​I'm back!!!

​From where, you ask?

Oh, just living life.

​My last post was my birthday recap. I've since celebrated my half birthday... And I think it's safe to say the Things I Learned in Year 27 post I was planning to share probably isn't relevant anymore. Cause if they were anything life the lessons learned from the year before's post, as soon as I typed them, I was on new ones.

​Looping back to this blog... Although extremely inconsistent, I am so glad I started this project.

I am SO glad this blog has been for ME! and stayed that way.

​Me. Yep.

​To write and reflect and to share the moments that live up my motto to "chase fun, choose time and cherish family."

​Also, I have been blogging for nearly 5 years! FIVE!!!

​AND I am so happy to have the stories, memories and phases documented.

​Over the years, "documenting" life has either felt natural or icky. By keeping this blog for me, I'm able to follow my gut and listen when it doesn't feel right to share. Sometimes it just feels better to live out the moments. Other times, I really do like writing and hearing others read and relate to my words.

​And so, I feel another one of those seasons coming on. I'm in need of a project for me. A place to release the thoughts twirling in my head and write down the new family memories being made. I'm feeling ready and excited as I dream up new ways to share inspiration!

Like I said, a whole half a year has passed, and I've done a whole lot of living and growing in that time.

While I might look back and cringe and some of what I once shared, there is also beauty in the growth, to look back and see how far I've come.

​My vision for living a life that embraces fun, quality time and family has stuck with me and continues to guide me today.

​It's time to open a new chapter of sharing that here.

​...Stay tuned XO
​

January: the month of 'new.'

The New Year.

The "new you"... or what seems to be the new "new you": the "better you." Which I am totally on board with, by the way.

Anywho.

I started a New Things blog category to inspire me to try something new each month and to look back on the new things, big & little, that we did each month.

So here's some newness from January.

SELF x Tone It Up Challenge
I kicked off the year with an at home fitness challenge! I have been a TIU fan for a while but it was only during the Fall that I actually started doing their (FREE!) YouTube workout videos, occasionally at home. They also offer various free fit challenges throughout the year. So I took the plunge and signed up for my first one! I started off strong, waking up early for workouts, plus weekly meal planning & prepping. Then, I totally fizzled out after being hit with a terrible stomach flu early in the month... My healthy eating took a plunge and I didn't fit in a daily workout. It's doable (!) but also damn hard to wake up early when your children don't sleep. But! I did make time to get active outdoors with my family, I aimed for completing the weekly new release Tone It Up workout, and love that I have discovered such great online resources and community support from the TIU team.

Luna
We adopted our second fur baby! Her name is Luna and she is a Siberian Husky, like Loki. She is also... a lot of work.

Between pups & babies, we have had a new addition every 14-18 months! Busy times.

Don't get me wrong, she brings us all kinds of happiness, cuddles & cuteness, but she also adds challenges. I mean, puppy training with two toddlers. I just barely finished toilet training Halle! Which brings me to the fact I have to always keep the bathroom door closed cause my other child wants to play in the toilet. And I always have to pick up the dogs' dishes because this child also likes to splash in their water bowls. As you can imagine, this makes for a lot of extra "work" on top of your typical training. Add in cleaning up puppy accidents, making sure toys & our home in tact, plus keeping up with our typical daily shenanigans, you've got one tired mama!
Nevertheless, things are getting better. Kennel training did not happen. I could write a whole other post about how Autumn woke up six times in two hours the other night while Luna had a literal shit show in the kennel... However, puppy pee pads did happen! Once I finally proofed the gate to upstairs, and Houdini dog couldn't sneak through at night to leave surprises on the (carpeted) stairs, I have managed to keep all doggy doo doos in a padded corner. She's also become the best play mate we could imagine for Loki. Which we knew we always wanted... real children just came first :) They are all getting along great, actually. Besides the nipping. Looking forward to the day those puppy teeth are gone. Alas, this is just a short chapter in our book of life and soon the baby days will be behind us all. Bringing with it more dog hair ;) & a whole lotta love!

