It’s that time of year again! Time to review 2011 in photos… it was a great year and a busy year, for so many reasons…

January

In January we headed over to Vancouver Island to visit Allan’s mom in Courtenay. One of the highlights included touring a beautiful fruit winery! I also started acquiring a number of accessories in advance of our wedding that year, including well… you know me… shoes.

February

In February we headed up to Apex Mountain (near Penticton) and I spent the weekend supporting Allan at the annual Apex outdoor ice hockey tournament and snowboarding some untouched powder. We also managed to get our wedding invitations out after tons of hard work doing all the illustrations, designs, and calligraphy ourselves.

March

Next we headed up to Kelowna for the annual video game industry ski and snowboard trip at Big White Ski Resort! Much snowboarding, foosballing, and hottubbing ensued. Then it was down to Seattle for the annual work charity ice hockey tournament! That’s me looking dorky in the front!

April

In April one of the most special people to me, my grandmother, passed away. It was a really hard time and I really miss her so much still. I wish she could have been there for our wedding, but I’m glad I was able to tell her all about our plans before she left us. Also that month we headed out to Tofino for a surf trip with two of our fave peeps in the whole world, Liv and Rob.

May

Lots more cooking and baking took place heading into the summer, including making a mascarpone cheesecake from scratch. Then it was up to the local mountains for newbie-ing it up at some downhill mountain biking! I’m still learning how to bike…

June

June was a memorable month as I saw my favourite sports team in the whole world make it to the Stanley Cup playoffs. It was an exciting time and I will never forget the highs and the lows of the playoff run. Here’s hoping for this year! We also went golfing and pitch-and-putting quite a few times in the summer, trying to make the most of Vancouver’s brief summer!

July

The annual surf and camping trip on Canada Day in July was a blast this year, with tons of surfing and friends around… not to mention catching some crabs and roasting them over the campfire. My friend Tara and I also hit up the Backstreet Boys/New Kids on the Block concert with floor seats!

August

In August we hit up my friend Amy’s annual event, dressing up for the horse races at Hastings Race Track. Then it was time to tromp around the city in various outfits for our engagement photos by our amazing photographers, Jonetsu Studios.

September

Allan and I got married in Tofino, BC on September 3, 2011. It was the best day of my life. There was so much lead up to it with a year and a half of planning, tons of crafting, construction, sewing, and insanity. But it was all worth it. I will always treasure my memories from this day and it really was the happiest day for me.

October

From September to October we left on our month-long honeymoon on a whirlwind cruise around Northern Europe and the Mediterranean. There were so many amazing days on our honeymoon, but special mentions go out to surfing in Portugal and dining at Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant in London, England.

November

Following our honeymoon it was back to reality and work, but we still managed to find time to surf and snowboard just a week apart!

December

To end of the year we decided to stay home and enjoy our beautiful city and cozy up in the apartment together. We threw a dinner party and decorated our apartment. It was a great way to finish off a fantastic year.

And that’s it!

How was your 2011? What were your highlights?

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I know it’s a bit late, but I just couldn’t miss putting up what is always my favourite post of the year… a recap of 2010 in photos, and then looking forward to what’s coming in 2011.

First of all, thank you to all my awesome blog visitors in 2010! We had just over 1.1 million unique visitors in 2010 and about 2.8 million unique visitors since the birth of this blog a couple years ago! Woohoo!

2010 was an amazing year… I’m so thankful for my friends, family, and of course Allan… my amazing boyfriend-turned-fiancé in 2010! Here is the recap in photos:

JANUARY

We completed our apartment makeover by the beginning of 2010! It was great to start the year with a fresh design and a cozy home to come back to.

FEBRUARY

February was truly one of the best months of my life. The 2010 Winter Olympics came to Vancouver and we partied hard and cheered our hearts out for Canada. We went to the men’s Canada vs. Russia hockey game, women’s Canada vs. Sweden hockey, and Canada-USA curling semi finals. We attended the exclusive invite-only Club Bud parties, saw Canada win the Gold Medal in men’s hockey at the Molson Hockey House, and checked out all the venues around town. I will never forget those moments.

MARCH

In March I bought the Amazon Kindle which is the gadget/technology that has made the MOST impact on my life since the invention of the cellphone. I read almost every day and I can’t tell you what a pleasure it is to read using my Kindle. I use it at the gym, on trips, before bed at night… it’s made a big difference in my life. Speaking of cellphones, I also bought a new Blackbery Bold 9700 which I still have, and love immensely!

APRIL

In April we went on the best snowboard trip of our lives doing catskiing / catboarding at Mustang Powder… it was absolutely incredible! Fresh powder lines every day. We also started cooking a lot more and learning to make fresh pasta and more.

MAY

In May, Allan got down on one knee and proposed to me. It was the happiest day of my life! A complete shock and surprise. I’m so happy to marry the most amazing man in the world in September. I love him with all my heart and couldn’t ask for a better person to spend every free moment with and never get tired of it!

JUNE

In June, I learned to downhill mountain bike at Mt. Fromme and we also booked our awesome wedding venue at Black Rock Resort in Tofino/Ucluelet area. Woohoo!

JULY

In July we went on a few awesome surfing and camping trips with friends, and booked our freaking amazing wedding photographers, JONETSU. We now consider Chadwick and Camille our good friends and can’t wait to create magic with them.

AUGUST

In August, we attended the annual horse races event that our friends’ throw which is always a blast, and we threw our engagement party in my parent’s backyard for our close family and friends.

SEPTEMBER

In September we started playing dodgeball (which is SUPER fun), and went on an annual trip with friends to Hornby Island!

OCTOBER

In October I started playing ice hockey more regularly and we started hanging out more with our now close friends Liv and Rob. I’m so happy that we met in 2010 and became good friends so quickly! So thankful to have them in our lives.

NOVEMBER

In November I had my birthday party and Allan and I went with my best friend and maid of honour Kim and her fiancé Greg to New York for a trip of a lifetime! Kleinfeld’s Bridal, Lion King, Mesa Grill, Mario Batali’s Del Posto, Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant, Serendipity, Times Square, and lots more eating, shopping and sightseeing.

DECEMBER

And December was filled with some more fun and sentimental memories with family and friends.

WHAT’S TO COME IN 2011

I’m so excited for 2011 to get rolling! Our wedding is in September this year and it’s hard to believe how fast time has gone past. There’s so much planning to do. We’ve also got a bunch of great ski trips planned to Big White and Apex, and maybe a few more places. A couple surf trips in the summer (cutting back due to wedding costs!) and maybe a couple mountain biking days too. I’m also hoping to finally start working out more and losing the weight I’ve been trying to lose over the past year and a half. And lastly… be better with my money! We really have to crack down now that the wedding costs are starting to add up.

And that’s it for me!

How was your 2010? What are you most looking forward to in 2011?