The Adventures of Skinny Mini Kiki

winter ladybug

2012-02-10T05:23:00.000-08:00

I found this ladybug in our spare bedroom upstairs, chilling out on the bed spread last weekend. It's winter. I have no idea how he got in the house but he surprised the heck out of us. I didn't have the heart to kick the little dude out in the cold winter air so he's been chilling out in this jam jar this entire week. Along with a piece of cucumber and lettuce leaf moistened with water, I also added some fat juicy raisins in there since I don't have a ready store of aphids to whet the little dude's appetite.

Lately winter has been feeling more like a slightly colder spring and so I'll release this little guy out into the air soon. Today even! Let him spread his wings and fly away.

It's been a topsy turvy week for me. There was a wonderful Sunshine goodness on Wednesday and a bit of sadness at work on Thursday.

Let's hope the weekend brightens up. Thanks for stopping by this week. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

shine on! the sunshine award

2012-02-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

via Stephanie Rausser Photography

Sometimes I wake up and end up having an extraordinary moment during the day. Today is that type of day. I was awarded a Sunshine Award by fellow blogger Bianca aka Scandinavian Mum! What a sweet surprise. I peruse Bianca's blog on a weekly basis as it covers everything scandinavian in news, fashion and even cooking! I'm also constantly confounded by the fact that here's a busy mum of 2 and she constantly looks so put together and (dammit!) looks amazing. I always want to try her recipes but.. I am way too lazy and am ever always hopeful someone else will cook for me. Thank you Bianca for passing forward this award, it truly brightened up my day and for your extremely kind words towards me. I am *still* blushing...

This is a daisy chain kind of award and I'm supposed to forward this ray of light to 5 more people (very hard to choose only 5 by the way). This is easily the best way to share the light with as many wonderful people as possible and I can't wait to pass it along! Here then, my answers to the Sunshine questions:

Favourite Colour: Hm.. pink & green, white & blue, orange & silver (I like duos).

Favourite Animal: I love dogs but they also scare me at times. I especially love puppies. Puppies & Keira are so similar in nature: cute faces, always underfoot and tripping over themselves. lol.

Favourite Non-Alcoholic Drink: Sadly, a diet soda or something bubbly. Am working hard on eliminating the diet soda stuff!

Facebook or Twitter: Sometimes both, sometimes neither. Twitter has been good to me though. Facebook is more about intimate sharing amongst my family and friends.

Via Hunt Studio

Favourite Number: 8 & 28

Favourite Day of the Week: I don't really have a fave day of the week. Maybe Thursdays since for some reason or other, that's the day my friends choose to have a night out.

via Stephanie Rausser Photography

My Passion: Photography. I wish I had more time to devote to learning more about it. The photography classes I took in school seem so far away, my memories are filled with cobwebs. I'd love to take an online course and be able to take proper photos. I could spend all day taking, editing, retouching and looking at photos.

Getting or Giving Presents: Both! I love giving but feel awkward getting. Is that a korean thing??

Favourite Pattern: I love to see a mix 'n match approach. I love seeing crazy patterns on rugs and would love to have them scattered all around the rooms in my house. I need to win the lottery in order to do so.

Via Pinterest here and here

Favourite Flower: Poppies and peonies! This is the true nature of Capricorns non? It's never one or the other, it's got to be both!

via Will Bryant

And now! Sharing the love.. I really can't just choose 5, there are so many blogs and people I love.. the ones chosen below I hope they will pass forward to ones not mentioned.. and the ones not mentioned I hope they don't feel left out. Because I love you all so dearly!

Kristin of KLTworks: I feel nothing but happiness when describing Kristin. A true artist with an eagle eye on design and to all things modern & vintage. She also has a heart of gold. I mean that. She's a giver, 100 percent. On top of being sole creator of all things KLT, she's also a fantastic mom to Sayer who's quite the artist as well as we see his style evolve over at her blog (can't blame the little guy, both his parents are amazing artists!). Kristin is an incredible friend and wealth of knowledge and I just can't get enough of her! Kristin's been spreading her wings lately and has a regular feature in the La Petite online magazine as well as regular guest posts over at the La Petite blog.

Nath of Mimimouse: I fell in love with Nath's online shop and tees the instant I saw them featured over at Bloesem Blog. Simple modern designs on pure cotton tees. I bought 2 for Keira and she's still wearing them! Not only that but when I had questions about business and mom related things, Nath answered all of them, openly & honestly. She has a terrific blog where she showcases many of the wonderful places she takes her gorgeous daughter in and around London and also where she showcases many of the clothing she makes (which are all so gorgeous!) modelled on her gorgeous green-eyed lil' gal.

Sheri of Happy Little Bento, Lilian of Acquiring Taste, Lia of Bentolicious, Shirley of Lovelylanvin & Haejn of Yobodish: I've only named a few but these ladies have kept me in stitches laughing, smiling and generally feeling happy each time we connect on twitter. Which is pretty much almost every day! Honest, sweet and always positive, they are my cheerleaders even when I don't deserve it, lend an ear when I'm sad and basically are wonderful people through and through. I also get almost all my meal and bento ideas from them! Check out each of their food blogs and guaranteed, you'll have a meal idea for over a week!

Florence of Pirouette Blog: Ah yes, you know my love of Pirouette blog. And honestly, I am a big fan of Florence as well. There is no snobbery here. She is a giver as well, 100 pourcent! She has such a passion of design and fashion, that she is able and willing to share this knowledge with you and me alike. I am so glad that Bianca passed along the award to Linda of Smudgetikka and Vanessa of BozAround.. because these ladies are serious about kids fashion and travel with families. These 3 ladies have the inside view of the kids fashion biz and are pretty passionate about it too! Plus, they are all so darn amazingly nice!

Peggy of Paul & Paula: What's not to love about Peggy and her blog? There is constant motion happening at her blog and her passion for everything kid-related can be felt as soon as you land over to her site. She's a champion of the underdog and will undeniably help you out if you ask for it. She's open and honest and driven to make her blog as fresh and fun as possible. She's welcomed me into her world and I'm very glad she did. Tweet with her and she'll tweet right on back! With a slight delay for those of us not in the same time zone. lol.

Anabel of And So I Whisper blog: Anabel is one of those people who you are immediately drawn to: warm, funny, open. When she tweets with me, I can see her gesticulating with her arms and talking with expressions on her face in that south american way! I had the good fortune to meet her last year in New York city and was so glad I did. She was showcasing her newest collection at ENK trade show and even so, made sure to take care of us. What a lady! I'm in love with her hand-made beautiful accessories and love to visit her blog where we get to see both north and south american sights, food and her designs. She is a real sweetheart and wonderful person!

winter sun

2012-02-06T18:32:00.000-08:00

Winter sun, in full colour! You will see this gorgeous blue wave tunic top in full detail later on. Dreaming of summer days at the beach already.

just dance!

2012-02-05T18:33:00.000-08:00

What happens when the cousins come over with Just Dance 3 in hand? Some crazy awesome dance moves from the kiddos, that's what! Caleb can especially bustamove. Keira loved it so much she made us go out and buy it the next day and I have to admit, in between working during the day, I busted a few moves maself..

en noir et blanc

2012-02-04T13:53:00.001-08:00

Winter sun.. with days growing longer.

This is my SweetShotTuesday:

happy friday!

2012-02-03T06:41:00.000-08:00

Friday.. FRI-DAY! This is Keira, in a sea of mis-matched prints and colours. I like it! This is her pretty outfit to wear to daycare service today (ped day again) where the event of the day is... The Olympics! So.. she will be jumping, running and doing who knows what else activity in this pretty little dress. Lol. Who else wants to look good while she sweats? Oops, sorry, ladies 'perspire'.

Happy Friday my friends! I have a little clip coming up soon to share with you all. Get your dance shoes on and get ready to learn how to hippety-hop with the Keikster! Stay tuned..

And a very special GET WELL SOON goes out to our friend little TS, Sheri's awesome little mermaid over at Happy Little Bento. We're thinking of you!

retro cool

2012-02-02T16:58:00.000-08:00

I believe things happen for a reason. Most times, I think things just... happen. Tonight Keira and I were supposed to go out for some korean food with friends but we had to cancel at the last minute. Luckily, we were still at home just about to head out when my friend texted me. Whew!

I have to say, the cancellation was a blessing in disguise! Because I'm just an old fart trying to recover from going out last night and still feeling the effects of someone ~~dumping~~ shouting their problems on me at work. So the cancellation was quite a relief though, I'm still hankering for some really good korean food!

Meanwhile, Keira came home and decided to change outfits for something a little more... retro cool. What do you think of her choice? The only thing I chose were her socks (and only because she can't reach the top drawer, lol).

Cardi: Zara Kids

Dress: handmade by me

Jeggings: Appaman

Socks: Mexx Kids

monday sigh...

2012-01-30T06:26:00.000-08:00

Waiting for Keira...

A beautiful Monday morning! Hope you all had a lovely weekend.
Keira was in the best of moods (which I have to admit, is pretty much every day, lol) and was looking forward to not just her swimming lesson but ski lesson as well which surprised us. We thought she'd protest the going up the ski hill and then having to ski back down all by herself with her group part but actually, she's been enjoying it. That says a lot about her instructor. Merci Antoine! Next week, she gets to use ski poles. Woot!

And now, the start of another week.. Keira had her best friend over yesterday afternoon and then they all decided that she would sleep over at their house last night. I have to admit, it's a strange empty house when Keira's not there. Eventually I know I'll have to get used to it but right now, her 'friends', the mister and I really miss her...

Do you think pigs fly? Even if they don't, this little piggie does. Keira loved him at first sight: Piggy bumblebee! I love his little antennae..

wednesday randoms

2012-01-25T09:46:00.000-08:00

Hiya everyone! Midweek already. Huh. How'd that happen? Just wanted to share this image with you taken last weekend. Apparently, Keira is imitating me when I used to hold her when she was a baby. Lol! She's missing the unkept hair, bleary eyes and grey skin. But the expression is spot on!

I'm taking this week pretty easy but will be going full-tilt again by this Friday night. I was pretty tired yesterday and wanted to just sit on the sofa and cuddle with Keira the whole day. She let me do that for about 2 minutes before we had to leave for the day.

It's a beautiful sunny day here, here's hoping it's sunny where you are too!

happy new year!

2012-01-22T19:29:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! It's the Year of the Dragon. What does this mean? Who knows, it's just another new year.

With all the comings and goings, the weekend activities... I have almost completely forgotten about this. But we met up with my sister and her family on the ski hill and while Keira had her ski lesson (her first time up the hill and back down, by herself - with her group of course!), we put in a few runs ourselves (egads but do I ever need more practice!). Afterwards, we had yummy chinese food at our place and my sister mentioned how our mom wanted to make traditional duk-gook soup for New Year's. Oh yeah! It should have been this weekend but.. we'll postpone it for another weekend. There is no rush. This year, I would like to eliminate the rushes in my life. I just want life.

Wishing you all a very happy, prosperous and wonderful New Year!
恭禧發財

I'm also linking this up to Darcy's SweetShotTuesdays!

sneak peek + happy weekend!

2012-01-21T08:10:00.000-08:00

I found this gorgeous nautical inspired summer dress the other weekend and Keira loves to pair with her bar-none-hands-down-favourite-Owl cardi (KLTworks!)

It's the weekend! How was your week? The first two months of the new year means.. trade shows. Everyone eager to showcase their new collections. That being said, my week at work was calm yet insane. Does that make sense? I tried to stay calm yet inside, I was screaming to go on a beach vacation. Yesterday I managed to leave work early. Press proofs be damned! lol. (My a/d was there to check those out, I'm not that irresponsible. Geez)

Speaking of beach vacations, here's a sneak peek on the freelance project I'm working on. It's been an exciting 2 weeks working with a dream client (who is also a friend that I grew up with)! And also working with an incredible photographer and her studio team (who I hope to feature here soon). Last week we had a fun filled photo shoot day. All I can say to describe this project, think: beach, sun, clothing for girls and beautiful gorgeous fabrics and embellishments.

Let's leave it at that for now! I'm working on the website right now and hopefully it'll go live soon.

Enjoy the sneak peeks! And have a fabulous weekend. I'm thinking of beaches but will enjoy the ski hills.

ski lesson day!

2012-01-17T20:28:00.000-08:00

Apprehensive

Well, the weekend has come and gone and it's another full on week. Keira and I had a great fun day on Saturday.. we were at a photo shoot (more on that later, much later!). The temperature dipped to -17ºc or so and Keira was scheduled to have her first group skiing lesson Sunday. There wasn't much wind so it was okay to go!

