Do-Take a bath

Holy man right now I am dreaming of this:

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But unfourtunately this is my reality:

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My feet are seriously sore! They are screaming on a minute to minute basis for me to sit the eff down. 

So this is it friends I need your help. What brand or even particular shoe do you reccomend to a person working on her feet all day?

I was so naive and really had no idea it would feel like this! I will pay any amount of money to work my eight hours not once thinking about this damn shooting pain. 

Thanks guys, I know you have my feet, errrr I mean back! 

Love and Hugs

Do- Start a new job!

Hey you guys I did it, I got the job! This morning is my first day at AVEDA and I am so excited!

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I'll be working on the front desk of the spa and the floor offering every guest a complementary wellness moment of hand massages and scalp massages! I am so excited to work within a company that connects beauty, environment and wellbeing! 

I'll tell you all more about it once I learn more but for now, please keep your loving fingers crossed for me and wish me luck! I am on my way to fufilling my dream of working in the wellness/natural/spirtual world one little step at a time.

Love and Hugs

Do- Immigrate to Canada

Holy fuck you guys. We are trying to keep all the hair on our heads and love in our marriage as we plug through the immigration procedures to have Vince legally in Canada.

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So that's where we'll be if you are looking for us in the next 8-11 months. URGH!

Trying to think, "rainbows and butterflies, rainbows and butterflies".

Love and Hugs

Do- Christmas party fever!

Do you guys have it? This year is a little over the top with invites and especially this weekend. Holy moly it's nuts! Last Sunday we were invited to a Christmas open house at Alison Ann and Jack's house and it was just lovely!

Alison is my Mom's coworker's sister. Both her and her sister are fond of octopuses and so am I! She is also an artist so needless to say there were a lot of funny felted and knited Octopi squiggling through their Christmas tree which made me feel right at home!

They are also vegetarians so no worries on the food front for me. They had glazed nuts, blue cheese and sage filo pastries, mini quiches, cheese and crackers and home made meringues and marshmellows!

There were a few special hosts of the kitty kind named Opti and Parka. Opti is normally a very shy fellow and surprised us all but coming out from under the bed for a visit. Everyone agreed it was a Christmas miracle.

The sisters were enjoying East Dell pinot grigio which was fitting because....

They hail from Windsor Ontario! Well not Niagara and not even close but you know!

Thanks so much Allison and her lovely other half, we had such a great time at your gathering and felt so blessed to be invited!

Now tell me girls what great Holiday shindigs are you invited to this season? And if you need a little inspiration for what to wear I've got you covered right here!

Have fun sillies!

Love and Hugs

Do- Community Theater

Are you guys big theater buffs or music or ballet or anykind of preforming arts? Well I am and to be honest I forget about it. Thanks goodness my Aunt Lyn is a theater actor and performs in about one play a year where I get to go and feel a part of the magic once again.

There is just something about live theatre that gets me everytime. I much MUCH prefer it to going to the cinema. And come on, check out the beautiful Victoria Hall above! Wouldn't you want to see a play there?

The production we went to see was called Revenge of the Three Little Pigs by Doug Wright. It was a charming story of fariy tale land and all the funny happenings and events that go awry when three little pigs take over the Kingdom. Fun right?!

My Aunt Lyn is the lady in the middle above. She expertly played the part of the evil Stepmother and it was as if the part was written just for her. She was truly hilarious, charismatic and stole the show to be honest. (No bias here I promise! ;))

What I love about Community Theater is all the work the actors and behind the scenes folks do to ensure it comes alive. They spend every single night at the Playhouse painting and practicing to make one 2 hour period of our life fun and unforgettable.

If you get the chance and are in the South Western Ontario region please check out the Petrolia Community Theater. They are putting on productions all the time and it's always a hoot! Support the arts my friends! Especially the small country ones!

