Birthday Party Fun

Friday night, a few of us celebrated a special little boy's birthday. It was a wonderful evening filled with yummy cake, good conversation and amazing people. I had no idea that watching a kid eat their first piece of cake could be entertaining - oh the things I have to look forward to when I have kids of my own :)

The Party Guests

Gavin wasn't too stoked with the party hats!

"Mommy is this cake for me????"

"mmmm...this tastes good, but a fork is just not going to work for me."

"My fingers work much better"

"Yummy, Yummy in my tummy!"

Going....

Going....

Going....

Gone!

Yeah! I am One!!!!!

Partied out.

Super Saturday

This morning marked the end of a fantastic volleyball season for my grade 9 girls. We won the division finals against a team we hadn't had a great record against. We came out and blew them out of the water essentially. What a rush!

Prior to our game, the girls came over to my place for a team breakfast. I used to do this with my team when I played and it was an important part of the team and I wanted to give these girls a little bit of that. My house was a lot louder then it typically is at 9am, but we did what we had to do in order to get pumped up for the game.

The girls played phenomenal. There were a few nail biting moments, but isn't that how final games are supposed to be? If there were easy games then it wouldn't really be much of a final game.

WE WON!!!!!!

The last team huddle!

Our season was outstanding overall. I enjoyed every minute spent with these girls and my fellow coaches, and I am looking forward to coaching again next year. It's been neat to be able to be a part of these lovely ladies' lives.

G-Man Turns 1

I can't believe that it has been a year since the very first day I laid eyes on this very awesome little boy. Wow, time sure does fly by. I swear it was just yesterday when I got the phone call from Sabrina saying that I was now "Tante Kara". I think at that moment, I literally jumped up and down with excitement.

Brand Spanking New

Gavin and I have had a full year of getting to know each other and it has been a blast watching him grow and develop both cognitive and motor skills. He has turned into a very fun boy! I anticipate weekly my Thursday morning visits with him and Sabrina with much joy.



Gavin, I love being your Auntie and I am anticipating many more play dates and fun together. I love your giggles and your "talking". I love playing hide-and-go-seek with you. I love being chased by you. I adore your cuddles, but most of all I just love you!! I love watching you grow and can't wait until the day when we can have conversations with you. You are a pretty special boy in my life and I LOVE being your Auntie.

I Love you lots Mr. Man!!

A Birthday Shout Out

Today happens to be someone's birthday who is quite special to me. This is one pretty phenomenal lady in my life. She is always so willing to give of herself to those around her so I hope Mary, that today is a day where you can enjoy being celebrated by those who love you very much!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARY!!!

(I realized I didn't have any pictures of this beautiful lady, so I had to steal it off of her facebook - perhaps we will have to change that.)

Oodles of Thoughts

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I LOVE Christmas, however, sadly this year my parent's house looks very little like Christmas. Usually at this time of the year, the Christmas tree goes up, the nativity scene comes out, garland is threaded up railings and posts, the advent calender that I had for my very first Christmas gets hung up and Christmas baking begins. Since we will be gone for Christmas this year, my parents have voted out the decorations - apparently too much work for no one to enjoy - bah I say. I was able to negotiate with my mom to at least put some garland up around the house. My hope is that with time, more Christmas decor will show its face in the next few weeks.
Most people I know despise Christmas shopping - the hustle and bustle in the malls just makes them cringe. I however, find Christmas shopping absolutely wonderful. I love casually walking around the mall, with a starbucks in hand of course, listening to Christmas music over the PA system as I carefully try to pick out the "perfect" gift for each person on my list. I am going to miss that aspect of Christmas this year.

I first realized that Christmas is right around the corner when I stepped into Starbucks a couple weeks ago and noticed that the holiday drinks are out. Those bright red cups and the Christmas music that echoes through the place just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Delightful.

It's been a crazy week so far. I am in the second last week of coaching volleyball and as much as it has been a very enjoyable season, I am looking forward to the "extra" time that I will acquire in my life. The going from work to volleyball to work again is a lot of wasted time and it gets to be slightly tiring.
Work has been quite busy this month so far. I'm not quite sure what the shift is, but I am in no way complaining. This past Monday I turned away 11 people!! That's just craziness. Apparently EVERYONE needed to get in right away and I only had 4 appointments open. No one was able to come back another day because they needed the massage NOW. Go figure. People are funny and I am constantly amazed by them.

