Day 352

This year (2011) I have experienced a wide variety of emotions and events, but over all, 2011 can die. Id rather forget it, except it has made me a better person in many ways...like dark nights often do. I expect, or hope, rather, that 2012 brings better things, because some of those things are already in the works. Our coming baby I know will be a life changing event. I have been living a healthier life style diet-wise. I am on my way to my goal weight. I am going to read more this coming year, which I am looking forward to. I hope to strengthen relationships this year, because I think too many people spend too much time in shallow waters, when we need to work on honesty, love, communicaton, depth, stuff like that.
Maybe Im just talking out of my butt.
Happy new year, everyone. Take care. Love you.

Day 351

We are in and partially unpacked...thanks to my in-laws. They did so much to help us out.
Tonight we saw Tin Tin in the theatre. I really loved it. Good for both adults and kids. Amazing animation. Funny dialogue. All that good stuff.
Its after 2am so I am off to sleep. Take care.

Day 350

With the help of my inlaws, we finished moving out today. We are also almost finished cleaning up as well. Now to unpack and set things up. That will be a challange but fun.
I start working again tomorrow. I hear its been really buay there so they need me to work some afternoons.
I hope youre all doing okay. Take care of yourself. Love you.

Day 349

Writing from the highway. We have about 2ish hours till we arrive in Saskatoon. I am looking forward to getting home. Unfortunately we have to move apartments over the break, but it will be a good move. A second bedroom will come in very timely for the arrival of our baby.
Well, tonight I hope is a good sleep. As good.as the air mattress was that we slep on, its not as good as sleeping on our own bed. I havent decided whether we will sleep in the new apartment or our old one. If we dont get curtains up we will definitely be at our old place tonight. Maybe I will be up late working on that. I want our new home to be a nice, comfortable, presentable place for my wife and daughter.
Take care, everyone. Love you.

Day 348

Christmas was a bit distracted this year. Ive been distracted by our looming move, some stuff I need to talk to people about when I get home, and various other things. I know that isnt much detail, but its not super important to the post.
It is getting late, and we are hoping for a later start tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by and reading over the holidays. Love you all. Take care.

Day 347

Hope everyone made it through this Christmas in one piece. Im having trouble not thinking of all I have to do when I get back home, but I know it will all get done.
Take care everyone. Love you.

Day 346

Christmas eve was pretty quiet. We went out to see "santa" fly over town and then went to check out the lights at a guys house who decoratea the crap out of his place and people come and walk through his yard and check all the lights and stuff out.
Have a great Christmas day. Take care.

Day 345

Madr it to my brother and sisters house in AB. It is good to see everyone. The kids are getting more and more excited for Christmas morning. I cant wait to have kids old enough to enjoy Christmas. That will be a good time.
Anyway, enjoy your holiday. Stay safe and have fun.
Take care.

Day 344

Time to end another day. My parents are staying ovetnight. Everyone is sleeping, including my wife beside me. I love listening to her sleep.
Looking forward to the get-away this weekend. This past week has been a bit of a gong show as far as communication and under/misunderstanding people goes. Tis the season.
Take care all.

Day 343

Tomorrow is my wifes last day of work before she starts her Christmas holiday. I am very excited for her because she works so hard. It is too bad we have to move over the break, but it will be worth it. It will be an easy move as far as moves go.

**Edit** I don't know who read it already, but I wrote this big post last night, complaining about stuff, and when I woke up this morning I just didn't want it on here any more. Yeah, it's how I felt, but I just don't want it on here. The paragraph below is the last thing I wrote, and you can sort of tell that I was in somewhat of a defiant mood. Anyway, I forgot to actually give the information I said I was going to. I'll add an edit below as well.

Oh, by the way...I told you I'd give you more information about our ultrasound. Some of you may not want to hear about the baby anymore. Well, I am sorry you feel that way, but too bad. I am extremely excited about this. I realize obviously that my baby isnt the first one, or that I am not the first father-to-be, but these are my experiences, and I will share them with those who care/care ot listen.
I am really sleepy now. Im not so sure if this is going to make any sense. Take care.


