orange.

orange harley davidson trike.  orange skirt.  orange mums. orange tankini

(by the way, i so dislike that word, “tankini”).  correction: orange two-piece.

to better things (random tuesdays in september where the sun shines like it’s summer),

steph

sometimes i wonder.

sometimes i wonder:

*how come graphic designer’s never lose their pets?  have you ever seen a tastefully done, well informed, non-cheesy looking “lost dog” poster around the neighbourhood?  why are all those posters so pitiful looking?! 

*my crazy, forty year old neighbours were pumping vanilla ice, “ice, ice baby” (think early 90’s) out of their parked minivan’s stereo system.  i admit to the vintage-goodness of roxette, and tom cochrane and sure, even vanilla ice.  hmmm… i was in high school when that music came out.  i’m not sure if i’m impressed or a bit freaked out though that the neighbours are at least a decade older than i am and they are still digging vanilla ice.  something to ponder.

*toddlergirl and i watched sesame street this morning and you would never guess who was on!  james blunt.   he sang a new rendition of “beautiful” that had the lyrics changed to be all about triangles.  i haven’t watched sesame street in decades.  i had always liked the song “beautiful” before, but hearing “my triangle,” start off with “this shape is brilliant/ this shape is pure/ i saw three angles/ of that i’m sure” it kind of ruined the song for me.  i applaud sesame street staying with the times, but seriously?  again, not sure what i think about this.  just wondering.

what do you wonder about?

to better things (on a random tuesday afternoon),

steph

goodbyes.

i’m getting really good at saying goodbyes.  over the past year i’ve said goodbye to my best friend who moved back to her home in the beautiful peace region.  i’ve said goodbye to these dear friends last spring who are now in africa.  and just this week i’ve said goodbye to these friends who will literally be on the other side of the world for the next three years.

phew.

i’ve shed a few tears lately.

to my friends that are literally boarding a plane right now (with their one year old daughter):

i will miss you heidi, my friend with gorgeous, licorice black hair and an infectious laugh.  who will go to mommy martini night and sex and the city movie’s with me?  i will miss your honesty and encouragement.  our photo walks were great fun and can’t wait to see what photos you’ll take with that new nikon in papua new guinea.

ps. and to my friends still here in bc… please stay!  i don’t want to say any more goodbyes for awhile!

to better things,

steph

new.

the official beginning of autumn draws near and although the leaves are fading and it’s the end of a season, in many ways its the beginning of a new year.  it certainly has that feeling to it.  i used to always love the bright, hot summer, but i’ve come to love fall with all it’s splendour.  i love autumn’s cozy sweaters, spicy, earthy pecan pie, the golden light in the early evening, and crunchy, crisp red apples with their sour bite.

my lack of writing on the blog as of late, has to do with a couple of things…

one:  i’m taking a writing course this fall with a fantastic vancouver writer/editor and there is a small part of me that fears writer’s block and therefore i want to hoard all my ideas just in case i need them for an assignment.  i know, it’s illogical.  but who knows?  it could go either way- you may see less or you may see more writing on the blog.

two:  in the realm of new beginnings, i have the beginning of a new little life inside me.  yes, i’m pregnant! yes, we’re excited.  yes, we are cautiously taking it one step at time and are prepared for knowing that our world may/will be turned upside down again with a new baby, but we’re willing to take the risk.  baby addition 2.0 is anticipated to join our family in april 2009.  the first few months have hit me hard with morning sickness (aka all-day sickness) and nausea, so that explains my lack of regularity around the blogosphere.  diclectin, and tazo green ginger tea have become my friends.  toddlergirl is excited in as much as she can understand what’s happening.  she knows that she is the “big sister” and that that is pretty darn special.

so, that is what’s new with us this season!  i’ll still be updating with photos as we go along.

to better things (like turning over a new leaf maternally speaking),

steph

blatant promotion.

i usually try to keep my work photos somewhat separate, but every once in awhile there’s a bit of overlap in the personal/professional side and sometimes i can’t help but want to share.  my brother, curt was here not so long again.  we had some friends over for a breakfast party (waffles) and he put on a fantastic magic show.  i use the term “magic” in the “it’s-so-amazing-how-the-heck-did-he-do that?!”  not the “sawing-people-in-half-cheesy-costumes-magic.”  he will amaze with close up illusion.  i’m taking david blaine kind of good.  david blaine good, but not david blaine crazy (freezing oneself in ice, being buried alive, etc).  

curt lives a couple of provinces away, so we only get to see him once in awhile.  he wanted some promo type shots for an eventual website, posters, etc.  he and i went out and got some of these great shots.  he’s pretty photogenic. 

if he’s back in our neck of the woods- we’ll see if we can host another waffles and magic party… or you can contact me and i’ll put you in touch with him if you ever want to hire him.  look out world.

5 things i’m loving right now.

1.  the sunny, fall weather we’re having.  it’s +22c and gorgeous outside.

2.  enforced quiet hour in our home.  toddlergirl may have given up her soothers quickly, but with it she also gave up her nap entirely.  nap gone= my freedom gone.  i had a few weeks of non-stop, 15 hours straight of toddler time.  that is just too much for me.  so every day after lunch, i create a “quiet basket” with a snack, a toy, a dvd, etc…  and she gets to unpack it in her room and hang out there for a little while.  it’s not entirely quiet, but it’s for the most part uninterrupted time for a small slice of the day.

3.  toasted tomato sandwiches.  for some reason autumn to me equates toasty deli style sandwiches and hot piping soup and what can i say?  it makes made me happy.

4.  decadence handmade soap by cascadia soaps.  double french milled with essential oils of lavender, orange, patchouli and cedarwood.  it smells SO good.  it’s not too strong either.  we use it as shampoo for toddlergirl’s hair as well.  for locals, we pick ours up at the granville island market, but you can order online as well.

5.  see kai run shoes.  i know, they’re not cheap.  i had toddlergirl wearing crappy $5.00 sandals all summer and now her feet and arches have taken a beating for it.  the occupational therapist strongly encouraged some good shoes for her, so we went shoe shopping.  these little mary janes make me smile each time she puts them on. 

to better things,

steph

real zebras.

real zebras at the zoo.

we decided to get a family membership this summer and we’ve been making use of it.

more zebras.

a sleepy lion.

giraffe.

cute monkey.

the real monkey is starred.  the other monkey is also starred. incrediblehusband would run around the cage and the monkey would keep up with him running laps as well.  yes, that’s the stroller speeding along and incrediblehusband in mid-run.

 making friends with the marmoset.

fake zebras.

my dad had the idea to take us all to kinsmen park while we were in saskatoon.  it was a childhood memory revisited for me as my parents used to take us there as kids.  pretty much nothing has changed in 25 years…  (except the ticket price from 25 cents to a whole $1). 

toddlergirl loved the merry-go-round!

 it was hard to say goodbye.