January 31, 2013

Mom, stop asking me to say "cheese". I can't pronounce that yet!

I know, a mere few days after mentioning that I was going to ease up on photos of my little gal so that this doesn't become the Stella show, I post more photos of the aforementioned child. But heading to bed, I realized I hadn't posted my 365 photo yet, and the only pictures I took today were of her. Nighty Night friends! 

January 30, 2013

faster than a speeding train!

Within an hour of getting home, I had made muffins, Stella's dinner and homemade curry for us. And just as I was about to declare myself superwoman, my veggies started burning, the smoke detector went off, the dog started howling, which prompted the baby to start crying and as I waved a towel in front of the smoke detector to stop it, the neglected pot of veggies burned beyond recognition.
But for the first 55 minutes, I was her. I was superwoman dammit.

January 29, 2013

life is a highway

Hi friends! My hubby saw yesterday's photo and said, ok, you're kind of turning it into the Stella show. I'm going to definitely try harder to get out and shoot something other than my favourite red afro'd kid. This is a photo of Hwy 99 because, as it seems, I simply can't get enough of this highway.
Sweet dreams!

January 28, 2013

Her hybrid car

The photo is a little blurry, but I love how much fun she is having. I was pulling her (and her five stuffed animal freeloading passengers) around in a pampers box, pretending she was in a car. I have to set the bar very low so she does not expect fancy wheels as a teenager.

writing and vulnerability



I apologize that I really haven't written in quite awhile. I have done little descriptions under daily photos, but not too much else in the writing department lately. Trying to determine how much to share on this little site is tricky business. Sometimes I want to write openly and candidly about various personal events and then I remember that some of my co-workers read this and it stops me in my tracks. After all, I sit by them day in day out, I really don't want them casting sideways glances at me, with that "wow, you're soooo messed up" look in their eyes.  Well, let's face it, they probably do that already. But, you know what I'm saying. And sometimes I think I really don't need to open up my life for everyone, I should just utilize this space to make people's day a little brighter, because if I can make someone laugh, I literally swell with pride (even more so than the usual water retention).

Does anyone really put their whole self or story out there? When it comes to vulnerability, why do we champion it in others and limit it in ourselves? Do we see vulnerability as a weakness? Or, do we subconsciously operate in self protection mode? Vulnerability is a bit of a dance. If someone shares a very personal story with you, it might prompt you to share something of equivalent intimacy, slowly building trust step by step. But when you're writing on a site like this, you kind of just put your words out there, and don't know how they are interpreted, unless people leave comments (which I always welcome). You hope that your words translate well and that people can connect with what you are saying. When I think of my closest friends, I value the fact that we dig deep, that we share the good and the bad of our respective journeys. I tend to prefer smaller groups to large ones because I enjoy a good conversation that really gets into the meat of a topic. Do you let your friends know your most personal thoughts, or do you find it off putting if someone is too open?

I love this ted talk by Brene Brown on vulnerability.
"When you ask people about love, they tell you about heartbreak. When you ask people about belonging, they'll tell you their most excruciating experiences of being excluded. When you ask people about connection, the stories they tell are of disconnection."
"With connection comes vulnerability - in order for us to connect, we have to let ourselves be truly seen. Some people have a strong sense of love and belonging within themselves and some struggle to find it: the key is a sense of worthiness. People who have a strong sense of love and belonging, believe they are worthy of love and belonging." A great example Brene Brown gave, in an interview I saw on the topic of vulnerability, is from the film Say Anything. John Cusack's character holds up a ghetto blaster outside the window of a girl he loves, playing the song "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel. The audience eats. it. up. People cheer. Women swoon. But when the audience is asked if they would do something so brave, the answer is a resounding "No."
We encourage others to be vulnerable, but we refrain from putting our own feelings on the line.
What makes you feel the most vulnerable? Asking someone out? Being the first person to say I Love You? Initiating Sex? Calling up a new friend? Telling someone you need help? Writing something very personal on a website/facebook or other public forum?



January 27, 2013

more soup sir

I just made a big batch of carrot soup and biscuits so that we have dinner ready as soon as we walk in tomorrow. Ya, it's soup. Not all 365 photos will be winners.

January 26, 2013

walking in a winter wonderland

Care and I got an early start and headed up to Seymour Mountain. It was clouded in, so we didn't get to experience the jaw droppingly beautiful view from the top, but we still had a great workout in the fresh air with tiny snowflakes lightly falling around us. It was gorgeous. The beauty of having your own snowshoes is that you can just head up Dog Mountain, which is a free trail. You don't have to wait in any line ups for rentals or trail tickets. That being said, I borrowed my hubby's snowshoes, which are more designed for heavy duty mountaineering, and are so big, it looked like I had a snowboard strapped to each foot. A few people commented on their way by, "Wow, I haven't seen ones that big!" Hey hon, check out her boards!" Yes, they are so big, people referred to them as boards, not shoes. I only wish Care's photo of me captured my footwear to show you just how giant they were in comparison to hers. Starting your day with a great workout in this province's amazing landscape always reminds me how lucky I am to live here.

