Down The Street

Our invites: blogged

2011-07-18T14:36:00.000-07:00

With less than 4 weeks to go, we have sooo much going on with the planning and logistical nightmares of our wedding. It's making it really impossible to sit still for 5 minutes and do a wedding recap..

But in the meantime, here is a post from the brilliantly talented Kathleen from Jeremy and Kathleen and how our invitations were created. Oh yes, she did. and they are fantastical.. check them out for yourself!

Things we do: summer nights

2011-05-30T05:06:00.000-07:00

The market is where we work and play both weekdays and ends...

Living in the burbs can be a little 'blah' at times... don't get me wrong. I love my neighbourhood. Sometimes the crazy dreamer in me wants to bust out a for sale sign on the front lawn, pack up our house and move downtown. Ottawa doesn't have the same vibe other cities like Toronto or Montreal may have, but it's a little offbeat and quirky in all the right ways.

I've lived and have loved working in the Market for years.. but my favorite thing to do is to pretend were tourists and just roam the streets and shops not looking for anything specific to do.

Last night was one of those nights. The goal was to hit the streets for gelato and what we ended up getting was a show..

Behold. Eden, swallowing a balloon... awesome.

Cool. Calm. Collected.

2011-05-10T09:12:00.001-07:00

My house is finally empty. Well not in the literal sense.. read on.

For the past eight months, we've had borders rent out a few rooms in our home to help our cash strapped asses and ease the tides while the better half job hunted.
Not that it wasn't great or anything short of amazing.. trust me. We had our good times...

Not too long ago, we decided we needed our privacy back... get our turned 'frat house' back into our home. our love nest. And so we waited patiently for the time to come to say goodbye to our roomies, our friends.

Our house has been eerily quiet for a few days now. They call it empty nesters syndrome for a reason.. the silence is unsettling. You start hearing all the cracks in the ceiling at night again instead of the faint music or the sound of a television in the distance.. the dog, has adjusted quite well to the additional noise; he doesn't flinch as much as he used to when he sleeps, which has been a blessing. God knows how many times I can deal with being woken up by a panicking dog at 2am anymore.

Our rooms have becomes blank canvases again. Call it inspiration...

I'm excited for what's to come..

This made my day..

2010-05-03T13:46:00.000-07:00

After lunch this afternoon, I received an e-mail reminder from PetSmart for a special someones upcoming birthday..

Rufus will be celebrating his 3rd big one next Wednesday..

Oh boy does time fly!!

Walking on Sunnybrooke..

2010-04-29T17:40:00.000-07:00

Every night we walk our pup the same route and every time we pass this shrub, I always kick myself for not having a camera strapped to my body.

Glad I had it on hand tonight : )

ka-boom

2010-04-19T04:33:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when I am left alone with my thoughts all weekend..

My better half left Rufus and I to play 'single man' with the guys, which I support %100 (sometimes). It took me all of 15 minutes to figure out what to do. Rufus spend most of Saturday hiding.. with good reason of course.. Things got a little messy..

Throwing rocks in coffee cups is a very messy and noisy hobby.. one Rufus doesn't bode very well with. Didn't stop me from having a little fun experimenting though..

I also may have overdosed on cookies for a little while...

(inspired by the cookie splash group on Flickr)

House plant love..

2010-04-18T15:44:00.000-07:00

my 6 year old peace lily; first flower of the season..

City girls don't play with tractors..

2010-04-12T09:26:00.000-07:00

After having a great brunch with family Sunday morning, we made our way over to a friend's farm for a cup of coffee.. I'm in no way mechanically inclined, but I'm glad I brought the camera in with me.

I am intrigued by shapes and objects that show their wear and tear proudly..

And Missy wasn't too hard to look at either.. : )

Grandpapa and the Old West

2010-04-10T07:12:00.000-07:00

After going through boxes of old photographs and books that once belonged to my grandfather, I became a little disappointed with myself in how little I knew of him before he passed in 2000. Once in a while my grandmother will come out with hilarious stories on how they met, and their lives together but I'd love to learn more about his past, where he grew up..

A few things I loved very much about him was his obsession with Abbott and Costello VHS tapes, Anne Murray and a love for the Old West (he grew up in Alberta). As a tribute to his early years, my uncle sent him a collection of photographs inspired by the Old West for Fathers day in '78.

here are a few of my favorite photographs from that collection..

a keepsake project..

2010-04-07T11:13:00.000-07:00

I've been going back and forth on creating a keepsake book of our memories together for about a year now. We are slowly creeping up on the 5 year mark in our relationship and I think I'm ready to start putting things together to build this behemoth of a book.

It will need to be durable and have many blank pages to fill since we're planning on adding pictures and souvenirs to it for many more years to come. It would be to document how we met, our first date, our biggest milestones (recent engagement and upcoming wedding) babies (a scary but exciting word) and our children's milestones. And of course, a special spot for Rufus, our fur baby.

First thing's first, our family tree..

My parents were only able to trace our family tree back 3 generations but eventually I'd like to go even further than that (more on that soon). For the time being 3 generations is more than enough for the project. I'd love to document where everybody grew up, how they all met, wedding dates.. cultivate as much information as possible. If we can, I'd love to have pictures of everybody either in the tree or next to it. But only if it's possible.. I know some pictures might have gotten misplaced over the years which is understandable (won't lose any sleep over it)

I am grateful my parents documented the first 3 years of my childhood in my memory book, but It still left me wanting more.. maybe I'll make a separate book for each of my kids to give to them on their wedding day or graduation.. I want to be able to preserve our fondest memories together for as long as we can.. I find myself looking back at my memory book every once in a while and I know I'll be thanking myself years from now when little details get forgotten..

I'd love to finally find our keepsakes a permanent home and to have it be something we can enjoy as a family for years to come. Like other things in our lives at the moment, it won't happen overnight, but looking at it as a long term goal, this will be a very special project and close to our hearts.

Can't wait to start working on this..

Bedroom Exposed: inspiration

2010-04-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

I will admit, I did get a little paint happy when we first moved into our home almost 3 years ago.. picking paint colors consisted of going to Home Depot, getting a paint chip fan, closing our eyes and with the drop of our finger deciding on each room color. Not the brightest tools in the shed.. that's for sure.

We're taking a different approach to it this time. In keeping with the tones of 'serenity and calmness', room by room our little Easter colored home is going to get a complete overhaul.. Eventually I'd love to bring neutral tones throughout the house, but for now the master suite is our starting point that will lead the way for future projects in our home.

The master suite consists of our bedroom, a fairly spacious walk in closet and ensuite bathroom (cheater ensuite, to be more specific) The colors in these 3 rooms do not match each other what so ever. I'd like to have the master bedroom be the base color to our color palette selection for all 3 rooms.

The hardest part for us at the moment is figuring out the base color. Once you figure that out, you're pretty much good to go with the same tone but a few shades lighter or darker. We decided on 2 shades of a mix between a light sage and grey. (don't mind the picture quality, it looks much better in natural light)

I'd love to bring some of these elements into our inspiration scheme..

via Brick Town Love inspiration images

This is what part of our room looks like now.. very 'inspiring'.. right?

In the coming months, we plan on priming the walls and painting the ceiling (popcorn ceiling.. lord knows this won't be easy!). Almost positive the dressers will be next on the paint list furniture wise. Haven't quite decided on colors we'd like to go with yet. I really like the boldness of the black colored frame, but I'm wondering if it's too bold for our overall idea (light and airy and not as heavy). I'm partially thinking of painting the bed frame too, but that's a while different story.

We're really going to be taking it a day at a time on this one. (just to avoid any 'oops' moments)

Weekend gardening

2010-04-06T17:52:00.000-07:00

I've been anxiously awaiting the day where I could finally get my hands dirty and start prepping the beds for a brand new season of gardening. I love to garden.. It's a passion gifted from my dad.. for years I've watched him create an oasis of flower beds from scratch. I also like to think of gardening as a form of therapy; nothing makes us happier than getting our hands dirty and making something beautiful and caring for our lovelies.

