jingle bells

Christmas Pictures

Haylie - the most gorgeous Christmas baby ever...

(this might be the best picture I've ever taken - I need KAG's photoshop to take out my mom's hand and the yellow baby blanket!!!)

My bro - Phil,
Sis - Jenna,
Brother in Law - Kyle

On Christmas morning
(above) I'm confident enough to put pre-showered pictures of myself :) he he. I just had to show off my most luxurious-ever robe that Jeff gave me for Christmas. I LOVE LOVE IT.

And Haylie looks so cute too.

This was taken Christmas Eve.

Baby had enough celebrating.

(above) Jenna, my Mom, and I playing Cranium. We lost.

(below) Kyle, a very overexcited Matt, Phil, Kayden and a barely there pic of Dad.

(above) the only pic taken of Jeff and I, and it's blurry. And I'm doing the over-smiling thing. Taken on Dec 23, as Jeff went home on the 24th. He's wearing the sweater I bought him, and proudly displaying the gift certificate for the Fishing Hole, along with his stocking that was jammed packed full of fun stuff. Lynnel and I also went together and bought him a little golf package - hat, oilers ball marker and golf balls for his birthday which is on Christmas Eve. Yes Lynnel. She insisted on paying for part of it because she wanted to get him a gift! It was cute of her. And also great for me.
I am holding the teddy bear that came with my 14 k white gold necklace that I am wearing, an awesome electric blanket to keep me warm and cozy at night (it's incredible), and a gift certificate for La Senza. The little green box is a fishing hook that was actually a joke.
He also surprised me on Christmas morning with the robe in the picture above that I had been begging for since September.

Haylie and Kayden in the play thing I bought for Haylie for Christmas. Haylie's sleeper says "Baby's First Christmas" and it was pretty cute.

So all in all, Christmas was just wonderful. I went to bed last night thinking it had been a perfect day besides Jeff not being there. We opened gifts from the family and mom and dad had bought me this absolutely gorgeous glass jewelry box from the Bombay company, along with some beautiful jewelry to put in it (seems appropriate doesn't it?!). I think the tassle is going to have to come off soon :) The parents also got me one of the most fun-filled stockings ever, with lots of chocolates, Body Shop goodies, scrapbooking supplies, lotions and potions, etc, etc. Phil got me the Snow Patrol CD, Matt got me 3 very trendy picture frames from Twisted Goods, and Jenna bought me a NYC calender and a girly book to waste my time on which I love. I still have a gift coming from Jeff's mom and dad.

I feel a little bit spoiled rotten this year.

After presents we had a huge delicious brunch and spent the afternoon relaxing, napping and doing whatever. We went for Christmas dinner at the Hilton and it was amazing and lovely and elegant. Nobody minded that we didn't have supper at home one bit. Then we went through the Enchanted Forest, supposedly the biggest light show in Canada, which is always a good Christmas thing to do. After that we came home and watched "Miracle on 34th Street" which really puts a smile on anyones face :) Oh I'm being so cheezy.

But it really was a great Christmas! I think I'll spend my last day off cleaning my very messy room, trying to figure out You Tube to download a very funny little video of Kayden to share with you all, and eating leftovers. PERRRRRRFECT!

So maybe for the last time (this year anyway).... Merry Christmas everyone!

italics are all mine!

****'s mean YES I HAVE. (Thanks to Heather for the survey!)

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink **** (it doesn't ask how many people were in the bar)
02. Swam with wild dolphins (i did this at canada's wonderland but they were hardly wild)
03. Climbed a mountain ****
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone ****
08. Said “I love you” and meant it ****
09. Hugged a tree ****
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea (i'm pretty sure this is just as cool on the prairies, in which case, ****!)
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise ****
14. Seen the Northern Lights ****
15. Gone to a huge sports game ****
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables **** (okay so my mom did the actual growing!)
18. Touched an iceberg ****
19. Slept under the stars ****
20. Changed a baby’s diaper ****
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity ****
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope ****
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment ****
27. Had a food fight ****
28. Bet on a winning horse ****
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight ****
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can ****
32. Held a lamb ****
33. Seen a total eclipse ****
34. Ridden a roller coaster ****
35. Hit a home run **** (don't laugh. it's true!)
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking ****
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day ****(well part of a day. more like an hour).
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment **** (definitely!)
39. Had two hard drives for your computer (i need another one though)
40. Visited all 50 states (it's on my list of things to do!)
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk ****
42. Had amazing friends ****
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales ****
45. Stolen a sign ****
46. Backpacked in Europe (another wish on the list)
47. Taken a road-trip ****
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach ****
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Greece
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them **** (a married man bought me dinner and a drink in the minneapolis airport at TGI Fridays!)
54. Visited Belgium (why aren't any of these about places i HAVE visited?!)
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs ****
57. Pretended to be a superhero ****
58. Sung karaoke **** (for the first time this last weekend!!)
59. Lounged around in bed all day ****
60. Played touch football ****
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain ****
63. Played in the mud ****
64. Played in the rain ****
65. Gone to a drive-in theater ****
66. Visited the San Marco
67. Started a business (just the lemonade stand when i was a kid)
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites ****
70. Taken a martial arts class ****
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party ****
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch ****
78. Won first prize in a costume contest **** (this halloween for my paper-bag princess costume!)
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Tyrol River
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
83. Got flowers for no reason ****
84. Performed on stage ****
85. Been to Las Vegas ****
86. Recorded music ****
87. Eaten shark
88. Kissed on the first date ****
89. Gone to Thailand ****
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone **** (ha ha, in Israel someone hit me with a rock, so I like to say i was involved in the war there) (this maybe isn't funny to some...)
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship ****
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge (seen it, not walked it)
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking ****
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Touched a stingray ****
110. Broken someone’s heart ****
111. Helped an animal give birth (i watched a calf being born once though)
112. Won money on a radio show **** (in the form of gift certificates!)
113. Broken a bone **** (i was six, broke the femer bone!)
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears ****
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol ****
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse ****
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon **** (modification - part way around the rim!)
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states (i just counted, i've been to 20 states and 10 foreign countries)
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper ****
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about ****
130. Gone back to school ****
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey (just parts of them - but they are on my list of books to read)
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read ****
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (do fish count?!)
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language ****
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream ****
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts (as if)
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair ***
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone’s life
and

