am a very emotional person and lots of things make my upset, but i tried to explain that i felt like i had been had by this guy and that i just spent a lot of money on a lemon and i didn't know what my rights are at this point.
Can i put a hold on the cheque until this problem is resolved?
Can i take it to a dealership and have it repaired and make him cover the costs?
Can i cancel the deal based on the fact that the car is not in the same condition as when i agreed to buy it?
I'm not sure where i'm going with this, but last night i realized that by myself, as a single person, i am weak.
When i am surrounded by my supporters, my family and my friends, i have strength and i have confidence.
If it weren't for Mat's calm and reassuing attitude that when it's fixed, everything will be ok, i would be a wreck.
If it weren't for my dad's take charge attitude to talk to the dealer and get this resolved, and for his determination to gather as much information by calling people he knows, i would be lost.
If it weren't for my sister's loving and positive attitude, i would still be upset.
There are a lot of things i can do on my own, but for things that i can't, i am happy to have "Team Roz" on my side.
"What have i done??", i thought to myself.
Needless to say i was very upset. I felt powerless.
Over and over i asked myself "what have i just done??"
I was so upset, i knew i couldn't call the dealer again. I would not be able to stay composed. And although my Dad said he wanted me to fight my own battles, he could see how upset i was, and called the dealer for me.
There was no answer, so my dad left a message and called the dealer two more times and left messages.
My dad called his friend who is a mechanic and explained the problem. He advised us not to drive the car because you could cause further damage.
My sister was there and i asked her for a hug. A hug that i needed badly. She told me it would be ok in the end and wanted me to explain why i was so upset.
I couldn't really explain it, except for the fact that i am a very emotional person and lots of things make my upset, but i tried to explain that i felt like i had been had by this guy and that i just spent a lot of money on a lemon and i didn't know what my rights are at this point.
Can i put a hold on the cheque until this problem is resolved?
Can i take it to a dealership and have it repaired and make him cover the costs?
Can i cancel the deal based on the fact that the car is not in the same condition as when i agreed to buy it?
I'm not sure where i'm going with this, but last night i realized that by myself, as a single person, i am weak.
When i am surrounded by my supporters, my family and my friends, i have strength and i have confidence.
If it weren't for Mat's calm and reassuing attitude that when it's fixed, everything will be ok, i would be a wreck.
If it weren't for my dad's take charge attitude to talk to the dealer and get this resolved, and for his determination to gather as much information by calling people he knows, i would be lost.
If it weren't for my sister's loving and positive attitude, i would still be upset.
There are a lot of things i can do on my own, but for things that i can't, i am happy to have "Team Roz" on my side.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Hitched
JUST back from our honeymoon in Turks in Caicos only a few hours ago.
I know some of you are about to kill me, so i'll leave you with a few pics taken by various members of my fam and friends.
I'm DESPERATELY waiting for the professional pics from these guys (i know, i know, it takes time to go through 3000 shots right???) and i promise to write a bit about the day very soon.
And now i'm a Mrs.....
I know some of you are about to kill me, so i'll leave you with a few pics taken by various members of my fam and friends.
I'm DESPERATELY waiting for the professional pics from these guys (i know, i know, it takes time to go through 3000 shots right???) and i promise to write a bit about the day very soon.
For now, please accept these....
And now i'm a Mrs.....
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Vegas Baby
I'm back from Vegas for my 1st bachelorette party.....
Wow.
2 days of non-stop partying and to my surprise, i was up for every minute of it.
If you know me, you know that i'm hard to motivate to go out clubbing. For the most part i like it when i get going, but any of my friends will tell you that i'm terrible at actually agreeing to get out and go.
The weekend was a combined bachelor/ette party for Mat and I with guys and girls out separately on Friday night and then everyone out together on Saturday night.
The party extravaganza started on Thursday night when Mat and i drove from Ottawa to Oshawa and then on to Buffalo on Friday (approx 8 hour drive in total).
We landed in Vegas around 7pm which gave us barely enough time to grab our rental car, head to my cousin's house where we "slept" for the weekend, change and get to our respective places.
Mat headed to the hard rock for an outdoor poolside concert and then off to Olympic gardens for who knows what exactly...
I headed to my sister's hotel room to start the party. We started off with the usual bachelorette party shenanigans of pin the penis on the man, and other penis related games. Very funny.
Then the rest of the night just seemed to fly by. First we stopped at a new vegas night club, Jet where we had VIP passes and an open Bar...sweet!!
Then we made our way to the Palms where we also received VIP treatment (skipped the snaking line AND didn't have to pay the $40 each cover charge) where we were ESCORTED to MICHAEL PHELPS' VIP SUITE
OMG
OMG
OMG
i am a HUGE Michale Phelps' fan. i couldn't believe our dumb luck.
After the Palms, everyone headed back to their resepective hotels (i think it was around 3 am) except for my cousin and I who wanted to meet up with the guys at Olympic Gardens.
When we got there we only found 3 of the 5 guys. Mat and his friend were missing and the other guys assumed that they went home. My cousin and i convinced the 3 guys who were my brother, my cousin's brother and her husband to come upstaris with us to see the male performers. Needless to say, someone bought me a lap dance which took place on stage. i was DYING. Have you ever been given a lap dance in front of your brother and male cousin? It's awkward even when you're drunk...lol
After a couple of hours we decided to call it a night and head home. When we got home, Mat was no where to be found. I was FREAKING out and started to call everyone. Finally my brother and my cousin found Mat - he had passed out in the bathroom and was being kicked out of the club just as they were leaving. Finally Mat made it home.
