In hindsight 3

Hello my prittis,
It's been a while and look at us diving into another year. A new year, means new goals and new promises. Last January, as I was dying of an asthma virus, I took the time to blog a bit on evaluating my resolutions of the past year to see how I did.

Well let's just say, things have really changed. You can refresh your memory by referring to "In hindsight 2" one of my January 2012 posts.

Here is the official list of things I wanted and things I wanted to accomplish for 2012:

• A Kitchen Aid Food processor- Bought one on Beyond the Rack early that year. for a great price!

• A guitar and some lessons- Didn't get to do this, but it's still on my list!

• Perform at an open mic- "

• Get back into shape and lose 25lbs- Funny story. I am now 9 months and expecting our surprise baby on February 7th! So, as for losing weight, that did not happen. But, I was part of a study for promoting health and fitness to pregnant women and I am proud to say that I lost about 10 lbs of my own weight and only gained about 12 lbs from my pregnancy. I tried to stay active this year and hope to maintain this once I am on mat leave too :)

• Stay on track with my debt repayment, so far so good. 2 more years and I should be good! Well, S&*% happens, unexpected things like A BABY and car repairs really didn’t help me in this department. But the good news is that we are still on track... kinda.

• Finish some basic renos in the house- Nesting! This is a great way to finish up renovations and get your house baby ready! We did a lot of cleaning and purging to make room for baby too. We still have a little ways to go though. One thing at a time... plus you need to save up for renos!

• Blog more! Guilty, have been a bit lazy on this front. Once again, I will blame it on the pregnancy!

Here are some things I did accomplish that I am proud of:

• Kicked butt professionally
• Got pregnant and had a considerably healthy pregnancy with very little weight gain. (Terrified of giving birth, but we can talk about that in February!)
• Got everything organized for the baby room
• Rekindled some old friendships and made new ones too
• Finally used my airmiles to get the DSLR camera of my dreams!

Lastly, can't start the year without setting some new goals:

1. Get a guitar, get lessons (2012)
2. Perform in an open mic (2012)
3. Kick start my business as a Solidea representative
4. Have an awesome maternity leave and bond with our baby!
5. Come back to work and get that promotion I deserve!
6. Become more active and lose the baby weight that I have gained
7. Go on our first family trip
8. Cut our debt in half by the end of the year
9. Research and design the kitchen of my dreams and SAVE UP for it!
10. Make more time for ME! I know this sounds selfish, but it's the root cause of not being able to take care of yourself if you are trying to stay healthy.

I highly encourage you to do this exercise, it's a great way to see if you can keep a promise to yourslef and what areas you need to work on! What are some of your goals?

Have a safe and happy 2013!
xox

lumberjack chique

I was visiting Vancouver this week and had the chance to explore most of the city in one day. Pretty impressive?... it turns out that it's a walkable city... which I completely didn't realize.

Towards the end of my journey I made my way slowly into Gastown, which to me seemed like the SOHO of the Vancouver Island. Cute shops, cobble stones, great vibe!

I found an interesting store called Old Faithful Shop. I call it lumberjack chique.

It was gorgeous!

The owner was quite an interesting character. A little rude and snobish at first, but he opened up towards the end of our conversation and was quite pleasant. He was a polished lumberjack sporting an auburn beard, retro specs, and a new take on a sweet old man's sweater vest.

I asked him permission to take pictures of the store for my blog. He wasn't really thrilled with the idea and stated that he hates the up close shots of small objects and labels. I'm thinking to myself... THESE ARE MY FAVORITE TYPE OF SHOTS!!! Macro setting hello?!?

Anyways, so my pictures suck, 'cuz I was trying to stay cool yet try to capture the amazing things he had in the store. It was just like the outside came in. The old became new. And the unwanted became valued. That would be the general description that I have for the stuff in his store.

I bought my husband a pocket knife from France, two metal camping mugs with lids and a wilderness book... because he is a true lumberjack.... Not a polished one!

