Monday, December 31, 2018

Welcome 2019!

As we ring out this past year and welcome 2019, I want to send you all my best wishes.  Maybe 2018 didn't turn out the way you though it would and you're hanging your hat on 2019, or maybe 2018 was the best year yet and you don't know what 2019 will bring, but either way, find the people that love you and hang onto them.

This is one of my favourite versions of Auld Lang Syne.  It played in the Sex and the City movie when Carrie got up and rushed over to see Miranda just before midnight.  This isn't really a video, just the lyrics, but enjoy.


And I had no plans of posting this video but it was one of the suggested ones after I looked at the above video, and I just love it.   It's Susan Boyle when she auditioned for Britain's Got Talent.  If you have a dream to achieve this year, go for it, just like Susan.



Friday, December 28, 2018

Friday Favourites - 2018 Edition


Linking up with AndreaErika, and Narci for Friday Favourites and The Blended Blog for Friday Loves to share my top favourite things of 2018.


Song - You know I have to pick Drake's Nice for What.  I will never tire of this song which is good since it's basically on a loop on Toronto radio.  I'm here for it though.


Movie - The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.  This is a Netflix one and based on the book of the same name that I read a few years.  Bonus that it starred several Downton Abbey alum.



TV Show - We watched a bunch of things this year but my favourite show that stuck with me was Manhunt: Unabomber.  I always appreciate a based on a true story show/movie.


Book - Out of the books I read this year I really loved Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez.  Read it this year if you haven't already.


Sport Moment - We loved watching the Olympics but I especially loved seeing Scott and Tessa skate at the Olympics and win!! They were so solid that I didn't have to hide behind my blanket during their routine.


YouTube Video - The most played one at this house was Baby Shark, but the slower cartoon version, not the dance one.  It kept Q entertained when we needed him to be quiet, and we even had a Baby Shark themed birthday party for him.


Meal - We had lots of good food over the year but this one is representative of our healthy eating habits.  This salad with the thai almond dressing is a staple in our house.


Drink - Gin and Tonics at Reds. This is a place in Square One, the mall by my work, and I believe they have other locations.   You get to select a gin and the little accoutrements (like rosemary, berries, etc.).  It is so refreshing.


New Clothing - This top from Zella at Nordstrom.  I usually just wear it to my exercise class, but I do love it.  I like that it has a bit of different style.

Toronto Moment - We experienced some terror events this year - the van attack on Yonge and the shooting on the Danforth.  We held strong though, as we would of course, and let the love shine through.

Canada Moment - Another sad story that took over Canada was the Humboldt bus crash.  It brought everyone together and I loved that people put their hockey sticks out on their porches as a tribute to the boys that were killed.

House Thing - The new shelves in the TV room really complete the space.  Dave is so talented to think of this idea and then execute it.

New Restaurant - Parallel on Geary Ave.  We only went one time but I still think about it. I love Middle Eastern food and they also have jars of their housemade tahini that is so much better than the stuff at the grocery store.

E Moment - We signed up E for art class this fall at school and he loved it!!  He came home with some really great pieces and we were very impressed.



Q Moment - At the Christmas Eve service this year, Q was full of energy and was back and forth and up and down all night, but when we sang Silent Night at the end, I held him and he gave me a big hug while I sang and patted my hair.  He is such a snuggly and loving kid and this was just a representation of that.

Dave Moment - He earned a spot at his company's club trip this year and we get to go on a trip!  He works very hard all year and it was great that his hard work paid off with this reward.


Bring on 2019!



Thursday, December 27, 2018

New Year's Resolutions

This past year, I didn't make any specific resolutions, rather I wanted to try new things.  I did a few new things, but not nearly as many as I would have liked.  I tried listening to new music and read lots of books, and I also got an alarm clock for my bedside table.  The idea was that I could plug my phone in elsewhere since I wouldn't need it for an alarm, but that hasn't happened yet.  I don't want to leave it in another room since in case anyone needed to call me in the middle of the night, but I could leave it on my dresser (so that will be a new goal for next year).

But the most significant thing was that I tried new foods, new eating habits, and worked out fairly consistently with new workouts (barre, pilates, yoga, etc.) and lost weight.  I really needed to commit to 3 to 6 week periods of really good habits to see a difference and it worked.  Here is a summary of what we did.  I did three rounds of this "reset" eating, in April, September, and the end of November.  My weaknesses are getting too hungry at work and just eating whatever is around and also snacking at night.  With the meal plan I had snacks and meals with me all day so I never got too hungry, and I just needed some willpower to stop snacking after supper.  I picked up some good habits, and some great meal ideas, so even though I don't stick to it 100% of the time, I don't need to.



Coming up for this year, I want to make more of an effort to spend time with my husband, children (one on one), and friends.  I hesitate to put set goals on this, like once a month I need to do these things, because then it becomes an obligation rather than something I want to do, but I will keep it on my mind.  Things like getting a late drink or dinner with a friend, getting lunch with Dave when he is near my office during the week, taking one kid for a walk or to get a slice of pizza.  Q is less of a baby now so he will start to appreciate these things, and I know E is always down for pizza.

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

2018 - Year in Review

Our year in photos:

January
Q started swimming lessons

And Dave and E hit the slopes each week

Race day

The Humber River took over the banks

We got some fresh air.


February 

I coached E in soccer

We watched the Olympics - this is E trying the skeleton position

We went down to the CBC for the Olympics day

March
Dave went to Arizona to golf so I took E to skiing that week for the final race day.

E came to work with me during March Break.

We celebrated St. Patrick's Day

Our soccer season wrapped up.

We celebrated Dave's birthday

April

We celebrated Easter


We went for walks and tried new restaurants. 

We started to enjoy our new backyard

May

E started t-ball

We went to see the cherry blossoms in High Park

E won some prizes at school bingo night

We celebrated Mother's Day

We hosted some family.

June

We celebrated my birthday.

 I went to Chicago

E started soccer

We went out for tacos for Father's Day.

E finished Grade 1 (and Q's hair started to get really curly)

July
We went camping at Sandbanks (and survived!)

We went to a Jays game

We played in our backyard

E went to golf camp

We went camping at Algonquin.

We went to Halifax to visit family.

August

And continued onto Cape Breton to see the folks up there.


We continued enjoying our backyard

We went to Black Creek Pioneer Village


And another Jays game and Canada's Wonderland. 

We went to a family wedding in cottage country.

September 

We camped at the Pinery.

E started Grade 2

We hosted our neighbours for a back to school BBQ.

We celebrated Q's second birthday

October 

We went on a bike ride around the Toronto Islands.

We had a healthier Thanksgiving dinner.

We went to Disney World!



We celebrated E's seventh  birthday.

Halloween

November

We raked all of the leaves

We went to school movie night

We started the Christmas celebrations

We went to a Marlies hockey game

December

We got our tree

We visited Dave's parents in Sarnia.

We got dolled up for my office Christmas party.

We hosted our 5th annual holiday drop in party

E was a shepherd in the Christmas pageant

And we celebrated Jesus' birth.