saturday pics getting ready for a party

Adam's singing birthday card

This is one of 2 tees that Keira chose at Zara Kids. She likes the girl because they have the same bangs.

We're getting ready to head on out for a birthday party. My nephew's turning 6! But guess who's turn it is to suffer from food poisoning? Uh yes, that would be me. I now know how it feels to go through a 'cleanse'. Not by choice. Hopefully the pink stuff I took will help me get through the party cuz it's quite a long drive getting there. I don't want to miss my nephew's birthday! So today, between naps, some photos of the Keikster being her sweet self. Hope you enjoy Keira's February drawing from school. She told me it's a baby flower with long pony tail hair, skipping for Spring.

happy friday!

We made it! We did it! It's finally Friday. This is exactly my week in a nut shell. Can you guess who I am in the photo above? Why yes, I'm Barbie keeled over and done. There are funky things happening at work but at home, it's still grand. And I'm so grateful for that. Happy Friday everyone! Hopefully you didn't have to ride the funky magic carpet ride this week.. if you did? I was with you. It's time to get off that magic carpet and slide into the weekend. Who's with me?

zara girls

Well, I've been on the fence about posting this. Why? I don't know. Probably because this is about Zara Girls again. lol. But it's been a magic carpet ride type of week for me and I guess I'd rather be daydreaming about spring and summer and where these clothes might eventually end up (i.e. vacation!).

These are the dresses Keira picked out at Zara Kids. I'm surprised with these choices because it's not A) Pink B) Mauve C) Sparkly D) No tulle in sight. Is my girl growing up? That's what I thought until she eyed the Barbie tee and made a beeline straight towards it. Did I get it for her? I think you already know the answer to that.

Well, this one's pretty pink. Happy girl's day is everyday if you let it be isn't it?

She's already worn this at home.. I'm not a 'let's save this dress for a special occasion' type of mom. She'll probably end up wearing this at the park. 

the bone n cozy at zone orange - my sweet shot tuesday

So last weekend, one of the reasons why I brought Keira to Old Montreal was so that we could head on to Zone Orange on rue Saint-Pierre. I passed by this shop almost every single day going to and from the métro to work. And I love it there! It's actually an art gallery + shop. They feature great Montreal/Quebec artists and companies. Their windows are always fun and every season, they change up their 'flower' boxes on the outside.

What I really wanted was this: The bone n cozy by a Montreal company called PMO Design. Don't ask me where I first saw it, I just saw it somewhere and found out they were sold at Zone Orange. Is it not fanstastico?? Sure I could order it online but nothing beats going to a brick and mortar shop full of imaginative and fun design.

Image credit: PMO Design, www.pmod.ca

The shop that day when we got there sadly closed. We were there an hour too early (Saturdays they're open from noon to 5). I should have checked their website first. Ah well.. good excuse to go back soon..

In the meantime, I think I'll link this up to Sweet Shot Tuesdays over at My 3Boybarians.

when tummies ache

Caught her going through a box of molasses cookies...

Yesterday, we had a little girl going in and out of the kitchen the entire day.. We were, all three of us, coming off from the highs of a terrific Saturday. For Keira, a birthday party for her friend at a bowling alley plus an all day sleepover at her best friend's house. For us, well, obviously, an all day date! Keira was also on a high because I finally relented and told her she could chew chewing gum. I even let her choose her own chewing gum flavour when we went to the store and the look on her face, "I'm a big girl now, I can chew gum!" was priceless.

So, here is how she was yesterday: Full of life, chewing her little gum, eating who knows what all day long and dancing, jumping, laughing. Until she went to bed when suddenly, things were not so grand. She spent the entire night being violently sick. So much so, Mr C had to change his pj's three times (that is the extent of his jammy wardrobe).


home sweet home from ChantaleP on Vimeo.


Today, I spent some time trying to figure out what she ate and kiddo spent the entire day in bed sleeping it off. She did feel better once she woke up at 3pm but that bloom faded until she was sick again near suppertime. So.. her food intake of the day? Quarter bottle of Gatorade, tons of water, 2 crackers and 3 spoonfuls of soup. Let's hope another night of rest will make her feel better in the morning..

how big drop & paris polaroid met

Poloroid Paris print & Big Drop print

See these gorgeous prints above? Here is how I acquired Big Drop A3 from Seventy Tree's Kerry Layton & Paris Poloroid from Toss & Turn: 

It all started by my reading Holly's Decor8. From there I learned about Will Taylor's Bright.Bazaar. These two decor blogs are something akin to emotional, eye-candy explosion! Back in January, Will posted images of Dabito's downtown LA loft. Okay, I must admit, I always stop for anything California and this was no exception. Suhwoon. What really made me chuckle though was a cutting board that was left on the bedroom floor, like a rug. This Bright.Bazaar post in turn, led me to Dabito's fabuloso blog called OldBrandNew. It's his melting pot of beautiful images that he takes himself, of vintage finds and his travels. You'll also be introduced to his little sweetie, Beatrice. You must check out his incredible photo journey to the City of Lights, Paris here. I'll get back to the Paris photo journey soon...

