June 25, 2013

This is the end...



I saw this flick last night and laughed my ass off. Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson and Danny McBride all star as themselves. While at a house party at James Franco's place in the Hollywood hills, catastrophic events devastate Los Angeles, leaving the friends trapped inside the home with limited supplies, putting their friendship to the ultimate test.
I can't wait to see it again.

June 23, 2013

camping with toddlers

The destination: Chilliwack Lake
On our way! Sippy cup? Check. Cracker that I can smush into smithereens all over the car? Big check.
Our site backed onto the Trans Canada Trail (part of the world's longest network of recreational trails - which by 2017 will stretch 23,000 kms. They were ready to run all of it....now!
Hey guys, don't mistake me for a log, ok? Did you hear me guys? 
We are hoping that one day they fall madly in love and have amazing, beautiful babies with giant afros. 
A playground! omg omg omg
That slide was awesome Dad! K, you stand there and watch me while I do that 100 more times!
clocking yet more kilometres on the Trans Canada trail....
giggling in the tent: undoubtedly laughing at how ridiculous their parents are...
Our new tent, that not only fit her crib, but my 6'5" tall hubby could stand up in it. Pimp!
adult fireside drinks & s'mores. children sleeping. camping success.

June 17, 2013

Summer plans.....

Hi lovely friends! What is on your line up this Summer? If you're staying in town, I don't blame you, this province is off the hook in the sun. Here are 15 things I'm hoping to do this Summer:

  • Take the little one camping. For reals. In a tent. Assess psychological state (mine) post camping to see if aforementioned experience is worth repeating.
  • Take the little one on her first flight. Keep rental car company names on speed dial in case driving home is our(my?) only option. 
  • Transform our back deck and have our friends over for dinner when it's done
  • Have a picnic in Stanley park and ride the train
  • Have a big family bbq in our yard with our extended families 
  • Keep regularly exercising so that my body is bathing suit ready. I used to say bikini ready, but let's be honest - no one is ready for that. much. white.
  • Enter a 5km race with my running crew and a 10 km race solo
  • Catch an outdoor concert
  • Have a weekend away to a place we've never experienced
  • Take the little one to the PNE so I can watch her enjoy her first experience on rides and she can simultaneously watch me enjoy the miracle of mini donuts. 
  • Try different local farmer's markets
  • Build my own veggie garden
  • Buy a hybrid bike
  • Visit local wineries with friends
  • Whistler getaway

a smile for your Monday.....


June 10, 2013

the buddy system...

On my days off, I meet up with some amazing local mammas with our jogger strollers, ready for business. We go for morning runs and then let the monkeys out to play after. If there's one thing I've learned, is how incredibly effective the buddy system is. When people are waiting for you, you show up. We run in the rain or sun. We don't let anyone bail. I can't guarantee I'd be this motivated if I was just running solo each morning. Actually, I know there's no freaking way I'd be motivated to run in the rain if left to my own devices. 
I realize that one too many times I've caught myself trying on clothes saying, "oh, it doesn't quite fit right, I've just had a baby..." and when the store clerk asks how old my baby is, I quietly cringe and admit, "oh 17 months". So this running group is exactly the slap in the butt I needed to get motivated. 
Grab some friends and put together a plan - it's way more fun working out with a buddy and you will definitely push yourself more. xo

June 6, 2013

on connecting.....


Sometimes people think I'm a little too open on this site, but I honestly don't know how else to be. I believe in putting it all out there, in hopes that maybe one person can relate and feel a sense of community.

