the elbow...

DIY: Gallery Wall

2013-05-16T09:37:00.000-04:00

...or a post with a lot of pictures about how I hung a lot of pictures.

In my never ending effort to make my house a home, we put up a small 'gallery wall' this weekend. By 'this weekend' I mean I've been collected pictures for months and finally went out and found frames.

Here's the process I went through:

1. Decide on pictures!
I was inspired by this post from Nothing But Bonfires - particularly the pictures lining the staircase and the personal montage to the couples relationship. I liked the mix of print and photograph, too. Another post that caught my eye was this one from Young House Love. Again with the hallway lined with photos, typically a space that you are just passing through, lined with a gallery of your life. Sounds easy enough! I had recently purchased two prints - Chicago and NYC skylines - both cities that Rob and I had visited together - and we'd just had an engagement photo session. Those would be the anchors. Oh look, here they are!

Ah yes, how could I forget when it was 10c in January... how young! how naive!

Obviously

This print and the next one are from an online store called Bird Ave, who were wonderful.

I miss this place.

These were the 4 big ones, all 8"x10". I decided that everything else would be 5"x7" or 4"x6", largely because they are cheap to print at the instant photo kiosk and frames would be easy to find. The rest of the pictures:

Me & Rob on the Brooklyn Bridge.

Me & my fam after a long days work.

Me and all my cousins.

Me & Rob drinking wine.

Boomy and his best girlfriend, Ilse.

Me & Rob doing what we do best: watching hockey, drinking beer, being crazy.

2. Frames!

After I chose all my pictures it was time to find appropriate frames. I spent very little time on this. I had several frames on hand and the rest I purchased at Home Sense for as cheap as possible. I think the most expensive frames were the large ones at $12.99 a piece. I owned 6/10 frames so when it came time to purchase the other 4 I considered how many of each colour I had and tried to balance that. Worked out to 3 brown, 3 white, 4 black. The thinking was that it would look odd with just one white frame etc.

3. Figuring out where to hang all this crap.

I have ten pictures, of varying size, that need to go on the wall in some configuration. I figured this out using two techniques:

a. trace all the pictures onto paper and then hang the paper on the wall to see how the alignment looks

b. lay all the pictures out on the floor to see how all the frames work together (not all white frames in one corner etc).

I settled on the lower part of the stairs because I liked that it made the pictures visible from the front door. I considered putting them towards the top of the stairs but then no one would every see them as guests rarely go upstairs.

The final layout.

View from the front door, messy kitchen and all!

4. Hang the bitches.

The paper layout on the wall did not accommodated for any calculated spacing, nor were they level. Our strategy for hanging the pictures was kind of rogue - hang the first one and eyeball everything from there. Lucky for us it worked. We have this picture hanging tool and it works like a charm.

We took each picture and held it over the trace paper to mark where to drill holes... repeat, repeat, repeat!

Almost done!

That dog needs to be at the centre of the action.

All done!

The whole process was easier than I thought. Figuring out the layout, framing everything and hanging probably took about 2 hours.

Friday Favourites ver. 28

2013-04-19T09:47:00.001-04:00

This post was almost ready to go last Friday and then we had an ice storm on Thursday night. We woke up on Friday well past our alarm because our power had gone out. The lack of power lasted 9 hours and included many frantic trips to co-worker PK's house to get work done and pack home to bail the sump pump pit. Needless to say blogging wasn't on my radar!! Moving on...

1. IT'S FINALLY SPRING.
(besides the aforementioned ice storm)
I had to restrain myself every day from tweeting about how it's still winter. There were days when I thought for sure we were in a Groundhog Day sequence of winter-slush-winter-slush. Not funny.

BUT NOW! NOW! The birds! They sing! The rabbits! They shit in my backyard! The dog! He sheds! and eats the shit! Ah yes, Spring, she has sprung.

Compost Cookies from How Sweet Eats - crazy and delicious. Yes, those are sprinkles you see.

2. We have basically decided on a honeymoon. We're going to ... everywhere! Sort of... we're going to drive down the West coast of the US. The plan is to drive from Seattle to LA. It's going to be a big crazy trip and I would LOVE if you could share any must-sees etc. More to come...

This dog has become insanely snuggly of late... after he wiggled out of the pile of sheets he came and leaned against me as I read my book in the doorway. It's becoming a nightly ritual.

3. The closer we get to the wedding the more obsessed I've become with "A Practical Wedding". It just makes sense. I love 90% of what's posted and the other 10% isn't so bad either. Specifically, THIS POST sang beautiful sweet angel baby voices to me. I sometimes feel like I'm being judged that my life is too simple or that I spend too much time at home. These things make me happy and you can't argue with happiness.

4. After making the same shitty recipe on 3 separate occasions I've added an action to my Pinterest boards - COMMENTS. Now I'm trying to comment on my pins once I've made them. I'm not deleting bad recipes because chances are I'll find it again, re-pin it, and be back at square one; just adding little review notes for next time. My 'What's For Dinner?' board is the most active these days.

5. Favourite food blog these days: Pinch of Yum. Her recipes are wonderful and she lives in the Philippines so you get a good dose of what her everyday life is like, too! Lovin' it.

Can I just say what we're all thinking? Those spoons are ridiculous and adorable.

6. Finally tried this fro-yo craze by going to Menchie's this week. The staff were super friendly! We tried most of the yogurt flavours and I wasn't in love with most of them. A few of them were extremely sweet but I settled on pistachio, chocolate, and mixed berry. The toppings were awesome, love the fresh fruit!

7. Now that the weather has turned for the better ("who can say I've been changed for the better... I have been channnnnnged for good" - name that song!!)... I've started running again. Specifically, Rob and I have been running together - it sure makes a difference to have company! A friend sent me this article the other way, what do you think?

8. Les Links:

David Lebovitz spent a day at the Veuve Clicquot cellars eating, drinking, and more of both. It's exactly what you'd expect.
Some good tips on travelling with toiletries from I Heart Organizing. I'm also a big fan of travel-sized everything.
AWESOME tips on 'Conquering your closet' from Seventeenth & Irving - getting everything sorted and in order... with direction! I need to do this.
A friend of mine gave me some homemade spicy pork sausage the other day and I added it into this Sweet Potato Sausage Soup (via Shutterbean) and omg so good and easy to make! Will have to try with other types of sausage.
Umm... Durex FUNdawear?? (NSFW) Crazy but interesting!
30 Abandoned Places that Look Truly Beautiful
An oldie but a goodie - 50 Things

Rob is gone for a whole week so it's up to me to keep the fort down here with minimal help from Boomer, wish me luck!

Wedding cake: a really long post about a really special cake

2013-04-08T11:26:00.003-04:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of making a wedding cake for our dear friends Cam & Caitlin. Their wedding was so beautiful and our whole group was fighting back tears during the ceremony. I well up just thinking about it! It was such a beautiful day.

So that cake...

I've made several cupcakes in my lifetime. In fact, this past weekend I opened a box of 500 cupcake liners... the 3rd box of that size in less than a year. It's Monday morning so I'll do that math for you: that's 1000 cupcakes in 10 months. 100 cupcakes per month. More than 3 cupcakes per day. 20 pounds of butter for the icing alone. At least 80 eggs. 200 cups of icing sugar/25 kg/55 lbs.

This weekend marked the first time that I've prepared a cake for a wedding. Specifically I made 72 cupcakes (24 oreo, 24 red velvet, 24 raspberry-lemon) and one 4 layer, 6 inch cake. As it was my first time doing this there were a few lessons to be learned and so here comes a really thorough (read: wordy) detailing of the process.

Wednesday (3 days before wedding): shop.

I made my master grocery and supply list and picked up everything I needed so that I could get to baking right away on Thursday and Friday.

Thursday (2 days before wedding): bake cakes.

The cake was going to be two chocolate layers and two Italian cream layers. As the cake was small (only 6") I used half recipes for each type of cake, divided into two layers. I used these 6"x3" round cake pans from Wilton. They have straight sides and bake evenly. I used this chocolate cake recipe and this Italian Cream cake recipe (omitting the coconut). After both cakes were complete I wrapped them and placed them in the freezer. Baking these cakes took about 3 hours as I prepared and baked them separately (and did dishes in between).

4 layers of cake... ready for freezer!

Friday (1 day before wedding): bake cupcakes.

This was the part I was least worried about. I'd made these cupcakes countless times and wasn't expecting any issues (which I thankfully didn't have). The worst part was washing my mixer bowl too many times. I had a small hiccup when I realized I had forgotten to purchase the lemon and raspberries for the lemon-raspberry cupcakes... d'oh. Superstar Rob to the rescue! Total baking time was 5 hours for 72 cupcakes. I saved time by trying to streamline as much as possible... reusing dishes when appropriate and keeping all ingredients readily available. It was a regular assembly line in my kitchen. Can you tell I'm an engineer? All cupcakes were put in their boxes and into the fridge for the night. By 11pm I was done and ready for bed.

Cupcake prep

4 dozen cupcakes complete (Oreo on top)

Final cupcakes complete.

