First Canadian Wedding

Monday night I experienced my first Canadian wedding. It was wonbderful. You wouldn't think that things would be that much different, but oddly enough, it was. I can't totally call it "canadian" because the groom is from Norther Ireland and the bride is from Canada. But it was in Canada and I guess held most of the canadian traditions and norms, so whatever.
Some examples of differences are this: they sign the marriage Certificate (which is called "The Registry" here) during the ceremony. It is fully an important part of the ceremony. Also, the wedding was at 3:00 (3 on a monday...yeah who knows!) and the reception wasn't until 6:30. Which for us worked out because we didn't have a present yet. So after the ceremony we went to the mall and got a present then I went home and had plenty of time to change and get all fancy for the reception. It was kind of nice, but strange. The reception then lasted HOURS! we mingled mingled, sat down at our assigned seats, had some speaches, ate dinner, more speaches, more speaches, dessert, mingled, cake, first dance and then more dancing and it was about midnight at this point and we were tired and left before the bride and grrom. Crazy! But I kind if loved it. In the states the "leaving of the bride and groom" is kind of a big deal, but in canada, not so much! It was also the most fancy wedding reception I had ever been to. The reception was held at a place called the Brock House which is pretty much right on the beach..amazing! When we got there, the servers were walking around with appetizers and there was an open bar and it was in the most gorgeous location. You will see in the pics. I must say, it was quite a great experience. Congrats Tim and Jen!

holy crap, I am going to NYC the day after tomorrow!

Annie Came to Visit

My sister, Annie, and her husband, Tony, came to visit over the weekend. It is the first time they have come to visit since Derek and I moved to Vancouver, so it was quite exciting! We had an adventurous weekend I must say. They arrived Saturday in the late afternoon and we pretty immediately went out to dinner from there. We went out to at a fun italian restaurant called Incendio, one of Derek and I's favourites. From there we headed down to Kits Beach to watch the fireworks because, like every summer in Vancouver, we are in the midst of the Celebration of Lights. It was so much fun to be able to go down and watch the fireworks with my sister, we had a blast! Part of the reason they are here is to celebrate their 2nd Anniversary, so that night when we got home we had a mini celebration and ate cake! YUM! Sunday morning (yesterday) Annie and I went on a super long runand kind of got lost, which made the run longer and so much more exciting! haha! Then it started raining on us...it was gross. After our showers we went downtown and got Annie and Tony checked into their hotel (they are staying in a hotel for 2 nights for their anniversary) then we walked over and had breakfast at Cafe Crepe just 2 blocks from their hotel. Why are crepes so darn good?! After the crepe-fest we went to the Vancouver Aquarium!!!!! Derek and I have lived in Vancouver for nearly 2 years and until yesterday, had not yet been to the aquarium. It was due time and we had such a blast...I love things like that!! After the aquarium we wandered up to Prospect Point in Stanley park and got ice cream and looked at the view. It turned out to be a beautiful day despite the morning rain. Derek had to do a bit of studying so we parted ways for a bit and I took a nap! We met up with Annie and Tony and had dinner at Bin 941 downtown, which is a Tapas Parlour. It was very hip and trendy...we felt cool! We took our time and ordered several tapas which was very fun. I had never been to a tapas place before. We then took Annie over to Denman Street to get a cupcake at Cupcakes, she had found it online and really wanted to go there and couldn't stop talking about it. So she finally got her cupcake! It was very pink in there, I wish I had take a picture :(
That, for now, ends our time together. They are still in Vancouver for tomorrow, but Derek and I have a wedding to attend later today. Hopefully we will be able to hook up with Annie and Tony later, but regardless, we had a great time together! See the excitement in colour here.

P.S. No big deal or anything, but this time next week I will be in NEW YORK CITY!!!
As for those of you who want to know what we are going to do in NYC...I can tell you
this, we are going to "Do New York". 4 Days and counting...

Let the Countdown Begin!

7 Days until we go to New York City!!

Happy Monday!

Woke up a little later than normal today...

Went to pack my lunch with yesterdays leftovers and it turned out that we took Grace's leftovers from the restaurant instead.

Had to get creative and pack another lunch. Bagels...again.

Derek spilled peanut butter oil all over himself while packing that back-up lunch.

Sprayed body spray on an open wound (accidentally), ouch!

They are filming yet another movie near my building today and the parking lot was full of trucks and catering vans, etc. Parking was a bit hectic.

And was only 10 minutes late to work!!

But I got a new skirt yesterday and got to wear it today! Yay!

On another note...we think our landlords are out of town, but didn't tell us. What the crap?!

11 days until NEW YORK CITY!!

Under Construction

Please forgive me for the bit of mess and some overlapping on my
page right now. I am in the process of changing up the template a
bit to make it look better but is taking a little longer than I had
hoped. Bear with me :)

Top 10 Reasons you Gotta Have 'Em

Top 10 Reasons You Gotta Have Crocs:

1.) Really soft, super comfortable, molds to your feet
2.) Barely there, weighing only 6 ounces
3.) Vented so air passes through, keeping feet cool
4.) Non-marking slip-resistant soles
5.)Bacteria and odor resistant
6.)Ultra-hip Italian styling
7.)Port holes allow water and sand to through - go ahead cross that river!

8.)Can be sterilized in water and bleach
9.) Easy maintenance, just wipe clean
10.) Ortotic molded foot bed for ultimate comfort and support

Rain, Sun, Brunch and more!

Last week, for several days, Vancouver produced many clouds and much rain. It was quite sad really considering the fact that it is the middle of July, but whatever. All week my friend Shelley and I had been planning a Birthday Brunch for Saturday morning because two of our close friends (Grace & Elizabeth) were celebrating birthdays and we wanted to do something special for them. The thing about this brunch though is that it was intended to be outdoors in Shelley's back yard. We were freaking out about the rain and were so nervous that our garden brunch was going to be rained out. We prayed and prayed all week and on Friday it didn't rain was chilly and cloudy and by Saturday morning the clouds had passed and the dun was slowly peaking through the clouds. We were setting everything up and the grass outside was still soaked with water and dew from the night before. We were nervous still. But by 10:45 the sun was blaring and the grass had dried and we were blessed to the max! Some of the girls even got sunburned! Needless to say, the brunch was a success and the birthday girls seemed to enjoy it.
You can see the pictures here.

2 other bits of news...Derek and I went shiopping yesterday and both bought a pair of chocolate brown crocs, they are amazing!
And the most exciting news of all, Derek and I bought plane tickets to New York City and we are officially going on Vacation! We cannot wait to "do New York". We are going to see it all!! It's less than 3 weeks away!!

thoughts about summer

I believe that weather truly can affect a persons mood. We are a little ways into summer now and I feel like I have never been happier. Maybe it is life, maybe it is Derek, maybe it's friends, but maybe it is the Lord providing this beautiful sunshine that tans my skin and brightens my day! I love everything about summer. I love how early the sun rises in the morning and how late it goes down at nigh, I love the sound of flip-flop, flip-flop that surrounds me, I love wearing flip flops for that matter, I love tan lines and capri pants, I love that my hair gets lighter and my smile gets bigger, I love all the pregnant women that seem to bloom in summer season, I love tank tops and pony tails, the beach and the sand. There is nothing that I love more than summer. Can't we just move somewhere that it is summer all the time? I would never tire of it.

oregon, coffee, wedding, groomsmen, beer, friends & family extravaganza!!

Derek and I just got back on Sunday from a crazy trip to Oregon. It was a crazy trip indeed! We left Tuesday after I got off of work and stayed the night in Portland at Derek's sister's house. We got to see his cute niece and nephew and had a short but good time.
On Wednesday morning we got our coffee and hit the road to Eugene where we spent only about 5 hours total. We had to visit a place that is near and dear to our hearts, Camp Harlow. We got to see some good friends and see all the changes they have implemented at camp. It's wierd...but good. From Eugene we took the next drive two and half hours over to Central Oregon to my hometown, Bend. Here we were able to find out footing for a good 4 days. But the madness began as soon as got there. We walked in the door to my parents house and of course they were all excited to see us and immediately we went out for dinner and enjoyed a nice Mexican meal (which is truly missed here in Canada). We then went straight to our friends Dave and Majell's house who are the couple whose wedding we went down for. It was great to see them and be able to spend the evening with them and a few other friends before all the wedding events began the next day. I will spare you all the details but the next 2 days consisted of coffee, the arrival to Bend of Dan and Amanda Johnson, Derek and I applying for our passports, one heck of a Bachelor party (so I hear), some good beer and just a tiny sprinkle of rain at the rehersal. The rehersal dinner on Friday evening was so wonderful. And leave it to Dave to get a keg of Mirror Pond Pale Ale for his rehearsal dinner...thanks Dave! Finally the long awaited day arrived where Dave and Majell would get married and did they ever! It was a beautiful ceremony, a perfect union and a great reception afterwards. Derek did a great job being a groomsmen (along with the 8 others) and got to be an up close witness to one of our best friends getting married. It was such a blast to a part of it all and to be able to connect with so many friends over the couple days prior to the wedding and even more at the wedding. Overall it was a very fruitful trip but of course it wasn't long enough. I miss Oregon :(


Like always....
You can find more pics from our trip here

Surprise! Surprise!

