My parents threw a small party for Adam & Jessica today. It was so fun to celebrate with them and talk about upcoming wedding plans! Here are some pictures from the afternoon: Adam & Jessica with my parents Add in me and Matt! Jessica's sisters and dad With the grandparents Brother & Sister Love No celebration would be complete without cake! Cake cutting practice Champagne - such a practical gift (plus a Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine)
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So excited that Adam and Jessica are engaged! They started dating in December 2002, so just over 8 years together! They were up at Tremblant for March Break and he proposed there after doing a cross-country ski trail together. So excited for a 2012 wedding!!! Below are some pictures I have of them throughout the years. Thanksgiving 2004 Christmas 2007 May 2009 Summer 2009 Christmas 2009 June 2010 August 2010 August 2010 February 2011
Twenty-seven (the sequel) has been great - nothing crazy this year, just nice. Last night went out for dinner with Matt to Sauvignon on Queen East - GREAT food, then went to see The Adjustment Bureau - really liked it - not as much action as I thought (GOOD), and more of a love story plot intertwined - highly recommended. Today went to Starbucks and Cobb's for some caffeine and baked deliciousness, and now going to work on the basement.
Matt got me Glee Season 2 Volume 1, and a trip to Lulu in the future for some new stuff. My parents got me a new Moen kitchen faucet (oh so practical - ours was leaking), the annual March Break Spa date with my mom (going on Tuesday to Elmwood), and also going to see GLEE on June 12th with my mom! That was a great surprise - I was spoiled this year! Got some money from family towards our trip in the summer too, so that was excellent. I want to learn to make and ice this cake - it looks delicious, so of course it is by Martha. Somewhat belated, but I was there on Sunday with the family to send him my wishes. Matt and I got him an Ikea gift card for his 26th (champagne birthday - 26 on the 26th!), so he has a few from me for when he decides to move out! Had dinner with the family, watched a bit of the Oscars - good night. Here are some pictures from the night: Adam & Jessica - over 8 years of love - awwww... Never too old for cake!
Christmas Eve we went to my parents' house and opened some gifts. My mom got me a purple Coach purse - very pretty! She also got me some jeggings (which I am actually like more and more with my new boots), and some little things like a fancy key holder for work, a Glee calendar, and a little "just married" ornament for our tree. Coach Madison Purple Leather Convertible Hobo My dad got me my CAA membership - taken for granted that I get it each year, because it is expensive but very good in case of an emergency! My brother's girlfriend got me the second half of season 1 of Glee which I very much wanted, and my brother got me a Snuggie (a leopard print one). He likes getting me infomercial items - by the way - the Slap-Chop is AWESOME! I probably won't use this TOO much, but it is quite warm! My brother also got "us" an HBC gift card which we have used already on Boxing Day. Christmas morning we did our own thing (see yummy breakfast post below), and opened gifts. I got Matt the Danier leather work bag, a Banana Republic dress shirt, a lot of books (3 Christopher Buckley and 1 Terry Fallis - a sequel to a book I got him last year), some movies - The Great Escape and Casablanca, a winery calendar (very pretty pictures), plus stocking stuffers like boxers and socks and chocolate and a Men's Health suscription for the year. I got spoiled as always - I knew one of my presents already - the gray Banana Republic sweater (since I asked him to get it as a present about a month before), but I also got some pretty Swarovski crystal earrings, some books (a Twilight novella and the latest Shopaholic book), some movies (Twilight - Eclipse, and Despicable Me), new stemless wine glasses (only because he broke one a few weeks ago), a gorgeous silver bookend set in the shape of an apple (perfect for the new office in our new house), and lots of fun magazines in my stocking, plus some fun socks and Victoria Secret underwear as well (I was impressed he worked up the courage to go in THERE!). He also suprised me by framing some of our wedding pictures for the new house. The frames are beautiful, although I will probably change a lot of the pictures he chose, lol. I finished and received all 5 photobooks, which we looked through that morning and showed to our families! All complete with Jason Mraz lyrics on the cover. That afternoon we headed to Matt's parents' house, and had another Christmas celebration! They already gave us the gift of the cruise, which was incredibly generous. They also surprised us with some house gifts like gardening tools, a hose, and a leaf blower. His cousin Paul got us snow shovels as well - all great ideas - we wouldn't have thought of these things until it was too late and we really needed them - so perfect for us now! We saw lots of family and had an incredible dinner, and watched some hilarious old movies from when the kids were young. So cute. It was a busy family weekend, but really nice to see everyone. Cousin Love
Last night we saw Rock of Ages with Matt's parents, sister, and brother. We had dinner at Il Fornello, and sat at the exact same table my family sat at when they went with Matt in November - weird. We had a great dinner with lots of exciting news - Matt's dad got a promotion, Megan is going to BC and spending New Years in Whistler, Hope (Jamie's girlfriend) is coming to Canada for Christmas, and we got our Christmas present early - THE MEDITERRANEAN CRUISE (more details to come)! A fun evening of catching up and even better when we went to the show.