I think my head hit the pillow around 6am which would have been 9am Ottawa time...
I'll tell you all about Saturday night tomorrow. i even have pictures!!
Wow.
2 days of non-stop partying and to my surprise, i was up for every minute of it.
If you know me, you know that i'm hard to motivate to go out clubbing. For the most part i like it when i get going, but any of my friends will tell you that i'm terrible at actually agreeing to get out and go.
The weekend was a combined bachelor/ette party for Mat and I with guys and girls out separately on Friday night and then everyone out together on Saturday night.
The party extravaganza started on Thursday night when Mat and i drove from Ottawa to Oshawa and then on to Buffalo on Friday (approx 8 hour drive in total).
We landed in Vegas around 7pm which gave us barely enough time to grab our rental car, head to my cousin's house where we "slept" for the weekend, change and get to our respective places.
Mat headed to the hard rock for an outdoor poolside concert and then off to Olympic gardens for who knows what exactly...
I headed to my sister's hotel room to start the party. We started off with the usual bachelorette party shenanigans of pin the penis on the man, and other penis related games. Very funny.
Then the rest of the night just seemed to fly by. First we stopped at a new vegas night club, Jet where we had VIP passes and an open Bar...sweet!!
Then we made our way to the Palms where we also received VIP treatment (skipped the snaking line AND didn't have to pay the $40 each cover charge) where we were ESCORTED to MICHAEL PHELPS' VIP SUITE
OMG
OMG
OMG
i am a HUGE Michale Phelps' fan. i couldn't believe our dumb luck.
After the Palms, everyone headed back to their resepective hotels (i think it was around 3 am) except for my cousin and I who wanted to meet up with the guys at Olympic Gardens.
When we got there we only found 3 of the 5 guys. Mat and his friend were missing and the other guys assumed that they went home. My cousin and i convinced the 3 guys who were my brother, my cousin's brother and her husband to come upstaris with us to see the male performers. Needless to say, someone bought me a lap dance which took place on stage. i was DYING. Have you ever been given a lap dance in front of your brother and male cousin? It's awkward even when you're drunk...lol
After a couple of hours we decided to call it a night and head home. When we got home, Mat was no where to be found. I was FREAKING out and started to call everyone. Finally my brother and my cousin found Mat - he had passed out in the bathroom and was being kicked out of the club just as they were leaving. Finally Mat made it home.
I think my head hit the pillow around 6am which would have been 9am Ottawa time...
I'll tell you all about Saturday night tomorrow. i even have pictures!!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
The story of the stamps.
aaaaannnd.....exhale........
Our biggest conference is finally over! It's been a long few months scrambling to get everything done for our conference in Quebec City but it's done. Finito.
I came home from a long 1.5 weeks in Quebec City. I love Quebec City, but man, were those days ever long. From 6 am to midnight every day. I'm zonked.
It's been tough planning the wedding and this huge conference at the same time, but for the next 6 weeks (SIX WEEKS!) i can focus on wrapping up the wedding stuff.
Did i mention the wedding is only 6 weeks away??!!
I never did tell you the story of the stamps, did i?
Well, if you didn't think i was a bridezilla before, this should change your mind.
So, i'm a bridezilla as my friends often tell me. But i'm not the mean kind of bridezilla. I don't boss my friends around and tell them they have to buy a certain shoe, or buy a certain dress or wear their hair a certain way. But i AM a bridezilla when it comes to the details of my wedding (which, by the way, i often don't think of as my wedding when i'm in planning mode, but just another event that i'm planning). I'm pretty detail-oriented.
So, yes, the stamps. One element of the invitations is of course the stamps on the outside envelope and on the reply card. I wanted to get stamps custom made which you can do through Canada post, but it works out to being about twice as much as buying a regular stamp. It doesn't seem like a lot, but if you normally put a 52 cent stamp on an envelope and that doubles to over a dollar and you need to send out about 70, that's of course, over $70 bucks.
On stamps.
To go one direction.
Of course, double that because you need the reply card to come back which brings you to over $140 (probably closer to $150). Add to the fact that your invitations are HEAVY and bulky and you can probably double that again so add another $70 and you're up to (gone to get the calculator) $220. And don't forget about the international guests so you're looking at about $300.
$300 bucks on stamps. And that doesn't include thank you notes.
NOT IN THE BUDGET.
Sooooo, i nixed the custom stamp idea right away.
However, you know i'm not going to put a crummy regular-old stamp on the invitations that i spent so many hours crafting and perfecting. For some reason the queen's face just doesn't go well with chocolatey autumn flowers.
So i scoured the internet and the canada post website for nicer stamps.
And i found them.
And they were PERFECT!
OH! i was SO HAPPY to find such lovely stamps that cost the same as a regular stamp.
They are commemorative stamps of Ottawa being the capital of Canada for 150 years. They had a gold background (um, perfect fall colour?!) with a beautiful picture of parliament (we live in Ottawa!). They cost 52 cents -------> IN THE BUDGET!
I count out how many i need taking into consideration the distance my invitations need to travel, the weight of my invitations and the reply cards. I enter in the quantity and click submit.
A message pops up: "unavailable"
hmm....maybe i've ordered too many. I try fewer. Still the message reads: "unavailable".
