Right Now

May 14, 2013 — Leave a comment

Right now my life seems very busy – and not always busy in a good, fun, and fearless way, but in a “do I really have to do this right now” way. Work, yard work, commuting, more work, the stomach flu, and putting out life’s many fires has been overwhelming, and has pulled me away from this blog. However, not all has been lost, I have had time to do some reading, engage in a little shopping, and hang out with friends.

To brighten things up a little, I thought I would compose another list of what I am loving right now.

La Rocca Creative Cakes

logocakes25_lg

These cakes are amazing. Not only have I tried the Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch, and the Chocolate Mousse Bomb and LOVED them. But the best part is you can get them from your local grocery store for a reasonable price!

Nine West Izabela Pump

izabela_blkle_pd

These pumps have been my work-wear staple for a couple of years. As much as I love a big stiletto heel, I love not tripping over myself while walking into an important meeting more. Sometimes comfort takes precedence over indulgence.

I am loving the nude shoe trend and may be picking these babies up as well:

izabela_tppt_pd

I recently attended a Women’s Show and was almost talked into becoming a stylist for Stella and Dot. I love their jewellery and the thought of hosting parties and getting discounts has me thinking. I am especially loving this Jolie necklace.

Kelly Green + Bib Style = perfect necklace

n362_jolie_necklace_1

I just finished reading the book Sarah’s Key

sarahs_key

I had seen this book around the bookstore for a couple of years but never took the opportunity to read it. However, my trusty old Kobo directed me to Sarah’s Key as a recommended read, and I am so glad I listened. I have a tad fascination with WWII and the horrible persecution that took place during this time and this book really was a heart-wrenching but educating read. The book is based on an actual event that took place in Paris during July 1942 where Jewish families (who were mostly French citizens) were rounded up in the middle of the night and sent off to concentration camps by the French government. Complete families were torn apart and thousands of lives lost. Although this book is hard to read because it is so profoundly sad, it also very well written and inspirational. I recently saw that the book was made into a movie. Looks like I may have to rent it, however, movies are almost never as good as the book it was based on.

What are you loving right now?

In Books, Loving Right Now, Style , , , , ,
permalink

Healthy Goals

April 30, 2013 — Leave a comment

Breakfast used to be my favourite meal of the day. I used to revel in my morning oatmeal with banana and peanut butter, or granola with fresh berries and yogurt, or when I had time – the infamous Oatmeal pancakes. But lately I have been in a breakfast rut where nothing really interests me. Some mornings I scarf down a bowl of cereal or oats, others I make toast with peanut or almond butter, and some mornings I skip breakfast altogether. I have made it my goal this week to eat a healthy and nutritious breakfast every morning.

I am sure you all know that breakfast is a very important meal. Several studies have shown that people who eat breakfast are often more successful at maintaining or losing weight, and have more energy and concentration throughout the rest of the day. Additionally eating breakfast gives our bodies nutrients which have been depleted while we were sleeping and helps to kick-start our metabolism. So all in all, breakfast can really be considered the most important meal of the day.

Recently I found this recipe for Mini Quinoa and Zucchini Frittata’s. I made a batch last night and had them for breakfast this morning. The recipe is simple, the ingredients are all natural, and they tasted really good. The husband was even raving about them this morning, and he typically hates zucchini. The recipe makes 10-12 mini frittata’s and are great for busy mornings or even as a snack.

Mini Quinoa and Zucchini Frittata’s:

Adapted from 52 Kitchen Adventures

  • 1/2 cup of quinoa
  • 2 eggs and 2 egg whites
  • 1 cup zucchini, shredded
  • 1/2 cup onion, chopped
  • 3/4 cup cheddar cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste

frit

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit. Line muffin pan with liners or coat with non-stick spray

Cook quinoa according to package directions. Once cooked remove from heat and set aside

In a large bowl, whisk eggs, zucchini, cheese and onion together. Add in cooked quinoa and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon frittata mixture into the prepared muffin tin, filling each cup until almost full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.

fit2

Additionally I am making it a goal to follow a 30 day squat challenge starting tomorrow. Here is the plan:

squatchallenge

Feel free to join me in the challenge – bathing suit season is just around the corner!

Do you have any healthy goals that you are working on?