So Derek didn't take me out to dinner for my birthday afterall. Yesterday at about 4:00pm, I was fully confused when he showed up at my work. Tunrs out he had arranged with my boss for me to get off early and "take me away"! I had no idea what was going on or where we were going. We started heading down Highway 1 and stopped in Abbotsford for dinner around 5:30pm. From there we continued on and about 45 minutes later we pulled up to this random house out in the middle of nowhere. My reaction was "what is this?". Turns out he had this special getaway planned for me at this beautiful Bed and Breakfast out in Harrison Mills. It was amazing there! So peaceful and romantic. We had our own entrance with a very fancy suite. It had a king bed, a dual head shower, your very own bathrobes, a fireplace and outside it had a hot tub! And best of all, they serve you breakfast in the morning to your room! Could not get much better than that. The evening was mellow and we just had to get straight into the bathrobes when we got there. Derek gave me my birthday presents (yay!) and after our soak in the hot tub he gave me a foot rub. Such a great evening. And I was so surprised and had NO idea. Thanks baby, I love you!

See some more pictures at my photo album

Holy Moly!

Last night one of our couple friends invited the usual group of friends to their place for a little get together because they had been out of town and thought it would be fun to see everyone. At least that's what they told us. So we are all sitting around, chatting, eatinf cinnamon bears (yum!) when the couple walks in the house and comes back out with a cake. Everyone turns to look at them and the husband says "well, we have this cake because this is actually a surprise party...for the baby we are going to have". Pretty sure my heart stopped and then started beating again really REALLY fast. It was so exciting! Everyone freaked out because no one had a clue! I am honestly still in shock and am just so happy for them. They did such an amazing job of keeping it a secret, it made the shock of the whole thing that much more exciting!! Congrats friends!

In other news... I had my 23rd birthday two days ago and got fully pampered by my wonderful husband. It was a great day. Tonight he is taking me to a nice dinner but the location is a surprise. I will finally get to open my presents!! I love birthdays and presents!! But I love babies more :)

What the weekend held

Ben and Deanna, friends from Oregon, came to visit this weekend and it was a different type of visit than just having friends in town. Ben will actually be attending Regent this coming fall, therefore in just a couple of months, they are moving here!! So Derek and I got to spend some time showing them Regent College as well as the UBC campus. We also showed them a bit of the city including Jerricho Beach! Sadly, we do not have any pictures from their visit...but soon enough we will get to see them on a regular basis, so it's okay.

On Sunday afternoon, Derek and I took our long awaited trip to Lighthouse Park. We have been wanting to go to Lighthouse park for a long time now, but for some reason it has taken us almost 2 years of living here to get out butts ou there. Anyway, we had a blast and it was a beautiful day. Check out the pictures here.

Sometimes I get overwhelmed with feelings such as "I'm growing up too fast" and "I wish I were back in my young single days" and "I feel like an old married lady" and such things like that. I don't like feeling this way but I admit that sometimes I do and sometimes I struggle with that. Which I think, and I hope, is just part of life. I am reading To own a Dragon by Donald Miller (Author of Blue Like Jazz) and it is about his thoughts and reflections on growing up without a Father. In the book he talks about a point in his life where he was living with this family and kind of got to experience what being a dad really looks like in a normal, healthy, God loving family. This is all kind of beside the point, but it is a good book even if you did grow up with a dad, like I did. Anyway, with all the thoughts and feeling that I explained above, I came accross this is Donald Miller's book and it was just a good little somthing that made me think and made me feel happy about the path I am on.

"There were times I would have rather lived on my own, played my music as loud as I wanted, come home drunbk, whatever. But Playing your music as loud as you want and coming home drunk aren't real life. Real life, it turns out, is diapers and lawnmowers, decks and painting, a wife that needs to be listened to, kids that need to be taught right from wrong, a checkbook, an oil change, a sunset behind a mountain, laughter at the kitchen table, too much wine, a chipped tooth, and a screaming child. "

This makes me realize that I really do want "real life". Honestly, I don't ever want to go and live through High School again or worry about being popular or having a boyfriend or knowing the right people. Yes, all that has a time and a place and is sometimes neccesary, but I am over it and now feel so happy and grateful that I get to live life for real.

Yay for friends!

I cannot wait for tomorrow! I am so excited and stoked because 2 of my very good friends are coming up to visit me from Oregon. Jess, my best friend, my maid of honour, my soul mate and my friend for life. We have been best friends since Freshman year in High school (that's grade nine to all you Canadians). My friend Kalee is coming with Jess to visit ME as well. When Jess went off to college at Oregon State (boo!) she had a wonderful roommate, Kalee. Kalee and Jess became really good friends and since I pretty much went to visit every other day, Kalee and I also became close friends. Eventhough she was only Jess's roomie, we all caled her roomie, room for short, and that will probably always be her nickname now. So tomorrow after I get off work Jess and room are coming to visit for the whole weekend. And what's better is that Derek decided to take off and go to Rivendale (on Bowen Island) for the weekend to have a little retreat. Not that it's great to have him gone but in this case, it means that me and the girls get the house to ourselves and pretty much get to have a big weekend O fun!!

Yay for friends :)

This is Jess and I about 3 years ago...a couple days before my wedding I think :)

whoa!!

Around UBC (where I work) and all over Vancouver for that matter, they are always shooting movies. After a while you just kind of get used to seeing all the signs, etc. BUT this morning when I pulled into the parking lot I always park at it was crowded with trailers and people, luckily I found a spot to park (phew!). As I get out and start walking towards my office I realize the set of the movie is right in front of my building. The set is supposed to be the University of Washington and so there are UW signs all over as well as a fake coffee cart and tables. It was pretty cool looking actually. Anyway, in order to get to work today I literally had to walk through a movie set! How fun is that?! I kind of want to go back out there...maybe I will be discovered :)

Anyway, in talking about work I thought it would be cool to show you a picture out my office window. Beatiful, hey?


This is my desk here on the left
(the other desk there is for a work study student if and when we have one)

The haps

Yesterday around 5pm I returned home from a long weekend away. Friday morning at 5am I got myself up and out the door as my Washington friends picked me up for a weekend at Malibu Club. Malibu Club is a Young Life camp located in Canada and is a 3 hour boat ride from the NE side of the Sunshine Coast. Young Life was a big part of my life in High School and I was priviledged to go to Malibu for a week as a camper back in 1999 and I got to go again and be on Work Crew there for a month in 2000. I had not been back since and when a couple of my old work crew friends invited me, I jumped at the chance. It was Memorial Day weekend in the States so the Young Life of Seattle thought it a good time to have a Discipleship Weekend for the High Schoolers in their area. Me and my friends (along with about 47 other college agers) volunteered our time to serve on the work crew for the weekend. I wish I could say that I had the most amazing time, but the truth is that I was sick for it all. I got sick about 2 days before the trip and assumed I would just get better as time passed. The case was that I got worse. And when you are at a camp on a island, you can't really go get medicine from the doc to make you better. Oh well. I put on my best face and served the best I could. For the weekend my job, along with my friends and a few other girls, was to be in the Linen Nook. This meant that we did all the laundry, cleaned all the bathrooms and even got to go and dig the dirt out of the cracks in the boards that make up the walkways. All for the Lord. I am now a master at folding fitted sheets! It's quite a skill to have. Jealous? Though it was not quite the trip I expected, it was pretty awesome to be in, what I think is, the most beautiful place on earth basking in God's beauty. You are surrounded by huge mountains, ocean, blue skies and by people who love Jesus. I have not felt that close to the Lord in some time and that made all the travelling and being sick well worth it.

P.S. Check out my picture blog here, it's updated!!

THE SUN IS OUT!!!

The sun has arrived and Vancouver is actually beginning to warm up! Today it's supposed to get to around 25 (celcius that is) and it should be nice most of the week. I love sun more than anything and it truly lifts my spirits. Give me the chance to wear flip flops and a tank top and I am one happy camper! Thank you Lord for sunshine and warmth.

And then there was Thursday...

Today has been a dull and unexciting day at work. Except for when my friend Shannon came and brought me lunch and we got to sit anc chat during my lunch break. Good times. I am excited to get off work because I am excited for what the evening will hold. After work we are going to go to the produce store to do our weekly produce shopping. Then we are having our Canadian friends, Levi and Shelley, over for some homemade pizza...De-licous! Then we will continue to our weekly ritual of watching Survivor. I hope Cirie wins...the finale is Sunday!

