THE GOODS BLOG: Erika's Precious Little Life ~ January Edition

About a week late but I'm finally showing up! This happens every year because I'm never at home when the year starts and then I need a few days to get back and recalibrate. But I'm here now! I hope that you all had a wonderful festive season! For me, the holidays start in mid-November and while fun, it feels like a marathon. I know that this is partially my own doing but... Can't stop won't stop. It's feeling really nice to return to a normal life with normal routines and a normal pace. As always, December was a whirlwind of holiday activities! Sarah came to Edmonton for work so Susan and I got to meet up with her for a fun dinner.

A whole group of us participated in the Santa Shuffle Fun Run which was a 5k run. I've definitely never run a 5k before and it actually went pretty well! We kept up our pace the whole time and finished in 35 minutes, which is honestly way better than I would have expected. And I got a medal for the first time ever! I did a thing! (I still don't like running though.)

We spent a day at the Edmonton Christmas Market, one of our favourite annual traditions.

Krispy Kreme opened a location in Edmonton! It's the only one in Alberta! I was pretty excited about this development and visited on opening day.

We checked out the CPKC Holiday Train when it came to town.

Tim and I attended BioWare's Mystic Woods Masquerade holiday party which was a blast as always! We enjoy dressing up for the theme each year and everyone goes all out. As usual there was an open bar, tons of food, lots of fun activities to partake in, and a dancefloor.

The next night was our annual Christmas Girls Night celebration which included attending The Singing Christmas Tree concert (which was wild but fun!) and dinner at La Ronde, Edmonton's revolving restaurant. We four always have the best time together. <3

Tim won Edmonton Oilers tickets from work (which tends to happen periodically) and he usually brings a friend. But this time I decided to go with him because it seemed only fair that I should get a turn! (I really just wanted to eat the snacks.) They were playing against Boston and the Oilers won!

We celebrated our Christmas at home early like we always do. This year we had dinner at Wilfred's (our favourite holiday place) and then were excited for the return of Luminaria, which was so magical. Then Santa came!

After that we were off on our holiday travels! First we went to London and spent four nights over actual Christmas with the Golems. It was great to get the whole crew together, especially all of the cousins who love each other so much. It's a bit of a crazy dynamic with so many different people involved but I think that we do a pretty good job of making it all work.

Next we went to Regina and spent a week there over New Year's with my family. It was a really nice time that didn't feel rushed. And we had very little family drama for once! Ha ha! My brother and his girlfriend have broken up so it was just back to the usual six of us.

We celebrated New Year's Eve by going to my favourite Regina restaurant called Homestead and enjoyed their special multi-course menu that included caviar and lobster. The food was great and we had a countdown and toast at midnight! I can't think of a better way to ring in the new year!

As always, we celebrated the family January birthdays while we were in Regina as well!

And of course I was very happy to get to spend time with a bunch of you while I was in town! <3

AND THAT WAS CHRISTMAS!!! It was a lot. But it was great. We did all of the festive things that we wanted to do and I am forever grateful that we have the ability to spend time with both of our families. I'm also relieved for this time to be over for another year - all of our decorations have been taken down and Christmas is a thing of the past. Until next time! I got some truly wonderful Christmas/birthday gifts this year!!

Life with Archie: Archie had a busy month full of festive activities and various things going on! We tried to enjoy some of the beautiful winter days.

Archie enjoyed the various holiday-themed events that we attended and is always enthusiastic about whatever we're doing.

Archie got to meet Sam Malmberg who competed on season 4 of LEGO Masters! Archie watched him on TV!

Archie built a Cataclaws at a LEGO free-build event and also a Holiday Snow Globe at the latest Kids Workshop at Home Depot.

Archie completed his fall round of swimming lessons and he finally passed Swimmer 1!! (I can't remember how many times he took it but it was a lot.) He gets to move on to Swimmer 2 at long last! We are gearing up for winter programs which will include snowboarding, more swimming lessons, and continued Beavers.

The last week of school before the holidays was a spirit week (I saw so many memes about how much moms hate this, ha ha) where each day had a different theme. There was Winter Headwear Day, Cozy Socks Day, Festive Sweater Day, Red White & Green Day, and Pajama Day. I personally find it fun getting Archie dressed up for all of these days! (I'm the problem, it's me?)

His school had their Winter Concert and it was very cute. Archie's class performed two songs, both in English. They did a great job!

And of course there were two appropriately themed lunches in the last week; one for red, white & green day and a Christmas one for his last day of school.

Of course Archie was pretty thrilled about our Christmas at home and all of the presents. (The big items this year were LEGO and Dog Man stuff.) He still fully believes in Santa and I don't intend on that changing any time soon!

Archie flew his 58th, 59th, and 60th flights!

He LOVED his time in London with all of his cousins and had such a blast zooming around with the whole crew for days. He had extra quality time with his cousin Madi (we stayed at their house) who is only three months apart in age. It was really great to see how they bonded.

Archie got even more presents in Regina for Christmas and his birthday!

Archie also enjoyed hanging out with some friends in Regina too! (They're all so big and it's crazy!)

PHEW!! I think that's the complete run-down!

What's on for January? Well it's a pretty big birthday month in our family. First is my birthday and I'm turning 43! I'm having a birthday girls night at Brew + Bloom for the esthetics alone, ha ha, (plus I've never eaten dinner there). And then Tim is taking me out on the weekend to Bernadette's, my new favourite restaurant. I'm really looking forward to doing the Astam Michiso Tasting Menu Experience! (Archie will be home with a babysitter.) The following week is Archie's birthday and he is turning 8! We told him that he could pick somewhere to go for dinner but he hasn't decided yet. His birthday party is happening at Chuck E. Cheese this year, which I feel is a rite of passage! I'm sure that all of the kids will have a great time! Otherwise it's a fairly quiet month, which will be nice. We've had a lot on the go and I need a break! I hope that everyone's 2025 is truly amazing and that you get to live exactly the year that you dream of! THIS MONTH’S SHOUT-OUTS!: January 30th is Enobong Antsey’s 43rd birthday!

Another year for us January babies! I hope that you have a fabulous day and that you get to feel very special! It was so nice spending time with you this past year and I hope that we have opportunities to see each other this year as well! I'm so happy that you're a part of my daily life. You're close to my heart and I love you very much! <3