I don't want to give too much away and spoil my experience... but you really must check it out!

pici of the weeki-6

Hello my prittis,

Yes, it's been a while, but I still love you! I have been busy with my o'valley blog, so I am still here.

I am sharing with you my pici of the weeki that was submitted by an avid reader ;)

This picture is very interesting, and kind of dark with the evil grin on the heel, the hidden young lady and the black cloud above her. Maybe this is just in time for Halloween!

It was taken in the South of France at the hotel marquis de Sade.

Thank you for sharing this original piece!

Have a happi thanksgiving my prittis.

pici of the weeki 6

It's Friday today! It not only means that it's TGIF, but it also means that it's time for pici of the weeki!

Here is it folks! Punta Cana 2007. Greatest trip ever!
This pictures not only reminds me of the good times we had, but it also reminds me of the movie "The Beach", which so happens to be one of my favorite books too!

This picture was taken by the resort photographer. It was really expensive to purchase, but I had to buy it!!!

B.T.W- it's really hard to get everyone to jump at the same time, let alone jump really high. The trick is to bend your legs back ;)

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!

pici of the weeki-5

Hello my prittis.

I know it's a little late, but here is my pici of the weeki!

This is my one million dollar shot. This picture is not photoshopped, it's an original, by moi!

Everything was perfect, the lighting, the shiny concrete from the rain, the sun coming out out the clouds. It's the best souvenir I brought back from Paris, that and my Longchamps bag of course :)

HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

curious is me- 2

Because of my curious nature, as you can imagine I like to stare at people, allot... particularly on the bus! What else do you think I should be doing?! My iPhone keeps my ears busy, but what is keeping my eyes busy? You guessed it, staring!

So today I noticed a girl at the bus stop fiddling around with something. That something, I kid you not, was a disc man! Really a disc man? No wonder she had a back pack, how else are you supposed to carry back up batteries and all you favorie CDs?!

Did I mention that she was fiddling around with... the batteries, trying to figure out what way to put them in. They must have run out, poor girl.

I guess it was a nice glimps of the past, but the reason why that technology didn't last long was because it was so cumbersome and took so much space, not mention you had to hold it parallel to the ground so it didn't skip. How inconvenient. Unless you own a fancy one that has "Shock absorber" features, you are out of luck my friend!

Then I thought, maybe this girl doesn't have a computer? Maybe she can't afford an MP3? The point is, she looked happy with her mess.

Well, I gotta go take this call on my hands free cell phone, because I am too lazy to take my phone out of my purse and hold the phone to my ear.

"Hello?... Can you hear me now? Oh, I am on my hands free ear set. ... Hang on a sec, let me just take it off.."

:P

me like pastry

On my last voyage to NYC, I went on a quest, a journey. I was, in search, for the best red velvet cake this concrete jungle had to offer!

I will tell this story with pictures- how else can I make you drool?

We got these cupcakes from Magnolia on Bleeker Street it was worth the wait! Although I am not eating the red velvet cupcake in this picture, I sure did have anothet serving later ;P

These cupcakes were made from a store bought package. They were still good, but not the taste I was looking for...

I tried the red velvet cupcake from Crumbs Bake Shop. It was very tasty, but too sweet from what I recall. Also the portions are really too big for a snack.

Alas! I found my one true love! The best cupcake I found was in a small little shed in SOHO. See that little red cabin behind me in the picture? That's the one! Perfect crumb, perfect taste, perfect moisture, perfect frosting. I wish I had the name and the address of this place. Basically he serves coffee, tea and snacks. This a series of pictures of me trying the cupcake...

And last but not least, my wedding cake.... it was half red velvet and half lemon poppyseed! I kept the top layer for our anniversary... it's RED VELVET!!!

I have tried the Starbucks red velvet cupcake too... let me save you $4. It was gross!! Not fresh and had a strange taste to it. Don't be fooled by it's good looks!

Note: Do not try this experiment at home. This may cause useless money being spent, diabetes, obesity and may stain your hands red.

me so broke-ii

Hello again my prittis.

