Happy Halloween!

Well this Halloween is a little different from Halloweens gone by. It's Ruby's first Halloween! No costumes for Nick and I (although if someone was having a party I totally would have put a costume together). I kinda cheaped out for R's first Halloween...not intentionally but hey, it's not like she has any idea (unless she reads this one day).

We had big plans to take her to the pumpkin patch for that first Halloween pumpkin hunt. Then I dropped a chair on my toe and couldn't walk. We did end up taking her to the farm to get a pumpkin but we didn't spend much time doing it and I certainly haven't carved it #halloweenfail.

{token photo of Ruby with pumpkins}

Nick wanted to dress her as a witch or a pumpkin. By the time we went looking for costumes, they were all gone. So I grabbed a cute cozy costume from the sale rack. I thought it was a watermelon, but it's a strawberry. Total cost for her first Halloween costume: $2.25.

{my little strawberry}

It's a pretty cold and rainy day here so I'm thinking we won't take her trick-or-treating either. It's really our loss (in the candy department). Hopefully when we look back, all we'll see is the cute picture of her as a strawberry. :)

Have a spooky day/night!!

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Hashtag WCW

I noticed #WCW popping up all over my Instagram feed recently. I felt pretty out of the loop because I had no idea what it meant (although now it seems pretty obvious). For those of you who are still in the dark on this one - don't feel bad, I had to google it - it is Woman Crush Wednesday. I prefer the term girl crush but whatever.

I legit have a girl crush on Gwen Stefani. I've always liked her, from the early No Doubt days when I was in middle school, through University when she went solo and started L.A.M.B. Then, out of the blue, she became a judge on The Voice. Just when I thought I couldn't like her more, I decided that I am officially obsessed. I pretty much wish I could be her and hey, I'm on my way! Step one: dye hair blonde - check; step two: marry an Englishman - check; step three: have a baby - check; now for the talent, fame and fortune part...

The most appealing thing about her is simply how cool she is. Of course she's gorgeous, doesn't look anywhere near her age (or like she's had three babies for that matter), dresses incredibly well, and is humble to boot, but her coolness is what sets her apart. There is no one cooler. I'm not alone in this thinking. Lots of my girlfriends are equally in love with her. We discuss it weekly. #WCW...more like #stalkermondays (you know, because that's when we watch The Voice). #loveyouGwen

image via

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My Mothering Instincts Failed!

Mornings with Ruby are usually my favourite. This morning was no exception. I opened the door to her room, peaked over her crib and said good morning. I was greeted with a big smile. I turned the lights on ever so slightly and walked over to the other side of her crib. I was just about to let Rocky out so I kissed her good morning and then reached for her stuffed cow to keep her company until I was back. That's when it happened.

When I picked up the cow, a centipede ran out from under it and went straight to Ruby. My reaction? I chucked the cow and ran for it.

OH MY GOD I ABANDONED MY BABY.

I thought I was getting all 'tough mama' because I'm better at killing spiders now, but evidently centipedes are a different story. At this point, after I realized it was probably hiding under my baby, I knew I had to help her out. So I went over and rolled her over super fast to catch that bug. Baby rolled: no bug. Bigger fear sets in - the centipede is inside her sleep sack. I unzip the sleep sack like I am trying to surprise a burglar inside and take her out of it with extreme speed. No bug. Even more panic. This thing must have crawled in her jammies. I am now handling my baby like she is radioactive. I unsnap her pajamas, overcome with fear that I have to battle the centipede. I rip them off, shake them, and chuck them in the laundry. My diapered baby just looking up at me. No centipede, cold baby. Crazy mother.

I have no idea where it went and now I'm afraid to put her back in the crib. Worst. Mom. Ever.

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Early Morning

{tasting sweet potato}

Well I've been up since 5 (that's when little Miss Tuesday decided she was hungry) and while she has been able to fall back to sleep, I haven't. I tried for a bit but then decided I might as well just get up. It's really quite nice to have some quiet time in the morning before Ruby is ready to start the day.

She's so busy now that I don't get the same amount of down time as I did in those first couple months. She expects a certain standard of entertainment, including a variety of activities in a variety of locations. I spend a significant portion of my day doing anything and everything to make her laugh and let me tell you, she's not the easiest audience.

