she's an iceland girl....

So last night I found out that my delightful friend Michelle from high school, who has been living in Iceland on exchange, has her very own shiny blog! It's called Michelle's Sense of Snow and chronicles her semester spent in and around Reykyavik. This also means that the Icelander that Sitemeter tells me has been reading my blog is, in fact, Michelle! Hvaða a suprise!! Not long ago I found a ridiculously cheap 4 day trip to Reykyavik that I wanted to take so badly and reading Michelle's blog has only made it worse. Note to Kelly: let's ditch American holiday plans and go for Icelandic holiday!!

so pretty!

Even though I can't afford anything on the Orla Kiely website I keep going to it cuz the page opening is SO pretty!!!! The colours, the flashing -- I feel like a baby mesmerized by the TV! And then the pictures! So pretty and whimsical and blustery-day like. I want to hang out with those girls in those clothes in that coffee shop. Kay let's watch the beginning again.....

lars and the real girl

Marc and I were invited to see this last night and I am so happy that it really was a great movie. My biggest worry about this movie was that it would be gimmicky. Remember that awful movie with Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear where they're siamese twins? Horribly gimmicky. Not that I thought Lars would be like that but it could have very easily been a stupid comedy with neverending sex-doll jokes. It was touching and sad without hitting you over the head with it. Yes, the scene where they first introduce "Bianca" is hilarious but then it's done and from that point on she really does become like another character in the story. Patricia Clarkson is so good I'd see her in just about anything but I wouldn't say I was on the Ryan Gosling band wagon. He was, after all, a Mousketeer. A show that I watched. It's hard to get past that. That being said, he was outstanding in this movie. He plays the twitchy, emotionally wounded guy so well it's uncomfortable to watch. I think I actually dated this very guy earlier in my life. But I digress.

****ATTENTION: HERE BE SPOILERS! LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU MUST!****

Obviously in a movie like this you know the big "breakthrough" is coming so you do spend the movie waiting for it. It didn't come the way I thought it would though which is always refreshing. This wasn't a movie for stupid people where they tell you exactly why someone is a certain way and exactly how it gets fixed and give you the whole family history and tell you who specifically is to blame. They tell you enough for you to just go with it and figure it out which really is fine by me. Clearly he's got issues with death and with his dead mother as he wears not only his baby blanket as a scarf but also what I assume to be his mothers shirt as an undershirt. At Bianca's funeral you can see he's wearing her pink sweater under his suit coat which is really quite sweet after you really get to know this character. Some people thought the funeral took things too far. I'm not convinced. The whole town rallied around this guy and a full funeral was what had to happen for him to have closure. I thought it was just as sad a funeral as if she had been a real person in the movie. On a side note, the girl who plays Lars' eventual girlfriend is just so hopelessly nerdy and adorable you just want to put her in your pocket.

Overall, I really really loved this movie. It was funny, sad and strangely charming. I only hope that if I lose my marbles at some point people will humour me like that.

it's really all about...

...Christmas holidays. 2 more sleeps until 3 glorious weeks of vacation for Tara. This picture illustrates what Bailey and I will be doing. Well, we'll at least try our best. In actuality I'm going to run on my treadmill every day in an attempt to get back up to where I used to be, try and make at least a few yummy dinners all by myself, bake a few things, bug Liana at her coffee shop for at least an hour one day, and play with all my new Christmas toys. Oh vacation, you truly are the bestest!!

pretty for girlies...

The Pier 1 damask tape measure. Finally something that's not hunter orange and it has a wrist strap. Pretty meets practical.

more from abbey...

...Oooh and she also tells tales of some fun custom silhouette artwork from Karl Johnson which are not only super fun but also on sale. His work looks like this...

Or I bet if you ask nicely my friend Harriet would do it for free. Her work looks like this:

i knew it...

...a while back I blogged about a necklace stand post by Abbey. Well today I see she bought it and photographed it in all it's glory and it's official. Tara must have it. It's exactly what I'm looking for and looks high enough that your long chains don't droop on the dresser. Not to mention cute as all get out.

beware the pre-holiday sale

So JCrew is having this ridiculous pre-holiday sale that makes me want to cry. They're practically daring me to buy stuff. Like this cashmere bateau neck sweater that is only $35 down from $98!! And this felted wool jacket that is only $69 regularly $195!!!!!! Seriously JCrew, you have to leave me alone until at least February...

canine couture

Fewer things in life are funnier to me than putting hats on Bailey. Bailey in my winter toque is no exception.

Weekend round-up

What a weekend it was! So much to talk about, so many pics to post best get started.

Friday Marc and I babysitted for some friends and I am a complete convert to highly regulated sleep-trained babies. First I mocked then saw it for my own eyes. This baby who doesn't know us from a hole in the ground went down like a lead balloon. In all of my years babysitting, I have never seen a baby go to sleep so easily -- especially with a stranger!! Kudos to Shannon cuz clearly her months of hard work have paid off. Yay sleep training!

