Let's take a look at 2011

2011 is basically over. And it was one hell of a year. 

Maybe you're new around here, or maybe you can't keep all the craziness straight, so let's have a recap. 

I partied until the end of 2010, dancing the night away with this pretty lady:

It was one of my favorite New Year's Eve celebrations. 

My favorite little boy turned three years old. 

I took a life-changing pee shortly after midnight on January 12th. 

I saw my gorgeous baby for the first time in April. 

My best friends got married in May, and I got to be one of the bridesmaids. 

I made my own baby shower invitations. 

My little brother graduated from the corrections officer course. 

I found out miss C. was going to be a girl and finished making my invitations. 

I continued to get huge... 

I moved out of the apartment I shared with mother for 10 months to move in with B., Chloe's father. I like living completely on my own, like I am now, but mom was my favorite roommate so far. 

I had my baby shower. It was so much fun and great to see all my friends and family. 

I got my first professional pictures taken - maternity photos. 

I started having contractions on September 23rd, my due date and my brother and sister's birthday. Nothing came of them, and I ended up being able to go out for supper for their birthday. It would've been funny to have the baby on their birthday - Courtney, Coady and Chloe? Could their names BE any closer?

I met my favorite person in the world on September 25. Life's been crazy ever since. 

I drank for the first time in 10 months to celebrate my 24th birthday with two of my best friends. 

I saw Doc Walker in concert for the second time, and it was just as amazing as the first. 

We moved to our current apartment, just me and Chloe, and Chloe turned two months old. 

Chloe had her first Christmas.

And now? We wait for 2012 to start.

Coming up in 2012:

- A trip to NB

- Chloe's first birthday (and tons of other firsts for her)

- M.'s wedding in July, where I'm a bridesmaid again

- Back to work for me

All very exciting stuff. Except maybe leaving my girl to go back to work :(

If you do a recap of your year, post your link so I can take a look. 

It's Friday, Friday

TGIF? Yeah, right. More like TGIS. Saturday.

You see, it's currently Friday night, and I will be so happy when Friday night is done and over with.

Why, you ask? Because Friday is a work night. Another busy work night. Tourism must be up in the city because it has been crazy all week at work, hence the lack of blogging and commenting.

Maybe a recap of my week? Okay. To be honest, most days blend into each other lately, so it will be short-ish.

Sunday, July 24

Mother, sister and nephew came up to visit for a few hours. They got their first tour of my apartment. Nephew pulled out my baby swing and had it swinging and singing within minutes of being in the apartment. When it came time to turn it off, he showed ME how to do it when I couldn't figure out which button would make it stop singing. Surprises me sometimes, that smart little boy. We went out to eat Chinese food, a favorite among the girls in the family - brother is the only one who doesn't like it. We stopped at the park to let nephew play for awhile, then they headed home.

Wednesday, July 27

I had my last monthly doctor's appointment. Now I go every two weeks for awhile. It was quick and easy. I got to listen to babygirl's heartbeat, and they measured my belly, and all was well. They took my blood pressure which must've been a tiny bit low because she made a comment about how I wont have to worry about high blood pressure. Yay? What does low blood pressure even mean?

Thursday, July 28

I got to work at both jobs. Part-time job double-booked me for a time when I was supposed to be at my full-time job, which annoyed me a lot. I've been working at both places for two years now and my availability has always been the same. My boss covered for me at the other job until I got there. I was TIRED when I got home. It's harder working two jobs when the hotel job is suddenly a LOT more busy.

Today

I had an amazing meal out with B. for lunch, wasted a lot of time, and headed to work.

Tomorrow

I'm getting up bright and early to meet for breakfast with A., who's in town for the weekend but I won't be. After breakfast I'm heading west, stopping to visit mother along the way, then staying with my grandfather for about 4 days. I'm pretty excited about it.

Hope you all have a good weekend!

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What I've done, and why I barely blog

It must be summer.

I don't mean that in the 'sunshine and sun tans' kind of way, because I'm as pale as a ghost and I wore my fall jacket to work today. I mean it in a 'we are soo busy at work' kind of way.

