Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

First things first...my sister is in labor!!!! WAHOO!! It's exciting for me, but probably not so exciting for her. She has had epidurals with her previous three children and this time she is going "au-naturale" with her midwife by her side (and Dave too hopefully). I'm so proud of her. She is so brave and strong and I can't wait to hear all the details. I'll try not to be too sad that I can't be there by her side cheering her on, but I'll be doing it from far away, even if I look like a crazy person! Can't wait to meet you Grayson.

Alberta was Fantabulous! It always feels like I'm going back home in some weird strange way. Probably due to the fact that I lived there for 4 years and it's where I met Mike and some of the bestest friends I have. We thought it was going to be hard to leave but sure enough, in classic Calgary fashion, it snowed the morning we left and so coming back to Ontario's +19C weather was not all that difficult. Mike and I always say that we'll probably end up back there someday..let's just hope that that "someday" isn't all that far away.

Mandi's wedding was BEAUTIFUL and she was a GORGEOUS bride! Try not to get too mad at me when I tell you that I forgot my camera, at home! So alas, I have no pictures to share as of yet. I am in the process of stealing them from family members though so to be continued. The day was sunny and warm (by Alberta standards) and it was so great being able to see family and spend time with everyone. Mike has an AMAZING family and everytime I am with them, I can't help but to feel so blessed to be apart of the Ryan/Miller clan.

Jack was so crabby that weekend. I believe he was teething and his schedule being turned right upside down didn't help either. He was okay on the plane ride there but on the way home OH MY LANTA!!!! I was pretty much ready and willing to sell him to the nearest person who would give me the best offer! He screamed and cried and yelled and pretty much stressed his two parents to high heaven, but then bless his little heart, he fell asleep for the last almost 2 hours and I couldn't have been more grateful. I really don't know how parents do it:
1) by themselves and
2) with more than one child.
I think airlines should hand out awards once the plane has landed and everyone on the plane should give you a standing ovation upon your exit just because you have conquered the feat of traveling with a small child(s) and have been able to remain somewhat sane. Seriously!

All in all it was a great trip and I'm glad we got to get away, even if it was just for a long weekend.

Also, did I mention that ..................................

MIKE GOT THE JOB!!!!

Woo hoo. Thanks for all of those prayers and eye/leg/finger/toe crossing. Your hard work has paid off. We found out Tuesday morning and couldn't have been more thrilled. Being laid off was actually a blessing in disguise because he got a better paying job and will enjoy what he is doing more. Yay us...and thank you all!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's Off to Alberta we Go!

We're leaving tomorrow for a long weekend in Alberta. What's the occasion you might ask? Well the Calgary Stampede is over, and it's not to eat some delicious Alberta beef, it's for our 3rd family wedding of the year, Mandi & Jordan's.

We leave tomorrow night and are back on Monday. Just a short little stint but long enough to hopefully see some familia and our long lost friends (well, they're not really lost they just live so darn far away). This will be Mr. Jack-a-Loo's first airplane ride so wish us luck. Luckily I'll have Mike there with me so we can take turns pulling each others hair out. How sweet!

Speaking of Mike, I have some horrible terrible no good very bad news to report. He was laid off last week :( There was a shortage of work and unfortunately since he was the lowest man on the totem pole, they parted their ways. Luckily they were so kind as to set him up with a job interview with another company the following day. He has his second interview tomorrow so again, like I always ask, please keep all possible flexible ligaments crossed for us.



Well folks, this is Katie "hopeful, trying to be completely optimistic" Ryan signing off. I need to go find me an outfit to wear to this shindig. Ugh, why couldn't I have been a man!!! Seriously! Throw on a suit and DONE!! No, no, not us women folk. We need a dress, our hair did, matching accessories, new shoes, manicures, nylons, and SPANX!! Oh the joys...and now my tangent has now ended.
;)

P.s. - Jack got his 1st haircut. He was pretty good about it to except for the part where he started head banging back and forth. He's a little peek into his fun time at the hairdresser.

NOW OPEN - Jack & Olive

The reason as to why I haven't blogged as of late???

