To My 18-Year-Old Self

I'm seeing graduation posts pop up left and right on Facebook of my friend's younger siblings and my little cousins--who aren't so little anymore. Last month was their high school graduation and it's left me feeling a little sentimental and reminiscent. Trust me, I don't want to go back to high school, I'm perfectly fine being in this mid-twenties post-college married chapter of my life, and have zero desire to move backwards. But with all these high school graduations happening around me, my mind can't help but take me back to that beautiful time in my life when every choice I made was going to majorly impact the direction of my life. Oh nostalgia.

I'm 26 years old now and have lived exactly 8 years since my high school graduation. (Um, wow; this is a hard pill to swallow, considering I still feel like a teenybopper sometimes.) If my 26-year-old self magically showed up at my graduation and pulled my young-platinum-blonde-haired-bright-eyed-18-year-old self away for a few minutes to tell me what the next 8 years of my life were going to look like...I would not believe a word of it. There's no way! Would I be totally happy and pleasantly pleased with everything I'd hear? Honestly no, and that's only because I had such different expectations for my life at that time. I didn't know how much I was going to change the following years after high school and I especially didn't know the hardships I was going to face.  And I can't imagine being told in advanced the exact struggle I'm going to experience in a few years. I think it'd be the same concept if God laid out our entire future on this earth in front of us, our future according to HIS plans. I imagine there'd be some disappointment and/or confusion as it definitely wouldn't match up to our plans, but God knows best you guys. "The mind of man plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps" (Proverbs 16:9).

Besides a little shock and disappointment, some of the things I'd hear would absolutely blow me away! I mean, if I could I'd give myself a huge high-five! Way to Go, self! How'd you ever manage to pull that off?! WHO ARE YOU?!

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With that said, things I would say to my freshly graduated 18-year-old-self regarding my future:

One day, you're gonna wish you hadn't tanned so much. Look at those crows-feet next to your eyes! You should have listened to your mother, Jennifer. Tisk tisk.

That guy that you're pining over right now, the one who never showed up today, he's actually gonna break a little piece of your heart this summer. Hard to believe, I know. Of course you'll go through some healing over time, but then...he's gonna come back into your life and break off another piece and you'll feel the hurt all over again. I wish you weren't going to give him so much of your time and thoughts. Even though I wish you would have just kept your standards high from the beginning, this season of heartbreak you're about to endure will teach you so much not only about yourself, but about the qualities of a guy you're looking for in a future husband, the man that you're going to choose to spend the rest of your life with. I know you're not going to listen to anyone and you'll ignore all the red flags because you're so hung up on him, but just know that God's got you throughout this whole thing.

Your huge princess high-school-graduation dress cost more than your wedding dress. Isn't that funny?!

Why I Love Being Married.

This has been an immensely busy season for Jarryd and I. Both of us have so many different things going on, making life not so easy breezy these days. On my drive home from one of my many obligations, this time of busyness got me thinkin'...I knew that Jarryd was already home from work and that he would be there awaiting my arrival. Just the thought of having someone to welcome me home when I step foot into our apartment after such a crazy day lead me to this conclusion: I'm so thankful I don't have to do this alone!

Marriage is fantastic--tough at times, but incredibly rewarding. The best things in life come with commitment and hard work, no? So in no particular order, I decided to write a list of my favourite things about marriage:

1. You have someone you can be your total self around and have the comforting knowledge that they'll love you unconditionally. I know for me, I am NOT my total self with most people. I'm pretty sure that if I were, they'd never want to hang out with me again. I'm not referring to the flowery "Be Yourself" or "Love Yourself" because you're such a unique and special snowflake. I'm talkin' about the crankiness, the cynicism, the breakdowns, the venting, the neglected hygiene (showers are such a hassle, y'all), the ugly sobbing, and the complaining. My husband--(and maaaaybe my siblings) are the only people on earth who will ever see that fallen and humanly side of me. And guess what? I know they'll always love me and I'll always love them!

2. You always have someone to watch TV with. Some of my favourite evenings consist of coming home from work, ordering our favourite take-out (either pizza, Chinese, or McDonalds--these details are important), and literally doing nothing but talking, laughing, and watching a great show together. (Until I fall asleep, that is--for some reason I am ALWAYS the first to doze off on the couch...I never used to be this way, guys. I'm getting old!) Right now our current TV show of choice is Friends...once again.
Side note: we are constantly pointing at each other during this show saying "that's SO you", and we've come to the conclusion that Jarryd is 1 part Chandler and 1 part Joey (not Ross, thank goodness!). And I am a solid mix of the three girls Rachel, Phoebe, and Monica; I have Rachel's emotions, Phoebes sweetness/quirkiness/flightiness, and Monica's cynicism.
Moving on.

Baking My First Wedding Cake.

Hello friends! Guess what? I baked my first wedding cake! OK, I'm sort of lying. Technically, this isn't my first wedding cake, per say. I have done one once before but that was alongside a friend (a.k.a I had someone to share all the stress and balance out the crazy emotions with).

Whereas this time around, it was all me, 100% me. (Note: I did have some help at the very end, but I'll get to that later!)
Plus, the first wedding cake I did was completely different from this one! It was an 8" round cake with fondant, sugar flowers, and cupcakes on the side. The wedding cake I did this time around was made up of TIERS, frosted with buttercream, and decorated with real greenery.

I wrote this blog entry so that I could share with you what this wedding cake journey was like for me, and perhaps encourage a fellow baker or two that you don't have to be a "professional cake designer" to execute a beautiful wedding cake. If I can do it, so can you!! So, let's start from the beginning, shall we?

