My baby is growing up

3 years ago today, I gave birth to our second little girl, Lucy, and our lives changed in an incredible way.

Lucy is so kind-hearted, so easygoing, strong-willed but not as much as her sister, smart, curious, and she brings such joy to our lives. She has always been an excellent eater, a (mostly) great sleeper, and her love for others and for books is immeasurable. She is very affectionate and compassionate. She adores her big sister, and I think the feeling is pretty mutual. She has the most beautiful smile and a wonderful laugh. She likes to take care of her stuffed animals and I swaddle her stuffed hedgehog for her almost every day. When Lucy was born, Molly told us that Lucy’s favourite colour was orange but now Lucy is old enough to have her own opinion, and her favourite colour is red (“the same as Daddy’s!”) She loves to sing, and some of her favourite songs are Wheels on the Bus, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Row, Row, Row your Boat. Lucy’s favourite books these days are Love You Forever, Slinky Malinky, the cat books, Step Outside, and many, many more. Her favourite show is Paw Patrol, by a long shot (unfortunately Molly is outgrowing it!) She is fearless and determined.

Here’s a cute recent video of her.

We are blessed to be her parents and to have her complete our family.

We are celebrating with an afternoon off today at the indoor playground, a small party with family tomorrow, and lots of balloons. I’m going to ask her some questions on video today to commemorate this day & I will try to share that next week!! 🙂

Now I’m off to make a paw patrol cake…wish me luck! I am feeling a bit bittersweet about my baby becoming a preschooler but overall I am just so enjoying this phase of life with my two girls. Happy 3rd birthday Lucy!

Have a great weekend, everyone 🙂

All about me quizzes

Happy Wednesday hump-day! Today is a day I’ve been looking forward to for months…going to see Beauty and the Beast tonight!!! 🙂 I will share my thoughts tomorrow or Friday. 🙂

I saw this on Kate’s blog Mom’s Radius earlier this week. I used to be totally hooked on these types of online personality tests – and I still really do enjoy popular psychology and personality testing in general. Does it define my entire life? Absolutely not. Is it ridiculously fun? Absolutely. Feel free to steal this idea and search out some aspects of your own personality (via the internet, aka, not totally valid) 😉

1. WHAT IS THE MEANING OF YOUR NAME?

The meaning of the name Heather is: A flowering evergreen plant that thrives on peaty barren lands as in Scotland. (source)

Here’s some heather for you to enjoy:

2. WHAT IS YOUR MYERS-BRIGGS PERSONALITY TYPE? (LINK)

I took this test years ago, and surprisingly, my personality hasn’t changed much since high school. I am a:
INFJ PERSONALITY (“THE ADVOCATE”)

The Advocate personality type is very rare, making up less than one percent of the population, but they nonetheless leave their mark on the world. As members of the Diplomat Role group, Advocates have an inborn sense of idealism and morality, but what sets them apart is that they are not idle dreamers, but people capable of taking concrete steps to realize their goals and make a lasting positive impact. (more here)

3. WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN?

Warm, action-oriented and driven by the desire to be loved and admired, the Leo have an air royalty about them. They love to be in the limelight, which is why many of them make a career in the performing arts. (source)

I don’t fall completely into this, but I do have some Leo tendencies.

4. WHAT HOGWARTS HOUSE WOULD YOU BE IN? (LINK)

I’ve taken the test before on Pottermore, so I was not surprised to see again that I am a Hufflepuff. When I first found out about this, I was kind of devastated (I know this is ridiculous LOL), but I have accepted it and realized that there is nothing wrong with being a Hufflepuff. I’m not brave enough to be a Gryffindor. (Okay, enough about a fictional Harry Potter house, lol). Coincidentally, I also enjoy a lot of books on this list.

Pottermore Sorting Quiz (all possible questions)

Your Result: HUFFLEPUFF!

Congratulations! You have been sorted into Hufflepuff, the house of loyalty, hard working, acceptance, and fairness. You are amongst other Hufflepuffs such as: Tonks and Cedric Diggory

GRYFFINDOR!

RAVENCLAW

SLYTHERIN!

Pottermore Sorting Quiz (all possible questions)

5. WHAT ARE YOUR LEARNING STYLES? (LINK)

I took the quiz and this is what I got:

Visual 3
Aural 3
Read/Write 9
Kinesthetic 5

You have a strong read/write learning preference.

This isn’t surprising to me in the least.