I promise I will update my picture blog soon ---> in the meantime check it out and look over my picture past :) www.kbpics.blogspot.com

Oh Happy day!!

My computer is fixed!!!! Derek got a new hard drive and installed it and now it's better than ever!

Currently....

Currently feeling: Bored






Currently Reading: Memoirs of a Geisha





Currently Eating: Strawberries







Currently staring at: Gmail







Currently listening to: Z 95.3







Currently drinking: water





Obviously I am 'currently' not working and slacking off. Oops! So Derek left for the weekend to go to some conference in Spokane with a couple buddies. I was/am quite excited to have the house to myself this weekend and have very much beenlooking forward to it. But when he left at 5:00am today, aside from feeling rather lethargic, I was sad tosee him go and will miss him this weekend. So I am living the single life this weekend and it's going to rock! I am having girls over for a big girl-fest of fun! Including movies, pizza, junk food and pampering. Pretty much heaven for any girl! Hope everyone has a great weekend and I pray the sun shines down on you!

Grad

Last night Derek and I went to the Regent Graduation to watch some of our dear friends graduate! It was very bitter sweet. We said farewell to many friends who we have gotten to know over the past 2 years and whom we will miss greatly. They have been a part of our Regent experience and forever a part of our life. I can't imagine having to that next year with even more, deeper, closer friends. However, it is very sweet becuase next year I will get to watch Derek walk accross that stage with Masters degree in hand and with that chapter of life complete. It will be scary to turn the page and head into the next chapter which, at this point, is unknown. But I have faith that God has a plan for us and that he knows what he's doing. I am amazed at life and how it can fly by so fast and hold so much greatness.

gotta love gmail

So as you know, my computer at home is sick. We think we just need a new hard drive and problem solved. It will suck because I will loose all my info. But $60 for a new Hard drive or $1000 for a new computer. What do you think? Anyway, at home I had all my e-mail set-up in the Thunderbird mail program, which I love because you don't have open up your browser, go to the website and check your e-mail. You jusy open a pogram and they download right it. I use g-mail (google mail) as my main e-mail server and I am just loving it more and more each day. Since my computer has been sick I have been getting my e-mail old fashion way online. But something struck me today. Besides being great and organizing all your emails into conversations, it also never has those little regarding "re:" things in the title of your email. That is amazing and beautiful to me. In other email news. At work (for my work e-mail and such) they use Outlook express. It's fine, again it avoids having to go online and go to a website to retrieve your mail. But you cannot search for emails like you can in gmail. Which is so annoying and just today I have been looking for multiple past e-mails that could be anywhere and took 3 times as long to find them than it would have on gmail. Pretty much g-mail rocks. If you do not use g-mail, you should, and you need to be invited from a current g-mail member to join g-mail, so let me know and I can send you an invite! GO GOOGLE! That's all I have to say about that.

and life continues

Derek is officially done with his finals! He is now recovering and resting, poor guy. I have to admit though it has been quite nice to have him play the stay-at-home-husband role these past few days. He has made dinner every night this week so far and has done his best to keep on top of the housework. Now, if he could only birth us some children we would be set!!
Sunday night we decided to go out for a celebration dinner. We went to this great local Thai restuarant downtown and right on the water. It just so happen to be an amazingly beautiful, sunny day so we had a blast! Great scenery and great food complete with deep-fried bananas and coconut ice cream. On the way home we were going to stop and rent a movie when we drove by Rogers Video and noticed they were having a 'Mega Movie Sale' (or something like that). So we stopped and got 3 DVDs for 24 bucks! We were stoked. So we continued our evening with one of our very own movies. Things at the job are going well. I am slowly but surely learning my through. I am excited to know it all!

computers, portland and finals

I was waiting to mzake a post until I got my pictures (from our trip to Portland) off my camera and I could put them on here. Sadly, 2 nights ago a shelf decided to fall off the wall and flat onto my computer and now is has decided not to work. Very fun...let me tell ya. So picture a photo of Jeff, Jess, and Derek getting into our little Subaru with JJ Bean coffee in hand as we begin our trip. That's the only picture I can remember taking.

Well, we went to Portland for Easter and were fortunate to have our friends Jeff and Jess join us for the drive (we dropped them off in Gresham where they have fam). Fortunaltey living in Canada we get Good Friday and Easter Monday as stat holidays so we had a 4-day weekend. Amazing! It was a crazy busy trip that consisted of visiting our best friends, my sister, Derek's entire family and having Easter brunch with Dan and Amanda as well as a Target run and a little too much coffee and alcohol. We had fun!

This week is Finals week for Derek or in other words "i don't have a husband" week. It's bitter sweet because on one hand I can just kind of do whatever I want with my week, come and go as I please and stay up late watching too much tv and scrapbooking. On the other hand because Derek is so busy and stressed, I am left do anything and everything when it comes to caring for us and our household (cook, clean, grocery shop, laundry, etc). It can be a bit stressful to come home after a long day of work and see the house that my husband has been in all day looking that same if not worse than it did when I left that morning. So last night at 11pm you would have found me scrubbing the shower and cleaning the bathroom. Stress me out! But after this week Derek will be a lot more free and I will hopefully feel like I have a husband again. We are planning a big fun date for Sunday night and I can't wait!!

New Beginnings

It is official! I have finised at The Well and have about completed my first week with SCARP. I am really enjoying it and know that it will only get better. I am in the very beginnings stages so there is still tons to learn. I think I will enjoy working in/for a school. My official title is 'PhD Secretary' at the School of Community and Regional planning. I work on the 4th floor all the way on the opposite end of campus from where Regent is located. I am not going to let myself be lazy and ride the elevator up to the 4th floor so I have to climb the stairs. But yesterday I counted and there are 12 flights of stairs leading to the 4th floor. Man...it's a workout. And this week I have probably avergaged about 8 times aday going up and down those stairs. My butt better look great in a couple months! Anyway, I took some pictures of my last day at The Well (they thre me a little party at the end of my last day) and I forgot to take a picture of my first day of work so I took a pic of me on my 3rd day of work. You can see the pics on my picture blog here.

Friends from home

The past two weekends in a row we had friends from Oregon come and visit us. First, Adam and Katy. Then Dan and Amanda. Adam and Dan are both great friends of Derek's and through that I have also become great friends with them as well as their beautiful new wives. We had so much fun with both couples. A few of the things we did: JJ Bean, Stanley Park, Lou's, Incendio, watched "The Corporation" and had some great conversations. Dan and Amanda inspired and encouiraged Derek and I to live more organically and naturally. So we are going to give it a try. We bought a book called "Worms eat my garbage" and we are going to start a worm bin very soon. I am very excited. We are also going to try and buy a lot more organic food and such. It is all a bit overwhelming but I can't wait to get serious about it. Where to start...?





Derek with Adam and Katy at Stanley Park















Katy and I doing a shot at Lou's














Dan and Derek at Stanley Park











Us with Dan and Amanda at an Organic restaurant called Aphrodite's








Yay for friends....I miss home.

job update and crafts

So I officially got a new job! I am so excited. I am going to be working at the Unversity of British Columbia as a Secretary for the School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP). I cannot wait. It will be bitter sweet to leave the coffee shop, but life goes on. Plus the benefits of working for a large University are quite amazing. Yipppeee!!!

Also, I have to show off and show you how crafty my friends are. The other night we made recipe books, we had a blast and I must say they all turned out amazing!!! Check it out...

the search is on

I am looking for a new job, not for any particular reason but the fact that it is time. I am not sure what, if anything, will come of this search, but I thought I could explore my options. I have to admit that part of me would miss the ole coffee shop and seeing all the students at Regent College. But the benefit of more money in my pocket and relief of my aching knees of feet (from standing on my feet for a year and a half) might just out weigh that. We shall see.

Check out my picture blog for some photo updates here

rain, snow, sun?

The weather this week has been downright wacky! We'll wake up to light layer of snow on the grass outside and small flakes falling from the sky. I will get to work and then the nast rain will come and I have no hope for a beautiful day. Then by the afternoon the sun is shinning and the temperature has raised about 10 degrees. What a wierd place I live. But at the end of the day I am thankful for any sun I might have seen.
Today is a crazy day and so I must make this quick. Jess Reimer and I are in charge of the Spouses of Students group at Regent College and today (this morning) os our big term event. It has been a long time coming with more planning than will show, but after this morning it will pretty much be over, the SOS thing that is. Jess and i will begin to look for a replacement for next year. It's been good, but pretty exhausting and a bit heavy at times. Ugh! On a lighter note, Derek and I are having a housewarming party tonight and I am very excited about it. We bought a little too much alcohol (never a bad thing) and are going to spend the afternoon cooking and cleaning and preparing for this evening. I am stoked. I love parties!