151. Participated in stupid online survey's because I was bored. ****

blogging is my christmas gift to you

many have commented, both on my blog and in person, of the extreme joy they are receiving because of the amount of blogging i have done recently. you're all welcome. think of it as my christmas gift to you, hence the title of this post!

this is the first Monday since august that i have worked and it was very difficult to get up this morning. you see, all semester i had a seminar class from 12:30 - 3:30, so i usually got to have a leisurely Monday morning. it was AWESOME. today is NOT AWESOME. it SUCKS getting up at 7. I've got this weird thing going on where i feel extremely faint and nauseous in the morning for about the first hour after i wake up. it's happened a few times over the last 6 months or so and again this morning. so i waste 20 minutes of my already very crammed morning (i'm late for work every freaking morning) lying on the bathroom floor. very strange. i don't know if its a dehydrated thing or a sugar thing or what, but well, a blog is not the place to talk medical things :)
soooooooo ANYWAYS!

it's CHRISTMAS in case you hadn't noticed! i love it. it's such a lovely time of year. i just wish that it would stop snowing in saskatchewan. i mean seriously HOW much snow do we need? it's very lovely but we don't need 18 feet of it. 2 would be sufficient. it's just annoying driving around on these bloody streets and brushing all the snow off every morning, afternoon and evening. back to happy thoughts. i am THIS close to being done christmas shopping. i just have to pick up something for my parents and for jeff, but i know exactly what i am getting for all of them so i can do it quickly on one of my lunch breaks this week. and i LOOOOOOOOOOVVVE wrapping christmas presents, just like tanys mosher, so i get to do that this week. SO FUN.

jeff the little bum has a birthday on christmas eve, so i have to do double duty this time of year. its hard to separate birthday and christmas, and the poor guy has been sacrificing birthday his entire life, so i try to do something. i think this year we are just going for dinner somewhere nice. i'm copping out a bit, but he has a wicked stocking. see, i can't help but combine bday and christmas. sucka.

i went to Bad Ass Jacks for lunch and it was superb. i was annoyed cuz right before i got there, 4 boys beat me in line and they took FOREVER. arrrrrg. i was so hungry and just wanted my wrap right now. but i had to wait. and then it was so hot i burned the roof of my mouth. brutal! but soooooooooooo tasty. i love it there.

this weekend i went to a fabulous party at the redekopp's farm near dalmeny. they had made soooooo much food and there was tons left over cuz the roads were so bad that a lot of people didn't end up coming. and they had karaoke and dance dance revolution. if awesome food, karaoke and DDR don't make a party, then I DON'T KNOW WHAT DOES. it was really fun. then lynnel and i went home and watched....

MEAN GIRLS! yes i bought it! no more whining. it is so funny. it was totally worth staying up till 3 am to watch.

saturday lynnel and i did some christmas shopping, and we just ventured out to the circle mall. lynnel thinks that only old people call it the circle mall. she calls it the center mall. everytime i say circle mall she bursts out laughing and calls me an old lady. Well I never. i blame it on all the old people i talk to everyday (who by the way, are ALL traveling to Arizona for the winter, which makes me sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous). anyway my whole point is that we did not even dare attempt to conquer midtown. no siree. i bet its even worse than walmart there. walmart is like a whole other culture - everyone there is so rude and so grumpy! i watched two ladies purposly hit each other with their carts the other day because neither one of them wanted to wait and let the other one go by in the aisle! i'm serious! it was insane.

sunday i went and bought a pair of pants for work. at smart set. they are way way way too long. so i go to 'stitch it' to get them hemmed. they can't do it till FRIDAY! HOW RIDICULOUS!!!! so i am pissed off and am wearing them long. it's my new style i guess. does anyone know anyone who can hem my pants for me??!!! like come on now stitch it, pick up the pace.

yes so i think that is about all for now. my cell phone is broken in literally two pieces so don't try to call me on that. i'll get a new one after christmas. or maybe i'll get a loaner for a week? we'll see. i love how this blog has brought me through the day. it's already 2:03. okay bu-bye.

love, me ;)

one year ago today...

sigh...................

analysis of poll

2 responses will do. (see last post if you don't know what i'm talking about.)

so the reason i was thinking about it. i've been writing a few christmas cards lately and i like to end it, "love me" if it's someone like my sister or lynnel or jeff, or just someone close. but everytime i do it i completely hesitate BECAUSE...

hahahaha... hope it's okay to write about this on a BLOG for pete's sake... when i dated this guy a long while back, like seven/six years ago, we used to write little notes and one day i ended it "love me".

well i thought i was so cute. but when the next time i got a letter from him, it ended,

love me kristin. (completely serious too) (parenthesis mine) (hahaha.)
love you-know-who.

