Steph Won!

Steph sent me a text last night to say she had received a Platinum Award at The Wedding Awards! Steph and Dave have been attending this yearly gala in Ottawa since 2014, and she has won before. I couldn't find details about her 2018 win, except that it was also a Platinum Award, for best Live Moment - pretty sure the image was of a horse going after a brides bouquet. This year, she won for best Unique Photo. Here is the winning shot:

Award Winning Wedding Photo - 2020

by Stephanie Koning of Stephanie Beach Photography

Instagram: @sbeachphoto

So beautiful, such a cool shot too. (I think it was done using a crystal.) When I was with her in Virginia she had just gotten a few more interesting crystal shapes that she planned to experiment which, so I am interested to see how those images turn out. As always, you can follow along with her career using the link to her blog that I have posted over on the right, her Facebook page or Instagram.

So Many Babies

I am always slow to get out congratulations, and this past spring has seen a whole pile of babies. So here are the new humans in my life (not alphabetically, not chronologically, literally in no particular order):

Nic and Drew have expanded their beautiful family one further, bringing Canada a new little wombat. I have only met her once but Rosie is just the sweetest. They are all renting The Cottage next week so can show the new little one their 'Beach House'. (Photo Right)

Christopher keeps bringing us Canadian content and just a few weeks ago became the proud father of Elliott. He lives, with his lovely wife Heather, just a couple of doors down from James and Mike so Elliott will be able to spend lots of time with his cousins Ava and Aiden. And the grandparents are around the corner too - such a cool city family - it is the Toronto dream.

Canada Day celebrations were even more special than usual for Pat and Michelle, who spent the entire day in labour. Fitting date - as they have been known to host an epic pool party on it in the past. Liam arrived in the early hours of July 2. I am so happy for this little family and the many adventures they will have together. (Photo left)

I can't believe how much Henry looks like his dad Marc. Marc and Christine are up in Ottawa. Henry was born in March, quite a bit early I believe. But he is doing wonderfully, even if Marc is going to have him cheer for all the worst sports teams (Boston? Really?)

P and E also named their little boy Henry, who was born a few months ago. At the moment he is keeping a very quiet social media presence. I have had the chance to see him and can report that he is super cute.

Babies are going to keep on coming with Lauren due any minute and JennD expecting her second little one in the Fall.

Tulips Don't Even Deserve A Day

Another thing that happens on June 21st? National Aboriginal Day. I didn't add this into the previous post about the first day of summer and my Dad's birthday. Dad didn't have a particularly nice or empathetic view of indigenous populations in Canada and/or the USA. So, I thought it best to separate the posts because my father's racism was nuanced, complex, frustrating, and confusing.

But since it somehow came to my attention today that it was National Aboriginal Day in Canada, I wanted to make a post that recognized the culture and history of this vital population group.

A long time ago I saw a comedian, Don Kelly, at an Ottawa comedy club. As an aboriginal, part of his routine riffed on his heritage, It stuck with me for years, but I remember his funniest line:

"A  black friend of mine was complaining that Black History Month is in February, the coldest month of the year, the shortest month of the year. Hey, we get National Aboriginal Day, DAY! Tulips get a fucking week." --- Don Kelly

Most people know how I feel about tulips - I am not a fan. But in contrast to that, I really like and value Canada's indigenous population. Their contributions should be celebrated nationally, and it should definitely be a longer celebration than a single day.

The Best Kind Of 3am Call

Jason woke up me up shortly after 3am this morning and handed me his cell phone. Mike had called him trying to get a hold of me. Aimee had just given birth to their second child!

Mike Holding Maya

Photo by Aimee (I think)

Friday March 18, 2016

I have in my planner that Aimee was actually due on April 10th so this morning was a bit early in more ways than one. Just 2 days shy of full term she is technically considered premature (Late Preterm). Because of this the doctors are running a bunch of extra tests but thus far everything is coming back looking good.

It is a girl! They have named her Maya Quinn Sweeton and she was born at a weight of 7lbs 14oz and is 20in long. Aimee felt like she was going into labour at 11pm last night so Avery went to their day care provider and Mike and Aimee went to the hospital. Maya was born shortly after 1am (Mountain Time). It went so fast that Aimee wasn't able to get an epidural (which I am sure she wasn't too happy about.) Glad to hear everyone is healthy and doing well, can't wait to meet my new niece!!

And So Today

In an update style, I thought I would respond to my own post yesterday about all the great things going on (in the same order as before):

- It is Still Fall in Toronto, But Also in Ottawa
Fall is my favourite season in Toronto but Fall is great in Ottawa too. (Technically Winter is my favourite season in Ottawa, but both are good.) Jason and I are heading up to Ottawa for the weekend for a quick visit with Steph and Dave since we didn't get a chance to see much of them over the summer - they have been super busy with Stephanie Beach Photography.

