Been awhile...

I haven't disappeared literally, just figuratively I suppose. Healing and recovery are going well, but not being out in the world is becoming difficult. I am struggling with motivation and inspiration...I should say I was, because over the last few days things have turned a corner for me.

Let me explain...before the surgery and the cyst that precipitated the surgery I was active and in the middle of my weight loss journey. I had lost 40lbs and had about 40 to go. When the cyst was discovered I felt fine and continued to live my active life, but not long after the diagnosis something happened that left me in pain, a lot of pain. A trip to the hospital to a deaf audience it would seem and they felt it was a bladder infection though there was no pathology to support this. No-one wanted to hear about the cyst and no diagnostics regarding it were done. We know now that if they had they would have discovered that the cyst had moved, and twisted, a torsion cyst, which can be quite dangerous. I suspect that if that had been discovered, the surgery would have happened long ago and recovery would be a thing of the past, but c'est la vie. As it was I left the hospital with antibiotics and went about my business. The pain receded and we presumed the 'infection' was gone. I started to exercise again but again was met with pain. I stopped exercising and waited for a few days then tried again to the same outcome, so for the six weeks leading up to the surgery I did not really exercise. This ended up having a very negative effect on me both emotionally and physically. I gained weight and the tiredness I experienced pre weight loss returned. Now my recovery has been a bit more difficult than I anticipated, in that while I physically feel good, I am so very tired much of the time, and I still cannot do much activity. I always thought I hated running, but did it because it was the best way to burn calories...turns out I miss it so very much and now that the weather is turning I am dying to get outside for a run.

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Anyhow tired, lacking inspiration yada yada yada...Then last week a friend of mine posted to Facebook about a tough run she'd just had and how she ended up walking half of it. She was disappointed in herself and I thought why is she disappointed she got up a 5am, got out the door on a very windy cold wet morning and ran 10k...ummm hello...hero? So as I sat here that morning thinking about her post I thought 'by jeez if she can do that then the least I can do is lace up my runners and get on the darn treadmill'...so off I went and walked a half hour...I realized I had been stuck in a mode where I felt that if couldn't do what I wanted to do (run, yoga, weights) then why bother with anything at all...silly really but that is in the past.

Then on top of the wonderful motivation my friend unknowingly provided me (I did later message her a thank you and some encouragement) I caught a segment of Ellen interviewing Tom Shadyac a Hollywood producer and director. I didn't see all of his interview but caught that he was promoting a new documentary called Happy

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During the interview Ellen asked Tom about his move from his Hollywood mansion to his mobile home...this caught my attention and while I was then distracted by a child in need, when I had time I settled down with my laptop and Google'd Tom Shadyac, what I came across was a documentary he made called I Am. I watched it last night and highly recommend it ( It will explain the move from the mansion).

I have once again found my inspiration, in the people around me and the world at large and cannot wait to get on with things.

I hope your weekend is full of inspiration, love, happiness and health!

Happy Weekend all!

Happy Wednesday!

Hi all hope you are having a stellar week...Here, I have no complaints. Recovery is going well, all pathology came back clear so life is slowly returning to normal.

So as I often do on Wednesdays I thought I would share with you where in blogland I visited today...

However before I do this I have to share my new favorite beauty product. Now, I am not a slave to makeup, I wear very little; a little blush, sometimes a nude eyeshadow, occasionally eyeliner, and always mascara. My only other must have is that I cannot stand to be without my toenails polished. When I was in hospital that polish had to come off and I could not wait to get home and get polished. My darling daughter Cait was kind enough to paint them for me as I was not able. She even went to the store and bought a new sweet blossom pink colour by Joe Fresh. Last week I decided to paint my finger nails which I almost never do and since my toes were blossom pink by Joe I thought so should my fingers...I am in love with this nail polish. It goes on smooth, wears well, dries fast and does not smell horrible. I am officially an addict :o) My sweet husband even went  back to buy me a few other colours.

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Okay...now back to our regularly scheduled program...

It was a bit quiet out there in blogland this morning, but I came across a few great posts I thought I should share.

Blair from Delights by Design just finished tearing through (literally) Steven Gambrel's book and has shared the images that were at the top of her pile. I am pining away for this stairwell...

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Designwali asked Shannon from 8Foot6 'Where's your colour at?' Hop on over to see what Shannon has to say, and to see her fantastic photo's.

Sue at The Zush has stumbled upon some fantastic TOMs ballet flats for her Wednesday Wants post.

Tim over at Design Maze is looking forward to summer and sharing some great outdoor furniture by Brian Gluckstein.

And finally Heather Bullard is doing man stuff...and enjoying it!

There you have it! Where I got to in blogland today and some musings about nail polish (and I was not compensated in any way for this)...Happy Wednesday all!

Parenting...

Today I read two blog posts over at Huffington Post. Both were on the same topic...a 7 year old who has identified himself as gay. Both were written by his parents, one his mother, one his father. Both were wonderful.