Saturday (wedding day!): decorate, transport, and set-up.

Decorate: This was the most stressful part and included the most 'firsts' for me. At the last minute I decided to change the icing I was using on the cake to an icing I'd never used before. After reading this article regarding the very technique I was going to use I changed my icing from standard butter-based 'American Buttercream' to a shortening based icing. I estimated that the cake would be sitting out from 4pm until 10pm and was concerned about the icing melting. The shortening based icing 'crusts' at room temperature and holds up better to heat and humidity. It also produces a much whiter icing compared to butter. I took the cakes out of the freezer, leveled them (easier to level when slightly stiff) and started on my icing. My plan was to crumb coat in white and then do the rose design with three rose layers in varying colours (dark purple, light purple, and white).

The icing came together well and the piping was also really easy. The whole process of making the icing and piping the cake took 1.5 hours. I was done by 10:30am!

The cake!

Transportation: Transporting cupcakes is NBD. they are all in boxes and travel well. Transporting that cake... not so simple. I MacGyver'd a shoe box into a cake box with one side open which I held in my lap in the back seat of the car. The worst part was making turns as I had to hold the cake plate still to avoid disaster. My fingers were seriously cramped after the 40 minute drive... but we made it!

Set-up: upon arrival all the groomsmen lent a hand and we got the 6 cupcake boxes, 2 cake stands, and the cake down the (many flights of) stairs. I brought flat shoes to avoid tripping! I was happy to see that the cake table was not near a window so no threat of hot sun beating down.

The whole set-up... including the precariously balanced cake... (I was so nervous it would get knocked down)

Post-cut (sorry for shitty phone pics)

Lessons & Tips:

- I kept the kitchen clean through the whole process and I'm so glad I did this. I find my work starts to get sloppy the messier my kitchen gets.

- Planning out the days beforehand made a big difference - being prepared FTW!

- I could have made the cakes at any time during the week and frozen until Saturday. I wouldn't have frozen for longer than a week.

- Seeing pictures of the cake I wish I'd make the icing a bit smoother. Add more milk next time!

- Transportation was the worst part. I'm not sure how to make it any easier...

And that's it! For my first time doing this whole thing it went really smoothly and I'm happy with the results. I get to do it all over again in 5 weeks!

Thanks Cam & Caitlin for letting me take part in your special day!!

Stuff I love: Winter Uniform Edition

2013-02-28T21:26:00.000-05:00

Alternate title: Stuff I love: try not to leave the house edition

Well it's winter here. Finally. After last year's poor excuse for a season (What, was it -15c like 4 times?) it's been a steady -10c for a good month. Maybe it's been less or more, my brain is fogged over from today's blowing snow.

Only two things get me out the door these days: going for groceries so I can further stock my freezer with comfort food and dog walking. Haven't they come up with a way to get them to look after themselves? Lazy creatures, I tells ya.

So, in my ventures to the great outdoors this has become my standard uniform, with a few extras.

1. Arctic Parka - this jacket was a Christmas gift from my mom two years ago. It covers my bum, it's crazy warm, and there's just no substitution for down insulation. The giant (non-flimsy, actually warm) hood is a great perk, too.

The hood is also great when you don't want to make eye contact with anyone.

3. Power-stretch Glove - slim profile gloves that are warm enough to fight off the wind but flexible enough to... 'scoop' without having to remove.

I have an extra left glove if you're interested...

4. Studio Pant w/ Liner - I have these sans liner and I'm wishes I had purchased avec liner. A friend of mine has them and told me they are her go-to dog walking pants. Sweat pants that have some semblance to regular pants? Sign me up.

The difference is that I usually have a shirt on. Ain't nobody wanna see that!

5. Cozy scarf - I have this scarf in pink and damn it is SO COZY! I unwrapped it at Christmas and it was passed around the room for all to try on. It's massive and perfect for travelling as it doubles as a shall/blanket. Oh ya, it's on sale. BOOM.

Careful your boyfriend doesn't steal it.

6. Aspelina W boots - I don't have these boots but I have other Tretorn brand boots, these just look so warm and toasty and maybe even a bit cute with the purple lining? Let's just forget trying to be cute in slushy snow, mmk? Also: waterproof. Win. (BTW I have these boots that I wear with an extra liner but they could be warmer and taller).

Can you help me tie them please?

7. Hands-free Reflective Leash - I love this thing. You can adjust the length so you can wear it cross-body or around your waist so your hands are free to stay warm in your pockets! Also has convenient pocket to carry bags and large reflective bands so you don't get hit by a car.

Also convenient for tying the dog to a tree during late-night licorice runs. Don't YOU want to eat licorice while watching Fringe? Thought so.

Maybe someday I'll write a Winter Uniform: Going out in Public edition. I'd have to go out in public to do that, though...

Friday Favourites ver. 27

2013-02-22T15:46:00.001-05:00

In which I post fun and favourite things from my week, semi-regularly... every-other... randomly... on Friday!

... and then I woke up and February was over? What the?

1. Do you love cookbooks? If yes then you will love 'The Piglet' - a yearly cookbook competition run by the fabulous Food 52 blog. 16 books published in the previous year go head-to-head with celebrity judges and food writers to give commentary. A very cool way to see which hottest cookbooks should go on your Amazon wish list. Fingers crossed for Smitten Kitchen!

2. Winter in Ontario is a sonofabitch. I love me some serious snow and cold but there never seems to be the right balance in these parts. We are forever in a cycle of snow-melt-slush-repeat. Enter the eternal battle to find the right boots. Forget Uggs (salt stains! slush!), forget leather (salt stains! slush!), forget heels (ice! snow!), forget anything that isn't waterproof (did I mention the slush?). I have given up on finding anything cute and have resorted to insulated rubber boots. Do YOU have a secret solution to fashionable, waterproof, and warm boots? I will pay you for your answer. With cupcakes.

At least I'm not in Manitoba

3. I made a headboard! It was pretty easy, too! After we finished the project and I was admiring our handy work I felt like we had just turned our otherwise utilitarian bedroom into some kind of swanky-ass hotel. What a game changer. I don't care if you make one or buy one - adding a real life headboard makes a HUGE difference. (I used this DIY for reference but there are literally thousands of similar articles available).

Need to hang some artwork and add some colourful details... main goal was getting it on the wall! The rest comes later...

4. We're coming off a long weekend filled with some serious home-time and we even BABYSAT. Someone actually let us look after their small child... without supervision! I suppose it was a success given that we returned the baby in her original condition. It was a bit scary at first (I have very minimal baby experience) but it turns out all you have to do is sit there and make sure they don't ... do anything stupid? Something like that. Rob was googoo over how cute this little girl was. Excuse me while my brain explodes.

5. I got tickets to see The Book of Mormon!! It's going to be in Toronto starting April 30th. Finally a musical that Rob might actually like...

6. Onto the links!

Currently listening to Tegan & Sara's newest album "Heartthrob" on repeat. DO IT. Thanks to Dooce for the beaming recommendation. Dancey! Poppy! Fun!
This dog is cooler than I'll ever be.
Great tips on being a good host or guest.
This White Chili recipe (which I got from my trainer and conveniently have the cookbook) is TDF. to. die. for.
Bruschetta Burgers? Can you make these for me please? kthx.
These bridesmaid's dresses? I die.
A Practical Wedding's Open Thread on Wedding Vows is delightful.

Have a great weekend friends! I'm going to a wedding and also bridesmaid's dress shopping... wish me luck!

NOLA

2013-02-21T09:50:00.003-05:00

I'm back. I'm alive.

I spent part of last week in silence because I was in desperate need of some quiet time.

The jist: I went to NOLA during Mardi Gras with a group of 12 woman to celebrate my future sister-in-law's bachelorette party. Forgive me for leaving out the specific party details - what happens at Mardi Gras gets stuck under all the garbage and never makes it out of Mardi Gras.

Overall thoughts:

Excuse my French but the city is fucking FILTHY during Mardi Gras
But... the city does a seriously awesome job cleaning up every night and then the city is temporarily clean for about one hour between 8am and 9am. Clean up involves tractors and spray trucks and street cleaners. It's very intense.
Yes I saw boobs but very few. No, I didn't participate.
The quantity of beads handed out is incomprehensible. At the end of the parade we probably had close to 600 strands in our group of 12.
The number people is even more incomprehensible.
I didn't know this beforehand - you can drink in the streets!
Every one is drunk. All day, every day (during Mardi Gras).

How people watch parades. Many of these ladders have little seats on top for kids.

How I traveled/accommodations

I flew out of Kitchener and took 3 flights to NOLA (through Chicago and Dallas)
I flew direct home - THANK GOD.
We stayed at the Sheraton New Orleans on Canal Street and it was excellent! Friendly staff, very clean, conveniently located, loved it.
We walked everywhere with the exception of the streetcar that took us to the cemetery tour and the various taxi's we took to/from airport and to/from bars when it was too late/we were too tired. One driver played pretend Cash-Cab with us, he was crazy smart!
All the service people we encountered were extremely friendly and welcoming and didn't seem too depressed that their city was overrun.

