Good Bye to the Penny

Today, during talks of the new Canadian Budget coming out, they announced the penny will no longer be produced as of the fall of this year. It will be sad to see that the penny will no longer be produced and will slowly fade away from part of our culture. I have so many fond memories of the penny, such as saving them up as a kid, buying penny candies, and many of the wonderful saying such as:

"A penny saved is a penny earned" and "A penny for your thoughts"

I am glad to hear that they will still be a currency as long as you have them

Birthday Update

Hubs turned the big 30 last Sunday. We ended up keeping it on the down low and quiet. We went out for supper just the 2 of us and spent a quiet night in. I bought Hubs a new sander and video game for his birthday. I know it sounds kind of boring for a monumental birthday, however Hubs didnt even want those things for his birthday. I did get him a cute card saying I wanted to get him a cake with a gorgeous woman to jump out and suprise him but I didnt want to get icing in my hair, lol. We're also finishing up the bathroom renos so money is a little tight (Will post when the bathroom is all finished). I did promise Hubs an ice cream cake when his brother in law moves out.

Happy 30th Birthday Hubs

Today my Hubs turns the Big 3-0. I can't believe we have been together 4 years already and married for almost 2. We have managed to do quite a few things in the time we have spent together, buy a home, traveled to Mexico twice, been across Canada, visited many museums and sites and were able to explore the many beautiful wonders where we live. I can't wait to see what the next decade brings fror us.

Wishing my Hubs a Very Happy and Wonderful 30th Birthday. I love you so much.

Wedding Decor

Our wedding decor ended up turning out beautifully and exactly how I envisioned it. Wedding decor sets the tone and mood of the event and is such a critcal part of the overall day. It can also be an expensive (or inexpensive) addition. We ended up going with Details decor as they had prices that fit within our budget and I loved the decor pictures in their portfolio. Sandy, from details, not only provided all our decor, she also provided her services as our day of coordinator, so I didn't have to worry about all the little details on the day of the wedding.
For our decor, I knew we wanted simple, elegant and lots of soft lighting. We also wanted to work within our wedding colors of chocolate brown and aqua.

For our ceremony, I had initally wanted flowers, and a chuppah and a few other details. We ended up cutting out all the ceremony decor (as cost was a factor) and I didn't miss a thing. The park provided an amazing natural background and was the decor in itself.

     (Natural beauty of the park we were married in)

For the reception here are many of our decor details:

 Here are how the tables looked at the reception. We used chocolate brown overlays on the tables, and a couple of chocolate brown and an aqua runners to make the x shape on the tables. Since the chairs were old metal chairs we used chair covers to transform the space into a softer look, with an aqua tie to tie in our colors. Napkins were white and we used aqua and white place cards to write guests names on.

 Our centerpieces where white orchids in tall vases with floating candles and clear rocks in the bottom. To bring in a little of the ocean, we used starfish holders to hold table numbers and menus (on the backside of the table numbers)

 We had a gorgeous backspash behind the head table. Their were white lights behind white organza with chocolate brown swags, and a brown swag in the front with an aqua tie.

 We used an aqua runner down the middle of our table, and aqua/chocolate brown petals along the front with candles and a couple of glass starfish to encorporate our slight ocean theme.

Homemade wine with personalized wine labels on the tables.

Wedding Limo

Our decision to rent a limo for our wedding day, was something that we went back and forth on. Initially, we didnt want to spend the money on a limo, and felt we could just use our own vehicle to get to and from places. Closer to the wedding, it came down to more of a logistical dilema of how we were going to get the bridal party to and from pics and the reception, especially since we didnt want to take numerous vehicles and many in the wedding party didn't have vehicles with them. With this thought in mind we started looking into limo services in our area.

Let me tell you, you definitly have to shop around. Prices and what is included varies so much from business to business. We ended up going with Alpine Limo. The service they provided and the cost fit exactly what we needed and our budget.

Our package cost us around $450 and included the following:

- 5 hrs of service (picked myselft and bridal party up and took us to the ceremony, took wedding party to picture locations after ceremony, and dropped us off at reception)
- Crystal flute glasses & champagne
- Water and ice
- Getaway car at the end of the night for bride and groom

Instead of going with the typical car limo, we ended up going with the black Stretch Navigator Limo.