6. ARE YOU MORE OF A LEFT-BRAIN OR A RIGHT-BRAIN PERSON? (LINK)

I really had no idea what to expect with this, but my result was:

So I guess that makes sense.

7. WHAT IS YOUR BLOOD TYPE?

A+ (I know this from donating blood).

8. WHAT CAREER ARE YOU MEANT TO BE IN? (LINK)

Writer…well, I guess I should start writing more! haha

9. WHAT DIVERGENT FACTION DO YOU BELONG IN? (LINK)

Amity. This likely won’t make sense unless you’ve read this series 😉

You belong with the peaceful. You hate when people fight over the stupidest things, and you’re never one to argue. You’re chill, always laidback. You’re open to the opinions of others, and you love being surrounded by people. You’re at your worst when you’re not on good terms with somebody, and you hate making enemies. You’re willing to make sacrifices if it means keeping the peace, and you usually play mediator. You’re fashion is always bright and vibrant, and you’re not afraid of color. You love music, art, and games—anything that will make you laugh, dance, or have a good time.

10. WHAT DOES YOUR BIRTH ORDER SAY ABOUT YOU? (LINK)

The Firstborn

Stereotype: Natural leader, ambitious, responsible.
Why it’s true: The eldest, for a while, has no competition for time (or books or baby banter) with Mom and Dad. “There’s a benefit to all of that undiluted attention. A 2007 study in Norway showed that firstborns had two to three more IQ points than the next child,” says Frank J. Sulloway, Ph.D., the author of Born to Rebel. Firstborns tend to be surrogate parents when other siblings arrive, hence their protective and responsible nature.
When it’s not: Parents can set high expectations for a first (or only) child. “When he feels like he has disappointed his parents or can’t measure up, he may veer off in another direction,” says Kevin Leman, Ph.D., a psychologist and the author of The Birth Order Book.

So, what do you think?! Kinda fun, right?? What’s your Myers-Briggs type? Anyone else a Hufflepuff??

Chatting about Books (SUYB March!)

It’s the best time of the month: Show us Your books day with Steph and Jana! Everyone should head over and wish Steph a happy birthday (tomorrow!) and link up to share all of their favourite reads with her 🙂 Happy birthday eve to one of my favourite bloggers!!

Some parts of this month were so BLAH for reading for me and you’ll see that reflected here. I just didn’t have any books that were so compelling that I wanted to carry them around with me and read them every possible second. But you know what? Real life can’t always be super exciting. One thing I also did was start plugging in my phone for the night ACROSS the room so that I wouldn’t put down my book to go and check social media. This was helpful. haha. I had a lot less commute time (i.e. best reading time!) this month because some co-workers were commuting with me and also because of all of the snow days we had. Funnily enough, I felt kind of the same in February 2016.

Anyway, I can’t heartily recommend all of these books (such is life!), but here are my thoughts on them nonetheless:

Red Rising by Pierce Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It took me forever to get into this book, which surprised me because I had anticipated reading it for a long time after hearing others rave about it. Once I got partway through, the plot moved along quicker and I was all-in. I will definitely read the others in this series as soon as I get a chance…need to know what happens to Darrow moving forward!!!
I’d say that the comparisons to The Hunger Games and Ender’s Game are spot on for this one overall but there are quite a few distinct differences too (obviously). Bottom line: if anything you hear about this book draws you in, read it. It is worth it.

Sign of the Cross by Anne Emery
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my choice for Erin’s book challenge for a book set in the city you live in. I never would have heard of this book otherwise, but it was really good!!! I don’t know if I’d ever read a book set in Halifax before, but it was pretty fun picturing everywhere that these events took place (although some places were fictional, I assume). The book drew me in right from the start, and I enjoyed the characters and their range of occupation: the two main characters were a lawyer and his family and a priest. I had a guess or two about the solution to the mystery, but it played out differently than I was guessing. I think I’ll definitely pursue the others in this series sometime just because I enjoyed the writing, the characters, and especially the setting and description of it.

The Wonder by Emma Donoghue
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book definitely held my interest for the most part, and the story was unlike what I have been reading lately so I appreciated that. The revelation near the end was not quite what I expected, so I enjoyed the suspense of it. It’s definitely not for everyone though, and I found parts of it to be a bit slow. Even as a lifelong Catholic I found the religious aspect a bit over the top, but it was absolutely quite true to that time and location in history (just felt weird reading about it in the present day).