- The Star Wars Trailer is a Day Older, and Jar Jar is Dead
There was some concern among Jason's friends that the awful Jar Jar Binks character might make an appearance in the upcoming Star Wars movie. I don't think he will be there though, and I ended up doing research to ensure he would be too old to show up on screen. Here are my results:
- Jar Jar is a Gungan, and they live for 65 Galatic standard years 
 - Using the Russian Formation dating system, he was born in year 948 
 - Leia (and Luke too obviously) born in 981 
- So Jar Jar is 33 when the twins are babies 
- She is in her 20's during the 'original' trilogy making Jar Jar 53 
- As long as this is set more than 15 years after that (and I have heard it is supposed to be 20ish years past VI) Jar Jar is DEAD
And I might be a bit of a nerd for spending the time to look all that up and work everything out.

- The Liberals Continue to Have a Majority Government
And they will have for four more years. That is the whole point of a majority government, there probably won't be a vote of none confidence to bring about an early election. I am hoping that they get a lot of work done and make some big changes.

- Jays are now 1-3 in the ALCS
Last night the Blue Jays lost terribly in the fourth game of the American League Championship Series. Jason was so bothered by how badly the game was going that he turned off the TV after the second inning. I don't care though, I can use it to make an exciting announcement - Mike and Aimee are going to have another baby! I am excited to be a two-times aunt. I decided that this little thing has thrown up a poster on the womb ceiling to celebrate, since big brother Avery is such a fan.

Future Blue Jays' Fan

My Next Nibling, Avery's New Sibling

Due Late Spring 2016

Congratulations Heather

Heather has been awarded a Graduate Professional Certificate in Cultural Heritage Studies from the University of Victoria.

The program provides advanced learning for emerging and mid-career individuals involved with a range of cultural heritage fields. Heather already has an MA in Greek and Roman Archaeology from the University of Newcastle in England. She has been working in her field (museums) for as long as I have known her. It feels like just yesterday she was talking about starting the online program from U of Vic. She did it on a part-time basis, one course per term, so she could still work full-time. It can't have been easy, I am so proud of her.

A New Father

Happy Father's Day Mike

Photo by ME

(February 2015)

A Lovely Cadence

* Cadence Shirley Ann N. *

Born: Friday June 5, 2015
Time: 10:04pm
Weight: 9lbs, 4oz

Proud parents: Taylor and Mark
Proud Big Brother: Lochlan

 Welcome To The World Cadence!!

Photo stolen from Facebook

(I can't wait to meet her!)

Always Standing Note: I have adjusted a tag which previously was just BabyLoch to be BabyLochCade so as to reflect posts related to either or both of Taylor and Mark's children.

Some Parts Are The Same

Sunday Mornin' Coming Down - A post about my Dad each Sunday, named after a song that he loved.

This is my parents 

celebrating with their friends in Jamaica 

after announcing their engagement:

This is a photo from last night at The Cottage, 

having a toast with friends 

for Jason and my engagement:

These events are approximately 35 years and 2,800 km apart. My parents are dressed up in a restaurant, whereas the more recent picture features a less formal atmosphere and location. Also no one is using a ketchup bottle to cheers in their picture. I love how fun and casual this whole weekend has been. (Commonalities between the two are love, friends, food, booze, smiles, and beaches.)

A Panda Cat

I have an exciting announcement, Tessa has adopted a cat. She was fostering a young black cat through a Toronto-area rescue organization. However, the thought of giving her up was too hard and Tessa decided to adopt her forever. She is a very sweet cat, and very cute, and likes to lie on her back to have her tummy rubbed. (Kristen and I have decided her voice sounds like a 'valley girl,' she should totally meet Rasta.) Tessa has named her Panda.

A Published Wedding

This is both a Wedding Wednesday post and a Much Overdue Congratulations! If you have been following along with Steph's Photo Blog (link on the Left) than you will already know that she has had some amazing business announcements over the past few months. She is starting to get regularly published in wedding magazine's and blogs! This photo (taken by Dave) is Steph showing her photos in the Spring/Summer 2015 edition of Ottawa Wedding Magazine. She is in a Chapters - her photos are in something that is sold at bookstores! I am so proud of her. You can read more about these recent announcements on her blog HERE.

I also wanted to let you know that Stephanie Beach Photography has been nominated again this year for the Ottawa Wedding Awards. Please vote for her HERE. Voting ends on March 16, 2015.

Born Today

The day has arrived...

I AM AN AUNT!