Rob's wet dream

What we saw:

We spent the first night walking Bourbon Street which is basically a giant street party. There are balconies everywhere, so much bead throwing happens from above. Watch your head!
We did a cemetery tour with a group called 'Save Our Cemeteries' of the Layayette Cemetery No. 1. It was very cool and an interesting insight into different cultural treatments of the dead. Our tour guide was a woman named Candy and she was SO awesome. Ask for her if you can! We got locked in the cemetery at the end of the tour, no joke. Thankfully it was a bright sunny day and only lasted about 10 minutes.
We walked down Decateur Street, which is right along the river and full of shops, restaurants, and street-vendors/performers. Very nice way to spend the afternoon.
We had tickets to the Endymion Parade and it was by far the most ridiculous experience of the whole trip. We purchased bleacher seats so we'd have somewhere to sit/guaranteed seats. The marching bands, the floats, and the BEADS. The beads HURT and you have to be careful not to get hit in the face. The histories of the different parades are very interesting - some have all male float riders - all float riders need to wear masks, etc. This year's parade Marshall was Kelly Clarkson - we saw her but she was facing the other way.

What we ate:

In short: everything. This is not a city to visit while on a diet. Also - everything has a kick to it.
K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen - it was great! Excellent service
Stanley's - omgsogood. We went for brunch, I had the Korean BBQ po' boy and it was TDF - to die for.
Domenica - an Italian restaurant just off Canal Street... I shared a charcuterie board that came with beignets instead of crackers. Be still my heart (and not due to the clogged arteries!)

My Korean po'boy that refused to rotate for this post.

Pros:

The people of this city are SO. FRIENDLY.
The history is very interesting and I think there is so much more to see than the small corner we experienced
Drinks were cheap!
Very walk-able city

Some of the street performers were crazy good! Like this group - Yes Ma'am

Cons:

Did I mention how dirty everything was? Perhaps returning after Mardi Gras is the answer.
It was very difficult to get on the street car... though again I think this is likely only during Mardi Gras.

Great group of girls to travel with!

Friday Favourites ver. 26

2013-01-18T11:09:00.000-05:00

In which I post fun and favourite things from my week, semi-regularly... every-other... randomly... on Friday!

1. I am going to New Orleans in THREE WEEKS. Holy shit. Have you been? Where should I go? What should I eat? TELLMETELLMETELLME!!! I'm afraid...

2. I made these cookies last weekend and omfgtheyweresogood. SO good. It's not fair to call them White Chocolate Cherry Cookies... because the highlights aren't limited to the white chocolate and dried cherries... but to the oatmeal! and maple syrup! and cinnamon! Do make these, you won't regret it. Note that the recipe says it yields "just over 2 dozen" and I easily got 50 cookies.

eeekk I wish I still had some left!

3. We had our engagement pictures last weekend - they were such a riot! I wanted some cute pictures to put on a save-the-date card so we did a whole shoot and had a few chalkboards involved with our date displayed. We used the same photographer that we have booked for the wedding. It was nice to get to know her and get a bit of practise in front of the camera before our big day.

One of the most normal pictures...

4. I actually did THIS last week - cleaned my make-up brushes, that is. And you know what? It was gross. Gross because the water turned so brown and terrible and I was immediately ashamed. BUT it was also awesome because it worked really well and was very quick and simple. I will be doing this again... hopefully before 5 years is up like last time...

5. HOCKEY HOCKEY HOCKEY HOCKEY. You know what I'm doing this weekend.

6. zee links fo zees week

10 Famous Films that Surprisingly Failed the Bechdel Test - or '10 Films that don't show two female characters having a conversation that isn't about men" CRAZY TOWN.
I made this 'Winter Lentil Soup' yesterday but I browned turkey sausage and added that at the beginning. It was crazy good and I'm going to go eat some right now.
25 Food Trends for 2013 - yes to numbers 18, 21, and 23
I'm basically obsessed with this song and now with this cover. Ahh T-Swift, you sing to my soul

Have a great weekend, team! We're taking down Christmas lights and WATCHING HOCKEY!!!

2012 Book Review

2013-01-07T04:00:00.000-05:00

It was a disappointing year for books! I attribute that to the subscription to Wired magazine that my brother got me. I read just about every page of that magazine which means the rest of my reading suffered.

Books I read in 2012:

The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien - finished the series! It look for.ever. but was worth it. Life List item checked off!
At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks - I couldn't finish it. Not my style.
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern - ahhh this book was so delightful and I need to re-read it to catch all the little details.
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut - I liked it but not as much as Cat's Cradle.
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See - oh how sad! I sobbed.
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling - Hilarious. Her voice was in my head the whole time. I want to be her friend.
The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides - worth the hype.
Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan - the second book of the year that I couldn't finish. It's tedious and didn't take off very quickly. Yes, Gavin, I know I need to return this to you.
The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman - very easy read and makes. so. much. sense.
Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin - still reading this one as it travels through the months, another book that makes. so. much. sense.
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn - also currently reading and I can't put it down. The story unravels quickly but other parts slowly as you catch little phrase that elude to other mysteries... looking forward to seeing how it ends.

Hits: #3 was wonderfully bizarre and #5 was intense and kept me up well past my bedtime to finish.

Misses: #2 I will not attempt Nicholas Sparks again and #8 was too predictable.

Last year I vowed to keep better track of what I'm reading and I've accomplished this by opening a Goodreads account and keeping it up to date.

See my 2011 list here and other book chatter under the 'books' tag.

What did you read this year? What was your favourite? Add me on Goodreads!

Looking Forward

2013-01-01T17:21:00.000-05:00

It's today, it's today! Happy new year!!

We had a wonderful party last night with some of our closest friends - played some wackadoo games and slept until noon today. A great success :)

Our crew - including Brooke who joined via telephone!

We played a ridiculous game that I learned from my brother - we call it the Cereal Box Game. The jist of it is that you put a cereal box on the ground and everyone has to pick it up with their mouth without having any body part other than their feet touch the ground. After each round you cut off a chunk of the box making it shorter and shorter until it's just a flat piece of cardboard. Reference video. Give it a go at your next party!

Enough relishing in last nights festivities - let's go forward!

Rob and I had an awesome walk today in which we discussed our goals for the upcoming year. We made several relationship and personal goals and talked about some of the fun things that are coming up this year. Discussing this while on a walk was a great ideas as we could both stay focused on the conversation - good tactic.

Some things I'm looking forward to:

Seeing my family more than ever! I will see my parents three times this year - quite an accomplishment as I haven't seen my dad in two years and I saw my mom twice in the same window. They will visit for my brother's wedding in May and then again for our wedding in August and then...
Going home for Christmas! It's happening.
Duh, getting hitched.
Travelling to New Orleans for Mardi Gras this February - I'm going with a bachelorette party. I am excited and afraid.
Seeing a lot of family in general as a result of wedding activities, will be good to get to know Rob's family a little better.
I will get my P.Eng... hopefully this month, even.

And now for some personal resolutions:

Listen to more music and expand music tastes - my music taste is awful these days - Rob is extremely helpful in this area.
Buy less things, spend more time - we don't need any more stuff - buy less stuff and instead SAVE the money or spend it on experiences - this goes for gift giving as well.

Relationship goals:

Act and react with good intentions - this stemmed from each of us realizing that we often don't give the other the chance to react differently (better) and pre-react to bad behaviour when the bad behaviour hasn't even come out yet. So - act with good intentions and react with good intentions.
Evening, non-judgemental chats - discuss what made us happy and unhappy before bed without the goal of getting advice, simply to share. We don't need any stress before bed so we're keeping it simple.

Despite recovering from a big night I feel like a million bucks today. Last night when everyone was leaving it was decided that the theme for 2013 will be "2013 - FUCK YEA". I love it.

Looking Back

2012-12-30T15:14:00.000-05:00

Reflection time!

This week Rob and I were discussing different year-end rituals and how sometimes it feels forced to review the year behind or predict the year ahead. I agree that it can but I also think that no matter what puts me in a reflective mood, I'm going to use that ju-ju and REFLECT. So, here's my reflection on 2012.

Speaking of reflection...

Big things:

We went to the USA - a LOT!

Trip to NYC - it's so close! We need to go again, soon.
Trip to Orlando - I still can't believe I booked a flight on Monday and left on Wednesday. Turns out spontaneity isn't a synonym for impending doom.
Trip to Chicago - why haven't you been to this city? It was perfection. I would live here
Trip to Buffalo - always a classic

We did a bit of work on the house and now I am overcome with the DIY itch and it can only be scratched by a new rotary sander that I'm going to buy today...
My brother got engaged! He will be married in May 2013 and I can't wait for all the good family time that we'll get!

Huge things:
This happened. A small gesture that will forever change my life and yet, hasn't changed a thing. I mean that in the best possible way. My mother reminds me on a weekly basis that I should never expect anyone or anything to change without major cause and specifically not to expect marriage to change anything. Well, we have successfully managed to live the same life pre and post engagement and damn, it's a good life. I look forward to being married and having an unchanged life.