Beauty and the Beast: Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelly
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I loved this because it was fun to be in Belle’s world, and the story within a story was interesting. All of the characters in the Beast’s castle were fun and this really made me excited for the upcoming movie. It was definitely very YA, but if you’re a fan of the story, this might be a great variation to check out. Parts of it are quite true to the Disney movie. 4/5 for enjoyment, 3 for the writing. PS: Not to be superficial but isn’t the cover SO gorgeous?!

When All The Girls Have Gone by Jayne Ann Krentz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed Secret Sisters last year, and this one was even better, in my opinion. Parts of it were a bit predictable and unbelievable, but it was quite quickly paced and I read it over a couple of days to find out what was happening. It definitely passed the time quite nicely and I would recommend it if you like mysteries that aren’t overly gruesome and have some romantic elements on the side.

Tell Me True by Ally Blake
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Cute characters in this story. I read it in one sitting when I was home alone one Friday night with a glass of wine, and I can honestly say that it was so enjoyable to just lose myself in this book for a few hours. Sometimes you just need that experience. It wasn’t overly memorable or new, but it was fun.

You Had Me At Hello by Mhairi McFarlane
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I had high hopes for this book, but it honestly fell a little bit flat for me. Usually I really enjoy this type of story, but the ending just came about too quickly for me and parts in the middle weren’t enjoyable. Overall, it was an okay read but just no what I was expecting and a bit too contrived.

Recent Favourite Kid Reads:

Just in case you’re looking for something to read with the younger people in your life 🙂 Here are some of the chapter books and picture books our family has enjoyed lately:

Clover’s Luck, The Enchanted Egg, The Missing Magic by Kallie George
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

We loved this series 🙂 It was approachable, interesting, and fun. My 5 year old loved all of the magical animals. I felt like it was a little bit of a (much simpler) intro to the magical world and maybe a bit of a stepping stone between Magic Treehouse and Harry Potter. LOVED it.

I Haiku You by Betsy E. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

These short poems are adorable and my kids love this book.

I Carry Your Heart With Me by E.E. Cummings
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The only thing more adorable than this book is hearing my almost 3 year old “read” it aloud. Seriously. SO cute. I also learned how much my husband does NOT love poetry when we had this book out from the library. LOL. Or maybe just e.e. cumming’s poetry, which I find quite adorable. 🙂

Step Outside by Doretta Groenendyk
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book has an awesome message and the words and pictures are lovely. We especially like all of the “magazine clipping” hidden words on some of the pages. We really enjoy this author and have read all of her books.

In a Blink by Kiki Thorpe
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a fun read and would be a great chapter book for girls who already love the Disney fairy world. My daughter enjoyed it but we haven’t pursued the rest of the series yet.

Finally, I was so sad to read about Amy Krouse Rosenthal’s death yesterday at age 51 from ovarian cancer. She recently wrote this piece for her husband as she was dying, which broke my heart. She also wrote a lot of our favourite children’s books including Little Pea, Plant a Kiss, and I Wish you More.

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I spent a large chunk of time listening to The Count of Monte Cristo this month, which is still enjoyable but SO long. I am almost at the halfway mark of the 50 hour audiobook. WOW. It’s another book I wouldn’t necessarily recommend unless the classics are your thing (they’re not always my thing but I like to challenge myself every once in awhile). I will say that the writing and the plot are quite intriguing and I’m not having quite as much trouble remembering the characters as expected…although the jumps to time periods in the future between chapters threw me for a loop and I felt compelled to consult SparkNotes. #readingforpleasure lol. I will say I bumped this book up to 1.85 speed on Audible and I am flying through it (not really) a bit faster now.

Also currently reading The Girl Before (SO intense!!) and The Little Book of Hygge.

What have you read lately? Anything good?? I can’t say that I am in need of a lot of recommendations because my TBR list has exploded this year so far BUT I love hearing what everyone else has enjoyed lately!!!

Five-ish on Friday

This week was a busy one, and the weekend is looking that way too. We started the week off with a sick 5 year old (viral) and ended it with a sick husband today (#mancold) and I had a few early mornings with a 2 year old in between. 🙂 Bring on the weekend and that hour of sleep I’ll be missing out on! haha.

I thought I’d compile 5 random thoughts for Friday.

1) I’m 5 days into the #21DaysofPilates recommended by Kristin, and I *LOVE* it. I have done a pilates workout here and there in my lifetime, but I am so intrigued by it and determined to continue. I love it almost as much as yoga. I can see the strength component a little bit more strongly than I’ve experienced it in yoga (so far!), and I enjoy feeling it intensely the next day. I can’t recommend it enough. Very short workouts but I would like to work up to more in the future.

