yay.

We're flying to Mexico in 4 hours!!!!!

That's all.

epic levels of excitement.

I've hit a record level of excitement, beyond anything that I thought was possible. Believe me when I tell you, when I'm looking forward to something I get so excited that I want to scream, jump, run, cry... turn into a bit of a hysterical mess. In an attempt to keep my fiancé wanting to marry me in 6 days, I've decided to blog instead. I thought that all of YOU might want to share in my excitement during what is going to be the best time of my life. OF MY WHOLE LIFE.

(Yeah, yeah... go on and tell me about how amazing it will be when I have kids... but that's in the distant future and this is now, and I'm really looking forward to it far more than labour.)

After 1 year and 4 months of being engaged, nearly 3 years of dating and 6 years of friendship, Ryan and I are getting married next week. Yeah, that's soon. Really soon.

It really feels like just yesterday we were on that beach and he was down on one knee. Okay, maybe not quite yesterday, perhaps more like last week. Regardless, time flies. On one hand it seems as though I've been counting down forever, on the other I'm wondering where the heck the time has gone and struggling to finish last minute details.

Our wedding is going to be amazing. Rain or shine, preferably shine.

We've put a lot of hard work into little details that are going to make the whole day so completely "us". I can't wait to see it all come together. I can't wait to wear a pretty dress, and I especially can't wait to see his giant smile at the other end of that aisle. I can't wait to share in such an important day with the people that matter the most to me.

I'm not just excited for the wedding, but for the entire vacation. The Mayan Riviera is basically paradise. I've been a lot of places in the world and I love to see new countries, so the fact that this will be my 4th time in Mexico must say something. I can't wait to lie on the beach with a pina colada in my hand. I'm excited for my friends. A lot of them have never been on a beach vacation, let alone to beautiful Mexico. I can't wait for them to experience it and start their very own winter vacation addictions.

We leave in less than 48 hours, and I still have a million things to do.

I just felt the need to procrastinate, and share in my happiness. So many of you have followed my blog since the beginning of our relationship! I can't wait to tell you all about the wedding!

my stagette & other fun things

Life has been busy lately. Good busy. Crazy busy. Right now I'm so tired that I keep thinking that I'm spelling busy wrong...

I've been working. A lot. Not flying. That's a story for another blog post, but let's just keep this one simple and stick with present time. I got a job at a naturopath clinic where I've been working for 3 weeks. It's interesting. I learn a lot, and it encourages me to live a bit of a healthier lifestyle as opposed to prior jobs where coworkers encouraged food and liquor filled layovers. I work with good people, I get nights off, and so far it's working out well. I miss the sky, but it's nice to have a bit of normalcy in a crazy stage of my life.

Last week I snuck out of work to go to the bank. I promised I'd be right back, but I hadn't anticipated getting into a collision while leaving the parking lot. Such instances are never fun situations, but I was just glad that I wasn't at fault and that unlike my last accident, this time the driver stopped and gave me her information instead of speeding away like nothing had happened. I have a nice dent in my back bumper. My car is sad, but I tell it that the new bruise gives it personality.

Fast forward to this weekend, and cue my excitement. My bridal shower/bachelorette weekend had finally arrived! Ryan and I packed up and headed to Red Deer, where we parted ways for the weekend. Much to my surprise, I arrived to my mom's house and was met by my grandma who had flown all the way from Ontario just to be there for my big weekend. I was shocked! It was an awesome surprise, and made the weekend that much better.

Together with her and my mom, we got everything prepped for the big party... and big is an understatement. We had about 30 people crammed into a rather small area. Everyone was dressed in black and hot pink, and I was showered with gifts. I felt so spoiled!

Each guest also brought me a pair of underwear, meant to represent their personality. I was left to guess who brought which pair, and hilarity ensued. Some of them were pretty, and some were ridiculous. Some will sit in my dresser drawer for years to come. Some were edible.... and I'm going to stop while I'm ahead.