P.S. Here is my shout out to you Lara (and Sienna too, cause she's cute)

moving on...

So Derek and I have moved to a new place...yay! We love it. Allow me to give you our crazy schedule of events that has made this move a bit on the stressful side...

Tuesday, feb 21: Go look at basement suite and love it
Wednesday, feb 22: Tell old Landlords we're moving (quite sad)
Thursday, feb 23: Old Landlords find someone to move in asap
Friday, feb 24: start packing
Sat, sun, mon: pack, pack, pack
Tuesday, feb 28: start moving
Wednesday, march 1: move completely out of old place

So basically what this all means is that we found a place and moved all in about a week. Ahhh! Needless to say, Derek and I are a bit exhausted. But it is all worth it because we love our new place. It is beautiful, new and has an amazing kitchen. You should come over!

In other news, my mom is coming to visit me today and will stay for a week. I am very excited. I am going to take her over to Victoria this weekend. She should be here soon :)


**A little shout out to Aud-dawg**

myspace, pyspace

So lately I have become addicted to one website known as 'myspace'. For some reason, I just can't get enough. Sadly, due to this, I have been neglecting my blog and to my faithful readers, I appologize. Today is a day that I have been waiting for for many weeks and months to come. And the best part of it all is that I am skipping work for it! Yes! My good friend, Shelley and I have taken the day off work and are heading one hour south to a city I like to call "targetville" aka Bellingham, Washington. Shelley and I will spend this day, yes ALL stinkin day...SHOPPING! To any guys out there, I am sure this sounds like pure tourture. But to any girls this is truly heavenly! Wish me luck on my shopping spree and we will see what I come home with! Off we go....

V-day

Valentine's day is not really a big deal at the Brown household as Derek thinks it is just a Hallmark holiday and blah blah blah. I don't really mind, but deep down I also would be okay with making a big deal out of it and doing something fancy and fun. Well, the big and fancy part didn't happen. But when I got home last night Derek had bought me flowers accompanied my strawberries and chocolate. We had dinner, he did homework then later we watched Law and Order and ate the strawberries and chocolate. What else could I ask for?! It was perfect :)


P.S. longest run yet accomplished today-45 minutes! And it was gorgeous outside! hehe!

Sick and tired

For 4 days now I have been sick...I mean down and out sick! Sleeping, hardly eating and watching far too much TV. I woke up Friday morning with a 102 degree (fahrenheit, that is) fever - random. I was feeling a bit down the night before but not expecting to wake up with a high fever like that. So I had to call in sick and actually had to reschedule a job interview that I was very much looking forward to (not something you want to have to reschedule). A lot of my friends have been sick too so there is for sure somehting going around. It's crazy around here! Usually when I get sick (unless it's something major), it's about one solid day of feeling icky and then a day to recover and I'm good to go. But this has been 4 days of the icky. My fever came and it went for 3 days. Up and down, up and down. Talk about exhausting! I had to call in sick to work again today...and apparently so did every one else. My poor boss had to cover 3 different people shifts all alone. But the day is done and I will be heading back to work tomorrow no matter how I feel because my guilt has overcome my sickness and that's just the way I work. But rest assured, I am feeling a lot better than I did 3 days ago. Yay!

Some highlights of the past week or so:

*Went on an all-church retreat last weekend and had an amazing time (will post pictures soon)!
*I completed my longest run yet-40 minutes!
*Got to be a part of the celebrations for Chad's birthday...i love birthdays!
*Was taken out for Thai food by my boss (and friend)
*I now have a total of 34 friends on myspace-don't be jealous ;)
*I recieved a sweet and romantic card from my husband (it was an e-card, but still!)
*I worked overtime last week so got to take 1/2 of today off!
*Made a nice chunk of money babysitting this past weekend and now get to go shopping!!

That's all for now!!!

Please take a moment to glance down at my Jan 16th post about Oregon...oh how I love it :)
Read it again...or for the first time-it's just SO true!

my art

I can't draw, I can't paint and I can't even write that well...but I can do this:



















more to come as my skills improve

Snooze it up

On the drive to work this morning I was telling Derek how I had hit "snooze" three times this morning before getting out of bed and how fast that precious 8 minutes always seems to go. We then began discussing "snooze times". Mine is 8 minutes and Derek's is 9 minutes. The one I always used in high school was 10 minutes. I always thought 10 minutes was normal. So I am curious if you can post a comment on here and tell me how long your snooze time is and see if we can get some sort of consensus about it. Thanks for contributing! :)

Apparently the Jewish World Review has something to say about this. I may just be wrong about my 10 minute snooze back in the day.
Check it out:
Here

Okay...now you can actually post a comment. Sorry about that!

You know you're a true Oregonian if...

I LOVED this and had to share it...

How do you know somone is from Oregon????? Well, there is what is called the "Oregon Attitude" (which can carry over, even when moving to other states...):

1. You know the state flower (mildew).

2. You feel guilty throwing aluminum cans or paper in the trash.

3. You use the statement "sun break" and know what it means.

4. You know more than 10 ways to order coffee.

5. You know more people who own boats than air conditioners.

6. You feel overdressed wearing a suit to a nice restaurant.

7. You stand on a deserted corner in the rain without an umbrella
waiting for the "Walk" signal.

8. You consider that: if it has no snow or has not recently erupted, it is not a real mountain.

9. You can taste the difference between Starbucks, Seattle's Best, Coffee Rush and Veneto's. ;

10. You know the difference between Chinook, Coho, and Sockeye salmon.

11. You know how to pronounce Sequim, Puyallup, Issaquah, Oregon and Willamette.

12. You consider swimming an indoor sport.

13. You can tell the difference between Japanese, Chinese and Thai food.

14. In winter, you go to work in the dark and come home in the dark while only working 8 hour shifts.

15. You never go camping without waterproof matches and a poncho.

16. You are not fazed by "Today's forecast: showers followed by rain," and "Tomorrow's forecast: rain followed by showers."

17. You cannot wait for a day with "showers and sun breaks".

18. You have no concept of humidity without precipitation.

19. You know that Boring is a town in Oregon and not just a state of mind.

20. You can point to at least two volcanoes, even if you cannot see through the cloud cover.

21. You notice "the mountain is out" when it is a pretty day and you can actually see it.

22. You put on your shorts and fire up the barbecue when the temperature gets above 50, but still wear your hiking boots and parka.

23. You switch to your sandals when it gets about 60, but keep the socks on.

24. You have actually used your mountain bike on a mountain.

25. You think people who use umbrellas are wimps, tourists or women with a good hair day going.

26. You knew immediately that the view out of Frasier's window was a fake.

27. You buy new sunglasses every year, because you can't find the old ones after such a long time. Or better yet, you continue to wear your sunglasses on cloudy and rainy days.

28. You measure distance in drive time.

29. You often switch from "heat" to "a/c" in the same day.

30. You use a down comforter in the summer.

31. You carry jumper cables in your car and your spouse knows how to use them.

32. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit under a raincoat.

33. You know all the important seasons: Almost Winter (Winter), Still raining (Spring) Road construction (Summer), Deer & Elk season (Fall).

Out to dinner

Last night Derek and I went to dinner with some friends at a near by local restaurant. It was very crowded and hoppin on a Saturday night. We sat down at our too-small-for-4-people-table and ordered our drinks. I ordered a Strongbow hard cider as usual. I was bummed when I realized they served it to me in a bottle instead of on tap. But I poured the bottle of liquid into my glass that they provided and proceeded to enjoy. About 5 minutes after my first sip I decided to enjoy another sip while we waited for our food. I picked up the glass and the next thing I knew cider was everywhere! All over the table, all over the floor, all over my seat and ALL over me! I was soaked and dumbfounded. I look at the glass that I was still holding in my hand to see that the entire bottom of the glass had just fallen right out! Have you ever seen of such a thing?!? So not only was I drenched, I was also so embarrased because if you had been sitting at a table near by and looking over at me, you would think that I spilled all over myself, but no, it was not my fault! Damn that glass. The waitress was not very helpful at all, but gave me some napkins to clean myself up. We decided to stay even though I was in an awkward state and was now freezing cold. We enjoyed our dinner, I got another drink (drank it straight from the bottle this time) and we had a good time. When we got our bill, the waitressed had comped both of my drinks as well as my dinner! I was quite surprised. In canada this type of Customer care is unheard of. So at the end of the night I got a free meal and a free drink and I was on my merry way. I dare say that it was all worth it to get a free meal. Yes!

Pictures are updated!