Back in the Fall after our good friends got engaged, I received a pretty little card in the mail from the future-bride-to-be that said: will you do us the honour of baking our wedding cake for our wedding on April 1st, 2017?

Cookies and Cream Layer Cake {My Birthday Weekend}

I'm 26! I'm Twenty-six years old, and so far it feels better than twenty-five did! It's crazy to believe that I'm now on the climb to thirty, or would it be better phrased as falling down an inevitable steep downward slope? I vaguely remember back in the day teasing my 9-years-older-than-me-brother about how he was turning 30 and calling him SO OLD and such. And now, I'm officially on my way to that same "old". (Well, in four years at least!)

Now, onto my birthday weekend. But first, let's rewind a bit here. Three years ago Jarryd and I were invited to a lunch/watch football/play games day at our friend's Jon and Michele's house, where our friend Cameron met Jon and Michele's niece (A.K.A his FUTURE WIFE) for the first time on sort of a "blind dinner party date". We were all having so much fun that we ended up staying not just for lunch but DINNER TOO. (That's how you know it's good!) The two singleton's hit it off and three years later they're happily married! And not only did they hit it off, but the six of us as a "couples" group did too! So, the following year we decided to keep up the tradition and do it again! And now, for the third year in a row we had the same plans set--Sunday lunch immediately following church, games and football in the afternoon, and pizza for dinner. And this time I brought a cake with me!! 😃

My 2016.

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE! What a crazy, exciting time of year and I can't even believe the beginning of January is about to hit us!

For someone in my shoes, the months of October to December are nuts. I say "in my shoes" because I'm a Canadian who married an American and is living in America. Therefore, in October Jarryd and I celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving, in November we celebrate American Thanksgiving, in December we celebrate Christmas, and now we celebrate New Years Eve/Day! There are four major holidays all within the span of three months for us! (Thank goodness Christmas is the only holiday where gift-giving is expected, or else we'd be sooo broke!)

Last night in the car, Jarryd and I were just talking about how great of a year 2016 was for us. Thankfully, and I say this with a truly grateful heart, nothing drastic or tragic occurred in our lives. (Thank you, God!) We both conquered some things we wanted to conquer, and accomplished things we never even dreamed we'd accomplish. But, there's also things we wish we would have done more of, or wish we would have done less of. Obviously our lives aren't perfect and therefore our year wasn't perfect. But overall, despite how exhausting and busy the year may have been for us, 2016 really was a good year.

Our Third Christmas.

So, Christmas has come and gone. There's no more cars driving around dressed with an antler on each side and a big red nose in the grill, and Christmas music on the radio is nowhere to be found! 😢 I very much believe that Christmas music should be played until New Years Eve; half of us still have Christmas family gatherings and get-togethers after the 25th of December, so what gives? (Perhaps it would confuse the little ones if they heard on the radio that Santa Claus still has plans to come down the chimney at 12 that night...AGAIN?)

Christmas of 2016 was definitely one of a kind! I feel like Christmas for me isn't centered around the actual day of Christmas--I think it's the days and weeks leading up to it. I believe I really started getting into the whole "Christmas spirit" thing at the very beginning of December when I was flipping through radio stations on my commute home from work and came across a station playing ONLY Christmas music, and I was instantly hooked. For some reason hearing those first Christmas songs instantly cheered me up and enveloped me in a warm hug of nostalgia. 😇

The following blog post is dedicated to our favourite memories of our third Christmas together: Christmas of 2016. 💗

Firstly, one of my biggest dreams came true when I got to see New York City at Christmastime! This was my first trip to New York City where we actually stayed the night, which was also a dream of mine (because I've had one too many "day trips" there).

 You know those decked-out "shop windows" they all sing about in Christmas songs?! I got to see them and it was amazing! One of them even featured Canadian geese so that was a lovely surprise.

And see that giant green thing surrounded by scaffolding? Yep, that's the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree being set up! I looked up the details of this tree, and it's a Norway Spruce from New York, and this year it was 94 feet tall! WOW. (Tallest on record was 100 ft!)

There was this one weekend near the beginning of December when I was feeling exceptionally cranky--probably because I spent my Saturday morning cleaning the entire bathroom and doing laundry all on an empty stomach and before coffee! (Bad move...) And I don't know if this is a human thing, a woman thing, or simply just a Jenny thing, but when I'm upset about one thing, it somehow connects to something else and something else again and again, therefore making me upset about EVERYTHING and henceforth coming to the conclusion that my whole life is falling apart. (Am I crazy?!)

So, me being upset about one thing lead me to believe that we probably won't even celebrate Christmas this year in the form of finding a Christmas tree and decorating our apartment and what not. No Christmas for me this year. I thought as I poured my tears detergent into the laundry machine. Now here's the amazing part! A few days before we'd looked everywhere for our Christmas tree stand! We couldn't find it and therefore thought we left it at our old apartment to be garbage-ridden. I don't know about Jarryd, but I certainly didn't feel like spending the money on a new tree stand, something we'd only use one month out of the year, so I thought for sure we wouldn't be getting a tree. But in the midst of my tears, Jarryd comes up and gives me a long hug--all the sudden he says "HEY! There's our tree stand"! It was hidden behind the laundry machine between the broom and vacuum. "Let's go pick out our tree now, ok?"
Me: "OK!!" 😅 💕

Off to pick our Christmas tree! (See! You can't even tell I was crying! 😆 ) Also, let's talk about how glad we are braids are back in style.