I have been enjoying the presence of Jesus like never before. I can't begin to explain the joy that flows out of me. Please do not assume that this joy means that I am happy 24/7 because I am not (my family can attest to that), but there is an inner peace inside of me that I can't necessarily explain. I have been more intentional about the time I spend with Jesus in silence. It is certainly not an easy task when you live in a house with 7 other people constantly coming and going. Finding a space for silence is a task within itself, but there have been quiet moments and I have enjoyed every minute of that time spent in the presence of Jesus.
Something that I sometimes struggle with is focusing too much on the future. I seem to tell myself that when such and such an event occurs, that is when my life is going to start. For example, when I get married, that is when life is going to get good. I think that it is good to set goals and have aspirations, but when those goals and defining moments prevent you from living in the present, in the now, we create a problem for ourselves and our relationship with Jesus. Most of my friends are married and are now on to the next stage of life in having kids. I think that's awesome and I am pumped and excited for each and every one of them. I do struggle though with wishing that I too, was in that same place in life. It is when I put all of my focus and energy on looking to the future and what I think it should hold when my relationship with Jesus takes a back seat. Being consumed with these thoughts allows the God moments in the present day to slip by without notice - we are missing out on some good Jesus time. I believe that Jesus does not dwell in the future - yes he knows what the outcome of my choices and decisions will be, but Jesus lives in the present moment and I need to be willing to live in the present with Jesus if I desire him to work and speak into my heart. So my prayers are no longer focused on asking Jesus to show me the "right" man in my life, but rather that my eyes and ears might be opened so that I might see his presence in my life. That is just something that I have been learning in the last little bit that I wanted to share.

Criminal minds is starting, so I'm thinking that pajamas, a cozy blanket and a hot cup of tea are in order as I curl up on the couch. It sounds like the perfect way to end off a busy day!

A Night Out with the Boys

It is a rare occasion where I get to spend an evening with 4 fantastic boys. To be exact, I have only spent the evening with these boys 4 times EVER. These are no ordinary boys either - they are quite special and very good looking.

Since I was in grade 7 I have been in a relationship of sorts with these 4 boys. I am happy to say that it has evolved from an obsession - their pictures were plastered upon every inch of my bedroom walls - to now, where my likeness of them is slightly more mature. They are no longer plastered on my walls.

These fantastic boys to whom I am referring to are in indeed the BACKSTREET BOYS in case you haven't guessed it by now. Yes, I am not ashamed to admit that I quite enjoy them, their looks and their music. I can think of only 3 other people who read this blog who can identify with these feelings, so if you are not one of those 3 ladies, then for this post you can either not read it or you can, for a moment, pretend that you like them and read on :)

Exactly 4 blissful nights ago, myself and Aimee had the evening of our lives. We had been looking forward to this night for months and Wednesday night, our night of bliss arrived.

Aimee and I decked out in our fabulous shirts made by us in 2005. Hers says: "What Good is Tomorrow Without BSB" - it's a line from one of their songs. Mine says: "AJ Your Back Alright!".

In 2005, Aimee, Jessica, Janessa and myself embarked on the road trip of a lifetime - at least it was for us. The 4 of us made a whirlwind trip down to Minneapolis to see these fine men for their "Never Gone" concert. It was PHENOMENAL to say the least. Picture 4 extremely excited young women singing at the top of their lungs, all 5 of the Backstreet Boys cd's the entire way down, throughout downtown Minneapolis and all the way back home. In all, that was approximately 18 hours of pure Backstreet Boys singing. Like I said, Bliss!

Unfortunately the 4 of us were unable to attend the concert here in Winnipeg together due to the fact that Jess is currently living in Hamilton and it didn't work for Janessa to come (BTW - Janessa ended up getting a ticket last minute, but did not sit with Aimee and I). So in honour of our previous concert trip in 2005, I made this picture so that Janessa and Jess could be with us in spirit. We definitely missed you guys - next concert we are all going together!!!!

Aimee and I didn't have the greatest seats in the house due to financial restraints. Our seats were in the first row of the second balcony. Just as the show was about to start, we overheard a woman with her young son (far too young to be at a BSB concert in my opinion, but whatever) talking to the usher in front of us saying how they had floor seats, but they were unable to see the stage due to some tall people sitting in front of them. She asked if they might be able to sit in some empty seats higher up in front of us. Immediately Aimee piped in and generously offered to trade tickets with them so that they could see. The usher let us trade, which meant that WE HAD FLOOR SEATS!!!!! I think Aimee and I almost peed our pants, we were so excited. Way to be on the ball Aimee. I am forever indebted to you :) Our seats were floor section, row 37. Sweet Deal.

For the Howie Lovers

Howie says "I want you!" to which we reply "yes please."

For the Nick Lovers


For the Brian Lovers


I Heart A.J.

There is something about the "bad" boy that I find attractive. Go figure.


All of the classics were sung, along with some of the new stuff and a little sampling of each of their solo albums. I would highly recommend buying their solo stuff - it's very good. Kevin's presence on the stage was sadly missed, but the remaining boys survived very well. There was only one song that I was hoping they would sing that they didn't - Siberia from the Never Gone Cd. Perhaps at the next concert. They are putting out a new album, so another tour is in the works in the next few years. We're starting to save up now for front row floor seats as that is where the girls get kissed!

The famous hat dance.

Singing "The Shape of My Heart" - the audience is showing the shape of our hearts. Cheesy, but oh so good.


What a spectacular evening!!!