Work is usually where I blog, hence the lack of blogging and sometimes commenting lately. By the time I figure out what I want to write about, it's time to go home. I feel like I'm behind on my own life right now. Here's a little recap to keep me in check.

Friday, July 8 - B's friends got to town. It was strange having strangers stay with us, especially when I still felt so strange being there myself, but I think that made it less strange. Confusing?

Monday, July 11 - I went to the beach with B. and his friends who are staying with us for the week. It was WAY too windy, but I may have gotten a few good photos of the scenery (haven't uploaded them yet) and got a nice walk on the beach in while we were there. I spent the night at Mom's place with nephew. He is the worst person to sleep with EVER. He squirms all night like there are ants in his pants.

Wednesday, July 13 - I worked at both of my jobs. Long, long day it was.

Thursday, July 14 - Shipped off my little giveaway prize to Caro, a few days later than planned. Got to spend a few minutes on some of my projects.

Tomorrow, Friay, July 15 - I believe B's guests are leaving, and it is also my day off so maybe I'll work more on my projects and make my to-do list a little smaller.

Sunday, July 17 - Is my baby shower. ALREADY. Seems like yesterday I was just thinking about it. Confirmed the details with the banquet guy on Thursday, and I can get in there to set up on Saturday. I just can't wait to see everyone. Also, I believe M. is going to be spending the night with me that night, just another thing to look forward to. Then it's back to reality and work on Monday.



Random - I don't understand at all why all of a sudden my 'Where I Live' post from May 2010 is so popular. 1053 pageviews so far this month.

What I Did and Didn't Do This Weekend

This weekend I:

Spent time with my nephew. We went to bed too late and fell asleep together on his little mattress in the hallway. This might've been Thursday night, but it still counts.

Packed a lot of my stuff for my move on July 1st. My closet (on Saturday) is so bare.

Ate Chinese food and it was the best meal ever.

Got paid.

Spent my entire paycheck right away on rent, bills, a tiny bit of food, and gas.

Played a lot of Dr. Mario on the Wii. It's addicting.

Moved a bunch of stuff's to B's apartment to store it there until we can move to the new place, which is right next door. Brother and cousin J did all the moving. I was scared for the condition my furniture would be in afterwards, but I'm so grateful to have them to help.

This Weekend I Did NOT: 

Get to spend anytime in the sun. There was no sun.

Very Long Recap of Time Spent with my Nephew

Very long, very boring, recap of the beginning of the week. Read if you dare. 


Sunday, February 20

I found a crib and change table online and bought it. I haven't had the chance yet to wipe it all down, but I look forward to inspecting it a bit closer. I also have plans to get some paint to cover up the scratches and stains. My awesome little brother drove me 20 minutes out of town in his van to pick it up. It was some nice bonding time. In return, I made supper for everyone.

I couldn't even wait until him and his girlfriend were gone before I was laying in bed watching tv. I was asleep shortly before 10pm that night.

Monday, February 21

It was my second day in a row of working a morning shift at work. Mornings do not work well with me. I wasn't too tired though. I had the next day off and didn't have any plans so I called my sister and told her to drop my little nephew off at my place and I would take him home the next day.

We had fun watching Dora (one of his favorite shows for some reason) and playing Kinect at boyfriend's house. Me and him both went to bed around 10pm that night.

Poor boy woke up shortly before midnight. I don't know what was wrong with him, nightmare maybe, but he was just sitting up in bed crying a little. He was sick with a cold, so the crying made him cough until he was almost getting sick. I woke Mom up because he wouldn't talk to me at all and was scaring me a little. We calmed him down and back to sleep he went.

I don't think he slept too bad for the next few hours, but he moves so much in his sleep that he kept me awake. He was sleeping on my bedroom floor on a crib mattress so I could hear his every move. He woke up a couple of times, but was mostly fine.

Tuesday, February 22

We were awake around 6am, and I don't think we slept again after that. I got him a drink and we layed in bed, both of us tossing and turning. Around 7am he started crying again so we got up for the day. Mom gave him some children's Tylenol because he was saying he had a sore ear. He was back to his normal self for about an hour before he started getting upset again. I called his Mom and we made our way back to his house.