Saturday was a trip to the theatre with my 2 nieces and their little friend for "Cinderella" and a fun time was had by all. There was laughing and giggling and borderline delirium when they got to meet Cinderella and get everyone's autograph. Sometimes you forget how cool it was to see live theatre when you were a little kid. The scene changes, fancy lights and all the stage trickery and costumes -- through the eyes of a 6 year old is pretty darn cool. It was nice to be reminded of that. And then the buckets of questions that followed went something like this: "Are you guys really sisters? (to the ugly stepsisters)," "Does that guy really have a tail? (about the guy who played Maurice the cat)," "Were there really horses backstage? (about the big pumpkin carriage)," "Is the fairy godmother really magic like for real?" Etc, etc, etc....

Saturday night we used a gift certificate for The Keg that we got as a wedding gift. Now Marc and I aren't Keg people. We really aren't chain restaurant type people at all. But this card has been gathering dust in my purse since the summer and after a day at the theatre cooking was out of the question. So off we go. Now in addition to not being Key types let's also remember that I only started eating red meat again this past year and even saying that I've "started" is a stretch. So this restaurant is a big step for me. I order a filet mignon because when in Rome right? I haven't had filet mignon in easily ten years. I almost died. It was buttery and delicious and the baked potato was probably the best restaurant potato I've ever had not to mention the exquisitely cooked asparagus. Colour me surprised. Yes I felt like cattle the whole time I was there, the volume of noise was deafening, my waitress acted like my best friend when in actuality I prefer my waiters to be borderline icy and when our table was ready, instead of being fetched like civilized people we were summonded by something that beeped and flashed. But the food was, in fact, delicious. So I suppose it was everything I hate about chain restaurants but with a pleasant surprise.

Sunday was breakfast with the folks and our 2nd annual foray into the bush for the gathering of fallen boughs to decorate my windowbox. Off we went down old logging roads and finally found a glorious fallen down tree with boughs a plenty. Bailey even found a big pile of old deer bones to roll around in. Fun for him, kinda gross for me. It was good to get out into the almost eery quiet of the bush and it was a beautiful day for it. It was snowing that kind of snow that feels like it's coming down in slow motion and being released one snowflake at a time.


As a result of this weekend I think we are almost completely decorated for the holidays. Tree is up, lights are up (except for one wayward strand awaiting an extension cord) and festive spirit is in place. Here are some pics of my favourite corner in the house.

local girl makes good

Well, well, well look who's kicking some ass at the big kid's table! Canada's very own Leslie Feist just got nominated for a truckload of Grammies today! How do you like them apples? She's up for Best New Artist (to win is a sure sign we'll never hear from you again), Best Female Pop Vocal Performance up against folks like Christina Aguilera and Fergie, Best Pop Vocal Album against Sir Paul McCartney and Bon Jovi no less and Best Alternative Music Album which is probably the best represented it's been in awhile -- she's up against Queen Bjork, The White Stripes, The Shins and fellow countrymates Arcade Fire. Interesting.......very interesting. We're big fans here at Cowgirl and if you get the chance to see her live I highly recommend it. If not for her amazing live performance then just to see how teeny weeny she is in person and how giant her guitar looks. I just might watch the whole show this year.

On a side note, I also learned there's a Best Hawaiian Music category. Who knew?

attention ottawa music lovers...

...that means you Kaili and Sean. Our friends Nathan Lawr and Kate Maki are doing a couple of kick ass shows in Ottawa this weekend, joined by the musical stylings of other pal Dan Levecque. Kate's show is first on Dec. 7th opening for Howe Gelb at the National Archives and Nathan's show is Dec.8th at Babylon as part of Andy Swan's CD release party for his new record aptly called "Ottawa." If you're oot and aboot, swing by and check it out and tell them we send our high-fives. You won't be sorry.

holidaze...

Last night was our staff Christmas party. There was Prosecco, tequila shots, grappa and many other embarrassing things. Today everything is far too bright and far too loud. We hoped a full Perkin's breakfast would help. It did not.

Happy Birthday Justin!

Today is B-day for my brother Justin so I want to make special mention. As with many December babies, his birthday often gets lost in the Christmas shuffle (along with his wife who is also a December baby!). Not this year!! Happy you day big brother!!!

Writers' strike

I stole this youtube clip from Dennis' blog cuz it is truly priceless. The writers strike continues and as much as it sucks to be sans new episodes of The Office, we must support the writers. They've been getting screwed out of their profits from the wild west that is the internet market. So if you've been feeling the squeeze of more bad reality tv and lack of Jim and Pam check out this video.

ouch

Last night I watched the Victoria's Secret fashion show. It's official. I'm wearing a big turtleneck and baggy jeans for the rest of forever.

food drive goodness

Attention all Sudbury folk! In mid-November we put out some boxes for a food drive here at our office with all proceeds going to the Sudbury Food Bank. If you want to swing by and drop stuff off, the boxes will be out until December 17th. They're starting to really fill up but we can always use more stuff!!

