Date night

Pretty modest bowling shoes eh? They didn't dare cramp my style.

My dress looked neat in the glow-in-the-dark lights.

Last night A and I went on a date night. Lately we've been doing our own "date night" for one another once a month. One of us plans an evening or afternoon for the other person and all the details are kept a secret! So far we've only had one each but they're really fun. It's a nice experience planning for the other and also great to not know what's going on, especially if you're usually the planner in the relationship. So, for A's date night I made plans for us to grab some Indian food and go bowling! We both love Indian food and this spot we went to was amazing. I had heard that this place was really popular on weekends so we arrived early but there was still a sizeable line outside of the restaurant and almost around the corner! I could talk in length about how disorganized and frustrating this process of waiting in line was (especially since you wait in line next to people's tables while they're eating, completely crowding their space) but I won't because everything else was really great. This restaurant is a BYOW with no corkage fee, one of my favourite things about Montreal and the food was top notch and reasonably priced! We ordered one eggplant dish that blew us away and my usual favourite okra dish was superb. We ate to our hearts content and had an excellent time.

Next we headed to a bowling alley which was once again packed but we were able to snag a lane. It was glow-in-the-dark and super hilarious. Glow-in-the-dark always makes me laugh and I love how elements of people's outfits or face suddenly stand out so much more, its really cool. Alex was a real champ and got so many strikes I lost count. I'm pretty sure the lanes were slanted or something, it was getting a bit ridiculous! Although, I didn't do so well so who knows!

All in all it was a successful date night. It's a really fun way to add some spontaneity to your relationship which isn't always easy to do. I can't wait to see what Alex plans for me in December!

Also, I took this photo on my walk home from school last week. All of the leaves are gone now but I feel lucky to have spent a fall season in this beautiful city. Now if only winter would settle in, definitely not enjoying this dreary in-between time.

flowers & valentines

I've been receiving some pretty awesome flowers lately from A, which has been really nice. The lilies pictured above smelt amazing and made our apartment so fresh! The second picture were my valentines flowers, they are gladiolus flowers and are such a beautiful poppy red. A also made me the sweetest card, a picture of a valentine he made for his mother 17 years ago, so so sweet. On valentines day we went to our favourite greek restaurant and had such a nice meal. The restaurant gave every lady a rose (A was mad that the men didn't get roses too, haha) and the food was, as usual, amazing. For an extra treat we went to a cheesecake restaurant next door for dessert. I got the white chocolate mint cheesecake which was delicious. All in all it was a great day! I even got a valentine from my dad which is a nice tradition, he loves to say that he was my first valentine.

Even though valentines day can be a bit problematic, due to its exclusive nature, it felt nice to celebrate and appreciate the love I have in my life. I hope to have many more like this one.

back?

Whoa so things have been very slow on here as of late, I apologize but is anyone really reading this anyways?

Since September A and I have moved into our new apartment and we are loving it. It feels like we've been here for years and the space is perfect for two people. Initially I was very worried about the lack of light in our apartment and the possibility of our plants dying, but they have survived and some of them have even thrived in their new spot!

I found two new jobs after deciding to give the social work job hunt a breather. It was causing me a lot of stress and was making me feel very depressed so I figured I would give it a rest. For a few months I was working as a chef in an Italian restaurant which was a huge change to the kind of work I usually do. It was a great learning experience and helped me to learn that the cooking lifestyle maybe isn't for me, I much prefer to be my own head chef and cook from home. Plus the hours were crazy, working mostly evenings does not make for a happy social life or relationship! Since leaving that job I've been working as a nanny with a family near by. This job is definitely not perfect, but it pays the bills and I have always loved working with children. I'm learning a lot about the responsibilities of being a parent and it has made me think a lot about how we will raise our children some day. What a crazy role being a parent is!

In December I applied for my Masters of Social work to three schools on a bit of a whim. A and I both decided that we are ready to leave Halifax and move on to different city and going to school would be an excellent opportunity to do so. I am not too optimistic about my prospects, because of my lack of social work experience but we shall see! If I don't get in to any of the schools we've decided to move to Victoria, BC and explore yet another province of this beautiful country. So really any option will be a nice and exciting change for us.

But perhaps the most exciting news for us are our travel plans. In May we are travelling to South America, Mexico and California for 3.5 months. It is going to be amazing and we are so anxious to explore new places, learn more about these countries and have some amazing adventures. The planning process has been a bit slow going but eventually things will all fall into place, we still have lots of time.

I just wanted to post about a few things I have been intrigued by lately.

First off, Anais Mitchell. Oh my! She is just lovely, I'm a little bummed I only discovered her recently but trust me, I am making up for lost time! Here is her awesome Tiny Desk Concert:

Also, I recently read this article and it blew me away. Some people are just so strong and astonishing. It's worth the read for sure.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/For-40-Years-This-Russian-Family-Was-Cut-Off-From-Human-Contact-Unaware-of-World-War-II-188843001.html?device=android

Recently the Banff Mountain Film festival came to Halifax and although some of the films were a bit disappointing in comparison to previous years, this film really captured me. These guys are hilarious and so brave (albeit a little naive/crazy). I would recommend seeing this film about their travels within Antartica if you get a chance, its a wild journey and it definitely made me feel guilty about complaining about -16 degree weather.

http://casandjonesy.com.au/expeditions/crossing-the-ice/

Also, A and I watched this movie today and all I can say is (excuse the language) MIND FUCK! A must see if you like documentaries with surprise twists!

 

Lastly, I've been reading Cheryl Strayed's Wild recently (for much too long actually, life just gets in the way sometimes... or excuses do) and it is amazing. It is getting me very excited to travel.

That is all. I hope I can post a bit more in the future, I do miss it!