Beautiful Days!

We have been having the best weather here this past week. It's been great. It's so warm, in fact, that we went to the beach on Saturday. We didn't go into the water past our ankles, but that's 'cause it's the Atlantic and it's COLD!!

It's been so nice and warm that I made a batch of home-made strawberry ice cream! It turned out very good (I think). I bought the strawberries from our local farm stand and I milked a cow for the cream (just joking- about the cow). This could be a bad combination though: pregnant woman with ice cream maker. I'm considering what my next flavor should be, either peanut butter with peanut butter cups OR peach. Any suggestions?

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. Like I've mentioned already, the weather's been great, so we spent most of it outside. We watched "Pan's Labyrinth" on Friday (not for the weak-hearted) and then Saturday, we headed to the West Hampton beach to enjoy the sun and sand. Sunday, we went into New York to meet up with our friend, Liz. We had a great day there. We went to MoMA for the afternoon for FREE!

Here's Liz and Jason in the garden at MoMA.

One of the displays in the Design and Architecture section of MoMA.

Just a picture of the Empire Building.

Monday, we helped out at our church, giving out free pop (out here- it's called "soda". I guess people in the Mid-West call it "pop") to people who were marching or watching the Memorial Parade.

We just bought our first BBQ. So, we have been cooking on it regularly, it's great. I think it's a necessity for the summer.

Other necessities for the summer:
-Body Shop body butter KEPT IN the fridge
-home-made ice tea
-a fan
-ice cubes, lots of ice cubes
-a nearby beach/body of water
-sunglasses
-flip flops
-ice cream (in any form, on a stick, in a cup, on a cone)

Big Changes and Little Changes

Well, I know that I have been pretty bad about blogging lately. We recently had Jason's mom and dad out visiting us. We also had some friends from Cambridge visiting. Finally, I was in Alberta for 10 days, visiting friends and family.

As the title suggests, there has been some big changes and some smaller changes as well... the biggest (and smallest) change is that I have a new neice! Her name is Emery Janae and she was born on May 6th. Here's her picture.


I was able to meet her five hours after she was born! I flew to Calgary and drove up with my mom the day before her birth. My welcome to Alberta? Driving through a snow storm on the way to Edmonton. Unbelievable.

Another change that we have experienced at the Olfert house is the shaving of Jason's beard. He has had that thing since September and now with the warmer temperatures and his favorite teams out of the NHL playoffs, he decided it was time to shave...

Before

After

And in between...

Here are some pictures from our trip to Washington, DC with Jason's parents. Here we are at Arlington National Cemetary. It's the cemetary where JFK is buried and the Unknown Soldier's memorial is here as well. We had great weather in Washington and saw lots of cherry blossoms on the trees.

Here's a picture of the White House. We couldn't go inside but we were able to tour the grounds and see the gardens.

At the WW II war memorial.

There were so many beautiful flowers there.

There's Abe.

Korean War memorial.

Iwo Jima memorial.

Capitol Hill.


An artistic attempt.


Here's a picture of Jason, working in an airplane. See kids what you can do after you get your PhD! This is Jason testing out his sensor that he has been working on. His research group is going to be flying over Oklahoma City this June, gathering air samples. This is a test run.

The Cheap Train Ride

On Saturday, we caught the train into NYC to spend the day with our friends Chris and Tara. We got a deal on our train tickets and thanks to Jeong, who lets us know about this discount, our tickets were only $6.50 each (normally $19.00).

The weather was great on Saturday, sunny and mild. We were lucky and beat the Nor'Easter by a day. You may have heard of the big storm that hit New York and the North Eastern coast over the weekend. The storm was apparently a 'Nor'Easter', which I am going to assume means a North Eastern wind was causing the storm. It's certainly took on a life of it's own. There was so much flooding in this area.

Here are some pictures of our day with Chris and Tara. These ones are all taken in Central Park.