2) Some great links: dropping the ball, 12 things to celebrate in March, a book on living well, Trudeau’s actions on International Women’s Day, March book blogger events, I *LOVE* this X-plan for teenager & their parents, Harry Potter themed time-wasters ❤

3) This.

4) These two.

2017 (this morning)

2016 (Lucy has grown so much!)

5) I’m torn on what to do tonight: read my book on the couch, watch La La Land, or clean the house while listening to some podcasts. SO torn. I think it’ll probably be the first one if we’re being honest 😉

Have a great weekend!! Show us Your Books is on Tuesday, March 14 with Steph and Jana – can’t wait! Even though I don’t have great things to say about my reading life lately 😉

Day of No Clutter (March 6)

I recently read Year of No Clutter by Eve Schaub, which I talked about a little bit here. I accepted this book from Netgalley & Sourcebooks in advance of its publication in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book and found it inspiring and humorous. I feel like I am constantly sorting through clutter in our home – this is the product of having two small children, a lot of doting people in our lives (NOT complaining), and from working full-time etc. etc. I have managed to purge A LOT in the last year or so, but it’s still always a work in progress to keep the papers & artwork & toys from piling up.

A post I read last week on Modern Mrs. Darcy sums up the way I feel about productivity, life betterment, and non-fiction perfectly: I need to read books about certain topics in order to live out those topics in my life. Reading books about things that I want to improve in my life helps me to focus on these things. Sometimes, I need to re-read certain books in order to maintain that theme. If I’m reading a book about bettering myself or my habitat, I generally have these thoughts at the forefront of my mind and I am able to strive towards these things in my daily life. That’s how I felt when I was reading alongside Eve Schaub’s journey in Year of No Clutter. In some ways, I expected the book to be a bit more of a how-to, but when I finished it, I realized that I have already read a lot of how-to books. What I needed at that time was to realize that other people suffer from these types of things and have managed to conquer the clutter.

Sourcebooks asked me if I would share some information this week for their Week of No Clutter during the publication and release of Eve Schaub’s book. I was happy to do this since they sent me the free copy of the book 🙂

To sign up for the week of no clutter challenge, go HERE.
To win a free copy of the book, enter via this Rafflecopter giveaway.

Do you enjoy books like this one? Other books I’ve really enjoyed that are loosely related to this topic:

Clutterfree with Kids
The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up
The Happiness Project

Some blogs that talk about minimalism that I really enjoy and find inspiring (even though I am uncertain if I will ever become 100% minimalist in ANY way)

Becoming Minimalist
Not Entirely Perfect
Measure & Whisk

February Recap

February was a bit of a weird month in some ways, but it was really good too! We had a series of crazy snow storms, so I got to spend a lot of unexpected time at home with my little family. We also had a little bit more illness than I would have hoped for, but I think we are all on the mend now.

Linking up with the wonderful Kristen and Gretch today to share what’s new with me 🙂

Here are some of the things that happened in February:

We had a date night while the girls slept over at my in-law’s house. We went for all-you-can-eat sushi (and managed to not eat TOO much), browsed a bit at Chapters (book store), and watched Inferno. We also slept in a bit the next day. It was lovely. 🙂 When we picked the girls up the next day, they had made these fun k-cup flower bouquets with my very crafty mother-in-law:

We also took the kids to an indoor playground, or, rather, Brian took them to the indoor playground and I went to Costco and Walmart. When I went back to the indoor play place, there were millions (ok, at most 100) of kids running around and screaming and I questioned my anxiety levels. We left pretty quickly after that. haha. I am way too used to my quiet children.

After that, we had a sick toddler on our hands (SEE ABOVE) and then we also got the MASSIVE snow storms I mentioned. On one day, the entire city was basically shut down and it was suggested that nobody should be on the roads at all unless it was a complete and utter emergency. We all stayed home, built forts, read books, and ate comfort food. haha. In the midst of that, we celebrated Valentine’s Day.

Brian had gone into work on Valentine’s Day, but our daycares were still closed from the snow so I stayed home. It was a lovely day overall. I also made us some DELICIOUS steaks for supper. Brian brought home flowers that night – one dozen for me and a half dozen each for Molly and Lucy. They were SO excited and surprised and it was super sweet of him.

We made it out (thankfully!) the night after that to see the Arkells in concert. They are one of our favourite bands, and this is our third time seeing them live. They did not disappoint. It was a great show and I can’t wait to see them again sometime soon. The girls slept over at my in-law’s house again that night (a weeknight!) and we actually were unable to pick them up until 3pm the next day due to MORE snow. It was quite a relaxing snow day at home without the girls, I must say.

