WHOA lansi

francophile, oenophile, logophile, turophile

Tag: recap Page 3 of 7

February in Instagram

I almost decided not to post my February insta recap. The month kind of got away from me & I was feeling a little silly posting it so late. I really like reflecting on the month though, so here she is. Better late than never, right?

instagram_2016-03-012

  1. We’ve had an incredibly warm winter, so when Container Bar decided to open their patio-only bar & let Dandy Brewing takeover, we grabbed some friends & headed on over.
  2. Dad took me to the Flames game. We grabbed dinner before at National (buck a shuck oyster night!) & had a great time!
  3. N was home for the weekend. We celebrated Valentines Day with a beautiful dinner at a new British restaurant, Whitehall.
  4. Dad turned 60 this month! We celebrated his birthday with a lovely dinner at my parents house. Luckily N was home so we could all be there!
  5. I love giving friends babysitting coupons when they have babies. This little guy was a gem & we’d gladly watch him again any time.
  6. Brad Paisley came to town & put on an incredible show. He’s mine & N’s favourite country artist & is such an amazing performer.
  7. La Manzanilla. I have no words for that view!
  8. Beach days with N. We spent 9 days in what I can only describe as paradise. I got an ok tan.
  9. We were blessed with beautiful nightly sunsets, but I thought this one was particularly gorgeous. We had dinner at a beachside restaurant for a friends’ 30th & watched the sun dip low.

Hope March is treating you well! I’m working on some changes over here & on getting back on the blogging train. I still want to post about our anniversary in Kelowna &, of course, all about our time in Mexico. I’ll get there! haha

 

January in Instagram

February is finally here! I know that’s a bit of an odd thing to be excited for, but we booked a trip to Mexico for this month & have been waiting almost a year for it to arrive. So yeah, I’m pretty excited that it’s finally February.

January was an odd mix of stuff. With N working up north, I tend to spend the weeks he’s away working out & chilling at home (aka watching a lot of netflix). Then we cram a million things into the week he’s home. It definitely makes the time pass a lot slower while he’s gone & fly by while he’s here, but I think that’s inevitable. Anyway, here’s what we go up to in January according to Instagram:

Recently Updated

  1. Happy New Year! We rang in the New Year at H&Z’s house. It was a late night, followed by a very lazy to start to 2016.
  2. Have you heard of the Music Mile? 9th ave SE is home to some incredible music venues, & has even more in the works. Check out the website for events & venue information. Our friend, Brent Tyler put on a great show at the Nash Offcut Bar. Great venue, great music, & great company. I highly recommend checking it out!
  3. I’ve been getting in a weekly workout at YYC Cycle (sometimes two) & I can feel myself improving every time I get on the bike. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it. I have so many favourite instructors (Andrew, Alex, Neil, Mark…) at the studio, but if you’re a first timer – check out one of Mark’s. You’ll have a blast!
  4. Selfies at Crossroads. By far my favourite market in Calgary, I’m never disappointed with the selection (or the snacks I always find myself picking up from Eats of Asia.)
  5. I hosted my sister in law’s birthday at our house. We made a day of it & it was so much fun: morning spin, OEB brunch, drinks in the hot tub, pre-party at our house, & then Wurst to end the night. (We may have made a stop at Clive on the way home too.) Happy Birthday, little sis!
  6. I’m so happy with how well my handstands are progressing. Now I’m working on landing a front handspring on flat ground. My goal is to be able to do it before our trip, but we’ll see whether that pans out. I’m SO close!! KSG runs an adult drop-in every Wednesday from 8-9:30 pm. It’s the most fun workout I’ve ever done & I definitely think you should all come down sometime!
  7. We’ve been having the most gorgeous winter. I’m sure it has something to do with global warming, but it makes my commute really lovely, so I’m not really going to complain.
  8. Our really good friend joined the military this month. I was lucky to be able to attend his swearing in ceremony. I’m so proud of him for going after his dream.
  9. It was this same friends 29th birthday this month as well. N & I hosted his Goodbye Birthday Party at our house. It was a potluck & everyone really stepped up their game. His pork belly contribution was the highlight for me, but there was so much incredible food! Well done, everyone! (& I miss you already, Alty!)