I finally got into this tea shop that I have been trying to get in to everytime I've gone in to NYC since Christmas. There was always a 45 min. wait to get a table. So, finally, this time we got in after waiting 10 mins. It's kind of a girly place, so a big thanks to Chris (and Jason) for allowing me to drag them into a place that serves finger sandwiches and was hosting a bridal shower in the back room. This place serves the best scones, so I know they didn't suffer. Warning, if you do come to visit me, I may drag you to Alice's Tea Cup.

From tea to hockey....

On Monday, we went to an Islanders playoff game. They lost, but it was still pretty fun to be in an atmosphere like that. The fans got a little out of control at the end of the game. Due to a bad penalty call, the fans were littering the ice with bottles and cups to show their disagreement with the call. I think we will stay away from going to anymore games this season because every game we have gone to, the Islanders have lost.

My obstetrician is a big hockey fan so I am now having dreams (or maybe nightmares) about him and Jason discussing hockey while I'm in labor. At least the playoffs with be done then.

Easter Birthday

That's it- I'm officially 29 years old. This year, I celebrated the date of my birth on the same date as the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Obviously, one event had significantly more of an impact on the world than the other event, but it was still a good birthday. Not a GREAT birthday though. No, unfortunately, last year's birthday is still overshadowing this year's celebration. Last year, I was in Egypt, exploring ancient temples and relaxing by the pool in the desert sun. This year, I spent the morning at church and the afternoon, studying in my kitchen.

Here's a picture from last year's birthday in Egypt. We went to a Korean restaurant for dinner.


But, the afternoon of studying paid off, because I passed my nursing exam! I just got the "unofficial" results today. I am so relieved. There still may be a chance that I will work in this country before I have this baby! I didn't feel so confidant when I left the exam on Tuesday. I had left my house with PLENTY of time to get there, but of course, traffic was horrible and then I missed my turn, twice. So I showed up with pink cheeks and out of breath. Then, the exam went really quickly. The length could range from 75 to 265 questions (depending on how you answer your questions) and you have 6 hours to write it in. Well, I was out of there in 1 1/2 hours and my brain was spinning. I thought I would have an idea of how I did, yet I felt completely confused and unsure of how I did.

Other exciting news- I got tickets for "Live with Regis and Kelly" at the end of the month! I had applied to go with Irene and Esther, when they were visiting. But, only two dates worked when they were here, so the third date I gave was a date in April, when Jason's parents are here. So, it's going to be me, Jackie and Irwin in the audience on April 26th. Make sure to check it out, spot us in the audience and listen for Irwin's laugh!

Colds and Friends

Well, all my visitors have left and now I am trying to study for my exam. We had a great time with our friends who came to visit. Carin and Marcus arrived last week from Sweden and stayed with us for a few days. We had the nicest day in spring so far, which we spent in Southampton, walking on the beach and looking at all the nice houses there. I think I even got a few more freckles. Here's a picture of the cute couple. They are on their way to Guatemala to visit Marcus' dad and take in Holy Week down there. That should be an amazing experience.


After Marcus and Carin left, my friends Irene and Esther arrived from Lethbridge. But (as the title of this blog suggests), I came down with a wicked cold, I even lost my voice for a day! Luckily, there was a day and half break in between our friends coming, so I was able to rest my body and my voice and somewhat recover. What a pain! I haven't been sick all winter and the week that I need to be well, I get sick! Isn't that how it always goes?! Now, we are looking forward to Jason's parents coming for a visit in two weeks. Our spring seems to bring friends and family, which is great.

Here is a pregnant picture of me. As you can see, everything has GROWN, not just my belly. Oh well!


As for a name for the little fetus, we are going with the name "Beans" (only while it's inside me!) Beans? you ask. Well, there is a bit of a story behind it. First, the kid DID look like a little bean in the first ultrasound that we saw. Second, we took the name from this children's tv show called "Even Stevens", where one of the characters gets the nickname "Beans". Jason and I laughed so hard during that episode (it must have been EARLY Saturday morning) that it made an impact in our minds. So, when we were thinking of nicknames, "Beans" jumped into our minds (and into our hearts!).