(i'm sure most of you know who, hehe, but i'm pretty sure he doesn't even have access to the internet.... i'm hoping not anyway... not like he'd google me first if he did.... anyway, i don't even care.)

ahhhhhh i was like oh that is NOT what i meant when i wrote it!!!! i TOTALLY have a complex about it!!! so i've been wondering all these years if i am completely crazy or if HE was completely insecure and basically wrote please love me kristin, oh please do. oh dear oh dear. so i feel better that at least jenn and leah are okay with the love me. thing.

maybe i should've added a comma? love, me. perhaps?

Poll

What do you think when you see something (i.e. a letter, or the end of a blog for instance) signed,

"Love Me."

Do you think it is a cry for love? like i am asking you to love me more?

or do you think of it as "love from me" ????

i must know. i'll explain after i hear from a few of you.

(i have my last final exam in 1.5 hours, and this is what is weighing on my mind? strange, i know.)

You Are Miss Piggy

A total princess and diva, you're totally in charge - even if people don't know it.You want to be loved, adored, and worshiped. And you won't settle for anything less.You're going to be a total star, and you won't let any of the "little people" get in your way.Just remember, piggy, never eat more than you can lift!

The Muppet Personality Test

ai ai ya yai, in china they never grow chilly

LAST DAY OF CLASSES TODAY!!!!

you guys i'm seriously thinking i might actually make it through! i don't know how many times i told lynnel i was going to drop out of school and she would just laugh oh haha haha ha. ha. ha. not. so. funny. when. i'm. half. serious. (do the periods emphasize that sentence or are they just distracting???) (i like them).

i have one more paper to write... by midnight tonight...that i haven't started...but you know what, THAT IS OKAY! i don't care. it might be a teensy bit late. but still okay.

so i'm soooooooooooooooooooo looking forward to just going to work and coming home AND GET A DECENT PAYCHECK, and not having stuff to worry about! school stuff stays with me day after day after day. i dream about it. it comes with me on my weekends. books lay piled up on my bed and on my desk. the computer never shuts off. papers are everywhere. i LOATHE this.

work on the other hand, ends at 5 pm SHARP.

i am so excited. i'm going to watch all my girl movies over the holidays. my chick flick movie collection includes:

The Notebook
In Her Shoes
Bridget Jones' Diary
Bridget Jones' DiarY: The Edge of Reason
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days

I'm going to watch them all over the holidays. I'm so mad at myself, i was at walmart on saturday and "Mean Girls" was $12 and i didn't buy it..... and there were only 2 copies left, so i'm sure its gone by now. biggest mistake of my weekend. that'd be a great christmas present if anyone wants to buy me it. hehe. i love that movie. i loved the old lindsay lohan. now she is one of my favorite people to see on "go fug yourself". her and mary-kate olson. J'ADORE that funny little website! go check out the one today its laugh out loud. LOL!

k so i have exams coming up but i am at peace with exams. i like them better than mad paper writing. and guess what i have the BEST day ever planned for next monday. i'm getting a massage in the morning. at 1 i'm off to the spa for THREE glorious hours, for a pedicure, spa manicure and aromatherapy massage (my birthday present from jeff). now, 2 massages in one day seems a little crazy but i wanted the real deal cuz my back feels like bricks, so a real one is in order here. i'll definitely be relaxed for studying. i was thinking about getting an eyebrow wax that day too. then i should finish off with getting my hair done. but thats a little overboard since it doesn't really need a cut yet. and i usually only get highlights when i'm absolutely dying over my roots and i'm not there yet. january i will be there. mmm can't wait for monday.

kayden got his little teeth fixed today and he was at the hospital in regina and he told kyle "i like these pajamas daddy, i didn't know i got to wear pajamas here!" regarding the hospital scrubs they put you in. he came through the surgery a little groggy but he just thought it was a fun family trip to regina, which is so cute. he couldn't wait to go watersliding. imagine if he wrecked his teeth the same night? oh dear. don't tell jenna i said that.

can't wait for the weekend to watch the christmas presentation and hang with alison and leon. and lynnel and i are dying for some quality time, although we did have some on friday night at Moxies with 2 bad-girl desserts and some fancy girly drinks. then chad and aaron came to intrude on girl time. but i can't really blame them. i suppose we did call them. can't get too mad.

my christmas wish list (besides 'mean girls') - shopping spree. and that super soft baby pink robe from la senza. pure luxery. please jeff come through for me. a calander. slippers. love. trip to jamaica. is that really too much to ask?

love to all.

my new favorite website

A Fug Affair
I would love to have been at the Simpson Family Meeting where it was decided that Jessica ought to wear this little number:

