tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49987248398532109632024-03-05T18:40:45.702-06:00Grandpa Joe's HouseTwo hopeful newlyweds set out with a 1960s house to build a life and modern home of their own.casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.comBlogger160125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-88274025274610156722020-01-13T11:35:00.000-06:002020-01-13T11:35:05.080-06:00Increasing Your Reading in 2020<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Are you hoping to read more in 2020? Philip and I made the goal to read more often for 2018, and since then have been increasing slowly each year (or rather quickly in my case last year). I love it when others are reading, and love to talk about books, so I thought I'd share some of the tips that have helped me increase my reading count so exponentially this year. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/75557033-cassondra" target="_blank">Goodreads</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I use the Goodreads app (as well as a spreadsheet) to track my reading, and you can find my profile in the link on the right. It's a social media app for readers, allowing you to add books to your TBR (to-be-read) pile digitally, and mark the books you've read, providing a rating should you choose. It's fun to be able to see what friends are reading, and allows you to see at a glance all of the titles you've read. Habit tracking is a motivator for me, so tracking my reading helps me to feel excited about getting closer to my goals. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Libby</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Libby app can be used for taking out ebooks and audio books from the library on your phone or tablet. In Summer of 2019 I discovered audio books and have finally hit my stride as far as picking books and knowing what I like in an audio book. As long as you have a library card, this is a free option and I have really enjoyed reading this way! As I mentioned in my last post, I found celebrity memoirs or other books that were read by voices I knew as a great gateway into audio. A lot of people find non-fiction easier than fiction on audio, which was my experience as well, although I have been finding some great fiction options lately as well. Check my <a href="https://grandpajoeshouse.blogspot.com/2020/01/2019-favourite-books.html" target="_blank">last post</a> for some great audio book recommendations, or send me a DM on instagram for more recommendations!</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Book-ish Podcasts</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One way to stay motivated to keep reading is by often hearing about new and exciting titles, and listening to people talk about a love of reading. I have two favourites:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>What Should I Read Next with Anne Bogel </i>Anne hears from listeners 2 books they love, and 1 book they don't, and proceeds to give them 3 recommendations for what they should read next. It's relaxing to listen to, and I have never been steered wrong. If you aren't into podcasts, her instagram would also provide lots of great inspiration to get you to the library.</span><br />
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">From the Front Porch </i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This podcast comes out of a bookstore in Thomasville, Georgia. It's a dream for a local bookstore, and my reading tastes are very similar to the bookstore owner, Annie (apparently you need to be named Anne/Ann/Annie to be into books - thankfully my middle name is Ann). They're changing their format in the new year, so the podcast might change a little bit, but I have complete confidence.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Creating Time for Reading</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Don't think you have time to read? A couple of ideas to carve out the time:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Pair reading with something else in your weekly routine. </i>Our starting move in 2018 was to pair reading with babysitting our nephews once a week. Each Wednesday when we went over, as soon as the boys went to bed we both took out our books. It was a quiet activity which was great for sleepy kids, and it automatically gave us an hour or two of reading. Once you get into a book for an hour, you're more likely to be interested in the story and eager to pick it up for a few minutes before bed each night or in any other free time you might have. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Set a timer</i>. Laura Tremaine, a podcaster I follow, suggests setting a timer for reading. If you're just getting started, set a timer for 20 minutes and dedicate yourself to reading. If you set a 20 min timer each day you'll be getting through books in no time!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Read as a reward. </i>Sometimes if I'm doing a task I really don't enjoy, or trying to psych myself up for such a task, I'll give myself a reading reward. If I shovel the walk, I'll come in and read a chapter afterward. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Read as a break from another time suck. </i>On a relaxing day if you're watching some TV, before allowing Netflix to play the next episode automatically, read a chapter between episodes. It's time you would have spent on a TV binge anyway, and helps incorporate your new habit into the time. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We're 2 weeks into January, have you done any reading? I'd love to hear about it! I am ahead of my goal for January reading, so February might include some longer doorstop titles while I have the wind at my back. One of my favourite January reads so far was <i>Atomic Habits </i>by James Clear. If you're still determining any 2020 goals you might have, that book is an amazing resource! </span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-43108762381967418002020-01-06T11:36:00.004-06:002020-01-06T11:36:58.591-06:002019 Favourite Books<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been looking forward to this post for at least a month, but couldn't get it done earlier because I was reading until the last minute to reach a goal I hadn't even imagined for myself. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This year I read 100 books. It's probably more books than I've read the last 5 years combined. It was awesome. I loved every minute. I love being a reader. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">First off, some stats:</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">At the end of the year, I went through all of the books that I read and checked how many books I read that I already owned (or bought) vs. books from the library. My goal is to finish reading the books that I own, so I wanted to see if I at least moved the needle because towards the end of the year I had a library problem. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Of my 100 books, <b>42% were books that I owned. </b>Sooo not moving the needle as much as I could that's for sure. However, I think the library was one of the reasons I read so much because I was excited about every book that came in and it had a due date so I was pushing myself. #noregrets</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">The next criteria that I tested myself on was a diversity audit. One tip for 2020, I'm going to keep track of this as I go because it took a while to look up each and every book and check whether the author was a person of colour. Of my 100 books, <b>18% </b>were written by people of colour. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Ensuring that you have different voices represented in your reading is super important (as well as your social media follows, news sources, etc.). I noticed a big trend towards that this year, which definitely helped me to achieve a mediocre percentage this year because books written especially by black authors were popular. My goal for 2020 is to read more books by First Nations authors, as well as Asian authors to better reflect the population of Winnipeg. I looked up the percentages online and am hoping to show the same percentages in my reading. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-large;"><b>Audio Book Favourites</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Let's start with audio books. This was a new reading experience for me in 2019, and a large part of the reason why my book count is so high. I majorly slacked on my podcasts, and consumed tons of books via audio. <b>32% of my reading was done via audio.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Getting into audio books was a little bit hard for me, so I don't have a ton of super deep audio book recommendations because I found it easiest to dip my toe into the audio book pool with celebrity memoirs. If you aren't sure you like audio books, I found this the easiest way to start, it helped to listen to voices that I already knew. Celebrity memoirs, books by instagrammers you follow that read their own books, etc. was an easy way to learn how to listen to books for hours while doing other things. If you are used to podcasts, non-fiction in general might be easier on audio which is what I definitely found. <b>81% of my audio listening was non-fiction.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">All of my audio books were borrowed through the Libby app, which allows you to borrow books from your local library and they are automatically returned on their due date through the app. There can be long holds, and you can end up with 18 books at a time (may or may not have happened to me multiple times), but it's easy to renew or place another hold on a book if you don't get to it during your 21 day loan. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My favourite non-fiction audio books were <b>Me Talk Pretty One Day</b> by David Sedaris<b> </b>(I have all of his other books on hold as well so I'm excited for them to be available!), <b>I am Malala </b>by </span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Malala Yousafzai (an engrossing story that taught me so much I should have already known about Islam and the Taliban), & <b>Save me the Plums </b>by Ruth Reichl (weirdly enthralling for a book about working at a cooking magazine). If you were looking forward to some celebrity memoir titles, I'd recommend anything by Mindy Kaling, and I also enjoyed Nick Offerman & Megan Mullally's book, <b>The Greatest Love Story Ever Told. </b></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">My favourite fiction audio books were <b>The Dreamers </b>by Karen Thompson Walker, <b>The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek </b>by Kim Michele Richardson, and <b>Finding Audrey </b>by Sophie Kinsella. I found the narrators easy to listen to so I could get into the books, and The Dreamers in particular was hard to put down! I listened to it over Christmas break which was hard to do as we were around people most of the time, so I found myself playing it in the bathroom to try to hear more of the story!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">In looking at my numbers, I read <b>51% non-fiction </b>this year. It looks like it was a percentage I held steady too, because I started analyzing my reading at 85 books and I was at 51%, and now today when I updated the last 15 books I was still at 51% so I was glad to see that. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">I'm in a Christian non-fiction book club, so that definitely contributes, and I love a good productivity or practical tips book as much as the next gal. I also read some great coffee table type non-fiction books with lots of pictures so that helped my numbers in December. Now, on to favourites:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>The Road Back to You </b>by Suzanne Stabile & Ian Morgan Cron</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">If you are new to the Enneagram personality typing system, this is a super easy book to read and will help you to figure out your type and what that means for you. If you're wondering, I'm a 6w7. This was our January book club read and I'd recommend it for a book club (along with any other personality books) as it makes for great discussion. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>I Think You're Wrong, but I'm Listening </b>by Beth Silvers & Sarah Stewart Holland</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">First off, what a great title. This book is about grace filled political conversations, taking off your team jersey and getting to know those on the other side, and getting curious about other stances rather than defensive about your own. It was super helpful during a time of hard church conversations (I definitely should have read it weekly to keep my feet on higher ground), and I gave it to my dad for Father's Day as we love to have conversations about controversial topics and politics. Highly recommend their podcast as well, <b>Pantsuit Politics.</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>Essentialism </b>by Greg McKeown</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">This book was hyped like crazy on my instagram so I had to read it. It earned every bit of praise that it got. Easy to read, but packs a punch, Essentialism is all about doing less, but better which is basically my life ambition. In the vein of one of my favourite follows, <b>The Lazy Genius </b>(her podcast is a must), this book will help you to be a genius about things that matter and lazy about the things that don't. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>Educated </b>by Tara Westover</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">A little different than my first 3 picks, this is a memoir about a Mormon girl who grew up in her survivalist family living in the mountains of Idaho. If you aren't a big non-fiction reader, this feels like a novel because it's hard to believe anything that happens to her would have happened in real life. It was hard to put down which is more than can be said for a lot of non-fiction reads. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b>I Miss You When I Blink </b>by Mary Laura Philpott</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">This essay collection was funny and relatable on every page and I remember being pleasantly surprised by it and so glad to have read it. I have trouble remembering books after I read them, but as I went through my 2019 list I immediately knew this was a favourite. Very much enjoyed. Mary Laura Philpott also makes an appearance on a very enjoyable episode of <b>What Should I Read Next, </b>one of my favourite reading podcasts.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The moment we've all been waiting for, fiction favourites! In case you have trouble with math, I read <b>49% fiction</b> this year. While I read about half an half fiction & non-fiction, if I could only read one I'd definitely pick fiction. I loved almost every book I read this year in the fiction category, so this is really really hard.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">A guilty pleasure for me is middle years books. Yes, books for 10 year olds lol. I don't feel good about this so I'm putting it first so you can get to the good stuff next if this is not for you. I only read 1 series and 1 individual book this year I think, but both landed on my favourites for sure. They make you feel happy, they usually teach you something, and they are an easy fast read. Just a pure delight. I felt embarrassed typing this but anyway, moving on. Run right now to your library (or come over and borrow) <b>Matilda </b>and <b>Mysterious Benedict Society. </b>We went to see the Matilda musical early last year so we bought the book in anticipation and I loved it so much. I love reading books before seeing a movie or in this case a play, and it did not disappoint. It also hits one of my favourite criteria for top books which is books about books and reading. Such a delight. Mysterious Benedict Society is a series that I can't wait to read with my nephews when they're old enough. It's a great read aloud if you have young-ish kids. I'd say it's younger than Harry Potter as far as themes, but as I don't have kids I don't want to give a specific range in case I'm way off base. It has some suspense themes, but nothing dark, sexual, or languagey. I think it would be a fun read aloud because it has a lot of riddles and things to solve as you read. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I don't know how to categorize the rest, so let's just do a quick dump of book names in the order I read them.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Cuckoo's Calling </b>by Robert Galbraith (aka JK Rowling)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This is the first of 4 (so far) books in JK Rowling's Cormoran Strike series. This first book is right up my alley as far as mystery novels. I love a private detective with an assistant, and this book was super fun to read. I found the next couple books in the series a little bit more difficult, the second in particular has some really strange things in it that I wasn't super onboard with. I loved the 4th again though, <b>Lethal White</b>, so I'd recommend keeping going with the series if you think the 2nd one is too creepy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b>All the Light We Cannot See </b>by Anthony Doerr</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This was a favourite of both myself & Philip this year. It was an amazing, suspenseful, historical fiction book set in WWII. It's a really unique view of the war because it follows one character who is a blind girl in France, and another who is a young adult boy in Germany. Their paths eventually intersect, and the book jumps back and forth in time leading you up to a climactic event making it really suspenseful. Philip loved it, and at first I wasn't so sure but by 60 pages it was a clear favourite and I couldn't put it down. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Immortalists </b>by Chloe Benjamin</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">This book had a few open door romance type scenes that might not be your thing (aren't really mine either, but in a physical book it's a bit easier to skim past - open door on audio is the worst though!). It follows 4 kids who see a psychic who tells them the day they are going to die. It unfolds following each of the kids in the order that they die and shows how they each act based on what they learned and what it means for the way their life unfolds. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>A Man Called Ove </b>by Fredrick Bachman</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I loved this book. I borrowed it from the library, but it's on my list to buy because I could see it being a great reread especially as I get older. It is about the grouchiest old man who is so lovable even though he is so crochety. I was smiling while I read it because he's just so endearing. There are some triggering themes of suicide to be aware of, and those parts were hard to get through, but the overall lessons and themes in the book are worth it. We did watch the movie which is not in English so if you aren't into reading subtitles, wait for the American version which Tom Hanks is creating hopefully soon!