Exams, excuses. etc.

New Baby!!

First of all, a big congratulations for Lisa and Nathan on the birth of Sadie Jane! Here is a cute picture of her at home- I can't wait to meet her!



First Excuse

It's been awhile since I've posted. My excuses? Well, I finally got a date to write my NCLEX (nursing exam). This is the last step in my pursuit of my nursing license in the States. So, I'll write my exam in the beginning of April and my excuse is that I'm now busy studying. Not that I am always busy studying, but it's easier to justify reading other people's blog while I eat breakfast than taking time to write in my blog.

Second Excuse

My second excuse is that we had some visitors last week stay with us. My friend, Sarah from university, and her husband and little girl. Looking back at my pictures that I took while they were here, I noticed that I didn't get one of Sarah, but all of the pictures have Lily in them!
We went to Southamptom for lunch one day and walked around the town. Sarah and I got immense pressure from one boutique to buy some "couture" baby clothing, which consists of baby clothes that cost way more than I would even spend on clothes for myself. We broke out of the store once we got a chance!


Here's a picture of Lily at bathtime.



We also ventured into New York on Friday, which is the day when we had a whole bunch of snow! I think it was one of the worst days that we have had this winter. But, we made it into Manhatten, popped up from the subway into Times Square, look at the Empire State Building, had a long lunch in a great Italian restaurant and took a long coffee break in Starbucks. It wasn't the best weather to see New York in, but Luc, Sarah and Lily were real troupers!

Third Excuse

I made my first baby blanket. It didn't turn out perfect, but I think it looks pretty good from far away! Here's a picture of it. (There are a few bunnies on it, just in time for Easter).



So, that's what I've been up to. We are getting more visitors next week, so there may be another break in my blogging, but after, I will post all of our adventures. My mom wants me to post a picture of me, showing off the pregnant belly. I haven't taken a great picture yet, but I'll post a pic soon. If you need a dose of adventure, check out Marc and Kylie's blog (link is on the right hand side). They have just moved to Kenya and they have been so good about writing about all their new experiences and new adventures! Enjoy.

The Passport

I have recently sent Jason's passport to Canada because it will expire soon. I had to send it to Jason's mom first. I decided to be wise and send it registered. Well, that decision resulted in a lot of stress. The passport package went missing for THREE WEEKS. Canada Post, USPS, nobody could tell me where the passport was. Finally, it showed up in Vancouver! I have a theory that this passport has done some travellin' around the world on it's own.

Ah, Ryan Smyth. Jason and I have been enjoying the recent addition to the Islanders' team. Jason received many unhappy emails from Edmontonian friends upset with the Oilers' loss. But, we have been encouraged by Ryan's arrival as the Islanders may now have a chance at the Playoffs. We got tickets for a game at the end of March- can't wait.

It's a baby!

Well, I know my sister-in-law has been waiting for me to blog this... we have a baby on the way! That's right, Jason and I are expecting to have a bundle of joy arrive on our doorstep in July. I had an ultrasound on Wednesday and I thought I would introduce you to our future family member by showing you a picture of him/her.



I'm a little partial, but I think he/she looks pretty cute. We aren't finding out the sex of the baby, so I think I'm going to have to figure out what I'm going to call "it" while it's in utero.
'He/she' is a bit of a pain to use constantly. Any suggestions?

Waiting for Spring

I am hoping March brings nice weather. I'm ready for it. The spring flowers in the stores have been catching my eye. These daffodils were beautiful (they didn't last very long though). I just bought some tulips on the weekend and they are cheering up my little home now.

I went to my first Pampered Chef party on Saturday. I was planning on buying very little, but ended up buying more than I had planned (I think this is why these parties do so well). My friend planned a Chinese New Year theme, so I learned a bit more about the culture and we got some Chinese food as well! The boys had their own party in the basement, with beer and darts. Very manly.

