Learning to say No

I am a yes person.  I want to to please people, I don't like to disappoint or cause conflict.  That makes me a yes person.  Sometimes it gets me into trouble.

Last week I was thrilled about being back at the rink and managing Cooper's team.  I was in my element and I knew what I was doing.  This past weekend, no one volunteered for Grady's team.  I waited.  The coach sent out 3 emails begging for a volunteer. Nothing.  Finally, I responded.   I told him I couldn't do it on my own but I would help.  Two others came forward after me.  I should have kept my mouth shut.

This week I am overwhelmed.  I can't even count the number of hockey emails that are flooding my inbox and the things I have to learn about managing a Novice team.  I've had a feeling in the pit of my stomach and my chest telling me I've taken on too much.  I am overwhelmed with new responsibilities.

If you know me, I am an organizer and out of the 3, I took charge and started delegating.  The good news is I kept what I wanted to do and handed out the rest of the tasks.  Thankfully the team is full of helpers, but no one wanted to be in charge.  Sigh....  I really didn't want to be either.

I need to learn how to say no.  Not only that, I have to learn to not feel guilty about it.  I can't always be the one to volunteer when no one else will do it.  I have to stop feeling guilty if I don't want to step up all the time.  I have to learn to say no.

I am also not a quitter.  I will get through the next 9 months with a smile on my face as I manage 2 hockey teams and also act as Grady's class rep.  Next year I will do 1 of these jobs and pat myself on the back for saying no.

On a brighter note, we got our photos back, Tomie is the best, 2 days later and I get my sneak peak.  I love how they turned out.  Yes, Yes, YES!!!  For those of you that wanted to see the finished product with the dress - voila!

Happy Hump Day!

Fall Transition: White Dress

Welcome to The Blended Blog's blog hop where we are talking about transitioning summer items into fall. If you guys are stopping by from Joy or Nicole, welcome! If this is your first stop, be sure to hop on over to their blogs where Joy is talking about general fall transition and Nicole is talking about grey t shirts.

Today, I am going to be talking about bringing a white dress into fall. Back in the day, you weren't supposed to wear white after labor day weekend, but these days, people are breaking that rule all the time. White is great color to bring into your fall wardrobe by just adding a few things to 'winterize' it. Trust me, being a Canadian, I have lots of experience with winter. And snow.

A few weeks back I was on a girls trip and looking for a cobalt dress for my family photos.  You see, my husband and I celebrated our 10th anniversary this month so we turned our yearly family shoot into a bit of a celebration as well and booked the venue we had our reception at to have our photos taken.  Our wedding color was Christy  cobalt blue, so I thought that was the color we would use for our outfits.

I was on a mission.

Then, I found this dress at H&M for $10 and I scooped it up.

I loved that it was a white background (like a wedding dress) and incorporated our wedding color.  Sold!  You can also see in the above photo I have styled it for summer with just a necklace and bare legs.  Now the trick was to take this summery dress into fall.  Let's take a look at how I did it.

Add tights.  Tights automatically make us think of winter.  So cover up those legs!  It is hard to tell, but there are traces of black in the dress so black tights it was!

Then, adding a boot or bootie, instead of a sandal, will add that element of warmth to your dress.

It is really hard to see the detail in this photo, but I didn't like the detail of the booties with this dress so I went with the simpler riding boot.

My favorite thing about fall is layering.  Layer, layer, layer.  I tried it with a blue blazer and a grey sweater.

I decided to go with the blue blazer to emphasize the blue in the dress.  Although I must admit that I like the grey as well.

Next up is the scarf.  Every fall outfit needs a scarf, non?  Not to mention that  our pictures have been freezing cold every year and there is no way  I could survive without one.  Here are the options.

I really thought I was going to like white the best, but the ivory didn't match the white and I just didn't like it,  When the white didn't work, I tried the black, not expecting to like it and it turned out I liked it best.  It ties together with the black tights and boots just perfectly.  I tried the grey on just in case we have a nice day, but right now, I am leaning towards black.

Here is the final transition.

Let's break it down.  In order to bring a dress from summer to fall you should do the following:\\

1.  Add tights and boots or booties

2.  Top with a blazer or sweater

3.  Finish with your favorite scarf.

And voila - a perfect fall outfit using a white (or any) dress.