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Dearly Beloved </b>by Cara Wall and <b>Ask Again Yes </b>by Mary Beth Keane</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I accidentally started both of these books around the same time which was super confusing because both were about two couples who are neighbours and the husbands work together and the wives don't like each other. It took me a while to not mix them up so I wouldn't recommend that method. The Dearly Beloved follows two couples, the husbands are both pastors and end up co-leading a church. The wives are opposites with one being a traditional church wife and the other being an athiest. It is a great fiction book that allows you to think of your faith from different angles and I found myself taking pictures of pages to save quotes. One example: </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">"Our love of God is not as important as our faith in God. Love wanes. Faith cannot. One can have faith and anger, faith and hate. One can believe deeply and still rail against God, still blame God. In fact, if one can hate God it is a sign of deep faith, because you cannot hate and at the same time doubt God's existence."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Ask Again Yes is also about two couples that are neighbours, and in this case the husbands are cops that work together. The wives again don't get along, with one having severe mental illness. Two of the kids love each other which keeps the families intertwined even after a tragic event takes place. I love a complicated family saga and this hit the nail right on the head for me. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Great Believers </b>by Rebecca Makkai</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I sought this book out by searching "best fiction books about the AIDS epidemic". Just as so may of us enjoy WWII historical fiction, I find books about a more recent tragedy such as the AIDS crisis so fascinating. I really want to read more books next year about events that happened in the 60s-80s to learn more about events that took place during my parents lifetime before I was born. The Immortalists also touches on this theme which got my interests peaked, and this book was an amazing telling about that time. It takes place in Chicago and Paris, jumping back and forth from 1985 to 2015. It follows a group of men that are great friends and unfortunately we watch as a number of the pass away during the crisis. It was a wonderful book and told the story in such a powerful way. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">That's all for favourites! This is a bit of a novel in itself, so if you need to up your 2020 reading numbers feel free to count this as a book. My goal for 2020 is to hit 101. My goal for 2019 was 50, and I hit 100, so we'll see if I can do it again. So far I've read 3 books that I have loved so I'm already looking forward to sharing those with you! Message me about your reading anytime, I love having friends to talk books with! If you need suggestions on how to up your reading, what books to read, or anything else readerly - I hope I can help!</span></span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-53030306276067275112019-12-04T09:26:00.001-06:002019-12-04T09:26:51.355-06:00Holiday Preppers: Theme Boxes<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Have any of you started your holiday shopping? My goal every year is to finish by December 1st, and it is a goal that I just achieved for the very first time. In fact, if you've been following along on Instagram, my tree is up and decorated weeks earlier than normal! I am feeling the Christmas spirit early and not fighting it. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I purchased gifts for 28 individuals, and had a lot of fun doing it, using the below framework for a number of the gift selections.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">For any others that want to kick start their holiday shopping, I thought I would share some inspiration around my favourite way to create a gift (if you have asked us to take care of your children after your demise, or you're a blood relative of myself or Philip, maybe stop reading now!). </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>The "Box"</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I love a cohesive gift. I feel unsettled when gifting things that don't go together. That is why, my favourite type of gift to give is the "box". I love to make a homemade gift basket or box of items that go together and suit the person that I'm gifting to. Some examples of this:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">My version of a <b>FabFitFun box</b>: I have given 4 or 5 of my FauxFitFun boxes now. A fall box for my sister-in-law filled with fall decor, snacks & makeup. A Christmas box for my sister including things like Christmas napkins, face masks, and small dishes for entertaining. A box for my brother-in-law with a mug for work, beard grooming gear, and turkish delights. I love to find items on a theme, and these are endlessly fun to put together. Just throw me in a Winners with $60 and I'm ready to go. Philip has pointed out to me the flaw in my ways. FabFitFun provides you with a $50 box worth $200, while my boxes are $60 box worth $60. However, it is extremely fun to think of items that the person will love and see their delight at each one. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Homemade Subscriptions</b>: One year, Philip gave me the most thoughtful gift that he called a "Book Box". He had purchased 24 books in advance of my birthday, and over the course of the following year I received 2 each month in a special box. They each came with a note from a fake company that was putting these book boxes on, and each month the books went along with a different theme. One month I'd get mystery, another Christian non-fiction, another classics or YA. It was the very best gift. This year we're doing this for a number of people on our list (stop reading now if you might be one of them), with some twists. First of all, it would be way over our budget to do 2 brand new books every month for all of these people. What we decided to do was be creative and we hunted the Children's Hospital Book Sale for previously loved books that we thought our loved ones would enjoy. We created 5 kids book boxes - one for each of our friends families - as well as 2 adult book boxes for Philip's parents. We bought a large roll of brown paper and wrapped each book, writing the month and some clues about the contents on the outside. Each month the kiddos in our lives (and our parents) can dig out their box and find the month, opening to find their next read. I really hope they enjoy it. We also did monthly boxes for Philip's brother & our sister-in-law. His brother will be opening an exciting pair of socks each month and my sister-in-law is going to open an item from "the religion". We call essential oils and other woo-woo things we're into the religion because it really bothers our husbands and makes us laugh. She's getting things like an acupuncture mat for her feet, an essential oils bracelet, eye mask, Himalayan salt ball, volcanic pumice stone, jade therapy stick, etc. Each month she'll open a new treat to enhance her wellness. Like I said, these are insanely fun for me to put together, and I love putting the thought and care into putting together a curated box for someone I love.</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Finding a Theme</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I am consistently helped with choosing any gift by having a theme in mind. I get annoyed when I pick out random things for a person and they don't go together. Maybe that makes me a little nuts. However, I've found this strategy works well for me. Some examples:</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">A colour story. This isn't my top choice for theme, but if you're finding yourself unsure of what to get, it can be helpful to have your gifts look nice together. Not only for presentation, but to narrow your search field. Recently I bought one of our nieces a sequined mermaid cup for by her bed, a night gown, and a bath bomb. That had two themes, it was all in the blue/green under the sea type colour story, as well as having a bit of a bedtime/relaxing theme. When I'm trying to pick out a gift for someone and don't necessarily know what they need/love, it can be helpful to think of a theme and get gifts that fit within it. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">A type of item. Books, beauty items, kitchen items, travel gear. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Homemade. This theme comes into play not when I think of a specific person, but if you're having trouble getting started with Christmas shopping, it can be helpful to think of a group of people and a type of gift that you can get for all of them. For example, one year we decided to make homemade gifts for everyone in my immediate family. It resulted in a wooden garage sign, a Christmas decoration made from a recycled mullion door, a paper mache rhino hanging, and a magnetic scrabble wall frame. It was super fun, narrowed our scope a bit, and gave us a focus to keep going.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">In my extended family, we choose names and there is always a guiding theme so that you know what to get. It can be hard to think of a gift for your uncle without a theme as you may not know what he wants or needs. We'll have a theme such as a gift that is plaid, a gift starting with the letter B, pajamas, or something used/homemade. That helps us to narrow our focus and pick out an item that meets the criteria that we think they'd like. They aren't annoyed they get another pair of pajamas, they already knew it was coming. </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I hope this helps with getting started with shopping this year. Are there other ideas you'd like for Christmas shopping? I'm not an expert, but would love to give book recommendations for gifts or other box recommendations if you're having trouble! Ask in Instagram DMs, Email, Facebook Messenger, or the Comments below and I can always put together another post on Christmas gifting to try to help you brainstorm! </span></div>
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casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-88313264301766374352019-11-13T15:44:00.000-06:002019-11-13T15:44:43.372-06:00Favourites: Work from Home Wardrobe Essentials<span style="font-size: large;">My favourite part about working from home has to be the dresscode. I try to get dressed every day, not staying in pj's, but that doesn't stop me from throwing on leggings & a cute top or the all-in-one wonder that is a romper. Here are a few favourites from the past year!</span><br />
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<a href="https://oldnavy.gapcanada.ca/browse/product.do?pcid=5151&vid=1&pid=507040013&searchText=compression+leggings" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="679" data-original-width="509" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNo6WoxX08I7hB2lc7u36uwWBL35XhbnNYwh7j6OPed1dXDL7f8kEx-5owodXjw2p8cprSVlH_OvYQSqSw5geGQSfxpBvLGqrbw5BJx0pz3iXF5wgkWjLBa4Eh1YDMZYPNcTZvgmkhOW0/s640/Compression+Leggings+11.13.png" width="475" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I can't stop wearing Old Navy compression leggings. I bought them last spring for our trip to London, so that I could avoid compression socks on the long flight. They are so so comfortable, everything is sucked in, they have cute details like mesh or moto designs, and they go great with any long sweater or tunic style top. I bought 3 pairs and the pair above are my favourite (click on photo for Old Navy link). </span></div>
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<a href="https://www.joefresh.com/ca/Categories/Women/Women-s-Activewear/Women-Soft-Knit-Jumpsuit/p/F9WP001692_0001?tilePos=2&tilePos=2" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="764" data-original-width="352" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpFSFoWjI5ELpasWxeVveR7PoDtMfbMfv7r12JBrU3qHY6qLpdvUBt8Vp2CPDo_ex-mSKyDqhwT0-FilqTvseguN1KXgzp39yTlhkLjk60DB-7o2VHDK0c1Solbjuo5HNMOtsmHbwunZY/s640/Jumpsuit+11.13.png" width="292" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jumpsuits are my work from home jam. A whole outfit with only one decision. So comfy. Philip hates them, but I think has slowly worn down. The above is from Joe Fresh, as my absolute favourite at Old Navy is no longer available and this looks very similar. I also don't see it online, but in Superstore Joe Fresh locations I've been eyeing a blush jumpsuit with pockets and a white drawstring....it will come home with me one day. </span></div>
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<a href="https://oldnavy.gapcanada.ca/browse/product.do?pcid=5151&vid=1&pid=451108183&searchText=swing+dress" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="691" data-original-width="444" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIpKPuUVLiMde6YO6QrLh80y20-1wdpe656JBviRen1o6LkB1MUP0-hVhKYnYWKzp0vno6oqUmfRrUJJNP1XFRqDyM_EMJZ9_ATc0XkNp-6WBxI8F5ZQx5J-s8iwjqeByqbEaDwPwIDqQ/s640/Swing+Dress+11.13.png" width="410" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In case you haven't gathered, I'm a bit addicted to Old Navy. I own two of these jersey swing dresses, and they are so comfortable and look super cute with leggings. My main goal in life is to feel like I'm wearing pajamas but look put together, so this dress, some compression leggings, and a fun lip colour do the job. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://style-encore.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="97" data-original-width="359" height="86" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ8uTcQLbLaW8KbnierWgzOdABMHnoCSoVkPki1ZwhcD_UEJjImwCgBU1qWbFleFOxgohekJRRnjUiggJF_CYnf5pylaS4Q4MQCyL1YcpiWwCM-BoC7uSj6A1iVDNoBuJ1sEcmXF5x5so/s320/StyleEncore+11.13.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Last but not least, Old Navy & Joe Fresh and any other stores I might shop at are definitely examples of fast fashion. In the name of not creating so much waste (and saving some bucks), I'm a huge fan of Style Encore. My sister-in-law took me the first time and I went in fully planning on being there for moral support, but not buy any <i>used </i>clothing. I quickly bought 9 items and never looked back. There's a location on Nairn here in Winnipeg and it is the best place to find new items for your closet at a discount, and save something from a landfill. The swing dress above, I bought my first at Old Navy, and found a 2nd one at Style Encore in another print for less than half the price of the first. With the holidays coming up, I can't recommend it highly enough as a locale for dresses! We only wear them once or twice in a lot of cases, so you can expect them to be in great shape as they were sold by someone who maybe wore them once for a special occasion. I love getting a dress there for a work event, I often see the same people again and again for these receptions and might not want to wear the same dress each time, this is a budget friendly way to stock up my work dresses and easily donate them when I'm done without feeling guilty about the dollars. Let me know what you find! </span></div>
casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-57581223911019123942019-11-07T17:06:00.004-06:002019-11-07T17:09:12.492-06:00Fall Closing Ceremony: Butternut Squash Soup<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Last night we finished Christmas shopping, and I immediately felt the need to celebrate by welcoming in the holiday season. We stopped at Superstore at 9:30 last night and picked up some Christmas ice cream to celebrate our success. Today I debated putting up my decor, but didn't want to rush into it. Instead, I decided to finish fall with a celebration of its own. I spent the afternoon making my last batch of butternut squash soup (I've made 4 batches this fall!) and enjoying the fall feeling before making the switch.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My mom taught me this butternut squash soup recipe earlier this fall when we had a meal prep day together, and I've been making it every couple of weeks since. I have some in my freezer still, but had a butternut squash in the fridge so decided to add even more to the freezer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">To make this Butternut Squash Soup, you'll need the following:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Equipment</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Large Pot or Dutch Oven</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Immersion Blender (or another blender will do)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Knife for Chopping</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Vegetable Peeler</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Ingredients</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">1 x Butternut Squash</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">3 x Large Carrots</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">1 x Head of Celery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Chicken Stock</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Thyme (fresh lemon thyme if you have!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Olive Oil (or other oil you desire)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><b>Steps</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">1. Peel & Chop Carrots</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I had extra carrots in my fridge and they've been there a while so I put extra carrots in this batch just to use them up - I'm not a soup expert by any means but in my experience it's not a science and you can put in whatever you like. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">2. Chop Head of Celery</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I use the whole head, but again, it's not a science and if you want to eat some ants on a log while cooking and are therefore missing a few stalks, that is totally ok. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">3. Optional: Chop 1 Onion</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I hate onions and like the taste fine without so you won't see an onion in my soup, but my mom does add one to hers. My mom told me that every soup she makes starts with onion, celery, & carrots - <b>the flavour maker</b>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">4. Optional: A friend commented on my instastories that she adds an apple to her butternut squash soup! How delicious! Since I was just sharing my original recipe to the blog I kept it the way that I knew tasted great, but next time I will try this!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">4. Saute carrots & Celery with Olive Oil</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"> If you had onions you would just do this until they are translucent. I just cook them a little bit while I'm chopping the rest of the ingredients and don't worry too much about the time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">5. Season</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I season my soup with Thyme & Lemon Pepper to taste. I have a Lemon Pepper grinder so I didn't measure, but did a number of grinds, and then tasted it after blending and added more as needed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">6. Peel, Chop, & Add Butternut Squash</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Peel your squash with your vegetable peeler. It has a tough skin, definitely not as easy as a carrot - I'd compare it to peeling a sweet potato. Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Chop and add to pot with other vegetables. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">7. Add Chicken Stock</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Pour chicken stock into pot enough to cover the vegetables. I did mine with water, covering the ingredients, and then added a heaping spoonful of Better than Boullion. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">8. Allow to Cook</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Turn down the heat, put on the lid, and allow to soften. Last time I let it go about an hour and then it was plenty soft. This time I set a timer for 30 mins so that I could have a better idea of how long things took to let you know. After 30 mins everything was plenty soft, so I went ahead to the next step. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">9. Blend</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">An immersion blender is an awesome tool if you make soup regularly. Just place it in the pot, press the button, and watch the soup blend before your eyes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">10. Eat, or Allow to Cool & Freeze</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I love having this soup in my freezer. I pour it into medium ziploc bags and it is enough for Philip & I for dinner, or he can grab a bag to take for his lunch if we don't have other leftovers ready to go. I'm allowing mine to cool a little bit and then I will pour into bags and freeze. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">What are your favourite fall recipes? In addition to this soup, I'd probably say Pumpkin Muffins! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">P.S. If you watched me cook this soup in Instastories, I also mentioned listening to "I am Malala" by Malala Yousafzai. Such a good book so far! I'm halfway through and am so glad I decided to listen to such an important story. It's important to ensure you're paying attention to voices that have different life experiences than you, and this is a great listen for any North American who is trying to understand the perspectives of others. I'm using the Libby app which allows you to borrow audiobooks from your local library, give it a try! (this isn't sponsored, I just love books)</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-42460022943725759142019-11-04T20:34:00.000-06:002019-11-04T20:34:10.001-06:00Lazy Geniusing Laundry<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">First of all, if you don't listen to The Lazy Genius podcast, and have any responsibility for household tasks, small children, or using a stove, go subscribe now. It's one of my favourites and I regularly feel proud of my own "lazy genius"-esque household hacks. I will never be a culinary artist, professional cleaner, or heavenly hostess by any standard. What The Lazy Genius, Kendra Adachi, teaches us is that we can do better without stressing all the time. She is also a great weekly inspiration on Instagram for things like meal planning, finding routines in the various seasons of life, and generally feeling okay about yourself. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Now, to my own laundry hack that makes me feel like I've mastered one aspect of life. 4 laundry baskets. You heard it here first, all you need are a lot of laundry baskets. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As a bridal shower gift, we received one of those wheelie laundry sorters that you can use as a hamper. I have never wanted to be a throw all the laundry on the laundry room floor person (although if that's you, no judgement as long as you're happy!), so I appreciated having the laundry sorted right in our own bedroom closet. However, by the time those baskets were full, it was extremely heavy and the bags would eventually start to rip. Smaller loads could have been considered, yes, but it just didn't fit with our life. Also, if we carried the laundry down in the special bag, and then life got in the way of putting things away right away, we'd be left with no place to put our cold colours. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">With the demise of our second wheelie sorter...enter 4 laundry baskets. We bought 4 matching baskets at Ikea, but any baskets will do. We have them on the floor of our closet in a line, and it is the perfect system for us. We typically have 3 loads of laundry that we separate and the 4th bin is there to keep the system going even while we have a basket downstairs with laundry spinning. The baskets are Cold Colours, Cold Whites, & Warm Whites. I don't know if we need to do this much sorting, but it makes for about the right sized loads each week and works for us. Do you sort your laundry? I recently learned that my mom doesn't really sort laundry and at some point I may graduate to that level of lazy genius as well. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Below is the laundry basket that we selected (click for link to Ikea website for this beauty of a $9 laundry basket). Apparently we break a lot of laundry equipment, because our two previous laundry baskets both had broken handles. We chose this laundry basket because it is 1 piece, so the handle is less likely to separate from the basket portion. Also, it's a happy colour and doesn't have holes so nothing's falling out. I'm really questioning my load sizes right now based on the fact that our wheelie sorters and laundry baskets have broken multiple times. Add that to my laundry method, huge loads so you hardly ever have to do laundry. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">One question that I have for those of you at a different stage of life than we are, is how can we keep this going with kids? I can see how this is a perfect system for us because we keep all of our laundry in one room. What I'm imagining is that they'll have a hamper and every time I throw in one of our loads I would grab their hamper and sort it into our baskets. Would that work?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When it comes to laundry, I keep things very simple. I throw in the load of laundry with a Tide pod and a scoop of OxiClean and walk away. Our cold colours & cold whites go in the dryer on delicate, I hang zero items. Warm whites go on a regular dryer cycle as we don't worry about shrinking. Warm whites used to be hot whites but I recently read an article that warm is good enough and saves energy so I made the change. Laundry is one of my favourite chores because there is a machine that does it for you. I also don't iron. I sound a bit like a slob. I do have a steam drier if an item is in desperate need, but for the most part we get by with the occasional wrinkle. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I'm not even precious when it comes to folding. The ever elusive fitted sheet? I roughly fold or roll it in my arms and shove it in the matching pillow case with the flat sheet and other pillow case. It is only right now that I'm realizing how lazy I am about laundry. Maybe someday I'll be a bit more particular, but I actually do like my system. I'm not the greatest at cleaning, but this is easy for me to maintain and we always have clean underwear. Share your best laundry tips with me. What can I do to be even lazier? One thing I'm definitely going to introduce asap is a container for the OxiClean so that this picture could have been more palatable. Happy Tuesday! Go do a load of laundry!</span></div>
casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-88770967463616009922019-10-30T13:00:00.000-05:002019-10-30T13:03:14.103-05:00Growing Our Family: Adoption<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Part 2! After finding out that we couldn't have biological children, we started to research our options. As I mentioned in my past post, we regularly heard "at least you can adopt!" so of course that was one of the options that we looked into first. When you read blog posts, articles, adoption websites as a person who is infertile, you'll often see the sentiment that they don't want you to apply for adoption as a consolation prize. I really took that to heart, and didn't want to jump to adoption and be judged by an adoption worker that we weren't ready to pursue that path and hadn't properly mourned the baby we'd never birth. This made it hard to move forward with an adoption plan too quickly after our fertility journey ended. It makes you think questions that I don't know if you'd ever know the answer to, will I love an adopted child the same as a biological one? Will our families accept them the same way that they do their other grandchildren? How do we know what the right path is? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Adoption Options is a private agency here in Winnipeg, and one of only a couple of adoption resources available for those in Manitoba. They offer a free information session for anyone looking into this path, and that was our first step. We took our time and as still our friends didn't have kids, we weren't in a rush to pursue an option until we felt peace and confidence moving forward. The information session walks you through the different international and domestic options, the costs, the time frames, and any other questions or concerns that those in the class had. It is a 2 hour evening session, and very helpful. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Question 1: Why Domestic Adoption vs. International Adoption?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The choice between domestic or international adoption was one of the first choices that we had to make. In attending the information session, we learned that international adoption isn't as often an infant that would be adopted. At this point in our lives, we were fairly young, none of our friends had kids, and we felt more comfortable with an infant as amateur parents. Now I think I feel a little bit differently, but the decision we made then was the right one at the time. Some other reasons were the cost difference, and the ability to know medical and social history of birth parents and for the child to have a relationship with their birth parents should they both be open to that. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Question 2: How does the application process work?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">After the information session, you have an initial interview with someone to do your intake. There is a small fee and you fill in an initial adoption application that helps the provincial government track who has applied for which types of adoption and ensure that no one is applying for babies all over town. The second step is to go to an education seminar. It is a 2 day class going through the ins and outs of applying for an adoption and getting approved, as well as providing an opportunity to meet birth parents and adoptive parents and hear their stories. It was immensely helpful and we left feeling excited and at peace with our decision to continue pursuing adoption. After this, becomes the dreaded Home Study. I say dreaded because I think it's something a lot of us would fear, worrying what they'll think of us, will we pass? It was a wonderful experience. Don't be afraid of it! Our adoption worker was lovely, they aren't judging you at all, just getting an idea for who you are and what your life is like. It consisted of 5 in-person meetings, one of which took place at our home. It also includes a physical at your doctor's office, criminal record check, character references, and putting together all of your application paperwork. Once the home study was complete and application submitted, we were approved on July 10th, 2015. We had our initial interview on February 3rd, so in total it took about 5 months. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">To give a little bit more detail about the application, it is a doozy. You will answer questions that you have never thought of and that are very painful to consider. It's a good marriage exercise to consider what you would do if you adopted a child who has fill-in-the-blank health concern, or birth parents who consumed fill-in-the-blank drug. We have a copy of our application in a binder, and are open to reviewing it with anyone who is curious. Some example questions are would you adopt a child conceived from various criminal acts (prostitution, incest, rape), what percentage of different races would you be willing to accept, when does the birth mother need to know she is pregnant and how many drinks can she consume before she knows and how many after she knows? There is a lot to think about and consider. We had some heartbreaking conversations. We've been told on numerous occasions that our file is very open, which is all we can hope for as it is the part that we can control. It sounds like it wouldn't be that difficult, obviously we want a baby and if we were phoned and asked if we would accept something that we checked no to, we'd likely say yes (in fact that has happened once). However, they ask you to really consider and be closed to anything that if they called you would hesitate and not be excited. They don't want a birth parent to choose you and have you back out. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In addition to the application of what we'd be willing to accept for our adoption, we filled out a number of documents about ourselves for the birth parents to review. There is a 8 page questionnaire including questions like What goals and expectations do you have for your children? What do you feel are the strongest points in your relationship? If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be? How were children disciplined/punished in your family? We each had to fill out those 8 pages for ourselves. We also provided a 2 page letter to the birth parents, and 4 pages of photos giving a glimpse into our life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Even with these three paragraphs I've barely scratched the surface of the application process, so if you are considering this yourself, please feel free to reach out and we'd be happy to get together and show you our binder and answer any questions that we can. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Question 3: How long is the wait?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In Manitoba through our agency the birth parents choose the adoptive parents. This means there really isn't a set wait time, the very first day you're approved someone could see your file and love you and choose you, or it might take longer. They say approximately 6 months - 6 years. We are of course around 4 years now, which is longer than we expected it would be, but adoption numbers have been significantly lower than they had been historically, with single digit numbers each year, so wait times have increased accordingly. Every year we have an update to our home study where our worker comes to our home and finds out about anything that has happened in our past year and updates our file, at that time she also tells us about activity with our file. We've had basically everyone who comes in look at our file each year. So we're definitely open enough which is great news. All of the couples waiting (I believe there are around 60) are equally deserving, and we can't all be chosen so it is what it is. We've always been encouraged to just be as honest about our life as we can, because you never know what the reason will be that you're chosen. Some of the things about us that a birth parent might think are great - our age, our faith, living in the neighbourhood we live in - could all be reasons why another birth parent might not want to choose us, so we just have to wait for the right birth parent to see our file and feel a connection to our letter and pictures.</span><br />
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<b>Question 4: Wait, the birth parents choose - so is this an open adoption?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">At our agency all of the adoptions are open adoptions. A lot of people are leery of this at first without all of the information so I thought I'd shed a bit of light on this. Openness can vary from a photo and update every year, to regularly scheduled visits, etc. Every situation is different depending on the adoptive and birth parents comfort levels and expectations. Our plan is to follow the birth parents lead on this one, from what we've learned lots of adoptive parents who don't have a lot of contact wish they had more, so we are hoping to be as open as possible and do as much as the birth mother/father are comfortable with. Hopefully this will also allow our kiddos to know where they come from, be able to find out medical information should they need it down the road, and have a healthy relationship with their birth parents if possible. Having more people love your kid and be part of their family seems like a great thing!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Question 5: What happens when you're matched?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">When we are chosen by a birth mother, we will get a phone call from Adoption Options. That will be quite a day! Most times if I get a 204 call that I don't recognize I think it's them, which can be a roller coaster of feelings. We will have a match meeting where we meet the birth parents and get to know each other better. At this point the decision isn't final, both us and the birth parents will go home and take a few days to think about whether or not we want to proceed. After we've both decided to continue, we'll have another meeting where we go over details of the adoption. At this meeting we sign the initial legal documents, discuss naming the baby, openness agreements, provide a diaper bag for use at the hospital, and go over any medical or other concerns. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Typically, this meeting would happen within weeks of the birth. We don't expect to have more than few weeks notice, and could be as little as a few days. We'll have to quickly get ready, but know the possibility of our adoption being reversed (the birth parents changing their mind) so we won't buy a lot of things in case. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">48 hours after the birth, our adoption worker and the birth parents will bring the baby to our home. That will give them an opportunity to tell us anything about the birth, the baby, see our home and where the baby will stay, and continue getting to know each other. There is a 21 day period in which the birth parents can change their mind. During that time, the birth parents can visit the baby and it is recommended that they do so that they can get closure and be sure about their decision. Approximately 12% of birth parents change their mind in the hospital during the 48 hours, and 8% once the baby is placed at their new home. I pray that after this wait, we aren't in a situation where a reversal takes place. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">After the 21 days, the baby will be ours. There is still some legal proceedings to take place, but birth parents can't change their mind after that time period. During that time, it's recommended we keep the baby somewhat to ourselves and keep it on the down low. I'm not great at secrets, so we'll see what we end up doing, but we expect we'd just tell our parents and siblings and potentially some friends. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Question 6: Are you doing anything else to speed up your chances or pursue any other options? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The 3rd part of this series is going to be about our other options to consider and what we might do next. That will provide more details on fertility options, other adoption options, etc. The only update I do want to include here, is that this July we also applied for adoption through CFS (child and family services). We went to a free information session there and applied right away. We hadn't realized we were allowed to previously, as you can only have one adoption open at a time typically. For that reason we can't apply for international while our domestic adoption is open. It turns out we can have this CFS adoption open, so we're happy to have done our paperwork and had that submitted. With CFS, things work a little bit differently. With all adoption options, once you are approved, home studies need to be updated every year. As CFS does adoptions for free, and has limited resources, they don't want to do the home study every year so we will only be called to do a home study and have an approved file once we've reached the top of the list of waiting parents. They said that if you're looking for a small child - for example, under 5, they said we'd be waiting likely 3 years to get our home study. We've been waiting 6 months so we don't expect to hear anything from CFS any time soon. Hopefully we will hear from adoption options much before 3 years and have our family begin growing! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Question 7: How much does this cost?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">A domestic adoption at adoption options is around $10,000 with variable legal fees. Costs are distributed about half at the beginning and half after being matched. If an adoption is reversed, we don't get our money back as it has been spent on legal fees that still need to be paid, birth parent counselling, etc. With CFS, the adoption is free. International adoption is significantly more, ranging from $20,000-$60,000+.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Thanks for your patience reading this huge post! Please don't hesitate to let me know if I've missed answering a question you had!</span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-15723262039052619152019-10-29T20:08:00.003-05:002019-10-30T12:56:05.813-05:00Growing Our Family: Infertility<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I've had this post on my mind for a while, and have been trying to figure out what to write/when to write it. It's one of those things when you've waited so long to share that it never feels like the right time. However, I want to share our story to help get the word out about adoption, and to be a resource for those of you who might be looking into adoption yourselves! Bear with me, as I'm an awful blogger and have included exactly zero photos. I just don't have photos of us waiting on an adoption and going to infertility appointments? It took a lot out of me to write these posts and I just didn't have it in me to then try to pretty them up with photos that I try to make sense of in here. Thank you for reading all of this with no pictures!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">This post is going to be part of a 3 part series that I post over the next week. We've received a number of questions and I want to provide blog posts that you aren't longer than the novel on your nightstand. We'll cover discovering our infertility, applying for adoption, and the other options that we may consider in the future, among other things. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So let's start at the beginning. Philip & I were married on August 6th, 2011. We'd always intended to have kids of our own (I'd hoped for 5!) but wanted to wait a couple of years and be just us for a little while. I don't remember exactly when this started, but I felt prompted by God that we should start trying earlier. This sounds a little woo-woo, and I can only think of twice in my life that this has happened. I remember feeling that I couldn't trust if it was God, or my own selfish ambitions, pushing Philip to pull the goalie and see what happens. After months of arguing about it and praying about it, I threw out my birth control on Mother's Day of 2012. At the time it seemed cute and symbolic (though fluke timing as it happened to be the day I would have started my next pill package), but as you can imagine hasn't made for the best Mother's Day's over 7 years that followed. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">We were very hopeful, and had no reason to be concerned. I've always had a very regular monthly schedule, and we weren't fretting very much at all as each month things didn't go our way. None of our friends had kids yet (which is crazy to think about as we now have almost 13 kiddos in our close-knit friend group, and 3 nephews born to our brothers and sisters who weren't even married at this time) so the pressure wasn't on as much as it was later.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">When we started trying, we came to the conclusion that we would also move. I had quit my job as I was really not enjoying it, and since we were moving and trying for a baby I didn't find a new one. We decided to move from our condo and buy a home so that we could do some renos before kiddo came along, and get used to some of the maintenance required before we had our hands full with a new human to learn about. We moved in August 2012 into the home we're in now and have slowly been renovating over the past 7 years. I am happy to say that our home is fully renovated now and ready to welcome our baby whenever he or she decides to join us! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">After a year had passed, we decided to go for routine checkups just to make sure everything was ok. That August, I went to my doctor who did blood tests and sent me for a pelvic ultrasound. The worst part of my ordeal was having to pee on command which anyone who knows me knows I can't do. I also remember the ultrasound tech being super harsh with us and telling Philip he wasn't allowed to come in. I don't totally understand why, isn't it kind of up to me if I'm comfortable with him being in this very private appointment or not? Philip went to his doctor, went to the Dynacare to provide his sample (which if anyone is wondering is done in a room that Philip says looks like a bathroom, but with a recliner instead of a toilet....if chairs could talk). To provide a bit of a look into that (which I'm sure you all want lol), you have 30 mins to get your sample to the clinic which is about 30 mins away from our house, so he elected to do it there. You do have the option of delivering it rather than using the creepy room though if this is something you're embarking on and it helps to have an idea of the ins and outs. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Eventually we ended up going to see an Endocrinologist about Philip's hormone levels. We learned that he had a zero sperm count, so things weren't looking good for us. We experienced numerous delays during that time, the clinic losing our requisitions and blood results, having to redo tests only after calling dozens of times to ask if things were ready, all in all this delayed us learning any diagnosis for about a year. After the endocrinologist did all that he could do, we were referred to Heartland Fertility Clinic here in Winnipeg to see a urologist about a potential biopsy. The idea being, that if they can find a sample through a surgical biopsy, we could use it for IVF. Philip went to the urologist appointment and they basically laughed him out of the room and told us it would be a waste of money. It is still something that we could pursue, but at that point we had been poked and prodded for a year or two and felt like we wanted to take a break from that and move on to something more hopeful. Even if a biopsy was successful which they made us think it wouldn't be, we'd still be looking at a ton of doctor's appointments and procedures with the slim chance of a biological child. The biopsy is about $3000 if I remember correctly, and while the money isn't the only factor, we decided to put a pin in that at the time. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">At this point, we had to look into other options. For anyone going through infertility, I just want you to know that I know how hard it is to make these choices. Often during this time we were told, "at least you can adopt!" "what a wonderful thing to do for a child!" "have you tried this herbal remedy?" "so-and-so had this same thing happen and then got pregnant!" etc. etc. Everyone means well, but choosing to adopt rather than have a biological child is not an easy decision. There are tons of factors to consider, and you want to know that you're excited about it and have mourned the loss of being a parent to a kid that looks like you and your husband. When I think back now at being told "at least you can adopt!" I think, well that's easier said than done because we've been waiting years and years. It isn't as easy as that, and no one will understand the emotions that you're feeling. Even I, who has been through it, I'm sure feels things differently than you will. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I often count my blessings in this whole thing. First of all, we started trying earlier than we planned, so we got on an adoption list earlier than we otherwise would have. We're definitely one of the younger couples waiting for an adoption. Secondly, we haven't experienced miscarriage. We've had our own heartbreaks over our infertility, but we've never lost a baby and for that I am forever grateful. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">In addition to counting blessings, I fall apart once in a while. I actually hold it together pretty well most of the time, but just last week had an 8 hour crying session about the fact that we just might never have kids. It's ok to be sad, things aren't going our way and it's hard to know what to do next. Writing out these posts will hopefully give our circle an idea of what we're going through and the decisions we're making, as well as provide a glimpse into how all of this works for anyone going through it. If you are going through this, feel free to reach out and ask questions too. No question is too personal, I am an open book and may not think of every question for these posts. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Next up I'll write about applying for and being approved for adoption, as well as the stats/timeframe/etc. to answer questions that have come through. Thanks for your patience with these long posts, and thank you for your continued prayers as we wait to grow our family. </span>Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-61010502340388835012019-08-15T10:25:00.001-05:002019-08-15T10:26:49.874-05:008 Years of Marriage<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the past month we've hit a couple of milestones, one being my turning 30 late July, and the 2nd being our 8th wedding anniversary earlier this month! I've been hit a little hard with turning 30, and while it is by no means old and it's just a number, I'm not where I wanted to be at 30. We have been trying to grow our family for 7 years, and I recently made a career change that has been a big adjustment. Seeing a new number at the beginning of my age isn't easy when you aren't where you wanted to be. However, while there are things I wish I would have accomplished by now, I realized that there are a lot of things that we have accomplished in this time that we are so thankful for! I write out 8 blessings below, one for each year of marriage, and hope this will inspire you to count your blessings as well! It's extremely difficult to be sad or anxious while also being grateful, so we'll see how this works!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1. Aunt & Uncle: Being auntie & uncle to our three nephews, and numerous friends kiddos including 5 goddaughters (and one godchild arriving any day!) has been our best role to date. I'm sure any who have hung out with us in the past few years have heard about Joel, Joseph, & Lincoln and we are so blessed to have them as part of our lives and honoured to be an important part of theirs as well. So exciting seeing our goddaughters grow up, with the oldest starting kindergarten this year!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRBQPyY57f094zgLZ7gDVo34j9Ld1nQZtCgBLZfx2VBMTkmpvG1PvUujYT4v9SVNVOF82aov89OGq_Qq4aEOVXOUWgPcJH_k_G-kSOhx04JJOTTB5iEGbxylwo9GVfTReyZa6tKW0NEsA/s1600/FullSizeR_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="767" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRBQPyY57f094zgLZ7gDVo34j9Ld1nQZtCgBLZfx2VBMTkmpvG1PvUujYT4v9SVNVOF82aov89OGq_Qq4aEOVXOUWgPcJH_k_G-kSOhx04JJOTTB5iEGbxylwo9GVfTReyZa6tKW0NEsA/s640/FullSizeR_01.jpg" width="476" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joel and one of our goddaughters having a stroll. So special to see them interact with each other :).</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2. Reading: A few years ago, I made the new years resolution to work towards reading all of the books that we owned. Since then we've both been reading so much more than when we first got married, and have enjoyed it immensely. I've ready 40+ books each of the past 3 years, and probably the biggest hobby we've added since reading so much is buying a ton of books. I'll never catch up at this rate, but it's a good problem to have! I read somewhere that buying books is an entirely different hobby than reading books, and we enjoy both thoroughly. If you're looking to enhance your reading life some things that have helped us: tracking on methods like the Goodreads app, and listening to reading podcasts like What Should I Read Next & From the Front Porch. The Children's Hospital Booksale is coming up next month too so I'm sure we'll be adding to our collection!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZejOd4B3wDPB6Z4OdalKfIz0lBcePn7A96hoaZ0HbpIw4qiKQDA9WHaV_jeWDoKLCz5supsXLqIAhoWe3KUFZqNSvsum_NehNcYyAsCsV2cSKrK1yzmlgF8J9d-EKBrspjWivuNgnGNU/s1600/IMG_20190101_123826_842.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1080" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZejOd4B3wDPB6Z4OdalKfIz0lBcePn7A96hoaZ0HbpIw4qiKQDA9WHaV_jeWDoKLCz5supsXLqIAhoWe3KUFZqNSvsum_NehNcYyAsCsV2cSKrK1yzmlgF8J9d-EKBrspjWivuNgnGNU/s640/IMG_20190101_123826_842.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The books that I own & read in 2018. Some books not pictured are e-books or books that I borrowed.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">3. Trips: In our 8 years we've been fortunate to go on a number of vacations including a few Caribbean cruises, some city vacations to Chicago & LA, Disneyworld & land, and most recently to London for our first European adventure. We have a family vacation planned for winter 2020, and have a long bucket list of travel in the future hopefully! It's hard to pin down a favourite trip, but Chicago is definitely one of my favourite cities to visit and one that we repeat whenever we can. My next bucket list type trip that I'm hoping to go on is Italy, since coming home from London all I can think about is going to a European country with pizza...England disappointed on the food front a little bit so nothing sounds better than old things accompanied by pizza and wine. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A highlight of our trip to London was the Tower of London tour, and the beautiful Tower Bridge!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">4. Living in a Time Where Clothes Feel like Pajamas but Look Cute. This is an embarrassing one because I legit just deleted one about feeling more informed about current issues and replaced it with wearing leggings as pants. My previous item here didn't come across super intelligent, but I will touch on it briefly - I feel much more informed about politics, issues that are important, and feel like a better person than when I first got married. Books & podcasts have been a huge help in this arena and I am so thankful to be more aware of the world around me. Back to leggings. I love rompers, my new business attire is ath-leisure (aka workout clothes you don't exercise in). I love that we live in a world where leggings and a jersey dress looks adorable and feels like PJs. I am thankful forever for this. I hope it never goes away. Also, back to being informed - much easier to be passionate about issues when you are dressed comfortably!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">5. Podcasts: I've already mentioned podcasts a couple of times in this post, so you can tell that they are extremely influential. I finally got into podcasts probably about 5 years ago, and listen a majority of most days. I get so many more chores done, learn a lot, and am entertained. Some favourites that I haven't already mentioned: The Popcast, Relevant, That Sounds Fun, The Lazy Genius, 10 Things to Tell You, By the Book, The Simple Show. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">6. Incredible Friend Group: Philip is still best friends with his friends from kindergarten, and I am so thankful for them, their wives, and their kids. I feel so lucky to have married into such a great group of people, and especially want to note what great dads they are, how the wives have become close even though we're adopted in, and the kids are a delight. In addition, we have our bud Ryan who comes for sleepovers and sportscationed with us in the Fall, and a couple from church that we have book club with and have adventures with! So thankful for good friends. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">7. Renos: In our marriage we have renovated 2 kitchens, 2 main levels, and a basement! We are working on our exterior now which I hope to share soon, and am excited to update the blog with some after pictures of projects we worked on during hiatus. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our kitchen getting some finishing touches a few years ago.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">8. Career Changes. As many of you will know, I had been working for a kitchen manufacturing company here in Winnipeg for the past 8 years. It was an amazing opportunity and I learned so much. I was primarily a design assistant for a majority of that time, but the past 2 years I moved into a corporate role doing training events for dealers, teaching them about the product and how to use the design software. I have since moved into a freelance role doing similar work. I never would have thought that I'd be confident enough to speak in front of people and teach them, let alone do it on my own. Being by myself in business hasn't been easy, so we'll see if I stick with it or not - but it is an exciting adventure at the very least. In regards to Philip's career, he is at a company he loves, as well as working on side projects like a writing project and a number of art pieces (stay tuned as we may sell some soon!). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Overall, it has been a great 8 years. There have been some curveballs, and I always think of part of our vows where we promised to love what we didn't yet know. We certainly didn't know that we would struggle with infertility, that we'd take some career risks, that we'd move and renovate (although based on my parents, Philip should have had an idea this would happen). However, we've enjoyed the ride most of the time, and I'm excited to see what the next 8 years will bring! </span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-67195781435287141342019-07-09T15:00:00.003-05:002019-07-09T15:07:08.599-05:00Our Trip to LondonIt has been a couple of weeks since we returned from London, as upon return I got sick and then we had a family funeral and house guests so we were quickly whisked away from the wonders of the UK. I did want to take the time to write out what we did, what went well, what didn't, etc. so that it can be helpful to me in the future - and hopefully helpful to you as you plan your own trip to London!<br />
