Busy season.

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted on here! Life has been a bit crazy the past few months but crazy in a great way. I can't wait to see what the new year holds. Since October, Brandon and I have bought a house in Portage la Prairie and I have started a new job (which I love by the way!). Also, I couldn't love our cute little home more if I tried. My favourite place in our home is sitting on the sectional (cuddling the kitties of course!) watching t.v with a roaring fire going in our fireplace. Life is so sooo good!

It is kind of crazy to think that the holiday season has come and gone already and in just a couple short days, 2015 will be here. I swear 2014 just flew right by somehow. Overall though, 2014 has been really quite wonderful and so was the holiday season. We celebrated with both Brandon and my families by playing games, eating too much food, and relaxing.

I'm hoping to get back into blogging in 2015 now that things have kind of slowed down for us but we will see what happens. I will be back with a resolutions post however because I want to keep myself accountable and make the most out of a brand new year!

 

 

 

 

Fall

Something Brandon and I have loved about living where we do in Winnipeg these past few months, is our nightly walks down by the river. Our neighborhood is so quiet, family friendly, and actually quite scenic. We usually walk through the neighborhood, down along side the river, around the community vegetable gardens, and loop through the trailer courts. Last night, we saw beautiful views of the river with fall colored trees lining the shore. We saw half-harvested veggie gardens, and happy little bunnies munching away on peoples lawns. I really was quite hesitant about agreeing to live on the outskirts of Winnipeg when we moved back in May, but I am so glad that we decided to live where we do. We wouldn't be getting these kinds of views if we were closer to the core of the city. So although we are moving in 3 weeks, I want to cherish these memories. This summer was challenging in many ways for me but it is always important to document and remember those moments that made all those hard moments worth while.

So... WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!

 

So sometimes, life is like a roller coaster! This past month has been full of ups and downs for sure. Days where I was so miserable and stressed and ready to give up completely. Then the next day would be wonderful and exciting and better than I could imagine. So now, I will tell the story of how Brandon and I decided that we should buy a house on a whim and how I think it was the best decision ever.

Ever since my summer job finished, I had been scrambling to find a job in Winnipeg, I sent out probably 50 applications, had 2 interviews, and felt quite hopeless. Then one day, Brandon comes home from work and randomly declares that he wants to look into getting a pre-approval for a mortgage.  To be honest, we hadn't talked much about it before that point. But on a whim, I decided we could go to the bank and see what they say. We really didn't know what they would say since I am currently unemployed. So when the mortgage specialist looked at us and told us "you qualify for $130,000 mortgage currently". We were shocked and so excited! The next few days were a whirlwind. We got pre-approved on a Thursday, we called a real estate agent on Friday, and then went and saw 6 house on Saturday. Brandon's parents came with us on Saturday and we ended up falling in love with one of the houses. I didn't want to commit without my parents approval, so my mom came and looked at the house on Monday. We put in an offer at 7:00 p.m. Monday evening and by before 8 p.m., the seller accepted our offer and we were officially homeowners!!

It is pretty surreal to me still. I am someone who likes to plan out my life and I rarely ever do anything spontaneously. Except apparently, buying a house! It is the cutest little house with a deck, large yard (veggie and flower gardens galore), 2 bedrooms, original hardwood floors, soaker tub, and perfect yellow painted walls. I am in love and SO excited to move in the middle of October!! Thankfully, one of my best friends Jenna and Ed are going to take over our apartment contract which is amazing. So now, I just need to focus on getting a job in Portage. 

I am beyond excited about this next chapter of our life! A brand new beginning for our little family :)

Currently...

I have been thinking a lot about getting back in to blogging but have been lacking any motivation. This is a rough season of life for me but I know that writing on this blog is therapeutic, so I am going to try to be better at it.

Here's some photos of life lately...

loving: adding pumpkin spice coffee back into my morning routine, cuddles with my kitties all day, endless episodes of Happy Endings, and nightly walks with Brandon.

reading: just finished reading Hannah's List by Debbie Macomber. I love her style of writing and her books always get me hooked right in. This book was hard to put down and I just needed to know what was going to happen next. Now to decide what to read next...

eating: cherry yogurt, nectarines, and dark chocolate. I crave all of these things daily!

watching: HAPPY ENDINGS! An amazingly funny show that my friend Natalie introduced me to. When I'm in a bad mood, this show instantly cheers me up. Do yourself a favor and start watching this show on Netflix!

hating: JOB HUNTING! Need I say more? I hate looking for jobs, sending in resumes, waiting to hear back, going to interviews. All of it sucks but it's necessary, so I must keep on trlekking. Like I said, this is a tough season of life for me. Things don't go as planned and sometimes dreams don't work out but I just keep telling myself "you are exactly where you are meant to be!".

looking forward to: hopefully finding a job soon and new beginnings! I know great things are just around the corner for me, so I am determined to stay positive and try my best to enjoy this season of my life. One day, I will look back and be thankful for my struggles.