In Fitness, Recipes , , , , , , ,
permalink

Weekend Fun

April 29, 2013 — 1 Comment

Well spring is officially around the corner. This has been one.long.winter.

I am itching to go on long bike rides, run outside, drink wine on the deck, and wear dresses without tights or pantyhose. I am hoping May will bring these opportunities soon!

This weekend I was able to relax and engage in some of my favourite activities. On Friday night the husband and I saw The Place Beyond the Pines with Ryan Gosling (yum), Eva Mendes and Bradley Cooper. It was a pretty dark film and I was not a fan of the ending, but overall it was an interesting story plot. I probably would not rush out to the theatres to see it but it definitely is a good film to rent.

On Saturday I was able to soak up the relatively nice weather we had. My mother-in-law took me out for a belated birthday lunch downtown Oakville at a wonderful restaurant Paradiso. We shared the beet and goat cheese salad and the pizza pomodoro. It was delicious, so delicious I scarfed it down and forgot to take a picture.

After lunch we ventured around and did some window shopping until we stumbled upon this beauty

mmcafe

The Marilyn Monroe Cafe. It is amazing. Yes it is trendy, yes it is slightly overpriced, but it is beautiful and so tasty.

mmcafe2

Marilyn Monroe Cafe is described on their website as:

“combining a classic old Hollywood glamour with a contemporary design flair, the fashionable café features intimate banquet seating, plush fabrics and exquisite design details, creating a space where you could imagine Marilyn sipping her favorite latte and indulging in a luscious danish.”

mmcafe3

mmcafe5

mmcafe6

After we soaked up the Marilyn experience we continued our window shopping until we stumbled into another great find: Titika Active Wear. I am usually a huge Lululemon fan, however I think I may be a Titika convert. Their stuff is not only fun and sporty, but also very pretty! The price point is similar to Lululemon, but the clothing options are much more diverse and fashion forward. It is also a Canadian company that was founded in Toronto in 2009. Their website describes the company as:

“globally-responsible, environmentally-friendly and a community focused company. We pride ourselves on producing high quality, fashionable activewear with great value. Our superior clothing is the result of detailed preparation, hard work and learning from our mistakes.”

titika

Unfortunately there is no online store as of yet, but retail stores are located in Toronto, Oakville, London, and Barrie. I was able to find a really nice workout tee that fits like a glove and has a cute cut out detail in the back. I will definitely be back for more purchases in the near future.

I also spotted an Anthropologie store downtown Oakville, but the stores were closing so I wasn’t able to go in and browse. I wish Oakville had some of these shops around when I was growing up there, however, I am glad I have more excuses to come back and visit soon!

Did you get up to any fun activities this weekend?

In General , , , , , ,
permalink

Blessed

April 24, 2013 — Leave a comment

I survived my birthday weekend and am officially a 30 year old.

It was a wonderful weekend filled with friends, family, wine, food, flowers, and pampering. I am truly thankful for being blessed with another year in this journey.

One of the many highlights this weekend was my birthday party, which was a wine and beer tasting theme.

Here are some pictures of the set up minus the food, wine and beer:

bday2

Beer table:

bday3

Sangria cart:

bday4

The signs designed by the husband:

bday1

Unfortunately once the guests started arriving and things got started and I failed to capture more pictures of the entire set up, but the party was a success.

For the wine tasting I followed the blind tasting format from TLC website found here

Invitations were sent out stating that it was a beer and wine tasting party. Once everyone rsvp’d we split the female guests into two different grape groups – sauvignon blanc and cabernet sauvignon. We then asked them to bring a bottle of Ontario brand wine according to their assigned grape.

Also because we knew not everyone likes wine we asked all the guys to bring their favourite 6-pack of craft beer, preferably an Ontario brand so they could participate by trying different brews.

As they arrived I asked the girls to put their wine into a paper bag, tie the top with some twine and number the bag. We ended up with 7 Sauvignon Blanc’s and 4 Cabernet Sauvignon’s. To make it a bit of a competition I found wine tasting scoring sheets online and printed them out. Once everyone was settled we made it through a tasting of the 7 wines, scoring each based on appearance, aroma, body, taste and finish. Once all the wines had been tasted we revealed the bottles and identified the top scorers. I had purchased prizes for the person who brought the top scoring white and red wine winner, and top 2 beers of the night.

sheets

Here are the 7 white wines we tried – somehow a Pinot Grigio and Riesling snuck in there.

whites

Unfortunately or (fortunately) after the white wine tasting no one was in the mood/had the ability/sobriety to do an official red wine tasting so we just opened the reds and allowed everyone to enjoy them at their leisure. Next time I would probably only pick one grape instead of two.

