Happy New Year (11 days late)

Hello!

Happy New Year! Our holiday was absolutely perfect. I really could not have asked for a better time with my friends and family. December was a stressful month for me at work because I was trying to get as much as I possibly could done before the break. I did accomplish a lot and on my last day of work I had finished most things on my to-do list which was a really nice way to start my holiday. On the last night of work we had our staff holiday party. We decided to do an organized fancy pot luck and it worked out really well. The food was amazingggg and just like the entire holiday season I ate too much food! It was all SO good though and really hard to pick just one thing - even though my intentions were good ;). The next day I started off my break with a 90 minute relaxation message and it was amazing it was so nice and relaxing and the perfect way to start a two week break (after a night of laughter and great food of course). So after that I had two weeks of holidays and my main goal for the holiday was to relax. I had not taken a break really (other than a few days here and there) since I had returned to work from mat leave in March. And let me tell you, being full time mom, full time work, doing the house stuff, running errands, getting in my workouts etc. is exhausting (even though I have a supper hubby who helps me SO much). So I spent a lot of the holidays just relaxing. The first few days I still sent Rylee to daycare full time so I could finish up Christmas stuff, get my gym time in, run some errands, and just plain relax. I am guilty of sleeping in a bit a few days (usually until 8) and taking some mid afternoon naps a few times. It was wonderful.

Sean’s work schedule was really nice too – because of the way that the holidays were it allowed us to spend a lot of family time and since Rylee was home with us all day I got to see her a lot too. It was just all around perfect. Christmas eve we had a nice dinner at home and then went to our church service. Christmas day we had time with just Sean, Rylee, and I, and then my family came over for the afternoon to open gifts and have a traditional big turkey dinner. On Boxing Day we went to see Sean’s grandmother in the morning and then we went to Kitchener to spend the day with Sean’s family. We had a really lovely time. The rest of the holidays were filled with more relaxing and doing a few things here and there but I definitely went back to work feeling very refreshed which was my main goal of the holiday so it was a complete success.

In the New Year I switched up my work out to be more challenging. I am also recording my session on paper now so that I can go back and see what progress I have made and try to do something better (more reps, more sets, higher weights etc.) over the course of the program. So far it has been really good and I am quite enjoying it! Some of the activities are quite hard which is a nice challenge and some of them are easier to create a nice balance. I have also returned to taking the stairs up at work. I aim to do it at least twice a day and they are 8 flights each time. Sometimes I get a few more sets it, depends on the day and how busy/tired I am.

Our next exciting thing is in less than a month now – we are going to Florida and the Bahamas! I am really looking forward to getting away in the middle of a cold month to somewhere that is much warmer than where I live! Rylee and I are gone for a total of two weeks. We are doing a week and a half in Florida and then ½ a week in Bahamas. Sean will be there for our first week in Florida. I am really looking forward to spending time with family, swimming, relaxing, and of course shopping!

Travel wrap up

We are finally home "for good" now. Meaning we don't have any more travel plans in the near future.

Our last few days in Florida were amazing. Friday Mel and Ryan went to Seaworld so Rylee and I did some more shopping. I bought her a few cute things/souvenirs. I was walking around the mall killing time waiting for it to open when I came across these:

They looked SO good and I was REALLY glad that they were closed so I wasn't even tempted to buy one. I think that I will plan on making these sometime in the near future perhaps at a holiday event.

I also saw this:

Paul Blart mall cop!

On Saturday we packed most of our stuff for Dave and Kathie to take with them and we then headed to Sean's cousins house for a visit and dinner. They made an amazing dinner of BBQ Chicken, asparagus, carrots, and potatoes complete with crescent rolls and baked apples. The chicken was huge and really juicy! I was in a food coma afterwards as it was all so good! Then we watched Despicable Me 2. It was a perfect way to end our time there and I was really sad to go.

Yesterday we got up bright and early and headed to the airport. The flight was uneventful and Rylee was really good. My parents and Sean picked us up and we went for dinner and got groceries before waiting the two hours in the border line up to get home. 




I got two new "treats" while in the states yesterday and they are actually REALLY yummy. Totally perfect for a little sweet something with a cup of tea. 

As soon as we got home we got Rylee ready for bed. I knew that we were going to have a bit of a struggle getting her back into her routine so I slept upstairs to avoid going up and down multiple times during the night. She did have one crying episode in the middle of the night that lasted about 30 minutes. I didn't give in to picking her up or giving her a bottle and she fell back asleep on her own and didn't wake until morning. 

So far today she has had two naps and seems to be doing quite well. I plan on sleeping upstairs for a few nights to make sure she gets back into her routine as smoothly as possible.

I have wanted to get Rylee a sock monkey for a while now and I finally found one I really liked in Florida. As you can see she has already taken a shine to it. Follow more adventures with Rylee and Socks here on my blog!

When I got home from BC and Chicago I was completely beat. I was exhausted and very frazzled. I was able to do some mental visualization in order to get back on track but I was still not feeling 100%. 

