Missing You Mikey

Two years have passed without you here

It feels so wrong not to have you near

Not a day goes by I don’t think of you

And the amazing young man you grew into

The memories you left us make me ache

For all the memories we still should make

Yet the world keeps turning and the days go by

But for those who knew you, with each day we cry.

For at every occasion and happy time

We only wish that you could be by our side

As we go through our days, we think of you

You’re still around us in everything we do

A song, a quad, the number 22

A smile from a stranger who looked like you

All bring me back to a time before

And make me ache for just one more

One more chance to hear you laugh out loud

Or to see you hold Paige looking oh so proud

There’s still a hole here in my heart

Since that tragic day that you did part

But you are not gone, I feel you still

You’re all around us and always will

You’re in my heart, I hold you dear

As I wipe away another tear

I love you and miss you Mikey.

Forever 22

Baby Showers

So this is a week late but last week was busy with report card writing. Now that I'm finished up with that (well mostly anyways) I have some time to blog about last weekend.  Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to share (I took some with Olena's camera which I will get from her later and hopefully share).

Well last Saturday I hosted a baby shower for my little nephew Austin at my house.  I invited all of Olena and my high school friends as well as my brother's friends. We ended up having 15 adults and 5 children there. The 5 kids were ALL boys under the age of 3. It was super cute seeing them interact with each other. At one point I took a picture of the 5 boys all sitting together in a semi-circle just kind of looking at eachother. I HAVE to get this picture from Olena and post it, as it was adorable.

Anyways, the party went well. We had a BBQ and cupcakes (which I unfortunately realized afterwards that I never got a picture of).  It was kind of sad just how long it had been since all of us high school friends got together at the same time. Each of us had some exciting news to share or be congratulated on since we had last seen eachother. There was one engagement, one person moving to a new place, one person got a new car, one friend has decided not to go back to work after her maternity ends, my sister-in-law had a baby and I was able to share that I finally got permanent. Definitely nice to have so much to celebrate and great to hear so many good things are happening in my friend's lives.

On Sunday my sister-in-law's mom was hosting a Meet and Greet for Austin at her place. I went with my parents to this. It was another wonderful event with great people, great food and another chance to spend some time with my perfect little nephew. Again no pictures but I'll get some to share later.

In the mean time here are a few newer pictures of Austin:

I just got a few pictures from the Meet and Greet on Sunday that I am adding to this post. Here they are:

Father and son with their matching Hurley shirts

Family Photo

Mom and Dad with Baby

My dad photobombing our picture

A lot of food

Cookies by Kelly

Cake

Fruit Carriage

Decorations in the background

Grandma and Grandpa

Introducing...

AUSTIN RYKER HOLSCHEN

May 4, 2013

7lbs 7oz

20 1/2"

I am incredibly proud to be the aunt of this beautiful baby boy.  It is such an exciting time for my family.  I am a first time aunt, my brother is a first time dad, Olena is a first time mom, my parents are first time grandparents and my Oma and Opa are first time great-grandparents. This little guy will be spoiled for sure and surrounded with a lot of love and family.  

Olena's water broke on Friday night and instead of texting me with the incredible news she texted me to say, "Did you know Steve bought a boat today?" Of course I responded with asking about the boat and we went back and forth discussing this purchase for a moment or two when she then followed this up with, "And my water broke half an hour ago."  At first I did not believe her but she wasn't joking.  (Steve put her up to mentioning the boat first, as he thought it would be funny to mess with me a little). I talked to her for a bit and couldn't believe that she was able to remain so calm.  They stayed at home and watched a movie then came to drop Buddy off at my parents house and visited for a bit before heading to the hospital at 1 (6 hours after her water broke).  I was impressed she was able to keep from heading there early (the doctor told her to try to wait at home as long as possible as she would at least be more comfortable there and nothing was going to happen for a while).  The following morning I headed to the hospital with my family and we waited with Olena's parents and brother in the atrium waiting for the good news.  We got updates, via text from Steve and he popped his head down a few times to tell us what was happening.  The baby decided to arrive at 3:49pm on Saturday.  It was absolutely priceless getting to watch my brother come down to tell us it was a boy and he and Olena were both doing well.  

