Erik.

Just a wee little post.

Erik, my beloved, handed in the last paper of the first quarter of his Masters on Monday night.

I cannot even begin to tell you how proud I am of him. He has worked so hard every single day since the quarter started in September. Every single day. I am amazed at his determination and perseverance and incredibly proud of the work he has accomplished. He works 30 hours a week as a case worker at a local establishment and he spends even more time studying. He's been known to read textbooks on his breaks at work. Erik gets a much deserved month off before jumping into the next quarter (in which time he is hoping to read ahead).

We went to the Hunger Games on Tuesday night to celebrate (and sat a row apart because the theatre was full).

He knows how proud I am as I tell him every day, but I thought he deserved some bragging so here I am. My husband is the best.

A List.

A list. It is all I can muster at present.

• Pumpkin Pancakes are delicious. I have made them twice in the last week and devoured them much quicker than anticipated (I like to take them to work). I used a different recipe each time and both were great. I am on a quest for the most delicious pumpkin pancake recipe now.
• We have rekindled our obsession with coconutty-chocolately-almondy-joy. We have also made a variation sans almonds and with peanut butter. Yummmmmmmm. I freeze them in ice cube trays, pop them out, and store them in the freezer in a container where we snack on them once a day frequently. 
• Our computer crashed. We brought it in for data recovery. We lost most of the photos we had on the computer… which was a lot of photos. A lot. I'm ok with losing most of them but… we lost the photos from our trip. Yup, I said it. We had backed up our photos online until Scotland, but the internet in SE Asia was terrible so we didn't do it there. Yup, we are silly because I didn't do it the instant we got home but, in my defence, we had them on both the camera card and the iPad until I put them on the computer. Then we had them on the iPad and the computer until we updated our operating system at which point there wasn't enough memory so we had to delete them. At which point I should have backed them up, but I felt a false sense of security in our trusty Macbook. And so my heart dropped through the floor and I almost puked when Erik informed me that our computer crashed. To make a long story short … it is terrible. We are sending the hard drive to the coast and paying a pretty penny in the hope that at least some of the photos from the last four months of our trip can be recovered. And no, I don't need to hear "I told you so".
• To be honest, our computer crashing kind of took the wind out of my sails.
• I started knitting again. Hallelujah. It is therapeutic and lovely. I knit some cowls for a friend's kids. They are pretty adorable. Who would have thought that cowls were a good idea for kids, but aren't they? You don't have to worry about scarves falling off. Think about it. 
• Erik finished the first quarter of his Masters. This deserves a post of its own, but I will toss in a little shout out here. He is something like 1/12th done the program now!! He has been working so hard and I am incredibly proud of him. 
• One of the reasons I haven't blogged (other than my computer crashing) is because Erik has been monopolizing the computer for the past couple months. He seriously works so hard. He comes home from work and does homework until he goes to bed. Or he wakes up and does homework until he goes to work, depending on the shift he has. It's amazing. 
• I am heading to Vancouver this weekend to finally do the Doula Course. As you all know, I love birth and this is really just making things official. I don't really plan on being a doula-for-hire, but hope to continue volunteering my services to dear friends of mine.
• My brother is in town for the night so we are heading to my parent's to visit and eat homemade butter chicken -- yum. 
• Erik just walked in the door and we should head over there now.

Have a wonderful night!

More Family Photos.

Sorry to inundate you with photos, but I love them! I have a pretty wonderful family and I'm excited about the photos we had taken so I want to share them. Here are a few of the individual family photos.

Sharlene's Family. 

Jessica (20), Christopher(10), Brian, Sharlene, Zachary(12), Kaitlyn (18).

Anthony's Family.
Hailey(3), Anthony, Jenn, Jordyn(22 months).

Lindsey's Family.

Avery (15 months), Adrian, Peyton (15 months), Lindsey.

Zachary's Family.
Colton(2 months), Zachary, Heather.

And because they're cute. 

Mom and Dad.

Photo Credit: flyphotographybc.com

my family

We had family photos done this Thanksgiving. We were all supposed to be home, but a sister-in-law and a nephew were unable to join us for the festivities. We went ahead with the photos anyway because who knows when we will all be together again? I can't even remember the last time we were all together.

Here are a few photos.

Everyone who was there.

Without the Grandchildren.

The nuclear family.

The boys.

The girls. Missing a sister-in-law.

And the siblings.
(Zachary, Jonathan, Justin. Lindsey, Anthony, Sharlene, Benjamin, Me, Joel)

Photo Credit: flyphotographybc.com

Thankful.