He was his happy self he whole drive home. We shared a breakfast sandwich along the way. I silently cursed and some crazy drivers trying to pass me in the middle of some snow drifts

I hung out with him and my sister all day. He played for awhile but started feeling sick again around lunch time. I feel so sad for him when he's sick but like most kids, it's the only time he wants to cuddle. He yelled from his bedroom "Mommy hold me" to my sister. She wrapped him in a blanket and he fell asleep in her arms. He slept on the couch for a couple of hours until we had to get him up for his doctor's appointment. I wish I had pictures of him all snuggled in his blanket.

He was fine until we got into the doctor's office, then the tears started. He hasn't been sick much in his life so he's not used to doctors. He started crying more when the doctor came in, but it was silent tears and he did everything the doctor asked. We were only in there a couple of minutes. Poor baby had infection in his ear. We got his medication and I had to leave soon after. My sister says he's feeling better now though.

I had supper with Sarah before coming back home, where I had to try so hard to keep myself awake until 9:30. I was asleep around 10pm for the third night in a row. For the first time in forever, I slept right through the night, and I slept around 11 hours. It was nice to finally catch up on sleep.

Parties and Family Time

It's been awhile since I've done much of an update on my life. Now, when I do these, it's not to bore you guys with the mundane details of my daily life, but more because when I look back years from now at this blog I don't want to think "Okay, but what was going on in my life back then?". Thus the boring recaps. 

Wednesday, January 5th

I hitched a ride with my friend Sarah to the other end of the province where I spent the evening with my grandfather. He seems to be easier to communicate with now. It's still a lot of work to get the message across, but the point is you can get messages across now. I managed to explain to him that another friend was picking me up and we'd be going out for a quick dinner, then I'd be back. It would be so amazing if he would just suddenly get better and we could have normal conversations again. But I'd take this over some of the other alternatives any day. Either way, he is still doing better and better each time I see him. The best part? Now I can call him on the phone and sometimes he does answer and we have a quick chat about nothing, but it's still amazing to be able to do it. 

Friday, January 7

We had our staff Christmas party. I took B. with me this year and we sat with the rest of the front desk staff, plus my favorite bartender. It was nice to just hang out without working for once. The two free drinks and $25 Future Shop gift card were pretty nice as well. We didn't stay for the casino part of the evening, but instead spent my gift card on season one of Grey's Anatomy, then had some drinks and hung out at his place. It was nice to just hang out and really talk. It doesn't happen very often. 

Sunday, January 9

My adorable little nephew had his surprise birthday party. He was at my sister's friend's place when we showed up early to decorate and get the food ready. The party was supposed to start at two but by 2:30 there wasn't really anyone there. The entertained him in the car, in the parking lot for a few minutes until a couple more people showed up, then they brought him in. This is the (low quality) picture of his face when he walked in and we yelled 'surprise'. 

He looked so happy, but then kept telling us to 'Stop that noise!' He had such a good time. He was running around playing with the balloons and just laughing the whole time. He got a lot of nice presents - mostly clothes because he got none at all for Christmas. The thing he enjoyed the most? The Cars toys that were his cake toppers. 

The little cutie even told us himself that he had fun at his party. Before we left? He thanked me and Mom for coming. It was very cute. His actual birthday was January 11th. He turned three. 

In General

I've just been spending lots of time being lazy relaxing. I've watched tons of Gilmore Girls, as I'm just a few days away from finishing the very last season. I will be so sad and lost when it's done. It is such a great show.  

Hope you week has been just as fabulous! 