In the meantime, I fell in love with a modern teardrop print that Dabito posted in one of his Style Board posts which in turn led me to artist Kerry Layton's delightful blog called Seventy Tree. She posts random photos of home life and of her illustrations that I love! I finally purchased my own Big Drop print and framed it up in our living room (looks terrific right?).

Getting back to Dabito's blog, he had a giveaway on his blog for one of his gorgeous Paris poloroid prints and yours truly actually won one! So Big Drop print was waiting for little brother Paris poloroid and on Friday, he arrived! I made the entire family trek to Ikea after supper to get some new frames and now, the family is complete. I love how they look together & add some much needed character to our space. Thank you Kerry and Dabito! By the way, you can acquire your very own polaroid print by visiting Dabito's shop: Toss & Turn and your own Big Drop on Kerry's shop: The Seventy Tree.

Something else came in the mailbox for me on Friday night. An Uppercase magazine! And within, des merveilles... Some added letterpress examples and I framed those up as well! Thanks to a pretty amazing and wonderful friend. 

It was a great start to a really wonderful weekend. Hope you had a great one too!

winter reflection

When I catch her like this, it is for 1 fleeting moment before she tornadoes her way in and around the house.

sweet saturday

Personalizing the birthday card.. 

Wondering what's wrapped up? Starts with B, ends in E. 

Today is birthday party 1 of 3 that Keira was invited to. The party's being held at a bowling alley! Keira wanted to wear this dress (which is actually a long top) with just tights but it's gotten quite short. So I made her put on the one pair of leggings I bought her (of which I took apart the waistband to adjust it to her waist size) and before she could rip them off and start arguing about how they don't fit and how only boys wear pants, Miss B came by and in all the excitement that followed, she kept the leggings on. hehehe..

What could be better than a birthday party break? A sleepover afterwards! A single sweet day to ourselves.. and we plan to take advantage of it. Ah.. sweet Saturday.

happy friday folks!

Friday! Need I say more? Keira has these cheese and crackers shindings but le monsieur and I are not invited. She likes to play alone at times and tells us to "va allez" (go away). Keira even put out the forks and knives here. haha! Enjoy your weekend everyone!

and Thank You all again, for really 'make my day' comments.

(so glad you can't see the mess in this photo)..

lunch à porter bentos!

Last week (or was it the week before? there are dust mites in this old brain), I went to meet up with some friends after work. We ended up in Old Mtl enjoying drinks and a bite to eat afterwards. On our way to that bite to eat, we ended up passing by this window where I saw the most incredible sight! A window full of bento boxes and accessories. I practically drooled and my friend pushed me on...

Now, before I get into it, I gotta back up a few more days before all this. Long ago and far away, I googled the words "montreal" and "bento" and to my great surprise, I found myself checking out this site: lunchaporter.com. I was so surprised, I didn't retain the website in my dusty old filing cabinets up there (aka my memory). Just excited about a montreal company selling bento boxes. Fast forward to my night out.. I still didn't make the connection.

It's only when I brought Keira out on our mommy/daughter valentine weekend outing that it finally clicked! Huboy. Duh me. Sadly, this was only a window dressing. There is no brick and mortar shop. Just the website. But exciting nonetheless! I can't wait to put in my order.. Do you think this will make my bentos look half as decent as Sheri's, or Lia's or Lily's or Susan's or Debra's or Mils, how about Crystal's? Heather? Nnnnnot even close. But it'll look pretty on the outside! lol.

Here's Keira telling me exactly which bento box she wanted:

Figured it out yet? Let me give you a hint...

Can't get any clearer than that right?

Gah! Love!!! Like a little bento suitcase. All coordinated.

Those are lefty sporks! Definitely want one for my little lefty..

The prices are a little bit pricy but there are still some cute stuff I want to try out and get. I think for international buyers, you're better off with the usual sites but for us here in Canada, at least this is in cdn $ and shipping.

lunchaporter.com!

sweet shot tuesday

The World Trade Center.. or as we call it, just the Mondial..

Hôtel le Saint James

Spotted on the streets: Giraffe girl..

Is it Tuesday already? I love these Sweet Shot Tuesdays ever since I started following Sandy's blog (sandyalamode.com). She's been doing Sweet Shot Tuesdays forever. I finally clicked over to see what all the hububs about and.. am really liking it. One of these days when I actually have some time, I'm going to really but really take out pen and paper and take notes on all the technicalities of photography.