Over the years I have learned to love and care for my perennials and show them reasons to keep coming back stronger as the years go on. Every spring, I look forward to seeing their little heads peek out.. my favorite part, this exact moment..

well hello there..

In a couple weeks, my spring ladies will be here.. how I've missed them..

I spent most of Sunday clearing the gardens of the garbage winter usually leaves behind. I also gave the lawn a well deserved combing. I missed the boat on lawn maintenance this past year and I vowed to make it a goal to get the best looking lawn on Sunnybrooke dr.. I have a feeling it will be a successful change. (toes crossed!)

I have to say I was a little bumbed when the birdhouse didn't survive the winter chills..

I guess our birds will have to enjoy the upgrade from condo to cottage soon! The search is on for the newest addition, hopefully we'll find something soon.

And now I leave you with the best part of getting your hands and feet dirty.. The amazing at home 'sink pedi'.. just read a trashy magazine for a half hour and let those babies soak for a little TLC time...

your toes will thank you later.. mine always do!

Dog Park Days..

2010-04-01T09:47:00.000-07:00

This week has been an exceptionally bad one so far. To change things up a little, we've been doing activities we normally wouldn't do on a weekday to help us get out of our funk and change our moods a little. Yesterday, we decided to blow off some steam by taking the little guy to his special haven, The Dog Park. (his most favorite words of all time)

Seeing this face makes it worth the trek every time.

From worst to great...

2010-03-31T04:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, was a bad day... Today didn't start off as great either, but I've just decided to forget the madness, power through the rest of the deadlines and be done with finance for the rest of my public service career (well, heres to hoping at least!)

After seeing me at my 'best' after work, the better half decided I needed a break from a computer and suggested we have a board game night. This changed my whole night around from being terrible to amazing. Reasons I love my hubs to be!!

We picked up some hot chocolate at the neighbourhood Tim Hortons, turned on Sunday's Celebrity Apprentice and played games until we both started falling asleep

Couldn't haved asked for a better way to end the night...

Reviving the old..

2010-03-29T20:28:00.000-07:00

I used to hate this light fixture.. with a passion.

2 of the 3 lightbulbs are burnt out and the frame is filled with cobwebs and icky dust. You can tell it needs some TLC. I think I feel a little DIY project coming on... This could easily be a switcharoo for a more modern light fixture, but after 3 years, this one has started to grow on me..

The light fixture is currently located up in the second floor hallway. It looks a little tired.. maybe a little glass frosting and black frame would give it a new life..

Spring Purging

2010-03-28T10:44:00.000-07:00

Pack rats, that's what we are...

Boxes and stacks of home decor, style and wedding magazines cluttered our closets for years. A couple days ago, I decided enough was enough. It took hours of filtering through page after page and ripping articles for inspiration.. but I can finally say I've let go of 10 years worth of magazines...

10 years, worth of garbage cluttering my closet space. Gone.

One less thing to scrap off the spring cleaning list.

Awesome.

Bugs never had a chance...

2010-03-25T18:28:00.001-07:00

Rufus' 2 favorite things.

His Chair and Bugs Bunny.

Bedroom Exposed: The Nook Continued...

2010-03-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

The better half and I do a lot of window shopping. Our weekends usually consist of walking around in shops, pointing at things we like/love/hate, maybe have an argument over bedding colors and sometimes get to play with some fun electronics.. (aherm… for my birthday *hint hint*…)

After our 'dinner date' night at the drive through Wednesday, we decided to take a moosy into Home Outfitters for a little decor indulgence. Lucky for us, I think we found THE perfect mirror for our bedroom nook.

For $100, it's a steal compared to the $200 ikea mirror we originally planned on purchasing. They have several choices of frame styles and colors to choose from (fist pump) AND they seemed to have a gazillion in stock (double fist pump). The only thing I worry about is the height of the frame since it might be an issue with over lapping on the vanity light (which we are planning on replacing). Now all we have to do is go back, measure, ponder some more and take the plunge. It will really open that little nook up, and I'm pretty excited to have a full mirror to twirl in front of before going off to work in the mornings. (common.. you do this too!)

Now if only we found the perfect nook light..

Top 15 things...

2010-03-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

I'm not big on chain letters.. If I spot a FWD in the subject line, I'll usually just toss it in the trash bin. But when I saw this subject line, I was a little curious..

a list of 15 things you wouldn't know about me...

1. In the second grade, I took piano lessons at school for $10 an hour from a nun. I told sister Gisele that my parents would pay for piano lessons, but they had no idea I was taking lessons in the first place. So when she called my parents to tell them they had to pay her, I did what every child did best. Denied, denied, denied.

2. I am a perfectionist and an over thinker.. Not a very good combination

3. My brother and I are 13 months apart in age, and 3 feet apart in height..

4. I love performing on stage, but the only downfall to this is that I have TERRIBLE stage fright.

5. growing up, we moved to 9 different houses in the span of 10 years.

6. I wear braces.

7. The only thing I know how to make in the kitchen is spaghetti sauce and crockpot chicken (a monkey can do this with it's eyes closed)

8. I have a capped front tooth from a snow shovelling accident.

9. Growing up in a small community back In the early 90s, divorce wasn't as common as it is today. (my parents divorced when I was really young) Because I was the only kid in my 3rd grade class with divorced parents, my teacher put me on the spot one day and asked which parent made the best spaghetti.. Seriously? who does that?? I wasn't gonna choose.. They both tasted the same!!

10. I can't sit still for more than 5 seconds at a time.

11. When I know I'm going to a city I have never travelled to before, I research it until my brain hurts. I like knowing and visiting spots people normally wouldn't think to visit.

12. I hate being late for anything. If I sense I am running late, I start getting very anxious and nervous. It never used to be like that..

13. When I was 16, I told my parents I would never consider working a desk job.. How times have changed!

14. I am in my mid twenties and I do not have a drivers licence.. (sad right?)

15. In the 11th grade, after spending almost a year planning the trip, I coaxed 4 of my best friends to travel with me to visit complete strangers in Wasaga Beach. This could have easily have been the stupidest thing either of us could have agreed to do, but it turned out to be one of the best experiences I have ever had in my life.

feel like you know me yet?

have a great weekend ya'll!

be yourself..

2010-03-09T12:44:00.000-08:00

'Everyone's unique, and that's what makes people exciting to watch, I think. So, just savor what you are and not what everyone else wants you to be' -Sandra Bullock

This made me smile.. feeling a little more confident today..

Why we love Rufus

2010-03-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

Reason #256:

He's not usually a stick chasing type of dog, but if he sees another dog enjoying the activity, he'll either get in there and ruin the fun or find an even bigger stick to chew and show off.

Sunday was just one of those days.

He's such a Diva.

Taking a moment...

2010-03-05T19:39:00.000-08:00

After a little pre-spring cleaning on the Mac tonight, I found these pics from a selfy session us ladies did during our trip to NYC last feb '09..

these make me smile..

Favorite part about our Keurig coffee maker?

2010-02-11T19:49:00.000-08:00

How it makes the perfect cup…
everytime.

Bedroom Exposed: The Nook

2010-02-10T07:17:00.000-08:00

We have a pretty huge master bedroom compared to most townhouses in our area. I believe the measurements are about 15x13 with a very large window and double doors to enter the room. Since we don't have a private bathroom ensuite, the floor plan made for a very generous walk in closet and a makeup/vanity area.. which my better half said 'added' value to the room...

Here's the thing... I HATED that vanity/mirror/makeup counter and lighting fixture combo with a passion. The counter height was so awkward and deep that it made the space pretty much unusable. This happens to be my least favorite spot in the room..

So here is a glimpse of what it looked like before we purchased the house.. I don't think the previous owners knew what to do with it either.. also note, the TV sitting on the vanity isn't plugged into the wall.. Kind of a space waster don't you think?

Don't mind the mess in this next picture.. we made a huge mess of the place when we first moved in, as you can see, but this is just shows you how deep the nook is..