This year, more than ever I felt confident and strong. When confronted with a bad situation or dealing with bad news, the constant thought that 'I can get through this' and 'there is literally no part of this situation that is going to kill me so I can soldier on' was stronger than even this year and I came through on the other side more easily than I've ever anticipated. I think this is in large part due to Rob's undying support and patience. He listens to my ideas and never makes me think they are stupid or unworthy of our time. Damn, it's a good life.

To review my resolutions for this past year

Reduce household garbage - ongoing, this upcoming year's focus will be to not only use the recycle and green bins but to just plain produce less waste.
Be more kind in all cases - I think about this a lot - I'm not sure how succesful I was but I feel better about my relationships than ever before so we'll consider this a temporary success and vow to keep working on it.
Reply to emails - I started striving for Inbox: 0 and it was a big help - if an email requires no action, archive it, otherwise it sits staring at you! Success :0
Wear more dresses and skirts - moderate success - finding fun tights was helpful.
Be thankful - based on how I feel this week and the messages I've sent I can honestly say I have been more outwardly thankful and it feels GREAT. It's one thing to feel it inside but it just amplifies the feeling to share it with others, especially those that you are thankful for.

Do you reflect at the end of the year? Do you do this alone or with your family? Do you think all this New Year stuff is a bunch of BS and it's just another day passing?

Next up: Looking Forward & 2013 resolutions

Friday Favourites ver. 25

2012-12-22T16:16:00.001-05:00

It's still Friday... in my mind...

You guys, it's totally Christmas. Well, it will be in like 4 days. How did that happen?? Are you ready?? I have 2 batches of cookies, 2 desserts, 1 dinner to attend, 1 dinner to make, 2 families to visit, and 1 dog to drop off at the kennel and THEN it will be Christmas.

This week? This week was alright.

1. On Sunday, as Rob and I were installing a light fixture, standing on our kitchen chairs in our pajamas, we realized that it was our third dating anniversary and that maybe we should do something more romantic than curse at each other in the dark (though maybe that's your thing...). We went for a nice dinner to celebrate our LAST EVER dating anniversary. Are we still dating once we're married? The terminology confuses me.

A little make-up and BAM I'm a real person

2. Per tradition, and for the third time, we went to see the Stuart MacLean Vinyl Cafe Christmas Concert at Centre in the Square. If you've never heard of it, it's a bit of a variety show with stories and music and the most moving Christmas medley ever. I was nearly brought to tears it was so beautiful. The musical guests were the Vinylettes - 3 beautiful women with equally beautiful voices - and Reid Jamieson. The acoustics in CITS are like none other and you really feel the music all over, it's wonderful, take your family.

*Reid's newest album is 'Songs for a Winter's Night' and it's full of delightful Christmas-y tunes. Listen to (and purchase!) the whole thing here.

3. I got a new camera last week to... compliment my iPhone. It's called a 'compact systems camera', kind of like an SLR little brother, very easy to hold with one hand (it's this one if you're curious). I'm hoping to learn a lot over the holidays and then register for a beginner class in the new year. In the meantime I've been reading these articles which have proven quite helpful so far. Here are a few of my first shots...

I'm not sure why but I really love this picture. This is what I spent 90% of my free time doing (baking) and to be able to capture nice pictures of the process is going to be a fun, and rewarding experience

Requisite dog picture, duh.

Links this week:

The 25 Funniest Autocorrects of 2012 - tears running down my face on 7:30am - win
Silly Portraits of People with Scotch Tape on Their Faces - silly
Treat Yo'self - some last-minute baking ideas for the holidays... or any day... from Shutterbean
10 Thing to Give - gift guide from Oh Happy day... wherein I learned that all pictures taken by the Hubble Telescope are FREE to download... must do something with this...
I want to try making these 'easy' flaky cheese twists, I'll let you know how 'easy' they prove to be...
And another one from Shutterbean that made me yell 'YES PLEASE' from the rooftops - The Rebirth of Slow Blogging

Have a wonderful holiday next week, I mean it, DO IT. Hug your family, cherish the time you have with them, turn the TV off, listen to each other, and eat some junk food. You deserve it. xo

Personalities: Myers-Briggs

2012-12-18T11:53:00.000-05:00

Lately Rob and I have taken a very keen interest in personalities, different personalities, our personalities, how our personalities are different/same, etc etc etc.

Two metrics that we've been looking at are the Myers Briggs personality test (yes, the same one you took in high school) and more focused, the 5 Love Languages. I'll get to the Love Languages later.

Looking at both of these metrics has given us a lot of insight into how we each behave and has helped us to better understand each other. Maybe it's our crazy analytic brains working too hard but regardless, learning more about the person you're going to spend your life with is always a priority to me.

Background: Myers-Briggs personality type indicator "is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions." You take the test and you get a four letter code that represents your personality.

Your first letter is your attitude: E for extrovert or I for Introvert
Your second letter is how you perceive: S for sensing or N for intuitive
Your third letter is how you judge: T for thinking or F for feeling
Your fourth letter is your lifestyle: J for judging or P for perceiving

We used this test this time around.

When I was in grade 11 we had a whole day devoted to taking the Myers-Briggs test and then working out what our personality type meant. I remember that at 16 years old I was an ENTP which can be described as the 'inventor' and fits into the 'Rationals' group. When I re-took the test this week (with Rob over my shoulder calling my bluff) I came out as an ENFJ with the N being very marginal (meaning I could sway to an S easily). That's two whole letter changes in ten years - very interesting!

My ENFJ personality can be described as the 'teacher' and falls into the 'Idealist' group. Should my N change to an S I would be an ESFJ or the 'provider' from the 'Guardian' group. Both are described as very caring and nurturing with a strong focus on people. A big change from my ENTP teenage years but I can still see how I'd fit into the 'inventor' personality with such descriptor phrases as "Inventors are always on the lookout for a better way, always eyeing new projects, new enterprises, new processes." and "Inventors often have a lively circle of friends and are interested in their ideas and activities."

Rob came out as an INTP (very close to my high school result!) which is the 'architect' from the 'Rationals' group. It's a pretty accurate (creepily accurate) description of him with such notes as "It is difficult for an Architect to listen to nonsense, even in a casual conversation" and " interested only in what make sense, and thus only statements that are consistent and coherent carry any weight with them."

Interestingly, our two personality types couldn't be more different - mine focused much more on emotions and people and his focused more on facts and experiences - they still compliment each other quite nicely. Rob's secondary code - INTJ - still falls in the 'Rationals' group which suggests that his N and T attributes are fairly strong while my N was my weakest letter and that I could sway between an N and an S.

Anyway - all of this is to say that Rob and I learned a lot by going through the exercise together and reaffirmed many things that we thought about each other. It was a fun little experience and has given us countless hours of discussion - in fact we spent our 3 year dating anniversary discussing how our personalities work with each other!

Livingroom Update: Coffee Table

2012-12-12T16:56:00.000-05:00

Remember my livingroom? You can see all the before pictures here and some of the after pictures here.

One of my favourite pieces that we added to the room is the coffee table. This is what we were replacing:

It's from Ikea, too dark, falling apart, glass top drives my bonkers with fingerprints etc. Basically the worst.

And now for the replacement...

TA DA! Our new table!

I would like to sleep on it.

The story of this table...

My wonderful uncle hooked me up with the table top. The piece of wood is hemlock (not the poisonous kind), reclaimed from the roof of an air plane hangar that was torn down. Specifically, an air plane hanger that was built as part of a WWII training facility, near Brantford, Ontario. I believe it's this one - No. 5 Service Flying Training School. More history here. My uncle stained the wood for me and I finished it using this product. I did 5 coats - our coffee table gets a lot of traffic so the extra two coats were an easy decision for extra protection (and recommended by the aforementioned uncle).

That's the inside of the building - my table came from the white planking you can see on the ceiling.

Table top post-stain, pre-treatment

Attaching legs with help from Rob.

See how shiny it is post-treatment? The extra coatings really made the colours and textures pop.

The table legs are hairpin legs, which I procured from this company. I conducted all business via email and the guys at hairpinlegs.ca were extremely easy to deal with and I had my order very quickly. Doesn't it make your life easy when people are friendly and professional? Ya, I thought so. I ordered raw steel legs because the table would be inside and not subject to the elements. I coated them with this product. While the stainless steel legs would be more durable they are twice the price and I didn't feel that they were worth it for my project.

The assembly was pretty simple, I used #10 panhead screws, as recommended by the hairpin legs guy

Yes, that's a bowl full of remote controls. This is real life, people. I ain't got time to cut fresh flowers or clean up the broken vase and spilled water when the dog knocks it over.

I love that our coffee table is one of a kind, solid wood, and (partially) made by me! If you're looking for something similar check your area for stores like Timeless Materials that sell reclaimed products that can easily be turned into benches, end tables, or coffee tables.

