Saturday, 22 March 2025

Quarter #1 Reflections

At the beginning of the year, I decided that I was going to think about goals, both setting them and reevaluating them, quarterly in order to make sure they fit my life and to keep me more accountable.  The areas I want to focus on in each quarter are personal, family/relationship, physical, financial, professional and a fun seasonal bucket list items. Let's dive right into quarter one reflections. (everything in blue is a reflection)



PERSONAL - good 7.5/10 with some goals needing extra attention 

This is a MUST read book.  I am calling it my favorite of 2025 and it's only the beginning,
but it's that good.

  • Plan our Venice/Paris trip, including booking everything by end of January. 9/10 I just have a restaurant for Disney Paris to book at to finalize one more time our day to day itinerary.  I can't wait to share it with you all!
  • Work on Halie's graduation scrapbook.  Specifically go through each year and select pictures to create a digital scrapbook. 5/10 
  • Create another month long meal plan for February/March. 10/10 and am loving my new cookbook Seriously, So Good: Simple Recipes for a Balanced Life
  • Keep a gratitude/refection journal 5/7 days a week. 8/10 fell of the last few weeks because my morning routine has changed.
  • BLOG once a week for this first quarter! 8/10 sigh. 



PHYSICAL - excellent 8.5/10 
I've mostly kept to this schedule and have really been consistent with 2x/week strength training even if sometimes its only 20 minutes instead of the 30 minutes. 
        Monday - Spin
        Tuesday - Run & Weights
        Wednesday - Rest Day
        Thursday - Weights
        Friday - Rest Day
        Saturday - Long Run
        Sunday - Yoga


FAMILY/RELATIONSHIPS - success 10/10




  • Host Halie's 18th birthday with her friends (wine-tasting and charcuterie board theme table, at her request). 10/10 so much fun and I built my first balloon arch!!!!
  • Special one-on-one date with Halie.  10/10 Tattoo date!  She already has a second one.  Yikes!
  • Plan something for Logan's birthday with friends in February. 9/10 Planned a day date of skiing on a trail we have been talking about for years and a dinner out at his favorite restaurant, so just missing friends but we had a great time just the two of us! 
  • Host book club at the end of January and plan a date with friends at least once a month. 10/10 
  • Continue to walk 3/week with my husband. 9.5/10 thank goodness for the pups to keep us accountable.
  • We also got to host our nephews and niece for a few days without their parents, building amazing memories with them and my sister and her husband came in March for a few days for their yearly visit.
  • My grandma also had an unfortunate accident resulting in hip surgery at the age of 93.  This of course was a worry and required daily hospital visits, but she is at home now doing very well.  Time spent with family is never wasted!


PROFFESSIONAL - completed 10/10
FINANCIAL - success 10/10
  • No spending January!  I actually had a no spending February as well in terms of clothing but did buy items for a cabin bathroom refresh, to be reveled in Spring/Summer.
FUN SEASONAL BUCKET LIST 5/10
  • Go outdoor skating.  X
  • Go sledding/snowboarding at the local hill.
  • Hot chocolate station for our home. X
  • Go cross-country skiing at least 3 times before the beginning of March.
  • Go to our cabin at least once and enjoy the winter in the woods.
  • Do at least 7 items off of the "Winter Photo Challenge" and share. X



Overall, I am pretty happy with how the first quarter of the year has gone.  I need to do a deep dive into what I envision for spring.  Tell me a) how the first quarter has gone for you and b) what you are excited about in the next quarter.