After a couple years of junk piling up on the vanity I got a little 'makeover' happy and took my hammer to it. The counter and mirror are no longer there and holes in the wall have been shellacked over with plaster. The beige square on the wall gives you an idea where that mirror used to hang! Brilliant!

I also had to smear the plaster on pretty thick since the holes in the wall were pretty ginormous. I think part of the dry wall came apart when I knocked the counter down.. my bad!!

The next thing on the "To Go" list is the 'Hollywood' dressing room like vanity light fixture. We are planning on taking all three, yes three, similar lighting fixtures out of the house, but for now the others can stay. Quite simply put, this one has to go.

This is where things get a little tricky.. The plan for the nook was to make it a dressing area with a full floor to ceiling (or close to it) mirror, possibly like the Mongstad mirror from Ikea. But after taking a few measurements, we hit a snag. The mirror seems to be on the taller side and would overlap the existing lighting fixture by a couple inches.. If we wanted a sleek and balanced look, the lighting fixture would either have to be moved higher or completely removed from the wall. To be honest, I wasn't planning on having that as an additional expense. But if it's going to be done, may as well do it right the first time. Right kids?

Now the fun part will be to figure out if we want to purchase a similar lighting fixture to save a few $$$, or have the electrician move the junction box from the wall to the ceiling and have a gorgeous Capiz chandelier or Moravian hanging star to add a little sass..

Kind of like so..

Come to think about it, maybe having the electrician come in for a morning of work might be a blessing in disguise! We were eventually planning to install a ceiling fan in our bedroom and neither one of us is brave enough to do this ourselves. May as well hit 2 birds with one stone, right?

hmmm.. Lots to think about..

Bedroom inspired..

2010-02-09T09:58:00.001-08:00

I was inspired by a couple finds on west elm this morning...

I think I've found our colors...

"Dos cervezas por favor.."

2010-02-08T19:52:00.000-08:00

After spending 7 days in paradise, coming back to reality this morning was a little hard.. I really wasn't looking forward to trekking it into work in below zero temperatures.. after all, we had just spent a week in +30 degree weather!

After winning (oh yes, you heard me) a trip for 4 to Cuba last November, we finally got on a plane last week, waved our very cold friends goodbye and headed South for a week of sand and sea adventures. Since the resort is a little secluded from the world, we spent a lot of time lounging by the pool, took a catamaran day trip where we went snorkeling and got to play with dolphins, spent a couple days quarantined in our rooms due to some mysterious illness %50 of the resort contracted (minor details really.. no need to worry... all is well now!) and after that little set back we were as good as new and spent our last full day by the ocean..

Another thing we really enjoyed on the trip were the live shows.. couldn't get enough of the shows...

But one thing is for sure... as great and eventful as this trip was, it sure is nice to finally be at home in our own beds...

Putting the pieces together..

2010-02-07T16:08:00.000-08:00

It feels like it's been a long time since we've had a completely clean house. Sure, it's clean when we're entertaining friends or when the pizza guy drops off an order.. don't get me wrong, it's clean.. just not organized clean. This is where we need some major mojo in the motivation department.

Every week, I read design blog after design blog and long for the perfect home makeovers. But the problem with dreaming is we don't have the attention span it takes to undergo a HUGE reno from start to finish. As sad as that is, it is the truth.

But what these design blogs have taught me, if anything, is that styling your home will always be a work in progress. I've finally decided that this year, I will put my nose to the ground and get at least 1 project finished before the end of the year.

The room with the most TLC needed right now is our Master Suite. Before Christmas, I started plastering walls and sanding down bits, but I got stuck at the colors stage. Couldn't figure out what I wanted to do with the space or what we could afford. I have ideas.. it's time to put them to action. First thing is first.. inspiration board to come..

365 days of Rufus

2010-01-08T13:38:00.000-08:00

Starting Monday I will be posting daily pictures of my dog on our new blog baby, 365 days of Rufus .. He gets himself into a lot of trouble and I fear that my forgetful mind won't remember all the wonderful things we do with our pup on a daily basis.

This will be his Dog-ography if you will.

Will you be checking in?

"What did you do New Years Eve?"

2010-01-04T10:13:00.000-08:00

My mom asked me this questions on the 1st of January 2010...
This was my reply...

The better half and I spent the day in Central Park..

Took goofy photos...

Stumbled upon a late night dance party..

Then at the stroke of midnight over looking fireworks at Strawberry fields in Central Park, the better half got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.

Not a bad way to start the new year, right?

You know it's Christmas when..

2009-12-23T04:53:00.000-08:00

Your Dog eats part of the Christmas tree as his main meal and 3 feet of garland for dessert!! :S

Family Parties..

2009-12-20T18:42:00.000-08:00

Never a dull moment with the fam..

Christmas is around the corner.. let the craziness begin!

2009-12-15T13:50:00.000-08:00

In exactly 10 days, Christmas will finally be knocking on our doors.. 10 days!?! I still can't believe it! Our first holiday party of the year kicked off the Christmas spirit train and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight! The house is decked to the nines and Rufus is finally getting used to having a real tree in the house.. it came close a few times, but he seems to be getting the logic behind having the tree indoors. (At least we think he gets it.. oh well!)

Christmas is usually an insane time of year for the better half and I. We spend %98 of the holidays running around with our heads chopped off and skipping from one family gathering to another.. we hardly get a chance to set our feet up.. it's exhausting. Since we have 3 families to deal with (a visit to my mom's for Xmas eve, my dad and in laws Christmas day) and if you add our extended families to the mix (a visit on the 19th and 26th respectively) it's really hard to find a second to tone down the crazy.

I thank my lucky stars, we have a bit of a break this year.. (more on that later)

Also, this coming year marks a huge milestone.. (well not huge but still, pretty crazy) it'll be the beginning of a new decade.. a Decade!! Now that's something to celebrate! We are really looking forward to a little New Years celebration in NYC with our dearest friends.. but don't worry. We aren't planning on waiting hours in line, like a bunch of cattle, in the freezing cold for a ball to drop in Times Square.

Any suggestions?

The Snow, The Snow is Here!!

2009-12-09T14:47:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, Dec 8th 2009, 6pm EST
Outside the office...

Wednesday, Dec 9th 2009, 6:30pm EST

Outside the office..

The aftermath...

The first storm of the season came as advertised Wednesday with about 20 cm of snow and gusting winds that sent cars into ditches and jets back to their hangars.

I assume 20cm was more of a guesstimate.. The weather has been so disgusting today.. at 3pm this afternoon the big boss sent an e-mail to all supervisors to inform them their staff may leave for the day due to terrible road conditions.

I'm still stuck at the office, waiting for my better half to swing by and pick me up.

It is now 6pm.

Whenever there is a snow storm, us public servants are notorious for taking "working from home days" or as I call them "snow days". (hey! If the kids can stay home from school, we can work from home too!) Since it was very quiet in the office, I entertained myself by taking pictures of the parking lot outside my window every couple hours to see how much snow really fell...

Can you spot the differences?

At some point in the day, you could barely see the buildings and apartment complexes located across the street (which are usually very visible during a clear day).

ahhh yes friends... winter is finally back with a vengeance... *sighs*

And it begins...

2009-12-08T14:21:00.000-08:00

17 days 'till Christmas... : )

December is here..

2009-12-01T07:55:00.000-08:00

Today is December 1st… unbelievable… It snowed for the first time yesterday, but it's the kind of snow that melts away after a few hours. Usually, around this time of year I'd be concerned.. we've been without a good set of winter tires for a very long time to protect us from the dangerously slippery roads we get here in Canada, but this year, we will kick winter in the bum. Finally, 1 less thing to cross off the list.

The better half has also started a major project on the house. I've never seen him this excited to work on the house... ever…

He is channelling the Grizwalds..

Rufus is a star!!

2009-11-16T18:20:00.000-08:00

Our lucky little guy was selected Dog of the week at the Ottawa Dog blog!!

We're convinced this shot won him the spot..

Ricko Sauve!

Tuesday date night...

2009-11-11T19:20:00.000-08:00

At the Sens Game...

Wouldn't have it any other way.. : )

An open letter…

2009-11-09T11:11:00.000-08:00

Night Rider..