If this is your first stop, don't forget to check out what Joy and Nicole are transitioning over on their blogs.  Also, the blog hop continues next Monday where Lisa, Karen and Carrie will be telling you how to transition 3 different items.

five on friday

{one}  Grady has a hockey team!  He is on N4 white, which I think is great for a first year player.  As frustrating as the evaluation process was, I am just to proud of him and am looking forward to a year of great hockey.  He is lucky to have a friend from his class and one from preschool on his team.  Last year he knew no one.

{two}  Between Friday and Monday we have 5 ice times.  Hockey season is in full swing over here!

{three}  We have family pictures on Sunday evening and of course, both of the kids skate right before.  We have to go straight form the rink to photos and we'll be meeting there since both kids play at the same time.  Nothing like a little sweat for family photos!

{four}  I stared office yoga this week. It is very odd to do yoga with a room full of your co-workers.  Truthfully, my body needs it.  Working with the trainer is great, but I am also sore a lot.  Taking an hour a week to stretch may be just what the doctor ordered.

{five}  Last night we had our first parent-teacher interview with Grady's teacher. I was so looking forward to it since Grady is not very willing to tell us about his day.  She had nothing but good things to say and somehow I walked as room parent.  This was Grady's self portrait hanging on the wall outside the classroom.

Have a great weekend!

Go Team Orange!

Cooper was assigned to the Orange team, just like his brother last year.  What are the odds  Two years of hockey, same team both years, different kid, weird.

I volunteered to be team manager for Cooper's team.  I did it last year for Grady's timbit team and learned so much it seemed a shame to not give it another go.  I didn't realize how much I wanted to be the manager until I got the email requesting a manager and I started to worry I wouldn't get it.  Rest assured, no one else volunteered.  I may regret this decision as the season goes on.

As luck would have it, both coaches were away for the first skate, so I wanted to make sure I was there early as I was bringing the jerseys and equipment.  The plan kind went off track when James woke up with a headache and flu like symptoms which meant I was heading to the rink with both kids in tow and needed to get some team admin done.

So... while I carried the jerseys and equip, this young man dragged his own bag in.

Look at that empty parking lot at 830am!

Grady was such a big help.  While I set out all the jerseys and started to welcome all our new team mates, Grady dressed Cooper in all his equipment except the skates.  I was so proud of them both. Quite honestly, the morning could have gone quite bad but they were perfect angels.

Grady really wanted Cooper to choose number 20, his number from last year, but Cooper wanted a number to call his own and he chose number 10.

It is so adorable to see him in all his hockey gear.  He is so tiny and most likely the youngest player on his team, but he is certainly not the worst out there.  He really holds his own, all those skating lessons have paid off!  He is a little spit fire out there.

This year due to ice shortages in the city, instead of 2 teams being on the ice, there are 3.  Talk about lots of kids on the ice.  This isn't even all of them.

For most of the time they were separated by team, but they played what Cooper calls the Star Wars game right at the end.  I suspect there were almost 50 kids on the ice plus 15 coaches/helpers.  Considering how many people were out there, they ran a great practice and I am calling it a success!

Not only did Cooper have fun, but so did I.  Organizing, welcoming, chatting, and being in charge is totally my thing.  I've started to wonder how I'll do sitting on the sidelines for Grady's team.  I am already thinking about approaching the manger of his team to get a job.  I love being involved and knowing what is going on.  I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love the social aspect of hockey.  I've met so many wonderful families through sports that I look forward to getting to the rink.

While Cooper was skating, a boy that Grady skated with last year was on the ice and when I saw his mom I hugged her.  I only know her through Hockey and Soccer and when I saw her for the first time since soccer ended I was just thrilled.  Although a touch sad our kids aren't playing on the same team.

So now are season is off and running and we are expecting Grady's team any day as we have ice time for the weekend.  While my schedule is seriously out of control and will be all winter, I look forward to seeing all the friendships that we build this winter while watching our kids on the ice.

Go Orange Go!

An Everyday Hero

My sister is a hero.

Last summer, she made a trip to Calgary and spend an entire day donating her stem cell to a complete stranger.  She saved his life.

Because she had to come to Calgary for the procedure, my little family visited her and Joel at the hotel, and of course the boys wanted to go down the water slide.  To be perfectly honest, it was such a crazy water slide that the kids wouldn't go down it and I actually screamed when I went down the pitch (or pinch as Grady would say) black slide.  Both James and Joel fired out of the  slide and probably scared the kids out of going down!  My screaming didn't help either.

