Photo Session

We had our engagement photos done over the weekend. I love them!

http://flickr.com/photos/71748504@N00/sets/72157602701251374/

Happy bday to me!

Another bday has come and gone. I'm one year closer to 30 how devastating!!! EEK!

I had to work and go vote on my bday. how late. After work, Jimmy took me out to Montana's for dinner and then we headed home for what I thought would be a nice relaxing dinner. Turns out that my parents & bro and sis in law were there to surprise me :)

We had wine & cake and then they gave me my gift. They all chipped in and bought me an awesome 48 bottle wine fridge! I'm soo excited! It's been ordered from DirectBuy and it should arrive within a week. I can't wait to use it!!

Wedding Website

So I went ahead and created a wedding site for us. It's not completed but most of the sections are up and running!

http://jim-and-jimena.613-flavah.ca/

Big News!

Just wanted to share with you all that I got engaged on the evening of Aug 22, 2007!! I am now officially a bride to be!!

How it happened

After work yesterday, Jimmy picked me up and told me we were going to the market to go shopping for some paintings for the house. As we were walking around, he stopped in front of a horse drawn carriage and asked if I’d like to take a ride. I said of course said yes.

We took a beautiful 30 min drive through the scenic back roads of downtown Ottawa. All of a sudden, we stopped behind the Supreme Court and the driver said he was going to take a small break. I thought that he was going to take a leak. As he left, Jimmy sat across from me and seemed a bit nervous. At this point I began to get suspicious! He had a speech written down but refused to read it and forgot all his words! He then got down on one knee and presented me with the beautiful ring. He thought I was going to cry but there were soo many other emotions going through me that crying was definitely not one of them!

Of course I said yes and the driver proceeded to take a million and some photos so I’m going to share them with you all!

No date has been set in stone but we’re looking at September 6, 2008.

Yay to me!

Here is a link to the photos:

http://picasaweb.google.com/613flavah/EngagementAug222007

T - 3 days

Yay! Another vacation is fast approaching! I'll be posting updates to my trip on my travelpod account. If anyone is interested in getting updates on it, please post a comment and i'll make sure to add you to the update list.

Cutest Pet Contest

Hey guys!

I entered both my cats into a "cutest pet contest" online and one of them has been nominated a finalist. I was winning the voting but now I'm behind I think 15 votes in second place!

Can you guys help me win by voting on Zazu (my cat) as your fave? LOL

http://www.brighteyesbushytails.com/contest.htm

You can vote only once a day and the voting lasts until August 15!

Prize includes $500 worth of cat food & toys!

Thank youuuu xoxoxo

What the heck are these used for???

Vroom Vroom!!

Jimmy & I went to pick up the car last night after work!!

New wheels!

I now have my own set of wheels! No more sharing with Jimmy. No more having to call my mom and bus to her place to borrow her car. No more worrying about who will get the car at night.

I have own wheels!!! I ended up getting a used 2004 chrysler crossfire. It's soo sweet. Check it out!

Yay it's Friday!

I'm heading to some girl's cottage for the weekend to celebrate Kelly's bachelorette. Should definitely be a good time!! It's been over a year since I last went to a cottage.

I received my Tabasco BzzAgent info early last week. I'm really excited about it because for the longest time, I thought Tabasco was only good for Bloody Marys. I guess I was wrong because I received a bunch of coupons in my package and they list some pretty yummy recipes in there! I think I'll be keeping one of the mini tabasco sauces for myself to try that's for sure!

Did you know that with Tabasco you could make Lemon Rosemary Chicken? Yea neither did I check out this recipe it sounds soo good!

4 boneless chicken breasts or 8 thighs
salt & pepper
1 lemon juiced, then quartered
4 sprigs fresh rosemary or thyme
3 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced thinly
2 tbsp olive oil
4-6 shakes of Tabasco Sauce

Season chicken with salt & pepper. Place chicken in a large bowl. Add garlic, herbs, lemon juice, lemon quarters, oil & tabasco sauce. Toss well and marinate in the fridge for 2 to 4 hours. Remove chicken from marinade and grill. Makes 4 servings! I'm going to try it on Canada Day for my guests!

How about the Bloody Mary Burgers??