You, were supposed to be reliable. You were supposed to suck it up and last for at least another year. You better have a good explanation as to why you choose this moment to quit on us.

Yes, you quit on us.. We didn't quit on you. We may not have been the best of owners in the year that you've been with us.. But you could have given us some warning signs that the honeymoon was over.

Well my friend, the joke is on you. We found another match for us. You are nothing compared to this one. It outshines you %100 and more…You are dead to us. So pack up your trunk, and leave my driveway for good. Just leave and don't look back. You are not welcome here anymore.

Good riddance,
Dom and the clan.

P.s. new car comes tomorrow.. PUMPED!!

How to Cheer me up...

2009-11-06T10:05:00.000-08:00

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.. I am a huge fan of Starbucks and their over priced drinks. I love how their cups of coffee (and staff) can turn any crap day into a perfect one.. Even if it's just for 5 minutes. The Red Holiday cups are finally out at Starbucks.. usually means the holidays are right around the corner (wither you want them to be or not).

p.s. this is a Peppermint Hot Chocolate... I suggest you pick one up when you have the chance... mmmmmmmm

They've also got their usual holiday inspiration quotes..

Soooo true right??

pp.s All my holiday decor boxes are ready to go, and I'm going to start decorating next weekend (you think I'm kidding?! Don't you!!) <- more to come on that later..

Carved..

2009-11-01T18:37:00.000-08:00

I'm not gonna lie.. this year's "trick-or-treating" on Sunny B drive was a huge dud. Seriously, had less than 20 kids pop by the house.. 20 kids?!?! Back when I was growing up, we had 50 kids come every half hour!! Well.. with everybody getting sick these days, it's not surprising.. but you know.. I can only eat so much left over candy.. right??

About a week ago, friends of ours dropped off a little "get well soon" pumpkin at the house. (did I mention we LOVE these friends? lol) So they told us we better get our A Game on this year because the competition was going to get blown out of the water... they weren't kidding...

Our friends posted photos of their triumph...

kinda had to up our game on this one...

I started carving Halloween day at noon...

finished at about 3-4pm...

pretty proud of myself for winging Martha's design... it turned out pretty neat...

A for effort 0n our part... they took the cake.. honestly.. where do our friends dream these things up??

p.s. Introducing.. Crocodile Rufus...

A Sunday afternoon in Wakefield..

2009-10-20T20:06:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday the better half and I took the steamtrain into Wakefield for an afternoon of fun...

There was some fantastic french canadian music (yes, to my better half's dismay, I was singing along)
the yummiest cheese bread we've ever tasted..
A delicious brunch at L'Hibou on the main strip.. (it had a vibe of Friends with owls all over the place... soooooo amazing)
and we walked along the tracks through the village... (my better half pictured above)

fantastic day with my love.

This made my day...

2009-10-19T08:05:00.000-07:00

"A photographer should never apologize for their work. Animals, still lifes and landscapes don’t complain, only people."

nuff said.

via here..

What's in my bag? {Sunnybrooke Edition}

2009-10-14T18:46:00.001-07:00

Flickr has always inspired me to see things differently through my camera lens..
This project by Jason Travis inspired me to share the contents of my mess with you.. my life..
details below...

From Left to Right..
Oversized purse
Leather wallet (smells nice...)
Change purse (great for coffee runs when I don't feel like carrying the big wallet around)
Spare change left over from my morning coffee
Empty bottle of Advil cold and Sinus (not sure why It's still in my bag but... you know..)
Gravol (just in case..)
Pens (to write down outrageous things I see and hear everyday.. poor memory)
iphone (can't live without it)
wax case (blue) -> for my bottom brackets.. (yes, I have braces.. invisible!)
McD's Monopoly board chips (I {heart} monopoly)
Earrings (always need a backup, in case I forget to grab a pair on my way out the door)
Pete Yorn & Scar Jo - Break up (ahhhhh soooo good)
Keys - house/mailbox/petsmart discount pass (best thing ever)
ballmania lipbalm
Dr.Pepper lip smacker
Canon Elph
Iphone earphones
hair brush
day planner (can't go anywhere without it.. seriously)

my favorite sets from Jason's Persona project:
Christy
Berly
Hilary

Winter in New York...

2009-10-09T07:50:00.000-07:00

January is a great time to visit New York City if you want to avoid the crowds, find great deals, and don't mind the cold weather.

hmmm... do I feel a trip coming on? I think so...

more to come...

quote via about.com

The view outside my window..

2009-09-29T14:13:00.000-07:00

It's not really raining, It's pouring outside. Considering the beautiful weather we've been having these past couple weeks, I can't bring myself to complain as much as I should be. After all, one of my favorite things to do during the fall is take pictures of wet leaves resting beautifully on pavement. Yes, that time of year is officially here! It's about time too, they are calling for rain for the rest of the week. My old self would take a couple days off work and sit by the window reading a good book, sipping on tea and listening to the rain.. But since I've taken 4 sick days in the past 2 weeks, I think I would be pushing my luck a little.

I've finally managed to shake my cold.. It's still kind of here, but not as strong as it was last week. I've managed to get a few of my co-workers sick, but I know I'll end up getting sick in the end.. Again. It never fails.

Ahhh fall... how i've missed you!!

Tea, Hobbes and a box of kleenex..

2009-09-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

Sick... sick as a dog. For the past week, I have been nursing a stubborn cold and more than ever it's putting up a huge fight and won't seem to take a hike. On days like this, I stay home pop in a Scene it DVD game and test my useless pop culture trivia knowledge. This time around, I decided to switch things up and play something different..

The brain game puts your brain to the test with quick speedy rounds jam packed with sudoku, problem solving and memory games.. at the moment, my mind is kinda fuzzy.. so playing this game for the first time proved to be a bit of a challenge. I gave up pretty quickly and went back to reading Calvin and Hobbes.. (let's just say.. being called a DODO bird because of low test scores really didn't bode well for my ego)

i {heart} lomo..

2009-09-20T13:43:00.000-07:00

was seriously excited to see this on UO this morning..

I've always been intrigued by Lomography.. you browse through flickr and see these wonderful highly saturated, blurry images and can't help to wonder how it's done. I could never really wrap my head around paying a ton of money for a 35mm lomo camera since digital post-processing has pretty much taken over the world at this point. However there is something to be said about photographs that leave a little something more than digital would..

I haven't dabbled with film in a very long time, so this might be a good way to experiment with something different for a change.. who knows.. my photographs might take a turn for the better!

Lomography film via Urban Outfitters

2009-09-20T02:49:00.000-07:00

It is 2:50am..

I am currently sitting in my living room eating Rolo ice cream pops, drinking green tea and watching season 2 of Family Guy. It only seems appropriate that I watch Cartoons on Sunday...

As far as I can remember, I've never really had a hard time sleeping.. ever. But so far, tonight has just been one of those nights. It must be a combination of the sniffles, the better half's ridiculous snoring and copious amounts of dog hair in our bed left over from the beasts week long visit. {Not such a wonderful combination if you ask me}

It'll give me time to catch up on a few things.. maybe enjoy my tea on the deck and watch the sunrise..

another reason to love our neighbourhood...

2009-09-11T09:27:00.000-07:00

For the past few months, I've been hearing the faint sound of "old Mcdonald had a farm" outside my home office window. Thinking it was our neighbour's kid playing around with a barn animal farm type of toy, I would just ignore it and carry on to what I was doing..

So last night, as we are hanging out in our driveway trying to plan out our evening (mostly going to the airport to pick up a package from FedEx - i love getting packages btw), we spot this ice cream truck slowly driving down the street.. with good ol "MacDonald" blaring through the speakers.. seriously?! When was the last time you saw an ice cream truck driving down your street? We never get this kind of excitement in our neck of the woods.

Our neighbours ordering dessert at the end of our shared driveway

I have never been so mad... well I wasn't mad.. just disappointed in myself. I love ice cream.. it breaks my heart that I only got to find out about this magical truck now. Hopefully he goes by again this weekend.. I would hate to miss it!!