Amelia writes about the first time her son verbally identified himself as gay and the moments since. It is an eloquent account of how she is managing this realization and it's early onset. She talks about how she and her husband are simply accepting that this a part of their son just as his love for Lego is a part of his seven year old self. Amelia's husband Dave has written a blog post in response to many comments to Amelia inquiring about how he is reacting to his 7 year old sons revelation. Dave is also eloquent, understanding and non-judgmental. He says "I don't see how a father, or any parent, can look at their son, the one they've loved since before the child was even born, and upon hearing him say, "Dad, I'm gay," turn their back on him."

I had to share these posts because Amelia and Dave are parenting role models. Regardless of whether you believe a 7 year old is capable of identifying his or her sexual orientation, the heart of the matter is showing your children love and respect and acceptance.

via my pinterest, original source

Thank you Dave and Amelia! Loving the children in your life is the easiest and most rewarding thing in life.

Happy Tuesday all!

Friday fancies...

So a week has passed already...time flies...hope the pace keeps up or I'm gonna get bored.
Today I thought I'd share a favorite space in my home...
Every day I pass by a corner of my home that I love, it sits atop the stairs, houses an old armchair and a bookcase I picked up long long ago when I was a single gal on my own. I love this bookcase...I always have, I always will.

As you can see it is not styled, the books are just forced onto the shelf however they happen to fit. The top is full of family photo's and little treasures are found on each shelf...maybe this is why I love it. The chair was bought from Habitat for Humanity's Re-Store here in Muskoka (honestly the best you will find...it is worth traveling for) the fabric is so bad it's good. I nursed my youngest in this chair during her late night feedings. This is the chair I curl up in when I cannot sleep and the chair I read to Isobel in when we have to put Lilah to bed before her (they share a room). My two cats curl up here at night and sleep together, and I often perch on the arm of this chair to peruse the bookcase for a good read.

This corner is one of my favorite spaces in my home. It is not designed, nor styled, but a reflection of how we live, and the things we love. I hope you have a space in your home that you love as much I do this.

Happy Friday All!

I'm Back...

Hello all! How've you been? I am here 4 days post op...home and doing well. Struggling to sleep comfortably, but with the ability and expectation to nap during the day it's all good.

I wasn't sure when or what I was going to post when I got back to it, so I spent some early morning hours thinking about it, and settled on sharing some of the things I missed on Pinterest while I was out of the loop...
The biggest thing is that they have adjusted their terms of service which I am happy to report. Not gonna lie, I was worried I would have to leave this shangrila and thrilled that the powers that be listened to the concerns of their users and worked to allay their fears.

As I scanned recent pins this morning I came across this pin from Rue Magazine

via my pinterest, original source

This chair would be of such comfort to me right now...absolute perfection...I love it in white!

Then there was this beauty from ModCloth

via my pinterest, original source

I am down ten pounds since the day I went in for surgery...crazy, but soon enough I might like to try out this sweet vintage vibe for myself.

And finally...some words of wisdom to leave you with...

via my pinterest, original source

Happy Monday all...enjoy the beauty of each day...but most importantly the day that is before you!

What I've been up to...

So time is ticking along here and it is now one week to my surgery. I have been busy trying to get everything organized at the gallery for my absence. Bookkeeping up to date...filing done...and a new and exciting venture (more on that at some point in the future) organized and running before I vacate for a while.

On the home front I am feeling a little lost without a project on the go, but am loving the revamped laundry and bathroom. If you missed the reveal you can see it here.

On the blog front I have discovered a few new blogs that I am crushing over. I happened upon Heather Bullard Lifestyle Blog I think while I was checking link backs on my pinterest. I fell head over heels for her beautiful photography, and was excited to learn of her new online magazine Souvenir going live next week.

One only has to look at some of the images on her blog to know that the magazine will be divine.

See for yourself;

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I then hopped over to the Souvenir Facebook page to check out some of the contributors and found a host of other bloggers sooo worthy of following...my blog roll is almost getting too much to manage but I cannot stop myself.

Happy Thursday all...and if I miss you tomorrow have a glorious weekend...supposed to be stunning up here in Muskoka...can't wait!

Time to lighten the mood...

Happy Weekend everyone...

Things have been a little heavy around here lately, and so it is that today I thought I'd share some of my favorite pins from Pinterest.

via my pinterest originally from here

via my pinterest originally from here



via my pinterest originally from here

 Just so you know this was an unintentional alliteration; bowls, bottles and books :o)
Have a beautiful weekend!

Note: There seems to be a lot of discussion surrounding Pinterest, their policies as well as the idea of copyright infringements, so in an effort to keep things very clear, I will now link to my pin board but also to the original source the image was found. I have been spending a lot of time going through all my pins to make sure they link back to their appropriate source, and where they don't I've been deleting them...quite sadly sometimes. Pin wisely my people, make sure the link back is live and correct.