RemodelingLessons.

This is a list of what I learnt when remodeling our apartment, mainly a list of things not to do. Yes I had to learn the hard way.

1. Taping correctly is key, or you end up with a white door and orange all around your door knob.

2. If it says to only leave the tape on for however many days. Do it. I left it on for weeks more then it said and in the end it was crispy pulling it off.

3. Do not finish your trim prior to the flooring guys come in. They are jerks and will ruin your trim and your door frames and your walls for that matter. Can you tell I am not impressed. Who leaves huge holes in peoples walls?

4. Do not mix the left over paint to paint an accent wall, because in the end you will need to buy more paint and that colour does not exist, nor do you need an entire quart of that colour you painted the small wall.

5. Do not let your husband who just wants to get it done sand the walls. He will rush, you will see it after.

6. Do not turn down help. For weeks I went it alone. I spent forever sanding and prepping and turned down offers for help left right and centre. The husband however thankfully did not. He managed to paint the entire apartment in two and a half weekends. I was impressed and thankful.

7. Do not clean your paint brushes in the sink or bath tub if they are missing their finish. Your tub will look like ours, paint stained and dirty. Huge mistake we learnt the hard way.

8. Paint costs more than I ever imagined! Be prepared. It also takes a lot more work then it looks.

So now we are about 90% finished the renos, so once it is actually clean and the bathroom is finished next week I will post an update with pictures. It is so nice to be able to relax again now that the major tasks are completed.

GymnasticsTakeTwo.

This was Little Miss' second week of gymnastics (You can read about the first week here) and with her parents currently in the middle of moving I was called to participate. So Little Miss and I got our gymnastics gear on and headed out in this crazy warm weathered January night for a night of gymnastics.

Let me just tell you straight up, I have a new found respect for any parent who participates in something like this. Last week I had fun watching as my brother lost Jemma as she took off like a banshee across the gym, this week however it was a little most stressful as I was the one chasing after her. Last week both my brother and sister in law were out of on the floor with her to keep her from running off and getting back hand springed on, this week it was just me. Lets just say after I lost her in the first two minutes I stepped up my ninja skills and we did not have another runaway incident.

This week the class grew from two to six so it was a little adjusting to the idea of waiting our turn, which was hard because Little Miss seamed to have remembered how much fun it was last week and wanted to go-go-go. So we did have a melt down over the fact that we had to wait our turn to run down the trampoline, but that was quickly forgotten. Also, Little Miss is used to getting me to run after and she loves to be chased. As a result she kept trying to run away and was looking back making sure I was following as she took off. This added another level of difficulty for me.

So lets just say that by the end I had worked up a sweat. It was so much fun and I am so glad I was able to go with her. Also, if you ever get the chance to jump on a gymnastics floor, do it, such a cool thing.

Crochet.

I love this.

Source

And this.

Source.

However we are trying to save money and I love keeping busy while relaxing so I figured I would attempt to teach myself how to crochet.

I watched this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqca00LdmAc
And got a few books from the library. So armed with some yarn and a crochet hook I set off to learn to make it for myself. Lets just say it is harder then it looks. After making a lot of things that look like this.

I finally had some success. I found the hardest part keeping it an equal width, so in the end I purposefully made it narrow and then wider to cover up my mistake.

My first attempt that was at least the right shape. 

The edging is the hardest part for me. 

I love this blanket. I cannot wait to finish it.

I love it and I love to crochet. I am currently working on a blanket  and have bought yarn when it was on sale for a number of different projects including a baby blanket for a friend. I hope to learn more and eventually if I could make hats and mitts I think my life would be complete. For now however I am content with what I am doing and I am pretty sure everyone I know is getting a blanket for Christmas next year. I adore sitting in front of the television at night and crocheting for hours. I can get a surprisingly large amount done per night. I am so happy with my new hobby and that I was actually successful in achieving my goal. It is an activity I highly recommend  It took me about ten tries and maybe five hours to feel comfortable with what I was doing. It is certainly worth trying.

Babysitting.

Confession. I love to babysit. If I could make it a full time job, I most likely would. I think I would love to be a nanny, and if I was single when I graduated from university I would most definitely have been on a plane to a foreign country to be an au pair.

For now however I have settled for spending as much times as possible with my niece. I love watching her grow up and as she learns new things all the time it warms my heart. Most recently she has actually started calling me 'Auntie'. Nothing makes me happier to be honest.

I feel like I love babysitting so much because we are not quite ready for children of our own, so it keeps me in check. I get to play with and cuddle with an adorable little girl, but at the end of the day when I am exhausted and dirty, I can go home and not worry about her any longer.

One of my favourite things about babysitting is planning activities. I love keeping her busy and entertained. We take trips to the Early Year Centre (even walking on nice days), we have made play dough and bathtub paint, gone on walks and bike rides and trips to the park. Even if its just going out and running errands, I love keeping her busy.

So that is my confession, if I could I would babysit. Most likely once we have kids, and once we have a house and etc. I would most likely consider babysitting full time as a way to feasibly stay home with our kids. Growing up my mother babysat and I loved having her home, I also loved that there were always kids around. We were always doing something from swimming at the local pool or church group activities I loved that we were busy and together.

For now however I am content spending as much time as possible babysitting Little Miss and any other offers I happen to get.

Gymnastics.

Yesterday night little miss had her first gymnastics class and I was so excited!

In preparation for her first class I wanted to get her a new gymnastics leotard. I looked around and found her size, however with the cost of it I quickly concluded we would see how it went and it would make a fantastic birthday present. The plus side is that they are size 3/4. She is currently a size 2 so I think it will be able to last a long while if she actually sticks with gymnastics.

While shopping I was opened to a world I never really knew, but as of late have been very fascinated by. A world of dance and gymnastics and figure skating, a world with pink and sparkle and glamour, and this makes me all the more excited to have girls one day. I grew up in a completely different world. I was a tomboy so my childhood consisted of hockey and soccer and playing with the boys.

As a result of being a bit out of my element a few items that the dance store sold shocked me in terms of modesty. They had outfits that consisted of a bikini top type top and mini short bottoms. The fact that this is available for older kids I have come to term with. I watch dance moms, I understand the comfort and the freedom of dancing in that, however when it gets smaller it seems to cover less and be even more inappropriate to me. What I do not understand however is why is this available for toddlers? I do not even know if my niece's diaper would fit into the shorts and I understand that she does not have anything too cover up, but I have never seen less material. Needless to say I also left that at the store.

Picture this, but significantly less material. Cute, but not for a 1.5 year old.

I was very excited to be able to go and watch Little Miss's first class. I was also very excited to step into a gym for the first time since I was about 5 (I lasted one year, I was younger then everyone and remember the uneven bars frustrated me). Now however, I wish I never quite. Gymnastics is easily my favourite Olympic sport and as of late I have been reading a number of gymnasts biographies. Plus I had an obsession with the tv show Make it or Break it until it sadly got cancelled, but that is another story in and of itself.

She is only 18 months so it is very much so a parent and tot kind of thing. Little Miss loved it, even if most of the time she was just running around laughing. She resisted things at first, but after that she kept asking for 'More Done', which is a combination of 'More Peas' and 'All Done', but when she then ran to the beginning of the task it was clear she was going for the first one and more then excited to try again.

Little Miss learnt to barrel roll and even walked across the beam all by herself. It was wonderful to see and she even kept looking up at me saying 'Auntie' to make sure that I was watching. It was wonderful watching Little Miss having fun, but it was also a lot of fun watching the other older kids practicing.

So I am excited to see if Little Miss grows to love the sport of gymnastics and I hope that at least she keeps having fun while there because to be honest, that's what it is all about.

Forever

June 18th, 2011

This is the date that I officially started on a journey of forever with the love of my life. This is the day that we planned for a year, that we thought about for two and that we in many ways prepared for, for five. This is the day that I became a wife and married my best friend. To think that we are quickly approaching two years of marriage is mind boggling to me. It feels like just yesterday that we were planning and preparing for the day, and not that long ago that I was dreaming of being able to do so on the long car rides to and from school with one of my best friends.

Brent had just graduated university and I was unemployed. Money was tight and this is how we planned our dream wedding on a budget of $12000, and came in well under at just under 10000. (my advice, never let money stand in your way of a dream wedding, we could have even been cheaper if we wanted, but there were certain compromises I did not want to make.)

We wanted a very personal, elegant wedding and to be surrounded with those that we love. We had the ceremony at our home Church in Chatham and the reception at the Florence Community Centre in Florence. We planned everything ourselves and with some help from friends and our wedding party we were able to complete a number of DIY projects that made the wedding perfect.

We made all of our own stationary from save the dates, to invitations and menu's. This alone saved significant cost as the cheapest a simple program can be purchased for example is 1$, and we managed to make ours for simply the cost of paper and a printer. We had the ladies group from a small country church cater the wedding, which resulted in fantastic local food at a low price and the knowledge that all the profits went back to the church. A friend gifted us the cake, we did the majority of decorations ourselves including the centre pieces and napkin rings. And our bombardier was bags of cookies that various family members and friends had made.