I met up with some girlfriends for a delicious supper on Friday of that week and it was amazing to have some girl time together. I really cherish that time with friends that I don’t see as often as I’d like to. We also did some sledding out at my parent’s house that weekend, which was SO fun, and I made it out for another run while the kids were entertained there. That night, we had some friends over for board games. We went out to a pub the next evening to hear my cousin play some fiddle tunes – the girls loved it. We don’t get to bring them out to hear live music as much as I’d like to because it is often so late at night.

We had some good friends over for brunch the next day, including some toddlers and a baby. It was fun to cuddle with a baby again ;). We also went over to another friend’s house for supper. The long weekend was basically the busiest weekend of my introverted life in recent past because I had spent SO much time cooped up at home during the snowstorms and we just really wanted to get on the go!

At the end of the month, we celebrated my dad’s birthday (yay!), got new kitchen appliances delivered (finally! I love them!!!)

Now that I see all this written out, it’s pretty clear why I didn’t get in as much reading time as usual. That AND the fact that I did get through about 6 more hours of The Count of Monte Cristo in audiobook format but I still have 30 hours to go…hahaha. I’m also really enjoying Life in Pieces on Netflix and we watched a few other movies: Girl on the Train, Arrival, and Fences.

Plus, there’s this:

Anyone else checking on April at least a couple times a day? I signed up to get e-mailed when she is in active labour. I know it’s ridiculous but the internet has just gone and sucked me right into that no problem.

March is off to a great start! It’s a fun month with March break for the kids (but I’m working), St. Patrick’s Day & BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, Daylight savings time + first day of Spring, and Lucy’s 3rd birthday!!

What’s new with you??!?!?!

Book Talk (SUYB link up)

Happy Valentine’s Day!!! We are currently experiencing #snowmaggedon2017 which has mostly shut down Halifax (this happens SO rarely). We got over 4 feet of snow yesterday and more overnight. It took Brian and I over an hour to shovel the driveway last night, and there’s more out there this morning! The kids had a snow day on Friday, then we laid pretty low on Sunday because Lucy had a stomach bug, and yesterday we couldn’t go out in the blizzard so I am going STIR-CRAZY!!! We’re home again today, but hopefully back to routine tomorrow!!!!

I’m so blessed to be able to spend Valentine’s Day with my three loves though. Molly is so excited about it and has been drawing hearts and talking about love non-stop for the past two weeks. We had heart-shaped pancakes this morning and we’ll probably try to do a craft or two this afternoon.

Linking up with Steph and Jana on this LOVEly day to chat about books!!! I expected to read more lately, but honestly only a few books this month (5ish weeks!) really grabbed my attention. I’m not sure why that is…I think a few of the books I read just took awhile to get into. I found myself reading a chapter, and then checking Facebook or Instagram….and then falling asleep. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I only felt like I really read three (ish) books that kept me thinking about them like crazy while I wasn’t reading them. Anyway…happy Show Us Your Books day!!!

The Best Books I Read this Month

Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve seen Ruta Sepetys and this book recommended all over the blog world in the last year, and then it also won the Goodreads Choice award in 2016 so it has been on my to-be-read list for awhile. I agree with all the other fans out there – this book was incredible. I had no idea that this event actually took place. It makes me wonder how many other little WWII stories are out there that have not been shared widely. The multiple points of view really built this story for me, and I felt horror, sadness, and hope for all of the characters at different points in the story. It was a relatively quick read compared to other WWII novels I’ve tackled – I think the short chapters really helped to build the story. I would highly recommend this amazing story.

Loyalty by Ingrid Thoft
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m so glad Steph recommended this series to me because this first book was really good! There’s not much that is unlikeable about Fina Ludlow’s character. She is smart, sassy, and good at her job. Her relationships are interesting. She’s surrounded by men, but she is powerful. There were some possible triggers in this book, but it was still really, really good. I will absolutely read the others in this series at some point.

I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am really glad that I was told beforehand that this book was a bit slow at the beginning, because I really found it hard to get into until about the halfway point. It was a great thriller though, and sadder and more intense than I was expecting (I completely expected it to be more focused on something that it was not). Highly recommend it if thrillers with a twist are your kind of thing.