I love sharing snippets of my life on Instagram. If this is your jam, follow along @whoalansi for even more updates (& selfies…probably too many selfies).

December in Instagram

Ok, this has to be the latest I’ve ever posted an Instagram recap. I think I’m still playing catchup from the holidays. We’re back to reality now & N is back at work up North. I’m getting back into the swing of the whole part-time long distance thing. We’re in for a longer stint this time, I think. But enough of that, here’s how we rounded out 2016, according to Instagram.

1-New folder.jpg

1. I loved our real Christmas tree. We named him Carlos for no reason whatsoever. I turned the lights on at every opportunity & loved sitting in that front room, enjoying the glow from his lights.

2. My company Christmas party is always a good time & this year was no  exception. We ended the night in our typical fashion, on the dancefloor.

3. Had a girls afternoon at Market Collective. Festive Christmas drinks, a little shopping, & some girl time. I really need to make a point of getting to MC more often.

4. Sarah & I kicking off the family traditions with my parent’s annual cocktail party.

5. Annual Ski Trip group photo. N’s friends have been doing this trip since University days & it’s always full of shenanigans & fun. This year we did a Yankee Gift Exchange, which was a fun addition I’d like carry forward.

6. We did another Locked Room with our gymnastics coach & a few of her friends. We made it out of the video game themed room, but it’s such a blast whether you escape or not!

7. Enjoying a Christmas morning coffee in our onesies! This year, we spent Christmas Eve & Day with N’s family in Calgary.

8. On Boxing Day, we headed out to the lake for the weekend with my family. My parents got me a selfie stick, so I put it to use right away, of course!

9. One of the best parts of Christmas is catching up with Gaux. We had a little get together at our house the Monday after Christmas – a few drinks & catching up with everyone for the last time in 2015!

Hope your December was fantastic. I’ll be over here writing 2015 on everything for the next two months! Follow me on instagram for even more updates!

 

November in Instagram

Move over, November, it’s time for Christmas! I always feel that Christmas comes out a bit too early, at least commercially, but often feel alone in that sentiment. Can we get past Remembrance Day before breaking out the music & decorations? I was happy to see some comments on that subject this year, honestly. I mentioned in another post that I’m much more excited for the holidays this year than last & I attribute that to not being alone in enjoying November for what it is: the end of a wonderful season.

Here’s what we got up to this month:

1-instagram_2015-12-02

  1. Me & the beer table at Winterstart! We ran (well, I ran, N is injured) again this year with two friends. They were a little stricter with the beer this year, but it was still a great time!
  2. Our first Flames game of the year! We saw the Devils play the Flames in what turned out to be a really exciting game.
  3. I’ve been stalled on handstand progress for a while so when my press handstand finally started to come together this month, I was quite excited.
  4. Cuddling a friend’s new little lady. We have a few friends with new babies & I love getting to spend some time with them at this age.
  5. Mid afternoon hot tubs are my favourite. We’ve had quite a few chinook days & they’re so perfect for a dip!
  6. I wrote about the Christmas Market already, but I couldn’t resist including this photo again here. I highly recommend checking it out next year!
  7. Instagram is such a funny place sometimes. This festive photo got a lot of love on there this month. I walk this bridge every day, & I love how it frames the city. It’s even better all decked out for Christmas!
  8. We attended the second Meet, Eat, Compete & it was so much fun! H posted about it here. As much as I want to make sure I always have a spot for myself, I also think you should check it out. We played two new games this time & had a fantastic time!
  9. It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Beef delivery! Haha. This is the third year ordering from Grazed Right. Ben is awesome & his beef is delicious. We’ve got a couple new cuts to play around with & I’m hoping to order some extra roast (the steak is all sold out – he’s that popular this year!). We also bought a deep freeze so we have room for it all in our own house.

Follow along with me on Instagram @whoalansi.

& now on to December – I’m ready for ya!