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First off, London is amazing. Definitely go. It is beautiful, old, has tons to do, and is absolutely a great spot to go for vacation. There is so much I could share, but I will try to hit the most important things, first off....<br />
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<b>Where We Stayed</b><br />
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We are pretty hotwire.ca loyal, and have booked all of our hotels on hotwire since we've been married. We did the same for this trip, and it worked out great. For those that haven't used hotwire before, you don't know the hotel you're booking until you've checked out, but the deals are great. Since we don't know what we're getting, we always put in 4/5 stars, and select some areas that we'd be happy to stay in. If you're quite familiar with the city, you can sometimes figure out the hotel based on amenities and location but that wasn't the case for us in London. We ended up at the Dolphin House Serviced Apartments in Pimlico, City of Westminster. The main reason we ended up there via hotwire was that we chose a budget friendly option, that wasn't a double bed. With London being a big city, and historic, the rooms tend to be quite small and most had only double beds. The serviced apartment was a great deal and had a king bed, kitchenette, and lots of living space.<br />
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As far as the hotel goes, it was ok. I wouldn't say it was 5 star luxe, the bed wasn't incredible, but we slept great every night. The main things were the bed wasn't amazing, and there was no AC. However, I think in London AC can be hard to come by, so this wouldn't necessarily have been better at another hotel. They did provide a fan, so we put a table at the foot of our bed with the fan blowing on us all night. The great things about the hotel were the ample space, kitchenette if you want to make some of your own light meals, and there was never any noise or other inconveniences.<br />
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Pimlico as a location also turned out totally fine. It was extremely quiet/peaceful, had a tube station a few blocks away, and some cute cafes. It was about a half hour walk to the main tourist areas (Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, etc.), or of course the tube was an easy way to get everywhere. My favourite part was the design of the homes in the area, it was just streets upon streets of white townhouses with black doors and stately columns. So gorgeous to walk around and there was no traffic via cars or foot traffic. It felt safe, there were the occasional people at the tube station that were asking for money and that kind of thing, but otherwise didn't come across anything like that. The picture below was from the street our hotel was on, and all the streets were that colour of homes and just absolutely adorable. Excuse all the selfies in this post, that's what happens when you go on a trip just by yourselves and don't talk to any strangers.<br />
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If we came again, depending on cost I may try to get a little closer to the areas I loved - but if it was significantly more I would say Pimlico was plenty convenient to everywhere we wanted to go, and even walking wasn't too far. If I moved closer I'd stick to Westminster, or maybe west closer to Kensington Palace, both those neighbourhoods I found quiet and lovely - as opposed to Piccadilly Circus or one of the areas that gives more of the "Times Square" vibe of being super busy and crazy. I felt much more anxious in those areas than in the historic areas. </div>
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<b>Getting Around</b></div>
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Transportation seemed to be a major theme in my mind as far as what we did well/items to share. Starting of course with a long travel day to get to London, we flew from Winnipeg to Toronto to Halifax to London. Mainly our flights were fine, although no TVs on the flights, not super long layovers for getting a sit down meal, and Philip got sick on our long flight over the ocean so we didn't sleep like we could have. </div>
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The first London transportation that we came across was the Gatwick Express. We arrived in Gatwick airport as we had booked with West Jet and that is where they land as opposed to Heathrow. It's a bit of a trek to downtown from Gatwick, but for those that are unsure - the Gatwick Express was awesome. We had pre-purchased tickets so we just walked right to the platform and got on, it wasn't crowded at all and there was lots of space for luggage and places to sit. The trip was probably about half an hour, and you get your first glimpses of London from the train window. The train drops you at Victoria Station, which was about a 5 min cab ride from our hotel. We could have walked but we had a fair amount of luggage and weren't sure of the area, or we could have taken the underground which would have just been one easy train, but they are fairly crowded so I wouldn't recommend taking the underground with full-sized suitcases in tow - not only would the stairs be a challenge in some stations, but also there is no room for luggage on most of the trains we were on. </div>
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Throughout the rest of the trip we took the underground/tube/subway (whatever you want to call it) for most of our journeys. The underground is only about 3 pounds per ride if you stay in central London, and caps at 10 pounds a day if you use an Oyster card. Comparably, a cab had a minimum 10 pound rate for a ride and we took one cab that cost more than all of our tube rides added together. It is also really fast and easy to use the underground, so we'd highly recommend it. Ahead of your trip, get a visitor Oyster card. You load them with money ahead of time, so that your trips on the tube don't require tickets. When you arrive at the station, you scan your card and get into the station, and then when you arrive at your destination, you scan again as you exit the station. Your card is automatically charged. Just make sure to check your balance occasionally so that you don't run out. We're still working this part out, but you are supposed to be able to get any balance remaining on your card at the end of the trip refunded so you shouldn't need to worry about having too much on the card. We had to mail the cards back to England to get refunded, so just waiting for that process to be completed. We didn't have much left on our cards, maybe 10 pounds. One thing that I loved about taking the tube was that you never needed to look at schedules or times to figure out where to go or what to do. There is always a train in our experience, we never had to wait more than 3 mins for a train to arrive. Just get yourself to the station, and head the right direction. Signage is pretty good, so we never had any issue with figuring out where to go. The scariest part is that the doors open for what feels like 10 seconds. If you aren't right by the door when they open, don't even bother. You can't be courteous and let people off before you get on, or you aren't getting on. Just get in there and find somewhere to sit or stand. It's also good to make a plan for if someone gets left behind. We didn't end up being separated, but there were some close calls for sure. We made the plan that if someone got on the train and the other person was left on the platform, get off at the next station and wait for the left behind person to arrive in a few mins on the next train. If one of us was left on the train and the other was able to get off, the one on the train would get off at the next station and head back the other direction to where we were getting off. Both of these situations almost happened to us, because I am not exaggerating when I say the doors were open for very little time, and the trains are very crowded at times so it can be hard to get to the door.</div>
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I mentioned we did take cabs a few times, the only times were to and from Victoria station for the airport train, and to our hotel twice late at night when I wasn't sure about taking the underground so late. For the train, we used the My Taxi UK app. It was very easy to use, comparable to an experience with Lyft or Uber in other cities.<br />
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<b>What We Did</b><br />
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Saturday: Walked down the Thames to the heart of Westminster. Saw Trafalgar Square, the Parliament Building, enjoyed St James Park, and toured Westminster Abbey with tickets we had pre-purchased at home.<br />
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Sunday: Sunday we had our first taste of Pret a Manger which is on every corner in London it seems. We then took the train to Kings Cross Station to see Platform 9 3/4, and the station itself was gorgeous. Even saw someone propose to someone in a flash mob so that was exciting. Afterwards we walked to Buckingham Palace which was incredibly beautiful. Afterwards we walked through the park to the Churchill War Rooms which was another of our arranged tours. Churchill War Rooms was very interesting, the only downside was at the beginning you see some of the underground rooms where they lived and worked during WW2, and then you're in a museum about Churchill and you think that's all so you are really soaking it all in. Then, they announced 30 mins left and there are still 16 rooms, so everyone had to rush to see the last of the underground areas - so just pace your time if you go so you can see everything. Can always go back to the museum a bit if you wanted after the rooms are done.<br />
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Monday: This day we went to the British Museum, one of many free museums in London. The architecture is amazing at the museum, and it's in a nice area with bookstores and cute cafes. The only recommendation I would give is to maybe have an exhibit in mind that you are very excited about, because it is huge and overwhelming. With sore feet going in already, we were quickly tired out and seeing rooms upon rooms of antiquities got old fast. They have an amazing collection, but I think we would have enjoyed it more had we gone in with one exhibit we wanted to see thoroughly and then maybe leave. It was impossible to take it all in so it felt quite daunting. Afterwards we went to a number of bookstores, including Hatchards which was opened in 1797 and was 5 stories of beautiful books. Lastly, we kept up our vacation tradition of going to a nice movie theatre. We went to the Odeon Luxe Leicester Square and sat in a theatre that seats 800. The seats were all priced based on their location in the theatre, so there were about 10 of us in the theatre seeing Men in Black (not good PS) but we were all spread out. We sat in the nosebleeds because the close seats were 40 pounds each.<br />
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Tuesday: We spent 5 hours at the Tower of London on Tuesday. It was probably our favourite tour that we went on during our trip. It was incredibly moving to see inscriptions made by prisoners hundreds of years ago, the crown jewels, and buildings built in 1050.<br />
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Wednesday: Our main activity Wednesday was Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. We saw both parts on the Wednesday with the first at 2 pm, and the 2nd at 7 pm, dinner break in between. Overall about 5 hours of Harry Potter play! It was definitely worth doing, and I think we would have regretted it if we hadn't gone, but it was super expensive and could have used a musical number!<br />
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Thursday: Our last day in London! It was probably one of my favourite days. We went for a super long walk to Hyde Park, about an hour there, then through the park, and eventually to Kensington Palace. The parks downtown London are amazing, and we took our time as we didn't have anything scheduled. We walked the paths, saw the monuments, enjoyed the scenery in London for our final day. When we got to Kensington Palace, we found we had time for a tour so we went in and got tickets for the last time of the day. It was very cool to be in the house where tons of royals have and do still live, and even the room where Queen Victoria was born. It was also interesting to learn about Queen Victoria and how she became queen so young even though those responsible for her tried to get in the way, and when her husband died (also her first cousin) she wore black forever afterwards and really took a step back from royal duties. Definitely would recommend a visit.<br />
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Hopefully this covers off the trip fairly well! It was an unforgettable trip, mainly just seeing how old things are compared to Canada. I hope we'll be able to go back someday, but hard to imagine as there is so much world to see! While there, we decided we'd love our next trip to Europe to be Italy someday (way better food than mashy peas). Now have to go make some bucks so we can make that happen! If any are planning a trip to London, feel free to get in touch I'd love to share any tips!</div>
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<br />casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-56947157947856218212016-09-27T20:30:00.001-05:002016-09-27T20:30:21.736-05:00Our Whole 30 ExperienceWe just officially finished the <a href="http://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/" target="_blank">Whole 30</a> on Sept 18...and we survived!<br />
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For those of you who haven't heard of the Whole 30 it's 30 days of no dairy, no grains, no legumes, and no added sugar. So basically meat, vegetables, and fruit.<br />
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I had heard about it over the years on a number of blogs I read and while we were in Chicago for our anniversary all of a sudden it popped into my head as something we should do. Normally we would talk ourselves out of it somehow, but instead within 2 weeks of coming home we had our fridge and pantry cleaned out of all things non-compliant and were ready to go.<br />
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One of the main driving forces which I don't think people would think of when they first hear of us doing the Whole 30 was to be better at meal planning. We were getting so lazy, we both work into the evening sometimes and getting dinner on the table can just be daunting when you're already tired from a long day - let alone getting a healthy meal on the table.<br />
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I'm the type of personality that has to do it all the way or not at all, this year we gave up desserts for all of 2016...and it is so much easier for us to do that than to say "let's eat less desserts" or "let's eat more vegetables" we seem to be the types that need something really regimented in order to succeed. I knew that doing something that so drastically changed our diet would really kick our butts into gear on the meal planning front.<br />
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Now that we're on the other side I thought I'd share some of our results and what worked for us. I should start by saying that we absolutely loved the Whole 30 and are planning to do either the exact thing again right away or potentially slightly revised and longer with some different rules. More on that in the future!<br />
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To start off with a bang, those of you who might be thinking about this from a weight loss perspective - it wasn't what we had aimed for but it was a very welcome side effect. In 30 days I lost 18 pounds. I am heavier than some and so it shed off fairly quickly but in all my years of exercising/eating right attempts I have never had those kind of results. I never felt hungry, ate delicious meals, and didn't exercise other than going for walks and the calories that are burnt while living life. That is partly why I want to keep going with it, because if I could get to a healthier weight this way that would be awesome. We had some party foods this week since being off the Whole 30 so I'm sure some is right back on, but we're planning to do this again right after Thanksgiving and likely continue it for a longer period than the 30 days. This next 30 we will definitely add in using the treadmill to this because it's important to eat healthy and exercise our muscles too.<br />
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Favourite Foods:<br />
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- FRUIT! We were so happy fruit was still in the running. It honestly got me through the first few days. Sometimes a craving could be easily quenched with a juicy bite of pineapple. We also bought this smoothie in the produce aisle that was the best thing ever. We bought it to try to help get off caffeine during this because while you can drink black coffee, neither of us were interested in that. We purchased this smoothie made by <a href="http://happyplanet.com/product/28/essential_energy" target="_blank">Happy Planet</a> in British Columbia, and it was made of fruit puree and yerba mate which has a bit of caffeine I imagine. We tried to indulge in moderation because it is really fruit packed so definitely had some sugar in the natural forms, none added in so it was Whole 30 compliant.<br />
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- One of my favourite breakfasts was what I was calling a "galette." I don't know that it fit the traditional description of a galette, but it was freaking delicious and I liked giving it a fancy name. In order to create this breakfast delight, line a frying pan with prosciutto to start. Turn the frying pan on to medium heat-ish (I don't actually remember what heat I set it to but I usually just play it by ear). Next put some mushroom slices and asparagus spears on the prosciutto. Finally crack eggs directly on top. So pretty! I usually would put a little bit of water in the lid of my pan and then pour it into the pan while putting the lid on top. Then I turn the heat low and let the eggs and vegetables steam. I actually want this for breakfast tomorrow now that I'm describing it. Ugh so good. You could easily switch up the vegetables to include broccoli, peppers, etc. etc. Anything will fly! Prosciutto was a great snack during the Whole 30 because most bacons had added sugar at our local grocery store. This was a nice breakfast meat and could also be eaten as a snack wrapped around a pickle!</div>
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- My favourite way to eat vegetables of which we ate a plenty was roasted! I got so sick of steamed vegetables and raw vegetables by about day 3. I love vegetables but I just wasn't in the mood for them, however put some olive oil and garlic on those things and slap them into the oven - best food ever. I could have eaten roasted beets/sweet potatoes/broccoli/cauliflower every single day and not been sick of it. </div>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Are you interested in joining us in our challenge to do an extended Whole 30 from October 11-December 23? If so, send me an email! I'd love to team up with others who are interested in reaping the benefits of the Whole 30 and work together to think of recipes, vent about challenges, and maybe more! cassondra.wiebe@gmail.com will get you in touch with me so we can talk about how we can encourage each other. </span></div>
Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-86548292859649391202016-09-14T16:35:00.000-05:002016-09-14T16:35:01.200-05:00Welcome Fall 2016I can't believe it's September! I don't know if I'm weird, but I'm a little excited. September brings with it for me the same fresh start as January. I'm a huge list maker and I have found that the start of Fall has really been a motivating push to keep going with projects, do things I'm excited about, and start Christmas shopping!<br />
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I think this drive came out of both September starting, and we're almost done the Whole 30 Challenge which I have always found "good habits beget good habits" a true statement. Also the word beget should be used more frequently. Since we're making good food habits, it makes me want to make other good routine decisions.<br />
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The first week of September I made a list of 24 things I wanted to do in September. It was on the 7th so it equalled to one thing per day for the month of September. Some of the tasks are more ambitious than others, it includes things like bake a loaf of bread (planning to do that this weekend since we're done Whole 30 on Monday and can enjoy fresh bread), purchase 3 Christmas gifts (done!), and finish painting interior doors. I started off so strong, did 4 things in the first 2 days...and now I haven't accomplished much in a few days but today I hope to get back on track!<br />
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A few things that I'm excited for this Fall:<br />
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- Being back to blogging! It's so good to have something outside of work that gives a creative outlet, fulfillment, etc. Also we did so many home renovations since the blog break - so we can all look forward to seeing the transformation to our bathroom, kitchen, and basically the whole main floor. We're about to start our basement as well so that will be exciting!<br />
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- Pumpkin Spice Lattes - even though it's cliche. So delish. Even more than that, Salted Caramel Mocha Frappuccino...<br />
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- Scarves. I basically always have a scarf on. I have an obsession. I try to follow a one item in one item out rule where if I get a new scarf I get rid of one I don't wear as frequently...but I do cheat on that rule occasionally. I got a new scarf my mom got me in Munich and it is my new favourite accessory for sure.<br />
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- Christmas Shopping. I know this is weirdly early! However, our list of people we buy gifts for is more than 20 and it gets insane and expensive. I have trouble thinking about more than one gift at a time when I'm at the store so if we start early we get a few done, spread out the costs a bit, and don't feel rushed. Every year I aim to be done by end of November and every year I fail - but I'm hoping this year I'll do it. I've already bought gifts for 6 little kiddos that we have the privilege of hanging out with frequently, and have started some of the fall birthday's that are quickly approaching. We've also been working on a gift for Philip's dad that we started in March...still not done. He will be happy at Christmas to get his Birthday/Father's Day/Christmas gift all in one hopefully.<br />
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A few things I'm not excited about:<br />
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- Leaves falling on my lawn and in my eavestroughs #adulting. Although I am excited for my garden to be covered in the white stuff we all hate so that I don't have to be embarrassed about the lack of gardening I did this year.<br />
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- Wearing a jacket - one Winter as a teenager I didn't wear a coat for the whole year just to be stubborn. Dumb jackets covering my cute scarves.<br />
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- No Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor in Paradise until 2017...So excited about Nick as the new Bachelor. I crushed Philip in our competition this past season and look forward to doing much of the same next year.<br />
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Are you loving or dreading Fall?<br />
<br />casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-69289236270934183902016-09-06T18:24:00.001-05:002016-09-06T18:25:28.780-05:00My New Obsession: Podcasts<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I have 28 podcast subscriptions on my phone. That includes the fact that I've unsubscribed from a couple today, it's definitely a fluid list. I'm fairly new to podcasts and resisted it for so long. Philip is obsessed. I have found myself resenting his podcast family - especially when it means that he doesn't want to see a movie I want to see because he "heard it isn't that great." I know who you heard that from, and it is from one of your dumb podcast people. Who's more important them or me? Anyway, I caved and I'm officially an addict.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you haven't tried podcasts, I'd highly recommend it. This sounds dramatic, but if they haven't gone as extreme as to change my life, they've at the very least changed my day to day routines. I used to come home and unwind with a TV show before starting dinner. That routine made me feel very lethargic and it was hard to be motivated to keep going with the evening, especially on days when Philip works extremely late it's easy for the TV watching to spill over until the sun goes down. Now when I'm driving a podcast is playing, by the time I'm home I'm quite into it and it feels strange to sit and listen to it without doing anything...so I do dishes...or I prep dinner/lunches...or I do laundry. Game changer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I have drafted this post a few times because I can't decide which/how many podcasts to list - and I'm constantly tempted to name the few that I listened to that day because they're fresh in my mind as podcasts I love. This may be a recurring post theme of which podcasts I'm loving that day. For now, here are 3 that I love!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">1. <a href="http://jamieivey.com/category/podcast-2" target="_blank">The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Happy Hour has really been something I've found uplifting. Every week Jamie Ivey interviews a fellow female believer about what's going on in their life - they're often women of influence in their community - authors/podcasters/entrepreneurs that also have a strong Christian faith. She's very funny and light, but the talks really make me feel inspired in my walk with God and put me in a great mood. One of my favourite episodes recently was August 3, "Happy Hour #100: Aaron Ivey & Friends" where her husband interviews her. It really gave good insight into Jamie Ivey and made me feel like we were good buds.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">2. <a href="http://theartofsimple.net/thepodcast/" target="_blank">The Simple Show</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Tsh Oxenreider hosts The Simple Show, which I got into because I've been a long time reader of her blog, The Art of Simple. I don't know that I'm full minimalist - in fact I know I'm not - but I love to purge and limit the number of things we have in our home that we don't use. My very favourite episode was one of the early ones I listened to, June 11 "Ep 30: The More of Less with Joshua Becker." In fact after listening to it I requested Joshua Becker's book for my birthday and read it all within a few days of getting it. Such a good book, I'd recommend it to anyone looking to simplify their life.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">3. <a href="https://grownupsreadthingstheywroteaskids.com/" target="_blank">Grown Ups Read Things They Wrote as Kids</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This was my first podcast I ever subscribed to so I feel like it should be highlighted here. It is hilarious. They tour Canada having live events where brave souls go on stage and read from their diaries/homework assignments/etc. from when they were kids. I often cry laugh. I'll always remember my favourite episode ever from a couple of years ago...the short story the kid had written was called "Breeding Day" and it was about horses on breeding day and the drama that ensues. I told everyone about it at the time and always cried talking about how funny it was. I know my diaries are not something I would want to read on stage, or any of the weird comics my friends and I made, or my agenda books. It's all humiliatingly hilarious. They do come to Winnipeg so look for their events and know that if you speak on stage I may laugh at it on my commute to work some morning in the future! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you listen to podcasts, write in the comments about your favourite podcast! I would love to add to my ever growing list of 28 podcasts so far!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Also, if you don't know how to access podcasts on your iPhone, head to the Podcasts app (it's purple). Go to search to search for a specific podcast that you have in mind - go to the Podcasts tab (rather than All or Episodes) and you'll see the podcast listed. Click on it, and click the Subscribe button. From now on whenever there's a new episode it will automatically download onto your phone! You can also go to the Featured tab at the bottom and it'll show you podcasts of different categories that are popular which is a great place to start.</span></span><br />
<br />casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-9636646977454572612016-08-30T19:02:00.001-05:002016-08-30T19:02:02.432-05:00Wiebe's Take Chicago<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">All Summer I can't stop thinking/talking about our amazing trip to Chicago for our 5th wedding anniversary. First of all, how have we been married for 5 years? In some ways it feels like 1 year and in other it feels like at least 12. Life has thrown us a number of curveballs in our short five years, so it felt good to go on a weekend getaway together, taking time to appreciate the wonderful marriage we've built.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">We went to Chicago for August long, with a day added on either side to make an extra loong weekend. I thought I'd share a bit about our trip because it really did kick butt. I had an awesome time and would recommend basically everything we did to anyone who ventures to the windy city for a weekend.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">We left on Thursday straight from work - and just a note - I love to leave for trips straight from work, or early in the morning on a plane, or whatever else means that you're not at home scrambling and killing time and trying to think of things you might have forgotten. Leaving straight from work means packing the night before, having everything you need in your car, and hitting the open road not stressed from having just finished packing and being crazy. It also adds a fun element of being at work knowing your car is packed and you're about to head out on your adventure, rather than being at work thinking about the things you have to do when you get home before you leave.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">As we left from work and didn't need to be driving through the night, we just drove to Fargo. Looking back, we probably could have made it a bit further and had a shorter day the next day...but no regrets, we had a nice time in Fargo getting our Target fix and getting some sleep before the next day. We also bought some breakfast groceries at Target to put in our electric cooler which we find saves some money on trips not having to go out for breakfast every day plus it is nice to have some cool snacks in the car/hotel room. Just to continue with this tangent pattern I've started, I could rave about our electric cooler forever. I got it for my birthday after asking to borrow my parents, it's so handy on trips for having cool snacks/drinks in the car and we found it even more helpful when going to my parents trailer to stay the past 2 weekends. I can easily pack our groceries the night before and it plugs into a wall or car for transportation and storage. Definitely made our last two weekends awesome food-wise. I believe ours is from Walmart, but you can find similar options at various stores including <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=coleman+powerchill&tag=googcana-20&index=aps&hvadid=120106405386&hvpos=1t2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=18158329877942300551&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001188&hvtargid=kwd-1564574705&ref=pd_sl_2xn18pwsi6_e" target="_blank">Amazon</a> which I've linked for your convenience.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Friday morning we left bright and early and were Chicago bound. We spent the majority of the drive alternating between chatting about basement renovations and listening to our favourite podcasts (I think I'll do a post soon about what podcasts I've been listening to so stay tuned for that). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Before we had left for our trip we did one thing that I'd highly recommend: <a href="https://spothero.com/" target="_blank">Spot Hero</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Spot Hero is an online service that allows you to book parking ahead of time at better rates. Especially when driving to the downtown of a large city it's nice not to have the stress of having to find parking especially because it's normally quite expensive and you're already tired from 10 hours of driving during the day. We arrived at our parkade to find it full. Panic. However, we called Spot Hero and they had us set up at a new parking location around the corner in a few minutes, kept our same rate (for those who are interested we paid $75 for the entire time and the regular rate on our new spot was $65/night if you'd just driven up that day and paid), and the new spot was valet parking so that was quite handy after we'd already been to a parkade and had a bit of stress from that situation. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Once we were all parked we headed to our hotel. I'm sure most of you have heard of <a href="https://www.hotwire.com/?gclid=Cj0KEQjw3ZS-BRD1xu3qw8uS2s4BEiQA2bcfM3Yp-Bc0rKzr-RBMwytSSEYPNOEIYw2h7oHjkoC3EaEaAlJO8P8HAQ&gclsrc=aw.ds" target="_blank">Hotwire</a>, we booked all of our hotels for this trip (and most of our trips for the past 5 years) on Hotwire. It's a bit risky because you don't know where you're staying until after you book, but if you select a high star rating you're going to get somewhere nice and we've never had a bad hotel booking from their site. This hotel was amazing. We loved it. It was the <a href="http://www.monaco-chicago.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Brand-Hotel%20Name_EXT&utm_term=hotel%20monaco%20chicago_47154318-VQ6-109176909295-VQ15-1t1-VQ16-c" target="_blank">Hotel Monaco</a> which is right on Wabash downtown. Great location for walking (which we did a lot of) and the staff was so friendly. Our room was gorgeous, and we even had a stellar view of a naked guy across the street (I will spare you the photo and instead include a happy Philip in a hotel photo).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">The first night we just walked around for about an hour as it was already late just to get a feel for the area, and then we ordered food to our room and went to sleep.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">The next day we walked from our hotel to the Lincoln Park Zoo! I've included a map of everywhere we walked on our first full day in Chicago because it was epic. We actually clocked over 6 hours of walking that day...our actual walking to and from places would have been 2 hrs 38 min as you can see on the map, but we would walk into stores and keep walking along, also the zoo was all walking so that definitely added to our time. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">The zoo was so nice! It was hot so the animals weren't the most thrilling, but it's a free zoo and a nice way to get out and get some fresh air. Also for a free zoo, it's at least as nice as a lot of paid zoos I've been to so good job Chicago.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">We were basically sweaty for the entire time in Chicago because it was so hot and we walked so freaking much.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">After the zoo we had tickets to The Second City which was very funny. For those who don't know, The Second City is where SNL alumni like Tina Fey & Amy Poehler got their start - so it's a sketch comedy/improv show. They perform every day in Chicago at multiple times a day with all different shows, and I believe even a trolley tour.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Next we just did some shopping in the area, we had especially hoped to go to CB2 so we really enjoyed window shopping there. We also went to a Jonathan Adler store which was amazing but I was so tense in there because I was afraid we would break something that cost $15,000 and we would have to sacrifice our left arm to pay for it. I sounded like a crazy wife with how many times I reminded Philip to be careful.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Walking back to our hotel after that long day was not a proud moment for me. I was so hangry. We hadn't eaten since the hotel and we'd walked a good 4 hours already with a long walk back and needing to find somewhere to eat. It was fairly epic. We eventually got back to the Loop area and we found a nice patio overlooking the river and had some delicious burgers. Food tastes so good after a long day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Sunday was another day that started with walking! We had an amazing walk through Millenium Park and then a new park called Maggie Daley Park, they had the most beautiful elevated walkways it was such a fun walk. We were headed to the Field Museum and had decided we'd take the Lakefront Trail for something different. I'd definitely recommend trying to walk rather than take a cab when you stay downtown in a city, we felt like we got to see so much more. The first day we saw a lot of historic homes in Lincoln Park and we saw a lot of downtown walking North to Lincoln Park. Then this day we saw a few parks, the lakefront, etc. For real look at how beautiful this walk was, first a walk through parks surrounded by gorgeous architecture and then walking along the glistening lake. It was boiling and there was a hilarious live Zumba class on the sidewalk with one guy freestyling at the back - that guy has style.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">The most impressive thing about the museum was how old the original exhibits were! When you walk in the museum has a really awesome feel to it, but the first exhibit area is a bit dull and underwhelming on first glance. It was all taxidermy animal exhibits so I wasn't super into it, and they looked like they'd seen better days. Then we started reading the plaques. These things were ranging in creation dates from 1902, 1905, 1908, etc. These were super old! That started making it a bit cooler. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Philip's favourite was the dinosaurs. I'm not 100% sure on what my favourite exhibit was, some of the Egyptian section was quite interesting and also the area about man through the ages.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">This was a day full of knowledge, taking place on the peninsula of knowledge (this peninsula into the lake has the museum, aquarium, and planetarium - quite a cool place). After the museum we went to the Shedd Aquarium. We only paid for a basic pass because it was getting close to closing time and we didn't feel the need to pay for the full pass. The basic was only $8/each. However, if you have more time I'd probably recommend getting a better pass. This one didn't give us sharks, dolphins, sea lions, penguins, or the sting ray touch (but who are we kidding no way would we have touched those things). In the area we were in there was a sturgeon touch area so if you're into that kind of thing the $8 would still get you some fish touching.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Our shins and other parts of our legs we didn't know could hurt before this were dying by the end of all of this so we decided to take the opportunity to water taxi to Navy Pier from the aquarium. Definitely a good call. It was super nice on the lake and another new way to see the city from a different vantage point. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">At Navy Pier we did the least touristy thing and just went to a late movie. We saw Star Trek Beyond with about 6 other people and thoroughly enjoyed it. The movie got out around 12:30 am and we had a bit of a walk back to our hotel. We did survive, but I'd say it wasn't the safest because we ended up missing the turn we were supposed to take and it was just us and a few homeless people sleeping on the sidewalks. Didn't feel the greatest, but we were okay. We eventually looked at our phone again for a map and realized we were just under the road we needed to be on to get to our hotel so we went up some stairs and we were back in the crowds again safely. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">The next morning we were headed out, to Minneapolis! We love Minneapolis and go almost every year. It's fun to have a city within driving distance that has lots of fun activities and as we've been fairly regularly every time it seems we try something new and get to know the city a bit better. We were only there for one day so we went to Mall of America upon arriving, saw another movie - Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates. We have a tradition of always going to a movie at Mall of America every year when we go. I don't know why, but it is fantastic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Before heading home we went to the newest outlet mall in the area, Twin Cities Premium Outlets which was close to Bloomington so if you're in the area for a long weekend it is worth checking out. I'm not a huge fan of Albertville so this was a nice change. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: medium;">Then the trip was over! Just a bit more driving and we were home safe and sound. It was a bit of a whirlwind but we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and were so happy to celebrate our anniversary in that way. Here's to the next 5!</span><br />
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Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-28447126380064147082014-04-28T21:26:00.001-05:002014-04-28T21:26:20.969-05:00Home Office Ideas: Staples Makeover Contest<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For those who don't know, Philip has been working out of our home for 2 months now! It wasn't a planned transition, but it's going great so far! Staples is currently running a contest (check out details <a href="http://www.staples.ca/sbdca/en_CA/cre/programs/furniture-contest/" target="_blank">here</a>), and it seemed to fit with this transition in our life and figuring out how to create a beautiful and functional workspace for his new business to grow. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I started out with the basics: a desk & chair. Without those the office would be a little less than functional for us. I loved the storage this desk has to offer, while still maintaining a sleek look. The chair looks comfortable, and doesn't have torn apart arm rests like our current chair does (why does this happen?!?). </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0772919_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0772919_sc7?$splssku$" height="320" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0738450_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></a><a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0738450_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0738450_sc7?$splssku$" height="320" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">After filling in those basic essentials. I got to the fun stuff. I'm crazy into this bird print. Who knew Staples had decor options? I also happened across the fact that they have sewing machines, outdoor stuff, all kinds of non-office goods. Anyway, this bird art floats my boat and would look happy on an office wall. Or any wall for that matter :). For function and prettiness I also decided to include these cork boards, feminine and functional.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000243694_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><br /></span><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><br /></span><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"></span></a><a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0620466_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></a><a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000243694_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></a><a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000243694_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEh6JPouXSe7QcLxxmrYssn8d_HW__VtX0V1gPwyAU29YX0rkmkfahkKEfAn1WO6ARGRmS2jCVPsPw5F1pB3yIz-r7LVD9UfV_wGKpxuLfXjV53pCysluCpP_qKwx2UpTCmLXRvp0brr2DMG_JlriggZPDNny-j5SiBwGZ2ixyTJphZmaNdEAQ=" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000243694_sc7?$splssku$" height="400" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEjhmzyvVJrqPHkIMzW31J5Hq3AtByo5nArKxQD1kNJOqcWDc53DcKUaKM15vxaCvYf7phO7SgIM_6A6JzldQF_XMfDwWr3qWsGzDgFqCy8a-wD5X5J1MWwwtJ4xU8-yjfjfDFKBy_duhlXoaC0nqD0pNB1fORPUxEnIHb3S5WhncdFDElU=" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0620466_sc7?$splssku$" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">To warm the feet, Philip & I can battle between these 2 rugs...</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000514360_sc7?$splssku$" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/m000514360_sc7?$splssku$" height="400" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been thinking of a new filing system for us, right now we have a beige hand-me-down filing cabinet, but this could work out really nice for doing a lot of paperwork in our second office - the living room. Just a quick jaunt down the hall and we'd be ready to go with a mobile filing system. I also like the baskets underneath for holding file folders and papers that are waiting to be filed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEiH_EKOZdOPgXCXvWEVrMunrIHhhV_OWBhwMa1wCPW4EM5K53wG33gY0xrY3DLQSH5F8-0x9MWG_4JPxorfgurdALNzaJw4XVhFXRCVx1ghqyRaiwkDtPo7JczHlO8S-E4cNOFVKZC7ix1ebVTGKPZ1_aKvqv51WCz_RydPF1w2a7oBCoQ=" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.staples-3p.com/s7/is/image/Staples/s0764129_sc7?$splssku$" height="320" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Last but certainly not least, one of our "needs" right now (if you can call it a need) is that Philip is working a lot in evenings and weekends, and his work is always on the computer. If I had an iPad I could easily do some of my computer work in the living room without disturbing him. This is definitely on our to buy list next time we have some extra cash waiting to be spent - if that ever happens!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is how I would spend my winnings if we get the prize!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I hope it never happens again. At first it was funny, but until we figure out how he got in I'm sleeping with one eye open...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We've officially started closing our bedroom door constantly just in case (with clothes at the bottom so he can't get in the gap), I disinfected everything he touched, and I'm super paranoid at the slightest noise.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgOvOi9Xwg3gU2temQgfvfWvmu8nOAYdxKifWxbOpzfZIGoHVZIqN9gMrnQf0T4lNyfIiuMH5RCGgIM8nkYPkmOcYWakUr36IQ6xLWY0uQVR4jQ5Joftpw-TjwsHGLIIoFXwAbfeOpt2o/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgOvOi9Xwg3gU2temQgfvfWvmu8nOAYdxKifWxbOpzfZIGoHVZIqN9gMrnQf0T4lNyfIiuMH5RCGgIM8nkYPkmOcYWakUr36IQ6xLWY0uQVR4jQ5Joftpw-TjwsHGLIIoFXwAbfeOpt2o/s1600/photo+3.JPG" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It happened on Saturday. Philip was exercising and I was in the living room, I was hearing some weird sounds by the wall and so I called Philip to see if I was imagining it. We didn't see anything that could explain it so assumed maybe there was a neighbour outside doing something by our house. About half an hour later, I spotted the bushy tail coming out from behind our TV. I freaked out, as you might expect. Philip was just getting out of the shower at this point, so he told me to go in the spare room and close the door, he went to put on some clothes and then we were on the hunt. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbw3V7KDbNpNSSA4AFv51zBtjyRWKbpZsaID-x27LNAHlzn6mUNIXr8Q1nkeP7y4_LKpnpGpBXemXE6o9X4FZUNRa6fxf91so0lyZ0_C7fiCjQZLQdeaGw-NWzVhuTFnhuJ_Dv4y2hC7M/s1600/photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbw3V7KDbNpNSSA4AFv51zBtjyRWKbpZsaID-x27LNAHlzn6mUNIXr8Q1nkeP7y4_LKpnpGpBXemXE6o9X4FZUNRa6fxf91so0lyZ0_C7fiCjQZLQdeaGw-NWzVhuTFnhuJ_Dv4y2hC7M/s1600/photo+2.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">At this point, we scared him off and couldn't find him for the life of us. We were hunting the house with a laundry basket and broom handle in tow to get him out from behind stuff and then trap him. It was a genius plan. Finally some friends came over, and within about 3 minutes he'd been spotted behind the oven. Just a tiny hint of his tail was showing. He was a cute little guy, but still not a welcome addition in our house. We got him out and he proceeded to leap from the window sill to the kitchen table (which has now been thoroughly lysol'd) to my foot (followed by screaming) and down the hall. All the doors were closed so he quickly returned to the kitchen after being cornered there. The laundry basket prison was thrown down and he was captured. After shimmying the basket onto a board, he was set free outside. I hope never to see him again. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2-yQvo9t4WPE7cpywmC_iRNyFuPIST-uvaSt3ELmkj8zJI2j9abQbF3VXOh_j1bxL8pinNAdRiB9BavEKxJR0ot61K_robV8073FScfc0izvi0bn1UJTXdhgDW4khxIJC8DwsDB7U44/s1600/photo+1+(1).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2-yQvo9t4WPE7cpywmC_iRNyFuPIST-uvaSt3ELmkj8zJI2j9abQbF3VXOh_j1bxL8pinNAdRiB9BavEKxJR0ot61K_robV8073FScfc0izvi0bn1UJTXdhgDW4khxIJC8DwsDB7U44/s1600/photo+1+(1).JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We can't find anywhere outside where he could have really gotten in, but we were in and out of the house a fair bit that day so maybe he just crept in when we weren't looking. We still have to do a bit more thorough search to be certain, but it seems to be a fluke incident since this will be our 3rd summer here and we've never had any unwelcome pests before. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Wish us luck & squirrel free happiness this week! We pulled the trigger on a kitchen reno this weekend, purchasing flooring for our whole main floor (that's going to be quite the DIY project that may require an on-site marriage counselor) and a contractor to deal with structural integrity when removing our walls. Our house could be looking a lot different by the end of summer! </span>Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-42294469485397212872014-03-03T18:00:00.000-06:002014-03-03T18:00:00.041-06:00Spontaneous & Fast Project<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Last Thursday evening Philip headed off to a Jets game and I was feeling mega burnt out from the work week and ready for an evening of relaxing. I didn't feel like making dinner, let alone doing anything productive.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Philip left, I made myself a snack, and I sat down to watch some Netflix. A little bit into TV I went to catch up on blog reading and came across this Apartment Therapy article about <a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/categories/projects" target="_blank">simple DIY projects to do this weekend</a>. I looked at all the articles, and after reading <a href="http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/diy-kitchen-upgrades-111646" target="_blank">this one</a>, I decided to do a quick change in our kitchen that I thought might tide me over until the big reno happens.</span><br />
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<a href="http://p-ec1.pixstatic.com/51b112ce74c5b629c3000a92._w.540_s.fit_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://p-ec1.pixstatic.com/51b112ce74c5b629c3000a92._w.540_s.fit_.jpg" height="298" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Our kitchen cooking area can be pretty tight, and I get lonely cooking in there alone! Sometimes Philip sits at the kitchen table and chats with me while I cook, but then I have to open the cupboard doors in order to see him at all. I have to admit I'm not that trendy when it comes to the open shelf trend, I find things get dusty and I just don't have enough pretty things that I feel like displaying in my kitchen, but I did think this might make the some-day-to-be-changed kitchen layout feel a little more welcoming and fit our lifestyle better. I decided to get out the screwdriver and take off the doors on the kitchen side of the peninsula.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It took 4 screwdriver bits, about an hour, and the removal of 18 screws, in addition to the wiping of ancient 1960s sawdust, but it was worth it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The removal of the doors, along with the wonderful yellow tulips I got last week from a friend, are turning our kitchen into a smilier place by the day :).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One of the best things about this I realized after the light of day happened the next morning is that it lets the light from the kitchen area window flood the whole space. It really helps things to feel brighter!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Happy Monday!</span></div>
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Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-44611945936793427072014-02-18T21:07:00.000-06:002014-02-18T21:07:18.598-06:00Cruise in Review<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We're Baaaack!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In case you didn't know, on February 6 we left for Orlando to hit up Islands of Adventure and cruise the Caribbean! We got home late Sunday and I'm proud to say that we were unpacked before noon Monday! We thought we would share a few of our highlights:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>1. Orlando's Beautiful Weather</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Nawt. It rained and was cold the whole 3 1/2 days we were there. So lame. However, we were cold in t-shirts and sandals, rather than in snowsuits, which makes it all the more bearable. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>2. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This area of Islands of Adventure was very nerdily beautiful to me. When we walked in it was moment of aw, all of the buildings look so amazing and are covered in fake snow. It felt so real! I'd love to go back when Diagon Alley is up and running and you can really ride the Hogwarts Express!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We rode the main ride, "Harry Potter & the Forbidden Journey" 2 times. I would have gone more except it took quite a while to get through since the line up was a tour of the Hogwarts school. So wonderful. The ride was a combination of video and real with a lot of special effects, and I was smiling the whole time - except for the part when they took my picture and I had taken a moment to itch my face, and the part with the Dementors where my eyes were closed. Other than that - all smiles. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>3. Butterbeer</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Rootbeer mixed with butterscotch = heaven. Legit, I'm pretty sure that after the pearly gates there is a pool of butterbeer into which you can plunge and drink for eternity.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>4. Exploring our Ship</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Philip & I are kind of freaks about exploring things lol. I feel like if we go to a hotel or anywhere new, we get to our room, put our stuff down, and then get so excited to wander about exploring. This ship was gynormous. It had all of the usual stuff we expected as past cruisers, but there were also features like a rock climbing wall, surf simulator, ice rink, and of course horrible things like dressed up characters. The Kung Fu Panda may have caused me to jump and accidentally elbow Philip in the face with fear. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>5. Albert & Ygnacio</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We had the amazing experience of sitting at the same table every night with the same waiters. They were so funny and nice. They were one of the best experiences of our trip.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>6. 2 Hour Downhill Mountain Trek</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In St Maarten we were transported to the top of their highest mountain "Pic Paradise" (the tour guide had an accent so I thought it was Pig Paradise for the longest time). The drive started in a comfy air conditioned bus for about half an hour, then we had to climb into a truck bed filled with wooden plank benches and ropes holding us in instead of sides. So bumpy and had to duck so tree branches didn't get us in the head - Adventure begins! We got walking sticks and started the long walk down. It was so beautiful! The mountain used to be a sugar plantation and so there are even old copper pots that slaves used, and you can see the stone wall terraces that they built down the sides of the mountain where the different work areas were. There were lots of monkeys around, except for a dog decided to walk with us and he chased them away before we could see any. We did hear them though...which is about 1/10 as cool. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Anyway...it was an amazing trip! We had a great experience, came back decently tanned, and can't wait to crack open our tiny $10 box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. Hopefully they aren't all vomit flavored. I will post some pictures later this week! Waiting to get some from my sister-in-law and the cruise ship because we didn't take many photos on our iPhones since they were off without reception anyway. </span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-30382627719488400732014-01-28T11:03:00.000-06:002014-01-28T11:03:09.954-06:00The Inner Workings of a House<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It's interesting how when you use the same appliances, television, car, front door, they become part of your life.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We're going to be going on an exciting trip soon, and while we're gone we have a friend who's graciously accepted the job of house sitting. Last night after she said yes, I got excited about buying her favourite snacks, making our house easy and a happy place for her to be. I started up writing a note for her: Wi Fi password, Netflix access, car arrangements, how to work the stove. I hadn't realized how intense this note was going to be until I was at 2 pages and had hardly covered anything.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now I'm definitely being more than thorough, but we won't have phones on and I don't want her to be here the first day and realize she doesn't know how to work our old school microwave. No popcorn for 10 days!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Anyway, just appreciating the special things my house is filled with, their tricks, weird quirks, and interesting features. I love anticipating a trip and this is a fun part of it...next up, packing!</span></div>