Other Enjoyable Books

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It took me a long time to read this book, but that wasn’t because it wasn’t good. There was just so much detail in the narration and some of the language was meant to be savoured. In some ways, it feels like one of those books in which not much seems to happen, but that’s not really the case at all. It’s just one person’s story and reflections over the course of about a year. It reminded me of the storytelling in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and some of the subject matter also felt similar.

It’s in His Kiss by Julia Quinn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Almost done the series of the Bridgertons…I loved Hyacinth’s character and the subplot in this story. I turn to this series when I need a fun break from whatever else I’m reading and I have yet to be (too) disappointed. The Bridgertons are a fun family!

Valley of the Moon by Melanie Gideon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book didn’t grab me the way I expected it to, and although I did like it enough to finish it, it fell a bit flat for me. I’m not sure why…maybe it just came to me at the wrong time (during a bit of a book slump). I usually love it when books jump back and forth between time periods but this one left me feeling a bit torn. The concept is still great, and the characters were mostly very likeable. I’m glad I finished it, because the ending was really very good.

Winter Storms by Elin Hilderbrand
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I quite enjoyed this conclusion to the trilogy. I’m not usually the biggest fan of “Christmassy” stories, but this series was a quick and fun read around the holidays. I loved all of the family dynamics. It was fun to follow along with everyone and easy to picture oneself on Nantucket with all the crazy Quinns for Christmastime 🙂

Miracle On 5th Avenue by Sarah Morgan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Although this romance trilogy is totally fluffy and at times a bit sappy, I love the characters, I love the NYC setting, and the friendships are unbeatable. This was a cute conclusion to the series. I think the world could use some more people like Eva in it.

The Best Mistake Mystery: The Great Mistake Mysteries by Sylvia McNicoll
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a great little book and I know my daughter will enjoy it in a year or two. The characters were sweet and I loved the dog parts. Probably good for about age 8. I’m reading a few books in this age group here and there because I have an avid 5 year old reader and I want to keep her in books!! Thanks for the copy of this, Netgalley 🙂

Any Time, Any Place by Jennifer Probst
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Fun, quick, contemporary romance read. I like these ones that are in a series because you can see where the next story is going. I hadn’t read the first in this series but this was still fine as a standalone. The characters were fun, the female protagonist is strong and sassy, and the extra twist was interesting to see resolved. Thanks for the copy of this, Netgalley 🙂

Year of No Clutter by Eve O. Schaub
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was not quite what I was expecting, but it was motivating to read about someone else’s attempts to clear their clutter. It also made me feel better about some of the stuff that I *haven’t* kept around for years, haha. Thanks for the copy of this, Netgalley 🙂

I’m currently still reading The Count of Monte Cristo (ugh I might end up giving it up because my motivation to read it is almost zero – my attention span just isn’t there these days), Red Rising (trying so hard to get into it! 40 pages in!! Tell me it is amazing, please!!!), and I started The Kitchen House but the library is taking it back (digitally) tomorrow so I’ll have to pause that one!

What have you been reading lately!?

Confession: We hoard small appliances

It’s been ages since I shared any confessions, but I’ve been saving this one for a rainy day. Here it is: we LOVE kitchen small appliances in our house and we have WAY too many of them.

Some of them are totally useful, probably a staple in most kitchens, and not all that weird. These include:

Keurig machine (we also have a French press) – we use this every morning for coffee. If it dies, we’ll look at just getting a coffee pot since Brian wasn’t drinking coffee when we got the Keurig. We use ours with reusable K-cups and coffee from Costco so it doesn’t cost us anymore than a regular coffee pot.

Toaster Oven – we use this instead of a toaster, but it has convection so I also use it for baking small pans of cookies/chicken/whatever.

Blender – we have a Ninja blender with the big pitcher and 3 on-the-go cups. I’d say we use this almost every day for smoothies. We also have a (separate) coffee grinder.

Slow cooker – we have the original 6 Qt Crockpot one and it gets used at least 3 times a week to cook meat for supper while we’re at work.

NEW fun appliances include our Instant Pot, which I got for Christmas and I LOVE for meal prep on the weekends and for making homemade yogurt, applesauce, soup, etc. etc. and a T-fal acti-fry air fryer which Brian desperately wanted. It makes delicious sweet potato fries, chicken wings (no oil!), and other roasted veggies. We have yet to try a stir-fry in it, but I’m sure I will love that too. I couldn’t rationalize buying either one of these appliances but I have used each of them at least twice a week over the past 6 weeks.

