High Five For Friday- 29.05.15

It is Friday and I am happy.  We are hosting a giant 1st birthday party tomorrow for Miss. E.  I am super excited to see everyone!  Here are my five:

1.)  Miss. E turned 1 this week!  I am totally one of those sappy moms, who got teary eyed over everything this week.  I am sure the sappiness will continue this weekend.  Ha Ha!  We had an enjoyable day of playtime and then Miss. E had some cake, which she loved!

2.)  Miss. E started walking a ton in the last week!  Before this past week, she would only take a few steps then sit down.  Now, she is walking as much as she possibly can!  It is adorable, exciting and BUSY!  I love it!

3.)  I planted a few beautiful annuals in my flower pots and they look great!  Also, I decided to name my Grandma's orange tree "Ollie".  I have also decided that I will talk to 'him' when I water him.  Apparently all great gardeners talk or sing to their plants.  I am going to give it a go.  I don't want to kill my Grandma's precious tree!

4.)  We got to celebrate my Grandma's birthday with her last weekend.  It was a fun day!  She really enjoys spending time with Miss. E.

5.)  I have checked many things off of my list, in preparation for the birthday party.  I sure hope I don't forget anything!

Have an awesome weekend!  If you would like to join in on High Five For Friday, please link up with the lovely ladies below!

Wardrobe Wednesday- 27.05.15

I decided to do a quick tutorial on the partial/half tuck of blouses.  One of my readers asked how to do the partial tuck.  It is a great thing to do!  I love to use this trick.  I find that it defines a waist and makes one look longer and leaner.  I love anything that makes me look taller!

Here is an outfit with the shirt loose.  Not terrible, but not great either!

And with a quick tuck into the front of the pants...  Better!  I can see a waist! The legs look way longer. Woot!  Woot!

Blousing the tuck out a bit.

This is the result.  It looks a little less deliberate.  

Here is the another tuck before.  Again, not terrible, but the top is making me look larger than I am and my legs are looking short again.

And tucked!  I look longer and leaner.  

So basically the rules are:

-Do a partial tuck with long, loose blouses.

-Tuck in the front, where the fly of the pant (or skirt) would be.

-Tug on shirt until you are happy with the result.  This is less a rule and more of a "trial and error" sort of thing.  My Type A personality hates this.  It does work, though.  You can tell when the tuck is "right".

-Blouse the top out a bit if you are going for a more effortless look.

Good luck!  

Minimalism Week #23 -The Dreaded Corner Cupboard

I wasn't planning on doing a minimalism project this week.  My daughter turns 1 this week and I am busy preparing for her big party.  I received my grandmother's orange tree (she moved and couldn't take it with her) and I needed to make room for it.  Hubby and I moved our kitchen cart out of the dining room and into the basement.  (It makes a wonderful folding table in the laundry room!)  The tree moved into the dining room.  We had been utilizing the storage in our kitchen cart, so I had to find new homes for those items.

The dreaded corner cupboard wasn't planned well.  It is a deep cupboard and awkward to get into.  It is important to use, however, due to the size of my tiny kitchen.  I needed to move my slow cooker into that cupboard so I started a quick sort and purge.  I threw away anything that had expired and I tried to sort like items into bins.  I moved items that are rarely used (but still important to keep) downstairs, into the cold room.

Here is my before:

Here is my after:

Everything fits!  Yay!  I probably should have taken a before picture of the kitchen cart.  We were rushing around and it was missed.  This minimalism project would have been far more impressive, with that photo.  ;)  Have a great Monday!  I am off to get Miss. E ready for her cake smash!

High Five For Friday- 22.05.15

It's Friday!  Happy dance!  I can't believe that the weekend is already here.  We had a long weekend last weekend.  The short week flew by!  Here are my five:

1.)  Over the past weekend, Hubby and I completed all 17 items on my "To-Do" list last weekend.  I truly thought that we would be lucky if we got half of the items done.  I was super happy that we got so much accomplished! 

2.)  One of our items on the "To-Do" list was planting our garden!  It is complete!  YAY!  I am excited about my garden.  I hope it grows!

3.)  I had an awesome acupuncture appointment over the past week.  Acupuncture has really helped me with various health issues and I feel so much better since I started going back.  I find it very relaxing, as well.

4.)  When I was in the city, I was able to get everything on my list.  That almost never happens.  I have had good luck with lists this past week.  I bought a few plants for my garden.  I always buy tomato plants, because our growing season is so short.  I don't start plants indoors.  I just buy tomatoes once it is warm enough out!