January 25, 2013

January 24, 2013

namaste

It's a tunnel! It's a magic carpet! It's a slide for her stuffed animals! My yoga mat is her favourite toy these days. It's easy to see that everyday objects in our home take precedent over store bought toys. This morning she picked up a cloth and was wiping the tables and floor with it, giggling away. It might be my new favourite game of hers. Who wants to play a rousing game of Cinderella?
Here's an interesting read about babies and toys.

January 23, 2013

This woman has PMS

I never post self portraits in any attempt at vanity.
Trust me.
I am THE most critical person of myself in photos.
Being a shy person, I often don't feel seen or heard. That's why I value having this little space where I can freely write my opinion and try to connect with readers.
I just posted this to show that I am here, behind the words, behind the lens.

January 21, 2013

my wish for you

When I look at these little faces, I think about how I want them to conquer the world just as they are in this moment of time:
Curious about everything around them
Completely unconcerned with body image
Non judging
Aware that they are completely loved
Unscathed
Unafraid to dance like a total maniac
Questioning everything
Full of affection
Zero self doubt
Enthusiastic about the smallest detail
Knowing when they need to take a rest
Able to befriend anyone they meet
Starting each day completely excited

I want to be just like my daughter when I grow up.

an air of romance


January 20, 2013

i heart organizing

In this month's Redbook magazine, they had a great section on organizing. Here were some of my favourite tips that I wanted to share:
When you're storing a linen set, put everything into one pillowcase to keep the set together.

 Use a cleaning carry-all to store kids books, toys, snacks and cups for convenient car travel.
Use a plastic door hanging shoe rack, to compartmentalize tape, batteries, rubber bands, a dog leash, umbrella, basically clean out your junk drawer.
Buy shower curtain hooks and place them on a hanger. Store your scarves so they are easy to see. 
Keep a laundry basket in the trunk of your car. When you get groceries, simply place them in the laundry basket to save them from tipping over and it makes them easy to carry inside.
Arrange items in drawers horizontally so they are easy to see.
Happy Organizing!





a moment of solitude

Julia at White Rock beach

January 19, 2013

a breath of fresh air

We got our wilderness fix this morning at Redwood Park. Stella kept touching the bark of various trees and then touched my face. Perhaps I need more moisturizer.

the feast

Friday's 365: Italian night was carbalicious. I've got two words for you - homemade gnocchi. Remember those two words because they are single handedly the reason my waistline expanded a few inches this weekend.
It was bellissimo!

ciao!


I am finally able to upload my photos again. Here's Thursday's 365 photo. I told my friends I'd bring bruschetta to Friday night's feast, but had never made it before, so I did a test drive Thursday night with Craig. Luckily, he survived.

January 17, 2013

missing in action

Hello lovely friends. I have misplaced the cable that connects to my camera to my computer to upload photos. So, there will just be a little blip in the 365 postings until I find it or buy a new one. I am still shooting daily photos, I just won't be able to post them until I have a cable. See you soon!

if you could buy a second home....

If you could afford to buy a second home, what would appeal to you the most? A cottage on a nearby lake so that you can easily get there on any given weekend? A cabin in the mountains so you can hike and ski? A condo in a destination city like London, Paris or New York? A beachfront home in Hawaii or California? A desert condo backing onto a golf course? Do you like the idea of a second home, a place to kick back, full of your own things? Or, do you find the idea of frequently vacationing in the same place too limiting?

Growing up, we had a cabin at Mt. Baker. It was only a 90 minute drive from home, so we'd often spend weekends there, skiing, hiking, swimming, playing tennis and pickleball. In the summer we'd go for weeks at a time. We shared it with two other families to make it more affordable and divided up the weekends. Often, all the families would go at once, playing in the fresh mountain air from dawn until dusk. For the entire 20+ years we owned the cabin, we never had a tv. We never missed it either. The entire upper floor was just an open loft and everyone would sleep side by side on foam mattresses in sleeping bags. Sometimes there were 10-15 people there, snoring in various intervals. As an adult, looking back, I often wonder how we did it, but as a kid, you didn't care. When we were older, it became an amazing place to go with friends and party the night away and crash over. There are so many albums like The Beatles Abbey Road, The Eagles Hotel California, Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, that when I hear them, I am instantly taken back to those cabin walls. 

When you vacation with your family, do you prefer to experience new sights together? Or do you like the idea of having a home away from home?