1 lb ground beef
4-6 shakes of Tabasco sauce
4 shakes of Worcertershire sauce
2 tbsp ketchup
1/2 tsp of horseradish
1 shallot minced
2 tbsp chopped celery tops
salt & pepper

Adjust ingredient amounts to suit your personal taste--just as you would for a Bloody Mary. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Divide into 4 patties and grill. YUM!

Hello to Summer

TGIF!!!!

Jimmy built a deck in the backyard and I bought a patio set for 6 it looks amazing! I'm going to take some photos this weekend and post them on here next week. We can actually now host parties in teh backyard. It's perfect b/c we're having a bbq on canada day and we now have places to sit outside! I cannot wait! I'm going to buy next week some decorations to put outside with the c-day theme!!

My mom's oldest sister & her husband are in town for a month. They are staying at my cousin's house(their son) who lives in Toronto and they are all coming up this weekend to crash at my mom's. I invited everyone over to our place at 6pm tonight for drinks and appetizers. They haven't seen the house since last summer before I moved in and before we made all the great upgrades to the house! 13 ppl will be over tonight yikes! (my aunt & uncle from peru, my other aunt from toronto, my cousin & his wife and 2 kids from toronto and my mom and stepdad plus my brother and his fiancée and Jimmy of course) busy busy!

Sat we're hosting a bbq luncheon for Jimmy's sister's 35th bday so that will keep us entertained for a good while!

Sunday it will finally be relax. Can't wait.

So I've finally been pushing myself to go to the gym! It's been 2 weeks I've been going almost every day and I've lost 2 pounds. It's not a lot but it's something for me. My goal is to lose asbout 10 pounds and tone up in time for my trip overseas in Aug. Wish me luck!

Happy June!

Ever since I was introduced to Facebook, I've completely forgotten about blogspot LOL so I apologize!!

Not much new here except I'm getting really psyched for my trip to Europe & North Africa!!! In case I didn't mention it, I'm going to visit one of my best friends who is doing his masters in the Netherlands in August. I'll be travelling around with him for 2 weeks. We're making a 2 day stop in Antwerp cos my little sister lives there and then we're off to Barcelona for a few days. Then we go straight to Morocco where a good friend of mine is working for the embassy for the summer. I love how we can travel around and not really worry about lodging except for one night in Antwerp and 2 nights in Barcelona! Everything else will just be spending money CANNOT WAIT!!! This will probably be my last big trip in a while. I do know that most likely, in Oct, for my bday, Jimmy & I are going to go to Vancouver for an extended weekend. My cousin lives in Richmond Hill so we wouldn't ahve to pay for a place to stay and I have enough airmiles to take us both. I'm going to call airmiles tonight to find out if there are any flights available for us. Keep your fingers crossed! Then in Feb we're thinking of going on an all inclusive. I love them and Jimmy has never been so I would really enjoy taking him. Plus it would break up our winter nicely and let us have a great week alone completely stress-free.

Jimmy is building a small deck for our backyard tomorrow. I can't wait! When he's done, we're going shopping for a patio set. It's perfect timing cos my family is coming over for a bbq dinner on Sunday and then we have Jimmy's family over the weekend after then it's Canada day so it works out wonderfully!!

Changes

Jimmy and I picked out some new colours to paint the living room & dining room. He's doing the dining room and half the living room another weekend with a different colour here are some photos!



We got these awesome paintings in Peru and recently had them framed here. Check em out!

Long time

Wow, it's been almost a month since I posted. I got too caught up with facebook that's probably why :P

Well, the bedframe we bought is discontinued so we had to order another one. It's still nice but not as nice as our initial one boo...

I'm going to visit Jason in the Netherlands this summer can't wait! We're going to Spain and Belgium to visit my little sister. Maybe even France if there is $$. I'll be keeping track of my trip via my travel blog that's for sure.

My brother got engaged over easter weekend! Wedding is sometime in June next year and I'm in the wedding party woot!

Things are looking good

Jimmy and I bought a new king size mattress a couple of weeks ago. It arrived on Thursday and I'm anxious to use it but he doesn't want to until our new bed frame comes in. We ordered it from DirectBuy and will be in sometime by May 5. I hate waiting! I want to use it NOW. So I'm hoping it comes in soon in April and not as late as May 5.

I found a photo of the exact bedframe we're getting.

Life works in mysterious ways...

