Its finally time...

Well, its Wednesday night, 10:00pm and its still about a million degrees outside. Therefore our loft feels like its at about a zillion degrees! But before you go thinking I am complaining about the weather, you must know that the weather has been absolutely perfect this week! Today was just over 30 degrees celsius. So although our loft is a bit warmer than I'd like it to be, I'm definitely NOT complaining about our gorgeous weather!

Packing is in full swing and I'm starting to feel the pressure of getting everything done before we leave on Friday night. I did get some incredible news today though. (*sidenote: Nobody could possibly have a better boss than I do. She's amazing.) Not only did my boss give us the very wonderful Mediterranean Cruise, but she also gave me BEAUTIFUL dresses to wear to all the formal dinners, AND she spent nearly an entire work day preparinng helpful information for our trip, AND today she told me to fill in my regular hours for Friday on my timesheet, but to then take the day off to get ready for the cruise. I seriously don't deserve her unbelievable generosity but I am certainly thankful for it! It will be so nice to spend Friday getting last minute details taken care of.

Anyway...just wanted to let you know that this will indeed be my last post for the next 2 weeks. So don't go thinking that I am neglecting my blog because of silly old Facebook, or disinterest, but it is because we will be off cruising our little hearts out in one of the most beautiful places on earth (or so I'm told!). I promise to post OODLES of pictures when we get back! Talk to you in 2 weeks!

I thought I'd leave you with one last picture that I couldn't resist posting. My niece and nephew just crack me up...look at the expression on Ava's face! And Konrad...well... he just looks so completely amused for some reason. Ah, I love it.

My Happy Ending...

Today was a good day. In fact, a very good day. The sun was shining its little heart out, work was great and to top off an already great day, we had a picnic in our backyard with Naomi and the kids.

Unfortunately, Erich has been working INSANELY long days so Naomi is often left alone all evening. If it were me, I would have pulled my hair out by now from the lack of "socializing with adults" but Naomi handles it well ---Naomi, you're such a strong person and a fabulous mother and I admire you for it!

Anyway...I was delighted to get a phone call from Naomi when I walked in the door from work today, asking if we had plans for the evening. We didn't, so I met her at Wal-mart where we picked up a few things and then we came back to our place for a picnic. Jon BBQ'ed smokies and I asked our landlords if they'd mind us using their picnic table---of course, they said yes (they're great that way!) and we spent the rest of the GORGEOUS evening, eating and playing outside.

Konrad and Ava just warm my heart. Every time I see them, I am astounded at how blessed we are to have such an awesome niece and nephew. Naomi & Erich ---your kids are beautiful and we just love them to bits!! Thank-you for sharing them with us so willingly :)

Thanks again Noami, Konrad and Ava for such a perfect evening! Looking forward to many more summer days, picnics and "play dates" with you! We love you.

Some pictures from my long weekend with Brianne. It was a wet weekend but a good one.

The 1 1/2 hour wait at the border crossing, in the dreary rain...

Target...what a glorious sight! The weather was BEAUTIFUL when we got to Bellingham...

Snack time in the Bellis Fair food court...apparently Canadian McDonalds' don't make Chicken "strips" anymore. She was very happy to find that US McD's do...

My very refreshing Mocha Shake, courtesy of Seattle Coffee....

Yes folks, its true. Brianne is in need of this new found store... ;)

Some of my Bellis Fair purchases. I couldn't believe the deals I got! This will be some of my Mediterranean cruise wear...

The rest of the weekend was spent watching movies, perusing the i-net, "vegging," eating and all the other relaxing things girls should do on a long weekend. Oh, and I HIGHLY recommend the movie, "Freedom Writers"--- it was one of our weekend selections and it was incredible. Totally heart wrenching. Watch it!!

Now we're just waiting for the guys to return home. Must say I quite miss my Jon-boy...can't wait to see him! The more time I spend away from him, the more I believe in the old saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder!" Hope everyone had a great weekend!

The sights,

smells,

and tastes of summer...

...how sweet it is.

Ah, summer...I love the fact that the flowers are in full bloom, the grass is lush and green, and we've been BBQing for supper every chance we get. Summer just seems to lift my spirits so effortlessly.

Our trip is now only 17 days away and I feel like there is still a lot to do in preparation. We finally got all the details of our trip this week and that has definitely helped ease my feelings of unorganization. Plus it has boosted our excitement significantly with the reality of what we'll be doing and where we'll be staying. One exciting thing we found out is that for the couple of days that we aren't cruising, they are putting us up in 4 1/2 star hotels (one in Venice and one in Rome). Its hard enough to believe that we are even going on this trip, let alone the fact that we are getting to do it in the utmost of style. We would NEVER in a million years be able to do a trip like this if it weren't for my boss so generously giving it to us. Here is a picture of the hotel we'll be at in Rome. From what I have been told, its within a 20 minute walk from the Vatican and St.Peter's Cathedral--- two sites we definitely want to see!

Pretty unreal hey!?