January 16, 2013

guilty pleasures

The little one is asleep. The hubby is out with friends. New magazines and a glass of wine seem like the perfect way to cap off this little slice of free time. What's your guilty pleasure if you have a moment to yourself? I'm looking through the magazines to collect words and images for a vision board for this year's goals/dreams. I just tape it to my closet wall so that I get to look at it daily and keep my dreams in focus. I did one a few years ago to try and will the universe into granting me a baby. I know it sounds a little hokey, hence why I tape it in my closet. This year my focus is on quality time with loved ones, health, adventure/travel and intellectual pursuits (I know, Glamour magazine seems like the perfect place for such brainy endeavours). What would you put on your board?

January 15, 2013

i'm going to be late for dinner, traffic is a nightmare

I am not too happy about her habit of driving and talking on a cell phone. The good thing is that we have 15 years to curb it. On a positive note, I do like how she carpools.

January 14, 2013

winter wonderland

When I got home from work, everything was blanketed in snow. It was such a beautiful drive home. I only wish I had my camera with me before the night sky had fallen. 

January 13, 2013

adorable

Stella's little buddy (future hubby?) Jacques.

January 12, 2013

date night

We saw Silver Linings Playbook. Have you seen it? It's the first movie we've seen in over a year at an actual theatre. I loved it. Bradley Cooper plays Pat Solitano, who returns home after spending eight months in a state institution, to live with his parents (Robert De Niro/Jacki Weaver). Through mutual friends, Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a woman battling her own problems since the death of her husband. Together Tiffany and Pat strike up a friendship, where Pat agrees to help Tiffany with her dance competition, if she'll help him reconnect with his estranged wife (who has a restraining order against him). Cooper, Lawrence and De Niro were all nominated for the coveted oscar, and the film, director and writing team all picked up nominations too. It was very funny, deeply moving and the chemistry between Cooper and Lawrence was palpable. I loved Jennifer Lawrence ever since A Winter's Bone and in Silver Linings she gives such an honest and gritty portrayal of a woman who is unapologetic in her unravelling. Cooper absolutely shines as bi-polar Pat, an unflappable optimist trying to repair the damaged life he left behind. Yep, I swooned.

January 11, 2013

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday Friends! What's on your line up this weekend? We're taking the little one snowshoeing with friends (Translation: hubby will carry her in a backpack up the mountain and partway up the hills, I'll play it cool, trying to cover up the huffing and puffing, and secretly wishing that I too was being carried in said backpack.) 

Are you going to watch the golden globes on Sunday? I'm looking forward to it. I absolutely love Tina Fey and Amy Poehler (have you seen Parks and Recreation? Brilliant.) I can't wait to see the ladies rock it. Here's their watch-along drinking game they devised. 
This week the nominees for the Academy Awards came out. Have you seen any of the Best Picture contenders? Check out this preview of Beasts of the Southern Wild, nine year old Quvenzhane Wallis is up for best actress. Doesn't she look spell-binding? Nine. Incredible. At nine I was far too busy watching Three's Company episodes and spinning my Rock '81 K-tel album to pursue a career in acting, thank you very much. 
Do you like the movie theatre experience? Nowadays with people having such sophisticated televisions, with state of the art surround sound systems, more people seem to prefer staying in and skipping the crowd noise. Personally, I haven't been to a movie in over a year (due to child/not to any kind of sophisticated home theatre set up) and am excited to finally see a movie this weekend in an actual theatre. The previews, a room full of laughter, the sticky floors - ah bliss. We're thinking of starting the list with Silver Linings Playbook because, as you know, if you have to start the list anywhere, you should always start with Bradley Cooper. 
Happy Weekend Friends! xo 

January 10, 2013

little friends

Today we gathered up seven of the little ones for some play time. Shortly after Stella was born, public health put together some "new parent" info sessions where we met this amazing group of women. We swapped numbers and kept our little mom's group going. We put together a facebook page for other local moms to join up and now the group has 25 members. The babies are only about a month or two apart in age, so it's a great chance for us to bounce questions off one another, to let them have some playtime and for us to have some much needed adult conversation. I've really enjoyed watching these babies grow together and seeing their little personalities emerge.

January 9, 2013

clearly, i had everything in the wrong spot

Dude. Seriously. We had been in the house for two minutes.
She doesn't even have her coat off.

January 8, 2013

sup

One thing I really like about doing the 365 project, is that it makes me more of an observer of my surroundings - truly living in the moment to seek out a shot. Tonight was just one of those dash home from work, make dinner for the little one, then for us, then hit the gym once she's gone to bed - kind of nights. But sometimes, if you take a moment, you can see the beauty in your routine. xo

January 7, 2013

uh oh!

I know what you're thinking....that grade A klutz you know so well has dropped her lens into the sink - but for once tis not I that is the fool, tis you! It's my new travel mug. I absolutely love it. But yes, there was a moment when I opened it up at Christmas that I thought I had received a new sweet ass lens.