Past, present, and future

In 2010:

• My first meal was chinese food
• I celebrated a one year anniversary
• I went through a breakup, plus getting back together
• I went on a plane and travelled to Ontario for the first time
• I moved into an apartment with my mother
• I started my goal of 101 things in 1001 days
• I got my first DSLR camera, and fell in love with photography
• I thought about going back to school, but then dismissed the idea
• I had my first guest blogger
• I won at NaNoWriMo
• I saw Danny Bhoy, one of my favorite comedians
• I turned 23, and did a life in review post
• I wrote about my father figure, my grandfather and
• Less than a month later, he had a stroke
• I had a great Christmas with my family

The turning point:

• We did our celebrating in the next city over - me, boyfriend and my close friend April
• We were the first people to arrive at the bar, and some of the first people on the dancefloor
• We ran into a lot of old friends, and danced the night away
• No expectations, just a great night, with great people

In 2011:

• I want to take the photography course and actually go somewhere with my photography obsession
• I want to win at NaNoWriMo again
• I want to put my life in order, and start saving money
• I want to eat less sugar, and be more active
• I want to think about my future

Books Read in 2010:

• Black Rose - Nora Roberts
• Red Lily - Nora Roberts
• A Compromising Position - Carole Matthews
• Goodnight Nobody - Jennifer Weiner
• Shoe Addicts Anonymous - Beth Harbison
• Tan Lines - Katherine Applegate
• Smooth Talking Stranger - Lisa Kleypas
• Charlie All Night - Jennifer Crusie

* I also read more than half of Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer, but still haven't completed it

How has 2011 been for you so far?

Life in Review

Today is finally my birthday. I am now 23.

23.

It feels like I'm aging so quickly. Wasn't I in high school yesterday?

Feels like the perfect day to tell you my life story.

The First Year of Life

I was born early, at 11:21 a.m. on October 19th. I weighed something like 7lbs, or 8, I really don't remember. Mother was 19 at the time. Four years younger than I am about to be. How crazy is it to imagine me with a 4 year old right now? Too crazy. We lived with my grandparents, Meme and Pepe, at the time. My father was MIA and would continue to be.

I had my first Halloween and the first Christmas. Too bad I can't scan photos.

Did I mention Mom took me trick-or-treating (just to family members' houses) on my first Halloween?

Baby's first Easter:

Age 1+
I turned a year old and I was the most awesome one year old to grace the planet. True story.

One of my friends (and distant cousin), M., was at my first birthday party. She was also at my 23rd birthday party.

Here we are at the end of 2009/beginning of 2010. Have we changed much?

4 Years Old
I got a brother and sister, twins!

I also fell and hit my head on the bottom of a door in the hospital (conveniently) and needed stitches.

5 Years Old
I was in kindergarten and had my first graduation.

6 Years Old
My grandmother died. I was too young to really understand, but it was still a really sad time.

7 Years Old
I met my father and half sister for the first time.

9 Years Old
Mom got married to my (now) ex-stepfather.

11 Years Old

I got my first not really boyfriend. We called each other boyfriend/girlfriend for a week, and talked on the phone. We never met in real life until later. He was someone my best friend went to school with. We lived in different provinces at the time.

12 Years Old
Expected computers to all crash in 2000 They did not. I didn't have a computer anyway.

I moved back to my home province after spending a few years in NB. Starting a new school with kids I'd known when I was younger was weird.

14 Years Old
I began that awkward first year of high school.

15 Years Old
I got my first kiss. It was through spin-the-bottle or truth or dare, so it was nothing special.

My 15th birthday party - Me in the middle, on the floor

16 Years Old
I had my first taste of drinking. It was a perfectly pleasant time. I also had my first bad drinking experience 6 months later.

17 Years Old
I became a high school graduate in June. Moved to the big city of Freddy and on my own in August.

Started university in September. Realized a couple of months in that it wasn't what I wanted to do.

17th Birthday at school

High School graduation

18 Years Old
Got my first job. At a sandwich factory while I spent a summer living home again.

Started legal office assistant program at the local college in September.

Halloween '05

19 Years Old
I finally got my first taste at what clubs/bars were like. The very first time, I hated it. I've loved it ever since.

20 Years Old
Got a college diploma, but continued working at Wendy's. Go me!

I inherited my mother's car. Yay, my first car!

Moved back to my home island, and with my friend S. We became alcoholics together and drank every weekend.

I was blessed with the most amazing nephew ever on January 11th.

21 Years Old
I cut off my long hair. Still loving it shorter.


I met a boy. He's still sticking around to this day.