I am sitting in the corner of my living room. From where I sit I can see most of my house and I realize it has become my home. I didn't think it felt like home, but it definitely does.

I can see out five different windows from here and yellow and orange leaves greet me on the other side of each one. It is lovely.

I see small piles of things that need to be put away -- that need a home of their own -- but they don't seem to bother me in this moment.

I have a bathroom to clean, a spare room to set up, and myself to dress, but that doesn't bother me either.

Right now, in this moment, I am thankful. Kelowna is about to be bombarded with Jansens and, though I will still be thankful, I won't have much time to reflect on my gratitude so I am squeezing a moment in now.

I sometimes can't believe this is my life. I never would have imagined this and yet it is better than anything I could have dreamed.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours from me and mine.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

*** *** *** ***

...

First of all, Happy Birthday to my dear sister-in-law, Shawna!!! You are one of my favourite people in the entire world and I am so so lucky to have you in my life. I love you and miss you constantly.

Secondly, the pumpkin patch. I went with Lindsey and the girls today and they l.o.v.e. loved it. Peyton was bold as brass and said hello to the donkeys and pigs, the girls spent an entire hour playing in the corn box and Linds and I sipped on yummy drinks and enjoyed the sunshine. It was definitely a good day.

Thirdly, I am finally getting around to rearranging my living room/setting it up at all. I feel as though a huge weight has been lifted off my chest and I actually want to spend a bit of time in there. All I have really done is arrange the furniture in a moderately cozy manner and brought the bookshelves in to make a "book nook" but it is incredible the difference it makes. I still have a giant bare wall staring me in the face and stressing me out, but in time it too will be transformed into something lovely.

Fourthly, I have been wanting to knit something fierce lately and haven't had any inspiration. At the pumpkin patch a friend asked if I could knit some cowls for her boys so I am off to buy yarn tomorrow to do the same. She lit a spark that I hope to fan into a full-blown flame as I hope to hunker down and knit myself silly in the coming months. Any other requests?

Fifthly, I forgot how much work school is. Erik is working so hard and I am incredibly proud of him. I forgot just how much of your life it consumes... each and every spare moment. Chatting with him about his courses makes me miss institutional/organized learning.

Sixthly, I am taking a doula course next month so I can be a properly certified doula. I was going to take it next weekend, but we have opted for a visit to the coast to visit the in-laws. I take it the end of November and I am excited to become legit. My love of the birth process is no secret and I am finally biting the bullet and making it official. So, if you know of anyone who needs a doula in the coming months let me know! I need to attend three births before I am officially certified and they need to be after the course is complete.

And seventh, Thanksgiving is just around the corner. The Jansen family will be congregating in Kelowna as has been the tradition the last few years. I am excited to see them all come, but sad that I will be working the entire weekend. I start a set of 2 days and 2 nights on Saturday, though I did take Sunday off so as to not miss out on all the festivities. It should be a lovely weekend.

Nori's First Sleepover and a Visit from Heidi

Elinor and Maelle came for a sleepover a few nights ago -- Elinor's first sleepover! I was expecting to pull an all-nighter, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much we all slept. I went to bed at 8:00pm right after I put Nori Joy down thinking she would wake me up by 11:00pm so I was surprised when 5:00am rolled around without a peep from her. I actually made Erik check on her at midnight when he came to bed because I was worried about her being so quiet. She didn't make a sound until 5:45am and she quickly fell asleep after eating. She slept until 9:30am. I have super powers when it comes to making babies sleep -- that or my house is enchanted.

Middle of the night cuddles... It has been a while since I've had the chance to snuggle with a wee one in the early hours of the morning. Nori is 10 months tomorrow so she isn't even wee, but she still needed me and happily cuddled her sleepy body into mine.

We baked muffins in the morning and Maelle drew a picture for Sawyer. I told her I would mail it in a few days, but when I turned around Maelle was already at the door with her boots on waiting patiently. I scrounged up a too-small envelope and we marched to the nearest mailbox in our pajamas.

A dear friend from college came to visit this past week. I haven't seen her since my wedding and it was wonderful to catch up and spend some time together. It was as though we'd never been apart -- we picked up right where we left off. We baked cupcakes, ate delicious food, walked around downtown, and stayed up much too late. I needed some girl-time so the visit was well-timed.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

*** *** *** ***

of garlic lemonade and other things.