I try to order just one, because surely they have just one of these stamps. Message reads: "unavailable".
fak.
Now, i admit to being a pretty stubborn person and when i decide i want something, damnit, i WANT IT!
i drive to the nearest post office and describe the stamp i'm looking for. The girl says they came out a year ago and that they don't have any left.
I drive to the next post office. Same thing.
And the next one, and the next one. They are completely sold out.
Remember how i said i was stubborn? Still not convinced that i can't have what i want.
i call my mom and my dad who live in another city and tell each of them to scour every post office in the city for these stamps. i put a message on my facebook. i tell everyone i know to look for these stamps.
And then. My director comes to me and says she has a friend who works for Canada Post. Her friend is the executive assistant to the CEO.
She calls her friend.
Her friend calls THE DIRECTOR OF STAMP SERVICES.
I get a call from THE DIRECTOR OF STAMP SERVICES AT CANADA POST.
He wants to know how many of these stamps i need because he can get some for me and can have them RUSH DELIVERED.
Our biggest conference is finally over! It's been a long few months scrambling to get everything done for our conference in Quebec City but it's done. Finito.
I came home from a long 1.5 weeks in Quebec City. I love Quebec City, but man, were those days ever long. From 6 am to midnight every day. I'm zonked.
It's been tough planning the wedding and this huge conference at the same time, but for the next 6 weeks (SIX WEEKS!) i can focus on wrapping up the wedding stuff.
Did i mention the wedding is only 6 weeks away??!!
I never did tell you the story of the stamps, did i?
Well, if you didn't think i was a bridezilla before, this should change your mind.
So, i'm a bridezilla as my friends often tell me. But i'm not the mean kind of bridezilla. I don't boss my friends around and tell them they have to buy a certain shoe, or buy a certain dress or wear their hair a certain way. But i AM a bridezilla when it comes to the details of my wedding (which, by the way, i often don't think of as my wedding when i'm in planning mode, but just another event that i'm planning). I'm pretty detail-oriented.
So, yes, the stamps. One element of the invitations is of course the stamps on the outside envelope and on the reply card. I wanted to get stamps custom made which you can do through Canada post, but it works out to being about twice as much as buying a regular stamp. It doesn't seem like a lot, but if you normally put a 52 cent stamp on an envelope and that doubles to over a dollar and you need to send out about 70, that's of course, over $70 bucks.
On stamps.
To go one direction.
Of course, double that because you need the reply card to come back which brings you to over $140 (probably closer to $150). Add to the fact that your invitations are HEAVY and bulky and you can probably double that again so add another $70 and you're up to (gone to get the calculator) $220. And don't forget about the international guests so you're looking at about $300.
$300 bucks on stamps. And that doesn't include thank you notes.
NOT IN THE BUDGET.
Sooooo, i nixed the custom stamp idea right away.
However, you know i'm not going to put a crummy regular-old stamp on the invitations that i spent so many hours crafting and perfecting. For some reason the queen's face just doesn't go well with chocolatey autumn flowers.
So i scoured the internet and the canada post website for nicer stamps.
And i found them.
And they were PERFECT!
OH! i was SO HAPPY to find such lovely stamps that cost the same as a regular stamp.
They are commemorative stamps of Ottawa being the capital of Canada for 150 years. They had a gold background (um, perfect fall colour?!) with a beautiful picture of parliament (we live in Ottawa!). They cost 52 cents -------> IN THE BUDGET!
I count out how many i need taking into consideration the distance my invitations need to travel, the weight of my invitations and the reply cards. I enter in the quantity and click submit.
A message pops up: "unavailable"
hmm....maybe i've ordered too many. I try fewer. Still the message reads: "unavailable".
I try to order just one, because surely they have just one of these stamps. Message reads: "unavailable".
fak.
Now, i admit to being a pretty stubborn person and when i decide i want something, damnit, i WANT IT!
i drive to the nearest post office and describe the stamp i'm looking for. The girl says they came out a year ago and that they don't have any left.
I drive to the next post office. Same thing.
And the next one, and the next one. They are completely sold out.
Remember how i said i was stubborn? Still not convinced that i can't have what i want.
i call my mom and my dad who live in another city and tell each of them to scour every post office in the city for these stamps. i put a message on my facebook. i tell everyone i know to look for these stamps.
And then. My director comes to me and says she has a friend who works for Canada Post. Her friend is the executive assistant to the CEO.
She calls her friend.
Her friend calls THE DIRECTOR OF STAMP SERVICES.
I get a call from THE DIRECTOR OF STAMP SERVICES AT CANADA POST.
He wants to know how many of these stamps i need because he can get some for me and can have them RUSH DELIVERED.
*blink*
*blink*
I got my stamps the next day and i'm as happy as a clam.
All i had to do was ask the Director of Stamp Services at Canada Post. Who knew?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Invitations, Invitations...
Guess what i've been up to these last few weeks (or is it months??)
WEDDING STUFF! I have wedding stuff coming out of my ears.
The last few weeks have been getting these darn invitations ready. They have been a LOT of work. We wanted to go with a professional for our invitations, but our budget said no way jose. Well, at least what we wanted we couldn't afford to have done professionally. So, i decided to do them myself.
I spent weeks searching for pocket folders for the invitations. I finally found some in the US.
I found a graphic for the invitations from Istock, bought it and had my friend (a graphic designer) change the colour for me (it started off as a lime green).