MA SIMPSON: What should Jessica wear to that Yahoo! thing tomorrow?
PA SIMPSON: Pasties!
MA SIMPSON: No.
PA SIMPSON: Hot pants!
MA SIMPSON: Not again. What about a slinky little cocktail number?
ASHLEE SIMPSON: Um, I totally hate to be a bitch, but am I the only person who's noticed that she looks like she's been living on a steady diet of KFC lately?
MA SIMPSON: Look, Ashlee, for the last time: we are not sending her out there dressed like Buckethead.
ASHLEE SIMPSON: That is not what I meant! She's totally been riding the lard pony, you guys! We were all at the Simpson Family Weigh-In this morning. You saw her charts. She's so gained weight since we booted Lachey!
JESSICA SIMPSON: (silent due to laryngitis, gives Ashlee dirty look, throws a highlighter at her head, gives her the finger.)
ASHLEE SIMPSON: You guys NEVER thought this would happen! DID YOU? NO! You NEVER thought I would be the hot one! AT LAST! THE STICKS OF BUTTER I HAVE BEEN WHIPPING INTO HER NUTRA SLIM SHAKES ARE WORKING! I HAVE FINALLY DEFEATED HER MAGIC METABOLISM! SURE, IT'S ONLY LIKE FIVE POUNDS, BUT I WILL TAKE IT! THANK YOU GOD! MY BLOOD SACRIFICE IS IMMINENT!
JESSICA SIMPSON: (holds up sign reading: "It's just three pounds, but even if it were 35, I'd still be hotter than you, you tragic little desperado.")
MA SIMPSON: Don't be ridiculous. She's maybe just a little bloated, and she's still very pretty. Let's just put her in a car hop costume and hope for the best.
ASHLEE SIMPSON: WHY DOESN'T ANYONE LISTEN TO ME? I'M THE PRETTY ONE NOW AND YOU'RE STILL IGNORING ME! SHE CALLED ME TRAGIC! I'M NOT TRAGIC! You don't think I'm tragic, do you, mom?
MA SIMPSON: Huh? Oh, we thought you'd left. Run along and play, I have to brush Jessie's hair 1000 times now.
ASHLEE: I HATE YOU ALL!

http://gofugyourself.typepad.com/go_fug_yourself/ashlee_jessica_simpson/index.html

i am still here!

how cute is haylie at 2 months old? she makes my heart melt.



i had to get at least one more post in before december! myspace drives me nuts cuz for some reason it always shuts my internet down on my crap computer downstairs. but i still have a place in my heart for myspace. kristyanne is on there. she downright abandoned blogging but you can find her my friends, she is still out there on the web... woot woot!

has anyone else noticed google is taking over the world? i have to use my google account to log into everything these days. scarrrrry. google is the antichrist. hehe.

i'm in a weird mood because it is 1:02 am and i usually go to sleep around 10 pm. but it's THAT time of the year.... essay writing time. it's brutal and i'm dying but don't worry i will make it.

this might not be funny, in fact its not, but it's related to my above sentence. jeff and i had a good laugh over it. we're both stressed out these days so i told him the two of us should just get hooked on crystal meth so all our problems would go away. we laughed a good one about that concept. JUST A JOKE. please don't leave rehab links for you comments. hehe.

don't worry guys, i'm not on drugs. just my woman's one a day vitamin. i asked the pharmacy lady if it really makes a difference if i take a woman's formula or not and she said it's just a marketing thing. but i fall for all the marketing schemes. don't you?

so, i'm done 3 essays, and 3 to go. ahhhh by next monday things will all be better. for a week at least until exams start!

enough school! oh guys, last year at this time i was planning my beloved nyc trip. i think that's how i made it through last year. there's 2 classes (ok one more thing about school) being offered from may 7 - june 30 this year in NYC that i totally want to take (i'd therefore graduate in june), but it's so darn expensive. it'd be about $5000. but seriously, LIVE in NYC for 6 weeks? oh my dream come true. sigh. somebody talk me out of this please!

the christmas musical is coming! it's gonna be amazing like always! can't wait for that!!!

ummmmm well, as you can see, my niece and nephew are so cute. i love them to tiny little bits.

the prestige is one of the best movies i have ever seen.

um yes basically i have nothing else to talk about because all i do lately is school. i could do a public apology to all my friends (i.e. lynnel) and family (i.e. jenna) who i seem to never ever see these days. i can't wait to hang out again. jenna we will go to starbucks. lynnel, we will... hang out like usual :)

happy birthday to lynnel on friday! she will be joining us at the ripe age of 24!

nutshell of my papers: that grameen bank ain't all that; women gained from WWI; human rights are way more complicated than you might expect; nation/state/citizenship are issues that are way above my little sphere of comprehension; save the environment it is rotting; and something about ancient roman women (i have some work to do on this one obviously!)

i'll be back one of these days!

Some Pictures

Halloween at Denvers House!


A visit with Carmen and Cate!

And here's my sweet pea.