We stuffed ourselves with snacks and then headed out to the comedy club. I'd never been before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. My friend Jake, who is gay and happened to be the only male in our massive party was the subject of 90% of the evening's jokes, much to my delight. He took it like a champ, loving every moment of being the centre of attention during what would humiliate most people. We laughed until our cheeks and abs were in pain, and then went out dancing until we couldn't feel our feet. My hot pink high heels caused me immense discomfort, but my feet looked so good that I couldn't take them off. You only get one stagette party!

We ran around the nightclub playing bachelorette games with ridiculous goals.... such as getting a guy to give you his underwear. Mission accomplished, in case you wondered...

Overall, the weekend was a huge success and I wouldn't change a thing. I'm a lucky girl to have so many awesome people that were there to celebrate my very last weekend as a single lady... aside from this weekend of course, but that doesn't count... we fly to Mexico this weekend!

Among my many great gifts that I was spoiled with were a ton of plushy towels in my favourite colours.. you can really never have enough. We got fuzzy blankets, kitchen accessories galore... and my dream gift... an espresso machine. Come over, I'll make you a latte!

The wedding is 9 days away and I'm still having trouble believing that. I have more excitement than I know what to do with. I want to jump and scream and laugh and celebrate. I'm so happy. Life is so good.

Oh, and if anyone has any good song recommendations for our wedding dance, send them my way!! I'm getting desperate! Not of that lovey dovey sappy stuff, we've got that covered. I need dancing in the sand with a pina colada in hand kind of stuff.

busy, busy

Oh my goodness, I'm so busy!

I realize that I haven't had the chance to post anything in ages... but please forgive me! I have a new job, I have very little free time, and I'm getting married in 16 days! Things are happening so fast, and I'm in complete wedding mode right now. My blog has temporarily been put on hold, but I promise that I haven't forgotten about you! Stay tuned... this weekend is my stagette and I'm certain I'll have stories for you!

Love you all, hope that you are having a fantastically awesome beginning of spring!! Yay!

... I'm really excited, if the abundance of exclamation marks didn't already give that away. Oh, and check out my shoes I've got for this weekend. I'd never imagined owning high heels, let alone hot pink ones.

fingerprints and paleo.

Today I logged on and much to my upset, I found I had lost a follower. Oh no! I've been watching that number slowly climb for the past 2 years, and with each new reader I feel motivated to keep blogging. I realize that I've been a bit of a slacker in the posting department lately, so I can't say that I blame that one person who has decided that my blog is no longer of interest. I'm certain that they came here to read about a girl who travels the world and eats delicious food... and lately, that's not me at all.

That said, in light of this loss I feel like I should keep updating my blog for all of you faithful readers who have stuck around, from adventure to boring day to day life. I love you all! You make me happy!

I may not being in the air, but I still have plenty I can entertain you with... like my adventures trying to obtain a police report from Dubai, or my new crazy way of eating, or my attempts at baking in a makeshift kitchen...

Police report, you ask?! What the heck would a sweet innocent girl like me need a police report for? Ahh, the joys of trying to get my airport security pass. One of the requirements for applying for the certificate is to send fingerprints with your application. I called ahead to make sure that this wasn't something that needed an appointment, and was appalled when the voice on the other end asked if I'd been charged with a crime. Oh gosh, no. I can't even jaywalk without a massive guilty conscious. So I got myself ready, switched on the GPS, and drove to Police Headquarters in the heart of downtown. Now let me tell you, I hate driving downtown. The chaos of traffic and pedestrians combined with the outrageous cost of parking makes me stressed before I even reach my destination. I made it, parked my car, paid the $5 and walked in to get fingerprinted. I was there for all of 30 seconds before the lady at the counter informed me that I needed not one, but two pieces of photo identification. When I'd phone ahead I'd been told that I needed to bring ID, but she didn't specify that it was more than just my standard drivers license. I was frustrated and defeated, and now I had to drive all the way back home. Through downtown. This led to a very grumpy girl and a few ranting text messages to my loving fiancé. I returned the next day with 2 pieces of ID in hand, and proceeded to explore the world that is the police station. I got my fingerprints and set out on my way, happy that the ordeal was over.