5.)  Hubby and I started working out again.  We had taken a bit of a break, but now we are back at it.  We got up early (5:30 a.m.) so that we could work out before Hubby left for the morning.  It felt good to get the workout out of the way.  It is too hot to workout in the evenings, so although I am not a fan of early mornings, this will work best.

Have a lovely weekend!  I hope all of my American friends have a great long weekend!  Enjoy!

Want to join in High Five For Friday?  Link up with the lovely ladies below!

Wardrobe Wednesday- 20.05.15

Hi Everyone!  This is going to be a short post.  I spent the day in the city yesterday, after a relatively sleepless night.  I was running on approximately 4 hours of sleep.  This means, of course, that I totally forgot to snap a pic of my outfit.  So I took a pic of it on the floor, today.  I wore my hot pink pants (the picture makes them look lighter) and my black flowy tank top.  I did a half tuck with the tank top, in order to help define my waist.  It was a good outfit for the heat of the day.  It was comfortable as I ran from appointment to errands.

Happy Wednesday!

Garden Dreams-Part Two

This past long weekend was a busy one!  I had 17 items on my "To-Do" list, 7 of which were labour intensive.  Not to mention all of the laundry and regular work that had to be done!  I am proud to say that Hubby and I crossed every single thing off of our list.  My favourite item?  We planted our garden!

I promised myself to do things a little differently this year.  I planned for half of my garden to be perennial flowers and the other half for vegetables.  I love flowers!  I chose to do perennials to help save myself some work (hopefully!) in the future.  I got Hubby to build borders around each vegetable patch.  I hope that it will help me know exactly where my plants are.  I thought that it might help to keep the plants separated and make it easier to weed.  We will see if that works out!

Hubby tilled the garden and then I grabbed my handy-dandy measuring tape and measured out my vegetable patches.  I had sketched out a scaled drawing in March.  I had already chosen where my veggies would be planted and how much of each plant would be planted.  Hubby built borders for my veggie patches, according to the strings marking each patch.

Cool, right?

I thought that the borders would take a while, but Hubby whipped them up really fast!  I was impressed, but he told me they were "easy".  Sometimes, he forgets that he is married to a woman whose construction skills are limited to Popsicle sticks and hot glue!

I planned my perennial garden out, using flour to section off each plant's area.  I heard that idea on T.V. somewhere.  The flour won't mess with the soil pH, making it safe to use.  I then planted according to the sections and my pre-determined garden 'blueprint'.  It felt like it took FOREVER because those seeds were so tiny!  I was pleased with how it turned out.  I hope all the plants come!

I am going to go crawl into bed, now.  I am exhausted after our busy weekend.  I hope everyone had a lovely weekend.  Take care!

High Five For Friday- 15.05.15

What a week!  I am so excited for the long weekend.  We are hoping to get a ton of work done and a little time to relax!  Here are five highlights from my week:

1.)  I got to celebrate my first Mother's Day as a Mom this past Sunday.  Hubby and I went for brunch in a nearby town and then went for a nice walk through the park.  My Mom came for supper and dessert that evening.  It was a lovely day!

2.)  One night, Miss E was freaking out and crying.  She wouldn't settle down.  I decided that a drive might help.  Hubby and I strapped her in the car seat and went for a drive.  She calmed down almost immediately and even went to sleep!  We got to enjoy an actual conversation.  It was really nice.

3.)  I took a course for work on Monday.  It was boring.  BUT, I did get 100% on the test.  Wooo!  I am not back at work, but I plan to fill in days here and there, therefore my courses have to be up to date.

4.)  Miss. E  had a fun playdate with my friend's little guy and I got to have a nice visit with my friend.  It was a fun day!

5.)  I am currently typing while sipping wine and eating ketchup chips.  I needed a break and Hubby was happy to give me one.  The chips are courtesy of him, as well.  Ahhhh.....Sigh of relief.

I hope you all had a great weekend and I hope you have an even better weekend!  If you want to link up, please do!  Join the lovely ladies below!

Wardrobe Wednesday- 13.05.15

I have two outfits for you today.  The first is a casual, everyday outfit that I wear while at home with my daughter.  I love bright coloured pants.  They step everything up a notch and they are so much fun!  You can never go wrong with stripes and colour.

The next outfit is a dressy outfit that I wore for my first Mother's Day.  The shoes are from my Summer Capsule.  I have started "borrowing" from my Summer Capsule at this point.  I usually start transitioning a few weeks before I convert my wardrobe to the next Capsule.  I love this outfit.  It makes me feel pretty and put together.  I matched Miss. E's outfit colour to my own.  I love "twinning" our outfits.  