This is the breed of tree we picked out, "White Pine". (Is "breed" the correct term here?) I LOVE it so much, and I think it may be the only breed of tree I'll ever want for the rest of my life! Our tree only cost us $35--apparently because White Pines don't hold heavy ornaments very well, they're not in demand, which explains the uber low cost. And since I'm not the kind of person to put alot of ornaments on a Christmas tree, it totally works out for me. (But who knows, I'm sure my tree style will change over the years, you know?)

Bringing our tree home was a bit of an adventure--we borrowed my father-in-laws red truck and loaded it up in the box of the truck. That part was easy, it was the getting-it-set-up-in-our-apartment part that was rough--you see, we thought for sure we had 9 foot ceilings! So our 8+ foot tree absolutely did not fit vertically. Jarryd ended up cutting a few inches off the top of the tree with my serrated KITCHEN knife. (I was cringing the entire time because that knife came in my knife-kit from culinary school and it's made of high carbon German steel! 🙈 ) It was quite the adventure getting this big fat tree set up, and despite how stressful it got at times we couldn't help but laugh at ourselves.

Moving the hutch out of the way to make room for the Christmas tree called for serious hutch-trinket rearrangement. 

I had some serious goals for this tree and pink Christmas balls were on the list! (Shoutout to Jarryd for being the best husband ever and letting me put pink decor up in our apartment!!)

I bought the pink Christmas balls at Target, the gold balls at Big Lots, and the poinsettia flowers from Dollar Tree! I'm absolutely in love with the color scheme of pink, gold, and white.

Our Christmas card photo this year! We were literally in our PJs right before this, hopped into some nice clothes, set up the camera on self-timer, took like 10 photos, and then hopped back into our PJ's again. I promise one day we'll get professional photos taken!

Yes! We rearranged our living room in honour of our Christmas tree, which was a funny story actually. Jarryd wanted more seating in our living room, and that grey L-shaped couch was always kept in our office/second bedroom as more of a futon. So I told Jarryd, "trust me babe, I've rearranged this living room in every way possible trying to get those grey couches to fit in beside the beige couches and it's utterly impossible". Well, he's a persistent guy and really wasn't having any of that, LOL. I then told him "fine, go for it; I just don't want anything to do with it...you're on your own." (What a nice wife I am...). And low and behold he created this super cozy u-shaped living room situation which I absolutely LOVE! The beige couch acts as a room divider which is fantastic. So I ended up apologizing to Jarryd for not having faith in his interior decorating skills, because boy was I ever wrong!

I think we'll keep it like this forever (arrangement wise, not cleanliness wise--you should see the coffee table right now...).

Christmas chocolates are always a big deal. These Guylian seashells are amaaaaaziiing, and Ferrero Rochers of course, and Ghirardelli sea salt chocolates are a MUST.

Christmas card photos were sent out to our immediate family along with gift packages for our nieces and nephew! I'm seriously praying that one day we'll live close enough to our nieces and nephew that we can buy them gifts and give it to them in person without having to worry about how much the shipping will cost! Maybe one day. 💖

This was our one and only snowfall, On December 17th. It was rain, then snow, then ice, and then melted away with the rain a few hours later. So far, there isn't any call for snow in the upcoming forecasts which is just fine with me! I live for the warm weather!

Yes, I wore my Home Alone sweater on Christmas Day. Speaking of Home Alone, that movie is a HUGE Christmas tradition for me--my family and I would watch it every year! This year, Jarryd and I watched a ton of movies leading up to Christmas. We randomly watched The Santa Clause (LOL), Four Christmases (which is hilarious!), and every year we have to watch The Family Stone. If you haven't yet seen that, I highly recommend it--you'll laugh, you'll cry, and all the actors are amazing and very well-known.

Both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were spent at the in-laws, where succotash is always a staple dish (cooked corn and lima beans). In the photo above, this was one of my favourite moments; when we looked through old photo albums of Jarryd's growing up years. What a cutie. There's something about watching old home videos and old childhood photos that give me the warm and fuzzies.

BAKING. On Christmas Eve I did so much baking! Firstly, I made these sweet dinner rolls.

Secondly, White Chocolate Macadamia Nut cookies. (Which I'd say were the biggest hit at the family gatherings!)

And thirdly, I made this Peanut Butter Crisp Triple Chocolate Pretzel Bark. Very rich, but very good. And bark isn't really my ideal dessert, but it was fun to try something new and expand my skill set!

Earlier in December I made these Unbaked Chocolate Cookies--these are definitely my ideal dessert, as I could probably eat a thousand of them in one sitting!

OH and the "Layered Cookbook: Baking, Building, and Styling Spectacular Cakes" by Tessa Huff was my early Christmas present from Jarryd. The only way I had even heard of Tessa was when I stumbled upon her Instagram page and totally fell in love with her baking style. To give you an idea of her amazingness, in the Good Reads Choice Awards, her book was #5, and she was the only one not associated/made famous through a TV show. She's just pure baking talent!

One of our Christmas traditions is to pick a movie saga to rewatch. Last year's was Star Wars (in honour of the Force Awakens) and this year's is Harry Potter!! Next year will probably be LOTR/The Hobbit, but we'll just have to wait and see! (And hopefully next year's Christmas will be in Canada!)

In full disclosure, Christmas this year turned out better than I expected it to because being so far away from friends and family over the holidays is tough. And despite Jarryd being horribly sick the entire weekend, and us being so busy having hardly any time to breathe, it was a great Christmas! God has been so good to us and we have much to be thankful for!

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time for ever." Isaiah 9:6-7

December First.