Photo Blog

Well it's been a busy month so far. First Haylie, then my big presentation which as you all know I had been freaking out about. Well it ended up going just fine and I'm so relieved to have it over and done with. It was actually kind of fun. A bit of a rush. I have a bag that says "do something every day that scares you." Well that sure scared me alright but it felt so good to do it and to do it well. I've been running three times a week and rewarded myself with lululemon pants which I basically live in. They're wonderful. School is still insane even without a presentation to deal with and I'm tired all the time but feel a bit rejuvinated after the long weekend. Thanksgiving was perfect. I got to see Kristy-Anne and also Tania who just got engaged last week! Both of them were delightful as always! And there was plenty of family time watching football and a couple movies, eating lots of good food, playing games and all that fun stuff. And holding Haylie. I barely did any homework and allowed myself to read War and Peace for the weekend. Perfect. So that's all for now, I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.
Love me.

Starting with little Haylie Anne Jade. So precious. She is beautiful isn't she?

Hehe, not as beautiful in this picture but Jenna is holding her a little bit funny.

A cute picture I think!

I love her eyebrows in this. She already has so many funny faces

and expressions!!!

A lovely visit with Kristy-Anne and Lynnel, also Jenna and myself
at Boston Pizza over Thanksgiving Weekend.

Nana giving Haylie a sponge bath. She almost looks like she is smiling here!
And just look at that curly hair!

Jenna and "the kids" in the back of Kyle's big truck. Both of them were fast asleep. Kayden was so disappointed that he missed the trip "downtown" when I went to pick up my new lululemon pants last week. Jenna just drove around the block instead of parking since the little ones were sleeeping.


I love Saskatoon in the fall! It's so darn pretty. This is the street by the university where I park my car every day and get $6.00 parking tickets at least once a week!


University of Saskatchewan


This is Lynnel and I trying on $70 masks at Winners! We were having a blast! Too bad they're so expensive. They'd be fun to have around Halloween time.


This is Angela (aka Angelina Jolie) and me. I am a bridesmaid in her wedding next August. This was at her engagement party last weekend.
She just became an auntie this weekend!


Me and my man. Had to include one of us too. I love us. haha.
My hair looks so short in this but really its just the top layer
sticking out of my bunnyhug.
Anyways. No one else would probably notice that.
What a handsome couple!

i simply cannot stop taking pictures

I just can't help myself... she's almost going to be a day old!

Hello World!

Well here she is!
Haylie Anne Miller came to us 7 days early, this morning around 7:45. I'll try not to say too much b/c it's Jenna's story of course, but I wanted to post a few pictures. Jenna was only in labor for about 3 hours. She was really fast!!!

Anyway she is 8 pounds and has a lot of hair as you can see. She looks a lot like Kayden did when he was born. I wonder if she minds that I posted that picture.... heheheheehe. She looks pretty good though for just having a baby 2 hours before!!!

Haylie is only a couple hours old in these pictures. She has a bit of bruising cuz the labour was so fast.


Here's Kayden giving his new baby sister a kiss. The first thing he did when he saw her was press her nose like it was a button!

My little loves.

Kayden has been eating red popsicles all morning, thus the red face.

So I'm really excited she came early. Perfect timing for Thanksgiving!!!

so this week ....

i'm seriously freaking out. like i'm scared of this week. once this week is over i will probably be okay for the rest of my life, in fact one week from today in this very hour everything will be okay. but no, next monday from 12:30 until 3:30 will be the worst, scariest, sweatiest (haha) and awkward three hours of my life. yes you may have guessed it. i have to do a presentation. on the BORINGIST topic ever, development from the 1940s to the 19790s. ah okay so when i first signed up to do the first presentation for this class, i signed up with three preconceived notions:

1) i had a partner.
2) it was only 30 minutes long
3) it was soley a reverberation of chapter 1, 2 and 3, you know like a summary, in which me and my partner would share.

i was so wrong.
1) my partner dropped the class
2) its an hour long
3) those chapters are simply the starting point of my presentation. i have to lecture to the class about this subject.

what makes it worse. at the end of class i asked her what she was looking for in this presentation, as she has not discussed it in class. she did however on the first day of class, hand out a sheet of paper on what she will be basing the mark on. she didn't give this to us, she just let us look at it and took it back. she has no intention on actually letting us know exactly what she wants. GEEEEEEEEEEZ louise. so i told her i didn't really think that was fair that she won't tell us what exactly she wants us to present about so she let down and is sending me a copy. but seriously that is so unfair that we just have to guess what she wants.

so i'm a little stressed. why oh why did i sign up to go first? i don't know. never again. i wish i wasn't so scared to do presentations. sigh.

on a lighter note. i went to moxie's last night and saw an old friend which was lovely. while talking to him, i started talking to the bartender there who is in this class that i am talking about above, so i have a new friend. and then today a new guy shows up in class who happens to be a guy i graduated high school with and we had a big chat at the end of class. so in the last 24 hours i have met/remet 3 old/new friends. how nice.

on the best note of all, tomorrow is my birthday!!!! yay!!!! i get super excited about my birthday. i just can't help it. it makes me feel special. i will be 24 tomorrow. what a perfect age!

and today is kristy-anne's bday so i hope she is feeling super special as well!!!! i just love her.

okay that is all for today. can you believe how much i have blogged lately? i simply cannot.

love kristin.

ugly day (and i don't mean the rain)!