The same (awesome!) friend designed the rest of the inserts. I told him what i wanted, and the fonts and the colours, and he spent countless hours putting it all together for me.
Another friend let me print the invitations at her work. I was able to print them in colour for FREEE. Although, we had no idea it would take 8 grueling hours to print. The damn printer would only print 2 per minute, and with all of the inserts, there were about 400 pieces to print.
Furthermore, the printer kept thinking that it was jammed (it was not) and so everytime it thought it was jammed, it restarted itself which took about 2 minutes each time.
Further still, the rollers kept getting dirty which meant i had to stop the machine, wipe down the rollers and then of course, it would restart itself.
GAHHHH.
In the end, everything turned ok. Most of the invitations had lines down the front (from the dirty rollers) which i later had to erase (it worked, just took hours). The invitations also turned out curly from the heat of the printer. I spent more time rolling them the other way and trying to flaten them.
Next came the assembly which i did all by myself. Rounding the corners, cutting the inserts to size, gluing the invitation to the background mat and then onto the pocket folder, putting all the inserts in order, putting stamps on the rsvp cards, putting stamps on the envelopes, printing the address and return labels, putting them all on, tying the yarn on each of them and on and on... here are the results:
Glad that's over and done with. I really dont' want to look at an invitation for a looooooooooong time!
Friday, May 23, 2008
old, new, borrowed, blue
Loves,
Soooo in case you've been keeping track, my WEDDING is coming up in just over 4 months.
FOUR MONTHS!!
woot woot!
things are getting done, yes, but things are also starting to stress me out.
Here's one small thing that i thought i had pretty much covered, but has now fallen apart.
I'm trying to find things for my "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue". I have the something new and something blue covered (Hi! new dress! new shoes! new EVERYTHING) and i thought i had the something borrowed and something old figured out as well...until a few days ago.
Ok, so for my something old, i was going to wear a family veil. I truly wanted to wear it. It's vintage. It's gorgeous. It's somewhat sentimental. I tried it on with my dress and, they don't seem to like each other very much. In fact, they kinda clash. I knew that they weren't going to match and i was totally fine with that - or so i thought.
When i put the dress and the veil together, they compete with each other as they are both so ornate. On top of that, the veil is a completely different colour, so it really doesn't look right.
For my something borrowed, i thought i would borrow a pair of shoes from someone. Mind you i hadn't asked anyone yet, but i thought surely there was someone out there that would lend me a nice pair of shoes. And then i went and BOUGHT a pair of (gogeous, no less) shoes.
SOOOO i still need a something old and a something borrowed. The 2 most difficult of items to find, wouldn't you agree?
So i'm looking to you guys for suggestions - or handouts. Probably more the handouts than the suggestions, but i'll take me a few suggestions too.
Soooo in case you've been keeping track, my WEDDING is coming up in just over 4 months.
FOUR MONTHS!!
woot woot!
things are getting done, yes, but things are also starting to stress me out.
Here's one small thing that i thought i had pretty much covered, but has now fallen apart.
I'm trying to find things for my "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue". I have the something new and something blue covered (Hi! new dress! new shoes! new EVERYTHING) and i thought i had the something borrowed and something old figured out as well...until a few days ago.
Ok, so for my something old, i was going to wear a family veil. I truly wanted to wear it. It's vintage. It's gorgeous. It's somewhat sentimental. I tried it on with my dress and, they don't seem to like each other very much. In fact, they kinda clash. I knew that they weren't going to match and i was totally fine with that - or so i thought.
When i put the dress and the veil together, they compete with each other as they are both so ornate. On top of that, the veil is a completely different colour, so it really doesn't look right.
For my something borrowed, i thought i would borrow a pair of shoes from someone. Mind you i hadn't asked anyone yet, but i thought surely there was someone out there that would lend me a nice pair of shoes. And then i went and BOUGHT a pair of (gogeous, no less) shoes.
SOOOO i still need a something old and a something borrowed. The 2 most difficult of items to find, wouldn't you agree?
So i'm looking to you guys for suggestions - or handouts. Probably more the handouts than the suggestions, but i'll take me a few suggestions too.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
tee hee
So last week i ordered something online and i have been patiently waiting for it to arrive.
Yesterday, there was a hang tag on my front door from Fedex - they had tried to deliver my order but i wasn't home. They wanted me to sign the hang tag so that they could leave my order there tomorrow if i wasn't home.
I couldn't wait until tomorrow so i called them to arrange to pick it up myself.
As i was speaking to the Fedex agent, he was gathering all of my information so that he could locate my order.
"Here it is" he said. Then he paused and said "Wait.............did you order a Dwight bobblehead??"
i replied: "Umm.....yeah.....and a Michael bobblehead, did they not arrive together????"
Fedex agent: "That's awesome!"
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Get the gas!
A lot of people stumble across this blog looking for answers on smooth-top electric vs. gas stoves.
Here's my opinion: Go with the GAS.
I am so disappointed that i let myself get talked into buying the smooth-top electric stove. I wish i had splurged and gone with the gas.
The smooth-top is much too high maintenance. You have to be very careful about not scratching it by dragging the pots across the top which is very tempting especially since it's a smooth top and when you have a pot of water boiling over.
Your pots and pans must be 100% flat. Nothing wonky - not even slightly. We have had to get rid of so many frying pans because they weren't 100% flat, it's ridiculous. We even had to get rid of a few wrought-iron pans because they had a ridge along the outside of the bottom of the pan. When a pan is not completely flat and it doesn't make full contact with the stove, the stove "thinks" that there is nothing there and it will turn off the element.