RIGHT HERE



My cousin in law, Mandy Fuller, and I have opened up a wee little baby boutique. It has been SO much work...but SO much fun. We have sewn, glued, cut, ironed, and crafted till our little hands have felt like they are going to fall off! We started selling our stuff at Mom to Mom sales here in the area. Speaking of which I have one tomorrow in Mississauga and still have loads of work to do so I must bid you all farewell for the moment.

Have a closer look at our new Website...(that still needs a lot of work but it's a start) or check out our Facebook page.

Catch ya lata gatas!

The Busy Bee that is ME

A brief sypnosis of the going ons of my life lately and then maybe you'll go easy on me for not posting as of late.

1. Jack is walking...which in turn means I am now RUNNING! He is growing way too fast for my liking. I often catch myself just staring at him in awe of how much he has grown and what a little boy he is turning into. He now says Doggie, Daddy, Mama, Stinky, Puppy and Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Okay obviously not so much the last word but it's so fun to say and type out at the same time I couldn't help myself.

2. I started another Accounting course last week. I'm pretty pumped and excited about that. I'm hoping to finish another one come the winter so that I can start my own "Yes I actually enjoy doing taxes and would love to do yours" business come April.

3. I started a business with my cutie patootie cousin in law Mandy. I am CRAFTING! Yes that is right. Don't wipe your eyes or try to look closer at your computer screen, you read correctly, I am crafting. I never thought that word would EVER be used to describe me but alas, I'm trying my darndest to join the crafty club. I've been a wannabe for years and decided to just jump right in....with the help of Mandy's amazing sewing skills. More details about our venture later but we finally came up with a name...Jack & Olive. (koodos to Liz for that one) I love it! It has such a vintage feel about it.

4. Mike and I are trying to figure out our lives. No big thing really. HAHAHA He has decided to pursue policing. He is preparing right now to take two really big tests come the end of October so keep him in your prayers for us. I'm really hoping that he gets in....and not just because he'll have access to and be wearing a uniform...Rrraaawr ;) He has figured out in the last little while that he is just not a desk job kind of guy. He needs to be out and about, a-movin' and a-shakin' and this career path really interests him. Guess I'll have to start being on my bestest behaviour soon. (uh huh, right, like that's gonna happen ;)

So there you have it. A Busy little bee, that is me! and I'm lovin' every minute of it except the lack of sleep and the fact that my house looks like the same tornado keeps coming by everyday but mess gives it character right? hahaha..at least that is what I keep telling myself.


Here are some pictures to help tell my going ons as of late.


Happy 30th Birthday to me. My darling sister in laws decorated the house for me.





..and yes they used leftover bridal shower balloons and crossed out the wedding bells. I thought it was hilarious!



mmmm banana pancakes for breakfast and I got to eat them off of the Ryan birthday plate.



My birthday present - a Tahitian Pearl Necklace. I LOVED these when I saw them in Hawaii but they were SOOOOO expensive. Mike surprised me. Aw shucks.


We drove into the city (Toronto) for dinner. I LOVE TORONTO!


Peek a boo, here I am Mom!


So innocent right??...think again


Note to self - do not leave package of just bought toilet paper out!


Hawaii! Really I could just post a gzillion pictures but then it might make you fall asleep which might possibly cause a pool of drool to form which would in turn seep into your computer and potentially cause a lot of damage and I don't want to be responsible for that so here are a few teasers.


The BEAUTIFUL couple with Mama and Papa Ryan. Her dress was one of the most beautiful I've ever seen.


Island of Oahu.


Doesn't the bridal bouquet really bring out his eyes?


Oh palm trees, how I love thee!


The Ryan Clan - best in laws EVER!

and that's all folks!

Weddings and Birthdays and Updates Oh My!!!

SHHHHHHHH! I don't want to hear it. Not one little word about how HORRIBLE I've been at updating my blog lately. Ugh! I know....but I am here at last typing my little thoughts away and that's all that matters right?
Where to begin....ps - ya might wanna get comfy! I'll add some pictures to make it a little more interesting.


