Did this week seem absurdly long and slow to everyone else? Just me? I felt like I was scrambling all week long to keep up, and then today dragged.for.ev.er. Plus a snowstorm thrown into the middle of the week didn't help either. I have been waiting for Friday night pizza and Saturday morning coffee (which is the same as Monday-Friday coffee but drank at 1/4 of the pace) for what feels like years.

But there were good things this week, too. J.Crew delivery! New necklace! The best homemade macaroni and cheese! Catching up on Breaking Bad! So, not a total bust.

All this being stuck in the house while it's snowy and barbaric outside gives me an itch to freshen up our home. Nothing too drastic, but a few little tweaks here and there to keep things interesting. Here are five things I've got my eye on lately to give our house a little kick:

[1] Threshold peony bouquets in a gold vase from Target - I love these little arrangements. I'd get a bunch and set them in a row down our dining room table, or put one on each end of the fireplace mantel. I saw these online and am not sure if they're available at Target Canada. I hope so! Fresh peonies in mason jars would also do the trick. Really, what I'm saying here is get this girl some peonies.


[2] Rifle Paper Co. prints from Chapters - I have visions of a gallery wall, whether it ends up being in my office, our ensuite bathroom, or in our kitchen...shhh, don't tell Peter. I think some of these framed prints would look beautiful and add some personality to any room!




[3] Navy throw pillow from Target - I've been feeling navy and white accents lately and I think some navy cushions would add a little bit of interest to our bedding, which is white and tan.


[4] Rustic Basket from Chapters - anyone with kids will tell you that striking a balance between having a home where toys are easily accessible without looking like a straight up daycare is a challenge. Since Christmas, Eli's toy situation has gotten a bit wild. I feel like dividing and conquering is the answer. Scatter these baskets in key rooms throughout the house, fill with a few toys and books, throw a cute blanket on top = problem solved.


[5] Lilac Blossom candle from Bath & Body Works - my favourite spring scent. Even though spring is still a thousand years away.

List #3 for 2014 is a list of things you should be proud of. This was hard, because every item I listed, I could think of a 'but'. I've had no student loans or car payments (but I have a mortgage). I've never had credit card debt (but I shop online way too much). I have a good relationship with my family (but I tell them probably 10% of what goes on in my life). So this list feels a little phony. Nevertheless, I'm telling myself these are accomplishments I can be proud of. 

I have been quietly chipping away at a marathon training plan. So...that's just like every year. I think this is the third time I've downloaded Hal Higdon's Novice 1 plan and started it off with the best of intentions, only to fizzle out somewhere around week 6.

Right now, I'm in week 3 and still pretty much on track, but my "long runs" have been six and seven miles long, which is ohhhh, ONE FOURTH of a marathon. So we'll see what happens. I'm not filling out any registration forms or paying race fees just yet.

I'm still hot and cold on the idea of running a marathon. Part of me just really wants that 26.2 bumper sticker. Part of me thinks that attempting to run for four-plus hours is disgusting and unnatural. I think everybody who runs for any amount of time toys with the idea of running a marathon. I read blogs of people who have done it and get inspired. I think about how shitty running 2+ hours is and get discouraged, and I'm about 75% sure I am not physically capable of running a marathon. Emotional roller coaster to the max.



This year, my strategy is to follow the plan, see how it goes, and not worry about busting my ass to save $10 with early bird registration. If it looks like it's going to be doable, I'll do it. If it looks like it's going to kill me, I'm not doing it. How's that for commitment?

Some nights, you just don't want to make dinner, holler if you're feelin' me. Maybe you were late getting out of work, or you had a bunch of errands to do on the way home, or you're just not feeling it for whatever reason. You have a slow cooker, but you forgot to turn it on in the morning. Coming home to half-thawed chicken swimming in a pool of cold salsa? Mmm.



Long story short: Sometimes you want to pull together a dinner that's fast, healthy-ish, tastes good, and doesn't come in a grease-soaked drive-thru bag. Here are five meals we eat on the regular at home that come together quickly and don't involve neon-orange powder or noodles shaped like cartoon characters.

DISCLAIMER: These are in no way, shape, or form fancy meals. These are only meant to be alternatives to eating a bowl of cold cereal or a bag of microwave popcorn for dinner. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

1. Breakfast for dinner. We end up doing this every couple of weeks and I always look forward to it. I LOVE breakfast foods. One of my favourite quick dinners is to throw some home fries in the oven, grill some mushrooms, onions, and peppers in a frying pan, then add eggs and cheese (egg whites if you're into that sort of thing). You can add sides of toast, yogurt, or fruit. This takes 20 minutes, tops. You can do pancakes and bacon, or waffles with berries, or eggs benny - there are so many options and none of them take a long time to cook.

2. Quesadillas. We almost always have tortillas on hand, and we ALWAYS have cheese, so that's half the battle right there. Quesadillas are so easy. Just throw in whatever you have in the fridge: peppers and onions, other veggies, even fruit is awesome in them (I recommend pineapple or peaches). If you have chicken or beef or pulled pork on hand to add, great; if not, they're good as a veggie dish too!

3. Paninis. Again, I love these because you can use different ingredients for different results every time. For me, toasting a sandwich makes it feel more like a meal and less like cobbled-together sustenance. Serve with a salad or bowl of soup if you're feeling fancy.

4. This Southwest Sweet Potato Hash takes no time (well, eight minutes, according to the recipe) and is basically foolproof. Last time I made it, we added some chopped avocado and a little shredded cheese.

5. Asian Edamame Fried Rice is another quick meal that takes about 10 minutes to prepare. Cook your rice while you scramble your eggs, and then everything comes together in a pretty speedy fashion. Again, this is flexible enough to add whatever protein you happen to have on hand: shrimp, chicken, tofu, or as is.

Your turn! What do you do make you want a meal that's fast and healthy-ish?

This week's list is all about comforts. Being comfortable and cozy is one of my greatest joys, especially in January. There's not much to look at outside right now: most of the snow is gone, other than some dirty snowbanks, there are no more Christmas decorations, and everything is kind of gray and exhausted-looking. So holing up indoors with some comfort food, books, puzzles, and TV has been pretty appealing instead. 

I'm not a very good winter person. I would love to be all outdoorsy and ski-bunny, but put me outside on a cold, windy day and I shrivel up and get pissy. I'm OK with places like hockey rinks for a limited time, but if I have a choice, I would much rather be in front of the fireplace, under a blanket, in a hoodie and big fuzzy socks, with a hot drink and a good book. If I magically had tomorrow off work all of a sudden, that's probably exactly how I'd spend my afternoon. Maaaaybe with a cinnamon bun too. I've always been a big reader.


I just finished Freedom and it was such a good book. Now I've started reading The Cuckoo's Calling and so far, so good as well. I read J.K. Rowling's other 'adult' book, Casual Vacancy, and loved it.

Santa and assorted family members brought me some other books for Christmas that I'm excited to dig into over the winter too:

[+] A House in the Sky
[+] Mad About the Boy
[+] Hero
[+] We Are Water 

Those should keep me going through the winter, just enough to pick up some new beach reads.

What are you reading now? Any books you're hoping to pick up soon?

We're almost a week in to 2014. How's it going so far? I can sum up 2014 thus far in one word: weather. It's supposed to be +10 degrees today, and if that happens, that's 40 DEGREES warmer than it was a week ago. The year started off bitterly cold, then we had a full-on blizzard (when the liquor store shuts down you KNOW shit's real) and today feels deceptively like spring. 

2013 was a solid year, and I don't mean that in the fist-bump, do-me-a-solid sense, but in the literal sense. It was stable, substantial, and secure. No massive shakeups. No tragedies, thanking my lucky stars for that one. A good year. A Cabernet Sauvignon of a year, satisfying and hearty.

A lot of good things happened this year, so here are five things I'd like to remember in no particular order.

1. The Red Sox won the World Series - which means we got to see the World Series champions in the summer. Our trip to Boston on Labour Day weekend was a highlight of the year for a lot of reasons: Eli's first flight, my first run through Boston Common and the Public Garden, getting lost in the hood on our way back from the zoo (Blue Hill Avenue, anyone? NOT A GREAT NEIGHBOURHOOD), eating some fantastic pizza, seafood, and brunches. My favourite outing was going to Fenway, eating a pretzel, drinking a pricey beer and watching the bearded ones beat the White Sox.


2. In November, I booked an afternoon off work, got my hair cut, and then met up with Peter for a matinee movie date before it was time to pick up Eli from his sitter's. We saw 12 Years a Slave, but the movie wasn't important; I want to remember how much fun it is to take a little time off - even a couple of hours - to do something nice for yourself. We did this on a Friday afternoon and it was such a nice way to kick off the weekend.

3. Running the Mud Hero race in the summer was HARD. Hottest day of the summer, hands down, running an obstacle course up the side of a mountain. It doesn't sound like fun, but I had a blast running the race with my husband and celebrating with friends. But I don't want to forget just how hard it was running up a mountain on a 40-degree day caked with muck.


4. I want to remember Eli's Clark Kent Halloween costume and his amazement and excitement at being out, walking around the neighbourhood, at night with all the other kids out running around. He was less excited about trick-or-treating and candies but was stoked just to be out at a time he's normally getting ready for bed. And he was pretty adorable doing it.



5. 2013 was like the year of the pizza. We had some really outstanding homemade pizzas this year. Like this guy and this one. Hubba hubba.

I'm happy about my solid 2013 and looking forward to making more memories this year.
Happy weekend, friends! xo

I have always been the queen of New Year's resolutions. I've made resolutions every year since I can remember, even in elementary school. Succeeded at some, failed miserably at others. More fails than successes, if we're being honest.

This year is different. This is the first year I'm not making any New Year's resolutions. I have a mantra for 2014. Four letters: JFDI.


Even the word 'resolutions' smacks of inaction. Making a plan or articulating a goal is one thing, but where is the actual follow-through? You're going to do XYZ - HOW? What are the actual steps to making this thing happen? When are you going to start? To resolve to do something is one thing. To do is quite another.

It's great to make a list of the things you want to change in the new year, but sometimes, it feels like by writing that list, you're done. Whew, that was a task and a half. And then you put your notebook away, and then you forget about your lofty list of goals and hopes and plans, and that's that.

This year, my whole thing is 'just fucking do it'. Rather than saying "I want to get in shape", I am just going to go to the gym. Just use the damn juicer and make a green juice rather than waxing poetic about eating clean. Just set up an appointment with a financial planner and listen to what they have to say. Just sign up for the marathon or skiing lessons or cooking classes or whatever. Stop talking about it, stop making plans, stop scheduling things for tomorrow or next week or starting Monday. Just do it...now. Or when it makes sense. The point is DO.

You know what else is nice about 'just fucking do it?' You don't have to make a list of anything. You don't have to remember what your resolutions were. You don't have to dig out your notebook next December to see what you've accomplished. Action is instantaneous and measurable.

So that's my motto for 2014. JFDI!