It was really a gorgeous sunny day but my little taco had tears in her eyes! We were waiting for the ski instructor at the base of the hill and looking up, Keira thought that she had to ski down the big BIG hill by herself. Poor kiddo! I'd be crying too if that was what I was thinking.

Since it was the beginning of the ski lesson season, they had all the ski monitors and instructors come skiing down the hill in front and it was quite impressive! Ski Mont St Bruno has the largest ski school in Canada (they have over 500 ski instructors!). And while many of these instructors look like they're still in their teens, they are really really good. Especially with kids!

The instructor for Keira's group came down, took roll call, gave us all the information needed and then proceeded to take the kids to their little hill. Their procession looked like a mother duck and little ducklings behind. It was really cute.

I watched the lesson for about a half hour before I headed off to the chalet for some hot chocolate. heehee. When I went back to pick Keira up, she had a huge smile on her face and told me she had a great time. The best part of her day? Going up on the T-bar! And proudly telling me she didn't fall off, not once. Apparently, some of the other kids did. lol.

So there you have it! Our own Nancy Greene in the making.

First Interview of 2012! Meet the lovely Peggy of Paul and Paula Blog

2012-01-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Paul & Paula blog. Credit: Peggy Juche

As promised, here is my first Q&A of the New Year. And I couldn't be happier as it's the wonderful Peggy of Paul&Paula kid's fashion & design blog!

Peggy! I love this photo of her, it shows her fun
& creative side.

Peggy writes and edits what feels to me a long established kid's design blog yet it's only been in existence less than 3 years. There is a distinct style and feel to her blog in which every single time you log on, there's a guarantee you will learn and see something fresh and different. It's a mom and fashion/design lover's perspective on everything kid related! Peggy has also started a separate blog to post her beautiful photography.

Over the past year, I have been lucky to have gotten to know Peggy a bit better. She is sweet, friendly and open and judging by all her travels, work and taking care of 2 little children... very energetic! I wanted to ask her.. how does she do it all?? Let's snoop & find out more about Peggy!

Peggy, your blog Paul & Paula is a relatively new blog but reads more like an experienced one. How did you get started and what was your inspiration behind it?

Wow, thank you... I started my blog really out of the blue. Somewhere whilst browsing the net I saw a “button” on a page that said “make your own blog” (or similar). I just turned around and said to my husband: I will write a blog. I instantly knew what I will write about and that the name will be Paul & Paula. My first ideas and instincts are generally best so I did not think much further. This is how it started. I had no clue about blogs and this whole awesome world behind it. No clue what to do really, no connections... just me, my husband and lots of trying and sleepless nights.

d.nik shop in Berlin. Photo courtesy of Peggy Juche/PauletPaula blog

Has living and traveling in and around Europe influenced your blog? Where do you find most of your inspirations and are there any sites or places that inspire you on a daily or weekly basis?

Well I guess that living and traveling to many different places definitely changed and influenced my life, so YES... it does influence my blog too. I love to discover, learn, hear life stories and look at beautiful things. Writing about them, search for them and see many more on all the blogs I read on a daily basis is just really awesome.

My inspirations come from everywhere. My own kids of course, reading magazines, cycling through the city, waiting in front of the school gate and having a moment to just daydream and so on... there is no fixed “stop” I go back all the time... What I read on other blogs, and of course I do have my favorites, does inspire me but more for myself. Maybe I will change something in the house because I saw a neat idea or I cook a recipe after I saw mouthwatering pictures...

The über cute kids of Peggy! KleineR and KleineA. Photos courtesy of Peggy Juche/PauletPaula blog

Your kids are so adorable! And extremely stylish.. Since you showcase so many amazing brands on your blog, are you more influenced by them or do you have a base of brands you love and always go back to time and again?

Thank you again! I really only show brands that I like myself. So yes I would say I am influenced because it is really hard to not to shop the whole day as I am always browsing all kinds of great online shops, look books and so on. I do have “classic brands” (lets call them like this today). For example nearly all underwear as well as simple tees (even for myself) are from Petit Bateau. If I am close by I always have a look what H&M and Zara kids have on the shelves. But apart from that I mix everything. Pieces where I really could not resist whilst surfing the net or finds when we traveled. You're gonna laugh but most sneakers for the kids we bought during traveling. :)

Oh and when I am in Paris I always go to Bonton and I never leave without a new bag. (Swoon! I wish I could do the same!)

All photos, courtesy of Peggy Juche/PauletPaula blog

I know you’re a busy mom of 2, with a full time job during the day. Where do you find the time to work full time, do photography, your blog and be a mom too?! Do you have a set routine or special recipe you can share with the rest of us?

No I don’t. Really not. But it might be nice to hear that I actually quit my job just recently and can focus on my blog and all other projects I am busy with and will be revealed in 2012. But to come back to your question: I am organised yes, I am German haha, so the school lunch box is ready in the fridge for the next morning. The clothes are all out and ready to put on as well and for work I still use a kind of “old fashion” note book where I keep track and write down ideas. I would be lost without that book! And I do believe that if what you do is what you like and you are passionate about things always fall into pieces, find a way to get into your schedule... and so on. It is not always easy and there are still evenings that I spent behind the screen but seeing the results is just so rewarding.

And believe me, working from home is really nice but often I have to find my path again too...

PS: if anyone has THE recipe please share :)

Advent Calendar, Photo courtesy of Peggy Juche/PauletPaula blog

And lastly, because you’re from Europe, I wanted to ask you if there is a special holiday that is especially celebrated where you’re from? Do you have any special traditions that you love to get your kids involved with too?

This is the question that I had to think the longest, really... To be honest before kids I did not care much about holidays at all... I would never have painted eggs for Eastern or cut out snowflakes for Christmas, having kids makes it the biggest fun ever. My husband is from France and I am from Germany and on lots of occasions we actually find the middle of both rituals for special holidays. And the kids are involved in all of them. For example in Germany we have “Nikolaus” who comes overnight from the 5th to the 6th of December. You put your shoes out, nice and clean and the next morning you will find a little surprise. In France they do not do this (or just in the parts very close to Germany). Here in The Netherlands they actually celebrate Sinterklaas on the 5th in the evening and it is the main event for the kids (instead of Christmas eve) with big gifts and so on... Now... not so easy to find a way here... plus it is my husbands birthday on the 6th as well : ) In the end we put the shoes out, they got a little gift and hubby got his birthday presents on the 5th in the evening :)))

Peggy, Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions! I think it's safe to say that you've probably inspired more people to take the time to find their passion and tentatively put out their own blogs and test the waters.

To get your daily kids fashion & design fix, head on over to Peggy's blog: Paul & Paula blog and also check out her photographic journey over at Paul & Paula Photo! Check out both NOW as she's at the Kleine Fabriek trade show.

Peggy is also incredibly friendly and would love to chat with you! Head on over to twitter and find her there: @pauletpaula and check out her fab pins over at Pinterest: PaulPaula

the holidays in snapshots

2012-01-10T16:08:00.000-08:00

Has a week gone and passed? A little more than that! I feel I'm finally experiencing the New Year. Keira got sick on New Year's day and got progressively worse as the week wore on. It was a week of sleepless nights (where she was alternately extremely feverish or shivering with chills) and of course, our backup to take care of Keira during the week (she had an extra week off from school) bailed on us. While I do have an option to work from home, I really needed to be in the office as there are many projects to finish up before the big triple trade shows.

I did bring Keira in to work with me for a day along with 2 big bags full of 'stuff'. I even brought in our bean bag and I'm so glad I did! She was able to sleep on it during the afternoon. In fact, I hadn't even noticed she fell asleep until, the office fell silent and someone asked, 'is, is.. is someone snoring?'. Uh, yeah. That would be Keira. lol!

Ah well, she had some kind of really bad virus and is finally back to her normal self though she and I have been needing some extra zzz's lately. I think we all are right?

Here are some snapshots of our time off taken together! Obviously, all taken before Keira got sick. We saw family, ate a lot of food, visited a chocolaterie in the Eastern Townships and went tobogganing. We haven't really gotten much snow so far so the tobogganing was half on ice and half on grass!

Along with the extra work at work, I've taken on some more freelance work that has gotten my creative juices flowing! I hope to post about it soon.

This month is also the start to some very hectic weekends as Keira will be starting up her Junior 2 swimming classes, continuing her ballet and now, ski lessons! whew.

In the meantime, hope you're enjoying your 2nd week of the new year!

happy new year!

2011-12-31T21:08:00.000-08:00

I'd like to wish you all a wonderful & Happy New Year!
Here's to another year of happiness and good health. I'm grateful for both!
Looking forward to sharing our adventures with you for 2012.. Thanks so much for visiting us on our blog! We've loved seeing you here.

Sehebokmanipadeuseyo!

happy holidays!

2011-12-24T08:37:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays!

I wanted to take the time to wish you all a very happy Holiday season. I'm sure you've all been rushing around, getting things done and for all you entrepreneurs out there, working overtime making sure your customers get their purchases on time.

Here's wishing you a quiet, wonderful and warm time off.
Cheers! Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

an impromptu visit to Centre des sciences de Montréal

2011-12-20T19:15:00.000-08:00

Okay, before the week ends and Christmas holidays begins.. a few images of our fun outing last weekend! We were at our annual brunch for the Mister's karate club (that's Mister 1st Dan Black Belt yo) and on our way back to our parked car, we passed by the Centre des Sciences de Montréal (Science Center). Right outside was a large dinosaur statue and as Keira walked up to look at it more closely, didn't the darn thing's head start moving and roaring away? And did Keira ever jump back in surprise! haha. She was so curious, we decided to head inside and take a look at the dinosaur exhibition. It was neat-o! All the dinosaurs moved and made sounds, it was quite realistic. I even found Keira in front of some dinosaurs imitating the movements. I wish I had taped it, cuz darn it was funny.

What Keira loved the most though, was another exposition upstairs. The permanent exposition called Science 26. It's a hands-on science center for kids. I think we were there for over 2 hours. She loved it all! And tried it all.. whew.

I've got a lovely lovely Q&A interview coming up soon. But I might save it as a scrumptious morsel until after the holidays.. when we're all refreshed and ready for 2012!

Hoping you've all finished your holiday shopping and tying up loose ends, getting ready for a much needed time out. Happy Tuesday everyone!

Keira in a bubble!

bonjour!

2011-12-14T06:19:00.000-08:00

Just a fun little video with Keira. This pretty much sums up her personality. The lyrics to this song so doesn't go with the light-heartedness of this video (something to do with a couple imploding with their relationship, ha!) but I love the music nevertheless. So to my english speaking friends, hope you like it! To my french speaking friends, enjoy and oublie les mots du chanson. ; )

tiny ballerinas

2011-12-11T16:02:00.001-08:00

This weekend, Keira's ballet class had a demonstration for the parents and families. It was an opportunity for us to see the girls' progress so far and also, a chance for the girls to proudly show us what they could do so far. It was also the last class before the holidays with classes resuming in the new year. There were many yawns coming from our little Keira ballerina (as she partied hard the day before at a birthday party her aunt Loulou threw for her) but she persevered and did a lovely job! I must admit, we were a very proud mommy and Papa. She has a lovely position and beautiful leg extensions with graceful little hands. Plus, all the girls were so darn cute!

Beautiful reusable & foldable bento box

2011-12-10T10:46:00.001-08:00

By now you should know that I'm a big fan of bento & asian food. I've pretty much fallen off the bento wagon recently but I get my bento & asian food fix all around the web.

A few weeks ago, I received word that I had won a foldable bento lunch box from The Lunch Geisha blog! This informative blog is written by the lovely Nobuko who owns the online shop Lunch à Porter where you can find some of the most beautiful bento & lunch accessories from Japan. You might also recognize her as being one of the many wonderful people & businesses that donated to our Bento4Japan fundraiser.

Last week, a lovely little package came in the mail all the way from Japan and within, a beautifully wrapped foldable & reusable bento box. It was easy to fold and put together and Keira and I love the wrapping cloth. I can't wait to start bringing this box in to work for my lunches!

Read all about this beautiful box here on The Lunch Geisha's blog: Reusable & Foldable Lunch Box with Wrapping Cloth.

If you love this box and are wondering where to get your own, head on over to Lunch à Porter!
You can also find Nobuko's blog link over on the left hand side of this blog.. in the link love.

Thank you so much Nobuko for this beautiful and very handy gift!

どうもありがとう (I hope I got that right!)