Along those same lines, if i turn up the thermosat on an element to max, it will regulate itself by turning itself on and off frequently. It's trying to maintain an even temperature, but it has the opposite effect. It's very annoying when you're trying to boil or fast fry.
The element stays hot long after you turn it off. I didn't think this would bother me, but it does.
Along with the element staying hot for a while after you turn it off, is you can't clean it until the element cools down completely. This is especially annoying when something has spilled over and you want to wipe it up before it gets hard and crusty. You can't, and you risk burning the cloth you're using and having the fibers stick to the stove permanently.
Again, the surface is very fragile and high maintenance. If you spill any sort of hot sticky stuff on the stove, you're in trouble. Anything that is hot with sugar will pit the stove top - not good.
Furthermore, the surface is just plain hard to clean. We have to use a special cleaner for smooth top stoves, and you have to remember that you can't use a regular scouring pad to remove anything that's stuck on - you have to use a "special" scouring pad that will not harm the surface.
All this to say that i wish i had spent the extra dough and got a gas stove. Just the piece of mind alone that i don't have to be so gentle around the stove would have been worth the extra bucks, nevermind the added bonus of having gas.
Here's my opinion: Go with the GAS.
I am so disappointed that i let myself get talked into buying the smooth-top electric stove. I wish i had splurged and gone with the gas.
The smooth-top is much too high maintenance. You have to be very careful about not scratching it by dragging the pots across the top which is very tempting especially since it's a smooth top and when you have a pot of water boiling over.
Your pots and pans must be 100% flat. Nothing wonky - not even slightly. We have had to get rid of so many frying pans because they weren't 100% flat, it's ridiculous. We even had to get rid of a few wrought-iron pans because they had a ridge along the outside of the bottom of the pan. When a pan is not completely flat and it doesn't make full contact with the stove, the stove "thinks" that there is nothing there and it will turn off the element.
Along those same lines, if i turn up the thermosat on an element to max, it will regulate itself by turning itself on and off frequently. It's trying to maintain an even temperature, but it has the opposite effect. It's very annoying when you're trying to boil or fast fry.
The element stays hot long after you turn it off. I didn't think this would bother me, but it does.
Along with the element staying hot for a while after you turn it off, is you can't clean it until the element cools down completely. This is especially annoying when something has spilled over and you want to wipe it up before it gets hard and crusty. You can't, and you risk burning the cloth you're using and having the fibers stick to the stove permanently.
Again, the surface is very fragile and high maintenance. If you spill any sort of hot sticky stuff on the stove, you're in trouble. Anything that is hot with sugar will pit the stove top - not good.
Furthermore, the surface is just plain hard to clean. We have to use a special cleaner for smooth top stoves, and you have to remember that you can't use a regular scouring pad to remove anything that's stuck on - you have to use a "special" scouring pad that will not harm the surface.
All this to say that i wish i had spent the extra dough and got a gas stove. Just the piece of mind alone that i don't have to be so gentle around the stove would have been worth the extra bucks, nevermind the added bonus of having gas.
Monday, April 21, 2008
It isn't easy being green.
I hate CFLs.
It's a hard thing for me to admit. On a regular basis, i do as much as i can to be environmentally conscious (save driving my car and running the water when i brush my teeth).
I have bought the reusable grocery bags. I refuse to have my meat wrapped in plastic grocery bags. I never take clear produce bags unless i'm buying beans (which is very very rare). I recycle all paper and cardboard including the toilet paper rolls and envelopes from junk mail. I save all of my leftover food. I save almost all of my plastic yogurt containers for future use and recycle the rest when i have too many. I hang my laundry to dry. I turn off lights. I turn off the heat.
I truly wanted to like CFLs but i just can't. I HATE them.
They suck. They are expensive and yet ironically, they look like discount. I can spot a CFL from a mile away. When i walk around my neighbourhood i can point out every house on the block that uses CFLs - "CFL, incandescent, CFL, CFL, incandescent" or instead i'll say "gross, nice, gross, gross, warm".
It doesn't seem to matter if you buy the "warm" light CFLs. They still cast a hideous, low wattage film all over the room.
Mat has even tried to trick me into liking them. He will install CFLs where he thinks i wont' notice, but i always do. Now they're in my closet and make my already sorry wardrobe (if you can call it that) look even more pathetic. There's one in the hallway and another in a side table lamp. Hate hate hate.
Thank god the pack we bought don't work with dimmer switches which we have in the rec room.
It's a hard thing for me to admit. On a regular basis, i do as much as i can to be environmentally conscious (save driving my car and running the water when i brush my teeth).
I have bought the reusable grocery bags. I refuse to have my meat wrapped in plastic grocery bags. I never take clear produce bags unless i'm buying beans (which is very very rare). I recycle all paper and cardboard including the toilet paper rolls and envelopes from junk mail. I save all of my leftover food. I save almost all of my plastic yogurt containers for future use and recycle the rest when i have too many. I hang my laundry to dry. I turn off lights. I turn off the heat.
I truly wanted to like CFLs but i just can't. I HATE them.
They suck. They are expensive and yet ironically, they look like discount. I can spot a CFL from a mile away. When i walk around my neighbourhood i can point out every house on the block that uses CFLs - "CFL, incandescent, CFL, CFL, incandescent" or instead i'll say "gross, nice, gross, gross, warm".