In the end it was worth the added cost for the convenience of having a limo and besides how many times in your life do you get driven around in a limo?

Happy St Patrick's Day

Wishing everyone a wonderful St Patrick's day filled with green beer, green food and the luck of the Irish.

Updated 101 in 1001

This is my second version of 101 in 1001. I finished most of the things on my original list sooner then I had expected and so I decided to make another list.

Not familiar with the 101 Things in 1001 Days project? Check out this website.
The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (i.e. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable, or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (i.e. represent some amount of effort on your part).

Start Date: November 14, 2011
End Date: August 10, 2014

Marriage & Family
1. “Date night” with Hubs once a month (17/33)
2. Have a baby
3. Celebrate 2nd Anniversary
4. Talk to home every weekend (39/132)
5. Visit Halifax for my brother's grad (Completed June 2012)
6. Buy a 2nd house
7. Get pregnant
8. Celebrate our 1st Christmas in our New House (Completed Dec 25, 2011)
9. Go on a vacation with family

Mind, Body & Soul
10. Lose 10 lbs (Hope to do so by April)
11. Learn to cook a new healthy meal
12. Complete some form of exercise at least 3 times per week (Completed Jan 2012)
13. Read at least one book per month (11/33)
14. Give up soda for a week
15. Learn a new recipe and cook it at least once a month (9/33)
16. Get a hobby (Does going to the gym count??)
17. Have a bubble bath (Completed Dec 21, 2011)
18. Get a library card
19. Spend a day at the ocean
20. Declutter (Completed Jan 2012)

21. Go on another trip
22. Do something for myself at least once a month (17/33)
23. No dessert or cookies at work for 2 weeks
24. For one week, go to bed at 9:00 p.m. just to read
25. After baby, get back to pre-pregnancy weight
26. Go for a walk with Hubby every night for a week
27. No eating after 8:00 p.m. for a month

Home Is Where the Heart Is

28. Get spare rooms organized (Half way there)
29. Buy a dresser for spare room
30. Hang wedding pictures
31. Cook our first turkey (Completed December 24, 2011)
32. Get a new dresser set
33. Reno the main bathroom (Completed March 2012)
34. Empty entire fridge, clean it, then put everything back in (Completed Jan 2012)
35. Reorganize kitchen cabinets
36. Defrost freezer twice a year (2/6)
37. Repaint shed
38. Buy blinds for the house

All Work, No Play
39. Get a new fridge
40. Get a new dishwasher
41. Stay on top of the house cleaning (22/33)
42. Start a wedding planning business
43. Help Hubs achieve his work goals

44. Get a new job, closer to home or clerical
45. Take another course at work
46. Learn to speak Spanish

Hit the Open Road
47. Take a spontaneous road trip
48. Travel to Hawaii
49. Visit Newfoundland
50. Visit friends in Winnipeg
51. Go camping at least once each summer (2/3)
52. Have a picnic in the park we got married
53. Visit the Buchart gardens in the winter
54. Visit Hubbs friends in Alberta

I ♥ Food
55. Update my recipe book with new recipes (At least once a month (17/33)
56. Try a new restaurant (Completed December 19, 2011)
57. Try making a new cultural food (Completed Feb 2012, Make Vietnamese Pho Soup)
58. Don't eat out for an entire month
59. Make homemade pasta
60. Put new recipe's on the blog (3/3)
61. Make tapas

Friends Are Forever
62. Email my best friend once a week (8/146)
63. Send Christmas cards each Christmas (2/3)
64. E-mail friends at least once per month (3/33)
65. Catch up with an old friend
66. Have a party or dinner party
67. Send birthday cards to all friends/family in 2012

Pinching Pennies
68. Save for another house
69. Set up retirement savings

Cha-Ching
70. Make a budget
71. Put more money on the house
72. Put more money on the car payment
73. Save for a rainy day

Pay It Forward
74. Donate to charity
75. Volunteer for a good cause
76. Buy something from a thrift store that supports a charity
77. Donate money to a children's charity (2/6)

Just for Fun
78. Go skiing
79. Go to a hockey game
80. Go to the fall fair
81. Buy a pumpkin from a pumpkin patch and carve it
82. Rent a hotel room for a night to get away
83. Take more pictures
84. Have a Christmas cookie exchange (1/3)
85. Buy a new Christmas tree and decorations