Here are some of our more obscure small appliances:

Breakfast sandwich maker – I’ve been using this more and more because Molly loves breakfast sandwiches and she will happily eat them in the morning. I use whole wheat english muffins, egg and cheese in hers and sometimes send them for lunches too.

Yonanas maker – we haven’t used this since the summer, but it is a great healthy option compared to ice cream. Brian bought me this once for our anniversary because he noticed that I “love to freeze bananas” lol.

Breadmaker – We don’t use this as frequently as we used to because Brian and I are trying to eat less carbs and I CANNOT resist homemade bread. It’s still great for making dough and the kids love homemade bread too.

Vegetable spiralizer: Used most frequently for zucchini noodles, although I also make sweet potato noodles sometimes. I use this a few times a month.

Mandolin slicer – this one is on its way out; haven’t used it in almost a year. We used to use it a lot for potatoes.

Dehydrator – Brian’s parents bought us this for Christmas a few years ago for Brian to dry his hot peppers, which has been great for him. We’ve been using it A LOT lately (several times a week) for apple chips, beef jerky, and kale chips. I’ve also tried zucchini chips and they were delicious! Next up is fruit leather sometime.

Rice cooker- this one is on its way out because our new Instant Pot cooks rice!

Waffle maker – we actually need to replace this because the one we have isn’t non-stick anymore and it was cheap. The girls love waffles and I prefer to make them from scratch and warm them up throughout the week. I also love to cook scrambled eggs in a waffle maker.

Electronic food scale – I’ve found this very handy (and quite small) especially when I’m trying to track macros. It’s also great for baking or some recipes without conversions.

Immersion blender – fantastic for pureeing soups and homemade apple sauce which I make every single weekend.

Popcorn maker – we use this quite a bit; we used to use it more, but we’ll still never let it go because it makes homemade popcorn taste delicious.

I’ve put a lot of thought into why I love having so many of these little appliances (they do take up a lot of space, obviously, and I am trying to embrace minimalism a bit!). Although there are a few that we have gotten rid of or intend to get rid of, I use most of them quite regularly. I know that my oven and stove can do a lot of this cooking too, but having some of these appliances that I can just set and forget about are great because I can focus on other things (i.e. cleaning, other meal prep, parenting, kid time).

I’d love to share some more of the ways we use these appliances in another round up post if anyone is interested – they all help me REMARKABLY with ahead-of-time meal prep and healthy snacks.

Do you have a weird obsession with small appliances in your kitchen?! Any fun recipes to share with me?

What’s Saving My Life this winter

When I saw that Modern Mrs. Darcy was hosting a link up listing the positive, helpful things that are “saving your life” during this sometimes-gloomy season of winter, I loved the idea. I suppose you could say that I don’t hate winter as much as some people, and we have mostly had a milder winter than usual this year, so that’s been nice, but it can still be a bit of a dreary time of year. Here are some things that have really made my days a bit brighter/kept me sane/increased my happiness during the grayer and darker days of winter in Canada 🙂

1) Winter running – When I can motivate myself to get out the door, I actually really love winter running. Fall is my favourite season for running because the temperatures and scenery are absolutely perfect, but winter is nice because you don’t get too hot! Especially now that we are seeing a bit more daylight, this is something that I’ve really been trying to do at least once a week to keep me sane (and in shape :))

2) Vitamin C & D supplements – I don’t always remember to take vitamins, but I have noticed a significant improvement in my overall mood since I began taking these two vitamins daily. I think the lack of sunshine really depletes vitamin D stores in particular so this one is extremely important.

3) Our Instant Pot & other small, easy, appliances – I’ve been using the Instant Pot to make yogurt and prep meals for the week. I have a whole post coming next week about my love for small household appliances 😉

4) SOUP – When winter hits, I absolutely crave soup for lunch so I’ve been making it in large batches, freezing it in muffin tins and grabbing a few “muffin sized” portions for lunches. It really fills you up, warms you up, and can be so healthy! I’d love to share a few of my favourite recipes sometime.

5) Good books and Goodreads – Honestly, this saves my life all the time because I love to read, but winter is such a cozy season for reading and I have really been embracing that lately. Granted, I have also spent a lot of “reading time” browsing social media, which has been nice in its own way 😉

6) The cold sock treatment – this is one of my favourite methods for healing from a cold. I have no idea why it works, and I know it sounds SUPER weird, but it is way cozier than it sounds (your feet don’t actually feel very cold due to the warm layers over top of the cold sock).

7) Taking a warm magic bag to bed – I love to do this in the winter and curl up with a warm magic bag on my neck/shoulders while I read for a few minutes before falling asleep. SO cozy. This is just such a pleasant way to get into bed.