The day at the hospital ended up being longer than Blaire anticipated.  I learned that day that the amount of stem cell that a person needs to donate is dependent on the size of the person receiving it.  And for Blaire, her recipient needed a lot of stem cell.  We actually talked about who the person receiving it may be and we concluded it was a very large man :).

While many people probably imagine a large needle and lots of pain, Blaire describes the procedure as uncomfortable.  She was confined to the bed and had limited movement of her arms.  Joel was by her side all day getting her what she needed and even helping her use the washroom.  Was that TMI?

Sadly, Blaire and Joel have experienced loss first hand more than any young person should, certainly more than I had when I was their age, or even today.  They've lost several friends to Cancer.   A few year back Blaire was tested when a friend of Joel's family was looking for a match.  Sadly, Blaire was not a match for her, but she was contacted years later since her name and information remained in the data base.

One of their best friends also lost the battle to cancer after receiving a stem cell transplant.   So, when Blaire got the call she didn't hesitate in donating to a complete stranger in honor of her friend.

A year later, she got the chance to see what an impact she made on her recipients life.  It turned out that it was a man exactly her own age who received her stem cell and a year later, he is cancer free.  All because of Blaire.

The 'met' over email and facebook and he wrote such a touching tribute to her.  This was the caption he wrote to the photo above.

Everyone, this is Blaire. This is the woman who jumped at the chance to donate her stem cells/bone marrow to me so I didn't have to suffer from this terrible disease anymore. She quite literally saved my life, as if it weren't for her, I wouldn't be here right now. The blood that flows through our body is 1 in the same. Her husband Joel, a pro hockey player, is on the right. I cannot wait to meet her sometime later this year and personally thank her for all she has done for me and Heather. She is forever my living angel.

This single post generated over 1300 likes over 100 shares.  Her decision to donate had an impact on so many more people than just the recipient, but also his family and his friends.  He is alive today because of my sister.   I am so proud of her and Joel and know that Al would be to.

There was recently an article in the herald about Blaire's story should you want to read it. With so much negativity in the news these days I am so glad they chose to publish a story showing that there are still heroes out there.

Blaire, you are a hero and inspire us all to be better people.

five on friday

{one}  The transition to grade 2 has been seamless.  He isn't a talker, so I don't know exactly how his day goes, but I know I haven't heard anything bad.  We have our first interview next week and I can't wait to officially meet his teacher and see what she has to say.

{two}  Cooper seems to be settled into the preschool quite well now.  Nana picked him up on his first day and said he was quite happy.  A big change from the teary guy I left behind.  He even made a friend his first day and that just made my day.  I have noticed a repetition in the curriculum already, but he's young, hopefully he won't notice!

{three}  We went away for 5 days and fall arrived.  Green leaves last week, colored leaves this week.  Have I mentioned that fall is my absolute favorite season?

{four}  Is anyone else watching big brother?  I am rooting for Vanessa.  I don't necessarily like her but she played a stellar game.  When she evicted Austin in the tie vote - best move ever.  I can't say I agree with choosing to bring Liz over Jmac.  Let's be honest, a person who has already been evicted can't really win.  You can't argue that she hasn't played a good game.

{five} While we are talking about TV.... I also watched the first episode of Dancing with the Stars and have a few favorites.  Nick Carter - he can dance.  Bindi Irwin - love her personality.  Alek Skarlatos - I am rootin' for him.  He isn't a star per se but he became famous last month when he helped avert a terrorist.  I think that Julianne said it perfect when she said that he represents everyone in America who wishes they could be in his shoes.  Like me.  I've always secretly wondered if I could do DWTS.  I've even dreamt about it.  For real.

Happy Friday!

San Francisco

James and I took a mini vacay to San Francisco without the kids to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary.  It was a great trip.  We saw everything we wanted to see in the first 4 days.  So we kind of had a bonus day to end our time away.

This was the longest we've been away from the kids in a long time.  We've mastered the 2, and even 3, nights away, but somehow 5 nights seemed like a long time.  I missed the kids.  A lot.  Both James and I agreed we could have come home a day earlier.  Live and learn.

One other thing we learned was that we will never travel in September again. Ever.   I feel like we missed so much while we were away.  We missed 4 hockey evaluations between the 2 kids and a school picnic.  Everything is new and exciting for the kids right now and I wanted to share in their excitement and hear all about their days.  