The vibe was similar to "We Will Rock You" with beer and food allowed in the room, a non-traditional set - it was great - and some audience interaction. It was hilarious, the costumes were perfect for the 80's setting, and the singers were incredible. It was a great night. I was trying to compare to "We Will Rock You" - I would say that the plot is weaker, but it is very funny, and the dancing was better. I can't say one is better than the other, however, it was a GREAT show. Highly recommended - this is definitely a show you can bring a man to - 80's rock songs and scantily clad girls! Lots of people singing along too! When I see a play I always decide on the role I want - usually the leads, for example - in Phantom - Christine (duh), in Joseph - Narrator (I have memorized all the songs already). I was thinking about a role I could be (in my pretend dual life of juggling teaching with broadway-showing)...this one wouldn't work...I mean I could be the main girl (if I could dance), but they don't wear enough clothing and she becomes a stripper which probably means I would be fired from my teaching job...oh well, one can dream! It's been a while since I've posted - I was reminded by one of the few people who reads this yesterday! As I was updating her, I realized I should be doing the same on here, lol.
Let's see - last weekend on Saturday we went out to dinner with some friends from university - Steph, Jess, and Carolyn, and their boyfriends/husbands. We hadn't seen each other since the wedding in the summer, which is especially bad since Steph was my maid of honour. But we have all been busy with work and stuff so at least we were able to see each other before the holidays! We went to a pizza place on Queen East called Queen Margherita Pizza - ohhhhhhh such good pizza. They have a great deal - $25 for an appetizer, a HUGE pizza, and a dessert. Great for a big group of people and they have a good wine list as well. We went to a pub after as well to catch up. We are definitely older because us girls were yawning by the end of it. Instead of Christmas presents, we agreed to get together again for dinner and drinks in January, just us girls. Sunday I went to the annual birthday dinner for my grandpa at Kally's with my mom's side of the family. It was nice to have everyone together - I think my grandpa is lonely. We are also not doing Christmas day with my family like we usually do, so I won't see them in a few weeks, so this was our gathering instead. This week I had an ultrasound for my abdominal pain...you have to drink a LOT of water and I thought it was bad right before the appointment, but it was actually worse on the way home, because your bladder fills up again very quickly and I was DYING by the time I got home. Maybe TMI, but funny to everyone but me I suppose. My doctor was supposed to get results by the end of this week, but nothing yet. Pain still about the same. Wednesday I got my hair done - it has been a few months, and went to a new stylist since mine just had a baby girl - Congrats, Heather! Just did some highlights & lowlights and cut off some length to keep it healthy. Friday we went out to dinner in Durham with some high school/pool friends - Meg, Steph, Bianca & our husbands. We are now all married! Steph and I were the last ones in the summer, and Bianca is going to have baby # 2 soon! So much has changed since those gossip sessions at the pool 5 years ago. We went to The Brock House in Whitby - pretty good food, too. Again I haven't seen these girls since the summer but with new houses and married life and babies and job promotions, it's been crazy. I'm glad we've been seeing friends - November was a bit of a shut-in month for Matt and I. Yesterday I braved the Eaton Centre and Queen Street and did some Christmas shopping as well as a bit of shopping for myself. Ended up getting something for Matt, my parents, my brother's girlfriend, Jessica, Matt's brother Jamie, and for Marta (for her shower today). We did a bit already a few weekends ago. For myself, I wanted new dressy boots, some new dress pants, jeans, and a few nice winter tops. I got most of that. From Zara I got a nice grey top - it's sort of flowy and sheer. From Le Chateau I got a dressier top that I could wear on New Years or out to dinner - looks better with dress pants or a skirt. I also got a silver and grey bracelet. From Browns I got a pair of dressy boots - they are a greyish-beige - good with both earth tones and black. I have little black boots and grey uggs, so this was a good middle ground. They were on sale too! From Banana Republic I got grey dress pants and a black pencil skirt, and with 25% off I got a good deal. From GAP I got black dress pants. I tried to get jeans at both BR and GAP because they have petite, but they did not have my size. BR had one size smaller and they didn't fit, and GAP sizes are way different and all the pants were too big and none smaller! SERIOUSLY? I need straight leg/skinny leg pants to fit in my boots. I only have flared and boot cut, or leggings (which I can't wear without a long top). I didn't get any wintery tops, however, which I was disappointed about, but by the time I was focused on that I had a large handful of bags and was ready to go home. The stores weren't too bad - I got there at 10 and was home by 3 with most of my Christmas shopping done. A few more things to get when I am off from school. One more week before the break! While I was shopping, Matt got a Christmas tree and set it all up, and decorated it. He did a good job. He cleaned too while I took a nap - what more could I ask for in a husband? Last night we watched "Knight and Day" which was funnier than I thought and relaxed on the couch. I'm up early today doing laundry. Heading to Oshawa for 1pm for Marta's baby shower! So excited for her! Pictures of the tree and decor, and from the shower, later! :) Nothing eventful really happened last weekend - relaxed a lot, saw Matt's sister Megan and boyfriend Jeff for a few hours on Saturday - I curled her hair all pretty for a bat-mitzvah they were attending later on in the evening, and wrote thank you cards. Very exciting.
