it's my girls' world

Happy Thursday!! Here's a little spring cleaning Q and A for your Thursday!

Yay for Monday! Especially when it's the first day of school. Like everyone else, we are a mixed bag of emotions.... but more about that on my first day of school post in several days.

2- I use a combination of exfoliant (AHA/BHA) and anti ageing serums/creams (Vitamin C&E) before I put on sunscreen during the day. The Skin Medica line from medical spas is one of my favourites but I've also switched it up with the Ordinary line for a budget-friendly solution. 

3- I recently started on a little resveratrol as well to brighten my complexion.

4- I take a break in the summer, but I also use a retinol at night.

5- I follow that with a moisturizer especially in the winter time.

6- I've also been loving face oils recently.

7- Because of all these exfoliants, I use a moisturizer with sunscreen every single day that I'm getting sun exposure. Origins is a favourite as it is also very moisturising                                

8- I also follow up most times with Jane Iredale Pure Pressed Foundation Powder with an SPF as well to increase sun protection and to even my skin tone out. It's been many, many years that I've been using it!  You can really build your coverage or just use a very light sweep. 

9- I use an eye cream as well whenever I remember :-).

10- Water is my love language. So much so I wake up way too many times at night to use the bathroom but that's another story!!

There you have it? What are your favourite skin care tips?

Have a magical Monday, friends!!! 

Good day, friends! How are you all? I mean really, how are you? I go from being worried, to being prayful, to getting antsy,  to being appreciative, to enjoying all this family time, to being overwhelmed. Basically, we are hanging in there but trying to make the most of it. 

Last week, I made the girls made lists of what they think they need to do in this uncertain time. A bit of fun, a bit of necessary stuff for their learning, more downtime than usual and stuff they need to do around the house as well. It made them pause for a moment, really reflect on the upcoming weeks and build a bit of anticipation. 

We are following a bit of a routine but not totally so. There is some learning, some reading, some math  and  instruments being practiced. However, bedtimes are later, mornings are sleepier, screens are out more and lots of baking going on. Lots of family time and fresh air too! It's not the norm for my routine following self but it works for now.  I want my kids to look back at this time many years from now with some fond memories. 

So since I made my kids make their list, I also compiled a bit of a list for me as well. Thankfully, work is a little slower these days for me which isn't the case for so many of us. Here's what I hope to do in the days that follow:

1- Facetime or chat with someone outside the house everyday. It's all about continuing to build those social connections.

2- Clean a little bit most days. We are tackling little projects for chunks of time that have been on my mind for months. 

3- Home cooking fun. So many delicious homecooked meals to experiment with and baking to be done. I'm also teaching C some basic recipes and kitchen skills. And we make popcorn most nights :-).

4- Text friends and family who need it most.

5- Check out Youtube videos on self massage - my neck, shoulders and face are getting some relief. Who knew my jaw bone held tension? I'm also doing tons of lower back yoga and stretches I've found online. 

6- We go for a walk every day. Somedays are longer than others but boy does the fresh air help. 

7- Read-- With work being so busy, I've had a couple on my list for a while. Kindle Unlimited is getting some use this month.

8- Focusing on gratitude and quiet meditation. 

9- We have been watching Little House and The Prairie most nights. It's really taking us back to a simpler time. 

What about you? What are you doing to bring you joy? Any tips and tricks to share?

Yay for this March Monday! There is something about a Monday that's new and fresh... it gets old right around 2pm but for now we will hang on to it ';-)

Now onto today's link up....

Today it's all about the self care, a topic near and dear to my heart. I truly try to teach my girls how important it is, not only for me to take care of myself but also how important it is for them to love themselves and take some time to refresh. I think that as moms we don't do that nearly enough. I think we lose it a bit as we get older... my kids do a great job at it themselves :-).

These are the things I do to nourish my mind, body, spirit and soul.

1- Exercise. I think the biggest thing I do for myself is my workout regime. I feel so much better when I work out and I've been doing it very consistently for many, many years. The endorphin rush is a real thing. Right now, after many years at the gym, spin and cardio classes. I've doing the F45 workouts, a combination of  resistance, HIIT and functional training. I'm a fan.... at least when I'm done, ha! But even when I can't get to the gym, I do Youtube workouts or go for a walk by myself or with my family. I think it's also important for my kids to see exercise as an essential part of life.

2- Meditation. In the past six months after taking an extended break for many years, I've started back meditating on many mornings. I face outside and use the Headspace app for a guided meditation. It's a nice few minutes of calm before my tea, vitamins and reading and the mayhem that is  oft' my morning.

3- Talk with friends and family. I don't take the time to chat with friends and family very often but when I do, I feel so much better.

4- I like a well manicured hand. Chipped nail polish really bugs me so I'm a huge shellac fan. Every couple weeks, I get a shellac polish change with either a very neutral shade or an in season colour.

5- Love me a good show and I put a series, podcast  or a movie in the background on whilst I'm working, in the kitchen, organising or doing laundry. Makes the task at hand way more enjoyable.