Side note: from now on, I will always look outside my window when I hear unusual sounds coming from the street. Guaranteed!!

Fall is here…

2009-09-10T13:20:00.000-07:00

Which means we are a few months away from this…

Scary thought right?

Weekend Surprises…

2009-09-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

What a weekend!! Our annual theme park adventure was indeed a success.. but after spending an amazing 3 days in Montreal with friends, it was really nice to be back home and sleep in our own bed. But before heading home to catch up on our ZZzzZZZzz, we swung by the better half's parents to pick up Rufus, who spent the weekend, and some well deserved coffees. It was a long drive back, so coffee was appreciated.

After the coffees, we said our goodbyes, packed the dog and bolted home. We walked in the house and headed towards the kitchen.. And there it was..

The Dream fridge…

Turns out the in-laws had a little fun breaking into our place on Saturday. I almost had a heart attack when I first saw it. We had been saving for weeks/months to replace old betsy and in one day our in-laws swooped in there and replaced her with the MAC daddy of all fridges..

We were floored, overwhelmed and extremely happy to have such an amazing family that wouldn't have a doubt in their minds to do this for us. For that, we are so thankful!!! We couldn't be happier to finally be able to eat at home..

Just think.. We haven't done a grocery run in 8 weeks…

wow.

Turning leaves.. must be fall

2009-09-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

What a summer.. August has been quite a hectic month (the lack of August posts should be an indication of that). I am truly very excited for the downtime in the coming weeks. The leaves are starting to change and sweater weather is finally here.. maybe I'll take a couple days off to wander.. {hearts}

p.s. It's finally here... we got her...

more to come tomorrow..

Trustfund.. you got one?

2009-08-06T13:23:00.000-07:00

There is this little posh boutique tucked away in the market called Trustfund here in Ottawa.. no words can describe my feelings when I go into this store.. I go in, fawn over the clothing.. don't look at price tags and walk out. (it is essential not to look at price tags to keep from cursing out loud.) I'm not gonna lie, it's pricey.. but so pretty to look at.

Here are a few items that were "showcased" in the last e-mail newsletter...

Too much rain = flooding!!

2009-07-25T07:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday turned into quite an eventful day!

The rain still hadn't let out and there were record volumes of rain dumped over the city. There is a former swamp land not too far from where we live. No matter what happens, there always seems to be huge flooding problems when it rains like this in the neighborhood. Thankfully we probably won't ever see it get this bad around our home. *knock on wood*

After the sun peaked out for a bit we decided to take a drive around to assess the damage...

This had just happened as we were driving by.. pretty scary if you ask me! Everybody got out of the car safely.. unfortunately, the car wasn't so lucky..

Mother nature.. please give us a break!!

2009-07-23T02:22:00.000-07:00

So we haven't had the summer we've been hoping for yet... it's pretty much been like this on and off since May.. kinda gloomy right??

I'm seriously in need of some fancy rubber boots.. hmmm

------------------------------------

(update Thursday PM) soooo apparently Rain is all we are going to be seeing for the next week.. Boy am I glad we don't have our summer theme park trip planned yet!! (but you know, a light drizzle wouldn't be too bad) You never know...

via the weather network

Mayor Naked Cowboy? Say it ain't so!!

2009-07-21T18:43:00.000-07:00

{A friend and I trying to be zexy with the NCB}

So the big rumour today is the Naked Cowboy plans on running for Mayor of NYC in the next election! Seriously... He is a walking tourist attraction.. if you put a buck in his boots, he'll be happy to take a photo with you and whisper naughty things in your ear! (not kidding!)

And you know what? He sure knows how to market himself.. The man makes more money busking in Times Square in a day than I make in 2 weeks working a 9-5 desk job, And EVERYBODY knows who this dude is...

If this turns out to be true.. I wish him all the best!! He is one hunky piece of meat!! ; )

Still not sure who this guy is, click here..

The story of a Duke, a Dom and their Rufus.

2009-07-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

Before I met my better half, I was contemplating getting a pet. I wanted a companion so bad. But I wasn't sure how this would have really worked out at the time. I lived with 2 other girls and they didn't really care about anything else other than themselves. Looking back now, I'm very happy the puppy came much later.

After living with the better half for about a year and a bit, we finally looked in to getting a pet. We did personality assessments, researched many breeds and looked up many reviews and narrowed it down to 3.

1. Golden Doodle
2. Portuguese water dog
3. Wheaten Terrier

We decided to get a Wheaten terrier. We love the breed's personality traits and overall look. We didn't think this was going to be a high maintenance dog, but boy were we in for a surprise. There was the slight grooming factor we never really took seriously. But you know what? It isn't really an issue anymore. (save this for another post)

We called several local breeders and had not so good luck with them. The asking prices were well above what we could afford and there were also waiting lists for puppies that crept over a year of waiting. We didn't want to wait one year. We were dead set in getting a family pet by the fall. So the search went on until we found a website called "next day puppies"..

Ok, before I keep going with my little story, I know what you all are going to say… what the hell were you thinking?

Trust me when I say we did our homework. Buying locally would have cost us upwards to $1700 + vet bills.. And this would have guaranteed us a show dog and a certified pure breed stud (and to add insult to ingury.. a guaranteed crater sized hole in our budget). For one, we weren't ready to fork up that much money for a pet. And second of all, we didn't care about the show dog status.. All we wanted was a healthy pet we could spoil, love and call our own.

We narrowed it down to 3 breeders all located in the US that offered the breed for a more affordable price. We ended up interviewing all 3 breeders over the phone and asked for references before putting deposits down. I'm glad we did this, because 2 of the 3 did not rate very well overall. The people we called were all pleased with their dogs but something didn't seem right. The breeders were not registered and some of the vet documents were either missing or never provided (which apparently caused quite a raucous when it came time to vaccinate the pets).

The breeder we ended up picking, passed with flying colors. They gave us as many references as we wanted, most importantly from Canada which ended up being great for us! We were able to ask them questions about travel, paying duties on the dog when they crossed the border, what happens if the animal isn't in good health.. All the important stuff checked out. This put our minds at ease.. After a hilarious struggle with payment (which involved moving funds from 3 different accounts) we finally had a travel date set for our little guy.

Rufus in his crate at the airport

I remember being late picking him up from the airport in Syracuse, about a 3 hour drive from where we live. There was a little crate waiting behind the American airlines counter and we knew he was inside. The poor thing was covered in his little accidents and smelt reallllly bad, but we didn't care. He made it in 1 piece and in complete health. He was painfully shy the first time we took him out of his crate outside the airport. We held him like a little baby, and his little claws would come out and latch on to us every time a plane flew off the tarmac.. He kept trying to get back into his crate.. It was quite funny for me at the time, I had never really had a young pup like him before. Little did I know, the "fun stuff" was about to start.

More to come...

who knew?

2009-07-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

the gazoo would make a comeback!!??

Delighted..

2009-07-17T07:28:00.000-07:00

ohhhh I'm swooning over these fabulous prints by Gemini Studio Art... A few months ago, I found these prints on Etsy and loved them so much..

I think we're going to that to splurge and get this one for Rufus.. too cute to be true!!

Gemini Studio Art via Etsy

The cardi.. revisited...

2009-07-17T06:19:00.000-07:00

So after spending what seemed to be an eternity editing photos from the shoot we did Wednesday (have to keep this under wraps for now...) I decided to take a break and browse cyberland. Since I got my weekly notification from UO yesterday, I figured I'd take a gander around to see what was new..

and then I saw it...

not only was it still available.. it was an even better deal than it was before!!

I REALLY had to hold myself back from screaming out loud.. you see, the boy and I made a pact that we would clamp down on our spending for a little while to save up for future projects and a functioning fridge.. I'll be damned if that cardi disappears from the UO website.. but at 14.99? it's a steal!!!

what to do.. what to do...

Why we {love} Rufus

2009-07-14T14:24:00.001-07:00

Reason #103:

This Face.

Times Square..