First, can we talk about how great it is that blogger FINALLY has emojis?? 😍 👏 💕 I can finally add some emotional tone to my blog posts now. Or did Blogger actually have emojis all along and I only noticed now? Hmm...

Moving on, I can't believe it's December 1st! This is crazy. I'm pretty sure I have the same gut-shocking reaction about every new month. Except for September; the start of September was very much ignored for some reason.

Now that American Thanksgiving is over and done with, the Christmas season is now in full-swing! And this year's Christmas already feels different! Normally the thought of the holidays stresses me out. I dwell on the thought of trying to buy the perfect gifts for people and drive myself crazy because shopping for other people is always so hard for me.
But this Christmas, I don't feel that stress! I honest-to-goodness just feel the warm and fuzzies. I've also never started listening to Christmas music this early or this frequently. For the past week I've been crankin' it on my commutes to and from work and it totally changes my mood. (It's even playing right now as we speak!) I don't know what it is but it takes my mind off of the bad and leads me down a memory lane of childhood Christmases in Canada. Jarryd and I even listen to it at home here in our apartment! And we sing along like total dorks--really just trying to doing our best impression of the cheesy voices, and making so much fun of each other.
My favourite Christmas tune right now is "Wonderful Christmastime" by Paul McCartney. It's so whacky and fun, I love it! I guess that's the inner-Beatles fan in me?
And the Charlie Brown "Christmas Dance" song makes me play air-piano in the car because I used to play it on the keyboard in Jazz Band. Oh high school...
Oh and "Silver Bells" is always fun to sing along to, OH and "Sleigh Ride"!! Gah!!
Honestly, alot of these songs I learned from my thirteen years of choir, church plays, piano, and band class in school. THIRTEEN YEARS. 😱

Also, I have this weird urge to decorate the apartment in all-things Christmas. I haven't, but I really want to. Which is weird, because I'm not one for seasonal decorating. Like, I'm DYING to go pick out a tree this weekend. And I'm dying to buy a furry white tree skirt. And Christmas-plaid ribbons and gold and white Christmas ornaments for the tree. I have no clue what's inspiring this, but I'll take it!

Last year we didn't do an ounce of Christmas here in Maryland because I spent 3 weeks at home in Canada. So there was really no point in putting a tree up just to take it down before even getting to enjoy it, you know?

Another thing we'd like to do this month is check out a German Christmas Market in a nearby city. Philadelphia, perhaps? Or even Baltimore?

Despite me being very much behind on my Christmas decorating, I made up for it in the fact that I bought some adorable red-green plaid PJ's in November. Plus, my Christmas spirit is at 110%. 👌

I was telling myself the other day that I'm not even that upset about not going back to Canada for Christmas this year. I feel fine! This is good!
I'm very thankful for this calm demeanour that I have right now, but I'm also nervous about the homesickness suddenly setting in and all of that going away. Because that's what homesickness does, it comes without any warning whatsoever. Honestly, it's like I'm standing with my back facing the ocean and a tidal wave--of missing home and friends and family--washes over me. I think I'll be ok until Christmas Eve and Christmas Day arrive, when I realize I have literally no one to watch the Home Alone movies with. 😩  (Jarryd unfortunately has zero appreciation for them.)
But oh well, I'm excited to celebrate my second Christmas with the in-laws here in Maryland, and to cherish them while they last because we might not be living here forever, you know? And I'm also excited to start new Christmas traditions with Jarryd that we can repeat every year just the two of us and then later with kiddos!

I'm loving December already!

Groceries.

Life has been BUSY you guys! Jarryd and I both work full-time jobs with pretty similar hours. After work he's got his soccer-coaching gig and I've got my cake-decorating gig. It's a GOOD kind of busy because we're busy doing the things we love! It's pretty sweet how we've both learned so much about each others' passions in the short time we've been married. Jarryd didn't know how much work actually went into baking and decorating cakes and cupcakes, and I certainly didn't know how much thought and strategy went into being a soccer coach. I've never heard so much about 4-3-3 and 4-3-2 and 2-3-1 and 9-0-2-1-0 formations in my life! {HA, I totally made that last one up.} ;)

Whenever Jarryd and I have a spare moment together it's usually spent eating our supper in front of the tv and enjoying some Gilmore Girls, and then occasionally pausing it to talk about how our days went. We just can't get enough!! Besides bedtime, that is absolutely our favourite time of the day! <3

I can just feel that Fall is right around the corner because I'm gettin' that undeniable craving to listen to all of Taylor Swifts' albums, new and old. It can't be stopped, you guys! The second reason that I know fall is around the corner is because the grocery store FINALLY released Pumpkin Spice coffee creamer. Apparently I missed the memo because the first time I checked, all they had left was the Sugar-Free version {blech!}. But the second time, they were fully stocked with extra-sugary Pumpkin Spice creamer. Mmm... I'm drinking it as I type actually.

It's actually a good thing I bought that creamer because it saves me money in the long run. For example, the thought of dropping by Starbucks on my commute home from work lingered in my mind UNTIL I remembered I had Pumpkin Spice creamer waiting for me at home. Why buy the milk when you already have the cow at home, right? {HA! Did I butcher that "saying" or what?!}

But then I'm seriously conflicted inside because the Starbucks PSL won't be around forever, so why wouldn't I just get it while I can, right?! Sigh...

