red chair

Today I gave our old patio chairs some new life with a can of red paint.
Speaking of red chairs......have you been watching the Voice? (Segueway!)
My personal favourite of the competition is this singer.
Who is yours?

tex mex chicken

I've been tossing this together lately as an easy go-to healthy dinner and thought I'd share it:
Bake chicken in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes or so until cooked through. (I just use a little olive oil, salt and pepper to keep it healthy). While the chicken is baking, cook up rice according to directions (I prefer Spanish rice for this) and cook up black beans.
Layer in a bowl chopped lettuce, rice, beans, chicken, salsa.
You could also toss on some extra toppings like avacado, cilantro, shredded cheddar or a spoon of sour cream.
Y'all enjoy now, ya hear?

cool ideas

Have you heard of glow in the dark paint? I hadn't heard of it until I saw the sold out sign at Home Depot today. (What? This product I didn't know existed before this very moment is sold out? Well, I have to have it!)
Here are some cool uses for the paint:

Paint path stones for a glowing walkway at night. Dazzle your guests (and keep them upright!).

Paint ceramic pots to light up  your garden at night. (For those of you who have flowers and plants worth illuminating) - I prefer to keep my weed-riddled yard in the dark.

I love the idea of using glow in the dark paint on mason jars like the ones below and adding tea lights. They'd make great tabletop lanterns for the deck. Click here to get the "how to". 

*images courtesy of pinterest.

catching up

Hi friends! Sorry for the delay in posts this week, it's been a busy one! I guess it's that time of year where as the weather heats up, so does the social calendar. Here are a few photos from this week's 365:

Wednesday: trying to be artistic at the park

Thursday morning: Hanging out at the park with a few of our wonderful friends: Leah & Nyah, 

Emlyn (& Tricia)

Thursday night: Having a surprise birthday dinner for Lynny at Lisa's company's headquarters: Stonz. Check out their amazing selection here. 

(PS - I bought Stella a pair of the yellow rainboots pictured below, aren't they awesome?)

I'm pretty sure there is a pre-sign pigeon who wasn't so lucky.

When it comes to food, we mean business.

Beautiful ladies: Uschi & Lynny (the birthday girl)

Friday afternoon: Double Date at the park with Owen, Joey and Nyah.

We capped off Friday with a date night for dinner and then dropped in on the gang at Pete's place. I laughed so hard and had that amazing feeling of knowing at that moment, there was no where I'd rather be than in that room with that group of damn funny people. Of course, post childbirth, I always come dangerously close to peeing my pants when I laugh so much, but it's a line I'm willing to walk. 

Saturday: Girls night out. Sharing delicious appies at Tap. 

Sunday: spotted this little sweetie chowing down at Crescent Park. 

I love this 365 project because I just have to look through these photos and I'm reminded of how rich I am because of the people I know, the experiences I get to enjoy and the love I share with my little family. I hope you feel recharged from your weekend. xoxo 

one of my favourite parts of being a parent...

.........is seeing the world through her eyes.
This photo is from our evening spent at the playground. I tried to capture myself on a swing (editorial note: taking photos while on a swing is one of the quickest ways to vomit).

in bloom

"Let us be thankful for those who make us happy, they are the gardeners that make our souls blossom."
Proust.

365 photo catch up from the week....

Wednesday: Harrison Lake

Thursday: Chillin at the cabin at Harrison

Friday: dinner at our friend's place- this is their amazing new hutch built from pieces of an old barn

Saturday: Afternoon brunch date  - our child was also in attendance, so I guess the word "date" is a stretch. It was more like a "Quickly scarf down lunch that I (happily) didn't have to make while I endlessly distract aforementioned child with items on the table" outing.

Sunday - her first time painting. I'll be curious to see if she loves the arts as much as her momma. 