Finally got the job I'd been wanting for awhile, and thinking about going to school for. No longer need the schooling!

22 Years Old

I now live with my mother, for dirt cheap, in a tiny apartment. I have a job I love. 

Stay tuned for age 23. 

It shows a lot of promise. 

Recap: more travels, a year ago & fall TV

Tuesday, September 21

New Brunswick road trip

What was supposed to be a trip to NS for S. to get fitted for a dress, turned into a random roadtrip to NB with no real plans or destinations. We visited a couple of roadside attractions, went to the zoo, tried out Magnetic Hill (my 2nd time), visited the outdoor gym, hung out with A. for the first time in months!, went to Hopewell Rocks, had some awesome Arby's, and just had fun. Here are a few pictures. 

A. and me. Just a tiny bit windy. 

Me and my moose friend at the zoo

Pretty kitties

Otters were our favorite! 

Magnetic Hill

The Silver Fox

S. and me with penis rock at Hopewell Rocks

Thursday, September 23

It was my brother and sister's 19th birthday. They grow up so fast. 

I went out to a pub with mother and sister, where everyone drank wayy too much. We talked to lots of people, had some drinks bought for us, and made friends with the band, who stay at the hotel I work at. I was so excited when they dedicated a song to me. We talked to the guy a bit while the band was on break too. When I saw him at work the next day he even remembered mother and sister's names. 

Going out when you have to work the next morning is not a good idea though. Mom would agree with that as well. 

Friday, September 24

I felt horrible getting up for work, but I survived the day. My friend Scott was in town and stopped by to visit me at work on my last hour. When I was done we met up with B. and had supper together. The meal was great, especially being my first real meal of the day. 

Afterwards we did some quick video game and grocery shopping before Scott went home and I spent the night with B. 

He got me Playstation Move, which was hard to enjoy hungover, but still pretty cool. I was in bed nice and early that night, as we both had to work at 7:45 the next morning. 

Saturday, September 25

Thankfully, it was an easy day at work, since I was still pretty tired. But it was the last day before my sort of 3 day weekend. I was off at 4 and don't have to be back until Tuesday at 4. 

I met up with B. after work again and we played more PS Move. I rock at volleyball and table tennis, just sayin'. 

Later on we pooled our money together to get some BOGO McDonald's and some Haagen Dazs on sale. We tried vanilla almond a couple of nights ago (I LOVE it) and pralines and cream this time. He was a bigger fan of this stuff. Too bad it's regularly about $7 because I am in love. 

We watched American History X after getting back. Good, yet disturbing movie. 

Sunday, September 26

It's kind of a sad day today. It marks one year since Keith died. Although thinking about it doesn't hurt like it used to, I still miss the guy a lot. I miss our random MSN chats and taking pictures together and drinking the Captain. He really was one of the funniest people I've ever known. 

RIP Keith

On to happier things. 

I spent the morning with my love, and the afternoon with mother. 

We went to the farmer's market they were having downtown, a few cute gift/craft shops and Wal-Mart. The best place was Michael's, the craft store. I could spend millions in the store. Probably on scrapbooking supplies alone. There was so much I'd love to have. 

My favorite was the scrapbooking table and storage blocks like this one:

I would kill to have my own room just for crafts/scrapbooking. 

I also looked around the baking aisle. The materials available for making cakes is amazing. It's something else I would love to get into, but I can't afford to take on another hobby. 

I also spent some time on Good Reads today. I'm reading 'Smooth Talking Stranger' by Lisa Kleypas (bought in the Toronto Airport) and I'm really enjoying it. It makes me feel like I'm really getting back into reading. If anyone else is on Good Reads, friend me! 

One last random thought.. Desperate Housewives started tonight! I barely remember what was happening at the end of last season so I feel a bit out of it but I'm glad shows are starting back up again. I also have yet to watch Big Bang Theory's newest episode. It's waiting for me on the DVR for tomorrow. What are you guys watching this fall? 

Soon my bedtime. I'm hoping to get lots of tv and baking time tomorrow while everyone is at work. 

Hope you all had a great weekend!