What fun stuff are you going to see this Christmas season? A few years ago we went to see Handle's Messiah by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and there is Tafelmusik going on up at the United Church on Bloor st. that is supposed to be amazing. Or what about The Nutcracker at the Rebbeca Cohn in Halifax? And what's going on in Paris? Or Boston?


Love and Hugs

Do- Get spooked at Père-Lachaise cemetery

Last Saturday Mom, Dad, Vince, Sunny and I drove into Paris for a day of sightseeing in the 19e-20e arrondissments of Paris including a stop at Père-Lachaise cemetery. And holy moly was that thing big. When we left Fontainebleau in the morning we had planned to see Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde and Chopin. No big deal right?

Think again! We made it to pay out respects to Jim and that was it. I think either you come back over multiple visits like when visiting the Louvre or stop for drinks half way through.

This is Jim's grave. There were a lot of people hanging around taking pictures, smoking hash and writting on trees. Mom made friends of course!

Lots of the graves were like tiny chapels. Apparently many members from one family will all be buried in the same grave as time goes by.

We could have honestly stayed all day meandering through the small alleyways and avenues of the cemetery but it got dark quick and the grey foggy sky hanging over seemed to be closing in and asking us to leave.

So instead we headed to Le Baratin for dinner! And what a lovely dinner it was. Actually we don't have any pictures of it because we were just too busy enjoying it!

So there you have it my last Saturday in Paris for a while! We are back in Toronto now and looking for jobs. So the big question is, when are you coming for a visit?! ;)

Love and Hugs

Do- Where to take your dog to the park in Paris

Here's in France dogs go everywhere, the hair salon, fancy restaurants, jean shopping with you but they do not go to the park! I'm not sure why but if I had to guess I'd say it's because Parisians do not pick up their doggies poop and they can't be trusted to go in the beautiful parks and lovely grassy spots you find throughout the capital. So unfortunately most of them are off limits for your dog.

Thankfully there is one off leash park in Paris and it's at the Louvre, naturally. My new friend Jennifer had a party there last Sunday for her girl Moxie's 4th birthday and we got invited!

Source: Thanks for the pic Jennifer!

The old Monkamonk was pretty excited to be there. When she saw Moxie from across the park she ran over as fast as her little fluffy legs would take her.

Here's a great shot of the off the park with the Louvre in the background so you can see what I mean. Thanks Mairin!

 

Sunny obviously got down to the serious business of playing. She is a social little monkey chatting with DSK the American Cocker spaniel and a small baby monkey.

She fell in love with a three month old Boston Terrier named Georges. Obsessed with younger men just like her Momma! ;)

While the dogs played we enjoyed vin chaud, pasta salad, muffins, apple crisp and more wine!

The weather was perfect and we stayed all afternoon soaking up the view and great company!

Soon it was time to go and give the birthday girl one last kiss before we were on our way home with a very happy and exhausted doggie.

What a success! We are so going back there Tuesday afternoon so Sunny can run and get tired before the big 8 hour flight home and to have one last look at one of the most beautiful pieces of architecture in Paris! 

What's it like for dogs in your town? Can they roam where they please or are they confined to your homes? Apparently Toronto has a off leash dog park every few meters like the metro in Paris so we are pretty excited about that! Right Sunny?


Love and Hugs

Do- Make yourself a pumpkin mask

So you got a lot of pumpkin around the house and you're kinda broke? Sound familar? Well you could make a pumpkin face mask if you like? Let's let Erica and Allison show us how.

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What's makes pumpkins awesome is that they are packed with vitamin A! Which works like a charm in smothing out your skin and kicking those wrinkles to the curb, stupid wrinkles.

You will need:

2 tsp pureed pumpkin

1/2 tsp honey

1/4 tsp heavy whipping cream

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Then mix it all up and apply with a fancy fan brush if you have one to make it even more spa-like. You could even heat it a little in the microwave so it's not too cold going on your skin.

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After 10 mins rinse and admire your gorgeous glowing pumpkin skin!


