a weekend at lake simcoe

at the beginning of july we got to spend a few days up north. we stayed with a close friend in her adorable little house on the shores of lake simcoe.    

going up to this particular friend's house is always such a nice little break from city living.  we relax, eat delicious food, spend some time out on the water, and just hang out. 

this weekend also marked w's first time in a lake. he was a little unsure at first, but as long as he was held he was okay. we joke that next year we won't be able to get him out of the water.

we are already discussing our next visit, and i cannot wait!

hello again!

hello again!

it has been quite a while. a lot has changed in the 4 years since my last post. since 2016 we have: renovated, then sold the condo; bought a house out in hamilton; rescued a puppy; and, had a baby! 

life these days is completely different, in the very best way.

i wanted to revive this little corner of the internet, and use it as an online journal of sorts. i have left some of my favourite posts up, but plan to use this space these days to document simple things about our new life in hamilton. i'm not really sure what it will look like - but i hope you will join me for the ride.

d

bathroom tour

if 2015 was the year of the bedroom in this household, than 2016 is the year of the bathroom.  i have so many ideas for the space that i am bursting!  some big plans for this small space.

in the meantime, i thought i would share the bathroom as it currently stands.  partially finished.

so far, we gave the room a quick coat of paint to hide the builders paint, swapped out the vanity knobs for some cute clear knobs from anthropologie (on sale!), picked up a rustic hook from a vintage shop near by, hung some simple ikea shelves to create extra storage, and added the cute WC plaque for a bit of character.

the space is coming along, but it definitely does not feel finished yet.  i cannot wait to get to work on the room in the coming months.

thanks for letting me share!

-d

an amazing birthday surprise [cedar row farm sanctuary]

 

my birthday this year was amazing. it was perfect - full of friends and family and brunch and animals...

that may sound a little strange, so let me explain.  

last saturday b had a birthday surprise for me. he told me very (very!) little . we promptly left our little home at 9am and headed out of the city.  

two hours later we had arrived...at the cedar row farm sanctuary.  

a little back story...i'm a huge animal lover. when we drive around in the country, i always ask b to stop so that i can go see the cows (here is proof). i also really want to move out to the country and have a little farm of our own - somewhere to keep way too many pets and grow our own veggies.

this farm only offers work visits (you volunteer a few hours helping out around the farm), and they all end in a group potluck. so we grabbed our wellies and spent the rest of the morning helping out.

after the potluck i got another birthday surprise.  my gift from b was sponsoring an animal - chickpea, the black and white cow.  rescued from a vet because she was born very premature, she is such a beautiful, kind, gentle creature. 

thanks for letting me share my birthday adventures!  it was such an amazing experience. one that i will cherish forever.

[d]

vancouver [british columbia]

i was so excited to take b to vancouver this year.  we were going out for my brother's wedding anyways, so we stuck a few days on to do some exploring (only had 3 days in the city since we were in whistler for the wedding).

even though it rained every day (we arrived at the same time as a major storm), we still had a blast celebrating new family, birthdays, & catching up with old (university) friends.



vancouver is an amazing city, & 3 days was just not enough!  here are some of the things we ate, drank & did on this trip:

> vancouver aquarium. the two beluga whales, aurora & qila, are adorable!

> walking along the sea wall in stanley park. it's just beautiful.

> vancouver has a growing craft beer scene.  we did a self guided "beer hop" with an old university friend.  on her recommendations, & b's research, we started at tap & barrel, continued on to the steel toad brewery, & finally to 33 acres brewing company )which was so awesome we decided to spend the rest of our evening there).

> eating lots of taco's at la taqueria. this place needs to come to toronto, it's amazing.

> brunching at spot cafe - great eggs benedict!

> shopping along main street (between 2nd & 25th).  loads of cute, unique clothing, stationary & home decor shops.

> eating, drinking, shopping & antiquing in gastown.

> dipping fries in the coconut curry sauce (from the green beans dish) at chill winston. a restaurant with a focus local, sustainable & responsible dining, the food is really delicious.

> the greedy pig makes a mean whiskey sour.

> i did not know so many types of whiskey existed, until we had a drink at shebeen whiskey bar.

> ...and a few places that were on our list that we didn't get a chance to visit this trip: suspension bridge in lynn canyon, hiking up grouse mountain, checking out the public market & brewery on granville island, wreck beach, & commuting along the water with the false creek ferries.

any vancouver recommendations that i missed?  i'd love to hear!  comment below or send us an e-mail.  i always love a good recommendation.

thanks for letting me share our trip out west!

[d]