Since there was no official red wine tasting we picked 2 white wine winners of the night:

winewin

2011 Creekside Estate Winery Sauvignon Blanc

2011 Lakeview Cellars Sauvignon Blanc

Here are the red wines that were enjoyed:

reds

As for the guys, they piled their beer into a big beer tub filled with ice and helped themselves to the brews throughout the night.

beer

The husband did a quick survey and there was a consensus that the beer winners of the night were:

beerwin

-Cameron’s Premium Lager

-Flying Monkey Pale Ale

Another highlight was the amazing cake my best friend brought. It was beautifully decorated and tasted amazing.

cake2

Isn’t it pretty? She decorated it herself because this was what it looked like when she picked it up from the store:

cake1

I was laughing so hard when she showed me this picture. Luckily she got a discount and was able to make it look nice.

Overall, it was a great party and an excellent weekend. Thirty is off to a fabulous start!

bdaysong

In Entertaining, General , , , , , ,
permalink

Goodbye Twenty-something’s

April 19, 2013 — Leave a comment

I read somewhere that the 30’s are the new 20’s and today I say goodbye to my twenty-something’s. It has been a very good ride, and although I am sad to let them go, I am looking forward to starting a fresh new decade of my life. As a tribute to “Twenty-something Fallon” I thought I would highlight some moments from each year that were groundbreaking, heartbreaking, hilarious or difficult.

Here we go.

Fallon as a 20 year old:

55_517114486841_722_n

-My 20th birthday was spent at an old Toronto club favourite “Money” with some of my closest friends and it ended with street meat and a limo ride home

-I finished my first year of undergrad and worked that summer as a receptionist for a real estate company

-It was the year of SARS and with 500,000 other people I attended SARSfest in Toronto and watched the Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Justin Timberlake, The Guess Who and Rush perform.

- Moved into a condo with my good friend and joined a sorority

Fallon as a 21 year old:

mee

-Studied for exams during my birthday – fun!

-Finished my second year of undergrad and worked for my roommate’s father’s company

-Moved into my sorority house for the 1st semester of 3rd year undergrad

-Broke up with my high-school boyfriend

-Moved to Aarhus Denmark for a school exchange and lived in a residence with people from all over the world – shared 1 kitchen and 2 bathrooms, and 3 shower stalls with about 50 people.

-Travelled to Holland, Belgium, England, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Slovakia

Fallon as a 22 year old:

meeee

-Celebrated my birthday in Denmark with friends from around the world in the basement of our residence

-Moved back home for the end of the summer and took temp jobs working for random companies – including an adult diaper company

-Began my final year of undergrad

-Took a course on Aboriginal issues and was mentored by my professor. I then instantly knew I wanted to go to law school to represent Aboriginal rights

-Was a little “wild” during this year – probably went out too much!

Fallon as a 23 year old:

97_517115200411_8227_n

-Studied for exams during my birthday – fun again!

-Graduated from Undergrad with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy

-Took a year off to write the LSAT, apply for law school, and work

-Worked as a legal assistant for a criminal lawyer

-Worked at a real estate company

-Travelled to Costa Rica

-Got accepted to all 6 law schools I applied at

-Travelled to Ottawa and accepted offer of admission

Fallon as a 24 year old:

me

-Celebrated by birthday by seeing the We Will Rock You the musical with friends

-Travelled to NYC with my friend from Oklahoma

-Moved to Ottawa and lived by myself for the first time

-Started law school

-Travelled to Bahamas

-Went through a very difficult period with stress, anxiety, and depression

-Not a great year

Fallon as a 25 year old:

282_610179423961_3834_n

-Celebrated my birthday by studying for exams and having my mom visit me in Ottawa

-Finished my first year of law school!

-Started working at University of Ottawa’s Community Legal Clinic in the Women’s division and Aboriginal division and loved it

-My grandfather passed away

-Got Abby my lovely little puggle pup!

-My nana passed away

-Started dating my future husband aka “the husband”

-My best friend got married!