2009-07-09T11:19:00.000-07:00

I first set foot in Times Square when I was 15 years old. My first impression is still exactly the same impression I get when I visit to this day. There is a sense of wonder, and a feeling of excitement every time I set foot in this area. The novelty will most likely never wear off. There is so much to see and so much to do, you wouldn't really know where to start. If you've never been, don't worry. Soak it in.. It's always lots of fun.

Fun fact:
Did you know Times Square is the only neighbourhood with zoning ordinances requiring building owners to display illuminated signs?

The newest addition in Times Square are the ruby-red steps over top of the TKTS booth. A perfect place to kick back, have a snack, take in the sights while people watching. This accounted for hours of free entertainment when we needed to give the wallet a break.The streets are always crowded (day and night) and there is always something exciting going on whether it be during the day or late hours in the night.

Hamming it up on the TKTS steps..

Here are a few places we enjoyed the most..

As childish as it sounds, Toys "R" Us isn't just for kids. (in no way comparable to FAO Schwartz, it was still a highlight) It boasts a HUGE indoor Ferris wheel, several awesome themed areas (Candy Land, Barbie world) and a Lego section that would knock your socks off… Most importantly, it's a great place to use the restrooms (very clean!)

we checked.. all the pieces are glued together

If you have a habit of only eating red M&M's, you'll most likely appreciate this place… 2 floors of wall to wall M&M merch and color co-ordinated tubes filled with more M&M's than you can count.. oh my…

The Hershey store is basically the same concept as the M&M store… but get this..You can pay $5 to have your name appear on their billboard! (not too shabby!)

If you're looking for a laugh, catch new talent night at Caroline's on Broadway. A lot of their shows feature high profile comedians. But be prepared.. you usually have to buy your tickets weeks and sometimes months in advance.. but try your luck! you never know what will happen! Looking for both laughs and an adventure? make your way over to the HA! Dingy/ Seedy basement comedy at it's best.. (some guy told us Dot.Com from 30 Rock was performing… he lied.. We should have known) **please note, we only liked this place BECAUSE it was so awful.. if you're looking for an amazing comedy show, don't go here.

more to come...

Just our luck..

2009-07-09T07:13:00.000-07:00

Old Betsy...

We haven't been having the best of weeks lately..

After doing one of the biggest loads of groceries we have ever done in the history of living in our house, our fridge kicked the bucket while we were away at the cottage. Over $350 in produce/meat/condiments, gone. Seriously, down in the dumps right now.

We were already thinking of getting rid of the appliances we had (which weren't that old to start with) to upgrade to stainless. But I think old Betsy got a feeling something was going on and bailed on us early as payback. We were looking at replacing them early next year. wonderful.

We had some money saved up for a few projects around the house.. but to our disappointment, they will have to wait. (unless we win the local lottery of course)

This brings us to the other dilemma. Where do we start? What do we do?

the dream fridge...

playlist for a wednesday afternoon..

2009-07-08T13:00:00.000-07:00

here goes...

The Vines - I'm only sleeping
Amos Lee - Love in the lies
The Cardigans - Carnival
Sly and the family stone - Everyday people
Luke Doucet - Brother
Mikey Wax - In case in go again
Ben Kweller - Lizzy
Stabilo - ? (yes this is the actually title of the song..)
Dido - Sand in my shoes
Bonnie Sommerville - Winding Road
Ryan Adams - Answering Bell
Ray Lamontagne - You are the best thing
G. Love - Hot Cookin'
Jason Mraz - Mudhouse Gyspy

always remember to..

2009-07-07T11:49:00.000-07:00

via alphabet photography

Canada day teaser

2009-07-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

We're off to the Cottage, unfortunately no Internet means no blogging. BUT we will be back Monday with a much better recap of Canada day..

Doesn't this look yummy??

Once again, It's Canada Day!!

2009-07-01T07:05:00.000-07:00

Bonjour mes amies, Canada day is upon us again! Last years festivities included a kick ass boochy ball tourney, a home run derby and a ball hockey competition. Hopefully all the fun can be had again this year.. unfortunately, we woke up to a little rain this morning.. so it's anybody's guess at this point.

What ever happens, it'll end up being kick ass I'm sure.

Expect a full recap tomorrow!

HAPPY CANADA DAY FOLKS!

2009-07-01T06:49:00.000-07:00

Iggly, Piggly, Oops!

2009-06-29T11:23:00.001-07:00

For the past couple weeks, we have been in and out of Toys"R"Us looking for toy ideas for the 1 of many birthdays coming up this summer. We walked up and down many isles starting from small puzzles all the way up to Nintendo land. We spotted quite a few new additions to kiddy land. Some of which are very unusual to say the least. I just don't get how people think these things up… What ever happened to ol' Teddy Ruxpin or the Carebears?

The strangest of the many toys are these funny looking creatures. Created by the same "geniuses" who brought us Teletubbies, in The Night Garden is a BBC children's show geared towards young toddlers and babies which explores the differences between being asleep and being awake from a child's perspective. (did you get all of that?) After seeing a few of the characters in stuffed form, I really don't think I'd want my kid to watch this.. Here are a few pics I snapped up last weekend.. Kind of creepy.. Don't ya think?

Looks like a Bald ewok.. don't ya think?

I think I'm going to stick to the familiar Elmo and friends, thank you!

I (heart) Avenue Q ...

2009-06-29T08:29:00.000-07:00

I was very surprised to learn that after 6 very successful years on Broadway, Avenue Q is set to close it's doors September 13 2009. During our 10 day stint in the city, we were fortunate enough to have been able to see this show. The talent was amazing.. If you are planning to see a show on the Great White Way, please take my advise and see this show. The reviews speak for themselves.

The wikipedia summary of the show doesn't do any justice in regards to the amazing cast. Honest to god, this show brings Dame Edna to shame. Charming and Absolutely vulgar in every possible way, you will not have a dull moment and won't be disappointed with this spectacle.

A little about the theater..

The John Golden isn't a brand new state of the art facility. The seats are old and the place is really run down. That being said, there isn't a bad seat in the house (viewing wise). It's a smaller theater and the intimate setting really worked in the shows favor. You want to be able to see the actors facial expressions and watch as their characters come to life. We sat in the balcony (second tier) and saw EVERYTHING. (Also, if you have a chance, take a moment and look up at the ceiling and stage's ornate decor. It's a sight to see)

If I were to recommend one thing, skip the booze at intermission. The bartender was a little too liberal when she made our drinks.. (I'll take it easy on her.. she probably had an off night) $20 for 2 very small/boozy drinks.. I only wanted a refresher!! If you're really thirsty go for the pop and grab a drink after the show. There are tons of restaurants and cafés in the area, you'll have a good mix of choices available to you.

Alrighty, back to the show..

{shot of the set for Avenue Q at the John Golden}

The set, a row of run down townhouses, is very minimalist. The characters are really the driving force which brings this show to life. Saying that the cast is amazing is an understatement. They really know how to make their puppets feel emotions and keep us captivated in their story. Carey Anderson, an ABSOLUTE Stand out, charmed the pants right off of us as Kate Monster & Lucy the Slut. I'd say that she alone is worth seeing this show, but it wouldn't be fair as the rest of the ensemble cast also performed beyond our expectations. That said, the petite blond is all we could think about after the show. She made quite the impression on us. You also can't forget Treckie (a cookie monster/ Oscar the grouch cross), he will leave you in stitches.

My top 3 numbers from the show:

-What do you do with a BA in English (great show opener!!)

-The Internet is for porn

-My girlfriend who lives in Canada
-There is life outside your apartment (I know I said top 3, but there is a moment in this song that cracks me up all the time)

I tried getting familiar with the music before seeing the show but I just couldn't get into it. I'm a very visual person and I had a hard time associating with the different characters and didn't really know where the story was going. I suggest you wait to listen to the soundtrack before you see the show. Now every time I listen to this soundtrack, I LOVE it.

I would totally recommend this for adults & teens around the age of 16-17. You can bring your entire family, but be WARNED. Be prepared to explain curse words, sexual references and explicit puppet fornication (sex) to your 13 year old. I'll leave it at that.