The Great Livingroom Make-over - Part 2

2012-12-10T10:10:00.000-05:00

Much has happened since I posted part 1!

BEFORE!

AFTER!

To recap - this is what I wanted to accomplish in my livingroom:

New floors - carpet and vinyl has to go. It's in good shape but it's a dated finish
New window treatment - those weird beige curtains are actually sheets with weird sheer curtains with dragonflies on them. No thanks. (Came with the house)
Paint - I think I've finally decided on a colour... maybe
New art work - I love the car pictures (taken by friends!) but I want a change
New coffee table - it's just all too much black.
Bar cart for dining area - going DIY all over this
Buffet table for behind couch - provides more storage and I actually have one, just needs a face lift
New light fixture above dining table - that old one... will haunt me
New couch - this one is the least likely to happen any time soon as it'll be the most expensive addition but we'll see...
Bookcase - paint it or get a new one, it's falling apart
Dining set - the folding chairs and my old university desk have got to go

Some photos of our progress:

Floors!! I didn't realize how disgusting carpet can be until I had to rip it up. You think you've done a good job vacuming but all those nooks and crannies just trap the dirt and dog hair. I'm so happy it's gone now. VOILA, our new floors!

We went with laminate 'wood' and 'tiles' instead of hardwood and ceramic. Largely for cost-savings but also for the durability. Dog nails tend to scratch hardwood pretty easily, laminate is more resilient. We also decided that our current home didn't deserve high end finishes as we are unlikely to recover the costs upon selling. Rob and coworker PK did the floors and what a wonderful job they did!

Window treatments! I got rid of those weird beige curtains! You can see in the above photo that we installed blinds. We ordered them from Home Depot and Rob installed them. Due to a slight measuring error he had to trim 1/4" off the edge of one set. Whoopsies... but much cheaper than ordering a new set.

Paint!! That you can hardly notice!! It's a very pale grey that has done wonders for the room, much less stark. I suppose I should also mention the purple closet doors. They add a great pop to the room with little commitment. I originally wanted to paint them chartreuse but Rob vetoed in favour of this purple. I also added a small shelf (which I made) below the mirror in the front entrance.

Table!! Well, sort of... we replaced the desk and folding chairs with a standard Ikea table that I bought off a friend. It's a cheap, temporary solution. I re-recovered the chairs from beige to a blue checker-board. While the table will be replaced someday I love that the leaf for this table is stored within the table and the two ends come apart to fold in the extension. Good move, Ikea.

Bookcase... another 'sort of'. It's still the same old, falling apart bookcase but I've given it some life with some pictures and a crazy spider plant. I moved it from the livingroom area to an in-between spot to help define the two spaces of living-dining. It's less in the way over here.

Bar-cart... another 'sort of'. I have the bar-cart but I want to paint it. Work in progress.

In the first picture you can kind of see the corner of the new coffee table. I finished the table this weekend and I'm so happy with the results. I have a whole post coming on how I built this puppy.

To re-cap:

~~New floors - carpet and vinyl has to go. It's in good shape but it's a dated finish~~ - FINITO!
~~New window treatment - those weird beige curtains are actually sheets with weird sheer curtains with dragonflies on them. No thanks. (Came with the house)~~ - FINITO!
~~Paint - I think I've finally decided on a colour... maybe~~ - FINITO!
New art work - I love the car pictures (taken by friends!) but I want a change - working on it...
~~New coffee table - it's just all too much black.~~ - FINITO! Stay tuned for details...
Bar cart for dining area - going DIY all over this - working on it...
Buffet table for behind couch - provides more storage and I actually have one, just needs a face lift - it's in the room now, but still needs to be re-finished.
New light fixture above dining table - that old one... will haunt me - Another item that we have purchased but haven't installed.
New couch - this one is the least likely to happen any time soon as it'll be the most expensive addition but we'll see... - zero progress made on this item :(
Bookcase - paint it or get a new one, it's falling apart - working on a plan for this
Dining set - the folding chairs and my old university desk have got to go - mid-term solution achieved.

We've made a lot of progress and crossed off some large items. The painting was a big job but I got it done in one day and I'm happy with the results. The couch and dining set are going to be on hold as they are the largest financial commitments and the least urgent. I think the next projects will be gussying up that bar-cart and buffet table. Also, I need to work on the art situation and get to filling those bare walls.

Friday Favourites ver. 24

2012-12-07T09:37:00.000-05:00

In which I post fun and favourite things from my week, semi-regularly... every-other... randomly... on Friday!

1. HELLO CHRISTMAS!! Let's get real for a second. Christmas is 18 days away. Less than three weeks. 2 weeks of work, 1 holiday party, 1 Frisbee game, 2 cupcake orders. Christmas. It's coming. Whether you like it or not.

We aren't doing much decorating in these parts - largely because we don't have a lot of decorations and those things cost money. We put lights up on the house and instead of a tree I purchased a wreath made of real balsam fir branches. I hope heaven smells like balsam fir.

I mash my face into this thing every morning. DEE VINE.

Our first year attempting lights... not bad! I was the ladder holder

2. I love that December brings a huge influx of gift guides. It's the thing to do. My friend Amber Marlow is writing a bazillion of them and all so far have been delightful. If only Rob read all the blogs that I read...

3. Coworker PK's adorable and amazing puppy has moved on to her advanced training. I went with PK last week to drop her off and it was a crazy combination of heart-warming and heart-wrenching. She was so happy to be there!! PK was trying to have a nice goodbye moment with her but she was too concerned with collecting every toy in the room. I will miss her so much but I know she's on to do bigger, better things with her life!

I think they will miss each other the most

4. Wait a minute. Did I tell you the deck is done? What the hell, E. Well... it's done!! Just in time for the snow to cover it for the next 6 months! Once the warm weather hits there will be no delay, we can plunk our fannies down and enjoy that SOB like it was meant to be! You're invited. Bring chips.

Before! What a mess! I miss the sun...

After! Stupid grey sky...

5. Links this week:

This video... is priceless. Merry Christmas. Also, I love the Roots!
OMG SOFTEN BUTTER BETTER.
Did I tell you about this salad? You should make it. Make extra sauce, enough to bathe in.
Some great xmas music suggestions
Yes to all of these
FREE monogrammed gift tags from Making it Lovely, so simple, so cute!
Hell yes
Have you made these cookies? I make them every week. I made 140 of them last week for my work Christmas party. Do it. With green & red M&Ms, duh.

Happy weekend!

Stuff I Love: link party

2012-12-04T11:08:00.002-05:00

I am a slave to my reader. Getting the 'All Items' tab to equal zero is a bigger accomplishment than getting Inbox = 0 (I file like a MOFO).

My life... 5 days a week

Some new things I'm reading lately:

1. Bev Cooks - holy shit she's funny. Ridiculous, and funny. She also makes wonderful food. I'm looking forward to trying this sausage ragu ASAP.

2. Young House Love - thanks to Kaylee for the intro - their home projects are so beautiful and they make them all seem so very DOABLE - which is important.

3. I'm Charming You - wonderful, Toronto based, blogger/socializer. Good fashion tips, product reviews, and general hilarity.

4. The Pintester - a ridiculous account of her attempts at ridiculous pins... somewhat NSFW (language).

5. Sweetapolita - beautiful, baking creations... I want to make every.single.thing she posts.

Some old favourites:

1. How Sweet It Is - "for people who, like, totally love food". Top 3 favourite food blogs. She's funny, clever, and takes great pictures. She also makes TDF food.

2. A Practical Wedding - not just for wedding advice but for general relationship insight. So many of their articles make me feel more normal and having me saying 'me too!!' and 'right??' out loud... to myself.

3. Nothing But Bonfires - Holly is hilarious and has great taste. I want to be her friend and ~~steal~~ borrow all her DIY ideas.

4. Smitten Kitchen - because, duh.

5. The Oatmeal - another one that has the whole population of the internet saying 'right??' out loud... to themselves... and then sharing on facebook.

What's in your reader these days?

Life List revisited

2012-11-30T08:54:00.001-05:00

Camp Mighty was held at the beginning of November and while I didn't attend I thought it fitting to revisit my life list that I wrote last year around this same time. When I first wrote this list I was pretty focused on reaching 100 items. Upon review, many of these items were added in an effort to bulk up the list. That's not how this should work. So, I'm freely adding and deleting items, after all there are no rules.

I've included a few tips for starting each one in an effort to get moving. Edits are in Blue.