I finished my accounting class in the middle of July and wasn't quite sure how I was going to do. I had really felt like I had bombed my final exam but lo and behold, I checked my final mark online last week and I ended up with A! Wahoo. I felt pretty darn pumped about that let me tell ya because I did find the class challenging. So now I need to figure out what the next step is. I know I want to pursue more classes in accounting but we just need to figure out where we're going to be living first before I can decide.



It looks like the University of Guelph won't be changing or improving our life!!!(see pic) Mike unfortuately did not get accepted this year. We found out, from the Dean of the program, that 70 people were trying to squeeze into 9 seats that they had available. I was mad, downright red in the face, steam comin' out of my ears mad. This was our 2nd year attempting to get in and alas it looks like it's just not in the cards. We are now trying to figure out what our next move will be. Mike has to find a completely different career path which is pretty stressful but luckily he has A LOT of interests! He has applied to a job in Calgary doing what he is doing now, so were thinking of possibly making the move back out west. We'll see what happens.



Our little Jack-a-loo is now 1. I can hardly believe it that a year has gone by already. It brings tears to my eyes knowing that his 1st year of life is over and all those little baby moments with it. He is also no longer breastfeeding. I planned on weaning him at a year and it seemed like he was losing interest as well. We had a few different parties for him. One down in Windsor when we were there for my sister's wedding. One back at home here in Burlington with the Ryan's and then another mini one so we could eat the AMAZING cake that Uncle Devon and his girlfriend Mackenzie made for him. I'll have to post pics later as my camera is being a wee bit tempermental. He got spoiled rotten and it was a ton of fun watching him eat cake for the 1st time. I can't wait to see what this next year brings!!!


Emily and Mark tied the knot! It was a beautiful wedding and a oh-so-fun reception. She was a BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEUTIFUL bride and made her big sister proud. It still hasn't quite set in that my little sister is married. I'm sure it will take a little bit of time. We're so excited to have Mark in our family and we LOVE his family!!! They are so cute! Emily lucked out big time. I got to see my sis Liz, bro in law Dave and there cute family as well for about a week. It was so good to see them. It really makes me miss them though and oh how I long for them not to live so far away FOREVER!!! Maybe one day. Keep your fingers crossed Diz!


Mike's little sister Mandi aka Mandizzle, Mandeep, Mandi Poo Poo(she is actually the same age as my sister Emily and they knew each other before Mike and I did) got engaged a couple of weeks ago! They are planning for an October wedding and we couldn't be more excited. We love Jordan to bits and pieces and can't wait for the big day.


We're off to Hawaii this Saturday for Tyler and Julie's wedding. Mike and I thought about it long and hard and finally came to the conclusion that this might be a once in a lifetime chance to go (although I sure hope not) and that we should just bite the bullet (and close our eyes as our bank account dwindles away) and go! My lovely, wonderful, bestest Mom is going to watch Jack for the week as well so we'll be childless! I haven't been separated from my lil' Jack for more than 8 hours so I'm not quite sure how I'm going to cope. I think I'll be the one having a wee bit of separation anxiety but at least I have blue skies, and sandy beaches to soothe my aching heart (and knowing that it's my own Mom watching him). Mike and I really are so excited and it should be a grrrrrrrrreat time. Post to follow with those details FOR SURE! ;;)



Looks good doesn't it? It's what I'm eating right now. Just in case you were wondering. Well that's about all for now. Buh-bye to all my follow bloggers and ALOHA Hawaii. I'm off to go polish my coconut bra! hee hee

Deep breath In.....Deep Breath Out...Deep Breath In...

So I am trying to remain somewhat calm but we just found out that there are 70 people applying to Mike's program at the University of Guelph and only 9 seats available. EGAT! Last year there were only 13 applicants and 6 seats available. Man alive! This is me from now on trying to have an optimistic point of view and saying to myself, if it's meant to be it will be (Although we sure could use all of the faith, hope and prayers we can get).

In other more exciting news, I had my first Accounting test this past Monday and got 96/100! WOO HOO! I really couldn't believe it. I am pretty proud of myself because it's not easy stuff. I'm quite enjoying this class so far so we'll see how the next 8 weeks go.

