what I've been up to...

A quick and fun update...

I did it! I got in!

I am going back to school come September 2013. I've been accepted into the part-time program at Wilfrid Laurier here in Waterloo.  It's been a personal goal to achieve an MBA and I'm about to cross the start of that goal off my list.   It will take me 3 years to fully cross it off, but at least I am starting. :)

I'll be sure to share the ups and downs with you; there will be plenty - we all know how stats went at times.


and a quick sneak peek of what I've been up to!

bathroom mini makeover

Have a wonderful Thursday evening.  

It's Friday!

Happy Friday!

I hope you all had a great week. We welcomed Spring this past Thursday and if you are like me you had to double check and make sure it was in fact March, and not December. Not only do we still have snow, but it's been snowing all week!. I say, #groundhogfail.

With Spring approaching I've been wanting to decorate a bit, you know, spruce things up. There's quite a collection of "things" forming in our basement, so I need to get at it this weekend before a certain someone notices. ;)

This weekend I'll be crafting, spray painting and maybe even sewing if I can squeeze it all in. 


Some sewing projects I want to get started on were inspired be the two pictures below. 

Tonic Living

We have neutral linen drapes on our main floor, I love the idea of adding a band across the bottom. I've ordered fabric swatches and can't wait for them to arrive. 

via

You can never have too many pillows, I think they are cheap and cheerful way to spruce things up too. I bought some fabric during a sale in December, and want to get at making some new pillow covers.  I love those polka dots!

and finally I will be making our dining room chairs much more comfy to sit on; which is sort of like sewing...right?!

Have a wonderful weekend and stay warm!

Favourite Workouts

Heya!

For those that know me personally, you know I cannot function for long without the gym in my life...it keeps me sane. 

I want to share with you 2 of my favourite workouts that I have been loving lately. 

Treadmill Workout
0 - 3 minutes      Warm Up
3 - 5 minutes      Run at 6.0
5 - 6 minutes      Run at 8.5
Repeat minutes 3 - 6*
Cool Down

*I started out only repeating about 5 times and have since worked up to repeat this 3-minute cycle 11 times. 

This is a challenging workout and one that can be done in as little as 20 minutes!

My second favourite workout is simply Spin! It's an amazing workout and one that easily burns 500 - 700 calories in a single class.  I have been a 'spinner' for about 1.5 years and absolutely love it; even if it kicks my behind every single time *sigh* 


I had to switch fitness facilities in January and moved from a boutique fitness center to a corporate chain...call me a fitness snob, but I hated the facility (and sort of still do).  But that's a whole other rant for a whole other day. 

I finally found an instructor that I love, she offers a challenging class that always pushes me to the max.  I faithfully attend the class every Monday and Wednesday evening...and although it's a love/hate relationship it's the.best.workout.ever!

What about you...any favourite workouts?

Things I Learned Watching the Oscars!

ok, ok...it's been a while; maybe not a while, maybe an eternity would best describe my blogging hiatus.  I made a "New Year's Goal" way back in January to get better at this whole blogging thing. I have so much I want to share, I just need to get better at the sitting down and sharing part ;)

In order to ease back into it; I thought I would start with a fun topic - The Oscars!  I read today that viewership was up and that over 43 million people tuned in, so I think this is a good spot to start; hopefully you will know what I am talking about. 

Here are some things I learned (or noticed) while watching the 2013 Oscar Award Show

1. Not everyone that writes a punch line can actually deliver it.  
2. Diva nails are back!  Did you see those nails on Adele and Dame Shirley Bassey as they performed!?
3. Kristen Stewart appeared to have better places to be.
4. JHud, Adele and Barbara Streisand can definitely belt out the tunes
5. I am a sucker for celebrities; their fashion and their gossip
6. I will own a pair of red sole shoes one day
7. I'm falling in love with Jennifer Lawerence; her media interview sealed the deal; the girl is funny!
8. and finally...my Twitter feed was far more entertaining than the Oscars ever could be

I'm sure there were lots of other things but these were some of the things that stuck out to me.  

Here are a couple of my favourite dresses of the night.

*all images are from the Huffington Post

so there it is...my Oscar moments. 

until next time I sit down ;) 

Kitchen Reveal...(sort of)

Hello again!

I know you have all been anxiously waiting for the big kitchen reveal (I know I have)...and you will need to wait a bit longer...sort of. 

I reallllllly wanted to have the kitchen completed before I shared the big 'ta-dah' moment with you BUUUUUT if I actually waited until we were completely finished you could be on the edge of your seats for quite sometime. Reno's are expensive friends and I can only make so many trips to Ikea without wanting to pull my hair out (more on this later).

Let's press rewind and start back at the beginning.  Here is what we started with - a standard builder's kitchen; no bling!

look at that UGLY light

and here's where we're at!

Amazing - right!?!? 

I need to thank Hubs for suggesting we open it all up, it changes everything about our main floor and I.AM.IN.LOVE! 

Still lots left to do, but we're thrilled with how far we've come and how awesome it looks! We did a lot of the work ourselves (translation: I supervised, arranged for the talented and skilled workers, and provided approvals ;)). 

Massive To Do List: 
- finish the toe kicks along the bottom
- put the corner cabinet door on
- install cover panel on the end of the pantry
- install the hood range
- install remaining handles 
- install moulding on top of cabinets
- pick a back splash (and install it)
- install remaining baseboards
- find a pretty light (with lotsa bling) for over the table
- DECORATE!!!!! (in 50 years from now when funds are replenished;))


So there you have it, where we're at and where we're going.  As mentioned super duper thrilled and can't wait to show you the actual finished project. 

Happy Thursday!

Sneak Peek!

I have some big plans coming up this week - organize!

It is time, we have been living through our kitchen renovation for an eternity a month now, and the "stuff" everywhere is driving me BONKERS! Everyday I ask hubby "is today the day we're going to finish and maybe hang that shelf?" 

*sigh*

I have been dreaming of filling up these BEAUTIFUL new cupboards since I saw them in the store.

SNEAK PEEK ;)

Look at all of those pot drawers, aren't they wonderful? I'm giddy inside, I can't wait.

PS: that counts as your sneak peek...right? 

In anticipation of moving all of our things back into the kitchen I have been reading up on organizing in general. Don't judge, I am usually a very organized person, just not right at this very minute. After reading, looking and and skimming for ideas I have realized that there is a whole new level of organization out there that I was not aware of - look out hubby, I'm coming after your t-shirt drawer! 

Anyway, here are a couple of ideas that will most likely make their way into our lives.

Source

Source

source

Hope to share some more kitchen pictures with you next week :)

New Appreciation...

...for the kitchen sink!

Yes, you read that right, I have a new found appreciation for the kitchen sink. I also FINALLY understand the meaning behind "they packed everything; including the kitchen sink" I'm never leaving it behind again - EVER!

Hubby and I have been diligently working on our kitchen main floor renovation for the past 3 weeks...and well, we're exhausted, and also can't wait for the end.  We're so close we can both see it.  When I say close, I mean close to something functional - something that has a kitchen sink ;)  

Which brings up my dilemma - what kind of sink do I we really want!? I'm pretty sure we will go with a single one, I really like the look of it but there are so many shapes and sizes!  What to do, what to do; I've shown some of my favourites below.  

Guess I better decide soon, we're going to pick out our counter top tomorrow! 

Home stretch!