Kids activities aside, we had a great time and saw as much of San Fran as we could in the days we were there.  

You'll notice that the post is lacking in pictures.  James is not a big photo taker, whether it be taking the photo or being in the photo.  It is what it is and after 10 years I'm used to it!  It allowed us to fully enjoy the moment, I guess.  

We arrived on the 10th, our actual anniversary, and booked a dinner on the bay, steps from our hotel called Scoma's.    It was supposed to be the best seafood in San Fran, we thought it was ok.  Very old school in appearance and service.  We were by far the youngest couple In there.  

Can you tell it was windy and sunny?

During dinner, we overheard  the couple beside us telling the waiter it was their anniversary.   Later in the evening I asked them about it.  The tables were that close.  They were celebrating their 26th anniversary on the very same day.  It was ironic that we happened to be sitting beside each other.  They were locales that made the trip to the bay specifically to eat at Scoma's.   We decided it must have been their second marriage because the hubby was very old.

During dinner, we answered a series of questions that we plan to open on our 15th.  I wish we would have done that 5 years ago.  I'm already excited to open up the envelope with all our answers in 5 years.  

We chose to stay right at fishermans wharf filled with lots of tourists and tourist shops.  When given the chance to stay on the water it is always what we choose.   We were right on the Main street and steps away from most things we wanted to do.  Some would say it was too many steps but we enjoyed seeing the city on foot.  I really wished we had a Fit Bit for this trip because I think we killed it on our steps!  Most active vacation we've ever had.

At dinner our first night we made a list of things we wanted to do during out stay and the number one on our lists was bike the Golden Gate Bridge.  So that is was we did our first day. 

What was supposed to be an couple hours turned into an all day event including an estimated 30k bike ride.  Most importantly, we bikes over the Golden Gate Bridge.  It was quite foggy that morning but we did get a few great shots.  

Day two we headed to Napa for a little wine consumption.  

We booked a semi private tour with a small wine tour company.   I knew there would be others with us and I just hoped they fun.  We were last to be picked up and when we hopped in and the other couples were our age I was very happy.   You never know what you are going to get!  It was a great day drinking wine and making new friends.  

Day three we headed to Alcatraz.  

I leaned a lot and now can't wait to watch Escape from Alcatraz which they said was the best movie about n Alcatraz.  

By day four we'd hit the major tourist attractions.   Since James didn't have any suggestions, I decided we would take a cable car.  James was grumpy about the $7 one way fair each.  Seriously?  You can't go to San Fran and not ride a cable car.

From Union Square where the cable car dropped us we walked to Alamo Square to see the painted ladies, aka the houses from Full House.  

I remember there being grass in the show credits, not a big dirt pile.

James wasn't excited about this stop either but to me this exact scene is what San Fran is all about.   It is from the opening credits from full house and if I didn't see these houses I knew I'd be disappointed.  I was actually surprised how many tourists were up there taking photos as it is quite a bit off the beaten path.  From there we walked all the way back to our hotel.  We covered about 20k that day we figure, including our walk to the ball stadium later that night. 

We ended our trip at a Giants baseball game.  It was a beautiful stadium and the hot dog was pretty tasty.

It was a chilly night and I did not pack appropriately for the weather so I was wearing a tank, a tee, a long sleeved shirt, a jacket, a scarf, and finally James hoodie.  How can I be Canadian and so cold all the time!  I enjoyed a yummy hot chocolate

I complained a lot about being cold.  This happened on a trip to San Diego once as well.  The temp says mid 20s and it feels about 10 degrees.   I wish I would have packed more warm clothes.  That is my biggest regret - no one is happy when they are chilled to the bone.  That brings me to my sole purchase of the trip, a winter scarf!

Another random fact about San Fran, it smelled like pot everywhere.  People just smoked it on the street, morning or night. Isn't it illegal in Cali?  No one seemed to notice much, or care.  

My favorite thing we did?  The bike ride, hands down.  I loved all the activity that balanced out all the eating and drinking we did.  What a way to see the bridge!

My final thoughts on the city?  It is very interesting.  I love the hills, the scenery, the location relative to the water, the way they promote being active with bike paths, the cafes, and the list goes on.  What I didn't like, the weather.  I'm a hot weather kind of gal.  While James would argue with me that it wasn't that bad, I was chilled to the bone.  I hate being cold.  I am so happy to have visited the city and hit up all the tourist attractions but I can't say I would rush back.  Take me to the beach please!