1. Spend time in all 10 Canadian provinces (layover in an airport doesn't count) (so far I'm at 9 haha does that make this goal too easy? nah) - my progress thus far here.
2. Make macaroons with perfect feet. - I need to make them myself so I don't have to pay for them. This is good for everyone.
3. See every NHL team play (I'm at Detroit, Toronto, Carolina, Buffalo, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Boston, New York Rangers) - hell yes. If the game ever comes back...
4. Get 1000 hits on my blog IN. ONE. DAY. - this kind of happened in July due to this post. I'm not sure it counts. Maybe I should edit it to be "Get 1000 hits without posting pictures of naked men".
5. Ottawa for Canada Day - planned for next summer.
6. achieve 'curb appeal' - This is extremely difficult. Mother Nature is a fickle mistress.
7. Successfully plant, grow, and eat something (the miracle mint in my backyard doesn't count). - I kind of did that this summer but I feel like I was cheating by using starters instead of seeds. Why am I so hard on myself?
8. Be a vegan for 30 days - also, convince Rob to be a vegan for 30 days.
9. 'lay out' and catch a Frisbee point - don't kill/injure myself in the process.
10. Score a second goal in hockey - start playing hockey again.
11. Get a penalty in hockey - start playing hockey again.
12. visit Thailand. - this should be 'visit exoctic vacation destination' because my desired location changes every month. Iterations include Africa and Peru so far.
13. Host a 100 mile feast - make it happen, Waugh.
14. Re-read all of my favourite fantasy series (Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Material, The Hunger Games) - again and again and again.
15. Do a 30-day challenge every month for a year - figure out what the challenges will be, doesn't have to be one complete calendar year, can start whenever.
16. ~~Successfully complete NaBloPoMo (I signed up to do it in November of this year!! ee!)~~ Completed November 2011
17. ~~Go on that 3-week Southeast Asia trip I keep talking about with RB~~ - I'm deleting this because it's too similar to #12.
18. Take a food tour in Europe - make a list of destinations and eat all food that is famous in each city. Must include mountains of gelato.
19. Attend TED (speak @ TED??) - someday...
20. ~~Read LOTR trilogy~~ Completed July 2012
21. Hike the Inca Trail in Peru - get over fear of altitude sickness, conquer this trail.
22. Host xmas dinner for my whole family - get them to come to Ontario... or go to The Pas...?
23. Do a downward dog and have my heels touch the floor - practise more
24. Make pierogies - seriously. make them.
25. Write a cookbook - start making a list of favourites that would be included.
26. Own a cottage - start saving.
27. Rent a cottage in PEI, drive there with dog & stay for a week, no technology, only cookbooks - I'm editing this to be 'cottage type destination' because I'm not particularly attached to PEI and my current infactuation lies with Traverse City, Michigan...
28. Send xmas cards to my family every year for as long as I am capable (going on 3 years now) - hell ya, never let this go.
29. Go to San Francisco - watch a Sharks game while I'm there to contribute to #3.
30. Give only homemade gifts for Xmas one year - I'm not sure if I want to keep this one. I think I'd prefer if it were 'reduce the amount of consumerism you partake in during the holiday season' and spend more effort on quality time with family.
31. Be half-decent with a camera - get a camera.
32. left-side plank, arm & leg up! - seriously. YOU CAN DO THIS.
33. PIE CRUST, make it, and make it GOOD - why haven't you done this yet?
34. Mentor a high-school girl who is interested in engineering - figure out what this entails
35. skinny dip - EEK but yes, do it.
36. have a conversation in sign language - learn more sign language
37. attend Munich Oktoberfest - hell yea
38. build something with my dad - hell yea
39. ~~read all previously awarded Man Booker prize winners and continue to read every year~~ - this is tedious and having read quite a number now I've realized I don't like committing to one specific group of books. I'd rather just say 'read a lot, and chronicle the books', which I'm doing on GoodReads.
40. learn how to change a tire on my car (have my dad teach me?) - good life skill
41. convert someone from a roundabout-hater to a roundabout-LOVER! - I'm ready and waiting, step right up
42. make my grandma's pickles (have mom teach me?) - good one, E
43. train my dog to be well behaved off-leash (maybe not this dog... next one!) - dreams...
44. take an improv class - Peter already agreed to go with you, what are you waiting for?
45. Go back to Rome with RB and do all the fun things we did separately together - ya!
46. Do yoga every weekday morning for a month - terrifying but doable
47. Become a certified instructor of something (yoga, skating, dog training?) - ya!
48. Develop a more consistent health routine (exercise, vitamins, balanced diet, etc) - oh god please... maybe a New Year's reso?
49. Deliver a motivational speech to a large crowd - figure out what I want to motivate
50. Have a baby - HOLY SHIT
51. Foster a service dog - figure out if you'd be ok with parting with them, research the program
52. Fill my house with art made by my friends (in process...) - working on it!!
53. Build my dream home with higher counters, party shower, and fire pit - someday...
54. ~~Buy a bicycle and USE IT~~ Completed May 2012
55. Graduate to the 15 lbs weights, say goodbye to the 7.5 lb weights for good - get over this injury and then get back at it...
56. Give Steve Yzerman a hug and promptly remove him from my freebie list - mmm dreams...
57. Cut my hair really short again - like THIS???
58. Watch The Notebook (No, I haven't EVER seen it) - Even Rob has seen it!
59. See Bon Jovi in concert - and promptly swoon yourself to death
60. See Michael Buble in concert - ditto
61. Take RB to see the Bengals play - check every year when they play the Bills
62. Re-do my website - learn to code this shit
63. Put up a Christmas tree, train the dog not to eat presents. - not this year :(
64. Help raise 1 million dollars for charity - find a worthy cause
65. Build a piece of furniture - working on it!!
66. Participate in the WarAmps mentor program - signed up, waiting for call!
67. ~~Make a Kub set, teach my friends~~ Completed July 2012
68. Try anti-gravity yoga (the one with hammocks) - they have it in town! Go do it.
69. Take a self-defense class (Krav Maga??) - Krav Maga is crazy $$$, find something else
70. Have a jewellery collection to be proud of - working on it
71. Be a mom - figure out what this means
72. Learn how to properly throw a baseball - quit throwing like a girl
73. Win the hockey playoff pool - booyea
74. "Make my boyfriend marry me" (his words while we were brainstorming) - HOLLER in progress.
75. Finish reading 'The Joy of Cooking' - even the part about skinning a squirrel
76. Live closer to my parents - likely the most painful and difficult item on this list. A life-long pursuit I imagine.
77. Learn to drive stick - just in case.
78. Teach someone to sew - why is it such a lost art? It's easy. Let me teach you.
79. Take up painting again - I'm not sure how I feel about this. I don't know if I'm actually interested in doing this.
80. Own a house outright - hell ya.
81. Be an expert at something - 10,000 hours spent on...?
82. ~~Go on a spontaneous, last-minute vacation~~ Completed June 2012
83. Successfully play matchmaker - I have successfully matched roommates, does that count?
84. Swim a lap (cannot currently do more than tread water) - it feels so damn good to swim, get over fear of water while I'm at it.
85. ~~Be a 'first pick' on a sports team~~ - this doesn't matter to me anymore. I am happy with my level of athletisism and someone elses skill judgement doesn't matter to me.
86. Ride a mechanical bull like a boss - do I care about this? I mostly laugh at the people that attempt it. TBD...
87. Teach an entire bar to line dance - you know you want to.
88. Give out homemade treats for Halloween (to those that will accept them and not search for razors) - I think 'get to know my neighbours' is also crucial here.
89. Start a book club - or a women's club, or some kind of club that isn't 90% guys.
90. Participate in a cooking challenge/competition - YA, it's ok if I don't win.
91. Complete a 1-year photo challenge (photo every day) - the committment is terrifying
92. ~~Develop a reputation as an awesome gift giver - another item that's based on other people's judgement. -~~ Dislike. I find joy in choosing gifts, that's the extent of my input. I cannot pre-select people's responses.
93. Donate back to my EngSoc - make sure it goes to EngSoc and not the school. The society needs the money.
94. ~~Write a memoir~~ - naw, I'm not that interested. I think writing a book that involves details of my life but not one that is solely based on my life.
95. Learn a really awesome song on piano & perform it - another one I go back and forth on. Need to evaluate if this is important to me.
96. Go on a crazy girls-only weekend with Cro & Griz (others welcome) - THIS will be GRAND
97. Have a good relationship with mother-in-law - totally working this one out. I think the final seal will be producing a spawn of her golden child.
98. Learn to let go - a life long pursuit, making considerable progress.
99. Be proud of who I am and tell my story to other families - HYFR.
100. ~~SEND MY MOTHER EFFING LIST TO LAURA MAYES IN ANTICIPATION FOR CAMP MIGHTY!!!!!~~ Completed November 2011

New items:
101. Enjoy my wedding for what it means to my life and not what it means to those judging me.
102. Embrace my future-in-laws as my family
103. Make a financial/life plan for myself, Rob and our future family. Including but not limited to: RRSPs, life insurance, living will, savings, etc.
104. Buy less stuff, you don't need it.
105. Get my GD P.Eng. Seriously. Do this. NOW.
106. Bake a cake every month for someone - with reason or without, doesn't matter. Inspired by this post.
107. Consider the viability of alternative careers. Engineering isn't the answer to all life's problems.
108. Get over my dislike of mushrooms and other foods I have avoided for too long. Disliking food is obnoxious.

Have you revisited your list recently? It's interesting to see the changes in just one short year - changes in accomplishments and also in direction...