Check out my picture blog here


http://www.kbpics.blogspot.com

Home at last

It was a great trip, a nice vacation and a wonderful Holiday! But the time has come now for us to get back into routine and our "normal" lives. I think it will be dfficult to go back to work on Monday due to the fact that I have had 3 weeks off. I hope I remember how to make a latte ;) However, it is nice to have purpose in life and whether or not work or school or whatever is something you like, I still think it's a good thing. Gives us balance and purpose in this life. But so would having a baby, right? Maybe one day...
The last half of our trip was spent in Bend with my family and we had such a nice time. We were able to relax and not feel overcommited. We were able to spend ample amount of time with family as well as friends and got to sleep in every day! I saw 4 movies in the theatre (a rarity when you live in Vancouver), drank lots of coffee, went scrapbooking, went in the hot tub lots of times, ate and ate food and really soaked up being on vacation. I will update my picture blog soon so you can see bits of what our trip held.
It is nice to be home now and I am excited to see friends, which will happen tomorrow night at the Reimers (thanks guys!). But for now, I still have 2.5 days left of vacation, so I am off to do nothing and enjoy! Hope you all had a great Holiday!

Christmas has come and gone

I can't believe that we have already been in Oregon for over a week. Dan's wedding has passed, Christmas has passed and we have now traveled to Bend for the other half of our break. Christmas was great. We spent Christmas morning with Derek's mom and fam in P-town and then headed out to Hilsboro to see Derek's dad and fam. It was an eventful day full of food, family, love and presents of course! It was a great day. Christmas night was the first bit of down time that Derek and I had since the start of our trip. We got some movies, curled up on the couch and actually got to relax for more than 10 minutes. It was glorious! The next morning (yesterday) we headed over to Bend and here we are, fully soaking up the true meaning of "vacation".

Holiday at last!

I am on Holiday at last! Finally after waiting and waiting and waiting for a break, we have arrived to Portland, Oregon and we have nothing to do! The nothing to do part might last but a few hours, but the fact of the matter is that I don't have to be at work right now. Oh the bliss!! What lies ahead for our splendid vaca you ask? Well...friends, shopping, a wedding, traveling, Christmas, coffee, family, family and more family. It should be good, but I am sure I will be ready to come "home" to Vancouver by the end of it all. Derek's best buddy, Dan, is getting married on Friday and Derek is the best man. It's going to be a great event and this week leading up to it is going to be full and exciting. Okay, well the day has just begun and I think it is time to walk down the block and get some coffee (yes, we are staying at my sisters place in NW Portland surrounded by coffee shops! Couldn't be better) then it will be off to Target and such places to finish our Christmas shopping.

J.I. and I

Eventhough J.I. Packer is a professor at Regent and I often see him wondering the halls. I have never had the honor of serving him coffee. Until last Friday... He came to The Well with a friend to get some coffee. He said he wanted a really strong cup of coffee (thata boy J.I.!!). So I asked him if he wanted a stronger flavour or if he wanted stronger caffiene. I told him that the dark roast has more flavour and the medium roast has more caffiene. He chose the dark. He was curious about why the medium roast has more caffiene. I went on to explain to him that the longer a coffee bean is roasted the more caffiene escapes from it. Despite the stronger taste, the darker it is the less caffiene it has. He was intrigued and said in his cute little old man voice "you learn something new every day". I can forever hold onto the fact that I, just a little barista in Vancouver taught something to J.I. Packer!!!!

Once again, life is busy as can be. At the beginning of the week, I look at my week and think, "oh, yay, it's going to be a nice restful week", then one by one, the days begin to fill with meetings, babysitting, work, friends, etc. It's all good stuff, but man I am feeling like I need a break. Just a week and a half to go until I get my Christmas Break!! Yes, yes, I know we just got back from a mini break to Oregon for Thanksgiving. But trust me, it was not relaxing or restful at all. It consisted of Derek and I driving all over Oregon to see all of our family (and some friends) and trying to get in a good amount of time with them so we didn't feel guilty, eventhough we were only in Oregon for a total of 4 days or whatever. It was craziness! So in a week and a half, Derek will be completely done with this school term, I will be done with work (for 2.5 weeks) and we can actually spend some time together. We will be heading to Oregon again, but we are going to be sure that we lay low for a couple days before we hit the road. Plus, this trip will be a lot longer and chances are it will be a bit more relaxing. AND....Dan's getting married!!!!!

On the road again

Tomorrow morning Derek and I leave for Oregon. I am so excited! I have been pacing around the house this afternoon not knowing what to do with myself because I am just waiting for the time to pass so we can wake up and hit the road. I am excited that we get to celebrate American Thanksgiving this year, it will be good to be home. And the cheap shopping....oh boy!
My best friend in the whole wide world came to visit me the past 3 days. It was a amazing! It was a short trip but so good and it was so nice to be with her and for us to finally get in some quality time together. There is nothing like it. Jess and I have been friends since our freshman year in high school and I am so thankful for her and for our friendship. Anyway, so her and her husband were here and we had a blast. We tried to show them a bot of Vancouver, but it has been so stinkin foggy that you can't see the mountains or the water or anything. We really do live in a beautiful place...you just can't tell right now. So Jess and Justin left today, it was sad to see them go :(

Busy crazy life

So I just realized today that for the next 2 weeks, I don't have a single free night. It is kind of crazy and I feel a little overwhelmed by it, but the excitement overrides that. I have so much to look forward to. Allow me to tell you what I have going on:

Tomorrow/Tuesday: SOS small group (spouses of students) at my house.
Wednesday: RSN (Regent Spouses Network aka SOS) social event
Thursday: Babysit
Friday: Staff dinner at boss's house (good, yummy, FREE food!)
Saturday: Go see the new Herry Potter movie with friends
Sunday: My best friend, Jess, and her husband come into town!!!!!!!!
Monday: Jess and Justin still here.
Tuesday: Pack
Wednesday: In Eugene, Oregon with my sister and her husband (after leaving at 4am and spending the whole day in Portland seeing Derek's fam and getting my hair done!)
Thursday: American Thanksgiving
Friday: Still in Eugene with sister and fam
Saturday: Back in Portland hanging with Dan and Amanda at Mcmennamins (after a day at Derek's dads house having another Thanksgiving feast).
Sunday: Finally home!!!

That's some serious plans, I must say. But as you see, there is plenty to look forward to and I absolutely can't wait! Especially to see my best friend and to have a break from work! I am so ready for some days off.

Yesterday

Wow, I am really getting lax on writing on my blog. Sorry. Life gets busy and I guess "writing on your blog" doesn't become a huge priority. But all is well here, just super busy. I'm tired.

So Yesterday I was supposed to go on a run with my friend Ansley at 4:45pm like usual. I got off work at 3 and then went to my other friend, Lara's, house to see her and her adorable 3 month old daughter, Sienna (check out this link to see the precious lamb). Anyway, after a long day at work I was hungry because I had hardley eaten a thing, and I was shakey from having recent coffee in my system that I consumed in hopes to get rid of an awful headache. Needless to say Iw as not so much in the mood for a run. On my way to Ansley I was thinking how I was going to tell her that I just don't think I could physically get myself running at that particular moment. But as I walked in the door she was ready to go and I so instead, I just warned her of my current state and off we went. We ended up running for almost 35 minutes! A personal best for me. Once I got running, it was amazing how the fresh, cool air cleared my headache and truly refreshed me. Despite the fact that my knees were killing me, it was a great run! Moral of the story: even if you are feeling sick and don't want to get up to exercise or run or whatever, do it anyway, cause you will be so glad you did. Goal: to remember that "refreshing" feeling everytime I try and justify away the fact that I should go for a run.

Have a great day!

Just an update

A few quick odds and ends to update you on my life: (Thanks Jess Reimer for the idea)

-Last night we went to a costume party at the Reimers. It was a blast! I was Cleopatra and Derek was Doug McKenzie(from 'Strange Brew').
-24 days until Derek and I go to Oregon for American Thanksgiving!
-I am in an "I hate my job" mode...what to do, what to do...
-The girls upstairs are running around right now and it is SO stinkin loud. But they're cute.
-Dan and Amanda are getting married in less than 2 months! Derek is the best man!
-I miss my friends from back home. I miss the poeple who really know me inside and out :( I am ready to go home.

Apparently nothing really exciting is going on. But that's okay. I'll keep you posted...





Here are Derek and I at the end of the evening of our halloween party.







(More pics on my picture blog here)

Past, Present, Future

Man, it's been a long time....

