Growing Up

I have survived another year and came out the other side in one piece despite my best clumsy efforts. I'm floating around in my late 20's and I find that it is a weird, but nice age. It feels like not so long ago everyone was working on school work and partying; now everyone is in career mode and my Facebook feed is filled with weddings and babies. Sometimes (like when I find myself staring down rude high schoolers who refuse to wait in line for the bus and thinking of ways to yell at them) I feel old. Then I take a trip to the zoo and I feel like a kid again.

I really wanted a nice, low key birthday this year that involved being outside all day with friends. I think it is impossible to ever outgrow the Zoo. I don't know if it's the nostalgia from childhood or just the cute animals but it holds a certain sway over my heart. Though I do miss being small enough to go on the pony rides.

One thing is for certain: I take A LOT of pictures at the zoo. I don't have a fancy camera, just a basic point and shoot, but I can never resist having hundreds of pictures of animals. They do the most amazing and interesting things that keep me captivated for hours. I am a kid in a candy store at this place! Or well..a big kid at the zoo, but you get my point.

My main concern for the day was having as much fun as possible. Second to that was the all important goal of no tan lines. I really wanted to wear a pair of comfortable shorts and a flowy strapless top, but I couldn't find one that would fit me. Being a dress girl I don't usually wear shorts, but I didn't want to worry about dresses flying up or my legs rubbing together (not all of us have tiny stick legs!). So instead I donned leggings with a strapless dress that allowed me to run around and be silly, while maintaining at least a small amount of girlish dignity.

I really appreciated all my friends who came out and put up with my overtly perky self and a very long day trekking around. Especially the boys who were my pack mules for the day and lugged two backpacks full of food and supplies. I don't really do anything half way and I steadfastly refuse to buy overpriced sub par food. Also I am a sucker for picnics. I had packed my picnic backpack full of cold bbq chicken, assorted veggies, kielbasa, cold salad rolls w hoison sauce, pita bread, brie, grapes, watermelon, pretzels and cookie bars. We were well fed.

Please note when bribing people to get up early and spend all day with you, a backpack or two full of food goes a long way. As do breakfast sandwiches.



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Getting Fitted - Pt. 1

Bridesmaid dresses. Yup, that's probably one of the most feared word combos ever. It brings to peoples minds unflattering cuts of silk and taffeta in shades of puce. Now I have to admit that it seems the dresses are becoming more fashionable and there's more of a chance of getting something that doesn't look too bad. But it will still cost you an arm and a leg for something you may never wear again outside of perhaps a play or Halloween costume. And with that, I would like to talk a bit about my bridesmaid dress experience thus far.

My brother is getting married in the summer and I have been asked by his fiance to be one of her (6) bridesmaids. She has been a fairly easy bride in that she a) picked a deep purple for our dress colours and b) told us that as long as the colour and material was the same we could wear any dress style we wanted. Naturally I heaved a big sigh of relief when she told us this. We went dress shopping back in December as a group and ironically all ended up liking the same dress style (one shouldered with a loose flowy chiffon bottom that hits just around the knees) and decided that we would go with matching dresses.

This is the dress minus the colour

So far so good...so it seems.

Out of all the bridesmaids I am the only plus size. Fact: bridal sizes are NOT plus size friendly. I am normally a 14/16 depending on the clothes; in bridal wear I am a 22W. Let's put aside the fact that the plus size section of dresses to try on was half a rack of clothes suited for a conservitive lady twice my age. Or perhaps that when I was the only girl who couldn't try on the sample dress the sales lady told me that "holding it up against your body would be just like trying it on". Even ignore that my measurements are wierd enough that the dress will have to be ordered two sizes above my bust size to accomidate my waste. I pushed aside any trepedation because the dress was cute and it would be custom fitted to us. One thing I couldn't easily gloss over however, was that once I was measured and sized I was then informed that I would be charged an extra $40 on top of the already expensive dress price because I was plus sized...enter rage.

There was a very specific reason I have waited until now to post about this experience. I didn't want this post to be an angry rant full of caps lock and exclamation points. I had to give myself enough time to process and calm down so I could approach this topic from a more reasonable stand point. That being said, could someone please tell me why being a plus size should equal you having to pay more money?

I don't believe the whole "we have to use extra fabric to make your clothes" line. If that was true shouldn't the fabric amount difference between an extra small and a large change in price as well? Kind of like sheet sets. Their is usually an approx $10 difference as you go up in sheet sizes (twin, double, queen, king) it is an accepted fact. If clothes were treated the same way it would be as well. But to only jump the prices once we are into plus sizes is bascially saying "we are punishing you because you are fat". But what do you do about it?

In my case I was tired, injured and didn't have enough fight in me to get very far past a shocked "excuse me? And why is that" repeated a couple times until I realized I was not going to get a straight answer out of anybody. In lou of being deemed the "drama starter" bridesmaid I sucked up my disgust, bit my tongue and paid the deposit for the dress. Perhaps I sacrified some integrity; afterall companies get away with charging us more because we let them. If I had been shopping completely for myself I would have walked out without buying it, but at the time I had to look at the bigger picture. The issue was sidelined but not forgotten.