Happy Tuesday everyone! 

Make sure you enjoy every season of your perfectly imperfect life.

Indequate.

Sometimes life seems so daunting, frustrating, and bleak that you just need to write about how you're feeling. I feel overwhelmed and stressed. I wish that my "life plan" would quit switching every day. I love plans, I love structure, I love knowing what my next step is. For the past several months, I haven't had a concrete plan for what my next life plan is. I wasn't excepted into occupational therapy. I was hurt, bruised, and broken by that. I was so excited for the possibility but then my heart got shattered and I was too angry to even consider trying again. There was no way, if they didn't want me on my first application, then too bad for them. So I got a summer job, kept on living life, and totally failed to even spend one second considering what would happen after summer was over. I was too busy living in the moment and naively avoiding any commitment or plan. Which, could be seen as a great thing considering I am usually the opposite. So fast forward to now, it is mid August and I am panicking because next week my summer job is over and then what? 

That's just it. I have no idea. Well I mean, I have some ideas but nothing is set in stone. I was thinking of just finding full time employment in hopefully something tolerable. Little did I know, that job hunting is THE WORST THING EVER! I literally hate nothing else more. It's time consuming, daunting, and annoying. I have literally found nothing I want to do or apply for. So then I got thinking that may be I could swallow my pride and work applying for not only OT again but even PT too. All fine and dandy until I just discovered that a. I failed to take grade 12 chemistry, b. that the courses I need aren't offered in fall term, c. that OT and PT only take into consideration marks up until December 2014. So basically, that plan is not possible.

So essentially I am back to square one. I have no clue what I am going to do with my life. I hate this. I hate not knowing, I hate that people keep telling me to quit worrying & that it will all work out, I hate that I have a degree and it is literally getting me no where. This is not how I saw my life being. I just want a job that will make me happy and provide me stability, it just seems like that's too much to ask for.

Well I feel a bit better now after that vent session. I hope for clarity soon.

Feels just like yesterday...

 

I distinctly remember this exact day 16 years ago. Although I was only 5 years old, it feels like it just happened yesterday. I recall camping at the Minnedosa campground, I remember my parents getting a phone call, I remember them both breaking down and sobbing like I had never seen before. Little did I know, that day would change me and my life forever. That day was when we discovered that my cousin Bradley had passed away in the wee hours of the night. Brad was hard working, kind, funny, caring, and a truly amazing cousin. I loved him so much. He loved spending time with us and always wanted to babysit us and spend time with those that he loved. He instilled in me a love for baseball, farming, the outdoors, animals, and family. He was so passionate about helping out my dad and uncles on the farm and he loved riding his horse named Buster (who is still alive today!).

I distinctly remember my last memory of him. I don't know if it was the last time I actually saw him but it's the last memory I have of him. Some family was over at our house and we were hanging outside together. Brad was playing tag with all of us, chasing us around, making us giggle (like usual). When he was chasing me, he accidentally hit me in the nose and my nose started to gush blood. Being the caring guy he was, he felt awful and he sat with me and made sure that I was okay. He was joking around with me and making me feel better. When I close my eyes, I can picture the day perfectly. I can picture the sun shining, the smile spread across my face, Brad chasing a bunch of giggling kids around the yard. I can still smell his smell and feel his warm, loving presence.

I often wonder how different life would be if he was still around. I can picture him with a wife and kids, living on a farm, and still living life to the fullest. I can picture my aunt, uncle, and cousins living a totally different life too. They are still healing from the hurt and they are still dealing with the loss of such a beautiful son and brother. Just like me and the rest of my family. I know my dad blamed himself for a long time and I know that everyone missed him so much it hurt. I am just so glad that I have these beautiful memories of him and I am so blessed that he is guiding me and loving me from up above. I am so thankful for his wonderful, thoughtful, caring, passionate soul. I will always hold on to all of the memories I have of him.

I love you Brad.

Five on Friday

So, life has been pretty hectic lately. But isn't it always? My job takes a lot out of me, even though I am only working 30 hours a week. However, when you chase kids around for 6-9 hours a day and have to rush all over the city from event to event. It wears you down. I am so thankful for weekends off!

Today, I thought I would blog about 5 things that made my week great. It is always important to stop during all the craziness of life and be thankful for those wonderful moments in life.

 My sweet little kitties. They will always make my days and weeks better. Even though they sometimes drive me crazy (like when Tuck pawed my egg off my breakfast plate this morning). There cuddles and loving will always make up for it though! I just love these two soooo much.