Agent Pédicure

2011-12-08T16:33:00.001-08:00

I went to pick up Keira from school today and found her with this moustache and teensy goatee on her face. Haha! Apparently she's pretty reserved in class but loves her 'cours de théâtre' (drama class). She's also in the after school drama class and she has been practicing with fellow students in a play. Keira's character is a police woman named Agent Pédicure. I can't wait to see the 'spectacle'!

In the meantime, I had a good laugh capturing the many essences of Agent Pédicure!
Enjoy...

holiday vintage new

2011-12-07T02:43:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone, can you believe the Holiday madness that's already started? The past 2 weekends when we headed to the mall, it was packed. Normally, I love shopping but I must admit, I couldn't wait to get outta there. It's crazy how people and companies are celebrating the holidays earlier and earlier every year. Some people have their office christmas parties in November!

That being said, Keira is all excited about the holidays, the time off and the snow. Ah kids...

Her aunt Loulou is throwing her a family birthday celebration this weekend (I know, another one?!).

It's midweek and hope you're all enjoying it!

sunday girl

2011-12-04T08:57:00.001-08:00

Belle, Barbie and gang goes for a ride in our christmas train..

It's been another weekend of running around, getting things done, birthday party and cleaning up. I did get out last night with Keira's bff's mom for a supper out though. It felt so good! Just us moms eating a great dinner and then realizing our local coffee shop was closed for the night so we headed into town for some Rockaberry's! Worth the ride in. Plus, the Mister and I had an impromptu supper out on Friday night as Keira was invited to go see Hugo with Miss C. Wow, a great weekend!

Hope you all had a great one too!

p.s. We assembled the xmas tree, Keira did all the decorations herself. Can you tell?

little ballerina

2011-12-03T09:01:00.000-08:00

Keira received a whole bunch of new jammies from her Aunt in SoCal.. she loves them all! And I'm so grateful for them too, whodathunk she'd outgrow the ones she has now so fast? Thanks Big Sis!

Hope you're all enjoying your Saturday! It's a beautiful sunny and crisp day here in the YUL and we're about to go out and let Keira choose a charm to add to her charm bracelet. The bracelet was supposed to be a surprise for her on her sweet 16 but the didn't the kiddo sniff it out and now wants to choose what goes on it?? Ah well.. she'll still only get to wear it on her 16th. hehe.

There are tons of crafts and gifts fairs happening in town but the amount of construction as well as less than stellar parking spaces are keeping us away. Maybe we'll make it to one next week but I'm not counting on it. Too much living to do on the weekends!

Have a great weekend everyone! Thanks for stopping by this week. : )

sweet birthday cake - jag's sweet delights

2011-11-30T18:21:00.000-08:00

One of the shows (that doesn't involve Hannah Montana, Selena Gomez or any other Disney personalities) Keira and I love to watch together is... Cake Boss with Buddy and now, The Next Great Baker. We get all nervous when they have to move the cakes and while the show's going on, Keira will grab whatever's around and 'make' her own cake (like, um, doing her own fairy themed 'cake' out of the kleenex box, christmas ornaments and paper).

I saw this incredible cupcake cake on Jag's Sweet Delights and I knew Keira would love it!

Jag is the owner and baker behind Jag's Sweet Delights and she is personable, incredibly professional and oh so nice. She even came up with alternative cake designs for me and while I loved them all, I just knew the cupcake version was the one. She even made an eggless mini cupcake version of the cake for one of Keira's friends who is allergic to eggs (and let me tell you, there were tears and fighting over those 2 mini cupcakes!).

As most of my friends know, I don't really like cake but I have to say, I ate a huge slice of this one! Seriously moist & chocolately with yummy buttercream frosting. You can see a slice leftover in the photo above but honestly, there was nothing left afterwards but crumbs. The kids all had seconds and some of the parents were secretly hoping there would be enough for seconds for them too (there was, barely).

Can you see Keira's reaction to her cake? Can you see everyone else's reaction too? They LOVED this cake! It was the highlight of the party. Keira especially loved the heart with her name on it.

Thank you so much Jag for making my little girl's day that much more special!

If you're thinking of having a special cake made for your birthday, wedding or special occasion, I would highly recommend Jag's Sweet Delights! They don't just make kiddie birthday cakes.
Check out their website and especially their Gallery: Jag's Sweet Delights
And go ahead and 'Like' them on Facebook! facebook.com/Jags-Sweet-Delights

lucky girl, lucky seven! a birthday celebration

2011-11-29T04:30:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday to my mini taco! This amazing gift from the heavens above turns Lucky Seven today!
The Mister and I count our lucky stars each and every day for this little spark plug.

She makes us:
Laugh, cry, smile, want to tear our hair out, feel years younger, feel miles older, feel like we're parenting by the seat of our pants, look like amazing parents when we're out in public (when we're not really), feel anxious, worry, swell with pride, do the crazy Elaine dance (sure in public too!), be a comedian, be a boo-boo healer, a tear wiper, be her biggest fan, cheerleader, be the tickle monster.. and most importantly...
She makes us incredibly happy.

Keira celebrated her birthday 2 weeks early with all her friends and cousins at the Petit Gym. What a wonderful place to have a party! They take care of everything.. activities (they make the kids run around like crazy so they go home nice and tired afterwards), cake cutting, opening presents and the cleaning up. So worth it! Check out Keira's birthday cake! I had it custom made by Jag's Sweet Delights (more on the cake in a post to come).

We knew she enjoyed her party because on the way to supper in chinatown, she spontaneous burst out saying, "that was my best birthday party ever! I love you mommy and Papa!". *melt*

It really was a terrific birthday party day.

Happy birthday my little taco. We will and will always be, your biggest fan.

And cuz I want to share my little girl's happy day, I'm linking this up with Sweet Shot Tuesdays over at My3Boybarians and Communal Garden.

our junior 2 girl!

2011-11-27T09:11:00.001-08:00

Hooray! Keira passed her swimming and has graduated to level Junior 2!
What a long way she's come from being that tiny 3 year old who hated being in the water and turned blue the instant her feet touched the water. Who redid at least 3 levels because she didn't like putting her head under water and was indignant every time her swim instructors deflated her floater. Now look at her!
We call her the torpedo and barracuda because she loves being underwater and silently kicks her way from one end of the pool to the other. We can't wait to see her continue her love for the pool and start learning the side stroke. Whoohoo!

saturday mix with kltworks

2011-11-26T18:55:00.001-08:00

What better way to dress up on a Saturday than in her new bunny long sleeved tee? Especially paired up with some polka dots? Ah yes... Perfect!

Thank you Kristin for Keira's birthday surprise! Keira when she saw the bunny on the tee:
"oh my lit-tle bunny! he's shoooo cute!" (and then rubbed the bunny image). Lol!

You can find the bunny tee here: KLTworks

bon matin!

2011-11-24T06:10:00.001-08:00

Here are some of Keira's fave gifts she received for her birthday.. Lalaloopsy doll and Monster High... We will be clearing out some of her older toys, clean it and give it away to someone who will love it again.

Bon matin everyone! Apologies for the lack of posts lately. I haven't been inspired lately. The weather has made me want to hunker down, snuggle in and want to hibernate. We had our first snow fall yesterday and seeing all the white stuff has the kiddo excited and me... not.

We celebrated Keira's birthday early by having her party last weekend. She loved it! I'll put together a post soon and share some pics.. The cake that I had made for her birthday was gorgeous! I shall show soon.

Lately I feel like a tire stuck in snow with my wheels turning in motion. I'm turning as fast as I can without actually getting anywhere. Anyone else feeling the same way? I can't wait for the weekend.

oh butterflies!

2011-11-13T14:25:00.001-08:00

Last weekend, I added this butterfly comforter to Keira's bed. The nights have been getting chillier and even though I know Keira becomes a human heater when she falls asleep, I know that once that first hot spell wears off, she can get chilly as the night wears on. My mother brought this beautiful satin and silk comforter from Seoul a few years ago. At first, my sister received it and then, as her 2 boys were born I guess the theme of 'butterflies' didn't exactly mesh well with a 'boy' bedroom theme. So I became the lucky recipient of this beautiful and quite heavy comforter.

Keira and I love to look at the embroidered butterflies and choose which we love best. All of them!

P.s. You may have noticed the different placing of her bed. Keira decided she wanted her furniture the way it was before the 'big girl' room. So the bed is placed by the wall again. To be honest with you, there is much more space now and everything flows much better.

a fall weekend

2011-11-13T14:21:00.001-08:00

a fall staple: the fournier scarf

2011-11-09T11:30:00.001-08:00

Nothing completes a Fall look than this luscious and beautiful hand-made Fournier scarf. So pretty!
Thanks Anabel...

Folks, it's almost Friday.. it's been a wonderful week for us at home. Here's wishing all of you had a similar kind of week and hoping you all have a terrific weekend!

preparations for an upcoming birthday

2011-11-09T11:19:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast Keira's birthday is approaching. Has it been a year already? My 'baby' will be turning 7 soon. Gah!

Since there seems to be no stopping to all the rush projects at work, I decided to plan and put together Keira's birthday party last October. I had already designed and sent out her invitations last month even though the party itself will be held closer to the end of this month.

This year, Keira decided she wanted to have her party held at a gym place which is great for me as well. I won't have to deal with a messy house and the gym place will take care of all the activities. Yay!

I also put in an order for a very special birthday cake that will be a surprise for Keira. I can't wait for her to see it!

Keira helped me fill up the loot bags 2 weeks ago and I made a frothy, tulle skirt for her to wear made from leftover tulle and fabrics.

As you can imagine, I have a very excited little girl who can't wait for her birthday celebration in 2 weeks time.

an indian summer day downtown

2011-11-08T18:34:00.000-08:00

Day 2 of 3 of my break from work and Keira from school...
We spent the balmy, gorgeous indian summer day downtown having our hair cut and styled at the salon. There is nothing I love more than to spend a day with my girl!

1/ A stop at DKNY at Les Cours Montréal
2/ Checking out the aerial sculptures before heading to the escalators up to the salon
3/ Quiet as a church mouse she was...
4/ Outside on Ste Cath.. notice the curls in her hair?
5/ A stop at Indigo bookstore where she picked up a copy of Geronimo Stilton
6/ Yep, curls still in place.. off to The Bay!
7/ After lunch at Il Fiori for pizza, we went in search of chocolate ice cream. Keira got her fix at Laura Secord at the Eaton Center
8/ Indian summer day downtown. We also bumped into a lovely wonderful friend and someone we rely on at work for amazing retouch work! Allo Alex...
9/ After an amazing morning and afternoon downtown, we took the métro back home. What better way to spend the ride back than reading her new book?

Hope you all had a lovely day too!

La Petite, Issue 6

2011-11-07T16:18:00.000-08:00

This cover is incredible! Photography: Karolina Henke, La Petite Mag

I'm in love with these black & white images.. Photography: Annabel Sougné, La Petite Mag

Another great article by Kristen L. Theiss of KLTworks!

Issue 6 of La Petite mag is out and it is really one of the most sophisticated and chic issues to date. The photography, styling and layout is incredible. Kudos to the entire La Petite team as well as all the stylists, photographers and everyone involved in the content and making of! It's a gorgeous issue.. Click here to view the issue: lapetitemag.com

All images courtesy of La Petite Mag

3 day break!

2011-11-07T04:53:00.000-08:00

Today begins my 3 day break with Keira! I feel so at peace.. I wish I could win the lottery so I could stay home forever with her. Yes, she asks me a zillion questions and yes, I do have to help her put on those darn rubber clothing on Polly Pockets. Sure I have to get her a blanket when she's feeling cold, then some drinks and snacks when she's hungry. I have to put in the discs of all the movies she wants to watch.. The house becomes a super mess. Yeah, and so?

Day 1 begins with "Annie", some breakie and then off to a warehouse sale with Keira's aunties.. then off for a lunch together and sadly, a stop back at the office for some work. But after that, we're free! Have a great Monday everyone!

ski stance

2011-11-06T18:18:00.000-08:00

Have you turned back the clock? Is that not the most annoying and confusing thing ever? I barely felt the weekend. The usual running around but we did spend time with family and got Keira her skis for the upcoming winter season. She'll be starting ski lessons in January but it's better to get skis now before everything is gone. Buying new skis at this age is pretty moot and useless as kids will outgrow the boots and skis by next season so we rent. You can either rent older or new models. Le Papa decided to rent his princesse new skis so she could choose what she wanted. Hm. Whodathunk she'd choose skis with a hummingbird and flowers on it? Uh huh.