Holding Austin for the first time was an amazing moment.  He is so perfect.  I think he might be the cutest baby ever (and I don't think I'm being biased).  I couldn't believe how much hair he had either. It was quite curly the first day but a little straighter after his first bath.  Austin came home at 4:00 on Sunday and is healthy and beautiful.  My brother and his wife are going to be amazing parents and both Austin and them are lucky to have each other.

Expect to see a lot of blog posts in the future starring this cute little guy.

Far too long...

So I realized that the last post I wrote on here was at Christmas time, over 3 months ago!!  I guess it's about time I update you on what is new and fabulous in my life.  Where do I begin?

The most exciting thing for me right now is that I am going to be an aunt for the first time within the month.  Olena is due April 28th and looks just too darn cute.  It really looks like she just stuck a basketball under her shirt, she is so tiny everywhere else.  I've gone back and forth on whether I think it will be a boy or a girl but here is my official prediction as of right now: I think it will be a boy, born on May 1 and let's say a weight of 7 lbs 8 oz.  Not really sure about the weight but we'll see how accurate I am on everything soon enough.

Secondly I am still seeing Jon and things are going great right now.  He's away again, but he only goes away for a week or two at a time so it's not too bad.  It's always nice having a reunion once he gets back too.  :) We've been dating for almost 5 months now, which seems kind of crazy.  The time really has gone by fast.  Sometimes I think about it and can't believe I've been in a relationship for that long.  Aside from Diego this is the longest relationship I've been in.  We'll see where things go.  It does worry me a little because I know he won't stay in Winnipeg forever.  I hate the idea of having to leave my family someday (especially now that I'm going to have a little niece or nephew here).  Somedays I think it would be okay and I'd enjoy a new city but other days I wonder about it.  Another thing I worry about is finding a job if I were to move.  I am so close to having permanent finally (fingers crossed this is the year) and if I move I'm back to square one again.  Actually even further back than that, as I will have no connections and have to take courses to be able to teach there.  I might actually end up pretty close to you Krista.

Other than that I am enjoying school this year.  I have a fabulous group of grade 6 students who make me smile and laugh each and every day.  I love going to school and I love being around my students.  The school I am at has a great feel to it. Just walking down the halls, you feel welcome and cheerful.  It's a very positive place to be.  Right now we are getting ready for our Spring Musical.  The grade 6s are acting in it and I have been helping out with practices every lunch hour.  The musical is called On the Radio and it takes you through the decades from the 1920s up to the 1970s.  The songs are really great and in between each song are skits that relate to the decade.  I can't wait to see it all come together.

I hope I am back at this school again next year and that I get my permanent contract.  This week my principal is evaluating me on 3 lessons he will come in to observe.  Tomorrow is my first one and then I'll have one the next day and then the day after that.  I am a little bit nervous but not overly so.  I am pretty confident that things will go well.

My spring break was great as well.  I headed down to Grand Forks for some shopping with a few teachers from my school last year.  I am so blessed that I am able to keep in touch with teachers I have worked with in the past and have made some lasting friendships with many of these teachers.  It was a great couple days with some wonderful ladies and a great way to spend part of my week off.

Well hopefully my next blog post will come sooner than 3 months down the road.  I'm sure in a months time I will be wanting to share some pictures of a very special little baby with you girls. So stay tuned...

Mikey

Dear Mikey,

I am thinking of you a lot today Mikey and wishing I could be celebrating your 25th birthday with you.  How you would have loved looking out the window this morning to see all this snow.  You would have, no doubt, had your snowmobile geared up and been out there making some tracks in this newly fallen snow by now.  How I wish you could be.  And then later tonight you would have happily joined our family to help you in celebrating this special day.  The jokes and stories you would have told would have brought smiles to everyone's faces as we gathered to celebrate you.  Instead today we think about you with both sadness for the time we will not get to spend with you but also with fondness and love for the time we did have together.  It was far too short but I am so thankful for every moment I got to spend with you.

Your brother wrote a wonderful memory to you on Facebook today.  I know your brother, sister-law and niece miss you so much and I am certain they are sharing wonderful memories about you with your nephew Owen.  It is such a shame that he will never have the chance to meet his amazing uncle.