Podcasts
So I have known about podcasts for a long time but never really made the time to find them or listen to them. It's not often I walk Loki without the double stroller & girls in tow so I decided to break out the headphones. Instead of opting for tunes, I quickly googled "motivational podcasts" (I was in the mood for a pep talk.) A blog post popped up with a link to Happier with Gretchen Rubin Podcasts. She's the New York Times Best Selling Author of The Happiness Project. Aw it was just what I needed! Not overly cheesy moticational, but simple inspiring tips to make life happier. But also just doing something new such as listening to a podcast while walking, taking a little me time, made me happy!

Do you listen to podcasts? Share in the comments if you know any goodies :)

Date Night
Since September, Matthew & I have made an effort to connect with more date nights. We found an awesome babysitter who the girls adore which makes going out even more sweet. We like to try new things on our limited nights out so this month we went to the Extreme Airpark and ate at Anju. The trampolines were such a laugh! It was our first time at a park and first time in ages jumping on a trampoline. It showed, in the fact we only needed a half hour jump time as opposed to the hour we paid for, ha! Forgetting our age and jumping too hard, sweating way too early and being surrounded by the Saturday night teeny bopper crowd had us ready for food. We ended up downtown on 17th Ave, which hadn't been the plan, but I am so glad our night brought us to Anju. It's a Korean Tapas restaurant. I am a big fan of small plate style menus because you can try so much in one visit! We had never eaten Korean before and everything we tried was SO good! The atmosphere was really fun, too. And our fun night ended with a lovely stroll together, light snow flakes falling :)

Hair
I was craving change in the hair department this month! I was long overdue for some locks love since my last appointment in October (yikes!) I thought I had found the perfect cut in colour with my long bob bronde ombre... but a switch up was needed. Cue darker roots and violet burgundy ends. It's fun and I'm enjoying the new look.

In other relevant newness, I've switched up the girls' routine to create a more structured day & stricter schedule. It's big for us but needed. Autumn has officially transitioned to one nap, which overlaps Halle's, and has her sleeping better at night! Thank goodness!!! It's about time I added some more 'me' time and sleep to my life ;) I should also note that this is brand new, like few days old new, so I'll stop while I'm ahead and save this update for a later post when I've really put it to the test..... (Please universe, no testing, it's going to work.)

Hope your New Year has been off to a fabulous start!

And if not, I read this quote earlier - "decided my 2016 starts again on February 1st... this was a trial month." Made me chuckle! Every day is a chance to start fresh. Get out there and try new things, friends!

XO

Last month I wrote a "New Things" post. It's part monthly recap and part inspiration for me to try/read/do new things, big or small, each month. Here's a look back at July.

Reading:

The One and Only by Emily Giffin

I found this book at Superstore on a best sellers table with a big 40% off sticker! The turquoise cover caught my eye but the inside description hooked me in. It's a fictional story about "about finding your passion, following your heart, and, most of all, believing in something bigger than yourself... the one and only thing that truly makes life worth living."

It was the first I have read by the author and I really enjoyed it! Girly novels are my favourite fictions. This is probably one of the first I have read, by my choice, that is about a young woman in her early thirties, rather than a teen novel. It was an easy read and I plan on checking out some of her other stories soon!

#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso

I LOVED this book! So much so that I read it in just a few days during Halle's nap and at bedtime. It's cover had been popping up all over my Instagram and book lists, so I checked it out online. I've always been interested in business, and girls kicking butt ;), so after viewing the description I knew this was next on my reading list!

I related to some, learned more and finished reading it thinking exactly what she said I would which was wanting to run and find work. It was a great read, probably not for everyone, but totally my style of inspiration. And now I'm one step closer to my journey of becoming a #GIRLBOSS *bam*!

Following: Three Little Crowns

I am constantly finding new blogs and IG's to follow but this one I wanted to share! It's a new blog for the modern mama written by first time mom's Natalie and Britt. They share their journey in motherhood as well as fun DIYs, style and all things baby! What really excited me about finding this blog is that they are Canadian mommies!! So many of the bloggers I follow are based in the US, which is great, but I was happy to find this one is written closer to home :) Check them out!

Thinking: About life with a new baby!

A few times this month I caught myself scrolling through my camera roll, reminiscing about Halle as an itty bitty baby. It's hard to believe in just two months we'll have another one! She is sure to make Halle look so big! Here's a couple throw back photos to this time last Summer with a three month old Halle Kay :)

Drawing: Chalkboards

And just for fun, here's a chalkboard doodle from early July! I've been slacking since... Trying to find the right quote ;)