Happy Wednesday!

High Five For Friday- 08.05.2015

Hello Friday!  This upcoming weekend is a special weekend.  I will be celebrating my very first Mother's Day.  I wanted to do something a little different this Friday.  I wanted to share with you the five people I will be praying for this Mother's Day.

1.) Those who no longer have their Moms to celebrate with.  Mothers are so important and the loss of a parent is devastating.  I am so thankful for my Mom.  I truly do not know what I would do without her.

2.)  Mothers who have lost a child.  This heartbreak is beyond comprehension.

3.)  Mothers who have experienced miscarriage or stillbirth.  I have close friends who have had miscarriages and it is devastating.  These mothers mourn the loss of a child that they didn't get to know outside of their womb.  They love these children deeply and will always wonder who that little person would have been.

4.)  Women who yearn for children, but have not been blessed with them.  This one hits very close to home.  My husband and I dealt with infertility for three years before being blessed with our daughter.  Infertility is so very difficult.  It seems to hang over you like a dark cloud.

5.)  Mothers who are raising children on their own.  These women are incredibly strong.  I constantly lean on my husband.  These women have to be both Mom and Dad and they don't have to take a partner to take care of them.

I pray that these people find peace and comfort this Mother's Day.  I pray that the Mothers will feel loved and cared for.  I am so thankful to celebrate with our little baby this year.  I will keep these other women in my prayers and hold them in my heart.  I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend.

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Wardrobe Wednesday- 06.05.2015

I am so sorry this is late!  Super late.  Like, in certain time zones it is Thursday, late.  But, alas, it is only 10 p.m. here!  The sandman has been skipping our house lately.  There hasn't been much sleeping going on here.  We had appointments today.  I got home and was talking to Hubby and said something about Wednesday being tomorrow.  He said that TODAY was Wednesday.  Oops!  I am blushing while staring at the calendar bleary-eyed.  Anyway, on to the outfit!

Can I just say how much I love this skirt?  It can be dressed up or down, it is super comfy, and it has a nice under layer that sits close to the body.  This comes in handy when you live on the prairies and the wind is constantly trying to give you Marilyn Monroe moments.  Wardrobe malfunction: averted!

Later that day, the pink tunic came along to the park.  I paired it with leggings, sneakers and my jean jacket. 

Happy Wednesday!  (Or Thursday, depending on your time zone!)

Minimalism Week #22- The Spare Room Part 2

I finished up the spare room this weekend.  Thank goodness.  This is where I left off:

After sorting through totes, I donated a good chunk of picnic dishes and a bunch of scrubs.  I threw away some items that were ruined or stained.  I now have three empty blue totes.  I can always find a use for the totes so I am pretty happy about that!  I plan to use one of the totes to store the clothes Miss. E has outgrown.  We hope to be able to have another little one, someday, so the clothes may come in handy!

Here is my after:

It looks much better.  Well, except for the hideous orange carpet.  Unfortunately, minimalism projects can't fix that!  Ha ha!

High Five For Friday! 01.05.15

Happy Friday!  I am so happy it is Friday.  I need a little time at home and maybe a nap!  Here are my five:

1.)  We had a fun weekend.  Hubby made me some "mug cake", which I love!  The weather was miserable, so we spent most of Saturday inside, playing on the floor with Miss. E.  It was a great way to spend the day.

2.)  We traveled to go visit Hubby's grandmother.  Doctors recently discovered a tumor in her leg.  She is waiting to hear if it is cancer (they are almost certain it is) and how they are going to treat it.  Hubby's grandmother is an incredibly strong woman and we are hopeful that she will be able to kick this tumor's butt.  We had a lovely day with her and it was nice to see other family members, as well.

3.)  The weather has been summer-like.  I love it!  It is so nice to go outside without worrying about jackets.  I made a cheerful wreath for the door.  It definitely isn't perfect, but I like it.

The "S" is upside down!  I fixed it later, but didn't snap a pic!  Ha ha!

4.)  I have been arranging specialist appointments for a few things (including my daughter's allergies).  I am finally hearing back from the offices.  I always feel better when I know when our appointments are.

5.)  I mailed out the birthday invitations!  I can hardly believe that I was 38 weeks pregnant this time last year.  Time sure flies and I am so thankful that I get to be a Mom.  At times, it feels surreal.  We struggled for so long, and here we are!  About to throw a first birthday party!  It is truly awesome.

Want to join in?  Link up with the lovely ladies below!