Happy Birthday Mikey. We miss you soo much, I think about you all the time. Sometimes more than others like this morning with a fresh 8 inches of snow on your birthday. You would have been so happy. You wouldn't have been quite so happy yesterday when the snow was starting and people were having to learn how to drive in snow again. I can just imagine the stories you would have had about them today. Paige got her first new snowmobile helmet from Kurt at Tcona the other day, after she picked the one she wanted and we decided to get it she said "daddy now we can put a 22 on it for my uncle Mikey". I am so glad she has the memories of you that she does but am so pissed off and sad for you and her that you dont get to be a part of these times, she would have been so excited to show her uncle Mikey. I think about all the moments that we aren't going to have together and it makes me so sad, its so unfair. Everything that happens I think of you and miss you, when its good or bad I wish you were here with me. We are going for a atv ride today like we did on this day last year in honor of you. Owen looks exactly like you and I'm sure he will be ripping around the back yard on atv 's and snowmobiles just like you did. I don't know what to believe in but I hope you in some way get to watch your niece and nephew grow and be happy. I know I am a better person because I had you in my life I miss you and love you so much. R.I.P

-Bill Mooney

I had to laugh thinking about all those times you vented about those darn Winnipeg drivers and how it could be that so many people out there just 'did not know how to drive in this snow.  It's like none of them had ever seen a Winnipeg winter before.'  I never knew you to get mad or upset about anything except when it came to people's driving skills.  You always had a smile on your face and a positive outlook on life.  You were one of the happiest people I know and could bring a smile to anyone's face at any time.  You really did live every day as if it could be your last and enjoyed life to the fullest. I hope you knew how much you were loved and how many people cared so deeply for you.  You have touched so many lives and your memory will live on forever.

I love you so much and miss you more than words can say.

Love,

    Samantha

Double Birthday BBQ

Today we celebrated two birthdays at my place.  June 9th will be my Oma's birthday and June 7th is Kea's birthday.  We decided to have a BBQ at my place to celebrate both.  The weather seemed to be cooperating all day as we got ready for it, in spite of the 60% chance of rain/thundershowers being predicted but then just as the guests arrived so did some thunder and a bit of rain.  I was quite worried that the festivities would have to be moved inside but within 10 minutes the rain passed, the sun came out and the rest of the evening was absolutely beautiful, sunny and actually a bit hot.  Here are some pictures from the evening.

All of us enjoying my new deck.

Kea's Cookie Cake

Oma's Cake... Tuxedo Cake from Costco, my favourite!

The birthday boy and girl

The outfits were NOT planned!

Olena and Buddy

Kea on his new lamb pillow

We Rock!

Spent most of the afternoon and into the evening shoveling rocks with my mom.  I think we did a pretty awesome job.  In between all of this we... dug weeds around my raspberry bushes, shoveled soil around the raspberry bushes and into my three raised gardens, stapled landscape fabric down around the raised gardens, removed the grates from my air conditioner, removed the rust from them and spray painted them black, planted hostess and some other perennials in my front gardens, helped my dad as he needed with adding flower boxes to the deck and wiring up three plugs around the deck, visited Home Depot twice to get wood and spray paint, barbecued dinner, got a wicked sun burn and walked to McDonalds at the end of the night for a much deserved treat.  I am exhausted but am so thankful it did not rain today.  Hopefully we are as lucky tomorrow and I can continue work in my yard.  I can't wait to have it finished and be able to enjoy my wonderful backyard!

Deck Building 2012 Update

It seems like I have been working towards building my deck and landscaping my backyard FOREVER already and I still have tonnes to do.  I am so lucky I have such an amazing family to help me out with this however.  My dad, mom and sister-in-law have come and helped me do work in my yard.  I am really enjoying learning from my dad as we do this and working with him.  It has been a great bonding experience.  Here are some pictures of the journey so far.  Hopefully this weekend it won't rain and we can get a lot more finished up.

My Sunday and My Family

I am combining My Sunday and My Family together for this My Life photo entry.  Tonight I got to celebrate Easter and several birthdays with my mom's family.  It was such a great time.  It was my second time getting to meet Owen James Michael, my cousin's new baby who was born on April Fool's Day.  Paige who is 3 just loves being a big sister.  Here are some photos from our evening together.

Paige cutting and pasting

Paige and Owen with their "Grandma Great" 

Owen with his mom and dad

A birthday message from Grandma

Owen and his proud Grandma

Beautiful Family

Paige and Owen with their Grandma and Papa

Olena, Leah and myself with Paige and Owen