As clear as day, I remember being four years old telling my little neighbourhood gang of friends that I found out I was adopted. One girl spoke up and said, "You know what that means don't you? It means your parents didn't want you." That one sentence, that single moment, immediately changed how I felt about my news and about myself. I instantly felt a deep sense of rejection. I felt like I didn't belong - anywhere. Now, as an adult, of course I know that little girl's statement is ludicrous - I know all the ins and outs of what a woman would go through to reach the complex decision of giving up a child for adoption. But I was a little girl, who didn't know how to process the information properly - I wasn't born into my family, I didn't have a birth story like my friends, I didn't look like my family, I felt like I was just kind of dropped into this place. 
Now, couple that sense of rejection with a naturally shy disposition - well, let me tell you, it ain't pretty: you have a girl who struggles to make connections. 
I can count the people who truly know me on two hands. And believe me, these people I worship. They are friends I've gathered throughout my life, who I bonded with and eventually felt safe enough to open up to and let my guard down a bit. I started to trust that they were sticking around. When I am included in a plan or group, it gives me such a deep sense of belonging, a feeling that has been foreign for a large part of my life. 
That's why becoming a mom was such a closely held dream of mine. I wanted to trust in the permanence of love. Marriages often thrive, but sometimes fail. Parenthood is a lifetime commitment and I knew that if I could become a mom, that I'd give my child my best because I would be giving them an unguarded heart. 
I feel like I do shine as a mom (I can say that now only because my child can't speak yet and give her two cents on things) - because I feel that I'm my most confident self with her. I'm 100% my silly self - I wish I felt that sense of permanence more in my life - where I trust people will stick around - so that I can show them my best. 
As I get older, my shyness has gotten a little better. Don't get me wrong, I've done somethings in my life that go against the grain of a shy disposition - travelled solo, made lots of speeches, skinny dipped at parties, ok, maybe some things that shouldn't be shared - but I still blush easily, struggle to start conversations and second guess what I'm saying all. the. time. On the flipside, I know that the more people I connect with, the richer my life feels, so I am learning to sit in the discomfort of shyness and push through it because the payoff is so great. I've amassed some spectacular friends recently, who have given me hope that maybe I'm believing more in myself and the universe is paying me back with these amazing connections. Of equal importance, is that I'm learning to let go of the people who don't make me feel valued because that's also an important sign of confidence. This entry is quite personal, but it's a little love note to my hubby and friends who have helped me feel like I belong, and to my little beautiful girl, whose fearlessness I learn from everyday. 
xoxo

June 4, 2013

I remember when cracking open the bubbly used to mean something else.....

I never would have guessed my dog would have more fun playing with the bubbles than my daughter, but she thought it was slap-your-knees hilarious to watch the dog leap around like a total maniac. So note to dog owners, try bubbles - it got my 13 year old dog moving like a puppy. 

June 2, 2013

I hope you're having a beautiful weekend....


Hi friends! What are you up to this weekend? We're housesitting and had friends over last night for appies and drinks. We were all in agreement that we're really lucky to have such a funny circle of friends. I don't know about you, but for me, a good sense of humour is key to knowing if I'm really going to click with someone. If they can make me really laugh, they've got my respect. What shows/movies do you find really funny?

Funniest TV show: Arrested Development.

Funniest Movies: Anchorman, Best in Show, Waiting for Guffman, Bridesmaids, Election, the Hangover, Napoleon Dynamite, I Love you Man, 40 year old virgin, Knocked Up, Date Night, Annie Hall, Princess Bride

Funniest Stand Up Comedians: Louis CK, Ricky Gervais

Funniest Book: Tina Fey's Bossypants

Funniest thing I've ever witnessed: We were at a night club with friends having a drink when one of our friends mumbled something incoherent to us,  probably "I love this song" then stumbled his way onto the dance floor. He was well into his bevvies and did more of a slow bent over side to side shuffle than a real dance. From our seats, we had the perfect view of large TV screens that captured all the goings-on of the dance floor, which still might I add, was just comprised of him.
For us this was already must see TV, but then it got so much better. The dry ice machine fired up and smoke slowly slithered its way across the dance floor. In a poorly planned(?) dance spin, our friend managed to twirl himself into a pole and lose his glasses. Now we were watching him on our TV screen on all fours, crawling around the dry ice, pawing at the ground feverishly trying to find his glasses. I fondly refer to this story as gorilla in the mist.

Funniest question I've ever been asked: "Welcome to Tim Horton's may I take your order?" Yes, I'd like a toasted egg sandwich on whole wheat and a small milk.
"You'd like me to pour milk on your sandwich?" 
No, I'd like my milk on the side.

I hope your weekend if full of big laughs! xo