I'm not sure if I posted about this before but I found out a few weeks ago that our accountant passed away from cancer in December by total fluke. I was looking for his phone number and couldn't find it so I decided to look him up on the net and lo and behold, the first link was a memoriam to him along with his photo. I was in total shock. This accountant had been doing our entire families finances since 1990. He was like a part of the family, being there for my mom when my parents split up and always coming to our house to do our taxes and take the time to explain how finances worked to me and my brother as we began to file our income tax. An amazing and sweet man for sure.

So not only was I in total shock but I was also concerned of where I was going to find another accountant who was just as wonderful. I dove right in looking for one and even though lots of my friends gave me numbers to their own personal accountants, I hesitated calling any of them not sure why.

Yesterday, a girlfriend of mine hosted a "candle party" (partylite.com). I had never been to one and thought I'd give it a shot. I didn't know anyone there besides my friend the host and her younger sister and her mom. Close to the end of the show, I sat next to a girl named Marguerite, we got to talking and for some reason, her parents came into the conversation. She was telling me how her dad had passed away in December and how he had his own business. For some strange reason, I had a feeling I had to ask her dad's name. When she said the name it was my accountant!!! I was so overwhelmed my eyes started watering. She went on to tell me how the funeral was and how he had died peacefully in his sleep. She also said that her dad had a partner and she had taken over all of his clients. It was like a god-send I tell ya. I got her number and I'm going to call her today. It's as if her dad had been watching over us all along.

I may not be an everyday practising catholic but when things like these occur, I get a chill down my back and really fall back to my christian beliefs.

Thanks Bryan!

Lookin' good!

Now that Jimmy's roomie is gone, the living room and dining room are starting to look awesome! Jimmy spent last night rearranging things around. Since his ex-roommate had all her furniture basically on the entire main floor, now that it's all gone, we can put his basement furniture along with some of my stuff and the things we bought in Peru in the living and dining rooms. It's still a work in progress but here is a photo of how great his 2 couches look with my glass coffee table and my plants along with the alpaca rug we bought in Lima.


We are going to be painting the walls sometime in the next few weeks and fixing up the dining area and putting up decorations on the walls so that's why this is all I'm showing for now. More photos to come as we move along with our decorating!

The day is drawing near...

Today we move whatever is left in my apartment to the house. I thought I wouldn't be sad but in a way I am. My life as a bachelorette and living downtown all alone is coming to a close! The apartment I had dreamed about and looked forward to finally moving into has come and gone. I can't believe I bought it back in April 2003 and didn't get to move in until June 2006 and now it's March 2007 and I'm in a house now.

I'm not regretting anything of course, but it's still sad to be closing a chapter of my life.

What I'll miss:

- Fireworks on Canada Day from my balcony
- Killer sunsets during the summer from any of my windows
- Walking to and from work
- Next door to LCBO
- Wine & cheeses with my neighbours
- The great party room
- Floor-to-ceiling windows

What I won't miss:

- The elevators constantly breaking down; having to go up 12 flights of stairs!
- Gym always being busy
- Small spaces
- Fire alarm going off at odd hours of the day/night
- Firetrucks/ambulances/police car sirens going off at all hours of the day
- The bums across the street
- Not seeing Jimmy every day

Now that I'm in Orleans permanently, I'm looking at getting my own set of wheels sometime this summer b/c Jimmy has priority over the car and it sucks at times. Like today, he's gone to teach a course at army and I'm home bound all day until he returns. Not that I mind I've got enough to keep me busy today just sucks that's all!

What was your theme song in 1996?

Your 1996 Theme Song Is: Macarena by Los Del Rio

When I dance they call me macarena And the boys, they say that I'm buena They all want me, they can't have me So they all come and dance beside me

What's Your 1996 Theme Song?

Le weekend

Do I ever look forward to the weekends! It's nice to know I've got a whole house to roam in rather than a small apartment. It was fun while it lasted but I'm really happy to be back in Orleans.

Jimmy's roommate moves out tomorrow and we're going to pick up the remainder of my furniture (which isn't a lot) from the apartment on Sunday. I can't wait to start decorating the house as I see fit. Pretty much everything in the living/dining room belonged to Jimmy's roommate so it will be nice to finally give it MY touch! I'm hoping to start painting the walls in a month's time. We have our first overnight guests coming up from NY in May so I'd like to at least have the walls painted and the guest room and their bathroom nicely decorated.

Guys i'm completely addicted to facebook!