 Working out. I love pushing my body to new limits and seeing it transform. I have always had body issues and I never used to think I was beautiful but that has changed. I feel strong and capable of anything.

Playing cards on the patio with Brandon. We do this almost every night and it's my favourite thing. Last night I had some tea, we listened to music, and we played cards. I know, it's like we are 80 years old or something.

 

Healthy, delicious food. Brandon made me this salad for supper one day this week and dear lord, it was AMAZING! Garden lettuce, beets, bacon, goat cheese, onions, cucumber, peppers, and vidalia onion dressing. Brandon usually makes supper and I am so thankful... he's an amazing cook!

 

Last but not least, I am excited for our date night tonight. I think we will go see 22 Jumpstreet at the VIP theatre tonight. Brandon has a scene mastercard and we have 10ish free movies. I am so excited for movie theatre popcorn and to spend time with my love! :)

Sometimes, my heart is so full of excitement, love, and thankfulness I think it could burst. Summer, you are my favourite. 

Happy weekend everyone!

 Linking up with September F A R M and The Farmer's Wife.

Hello July

Hello July, goodbye June (talk about time flying by).

Hello sunshine, goodbye rain 

 

Hello month full of craziness at work, goodbye sanity

Hello weekends spent enjoying summer, goodbye weekends spent working

Hello sunny mornings being active outside, goodbye lazy mornings

Hello month where I plan to check off some of my summer bucket list items

Hello yummy summery treats, goodbye guilt

Hello kitty cuddles, you are one of my favourite parts of every month!

 Hello nights spent having drinks & playing cards on the patio, goodbye crappy weather

Hello heaven on earth (ie, wine, bubble bath & a good book), goodbye stress

Hello July, I am beyond excited for you! Bring on the sunshine!
(Linking up with Allison!)

The Best Kind of Sunday

Sundays have always been one of my favourite days. I like to spend them relaxing and rejuvenating for the week to come. Yesterday was the perfect kind of Sunday and just what I needed after a full day of work on Saturday.

Brandon and I slept in until 10 which was blissful, we then got out of bed and made hashbrowns, sausages, and eggs for brunch. We then facetimed my mom and sister and talked with them while drinking our coffee on the patio. We realized it was going to shape up to be a super nice day, so we decided we wanted to spend some time outside soaking up the sun. We made a quick trip to Walmart to pick up some essentials and then we packed up a delicious picnic and headed to Assiniboine Park. We walked around the park for a bit, then set up our blankets and food under the shade of a tree. Then we decided to sun tan a bit and read our books. Right before we headed home, we hit up Sargent Sundae and grabbed some delicious ice cream. A peanut butter, marshmallow sundae for Brandon (his favourite) and a dipped swirl cone covered in dark chocolate and peanuts for me!

On the way home, we stopped at the liquor store to grab some gin and wine. We then sat on the patio sippin' our G&T's and playing cards. We ate a late supper of grilled chicken, baked potatoes, and asparagus and peas. We were in bed by 10:30 and our amazing day was officially over. I'm so thankful for awesome Sunday's spent with my incredible man! Life is so, so good.

Happiness is...

 

Not having to work until 1 p.m. on a Tuesday. 

Watching our vegetables grow every day on our patio. I can't wait to eat them!

Staying out until 11:30 p.m. on a Monday night, just visiting with some great friends.

Kitty cuddles all day everyday.

Getting delicious Americanos from the cafe across from my work.

Looking forward to going camping for a weekend with my family!

Summer time and sunshine.

Pushing your body to new limits and working out (even if it means doing it in the morning).

Weekends spent with family, even if it means only being home for less than 24 hours.

Having a fridge full of fresh fruit and veggies.

Realizing how important it is to have a few great friends, rather than 20 so-so friends.

Coming home to your own apartment after work (especially when it's clean).

A good book on a rainy day. 

Getting to snuggle in with my man after a long day.

Season 2 of Orange is the New Black.

Patio sittin' and cocktail sippin'.

Happiness is SUMMERTIME!

There is good in every single day, take the time to notice it and appreciate it!

Our Newest Family Member

So for awhile now, Brandon and I had been discussing the fact that we thought Maggie needed a friend. She has always had another cat around since we got her (either Cleo or Jinx) and we didn't want her to be lonely. I was hesitant and second guessing whether it was a good idea for quite awhile. Brandon, being the go getter that he is, decided on a whim last Friday night that we should make a trip the the Humane Society. You would think that I would have learned by now that the HS is a dangerous place to go. I am a crazy animal lover and especially a cat lover. I always feel so bad for all the sweet kitties locked up in those little tiny rooms.

