Weekend Things and To-Do in 2019

After sleeping in on Saturday morning, Christopher and I got ready and left the house to run an errand and grab some breakfast.  We don't often go out for breakfast in our own city (maybe once or twice a year, if that), so this was a nice treat.

I had eggs benedict from The Lobby.

After breakfast we got to meet our new puppy-nephews at Christopher's brother's place.  They are two adorable little Chihuahuas.  We had a short visit with Mel, Steve, and our niece, and then got home to start on this ...

A Thai coconut curry noodle dish, with some crispy noodles, red onion, cilantro, peanuts, red chili, and lime as garnish.

This morning Christopher made avocado toasts with smoked salmon, red onion, dill and capers.

He also made lunch - fried rice with some crispy pork that we got from The Great Asian Market yesterday.

Other cooking we did today included Moroccan chicken with lemons and olives, and a sausage and kale soup to have for lunches and dinners for the first couple days of the week.

I've been thinking about things that I want to do this year, and Christopher and I had some conversations about what our plans and intentions are for 2019.  In addition to cooking and baking a whole bunch of new and delicious eats, and expanding our taste buds in new cities and restaurants, there are other things on the 2019 to-do list:

1) Try floating in a sensory deprivation tank.  We've been wanting to try this for a while, but haven't booked it yet.  This is the year!

2) Have more casual/ low-key get-togethers with friends and family.  When I was little I remember my parents having friends over for a quick coffee and a visit quite often - no fuss, no real preparation required.  An hour or two visit, and the company was on their way after a nice time catching up.  We still plan on having people over for nicer meals, but we want to do more visiting over a cup or two of coffee, invite friends over last minute and just order a pizza and pour beverages, or maybe a casual evening of card/ board games ... let's do this pals!

3) Go on a day trip to a small town near us that we've never visited before.  This will be a pretty easy thing to do, as our city is surrounded by so many small towns, and we've basically been to none of them.

4) Read more.  I particularly want to read some books outside of my typical choices, which are usually food/ nutrition science, or behavioral/ brain science, non-fiction books.  I am going to turn my attention to some different genres.  I also want to keep track of the books I read this year, and do a post about my faves at the end of year, like Lisa and Amber do, as I always love seeing their favourite reads from the year.

5) Learn a new skill. 

What are some things on your 2019 to-do list?

How was your weekend?  What did you do?

2019

A few weeks ago I started writing the date on my day plan templates at work for the new year.  I got about as far as early March, when I realized I had been writing 2018 the whole time.  Ha - I think that's going to be happening to me for a while.

We had such a fun New Years Eve!  At 5:30 p.m. we went to our friends Chris and Cori's house, and brought along some ginger noodles and oatmeal bars.  It was a potluck pajama party!

 

There were so many yummy foods, and so many adorable kids in their jammies 💜 We loved all the quality time that we got with our little buddies.

I ate this plate of food, and then hours later made another plate up.  We nibbled all evening.

We were all too busy visiting to really pay attention to the countdown, but at some point someone said it was the New Year, and we welcomed 2019.

I am so pumped for this year, and the new experiences it will bring.  Our guiding word for last year was relaxation.  In 2019 our word for the year is adventure.  We are going to do things we've never done before, travel to places we've never been before, and step out of our comfort zones.  Our first travel adventure will be a week in Havana.  We're staying in a casa particlar, which is similar to a bed and breakfast.  All of our hot/ beach vacations have been to resorts, so this will be an exciting change of pace.

We started our year of adventure out with a new breakfast.  Christopher made portobello mushrooms stuffed with veggies, sausage, and an egg. 

So delicious!

Tonight, we fondue!

Happy New Year!

How did you spend New Years Eve?

What is something you are looking forward to this year?

Looking Back at 2018

As far as years go, 2018 was okay.  There were some highs and some lows, and more stress than I would have liked for a portion of the year.  Christopher definitely helped me de-stress, relax, and take the lows in stride, and the year is ending off fabulously! 

As an end of the year review this year, I thought I'd look back at each month of 2018, and give the highlight(s) from that month. 

January - We started 2018 in Mexico, at Excellence Riviera Cancun, where we had some much-needed relaxation time.

February - We celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary, had our friends Jeff and Alaina over for dinner, and I got to meet Freya (Christopher's relative from England; I got the idea for this month by month highlight from her Instagram story).

March - We went over to Mel and Steve's house for dinner on St. Patrick's Day; it was really nice to spend time with them and our niece.  We also had an early Easter brunch at Christopher's parents' house.

April - We were back in Mexico!  This year was not one of adventure, but rather one of self-care and relaxation. 

May - May was fun!  We went to Vancouver for a few days, had Mel and Steve over for dinner, went out with family for my dad's 77th birthday, hit the Cathedral Arts Festival, and went out to Mosaic with friends.

June - The best part of June was when we went to Good Spirit with our friends.  This month we also had my dad over for a Fathers' Day dinner, and went out with Christopher's parents for a joint Mothers/Fathers' Day date.

July - In July we celebrated three of our littlest nephew/nieces' birthdays.  They turned 1, 2, and 3 years old.  Our friends Matt and Alissa had us over for brunch.  We had my sister and Riley over for dinner, and then had both my whole family, and Christopher's whole family over for backyard BBQs.

August - At the end of July and beginning of August, Christopher was off for a week, so we had our first week-long staycation together.  Some other highlights of the month included a wonderful rib BBQ in the park that our friends Keith and Fanta planned, dinner at my sister and Riley's, and friends Mike and Tiffany's wedding; we danced our butts off!

September - We went to our niece's 4th birthday party.  This month we also went out to a couple get-togethers with friends, and started our Spanish class.

October -  Christopher's parents had us over for a feast to celebrate both of our birthdays, and later in the month we had them over for brunch.  We also dressed up and went out with friends for a fun Halloween celebration!

 

November - My sister and Riley tied the knot!  It was super fun, and the kids had a blast playing together after lunch. We also had our friends Colin and Erica over for brunch, and had a great time catching up with them.

December - We had a few nights out with friends, and a really lovely Christmas at home.  And today my sister Leah turns 32!

Happy birthday Leah!

I am sure I missed some other highlights of the year, and looking back at these memories, I can't help but be thankful for all the blessings in our lives, and all the amazing people we are surrounded by.

Tonight we're changing it up from our typical New Year Eve celebration, which for the past few years has either been in Mexico, or a quiet evening at home.  We're heading over to our friends' place for a pajama party with a bunch of our friends, and all their kids 💙 It will be a wonderful way to ring in 2019, and I am really looking forward to what the new year will bring.

Be safe tonight my friends!

How are you ringing in the new year?