Brent made and designed the programs. They were a tri fold type program with our 'signature shape' cut out of the front. So the top folded up and then there were two pieces with information side by side.

The church was decorated by the Maid of Honours mother and looked exactly how I dreamed it would.

Through wedding planning I started my love and obsession for peonies. Although hydrangeas was the 'signature flower' I had to have peonies in my bouquet. I loved it! For the bridesmaids bouquets I went with a simple bunch of hydrangeas which cut the cost significantly. Then the flowers at the reception were arranged by my cousin so we just paid a per stem fee. 

We had friends pray for us and perform music which added a personal touch and also saved us a bit of money. (they were awesome!)

We followed the ceremony with family pictures which was hectic and so much fun. 

And now is the part when I can not narrow down my favourite pictures and add a bunch. We had a wonderful time with our wedding party driving around taking pictures in our bus. The bus was a splurge  but so much cheaper than a limo and a way for the wedding party to stay together during the trip. We started the pictures off with a refreshing stop at McDonald's  I don't think I have been there in years before this, but it only seemed a fitting location to visit when in a wedding dress. The tree that we are in front of has actually been called 'the kissing tree'. It is located across the street from my Grandma's house, in my second cousin's backyard. A number of my aunts and cousins have had wedding pictures taken in front of it and we even used to have family pictures taken here. It was wonderful that we could be part of the tradition. The red barn also has sentimental meaning as it is my Grandma's neighbor. 

The reception hall was decorated with the help of a number of people, the wedding party, my mom, and even the photographer and her mother (she also happened to be the Matron of Honours sister, so its not that weird). The decor took much longer then anticipated and the boys were actually there until after midnight adding the final touches. In the end there is not much I would change, I loved it all. 

A friend of mine made the cake. It was her first and she did a fantastic job. I loved it!

We made the seating chart. Each table was named after the location that the picture was taken. (this is all I would have changed, outlining the shape that said 'Brent & Stephanie' in eggplant, but oh well.)

A closeup of the seating chart.

The head table. I bought silver chargers for $1 (and then resold them for the same), and made the napkin rings out of wire and beads.

PlusSize.

To me this has always been a bit of a dirty word. No one wants to be called plus size. It has such terrible images associated with it. It is like being different, and hence they need to label the clothing as such.

I am finally ok to admit, I am plus size. I have as far back as I can remember been plus size. The smallest I remember being was a size 12 in high school. Looking back I feel like I looked amazing  at the time however, not so much. I have always had to go to the back of the rack to find something that fit. There were always a number of fashion styles that simply did not work for me. Trying on pants often ended in frustration and giving up or setting with the only pair in the store that fit.

I hate feeling limited with the clothing I wear. Recently I have decided to attempt to find clothing in an actual plus size store. That was probably the biggest mistake I have ever made. If I was fifty or lacked a fashion sense these stores or sections of stores might work. They attempt to meet the current fashion but it simply does not translate appropriately  Then if you add in that everything in those stores costs twice as much as else where I typically leave even more frustrated then I started.

To be honest, there isn't much I would not give for a store that had clothes I like that actually fit. To not have to try and shove myself into clothes that clearly do not fit. I know I need to lose weight, it is something I have been thinking of for a while and I will eventually be making some drastic changes to accomplish this. However, I am a realist. In high school I was on a number of sports teams, went to school, worked part time, had a social life and was constantly on the go. I will never be in better shape then I was at that time, and even then I was still what the world considers plus size.

So my goals are to get healthy again, I do not care if I drop pant sizes or not, as long as I feel good and to also find decent looking plus size clothes. To find pants that fit perfect and to buy multiple. So if you have any suggestions on wonderful plus size places to shop I am more then open to try them out. Currently my successes have been with OldNavy.ca. Mainly online shopping as I can send them back for free, but it is still frustrating to order and try on ten pairs of pants to keep only one.

Applications.

I hate job applications. I hate writing cover letters, I hate fixing up my resume and I hate applying to a million and one jobs and hearing nothing in response. I hate the waiting and deciding and the discouragement. I hate it all.

So yes it is that time again, my contract is coming to an end in a few months and I have gone into job application overdrive. Do not get me wrong, until I have a permanent full time job that I enjoy, the job application process never really comes to an end, I just now feel the crunch. I am currently thankful that it is like Christmas on the Conservation Ontario website, so I am excited to see if I actually hear back from the number of resumes and cover letters that will be going out over the next few weeks.