All of the stress made me want to do one thing, and one thing only... eat. Junk food, of course. Unfortunately, that's a no-no these days as Ryan and I take a stab at eating paleo style. What's that, you ask? You're probably better to Google it if you want to get into the details of the benefits, but summed up, you eat fruits, veggies, nuts... and meat. That's right, no dairy. No wheat or grains. No candy. Basically, we try to eat like the cave men did, before the agricultural revolution came along and brought us a world of gluten and sugar. Why on Earth would somebody attempt something so crazy? It's not as bad as it sounds. Okay, after the first week it's not. The idea had crossed our mind awhile ago, but it wasn't until the diet had rave reviews from a friend of ours that we decided we'd give it a try. She assured us that since switching her way of eating she feels energized and strong through her workouts... which is important to gym junkies like ourselves. I get that people might not agree with this way of eating. You can never please everyone. We do what feels right for us, and so far, this is going well. Eliminating processed foods is something that I've wanted to do for a long, long time.

Of course, I can't just completely give up my comfort foods. I need carbs and sweets and stuff that tastes unhealthy. I need to fill my urge to bake. Don't think that paleo has stopped me... I'm eating pineapple and raspberries like candy, and my newest obsession is banana pancakes. Made entirely of bananas, cinnamon, peanut or almond butter and eggs, they are easier and more delicious than normal pancakes, and I don't feel a teensy bit guilty downing an entire plate of them. Well, minus the fact that peanut butter isn't actually paleo because apparently peanuts are legumes, not nuts. See?! I'm learning so much! My pancakes have been keeping me satisfied, but I felt like baking something to feel like I was indulging. This was a challenge for 2 reasons. First of those being the fact that I had to bake without using sugar, flour, milk or butter. That was fine. I found recipes online that substituted ground almonds for flour, and bananas are sweet enough that banana bread doesn't need any added sugar. I was set. Until challenge number 2.... that being the mess that is currently our kitchen. The people who installed our cabinets screwed up by making them an inch too short, making it impossible for us to fit our dishwasher in the designated spot. Annoying, yes, but we've learnt to live with it. They finally came to fix their mess this week, and now our beautiful granite countertop is on the floor while we wait for our cabinets to be replaced on Monday.

As if having no countertop wasn't enough, we are also currently without a kitchen sink. That gets to be rather inconvenient. Especially when you are too impatient to wait a few days and make a mess while trying to bake and find yourself with a pile of dirty dishes. That's annoying. So what did I do? I hauled them upstairs, put them in the bathtub, and scrubbed away. Sometimes you have to improvise. While I cleaned, my banana bread muffins baked.

They turned out better than I'd expected, which didn't take much... I am rather prone to baking mishaps. Best of all, they are super healthy! Finally.... I can bake, and eat it too!

That's the last week of my life summed up... thrilling, I know! Ryan and I are about to head to Red Deer for the weekend for some time with family and friends, and a wedding shower just for us! Yay! Can you believe that our wedding is in 41 days?! I certainly can't!

so this is what normal people do?

A few weeks have passed and I haven't blogged. Oops. So what in my world is new?

First things first, I'm not flying.

Obviously.

I write a blog, I love the sky, and you know as well as I do that I'd tell you all if I was suddenly back to work and hopping around the country. So please, please stop asking me. It's not something that I'm thrilled about, so understand that having to explain it 7 times a day to every single person that I encounter grows tiring. I'm not trying to be mean, but trust me... when I know something, so will you. I'm stressed enough already without the constant reminders. Moving on...

Ryan's sister had a beautiful baby girl on February 18! It's their second child and I have plenty of friends with kids that know me as Auntie, but this is the first legitimate soon-to-be-related baby to be born when I was in the country. Safe to say, I was pretty excited. She's gorgeous and I'm going to try to be her cool Auntie Krysta.