Long story short, we adopted another cat! His name is Tucker and he is an orange and white, year and a half year old. We looked around a bunch, saw a bunch of cute cats but none of them really stood out to us. However, when we walked past Tucker's room, he ran to the door and demanded our attention. We could hear his distinct meows and cries (which he does in the middle of the night) through the door. We knew immediately that we had to wash up and go into the room and see him. He jumped on Brandon's lap and started purring instantly. I then picked him up and he just flopped into my arms and reached his paws up to my face. It was love at first sight! Also, it clearly doesn't take much to win me over ;)

Also, some fun facts for you. Tucker's name was "Cheeks" when we adopted him. Just like Maggie's name was "Aggie", seriously people. Who picks these names? Additionally, I thought Tuck was dying the first few days after we got him. He puked A LOT all over the floor and made weird noises (which we have since learned is normal for him). He likes to sleep in the smallest, coziest spots. Like the shoe organizer in our closet or the t.v. stand shelf. He is a beggar and especially loves milk. He purrs almost constantly.

We are so happy with our newest addition. Maggie is still adjusting but I just keep telling her that she's still my favourite and will always be. Now for some adorable pictures of my newest little love!

Welcome to the family Tucker. You are so sweet, loving, playful, and adorable. We love you so much already!

Summer Wish List

I am a huge list maker and planner. It makes my heart happy to check things off of my "to-do" list. So in true Kerri fashion, I thought I would make a list of places I wish to explore or things I want to do this summer! It will be mine and Brandon's first year living in the city during the summer months, so I am excited to make the most out of this summer :)

1. Picnics & hangouts in Assiniboine Park (hopefully with my sister and her boyfriend!).
2. Grow veggies/herbs on our patio (already in the works).
3. Visit the St.Norbert Farmer's Market as much as possible!
4. Go on a bike ride.
5. Visit the zoo at least once.
6. Road trip to the states.
7. Family camping trip.
8. Lots of bonfires with roasted marshmallows.
9. Have a games night.
10. Make homemade lemonade.
11. Get a BBQ and grill lots.
12. Go to lots of garage sales.
13. Paint my dresser.
14. Try one new Pinterest recipe per week!
15. Explore & hike in Birds Hill park.
16. Visit The Forks.

Most of all, I just want to enjoy this summer to the max and spend as much time as possible outdoors with the people I love! I look forward to documenting this summer and making awesome memories :)

Currently...

All dressed up for my interview yesterday!

"Hi Mommy! Look how cute I am. Please cuddle me!"

enjoying:  kitty cuddles (always), days full of sunshine, time spent with Brandon, & reading on the patio.

dreaming: about the future and what life will look like down the road.

loving: how my body craves exercise and forces me to do something active every day. Yay!

watching: too much HGTV.

reading: finally reading Allegiant and can't put it down!

thinking about:  how messy our apartment is and how I have no desire to clean it.

drinking: copious amounts of tea and water since I'm sick. Boo!

running: and exploring our new neighborhood.

painting:  I need to paint our t.v. stand and coffee table but I'm struggling to decide what colour to use!

craving: not too much. being sick takes away my appetite.

listening to:  the t.v. in the background and the birds chirping outside.

missing: already missing Brandon. He's gone today until Sunday for bowling nationals!

feeling:  gross cause of this darn cold, excited to go home on Thursday, & glad that the sun is shining!

Now I'm off to have a lazy day in hopes of getting rid of this nasty cold. Have a great Tuesday! :)

May Long Weekend

 

This past weekend was amazing! Maggie and I met Brandon in Portage at 4:30 when he was off work and we all headed home for the weekend. Friday night, we had supper at my house and then went back into town to have a drink with our friend Sarah. She also lives in Winnipeg, so we all agreed we must make a better effort to see each other often.

Saturday morning, we woke up early (7:00 a.m, blah!) to help Brandon's grandparents get there garage sale organized and set up. We then hit up a few garage sales since it was the town wide garage sale day in Minnedosa. We didn't buy anything which is unheard of! Then we were off to Shoal Lake to Brandon's parents cabin to hang out for the day and night. We went for a long walk with Titan, tried to have a bonfire, played cards, had too many drinks, and taught his parents how to play beer pong! It was so much fun and a night I will never forget!

On Sunday, we woke up to breakfast already made by his parents. We ate and decided to go for another walk since the sun was shining! We talked for 1.5 hours and explored the whole cabin and campground area. It was the perfect way to spend a Sunday morning. Brandon and I then packed up our bags and hit the road back to my house for the night. We had supper with my parents, Auntie Heather, both my Grandma's and my cousin Amanda. We then spent the rest of the evening playing games with my parents!

Monday we ate breakfast and then packed up the car once again. We offered our friend Richard a ride back to the city, so we ended up having a jam packed car but it all worked out.

Basically, this past weekend was the perfect mix of relaxation, family time, and fun. It was nice to spend lots of time outdoors finally! I love being back in the city but it's always nice to visit home and family! :)