PAST
This past week or so, life has been crazy (hence why I haven't had time to write in my blog). I hav been working of course, then on top of that I have had loads of meeting for work. So some days I will go straight from work to a meeting. Then it seems like we have had something going on every evening for the past couple weeks and as fun as it is, it can be exhausting. Let's see, nothing really exciting has happened. Every week just kind of turns out to be the same. We are just waiting out the time until we get to go home for American Thanksgiving and then again for Christmas. I am praying that the time flies. Last weekend we did have a Pumpkin Carving Party. It was quite fun. My friends are so creative. We had a blast.

PRESENT
Well, I sit here at my desk at 7:30am and I am so excited that it is Friday. I wait for this day all week long and now it is finally here. Just one last 8 hour shift then 2 days of freedom. Kind of sad, but I live for the weekends! Derek and I are going to go out to dinner tonight because we need a date. I can't wait. Luckily this week is Reading Week at Derek's school which means there are no classes so I have been able to sleep in an extra hour and go to work at 8 instead of 7. Oh the beauty of an extra hour of sleep!

FUTURE
The immediate future (as in the weekend) holds for us a Halloween (Costume) party. We are very excited about it, but ot has kind of been a pain coming up with an idea for costumes. The party is tomorrow and we are still not set on an idea. We have to come as someone famous, wether that be an actor, a TV character, a dead theologian, anything. Please email me if you have any brilliant ideas...but shhhh it's a secret. Our goal is to try not to spend too much money for this whole ordeal. Afterall, we are poor. As far as the more distant future, I see babies and a house and me staying home and not having to go to work anymore. Okay okay, it's a ways off...but it'll happen! I hope.

working at a coffee shop

As you know, I work in a coffee shop. For the most part it is good and fun and busy and whatnot. But in working in a coffee shop (as in any customer service job) you get customers who think they are better than you and they aren't afraid to treat you that way. I guess thet think that they are better than me because I work at a coffee shop and they don't. Whatever. I don't really get it and I think it's quite ridiculous. Sometimes I try and be overly nice to these people and other times I try and to be not so nice to them....either way, it's fun. Sometimes I am only nice in hopes that they willl leave me a big tip, but then I get mad when (yes I said when) they don't...ever! Oh the joys of customer service. Audrey and I came to the conclusion today that people are just straight up annoying (sorry). I urge you to please be nice to people in coffee shops, they have to stand on their feet all day long and for all you know the customer they had before you may have treated them like crap and that is the only reason they seem pissy. Maybe you can be the one to brighten their day! I also very highly encourage tip giving. Even if it's just a dime or a quarter, or whatever you can spare. I know it doesn't seem like they did much and they really don't "deserve" a tip, but they work hard and all the more reason to drop a few pennies in the tip jar!

A new week...

Have you ever been so physically and emotionally exhausted that you can hardly stand? That's how last week was for me. It was a short week due to the Thanksgiving weekend which means you have to do 5 days worth of stuff in 4 days. So with working, evening events and meetings last week, I was pooped!! Getting up at 6am every day makes you tired. This past Saturday we went down to Bellingham for the day, we got back around 3ish and as soon as we got home I went to sleep until 6:00. It was an amazing and much needed nap. Then I went ahead and slept 9 hours on top of that. Oh, I love sleep. Why is it so great?!? Anyway, I am stoked that it is the beginning of a new week. I have hope and excitement for it and know it has to be better than last week. At least more restful if nothing else...

Yay for a long weekend!

One thing that I love about Canada is that there is one holiday every month (except one I think), it's pretty great, cause not only do I get a day off, but I get paid for it! Gotta love stat holidays. This coming Monday is Canadian Thanksgiving. Something we experienced last year, but it's still just as odd. The Cramer's are having a big Thanksgiving potluck, so we are going to that and we will have turkey and all the fixins, just like in the states! I love Thanksgiving, and this year we get to celebrate it twice cause we are going home for American Thanksgiving. I am very much looking forward to the long weekend. So much so that tomorrow I am splurging and going to get a pedicure. I deserve it, right? I mean I do work on my feel 40+ hours a week. Well, regardless, it will be great!

Some highlights of the week:
*Worked 3 of 5 days without a lunch break -we've been so busy!
*Drank a little too much with the Raith's on thursday night
*Went running for a record time of 32 minutes (in the rain too!)
*Saw my boss in a towel -not on purpose...awkward
*Had our first SOS (or RSN) meeting -it was so great!
*Derek is sick...again
*The Cramer's got their phone hooked up-finally!
*I get a pedicure tomorrow!!

Tidbits (idea stolen from Cramer and Reimer)

I admit that this is a stolen idea. First from Jess then from Grace. I thought it was cute. And just what you always wanted...more dumb info about me!

A-Area Code: 778

B-Birthday: June 21, 1983. I;m only 22. Though I feel 24 or 25 cause that's how old all the girls around me are :)

C-Creative Outlet: Scrapbooking and organizing, and writing in my blog (is that creative?)

D-Drink of Choice: I like coffee and coffee type drinks. I also love love love hard cider (McMenamins has the best!)

E-Eating Currently: Just finished dinner-stir fry-and will soon be having some apple pie.

F-Favorite Food: Chicken Curry!!! My newest found love. Especially from 'Thai Away Home' and sweets. Off the top of my head, the Cramer Banana cookies.

G-Goals: To help Derek accomplish all his and in the meantime become a mom!!

H-Hatred: I'm going with zits and back pains today.

I-Inspiration: Deep and conversations with women and when someone says something nice to you and my best friend Jess Scott!!

J-Job: Manager/Barista, The Well Cafe, Vancouver BC

K-Kids: Just Derek ;)

L-Loves: Planning, my husband, babies, friends, Jesus, fam

M-Movie: I am a chick flick girl through and through, therefore my fave is always changing. And since I am poor, I haven't really seen too many movies lately.

N-Nerd-like Tendencies: writing in my blog, reading other peoples blogs, playing on the internet...pretty sure I am just a big nerd but I haven't realized it and think I am really cool.

O-Obsessive-Compulsive Tendencies: Checking my e-mail every chance possible, getting into a made bed. If I am 2 seconds from crawling into bed, but it is still not made from the morning, I have to make it before I can get in.

P-Favorite Perfume/Cologne: Britney Spears new scent...just kidding!! I love Bath and Body Works Cucumber Melon...oh, so good! That has been my scent for probably 5 or more years now.

Q-Quirk About Yourself: you tell me-cause I can't think of anything

R-Last Road Trip: To and from Warm Beach in Washington State for a Regent retreat last weekend, in the vehicle of the cramers.

S-Smoke: Pretty sure I smoked a cigarette or two when I was in middle school, I tell ya, I'm cool.

T-TV Show: too many-how embarrasing, will name a couple. Law and Order:SVU and Gilmore Girls. I get into shows way too easily. Who gave me cable?!

U-Ultra-sensitivities: So stinkin ticklish, and I cry real easily.

V-Time You Were In Vegas: Never been. Not too bummed.

W-Who Do You Go To For Advice? Derek, Jess Scott, SOS girls.

X-X-rays Taken This Year: None this year

Y-Your Favorite Year of Your Life: Freshman year of college, moving to Eugene, meeting Derek, making some amazing friends, feeling so "free", being tight with the Lord, being carefree, staying up till 4am every night and not caring, gosh it was great!

Z-Zodiac Sign: Technically I am right on the cusp of Gemini and Cancer, but I could care less really.

Thank you for reading "dumb things about Katie" hope you have enjoyed this time and I hope you come again soon.

darn them!

Darn Starbucks for calling a 12oz coffee a "tall"...darn them!!

This past weekend was the Regent Retreat (a retreat held for the students and family's of Derek's grad school). We had a blast! Though it cost a little more than we would have liked to have paid, we had a great time. It was fun not to be new and awkward but to be comfortable and to have friends all over the place. It was a good feeling. And who knew you could have so much fun tossing tiny pigs on the table! Oh, the laughs!

Anyway, the past two days I have work 12 and 14 hour days and I am so tired and my body hurts. even this mornig I woke up with a hobbile headache and a huge knot in my kneck. It's a pain. Tonight after work, Derek and I need to go grocery shopping (long awaited) and then I am hoping to sit and relax and go to bed early. We'll see how this all pans out later. As for now, it is 6:30am and I need to get going to work...

I am sitting here at The Well (at work) waiting for Derek to get out of class. He is out of class at 4:00 (I am off work at 3) and he has another class at 6:30. He has not started the paper and therefore does not want to "waste" time riding the bus home. So I am ever so graciously waiting for an hour for him to be done with class. Audrey doesn't mind though because I am keep her company while she is working.

Our trip on the train went well. The train ride was ever so long, I don't reccomend it if you are only going for a day. My back is still sore from sitting and slouching for 10+ hours (each way). But they do play movies on the train (a fact I was unaware of) and I did get to watch Herbie:Fully Loaded three, yes THREE times! Goodness. The wedding was sweet and it was great to see friends and fam while in Oregon for less than 48 hours.