I would like to be called Aunty C, but I don't know if it will stick. I am so excited to introduce my new nephew:

AVERY MICHEAL SWEETON

Avery In Aimee's Arms

(Very Shortly After Birth)

Born: 5:35am on Saturday January 10, 2015

Weight: 7.1 lbs    Length: 18 inches

Photo by Aimee, Edits by Me

A New Baby

Aria Lynn 

Born: August 3, 2014

In my usual form, I am very late with my Always Standing congratulations, but on August 3rd, Amanda (SoccarStar, WalkerPal) and her husband, Tim, welcomed a beautiful daughter into their family. Amanda and I have been friends since elementary school; we walked together and were always late. Of course, we were also friends all through High School too. I very much wish she lived closer to Toronto (in fact she did live in the city but I was in Ottawa at the time, and moved away before I got here.) Amanda is amazing and I miss her a lot.

When she was born, Aria Lynn was 'only' 5lbs 13oz, and I like to hear about tiny babies, since 8 and 9lbs now seems to be the norm. (I was 6lbs 11oz, and I don't think I was considered small at all.) I have yet to meet Aria Lynn, however a very pregnant Amanda was at Teri and Greg's wedding on July 26, so I was in the same room as the baby - kinda. Teri and I will make our way to see the new one soon, and of course visit with proud big brother Hudson.

All photos by:

Cayley Black Photography

Copywrite 2014

An Award

Jason has received an important honour for the work he has been doing over the last 6 months to a year.

JASON WOODS

Outstanding Technical Achievement Award 

from IBM Canada 

in December 2014 

for contributions to BigSQL 3.0

I don't really know what any of that means, but it is a big deal and I am very proud of him. (It also came with a bit of money and his manager suggested that he spend some of it on me, which I highly support.)

Wedding (In A While) Wednesday

Ok, so I don't know when the wedding will be, but Jason's best friend proposed to his girlfriend this past Friday! So, I think that engagement congratulations is an excellent choice for Wedding Wednesday. Rob and Andrea are truly an amazing couple, who also met through eHarmony. They are both such kind, smart, and fun people that the engagement news has been met with enormous amounts of joy. (It was also very exciting to know a bit ahead of time - but keeping that type of happy secret is so hard!)

Best wishes and love to Rob and Andrea!!

Now And Forever

21.11.14

Photo by Andrea

Jenn & Jon's Wedding

So, this post has been a long, and I mean long, time coming; I wanted to add photos and I am glad I did, because Steph (and Dave's) photography was an amazing part of the event. When Jenn and Jon sat down to plan their low-key wedding, having photos was an important part for Jenn - as a couple they don't have many pictures, it is a perfect time to capture a beautiful time in a relationship, wedding photos also mean photos of friends and family, and the reasons go on. I think calling and booking Steph was one of the first planning steps Jenn and Jon made. The wedding was on July 14, 2014...

This is my

smart,

beautiful,

hilarious,

and loving

friend:

Jenn

I am not great with dates, but I think JennD and I met in early 2008 at an evening Mass Communications course at Carleton. (It was the same course that I first met Erin AH in.) Jenn met Jon very shortly after meeting me, so I feel like I have been there through the highs and lows; to see them reach this amazing point in their relationship is very exciting. Their future is looking so bright and joyful.

The weekend of her wedding, Jason and I drove up to Ottawa on the Friday evening and stayed with Steph and Dave (pretty much a given for a visit to Ottawa - I have my own room there, which is tulip picture free.) Early Saturday morning I had to be at Jenn's place to help her get ready - I was so honoured to have been asked! I dropped Jason off at the park that was the site for the wedding, since I had volunteered him to help set up. Before going to Jenn's, I picked up her flowers. The bouquet was beautiful, I choked up at the shop when I saw it. (I choked up a lot throughout the day, and was quite emotional - she look so beautiful and it was such a special event.) I got to her house just as the stylist was putting last minute touches on her hair. After make-up and some last minute wedding logistics, I helped her into her dress and tied the back (Left), which took way longer than the 5 minutes we had scheduled to do so.

I drove Jenn to the Ornamental Gardens, where her and Jon were doing a 'first look.' Normally this is a very private event (and it still was) but I stayed around a bit to hang out with the happy couple. The way a 'first look' works, is that before the wedding (or in Jenn and Jon's case, before their party; they got legally married at Ottawa City Hall earlier in the week) the bride and groom meet up to see each other - often this event is captured by the photographer, and sometimes they are the only other person there. The first time I have ever heard of it was for Steph and Dave's wedding; the photo I chose to post on Always Standing to announce their marriage was from their first look. I am a huge believer of this concept, it is a much better idea to have the first look and do a majority of the photos earlier in the day before the event starts.

