Last weekend I had the chance to do something really cool here in Winnipeg: I got to witness the Winterlude Ice Carving Championship in action!
A little bit of backstory: this year, in the spirit of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, 20 ice carvers across 10 provinces were given 4500 pounds of ice (15 blocks of ice weighing 300 pounds each). Over the course of 20 hours, they had to create their masterpieces! And now, voting is open to the public.
I suppose the title gives it all away, and, I suppose, if you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you’ll have known the news for months. But yes… I am pregnant. In just a couple of months, I will be a mom. And I’m going to be a single mom.
So… whew. Where to begin?!
It’s officially been one year since I’ve left Manitoba. I know I’m not alone in saying that I miss travelling; I miss trying new food, staying in hotels, walking around new cities…
I’m not quite sure where to begin with this year in review. It doesn’t help that I am nearly three weeks late in publishing it; like 2020, 2021 seems to already be passing by in a strange vacuum of time. I wake up, I don’t really do anything, and then it’s dark outside. I don’t do anything, and yet time goes by and I’m always tired.
What a great way to start a review, eh? I’m sure you’re just chomping at the bit to read more!
As I’ve made pretty clear in the past couple of years, I love Winnipeg. Born and raised here, I moved away at 18 only to return at 33. For the past three years, I’ve fallen harder for this prairie city than I ever thought possible. One of the reasons I love it so much? The unbelievable wealth of local makers. This year, more than ever before, I’m trying to support local businesses. With that in mind, I thought I’d put together a guide of the best local Winnipeg gifts for Christmas and beyond.
Do you remember, back in March, when we all thought this would last two weeks?
The snow was melting in Winnipeg, I had a new boyfriend, I was almost overwhelmed with freelancing work, I was going to the gym regularly and loving it.
“Two weeks without seeing my family and friends, two weeks without going to restaurants, two weeks without going to the gym?” I panicked.
Oh, how innocent and naive I was. How blissfully, ignorantly unaware.