Wednesday, 19 March 2025

Ageless Style: Fuzzy Cozy



Hey, hey!  Welcome to the third Thursday of the March and another installment of Ageless Style.  This month our creative and innovative Jodie picked 'fuzzy/furry' as the prompt.  Although the official date of SPRING is today, here in Sk. it'll be a bit before it truly arrives.  Yes, we still have snow.  Yes, it's still mostly below 0C as a daytime high.  Yes, it might still snow a lot.  Yes, I am still wearing my parka, mitts, toque and snow pants when outside for long periods of time BUT it's also getting much warmer and the sun is shinning longer and brighter.  And some days are even beautiful and warm-ish like the day I took these photos.  As we enter into this very mild part of winter, with the melting and even above 0C temperatures, I like to stay warm and cozy but don't need all the winter gear especially mid-day.  Cozy fleeces are the perfect layer to have over a long sleeve.  There are so many beautiful styles that look fantastic but their main job is to keep you toasty warm.  This Patagonia half-zip is the perfect fall/spring layer to have..  In full transparency this is actually my daughters but I sometimes borrow it for long periods of time as she rarely wears it because come on teenagers don't spend a lot of time outdoors, LOL.  Anyway, I grateful to have two daughters that I can share clothes with, that's a bonus I would say.  







What are your spring go-to layers?

Join us again on April 17th when we will be styling graphic tees!



Leslie ~ Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After
Marsha~ Marsha in the Middle
Blog /Instagram
Mireille ~ Chez Mireille Fashion Travel Mom

Jennifer - Overflowing with Thankfulness

Jodie ~ Jodie’s Touch of Style
Blog | Instagram | Facebook | 

Joanna ~ My Slice of Life

Blog


Amy ~ Amy’s Creative Pursuits
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |

Bo ~ Bo's Bodacious Blog



Sunday, 2 March 2025

Slow Sunday Mornings in the Perfect Robe



Hi friends.  I am just coming off a perfectly slow and wonderful weekend at our cabin.  I love of our busy lives but I am not going to lie, anytime we have an opportunity to slow right down I have learned to embrace and wallow in it.  Slow mornings, with a cup or two of coffee, a good book, cuddles from the pups, is my favorite.  I also love to be cozy and warm while relaxing and am in love with this new waffle-knit robe I received in my FabFitFun Spring box.  It's extremely light weight, cozy, and oh so soft.  It's absolutely perfect after a shower or to just lounge in.  My other robe was getting so tattered and although it's warm, it's not ideal when the weather starts to warm up.  When I saw this as one of my customization options in my spring box, I immediately knew I wanted to upgrade.  


Thoughts on FabFitFun?  Here  is the deal, I've had a subscription and I've not had it.  I currently have the full-year and I've been mostly happy.  I am not someone that would splurge on a new robe, or try new beauty products, or indulge in a pricey item for the kitchen, but I love it!  I've had three really great boxes of things I would never drop money on and although sometimes there are items that I am indifferent to, I give them to my girls, or to someone I know will enjoy it, so it overall feels like a win.  It feels like a special splurge just for me and I always get excited to receive my box.  The reality is you get so much more than what you pay for, and even if I only liked this robe it pays for the box, and I am super excited about my new beaded gold bracelets, my MILK primer and MILK bronzer, face masks and overnight moisturizing mask!  It was a WIN and  I also love that over the year I get to choose from a mix of kitchen items, decor, beauty products, jewelry and fashion.  If you are interested in trying it out please use my  CODE.  If you have questions, I will answer them 100% honestly.  











Enjoy the week ahead.  


Sunday, 23 February 2025

Top 5 of February Break and a Sparkly Dress



You guys, I am glad February is coming to an end!  February here has been not only cold but we had three weeks of steady Extreme Cold Weather warning.  It was BRUTAL and I consider myself a pretty hardy and optimistic person but I felt it soooo hard.  Needless to say 80% of our February week off from school, a winter break, was spent in the deep freeze meaning we had to find other ways to enjoy family time and make the most of it.  Thankfully the freezing broke through late Thursday and the last three days of the break were unbelievably beautiful.  Regardless of the weather, looking back I am grateful for the many memories and moments we created as a family.  

#1 Nephews & a niece

Our two nephews and niece came to spend two nights with us all by themselves.  We packed in as much as we could with them including a trip to the pool with waterslides, movie night, endless  games of Guess Who and other favorites, a trip to Dollarama, bowling, cotton candy, bedtime stories, morning cuddles and a special Go-Kart birthday experience for the oldest.  




#2 Happy 43rd Birthday to the Mr.