ever have an ugly day? ladies you know exactly what i mean. hair is flat. hair is dull. hair doesn't even look nice in a ponytail. little tiny zit that feels very not so tiny. the oh so trendy "dewy" skin just feels greasy and shiny. jeans feel slightly tight so you make up for it by having a bag of m&m's. haha i'm just really laughing at myself here because this is me today. i'm a real lovely picture! but don't worry it's just an ugly day! i am fine with myself this way because it just means that i get to hide away in my house (besides going to class of course which i did already) and curl up on the couch and watch my favoritist of all favorite TV nights. i'm okay with ugly days because my family doesn't notice and jeff is out of town (not that he would notice either... i hope ;) ) it's also okay because i'll be extra sure to make tomorrow a "Hot Stylin' Chick Day". so here's to all the girls who are having an ugly day! eat chocolate! wear pj's! watch tv! wow has this day ever just turned around!!!

so speaking of outward beauty and vanity, i am so happy that America's Next Top Model (from this point on, ANTM) started last night. i can't help but be in love with this show. i was so happy to come home from my exhausting seminar class (globalization boo, alternatives to it, no ideas - do we truly need 3 hours to discuss this?) to find it on at 9 pm, and what a nice suprise, it was a two hour special! score! i couldn't believe they started the girls off with a nude portrait. i am pretty sure i could never do that (haha, see above and i'm pretty sure nobody would want to see it anyway! haha).

so i have a few opinions about the girls. first of all, monique what a nasty little girl, i couldn't believe she took that bed like that. and yet she's so beautiful. OKAY SO those twins...um i'm not sure about anyone else but do they not look like Hutterites? what are they doing on this show? am i blind? okay their pictures turned out pretty good in the end, and i had to laugh when they had to do "bulimic girl" and "anorexic girl" because they are so freaking skinny, but to me they scream homely and very very plain. and they BOTH made it. unbelievable. tyra sees something i don't i guess. i was okay with that one girl being sent home (i can't even remember her name). i'm obviously not emotionally attached yet. and i was soooooo annoyed with A.J. when she got all stupid at the end "i'm not as beautiful as the other girls, i'm different than them" when in her home video to GET ON the show was all about her being a different type of beauty! that was annoying. and i want melrose gone she bugs me.

okay so more on TV - tonight is going to be superb. My Name is Earl and The Office, what better appetizers?! soooooo darn hilarious. my problem is going to be watching Survivor, Grey's Anatomy, ER and trying out the new show 6 Degrees - which are all on in the same 2 hours. luckily i have all the higher channels which play everything over again around 9pm. because there's no way i'm missing a second of Grey's Anatomy. i'm very excited. there is not going to be any textbook reading this evening that is one thing for sure.

i was just listening to oprah in the background (ha, so i watch the morning news when i get ready in the AM, and today they were talking about how there is this website to "vote oprah for president" it's some little thinger in the states which i think is hilarious) anyways, john legend was on and i LOVE john legend and i am going to buy his cd next month. that can be my birthday present to myself! super. usually i buy underwear from lasenza but i did that already this month. haha. now THAT is a remedy for ugly day!

lynnel is coming home this weekend! yay for my friend! and carmen, my carmen is moving to england, like in a week. i am so proud. and jenna is having a baby so soo sooooooooooo soon!!!! i can't wait to meet my first little neice. i just love her so much already.

so with that, i have laundry to do and pj's to put on (i love it, it's 3:30 pm and i'm AT HOME!!! this is so much better than working full time!) and lots of reading to finish before 6 pm.

love kristin

how vicarious

i sleep with my textbooks. i read them until my eyes close at night and i awaken with about 4 books, 2 binders, 1 clipboard and a pen around me every morning. i think i need a bigger bed to accomodate my student sleeping arrangements. they are everywhere. they move from my bed to my desk to my kitchen table to my car to jeff's house and back again. it's truly scary how many pages i am supposed to read in the next 3 months! and i was so gung ho about it just 2 weeks ago when my lovely student credit line financed my $500 worth of literature. actually text books are hardly literature. literature is more like war and peace which i miss very much because i don't have time to read it anymore. i feel too guilty to open up war and peace when i have 5000 pages of other reading to be doing - for classes for which i'm paying outrageous tuition for! sigh. i need to hire someone to do my reading for me. which is crazy because i love reading! i'm just a big paradox i suppose.

i don't know why i used the word 'vicarious' in my subject line. it just came out and i decided to keep it. it sounded good with the first line of this blog as though i was going to say something much more shocking. let's call it the word of the day. it's such an exciting word to use. maybe it'll make someone want to read this blog.

i feel much better now. i gotta go read.

my friends

ok someone please tell me why i need to have a blog, a hi5, a myspace, an msn space and whatever else i have??? i don't know. oh well, it's kind of fun. passes the time when i have nothing to do. which actually never happens anymore now that school is back in session. i think this is gonna be a crazy busy semester/year. so let me tell you what i'm taking, since i know about 3 of you care.

History of Europe in the 20th Century - seriously, what better class could exist than this?? Oh how i love history, especially these years. oh the world wars, depression, soviet union/cold war and so on and so forth. Yes I am in love with this class ... besides the fact it is 8:30 in the morning ... i'm famously bad for skipping 8:30 classes. but I think I love this too much to skip. we will see!!!