You may wonder what the kids were up to while we were away?  Well, grandma was taking very good care of them and getting them to school and all their activities.  She provided very detailed updates and I nearly peed my pants after reading the following text on our first full day away:

So Cooper and I went to superstore to buy a toothbrush as I forgot mine. We came out and went to the van and just my luck, I couldn't get the doors to open. The little red light came on but it was dull. What were the odds the batteries would die on me. I ask Cooper if this was the right van. He said ya that was his car seat. I lifted him up to make sure. I tried every button just hoping one would work, tried the key- nothing. We were just getting ready to walk home when I thought hey there's no scratch on this van. I turn around and right behind us is a van with the trunk open, the side doors opened and the windows down. Omg I couldn't believe it. I couldn't help laughing all day. Damn, Cooper was so convincing it was the right van. hahahah.

I was so happy that my Mom was able to spend a full week with the kids.  Let's hope she feels the same.  She really got a glimpse into our daily lives and the lively personality of our 2 boys.  I had such a great relationship with my grandma growing up I love to see the one my mom has with our boys.  Even when they fart all the time and try to lift up her shirt.  She had her hands full!

Thanks Mom - couldn't have made it work without you!  Can we book you again for next year?

The Blended Blog

Back when I was doing the style challenges, I was connected with a great group of bloggers.  We are different ages, come from all over North America, and are all at different stages of our lives.  What we did have in common was a love for fashion.  As we navigated through blogging about fashion once a week during the challenges, we realized we wanted to talk about more than just fashion, so we started doing a few topics a months outside of our normal fashion boundaries as the Style Me Bloggers.  As we did these, we realized that we have so much to say and wanted a medium where we could collaborate together.

Enter The Blended Blog.

The blended blog will be a place where any of us can write about any topic.  A place where a bunch of woman can come together and talk openly about whatever fancies them.  Fashion, fitness, recipes, home decor, parenting, anything.

I'm going to admit that I wasn't quick to commit.

I am not concerned about readership of my blog.  I blog for myself and for my family.  I enjoy blogging.  I was scared that if I committed to a certain schedule or number of posts that it would take away from the enjoyment of blogging and that my own blog would start to suffer.  It was the relationship that I have developed with some of the woman that changed my mind.  I didn't want to be left out as they embarked on this new project without me.  That, and Deena told me I had to.  Just kidding.  Kind of.

So without further a due, I introduce you to The Blended Blog.

I encourage you to pop over and check out the other contributors and read what they have to say.  I am really excited that over the next few months, one contributor will be highlighted and will answer some interview questions and then do their first blog post the following week.  What a great way to get to know all the great ladies (myself included!) behind the blog!

I hope that you enjoy getting to know the other ladies as much as I have.

Back to School #2

This is Coopers third year at the same preschool, with the same teacher, in the same class. I expected this to be a simple drop off where I try and steal a kiss before he runs in to play.

I was wrong.

I thought Cooper was ready and excited to go back to school.  Since Grady started last week, he had been asking when he got to go back.   He knew what to expect this year.   The only difference this year is that while he is returning, most of his friends have headed off to kindergarten. And apparently that was all a little difference that made all the difference in the world.

Cooper has a November birthday which left us with the difficult decision of when to have him start Kindergarten.  It is somethiing I've struggled with for years.  I really wanted the kids to be 2 grades apart like my brother and I.  I loved having my little bro at highschool with me for a year and to have us share a few similar friends.  I know that the age gap of the boys doesn't change, but somehow putting them 3 grades apart seemed to widen their age gap.

A few years back, my friend wrestled witht he same question for her december child.  She sought out advice through her blog and over facebook.  I read every comment.  There was one in particular that helped me make my decision. 

'If you could keep your child a child for one more year, why wouldn't you?'

For the first 2 years of pre-school, he was always the youngest, by delaying his debut to kindergarten, he will be the oldest in his grade for all his schooling years.  I hope to see him grow to be a leader among his peers this year and the years to come.

While I feel confident with my decision, it is still hard to see all the kids born within weeks of young Cooper head of to kinder this year.  There is still a part of me that wanted to see him head to the big school this year, and Cooper's tears this morning didn't help that.

There were absolutely no tears or talk of not wanting to go until it was time to take back to school pictures.  He started to cry and say he didn't want to go.  That is fine, the first day is stressful.  What really yanked at my heart strings was when he told me he didn't want to go to the baby school and that he wanted to go to kindergarten.

I have no idea where this came from.  He played hockey with a friend from preschool this week that went off to kindergarten, maybe he called preschool baby school?  Not even Grady has ever referred to it as baby school.  Grady is really excited for Cooper to join him at the big school.  The fact that I struggled with the decision and then for Cooper to be so upset just broke my heart.  

I really wanted to snap some back to school pics with him but his is the best I got.  He cried through the rest.

He cried on and off on the way to school saying he didn't want to go.  I took his jacket off and put his new school shoes on while he cried.

At this point I started to wonder if he was nervous about making new friends.  My social butterfly Cooper, who I never worry about making friends, may have been feeling a little shy and scared.  I pulled him aside and promised him he would make new friends.  He continued to cry.  I stood at the door and waited for his teacher to come over and bring him in.  She was tending to another crying boy. Oy.  She led him in, said he'd be OK and I left.

I barely made it to the car before the tears started to freely flow for me.  What was supposed to be such a great day for both Cooper and I did not transpire the way I'd hoped.  I tried not to doubt our decision or blame myself.

Fingers crossed, it will get better.

Fingers crossed, he will make new friends.

Fingers crossed, this was the right decision.

Sadly, I had to go to work so Nana picked him up and I just waited for the update on how he had done.  I'm happy to report that it sounds like the morning went well.  He told Nana that he made a friend named James (like him and his Dad) and was chatty while Nana treated him to McDonalds to celebrate the first day of school.  I hope that it was just a first day thing.

In my heart of hearts, I know that we are  making the best decision for Cooper.  It may be a difficult transition year for him (and us) but at the end of the day when he enters that kindergarten class next fall he will be more than ready.

10

Today James and I are celebrating our 10th anniversary.  I use the word celebrate because it really is something to celebrate.  Not everyone makes it 10 years and I am happy (and not surprised) that we did.

We are celebrating our family and friends that supported us on our wedding day and, more importantly, during our marriage.

We are celebrating the family that we have created together.

We are celebrating the house that we have made a home.

While we would love to celebrate with all those who came from near and far 10 years ago, we will be celebrating just the two of us in San Francisco.  

In honor of our anniversary I took a stroll down memory lane and pulled out a few of my favorite shots and believe it or not this is one of them.

This photo was taken on our wedding day at 6am.  I love how I woke up in the house that I still call home today while James slept at his parents house in the room he grew up in.  I love that I have my trusty water bottle with me.  That rain forest bottle was with me for many years.  Just ask my university roommates.  I  love that this is one of the last photos taken of me as a single woman.

This is also one of my favorites taken in the middle of my kitchen.  It was the calm before the storm.  There was a kitchen table just out of view of the photo filled with food and champagne that me and my maids had devoured before getting dressed.  Yet this photo shows none of that.

When I was originally preparing for our wedding, I felt like the ceremony was just a formality, and that the real fun would happen at the reception.  I was wrong.  The ceremony was full of emotion and very powerful for me.  To enter into a room filled with everyone that was important to you, from all aspects of life.  It was overwhelming.  Too see James standing at the end of the aisle... overwhelming.

James entered into the church with both his parents.  I love that he opted to this.  While some guys choose to enter with their groomsmen, I was so happy that he wanted his parents to be a part of the ceremony.  I hope that my boys will give me the same honor one day.

While many brides tear up at some point during the ceremony, I was cool and collected with a large smile plastered on my face.  I was excited and happy to become James' wife.  No tears here.  I proudly had both my parents walk me down the aisle. What did surprise me was how emotional my Dad was.  I have always loved this photo. When I look at my face I see the anticipation and excitement in my nervous smile.  If you look closely, you can see one tear that settled on my Dad's cheek.   This picture shows all the raw emotion of the day.

This is the very first photo of us as Mr and Mrs R as we walked down the aisle.  I wanted to to play the song I Feel Good as we left but that was apparently against the rules of the church.

This was one of my favorite photos of James.  He looked so grown up and sophisticated.  Looking at it now he looks like such a baby.