Speaking of the grocery store, I am there ALL THE TIME. For real! It's because every time I get a cake order there's always some type of ingredient that I need to stock up on. Well, yes that's true, but it's not the whole truth. Whenever we run out of chips I head to grocery store. Yes, chips are the only reason I need to go grocery shopping. {Lately I've been really into Doritos Spicy Sweet Chili--but you didn't actually need to know that...unless you feel the need to send me some in the mail?! Yes?!}

Also, seeing as I am person of routine, I really wish I had ONE grocery store to shop at. You know? Like one that has every single item that you need, all at a great price. But I don't! I actually jump around four different grocery stores. Not in ONE trip, silly. In one trip I'll jump to a maximum of two stores. I alternate depending on what I need.
1) Aldi: They have spectacular prices that just can't be beat! Also, they have the cart system where you need a quarter in order to take a cart out, and then when you put your cart back in, you get your quarter back. {I like this because it reminds me of the grocery stores back home in Canada!} Despite all these great things, they don't have much selection, a.k.a they don't have the chips I like.
2) Safeway: I really like Safeway because it's nicest looking grocery store around and they have a fantastic produce selection. It's where I like to buy mangos and apples. ;) They also have a Starbucks right at the entrance....so yeahhhh. {need I say more?!} There's nothing better than grocery shopping with a PSL, right?! Anyway, I was going here pretty frequently until I read in the news about someone getting assaulted right outside in the parking lot!! I'm kind of hesitant to go grocery shopping there now, especially since I usually go alone! :S
3) Food Lion: They're the closest grocery store to us, so when we're in a pinch we go here. But it's definitely nothing special...like I honestly have nothing to say about it right now...
4) Wal-Mart. I know, I know, how could I?! Bring on the haters. Trust me, I don't like Wal-Mart either. BUT they're the only store near me that sells cake decorating products at a pretty dang good price. {They also sell the Pioneer Woman kitchen brand, which makes it feel a little more "Targety" inside} But let me tell you, Wal-Mart in this area is super sketchy, like incredibly janky. I purposely dress down when I go just so I don't stand out too much. And then there's Wal-Mart in Canada, it's just absolutely gorgeous. {I take that back, "gorgeous" is a strong word...}. It's more decent and clean-looking I should say. Also, people get shot at this Wal-Mart here, and yet I still go. It must be the cake-decorating motivation inside of me that just can't be bothered, you know?

Since we're still on the topic of grocery stores, I'm actually a huge fan of the whole "self-checkout" ordeal. I love avoiding any possible chance of awkward small-talk with cashiers. Seriously, I never know what to say when after asking a cashier how they're doing and they reply with in the most depressing tone "oh you know, hangin' in there" or "as good as I can be for being here" or "it's Monday, so enough said". Like, what am I supposed to say? "Thank you for making me feel guilty for asking you about your well-being..."?
Oh well, I feel I'm allowed to comment on cashier-etiquette only because I used to be one. Good times!

The Evolution of our Living Room Space.

I know I'm not an interior decorating guru or anything--nor do I participate in any remote form of Feng Shui--BUT I changed our living room around again. And I think that this arrangement just might be THE ONE. Yes, the one. The one that will stay for months and months to come.

Let's go way back, shall we?

After Jarryd and I got married in June of 2014, we moved into an above-garage apartment. It really did constitute as one of those apartments you "have to have" in your first year of marriage in order to get the full newlywed experience. {That's one positive way of looking at it...Ha!} This is what out first apartment living room looked like:

{July 2014}

We hardly had any furniture, but the beauty of it all was that you're just so excited to be married and living together that you don't even care what your apartment looks like.

But hey, weren't we just so creative with our American Flag casually draped over our rocking chair? Haaaa!

And then we rearranged and decorated for Christmas holidays:

{December 2014}

This look quite bachelorpad-esque, don't you think? Like, it has absolutely no personality to it. There's nothing in there that looks like "Jenny", and that's a sad, sad truth to swallow.

{March 2015}

 And now we're gettin' somewhere! We finally had enough money to buy a coffee table (which was much needed), and an area rug. And I painted our "tv stand" and end tables white! And we finally put up some wedding photos on the wall! (I sure do miss all of that natural lighting coming in through all those windows!)

{August 2015}

This was right after we moved into our current apartment! Yay! Just gettin' settled.

{October 2015}

We bought a futon for our second bedroom, but because we needed more seating available in our living room we decided to move it out here...

{February 2016}

 Put up some nice pictures on the walls and organized the tv stand! In regards to this arrangement, even at the time we weren't crazy about it. It just felt too crowded.

{April 2016}

There was even a short time where we put our desk in front of the window. That was quite nice, but the room STILL didn't feel right. (Perhaps I am more into Feng Shui than I thought?!)

{July 2016}

We bought new end tables, moved the desk around, put the coffee table by the window, and replaced that horrible dirty "floral" rug with a beautiful white sheepskin rug. {Let's see how long we can keep it white for!}

These two photos above were the photos that I had just showed you in my "One Year Apartment Anniversary" Blog Post (that you can click here to read), and literally the week after I took these, I changed up the living room AGAIN!

Are you ready to see what our living room currently looks like right now?? YAY me too!

{September 2016}

Because I knew that my family was coming to visit soon, I wanted it to look more put-together. So I went on a huge IKEA and HomeGoods haul. Well, I don't know if HUGE is the correct word to use because I didn't spend a crazy amount of money or anything, but I did buy a noticeable amount of home decor {just enough to spruce things up a little!}.

Also, at this time when I went to IKEA, I arrived just under an hour and a half before they closed. Talk about PANIC MODE. A person needs at least 3 hours at IKEA, right?! There's so much to consider and ponder {and admire}!

 Yep, we finally filled that empty wall!