Yesterday was Presidents' Day down here and so we had the day to spend together. I think traditionally, you are supposed to go shopping. That's assumed from all the advertising on tv for Macy's, J.C. Penney's and every furniture store around. We had thought about venturing to IKEA but changed our minds when we noticed that they didn't have some tables we wanted (you can check their stock online- it's great!). So, we hung out at home and watched the Islanders' hockey game. It was probably the most exciting game they have played in awhile and they scored the winning goal with 30 sec. left on a breakaway. Yah! They might squeak into the playoffs still.

Fruit Salad and Friends

Well, I have good news, that my nursing application in finally moving along in it's process. Finally! It's on step two of three, so I'll keep you posted on the progress.

We had a great time on Sunday. Our small group got together at a couple's house for brunch. We had a great spread of food. I made a fruit salad with every fruit that I could find. Just a tip: the strawberries are disappointing right now. Just wanted to let you know if you are planning on a chocolate fondue anytime soon. The big hit at our brunch was Scotch Eggs. Keith made them from scratch. They were lo-ve-ly! I've had them before in England but never homemade. They are essentially hard boiled eggs, wrapped in ground beef and Italian sausage, then dipped in breadcrumbs and beaten egg and baked until golden.

On Saturday, we got together with some new friends and played Settlers. It's been MONTHS since we had played that game. Our last game was with our Aussie friends in England. Needless to say, Jason and I didn't win either of the two games that we played, so we will relentlessly play until we win again.

Here is a cute little picture of my nephew Lewis that Michelle just sent me. He is such a happy baby.

Superbowl Sunday

We had a fun weekend and the Superbowl on Sunday was the peak event. On Friday, we went out for dinner with some new friends. It was almost a blind date, because we hadn't met Kyle's wife and we had just met Kyle once. But, it was a lot of fun and we had a lot to talk about. They introduced us to a lively restaurant nearby and we discovered that they like playing board games, so we may have found some new Settlers partners.

Saturday, I went to a movie with a friend. We saw "Notes on a Scandal". It was interesting, there is a twist in there that I didn't know about before hand.

Sunday. The Superbowl. This is the first time I watched the Superbowl in the States, so I was excited to see the commercials. We had some friends over from church to watch it. This picture below is of Crystal, Louise and Sharon (Left to right). Sharon introduced herself to me at church, the first Sunday I was there and we just clicked. I've been really blessed to have met her.

This is a picture of Jason and Josh. Josh had a little "accident" on our couch.

This is Brian drinking mate. A big thanks to Stephen for supplying the special mate horn to drink out of. It's a cool Paraguayan thing that the Friesen family shared with us. And we are sharing it with our Long Island buddies.

I made these great pizza twists that were a big hit. Thanks, Rachel Ray! Writing about this weekend has made me realize how much God has blessed us with in our new lives in New York. The first few months after a move is always difficult, figuring out where everything is, finding new friends, setting up a new home. But, this last month, I've been realizing how many great people we have met and how this place is starting to feel familiar (in a good way).

Good Morning!

Well, I haven't posted anything for awhile. No good excuse really, probably watching too much tv! A big Happy Birthday! goes out to my bro and sister-in-law. Renny just turned the big 3-0! A very special birthday indeed (and she was working night shifts over her birthday) Here are some pics of the two special birthday people. These were taken last Christmas. For some reason, I hardly took any pictures this Christmas.



We had a great weekend. We got the opportunity to volunteer with our bible study group at a street mission on Saturday. We helped with the children's program. Did some singing, crafts and lunch was provided. I sat (of course) right in the middle of the trouble-makers, so I was trying to remember some Supernanny lessons while I was breaking up kiddie-fights. But, overall, we really enjoyed the experience and we were happy that we got to spend time with kids who really appreciated the extra attention.

Things with my nursing license are moving slowly. I'm trying to stay focused on studying for the exam I'll have to write. I think it keeps me from getting too frustrated about the time it is taking for everything to get processed. We now have friends coming to visit throughout March, so it might be nice not to work while they are here. We will see! It's so hard to believe that I may actually get to work one day.