How lucky for Logan to have the littles sing him happy birthday first thing in the morning!  That evening we enjoyed hosting my family for desert and drinks and birthday festivities.  On Friday we had a whole day date just the two of us, keep scrolling.


Delicious no bake, GF cheesecake from Yum and Yummer Cookbook.
For the record this is my all-time favorite cookbook.



#3 Coffee Date with a Friend

My longtime friend Kelly and I met for a coffee date and here is the best part, we never run out of things to connect, laugh and lament over.  we need to do it so much more often but we always make time to reconnect via text between our real life visits and we decided to sign up for a spring duathlon together!





#4 Skiing/Snowboarding as a Family

On Saturday it was a glorious day.  Sunny, warm, no wind and both kids were free!  It's like we won the lottery!  We headed out the door early Saturday morning to a ski hill a couple of hours away.  We were on the chair lift right when it opened and we stayed until 4:20 when we finished our last run.  Doing something we all love together is the greatest gift I could ask for.  We had sooo many laughs throughout the day, especially when a bird pooped in the one empty seat between Logan and Halie on the chair lift.  Anya's boyfriend also joined us and he adds a great dynamic to our little group.  




#5 Day & Night Date

On Friday, Logan didn't work so I had planned a day long date for us.  We headed 45 minutes away to try out a new cross-country trail  that everyone raves about and it was so worth it.  We did the 9 km loop and were sweaty messes by the end, but loved it and vow to return again.  Fresh air, perfect snow conditions, breathtaking nature and great company.  Next time we are going to bring hotdogs, smores and hot chocolate to enjoy at the cute little warming shacks that they have available for use and pre-cut wood.  

Upon returning home we enjoyed a hot tub, coffee, followed by a mid-day nap.  Then we got dressed up and heading out to dinner at the Keg, one of Logan's favorites.  





That brings us to this cute little dress that I got in my hand me down bag from my sister.  I love the fun, sparkly dots all over, the easy flow of the dress making it super comfortable and how it moves when I move.  I paired it with black tights, because it's still cold, and my sparkly boots.  You all need a pair of sparkly boots.  I am being serious.  I feel like they add fun and pizzazz to every outfit in an instant.  These are from Ardenes, unfortunately all sold out but similar here, and although they were inexpensive they are surprisingly super comfortable to wear all day.






Happy almost March!


Wednesday, 19 February 2025

Ageless Style: Pink & Red Link-Up



Hello friends!  Valentines Day may be behind us but  Jennifer from My Joyful Life prompted us to explore pinks and reds beyond V-day in todays Ageless Style post.  As spring is on many peoples horizon, not mine btw, pink is the perfect color to walk into spring with.  In fact, I was reading this Glamour article and they are saying Petal Pink is going to be a huge this season.  Today I am showing you a few winter/spring trends and how they can mix and match for a perfect transition to spring outfit.  I am combining the burgundy color that was huge over the fall/winter season, with a pink tweed jacket, and wide leg jeans.  I am loving how this outfit is a little bit girly, a little bit posh and also very cool and casual.  Although I wont be wearing it anytime soon as we continue to experience "extreme cold warnings" and unseasonable long stretches of freezing cold weather, I love this outfit so much that these might very well become my staples in my wardrobe for our European trip in late April.  

P.S. I can't wait to take photos outside again.  








Shop This Post:

Pink Tweed Jacket (similar Mango or Shein)

Levi's Wide Leg Jeans 

Burgundy Purse (old; similar Coach)


Make sure you check out all the posts from Ageless Style and explore some new blogs that have linked up with us.  In March we will be styling something FUZZY.  


Leslie ~ Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After
Marsha~ Marsha in the Middle
Blog /Instagram
Mireille ~ Chez Mireille Fashion Travel Mom

Jennifer - Overflowing with Thankfulness

Jodie ~ Jodie’s Touch of Style
Blog | Instagram | Facebook | 

Joanna ~ My Slice of Life

Blog


Amy ~ Amy’s Creative Pursuits
Blog | Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook |

Bo ~ Bo's Bodacious Blog