Just another reason to love Autumn! Are you going to try this? Or does the thought of pumpkin on your face freak you out? Well then maybe you could make this Pumpkin-Smores cake from Desserts for Breakfast instead? oooooor do the mask while eating the cake?!

I know I'm bad. ;)


Love and Hugs

Do- Champagne tasting

Thank goodness for twitter is all I can say. I met a lovely girl on there named Emma. She is a major wine buff and turned us on to the many tastings at Caves Auge. The oldest wine shop in Paris and her old workplace.
A couple of Saturdays ago Auge had a handful of small vintners come in and offer free tastings of their bubbly with discounted prices on the bottles. We were late, arriving around 3pm and this is what we saw: 

A packed sidewalk with desperate tasters huddled around the barrels.

We mustered our way in and were rewarded with many a glass of lovely champagne.

Sunny didn't really see what all the fuss was about.

The vintners were pouring tirelessly from 11am-5pm educating us on their specific process and taste points.

Most people were taking notes and really getting into it. We tried most of the wines as well and left with 3 great bottles which have since been consumed!

It was a great Saturday and we definitely reccomend logging on to the Auge Website and viewing the other tastings coming up. They have one almost every three weeks and if you want to benefit fully don't do what we did, Get There Early!


Do you drink champagne? Cava? Prosecco? Or are you a straight up red wine type person? I'd like to know so next time I come over to your house I bring the right bottle! ;)



Love and Hugs

Do Thursday- First time Pumpkins

As you know last weekend we were in Metz. It was a long weekend, Vince's nephew and sister's b-days and Halloween all rolled into one. Léo is really getting into Halloween lately and was disappointed last year when not one kid came trick or treating to his house. So this year we decided to help him out by decorating his front gate with a pumpkin! That way the kids would surely know he was open for business.

We prepped the table with newspaper and Léo drew his desired scary face for the pumpkin on paper first as a stencil. Uncle Vince helped him cut ou the shapes.

The kids were a little less than impressed with the gooey insides and having to empty it with their bare hands. Lise decided to use a spoon instead.

Tonton Vincent trying to scare Léo and it was kind of working!

Lise preferred to wash and rinse the seeds for roasting later. (better than getting your hands dirty and slimy right?!)

Léo is pretty proud of his very first attempt a pumpkin carving!  And I must say it is pretty spiffy!

Mr. Pumpkin taunted us from the top of the fridge for the rest of the afternoon!

Did you guys carve a pumpkin this year? Was he friendly or scary? My Mom did a white one with flames! I also saw some that were just painted with no carving at all. I can't wait to get back and carve my very own next year!



Love and Hugs

Do Thursday- Fontainebleau Castle

While Sunny was getting her hair done last Saturday we took the opportunity to visit our castle. (There are no Dogs allowed, not even sweet little fluffy white ones.) We decided to just visit the gardens and the grounds this time. Mom and Dad are coming to visit in November and we plan to visit the inside with them next month.

The Castle was built by King Francis in the 16th century and is apparently the inspiration for the massive gorgeous gardens at Chateau Versailles.


I was just like, "Welcome everybody, come on in!" "Oh this little place? Well no haven't you been to Marie's place at Versailles? This is nothing! Just a humble abode we like to say."

And then there were the peacocks. Holy crap I was standing right beside one and thought it was a statue and then it moved and so did I! I actually screamed. Poor birdie. But seriously how cool are peacocks??!!!

Reflecting on how lucky I am to live here. 

Wait there's more wildlife! Don't forget about the swans for goodness sakes! They are so hypnotic. I couldn't stop staring.

Photo for my Mom and Dad.

Then is was time to go. But not before our favourite weekend thing, Apero! Having a beer on a terrace. Oh yeah!

What did you guys get up to last weekend? Have you ever been to the Fontainebleau Castle? And Versailles? How would you compare the two?



Love and Hugs