We also found out that our cruise ship is brand new as of this month and is also rated at 4 1/2 stars. I can't wait to see it!
Apparently it is "fully loaded" with 3 pools, 5 hot tubs, spa, fitness centre, tennis court, and so much more. This is truly a dream come true and every time I think of this opportunity before us, I thank God for his blessings and goodness to us. We are so blessed to be able to see a new part of the world that we've been eagerly awaiting to see.

As I've said before, we'll be touring Venice, Greece, Croatia, Turkey and Rome. But one of the things I am looking forward to the most, is an afternoon that Shade-o-matic is putting on in celebration of their 25th anniversary year (and the whole reason this cruise is taking place). They have scheduled a guided bus tour through Tuscany with an afternoon of wine tasting and lunch in an old Tuscan castle. Sounds completely unbelievable--- I'm sure it will be a definite highlight!


In other news, Brianne and I will be "baching" it for the upcoming long weekend. Jon and Todd are off to Pines Bible Camp in Grand Forks to build some cabins so Brianne is going to come for a weekend "sleepover." I think we're going to take a trip to Bellingham and, if the weatherman is wrong about the rain we're supposed to be getting, maybe a day trip to Harrison. We'll see how the weather pans out. Other than that, probably lots of chick flicks and facebook :)
Have a great week everyone!

Paradise... just around the corner

Jon and I were able to spend our Friday afternoon at one of my absolute favorite places... Harrison. Its simply divine no matter what time of year...

We had a delicious lunch at the Lakeside Cafe in the Harrison Hot Springs Resort hotel.

Its not too often that we get days off together, so yesterday was a real treat. It was so fun to just walk through town, relax on the beach and soak up the sun while we had the chance. Truly a perfect day. Both of us agreed that we wished we could have more days like yesterday.

Harrison happens to be a short 15 minute drive from our place so I'm really looking forward to spending many more summer afternoons & evenings there...

First Esau Family BBQ of the Season

Last night we had our first "official" family barbeque at Jon's parents place. The sun was out, the food was incredible (BBQ'ed salmon, salads, fresh fruit...) and the kids were as cute as ever. We had a really great time...

<-- Konrad wasn't into the idea of eating salmon but he sure enjoyed his hotdog and Kraft Dinner!
And Ava literally gets cuter with each day. She's the most happy & content child I've ever met...





Jon definitely loves being an uncle! We could hardly get him to give up Ava throughout the evening :)

I did manage to snag her for some cuddle time too...


It was such a wonderful way to end the work week! Jon and I both have today off so I think we're going to head out to Harrison Hot Springs to "catch some rays" and have lunch. The sun is already blazing and its only 9:30am. Should be another great day!

The new look...

Jon FINALLY got new glasses! He didn't want me to post this but here it is anyway. I think he's lookin' fine... :)

Facebook...the silent blog killer...

As of today, I have a new mission. And it all began with a quiet, boring day at the office.

I started work at 9:00am this morning, as I always do on Mondays. Mondays are my Precision Building Design days (for those that don't know, I am a receptionist for a drafting firm part-time). Today just happened to be one of the exceptionally boring Mondays. I plotted some plans, ran a few errands, answered the phone (the few times that it actually rang) and by about 10:30am, had finished all there was to do. Now this isn't a good feeling when you know you have to make it to 4:00pm but thankfully I have an awesome boss who says, "well, check your email...or find a book to read on the internet."

So...after reading through every blog I could possibly think of and replying to any emails I had, I decided to do something I have been putting off for a while now. Its this little thing called Facebook. And I now know why I have been putting it off.
Its the silent killer of all blogging life. It sucks you in and suddenly, you forget about the blog you once loved so dearly. Ok, Ok...so I'm exaggerating a bit and the more I read what I am writing, the more pathetic I know I sound but bear with me :) And I must confess that I was extremely grateful to have something to fill almost an entire work day with. (Can you believe that I got paid to sit and look at Facebook all day...that can't be normal).

But it is truly amazing. I came across people on Facebook that I had almost forgot existed. I got in touch with old friends that I haven't talked to in AGES. Unbelievable really. But now my mission is this. To not neglect this blog and the fun I have with it. It has also connected me to great people and I know that many others have somewhat forgotten about their blogs, once in the Facebook realm. So although I am excited to see where this Facebook novelty will take me, I just want to let you faithful readers know that I promise to continue with updates and pictures. I don't even know how many of you even care that much but I will continue to blog. Just thought I would let you know...


So, now that I have that off my chest (oh man...can you tell I was struggling to find something to blog about or what!?)...just want to give a little shout out to my very good friend Izzy who just got ENGAGED!! Izzy and I were roommates at Capernwray New Zealand and I love her dearly! Ryan proposed yesterday and I am anxiously awaiting "the details." So Ryan & Izzy...just want to let you know how excited we are for you and can't wait for you guys to begin this VERY exciting stage in your lives! Congrats!!

<-----I can't believe that exactly this time next month, we'll be here!!! Time is FLYING by and we now only have one month to prepare for our big trip. But we've got our passports, our flights are booked, we know our ports of call for the cruise and now we just have to wait. I don't want to wish it away but I must admit I am getting pretty anxious for the time to come--- at least I know it will totally be worth the wait :)
So the countdown is on...ONE MONTH TO GO!!!