Friday, September 28, 2018

Friday Favourites- Books

Yay for Friday!!! Here's a little bit of what I've been reading for the past few months....  



The Husband Hour by [Brenner, Jamie]

A very interesting read with about a woman who unexpectedly and tragically lost her husband, a public figure. She isolates herself from everyone but soon her mom and sister comes to visit as well as a film-maker who wants to make a documentary about her husband. A whole lot of painful revelations follow... A very interesting read with lots of twists and turns. 

The Storyteller's Secret: A Novel by [Badani, Sejal]

I got this one with my three month Kindle Unlimited trial and I was so impressed by the quality of the writing and story. Jaya has just had her third miscarriage, is separated from the husband and has a very complicated relationship with her mother. She decided to go to India to discover some of her family's secrets. Loved this book so much with all its colourful descriptions and complexity of characters. I definitely want to read more by this author but as it's a heavier read, I'm reading something else before. 



When Life Gives You Lululemons by [Weisberger, Lauren]

Juicy is what I'd call this one with all the salacious details about three very different, yet intrinsically good women as they navigate through the suburbs, different crises and so many scandals. What I love about this author's books is that though the lives are over the top, the characters are so relatable. A great summer read. 


All Your Perfects
All Your Perfects: A Novel by [Hoover, Colleen]

I must be the only person in blogland who didn't totally love this book. I would give it a solid 3 out of 5 stars. I found the protagonist to be very frustrating and though I ended up loving the ending and thinking that it was realistic, the back and forth was a bit much for me. 



What books have you been reading lately? Anything to recommend?

Make yourselves a terrific weekend, friends!



Linking up with
and Andrea, Erika and Narci for Favourites on Friday

x



Wednesday, September 26, 2018

What's Up Wednesday, September 2018

Happy last few days of September and first few days of fall!! Here's what we have been up to....

Image result for hello fall



What we're eating this week?
Monday: salmon/chicken burgers with salad and roasted okra
Tuesday: Garlic shrimp and steamed cauli/broccoli
Wednesday: Leftovers with a salad maybe... or if the protein runs out, some lamb
Thursday: lentils and cauli rice
Friday: dinner out, I am thinking
The weekend is too far away for me to think about

Low carb and low sugar with some little treats thrown in.

What I'm reminiscing about
Those lazy summer days... Life is starting to get hectic already




What I'm loving
I've set aside 15-25 minutes before I pick up the kids some days to sit, have a cup of tea and a good fat bar. Relaxes me before the afternoon routine begins.

What we've been up to…
School is in full swing and extra curricular is beginning again. This year C (9) is in Karate (twice a week) competitive swimming (twice a week), piano and violin. A is in Kindermusik and gymnastics. Both girls will be in skiing in January and C is in engineering camp for eight weeks this year.


What I'm dreading…
The really cold temps.

What I'm working on
Decluttering the kitchen in September

What I'm excited about…
A trip to NYC for a family weekend in October. 


What I'm watching/reading…
Ohhhh TV has begun again.

I just finished The Storyteller's Secret. A very intriguing, colourful read. 

The Storyteller's Secret: A Novel by [Badani, Sejal]


What I'm listening to..
Some podcasts here and there

What I'm wearing…
Starting to bust out the jeans, scarves, jackets and tunics!! Fall y'all

What I'm doing this weekend…
Two birthday parties and an outing with friends. Pretty low key otherwise.  Maybe I'll decorate for fall!


What I'm looking forward to next month..
A wedding,  a week of meatless eating and some dress up for Halloween.

What else is new?
My six year old is starting to cartwheel and couldn't be more proud of herself. Also C is LOVING her new karate class. 


What's your favourite way to eat/drink pumpkin?
Pumpkin poppers are a HUGE hit around here. I also love these pumpkin oat bars
And I love a half sweet, extra hot PSL!


Make your Wednesday wonderful!!!



 Linking up withMel, Shay and Shaeffer




Monday, September 24, 2018

Weekending- G'bye Summer and Hello Fall!!

Happy Fall, friends! The weekend was yet another great mix of spending time with friends and family but another failure to take out too many pics. 

Here's what we were up to:

- The kids had a PD day on Friday so we did a girls' lunch out and then headed to a playdate to visit one of A's friends and her new baby brother.

- The final neighbourhood happy hour was also on Friday and it was a good one!

- Headed for a 10 k walk on Saturday with a neighbour through the trails.

- The girls had a playdate at home and then we headed to a music party with friends and neighbours. 

- Watched Trainwreck with D

- Spent Sunday morning exploring my 23andme results and doing a little online window shopping

- Did bucket loads of laundry, ironing, sorting, meal prepping and went to the fishmonger and the grocery

- We then walked to dinner at a local restaurant since it was so lovely out!

And now it's Monday again!!!

A little treat for the baby







All the neighbourhood things are pot lucks and someone bought this amazing banana cake!