This trip to Florida was awesome. We had such a great time and other than one rough night Rylee was really good and went to everyone lots. I am excited that I came back rested and feeling GREAT. I am full of energy, have already done my meal planning of the next two weeks and am ready to go. Big difference from last trips. 

I had a really healthy lunch today too!

Tuna with lettuce on vegetable bread with apple slices, snap peas, and my energe!

Tonight the menu is Shake n bake chicken, asparagus, salad, and stuffing. I love this time of year as it is "crockpot season" and so many wonderfully yummy and healthy things come out of that! Of course I'll keep you all updated on anything that turns out stellar!

The beginning of a lifetime...

Yesterday was the wedding that we came to Florida to attend. Sean's couzin Kari was getting married so we made a family trip of it.

As I previously mentioned the weekend started off with a kick off kick ball game on Thursday night. Friday night was the rehearsal dinner. It was at a golf and country club. Rylee hadn't pooped since Sunday and we had been feeding her prunes to try to get things moving for her and no sooner had we pulled into the venue and we heard the poop. When we parked and pulled her out of her car seat --OH BOY! It was up her back, all over the car seat, it was a full blow out (and of course she was already in her outfit). So we stripped her down, cleaned her up, changed her clothes, and washed her outfit in the sink. 

When we got into the room is was SO pretty. Kari's colours were dark purple and silver sparkle, and it looks great! I wish I had gotten a picture of the centre pieces because they were SO pretty but we were caught up in talking with people. For dinner there was a salad bar, pulled pork, chicken, flank steak, mac n' cheese, green beans, and brown beans. What I had was really good:

I went back up for seconds of the salad bar because it was so good. I had a brownie made by the groom's grandmother, and it was very good. There were speeches and then the bride sang a song she had written for the groom it was pretty funny and very much the brides personality.

Saturday morning when we got up Melanie and I (my sister-in-law) went to get our nails done and then we went with our mother-in-law Kathie to all get our hair done.

The wedding was really nice and the bridal party looked great. After the wedding we went to the reception. When we got in the room is was all purple and silver sparkle and looked really nice and well done. We were all very hungry and were high anticipating the food. They had 5 food stations. Salad bar, sliders, french fry station, taco bar, and mac n cheese bar. I started at the taco bar, tried a bit of the mac n cheese, then salad, then a slider, then the fries. They had FUNNEL CAKE FRIES. Oh wow -- they were SO good. It was like a mini stick of an elephant ear. It was a great way to have a little bit of it without having a huge amount. The cupcakes were filled with frosting and they were very good as well. I didn't go way over board but between the two events my extra points are gone (it was all SO well worth it, because it was all very yummy).

                     

I had no idea how much Rylee liked music but during the dance part of the evening she was having SO much fun! She was laughing and laughing as we were all taking turns dancing with her! As Will and Kari began their life together they ran out of the hotel down a sparkler line -- super fun. Over all we had a great time. The theme was pulled together so well from the invitations to the rehearsal dinner, to the wedding, to the reception -- even the washroom was decorated with purple stuff!

                                 

                               

Today I got up and had a shower and we are going to have a lazy day before having our thanksgiving dinner. Sean leaves tomorrow to come home so we are spending as much family time as we can with him.

I'll leave you with a picture Melanie took:

Florida

Sorry for being MIA the past week or so but I was running around trying to get stuff done and didn't think to post. I have a few updates:

1. I found an add on Kijiji and went to see the guys baby stuff. I got a jolly jumper exersauser, baby swing, leap frog play table and little computer thing for Rylee all for $80. Super score! We borrowed the exact same jolly jumper from a friend and she LOVES it so I had to get it when I saw it. It was all REALLY dirty though and took me about an hour to clean and sanitize but it all looks brand new now! 

2. My sister, Tara, and I spent all Sunday afternoon making apple crisp with fresh apples and it was very yummy!

3. Rylee had blueberries on Saturday night and did a big blueberry poop on Sunday. She poops every morning like clock work but Monday...nothing...Tuesday...nothing. All the way until today! I have her a few jars of prunes and that got things going for her! You know your life has changed ALOT when you become very enthrawled with baby poop. 

4. We made it safely to Florida! We got here yesterday afternoon and went for a swim and got unpacked and settled in. Then we went to the wedding "kick off" event which was a kick ball game followed up by dinner on a patio. 

I was SO happy when it was time to go to bed because I was sleeping on an air mattress again. I love sleeping on air mattresses even more than my own bed at home. 

Today we went and got groceries (lots of healthy stuff to ensure I will stay on track) and then went for a swim again and had a hot shower. It feels nice to just kick back and relax. Plus it helps having so many extra hands to play with Rylee -- perhaps I might even take a nap one day! 

Tomorrow is the wedding and we will probably get our hair and nails done just for fun -- I can't wait to see how Kari has decorated everything! Not to mention how cute Rylee will look in her pink dress! 

I'll leave you with this photo of Rylee in the pool: