When my daughter was born everything was so new. There was so much that came naturally to me…an so much more that didn’t. I had a difficult time with breastfeeding and believe, on reflection, that I suffered a bit with postpartum depression. What amazed me about this time, however, were little things that instinctively just came to me. Read more…
I wrote a guest post for My Thirty Spot about what I would tell my 13 year old self today, if I could.
Check it out here.
Yesterday evening, we were down at Lacarno beach with another couple and their kids. We had a lovely time playing in the sand, swimming and lapping up the sun (Yes!! Sun!!). At around 8 PM it was time to pack it up. Our kids are still young and they were “done”. As we headed back to our cars we noticed an unusual amount of loud, obnoxious groups of younger people. Guys in Tap Out shirts and embroidered jeans puffing out their chests, dropping more f-bombs per sentence than you would think possible — and girls, trailing behind them, rolling their eyes and (I imagine) wondering how on earth they got so damn lucky. Then, the giveaway: guy hunched over puking in the middle of the sidewalk…yep, it was fireworks night in Vancouver. Read more…
The mobster, the sexy lawn boy and the princess…what do these three have in common? Homes worth $2.2 million dollars, it would seem. Read more…
Architect Barbie
Recently someone forwarded me a link to an article in DWELL magazine about Barbie. Yes, the buxom blonde has now managed to infiltrate the premier publication for modern home design. “Architect Barbie,” was launched at the American Institute of Architects National Convention last year and was met with mixed reviews. The author of the DWELL article was not impressed with her saying,
“Architect Barbie didn’t sit right with me, and I was not alone. Much disquiet on the architecture blogs and in the field focused on her stylized wardrobe: black-rimmed glasses, an outdated hot-pink blueprint tube, a skyline- print dress, white hard hat, those oh-so-fashionable high-heel booties…Barbie seemed like a distraction from, not an answer to, an ongoing problem. Architect Barbie and other gender-specific toys—pastel LEGOs, Lincoln Logs’ pink-accented Little Prairie Farmhouse—narrow girls’ play to what manufacturers think they already like: playing house, not building one. To become an architect after playing with the Barbie, I thought, would be like choosing the profession because you like the glasses.” Read more…
I knew this day would come. The day when my baby truly became a “big girl.”
Yesterday, Cait rode a bike for the first time without her training wheels. It broke my heart that I wasn’t there. As a working mom, I know this is a reality. There are things that will happen in my kids lives that I am simply going to miss. Thank God for modern technology, though. My husband caught the whole thing on his iPhone and messaged it to me as soon as it happened. Not the same as actually being there, but it was the next best thing…unsure if my colleague agreed as she listened to me yell “Hooray, Cait!” at my phone and blubber like an idiot afterwards.
Last night I told Cait she had crossed the true finish line from toddlerhood to big-girl-dom. She was so proud. As was I.
Recently, I was at the VancouverMom.ca “Top Mom Bloggers” event. There I met, Louise, who runs the online company Lavish & Lime Vancouver, where you can purchase “…contemporary eco-friendly products to help you live life a little greener.” Louise asked if I would be interested in trying out one of their sunscreen products and writing about it*. I’ve never really done “product reviews”, but thought I would give it a go. I was very honest with Louise, however, and let her know that I am frugal by nature. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you know that I believe in our thirties most of us are cash poor, many of us raising kids, paying mortgages and just trying to make ends meet. One of the major problems I have with the whole “natural” and “organic” movement is the price tag. Yes, I want to buy products that are both healthy for me and my family and good for the environment, but I am also a working mom who needs to stick to a sensible budget. So, I pick and choose where I make these kinds of products a priority. From what I can see, Lavish and Lime shares a similar philosophy, “…we’re not tree huggers and we’re definitely not litter bugs either – we’re somewhere in between and firmly believe that even small steps make a difference.” Read more…
Jessica Gares is a producer of the popular CKNW Radio program, The Bill Good Show. Recently, Jessica spoke with Bill about why she and her husband have deferred homeownership for the immediate future in favour of renting. I know many of you who visit The Thirties Grind, share Jessica’s view, so I asked her to share her rationale with us as to why she prefers to rent…for now. Read more…
I remember back in the day The Barenaked Ladies sang about being rich and what they would buy if they had loads of money. Because, a million dollars is loads of money. The line was, “If I had a million dollars…I’d buy you a house.” Now what kind of house do you think the Barenaked Ladies had in mind? Read more…
This summer, for the first time since we were kids, our family is up in the Okanagan. We’ve rented a townhouse in Osoyoos and are enjoying a week in the sun, by the lake.
I love getting away from the city on trips with our kids. However, at the ages they are right now, my husband and I have decided that big expensive resort-style vacations are not really practical, never mind affordable (for us, on our own…sure, maybe someday soon). But, why spend all that time traveling and money paying for a vacation that little kids won’t really appreciate or remember? So, we’ve focused more on smaller getaways to close by destinations… Read more…