My 1st official mother's day was wonderful. Like I have previously mentioned, I had the opportunity to attend Time out for Women. It was exactly what this woman needed. Sunday morning I woke up to 2 dozen white and red stemmed roses along with a pancake breakfast. It was delish. I also received a great present...a new camcorder! I've been wanting one for quite sometime. I also got the most darling card from "Jack" that said "I'm just a pup, but i'll grow up and as I do, my love will too, especially for a mom like you" and then Mike wrote a little blurp on the bottom from Jack saying Sorry for all the poo! I died laughing and then started bawling like a baby. I have loved being a mother and watching my "little pup" grow up. I can't believe that he is 10 months already, almost a year old. Time has flow by and it's been amazing. I love my lil' Jack-a-loo and cherish everyday we get to spend together.

Only a couple of months left before my lil sis's wedding/when I get to see my sis Liz and her family. I can't wait. It should be an exciting summer..and the weather has been absolutely GORGEOUS this week. Bring on the summa, I'm a-ready! Here's some pics/video taken lately.

He loves staring at his reflection. He often kisses and talks to it.

Here I am Mom

I love his "sleepy" face.

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He's going to kill me one day for this. Mike was changing his diaper and he just all of a sudden sat up.

It's time I took a TIME OUT

...for women that is. THIS is where I'll be spending the majority of my weekend with my wee Mum and lil' sis Deeb (aka Emily). It will be the first time I've been separated from my little Jack-a-loo for more than a couple of hours in almost 10 months. KEEEERRRRAZY! I know! I don't doubt that he'll be fine, it's me I'm worried about. hee hee Think of it, to be able to sit and actually listen to inspirational speakers without having to playing sit-still-on-my-lap-tug-o'war. To be able to dress cute and not have to worry about bodily secretions staining my clothes. To not have to watch the clock to see if it's nap time, feed time, play time, pull my hair out time. To be able to replace my sou sou(soother) searching with some much needed soul searching. To be able to sing songs other than my daily repetoire of Old McDonald and the Wheels on the Bus. Yes, it's me I'm a little worried about. Will I be able to function normally around other adults? Will I be able to carry on a meaningful conversation without all of a sudden covering my eyes and yelling Peek-a-boo? Or will I randomly make faces that look similar to this:



Oh I think I'll manage just fine cause it's darn tootin' time this girl took a much needed Time Out. ;)

My New Life

I stole this from my sister's blog and just had to share it. She truly is one of the most inspiring, remarkable women I have ever come to know.



Stephanie Nielson's blog can be found in my list of blogs I read. Although I have never met her, she has truly touched my life with her story.

Duh, Duh, Duh, Another one Bites the Dust!

Well looks like I will get the privilege of attending TWO weddings this summer! woo hoo! Mike's brother Tyler (same age as me) FINALLY proposed to his girlfriend of three long years this past Friday night. We are soooo ecstatic and love Julie to death. Of course my own proposal was by far the best ever...but this one is definitely a close second! Julie is a phenomenal artist (check out her website HERE) and was asked to do the artwork for a huge concert in Hawaii called the Kokua festival by none other than Jack Johnson. See she was Jack Johnson's nanny for quite a few years so she knows him pretty well. Anywho, Tyler saw this as the perfect opportunity and he jumped on it. It went down like this. They asked Julie to come up on stage to recognize her for her outstanding artwork and Jack Johnson's wife Kim, said they had a special surprise for her. Out comes Tyler on stage and asks her to marry him. How cute eh? Apparently there were 10,000 people or so there so good on him that couldn't have been easy. Luckily they had quite a few people filming the whole thing and we got to see the entire thing go down when we skyped with them on Saturday. It's the best! Maybe they'll let me post it on here...we'll see. So looks like we'll be heading to Hawaii in August. Saweet!

Congratulations Tyler and Julie. We sure do love ya!





How cute are they right?

Back to School, Back to School to prove to myself that I am no Fool

Can you name the movie from my blog title? (I did change the words a tad)

So I am sort of, kind of, not really going back to school. I signed up to take an Accounting course that starts this Monday at a local college. I am pretty excited though. I just wanted to see if it would be something I would like. I had originally gone to school for Human Resources Managment but have since decided I don't think its for me. I've decided to just start taking courses to see what I'm interested in. A little ol' game of process of elimination. I'm just hoping I'm not the oldest person in the class. Wish me luck!