And now, 3 whole days with my buhbee! Who cares if I have to work a bit from home... 3 whole days with my Kiki!

happy friday!

2011-11-04T04:23:00.000-07:00

Kitty cat Keira. Tee from KLTworks

It's Friday! Friday. One last push at work and I get to be with my Keira for 3 whole days next week. Sometimes, I don't like to think how lucky I am with her because I don't want to jinx anything. I certainly don't take this awesome little kid for granted. This week, Keira came home with a 'meritas' award for excellence in english class! She's climbed the top of the merit calendar in her class twice since school began. Um, competitive? Methinks a bit. Perfectionist? Yes, slightly. But she's also a goofball and able to create quite a mess. Perfection in chaos.

Happy Friday everyone, enjoy your weekend!

anorak mag at drawn & quarterly bookshop

2011-11-02T05:59:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, I decided that it was high time we headed out to Drawn & Quarterly. A publisher of independent comics (graphic novels?), they also own and operate a bookstore by the same name. I knew they carried Anorak kids magazine but I just never found the right time to head over to their shop. Well, we finally made it! I think Keira and I could've stayed in their kid's corner for a few more hours.. They have quite a serious and wonderful selection.

Keira picked up Little Mouse Gets Ready which she has loved reading ever since. She just finds it funny that the mouse has to put on his clothes, just like she does every morning. But there's a hilarious twist to the story! You'll have to read it to find out.

I also picked out a book for a special little someone.

I bought Keira 2 Anorak mags: one in english and one in french so she can practice reading both. She has really picked up on reading now and in the span of a minute or so, she can go through teary frustration to complete and utter elation. This morning, she picked up a mini chip bag from her halloween loot and read out loud: "Do-ree-tos". Doritos! lol. Actually, her reaction was more like, 'doritos? what the heck is that?'. Um, one of your favorite chips!

Last night, we were colouring in a page in Anorak that Keira and Papa finished off this morning. She finds all the colours and drawings fascinating in the magazine but what really holds her interest are all the colouring pages and text games. It's really an interactive static book! And the fact that it comes in both french and english versions is really a bonus for us. Papa gets to read the french version to Keira and I, the english.

If you're interested, you can pick up Anorak through their online shop or check their stockists to see where you can purchase yours.

If you happen to have an iPhone, they have a superb app as well! Download yours at the Apple app store.

And of course, if you happen to be in my home town of Montréal, don't forget to check out Drawn & Quarterly over on Bernard street (west) in lovely Outremont. It's a tiny little shop but I think well worth it. They also carry the awesome Uppercase magazine!

happy halloween!

2011-10-31T06:42:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween everyone! Keira got to dress up for school instead of wearing her uniform today. She dressed up as Frankie Stein, Monster High. I know I know, what in heck is this new thang? Whatevs. The point is, we all got up super late, I rushed Keira into her costume, added on some face make-up and curled up her hair and voilà! Rushed her off to school!

Hope you all have a magical day today and to my friends across the border with all that snow? Hope you find a way to have a magical time too.

coffee for kids day in honour of vaughn, Entre le café et la plume

2011-10-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

These stunning and gorgeous photography on display are by Vaughn's dad, Paulo. All proceeds of these sales go to the Montreal Children's hospital & Make-A-Wish foundation.

Another weekend come and gone. Yesterday Keira was supposed to go to her first halloween party but she was suffering from a cold and after her swim lesson, was out like a light. So she missed it. After all that sleep yesterday, she woke up in better spirits today.

Enjoying some chocolat chaud, or as Keira liked to call it, her 'capuccino'.

We decided to go out today and head to Entre le Café et la Plume café on Mont Royal. There was an extra special event being held there. The café was donating all the proceeds of coffee sales to the Montreal Children's Hospital and the Make-A-Wish foundation in honour of a very dear friend's son, Vaughn. This little angel passed away a few years ago and believe you me, I think of him almost every time I see Keira's little face. His legacy of love lives on and when I feel like life is punching me in the face, I remember Vaughn and remember that it's family and friends who are the most important part of my life.

I also think his parents and especially his mom, my friend from childhood, to be one of the most courageous and positive people I know. After all she and her family have been through, she's still smiling and living life to the fullest. I honour and respect this woman.

I was so glad to see her, her husband and most importantly... to remember our angel Vaughn.

happy friday!

2011-10-28T05:43:00.000-07:00

Well folks, fatigue has finally caught up with me. I am officially burnt toast. hehe.

Keira is into her 3rd or 4th week (or 6th??) of her after school cooking class and this week, it was Halloween themed. She came home with these halloween finger cookies to bake! I think they look a little gross but she thinks they're really fun. It's regular butter cookies with jelly bean finger nails (yikes, I might gag).

I'm going to leave work early today to cheer Keira and her classmates on a 1km walk/run/jog this afternoon to raise money for the Sainte-Justine hospital here in Montreal (you can read more about it here: 1km.org). The Sainte-Justine focuses on babies, teenagers and mothers. The mister and I brought in the envelope and asked our respective coworkers to 'cough it up'! Keira hit up her family. lol.

Hope it's been a wonderful week for you all. It's turned pretty darn chilly here and we've been wearing our beanies and scarves lately. Stay warm and toasty everyone!

makr carry goods

2011-10-26T03:28:00.000-07:00

After over 8 years, countless trips and once stolen (then found under the racks at Zara! The store manager called me), my Bottega Veneta zip wallet was on it's last, well, zipper. After months of searching for the right replacement, I welcomed my new Makr Corner Zip wallet a few weeks ago.

As with my Bottega, I love Makr's quality and understated, quiet elegance. There are no screaming logos. It's also the perfect size, able to fit in my jacket pocket and neatly in my hand. The leather is buttery soft and I love that it's hand crafted. Another top notch quality of Makr? Excellent customer service. When I sent an email to them inquiring about when the Corner Zip was going to be back in stock, I wasn't expecting a response about an hour later. I became a Makr wantr then and there. And when it was back in stock, they emailed to let me know!

Here's to many years of wear and tear & following me to travels and adventures to come.

You can peruse Makr Carry Goods online shop here: www.makr.com

fall accessories

2011-10-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Has it already been a week since my last post? I've been so busy at work that I come home with too much buzzing around in my head without it making much sense at all. Ever had that feeling? The good news is that the big project at work is done! The bad news is.. that's not the only rush deadline I have. Boo.

A few weeks ago, I saw this unusual and fun necklace from Anabel's Fournier line and it was just a 'coup de foudre'! I had to have it. It came in the post a while ago and I've been wearing it to work. I love getting that double-take look when I wear it and the smiles and questions of, 'where'd you get that?'.

Anabel has been so incredibly kind to us (Keira & I) that even though I had only ordered the PomPom necklace, she put in a special little something for Keira as well. Really, we do not deserve that but we're humbled and appreciate this incredible kindness. Thank you so much Anabel!

This necklace is just a fun way to dress up my fall wardrobe and Keira has been loving wearing her pink 'shroom necklace as well! For all those long days at work, this necklace made me feel dressed up (even though I had dark circles under my eyes) and made me smile.

There are some gorgeous accessories in the most luscious jewel-toned colours in Anabel's fall collection, you need only head to her online shop to check them out and add to your fall wardrobe!

Anabel has also been recently featured over at Babyccino Kids! Read the feature here: babyccinokids.com/blog/2011/10/13/fournier

www.andsoiwhisper.com
fournier.bigcartel.com
@andsoiwhisper

an evening out at l'Unico

2011-10-17T18:26:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday evening with my sister and mother in law at our house, we decided to head out to eat supper. Keira's ankle pain came and went, and came again but she hobbled into the restaurant. There is a pizza resto that we have come to love. It's called Unico and their fire brick oven makes all the difference! That fire brick oven turns out the crispiest, chewiest flat bread pizzas in all its varieties and flavours.

Now, a short 5 years ago, food anywhere off the island of Montreal was horribly amiss. Especially on the south shore. About the only decent food you could order was pizza and chicken. Fast forward to today and there are so many amazing restos, cafés and bistros off the island, it saves you from the headache of traveling to the island for amazing food. And believe me, with the amount of crazy construction all over the place, it's enough to make you hunker down at home and never see the light of day until it's all done!

Unico is one of those amazing places to eat. The staff and owners are so friendly and the pizzas! Sigh...

Keira had the Margherita.. plain, simple and fresh.. Oh so yummy! The Mister had the smoked meat pizza and the in-laws shared their pizza with a side salad. I can never resist the Diablo. Spicy!

The restaurant just relocated to a new location and the view is beautiful. It's frequented by couples young and old but families are also welcome as well. After all, it's owned by Italians! Lover of families, good food and good times. We had a great evening..

Trop mangé... Keira's super cute pink mushroom necklace by Fournier!

the ankle

2011-10-15T13:57:00.000-07:00

Keira woke up from her ankle-ouch induced nap this afternoon feeling... so-so. I'm sure it still hurts a bit but I have a feeling it's something she needs to overcome in her head a bit more (afraid of the same painful sensation again).

Nothing that her tante Loulou (aunt) can't help cure! A visit from Loulou along with Grandmaman this afternoon is just what the doctor ordered.

Halloween Bento!

2011-10-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

It's a blustery cold day today and we're, all three, snuggled inside the house. Keira did something to her ankle and is now snuggled deep under covers in her bed trying to sleep it off. Hopefully she didn't twist anything. Strange how she reacts to things. She's fallen off the monkey bars, hit her face hard and scraped it on asphalt with barely a reaction or a cry yet a little tap on her finger could send her wailing for hours. Anyhoo, hope it resolves itself.

Apologies for being MIA lately. After this month, I should be back to normal hours at work.

I've been noticing a whole amazing new slew of Halloween themed bentos around the world and I wanted to try my hand at it today for Keira's lunch. Last weekend, I ended up at Pier 1 and bought some super cute halloween decorations. The bat was my inspiration today! Using mini sausages wrapped in philo dough, I added nori wings and stuck them in between the philo layers. Next, after seeing string cheese mummies here and here, I wanted to add that as well. The string cheese is easier to manipulate after placing it on the sausages and warming it up for about 8 seconds in the microwave. Add some cherry tomatoes et voila. Simple and fun lunch!

If only it could have prevented the ankle situation with the Keikster.. sigh.

Hope you all enjoy your weekend!

For more Halloween bento fun, check out Sheri's Happy Little Bento, Lia's Bentolicious and Flickr's Obento My Bento! group and Pinterest's bento search results. Love them all!

Another perfect day

2011-10-10T17:48:00.000-07:00

Another perfect day here.. We went off for a long hike up Mont St Bruno with my sister and her family. Picnic lunch by the lake, the kids running around, getting fresh air, warm Fall day. How can a day get any better?

The perfect apple picking day!

2011-10-09T17:16:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the sparse posting lately. It's crazy time at work and I've been pulling all nighters for a few weeks now. It won't be letting up until the end of October. Hopefully. Because I am in need of some serious R&R time.

When I was a kid, I used to go apple picking with my family almost every autumn. Every year, the mister and I would say to ourselves that we should bring Keira and every year, we'd completely miss apple picking season. Well not this year! It's turning out to be a gorgeous, sunny and warm long weekend. Like Indian summer... This is our Thanksgiving weekend but really, it's not the big holiday for us here like Christmas is.

This will probably be the last of the summer like weather here and I promised myself to enjoy it with Keira and the mister instead of staying indoors and working. I'm saving the working after Keira goes to sleep (hohum).

On a whim, we decided to head out to the local mountains here and check out the apple ochards. I think everyone else had the same idea because the car line-up was insane. We headed to Mont St Hilaire and ended up at one of the larger run orchards. The hayride heading inside the apple orchard was one of Keira's favourite moments of the day! But what she really loved was looking for and picking the apples. She carefully checked them all out and if it didn't meet her standards, they were sadly dropped or weren't picked at all.

It was such a gorgeous day. Thankfully this weather will last for a few more days. And once we got home? Keira washed some apples and we both had one. Oh wow. These McKintosh were juicy, crunchy, slightly tart and not too sweet. Just perfect!

Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend too!

retro toys

2011-10-06T03:36:00.000-07:00

Can these really be called 'retro'? Some of the toys I used to love playing with when I was a kid, seems to be resurfacing right now and being loved all over again by a new generation. While yo-yo's, Barbies, cars and hacky sacks have never gone out of style some others disappeared completely off the shelves the last few years.

How about this thing (what in heck was this thing ever called?!).. where you scratched & drew on it, then lifted the top layer off to erase it and start all over again? We got this flash from the past toy in a treasure chest freebie toy bin for kids at a local restaurant. Keira loves it.

