THE GOODS BLOG: Erika's Precious Little Life ~ October Edition

Welcome to cozy season!! I have been enjoying the changing colours and the general sense of slowing down. The return to our usual routines has been nice for me (especially with having Archie back in school). After an action-packed summer everything feels good and quite content in our world. The start of September brought the first day of school! Archie is now in Grade 3! He's still in French Immersion - and a bunch of his classmates dropped out after last year. Apparently all of the kids who weren't hacking it were encouraged to consider switching to English. No such conversations were required about Archie so I'm happy that he continues to thrive!

Archie has TWO teachers this year (which is a whole weird situation in itself) and their names are Mme. Jones (in the morning) and Mme. Kaya (in the afternoon). They both seem really nice!

Essentially, because Archie's class is so small after so many kids left (his whole class is now 15 kids) the school decided to combine the entire Grade 3 class with half of the Grade 4 class - BUT only for the morning. So Archie has mornings with Mme. Jones in a 3/4 split class and then goes to an entirely different classroom for the afternoon with Mme. Kaya where it's just the 15 Grade 3 kids. So it's weird. I felt pretty annoyed about it at first but now that we're a month in it seems to be going alright. Archie does not seem bothered by the arrangement. However, it's pretty interesting that our class has the complete opposite of an "over-crowded classroom" problem.

Then we were off to Regina for four days! The main part of the trip was to attend the GMS Queen City Marathon which has become a fun family tradition! (I am very much NOT a runner myself but it's fun to cheer everyone on!) I'm very proud of my family!

First on Saturday was Archie's ISM Mini Marathon 3K for 8-10 year olds. He completed his race in 20:01 and came in 60th place out of 186 kids! We are very proud of his effort!

Next on Sunday was Tim and Jamie's Auto Gallery Subaru 21.1K Run (half marathon). They both did great! Tim completed the race in 1:57 which was a personal best for him and Jamie completed the race in 1:39 and came in 80th place overall out of 1,152 people! Next year they both plan to do the full marathon.

Meanwhile, I just utilized the stretching zone for its true intended purpose.

The other significant event that happened that weekend is that it was my parents' 50th wedding anniversary! I planned an entire special night for them and I was very happy with how it all turned out! We surprised them with a night in the Royal Suite at Hotel Saskatchewan and inside the room waiting for them was a floral recreation of my mom's wedding bouquet and a bottle of Dom Pérignon champagne (among other things). We also took them out for a fancy dinner and had a private room at The Diplomat Steakhouse. My parents seemed to really love everything that we arranged and were very appreciative! I'm glad that we were able to celebrate them and their big milestone!

I was also able to fit in some friend visits while I was in Regina as well! <3

I don't know if anyone else watched this season of Amazing Race Canada, but I ran into Nipîy and Magoo at the Aqua concert! They were contestants from Edmonton who came in 4th place. (Also the Aqua concert was freakin' wonderful!)

My friend Julia from Vancouver was in Edmonton for a concert so we got to enjoy a fun afternoon hang out together which included lunch and donuts!

Tim and Archie kicked off another year of Cub Scouts! Tim is a full-fledged Scouter at this point and this has become a really special activity that the two of them share together.

Tim did another race, the Brita Night Run 10K. He completed this race in 54:47 which is his fastest time yet for a 10K! Tim has become SUCH a runner and all of his training and commitment has been very impressive.

We have been trying to capitalize on the last bits of nice weather and have been enjoying a very beautiful fall season so far.

Another cool thing that happened is that I was invited to a very nice restaurant called Riverbank Bistro and treated to a five-course chef's table dinner for free all because they wanted me to write a review about the restaurant. This kind of stuff is happening more and more these days and it feels very awesome to know that my work is being noticed and that people want what I have to offer. It's extremely validating and makes me feel really good. (When you write a review after being invited it is required that you disclose that the meal was hosted.)

And finally, my friend Marshall from Regina was in Edmonton and we met up for brunch!