After the show, head on outside to have a photo op with Treckie (in billboard form). We couldn't help but hog the poster for about 15 minutes. You want to remember the good times right??

{a friend and I getting cozy with Treckie}

On a last note, DO NOT BUY TICKETS AT FULL PRICE. Not right now anyways. Look online for LEGITIMATE ticketing companies who offer discount codes for the show. They are trying to get tourists back in the city, due to the crappy economy, so take advantage of these special codes. You can also head down to Time Square the day of the show at the TICKTS booth for great discounts; anticipate for a huge line-up. I signed up to get e-mails from Playbill.com for discount codes.

VERY WELL WORTH IT!!

Ratings: A++++++

2009-06-29T06:42:00.000-07:00

The morning of crafts..

2009-06-26T09:24:00.000-07:00

Every couple months, our organisation gets together for Town Hall meetings to update us on what is new and going on in the unit these days. During the meetings there are presentations, guest speakers and on occasion team building exercises.

Usually, I don't stick around for the team building exercises, but this time around I was intrigued. About half way through the meeting, a group of individuals passed gift bags around the room. Each table got a bag stuffed with sharpies, poster boards, foam paper, pipe cleaners, 4 pints of play -doh, glue and lots of little crafty things.

I think I was the only one who was really excited about the project.. While everyone else rolled their eyes at the bag, I rummaged through it and got really excited about all the goodies we had to play with. I just love to do crafts in my spare time. I'm not very good at it, but I have lots of fun doing it! Also, I LOVE play-d'oh.. BONUS!!

I'm not gonna go into much detail of what the project is supposed to represent (just in case people I work with figure out I have this blog) but here are a few shots of the project. It may look like a first grade craft project.. but we had tons of fun putting this together..

From now on, I think I'll attend all team building exercises.. the play d'oh is worth the trouble.

Goodbye MJ...

2009-06-25T18:33:00.000-07:00

via unseen 360

what a day..

2009-06-24T15:06:00.001-07:00

Adventures in New York City..

2009-06-23T19:02:00.001-07:00

Back in February, the better half and I spent 10 fantastic days in New York City. We had been to the city together before with family, but we never really got a chance to walk around and do things on our own. This time around, we got a glimpse of what living in New York would be like. a test run if you will. Let me tell you.. This city can be overwhelming and very exciting all at the same time.

So how was the trip you ask? To sum it up in one word… NYC was amazing. We did almost everything we wanted to get done and saw so many sites we’d never really seen or heard of before. This being my 5th trip to the big apple (I know over kill) I was pleased to see old favorites and enjoyed getting lost amongst the skyscrapers and small shops.

Before we left Ottawa for our adventure, I started a blog dedicated to our stay in the city. That lasted about a week after we got back. There was so much going on, I didn't know where to start. M.B.F(massive brain fart) got in the way. That said, instead of updating that blog daily, I've decided on dedicating weekly posts of stories, pictures and reviews on what we loved and didn't like about our trip here.

To start things off on the right foot, here is a quick summary of what we've learned during our stay in the city..

Chinatown, Canal st, is always open no matter the holiday so please, don’t freak out. There will always be bags in the backrooms waiting for you to take them home.
The express line on the subway is nothing like the local line. Be careful, you might end up in Harlem if you aren’t paying attention!
When you see a dog in Central Park, don’t rush to pet it. If they don’t see you coming, you might get a very unexpected surprise coming your way!
It is very cold and windy on the Brooklyn bridge.
Broadway and West Broadway are 2 very different streets. Please make sure you don’t confuse the pair.
Never EVER buy electronics in Time Square. (consider yourself warned)
Use the Subway, it’s much cheaper to get from one end of the city to the other rather than taking a cab.
Movie Mike has the best bootleg DVD collection in town, at $5 a pop, you won’t be disappointed.
Always cross at an intersection in Time Square. Cabbies may see you, but they will never stop if the light is green. Be very careful or a trip to the hospital might be required.
Wear sensible shoes people... unlike Nancy Sinatra, my boots were made for walking shorter distances.. Keep your daisy boots at home and wear sneakers...

Stay tuned for more…

bench, bokeh and fuzz.. oh my!!

2009-06-23T18:22:00.000-07:00

When I get home after a long day at work I have a quick dinner with the better half and crash on the couch watching Family Guy and reruns of Friends.. what an interesting life we lead right? This happens more times than not.. we really need to get into a better routine. Having something to do everyday afterwork, might motivate us to do more before the end of the day..

in comes Le Plan.

After browsing flickr for a few inspiring ideas (thanks guys), I decided to participate in a few of the groups.. starting this week, every Monday/Wednesday/Friday I'll have new shots ready to go involving benches, bokeh and lots of furry pets.

whoo!

2009-06-22T17:45:00.000-07:00

From A - Z

2009-06-21T12:53:00.000-07:00

via living etc

Mmmmmm.. really loving this! Maybe a little too much for the kitchen.. but the office could use a little excitement.. creative juices are starting to flow friends!!

Project Powder room

2009-06-21T08:11:00.000-07:00

More to come...

Here are a few before pictures..

Garden shmarden..

2009-06-15T18:33:00.000-07:00

After posting about my Irises last week, I really wanted to have the gardens cleaned up over the weekend..

I have a feeling we are going to see the best garden we've had to date..

p.s. I think the cat is really going to like it's new digs under the Peonies..

I {heart} Soup

2009-06-15T12:31:00.000-07:00

Nothing like a good old bowl of french onion soup to satisfy your hunger.. my mouth is watering just looking at this photo from last night's dinner...

ahhh I wish I could go home early and serve up one of these babies... hmmmmm

Goodness gracious.. what a day..

2009-06-15T09:14:00.000-07:00

Since early May, things on Sunnybrooke have kicked into high gear. We had our first Annual Sunnybrooke Drive Street party on Saturday. What a great way to meet your neighbours and share a couple laughs.. Our front door neighbours performed for the street, had stick on tattoo station for the kids, chalk drawing contests on the road, a fishing booth, a play-d'oh station down the road.. just fun!!

Have I mentioned I love our street? everyone is so friendly!!

Unfortunately for us, we weren't able to stick around more than a few hours.. But we did make our rounds to make sure we said Hello to everybody we met along the way.

Hopefully next year will be just as successful..

We're thinking of getting a bouncy bounce for the driveway... can't wait!!!

Friday girls night recap..

2009-06-14T18:30:00.000-07:00

4 girls

had chinese food

played an awesome game of Scene it

and danced until the wee hours of the morning

outcome?

awesome fun..

This weekend..

2009-06-12T10:07:00.000-07:00

I will:

Clean the garden
Paint the garden bench
Organise the office
Make waffles
Call granny (long over due)
Get rid of at least 3 garbage bags of clothes (tip of the iceberg)
Take one minute for myself and breath
Practice taking pictures
Walk the dog at least 9 times (3 times a day *F*s*S*)
Purchase a cheesy lawn ornament
Have beers with the neighbours
Visit at least 3 yard sales
Enjoy a homemade dinner outside on the patio

And most of all, remember to smile.

Enjoy the weekend folks.. The sun is finally here to stay..

the blooms are out...

2009-06-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

Finally... my beautiful Irises come out to play.

Home Renos: kitchen floors

2009-06-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

I'm not gonna lie to you, we were conned big when we bought the house. The first time we saw the house we were awe stricken. The hardwood and ceramic floors were just done and everything was shiny and brand new. (I get distracted by shiny things.. ) The red flag should have gone up when the guy selling the place told us his friend finished the ceramic himself. We should have looked really hard at the baseboards.. it would have been a dead give away. Grout eeeeeeeeeverywhere.

When the guy told us his friend installed the ceramic, he didn't tell us the tiles were installed over Linoleum flooring. Big nono. (we didn't bother to ask either.. so that was partly our fault). Fast forward 2 years.. the cracks are starting to show. Not only is it problematic in the kitchen there is tile located in the main entrance, powder room and landing leading to the basement; all on the main floor. Everything tiled over Linoleum and both tiles and grout are cracking. wonderful.