And recently, Keira has been coming home with even more bruises and cuts than usual from school. Was she pushed around? Shoved to the ground by a big bad bully? Nah. She's been practicing climbing on the monkey bars (now that she's gotten taller) and falling, getting back up and doing it all over again. Last week she came home with 2 scraped knees (one bandaged up). When I asked her what happened she told me that she was playing with 'this thing that you put on your foot, around your cheville (ankle) and you make it go around and you jump'. Hey man, that's the lemon twister! Remember those? I was obsessed with mine when I was younger. She then asked me to buy her one so she could practice and not fall again. I tried to find it online but I couldn't for the life of me know what they market the 'lemon twister' today. Facebook to the rescue and my friends let me know it's called Skip It (how boring is that?!) and my sister let me know that it could be found at ToysRUs. Actually, my sister bought it for me since I couldn't find it myself.

What have you been seeing lately that reminds you of your childhood?

milk & soda goodness!

2011-10-05T03:46:00.000-07:00

I love these cool shades & lego inspired watch!

A few weeks ago, I received an interesting link in my inbox. Not only do I love the name of this online company, Milk & Soda, but I love their website! Plus, if you must know, I veer more towards accessories than clothing and this shop has accessories galore. Okay, Pop Culture: Remember the tv show Laverne & Shirley and Laverne's oddball drink of choice, milk & Pepsi? Yep, definitely loving the name of this shop.

Back to the shop.... Bow ties anyone? They have such fun ones! How about bright neon laces? Or even terrific sunglasses, like mini Ray Ban inspired ones? This shop is great for stylists looking for great accessories and mini fashionistas to polish their wardrobe. I'm loving it all.

Get a load of this aviator hat. I love it. I've been trying to convince Keira to be Carl (though right now, what with her tooth gone on top, she looks more like Ellie!) or even Snoopy as the Red Baron for Halloween. That would be da bomb! For something a little more classy, how about your kids channeling their inner Amelia E?

G'head and check out Milk & Soda's shop! www.milknsoda.com.au
You can also catch them over at Babyccino's Kids boutique portal here: babyccinokids.com/milknsoda
Any questions? Wanna chat? Connect with them via twitter: @milknsoda

And for nostalgia's sake, here's the theme song to Laverne & Shirley... I think it kinda goes with this shop!

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Schlemiel! Schlimazel!Hasenpfeffer Incorporated... we're gonna make our dreams come true...

smells like, hm, tween spirit

2011-10-03T03:28:00.000-07:00

Flashes of tween spirit. Scary. I want to hold onto 6yo Keira for as long as I can. I break out in a sweat whenever I start to think of Keira in her teens. Will she hate me? Will she want nothing to do with me? Will all those hormones work against me? Everyone who has daughters keep telling me to 'watch out'. Girls fight with their moms while their sons love them throughout any stage. Gulp. Is this true? What?

I took these photos at my sister's place. I thought it was fun while Keira wore my striped beanie looking like she was channeling some Seattle spirit (minus the java) what with the rainy weather outside... but looking at the photos at home, it hit me how much she's grown.

Yep, smells like tween spirit.

weekend djeco fun

2011-10-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

When we're not running around from swimming to ballet to the grocery store, what keeps two best friends occupied when it's cold and raining outside? How about some fun paper crafts. Keira received all these Djeco craft boxes for christmas and her birthday. She's only just started to open them up (after 2 christmases!) and having fun with them. The stamp box is especially a hit as well as the art by numbers with felt markers.

I must admit, I love the quality of each art in a box and I love how you can put everything away in it's beautiful box and not worry about it's contents spilling out as each has it's own elastic band to keep it shut. It's also beautiful to display!

Check out the super fun website for Djeco here: www.djeco.com

just chill

2011-10-01T20:33:00.000-07:00

My little joker, showing me some animals she played in her after school 'arts dramatique' class. This is her mischievous swan (or maybe duck?).
Kiki's 'bite me' stare.

Saturday morning and there was a chill in the air. October 1st and boy did Mother Nature let us know it! What do you do when it's chilly & raining outside? We headed out to my sister's place for supper, that's what we did! Forget the design layouts I ran out of time doing at work and brought home to finish this weekend. Just for this weekend, just for this Saturday... no work. Just me. Just family. Just rain.

Just chill.

Keira is constantly attracted to pianos and loves to try her hand at it. We really need to get her piano lessons.

beauty is..

2011-09-28T20:14:00.000-07:00

On a daily basis, I tell my Keikster how much I love her and ask her, why is she so darn cute? I think after all this time, this cuteness business runs right over her head. I mean, she knows it, I say it all the time to her. But what does it really mean? Lately, I've been telling Keira that she's beautiful because it radiates from the inside of her. Her kindness, her spontaneity, her happiness radiates all the way to the outside and it shows on her face. This, I keep telling her, is the real reason why I think she's beautiful.

She doesn't fully understand it yet. She takes it quite literally. Beauty inside? What's inside? Is there yucky stuff in me? It shows on my face? Really?

Kids really do say the darndest things.

But most times, they just laugh in your face and run away.

lingering evening light, sweet shot tuesday

2011-09-27T04:05:00.000-07:00

So I saw Darcy of My3Boybarians tweet that this will be the last Sweet Shot Tuesday for a while (about 4 weeks!). Since I'm up anyways working late, I thought I'd get in a post for it. I took these shots on Sunday in the evening. I didn't even realize Keira was only in her skivvies until I asked her to please please put on at least a tee. The lighting was beautiful and I wanted to see if I could get some interesting shadows playing on her sweet face.

When I asked her if she could sit in the evening sunlight as well as put on a tee all I got was,
"But mommy! I'm super hot... like toast! I'm melting".

Um, did I mention we have central air with the a/c going on? Ye-ah. Only the Keikster would be 'hot like toast'. lol.

Oh and see that last pic? Where she's smiling? These will be the last of her 'baby' smiles as both top teeth are loose, one hanging on like a swing hingeing wildly back and forth. All four of her baby bottom teeth have already fallen out. I'm so happy to see her grow and reach all these milestones yet, yet.. am gulping back emotions as I can't bear to see her shed the 'baby' so fast!

Tomato #twitterfoodparty

2011-09-26T08:34:00.000-07:00

Our mini garden bounty
Basil, cherry tomato & mini aubergine (eggplant)
She's all about the sauce!
Sundried tomato pizza

I made it! Well, I made it to this month's twitter food party (which I usually don't make it to) but we, as in Keira and I, made it! This month's twitter food party as hosted by the ever talented and wonderful LovelyLanvin. This month's theme: tomatoes!

About 2 weeks ago, Keira and I made home-made pizza together. I'm surprised there was any pizza sauce leftover to use on our pizzas as Keira usually spoons it out and eats it before it gets spread out. lol.

I used the baby sized aubergines (eggplants) and tomatoes from our garden that I had pre-baked with course salt and olive oil with fresh basil. Keira's version is straight up sauce, pepperoni and cheese. We didn't make the dough but instead bought it at our local deli who makes it fresh pretty much daily.

This weekend, I also made a tomato + goat cheese toasted sandwich. Our tomatoes are so tasty, packed with flavour without the big pockets of seeds and water like you get with the supermarket variety. Add some goat cheese to the toasted bread and you get this mouth watering bite of fresh tomato with warm creamy goat cheese, mmmmm...

Get in on the action and join the #twitterfoodparty!

We are here: BozAround!

2011-09-25T17:23:00.000-07:00

I'm sure an introduction is not needed for BozAround, Vanessa Boz's inspirational travel blog (Vanessa is one of Milk Magazine's London correspondent). It's one of my favorite blog reads and I vicariously live through the lush and vibrant photos that she posts of her travels (like the almost year long world tour she did with her family last year) or of the families and people she features. My dream is to travel around the world with my little family one day and until then, I dream through BozAround.

A while back, Vanessa asked me to participate to be part of her travel features and while I wrote back about Virginia Beach, I think she had more in mind something about my home town of Montréal! Lol. Oops. Ah well.. Here we are today, featured on her travel series!

Thank you so much Vanessa for letting us be a part of your fantastic blog! And for letting me reminisce yet again of sandy beaches, warm sunshine and wonderful memories.

If you don't know about Vanessa's BozAround yet, head on over and let your wanderer self be inspired. If you are a traveller or will be travelling, you must check her blog out as you will get detailed information on where to stay, what to do and where to eat with or without kids! It's a site you need to bookmark and take notes.

bozaround.com

Also, send her a tweet! @BozAround

saturday family

2011-09-25T08:41:00.000-07:00

The boys fight over who makes coffee and who makes the toast
The village is annihilated by this giant boy in green tee

Today solidified what we knew in our minds, that our Keira is quite the competitive sportster. The Mister and I couldn't stop laughing while watching Keira in her swimming class. The instructors pair up the little swimmers throughout the class and make them swim it out from one end of the pool to the in-water platform and each and every single time, we watched Kiki swim out her heart to reach the platform or edge of the pool first (occasionally glancing backwards, making sure whoever else is in the water with her is behind her). lol! While I love her competitiveness, I've seen it get the best of her and see her break down when she's not first. I only hope I can teach her to enjoy the process rather than become frustrated by it. I want her to have FUN.

Apart from all this, we've been enjoying some humid summer weather still and yesterday we had my sister's family come over for a fun visit. Not only do I love it when they come over, my sister usually manages to bring over some food. She's an incredible cook and we enjoyed her home-made honey glazed ribs (finger licking yumminess!) and salad.

The best part about the kids growing up? We can pretty much relax and have our laughs while they play, argue, work it out by themselves. We just provide the snacks and drinks. haha.

Hope you're all enjoying an awesome weekend!

happy friday friends!

2011-09-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

Has a week gone by already? It felt as if it went by both quickly and slowly at the same time. Make sense? Mmmhm. Me neither.

Keira has been creating this 'village' for about a week now. Every morning before school and every night, she keeps adding, placing, replacing shops, studios, homes & buildings comprised of every single Pet Shop, Little Critters, Polly Pockets and who knows what else. She calls it her village. People eat cakes in the cake shop, have ballet in the studio and even go to school (you can't see the school, it's her Rapunzel tower father off)! Her brain, it's a-growin'!

Keira also had her first cooking class this week and came home with these goodies: mango chicken with cream cheese baguette sandwich and an orange smoothie. She wasn't too keen on the cream cheese taste but can't get enough of the smoothie. Thumbs up!

On top of the swimming, ballet, cooking and violin.. there is one extra class she wants to take: dramatic arts. We missed the registration deadline but we'll try to get her in it. Apparently, the Mister also loved to try every single thing when he was a kidster way back when. It seems the apple really doesn't fall far from the tree. I am so glad and thankful I have a little girl with an adventurous spirit!

Happy Friday my friends!

premier pas, ballet

2011-09-19T19:12:00.000-07:00

Velvet Hello Kitty jacket: Zara, Paris dress: Mini Rodini

Keira had her first ballet class and enjoyed it tremendously. She also met up with a few friends from school and the pool. It was a sweet gathering of girls, ballet slippers, giggles and squeals of delight.

There was also some fun face painting at our local grocery store!

late summer saturday sun

2011-09-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

Are you having a good weekend? Hope so. The weather is spectacular here in the YUL. It makes up (mildly) for the fact that we are missing out on my niece's wedding to the man of her dreams out in California and missing out seeing and being with my family out west. Sadness. The weather also makes up for the late nights I've been working for the job. Talking about the job, our social club committee put on a fun end of summer photo contest and I won for best portrait with this photo! Actually, as the 5à7 festivities were happening in our showroom, I was still at my desk trying to get a few more things done before heading home and one of my coworkers (who was one of the judges) kept coming to my desk asking me when I'd be done. After 3 times, she finally grabbed me and told me that I should at least be there for the contest winners, just to show my support. When they called my name, ah... I finally understood why she just couldn't let me go!

Back to yesterday... After Keira's swimming class, my mom came over and we spent time with her. We then went out for dinner which was so nice and relaxing. Keira barely ate as fatigue set in and she spent most of the time fidgeting and lying down on the banquette chair. If it hadn't turned slightly chilly in the evening, I would have loved to have eaten outside. Eating outside in California with my family, celebrating my niece's wedding would have been better too. Ah well...

happy friday!

2011-09-16T04:02:00.000-07:00

It's Friday! Keira has been watching Mary Poppins lately and occasionally, I can hear her belt out this song on loop: "just a spoonful of sugah helps the medicine go down, the medicine go down the medicine go dooooooown". lol.