Home from the Holidays

We have been home now for a few days. We had a great time in Canada; visiting, eating and relaxing. Here's a list of some of the things we were up to:

1)Christmas dinner with Jason's family, my family and my aunt, uncle, 3 cousins and my grandparents. A full house! Jackie did an amazing job of organizing, hosting and making most of the dinner. Here are some pictures of my nieces and nephew from that night.



2) Ate 'Christmas Morning-Wife Saver' on Christmas morning: my mom's specialty.

3) Opened presents two days in a row. Here's some pictures of Jason's family (and a princess that joined us that morning) opening up presents.


Jaina "helping" Grandma open her present.


Lewis, obviously not interested in presents this year.
Jason and Michelle, patiently waiting their turn.
At the Olferts' present opening, we open presents, one at a time, beginning with the youngest person and continue to the oldest. It's great because you can watch everyone open their presents and it makes the whole occasion last longer. The only problem is that in the last few years, we get another person added to the circle, so each year it takes a little longer. We have to take bathroom and refreshment breaks now. But it's still lots of fun.

4) Enjoyed a fire and weiner-roast in my parents' living room (fireplace).

5) Drove up to Edmonton to catch up with friends. Saw a friend's new baby and another friend's new house.

6) Watched the Oilers/Flames hockey game in Calgary on New Year's Eve. Watched the Oilers lose but got to spend the evening with Matt and Michelle and watch the game in very good seats courtesy of Jackie. Thanks again!

7) Had a New Year's fondue party after the hockey game with Jason's family. Went to bed at 12:10 am.


8) Had a delayed flight back from Calgary which gave us a few more hours to hang out at Matt and Michelle's place. Finally got home at 3:00am. Had a crazy taxi driver with a lazy eye drive us home.

Holidays!!

We are off to Canada tomorrow to celebrate Christmas and New Years with family. We are in Lethbridge for most of the time, but we are hopping up to Edmonton for a few days. For New Years, we are going to the Flames/Oilers game IN CALGARY! So, we will have to be brave fans and cheer extra loud for the Oilers.

We had a Christmas party last night with our new small group from church. We joined this group about a month ago and it has been so great to get to know them. They have really made us feel right at home in the group.

Well, I should go and start packing. Merry Christmas to everyone!

Things We Learned In NYC

We went into New York this weekend to do some Christmas shopping. Here is a list of things we learned while there:

1) Never get on an empty subway car. There is a reason why it's empty. Our car happened to smell like it had carried livestock previously. I can't even describe how terrible the smell was, in fact, I start to gag if I think about it.

2) You can actually see celebrities in NYC. We had our first celeb-spotting in New York. We saw Ethan Hawke walking in the Upper West Side, talking on a cell phone. Sorry, no pictures. You'll just have to take our word for it.

3) If it's cool, you'll have to wait. I had found out about this tea room that I wanted to go to for tea. It was cozy and quaint, and the scones looked amazing. And there was a 45 minute wait to be seated!

4) Hot dogs are serious food. In our "Not For Tourists" guide book to New York, a hot dog fast food spot is listed as a landmark. We stopped in at another serious hot dog spot for New Yorkers, Gray's Papaya, for the recession special. Two hot dogs and papaya juice for $3.5o. That may seem like a strange combo but it works.

5) Even Canadians can blend in to look like New Yorkers. We had a few people ask us for directions during the day. Maybe it was because we weren't waving our camera around or wearing "I love New York"...

We did take some pictures however. One of them is of the Canadian Lounge that I wrote about in a previous blog and the skating rink that is located in front of it in Bryant Park. There are also a few dinosour pictures as we spent the afternoon in the American Museum of Natural History.

Teas and Christmas Parties

I went to my first Ladies' Tea at church. I was a little hesitant, thinking perhaps it was a little too grown up for me. But it wasn't (I can be quite mature at times). It actually felt a little British, with little finger sandwiches, scones and china for the tea. And I'm pretty comfortable around the British stuff after living in it for 3 years. (The sandwiches looked better than these ones in the picture. Not sure how you make bread pink.)

