I'm Back & What's Been Happening

I'M BAAAA-ACK! ..... Again :P

I promise that I will get out of the habit of going on long hiatuses as soon as humanly possible. But it has been a very busy & productive summer! Trust me, when I first came back from a long absence, I intended to stick around, but maybe a week later some real-life stuff happened and I thought "Oh... Guess I'm going to end up disappearing again XP

Tbh, I'm not 100% back yet - due to one of the things that I'm about to tell you about very shortly, I can't really start blogging about fun things in full force just yet, but I promise you that it's going to be happening soon. Since I haven't been around to blog too much about my summer in detail, I thought I'd share the highlights with all of you in this little catch-up post :) So here we go, starting with the biggest event.

#1: I'm Moving!

It's the end of an era - a 19 year-old era to be specific. That's how long I have lived in my current home that I share with my mother and my 8 year-old adopted puppy Rocket. I was 5 when I moved in here 19 Septembers ago, and the time has come for a big change. I will continue to live with my mother, but the three of us will be moving in to my grandmother's house early this fall. For a number of reasons, we've decided that my grandmother could use some extra company, so we've spent the majority of this summer packing up everything in the house and getting it ready to sell. We're nearing the finish line, but there still some work to be done (including packing up my entire bedroom, which is terrifying to think of XP )

#2: I Turned 24!

On August 19th, with the help of my amazing boyfriend Kurt, I got to experience the best birthday that any geek girl could ask for. Ever since I was little, I have always loved my birthday, and enjoyed making a big deal and celebrating every year possible, unlike most people I know who would rather not observe their own birthdays at all. But Kurt shared in my enthusiasm and helped me have the exact day that I had imagined :)

First, the day before my birthday, he showed up at my house with this gorgeous flower arrangement (he knows orange is my favorite colour), and after midnight had passed, he couldn't wait any longer to give me my gift, which was a brand new board game (it was 7 Wonders, in case you were curious - we've already played it and it's a lot of fun!). The next day, after breakfast, we set out to make my own birthday cake - specifically, we baked 37 cupcakes and decorated them to look like the game board from Settlers of Catan! They turned out so adorable, not to mention delicious, and the both of us had so much fun making them.

One of the sheep we made out of white air heads, icing, and candy eyeballs. The little curlicue was a complete accident, but isn't it so cute?! If you'd like me to write a post about the entire process of making these Settlers of Catan cupcakes, let me know in the comments and it shall be done!

A while after the cupcakes were done, I got dressed in my pretty birthday outfit (which I refrained from wearing while we were icing cupcakes) and headed out with Kurt to dinner at The Flying Saucer in Niagara Falls CA, one of my all-time favorite restaurants. For the evening, Kurt had pre-ordered tickets for us to enjoy a fireworks cruise, where we travelled on a boat close to the falls, then we got to watch their scheduled fireworks from right there on the water. 

We both got soaked, but it was still an incredible experience. I adore fireworks, and we had the best seats (metaphorically - we were standing on the top floor of a boat) in the house! Definitely my best birthday so far, and I have Kurt to thank for making it such a great day <3 birthday="" can="" favor="" his="" i="" on="" p="" return="" t="" the="" to="" wait="">

Annoying Required Disclaimer: Everything written below is my own personal opinion, and is not shared by the LCBO - I speak for myself and not as the collective voice of the company - there, done! :)

#3: I Got A Year-Round Part-Time Job!

A lot of you may know me as "That Kacie girl that always talks about working in a bookstore", but you may have forgotten that I had to leave that job last year when I moved to Toronto for 4 months to pursue a post-grad in Creative Book Publishing. Since then I've been job hunting behind the scenes, and I was encouraged by my boyfriend's mother to apply for a summer fixed term job at the company where she works. I ended up getting an interview, and later a job that would last from late May until Labour Day. I went through two 8 hour days of intensive training, and I did my fixed term at a very busy store in Niagara Falls CA - I got to work with some incredible people, and I had so much fun during my term. I realized pretty quickly that this is a job that I loved.

Pre-Shift Selfie!

Here's a little info about what my job actually is, for those who don't live in Canada - the LCBO, aka the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, was originally the only place in Ontario where you could buy most alcoholic beverages. It's only been recently that grocery store have started carrying various beers and ciders (and wines, come December 2016). The liquor laws in Ontario are very strict, which is why I had to go through so much training before I could work at any LCBO store. 

I've learned a lot during my fixed term - a LOT a lot, because I don't often drink and knew basically nothing about alcohol when I went into this job. Long story short, after my fixed term came close to ending, I received a phone call offering me a year-round casual position at another Niagara Falls store - one that is supposedly even busier than where I've previously worked, and with way more tourists! I haven't had my first shift at my new store yet but I'm really looking forward to it :)

#4: Charlie Turned 1 Year Old!

Not only is my little nephew adorable, but he is now one year old! He turned 1 in early August, and my brother and sister-in-law had me, my mother, and my boyfriend over for a little hang-out on the back deck. He's gotten so good at pulling himself up, and after his birthday he's learned to walk, and is even attempting to run (which results in a lot of face plants, but he's good and getting right back up again).

My mother and I got him a Little Tykes farm play set for his gift, which includes a bunch of farm animals, and even a little farmer that looks like Charlie! AND, because I have to maintain my position as his weird aunt, I also got him some more exotic animal figures to go in his farm - specifically, a seal, a rhino, a zebra, a flamingo, and a camel! Aren't I the Best. Aunt. Ever?! XDD

I can't believe this little guy is 1 year old already! It seems like yesterday when I was rushing from Toronto to St. Catharines after doing interviews in order to get back home in time to be there when my first nephew was born. FYI I made it with plenty of time to spare, and got to hang out with everyone in the waiting room while little Charlie Terence Cruise was being born. Since then I've gotten to babysit him a lot and I continue to marvel as I watch him grow and change into this amazing little person. With everything he learns, from babbling to crawling to actually walking around (which still baffles me!), I start to imagine how much fun it'll be to teach him how to build forts in his rec room, and getting to help him with his first book report (I'm thinking I should get him to read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, what do you guys think?!) and I can't wait until he's able to talk and I just get to listen to him tell me all about his day.

Also, I can't wait to get him into watching Hamtaro, because REASONS! XDD

That's all of the BIG lift updates that I have to share with you guys. Since all my crafting, snail mail, and writing stuff is packed away, I'm at the mercy of this move before I can really do anything worth blogging about, but I promise to try and keep you guys updated and not to drop off again until I'm settled in at my grandmother's place. As always, I'll be keeping you posted! :)