The only thing I currently am able to rest assured in is the fact that I know something will show up. God has provided for the husband and I thus far in our careers and I am positive that He will continue to do so. Throughout our marriage (a year and a half) we have worked at total of eleven jobs in four different cities and although we have never hand continuous employment, we have never been without. One of us has always been blessed with employment and at times at the same time! We have managed to move within a weeks notice and even done the long distance thing to take steps in our careers.

So I am hoping that over the next few months something comes from the number of job applications I have been sending out. I am praying for something a little more permanent  a year contract with health benefits would be nice, actually fantastic. Shoot, a six month contract would be wonderful as well. So who knows what the future holds, but I certainly am hoping it includes another job in my fiend.

25thBirthday.

My birthday has come and gone another year and all I can say is this one certainly beat the last.

Last year I was super excited to spend my first birthday as a married lady. I was excited to be home, to have someone to share it with and to be able to celebrate my birthday. You see, I have not had the greatest birthday's in the past. I had one year when no one remembered and lived with my father who I was lucky to receive a card from. So birthdays were not a big deal growing up. In my mind however they were. So last year I was excited because I knew Brent knew just how excited I was.

As the time came however, I caught the flu. I was sick starting New Years eve onward. I tried to pull it together for a birthday dinner with friends that Brent had prepared but ended the night with my head in a toilet and my husband joining me with the flue as well. It was probably one of the worst birthdays on record. I still cannot think of merange cookies without feeling sick.

This year was different however. For starters I was not sick. It was low key, but wonderful I was able to celebrate with those closest to me. The day started with breakfast in bed before heading to work. A lunch date with my mom and then dinner and ice cream cake with some friends.

I am thankful for how it turned and and for being able to celebrate with those closest to me. I am thankful for the friendships I have and their love for me.

It is crazy to think that I am now 25. That I have made it to a quarter of a century. If I am honest with myself I would admit that I thought life would be different by now. I imagined having a career and having accomplishments. I thought it would be different however I am currently loving how things are going. It's not as I imagined but it is wonderful and God has always provided.

So Happy Birthday to me and I am excited to see what this next year holds. I still cannot grasp that I am 25, I still feel like a teenager. I still cannot understand how I am married and working and done with school. But I am and here comes another year. I am excited.

Planning.

The planning has begun. Europe this spring. Fingers crossed that it all works out. I feel like if we just get the big part of booking the tickets done we will be set, we will be certain that we are going.

So we are in the planning stages. We are debating what is worth seeing and what is not. Where to go and what route to travel. If we want to fly or take the train and where we should spend the nights. Can I just say this is MUCH harder then I anticipated.

My type A personality is on overdrive. I don't want to miss any detail. I want to go there and be able to know all about the random monument we are staring at. I want to be educated on where to go and how to get here. I don't want to get stuck in the tube (I am guessing this is a subway) and have no idea what direction to go. On that note can I just share that Toronto, my only real bus and subway experience is greatly lacking and in comparison to London looks like a child created it.

So this is our potential route/destinations:

London
Scotland - Edinburgh/Glasgow
Ireland- Dublin
Paris
Venice
Florence
Rome

Two and a half weeks. Maybe three. Therefore this seems a little extreme for such a small amount of time, but I have the feeling that it might be my one shot, or at least my one shot for a while to see any of these wonderful sites. I try and debate what to cut, however as I lean towards Paris I then look up what there is to see and I fall in love. Also, I did not take six years of extended French to only use it that one time on a ski trip in grade 11. On the same note however other then the french, and the bread and the Eiffel tower and arc de triomphe, its scoring pretty low. I hear rumors its dirty and expensive, but it cannot be called the city of love for no reason.

So we will see what happens. We are still researching and debating. Any must sees or suggestions of what to skip? I am completely open to suggestions.

Resolutions.

I can honestly say I have never before made a resolution. I hate to fail and have never felt convicted enough to know I would follow through with one, so why bother.

I have dreaded the gym in January because of the resolutioners, or those who for the first two weeks of the year its all they talk about. I do not want to be one of those people because 99% of them fail. They made something be their resolution simply based upon the fact that they felt they needed one. That it was the thing to do and so they did it.

This year is different however. It is not so much a resolution per-say  but a goal. It is simple and measurable and attainable. This year I plan to take more pictures of everyday life. I have a million and one pictures of my niece  and as I was organizing picture on my computer last week, before she came around I used to take a million pictures of my dog, and before that I actually took pictures of people and events. So my goal is to go back to a time when I took pictures of a multitude of things and do that. I want to be able to at the end of next year make a picture book of the year and have it not look like a baby book for someone who is not even my child.

Yes in my goal to take more pictures of everything, I know I will also end up with more pictures of my niece, but at least maybe I can put some other people in the pictures with her. She is so cute I cannot resist taking the pictures.