**Edit** The ultrasound lady told us that she was about 80% sure that it was a girl. Watching the little one move around was such a great experience. Both my wife and I wished that they would give a dvd of the ultrasound, but that's probably a long way off. They might do it at those fancier places, but we didn't want to pay for an ultrasound that makes your baby look like a clay monster (the 3D stuff). Anyway...yeah...so probably a girl. I am very excited about it. I would have been excited either way though, just so you know. So if the ultrasound lady was wrong, and we end up with a boy, great. Either way, I'm happy. The private parts don't really matter to me.

Take care, everyone.

Day 342

Reading is the activity of 2012 for me. In advance, I'm letting you know that my new years resolution is to read more books and to get to my goal wieght of 190lbs. The weight loss is a fairly big goal, but very doable. As for reading more, I haven't come up with a specific number of books, or if I should go with pages read or what. Let me know what you think, and of any book recommendations. I will start making a list now.
Take care everyone. Talk to you later.

Day 341

I think I may have felt our baby moving around my wifes belly. If it was my imaginaton, it wont be long till I really can.
I have some ultrasound pictures to post, but not for a day or two.
Thanks to all of you who share in our exitement. It means a lot to me/us. I am sure Ive mentioned this before, but when we miscarried last spring, the one thing I tried very hard to do was not to isolate myself from people with babies or pregnant people. I encouraged my wife not too as well. As a result, bitter roots havent been able to take hold. We openly celebrated with people, and I think in hindsight it meant a lot to them. I cant imagine not having shared in their excitement, as you've shared in ours. It's the case especially with those close to us. It is a very special, and at times very difficult time (pregnancy and early parenthood) and it is nice to be a part of that in my friends lives. So, all that to say...thanks for being happy for us. Thanks for the support.

Day 340

Yeesh, I shouldnt lay down for the night thinking I will blog from my phone, because I pretty mich always fall asleep. Is everyone looking forward to Christmas?

Day 339

Sorry, today was a bit of a busy day. We even took a last minute drive to Tisdale to surprise my family for supper, then came back tonight. It was fun, but my wife was so tired by the end of the night. I felt bad for her, and probably from now on should cut back on the spontaneity, especially when that includes late night driving.  She's a trooper, to say the least.

I will fill you in in stuff either tomorrow or the next day. It's been a good weekend so far. Take care, all.

Day 338

Everything is good. I will catch you up later today hopefully!

Day 337

Another day down. Tomorrow morning (might have already happened by the time you read this) we go for the 20 week ultrasound. If all is well this will be the first and final ultrasound.
I would be lying if I said I wasnt a bit nervous. I just want to know that little one is healty and growing and safe.

Day 336

Hey, an actual on-time blog today!

I don't know if I mentioned this before, but I'm going to talk about it again. Remember when I was talking about having a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit? Well, I was listening to a friend talk the other day, and she said something that was actually quite freeing. I don't remember the exact wording, but the gist was that there was pressure to be a certain way at Christmas, to get into a 'sprit' of sorts (probably the same spirit I was talking about). She basically said we didn't need to get into a spirit, and that this season is what it is. If you're sad for the season, you're sad. If you're happy, you're happy (this is a very loose, and interpreted paraphrase of sorts...the message I got out of it). Essentially, for me, it was freeing because now I don't feel pressure to get into the Christmas spirit, because whatever spirit I am in happens to be the Christmas spirit.

That being said, Christmas has been getting progressively more difficult for me over the last few years. I don't know if it's because of age, depression, memories of fights while decorating the tree, now missing my grandmother, expectations of the season being beat up with reality, or whatever. Still, the season is special to me, because of the hopeful nature of it. Whether that means hope in the goodness of men and women, or hope that Christ gives us, or hope for a new start with friends or family that you've been temporarily or permanently estranged with, or hope of any kind. Maybe you think it's silly. Whatever. I think it's your loss if you don't have a hope in anything. It's what keeps me going. I think it's what keeps us all going in some way. Am I wrong? Whether it's religious hope or not, there's usually a hope of some kind in peoples lives, right?