Instead of buying a new house, we decided to stick with this one for another 6-7 years. We'd like to invest in durable materials to get this problem nipped in the butt as soon as can be. It would also be nice if it were done as cheap as possible, but after 2 years of picking up bits of grout It needs to last and it needs to be done properly. This is why we've decided to pull all of the stops and go granite. It's crazy expensive and we would need to hire a professional to install it (add on more $$$) but looking at it from a long term perspective, It'll be worth the cost. It is very durable and resilient to anything you throw at it.

After that, all we'd have to do is paint the walls, change the hardware on the cupboards, and it'll look as good as new!! (easier said than done right?)

How did you re-finish your kitchen floors?

Bed Head.. for pets?

2009-06-10T07:41:00.000-07:00

While on a walk this past weekend, the better half and I spotted a brand new pet shop in the neighbourhood. We were pretty pumped about having one close by, since could finally stop in with Rufus for a quick treat during our afternoon walks.

We snooped around the store for a bit and saw the assortments of dog foods and toys they offered.. then something caught my eye.

I couldn't believe it..

It's bad enough I can't afford Bed Head hair products for myself... do you actually expect me to purchase a small bottle of de-tangler for $21.99 for a dog no less? Super insane.

Bedroom envy..

2009-06-08T13:28:00.001-07:00

via Anthropologie

I renewed my subscription to Real Simple last night.. a part of me missed the photographs of freakishly organised closets and bathroom linen closets. It's been about a year since I received my last issue, but I think I'm well overdue. 6 weeks from now, I'll be receiving my brand new issue in the mail.. ahhhhh yes.. let the inspiration juices start to flow..

p.s. how dreamy is this Anthropologie bedroom set up? {hearts}

Rufus and his mohawk

2009-06-04T19:36:00.000-07:00

Now repeat after me..
I (I)
Will (Will)
Never let the better half near the dog with scissors ever again (...)

The one with all the waffles

2009-06-04T17:39:00.001-07:00

So the better half got me the greatest gift for my birthday. (yes, the man got away with buying me an appliance, but I've been wanting one of these bad boys for a very long time..) He knows what his lady likes!!

We wanted to make waffles for breakfast yesterday (my birthday) but we didn't really get up on time to execute the master plan. we like our sleep. We then decided to have a "breakfast-dinner" tonight instead. So after a long day at work and a quick trip to the supermarket for garnishes, we finally got home and started working on the waffle project. We weren't too successful on the first couple tries..

{Our first try...}

{not so good..}

But after a few tries, it was smooth sailing all the way..

{Leaning tower of waffles.. so yummy}

{all finished}

over all, turned out to be a perfect night in.. ahhh yes...

Making waffles is a great idea for a fun dinner activity, but I have a feeling this could potentially be the cause of some major weight gain in the next few weeks..

vintage birthdays

2009-06-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

taken 12 years ago... happy birthday to me!

a random skip day..

2009-06-02T21:54:00.000-07:00

I find Tuesday to be a pretty random day to take off, I find it keeps things balanced at work and i don't feel so exausted all the time! I need a day off after a busy weekend.. silly, I know. My day started off with a little shoe shopping, coffee with a friend and a nice walk in the park with Rufus.

He usually doesn't like to be walked... he walks us. I think it's a terrier thing.. he'll grow out of it.

The plan for the evening was to see UP at the local cineplex.. only to be turned around at the theater due to a film malfunction.. who wants to see a Pixar movie with a "considerably damaged film" with annoying lines throughout the whole movie?! Not me!! So we ended up at the pub instead. (something we hardly do anymore) We ate nachos and sipped on Strongbow all night..

ahhh yes... How I love thee Tuesdays..

{nachos with chicken, extra guac before the carnage}

{after.. mmm they were yummy}

Parking lot fun

2009-05-31T20:18:00.001-07:00

{In case you were wondering, this picture isn't crooked...}

Earlier that day..

Lesson of the day: remember to put your parking break on if you park your car on a hill folks!!

Home Renos - Kitchen Edition

2009-05-31T19:48:00.000-07:00

We purchased our wonderful townhouse a little over 2 years ago. At the time we weren't seriously looking for a home, we didn't really see anything that was remotely close to what we wanted in a home.. until we saw this one. The second we set foot in the house, we were in total awe and in love. Within a few hours of it being posted online, we put an offer in. It was ours the next day.

We did quite a bit of work to it when we first moved in; The walls looked like they were drenched in pepto-bismol.. but flashy pink. It took around 15 cans of paint and several garbage loads of wall paper to finally be able to call it home. If I were to do it all again, I would have waited and done my research on a few things before taking the plunge on a few projects we did. I don't regret doing them when we did, I just wish we would have waited a little longer. (Geminis are known for being hard-headed.. this wasn't an exception)

The reason we bought the house pretty much rests on the kitchen. It's open concept, with lots of cabinet and counter space and you can sit 8 comfortably at the kitchen table while still having some room to maneuver around. We didn't want to set up a formal dinning room, so this was pretty important for us.

Here are a few shots before-during-after the reno/ face lift..

{Before - Pepto bismol pink}

{Before - breakfast area}

{During painting}

{After, home sweet home}

The first phase was pretty much cosmetic. Now that we've been here 2 years, it's time to get some kind of big project going. The next phase is going to be a little drastic.. here's what we planned on doing in the next year..

Back splash, walls re-painted (softer green), counter tops, new ceramic floors & maybe new appliances (budget pending - looking for stainless ) We aren't looking to spend more than $2500 (appliances, materials and labour included) It might be doable...

We're going to take this on as a long term project.. hopefully this time around next year things will be looking good..

Can't wait!!

Here comes trouble

2009-05-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

Rufus got a little restless today.. when he came in covered in dirt flicks after his romp around the backyard this morning, we kind figured something was going to happen..

which is why we really weren't surprised when we saw this...

But honestly, this isn't bad compared to what we used to come home from work to...

I'll save that post for a rainy day..

For now, I leave you with a very remorseful puppy..

Have a good weekend folks...

the story of a girl and her cardigan

2009-05-29T09:40:00.000-07:00

I had it in my head I was going to purchase this crazy gorg cardi from Urban Outfitters today..
LOVED it. Kathleen has been fashioning it for the past few months and it just seems like such a perfect fit. To my surprise, it's currently on sale!! $24.99 from $49!! Insane!!

So I registered for an account at UO, plugged my info in the required field boxes, whipped my credit card out of my wallet, sped through the numbers and got as far as the shipping page (pretty close!!) However, to my horror... shipping to Canada is $25.. WTF?? That's more than the stupid cardigan. To save $$ i would have to walk in the store to purchase it.. (as stupid as this sounds, the closest Urban Outfitters to us is 3 hours away.. very disappointing!!)

geeee whizzzzzz.. guess I'll just have to wait a little longer..

one day cardigan.. we will be together.

The break down

2009-05-29T07:19:00.000-07:00

This girl and this other girl

Are taking a road trip to see this guy...

At this place..

On the 15th day of the 8th month...

one word. capital letters.

PUMPED!!

It doesn't get better than this..

2009-05-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

This week's Thursday night consists of lounging in bed with the dog.. while he's passed out with his head on my lap...

The boy is downstairs playing guitar like a rock star.. insisting on playing the same song for the past hour

I wouldn't have it any other way...

the dog blog

2009-05-25T14:08:00.000-07:00

ok so a few months ago, I started a twitter account for the dog.. for some reason it kept getting followers. I changed the account to reflect my everyday life musings.. and everyone stopped following. idiot.

I then created a blog for the dog. Rufus the Wheaten.. no posts yet. it's still sitting there.. empty.. Rufus gets into a lot of trouble on a daily basis.. You'd think his owners would take the time to write a few of his stories down right? he at least deserves his own posts! so on that note, his daily shenanigans will be updated here from now on. You can follow his every move while reading mine!

*how clever!

enjoy...

{Rufus the Wheaten}

Just a thought..

2009-05-24T11:22:00.000-07:00

"How many cups of sugar does it take to get to the moon" - Goofy