Fast forward to this past weekend. I have had months to ponder and worry over what the dress will look like. Will it fit me, will it look nice, will it look like the other dresses or will it be "plus-sized modified". Despite the bitter taste left in my mouth from my last visit I was determined to go into my first fitting with a positive attitude. So in I went to try it on and wouldn't you know it's cute. Yes, its entirely too big on top and will have to be taken in, but I was prepared for that. Once it was pinned I got a better idea of how it would look after alterations. The appointment was fairly painless (minus one pin prick to the finger) and much less mentally emotional that my last visit. Let's hope fitting #2 goes just as well.

In the meantime I fully plan on looking further into the whole price difference issue.


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Going Gaga Over: Current Obsessions

The sun is out, my hair is straight and my dress is bright yellow. There is no reason for anything less than big smiles. Just popping by with a quick list of current loves.

1) Summer-like weather! Yeah I know it's not officially summer yet but it's certainly starting to feel like it. I've already started to chant my favourite phrase in my head 'parks, picnics & patios'

2) Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips - easy, affordable, no muss no fuss. My nails are leopard print right now, they are making quite a splash.

3) DIY blogs and projects - I've been re-painting my front hall and it has inspired me to change up some things around the apartment. I'm going to go through and try to take some stuff I have and re-purpose it to get better use. Updates are a coming.

4) Strapless sun dresses - I have to wear a one shouldered bridesmaids dress in August. I refuse to have strap tans. Keeping it classy.

5) Bread Making - I have yet to venture past a basic whole wheat bread but there are no complaints thus far. With The Boy all moved in, and his sandwich consumption at an all time high, it's definitely saving me money.


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Yesterday was a bit of a throw away day. A fever kept me at home and from getting much rest. I spent most of the day bundled on the couch with episodes of Buffy, lots of liquids and tylenol cold and flu. I did manage to rustle up enough energy to put together a basic soup.

(Chicken Broth, Udon Noodles, Peas, Carrots, Celery & Onion)

It was my major accomplishment of the day.


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Lifes Giggles

Last night I spent the evening next door helping my neighbor decorate headbands with ribbon and tulle. My fingers were covered in hot glue by the end of it and everyone laughed, chatted and ate pizza until we were all too tired to continue. Sometimes it's the simple impromptu moments in life that are the best and most cherished.

Happy Friday!

G.

Easter Gathering - Chocolate Pecan Pie

Another Easter has come and gone, leaving in its wake a sea of bunny and egged shaped chocolate for us to gorge ourselves on. It's a hard job but someone's got to do it. Every time our family gathers, whether for a holiday or just a reason to eat, I usually put myself in charge of dessert. In addition to large ribs and a penchant for mischief, my Mother has also given me her sweet tooth. The sheer amount of desserts that the two of us can eat should be illegal. Seriously.

This year I decided to try something new and I let Martha Stewart lead my way with her delicious Chocolate Pecan Pie Recipe.

The crust was super simple involving only a few ingredients and my food processor to mix it. This particular one had unsalted butter in it. Fun fact: my Mum doesn't believe in using butter for pie crust, she only uses lard. I have to admit nothing beats her crust.

Nothing really beats the ooey-goooooey goodness of pecan pie either. Except perhaps when it has chocolate added to it.

I ended up making two pies. One for my family dinner and one for my boyfriends family dinner. He liked the idea that he got to taste test it twice. He calls it "checking for poison" in hopes that it will get him extra pieces. My other pie was much prettier all wrapped up in a removable bottomed tart pan, but I like how rustic this one looks. In the end the taste is really what matters most and this pie was a winner.



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Going Gaga Over: Current Obsessions

Spring is in the air and along with it comes brighter colours, lighter fabrics and happy tunes. In addition to my spring re-organizing project I've been trying out some new looks and spring trends that I was unsure if I could pull off. Here's a quick list of what I'm currently in love with:

1) High Messy Buns - I have a really round wide face that I usually like to narrow by keeping my hair framing it. I've never really liked the way I look with my hair up so I usually avoid it at all cost. But I'm trying to embrace new things and I kinda love the perkiness of my hair piled on top of my head with a few stray curls springing out.

2) Bold Coral Lips - I've always been more of a lip gloss girl. It's quick, simple and has a no fuss quality that I like. But there is something about a bold lip that can really make an outfit pop. My current fav is the Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stain in Flame with a swipe of Rimmel Vinyl Gloss in Fashion Icon on top

3)The Urban Ballerina Collection by OPI/Sephora. I never thought I would wear pale pink on my nails. Clearly I was wrong.

4)Urban Outfitters Decor. Quirky and functional.

5)This Baseball Bean Bag Chair. My boyfriend is opposed to it. I am in love with the idea of it sitting in my living room and watching Jays games from it. We are in negotiations currently. His argument being "it doesn't match anything in the apartment". My retort was "it matches my Jose Bautista bobble head". We shall see.

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