8) Bullet journaling, Project 52 weeks, and fun markers/pens – It’s fun to doodle sometimes! I have also enjoyed all of my 2017 lists and random thoughts during this season.

9) Carbonated water – this feels like a treat but has zero calories. Brian carbonates it for me with his keg system (for homemade beer) and I add lime juice to it, but I also love this stuff.

10) Board game nights – we have had a couple of board game nights so far this year and I love it. Brian got a subscription box with board games in it for Christmas, so we’re excited to try out some new ones too!

and a bonus one:

11) Sunshine!!! – It has been spectacularly sunny in Halifax this week (although still cold), and it has raised my spirits (and everyone’s!) SO much. It is glorious to feel some warm sun streaming through the windows these days.

Happy weekend, friends!! Hope there is something that is saving YOUR life right now. Feel free to share any thoughts on this 🙂

January Recap

View from our back deck of which I never tire.

January is always a little bit of a blah month, and I definitely felt that way going back to work after 2 lovely weeks at home with my family. BUT, I started trying to get outside more, I started religiously taking vitamins and doing yoga or stretching, and I have to say I mostly kicked the winter blahs away. It helps that we have (so far!) had a relatively mild winter compared to other years!!

I had big ambitions for reading and decluttering this month, and I definitely made some progress, but some nights I just didn’t have the attention span to read, or I was too tired, and that’s okay. We made our way through Season 3 of Brooklyn-99 and that was enjoyable, and also played some board games, so I considered this a month to really cozy up and spend time with the girls and Brian.

Anyway, here are some fun highlights from January:

The girls singing “happy birthday” to my brother-in-law in French 🙂

We ate a lot of delicious low-carb suppers:

zoodles with bolognese sauce // my favourite brussel sprout caesar salad (recipe coming!) // brussel sprouts and bacon // fathead nachos (delicious)

We had a date night in January and the girls slept over at my parent’s house! We went out for sushi (we had a gift certificate) and then to the board game cafe to try out a few new games. We were both super tired so we came home pretty early, but it was still really fun. Unfortunately, Lucy got sick to her stomach overnight at my parents’ house which started a downward spiral of sickness in the whole family over the next week, but that’s life.

Sick munchkin in the car//checking out the trains at the doctor’s // Molly a day before getting sick

Brian built the girls a desk for our living room!! // Preppy 2 year old dresses herself // faces for supper!

We had a lot of relaxing days/nights at home relaxing and recovering and we also had a busy weekend when my sister in law and her fiance visited from Ontario for the weekend! We had them for supper, then went out for supper the next night and had a shower for my sis in law on the Sunday. It was lots of fun to see them for the first time in MONTHS and we are so stoked for their wedding (here!) in May. We also had a bit of an upset when Lucy fell down 4-5 stairs at my in-law’s house and bumped/bruised her entire body. It was super scary and really upsetting, but she seems fine and had no residual effects besides a couple of bumps.

Brian drove for date night! (usually I am DD) // Sad tiny toddler // SUSHI yum

Lucy built this herself // Girls playing // bullet journaling // my magnetic block creation (a big pile of nothingness)

We bought the girls these super-fun magnetic blocks for Christmas and I have to say that I am impressed at how much they have played with them (nearly daily). I also watched a brief webinar from Modern Mrs. Darcy about bullet journaling for book lovers, and I’m trying to keep a bit better track of some of my favourite quotes from books this year. Brian and I have laughed over the magnetic blocks because he is a structural engineer and loves to built amazing and elaborate things, and I like to be a bit more artistic in a modern art kind of way hahaha.

I also took in some live music, saw a few friends, ran a 5K race in pretty decent time, enjoyed the effects of getting back into yoga, and started on the 52 list project which has been great for self-reflection.

All in all, we had a great month. I read some fantastic books which I can’t wait to talk about on SUYB day (February 14!!). I also returned several books unread to the library, but I’ll get to those ones someday!! There are some fun ones coming up! 🙂 February is shaping up to be a great month. My brother (who lives in Calgary), sister, and dad all have birthdays, so we usually end up doing quite a bit of celebrating. We’re also going to a concert and having another date night this weekend while the girls stay with the other grandparents!! PLUS, Shubenacadie Sam, our provincial groundhog, said that we will have an early spring this morning, so I am excited about that! haha

What’s new with you lately?!

Linking up with Kristen, Gretch, and Kristin today.