Everyone came to dinner!



And devoured their meals!


Have a great week, lovelies!!

Linking up with Biana for weekending!





Friday, September 21, 2018

Fri-yay Five

Hip Hip Hooray for Friday! Here's what has been fun around here....

1- My kids love the samples at Costco so, so much. Here they are with their second cup of green peas-- I counted it as their veggie for dinner. #winning

Not pictured, their sampling of the bread and hazelnut spread.



2- Met this sweet friend for an unexpected ladies lunch. We were able to sit outside in this last beautiful week of summer.




3- Also met another sweet friend when we went to St Jacob's market.... these flowers and their brilliant hues caught my eye. 



4- If you like crossword puzzles and word sleuths then the app Wordscapes is the one for you. Great brain exercise. My kids play it with me too! An easier one for the kids is Word Cookies.

Image result for wordscapes

5- Sooo I totally cheated on No Spend September buying a couple KS items when they were on sale in Nordstrom. They don't last long so I didn't want to wait until October and then have them removed from my cart. I'm ashamed... womp womp :-(


Image result for ashamed gif


Make yourselves a terrific weekend, friends!



Linking up with
and Andrea, Erika and Narci for Favourites on Friday



Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Taking A Scent Snapshot of Life

Image result for scent quotes


Gretchen Rueben's Happier Podcast recently discussed thinking about the scents in your life and how it can be a happiness booster. Being a very olfactory person myself, I figured a scent snapshot was in order for 2018... Here are the scents that permeate our life currently...

- Bread toasting in the morning. Granted, these days I'm not having any of the said bread but I adore the smell

- Morning coffee that D drinks... tea has no smell :-)

- Laundry detergent during the weekend when I do at least 4-7 loads of laundry most weekends.

- Freshly cut grass when I'm walking to pick up the kids from school

- Chlorine from towels, hair and swim meets.

- The smell of my Philosophy Fresh Cream shower gel.

- Grilling- we've done a lot of grilling for the past five months.

- Voluspa coconut wax candles are my jam these days because of the 'cleaner burn', unique smells, lack of parabens and the more natural wicks. I still don't burn them often though. 

- The gymnastics studio smells like a combination of rubber and shoes.... not the best smell but distinct nonetheless

- Fresh baking either at home or in the market...

- My friend Jenn's house is a very light, warm scent that is very inviting. 

- The smell of my kids' freshly washed hair.

Image result for scent quotes


What scents permeate your life these days?




Monday, September 17, 2018

Weekending- a nice hot one

It was HOT this weekend.... and I'm totally not complaining.... we didn't take enough pics but here's what we were up to:

- It was our turn to host our summer neighbourhood happy hour  at 6:30on Friday (BYOB and  everyone brings an app to share) and it was the largest one ever as D invited some other neighbours and friends... think 30 people and 6 kids. The previous owner who designed the house also came (eeeep) so we were nervous as we've changed a few things but he was very complimentary. Our last guests left about midnight so it was more than just 'happy hour' but it was a wonderful time. We cleaned up before bed to wake up to a fresh shiny house....

- Saturday morning was spent doing some laundry and having breakfast outside.

- D's aunt and uncle came to meet us for lunch. It was wonderful catching up with them! We all had meal envy for D's mushroom salad and I'm going to make one this week!

- We tried taking a walk along the river but the extra hot temps did not permit. 

- Very last minute, D invited a friend and his family for a swim and simple dinner. We put some shrimp and chicken burgers on the grill and leftover apps and dessert from the night before. #winning #wastenotwantnot

- Sunday was spent doing some cooking, cleaning, pool time, pizza (cauli crust for me and D) and board games before watching Little House and the Prairie as a family before bed.

Now it's Monday morning and I need to wake up my kids to get ready for school!!!


More sass than size


We saw this heron from the window of the river


Dessert!


So many weddings-- I think we saw three... those brides must have been sweating!

Family is everything!




Happy Monday, friends!! Make yourselves a wonderful week!


Linking up with Biana for weekending~

Friday, September 14, 2018

Friday Five

Yay for Friday!! Here is my five for Friday that have been bringing bits of happy around here.


1- It's been hot then cold then cool and then back to hot again. It was so hot the other day even mama got into the pool.

2- Look at the bright yellow/orange of this egg. My neighbour brings it to us fresh from the farm.


3- Posing by some neighbourhood flowers before they are gone as the temps drop





4- Went to lunch with one of my besties to one of her favourite spots in Oakville. The Middle Eastern food was absolutely delicious. 

This was the cauliflower... it was so good!!





5- Take a look at my mom's weekly fitbit report. #stepgoals

And finally, just some mama smiles

True Story



Happy Weekending! Make it a good one!!

Linking up with
Caroline and April for Five on Friday! 
and Andrea, Erika and Narci for Favourites on Friday


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