 The two silver frames and the world map in the middle are all from IKEA. The world map definitely wasn't an impulse buy, as I had been eyeing it online for awhile! ;) The photo to the right is my FAVOURITE photo from our engagement shoot. We even had it on the back of our wedding invites.

 And this lovely photo was taken at, duh, DISNEYWORLD. It's where we took our honeymoon and I wouldn't have traded that experience for the world! It was SO fun!

There is ALOT of IKEA in this photo. The large palm plant was on sale for only $11. I was so hesitant to buy it because, I don't know...I KILL plants. But I thought, hey, as long as it survives up until my parents leave then that'll be fine. And now, almost a month later it's still living!

Also the framed greenery art is from IKEA and so is the cactus, and the two plant holders. :)

So I found this sultry soft sheepskin at HomeGoods for a way better price than the one at IKEA! It was only $16.99 and it feels amazing! I honestly used to loathe this rocking chair, I kept asking Jarryd to just throw it out and get rid of it somehow someway. But once I laid the sheepskin on it, I've been totally smitten and now it's my favourite place to sit. Actually, it's where I'm sitting RIGHT NOW as I type!

You would not believe how much a room changes once you stick a giant plant in it. Buying that plant was probably the best home decor decision I had ever made!

It felt almost surreal having my family here, in my living room! You get so used to having them live millions of miles away that you just can't picture them sitting in your apartment! And the awesome part is that both of my parents said that we did a great job with decorating the place! Yay what a compliment! :)

Anyway, I love our apartment and I love coming home to it after a long day at work {especially when it's clean! haha!}. SO, what do you guys think?? I'd love to hear your opinions! :)

Dearest Future Self,

August is almost over, I repeat, August is almost OVER. This is absolutely crazy!!
For the past two (or so) months Jarryd and I have been planning my family's trip out to Maryland; most of our energy has gone into anything and everything relating to their visit from  grocery lists, to bed/sleeping situations, itinerary, activities, places to see, and what baked-goods to make.

You spend all of the days leading up to their arrival just planning like crazy--striving for it to be perfect; and then after they leave you say to yourself, "hmm, now what? My brain is oddly quiet right now".

I doubt most people get as excited about their parents' visiting as I did this last time around. The last time I saw them was at Christmas and that was up in Canada! So this time, they flew all the way out here to beautiful Maryland. I'm tellin' you, it is SO cool when your two worlds collide (those being my Canadian world and my American world).
FINALLY my family got to see our new apartment and just see how we live our life here in general. The last time they were out here in Maryland, Jarryd and I had been married a little over a month, so that hardly even counted. We weren't "settled in" at all!

They left to go back home to Canada on Sunday and ever since then I've just felt nothing but thankfulness. I mean, I'm thankful to God all the time for my life, but recently it's been an overwhelming thankfulness. Being with my family again reminded me of how blessed I am to have been raised by two of the most amazing people I've ever known. Through them, God has given me an incredible 25 years of life, experiences, and adventures.

Everytime I look back at photos of myself that were taken on all my adventures in Canada, Europe, USA, ect, I try to read my face as best as I can; I look for any indication, ANY slight indication at all that I'm grasping just how good I have it. So often I want to go back in time, stand before myself, reach out and shake my own shoulders screaming, "do you know how amazing your life is right now?! I don't think so because I remember when this photo was taken and how you weren't actually very happy at the time. Jenny, you are crazy for ever NOT being happy!".

Sigh. I see pictures of myself standing with all of my best friends and wish I knew then that I was probably never going to be in the same room with all of those wonderful people at one time again. I wish I knew then how lucky I was to have so many friends who lived just a few minutes from my house. Nowadays, making friends isn't so simple.

I see pictures of myself lying on the grass on our old farm and wish I knew then that one day I'd be living in an apartment situated between 4 major U.S cities, longing to have that much space to roam again. I often wonder if I'll ever have that much peace and privacy to myself ever again.

I see pictures of myself at my high school graduation and wish I knew then what an amazing chapter of life I was going through. I had finally graduated and I literally could go anywhere and be anything that I wanted to be--and all I wanted to do was rush through it. It's sobering to think how every single choice I made back then was so crucial and life-altering.

If I never would have felt so career-oriented and brave I never would have gone to University in B.C. If I never would have felt so longingly for a change in scenery/way of life/school dynamic I never would have gone to Germany for Bible school.
If I never would have felt so passionate about continuing my degree in Christian ministry I never would have gone to Bible school in Saskatchewan.
If I never would have had my own kitchen in my dorm room there where I realized how much I actually enjoyed cooking and baking I never would have applied to Culinary School in Ontario.
If I never would have met Jarryd during my time in Germany and committed to long-distance dating and later said yes marriage, I would have never moved to Maryland, US.
If I never would have moved to Maryland, I don't think I'd ever appreciate the beauty of friendship the way I do now. I don't think I'd realize how warm, friendly, and welcoming my home country of Canada really is. I don't think I'd fully appreciate to the extent that I do now, how wonderful it was growing up in a Christian community surrounded by a huge support system of friends and family. I don't think I'd truly appreciate how fantastic it is to meet a person so friendly and genuine, and to realize how infrequent these types of people come around (so when you meet one, make sure you hold onto them).

All of these choices and decisions I made based on feeling "at-peace" with it all, have led me to this place: 25 years old, married for over 2 years, living in an entirely different country, working as a cook, exploring the beautiful country of the US of A, and sharpening my baking skills by doing cake/cupcake orders. Sometimes I STILL can't believe where I'm at right now!

I bet, in 5 years I'm going to look back at this moment, this memory, and say to myself, "you had it SO good Jenny. Your life was incredible at 25. How could you not have been truly happy?"