It doesn't seem to matter if you buy the "warm" light CFLs. They still cast a hideous, low wattage film all over the room.
Mat has even tried to trick me into liking them. He will install CFLs where he thinks i wont' notice, but i always do. Now they're in my closet and make my already sorry wardrobe (if you can call it that) look even more pathetic. There's one in the hallway and another in a side table lamp. Hate hate hate.
Thank god the pack we bought don't work with dimmer switches which we have in the rec room.
And hey - did you know they have mercury in them? I didn't. I dropped one and it broke and i just wiped up the broken glass and vacuumed. Now i've learned that if a CFL breaks you are supposed to make all humans and pets leave the room for at least 15 minutes immediately after the bulb has broken. You are supposed to ventilate the room by opening outside doors and windows. You are supposed to turn off the central heating and air conditioning. Then, when you clean it up you are supposed to but the broken pieces and anything you used to clean the area into a GLASS JAR with a METAL LID. THEN, when you vacuum (which you are only supposed to do if you have carpet because by vacuuming you are increasing the chances of it being recirculated into the air every time you use the vacuum) you are supposed to again turn off the central heat / air and then wash the vacuum canister or dispose of the bag into a GLASS JAR with a METAL LID. You are supposed to follow the same procedure of ventilating the area and turning off the heat / air the next several times you vacuum. You are not supposed to wash clothes in the washing machine that have come in contact with the mercury because it can contaminate other clothes when you wash them in the machine - you are supposed to DISPOSE of any and all clothing and bedding that have come in contact with mercury. Only clothing that has been exposed to the mercury vapor is ok to put in the washing machine. Don't believe that this could be actually true? Here you go:
Umm.....scary much??
I am so worried when the time comes that incandescents are banned. I've told Mat that when they make the official announcement i will stock pile our house with incandescents. I mean really, at 80 cents each or however much they cost, it can be my Christmas present.
Does anyone else have a problem with CFLs?
I am so worried when the time comes that incandescents are banned. I've told Mat that when they make the official announcement i will stock pile our house with incandescents. I mean really, at 80 cents each or however much they cost, it can be my Christmas present.
Does anyone else have a problem with CFLs?
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Wedding update
Do i owe you an update?
yes, i think so - thanks to the 2 people left who might be checking this blog - a BIG thank you.
ok, so updates....
My dress came in (about a month ago - i know, i know...sorry!) i had a nightmare just once that my dress came in the day before my wedding, which didn't bother me, and thankfully it didn't need any alterations, and i wore all day on my wedding and then at the end of the night when it was just myself, Mat and my parents sitting in the empty restaurant after everyone else had gone home, did i notice that my dress was NOT the colour that i had ordered - and i balled, and everyone kept trying to convince me that it was fine because i didn't notice until NOW and it's all over anyway and that it looked great in the colour that it was, but that didn't help me because it was NOT MY DRESS. Dreams are so weird. Needless to say, my dress DID come in the colour that i ordered it in because i checked the tag and it said "platinum". Phew. You have no idea how badly i want to post a picture of the dress, but we'll both have to wait for another 6 months...
We have finalized so many details. We've got the church booked, we've taken our mandatory marriage prep course, we've booked the venue and paid our deposit, we've booked our photographers (yay!), we've got the favours picked out, we've finalized a budget, we've started the invitation design process, we've finalized our flowers (bah! so many flowers!), we've started the cake hunt and the DJ hunt...just a few more things to do and we're still 6 months out . I'm feeling good about this considering i am the world's biggest procrastinator.
So, any tips and advice from those of you who have gone through this? One of my favourite parts of Martha Stewart Weddings is the "One thing i learned" section. Did i mention that i've been collecting Martha Stewart Weddings magazines for 10 years? I have every issue which come out 4 times a year - i have about 40 Martha Stewart Weddings Magazines! It made getting ideas easy!
What are some of the things you're glad you did, or wish you had, or enjoyed at someone else's wedding?
Friday, March 7, 2008
This is Canada eh...
This photo was forwarded to me in an email, so unfortunately i don't know who took this picture (if it's yours, let me know!)
However, i do know that this is a house in our neighbourhood.
I was wondering why Mat had been complaining so much about shoveling the driveway...
And, they are calling for another 50 centimeters this weekend.
Here's hoping we break the 1971 record for the most snow in a season. We are very close and 50cm will definitely push us over the edge. For some that's probably more literal than figurative...oh man...
Have a good weekend - i'll be hibernating :)
Friday, February 29, 2008
My thoughts on food and eating
Something dawned on me recently: I eat healthy.
I don’t know when I finally realized this since I’ve been “dieting” on and off for years. Trust me folks, I have tried almost every diet out there. Some with excellent results, others, not so much.
However, just recently, it hit me: I. Eat. Healthy.
Sure, I would love to be naturally “skinny” and slender. But I’m comfortable in my skin these days. I’m by no means over weight yet I’m the heaviest I’ve ever been.
I guess a lot of me being comfortable has to do with where I am in life. I’m happy. I’m confident. I have a good level of self-esteem. I know who I am. I’m proud of myself for where I am in life. And yes, I enjoy food.
Ya, my stomach isn’t flat – if I’m not wearing the right jeans, you can expect to see a muffin top under my shirt. But you know what? I like bagels. I like wine. I like beer. I like brie. I like cake on special occasions. I don’t eat these things every day by any means – which is actually a shame.
