No more blogging for me. Maybe in a couple years or something.
:)

A Long Time Coming

A week ago today I got a job. And the day before that, Jon got a job. Both are term positions, but we are SO thrilled! I may or may not have literally jumped for joy ;)
I am enjoying teaching SO much, and LOVE my students.

Here are a few pictures from the holidays. I had to include the one of me laughing...Ayii caught me mid-laugh at something apparently super hilarious, maybe even more hilarious than anything ever--yikes. I can't look at it without laughing. Thought my crazy face would make others laugh, too.
And of course my beautiful nieces. Jon and I got to babysit them one day, and it was a blast! Here Halle and Jon are making a snow fort and getting Kaylee to smile.
Basically, I'm feeling more positive and happy lately. And that's a good thing.

Cute Story

Jon's cousin, I"ll call her Molly, loves me. She also doesn't like her middle name (even though I think it is a cool middle name).

For a school assignment, she was to put together her "full" name on leaves, for a wall display in time for parent-teacher interviews. When her mom went for the meeting, she noticed something odd...Molly's name read like this: "Molly Jessica Hildebrand." I don't condone lying, but this is pretty cute.

Oh yeah. I've decided to write again. There was a (long) hiatus, with many unpublished drafts and erased posts, but I'm back for some more regular sharing! If anyone even checks this anymore, hello again.

J & J and J & J Outing

Our good friends Jenni & Joel took us to a mystery destination yesterday...which ended up being the St. Jacobs Farmer's Market! The drive there included a thunderstorm and lots of rain, but once we arrived, the sky had cleared and the temperature was perfect! We browsed the market, bought fresh berries and some baking, and had a picnic by a stream. After that we checked out some galleries/shops in the town. Such a fun day! Thanks go out to our lovely same-initialed friends for a memorable, relaxing, summery afternoon.

The Market

We love animals

Picnic!

Nayler Time

Today we had our last set of Winnipeg (and Peterborough) visitors! My Dad, Ayii, and Grandpa came by for the afternoon. We sat and talked, and were treated out to lunch. Not many pictures were taken as we'll soon be seeing my dad and Ayii on a more regular basis (yay!) and Jon and I are visiting my grandpa one more time before we leave Ontario. "Not many" pictures does not "mean not any"...here's a photobooth shot of a few of us:

First family visit in Hamilton where I didn't cry after they left. Makes sense as we have only 20 days left here. CRAZY! My last day of work is this Friday...then we'll be cramming every last bit of Hamilton/GTA fun in as much as possible!

Plans

We now know when we are moving (and how we are moving) back to Winnipeg. After looking at different options (U-Haul, moving companies, train, etc.) we, or rather, our fathers, have come up with the most cost-effective way of return. Dad H and Daddy N are driving down together in Jon's parents' pick-up, and we'll be returning with a U-Haul trailer in tow! Road trip with the dads! They will arrive sometime on the 24th, and we'll be back in Manitoba on the 26th. This method is at least $1000 less than any other option--yay for saving!

So far, I've handed in my notice at work, and am doing what I can to get back in to the teaching world in Winnipeg. We're looking for apartments, and have some family & friends checking out some of the places we're interested in. Jon has finished the research part of his MRP, and is now organizing and planning before the actual writing part of the process begins.

As much as I am looking forward to life back in Winnipeg, I am not wanting to move!! I really love Hamilton, and feel so at home here. There is so much involved in moving back...and I am not as excited to move back as I thought I might be. In fact, if it wasn't for the whole Ontario non-teaching situation, I think I'd be really tempted to stay! That being said, there is a lot to look forward to in our return: FAMILY, re-connecting with friends, going back to Faithworks, teaching, and settling back into the city we so love...

So much more I could say about all the above, but I'll leave it at that.

Sister Shout Out!

Big congratulations to Janessa--she graduated on Friday with her B.A. in International Development Studies!! So proud of you. You are an amazing, beautiful, intelligent, caring individual who is doing great things, and will continue do great things in life. Love you!