five

So, you may have seen this going around on all kinds of social media, and now, it's finally made it's way over to me, via the beautiful Brooke, of Her Life Lately.
Here goes!

one ||  I'm the only person in my immediately family that goes by my given first name.  My parents both go by there middle names, and my sisters go by different versions of their first names.

two || I'm so happy to have Kea, our dog, in our lives.  It's like it was destiny for her to be ours.

three || I can compare pretty much anything in life to and episode of  'How I Met Your Mother' and/or 'The Simpsons'.  And have it actually make sense.

four || I've never been on an all inclusive vacation.  This needs to be fixed immediately.  Any takers?

five ||  As a child, I used to have a recurring dream.  It involved the lighthouse in the small town of our family cottage, and going up the round staircase over and over.  Sometimes it was a scary nightmare, sometimes it was nice and soothing.

Bet you didn't know these things about me!!
Brooke also tagged a couple of other bloggers, so check them out! Ashly of Ashly & Monkey, and Margot of Around the World and Back Again

Meeting my Idol - Emily Schuman of Cupcakes and Cashmere

One thing I had the opportunity to do while back home in Ontario, was meet my biggest idol, Emily Schuman  of the blog Cupcakes and Cashmere.  She was celebrating her book, Cupcakes and Cashmere: A Guide for Defining Your Style, Reinventing Your Space, and Entertaining with Ease, with a book signing at Holt Renfrew on Bloor St in Toronto.  I happened to catch the event details on Twitter and thought, 'what are the chances?!'.  I had a copy already, (pre-ordered it from Amazon back in Dec!) and had the Bf overnight it to me in order to make it in time for the event.

I had my sisters in tow as we headed downtown, (same trip as the Hudson's Bay Christmas windows), and we ventured into the beautiful store.  They were holiday ready with carolers singing, free hot chocolate as you walked in from the cold, and in the area for the book signing, free cupcakes.  Very appropriate.

Emily's desk was surrounded by Holt's finest cashmere sweaters, fresh flowers, and teacups.

Once it was my turn for the hot seat, I walked right up and introduced myself, as did she.  We chatted for a few minutes as she signed my copy.  I told her that her blog was the first blog I'd ever read, and she was genuinely thankful for that.

Emily is just a peach; So friendly, easy going and even more beautiful in person.  I feel so inspired by her success and can't wait to see what's next for her! Congrats Emily!

Green Sneaks

Oh, look! I have bangs! That's something that happened during my time off, and I love them.  

Speaking of which, I could use a trim.  

Oh, look! I'm wearing a new pair of Converse sneakers! I picked up these puppies on a crazy deal at the Hudson's Bay huge shoe sale.  We're talking 50% off clearance, so I got these guys for $8! 

I'm very proud of that.  

Jeans, tank and blouse: American Eagle, Striped Scarf: H&M, Handmade Felted Wool Tote: Flea Market in Budapest,
Shoes: Converse sneakers via Hudson's Bay

Holiday Season in Review

Get ready for photo overload.  

I thought I'd catch you all up on my what I did over my holiday season.  We managed to keep up a lot of our family traditions and frankly I think we did rather well, considering. 

My sisters and I visited the Hudson's Bay at the Eaton Center, in downtown Toronto, to see the Christmas Window displays.  We used to go when we were kids every year and made a day of it, such a good tradition.  

We also did the job of picking out, putting up, and decorating the Christmas tree.  Picking a tree was pretty easy, seeing as we fell in love with the first tree we saw.  While decorating the tree, we decided to purge some of our old (read: broken/ugly) ornaments and decor.  Let's just say, it was a long awaited task.

I attended a friends annual gingerbread house making party.  Holy moly, these girls are good! A few ladies prepared for the task by researching ideas online, meanwhile some invested in professional grade tools to help with icing and such.  It was pretty competitive, but such a great night. 

And lastly, my sisters and I had a girls day and got our hair done, ate some sushi for lunch and walked around the Burlington Village Square.

Oh, and with the big day being my birthday as well, Mom got me my favourite cake.  An ice cream cake with Santa Claus on it.   

I was really proud of Mom, my sisters and I this holiday season.

Even though we missed Dad like crazy, we still managed to make each other laugh with silly gifts, enjoy good food together, and made some new memories.  

I may be a bit behind, but I hope nothing but the best for you all in this new year!

On the Want List.... Eyeglasses

A few months back I lost my glasses.  Now I don't need to wear glasses all the time (yet), mostly just for driving at night and distances.  So, loosing them wasn't the complete end of the world.  Until I thought I had also lost my back-up pair (which about a month later I miraculously found).  So, one of the things I did while back home was go see the eye doctor and get a renewal of my prescription, in order to get a new updated pair of glasses.  

Both my sisters and I have been using this website called Zenni Optical for a few years, and have had great success.  They have good quality frames, great prices (cheaper than Clearly Contacts!) and serve their customers well.  

When buying glasses online there's always the issue of not being able to try them on, Zenni Optical has an option to upload a photo of yourself, or you can use an existing photo of someone else with a similar face shape to yours, problem solved.  And seeing that their prices are so reasonable, you can get 2 pairs, with the hopes that 1 out of the 2 will look as you expected.

I found these frames that I loove! They are the same wayfarer style as my old ones, but with a tortoise shell colour.  These bad boys are $12.95!! 

p.s. I may also be getting them in black....to replace my lost ones.

This post is my own opinion.

Over the Long Haul

Hello Strangers!  I'm back! 

A some of you may know, I took some time off from blogging (and life), due to a life changing experience, my Dad passed away.  I was back home in Ontario for a while supporting my Mom and sisters and have been back in Vancouver for almost 2 months.  I'm still very much settling in, but making progress.  

I miss him everyday, and I'm starting to realize two things:

a. this feeling never goes away.
b. and it's a good thing.

I want to take a minute here and thank you all for your kind words and support.  Fellow bloggers, friends, family, co-workers, and anyone else I have come in contact with have been so great to me and those I love, and for that, I am truly thankful.  

Being away from my blog has made me realize how passionate I feel about it.  And how much I really enjoy reading all of your blogs too! I definitely enjoyed all the 'holiday' posts, 'new year' posts, and especially 'year in review' posts. Thank you for keeping me entertained and inspired.

The blogosphere really is an inspirational thing to be a part of, and I can't wait to dive into it at new depths.  

This year, my resolution of sorts is basically to get my stuff (read: a swear word) together and do it! I like to say this out loud with a lot a lot of gusto! It makes me feel good! This carries through to blog, work, life and love.  

I have some exciting ideas for le blog, and other similar endeavors and can't wait to share them with you. 

Here's to 2013!

I'll stop typing now..... ;)