When I go grocery shopping I buy:
Fat free yogurt, broccoli, apples, bananas, granola, chicken breast, lettuce, cream for coffee, honey, whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta, low fat cheese.
I never buy cookies, cakes, sweets, junk, chips, or deli meat.
I eat healthy and if my body isn’t “perfect” then I guess that’s just how I’m made.
I realize that I need to make more of an effort to exercise, but this is for my health, and not to look a certain way. I need to run to stay healthy, to keep my energy levels up, to keep my bones strong and to retain my muscle. I don’t need to run to lose my occasional muffin top although I suspect that eventually that will take care of itself too.
I don’t know when I finally realized this since I’ve been “dieting” on and off for years. Trust me folks, I have tried almost every diet out there. Some with excellent results, others, not so much.
However, just recently, it hit me: I. Eat. Healthy.
Sure, I would love to be naturally “skinny” and slender. But I’m comfortable in my skin these days. I’m by no means over weight yet I’m the heaviest I’ve ever been.
I guess a lot of me being comfortable has to do with where I am in life. I’m happy. I’m confident. I have a good level of self-esteem. I know who I am. I’m proud of myself for where I am in life. And yes, I enjoy food.
Ya, my stomach isn’t flat – if I’m not wearing the right jeans, you can expect to see a muffin top under my shirt. But you know what? I like bagels. I like wine. I like beer. I like brie. I like cake on special occasions. I don’t eat these things every day by any means – which is actually a shame.
When I go grocery shopping I buy:
Fat free yogurt, broccoli, apples, bananas, granola, chicken breast, lettuce, cream for coffee, honey, whole wheat bread, whole wheat pasta, low fat cheese.
I never buy cookies, cakes, sweets, junk, chips, or deli meat.
I eat healthy and if my body isn’t “perfect” then I guess that’s just how I’m made.
I realize that I need to make more of an effort to exercise, but this is for my health, and not to look a certain way. I need to run to stay healthy, to keep my energy levels up, to keep my bones strong and to retain my muscle. I don’t need to run to lose my occasional muffin top although I suspect that eventually that will take care of itself too.
I have surprised myself with this recent acceptance of my body. I honestly thought that I would have been killing myself trying to look a certain way for the wedding. I’m not, and I’m not going to. I’m happy and I know that I’m eating right with the occasional treat, and I’m enjoying life this way. With a muffin top.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Best post of the year so far
Read this http://kidsarealrightto.blogspot.com/2008/02/whoda-thunk-it.html
Exactly what i was going to say...(minus the mat leave part)
Exactly what i was going to say...(minus the mat leave part)
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Ah jeah Laken!
Alright,
so you all know how we're not supposed to be using our nalgene's anymore. Or anything made from polycarbonate because it leaches bisphenol-A. Crap. the one thing that gets me to drink any sort of water is my non-breakable, completely portable, leak-proof even for a klutz, good looking nalgene.
Now what?
Well, there are alternatives - you can use other types of bottles such as glass and other plastics that are non polycarbonate (for now, until something comes up about those), stainless steel or aluminum.
There's been some buzz about this product line of aluminum bottles called Sigg. As soon as i saw them, i wanted them. They are so chic! slender, great colours and cool designs. If i can't use my nalgene, i must have a sigg!
So off i went to find one for myself. First, of course, i googled them. I found several places in Ottawa that carried them. My first stop was the Papier/Papery. They had 2 kinds - a short blue one, and a big camoflauge one. No thanks. they wouldn't be getting any more until next week. Of course, i can't wait that long, so off i went to the next store on my list - Trailhead in westboro.
I didn't even want to waste time looking around the store for them so i immediately asked the kid behind the counter where the Sigg bottles are. She informed me that they are currently carrying a brand called Laken which is the equivlent to Sigg. She pointed me in the direction of bottles and off i went looking for the perfect one for me.
I was immeidately drawn to the vibrant colours - fuschias, indigos, royal blues, exotic oranges...my hand reached out to touch the sleek and slender cylinders that hung from their display. There were irresistable. But THEN - my eye caught the most glittery, shiny, sparkly and above all - important - element of the bottles - the PRICE.
I knew these types of bottles were expensive compared to their nalgene counterparts. I had heard of people in the area spending upwards of $30 PER bottle. I was prepared to spend the same if only for the sake of fashion. But i was THRILLED when i saw the beautiful price on the BEAUTIFUL Laken bottles....................$17.99!!!!!
Can i get a W00T W00T???!!!???!
That's nearly half the price of a Sigg bottle and they are the exact same thing and equally gorgeous!
I asked the girl at Trailhead why the price was so crazily different and she shrugged and said that they are the exact same product made with the exact same materials. It's just that Sigg has been seen in a lot of hiking and outdoors magazines lately and people are asking for them (as i did).
I was so happy that i was about to spend almost half of what i thought, that i bought 2 - one for myself and one for Mat. I bought myself a fuschia bottle and i bought Mat a granite bottle.
I cannot wait to use my cool new Laken bottle at work. Heck, at this price, i might even buy one for the treadmill at home :)
Behold, my beautiful Laken:
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Howdy
Hi there, howdy, welcome, ola...
Happy New Year Everyone!
First, an apology - there is no excuse for the tremendous lack of posts except that i'm lazy. I admit it - i always have admitted to being lazy. Don't know why i am, but i am.