This weekend we are off once again. We are going to the Regent retreat. Besides the fact that it costs money and too much money, I am very excited. I think this year will be even more fun that last year considering that fact that we know a lot more people and I just think it will be great. But this is hopefully our last weekend away for a while. We're tired.

off again

tomorrow morning Derek and I leave for yet another weekend trip. We are headed back to Oregon to go to Adam and Katy's wedding. My sister is also having a housewarming party so it works out that we will be ther. We are taking the train from bellingham tomorrow morning and it is quite a long ride. About 10 hours. However, it will be a nice break from driving and the train should be fun. It will be crazy though because we arrive to Eugene tomorrow evening around 8pm and we leave Sunday morning at 10am. So we are really only there for Saturday. We have a housewarming party, a wedding and all the stuff in between. My whole family will be in town for my sister, which will be great. But who knows how much time I will get to spend with them. I am thankful that we get to go though and I am really looking forward to it. Won't be quite like Victoria...but who's comparing ;)

Victoria

Victoria was....amazing!!!! I can't even describe how wonderful and beautiful and fun it is. Check out my picture blog within the next day or two for pictures. We had a fantastic and romantic time, I don't think we will ever forget it. Yay for vacations!

See the pics here!

2nd Anniversary

Tuesday, the 6th, was our two year anniversary. Wow...2 years. It sure does go by quick. On a side note, it was also the 1 year anniversary of us moving to Vancouver. Besides waking up an hour late, Tuesday was a normal day. Work work work. But when I came home Derek told me to sit and relax and he was going to make dinner. 3 hours later he was done. We got all dressed up and had a nice romantic dinner (he made manicotti-my fave!) accompanied by a taylor made bouquet of flowers, candles and wine. It was great! Though Tuesday was our actual anniversary, we are actually having our big celebration this weekend. We leave today and we are going to Victoria. Just for 2 nights and 3 days, but I cannot wait! We have been planning this and looking forward to it all summer and now it has arrived. We will stay at a cute little Inn, sleep in, see the city and have a nice fancy dinner (compliments of my boss). I hope it will be a relaxing weekend and that Derek and I can just enjoy each other. Yay for anniversaries! Off to Victoria...

Last night

We had a party last, it was pretty stinkin fun if I do say so myself. It was Derek and I and all our close married friends. There was about 14 of us total. I think we had a blast. We hung out and drank a lot and then we played the "newlywed game" that Derek and I created ourselves. It's hilarious to see the couples interact during this. Robert and Michele were the winners by a coin toss. They tied with the Sartors originally. And boy were the prizes great ;) Yeah...we got them from the dollar store. Anything we could find for a buck or less. We had a raffle and that is how we gave the rest of the prizes away. I'd say the party was a hit! Now school will be starting up in a week and it's back to the life of no fun while all our husbands study study study. bleh...

Katrina

The events over the past week that have occured due to Hurricane Katrina have brought up a lot of feelings and emotions in everyone. Words can't explain the sympathy I have or the feeling of helplessness that overwhelms me. I hope we can all keep those people and their families and all the volunteers that are invloved in this horrible disaster, in our prayer and thoughts. Don't let one day or even one hour pass without giving some thought to those who are in trouble and suffering. May God bless them.

Go ducks!

It is so refreshing to be back in Eugene, Oregon. We will be here about 2 1/2 days and it will be the longest time we have spent here in a year. It is so nice to see the University or Oregon stickers and the Duck icons all over. Really brings ya back :) Soon, and very soon, we will be sporting a bumber sticker of our own (and so will the Cramer's!). Go Ducks!

Tomorrow we get to go to a wedding of a friend of ours from undergrad. It will be like a big reunion with friends we haven't seen in a whille. We are very much looking forward to it. It has been a crazy busy trip with not a lot of sleep. So though it is nice to be away and on "holiday" it will be kind of nice to get home and be on a normal sleep schedule again. It's amazing that you actually get less sleep and relaxation when you are on vacation sometimes, it's a little ackwards I think. But, we will be home to Canada Sunday night and it will probably come too soon.

Clothes Swap

Quite possibly the best idea (especially if you are poor and a girl). Gather up your friends, have them bring all the clothes they don't want and then you pile them on the floor and go at it! You walk away with "new" clothes and it's a whole lot of fun doing it. Espcially after it's over and you are all just sitting around chatting or whatnot and randomly you see something you may not have noticed earlier in the pile. It's all very exciting. Oh, and don't forget the alcohol!

Mexican food in Vancouver?

side note: I have decided to change my font back to "normal size" instead of "large size" (sorry Grace) but it's just so big!
I swear there are like 3, maybe 4 mexican restaurants in Vancouver. It is a rarity indeed. However, you can walk down any given street and see about 100 sushi restaurants. Now, if you are into sushi, that's great for you! As for me, I would rather have myself a big burrito...mmmm! The other night Derek and I decided we would splurge and go out to dinner (another rarity). We were both craving mexican food. We looked up the 4 existing local restaurants and decided we would drive by them and see where we wanted to go. We found this great one called Las Margaritas on West 4th. It looked fun, it was packed and the appearance of it was pleasing to the eye. We parked a few blockes away then walked up and decided to check out the menu that was posted outside the door. Our hope was quickly shot when we saw that it ws around $15 a plate. Then you add drinks and tip and tax...you're looking at $45 bucks, at least. That was a no go. We decided instead that we would just walk down 4th and see what else there was. Alas, another mexican place..and it's upstairs..and it had a special going on that night for like $9 a plate. We were in! It was not quite the mexican food experience we had hoped for. Let me set the scene, we walked in, there were 2 employees and about 2 of the tables were full. The place looked old and Sex in the City was on the TV (hmmm?). We decided to give it a try. We ordered drinks (i think my Pina Colada type drink had been sitting in the fridge for a few hours) then we got our food. It was okay, but I could have done way better making it at home. Needless to say, I was kind of disappointed. Our big night out to dinner was a flop. However, the company was pretty good, so I guess I can't complain ;)
If you ever come to Vancouver...go for Sushi...apparently it's pretty good here.

Working at The Well

Working at The Well Cafe is an interesting thing. It has it's ups and downs...that's for sure. Mainly, I would say it is the people. The customers, that is. They really make or break a day for you. And honestly, all it takes is one person to be rude for no apparant reason and you're done for. You might as well go home and start the day over cause the day officially SUCKS! I don't understand those people who are rude for no reason. I imagine they must have had some experiences in life that have made them bitter and they deicde to take it out on the world. Somtimes...it hurts...and really makes me mad. I wish I could depict the stories exactly as I experience them, but writing them would not do them justice. You'll just have to trust me...I see some amazingly crazy people pass my way each and every day. I swear the Lord is testing me in EVERY way.
Honestly though, if it weren't for my great staff (of 3) there would be no reason to get up in the morning. I can't even call them "my staff" cause they are my friends and my source of entertainment that keep me from going insane each day. There's Audrey, Dane, and our new addition Jeff. Jeff hasn't started yet since his wife (ex-manger of the well) had a baby yesterday-yay! But I know he'll add to the team quite nicely. Audrey is my right hand, I am not joking. When we work together, not only does the time fly cause we are having so much fun but we are like a machine and communicate without even talking. She's also crazy and I love her. She is probably one of the funniest most sarcastic people I know and she has a story for everything. It's greatly amusing. Then theres Dane...silly Dane. He's freaking hilarious and I think his goal in life is to make people laugh. We have loved having him around and all I have to say...is our store is better than that other store over there on Dunbar. We ROCK!!! Yay for great people to work with.

Way too long...

Whoa...it sure has been a little while. I am so sorry to those of you who sit at your computer daily waiting for my next entry. Finally you get some excitement! Lucky you. Anyway, all is going well here during our first Canadian summer. We have been very much enjoying the sunshine and the beauty here. Today we went to China Town with our new southern friends, Chad and Ansley. It wasn't all it's hyped up to be, but we had a good time. Plus it was a beautiful day, so you can't go wrong.

What else is new? Well, I did go to L.A. last weekend for my sisters graduation from her Masters. I had a blast with the family. We were only there a couple days, but we did a lot of eating out, a little laying by the pool and a lot of time laughing and enjoying each other. It was a mini family vacation that I am sure to remember. Annie graduated from Azusa Pacific with her Masters in Psychology. Her and her husband have just recently moved back to Oregon and are now living in Eugene where Tony will attend University of Oregon and get his masters in Psychology.

As far as Derek and I, we are still puttin along. Derek is currently finishing up some papers fro summer school and I am just working my little tail off and enjoying the beauty of Vancouver. We've really been enjoying our friends a lot and have actually found lots of open times where we are all in town on the same days. It's been fantasic. Well, that's the little update. Sorry I don't have a more exciting life. But hey...what can I say?