And my future self is right! There's something exciting about where Jarryd and I are at right now. It's just the two of us, no kiddos yet, and no careers that have the "power" to keep us tied down to hanging our hats in one specific area. Truthfully, we could pack up and move anywhere right now. If we really wanted, we could hand in our two-weeks-notices at work tomorrow and pack up and move within the following weeks. We could live anywhere we want to. It's exciting and nerve-wracking and overwhelming and thrilling! To think, this time next year we could be living in another town, another state, or another COUNTRY even! OR, we could just be in this exact same spot a year from now, here in Maryland (which...truthfully...doesn't give me any butterflies whatsoever, haha!).

God places us right where He wants us, doesn't he? It's only a matter of opening your ears to what He has in mind. Right now we're just praying for wisdom and discernment. Praying to be active in our faith and to be aware of all opportunities He lays out for us. We're exploring our options and trying to grow in Christ in the meantime.

So dearest future self (30-year-old Jenny), I'm here to tell you in August of 2016, I am truly happy and am truly thankful. I have it so good, and I don't have it good because of anything that I've done, but because of what God has done! :) <3

Our Two Year Wedding Anniversary.

Apparently I have this tradition where I write blog posts for all of our many, many wedding anniversaries; all TWO of them! Haha!

In case you're new to this little corner of the internet, {my blog}, last year we celebrated our one year wedding anniversary in Washington D.C! Also known as, one of my favourite cities!!

Click HERE if you'd like to read/see it!

It's actually so amazing looking back at that blog post and seeing all of the photos from exactly a year ago. It makes you realize how fast the time actually goes... So much can happen in just one year. I mean, a year ago we were living in a different apartment, we only had one vehicle, we both had different jobs which were both only part-time, no benefits, no savings, and ect. According to society's standard of living we have come so far; but also according to our marriage relationship within our relationship with God, we've KNOW that we've come so far. We have loved each other and have forgiven each other more than ever before. It really is true what Brad Paisley said...you think you loved someone then.... but your love for them NOW is just beyond anything you ever dreamed! :)

Anyway! I want to say that Jarryd surprised me with this year's anniversary trip. I would reeeeeally love to say that...except I would be lying.

Originally, I didn't think we were doing anything for our anniversary. We didn't have a single thing planned, and with my job it's super hard to get days off with such short notice. So the Thursday before our anniversary weekend, Jarryd tears his hamstring at his softball game. We ended up spending the evening at the walk-in clinic. Oh what fun...

While I was in the waiting room and Jarryd was in another room with the doctor, he left his phone behind and when he got a text from someone, it showed all of his past messages. {Jarryd thinks that I snooped, but I really didn't, I swear, the messages were all on display!}

"CONGRATS on your booking with Airbnb!!"

Jarryd surprised me with an Airbnb?!?

After reading that text I felt high with a rush of excitement, which then quickly descended into a low as reality sunk in.

We can't do anything or go anywhere with his leg in this condition. :( Of course, the one time we have a romantic weekend getaway planned, we can't even go. Sigh...so there goes that. Hope he can get a refund...

Plus, I already had plans with a friend the next day and I didn't want to have to cancel on her. But this whole hamstring business was sure wearing me out and the temptation to cancel was definitely there. I then received a text from my friend, who has just cancelled on our friend-date night. Hmm.

I decided to "play dumb" to Jarryd about the whole thing and keep my lips sealed. When Jarryd and I drove home from the walk-in clinic, he said how frustrated he was with the timing of his torn hamstring. {Funny enough, he's saying all of this with a half-grin on his face}.

Caving, I say "I think I know what you're talking about..."

And in true LOUD-American-Jarryd-fashion he yells: "YOU SNOOP! You snooped my phone! I knew I shouldn't have left my phone with you back there!!" Hahah! {It was hilarious}.

He said that he did the Airbnb booking the other day right in front of my face too; granted, I was in the middle of photographing a cupcake order so I was WAY in the zone of my own little cupcake world. He also said that he was going to pack a suitcase of my clothes and hide it in the trunk of the car. Aww!!

Later, I told him how my friend cancelled on me, and Jarryd said "Yeah, I told her to do that...so that we could leave for our anniversary trip right after work on Friday!"

"WHAT?!?" I was actually quite impressed with his deviousness. ;)

But my excitement levels remained slim, as I really didn't think we were going to go. If he could hardly walk, what was the point of going on this trip?!

THANKFULLY, the next day he could walk just slightly more normal...so we packed our bags and went on our way.

YAY! Finally a weekend away from our home and out of the norm! Just the two of us. :)

OH yeah, we spent our weekend in Honey Brook, Pennsylvania. The land of Amish, rolling hills, gorgeous farmland, and Smorgasbords. Mmmm!

Following an Amish buggy or two here in PA is a normal occurrence. I just love the "clip clop" sound that the horses feet make.

Here was the outside of our Airbnb {we stayed right up there in the attic. See it??} For those of you who don't know what an Airbnb is, it's a private space in people's homes that they can open up to travellers. It's a unique and personal alternative to staying in a hotel. {And also most of the time it's cheaper!}

Ugh, love the exterior.

Here's the door to our little weekend abode. How cute, right?!

The view as soon as you enter. HEART EYES to everything!!!

They had this pillow there and I just fell in love. In case you live under a rock, it's "Good Night" in German. I'm German, so you can imagine my excitement; anything familiar is something to celebrate when you're living in a foreign country.

:D

My face!! It's as if I just discovered the most beautiful thing.

I LOVE the gold XOXO on the brick. I think everyone's house should have at least one brick wall. I wish!