Things have been going really well around these parts. I quit my last job which was a bit scary, but liberating.
Took 2+ weeks over Christmas.
Went to Phoenix to spend Christmas with a part of my family that i rarely see let alone spend Christmas with. It was so great! Such a break from our usual family get together at Christmas. I think our family really needed it. In 2007 our family lost 2 very important members within a week of each other. Tough times, and if we had tried to celebrate Christmas in the same settings with the same routines but without these 2 people, it would have been very sad and very strange. So thankfully our cousins out in Phoenix hosted us for a week or so.
After Christmas, we all travelled to Las Vegas for new years. SO FUN. Different, mind you, when you spend New Years Eve in Las Vegas with your 60+ dad and 70 (?) Uncle, but still fun and definitely an experience.
When we returned from Vegas, Mat headed back to work, while i still had another 3 days plus a weekend before starting my new job. Unfortunately, we were both sick and there was NO WAY i was calling in sick on my first day, so it was not an easy first few days, but I LOVE MY NEW JOB.
I'm doing what i love, i'm busy, i'm surrounded by smart, young, nice people. I have benefits coming out of the wazoo, i'm so SO happy i took the risk of changing jobs. Change is always hard, but almost always worth it.
I've been at my new job for 3 weeks now and did i mention that i love it? I did? ok, sorry.
Not much else is new around here - we've been doing a bit of painting in our house and had our dear "old" friends visit us from home-home in our new house. Love those guys! We had so much fun and they showered us with cool prezzies :) Can't wait for them to come back again!
Mat and i have almost narrowed down our choices for a venue for our reception. I'm so excitied! Now it really feels like a wedding is on its way. I can envision how the night will play out, and the people we'll see and the everything - getting really excited.
The only part of the wedding (besides $$, and god does it suck how much money weddings cost regardless of how many or how few people you invite) are the bridesmaid dresses. I don't want the "traditional" bridesmaid dresses where they all wear the same dress. I wonder if that's even traditional...
I told the girls that they could wear whatever dress they want so long as it was knee length and in the fall colour family such as red, orange, green, brown. At the time i envisioned this beautiful blend of fall colours, but now i'm worried that there will be too many colours with 3 bridesmaids all wearing a different colour and then mat and i obviously wearing different colours from that and then the groomsmens ties - gah! Must sit down with some magazines and a story board and figure this out before i go crazy!
Last, but certainly not least, my friend Meg just delivered her first baby girl. I am SO EXCITED for her and her husband - i can only imagine how happy they are.
I think that's it.
How are you guys?? I'm still reading your blogs, but not commenting that much as you can tell because i've been a bit busy.
Bye for now :)
Happy New Year Everyone!
First, an apology - there is no excuse for the tremendous lack of posts except that i'm lazy. I admit it - i always have admitted to being lazy. Don't know why i am, but i am.
Things have been going really well around these parts. I quit my last job which was a bit scary, but liberating.
Took 2+ weeks over Christmas.
Went to Phoenix to spend Christmas with a part of my family that i rarely see let alone spend Christmas with. It was so great! Such a break from our usual family get together at Christmas. I think our family really needed it. In 2007 our family lost 2 very important members within a week of each other. Tough times, and if we had tried to celebrate Christmas in the same settings with the same routines but without these 2 people, it would have been very sad and very strange. So thankfully our cousins out in Phoenix hosted us for a week or so.
After Christmas, we all travelled to Las Vegas for new years. SO FUN. Different, mind you, when you spend New Years Eve in Las Vegas with your 60+ dad and 70 (?) Uncle, but still fun and definitely an experience.
When we returned from Vegas, Mat headed back to work, while i still had another 3 days plus a weekend before starting my new job. Unfortunately, we were both sick and there was NO WAY i was calling in sick on my first day, so it was not an easy first few days, but I LOVE MY NEW JOB.
I'm doing what i love, i'm busy, i'm surrounded by smart, young, nice people. I have benefits coming out of the wazoo, i'm so SO happy i took the risk of changing jobs. Change is always hard, but almost always worth it.
I've been at my new job for 3 weeks now and did i mention that i love it? I did? ok, sorry.
Not much else is new around here - we've been doing a bit of painting in our house and had our dear "old" friends visit us from home-home in our new house. Love those guys! We had so much fun and they showered us with cool prezzies :) Can't wait for them to come back again!
Mat and i have almost narrowed down our choices for a venue for our reception. I'm so excitied! Now it really feels like a wedding is on its way. I can envision how the night will play out, and the people we'll see and the everything - getting really excited.
The only part of the wedding (besides $$, and god does it suck how much money weddings cost regardless of how many or how few people you invite) are the bridesmaid dresses. I don't want the "traditional" bridesmaid dresses where they all wear the same dress. I wonder if that's even traditional...
I told the girls that they could wear whatever dress they want so long as it was knee length and in the fall colour family such as red, orange, green, brown. At the time i envisioned this beautiful blend of fall colours, but now i'm worried that there will be too many colours with 3 bridesmaids all wearing a different colour and then mat and i obviously wearing different colours from that and then the groomsmens ties - gah! Must sit down with some magazines and a story board and figure this out before i go crazy!
Last, but certainly not least, my friend Meg just delivered her first baby girl. I am SO EXCITED for her and her husband - i can only imagine how happy they are.
I think that's it.
How are you guys?? I'm still reading your blogs, but not commenting that much as you can tell because i've been a bit busy.
Bye for now :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)