Another thing that I did this month is I joined a weekly small group coaching weight lifting class called Lift and Yap. I've heard a lot about how important it is in menopause to maintain good bone density through strength training and I'm also trying to introduce a bit more cardio. I still attend yoga three days a week and I've been trying to find ways that work for me to add in a bit more of what I'm missing. I personally found that Orangetheory was WAY too intense (plus I injured myself there) so I quit OT and have been looking for something that suits me better. I think that this new class might be it! Lift and Yap is very chill, is a women-only class, and I like the trainer a lot. Plus I get to look really cool lifting heavy weights. Hopefully I'll get really strong! ALSO! I've been on the waitlist for the Menopause Clinic in Edmonton since September of 2024 and I finally got an appointment!! I've had to do a lot of my own work in the meantime but I am really looking forward to finally having the chance to go over everything (my entire situation) with them and to hear if they have any thoughts or insight that I haven't come across yet. It's been a long road but it does feel like I'm finally getting closer to the proper care that I need. Life with Archie: Archie was really happy to start school and to return to his friend crew! There are now only seven French Immersion Grade 3 boys in the whole school and they're all really tight!! I love watching these meaningful and potentially lifelong friendships continue to grow. As usual, on the first day of school we let Archie pick any restaurant that he wanted for dinner... McDonald's is always a popular choice.

Archie's programs have started up for the fall! This time he's doing: Intro to Piano at Backbeat ~ After trying four different instruments at Backbeat, Archie has selected his favourite: piano. So now he is digging in on really learning how to play! We've rented a keyboard so that he can practice at home. He seems to be picking it up really quickly!

Swim for Life Swimmer 3 ~ Swimming has finally clicked for Archie and he can now swim. I am now fully confident that if he fell into the deep end of a pool that he would not die.

Cub Scouts ~ Archie is now a 1st year Cub! He loves this organization and gets so much out of it. He's looking forward to another fun year of nature, life skills, and camps!

Archie built a Crop Duster at the latest Kids Workshop at Home Depot and a Hoop at a LEGO free-build event.

Archie really enjoyed his time in Regina and running in his first 3K race! He was in an older age group this year and I think that it challenged him in a good way to be one of the younger kids in the group. He loves getting medals (who doesn't?) and proudly wore his latest one to school!

Pooltime in Regina is always a hit!

There was a bunch of great friend time spent between Archie and his pals. He was also invited to his friend Everett's birthday party.

The teachers in Alberta are now on strike and justly so. Teachers do a job that I could never, ever do and I am of the opinion that they should be given absolutely everything that they want and more. It also goes without saying that I want the best possible education for my son. SO. Here we are, it's the one-woman fall camp - it's like summer vacation all over again. Hopefully the strike doesn't end up lasting too long. October includes Carrie coming to visit on her way out of Vancouver. She's off to Morocco for an undetermined amount of time! We'll be hanging around at home for Thanksgiving which I don't mind at all. I love the turkey feast that Tim prepares every year - even if it's just for the three of us. Tim's birthday is on the 21st and he's turning 42! We don't have many big plans but I have asked him what he wants to do for dinner that night... I don't think that he's fully decided yet. And then of course Halloween! Archie has a costume ready to go! I always enjoy the fun and spooky day that we get up to and heading out into the neighbourhood to go trick or treating. I really am looking forward to the magical autumn ahead!

THIS MONTH’S SHOUT-OUTS!: October 7th is Colen Quinn's 18th wedding anniversary!

Congrats to you and Jeff on 18 big years! I hope that you get to do something special to celebrate! Cheers! October 7th is Melanie Santiago's 7th wedding anniversary!

Congrats to you and Ron on 7 big years! I hope that you get to do something special to celebrate! Cheers! October 13th is Kristen Smith's 13th wedding anniversary!

Congrats to you and Dallas on 13 big years! I hope that you get to do something special to celebrate! Cheers! October 19th is Mary Cox's 12th wedding anniversary!

Congrats to you and Jonny on 12 big years! I hope that you get to do something special to celebrate! Cheers! October 24th is Rachelle Helston’s 41st birthday!

My sweet Rachelle, how I love you so! I am forever grateful for our long and special friendship. It feels like we have lived through several lives together, with all of their ups and downs. It means so much to know that we've always had each other through it all. You are one of the most caring and selfless humans that I know and one of my forever people. Love love love you!! <3