I'm not feeling so hot. I think I came down with a bit of cold when I took a swig of a friend's cider. I was warned as three sick individuals had already sipped from the same rim. I boldly proclaimed that I was a nurse and we have rock solid immune systems. I was proven partially wrong as I have a persistent tickle in the back of my throat and my nose decides drip on occasion. It isn't bad, but I'd rather have no throat issues.

When I became aware of my bothersome throat upon waking I decided to visit my SIL's blog as she oft posts natural remedies and I have a night shift looming ahead of me that I want to be in tip top shape for it. I brewed me some Garlic Lemonade and I may have put in too much honey and lemon juice, but I am sipping just the same and praying that it is as soothing as Shawna promises. It is warming me up, if nothing else, and I appreciate that in and of itself.

Fall came quickly to these parts. It has been cold. And wet. And miserable. I don't mind it, but I am already contemplating turning the heat on in the house. I know it is only September, but it is currently 13 degrees in my house (55 degrees for those of you South of the border) and that is less than optimal.

I made this recipe for Roasted Butternut Baked Penne. All I can say is YUM. Erik and I both enjoyed it. I didn't even put in mascarpone or bacon and it was still delicious. And I put in a little extra milk because I don't like things too thick. Seriously though -- you should definitely try it. Yummy.

Speaking of milk. We have been drinking raw milk lately and it is delicious. Well, I don't drink milk, but I have cereal with milk and I use it in my chai tea and I bake with it and I love it.

I have a friend coming to visit on Monday! I have not seen her since my wedding day and I cannot wait!! She is out from Manitoba so I am now dreaming up fun things to do with her. I'm not even worried about the weather as I could use some time sitting on the couch, sipping on tea, and catching up. It will be so so nice to see her again. She just told me this morning that she is in the Lower Mainland -- she was hoping to surprise me, but realized it would be too difficult as she had no clue what my schedule was. As I said, I cannot wait!

Beyond that I have yet to unpack half of my house. Our living room is empty and the spare room is full of books and guitars... on the floor. One day I will be motivated to get those organized -- they are proving too overwhelming at present.

And that is that.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

*** *** *** ***

quickly

My ride is coming to pick me up any second so this will be incredibly brief. I don't have much to write but I find my desire to return to these pages lessens as I neglect them more and more. And I love looking back at what I have written in the past so I am forcing myself to take three minutes to write something.

If I had copious amounts of money I would buy myself a blanket warmer. We have one at work and it is heaven sent at 03:00 when you are shivering and slightly disoriented. I love me a warm towel when I come out of the shower (I have been known to bribe Erik into getting one fresh out of the dryer for me on occasion) and yes, a dryer is wonderful, but a warmer constantly stocked with blankets -- that would be delightful! Warm blankets on demand. Yes, please!

I'm going to a conference tomorrow. Then heading to work after to finish my shift, but that's ok. There may be some educational opportunities for me in the near future... outgoing education, not incoming. It may involve traveling IH wide to help roll out a program we have been using for the last year or so. I am nervous, but a little bit excited. It will be an experience, that's for certain. I don't have much information on what is expected of me, but I'm hoping to get some soon.

I miss Mandi and her family. Lots.

Maelle and Elinor are coming for a sleepover next week!

I hate packing lunches. And we have been re-learning how to cook. We've been home for almost three months (yoinks!) and we are still learning. I was amazed at how much I forgot about daily life while we were away.

We have one car. Our places of employment are a seven minute walk apart which would be brilliant except we both do shift work -- I work 7-7 and Erik works 7-3 or 3-11 or 8-4. This means a lot of driving, some busing, and car pooling for me the few days I can. It is only a 15-20 minute drive to work, but I was spoiled when I lived a stones throw from the hospital so that seems like clear across town (it is, in fact, clear across town).

Gotta go.

celebrating our fifth anniversary.

Erik and I went on a mini vacation to celebrate our fifth anniversary. I can hardly believe it has been five years already, but it has and we spent a couple nights at Harrison Hot Springs to celebrate. We planned it a few days before we went -- a last minute deal easily convinced us.

The holiday was all-to-brief, but it was wonderful. We only had one full day in Harrison and we decided to go on a hike. We did was is unofficially known as the "Harrison Grind". It rained a wee bit but we spent most of our time in the forest. Apparently Erik didn't get the "I'm planning on doing a hike memo" so he only had jeans to hike in. We only hiked for 4.5 hours instead of doing the full thing, but we did the hardest part and got a lovely view from where we ended so it was well worth it.