This weekend was more productive, but most of it to do with house hunting, including meeting with a mortgage broker and real estate agent (see house hunting blog), and wandering around Liberty Village. Visited West Elm and "For the love of Cake" and got a yummy cupcake each. Saturday Matt went to Real Sports to watch the game with his brother while I marked and cut out design inspiration from my large pile of decor magazines (again, very exciting). Today so far we have done some more relaxing, watched "Evil Dead" - wow - it was bad, and are making pulled pork poutine for dinner - so decadently good! Planning on watching Friday the 13th and possibly the Rocky Horror Picture Show (inspiration from Glee this week) as well. The weekend seemed nice and long and stretched out - which is rare. Still a nice evening to go! Last weekend Matt and I, along with both sets of parents, went to Niagara from Saturday to Sunday. The parents went up early and enjoyed walking around Niagara on the Lake and lunch. Matt and I headed up there later. We stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn in Niagara on the Lake which was lovely and simple and a good price for one night. We had booked a wine tour and dinner with Niagara Getaways a few weeks before. Our driver was Nancy, who was nice, but the main tour guide (who we met up with at the various locations, we had a private car for the 6 of us), Gary, was incredible! So full of Niagara wine facts and information - it was wonderful. He told us that the couple that started and own Niagara Getaways are married and are named Kathleen and Matt as well - such coincidence!
We did two more tours than the main group in the beginning. We started at Konzelmann, and had a great bartender who told us all about tasting wine. Although we have each been on wine tours before, it's nice to learn new things from new people about drinking wine. They had some nice wine, although I did not enjoy the peach wine they made. Our second stop was Palantine Hills Estate, which was simple but had great wine. Our bartender did a competition for tasting an unknown wine and I won! I guessed the 2007 Chardonnay from a list of about six! As a prize, I got to taste their Cab-Sauv ice wine (which sells for $100!), which was absolutely delicious! Our third stop was Jackson-Triggs, where we met up with the larger group. We did a tour in the vineyard itself, and got to taste some of the very sweet grapes that were still on the vine for last harvest and ice wine. The regular wine grapes have mostly been picked already. 2010 is shaping up to be a great wine season because it was hot and dry, with just the right amount of rain. I'm excited to try some of these wines next year. We also got to tour the fermenting area and all the equipment, and the barrel cellar. The dinner they had down there for another tour smelled delicious - I would love to eat down there another time! We had a great tasting once again, and by this time, we were all feeling good! We bought some Gwerztraminer ice wine there. Our fourth stop was Hillebrand, where Matt and I have been before. They have a great red wine, simply called "Red" which is a Bordeaux blend of three grapes. They also have a good simply called, yep, you guessed it, "White" which is a blend of five grapes. Matt got a few bottles of those! Our last stop was at Peller Estate, which Matt and I have been to as well. We did another tasting, and we got to sample their great sparkling wine, and were definitely ready for dinner by then! Dinner was in Niagara on the Lake at a place called The Epicurean, where we had a few choices on the menu. Matt and I both had lamb, and we shared a salad and creme brulee to start and finish. All in all it was a really nice way to say thank you to our parents for helping us with the wedding, and to just be together with the two families. Sunday we had brunch at one of the hotels called Pillar and Post, and we walked around Niagara on the Lake. A very nice little town. Lots of expensive shops and galleries, plus bakeries and hotels. The weather was warm and sunny all weekend so it was perfect! Here are some pictures of our weekend together: |
KathleenJust married - let the adventure begin! Other Sites I LikePortraits by Joni Allardyce
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April 2011
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