Pages

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Getting into the Christmas Spirit

With Christmas a week away, I can say we are actually ready for it this year. Decorations are up, tree is trimmed, holiday baking is complete, and shopping is done. I absolutely love Christmas, it's by far my favorite holiday. My parents always made this time of year so special for us. I have so many great memories that I hope to turn into family traditions for our own growing brood.

Reese is a little more aware of Christmas this year which has been fun. She's still quite easy to please and is only requesting a new Dora movie and 'treats', which can be interpreted as anything sweet, from Santa this year. I think that may be doable.

As always, we're missing our family, friends and home in general this time of year but are counting our blessings too!

Here are a few pics of some of our latest holiday fun.



Decorating the tree and loving it


Ready for the team Christmas party

Heading out to a Christmas party with friends sans Reese

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Parenting: Reading between the lines.

With baby #2 due in less than 3 weeks (eek!), I've been thinking of the sleepless nights ahead of us and how we might handle them this time around. I have to admit, we've gotten so comfortable with having our evenings to ourselves and full nights' sleep that I know our systems are in for a real shock. Also, we got lucky with Reese in the sleep department. She's always been a great sleeper from baby onwards. Going down with ease and consistently sleeping through the night (minus the random hiccup here or there) since she was 4 or 5 months old. Having said that, I'm sure this one will be the complete opposite. And knowing myself and how I handle stress under pressure (not well), I need to think about how we might cope, or more accurately, how I might cope. Afterall, I am the crazy mom who recorded feeds until Reese was 6 months old. That's right, every. single. feed.

I know there are parenting books out there aplenty and as many differing opinions on them as there are parents. We found one that we could relate to and made sense with what we thought our parenting style might be. The Secrets of a Baby Whisperer. There are mixed reviews on her methods (as with any method I guess) but we found her guide to be helpful. Using it as a guide is the big lesson, at least it was for us and something I need to keep in the forefront of my mind this time around too. I like to follow something step by step but unfortunately that just doesn't work with babies. It's all about reading between the lines and figuring out what works best for your baby specifically, remembering all babies are different. It's something I need to remind myself of often. I'm hoping to help my own sanity (and everyone else's) by stepping back and taking a deep breath and figuring things out as we go. I want to enjoy the newborn moments more this time around by being less stressed. Afterall, I know too well how fast that time goes by!

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Halloween





I love Halloween. I mean, it makes total sense since I'm addicted to candy of all kinds. A night dedicated to dressing up and going door to door collecting a huge variety of candy is right up my alley. So, you can understand my disappointment last year when I discovered there were zero trick-or-treater's for Reese's first Halloween. I can finally get back into the game of getting loads of candy under the guise of my baby trick-or-treating only to find out it wasn't happening in Cardiff. What?!

Based on that, I wasn't getting my hopes up this year but was thrilled to hear they do trick-or-treat in our area. So, we quickly found a costume and geared up for the big night. Let's just say Reese was less than impressed. She loved getting treats from the first handful of houses but then got spooked when a little boy handed out candy in his costume and mask. Spooked as in went running into my arms sobbing, saying 'home, home, home!'. So, home we went with a pretty bare bag of treats. Obviously, I wish we lasted a few more houses but it was not to be. On a brighter note, she did make for a pretty cute spider. There's always next year I guess.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Fall Fashion: Scarves

Shopping for myself these days is pretty limited. I'm just not into spending too much on clothes I'll likely only wear for the next few months. Plus, what may fit my ever expanding belly now may not fit in another month! Accessories, shoes and bags are the obvious exceptions. With fall weather upon us, I find myself reaching for a scarf these days more and more. Good thing for me, I can wear (and buy) cute scarves no matter what my size. Here are a few that have caught my eye lately.







I also found this awesome video on how to wear a scarf (brilliant!) on one of my favorite blogs a few weeks ago.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Make these!


We celebrated Reese's birthday yesterday with a party here at our place. Of course, I made funfetti cupcakes for Reese and the kids to dig into but these really stole the show. Be warned, they are beyond delicious and definitely addictive! Recipe found here.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Another year makes 2.







I don't know if I'll ever stop saying it but time really does fly, and it seems like every time I turn around, Reese is changing. I can't believe our baby girl is 2 years old now. She amazes us every day with all of her new discoveries and watching her really come into her own little personality.

We celebrated on her actual birthday with bowling and dinner out and are planning a small birthday party for her this weekend.

Reese is saying so many new words and putting those words together to form sentences. She loves her baby dolls and always requests to sleep with 'two babies' along with a handful of other buddies. She's also recently started daycare two days a week and is loving it. I was a little nervous about the transition since she's never really been away from us for too long. She did great though, only crying a little the first couple days when she would realize we weren't there. I was a little sad the first day but know she needs the social interaction and it is a nice break for us too. The one thing I don't love is all the extra germs that come along with it! Oh well, guess it's either now or later.

We are officially crib-free now! At least for a few months anyway. Reese loves her 'new bed' and handled the transition much better than I anticipated. Although, we're holding our breath a little as we've heard the tough times come a little later once they really realize they can escape. For now, she's doing great in her new bed and fingers crossed it stays that way.

We've also started a naughty step for disciplining. We use it with a warning first when she acts out too aggressively (hitting, kicking, etc) or blatantly disobeys. She goes on the step a little too willingly though and we're not exactly sure why. There is nothing on the step for her to 'play' with but she will sometimes run there and stays the entire 2 minutes without a sound. Then we come get her and explain why she was there and she will say 'hit mama' as if she knows exactly what she did wrong. I'm just not sure it's effective in the way we had hoped, as in discouraging the bad behavior. Um, Super Nanny, what do we do with that?!

Hard to believe how much she has grown and changed over the last two years and we're trying to cherish every precious moment!

Friday, October 7, 2011

I'm back, finally.


Well, it has been quite a hiatus for me. At first, I decided to step away just for the summer since I was feeling a little too all over the place. Clearly, that has turned into months. In any case, I'm back and happy to be blogging again.

We are back in Cardiff now and just to recap, here is how all that went down. Most of you know the story by now but last time I was writing, we were packing up for France so obviously things changed. With my pregnancy out in the open, the team was having a hard time agreeing to issuing full health insurance for the entire time we would be in France. Obviously, this was a big problem since I would have been around 20 weeks when we arrived. It was an extremely frustrating process since we had agreed and signed a contract with the team stating full insurance would be issued for player and family. They basically tried getting around this by claiming pregnancy was not part of healthcare. Really?! I mean because that would make absolutely zero sense. Insert sarcasm. So with that big wrench thrown into our plans, we quickly worked toward a settlement and began our search for a new team. Since July is late in the game (for European hockey) and with the pregnancy well under way, we weren't in a position to sit around and wait. Unfortunately a common practice in this lifestyle. Luckily, Cardiff reached out to Scott expressing interest in having him back. A deal was struck, contract signed, and here we are, back in Cardiff. Happy to be back on familiar ground most definitely.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Adding to the mix

Reese not looking too thrilled about becoming a big sister

It's official, we are adding to our family! That's right, Reese is going to be a big sister come January 2012. We're thrilled to be expecting again and almost equally thrilled I'm now in my 2nd trimester. I know it could have been worse, but it's a different ball game altogether when you have a toddler to chase around all day while dealing with nausea and fatigue. In any case, that phase is hopefully behind me and I'm starting to feel like myself again.

We saw baby bean #2 a couple weeks ago and that's always such an amazing sight. It makes it feel more real, especially when I'm not feeling too different at this early stage.

We hope to find out the end of July whether it's a girl bean or boy bean, but that could be wishful thinking. We may need to wait until we get to France to have our 2nd ultrasound.

It's hard to imagine life with two little ones but a prospect we couldn't be more excited about!

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Happy Father's Day!



"Any man can be a father but it takes someone special to be a Dad. " -Anne Geddes

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Reese Lately

Looking like such a big girl
Having fun with her ear protectors for the hockey games

Reese is growing up so quickly we can hardly keep up. She’s really showing her independence in everything she does these days. However, there are definitely some times when she still wants Mommy or Daddy. She is so friendly and outgoing with just about anyone but if she spots a fly near her, watch out. She is running straight into our arms. A car horn? I don’t know if she could move any faster. A loud truck driving by on the road? ‘Up, up, up, up!’ It’s so funny to see the things that startle her, especially for such a feisty little thing.

She went to the daycare at the gym for an hour the other day, while I snuck in a quick workout. I was a little nervous because we haven’t left her in such a long time. It couldn’t have gone any smoother. I don’t think she could get out of my arms fast enough when we walked into the room. She ran right over to the toys and babies and immediately started playing. It was such a relief for me to see but also a little sad to see my baby growing up so fast. It has reaffirmed our thoughts of finding a daycare next year in France. We need to make it a priority, even if it’s just a couple days a week. I know she will love it, and she needs the interaction with other kids.

One new development is she’s terrified of Scott on the ice and skating in general. Terrified. After the daycare and gym workout, we walked over to the rink where Scott was skating. He was going to take her around a couple times on the ice but she had other plans. She wanted nothing to do with Scott while he was in his gear. She didn’t even want to ‘walk’ on the ice with me. Scott ended up taking her from my arms for a couple minutes to see if she would loosen up once they were skating around. No such luck, instead she was screaming, ‘mama, mama, mama’ and reaching for me the entire time. Such a change from when we first arrived. The ironic part about it is she absolutely LOVES her hockey book. In fact, she always requests it before naps and bedtime referring to it as the ‘dada’ book. She points to a player on each page and says ‘dada’ quite matter-of-factly. Hopefully she changes her tune about skating soon. If not, we always have skiing. After all, Scott was on skies before he was on skates. And we’ll be in the perfect spot for skiing next year.

Monday, June 13, 2011

The cost of the job is big but so are its rewards.



Hockey is a different game altogether when you think of it in terms of work. Of course there is so much it has allowed us to do that no typical job ever could. There are also some things we've given up in order to live this life. But all in all, the good outweighs the bad in my book.

There are many things hockey has provided for our family that I’m truly grateful for. We’ve traveled the world and have seen places I never would have imagined I’d see. We’re able to enjoy our summers off at home relaxing with our friends and family and not worrying about earning in the off the season. Most importantly though, I’ve been able to be home with Reese and essentially Scott has too. If we were at home, I’d most likely be back to work after 8-12 weeks, just like every other working mom. No other job could ever allow that kind of flexibility for both of us. So we’re willing to make a few sacrifices.

There are, however, a few things I’ve never really given much thought to that are unique to this job. Of course I knew the players wear equipment to protect themselves, I’m not that clueless. I just never thought of where all that comes from and how much it costs. When you think of a typical job, employers aren’t exactly providing thousands of dollars worth of necessary gear to each worker. In hockey though, that’s a must. A few weeks ago, Scott was busy making lists for all different types of equipment for next season. Next year, he’s been given a budget but has to supply all his equipment himself. We’re talking thousands of dollars worth of stuff. I had no clue a stick retails for $200. When you think of how many sticks one player may go through in a season, multiply that number by 24 or so. And that’s just one player on a team of up to 20! Skates, well that figure is even more outrageous. Top-quality professional custom skates retail from $700-$900 a pop. Players usually go through about 2 per season. That’s not even mentioning all the other equipment like elbow pads, shoulder pads, shin pads, gloves, socks, under gear, etc.

The cost of the job is a big one but so are its rewards.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Mealtime Favorites, Skinnygirl style


I don’t know about you, but I am a Bethenny fan. I’ve watched the entire season and am thoroughly entertained each episode. She is a bit neurotic but she makes me laugh. She’s smart too. She turned an idea for a low-cal margarita into $120M, according to ‘insiders’. Not too shabby if you ask me. And who wouldn’t want to at least try a margarita with only 100 calories. Um, yes please.

Let’s not forget she started out as a Natural Food Chef so it got me thinking she must have some good recipes out there. I was browsing her website, and stumbled upon this winner, Goat Cheese Sundried Tomato Chicken Breasts. It was a surprising hit and definitely one of our new favorite go-to recipes. We’ll be visiting her website for more dinner inspiration soon. Whether you love her or hate her, this recipe is a must try.

Saturday, May 14, 2011

I hate the unknown.

I was trying to hold in all of my concerns about next season and really try to go with the flow. The only problem is I’m really not the ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ kind of girl. I need to plan things out. Something that is near impossible in this hockey life we live. That feeling is even stronger now with Reese in our lives. It’s not just the two of us who can make do, we have to think about Reese’s needs too.

There are way too many unknowns in our hockey adventures and I tend to stress about all of them, big and small. Is the team reliable? What is the town/city like? Am I going to be stranded halfway up a ski mountain without a car? Will there be other people I can talk to (read: that speak English)? What will our apartment be like? Will there be other kids Reese can play with? Will there be other wives/girlfriends? I really believe the other girls you’re with make a big difference in your experience. We all need friends, someone to talk to or vent to, and these girls understand exactly what it’s like to live this life. I would love to know the answer to any of those questions before we leave but am sure I’ll still be wondering after we arrive.

One of the biggest things is where we will live. We have seen the gamut on this one over the years. From our own places to friends’ places and friends of friends’ places. Let’s just say I’ve seen some less than ideal places to live. We’ve been fortunate enough to have pretty good apartments wherever we’ve been, (minus one little hiccup in Finland but let’s not even go there) but it’s definitely not a guarantee. We need two bedrooms. Not two in European standards, which often means one bedroom plus one ‘living’ room. If you have a toddler, you know the importance of this one. We can’t sleep in the same room as Reese for an entire season. Well not if we actually want to sleep. Prime example, we just spent a night in London and it was like sleeping with a jumping bean the entire night. I mean literally jumping from one side to the other and walking around the bed with a blanket over her head at 3a.m. Almost funny but then I remembered it was 3a.m. Definitely not funny.

We are hoping to get some of these things worked out with the team before we leave. We’re crossing our fingers anyway. Maybe our toes too.

And in the meantime, I’m making a goal for myself to try not and stress about all these little things. Instead, try and focus on the positive things I can control. Like what kinds of candy I should pack.

Friday, May 6, 2011

I love you to the moon and back.

Me and my girl



My Mom and hers

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, I find myself feeling a little conflicted. On one hand, I’m overjoyed to be celebrating motherhood as a mother myself. It’s a gift I’m so grateful for. One that has brought on this all-consuming love for my child since the moment she was born. I’m proud to be a mother. To be her mother.

On the other hand, I can’t help but be overcome with this deep sense of sadness and longing for my own mother. Simply, I miss her. It breaks my heart knowing my daughter will never know her but through the stories I share with her. That she won’t feel her love. A love I know so well.

Although I know I will forever miss her, I don’t want to be sad when I think of her; I want to be happy. I want to celebrate the woman she was. I want to celebrate the woman I am, because of her. She guided me through life with an unfailing love and support. The kind of love and support I want to show my children. I can only hope to be the kind of mother she was to me.

So this Mother’s Day, I will celebrate being a Mom and honor my own mother, knowing she was the best example.

To you, Mom, I love you to the moon and back. Always.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Vacation gone wrong







Do you remember how I was dreaming of the beautiful views of the French Riviera? Well, I'm still dreaming of them.

That's right, our anxiously awaited vacation never happened. Long story short, Scott's passport went through the wash and we were denied entry at the gate. Fun times.

It was like a nightmare that wouldn't end. At least that's what it felt like at the time. Washed passport, woke up late, got lost on the way, refused entry on the plane. That about sums it up.

This was supposed to be our first big family vacation. It was like the light at the end of a long, stressful year. Disappointment doesn't even begin to describe it.

We went over our options, which weren't many, and decided there was no way we would be able to make the trip. Mainly because I don't think the U.S. Embassy constitutes a family vacation as an emergency. Really?!

So we gathered up our bags and headed home. Not only would we not be going on our vacation, but we were out all that money too. No refunds here. Nothing like a cherry on top of an already disaster morning.

Luckily, the sunny skies of Cardiff and a bbq with friends managed to get us (well, mainly me) out of our funk.

The hubs wanted to salvage the week somehow so he planned a little getaway to the Welsh seaside for a couple days. It wasn't Nice, but it was beautiful in it's own right. We strolled through quaint little towns, relaxed on the beach, ate too much food, and most importantly had quality family time. After all, that's what family vacation is all about. There's always a bright side, right?

Ironically enough, we will be a few short hours away from the French Riviera next season. So we will be enjoying those views sometime soon, come hell or high water!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Mealtime Favorites

With Scott around so much more lately, he's really been putting me to shame in the kitchen. Again. Honestly, what a treat to have a hubs who really likes to cook.

I found this recipe a couple weeks but wasn't prepared for what a hit it would be. If you like salmon and can indulge in a little fried food for a night, you must try this. Tonight. They're really that good.

Follow this link for the recipe. I didn't take pictures of ours this time but it doesn't even matter; the pictures don't do these things justice.

We made the following tweaks to the recipe:

- vegetable oil for frying
- light mayo
- homemade bread crumbs (this is a big one - it makes a big difference in flavor so if you can take the time to make your own, definitely do)

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Parlez-vous français?


The thing about the hockey world is there is so much unknown it’s hard to plan anything. We thought this would be our last year abroad; that we’d finally be heading home for good to set up shop so to speak. Well, plans change. We started thinking about all of our options and decided to go abroad again. So it’s official, we are heading to France next season. Specifically, a little ski village called Morzine in the French Alps.

With Scott’s MBA commitments going until July here and the start of next season in August, it only leaves us with a month at home. Of course, this isn’t ideal but it’s part of the life we chose. We try and roll with the punches. Actually, no, who am I kidding, I suck at rolling with the punches. I’d much rather lay out a set plan and stick to it. Either way we have no choice in the matter so we are going to try and cram in as many visits with friends and family during that month as we can.

Even though our trip home is a much shorter one, it will be so nice to really enjoy that time rather than stressing over what to do and where to go. Something that is a common theme each and every summer.

We are both excited about the new adventure that lies ahead and are trying to jump in head first and leave our concerns at the door. After all, this could be our last year. Maybe.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

10 things about me...


Thanks so much to Allison for passing along this award to me! The rules are to share 10 random facts about myself so here goes:

1. I could survive on candy alone. Seriously. 2. I am way too obsessed with sleep to have a toddler (lucky for me the hubs is a morning person). 3. I was adopted from Korea when I was 6 months old. 4. I love making lists for any and everything but don't always remember to bring them with me to the store. It's more about getting the thoughts out of my head and down on paper. 5. The Notebook is one of my all time favorite movies. 6. I put my current obsession songs on repeat (who doesn't?.) 7. I rarely use a purse these days since the diaper bag has taken over. 8. I hate leftovers. A lot. 9. I have 2 wedding days but have only been married once. 10. I am the most indecisive person ever. A fork in the road could seriously screw up my day.

So, I am passing along the award to Court and TexaGermaNadian. Love both blogs!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Enjoying the off-season


Well, we're a couple weeks out and so far enjoying the off-season. Sure, it was a sad day when all the other imports were packing up to head home and we're still here, feet firmly planted on Cardiff soil for another three months.

Two things that are making that pill easier to swallow, Scott is on his spring break from school and the weather has been consistently beautiful here. Sunny skies and near 70 degree weather make it hard to complain too much.

Last weekend we enjoyed a family trip out for breakfast. It's one of our favorite weekend outings when we're back home. We went into Penarth to a little deli called Florentine's and enjoyed a delicious English breakfast. After, we strolled over to Alexandra Park to work off some of that food. Reese loved climbing up the steps and diving down the slide.

On a side note, picking out clothes has become more of a challenge now that most outings require chasing Reese around. I need something mom-friendly for sure but want to look somewhat pulled together too. Not always easy. For this outing, my mom street style consisted of my Gap Always Skinny jeans, a F21 ribbed tank top, H&M open cardigan, Urban Outitters scarf and Topshop ballet flats. For more mom style ideas, see Ain't No Mom Jeans' Mom Street Syle Linkup. Hurry over to enter their giveaway for a free pair of jeans too. I know I'm not much inspiration when it comes to style, but check out their blog, it's full of it!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Two birds with one stone


It’s no secret that I love a good workout. From running, to circuits, to classes and everything in between. I like to push myself so I don't feel like it's a waste of my time. Also, so I don’t feel as guilty for downing an entire bag of mini eggs. Which happens much too frequently because mini eggs are out from just after Christmas to Easter. A little too long for this candy addict.

So, when I strapped Reese into the carrier last week to go for a leisurely stroll through the park, I wasn’t expecting it to double as a workout. But man was that a workout in disguise. That girl is solid. I was in serious sweat mode by the time we got home. It was like doing weighted cardio if that even exists.

It was a nice walk through the park and some fresh air for Reese all while getting in a good workout for myself. Nothing like taking out two birds with one stone.

Note: We have the Belle baby carrier and we love it! I did tons of research on these while pregnant and decided on this one over the Baby Bjorn because of one major difference. When using the Bjorn, your back/shoulders bear most of the weight which makes it less than ideal for anything longer than 15 minutes or so. With the Belle, the weight is distributed to your hips so it’s more comfortable for longer baby-wearing. At least that’s what I’ve found to be true. The one downside to the Belle is the lack of head and neck support when carrying a newborn. However, they do have an attachment now you can buy to remedy that.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Year in Review

Well, we've survived another year. A feat I honestly wasn't so sure about when we started off this year. I feel a sense of accomplishment which I know probably sounds a little silly since I'm not the one getting my MBA or playing hockey. But for me, it was an accomplishment to stand on my own two feet.

Frankly, I'm used to having Scott around to help with everything and I like that sense of comfort, especially living in a new place. I don't like navigating through a new city on my own. Since we started this adventure of living abroad, I've come to depend on him for so many things, to find directions to get us to here or there, figure out how to get gas in the car, tell me about the street signs and what they mean, and so much more. This year, he just didn't have the time so I had to learn to do things on my own. And I did. And that is my accomplishment.

I asked the hubs to share his accomplishments too. Here is his year in review:

It has been a very interesting year in Wales. Things had changed dramatically already with the addition of little Reese, with less sleeping in and lounging around, but with the addition of school (The Cardiff MBA), my life couldn’t be farther from relaxing!

For the majority of the year, darkness set in as I stared out of the window of S21 or some other dusty room in the Aberconway building, wondering why exactly I accepted the offer to try to complete the MBA while playing professional hockey, being a husband and helping to raise a little princess. There were some stressful days, that’s for sure, at least until first semester exam results came in and all (most) was forgotten as I exceeded my expectations and placed within the top 2% of the class. As exam week (winter semester) commences tomorrow, I can only hope for the same clarity that I had last time. A little less studying, a little less worrying, a little more enjoying the weather might not help the grades but it sure helps everything else!

Rain drops have changed to rays of sunshine with beautiful weather into the 70’s this past week and envy of the guys starting to dust the golf clubs off for another season is setting in. It’ll be my turn soon enough. The MBA has been an incredible experience so far and I look forward to applying the knowledge somewhere in the business world, someday.

As for hockey, a slow start to the season left everyone with the feeling it might be one of those years, instead it turned into a different kind of ‘one of those years’. As in, one of those record-breaking kind of years. We won 22 games in a row during a stretch from late October until early January and were mentioned as a possible world record holder for most consecutive victories by a professional hockey team.

With 3 trophies (Challenge Cup, Regular Season, Playoff Champion) up for grabs, we were in the mix to win all 3 but unfortunately lost the regular season based on regulation wins and 5-4 in the Playoff final. It ended up being a great year with a sour tasting ending I guess. Personally, I had one of my best years statistically, accumulating 97 points in 62 games. That was good enough for 2nd in the league points race, behind only my linemate, Jon Pelle.

I faced some new challenges this year and through it all I think I’ve become a better person, husband and hopefully daddy! I know Reese hasn’t seen her daddy as much this year, but I hope one day all this hard work will be rewarded. There were some speed bumps, but I know I’ll look back on this year fondly. Thanks Cardiff!