In the meantime, here's my 3rd post linked over at My3Boybarians.com. I doubt I'll be doing this every single week but I encourage everyone who loves taking photos to give it a try. You'll be able to see some amazing shots each and every week there.

Above are some shots of Old Montréal that I took on Saturday. The first photo is the interior of The World Trade Center. A place I passed by almost every single working day going to and from work.. this place connects to the underground network of métros. There is also a food court I used to frequent here.

The second photo is of course, the famous Hôtel le St James. Ritzy, exclusive.. And the third shot? The third shot is of Keira hamming it up to the camera with her giraffe tuque. lol!

Happy Sweet Shot Tuesday folks!

valentine nutella waffle hearts

Happy Valentine's folks! It's a special day for the kids at Keira's school. Everyone gets to wear street clothes in pink or red. We had a right ol' giggle wondering if the boys will wear pink today! Keira is wearing a cute little pink dress that Papa bought for her on his last business trip. Then I put a pink ribbon bow in her hair to tie up her ponytail.

I didn't create a bento for her lunch today because she gets  a hot lunch provided by the school (which of course, we pay for). It's just easier this way rather than trying to deal with what's on the restricted list.. We do however, send her off to school with plenty of snacks (chocolate, chips, cookies and candies are not allowed). So her snack today contains strawberry hearts, banana hearts, raspberries and bear paw crackers. I also added in a tiny little card with hearts on it in her lunch box. A tiny little surprise. I hope someone reads it for her.. lol! It just says we love her..

I also made her waffle hearts this morning for her breakfast, smothered with Nutella and topped with banana hearts and raspberries! I hope you all enjoyed your Valentine weekend!

happy ♡ day!

Wishing you warmth, hugs and love this Valentine's Day...

Our Valentine's cards from Keira.. One in english and one in french.

saturday valentine date, a day late

handmade by karaimame

Are these not the cutest little critters ever?? When I saw Lily's crochet amigurumi critters on her flickr set, I went all gaga. They are so crazily kawaii! I had actually seen the felt octopus on her flickr set and asked her if she would be willing to create one for our friend's son Alex who has an obsession with all things octopus. I can tell you, there aren't many stuffed toys.. or toys in general that has an octopus theme with it. And here is what came in the poste for him last week! To our complete surprise, the octopus came with 2 other critters.. bunnies to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit. I can't even tell you the attention to detail: the tiny tiny flower bead, the scarf.. even the headband on the octopus! He looks like he's ready to make sushi and not be in it. hehe. They all came packaged so beautifully that I asked Lily if she had an online shop. You will be disappointed to hear that at this moment, she doesn't have one. But maybe if you pester her enough.. she will relent and open one soon! 

There were even some other goodies in the package. Marimekko tea towels! Moomin cutlery set for Keira and towel (her new doudou). Mr C and I fell in love with this Lumimarja pattern and finally decreed it will become our dining room curtains. Sadly, when I checked online to purchase the fabric, it comes in every other colourway than this one. 

Do you ever wonder if there are good people in the world? Really good, amazingly creative people? Do you wonder who they are, where they live and what they do? The world is full of them mes amis. And Lily is proof of that. 

Thank you sweet Lily and to Miss E and Miss S. Muito obrigada!! 

Check out Lily's terrific blog here: karaimame.wordpress.com and 

follow her on twitter here: http://twitter.com/karaimame

I also blogged about Lily right before xmas last year. She is one crafty lady! Check out the post here.

Go bug her to open a shop. hehe...

oh oh oh it's magic! summer lovin'

Magic! from ChantaleP on Vimeo.


Did it really take me 6 months to finally put together a little video of our summer vacation last year? Yes, yes it did! Life stubbornly gets in the way and last night, I kicked it to the curb and had some fun.

I've been trying to embrace winter as best I could but the past 2 weeks, I've had nothing but sunshine and warmth on my mind.. daydreaming about hawai'i and the aloha spirit. A little California sunshine wouldn't hurt either.

So my friends, enjoy this little magic and dream of your own sunshiney days!

Music: Pilot "Magic"

when in doubt, gallop! happy friday folks!

It's finally Friday folks! I feel so darn freeeeeee..
The Keikster and I will be galloping alone this weekend. Going to check out what's out there and enjoy some mother/daughter time. Usually this involves a lot of giggling and some pretty deep conversations on the kiddo's part. Like: "maam, when LP.. when he goes to school, he don't wanna play with the paper because he don't like dat". Um, yes. Okay. I gotta make like I get it! Get it? Deep.

Wishing y'all a terrific weekend!

sweet shot tuesdays

This is my Sweet Shot Tuesday over at Life with My 3 Boybarians. It pretty much sums up life at the moment: Winter days, snow fall and lots of hot chocolate being made after skating afternoons. How's your winter and what do you do to enjoy it while we all impatiently wait for summer days?