We didn't do much aside from hiking. We slept. We lounged in the pools. We swam laps. We ate delicious food. We enjoyed being just the two of us again. It has been a while and after almost seven months of constant companionship I was really missing my husband.

Can I just say that I love buffet breakfasts? Like really really love them. I always eat way too much, but how can you not with unlimited bacon?? Yummmm.

fort st john.

My dear friend, Mandi, and her family moved to Fort St. John on September 1st.

It broke my heart to see them go.

Mandi is my person. She is my go-to... my support... my encourager... my buddy. She is the one that I spent most of my time with and I sorely miss her. I have thankfully been incredibly busy since her family moved away, but I spend much of my down time wishing they were around.

We threw a farewell party for them which would have been much more enjoyable if it was a yay-you're-staying-here party. It was still fun. Our entire church showed up along with much of Kevin and Mandi's families. It was lovely to celebrate their family and what they mean to all of us. And to remind them that they have all of us rooting for them and loving them.

I am hoping to go visit in December. Woohoo! Who doesn't want to go to Fort St. John for a holiday? It seems so very far away. And it is, but it will be here before I know it.

Mandi moved up north. So that happened.

quick photo update

August began with a birthday for these two -- I can't believe they are already one! I suppose missing half of their first year made it pass by much more quickly. We had brunch and a cake smash to celebrate Peyton and Avery's first birthday.

The day after their birthday we headed down to Western Washington to visit Erik's family and attend the wedding of a friend. Little Miss was the flower girl as her uncle was getting married. She was adorable (as always).

After the wedding Maelle joined us at my in-laws and camped in the backyard with us.

Erik's grandparents were in town so we got to spend some time visiting with them. I haven't seen them in a few years so it was nice to catch up again.

On the way home from Washington we stopped to visit an old friend and to meet a new friend... his new friend. We stayed longer than anticipated but it was fun to catch up with Joel and to get to know Brianna.

And that is about as much energy as I have post-night-shift.

Erik and I are heading to Harrison Hot Springs for a couple nights -- I cannot wait!! I feel as though we have hardly seen each other lately. The weather is supposed to be terrible, but we'll have a good time anyway. 

still here.

I wasn't planning on taking a month away from this space, but August proved to be an exceptionally busy month.

We moved into a new place on August 1st and I haven't spent an entire day home yet because we have been here, there and everywhere. I have many things to unpack and organize, but setting up the house has been on the back-burner all month.

I do plan on posting a proper update soon, but here's a list of a few things August entailed:

- moving.
- a first birthday.
- a wedding and a trip to Western Washington.
- a short visit with an old friend and a new friend.
- a few sleepovers at my house with some little people.
- rock climbing.
- a visit from my newest nephew and his parents. 
- packing and cleaning a friend's house.
- a fifth anniversary.
- a pregnancy announcement or two (not mine).
- a farewell party.
- a trip to the fair.
- and a dear family moving to Fort St. John.

It has been an emotional month... I feel I haven't had two seconds to breathe. I have been trying to enjoy each moment and to be present with each individual I have spent time with.

I am still here. Still alive. And still planning on updating a bit more in a bit.

Enjoy your long weekend. 

{this moment}

{this moment} - A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

*** *** *** ***

Colton.

We spent 16 hours visiting my brother, sister-in-law, and the newest member of their (and our) family. It was a last minute decision, but the 3.5 hour drive was well worth it.

I am a crier. I always have been and I suspect I always will be. I am most easily reduced to tears when I am feeling particularly happy, love-full, and/or proud. It came as no surprise that I met my nephew with salty discharge impairing my vision.

I was struck by how tiny Colton was as I approached him. His general size was really all I could make out due to lack of visibility, but it seemed shocking none-the-less. I was eventually able to make out the features of his tiny face -- he is cute! So very very sweet.

I snapped a few photos (who could resist) and enjoyed his perfect babyness. The way he smelled. His perfect little pouty lips. His tiny squeaks. And his post swaddle stretch. And his unbelievably soft skin. Mmmmmm, I love babies.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

*** *** *** ***

Meeting the Mister.

Erik and I made a last minute trip to the coast to meet Colton Garrit -- our newest nephew. We will be away from Kelowna for less than 24 hours, but the trip has already been well worth it. I got off work at 07:00 yesterday so I haven't slept in over 36 hours, but these midnight cuddles make everything ok. Mama is off to bed while I settle the boy. We leave for home in six hours so I plan on savouring each moment with the fella. He is pretty perfect, this nephew of mine. I love him oh so much. Oh so very very much.