We will both take our accomplishments and lessons learned with us as we continue on in our adventures of this crazy life. More to come on where that will take us soon!

Saturday, April 9, 2011

A little bit of sunshine


image via

It has been sunny and nearly 70 degrees all week and we are loving it. The perfect weather, if you ask me. It means we've been spending more time outside enjoying it and less inside on the computer. Will hopefully be back soon. Or hopefully not if it means this weather will stick around!

Monday, April 4, 2011

Cote d'Azur


With the close of another season upon us, I sit here feeling a little sorry for myself as I watch everyone else preparing to head home, because we are not. Well at least not now. We still have another three months here away from our friends and family. Don't get me wrong, I am glad Scott is getting his MBA and am so proud of him for juggling school, hockey and family (read: my constant nagging about this and that) and actually making it work. I know it wasn't always easy. So as much as I complain about it, which is probably a little too often, I am glad we are still here. Sort of.

However, the one bright note in being here longer than usual is taking advantage of the beautiful places to visit within arm's reach. We are heading to the Cote d'Azur for a family vacation at the end of April. The countdown has begun. I can't wait!

How can views like this not cheer me up?!

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Girl Talk



We all need a little girl talk now and then. Sure, I love talking to my husband. I share everything with him. Partly because it’s just he and I so much of time, and partly because he’s my best friend and I like talking to my best friend. But it definitely doesn’t replace having a little girl talk in your life. There are just some things he could care less about or just doesn’t get. Like listening to me talk about fashion and actually showing him pictures of my latest obsessions to really drive the point home (as if he’s even looking). He hates that. My girlfriends on the other hand, well that’s right up our alley.

Even though my girlfriends back home are spread out over the country or world, we can always pick up right where we left off, talking and laughing for hours on end. It’s what I love about them. We’re just that close. There’s definitely something to be said about that kind of friendship.

As for my girlfriends here, the ones I’ve met along the way; my experiences just wouldn’t be the same without them. They’re better because of them.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Like Mother, Like Daughter?



When it comes to a few of our latest spring fashion buys, definitely! It’s so much fun to shop for a little one. Especially when I still get to pick out what she wears. My favorite things for her are ones I’d wear myself. But seriously, how cute are these finds in the mini version?!





Mealtime Favorites



During the hockey season, pasta is a mainstay of our diet. With all that pasta, it’s nice to throw in some lighter meals here and there too. Here is one of our favorite salad recipes. It’s a modified version of the Cosi signature salad and a recipe I got from one of the girls a couple years ago (thanks K!). We usually make our homemade foccacia (another great one from one of the wives a few years back) to go along with it. Delicious!

Recipes can be found here.

Since I’m posting about food today, thought I’d share a video of Reese doing a little cooking too. She loves to make food and feed it to all of her buddies.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Date night is more than just a date






I’ve realized that life with little ones changes things. A lot. Not a shocking revelation, I know. It’s so easy to get caught up in the busy schedules and routines of kids. Not leaving too much extra time for much else. So date nights are important. Even more important than they were pre-kids. I really believe they help keep our marriage strong because it forces us to set aside time to get out and enjoy ourselves.

Even if it’s hard to make that time… Even if the food at dinner wasn’t worth the money… Even if the movie was terrible… Even if it costs more money to get a sitter… And creates more stress to get things in order for watching the little one… It’s all worth it. It’s more than just a date. It’s about getting out with the hubby and spending some quality time together. The value of that will always be greater than the cost.

We had the team’s year-end banquet this week. It was a perfect excuse to get out for a date night. Luckily for us, it was my Dad’s last night in town so naturally we put him to work watching Reese. Dinner, drinks and dancing made for a great night out with friends!

Friday, March 25, 2011

Spring Lust List

The weather here has been warm and sunny this week without a chill in the air. It’s making me lust after Spring even more. So in the spirit of Spring, here are a few things I'm lusting after right now.




Love the bright blue color of this Topshop top




Park Bench Fedora from Madewell- a perfect spring accessory



LOVE these wedges from Topshop




Cute maxi dress from Anthropologie





Okay, so this one could be for any season, but how good do these look?! I've seen them all over lately and I'm dying to get my hands on some!