This is also the start to another season of weekend activities. Keira will continue swimming lessons and new this year, ballet!

What are your plans this weekend? Whatever the outcome, I wish you all a lovely lovely weekend!

princess pancakes

2011-09-14T20:25:00.000-07:00

Because there's no time like pancake time to wear your crown...

Cotton crown by EllieBellieKids

mini rodini + shak shuka = mixmatch heaven

2011-09-13T15:50:00.000-07:00

As Keira pointed out to me recently, Fall is a'comin. Leaves are starting to fall (a bit) and turn yellow (slightly). I can't bear to think of it! I find dresses so much easier to deal with for Keira. Nothing that will hang off her shoulders or fall off her waistline. Just slip on and go! Accessorize with a skinny belt or baubles around her neck. That's it. When I saw the fall collection of dresses on Shak Shuka, I knew I needed to order some straightaway. Prerequisites: Long-sleeved, cotton and cool. To fit the bill? Mini Rodini to the rescue! Fell in love with their Peacock & Paris dresses. The quality is terrific and most importantly, the fit is awesome. I can't stand clothing that look amazing but have absolutely no consideration of fit and spec in mind. Especially for kids.

And once again, Shak Shuka delivered! Top quality, top customer service and in keeping with their green conscious company, the packaging is minimal in the mail. Top notch! I'm now eyeing all the gorgeous patterns on dresses from Winter Water Factory.

And thank you Shak Shuka for the wonderful extra surprise in our little package! Squeals of delight from Keira. xoxo

Shop Fall Collection over at Shak Shuka's shop: www.shakshuka.com and tweet along @shak_shuka. You won't be disappointed!

To view more Mini Rodini: www.minirodini.com and tweet along @minirodini.

bedhead on sunday

2011-09-12T03:37:00.000-07:00

Someone woke up with extreme bedhead yesterday morning! Wasn't me. We made an impromptu visit to Chinatown on Saturday night for supper and picked up my mom on the way there. What's supper without guests? For some reason, chinatown was packed and Beijing was full so we headed next door, to MonShing. Delightfully delicious!

----

Update: Thanks to Dabito and Lia, I now know that this is Mid-Autumn Festival/Mooncake Festival! No wonder chinatown was hoppin'.

september 11, sunday

2011-09-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

I didn't realize the date today until I heard the ceremony happening on the telly downstairs. September 11. Do you remember where you were, what you were doing that day 10 years ago? I certainly do. I had just settled down at my desk at work when one of our sales rep ripped through the design room where I was sitting and shouted, "New York city's been attacked! New York's been attacked! It's terrorism!" and upon seeing me, "Chantale, get up and get into the kitchen! It's on tv, forget what you're doing! Get up!". I internally rolled my eyes as this sales rep was known for being Mr Drama but I sighed, got up and headed to the tv in the communal kitchen. What I saw onscreen however, rooted me to the spot, drained my blood and I felt light-headed. Smoking twin towers.. All of us could barely work that day. It wasn't about who attacked who, what flew into what but more... that there were people still stuck within that burning structure.

So much has changed since then. For better, for worse? Who knows. Life cannot contain itself and pushes itself forward, memories linger. I have so much to be thankful for, so much to think about. A moment of silence & prayers.

Life is not about sadness but of living the moment & be at peace with it. So easy to say, so very hard to do. I looked around me Saturday and today, I saw my girl and her best friend bounce in the trampoline outside without a care, playing at the park with pure joy of being outdoors, together.

Wishing you all peace. Love.

whacky wild fun! happy friday

2011-09-09T04:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday everyone! Did you all make it through this Back to School week? Now that summer hours are over and I can relax a bit in the mornings, doesn't Kiki make me hurry up so she won't be late for school? hmf!

I've added a new tab on my blog called Gallery. It's where I'll post some of my favourite photographs that I want to share with you all. Hope you enjoy it. I've also been hard at work on my portfolio site.. more on that later to come.

Yesterday, I happened upon Pau's (Paula of Dents de Loup) tweet and checked out her blog to see these freakamatic amazing images of her products on billboards and posters everywhere around the world. I thought it was gob-smacking amazing until she brought me back to earth with a thud and told me that the images were made with a fun app and site called Photofunia. Did I ever laugh myself silly...

I uploaded some photos of my own and had a fun time seeing the images on billboards, art in museums and magazine covers! Leaving you all with something to smile & laugh about to start your weekend. Go ahead and have some fun of your own!

And to start off your weekend right, why not check out Pau's lovely lovely blog! Dents de loup. She creates the sweetest knitted dolls and accessories, you can check out her etsy site here: dentsdeloup on etsy

And if you'd like to chat with her, why not send her a tweet? @dentsdeloup

Merci Paula pour le lien et pour les rires et sourire!

newest member of the family

2011-09-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

Introducing, the newest blue-eyed member of our family: Édouard. We've had busy busy weekends including tons of family get-togethers including attending Édouard's baptism. At 4 months old, he is one calm, sweet, curious baby boy. Again, in this family, the boys outnumber the girls. Édouard and his older sister Florence are actually Keira's second cousins. Their father is Keira's cousin. Wild.

Keira looks up to and adores her older cousin Virginie (who is 10 years older than she is) as Florence looks up to and adores Keira. They are the girly trio and it is sweet to see them together. There is also no denying how much my girl loves her aunt Loulou... There is no clinginess, no wanting to stay only by mommy and Papa's side.. My girl loves a good party. Both of her grandfathers in heaven would be proud of her.

a long weekend in pictures

2011-09-06T20:35:00.000-07:00

Last long weekend of the summer... we spent it with friends. A magical overnight stay in a camper for Keira, canoeing, bbq outside, swimming, a night out for us mums alone, a visit to Ray's reptiles, Kiki trying to feed the chameleon with a live worm (!), holding and petting some reptiles and a slow return back home. Hope you all enjoyed a lovely long weekend too.

each image, a story

2011-09-05T16:04:00.000-07:00

We went to visit our very good friends this long weekend. Each of these images evoke a story within. I love watching the kids be... kids. Keira proved to be a worthy friend, not foe. She is equally princess as she is pirate and sword-wielding, gun-toting darth vader.

May the force be with you.

2011-09-05T12:23:00.000-07:00

Friday was Keira's Back to School celebration. This year, something new at the B2S celebration: some dodgeball, a sweet treat, face-painting and playing outside. For us adults? A chance to see the kiddies at play and talk with other parents. The Mister and I took the afternoon off to join her and then we were off on our way to spend the long weekend with friends.

Mini road trip is always something to look forward to...

moo says the cow.. happy friday folks!

2011-09-01T19:20:00.000-07:00

What a week! A few surprises and bumps along the way but mainly, a great feeling, some good vibes and amazing friends and coworkers. I feel very lucky. Keira has yet to find her groove at school and despite the loss of her bff in the same class, she is having some pretty darn good days. After this lune-de-miel (honeymoon) type of feeling week, reality will set in next week when she realizes that: She.Will.Be.In.School.For.The.Rest.Of.Forever. Mwuhahahaha....

I'd also like to thank you all for dropping by and spending some time with us this week. It's always so fun to read your comments! Thank you. I'm so glad you enjoyed the Q&A with Christiane of DS. I always get nervous about these things. And thank you all so much for your encouragement and positive feedback on my photography! It has really taken over my passion brain cells.

This tee that Keira is sporting here shows you the type of 'souvenirs' she gets while the Mister goes on various and numerous business trips. Often, being sent to far-flung and exotic places like say, oh I don't know... Arkansas (where folks often tell him suspiciously, "you ain't from around here are ya?") and Minnesota (where folks there ask him "What's that accent? Are you from Sweden?" - he's a blue-eyed 6'3" dude with a very cute french accent) the souvenir shopping is mainly relegated in the airports and the Mister occasionally comes home with big winners like this tee from North Carolina. A respite from yet another toutou.. Who doesn't like an 'interactive' tee right?

Moo says the cow! Happy Friday folks! Enjoy the long weekend...

first day, first grader

2011-08-31T05:55:00.000-07:00

Today is Keira's first day back to school. Where has time gone? It seems like only yesterday we were enjoying being on vacation and on the beach...

We had a parent/teacher meeting Monday night and that's where we found out who would be Keira's new teacher, where her classroom would be (goodbye preschool floor, hello 1st floor!) and who her classmates are. As we went through the class list, our hearts sank as we realized Keira's bff Miss B is not in the same class. After having spoken with other parents, it dawned on all of us that this was done with a purpose in mind: getting our kids to learn something. No more baby play, goodbye with getting away with snuggies and relying on a clique or best friend. This is the big leagues. Time to grow up and get those brains to suck up some learning.

Last night I had the difficult task of telling Keira her bff is no longer in her class. It didn't go so well. She got sassy. She gave me lip. She got anxious.... then she got mad. But right before bedtime, she started asking questions. She asked me questions in a very forthright, confident way. "Mommy, who's my teacher? What am I going to learn? Where's my classroom? Is it near the end of the hallway upstairs? Where's the stairs? Who's going to help me find my way to my new class? Tell me who's in my class!". And I answered her questions as best as I could, giving her directions of where her new class is situated and what she can expect the first few days.

Don't worry folks, as bad as it may sound.. losing her bff to another classroom will end up being the best way. They need to stop using each other as crutches and this will also give them an opportunity to shine individually without competing with each other as well. Also, if you don't already know, Keira is friends with all of these kids, from both classrooms. She won't be lonely. I promise!

So I sent her off this morning. She was a little apprehensive but saw a friend, each giving each other a huge hug. I walked her to the door but didn't go in with her (new rule: parents no longer allowed inside the doors in the morning). I saw her hesitate in the crowd of newbies, returning students, hallway monitors and teachers.. I saw her look left and walk confidently away, her ponytail swishing behind her. Then she was gone. Good luck to my new first grader!

DwellStudio – An interview with Christiane Lemieux

2011-08-30T04:41:00.000-07:00

Photos credit: Courtesy of DwellStudio

There is absolutely no denying my love for DwellStudio. I keep their catalogs by my bedside, perusing it before I sleep and dream of endless possibilities of transforming every single room in the house with their products. If only my pocketbook were endless and deep as well! DwellStudio is in constant design motion, continually adding to their arsenal of fine modern design by introducing fabulous new products and divisions within their company such as their newest Stationery line, home decor accessories and fine furniture (I have been longing for their Cooper chairs, so heavenly!). Each so meticulously thought out & fine crafted.

All Photos credit: Courtesy of DwellStudio

What I love most though, is their ability to pare down their product lines to a well curated collection of each... without bombarding us with too much of a good thing. There is a definite want & wow factor for everything. I have had such a miserable time trying to decide on bedding (loving them all), that I have been to Simon's downtown on numerous occasions, each time incapable of making a decision on "the one".

Photo credit: Architectural Digest, Read the article here: architecturaldigest.com

I had the chance to ask Christiane (DS's founder and Creative Director) a few questions and she graciously lent me her time and energy despite a hectic schedule to answer them. Herewith, the interview with a Super Mom and incredible designer (and unbelievably down to earth and nice person!). Thank you so much Christiane! I am still in awe of you..
****
After all these years, successfully leading your DwellStudio company from bedding, textiles to new furniture and home decor accessories, how do you stay so fresh and inspired? Are you constantly living and breathing design, even on your days off? Is there such a thing as a normal 9 to 5 day for you?
Christiane: When you run a company - there is never a day off! It's just like having a child - you have to mold and push it forward constantly. You want the company to strive to be it's best always. Excellence is something we talk about all the time. It's also our job to set trends and never follow them. So, no. The day never starts at 9 and ends at 5. This is a 24/ operation!

You have a new book out called UnDecorate. How did this book idea hatch? Where and how did you find the time to start, dive into and finish a book as well as heading up your company, being a mom, wife, designer, flea market hunter... (did I forget anything else?). I'm in awe..
C: Haha! Please do not be in awe. I have no life outside my family and work. My kids are little right now but I can see how things change all the time. Maybe when they're both in school, I will finally go for a jog (My kid is in school right now Christiane.. good luck on that one! lol). The idea of UnDecorate came to me from a couple of different places but the most obvious was our "How you Dwell" feature on the blog. We get to see great places. That got me thinking that the most amazing design is coming from non-professionals and the process never starts or stops - it's fluid. Hence, UnDecorate.