I hope you're having a great weekend friends! xo

a must see for all women

Not surprisingly, this video made me cry. Why are we so hard on ourselves? Why can't we see ourselves the way others do? I've got beautiful friends. I mean these women are gorgeous and if you asked me to describe their traits, I'd have a lengthy list of accolades. But when I see myself, I see: big forehead, big nose, frizzy hair, thick waist: I never, ever have felt well put together.
The other day I found some old photos, when I was in my twenties. I remember at that point of my life feeling big, even though I was always a size medium, I felt really big compared to how I wanted to look. Now I look back, and think, I looked so thin. Why on earth did I waste so much time worrying?
Look at yourself right now, at this point in your life - you'll never be younger than you are right now.
You want to lose weight? Sure, you and everyone else, but you have to be happy with how you look at this very moment.
I picked this photo below as one of my favourite self portraits, simply because I feel like it embodies who I am: not made up (no make up/hair products), happy & shy at the same time.
I like the fact my eyes are green, my hair is thick and my shoulders have freckles, but I still see the big nose and pointy chin. The older I get, the more I realize I have to embrace it all and grow into my face.
Look in the mirror tonight and find five things you love about yourself. xo

down by the water

Goodnight sun, see you in about six days or so according to the forecast. 

I love you.

I miss you.

Please come back. 

one of my favourite words

yesterday's 365 photo.
I like to think among all the weeds and rocks that life throws your way, friendship survives.
(Wow, really trying to dress up the meaning in an otherwise sub-par photo)

weekend roundup

My love.

Out and about in Fort Langley

Herb crusted Sole on Quinoa with citrus salsa at our favourite spot in Fort Langley: Beatniks Bistro. Hello delicious morsels. 

Celebrating my aunt's 70th birthday. Doesn't she look Amazing? Here she is with her adorable granddaughter Emily. 

Three Generations:

Hello friends! Did you have a good weekend? I feel like this was one of my favourite weekends in awhile because it felt so perfectly balanced. We joined friends friday to take the kids swimming and shared a delicious dinner together, the hubby and I took turns looking after the little one Saturday while we swapped working out, had a date night Saturday night, visited friends after, worked out Sunday morning, went to my Aunt's 70th birthday party and chilled out tonight. It was a perfect blend of friends, family, exercise and romance. When do you feel like your weekends are most balanced? 

xoxo 

sunnyside up

My heart is full from seeing all of these beautiful faces today. I hope you were able to get out and enjoy the gorgeous day. Don't you think as adults, we need to play more? I mean, look how happy it makes everyone. Goodnight friends xoxo 

stand tall

Resilience is the word of the day. I've been so moved recently by the resilience of others, who handle the most challenging circumstances with such strength and dignity: a classmate of mine (40 years old) who is getting a double mastectomy jokes that it's better to be flat chested than flatlined. She says some people say "why me?" and her immediate thought is, "why not me?" It's life: bad things happen to good people and good things happen to bad people.
A friend of my husband found out his wife is pregnant and both he and his wife lost their jobs within two days of one another. But he's so overjoyed about their pregnancy, because his wife had recently suffered a miscarriage that the rest is just stuff that will work itself out.
Life throws us curveballs all the time - but we can choose how we want to respond to them.
The bravest woman I ever saw, was on the Oprah show, her family was Tutsi, and the Hutu militia had slaughtered all 16 members of her extended family and wiped out her entire village of friends during the massacre that took place in Rwanda. She was raped repeatedly and escaped when her attackers were resting from exhaustion.
She was a smiling, beautiful, happy woman who still had a light within her. Where does that strength come from? I found her resilience, in what was one of the most tragic stories I had ever heard, to be nothing short of phenomenal.
Take stock of what you have. For me, my wealth is: my health, and the health of my family and friends. Seriously, the rest is gravy. xo

Read. This. Now.

My view, running at me. Children know what they want, and they want it right. freaking. now.
I love the fact that she has yet to meet the word subtle.
Goodnight loves. I hope you had a great day. xo

friendship

Someone asked me an interesting question the other day: If you took your current circle of friends (who are probably made up of people you've known from high school, university, work, sports, hobbies, via your kids, etc.) - if you met them all today, would you still be friends with each of them? So many of us have nostalgic memories of our friends, shared stories and adventures, but do we still have things in common today?

If history wasn't part of the equation, would you still have the same friendship circle?

It's a tricky question because we have such a deep sentimental love for our friends and they've played such a pivotal role in shaping our lives, but what makes some friendships stand the test of time, while others slowly fade away?

Anyways, toss those thoughts around your noggins, I'm hitting my big pillow! xo goodnight loves.

serenity now

It's 11. We've been trying since 8 to get our baby to sleep, so, as much as I wanted to write tonight, that window has passed. To quote Frank Costanza from Seinfeld, "Serenity Now." 

Goodnight friends! 

Hopefully. 

xo