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casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-29882791843183817842014-01-21T14:58:00.001-06:002014-01-21T14:58:10.792-06:00The Kitchen Colour Conflict<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Philip & I have been constructively arguing about the cabinetry we'd like to go with for probably a year now. For those who aren't in the loop, I work in the kitchen business so it can be tough every day selling beautiful kitchens while ours remains dishwasher-less with a fridge in the living room. We're really hoping to renovate the kitchen this year, depending on cash flow, so we started to choose some of the decor aspects to make a more accurate budget. This week we made some great strides towards envisioning the kitchen we'll be putting in:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">1. We're looking into redoing the entire main floor flooring...it's a bit of a crazy addition to the budget, but the floor needs refinishing anyway and this way we could have the same floor throughout the kitchen and living room. We'll likely do carpet in the bedrooms, and then we're going to do engineered natural maple throughout the remaining main floor. We're looking into installing it ourselves to save a couple thousand dollars, but we have to think that through a little more.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">2. Two tone cabinetry is going to be the look we're going for, and we chose my favourite grey-ish stain from my work, Slate, for the bottoms while the uppers will be a painted soft white. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">3. As far as countertops, we're hoping to put in a new quartz product in a white tone, it's a laminated quartz - a thin layer of quartz with a manufactured core making it really light weight - and affordable. It's a brand new product so we'll see what the limitations are and if it will work for us over the next month or two. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">4. This is a big one...we plan to take down a number of walls. All of the walls we can. When we're done you'll be able to see from the living room all the way to the back door, and the kitchen layout will be drastically changed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Take a peek at some 3D renderings I did at work the other day! Let us know if you have any ideas we should try to incorporate? We've been brainstorming but it's a big project to undertake!</span><br />
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<br />Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-57678846687760631982014-01-07T21:19:00.002-06:002014-01-07T21:19:26.941-06:002014<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm a week late on this, but Happy New Year!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm a big resolution person, but to tell you the truth I didn't feel very Christmas-y or New Years-y this season. I'm just starting to get the hang of writing 2014 at the end of dates, so I'm just not there yet!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'll definitely still be thinking over some goals, which started with Philip & I exercising every day. We spent the last half of our Christmas break setting up an exercise room in our guest room. We bought a TV on kijiji a few months back, got our day bed set up (for collapsing onto after a good workout), and on Boxing Day we headed to Ikea for an expedit to be used as a TV stand. We started up January 1st, full of gusto. We both worked out! January 2nd rolled around, Philip worked out, and when it came time to do mine the TV turned on, and just as quickly turned off - so we got 2 good uses out of our kijiji television and we were off to Best Buy. Last Saturday seemed like a spontaneous spending kind of day, we decided to get a new TV because the one we bought was going to cost a couple hundred dollars to fix, much more than we paid originally, and we just weren't in for the hassle. We got in and out of Best Buy in a matter of minutes, we had chosen the TV before we went so it was nice and quick. We ended up with a Smart TV just for options later, and so we can watch Netflix in a second room if we want to, or if we ever have a guest who wants to. After that we stopped in at Superstore because a headband had broken earlier in the day and I wanted some new ones, they didn't have any but somehow I walked out with 2 new pairs of glasses. Ay caramba. Budget is off to a great start in 2014. Anyways, since then we've each exercised everyday, and no desserts for us either - till our cruise that is. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Some other things we're looking forward to this year: our family vacation, hopefully doing our kitchen and finishing up our main floor (I'm not going to say for sure because renovations have their ways of throwing wrenches into plans!), and who knows what else. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Let's hope it's a good one! Speaking of hope, I think that's my word for 2014. 2013 seemed like a waiting period - working our bathroom constantly, things not going our way - that sounds very Eeyore-like, but there were definitely good parts too. This year, I'm going to try and be positive and hopeful, God has a plan and this year is part of it!</span>Philip Wiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00040103008620905611noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-88369687538733388712013-12-02T19:41:00.002-06:002013-12-02T19:41:33.546-06:00Food...yummm<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I've been waiting to post about a new experience we've embarked on, but haven't had a chance! Today's post is extra special because it includes a discount that you can use to make your life easier!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We started using eMeals a few weeks ago and have really liked it so far! It's an online meal planning service. Basically you pay a small fee and have meal plans with recipes and a grocery list sent to you each week. You can choose from 13 different meal plans, ranging from your everyday Classic to more specialized like Paleo and Clean Eating. You can change your meal plan once a month, so if you want to try a few that's a great option. We started out signed up for "Low Fat", but I didn't find it a lot healthier than the way we already eat, so we changed to "Clean Eating". So far we've really enjoyed it! My favourite things:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The grocery list makes shopping so easy! It's divided by department so going through the store is pretty quick. If you're in a rush it's as quick as printing it our or accessing from your phone and you can get all your groceries done in one trip. (We only opted into dinner plans as we usually just eat leftovers for lunch and cereal or toast for breakfast - but you can have your meals complete which would make the grocery list even more handy!)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We've tried a lot of new meats and foods. I'm mostly a chicken and fish kind of gal, and before this had only bought red meat I think once not counting hamburgers...so it's been an interesting change eating sausage, pork, steak, etc. Definitely adding some interest to our meals. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I find that it makes it a lot easier to remember to take out meat to defrost, and to get started cooking right when I get home. Sometimes thinking of a plan is so hard, and then even when I make one by the time I get home I don't feel like making that particular dish. Ay ay ay. Anyway, now I get home, open my binder where I have the recipe print outs and just start following the instructions. I know that I have all of the ingredients so it's just as easy as following the step-by-step guide. </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you think this sounds as heavenly as I do, give it a try! eMeals is offering 30% off for Cyber Monday, so hop over to their website at emeals.com and start eating delicious meals with less effort :).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Disclaimer: I wasn't paid to write this post, I'm part of their blogging network and believe in their product so I was happy to write about it and share a great service with people I know and like! I am in the process of being approved as an eMeals affiliate in which case I could make money if you visit their site through a link on my page, but as of right now this post is written with no money in mind!</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Do you have trouble thinking of meal ideas too? I hope I'm not the only one who comes home starving at 5:30 to a freezer full of rock hard meat that will take way too long to defrost so I dig into some scrambled eggs...</span></div>
casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-41147838720451810562013-11-26T14:16:00.000-06:002013-11-26T14:16:14.180-06:004 Saturdays<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It's official, there are 4 Saturday's until Christmas. That is exciting, but also makes me nervous about all of the shopping we have to do! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Has anyone started shopping? I've completed 10 out of 19 gifts so far, plus whatever gift exchanges and parties come out of the woodwork. Ay caramba. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Philip & I have already distributed our Christmas lists which are sometimes fun to put together. Since sending it I've seen a few other things in stores that I'd love, so I've been keeping notes for my July birthday. Not trying to be selfish, I think because we've been putting most money into our house it's just exciting to get to have some of the things that I wouldn't buy for myself right now with all that we have going on. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I love Christmas! We have 2 gatherings already planned for the 14th & 15th (one at our house!) followed by countless more right around Christmas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">My goal was to finish all Christmas prep before the end of November, so that in December we can take some time to relax as we both have 2 weeks off. We have less than one week to go so I'm going to be furiously shopping online, doing my Christmas baking, and organizing our plans for the holidays. This past weekend we put up our tree and decorations and we've been playing Christmas music non-stop so we're well on our way to the Christmas spirit! The other thing we've been trying to do in preparation is to finish as many of our house projects so that we can relax guilt free when Christmas break comes around.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What have you done to prepare for the holidays? I'm hoping that all of our preparation means a calm and jolly holiday season!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Christmas Projects</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><strike>- Decorate</strike></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Bake</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Shop</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Wrap</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Bathroom</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Guest Room</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Office</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Cleaning</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Basement</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Host</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">- Celebrate</span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-48337865042737081732013-11-17T01:03:00.000-06:002013-11-17T01:03:10.538-06:00Double Vision<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We currently have 2 TVs in our living room. Ay caramba. If anyone's wondering why our bathroom takes so long, it's partially because we've jumped between projects a lot - that and we have a busy schedule, and we are learning as we go. Anyway, we're close to a reveal on the bathroom, but in the mean time I thought I'd share our plan for the guest room/eventual nursery/potential foosball room/exercise studio (I decided to use the word studio because it makes our exercising sound much more glamorous than it actually looked when we do it). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So hopefully one day the 3rd bedroom will be a baby room, but until then, we don't want a room sitting there and being of no use to us. We painted it "Quiet Nest", so when the day comes we won't need to repaint, but it's a soft enough colour that it works as a guest room too. Our original plan was just to put the day bed and vanity in there and use the closet for seasonal storage and the occasional guest. This was a little silly because we will probably never have an overnight guest. Perhaps a friend who is too tired to drive, or a babysat kiddo needing a nap, but both of these seem pretty unlikely. Almost all of our friends live here, as well as our family, so we've never had a guest. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The next plan for this room came about by Philip's cousin generously gifting us their foosball table. We thought that room could work for it since our basement isn't finished and it's just off the living room. We have the table set up in their now, but I think it's about to move into the basement. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Poor foosball, being kicked back downstairs. We'll probably try and buy a cheaper rug for the basement and set it up down there for the time being. It can still be used and stay nice, but just not upstairs because we came up with yet another plan! Plus this one we sank money into so it's likely to stick.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Our exercise regime is a Wii program called <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Electronic-Arts-014633361353-Sports-Active/dp/B001VN2KDU" target="_blank">EA Active</a>, it's awesome but since moving we've both fallen out of the habit. We're really hoping to get back into it, but the problem is that our living room is not a great set up. Any time we need to exercise we have to move our coffee table, which is too heavy for one person to move. This means that if I decide to exercise on a day off and the table is there it isn't so easy for me, or else it means that we keep our table off to the side for weeks making our living room look less than presentable. After thinking it through, we decided that a great option would be a TV in the guest room with all the gaming consoles set up in there. We can exercise out of the way, keep our living room weight free, and have a separate room for playing games too with friends. The day bed works as a great couch so it should be a fun space.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Right now our guest room is being used as an interior door construction zone, so we haven't set it all up yet, which means the TV we bought off Kijiji is hanging out next to our other TV. It makes us look very tech-savvy. I can't wait to have it all set up and maybe do a video showing how our house is looking these days! </span>casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4998724839853210963.post-68371271408675497362013-11-07T10:51:00.003-06:002013-11-07T10:51:36.718-06:00Warm & Toasty<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">While we've been keeping pretty busy with our bathroom, we've jumped around a little bit and finished some other projects too - that would be easy to skim over because they aren't so thrilling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As you might remember, when we gutted our bathroom and took down the ceiling, the insulation fell down on us. This is when it was revealed that we had 3 layers of insulation: saw dust, batts, and blown fibre glass. Too many layers. It was time to clean that all out and start fresh. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you're handier than we are, I know that you can rent the machine from Home Depot or other places, but we just aren't that skilled. I would rather pay to have someone else vacuum it all out and blow it back in than pay for repair on a Philip sized hole in our ceiling. Just not worth the risk, and it's a gross job. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">We got a few quotes, and ended up going with a company recommended by my cousin, <a href="http://airborneinsulation.com/" target="_blank">Airborne Insulation</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The journey of having our cellulose insulation blown in was a little trickier than we, and the insulation company, had anticipated. They had a crazy summer and we had a lot of delays waiting for them, but eventually it got done. The first day they came in and realized that the scope of the project was a lot larger than they thought. They had planned on spending the morning vacuuming and the afternoon blowing in, this turned into 2 and a half days vacuuming and half a day blowing back in. We were pleased to see that they didn't change the price on us though, the guy that quoted saw the attic and we didn't hide anything so it was their mistake and they took the hit on the extra labour. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It was a gross job, the attic is messy and dusty, I felt so bad for the guy who had to be up there all day vacuum in hand. I told him he has a terrible job (was that rude? I'm not normally that blunt :S). He has done it for 25 years and he's good at it! I'm glad he can still be happy while stuck in a dingy attic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Anyway, now hopefully our home is more energy efficient. Since we've moved in we've replaced the windows, replaced the exterior doors, the furnace, air conditioning, hot water tank, and attic insulation. I think we're well on our way to low heating bills! </span></div>
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casswiebehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10202246206485276908noreply@blogger.com0