We also went to a little party on Sunday with some friends from church. We played darts, which I haven't done for EVER! You may be surprised, but Jason and I actually got into darts quite a bit while we were in Edmonton. We would play at this scary pub on 99th Street. We even bought some darts of our own as well. But then we moved to England, and I didn't play at all there. But I did watch dart competitions while I was there (on TV). Who knew it could be so much fun to watch? I ended up winning two games and coming in second on the third game... not too bad for a gal that hasn't thrown in awhile.

I just finished a book I had been reading, "David Copperfield". It was really great to read. The way Dickens describes David's childhood is so funny. I was entertained throughout the whole book. I have now moved on to "Tom Jones", which I have only read the first two pages. It doesn't seem like it will be as easy of a read as "David Copperfield". I have a few books lined up to read and I love that. I also love this time of year, as it gets cold and the days shorter, as the holidays come upon us, it just makes me want to curl up on the couch and read all day.

But I haven't been reading all day long, I have also been sewing some curtains for our bedroom. They are made from king-size sheets, but I think they look pretty good. They block out the light, which is the most important thing. Next project, mittens- for the cold Canadian winter.

Winter Crowds

We went into New York City on the weekend to see the sights of Christmas in the Big Apple. We went to see Rockefeller Center's big, beautiful tree and skating rink. It was sooo crowded. And the line-up to go skating was insane! So, we just squeezed through to take a few quick pics and then moved on. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera (although I took plenty of pictures on my cell phone).

Another cool place we saw was Bryant Park. They had a huge outdoor festive market, a skating rink in the middle AND a temporary restaurant called 'Celsius'. This restaurant was described as being a "Canadian Lounge". It was a pretty cool-looking restaurant, which is a huge feat: to look cool in the middle of Manhattan! Made me proud to be Canadian. What was on the menu, you ask? Well, Canadian Cheese Fondue, British Columbia salmon, and much more (but I've forgotten).

We also walked through Little Italy (had a slice of pizza there) and China Town. Found out that China Town is THE place for cheap deals. Wish I could buy all my Christmas gifts there! We also walked over the Brooklyn Bridge, which was recommended to us. It was pretty cool. It took us about 15mins, stopping three times to ask for directions and doing a full circle before we figured out how to get ON to the bridge. But hey, if you ever want to walk over the bridge, we can show you the way. Oh, we also saw the Courthouse, you know, the one that is always in Law and Order. We were so excited for some reason. It doesn't take much I guess.

Oh Dreary Day!

Today is grey and rainy outside and all I want to do is stay inside. But, I can't. I need to make a 45-min excursion back to IKEA. I bought a bed from them yesterday and then we found out at 10pm that there was a piece missing, so we couldn't sleep on our new bed. So frustrating!

Today is the perfect day to read a book and drink hot chocolate. After talking to friends and family (and seeing pictures of snowy landscapes on a friend's blog), I am actually missing snow. I put my Christmas decorations up yesterday and now I feel that I need a little cold weather to go along with it. I hope to get my fill of snow when we go back to Canada for Christmas.

I finally did it. I have been meaning to do something meaningful with my time and I have had good intentions to do some volunteering for the last few weeks (but it's taken some time to work up the courage). Yesterday, I finally went in to the hospital to drop off my application. I have applied to volunteer at a hospital that I would like to work at in the future. AND- they have a volunteer position that deals with educating cardiac patients. That would be perfect for me and help me make those all important connections with cardiology staff. I won't be starting until the end of January, but I would be thrilled if that worked out. Am I crazy for making myself spend more time in a hospital than I have already (and not get paid for it)?

December 1st- only 3 weeks until we fly home for Christmas! I've got some major shopping to do! Don't think that we are going to buy a Christmas tree this year. Does that seem Scrooge-like? I may just buy an artificial tree at the post-Christmas sales. That seems like the financially smart thing to do.