 

October in Instagram

I have such good intentions on posting these recaps, but sometimes the days just get away from me. Anyway, better late than never! Here we go…

I think the game night was the theme of the month of October for us. We played board games more often than ever before – in part in an effort to host people in our new home (& save money), but also because we added a new game & two settlers expansions to our collection. N is obsessed & wants to play Catan all the time now. It’s become his go-to suggestion. Here’s what else we got up to this month, according to Instagram:

instagram_2015-11-04

  1. N bought the new expansion packs & immediately invited friends over to play that night even though we also had plans to play the following night.
  2. Gaux was in town for Thanksgiving so we got together at our house for drinks & then hit up the very cool Good Luck Bar. Cheap drinks & good music in a tiny space remind me of our party days at B Side in Montreal.
  3. We hosted Thanksgiving with both our families this year. N & I were in charge of the turkey, stuffing, & gravy, while everyone else brought sides. Thirteen of us squished into our little dining room for a delicious thanksgiving meal – I’m so happy for what a success it was!
  4. The sunrises on my morning commute were pretty spectacular this month. I managed to capture a few examples of the incredible colours we saw this fall.
  5. Obligatory voter selfie. I watched the election results from the lobby of the YMCA that night. What an interesting race this year!
  6. The very first Meet, Eat, Compete event at Nicastro’s pub was a great success. I can’t wait to try more games at the next event. Thanks to A Couple of Couples & Connect More for organizing!
  7. It’s been years since I carved a pumpkin, but considering we’d be giving out candy on Halloween this year it seemed fitting. Everyone’s pumpkins turned out great, if I do say so myself!
  8. Volunteering at the Drop In Center with my office, serving lunch to over 1500 people.
  9. Dressed up as Spartan Cheerleaders Craig & Arianna from SNL with my coworker.

September in Instagram

IG recently started allowing portrait, landscape, & square photos. Judging from this month’s recap, I have clearly been all over that. It certainly doesn’t make for the nicest looking collage, but I’m pretty excited to have options other than just square. I swear I still posted a few square ones – they just didn’t make the post!

Anywho, here’s what we got up to this month according to Instagram. instagram_2015-10-07

  1. Walking in the Pride Parade with some really awesome people. It was a chilly morning, but we had a pretty great turnout, nonetheless.
  2. The gold medal member shirts this session are wicked. I finally got into the Adult Gymnastics class at KSG, which means every Wednesday I spent 3 hours playing around, which means my handstands are getting a lot better.
  3. We took advantage of a beautiful weekend & explored the redeveloped St Patrick’s Island. The redesign revitalized this inner city space & made it somewhere I actually want to spend time!
  4. We bought a house! We like her. I made N take a photo with the sold sign one day before we moved in. It looks a bit like an ad for Camp Brand Goods.
  5. I volunteered on the Social Media Crew for Beakerhead, which was a pretty fun experience. If you missed out, fiery skee ball was one of the coolest installations this year. I highly recommend you check it out next year!
  6. In an effort to cut back our spending, we’ve been making an effort to stay in more. We love a good game night! We kicked this off with poker right before our move.
  7. Moving day! Thanks to our friends & family, moving went pretty smoothly. My parents got us this awesome sign as a housewarming. We think it’s pretty spot on.
  8. Monday morning takeout from OEB after a rough weekend. I wish we’d taken even more time off after moving, but at least we did breakfast right.
  9. My new commute has a slightly different view of the city & I am obsessed with it! I’ve already posted so many photos of it & I don’t see that changing. I’ve opted not to look up bus information & continue walking to & from work. It takes about 40 minutes, but I like the extra $100 in my pocket.

October is already looking like a pretty good month – we’ve got lots of game nights planned, a big Thanksgiving dinner at our house, & some fun parties. Mostly we’re really taking advantage of owning a house. It’s pretty exciting!

You can follow along with all my instagram posts @whoalansi.

August in Instagram

& just like that, August is gone. Seriously? Everyone is talking about fall & pumpkin spice & sweaters, but I’m still over here wishing my tan wasn’t fading & daydreaming of sunny patios. I love summer. Fall is okay too, but it doesn’t beat summer. Fall just means we’re one step closer to parkas & sorels & all that nonsense. My morning bike ride is getting chilly. I know it’s coming, but I’ve still got another few weeks, & I refuse to give in early.