Gift Guide for your Girlfriend

2012-11-26T14:23:00.000-05:00

It's the same thing every year. She tells you every year what she wants and you get it for her. Where's the magic, guys? So you don't want to surprise her with something big, why not get her that kindle she's been asking for and then throw in one of these gems for some added Christmas whimsy? Onward!

1. Give her a piece of jewellery that won't break the bank and supports a good cause, too! 'Wind Spark' necklace from 31 Bits is a necklace that can also be worn as a bracelet and the beads are made of... paper! Bonus if she's allergic to metal. Read all about the 31 Bits process here.

Shiny gold flecks! Oooohhhh shiny...

2. Two-tone Waffle cowl-neck scarf from The Gap. I stand by the mantra that 'a girl can never have too many scarves'. I am living proof.

Available in many colours!

3. Does she paint her nails? Chances are she wants some glitter on those puppies. Shephora by OPI Jewlery Top Coat Gift Set.

Be prepared to have your home smell of nail polish for the next two weeks.

4. Does she have hair on her head? Does she like to treat it well? Again, chances are YES. (Damn, your girlfriend is really starting to be a fancy ass lady!) Check out Morrocan Oil Treatment, good for restoring hair from years of heat and styling. Unfortunately you can't buy it online but you can look up where it's sold.

So luxurious and so worth it.

5. If your GF is anything like me, having a solid phone case is important. I mean... I don't intentionally drop it or let it fall out of pocket... it just happens! I currently have an OtterBox on my iPhone but I just saw an ad for their new 'Reflex Series Cases' which allow for easy docking. The biggest pain of the OtterBox is having to take it off to use a docking station. Problem. Solved.

Available in 6 different colour combos

6. It's Christmas. It's cold. She's always cold. (Of course she is, haven't you learned yet that every girl is always cold? Fact of life, dude.) A cosy hoodie is necessary. Roots makes the best hoodies that are fleecy soft and delicious. And just maybe she'll stop stealing yours, but probably not. Beaver Canoe Vintage Kanga hoodie from Roots.

Currently on sale...

For more ideas, check out last year list here.

Good luck to you in your shopping adventures!

November 1st - non-Friday Favourites

2012-11-01T12:31:00.001-04:00

It's November 1st! Did you have a good Halloween? We stayed in and handed out candy to the kiddies. I never get sick of seeing babies in costumes. Hilarious! Also, cute.

Today is also the first day of NaBloPoMo - A.K.A. National Blog Posting Month. I patricipated last year and it was a vey interesting experience, finding new content every day and taking the time to write everyday. You can find the archives here.

Unfortunately I won't be participating this year. I am travelling for work starting tomorrow through November 12th and it's unlikely that I'll have the time to devote to daily blogging. I am disappointed! Perhaps I'll try it at some point early next year. Maybe it'll be part of my monthly-challenges-for-a-whole-year Life List item?

A few other things to report:

1. I went wedding dress shopping! It was weird. It was fun to try on giant gowns but very different than my every day attire. The prices are also ludicrous. I may look into getting something used. I don't think I'll have a reaction when I decide it's 'the one' but I'd probably only have that reaction if you told me I could wear sweats down the aisle.

2. The work I'm heading out on will involve being outside and managing temporary staff. Please contain your jealousy. At least I'll have Rob for company the first weekend and co-worker PK will be with me throughout.

The result of a long day moving equipment.

3. The deck! It's almost done! The weather sucks though so progress has slowed. At least the dog can walk on it now.

Deck boards! The most rewarding part! Unfortunately the last and easiest part.

4. I need to go make cupcakes. It has been too long.

5. Links this week:

The Broad Group builds cookie-cutter skyscrapers that are crazy efficient, wicked safe, and surprisingly cheap. Future of tall buildings? See for yourself.
I picked up a copy of the 'A Practical Wedding' book and was drawn to the list of questions to ask pre-marriage. Sparked some great discussions (infertility - AH!!!). They have a similar article posted online here.
and on that note... an awesome list of relationship advice '16 Ways I Blew My Marriage' and part 2 'The Other 15 Ways I Blew My Marriage' (big YES to #10 and #26 - things we happily practise in our house).
These cupcakes - via Two Pease & Their Pod - they have a peanut butter cup INSIDE. Must make ASAP.
This article on 50 uses for leftover pumpkin puree. Seriously, the cans are twice as big as they need to be and I have leftovers 100% of the time.

Sorry if it's quiet around here for a few weeks - will be back soon with livingroom update and how this whole wedding planning business is feeling.

Friday Favourites ver. 23

2012-10-26T10:52:00.000-04:00

In which I post fun and favourite things from my week, semi-regularly... every-other... randomly... on Friday!

1. Well, what I like most this week is... THIS. Maybe I should show you a picture, too? Ok. Now, figure out how I took this picture...

Hello beautiful...

2. These pants. I wasn't sure how I felt about the whole coloured pants trend but this raspberry/burgundy/red wine colour is just so GD festive. Also, these pants are crazy comfortable. Seriously crazy. I haven't yet ventured into pairing them with other colours, mostly neutrals, but I have a mustard sweater that might need a friend...

3. We were on vacation last week. We took a 'stay-cation', my first that was longer than one day. It was AWESOME! I recommend it. I got so much laundry done! And cooking! And cleaning! We went swimming at the rec centre which was pretty awesome. It was just great to be at home with no obligations. We had planned on using the week to build our deck but other things took priority and we didn't finish it. I'm not heartbroken, we had fun instead. The dog is dealing with the new obstacles.

Who decided to build a deck in October... I oughta punch her...

4. Wedding planning is weird. People like weird things. My mentality so far is not to stress over any of it. Really, none of it matters. What matters is that Rob and I want to be married and all we need to do that is an officiant, each other, and a witness. Everything else is just for fun.

5. While we were on vacation, Ontario decided to go all nutso with the colours. It was beautiful.

I think I took 30 pictures within 10 minutes

6. Oktoberfest came and went! Did you know that the city I live in, Kitchener-Waterloo, has the second largest Oktoberfest IN THE WORLD? The first being Munich. Fair. Yep, we rock the shit out of schnitzel eating and beer drinking. Also, polka dancing and keg tapping. I love it.

Polka dancers doing something that I don't think is polka dancing...

7. Sign of a good night

Have you played this game? You should. Purchase here.

8. Links this week:

Lightened up enchiladas - made these last night. easy and awesome (via Tasty Kitchen).
MAKE THIS CHICKEN NOW - made it for dinner party group, died (via Martha Stewart).
Men with shaved heads are more masculine - A certain man in my house would agree (via Globe & Mail).
Ten tricks to make the lazy cook's food taste better - I have been caught on #10 too many times.
Dog's dream comes true! - Boomer's would be apples or used kleenex.
I've gone all wedding-ape-shit on Pinterest. Follow if you like that kind of thing.

What are you doing this weekend? Watching baseball? Good. That's the only acceptable answer.

Stuff I Love: Calvin Klein 'Push Positive' Bra

2012-10-19T09:06:00.000-04:00

Sorry boys. Go away, please.

GIRLS!!! YOU NEED THIS BRA!!!

On Saturday, about 1.5 hours before we needed to leave for a wedding, looking very un-showered and dishevelled Rob and I were in The Bay picking up a wedding gift. And a shirt and tie for him to wear. And a dress for me to wear. When I mentioned to the sales clerk that we were heading to a wedding that afternoon she commented "Oh I'm so glad to know that I'm not alone in doing everything last minute". To which I replied politely but screamed in my head "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? THIS IS THE ONLY THING I'VE EVER DONE LAST MINUTE IN MY LIFE AND WILL GO HOME AND PLAN TWO MONTHS WORTH OF DINNERS TO MAKE UP FOR IT". I hope she didn't read that from my smile and "oh, totally!" response.

En route to check-out we passed the women's underwear (lingerie? unmentionables? wtf is this section called?) and I saw a giant display of Calvin Klein bra's - specifically the 'push positive'. I'd read a review for this style online - I think it was this one - and as a sucker for well-reviewed products I decided to buy two.

This bra has 'soft-wire' which means there aren't any stabby bits and they won't poke out the side after you... very gently hand-wash them (ie: throw them in the washing machine). It's crazy comfortable for a non-sports bra. There are also many colours!

I'm a bit ashamed to share the video for it, though. It's not exactly inspiring... to women anyway.

But, don't let that turn you off. This bra is awesome. I went back on Sunday and bought a third.

Side-note: a friend of mine, a much more 'well-endowed' friend of mine, tried this on and said that it might be 'a bit too much push' for her but eventually decided to get it 'just for fun'. Because, we girls do that. We buy bras that are massively boob enhancing... just for fun. True story.

I'd recommend this bra but maybe that you try it on first just in case it's 'too much push'. It's more comfortable than anything I've purchased at Victoria's Secret thus far.

BONUS - The Bay is having 'Bay Days' which means that the whole store is on sale. This bra is normally price at $50 but is currently on sale for $35 until October 30th.

In which I get fooled by my whole family...

2012-10-14T17:17:00.000-04:00

So. You want a story? Here's the story.