By the way...I hope you have all had a chance to read Harry Potter 6 or least started reading the series. Since I finished reading the 6th book, I have become completely addicted and maybe a tad bit obsessed. I am rereading the book and once I get all my other books in the series back (they are loaned out at the moment) then I will reread the entire series. Oh man, I get excited just thinking about it....

HARRY POTTER!!!

Today is the day, it has finally come. July 16th, the day that Harry Potter and Half Blood Prince (the 6th book in the series) is released. Months ago I would have thought that at this very moment I would be curled up on my couch reading the long awaited book. But, just weeks ago Derek and I realised that if we bought the book in Canada it would not match all of our other books. So alas, we are waiting until next weekend where we are going to Seattle for a wedding. We will then get the book and dive right in. Though the next week will be tough and it will be hard to avert my eyes from online articles and news broadcasts about the much anticipated book, I know it will be worth it to have my fresh American Harry Potter book. Despite the controversy that is going on, I really don't care. the controversy is that the U.S. version is not printed on recycled paprer whereas the canadian version is on 100% recycled paper. But what can you do? I must have my U.S. copy of the book. For the last couple of months Derek and I have been rereading all of the books in order to prepare for today's release of the 6th. But instead of reading them, we have been getting them on tape from the library and have very much enjoyed listening to them together. We are still working on finishing up the 5th book on tape. So all in all it is a good thing that we still have one more week, cause we still have a little ways to go. Though it is fun to listen to it (actually it is amazing!) it takes a bit longer to get through because we have to coordinate our schedules and set aside "Harry Potter" time. But, if you get a chance, I highly reccommend listening to them on tape-or CD. They are perfect for road trips and you can check them out from the library. The guy who reads the books is positively wonderful. He is a delight to listen to, he does all the voices and has won numerous awards for his work reading the series. It's great! I hope that everyone now has their copy of the 6th book in hand and is enjoying it greatly. And, if you are still yet to get into the Harry Potter craze, I very much urge you to give it a try. Pick up the first book and just start reading, it is an easy read, very fun and interesting and is good for the imagination. You will soon know what all the fuss is about and once you get through the first 5, you will be on your way out to pick up your copy of the 6th. If you begin reading and you are not as into it as you thought you would be, then at least give it to the end of the 3rd book and if by that point you are still not convinced, then I guess it's just not for you. Which is sad and depressing, but I guess could just be the case. Hopefully you have not gone and seen the movies before you have read the books, it's just not the same to see the movies first. The 3rd movie sucks anwyay. Okay Harry Potter fans, what are you doing reading my blog when you should be reading your new book. Off you go...

Babies everywhere

Everywhere I go...babies, babies and preganant women. There must be something in the water here. One of my friends here just had a baby 2 days ago. A baby boy named Noah. So precious. It was long awaited (well 9 months) and now he's here. It's a pretty crazy and incredible thought that he is now out in the world experiencing life for the first time. There are a few more friends who should be giving birth within the next couple months. So litterally, there will be new born babies all over the place. With their new proud, glowing (yet tired) parents. I love it all. It's fun to oooh and aaaah over them but then know that at the end of the day you get to go home and sleep the whole night through. One day that will be us though and that is fine by me. I think it all seems fun and exciting.

Enjoy the sun Vancouver (yes it finally is here)!! Pray it lasts.

Long time

Wow, I have just noticed that it has been a while since I have written anything on here. What a slacker I am. This full time job thing sure keep ya busy, eh? That and the fact that my husband and I are now having to share a computer. All those things take a toll. So first off, let me just tell you how wonderful the summer here in Vancouver has been. Oh wait, did I say summer? Cause I think it must be fall eventhough the calendar says July. Yeah, it has been pretty crappy. Rainy and not too warm. Our first summer in Vancouver has so far sucked! I just want to go to the beach and get a tan. Is that so much to ask? We did have one nice day on Saturday, that was fun. My mom and Helen were here so the whole day was a huge blessing. We had a great time.
So, I am coming to a realization in my life that I am not getting any younger and really need to start focusing more onmy health. I need to eat at least a little healthier and need to do a little more physical activity. My question for you is this...how? How can I eat healthier but still be on this tight budget and cook in my tiny kitchen? And how can I get myself up off my butt and be motivated to workout when I have to be fully self motivated (no one will run with me)? That's my challenge for you all...to help me ;) Any encouragement, words of advice or nice healthy recipes would be greatly appreciated.
Okay, I have to work in just 8 hours so I guess I should at least start thinking about getting to bed (I guess I shouldn't have drunk that coffee). Goodnight world.

A quick thought

You know you are getting older when, eventhough it's your birthday, you are still ironing your husbands shirt while he plays video games. Hmmm...

P.S. I got a digital camera, so my photo page will hopefully have more pictures on it now. Be sure to check it out www.kbpics.blogspot.com

Hanging in Oregon

Here I am, at my parents house in Bend, Oregon and for the first time in a few days I get to actually sit down and have nothing to do. Feels good. After I got off work on Friday we drove straight down to Portland where we arrived around 10:30pm, we got to see our niece, Sophia (yes she was still awake) and we got to see our new nephew again who has grown about double in size since the last time we were there about a month ago. It was amazing. Anyway, Saturday morning we woke up and drove down to Eugene, we had not been to Eugene since the day we left over 9 months ago. Oh how we miss it. Our first stop when we got into town was, of course, ROMA!!! Derek was in heaven. It was nice to be back on the U of O campus where the sun was actually shining...for about 10 minutes. For lunch we met some friends at the North Bank McMenammins where we both had the ever famous 'Wilbur Burger' and Derek had a Terminator Stout. Again...in heaven. That evening we went to the wedding that we had actually come down for. Our friends Ben and Deanna got married. It was a sweet wedding and we litterally got to see ALL of our Eugene friends while we were at the reception. It was awesome and socially draining. We loved every minute of it. We couldn't quite get enough so after that we went again to McMennamins (this time it was the one on 19th) with about 8 of our friends. We got to catch up more personally and it was glorious. Needless to say, we were exhausted. We set it up, so we were able to stay out in Cook's Cottage at Camp Harlow. This morning we got up and went to breakfast (it just so happens to be counselor training right now) and again we got to see all of our camp buddies and close friends. Breakfast lasted a little longer than anticipated but we eventually got out of there, hopped in the car once again and headed to Bend. But first we stopped at Roma once again for some coffee for the road. Side note-we checked out 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' on CD to listen to in the car and we have pretty much listened to it every chance we have gotten. Needless to say, we are flying right through it and hope to move on to 'Order of the Phoenix' soon. We got here to Bend around noonish and just knowing that we will not have to be getting in the car again anytime in the next 12 hours felt good. It is Father's Day so we have just been spending time with the fam. We went to a BBQ and it began to get a little chilly so we went inside and not even 2 minutes after we moved inside it began to hail like I have never seen before. It was coming down like pouring rain and lasted for about 20 minutes. It was insane. It is the middle of June and it's hailing. Who would've thought? I kind of enjoyed it. So, I am back at my parents and we are just resting and waititng for mom to finish her big surprise Father's Day gift for my dad. And in about 2 or so hours we will get to see our good buddy David Beach, so excited! On Tuesday (my big 22nd!) we head back over to Portland where we will get to see Derek's fam again and then Wednesday we head back home to Vancouver where we get to breathe :)

Craziness

Isn't life just crazy? I have to say so. Especially when summer hits, lives just fill up and more and more things are filling the day planner. I thought summer was supposed to be a relaxing time of peace and quiet. I guess we just take advantage of our so called "peace and quiet" and we fill our schedules with trips, guests and fun activities. Therefore ultimately summer is just as busy, if not more busy, than any other part of the year. It's all craziness I tell ya, just craziness. Take time to stop and enjoy what we all hope will be a beautiful summer. Congrats to all my graduating friends from U of O and of course OSU too. I am so happy for you all!

Stupid moment

So last week I was making....something with ground beef. I had let the ground beef thaw that day but it did not thaw all the way so I put it in the microwave for a couple minutes to defrost. Anyway, when it was done I took 1/2 of the ground beef to cook with and put the other 1/2 of the beef back in the freezer...though I thought. A few days later, litterally a few days, I went to cook something in the microwave and it turns out that I had put the other 1/2 of the beef into the microwave instead of the freezer. Needless to say we had to throw that out and it did not smell too good in the microwave. Silly me!

P.S. Derek got a job...woohooo...but he works all day Saturdays, so we had to change our coffee shop hunt to Sunday afternoons. We went to a place called Higher Grounds on Sunday and it was alright. Cute little place, okay atmosphere, small seating area. But they serve Cuppa Joe coffee, so that's always good. :)