I didn't want to have to go there, but judging by my 1 vote it looks like you want to hear about my problems. Well, I can't blame you. It's great hearing about other people's problems, because it makes your life seem so easy.

You know that saying..."blah, blah, blah, you would never want to switch with someone else problems in the end"... "blah, blah, blah, walking a mile in my shoes for a day.", "blah, blah, the grass is always greener on the other side.". The point is having problems SUCKS, no matter who you are.

Here are some of my problems:

• Dept :$ (Did I mention I bought my house and got married all in the same year?)


• Shopaholic (I shop because I am unhappy, and I am unhappy because I shop.... Ya right!)


• Excessive renovation planning (I want my house to look like Sarah Richardson decorated it)


• Delusional about everything!


• Need to replace my car- something reasonable like a Honda or Toyota


• Need to redo my kitchen- make all I can really afford is a facelift


• Need to repair the bathroom- seriously, the walls are cracking and the tub is ugmo!


• Excessive planner in general = no time to do anything productive!


• Excessive NEED/WANT to travel (Do you realize how many countries are in Europe?... I haven't even scratched the surface!)


• Excessive travel planning


• Excessive streeming of entire seasons in an unhealthy amount of time


• Awe man, I didn't want to go there but... My P.A.D.D ( Physical Activity Deficit Dissorder)

Before I started this list, I'm thinking to myself... "what should I put on this list? I don't really have any problems, do I?". By the end of this list, I am cutting my wrists and now clinically depressed. Just kidding!

Anyways, the conclusion of my list is that I am BROKE! But I am on track to paying off my debts, one post at a time. I promise. You just have to keep reminding me that I don't NEED a $2,000 chair, that my closet is full and I don't need to buy more shoes or purses or clothes for that matter. That I have to save up for my car if I want one.

Admit it though, you wouldn't tune in if my life was perfect!!!

Let's just say hypothetically that my total debt was $ X... I will attempt to give you a monthly financial statement so you can keep track of my progress!! Now I HAVE to be good! No excuses!

Have a great Tuesday everybody.

me travel plenti

Since I travel allot for work and for pleasure I thought I would prepare my "Top 10 things to bring when you travel".

1. Sunglasses (picture: Dolce and Gabanna now for sale on kijiji)
2. Passport (not for sale :P)
3. Iphone with headphones
4. Ca$h money
5. Pen
6. Havaiana flip flops (AMAZING and COMFORTABLE! They have been everywhere with me... if shoes can talk!)
7. My Fendi satchel (consignment shop 50% off!) It fits everything!
8. Rosebud salve purchased at Sephora
9. H&M scarf. I call it "my Russian". It's huge! I luv it.
10. Camera (picture: Nikon Coolpix now for sale on kijiji). Remember I bought my Cannon camera which is why my Nikon is for sale :P

P.S. Although I travel so much, did I forget to mention how much I HATE PACKING!!!!! But I am getting good at it :)

What's your top 10?

me dress by city

Typical scenario for me: Get home from a trip, unpacking my suitcase and wondering..."What possessed me to buy this? When am I ever going to wear this again?"

Okay gals, have you noticed that your style changes depending on the city your are staying in? Your taste completely adapts to your surrounding. Suddenly you are inspired to wear different things, you're telling yourself "Man, I'm gonna be so original and fashionable when I get home."

But who is kidding who? Can I really pull it off?

Take for instance my last trip to Florida. I actually bought a colourful bikini. My friends who know me well, know that I don't buy colour. Everything I own is black, white, navy, grey... you get what I mean. In the end, I am SO HAPPY WITH IT!! I LOVE IT!

My last trip to Jamaica, I bought a green t-shirt that has JAMA-on the front and ICA- on the back. Do you think I will ever wear that shirt again? Maybe to bed.

My last trip to Vegas, I bought a crazy pair of heels... I had to wait 2 years to actually wear them here to synchronize with the fashion trends in Ottawa.

I guess the point I am trying to make is... NEVER CHANGE YOUR HABITS!

These clothes bring back memories, stories and create the best conversations.

"Where did you get those shoes?... oh from my trip to Vegas"