Cushion covers sewn with DwellStudio's Vintage Blossom Citrine fabric
Lampshade covered with DwellStudio's Vintage Blossom Citrine fabric

Your passion for design is so infectious! After reading your blog posts, I feel like heading out into the world and redecorating my life. Is there one thing that you're passionate about that trumps all others in terms of designing for? For example, your furniture or bedding line?
C: I am so passionate about the furniture line because it's really the place where everything comes together: design, form and textiles.

What is your design thought process? Do you separate being a designer, mom and wife when you create a collection/design? Or do you incorporate all three and does it then direct the way DwellStudio creates new products?
C: I think now it's all a big mix. I get ideas from everywhere and they go into my mental blender and then through the lens of our brand.. and that is the genesis of the designs.

Photo credit: Courtesy of DwellStudio

You're a mom to 2 super cuties. Do they get to design or have their say in DS designs? Do they have veto capabilities (haha!) and are you good at delegating work and letting things go? Unless you've got a hidden Superhero cape hidden somewhere underneath that chic attire and if you do.. let me know where I can get one too!
C: I've gotten much better at delegating. I have 30 amazing people in my office. I trust everyone to get their job done. That allows me to focus on mine. I used to do everything from taking out the garbage to the banking. These days, it's much easier as we have experts in all areas. As for the superhero cape, I have seen what you do Chantale... I may have to borrow yours (hm, I don't even come close!).

*********

For more on Christiane, read La Petite's terrific feature on her in their latest issue! lapetitemag.com
Peruse, imagine, dream and purchase all DwellStudio designs here: DwellStudio.com
To get inspired, please check out their terrific blog here: dwellstudio.com/blog
and their UnDecorate Tumblr here: undecorate.tumblr.com/
To connect with Christiane, you can tweet with her, @DwellStudio or with DwellStudio in general: @DwellStudioPR.

a day with irene

2011-08-28T21:01:00.000-07:00

After seeing this and hearing from my cousins, new yorkers took Irene pretty much in stride (my cousins were just curious and excited to see how big this hurricane passing through was gonna be). Here in Montreal, we got a slightly tamer version of Irene (by tamer I mean at least 100km gusts of wind) with tons of wind and rain. We put away anything we didn't want flying around outside and just stayed in. A great day to do nothing. Nothing but hem up school uniform tunics, get rid of too small clothing, clean out closets & tons of cuddles and tickle monsters...

A big Thank You goes out to our friends from Pittsburgh! Sydney.. you made Keira's entire week, month, year!.. with the unicorn Pillow Pet. "Thaaaank youuuuu Sydney" said Keira with a big hug to her unicorn that kept her warm and safe inside while the rain and wind went on outside. We love you guys! We really do...

the calm before the storm..

2011-08-27T19:08:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the last waning summer days at the park...

I'm thinking of all my friends and family on the east coast of the States with Irene on it's way.. Here in Montreal, I think we will only get the tail end of the storm though that might mean high winds and tons of rain. I have not heard from my cousins in NYC but I think they're hunkered down together and going to weather the storm. Stay safe sweet friends and family...

friday, at dusk

2011-08-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

A surprise visit from my sister and family Friday evening.. an impromptu sleepover and a wonderful wood-fired thin crust pizza dinner with everyone. Afterwards, cross-training & fun at the park then ice-cream & music and entertainment by the river. The perfect start to a weekend non?

la vie en bubblegum

2011-08-25T19:36:00.000-07:00

Oui, c'est la vie en bubblegum! The long days are starting to wind down and summer days are almost ending (gulp). School will be starting in t-minus 5 days and I've finally made the effort to order school uniforms and see what still fits the Keikster. Everything fits width-wise, nothing fits length-wise. Voilà, a few new and fave tops and bottoms to face the chilly weather soon to come. But not now. Oh no, not now. We will enjoy the here and now...

Happy Friday everyone! What are your weekend plans?

I love these new HushHush shoes..

Et oui, tes idées étoiles??

Heather Grey Cardigan+tee: KLTworks
Long sleeved tee: Crewcuts, JCrew
Minnie Mouse hoodie+slim jim roll-up jeans: Zara Girls
Cord skirt: Crewcuts, JCrew
Star tulle skirt: Gap Kids
All socks: Crewcuts, JCrew
Shoes: Hush Hush

nyc reads & tschotkes

2011-08-23T03:28:00.000-07:00

Just a few catalogs I brought home from NYC... and souvenirs..

Back to School ready with Lands' End

2011-08-21T10:16:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again! Back to school (add groans here). The last 2 years, I've gotten away with missing school uniform orders deadline and have been able to send Keira off to school wearing the same tees, sweater and tunic only buying new socks and the occasional gym sweats.

Anyhoo, this year, I once again missed uniform ordering deadline but seeing as my little taco actually keeps growing (the noive!), I had to order a whole new set online. And in keeping with my laziness and my absolute denial that summer is quickly fading away, I also decided to order her socks and new school approved shoes online as well. Last year, I was actually early and went to the school approved shoe store (yes, school-approved shoe store!) and found an entire wall of navy blue shoes to choose from only to have that entire selection cut down to 2 because of Keira's super skinny feet. This year, I ordered from Lands End as they have a school uniform section and at 29.50$ (on sale now!) they were a steal! Plus, they fit Keira's feet! I also bought her a half year's worth of navy socks and tights as well. These are incredibly hard to find (believe it or not) in stores.

I also bought Keira a new backback from Lands End and we love it. I had it monogrammed with her name since it's still pretty unusual. I searched high and low during our vacation to look for keychains, mugs, photo frames etc with her name on it but the closest thing we came to was Kaylee.

And there you have it! My back to school uniform is complete! As for all that school supplies stuff, luckily Keira's school takes care of that for us.

Are you guys back to school ready? Or are you still in summer vacation mode like me?

Anyone else's kid crazy about these crazy (& seriously over-priced) Kachooz?

An afternoon with The Lion King

2011-08-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, we were fortunate enough to see the Broadway musical The Lion King being played here in Montreal at the Place des Arts. My sister-in-law wanted to treat Keira to the show and brought us along for the ride. lol. I've seen a few Broadway musicals in my life but nothing moved me like this one! The show begins with Buyi Zama as Rafiki and her incredible and majestic voice sent shivers up and down my spine singing the opening song of Circle of Life.. with the actors as animals coming up from 2 aisles going to the stage: birds, elephants, zebras and more. We were seated only 8 rows from the stage and I was at the end of the row, right beside the aisle! Keira rushed to my side to see the animals and the actors smiled at everyone..

These are not actors with masks or costumes. They play the part of the animal, characterize them so incredibly.. I had a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. I know it sounds corny but it was so incredibly beautiful. Keira's favourite animal? The elephants! I loved the giraffes and birds..

At certain points, the audience gets to connect with the show as some of the actors were stationed in different areas of the floor and levels playing their parts. Truly, we were all awe-struck. Cameras etc weren't allowed during the show so I have nothing to show you but these videos from Youtube will give you an idea of the show we watched.. it brings a lump to my throat each time I watch it...
Keira spent a good 10 minutes right before she went to sleep that night singing and shouting at the top of her lungs, pretending she was Buyi Zama as Rafiki, doing the moves..
NAAAAAANTSINGONYAMABAGITHIBABAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!
hehe, it was really cute. If you haven't already seen the Lion King, this is a show worth saving your pennies for and going to.

ellie bellie kids' robot girl goes on vacation! pt 2

2011-08-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

Remember how Jen of Ellie Bellie Kids sent us a whole range of her wonderful kids products? Imagination at play... that, it certainly has been! I have spied Keira alternately playing Queen someone or other with the crown and jumping off the couch with the cape on a weekly basis (nope, she doesn't play a superhero. Instead, she's usually Rocky or Teddy or Selena. Do these girls wear capes? No. Does Keira care? No). Well, Keira decided that Robot Girl needed to come with us on our beach vacation and I thought the Robot Girl messenger bag was the perfect craft bag to bring along as well. I prepared the bag a few days before we left, stuffing it with a pencil case full of crayons, pencils and markers, 3 colouring books and tons of paper to draw with. It is the perfect-sized bag! Not only that, we had time to kill before checking into our hotel in Virginia Beach and decided to head to Barnes & Noble. I bought Keira some more books along with a scratch-off spiral book and packed all of that into the bag. It all fit! With room to spare..

Not only was Robot Girl companion and friend during the long road trip, she kept Keira at ease during the nights as well. Actually, during the long hours spent in the car, I was the one amusing Keira as robot girl sprang to life in my hands (I put on a pretty good puppet-style show folks but only in the car). Robot Girl did try to beg ask Keira to Go.To.Sleep. She failed miserably. But! She did make it to the beach one day (only 1 day as the kiddo thought she might get wet or dirty) and the bag, oh the bag! The bag was super in the car and also came in handy in restaurants to whip out 'things to do' while waiting for the food. That is of course, when I actually remembered to bring it! Oh lord, I even got the evil eye several nights from my kid when I forgot to bring the bag to the restaurants. I am not like my friend Lisa, super mom! She never forgot to bring the kiddie crafts stuff.

The bag also became a make-shift swim bag stuffed with a towel, goggles, swim cap etc when Keira was in NYC and headed to swim class boot camp with her cousins! More on that in a later post...

Thanks Jen for making such soft, fun and durable products! You can get your own Robot Girl doll and bag over at Ellie Bellie Kids' website: www.elliebelliekids.com
And don't forget to check out Jen's terrific blog Classic Play too!

NYC ♡ :: part 2

2011-08-16T03:15:00.000-07:00

I wanted to revisit New York today.. because I'm in a New York state of mind. Sorry, couldn't resist that one. hehe. We had such an amazing time with family but we were also able to enjoy summer and walk around the city, which I love to do. Just people watching, checking out some shops but mostly.. the walking. I even stopped by Duane Reede to purchase some super comfy Dr Scholl insoles for my sandals so my feet could stay cool and comfy. Duane Reede is to NYC what ABC is to Hawaii. Seemingly on every street corner!

Keira takes a pose at Anthropologie

Paper sculptures at Anthro. I took this photo for you Kristin, you were there with me in spirit and in my heart..
Rockefeller Plaza, Anne! Where are you?
I think we should've shopped at Bloomingdale's instead...
Love these rickety old wood escalators in Macy's.

That said, the three girls (Keira and her cousins) were intolerant of the walking. Kids wilt my friends and they wilt fast in summer heat. lol. I heard a lot of "can't we just take a caaaaaaaab??" walking the last 2 blocks of somewhere (precisely why I nixed the Highline idea with the girls). To break the heat monotony, Keira was invited to her cousins' private swimming lessons. Did I just write swimming lesson? Yeah, no. Swimming Boot Camp is more like it. Over an hour and 20 minutes of continuous swimming and workout in the pool! My cousin's kids have only been swimming for a few months but they looked like olympic swimmers in the water! They are 10 and 6 years old and they've both mastered the freestyle, breast stroke, back stroke and were beginning to learn the butterfly. Keira was unable to catch up with them and was made to practice with a flat floater in front of her.. for the entire length of the pool. Several times. For over an hour. lol. Then she was made to do push-ups in the pool along with her cousins. That was a sight to see! And who is this master of swimming boot camp? The amazing, tough, funny and sweet Phil. He is really tough but only because he strives for your own excellence.

Mirror, mirror on the wall.. Kiki in J.Crew
Just to show you that New York has some of the cleanest tap water around..

Back to see the cousins.. & super happy 'bout that she was

Afterwards, we went to eat some incredible korean food at Korea Palace. The food, the panchan, everything kept coming to our table. We ate some super yummy pa jun, jab chae, bulgogi, mandu, kimchi, tuk bok ki and of course, my absolute fave: bibimbap! Oh everything was so good but I didn't take photos because I ran out of batteries. Hey, that's okay cuz I was too busy eating to take any photos anyways. Meanwhile, my girl Keira was beyond cranky and tired from boot camp beforehand. My cousin, with 2 girls of his own, knew exactly how to get past the crankiness by ordering her a bowl of ice cream. Ha! It worked. I can't believe my own flesh and blood does not really like korean food. Not that I haven't tried.. It was such a fun night with everyone. So much eating, laughing, talking.. soju. lol.

Hayden Planetarium, American Museum of Natural History
Seismic activity! Oh wait, it's just the girls jumping up and down..

We made a day trip to the American Museum of Natural History with the girls one day. On our cab ride there, we cut through on 79th street transverse in Central Park. The girls and I loved it, it was so peaceful compared to outside of the park. We visited the museum and decided to check out the Journey to the Stars exhibit in the new Hayden Planetarium. The exhibit and movie is fantastic! Poor SJ though, she got motion sickness again watching the movie. It does feel as though you're travelling through the universe. And on our cab ride back home, we got the best cab driver! He started off the conversation mentioning my camera and just went on and on about all kinds of stuff. I hate small talk in cabs but this guy was fab! Très New York..