6- I love a hot beverage even in the summer months. Even if it's hot water and lemon, it's so good for my soul.

7- Doing laundry on a weekend is my self care as well as weird as it seems. That way, all the clothes are washed, cleaned and put away and I don't have to scramble mid week. Also, the kitchen being clean at night is a huge deal for me so I don't have to stress about it in the am.

8- I'm very olfatory. A  diffuser or candle is always welcome.

9- A night out either with D, another couple or some girlfriends is always great for the soul. And then every couple years, we also try to sneak off somewhere on our own!

10- I feel so much better when nourishing food is in my body. Smoothies, salads, lean protein and soups are my jam. I love chips and candy but as I'm getting older I'm finding my body is not loving it, ha!

11- A nice hot shower with one of my favourite shower gels (as I said, olfactory!) and putting some very emollient lotion. My winter skin has never felt better.

12- Sleep is so crucial. I'm a gal who needs between 7-8 hours.

What self care tips do you do?

And if you're interested in joining us in the future months, here's what we have ahead....

Happy Monday, friends and welcome to a new link up. In the almost seven (!)  years of blogging, I've never hosted a link but I'm super happy to be hosting this one with some lovely ladies.

We have a ton of fun stuff planned so I'm hoping in the months that follow, we get some other lovely bloggers to join in! Here's what we have planned....

Now onto today's task at hand.... introductions!! The first thing I usually say/write in my intros is that I'm a mom-- kind of funny to start off with that when the link up is about not just a mom, ha! 4

I'm Sarita. I live in suburban Ontario in Canada where the people are lovely but winters are longer than I'd like :-). I moved here from Trinidad, an island in the Caribbean, to do my MBA almost 16 years ago and after that settled down here. I worked in Marketing Management at Energizer (the battery and the bunny) before having kids, taking a step back from my career and after a couple years slowly starting back in the world of corporate taxation. I work from home and not full time so I can be around for pick ups/drop offs/sick days and all the in betweens. 

My loves in no particular order include:

Warm weather

Workouts

Clean cooking and eating (70% of the time, though it really should be 85)

Reading

Spending time with my people 

Weekend happy hours

Interior design (neither an expert nor trained)

Finding a real special gift or really good deal- mostly online

Travelling and researching travelling!

Oh and I'm married to the love of my life and I'm a girl mom, to a ten and seven year old :-). Smiles, snacks and laughter are abundant here... so are messes, squabbles and repeating myself 12 times per day! 

Hope you'll join in the fun on the second Monday each month!!

Click here to enter the link up 

Hello, lovelies and Holidays-- I say that until I begin to say Happy New Year, ha!! Hope you all are having a wonderful season filled with joy and fun! 

2020 is coming soon!!! Here's a look at a little inward Q& A as we reflect on the past year. Thanks to Dara who got these questions from the 10 things to tell you podcast  

1. What was the best part of the year?

The best part of my year was the cruise we took with some family to celebrate my dad's birthday... It came after a pretty stressful couple weeks when A had a health scare and we weren't sure if we could make the cruise. So happy it all worked out and by then we were ready for a vacay! We had an awesome time and needed my family, the sunshine and beach time. As a bonus, we also made it to Universal as well for a couple days. 

2. What worked and what didn’t work?

Summer camps-- my kids will repeat their Girls Rock camp until they age out of it, ha! Conversely, they did a YouTube production design/Lego robotics camp and I felt they were on screens a whole, whole lot. They do enough screen time at home, don't need to pay for them to do it as well. 

3. What were the best conversations you had this year?

One of my friends told me "not to put myself in that space." It was eye opening. We really do that to ourselves lots as women and we have to be strong enough to change that! 

4. What was a discovery you made this year?

That if you and your family are healthy, physically and mentally, that's the most important thing of all. 

5. Who was the most influential to you this year?

The guy who created Headspace. I love the guided meditations. It's a journey and I love it. 

6. What was the best entertainment you consumed this year?

I loved The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo. It was so heart wrenching and well written. 

I also love A Million Little Things and This is Us. Oh and our family became The Masked Singer fanatics in 2019. Love, love, love it!!

7. Who or what are you letting go of?

Things that bring me down or stress me out. Negative energy is not a good thing, friends. 

8. What behaviors do you want to change?

I'd like to have more self control- with chips/cookies(!), with my patience with my kids, with screen time.... 

9. Where did my beliefs shift?

I would say that recognising how important peace of mind and how gradually I  can actually achieve this was a big aha for me! 

10. Who do you want to be in the next year?

At the risk of sounding cliche, I want to be a good person and the kind of person my children respect and admire. 

What about you? Do any of these resonate with you? 

Happy Friday, friends! Here's a little recap of one of my very favourite days this week... our date day at Collingwood. I got a very generous spa gift certificate for my birthday from my most lovely friend and we were so excited to use it. We found a free day, albeit a bit late, got a friend to watch the kids for the day and off we went!

A two hour drive away, listening to music and having legit conversations....with NO interruptions!