Our wedding is in 48 days. That means we leave for Mexico in 44 days, and while I'm excited beyond belief, it's all coming so fast! I've been so caught up in the madness that is buying a home, moving into said home, and trying to get my job back that time has just creeped up on me and all of a sudden I feel like we are running out of time!

We have been pretty darn awesome at keeping on top of our fitness, if I do say so myself. There have been a couple of cheat meals that have led to entire weekends filled with guilty pleasures, but for the most part we've been eating healthy, working out, and feeling great. With Lent beginning this week, I gave up chocolate as per tradition, but along with it I'm trying to give up all sorts of sugary treats. I hate to admit it, but I've got an addiction to all things sugary. I knew that sacrificing chocolate would only lead to binge eating other equally unhealthy treats, so I had to take drastic measures. I'd imagine that the way I feel right now is similar to the way that a smoker feels within days of quitting. I'm in withdrawal. No amount of sweet fruit will fill the void left by the absence of junk food.

My goal is not to lose weight, but to challenge myself and get healthier in the process. Sugar controls me, and I'm going to show it who's boss! No, I don't possess some crazy form of willpower. This is one of the most difficult things I've ever tried to do. I just want to sit here and stuff myself with cake and chocolate and specialty lattes. Mmm. Sugar.

I'm using my Project 366 to keep me busy. Taking a photo a day is not as easy as it sounds... not when you are picky, at least! I strive to have a great shot for each and every day, but more times than not I'm unsatisfied with what I post. I've been reassured by the photography community that that is entirely normal. What I think is a great photo now, might make me cringe in a year! If you are never satisfied, you'll never give up... not a bad thing, if you ask me!

Aside from that, my life has been relatively uninteresting. I don't have a lot to blog about, because I'm not traveling and I'm eating healthy.... food and vacation seem to be the inspiration for a large percentage of my blogs, and clearly what you all would rather hear about!

Until next time, eat some chocolate for me!

oh, it's already february

I'm officially sick of being on the ground. Okay, fine, I was sick of it a month ago... now I'm just reaching the point of serious withdrawal. I stare longingly at the sky as Boeing's soar overhead. I should be on those planes, but instead I'm here. On the ground.

After an unanticipated lack of income, I began searching for a second job. I'm now employed at a local cafe. It's a cool place designed for parents with young kids to enjoy a cup of coffee with friends while the kids drive toy cars around the track and climb through princess castles. I enjoy making fancy lattes, but I can't shake the feeling that I should be above this type of job. I mean that in the most literal sense, not to indicate that I'm any better of a person than a coffee shop employee. I'm better suited to 40,000 feet.

Aside from that, life is great. It's only 59 days until my wedding, and I'm so, so very excited. I can't wait to be on the beach with my best friends and family. I've been getting a lot of negative reactions from people who are against traveling to Mexico, but that's not making my excitement dwindle at all. I've been to some pretty scary places in this world, but never have I feared for my life in the Mayan Riveria. The media exaggerates everything.

In terms of wedding preparation, Ryan and I have been to the gym nearly every night this year. He's lost weight, and I feel strong.... for me, at least. Maybe when I eventually go back to work I'll actually be able to close the main cabin door with ease. Maybe.

In keeping with our aviation obsession, Ryan and I went a little bit overboard yesterday. While shopping at one of our favourite stores, I lit up upon discovery of the flight attendant "Career Barbie" that I've searched for... for a long time. Yeah, I'm 25 and I buy Barbie. I didn't think that I could get more excited until we turned the corner and found paradise. Airplane pillows and bedding galore. With each item I'd pick up, we'd find another equally awesome one. We threw everything into our cart and tried to convince ourselves to put it back on the shelves. It was no use. We left with everything. Our airplane themed guest bedroom is finally coming together. And no, we don't have some secret child that we bought all of this for.... but when and if we do ever have a little boy, he'll have absolutely no say in his bedroom decor. Ryan was just as thrilled about the end result as I was. You see why I'm marrying him?!