January

January started as many Januaries do, high hopes and big plans for the year ahead. We went skating with family, and had lot’s of coffee dates with friends. Marvin had a birthday party at our old apartment where we hosted some friends before going out for donairs! One of the last big gatherings we had before Covid hit. We had been living in our new place for a month at this point, and were enjoying the excitement that comes with living downtown.

February

We were well into the hockey season when mom and I shared an Oilers game together. I think we lost that game, but we had loads of fun there together, as well as some pricey beer! This year for Valentines, we got to spend some quality time with the cutest sweetheart, my baby nephew! Any time spent with my munchkin this year was a highlight! February was also the last few big events before Covid became real to me. I attended my first teacher’s convention, as well as the last Symphony before the pandemic. Both of those events feel like a lifetime ago now, but they were the last time I was in a room with so many people beside me!

March

The uneasiness of the pandemic began to settle in. Before any restrictions were announced, the first sign of havoc was empty shelves at the grocery stores. Namely, toilet paper was in short supply, but I also recall a few stores where meat was scarce, as well as baking supplies and lysol!

Just before places were called to shut, Marvin and I found the coolest cafe – Bean Around The World. I was so disappointed that we could only get there once before they were shut! This was also when I believed the pandemic would last a month before we were “back to normal.” One of my saddest moments this year was realizing I would have to cancel my birthday in March, and truly thinking I was the only one who would have to cancel plans like this. Boy, was I wrong! Marvin tried his best to make it a good birthday though! He found me lots of cake and presents, and it became a very memorable birthday!

April

After Spring Break, the reality of the pandemic really sank in when schools were shut for the remainder of the school year! I began teaching online, which was way more work than I could have imagined! Offset by not being allowed to see friends or family, Marvin and I had to find joy in walks and at-home hobbies. I became a plant-mom (not sure Marvin approves of our living room jungle yet, but hey ho!) and we celebrated Easter with an apartment scavenger hunt! One of my favourite Easters yet!

May

As the weather began to warm up, spending time outside became easier and easier. We started cycling a bit, and continued our daily walks and runs. Most notably, we discovered some baby owls on a nearby trail with my parents and enjoyed our first “birding” experience! We also got to meet our newest fur nephew – Otis! What a cutie!!

June

June seemed like one of the shortest months of the year! I finished up the school year with my class, cleaned up my classroom, and began Summer! One of my favourite weekends this Summer was going to Sylvan Lake to visit my girlfriend Abby who was living there! We got to explore near the lake with ice cream, and it really felt like things were normal for a minute!

July

Easily the best month this year, and the one that felt the most normal! Marvin and I decided to start a YouTube channel. We originally wanted to document our trip to Europe, which obviously didn’t happen. Instead, we decided to cut our loses and explore our home, Alberta, instead. We got our drone license and decided to buy a DJI Mavic Air 2, as well as some action camera equipment so that we could have some fun while learning a bit about filming and YouTube. We started out by exploring around Edmonton’s River Valley. Then we expanded out to Lacombe and Pigeon Lake, and finally to the Rocky Mountains! This was my favourite mountain trip ever. I think I’ve always been of the mentality that I didn’t need to do the tourist attractions in the mountains because I live so close so I’d just do them later, but this time we decided to go all out seeing as it had become our big vacation of the year, and it was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had in the mountains. I’d still like to do a blog post about our trip, but it became lower priority when we started exploring with video.

August

August was another short month. We went to one physically distanced outdoor concert early on, and then spent the rest of the month chilling at home, lining up work as businesses were opening again. I found another position at my school, and Marvin found a new job at a cafe. We spent the rest of the summer back on our daily walks, and seeing friends here and there when we could.

September

Being back to work kept us busy in September. We celebrated the beginning of the Autumn season right before I was put into isolation from a close contact at work! I spent the rest of September inside our tiny apartment working from home and catching up on Netflix in my free time!

October

After being in isolation for 2 weeks, I was desperate for some outdoor experience! We took my sister’s dog camping at Elk Island at the beginning of the month. It had started getting cold at night, but the middle of the day was still hot! The weekend after that, I went with my dad to our neighbours piece of land. The weather wasn’t quite as good, but luckily they have the cutest cabins to warm up in! Marv and I also went to the Edmonton Corn Maze before Halloween, and treated ourselves to dinner at Bar Clementine for our anniversary!

November

Another busy month for us! We explored the new Manchester Square in Edmonton, as well as the Christmas displays downtown! We celebrated the munchkin’s FIRST birthday, and spent as much time as possible in the fresh snow!

December

Almost a year living with Covid, and we were put into another lockdown. I had to isolate from work for the second time, and came out of isolation to everything being shut, and no gatherings allowed. We made the best of what was left of December, spending time at the ice rink, going for walks, and preparing for a quiet Christmas. Our celebration was a bit different this year, but we had a lot of fun opening gifts together, sitting by the fire, and facetiming our families. We’ve also just moved to a new place, and have spent the month making it feel like home.

2020 was not the year we expected to have at all, but I think we had a lot of fun making the best of it anyway. I know things won’t be back to normal for a while still, but I’m looking forward to 2021 being a better year, and I can’t wait to look back a year from now and see what we’ve done!

We’ve been very cautious to plan anything for this next year, as it just feel like we need to be flexible with restrictions lately. I’m sure we will explore more of Canada, and we can’t wait to see Marvin’s family in Scotland when we’re allowed to go! I’m going to try to blog more this year, as well as continue with our weekly videos. I have a lot of dated content now I need to catch up on, so hopefully I have it all up before our next adventure!

I hope you all have a wonderful New Year, and best wishes to you all for 2021! If you read all the way through, thank you so much for sticking with it! I really appreciate your support!

Come say hi in the comments below, I’d love to chat! 🙂