Hobbies & Skills
86. Blog once a week at least (18/33)
87. Learn to cook more things
88. Get some family tradition recipes
89. Make a scrapbook
90. Read a book a month (11/33)

Capture the Memories
91. Get wedding album (Completed May 2, 2011)
92. Print photoes of each year's events and put in photo album
93. Get photos printed to hang in home
94. Take more pictures
95. Complete 101 in 1001
96. Send more pictures to family

No More Procrastinating
97. Lose some weight
98. Deweed garden
99. Start an excercise routine (Completed Jan 2012 with gym membership)

101 in 1001
100. Start a new 101 Things in 1001 Days list once this one is completed
101. Get friends in on this project

1 Year Ago today....

Hubs and I closed on our first home. It's hard to believe its been a year already. Our house has been through so many changes and reno's. It's basically a whole new home on the inside. We painted all the walls, ceilings, installed new hardwood floors, new carpets in the bedrooms, a new hotwater tank, a second bathroom, completely reno'd our main bathroom (currently in progress), put all new trim and baseboards in the home, took down a wall and put slate in the entrance way, as well as some yard work. I should post some before and after pics in a post.

So Proud!

I'm so proud of my baby brother, he just found out he has been accepted to University for business and got a scholarship! I'm almost more excited for him, then I was when I found out I was accepted to Uni.

New Blender

Hubs and I have been in the market for a new blender for a while. Hubs mom gave us one a while back and it worked great until we over worked it and fried the engine. We looked everywhere for a decent blender but none seemed to fit what we were looking for. We wanted one with a glass "jar" and it had to have metal blades and components (finding this is no easy feat). Two weeks ago we ended up at Home Outfitters and came across the Breville Ikon Blender. It seemed to have everything we were looking for, except the price, at $189.99, was a little higher then we wanted to pay (I know, you get what you pay for). We decided to walk away and wait for a sale to come up. A week later, I was looking through the flyers and as luck would have it, all Breville appliances were 20% off. After work one day, I stopped and picked up one of the blenders and brought it home to join our kitchen family.
So far, we have used our blender just about everyday and sometimes a couple times a day and it hasn't let us down yet. It crushes ice perfectly, even to a "snow" (unlike many other blenders that couldn't even break the ice up). It's easy to take apart and clean and reassemble. The base, with the control panel is easy to wipe if there is a spill (Any liquid wont get in under the buttons). The blender also looks great, it has a stainless steel finish on the base and it compliments my empire red kitchen aid blender nicely.  Overall I would recommend the blender so far.

Spring, spring ahead....

For all my fellow Canadians that follow throught with Daylight Savings time, tonight make sure to set your clocks ahead an hour.

Get Better Hot Tea Remedy

I found this recipe over on What You Make It Blog, and even though I haven't tried it yet, I'm thinking I will be today. I woke up yesterday with a slightly sore throat and today I have a cough too, grrrr.

What you need: *All amounts are approximate. I don't measure, but toss the ingredients together. Experiment with how you prefer the flavor.*

Juice of 1 lemon or 1/4 cup lemon juice-----------Breaks up mucous; antibacterial; antiviral; immune boosting power

1/2 cup of honey (more or less to suit your tastes)-----Suppresses cough & relieves sore throat

1 Tablespoon whole cloves--------------------------Acts as a natural antiseptic

1 pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)----------------Adds some heat and clears out those sinuses!

Add ingredients to a saucepan and heat on the stove, then fill mug and enjoy. You can also make it by the single serving if you don't need such a large batch.

Let the reno's begin...again!

With the possibility of putting our house on the market we have decided to renovate our main bathroom. Everything is gone, Hubs and I stripped the bathroom down to literally a floor and walls and are starting over. We've been taking progress pics as we go and I'll be sure to post when its all done.

Happy 20th Birthday Sister

Today, my baby sister is celebrating her 20th birthday. It's hard to believe she is 20 already, I feel as though she is still a little kid. Heck, it feels like only yesterday I was 20 myself. I wish I could be there for her birthday and help her celebrate this new chapter in her life but I'm hoping to get out to visit this summer.

Myself with my brother on the left and sister on the right