Fallon as a 26 year old:

us

-Celebrated my birthday by going out for dinner with friends

-Finished my second year of law school

-Started losing my hair – due to stress – luckily it grew back

-Went to Vegas to celebrate my best friend’s marriage – post bachelorette party

-The future husband and I went on our first vacation together in Miami

-Lived and worked downtown Toronto as a summer law student

Fallon as a 27 year old:

28256_885233588211_240145_n

-Celebrated my birthday by going out for dinner with friends

-Finished law school

-Moved in with the future husband

-Wrote the Ontario bar exams – worst 8 hours of my life x 2

-Started articling at an amazing Aboriginal legal services company

Fallon as a 28 year old:

393479_10100442253223371_291150289_n

-Celebrated my birthday at a vodka bar with friends

-The husband’s sister got married

-Got called to the Ontario bar as a lawyer

-Started working at my current job as a lawyer!

-Bought a new car

-Bought a house with the then future husband

-Became engaged to the husband

-Planned a wedding

Fallon as a 29 year old:

29374_10100909709946351_997613992_n

-Celebrated my birthday at my house with friends – everyone left by midnight – yep getting old

-Continued planning the wedding

-Went to Vegas for my bachelorette

-Got married!

-Planned the honeymoon

-The husband’s other sister got married

-Went to Thailand for our 3 week honeymoon

Well – looking back I can see that the “highlights” of each year changed dramatically from parties, concerts, and random jobs to houses, careers, weddings and marriage. I was really trying to figure it all out, and by no means have I figured it all out by now, but I am a lot more comfortable with who I am and where I am.  I am looking forward to all the new and exciting things that will hopefully come my way when I start this new chapter

In General , , , ,
permalink
you-are-beautiful

Our Worst Critic

April 16, 2013 — Leave a comment

I am sure many of you have seen the newest Dove project titled Real Beauty Sketches. The project shows how several women see themselves as they describe their physical appearance to a forensic artist. Subsequently the women earlier in the day were asked to spend time with a stranger. Later that day the stranger was then asked to describe the women they had spent time with earlier. When the  two resulting sketches were hung side by side the results were shocking. Not surprising, the women described themselves in a prominently negative light, while the strangers described the women in a positive and accurate way. The tagline in the video appears: “You are more beautiful than you think” 

you-are-beautiful

Although critics may claim that this is just a ploy for women to buy Dove products, or that Dove is owned by the same company that owns Axe – the leader is misogynistic ads, the message in this video instantly rang true for me. I have been told many times that I am my own worst critic. And this critic extends beyond just physical beauty borders.

I have always struggled with the belief that I am never good enough – not smart enough, pretty enough, funny enough or skinny enough. For a long time I had a hard time taking a compliment and often got defensive when someone even tried to say something positive to me. I believed that no matter what I achieved or succeeded at it was never good enough. That those achievements were never because I had worked hard, but was due to pure luck or chance. Every positive word that someone spoke was heard by me as a negative, or as an untruth. Needless to say this went on for a long time, and it was not until someone said these words that something finally clicked: “you would never allow someone to talk that way about a friend or family member, why do you allow yourself to talk that way about yourself – you are your own worst critic.”

I realized I was doing and thinking things about myself that I would never allow myself to think or feel about my friends and loved ones. That ultimately I was sabotaging myself and nothing good could come from it. Those words really resonated with me, and begun to put me on a path of ignoring and blocking out the negative voice in the back of my mind. I know many women and men struggle with feeling happy and confident in their own skin and that these feelings begin at a much younger age and follow many of us for a long time.

The Dove Real Truth About Beauty Canadian research found that by the age of 14 more than half (55%) of Canadian girls feel pressure to be beautiful. By the time they are 29, this number increases to 96%. After the age of 14 girls increasingly become their own worst beauty critic. While only 10% of girls 10-14 put pressure on themselves to be beautiful, this number climbs to 59% of women 18-64.

These numbers are shocking, but unfortunately not all that surprising from the way women described themselves in Dove’s video above. For all the crap that I see and hear on a regular basis in the media, I am so happy that Dove is sending an important message in their new campaigns and research.

To view some of Dove’s other excellent campaigns click the links below:

Perception of Beauty

Real Truth About Beauty Stats

Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Beauty

The Language of Fat

In General
permalink