While we have a few traditional photos, what I loved about our photographer was her ability to capture the moment.  There were 2 items that I wanted to splurge on, the dress and the photographer.  At the end of the day, those are the only 2 things you walk away with.  That, and a husband.  We paid what seemed like a lot at the time for our photographer, but we got some great pictures considering it rained all day.  Not rained, poured.  Intense rain from sun up to sun down.  I've never heard that rain is good luck on your wedding day so many times in one day.

Thankfully we did have a backup plan and had our photos taken in the garden area of the building James worked in at the time.  I don't know what we would have done otherwise.

Here is one of my faves of our group.

I'm proud to say that these five ladies are still my best friends today.  I remember when choosing them there wasn't a doubt in my mind that  I would still be friends with them 10 years later.  I've known one since Kindergarten. I lived with two in university.  One lives just down the street from me currently. And the other used to have many sleepovers after a late night out.  Bonus points if you know which friend did what!

While the girls were busy hugging, the boys dropped their pants, literally.  I still can't believe they did that.

One of my favorite things on our wedding day was the train ride.  The day we met with Heritage Park to confirm our wedding details they asked if we wanted to rent the train for $500.  I said we'd think about it and James said yes we wanted to do that.  The first executive wedding decision that the groom to be had made.  

You see, James and his family went to Heritage Park all the time growing up and Nana now takes our kids there on a regular basis.  It is their thing.  Come to think of it, James brother got married at HP a few years later.  Many many memories.....

I digress.

When we booked the train, I had never been on it, or even to the park for that matter.  I decided that I would ride the train for the first time on our wedding day.  Well, with the rain that day, you couldn't even see out the windows!  Our wedding guests were such good sports about running in the rain with or without umbrellas to ride on the train.  I think it made our day that much more special.

I couldn't not post this picture of James.  A smile/laugh doesn't get more genuine than this!  If I remember right, this was during the toast to the groom.  James was sick on our wedding day. And we all know how men are when they are sick, James included.  I remember asking him part way through the day what he was most looking forward to and he said 'going to bed', in a non-consummating way.

This has always been my favorite picture of myself from our wedding day.  It was taken upstairs at the Wainwright hotel.  While the party was in full swing downstairs, she pulled James and I away for a few last photos.  I love the lace, I love the way she made me stand, i love the way my dress fit in perfect with the venue.

This, my friends, is my favorite picture of James and I, not only on our wedding day, but of all time.

This is the only outside photo we have that day.  We had access to all of HP and it was raining so hard that we only got this one photo.  And it is my fave.  For our 10th anniversary our family will be having our photos taken on this exact porch outside our wedding venue.  I hope to recreate this exact shot.

I remember our wedding day like it was yesterday.  There are very few days that I wish I could relive but September 10th, 2005 is definitely one of them.  As much as I loved James on that day, I love him more now.  I wouldn't change a thing about the last 10 years because that is what has made us the people, and couple, that we are today.  And I like things just the way they are.

Happy Anniversary James!

Hockey Hockey Hockey!

I have the feeling that this will be a common title through out this winter....

Since we didn't have plans for the long weekend we put Grady in a hockey tourney.  Many people thought we were crazy for choosing to spend more time at the rink, but the best part about this tourney was that they took friend requests.  So, for the first time ever, Grady got tot play on the same team as 2 of his besties from school.  And honestly, the weather was crap so it was nice to have indoor plans.

While he was happy on the ice with his friends, the rest of the family was happy to have some familiar faces in the crowd with younger siblings to play with.  Let's be honest, the littles didn't watch even a bit of hockey!

Here are my favorite team 'Edmonton' players from the weekend.

Alex, Jayden, Grady

Grady wore his orange socks from Timbits all weekend and personally, I LOVED it.  I could always find him on the ice. I told him he should wear them all season and he told me he wanted to match the team.  #itried

We had a bit of growing pains after the first game.  Last year, Grady was the best player on his team.  He scored most of the goals each game and had many breakaways.  This year he is a first year novice player and is not going to be the best and he has to accept it and get used to it, but not easy to tell a seven year old.

After the first game Grady came off in tears because he didn't get a goal and he didn't get the MVP medal.  He was trying to hold the tears back but his eyes were red and starting to water.  It broke my heart.  We explained what he needed to do to get the medal and reminded him that  he was not always going to the best.

The second game he went out with a much better attitude.