Anyway, Jon waited for Jenn (Right) at the bottom of these beautiful stairs, and she walked up and tapped him on the shoulder. It was magic. I had to hurry back to the park though, so as to be there when the couple arrived, and also I had to get changed.

All morning I had been wearing sweatpants so as to be comfortable when helping the bride, who at one point ask, "I'm not judging, and it is casual, but is this what you are wearing to my wedding?" I finished doing my hair, changed into my dress, and did my make-up in the park's washroom, all of which took about 10 minutes. I hung out with Jason, Erin AH, her boyfriend, and some awesome co-workers from Justice. Soon, the couple arrived, walking across the grass towards us (Left) while the crowd blew bubbles. There was some more photos with guests and then the food started. Jenn and Jon really wanted to serve a great meal and so much of the lunch they had prepared themselves; salads, barbecue, treats, etc. It was such a fun summer afternoon, spent with great friends.

All of my love and best wishes

to the happy couple,

Jenn and Jon!

Photos by Stephanie Beach Photography

Copyright 2014

George Sweeton Memorial Award

Sunday Mornin' Coming Down - A post about my Dad each Sunday, named after a song that he loved.

----- From a recent eBlast to members of the Port Dover Yacht Club - Sailboat Racing Group. My mom, along with my aunt and uncle, have decided to fund an award each year in honour of Dad.

In November of last year we lost a cherished member of our family and a dedicated member of our sailing community. In his sailing career he was both skipper and crew, and in honour of George Sweeton we have commissioned an award to dedicate to the, more than 125, people who trim the main, grind the jib, hang on the rail, ride the tiller, gybe the pole… and in the deep dark sewer…re-fold the spinn. We would like to present the first award for outstanding crew member this year at Sailor’s Night, Oct 25, 2014.

If you feel you have a crew member that you would like to nominate, please fill out a nomination form. Deadline for receipt of the nominations is September 28, 2014 (last Wed night race is on Sept 24)

 If you would like to nominate one of your crew to be recognized publicly for:
Education, Community, Civility, Corinthian Spirit 
 This season, have you noticed that a member of your crew has been:
- Contributing to the positive environment of the boat
- Mentoring new crew members
- Improving performance
- Finding innovative and effective boathandling ideas
- Taking initiative to improve safety
- Enthusiastic about recruiting

Announcing A New Professional Chapter

I made the decision in January to look for a new job and leave the BIA. I took my time, over 6 months actually, to find a good place and time to go. I wanted to focus more on communications and marketing again, but this time at a company instead of the public service. I was looking for better pay, an inspiring environment, and challenging work - in short, I was being picky. I still worked my ass off applying and interviewing at places but I was making a point to find something perfect.

And I did!

Because of a maternity leave vacancy, and some networking connections I have in Liberty Village, I was given the opportunity to interview at an amazing company that I have admired for years - Forrec. "Forrec is a planning and design firm that specializes in the creation of entertainment and leisure environments worldwide." Our focus is on Theme Parks, Water Parks, Entertainment Centres, Resorts, Retail & Mixed Use, and Museums & Science Centres. There are around 100 employees in Toronto (the office is in Liberty Village, and includes a pool table for employee use) who specialize in architecture, landscape, interiors, graphic design, and general creativity. I started on July 24 and have joined the marketing team for a year. I am completely enthralled thus far, and love it more everyday!

Meet Ava

Mid-Week Friend Update - A Wednesday feature that provides a small update on what is happening with the incredible people that I have in my life.

One of the two most important babies in my life - just had a baby! I would like to introduce you to Ava and she is beautiful.

I can't wait to meet her in person, I have been dealing with this stupid cold so have been staying away for now. While I want to get better, I get to look at pretty baby pictures on Facebook. Here are her baby details: Born on Feb 27th 2014 at 3:21am; 8lbs 2oz and 22" long to James and her husband.

The reason James is one of the two most important babies in my life (the other being Jeska) is that without her birth and subsequent adorableness my parents may never have had kids. My Dad didn't think he wanted children but when Jeska and Jamie were born he changed his mind. So a year and a bit later, I was born. And now Jamie has a baby! (Who I hear is perfect, and sure to inspire many to change their minds about having kids.)

Kitten Tomorrow

Mom is coming to Toronto tomorrow because we are going to James' shower. She is having a little girl and I am so excited for all the pink. Everyone has boys (Taylor, Kiyomi, Kristen's sister, Jason's sister has 3). So happy for James and her husband and looking forward to seeing lots of tiny girly baby clothes tomorrow.

I know that it is Caterday but tomorrow Mom is also bringing Rasta! So, I will get some good pictures of him, hopefully introduce him to Two and report back next Saturday.