We had a great August – filled it family, friends, & folly. (Ah I love a good alliteration…). Here’s what we got up to according to Instagram:

instagram_2015-09-03

  1. Camping at Big Valley Jamboree with N.
  2. Our BVJ crew in all our messy glory. This music festival was one of the craziest weekends I’ve ever had.
  3. Celebratory birthday dinner for my little brother, who isn’t so little anymore.
  4. I’ve known these girls since junior high, but it’s rare that we all get a photo together. We caught up this month over dinner at Anju. It was fantastic.
  5. Cheers to officially buying a house.(!!!!) After we removed the conditions, we grabbed a beer at Vancouver’s Granville Island Brewing.
  6. We are the three best friends that anyone could have. & we were so happy to celebrate Nikki & Dan as they tied the knot. I’ve known Nikki my whole life & am so happy for them. xo
  7. Enjoying the suite life at the El Dorado in Kelowna. Definitely a splurge – that hotel is fantastic.
  8. Touring the South Okanagan Wineries for our anniversary. I absolutely loved Culmina Family Estate Winery. Meeting Elaine Triggs was such a treat. She’s a very interesting lady & I highly recommend booking a tasting if you’re in the area.
  9. It was incredible to see the effect of the smoke from the Washington fires on every area we visited. The lake felt a little like Mordor.

Well, that’s it for August. Vacation has come & gone & it’s back to reality. We move at the end of the month so it’s gonna be real busy! Happy September, friends!

April in Instagram

Happy Cinco de Mayo! May? May is here! The weather has been fantastically spring-like. I can hardly believe our luck. Spring in Alberta is usually essentially Winter: Part 3. While I’m still expecting at least one more dump of snow, I really have no complaints with this year so far. April was pretty busy so I’m looking forward to what should a bit of a quieter May (& Summer). N has started a rotation in Fort McMurray so he will be working 14 days on/7 days off. I plan to hibernate a little bit. & eat a lot of salad.

Here’s what we got up to this past month, according to Instagram:

April

1. We spent Easter at the lake with my parents, ATVing, eating delicious food, & relaxing. I love spending time out there.

2. A friend of ours turned 30 & planned a “reverse surprise party”. It included a party bus, photos on McHugh bluff, & a Roughnecks game. #GarciaCat.

3. I’m attended the Calgary Expo as a volunteer on the Social Media Crew for Beakerhead. The Tin Fish was a big hit! Follow along on Social Media @Beakerhead.

4. I’ve finally started to clean out my old room at my parents’ house. I started with my wall of posters, Jones Soda labels, photos, & postcards. Goodbye young Usher.

5. Anju‘s “Poutine for your Seoul” was incredible. We shared a pre-game meal with some friends including this poutine, gochujang wings, oxtail tortellini, crispy tofu, & spicy octopus. Always a favourite spot for a great meal.

6. One canucks fan & three flames fans walked into a bar…everyone booed. haha. I always seemed to be working late during our playoff run in 2004. This year I’ve joined the crowds on the Red Mile twice to celebrate Flames’ wins!

7. Seven of us took on the Poutine Crawl this year. We had a great time sampling poutines from six different restaurants on a crawl around downtown Calgary. Delicious!

8. I used a new recipe from the Domestic Man on one of grass-fed Alberta roasts & turned out fantastic. You will not regret trying this one out!

9.  Kyle Shewfelt himself covered Adult Open Gym last Wednesday. He’s both  hilarious & knowledgeable. We learned so much & had a fantastic time. I can’t wait to practice more this week.

Happy Cinco de Mayo, friends! Grab a margarita, your Flames jersey, & cheer on the Flames tonight (after you vote, of course!).