Ruby is 20 weeks old today, but I know counting things in weeks annoys a lot of people, pre-baby Emma included, so we'll round it to 4.5 months. While she's so much busier and demanding so much more time and attention (aka sleeping less during the day) now, she's so much cooler and more fun to hang out with. She watches and listens while I narrate every activity in our day.

So many people have asked me "Don't you looooove being a mom?" and it got me thinking. For me, I wouldn't say that loving being a mom is necessarily synonymous with loving my child. What I loooove (absolutely, without a doubt) is Ruby. My journey in to motherhood has given me a lot to think about and evaluate. It's the hardest thing I've done to date and I am learning as I go. Some of the stuff that comes along with motherhood is amazing (like seeing Ruby every morning as she looks up at me from her crib and her little face breaks into a huge smile) and some of it is sucky (like getting punched in the eye by your baby's flailing hands and crying because it legitimately hurt) but I am obsessed and in love with my baby. That's one thing I say with 100% certainty.

What do you think? Are motherhood and baby-loving one in the same or can they exist as two separate ideas? What about fatherhood?

Ps. It's 7am and still dark out. What's up with that?

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Places to Eat: Detour

Last week, Ruby and I took my dad out for a daddy/daughter/granddaughter day out to celebrate his birthday (albeit a little late). We drove in to Dundas and after spending some time at the park, we went looking for a place for lunch. We parked up on the main street and figured we would pop into a place that looked interesting. We found Detour. It is the perfect little breakfast & lunch spot. As soon as I saw macaroni and cheese on the menu, I was obviously getting that. He opted for gourmet grilled cheese. Both choices you can't really go wrong with, in my opinion. Ruby said she was too full, and I think she regretted her decision after seeing our meals.

{grilled cheese for dad, mac and cheese (with spinach!) for me}

The staff were so sweet and even helped us get the stroller inside. It's got that great vintage/antique vibe with updated touches (some of my favourite art). I would definitely recommend giving this one a try.

{I love the art - of local skylines - they have displayed}

Have a great weekend!

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Weekend Bits

How does Monday get here so fast? Did you have a good weekend? We had a lovely one. Friday night was just a chill at home night. Somehow, Friday has just turned into that. We're both too exhausted from the week to make much of an effort to do anything but just have a drink and curl up.

Saturday morning little miss Ruby was up bright and early and ready for action so we were out for a walk by 8:30. The weather stayed clear enough to go apple picking in the afternoon with friends. Check one thing off my Fall To-Do list, plus, we got so many delicious, local apples.

{all smiles for our morning walk}

{two men and a baby...and a wagon full of apples}

{some of our haul}

After that, our friends treated us to what they referred to as a 'simple supper'. I am now going to start calling them the ultimate hosts because two homemade soups plus gourmet grilled cheeses wasn't what I would call simple (in the best way possible). For future grilled cheeses, allow me to recommend old white cheddar, bacon and apple or pear, brie and fig jam. Just go ahead and make it right now, you won't be sorry.

{there were six of us eating, so you don't think we're that bad}

Sunday, after being served coffee in bed, was a typical lazy day around the house, but when we went to family dinner at my parents' place, guess what they had decided to make? Poutine. Looooved it. Poutine with different choices for toppings (slow cooked beef or pulled pork). Does your mom make poutine? Just saying.

{coffee in bed} 

{family cuddles}

{pulled pork poutine}

This was a bit of a food-centric post...I swear I live for more than just eating (riiiight). Now here we are, another Monday. I hope you have a great week!

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Baby Talk Canadian vs English

I've written several posts about the funny conversations Nick and I have that highlight the differences between British English and Canadian English. Now I've discovered more differences in the baby world. These have all surfaced since Ruby has graced us with her presence.

{taking Ruby for a spin in a proper pram - it was Nick's as a baby!}

We say                   They say

Onesie & Sleeper     Baby Grow

Stroller                     Pram

Crib                         Cot

Diaper                      Nappy

Soother/Pacifier        Dummy

Burping                    Winding

Drool                       Dribble

While we were in England, I tried not to confuse everyone too much with my words, but it's funny how the context changes so much with just one word. The word diaper has a different (and apparently gross) meaning. Who knew?

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