I'm probably not making much sense today. I hope you can enjoy some or all of this season. Take care. Love you all.

Day 335

Looking forward to this Christmas/holiday season off of school. There are a few fun things Ive been meaning to get at, so it will be nice to feel like I have the time. Photography and guitar play are a couple. Also a to do list. It will be nice to tackle that as well.

Day334

Finished studying for the night. At the moment I am feeling pretty decent about my final except that it is really late and I am going to be quite tired tomorrow. I will have to get through the day by consuming a lot of coffee.
I probably mentioned this before, but I am really looking forward to the break coming up. I have a bunch of stuff to do this week, and it will be great to get some stuff done.
Anyway i think I am done here now. Take care.

Day 332 AND 333

Sorry, I know, it's probably cheating. It's been a strange day or two, and we ended up having a "camp out" on the air mattress last night in the living room, and I fell asleep before I blogged. We ran around the city with my parents so they could do some Christmas shopping. It was good to see them, but I'm really looking forward to the actual Christmas break, and the drive out to Alberta to see my brother and his family. I am hoping that the roads are good and that the weather doesn't ruin our travel plans. That's the biggest thing about the winter that I don't like...ruined travel plans. Other than that, I can deal with it. We went to Fuddruckers for supper. I was craving fries, so I got a salad with some chicken in it and a basket of fries to share with Jenn. Not the best for me, but it was a tasty treat.

Today has been an interesting day so far. I played at church this morning. It was a quieter morning, with fewer people coming to church. Only Jenn and I played, which is always good. She is such a talented pianist, and can harmonize quite well too. It seems like such a waste of talent and time that we haven't written songs together or just played together more.

Have a good night, everyone. Talk to you tomorrow!

Day 331

I'm really looking forward to getting away for a few days this Christmas. It feels like I have been in the city for too long at a time.

I hope your day was good. Take care.

Day 330

End of the day, and I'm off to bed. I got a little studying in, but tomorrow is a full study day. I have one more final left on Tuesday, and then the Christmas break. Looking forward to that.

I was feeling sorry for myself a bit tonight. I just want to eat a big piece of cake or have some pancakes and syrup. I'll get over it. I'm still plateaued at a certain weight, so I have to watch what I eat still. I have no idea, really, why I'm not still losing.     
Maybe I am eating something bad without knowing it's bad. Probaby not. I have been eating pretty well.

My hands are too tired to do this anymore tonight. Take care everyone.

Day 329

One of the reasons I am looking forward to not doing a daily blog is because I don't have to worry about missing a day, or being a day late for a post, etc. Another reason is that when doing a daily blog, I am tempted to complain about stuff that goes on in my day. Often that's the easiest stuff to talk about. That being said, I am not going to complain about stuff that went on today, because it involves people, and as I've found out the hard way, even if you don't mention names, or even refrain from giving much detail at all, you can still upset people. You would think that's obvious, but I'm a little thick at times.

For the most part, the day was worth celebrating, because I finished another exam, and I got to go for supper with my in-laws and shop around with my wife before going home and attempting to decorate the Christmas tree. Well, let me tell you, for some strange reason, I can't get through a year without getting pissed off at the world while decorating for Christmas. I don't really know the reason why, and maybe it doesn't matter. All I know is that it happens, and I am ultimately responsible for my reactions and attitude. I just wish people didn't have to be around me or in contact with me or that I didn't contact people. Lesson learned...ish. I am still working on it. Needless to say, we did not finish the tree tonight. We will finish it tomorrow, along with any other decorating that we do.

Speaking of Christmas, I haven't got into the spirit this year as of yet. I really like Christmas usually, but for some reason I am having trouble. Might be because of finals, or because of only being able to eat healthy food, or because this time last year my grandma died, and it's her birthday on Christmas day. None of those things I really have control over, except to make the best of them. Work hard at studying, eat well and enjoy being healthy instead of sluggish and bloated like I was for many years, and celebrate my grandmas memory. She's gone, and there's nothing I can do but remember her. Or it could be just because...I'm just not in the spirit yet. Who knows.

I hope you're in the holiday spirit, whatever you celebrate. Take care.

Day 328

Yesterdays blog, written right now, the afternoon of the day after. Sorry for the wait, everyone who still reads this. I have been a little preoccupied with studying and all that. I wrote two finals, one today and one yesterday. My wrist has had it, and I'm very glad it won't need to work that hard for a while. My next/last final is online, and I shouldn't need to do a lot of handwriting stuff, unless we're to do some, then scan it and send it as a pdf or something. If so, I'll be good to go next week anyway.

I'll write today's post today, believe it or not. I'll talk to you all later. Take care.

Jason

Day 327

It's super late. I've been getting ready for a final tomorrow. I am not quite finished yet, but have time tomorrow yet. I hope your week isn't too stressful. Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow after my final (Tuesday)!

Another day down, another day not studying.nearly as much as i wanted to.

Day 325

I am going to make this one short.

Today I worked the morning, in hopes that I could study all afternoon. Well, fat chance. I didn't really study at all. I'm at the coffee shop with my wife at the moment, trying to get some studying finished while she works on the power point for church tomorrow. That I got any studying at all done tonight is better than nothing, I suppose.

I have one final on Tuesday, and one on Wednesday. After those, I have one the next week, and I have lots to do on that class before the final comes. I will be very glad when the semester is over...not because it was so tough. If I was more focused this semester, it would have been much nicer. No one's fault by mine.

There are some big changes over the next month. We are moving to a different apartment unit, in the same building. It's actually just down the hallway, in my in-laws apartment. They bought a house, and so we will take the two bedroom place. We're excited to paint a baby room, and to have more storage space, and a different lay-out. There have been some frustrating things come up, with people questioning our decisions and plans, etc, but I am dealing with that.

That's it for now. Take care, everyone. Thanks for stopping by.

Day 324

A "shout-out" to my boss, who doesn't read this, but I'll do it anyway, who worked around the schedule so I could have Saturday afternoon, and all day Sunday off for studying. I'm pretty sure he is working Sunday instead of me. What a guy. He said I've covered for people lots, so I'm due for the favour to be returned. Anyway, that's it about that.


I've been studying yesterday and today, and it never seems to go as well as I plan. I study, but the process is much slower than I would like it to be. Is that how it is with you, or are you a person who can study massive amounts of material in shorter periods of time?

Tonight is our first (and probably only) Christmas party. Sad that there's only going to be one, but it's probably for the best, considering I can't eat anything at them anyway. One of the hosts of tonight's party excitedly told me last night that they have 10 lbs of carrots for me to eat. While I'm am very grateful for the effort, you can probably understand the difficulty I am having being excited to gorge on carrots at a Christmas party while everyone else is eating enough food to feed a small, yet chubby village. I am not complaining about carrots, mind you. I am simply saying that this Christmas season is going to be difficult, as it's my first with diabetes. It will be a good exercise in self-control, if nothing else. I used to say "Christmas comes once a year, so I'll allow myself to eat poorly." Now I'll have to say, "I need to eat well all the time, regardless of what time of year it is."

My body is important to me, and I don't want to treat it like a garbage disposal anymore. Actually, I'll say that I can't treat it like a garbage disposal anymore. If I didn't have diabetes, I probably still would be...especially during this time of year.

On that note, enjoy the time of year. Hopefully you can eat well. I am going to stuff my face with carrots, at least.

Day 323

His is my pathetic attempt at a beard. It is really sparse, so i just look very...dirty, or something.
It is late again. I was trying to finish some photos, but there are just too many for one night...i need sleep if i am going to study. Take care. Love you.