I've also started Weight Watchers again. This girl needs to get her bootay into shape, ship shape. I was successful on it before and I like that there is freedom in the plan. There really isn't anything I can't eat. It's all about moderation (so instead of inhaling 4 chocolate bars I can devour 3 1/2..hahaha) Today was Day 1 and I stuck to it. WAHOO. One day down, 9,999,999 to go. ;) Some of my motivation is that I've told myself if I want to start thinking about bambino numero 2, I need to loose some of the weight that bambino numero 1 left behind.

Jack-a-loo and I have started swimming lessons. It's so much fun to take him in the pool. He was the only boy in the first class we went to and he sure let it be known! He sure strutted his stuff in that pool. It must have been that sweet swimsuit I purchased for him. He was babbling and sort of screaming for the majority of the class. It was probably just baby talk for "Hello Ladies, come here often?"
hee hee Toodles for now.

Forget Oysters, The World is his Lollipop!

I just had to post this. Here is how I found Jack this morning:



Really? Does EVERYTHING need to go in his mouth? Including our dresser knobs?

;)

Here Comes the Bride! (Well not until July)

One of my little sisters is getting married. Emily Shannon Rose will be tying the knot on July 17th. I'm so excited for her. I can't believe that she is old enough to be married. Time really does fly. Why I remember it like yesterday when she as wearing her Little Mermaid attire 24/7 complete with her 101 Dalmatian headband. Emily has had a love for animals her entire life. She wasn't very into dolls or barbies, she was all about the animals. She can even impersonate some of them to a tee hence the reason why when I was a teenager and talking to my friends on the phone they would hear barking in the background, ask me if we got a dog and I would respond with the typical, "Nope, that's just Emily". I actually don't call her by her first name I call her by her nickname of Deeber. How did this come about you might ask? Well when I was in grade 6 or 7, I was over at my friend Krystal's house and we were playing with her little brother Daniel. Although they didn't call him Daniel, they called him Deeber. I thought that this was a phenomenal nickame so I brought it home and gave it to Emily and it stuck. I know she will be forever grateful to me for giving her this blessed nickname. hee hee

Congratuations Deeber Deeb and Mark. Can't wait till the big day. Love you lil' sis.

Jack Be Nimble, Jack be Quick

Well gone are the days when I could just sit my wee Jack-a-Loo on the ground, surround him with some toys and be on my merry way. He has moved on to bigger and better things. He is officially crawling. It is the cutest thing ever. It's more like a shimmy than a crawl but I'm sure he'll get the hang of it. We were at my parents house this weekend for Easter and he made his grand debut. Here is a little blurp that Mike caught on video with his phone camera (sorry about the poor quality)



Mike and I think Jack's crawling reminds us of one of THESE Click on the word THESE and have a look and let me know if you see any similarities.

Of course I found it absolutely and utterly adorable until I realized that I have to keep a MAJOR eye on him and start baby proofing. Just yesterday he managed to get into the dog's food dish twice, picked up random little pieces of paper he found somewhere on the carpet and immediately put them into his mouth, and of course headed straight towards all electrical outlets and pretty much anything else dangerous. I had to resort to putting him in his playpen so that I could at least go to the "loo" without having to worry about him. This is how I found him when I came back...




He wasn't very happy with his Mom for throwing him in baby jail. Poor guy. Incarcerated at the tender age of 8 1/2 months. At least we don't make him wear the hideous orange jumpsuit. He also has uttered his first word. Can you guess what it is? GIFTED! I know! Crazy eh? hahah ok, I might be telling a little fib. It was more along the lines of Mama. YAY! Nevermind the fact that it came after ba ba and it sounds more like mla mla, but a woman can dream right? He says dada now too but let's just make a note that mama came first. All my hard work has finally paid off. He truly is a joy and he makes us laugh all the day long.