Sunday morning. The day after Thanksgiving, two days after Oktoberfest. I'm tired. I want to sleep in. I have no plans for the day. The dog, per usual, comes upstairs at 7am, Rob gets up and takes him out. All very normal and expected. He comes back to bed and says "I'm going to go down and make breakfast, you come down whenever you're ready." I fall back asleep until 9am. I get up, I go downstairs.

Rob gets breakfast out of the microwave (where it had been sitting, waiting... for two hours). We eat, I ask him if he's just been napping on the couch, he says yes, etc etc. All very normal. We finish eating. Rob gets up and walks around the couch and calls the dog. uhh what? I hear the dog (I can't see him over the couch). The dog walks over to the table, and, like dogs do, he shakes. Something flings off his collar onto the floor. *ping* I see it, Rob grabs it, dog goes back to sleep. Crying, laughing, hugging, etc etc. I said yes!!

So, that's all very nice and simple and wonderful. I have a beautiful ring on my finger and I'm happy all over. I start calling the following people:

1. My mom: my mom had previously told me that she was going to Winnipeg for an MRI. Pretty normal. I call her on her cell phone - she's happy etc etc.

2. Rob's parents: I call his dad, he's happy, etc etc.

3. I call my brother. Him and his fiancée scream and cheer etc etc.

I make a few more calls and we go on with our day.

I ask Rob what he wants for dinner, I suggest I make pizza and I'll get groceries this afternoon. Rob tells me that he's actually made a reservation at our favourite restaurant so we can go celebrate. What a lovely thought, that sounds delightful.

The day goes on, fairly uneventful. I start to get ready for dinner. I suggest going early, Rob kiboshes that. Ok, whatever. Finally we get into the car and we head to the restaurant. We arrive and Rob walks up to the hostess and tells her the reservation name. All very normal.

She asks us to follow her, we walk through the restaurant and pass all the tables, pass the washrooms and.... walk right up to the door of the private dining. The door is swung open and inside awaits MY MOM, my brother, his fiancée, Rob's sister, her boyfriend, Rob's parents, and my brother's fiancée's parents. All waiting for us for our immediate engagement party.

I was VERY surprised. It was so wonderful to be with all the people you love most so quickly and all at once. We had an awesome dinner and came back to our place for champagne and cake and some board games. It was perfection.

Did I mention I hadn't seen my mom in over a year?

Oh, did I mention ALL OF THE LIES THAT EVERYONE TOLD?? So. many. lies.

My mom wasn't going to Winnipeg. Rob's parents didn't cancel their family dinner because they had a wedding to attend. My brother and his fiancée weren't busy with friends that night. This plan had been in the works for a month and all of these people knew. All the calls I made Sunday morning were fake - my mom was actually taking the call from my brother's place in Toronto.

There were many other small things that were seamlessly executed and it turned into a massive, awesome, seriously crazy surprise. We are SO happy. Rob's had a month to get used to the idea - I'm still working on having it set in!!

October 1st

2012-10-02T08:55:00.000-04:00

I can't get over saying 'Holy shit it's (every month) 1st!'. Gretchen Rubin uses the line 'The days are long but the years are short' and it seems to be more true as every month passes.
September was a whirl-wind and we're hoping for a more relaxed October.
Some fun things I did in September...

Brought an old armchair to my BFF. The final placement is still TBD.

Niagara wine tour with work colleagues We drank much, played 'Wine Tour Bingo' and had a seriously wonderful day.

Work trip to Niagara for interviews. I'm going to hurt something good when this dog has to move on to her advanced training.

Oh did I make traffic signal cookies? Yes, I did make traffic signal cookies. Are you really surprised?

First attempt at cinnamon buns. Mildly successful. Worth a second shot. Need to roll tighter.

One of my favourite soup recipes ever. Freezes well. Feeds many. Do it.

Find me on instagram @erica_rw

Friday Favourites ver. 22

2012-09-21T04:00:00.000-04:00

In which I post fun and favourite things from my week, semi-regularly... every-other... randomly... on Friday!

1. I've basically gone nuts on Pinterest since posting this on Monday. It's kind of an "oh shit I told people to look at something, I'd better pin ALL OF THE THINGS!!". Needless to say, my 'what's for dinner?' board is filling up nicely.

2. I'm a little bit obsessed with trees. Anything with tree patterns or designs on it and I'm smitten. I almost bought every available item that David's Tea recently released with this new pattern but eventually settled on this set. It's adorable. Do you drink tea? You should try David's Tea. It's the best. I'm currently drinking a tea called 'red velvet cake'. Ya, cake flavoured tea. BAM.

The trees... I am in love

3. I bought Michael Smith's 'Best of Chef at Home' a few years ago and it's become quite the staple in my kitchen, specifically this recipe. It's a build-your-own salad dressing recipe where you swap in different sweeteners (honey, sugar, maple syrup) and other ingredients to get a variety of salad dressings. It's a little bit science and math and that's my bag, baby. The variations are down the side. Our favourite is the Fennel Balsamic which doesn't taste like licorice, thank goodness.

4. The living room project is coming along nicely and I've done MUCH painting over the past two weeks. There was some light grey, some chalkboard paint, and some VERY awesome purple that happened. The purple is the most dramatic so I'm saving it for a living room post, in the meantime here's what the chalkboard paint looks like. It's right next to the kitchen and we've been using it for menu, to-do list, and general calendar reminder type things. Future uses hope to include: board game score keeping, football pool tracking, and dog tracing.

Oh what's that... where has the ugly beige carpet gone? Ohhhh stay tuned!!

5. This is my 61st post this year!! I'm breaking records on the ol' Elbow.

6. Links this week:

Chocolate Zucchini Cookies via Tasty Kitchen Blog - so many favourite things and ZOMG we all need more uses for all that zucchini.
Cute idea to change up plain curtains via The Yellow Cape Cod
Vegetable Shepherd's Pie via Bon Appetit - so much room for all that market bounty and so wonderfully comforting
Ideal Bookshelf Art - they have pre-selected bookshelves for print OR you can order one with YOUR favourite books on it. The most awesome gift idea EVER. I would get ten prints just so I wouldn't have to leave out any of my favourite books.
I have been dreaming about these Sugared Toasted Almond Cupcakes via How Sweet Eats since it was posted. I need to make these STAT.
I've been laughing about this post all day - what would your name be if you parents combined their names? So much hilarity. My friend Caitie would be Jozra which we refitted to be JAWS-RAH. Another friend would be Tron. Ahhhh so much fun.

Milestone Post #60

2012-09-19T04:00:00.000-04:00

This is my 60th post of 2012, which puts this year in the lead for most posts! In 2011 I had 59 posts and more than half of those (30) can be attributed to NaBloPoMo so I'd say 2012 has been a banner year for the ol' Elbow.

I've felt really good about blogging this year. I find myself excited to write and to come up with new topics. I think I have learned the most over the past year, in all of my 8 (!!) years of blogging.

I find myself brainstorming new ideas all the time and I'm extra careful to take pictures of everything I do just in case I need it for a blog post. This summer especially, I found myself taking my posts more seriously and editing more carefully. It takes more time to produce a post but because I'm really enjoying it I haven't minded spending more time writing. I've learned how important it is to keep a regular schedule. I haven't felt the need to blog everyday - and frankly I don't have the material - but since taking on a twice-a-week mentality I've gotten into a good groove. It doesn't always happen but it's something to work towards.

In honour of my milestone, I thought it fitting to posts a few lessons I've learned through my 60 posts this year and my 300+ all time posts. I am by no means an expert but I've really felt like I've learned a lot this year and to me, that's worth sharing.

1. If you don't enjoy it, you won't put the time in. Blogging isn't for everyone, and that's ok! Neither is skydiving! If you try it and you don't enjoy it, don't feel the need to keep going as it won't be rewarding.

2. Blog about what you love. I know that sounds so cliche and appears in basically every blogging advice article. It's true. I thought I wanted to blog only about food and cooking but I found it too tedious and I don't have the photography skills that food blogging deserves. That being said, I still want to keep posting recipes, just not all the time.

3. Coming up with features and series has been the easiest way for me to keep a semi-regular posting schedule. When I started 'Friday Favourites' it was a way for me to share items that might not deserve a full post and also to keep me honest about posting. It's morphed into bi-monthly favourites but it's a good milestone for me to work from. Starting a series is helpful too - breaking up a larger story or project into several posts keeps each posts unique and manageable and gives you more material to work with.

4. If you have the time and the ideas - write many posts at once. Then save as drafts and post at your wish or schedule the post to publish when you're on vacation. Often writing one blog post will give me several other ideas so I'll draft a few posts and come back to them later in the week and then publish them so they are spaced out appropriately. Confession - I actually wrote this post before posts 58 and 59 were published!

It's been a fun year and I have enjoyed writing more in the past 6 months than ever before. I have appreciated every single one of your comments. I figured out how to add a 'reply' to comments option and I have been trying to do so over the past few weeks so be sure to check back in if you've left a comment. THANK YOU, seriously, THANK YOU for reading.