This goal was brought on by a number of things, one I was actually making a picture book of the year and had like two events when my niece is not the star of the show (ie she was not there), and I got a new camera for Christmas.

So here is to a new year and new pictures. We will see if I succeed.

Sidenote: I am also praying about reading through the Bible. I am still trying to find the proper plan that fits my life and my goals (I am leaning towards a two year plan). This however is not something I would consider a resolution, it is more so something that has been on my heart as of late. I figured I would mention it however so now it is something I should follow through with because well, I have told the world. So hopefully within a month I have started (a post on this to follow).

HartfordChristmas.

Christmas in the Hartford house is busy. It is a wonderful time spent with a lot of family, over great meals, but it is busy. This year we had five Christmas's over the course of a week. This made it feel rushed, made my vacation from work seem almost non-existent and now has made us take a look at our apartment, at the mess and the haphazardness of boxes and gifts and wonder slightly was it worth it. 

To be honest, I would love a little less. I love my family and I love spending time with them however, once you throw in friends and new years and my birthday, the stress starts to add up. I feel like their is no time to enjoy it. That going from house to house and big meal to big meal, there is not time to eat left overs or appreciate the time together. 

Don't get me wrong, I feel extremely blessed to have so much family close and I am thrilled to be able to spend time with them and love them. But as I head back to work today, I cannot help but feel exhausted. And then I think, its just the husband and I. Imagine all of this with our own little one. So then that makes me think again, that by the time we have a child I know things will need to be different. That I will not want to be going a million miles an hour and visiting everyone under the sun. I will want to be starting family traditions and spending quality time together. 

So with that being said, for now I am thankful for the craziness that the holidays bring. I am thankful that we have people to spend our time with and to share with and I know that it will not last for forever. 

Check out the pictures, its funny to see the quality change as I received an awesome camera from my mom for Christmas. So hopefully the photo quality on the blog will now improve as well, no promises. 

Little Miss and I at Christmas #1.

We spoiled Little Miss this year. 

Little Miss and I at Christmas #2.

Christmas #3. 

Husbands family, Christmas #3.

Husband and Little Miss at Christmas #4

ChristmasDecor.

I know this is late, but  by the time I had the pictures taken and the apartment actually decorated, Christmas was in full swing around here and there was no time to actually finish the blog. So here is a little bit about how the Hartford's decorate for Christmas.

I'm a minimalist when it comes to decor of any season really. I like pieces that are multipurpose and that do not require a lot of work or change and I hate to spend much money. On the same note however, I love crafts, DIY and keeping on top of what is hot and popular.

The husband and I decided to choose Christmas colours that were timeless. Things that we could easily add to and that we would still enjoy even ten years down the road. I love the fuchsias, turquoises and bright greens that have been popular as of late, however I knew that with time the colours would fade and I would not be so thrilled to have them screaming brightly at me each Christmas. We picked our colours before we were married and bought a bunch of decor for half price on boxing day (and we have then added to it each year since). We went with silver, red and white. I love it and am  happy with what we chose.

Last year we were in a small apartment. Hence the tree fit the space and we found a little went a long way. I fill a vase we keep out year round that was actually left over from our wedding, as well as a bowl my friend brought back from Africa that is always on our coffee table with a mixture of left over bulbs.

Last year I made a Christmas wreath for the door. I wired in the bulbs and used the bow that was originally on the top of our card box from the wedding and was able to create a wonderful wreath. I love to display the various Christmas cards we receive on a ribbon on our wall.  The location this year was not as ideal as last, however I still love the idea of it and then we are able to enjoy all of the wonderful cards.

This year I was feeling creative and with our new balcony door and a number of extra bulbs I thought up a creative way to display them. I took simple ribbon (I am thinking of switching this for better ribbon later) and simply tied one end to the bulbs and stuck the other end into the ceiling. I hung them at different heights and used a variety of styles of bulbs and it is just the perfect match while still leaving the door and draps completely functional.

So those are just a few of the ways we add a little festivity to our apartment over the holidays. I love the Christmas season. I love the sentimental aspects of it and the reason behind the celebration and I love how the husband and I have been able to make it so meaningful while still taking into consideration the issue of space and storage.What do you do to decorate? I would love suggestions and easy, cost effective ideas to incorporate into the decor for next year.

Wedding vase filled with ornaments. 

Our mini tree beside a large pile of presents

Our Africa bowl.

The lighting is terrible, but I promise it looks cute, especially at night.

The Christmas cards. Since they have multiplied ten fold and I am thinking next year we may need two.