With less than a minute left in the second game, Grady got his first goal.  He was absolutely thrilled.  I had been sitting in the spectator area with the Moms and I was so excited to give him a high five as he played a great defensive game and skated hard.  I was surprised to see him sitting in the dressing room wearing the MVP medal around his neck.

 

I was so so proud of him.  

Over the course of the weekend we lost all 4 games.  They were close games.  The third game came right down to the last minute and the other team won 17-15.  Grady scored 4 goals, or so he told me.  The last game of the tourney was intense and the teams were very well matched.  Those little goalies out there worked their butts off saving goal after goal, but in the end, the other team won.  Our boys still came off the ice with smiles on their face.  Such a great weekend!

I found myself watching and even cheering.  I wanted them to win one game with every ounce of my being because I knew how much it would mean to them.  They worked hard and took every loss is stride.  If that doesn't show a love for the game then I don't know what does.

After the positive experience we had this weekend  I can't wait to be assigned to the kids teams and to start to get to know the kids and parents. That is who we will be spending the winter with after all!

Here is a little snippet from the last game as Grady takes off on a breakaway (in the orange socks).

Havoc from Christy R on Vimeo.

It wasn't only Grady who played hockey this weekend.... After we wrapped up Grady's tournament, we headed back to the rink last night to kick off Cooper's Timbit season.   

Isn't he the cutest little hockey player ever?

Our little Cooper is not yet 5 years old, not in Kindergarten, but that boy can skate!  He chose to play Timbits hockey over a development program like he did last year because 'he wanted to be part of a team'.  That is SO Cooper.  He is such a social butterfly.  While Grady is motivated to score and be the best, I think Cooper will be more motivated by the relationships and social aspect of the game.  Like his Momma.

One of his best little preschool friends happened to be on the same ice time of us and they spent the whole hour doing the drills and chatting.  He was thrilled.

So if you are looking for us from 430 to 530 one evening this week, you'll find us at the rink cheering on Cooper at his camp.  

Overall it was a great weekend and I am sad to see it come to an end.  

A Girls Trip... in Numbers

Today I am linking up with Dee to recap my month  girl's weekend in numbers.

The second leg of our girls weekend had us heading to the mountains - Watch out Banff... here comes trouble!

Us SIX girls, crammed into ONE big truck full of our FORTY SEVEN shopping bags.

ONE of us (me!) got nominated to sit b*tch in the truck for the weekend.   Per my mom, it also means sitting at the back of a motorbike.  I always thought it meant sitting in the middle between the driver and the passenger.

SEVENTY minutes later and we arrived at our hotel with THREE queen beds to fit all SIX of us.

With SIX girls, SIX suitcases, and FORTY SEVEN shopping bags, our room was ONE big mess.

Carmen took ONE selfie with this bear, but looked for bear paraphernalia for her THREE kids all weekend.

Deena confiscated my phone when I wasn't looking and took SIX selfies, these are the best FOUR.

At least THREE instances of photo bombing occurred.

Not hard when you take a THOUSAND AND ONE selfies over the course of FOUR days.

I think this ONE is my fave because the mountains are in the background.

But there are at least SEVEN selfie pics with Deena's head in the front.  She is the selfie queen. Here are TWO more.

This ONE was taken with our selfie stick.  A photo with SIX Banff Tshirts.  We all wanted to get the same ONE, but we agree on the same one.

Alynne and I got the same one.

Deena and Carmen got the same ONE.  Notice that it is of ONE bear taking a selfie. Totally appropriate for our trip.  Looking back, maybe all SIX of us should have gotten that shirt.

FOUR Beaver tails were consumed.  Or Queue de Castor if you are Deena or french.  I had never seen ONE before, maybe next time I'll get one because they were super yummy.  Alynne and I had TWO of my favorite homemade turtles.   Yummy. 

Approx. THIRTY coffees were consumed.  Often times multiples times a day.  

SIXTY SEVEN minutes waiting outside stores for everyone to gather out front.  We did not leave one tourist store unturned.

ONE trip to the spa that lasted over THREE hours included at least THREE couples making out in the hot tub, ONE celebrity spotting (Kim Coates from sons of anarchy per Carmen),  being caught in the rain THREE times, and ONE selfie to capture the moment.

All in all a great weekend.  Already looking forward to next years trip in NINE months.  I am lucky to have such great friends.  Every year I appreciate them and our weekend away more.