Environmental Anthropology - um yes i'm not too sure exactly what this class is about. the prof looks like the little man from monopoly, but he is not nearly as cute or as happy. no he's a bit of a drowner and he rambles for ever, but the class seems to be easy. and the textbooks are interesting. one is a novel called Ishmael and it's about a gorilla. it won a whole bunch of awards and is very highly acclaimed i guess. i get to do a book report. can you believe it, a book report for a 300 level class. love that!

Classics - Women in Antiquity - oh gosh another class that i am IN LOVE with. i've never felt this way about school before!!! haha. its wonderful. it's all about greek and roman women in ancient times. so far we've been learning all about greek goddesses' and myths and stuff like that and it's so fun. it's a last minute elective that i picked and i'm so glad i'm in it.

Sociology of Development - 400 level seminar class that includes 1 hour presentation. could i be more scared? i doubt it. but i signed up for the first week to do my presentation, and i'll just get it all over with so i don't have to ruin the rest of my semester. it's still not till oct 2, but thats like, 3 weeks away. that's pretty much tomorrow!! its on the most boring topic ever - development theory from 1940s - 1970s but i don't care. that stuff is like 2nd nature to me now so maybe i won't be as nervous. otherwise could maybe be a good class. we'll see. its on monday afternoons, 12:30 - 3:30, and i get Monday mornings off, so it potentially could be the best day of the week for me. can you imagine, loving your monday? eek! now i'll love sunday nights even more than ever (sunday nights happen to be pretty much my favorite night of the week, i don't know why, i just love them.)

International Co-operation - this is THE class, you know like THE class for my major. this semester is cooperation and conflict, next semester it turns into Development but same prof, same class, just a bit of a different stream. now this i am excited for, you see there is a new Department Head for IS, and he is a very different man from the guy before him. years before, each person had to lead, i.e. be the instructer, for one class each. this is no more, and i couldn't be more relieved. instead, we all have to contribute "equally" and contribution to class is worth 50%. so yes, i still have to be prepared and whatnot but i DON'T have to do a 3 hour presentation basically. so thats awesome. the other 50% is 2 "discussion" papers i have to write that are entirely my OPINION. this is also the best news because there is no research involved, no citations, no nothing besides my fabulous opinion. this also means NO FINAL EXAM/MIDTERM! Oh sigh i couldn't be happier.

so it all sounds fine and dandy but i have more reading than i can possibly keep up with. luckily i love reading so i hope i'll be able to keep up and stay focused. it should be an okay semester!!! and the best part of it all - no spanish. not one little spanish word will i ever need to say. not one. well hallelujah!

on top of all this, i am working still at blue x, wednesday and fridays, all day. but thats okay cuz i need the money and i don't mind coming in a couple days a week at all. besides i have to help angela plan her wedding!!! who, by the way, did not like me calling her a hillbilly in my last blog entry... hehehe, i can't believe she is still letting me be a bridesmaid!!! it was just a little joke cuz angela knows i love her!

what else, what else.... my running is going good. i've been keeping up with the schedule, PLUS i bought a yoga and pilates video at extra foods for $7.00 so i'm trying to do that too. i'm so bad with trying stuff like, twice and giving up but heck i'll try again. another healthy choice i've been trying - eating yogurt. i don't know what it is about yogurt, i just never ever feel like eating it. i even somewhat like it but i never want it, so i've been forcing myself. its just so so so good for you!

this is the longest blog ever. one last thing to say - i finally went golfing for the first time. and guess what i was GREAT!!!! well not like great as in professional but definitely great for a first timer. so there jeff!! and i got to drive the cart and that was fun too. jeff has taught me so much, like seriously i have learned how to camp, fish, golf, 2 step, and most importantly, eat chicken wings, but maybe i'll save all this for another blog!!!

k so i hope the lovely paragraphs made this blog managable to read, cuz i do realize its long, but its been such a long time since i wrote!!! i want lots of comments please, cuz seriously 5 just didn't cut it last time, and i think one of those was megan, and 2 were jenna, lynnel and jenn, my faithful commentors. like hello, alison you never leave me comment anymore, and you miss jolie, and you tania, and you my little mother carmen.... girls, do you not like me enough for a litttle love comment? really now.

(haha i just checked, and there are now SEVEN comments which is funny b/c when i started this blog there were only 5, but both of the last two were leah, won't she be surpised when she sees i finally wrote again!!!).

GOODBYE NOW LOVELY BLOGGER FRIENDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

this should do for a little while...