March in Instagram

We were up at the lake for Easter Weekend so I took some time to catch up on blogging & photo editing. The photo editing went well, but the combination of a slow computer, large photo files, & slower than usual internet made putting a post together a pretty slow process. Blogger has been frustrating in other ways lately too. As much as writing your own blog code can be great, I’m looking to spend the bulk of my time writing. I’d also like an easier interface for working with photos. 
Keep an eye out for what I think will be some positive blog changes. In the meantime, here’s what we got up to last month according to Instagram!

1. We took advantage of the mild weather & borrowed N’s brother dog, Korra, for a hike up Sulphur Mountain. It’s a quick little hike up & in the winter you can ride the Gondola back down for free!
2. We celebrated our friend’s birthday with a centurion & an epic dance party.
3. I chopped a big chunk of hair off & for the first time ever, it’s shorter than D’s.
4. N & I had a beautiful lamb dish at Wine-Ohs for Big Taste this year.
5. Long runs are back! I also scored these wicked lululemon leggings & a cute top when my number was drawn during an evening of spin! The awesome pattern is a new favourite!
6. We joined a bunch of friends at Grape Escape again this year. We tried a lot of beer & wine, while checking out a bunch of food trucks!
7. Enjoying a Flames game thanks to my parents. Even though we lost to Dallas in overtime, I have no complaints about watching live hockey.
8. We took advantage of a very warm early spring day to sit outside at Container Bar. We’re pretty sure they ran out of beer, thanks mostly to our large table of friends.
9. Celebrating a friend’s 30th Birthday with a hike up Mount Lady MacDonald. She’s merciless, but the views are incredible. I’m excited to have checked another summit off our list so early in the year even if my legs have only just forgiven me.

Hope you got to spend some time with family & friends for the long weekend. Happy Easter!

February In Instagram

No matter what, this recap seems to sneak up on me. Granted, February is the shortest month,but it still amazes me how quickly time can fly by. We got up to a lot judging from my Instagram feed. The unseasonably warm temperatures have resulted in much less hibernation than usual. We got outside more than you’d normally expect. It’s a nice change, but I’m a little bit wary about what this means for our Spring & Summer. 

We also booked some exciting things. We’ve decided to go to Big Valley Jamboree this summer & we’re officially going to Mexico again next February. As we continue our house hunt & hold off on big trips, it helps to have a couple vacation plans to look forward to. 
Here’s what we got up to this month according to Instagram: 
1. Once again, we headed out to Panorama for a ski trip with some friends. Despite a rocky start, it was a great weekend. We even ventured into Taynton Bowl – a backcountry-style part of the resort I’d previously found intimidating. Overcoming that fear meant skiing some of the best powder & terrain I’ve ever encountered. 
2. Now that they’ve settled back into daily life after 3 months of travel, we presented our friends with a homemade (slightly risqué) calendar we made while we had access to their house.
3. H, Z, N, & I attended a wine tasting at Metrovino. We learned quite a bit & picked up a couple beautiful bottles of wine. This wine shop continues to impress me with every visit. 
4. N & I had a lovely Valentines Day. We started with oysters & cava at the recently opened Rodney’s Oyster House followed by an incredible dinner at Cucina. Their Chicken Liver Parfait is one of my favourite appetizers. 
5. I took in a Flames game with my dad. Always a fun way to spend an evening. 
6. N & I decided to take advantage of our proximity to the mountains & put our Banff Park Pass to use. Our first adventure was a leisurely hike at Johnston Canyon. It’s a bit icy due to our warmer winter, but still an easy hike with some unique sights. 
7. Another welcome addition to the food scene is The Nash, Michael Noble’s latest restaurant venture. N’s brother got us a gift card for Christmas so we decided to check it out with some friends. A week later, I’m already looking for an excuse to go back (despite it being a definite splurge).  
8. H & I got a sneak peek at some of the eggcellence going down for Beakerhead this year. We were visibly eggcited to learn downtownfood is involved. (Confused? Keep an eye on Twitter for more info!
9. Night riding with some friends at YYC Cycle to cap off the month. Glow in the dark paint, lululemon giveaways, Juice Because samples, & an amazing workout with two incredible motivators = a fantastic Friday night! 

Page 3 of 7

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén