Looking back on 2011

Christmas Snow!

I've been thinking about the past year and realized how lucky we are. 2011 was an amazing year for Matt and I, and our families!. Here's a quick look back....

January: I was fortunate to have a fair about of subbing and several swim meets to coach at.
February: I had the pleasure of subbing during a school field trip. We went on a Sleigh Ride, went tobogganing and got to pet the horses.
March: Another busy month! Lots of subbing.
April: We moved into our lovely duplex! I really love living here, although we still haven't finished decorating... we're getting close though! We got new couches and curtains as well.
May: Things continued to be busy with PEI Swimming Provincials, then I went to Wolfville with a bunch of swimmers to the NS Jr Provincial Champs.
June: I completed my Learning Facilitator Training by co-facilitating a Swimming 101 course in NS. This also meant I got to go home to Halifax for a weekend and managed to squeeze in a lovely Pot-luck at Lindsay's!

July: Started with Mom and Dad coming up to PEI to spend Canada Day (and Mom's Birthday) with us on the island. Our weather wasn't the greatest, but I did manage to spend a few days at the beach. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (Prince William and Kate) came to the island. I ended up getting a bunch of great pictures of them when they were in town.
August: Laura and Sebastien came home for a visit ... at the same time Kathy and Jody and Heather and Stuart were here. It was great to see everyone. It was also when we found out that Laura was pregnant!
September: Everything started up quickly. Lots of subbing. Band started. Swim team started. I took a more active role in overseeing the Miniphin program with the Swim team - designing all the practices for the fall. I also finished all my paperwork so I could take a french course online to help raise my french level. I started teaching Swimming lessons again AND I started to swim and train again.

October: Electronic Arts (EA) bought Bight Games. This had been in the works for a while but it became official in October. Matt is guaranteed work for 4 years which is very nice. I also got an iPhone!! There was also Thanksgiving and finishing swimming lessons. We girls had a bachelorette for Kylee. Kylee and Jamie had us over for their annual pumpkin carving party which is always a hoot! And of course Halloween, although we did not dress up, but we did have some trick-or-treaters who came to our door.

November: Went by soo quickly! I worked nearly everyday! I continued to swim and coach and band. Matt had several big deadlines so he worked a lot this month which wasn't fun, but at least he had one day off each week, instead of having to work non-stop!

December: More subbing and Swim team. I got to go to Quebec City with 42 swimmers on the team which was a lot of fun.... I didn't like the bus ride home, but that was mostly because I couldn't sleep. We also had our annual "Elf Extravaganza" Swim Meet where all the coaches dressed up as elves which was fun too. Christmas was a good time. Dad came and got me. Laura and Sebastien were home so I got to see her belly-bump. We found out the sex of the baby and threw Laura a Baby Shower. It was a busy but Fun Time.

March Break!

I'm so happy that this week is March Break. I am really looking forward to not having anything that I have to do. That said I will have a lot of things to do in our apartment as we will be moving in less than 2 weeks! I'm so excited about our new place. Having a duplex will be so nice. Hopefully we will make it feel more like a home, rather than a place we are staying. I have been preparing big time for the past few weeks, going through things like clothes and books, trying to purge. I think I'm doing really well, although I need another few rounds in my closet. I know that logically, if I haven't worn something in a year, that I should get rid of it, but I am getting down to things that I either really like or are really good quality. Some of those are really hard to let go of, but I'm trying my best. I've gotten rid of 2 1/2 blue bags of clothes and have about another 1/3 of a bag started. That's without going through my summer clothes which are stored in a plastic bin. I'm also getting rid of a lot of my books. I have so many, but now with a kindle, I can get them electronically which take up a lot less space.

Today Matt and I had to be out of our apartment for over two hours while our landlord was showing the place..... well we really didn't have to be out, but it would just be awkward to hang around, so we left. We decided to go through the car wash since it was such a nice day, only to discover that the seals around the window on the driver's side are now so bad that they let water in. Oops! It really wasn't too bad, only a little spot up at the top and it only let water in when it was doing the big rinses that spray directly on that spot. It's making us really want a new car, although that really isn't in the cards until the fall. We own our car so to get a new one (or rather lease a new one like we are thinking) is a fair amount of money which we probably shouldn't spend at the moment. Our current car is 8 years old and starting to get expensive.

One annoying thing about today, we tried to go to both Leons and The Brick to look at furniture for the new place (new tv stand, & side tables for the living room and a couch) but they were both closed. Oh well, wasn't the end of the world. We ended up going to indigo, bulk barn and superstore then went for a little drive. It was such a nice day and the sun was so strong. I'm hopeful that the spring weather we have been experiencing for the last week or so continues.

Made a yummy stew out of leftover pot roast for supper. Paired really well with all the candy we got at the bulk barn. Ugh! I have such a sweet tooth!. I really need to cut back.

Lucky

Knock! Knock!
Who's there?
Bean!
Bean who?
Bean a long time since I seen you!
I know, I know! But hopefully with a new layout and updated title, I can get back into the swing of things.

Lately I have been realizing how lucky I really am. I have found my calling in being a teacher. I am fortunate to be able to get enough work to support myself and can continue doing other things that I love such as coaching swimming and playing in the Holland College Community Band. It is times like these when I want to pinch myself. I don't have everything I want, but I have the things that count and make me happy. Those other things that I want are just bonuses.

Matt and I are getting readying to move. We are so excited. We are going to move into this nice little duplex, two blocks from where we currently live. It was gutted about a year ago and redone completely. The main floor has a living room and a nice big kitchen. Upstairs is two bedrooms (one we will use as our computer room) and the bathroom. It is probably not bigger than our current space, but the layout is better and we will have a deck and a washer/dryer/dishwasher which are all perks. We move in around the first of April and can't wait!
Along with this move, comes a lot of sorting and purging. I've been really good so far at getting rid of things such as clothes and old books. I mean I still love to read, but where I now have a kindle, I can start to transition my book collection over to digital formats and get rid of a lot of books I have already read. I'm a bit sad that I haven't been reading as much as I would like. Sometimes I find it had to get into a book, whether it is because of the book, or of my mood or that I'm using a kindle has yet to be determined. That said I have read two more books from the Betsy the Vampire Queen series in the last day or so. Working so much and having all these extra-curricular activities does not lead to much time to read.



I love coaching swimming and being around the pool. It is something I've done for years and years and I have been so fortunate to be able to continue doing with with my career. That said, this year I am experiencing some major challenges. I am coaching a group of 11-14 year olds who are competitive. and unfortunately at these ages kids either decide that they enjoy swimming competitively and are able to have a lot of motivation to do what is asked OR they just goof off. In my group I am at about 1/2 and 1/2 right now. It gets hard to try and get these swimmers who are goofing off to listen to me and do what is asked. There are some days when I want to pull all my hair out because they are being so frustrating. There is only one more training cycle left in our season (from after March Break, through to provincials May 13-15). I have made some progress with a few of them, so hopefully I can motivate the others and get some good training in so that they can meet their goals. I've been having issues with the parents as well, since they don't seem to understand how much time and planning and effort goes into coaching. I can't force a kid to swim. I can only do my best, and it is a crappy feeling when your best isn't enough.