Camping at WhiteswanLake
Niagara Falls - Maid of the Midst boat

ride, we were (obviously) very soaked!

ah, so as i sat here at work and opened up a fresh can of president's choice diet pomegranate sparkling soda, i thought to myself, "why not write a new fresh blog to go with my drink of choice." so here we have it my friends, a real update, in my own words, no blog picture cheating (well okay, just a little). now as a little side note, i have to say that i love putting up my pictures on here and writing about what's been going on, because truly, a picture says so much. and i know how much i LOVE when other people post their pictures, so hopefully mine are somewhat interesting to all of my faithful fans.

so summer has been great, as great as can be when one works Mon - Fri, 8:30 - 5:00. as you can all see, i did get to take a week off in july and we headed to Ontario for some cruisin down the freeway in the hot hot sun... above left is a picture of us right after we went on "maid of the midst" in Niagara Falls - it took us right into the center of the falls and it was absolutely awesome. we had such a great time. we have decided we prefer to be on holidays and would like to become professional holidayers. we are planning a trip to Los Angelos now... yah we leave tomorrow. hehe. just kidding, it's one of many imaginary trips.

for August long we went camping with some friends, Angela (who I work with at BX) and her boyfriend who is now her fiance as of yesterday, Kim. we went to whiteswan lake which is about 30 minutes from the famous candle lake. we had fun despite the crummy saturday weather, as we pitched our tent in the pouring rain and set up a great big huge tarp and made a roaring fire. kim and angela had brought their black lab puppy who that night followed kim and jeff in the truck to go get firewood, and angela and i didn't see her follow them so suddenly we realized she was missing. so out we went in the absolute pouring rain with our little flashlights yelling for charlotte for 30 minutes, when the boys come driving around the bend with the dog in the box of the truck wagging her happy little tail. yes we were less than impressed and drenched the the core. but heck it was fun. sunday we went fishing because i am dating a hillbilly and all my friends are too. haha just kidding angela! :) i'm turning into one too, as i caught 4 of my own fish, my very own fish. i have graduated from beginnger to novice fisherwoman status. jeff needs to now buy me a cooler, more expensive fishing rod, as the one i have now has been called everything from a fisher price rod to a kindergarten rod. thats so uncool. i want to find a pink reel. now thats cool!

school starts in a few weeks and i'm not really looking forward to it, other than the fact that its my last year and i will actually have a really expensive degree. that'll be awesome. i'm gonna get my degree framed and send out really big grad pictures of myself to all my friends and family for them to mount in their front hallway in their homes :)

i have three new loves to discuss with you all:

1. in september a few girls from work and i are registering for brainsports learn to run clinic. they start you off running real nice and slow and for short periods of time, and by the end of the 8 weeks you should be able to run at least 30 minutes. so hopefully that'll be good. i need something to help me get motivated. at least lynnel will be back this fall so that we can go back to the gym together, as long as she takes a night class or something so that she'll have the membership. they teach you about proper stretching, running posture, nutrition and other crap like that. you know, all the stuff thats good for you. and they take you down all those beautiful meewasin trails by the river. so it should be good! you should join too!!!

2. so since i read sooooooo freaking fast i bought myself a killer. war and peace. 1392 glorious pages of war and peace. its got the smallest printing a person can read and i'm loving it. its taking me forever to read and its great cuz normally i read books in about 3 days. this summer i've read a million little peices and my friend leonard (you know that james frey author who's story is a big crock but still, great books to read), the life of pei, the devil wears prada, a couple of the shopoloholic books, 2 john grishm books, some dumb book i found on our bookshelf downstairs, and a few others i can't remember. so war and peace here i come! and i'm loving it so far, it's a great story. some parts are very quircky and clever and the characters are unique and it's lovely. hehe. i love reading.

3. and finally, i have bought my first installment of scrapbooking stuff! i was flipping through the good old entertainment book and found a coupon for a scrapbooking store on 8th street, and last night as there was a 1.5 hour wait between my Wed night shows, Rockstar Supernova and The Hills, i decided to check it out. so i got about 16 individually chosen peices of paper, a scrapbook, 2 gel pens, 2 packages of stickers, and some adheisive for $38.00. it's still not enough to really do a good job, i need way more stuff, but it's a start. it's so overwhelming being in there and choosing paper and stuff but sooooo fun. and the lady working there, she's a bit of a cooky one (as much as i love home sewn navy blue and white bunny rabbit jumpers), but she was very helpful. i had a fun time talking with her and trying not to laugh. she was very passionate about scrapbooking. maybe i will be too one day (my bday is coming up in 37 days so hint hint).

well with all that, and one sip left of my sparkling soda, i must bid you all adu. have a great great day!

love kristin

Guess where we were?

This pretty much is a dead give away...
Yeah, so Jeff and I took a little vacation from July 14th - July 18th... we jetted off to Toronto and had an awesome trip! Here are some of our highlights.

(I honestly just love my digital camera... can you tell?!!!)

"Everyone Loves Marine Land!"
The Killer Whale up close and personal!
Oh so cute Baluga Whales - it cost $8.00 to touch and feed them, so we stood back and jealously watched the rich people touch them.
Niagara Falls all lit up at night.... so beautiful!
The Maid of the Midst boat ride - it takes you right into the center of the falls, soooooooooooo scary and fun! We had a great view - right in the very front tip of the boat on the lower deck! We were soaked, but it felt good on a +40 C day (that's with the humidity of course).
Again, the beautiful falls at night time.
An afternoon at Niagara-on-the-Lake - a very quaint tourist town about 20 minutes outside of Niagara Falls. We took a walk by Lake Ontario, tasted some Ice Wine samples, stopped for a little lunch, and picked up some cherries and sugar plums! Who would've thought that sugar plums are a real fruit? Delicious!

No trip to Toronto is complete without a Blue Jays game! We went to two - Friday against Seattle, and Monday against Texas. Good times!
Right before the game. I love this picture!