Complete with a little wood stove!

The rustic door to the bedroom. Some may say it's a door that needs a fresh coat of paint, others would say it's rustic and charming. 

This bed was actually SO comfortable. And the best part is that we slept 11-12 hours in it our first night there. I haven't gotten that much sleep in MONTHS. It was absolutely glorious!

Another view, with a ladder to the loft. Who knew that attics had room for lofts? Not I.

My husband, pretending to be a guitar player. "This sounds good, therefore it must be a chord!"

The dining room! How quaint!! Also, you'll notice that to your left is a decorative sign that says "Taste and See That The Lord is Good"; there are little hints all over this place that show our Airbnb hosts are Christians. We felt right at home. :)

This place had so many skylights--it definitely made it so nice and bright!

I just loved this plant! I could see myself adopting it...

The lovely little kitchen--that we didn't even use. But that's OK, kitchens are my life 100% of the time, so it's nice to have a few days away from it.

And that door right there past the kitchen is the bathroom. I did not take any photos of the bathroom, as it was pretty standard. My apologies to those of you who were on the edge of their seats to see the big bathroom unveiling!

Our Airbnb hosts left us a little "Happy Anniversary" note on the kitchen counter along with roses, which I thought was really sweet. :)

I would buy this rug. I REALLY WOULD!

Cute little shelves. Overall, I probably wouldn't decorate my own home with most of the little pieces in this place, as it's not exactly my style; but it totally worked for a little attic suite. We truly loved this abode and our hearts definitely sank when it was time to leave.

After we got settled into our Airbnb, we decided to go on a hot date to Victory Brewing Company! Jarryd and I love going to brewery's! It's fun ordering flights of beer and testing out the unique concoctions.

Kettle chips for appetizer!

You can't tell in this picture, but I ordered the shrimp tacos and that was the best shrimp I've EVER had. It didn't have a rubbery texture in the slightest; it was cooked absolutely perfect. Gordon Ramsay would be pleased. ;)

So after getting our 11+ hours of sleep that Friday night, we woke up on Saturday morning SO excited to check out the local thrift store we passed on our way into town. {Well, I don't know how excited Jarryd was, but I sure was!!} After enjoying a cup of coffee together in our cute little dining room, we took off for the thrift store, only to see a big "CLOSED" sign. They close at 12 on Saturdays. Pfft! Worst hours ever, right?

Mini golf in Lancaster, PA was calling our name!!

Fun fact: American water is substantially bluer than Canadian water. Haha jokes! This water was reeeeally blue, like it was almost scary...

I'll have you know that I was winning for the first 9 holes. And then I lost...ugh. Ah well, it was still a good time! Note to self: always eat before playing mini golf in the hot hot sun, so you don't feel like fainting half way in.

WYEBROOK FARMS! So, the only reason we heard about this place is because our friends signed us up for a Martha Stewart Living magazine subscription {as I joke I think?! If so, jokes on them because I love it!!!}, and in one of the issues was a piece on this farm started in the 19th century just off the Brandywine River. They have their own market and restaurant where all of their meats, cheeses, and vegetables, ect come from their farm. So cool! We just had to go!

I get a little too excited every time I see Canadian Geese because, well, you know why. :)

We went for a little walk on this farm and it was oh-so peaceful and incredibly beautiful! Even the smells didn't bother me one bit; it all only reminded me of the farm I grew up on.

Pigs really are dirty animals...

Jarryd's unintentional cowboy stance.

Pigs have the cutest little pink snouts though!!

And the ugliest bums...

This farm was so gorgeous!!

A few of the farm house. How cute is that couple to the bottom left? 

My Jare Bear and I. <3 Apparently he's the biggest Nationals fan ever? (?!)

A photo of the restaurant before it filled up. There is sheepskin at every table!! I was SO in love!!

The view from where our dinner table was. I'm so happy I got that bird in the shot!!

We visited the goats after our meal. Unfortunately there weren't any baby goats, or "kids" as they say.

Feeding the goats the "greener grass from on the other side". I was sooo in my happy place.

:D

The beautiful farm house once again. 

That evening we decided to go see Finding Dory in IMAX 3D! It was AWESOME!! Honestly, if you liked the first one you'll definitely like the second one! It had some pretty funny scenes.

After sleeping our second {glorious} night in our little Airbnb, we packed up our bags and headed back to our real life in Maryland. It definitely weren't ready for our mini-vacation to end. Real life gets tough sometimes. Tough and tiring. Truthfully, I don't like waking up at 5 AM and I don't think I ever will. ANYWAY, one of the ladies from my Bible study group had 4 tickets to the Baltimore Orioles game that Sunday and she gave them to me!!! Because it was Father's day we decided to take Jarryd's parents. Baseball games are so much fun!!!

That evening we celebrated with a nice big ole' bushel of steamed, extra-Old Bay seasoned crabs at the in-laws. An amazing little fun fact is that I have lived here in Maryland long enough to recognize amazing seafood and not-so-amazing seafood. This bushel of crabs were good, but not nearly as good as the bushel we had last summer. I just think it's amazing how far I've come since I first moved here!! :)

So that was our second anniversary weekend! It was a perfect contrast from our first anniversary weekend, because as I said earlier, we went to Washington D.C and that was nothing but city city city! And this was pure Amish, and countryside, and farm. It was just fantastic!

Although the weekend wasn't a TOTAL surprise, the things that we did and the adorable little place where we stayed was a complete surprise. So in conclusion, Jarryd is the best! :) <3

I can't even imagine what our third anniversary weekend will have in store for us!!