M&M, Times Square

On our last day, Keira was invited to bootcamp again but this time, we decided she just stay on the sidelines. We weren't there as my cousin's wife told us to amscray and enjoy the city while she stayed with the kids at the Y. Apparently, Phil being ever so sweet made Keira his assistant coach and she was the one telling her cousins to give her 20 (push ups)!, made them do laps and timed them. haha! Wow, we love Phil. Meanwhile, the mister and I headed to Tkts of the Day but after seeing the insane line-up, decided to nix the idea of a late evening Broadway show this year. We did walk around everywhere, which is exactly what we love to do minus the little chatter and whining of "can't we cab it?". Ah New York, we love you. We shall be back en famille again!

Yankee Stadium

saturday, three generations have fun downtown!

2011-08-14T16:47:00.000-07:00

Keira with her halmoni (Grandmaman)
Kiki at Kiki & Co!
Sitting pretty at Club Monaco

Before we left on our vacation, I decided to cut Keira's super long hair on my own. The results were, not so fantastic but hey, at least her hair was shorter and more manageable. Or so I thought. Cut to about a week later and I couldn't help but notice how much more tangles and knots her hair had during the day. But the mornings, oh the mornings! Keira woke up with what could only be best described as a rat's nest. A big jumble of it that took forever to comb out and worse, made her cry when I did. I believe the blunt jagged cut I gave her hair was the culprit. Keira has super fine, super straight hair and when it tangles? Hoboy does it ever tangle! At one point during our vacation, Keira asked her daddy to please cut off all the hair that she couldn't comb through. Yikes.

Last week, I finally made an appointment with my salon. I also asked my mom if she wanted to come along.. Three ladies downtown! We met up, we did a bit of shopping, we had a lovely little lunch and the Keikster was pampered (her favorite part is the shampoo & head massage!), ooh'd & ahh'd over and had her hair professionally cut (I did hear a silent tsk tsk from the stylist, she was nice enough not to look at me when she did that). And when the stylist asked her if she wanted to have her hair curled? Yep, she wanted em. Just like her bff Miss B! We finished the day by bringing my mom over to our house, having a bbq dinner and a quiet evening.

Hope you had a lovely & fun Saturday too!

At Les cours Mont Royal

NYC Meetup, ENK Children's Club :: Anabel of Fournier | andsoiwhisper

2011-08-13T18:52:00.000-07:00

Wonderful Anabel meets Keira!

One of the highlights of our trip to NYC was meeting with Anabel of Fournier | And So I Whisper blog. I've gotten to know Anabel over time and we have become long distance friends. I cannot wax poetic enough about how sweet, funny and genuine she is. Plus, she's incredibly intuitive and creative!

Anabel was showcasing her products at ENK NY Children's Club and was kind enough to get us passes to go to the show. So on our second day in New York, we cabbed it over to Pier 94 and met up with Anabel at ENK. And let me tell you folks, she is even lovelier in person than online! We had a personal tour of her newest collections, which is so beautiful (I love her new Paris accessories!) and she even took the time to show us around the show and introduced us to her friend Stephanie of Winter Water Factory.

I first heard of Winter Water Factory from Kristin of KLTworks. Her son Sayer has a few of WWF's tees in his wardrobe. I love Stephanie's gorgeous graphic children's clothing, especially knowing they're made of soft organic cotton. I'm not a granola type person but you can't go wrong with all cotton clothing for kids! Especially when they look this good.

Eyeing the gorgeous Charles David dresses
There were so many kids brand I loved seeing at ENK but I was too wary and chicken to take too many photos. Perhaps now is the time to get an iPhone/iPod Touch for it's ability to take photos discretely. In any case, two labels caught Keira's eye and attention: All the incredibly lovely fancy dresses from David Charles and the super tutus from Huggalugs. Wow! If only I could have bought one on the spot! Might have to get one online.

Anabel even had a few Fournier goodies waiting for us when we visited her. I felt horrible because we came with nothing in hand for her! These gorgeous scarves will certainly keep us warm during the colder months and will remind us of a good friend and a great memory (Thank you so much Anabel!).

I only wish I could have had more time to spend with her and am hoping we can still be able to. Perhaps a fall NYC meet up? And when we do, I'm going to make sure to see & meet up with other amazing new friends as well! Perhaps you?

NYC ♡ :: part 1

2011-08-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

Right after our Virginia Beach adventure, we packed up the boogey boards, shells and other beach paraphernalia and headed north... towards the Big Apple. NYC is like the caffeine jolt to Virginia Beach's mellow vibe. Like melting in a sauna only to run out and jump straight into a cold & refreshing lake. We always come home relaxed and feeling jump-started! Of course, this feeling only lasts until we start working again to which I feel overwhelmed by noxious work fumes.

This time around, we stayed at my cousin's place right in midtown Manhattan. I was a little nervous about parking our car in the city trying to find a place close to the apartment but I needn't have bothered about worrying. There was parking everywhere including a parking garage right beside my cousin's apartment. Hel-lo! Things started off terrifically.. The mister and I had a bet going on as to what our supper was going to be the first night. You see, you don't cook in NYC (although we did in my cousin's never-used tiny kitchen. She also made us clear everything we cooked out before we left the city, lol). You either order in or you dine out! Our bet was on the choice of what was going to be ordered for supper that night. My bet was chinese food and the Mister's was korean. Neither of us won as we ate some of the most amazingly fresh and tasty sushi & sashimi! My cousin picked it up somewhere in Brooklyn? I don't remember, I was too hungry. Keira and her cousins SJ and SB did not dine on fresh sushi but rather good old fashioned butter noodles and pizza. Mmhm, Oh yum.

Last year, we made more of an effort to visit all the hot spots since it was Keira's first time in the city. The sad part about doing that was that we didn't spend as much time with my family as we would have liked. This year, our main goal was to spend as much time as possible with them. I also had a meet up with a friend I met via blogger and twitter (more on that in a later post)!

Since we were in NYC during the work week, my cousins were hard at work during the day and we decided to spend more time with my cousin's daughters and give their mom a break. You see, my cousin's wife had a scary bout with cancer a few years ago and her yearly check-up to see if she is still cancer free was coming up. Needless to say, she was feeling out of sorts and slightly frazzled. And, since her daughters weren't in any kind of summer camp during the day.. we decided to give her a break and take the girls with us about town.

Our first stop together was to Central Park and off to Victorian Gardens at Wollman Rink. Christiane Lemieux of DwellStudio had tweeted about this tiny amusement park last year & loved it and I wanted to bring Keira this year. I gotta say, I've been to Central Park numerous times spanning over a decade and I have never seen this amusement park (even while jogging the paths)! To be honest, I haven't explored as much of the park as I'd like to. Well guess what? Keira loved it along with her cousin SB! The older cousin SJ however, got motion sickness after 3 rides and literally melted in her mom's arms. This place will only take you about an hour to ride all the rides but with the view in the background & the fact that there isn't a huge line-up of people, I thought it was fun. Clearly by the photos above, the Keikster loved it. I think kids 7 & up however, will find this a bit on the 'baby' and boring side.

And so it is..

Right afterwards, we scooted off in a cab and headed to 60th and 3rd to eat lunch (and to refresh poor SJ who could barely walk at this point of our adventure) at California Pizza Kitchen. I gotta say, this is a great place to eat with your kids. After a plate of mac n cheese (why do kids love this stuff so much?!), the girls got second wind and were jumping around like jelly beans. We headed next door to Dylan's Candy Bar. Here's the thing about me and Dylan's Candy Bar: I spent about 10 years wanting to visit this candy emporium and have never been able to for one reason or another... until now. I was in candy heaven! Much more than the girls were. I couldn't get enough of everything though we were all very good and got 1 candy-something each. For some reason, Keira and I were stuck on the M&Ms.

And on our walk back to our cousin's place, we saw this gem of a sign: Restaurant Les Sans Culotte or translated to english, Without Underpants. Heeheehee!

bento at the beach!

2011-08-11T17:56:00.000-07:00

Keira surprised me at lunch one day on our vacation by the beach. I made her a ham sandwich but she wouldn't let me garnish her meal. Instead, she took her box herself and added 'stuff' to it all the while telling me to 'look away mommy!'. Then she showed me her sandwich and said, 'see? it's a bonhomme (a man)!'. He had 2 eyes made out of grapes and hair made out of oreo cookies. lol!

vacation 2011 :: virginia beach, part 3

2011-08-10T16:04:00.000-07:00

When we head to Virginia Beach, we usually make it a point to visit Busch Gardens as well and since we had such a fun time at Water Country USA last year, we decided to spend half a day there as well. This year, along with our friends, we tried the 'big' rides and I think even Keira & Sydney surprised themselves by having a great time and loving them. Yes, there was some apprehension before the rides but once they were actually doing the rides, adrenaline rush replaced fear!

One of the highlights of our stay at the hotel was the cannonball contest they held one day. The big prize? Ice cream! Keira and Miss S entered the contest and it was too adorable watching them waiting with the big kids and then watching them try their hand at making a big splash in the pool. Sadly they didn't win but their enthusiasm and effort was prize enough! Plus they loved it.

Ah the days sped by so quickly by the beach. Before we knew it, our friends left to go back home and we spent 1 forlorn and lonely last day at the hotel. We had a lovely & amazing time at the beach this year, made so much better by wonderful friends! Hopefully we'll make it back again next year. For now, I spend each waking moment dreaming I'm back at the beach, listening to the waves with my feet buried in the sand.. sigh..

Their necklaces read 'Best' and 'Friends'

vacation 2011 :: virginia beach, part 2

2011-08-09T02:48:00.000-07:00

Nothing is complete being at the beach without those roaming photographers hawking keychains and other touristy tchotkes. This time around though, I really wanted to have a souvenir on the beach that didn't come from my camera. To be honest, I felt so completely lazy at the beach, occasionally taking out my camera and firing off several shots at once just to have something on the memory card. Plus, this photographer guy (if you get Rob at the beach, tell him I say hi!) was a real charmer, made the girls giggle and was nice. He first approached my friend Lisa and I, then called out to the girls and the dads who were out in the water to pose on the beach. I think he took some pretty good shots! Thanks to Lisa for giving me the ins and outs of this touristy thing.

Every morning, we'd head out to the beach and stake our place. The girls would look for sea shells, catch some waves and play in the sand and the adults (that would be us) would just try to soak up as much of summer as we could. By noon though, we'd all be sufficiently over-heated & head back to our rooms to eat lunch and cool off. By having a small refrigerator and microwave in our rooms, we saved a bundle on food costs, only heading out each night for supper. Afterwards, we'd head out to the pools at the hotel and in the evenings, we'd head out for supper and entertainment on Atlantic Avenue.

One night, we decided to try the bus and boy did we ever laugh at how slow that thing went! We could have walked faster than it rolled down the street. We were a little disappointed at this year's entertainment. The first night we were on Beach Street, the music was so freaking depressing, the acts a little slow and boring but with all the lights, the people, the sounds, the shops.. the girls were transfixed. On the last night out, Keira and Miss S were serenaded by this crooner type dude! I so wished I had videotaped it because it was so adorable. The dude even did a little dance with Keira.

And what could top off a long day and late night out? How about Keira running back to the hotel and watching her topple over and slam into the concrete. Skiiiiiiiiiiid. Smack. lol. And next morning Keira was spoiled by our friends with donuts and do we tell her to wait til later in the day to eat them? Um, nope. We let her eat the donut for breakfast because we're such pushovers.

bloesem kids :: wear neon star necklace

2011-08-07T14:31:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, hm, maybe even longer than that.. I received an email from Irene of the incredibly popular and stylish Bloesem Kids blog that I had won one of her Wear Neon necklaces. I had entered her contest and that email certainly brightened up my entire day. The necklace took forever to arrive because of the postal strike here and we received the necklace right before we headed out on our family vacation.

I wanted to show you the quality and design of the necklace. It is beautiful! The star is made from Swarovsky crystal.. I love how delicate and durable it is.

Thank you so much Irene and Vivien! Keira loves her necklace and I have had to put it in a 'special' place when her friends come over. Otherwise, all the girls beg to have it or wear it home. lol!

You can follow & chat with Irene over on twitter: @BloesemBlog
Bloesem Blog
Bloesem Kids
Wear Neon online shop: bkids.bigcartel.com