My exercising is getting off to a slow start but it's starting nonetheless. I just signed up to run a 5K this June with my sister in law Shari so that gives me something to work towards. I started a running program called Couch to 5K It's great because it literally takes you from not running to being able to fun a 5k in 9 weeks. There are some exciting events taking place in mine and Mike's family this summer (details coming soon) so I need to get my butt in gear...like 5th gear!

Mike and I are still playing the waiting game for school which is always loads of fun. We actually applied to the University of Idaho as well (which will be quite a long shot) just as a backup.

Three friends of mine had babies on or around April Fools. Congrats again Robyn, Dayna and Ethney. Love you girlies.

Anywho, that's it for now.

This is Katie-Running-Around-Like-A-Chicken-with-its-head-cut-off Ryan signing off.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

You might be a little perplexed by the title of this post as it is March 2nd and not anywhere near Christmas. What, might you ask, could possibly be the runner up for most wonderful time of the year? Why tax season of course! Now that you have picked your jaw up from off the floor, let me explain. I do not have an accounting degree but I love love love doing my own taxes. This is a newly discovered passion of mine that came from tackling them for the first time last year. I think part of the reason why I like doing them so much is because I get to fill out TONS of forms. My first love in life is my husband, Second comes Jack, Third chocolate and Fourth FILLING OUT FORMS!!! Yes it's true I love love love filling out forms. It's one of my many little qwirks. It's so bad that if I start filling out a form and think it doesn't look perfect, I'll redo it. If I could get a job filling out forms all day, I would be in paperwork heaven..although I'm pretty sure it would lead to some severe carpal tunnel, but well worth the pain. I've actually have thought about taking an accounting course lately and am researching some schools. I've never really taken one and I'm curious to see if I would like it. I'll keep you posted on that one.

Life has been going great here in Burlington. The weather has been AWESOME!! Ugh, I sooooooo don't miss Edmonton for just that fact alone. Today is a gorgeous sunny day and it feels like Spring to me, even if this morning it was -1C. Don't you find when the warmer weather comes that it is so motivating? Whether it is to start exercising, eating better, cleaning more, etc. It just feels like a fresh start on whatever goal you're trying to work on. I'm feeling pumped and rearing to go!
Nothing to new to report on the homefront. Jack is growing like a little weed. He has his two bottom teeth in and they are so cute. I love his little "toofies", except when I'm breastfeeding of course. Yowsers! He'll be turning 8 months old already in a couple of weeks. I really can't believe it. Time really has flown by and I'm trying to cherish this time with him. Whenever I'm out shopping or at church, etc, people are always mistaking him for a girl. For instance, today at the store the cutest russian old couple came up to me and start talking to Jack. The lady says "Oh what a beautiful princess, She is beautiful" and kept going on and on. At this point, I didn't have the heart to tell her that the princess is really a prince so I just played along. I had to laugh to myself because she kept calling him princess over and over. There was also this woman at church who told me that Jack really looks like a girl even though he is a boy. She would keep saying, no really, he looks like a girl. I dont' think I would ever say something like that to someone, but hey, I guess she just had to get it off of her chest. It must be his big blue eyes.

Mike started a new job this past January and is loving it. We've applied to the University of Guelph again this year and are keeping our fingers crossed that this year will be the year, and he'll be accepted. Keep us in your prayers. We won't find out until like June or July.

Mike has also been contemplating about joining the reserves. I was pretty hesitant in him doing so, but after finding out that they only go abroad if they choose to, I was on board. It will help pay for school and be additional income so that will be good. He goes in this month for a sort of orientation and will make the decision then.

Well there's a wee update for you for now. My tax forms are calling my name and Jack is sleeping so it's the perfect time. Here's some recent pics of our Jack-a-Loo (nickname courtesy of Auntie Katie)

In the Doghouse!

I know I am way overdue for a post and it's coming soon, real soon, I promise. Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye promise. ;) I just had to post this video we took of Jack recently. He absolutely LOVES our dog Zan. Everytime he sees her, he gets all giggly and has the biggest smile on his face. He also does this thing lately when he gets really excited where he covers his eyes with his hands. It'll be interesting to see if he keeps doing that as he gets older. Here is a recently video we took of his reaction to Mike playing catch with Zan. That laugh melts my wee heart.

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