I'm it...

....I've been tagged my cousin/blogger Kaili to talk about gratitude since it is the season for us all to *hopefully* think happy thoughts about all those fun and important things that make our lives great. The deal is to list 7 things you are grateful for so here goes:

1. I think as a newlywed I'm obviously thankful for my shiny new husband Marc. He loves me even though I don't always rinse out my milk glass, makes me feel safe and taken care of, makes me feel good when others make me feel bad and is the kindest person I've ever met. Yes, I wish he'd close cupboard doors and drawers behind him but overall, he's my perfect balance, my best friend, does all the cooking and does it SO well, makes exceptional coffee that has spoiled me for all other coffee, makes sure there's always wine and good chocolate in the house and I get queasy when I think about ever having to live without him;
2. Ma and Pa Levesque cuz I know if anything ever happened they would be fighting people off to be first in line to help. Of all the important things that have happened in my life, none of them would have been possible without their help -- be it manual labour, advice and ideas, emotional support, late nights, you name it. They are exceptional people and thankful is not enough of a word for what I am;
3. My nieces because when you're like me and not really down with the whole having babies thing, the best you can hope for are great neices or nephews. Well I've got 4 wonderful and adorable nieces who are turning out to be just great kids all around. All babies are cute and of course you love them but the real test comes when they start turning into little people with opinions and thoughts. So far, these kids are polite, considerate, loving, smart and truly unique little human beings and my brother and sister-in-law have done an incredible job raising this pile o'kids. They're just good kids and are the best substitute for kids of my own;
4. My home because there was a while there when I was convinced we'd never find what we were looking for. We knew exactly what we wanted and kept seeing houses that were anything but. Suddenly, this house fell into our lap and 2 seconds later we were the proud owners of our dream house. It's got smack dap in the middle of the neighbourhood we wanted with all the charm of a house that's almost 80 years old. It was rough enough that we could afford it and truly make it our own. As much as I complain about the work, it's a remarkable feeling to look around and see everything we've done and the amount of sweat that's gone into every detail so far. There's still lots to do but every weekend it gets closer and Marc is learning tons with each project he undertakes. We got married in the backyard and if we ever move we'll have to bribe the new owners to let us stand in the garden on our anniversaries;
5. My work because it allows me to feel like a contributor to the Canadian music and film industries in my own little way. We work with companies that want to film in the North and artists who want to live and work out of the North without having to cave to the "big city" machine -- for a Northern girl that can be very satisfying work. And being a non-profit allows me to feel like I'm not part of the "corporate money making" side of things. Not to mention, when we go to work conferences they usually involve having to hang out in clubs watching great bands schmoozing with label people. Which I'm guessing is more fun than say a life insurance conference. The people are fun, my office is orange, I can wear band tees to work and sometimes there's puppies-- it's a good thing;
6. Speaking of puppies, I'm grateful for puppies! Puppies of all kinds, all shapes, all ages and all levels of furryness. I love all the puppies in my life and miss all the puppies that came before. I truly believe a good dog makes your life better in every way. They love you unconditionally and who doesn't love that? They force you outside to exercise them (and you in the process) and provide a level of responsibility to those of us that are without children. Puppies = completely awesome.
7. I'm using #7 as a catch-all cuz I'm out of numbers. I'm grateful for my whole clan of family both new and old, my friends who tolerate my bad friend habits (ie: never calling), internet shopping, Indian food, movies on Sunday afternoons, finally getting to Europe, Fluevog shoes, expensive bedsheets, people who send letters, good cheese, old records, and all things that make my life more fun.

I tag Dennis , Jane and Jamieanne cuz they are all bloggers of note.

puppy love

Congrats to Kelly and her new rescue puppy Katie!! She's so cute she makes me want 100 puppies! But what doesn't really? I can't wait to meet her and that big brown nose of hers. Congrats Kelly, after years of campaigning finally puppy success!!

Weekend round-up

Ah tis the season for sure now! We got walloped this weekend with the first big storm of the season. And on December 1st no less! Needless to say, much of the weekend was spent either prepping for said storm or recovering from said storm and not much in between.

I started to maybe feel like I was coming down with something early in the weekend so Friday night I stayed in and Marc met up with our friend Ben for drinks. We did manage to get the tree up if not decorated on Friday too so at least I got to look at a beautifully lit tree for the night.

Saturday we did a monster load of groceries as it felt like we hadn't shopped in weeks. We got a million things done including cleaning out our fridge. There's really nothing that makes you feel like a filthier person than emptying your fridge and seeing all the spills and crusty stuff hiding in the corners. I always find it embarrasing and gross and we've implemented a new fridge organizational system as a result. After that, Marc took me out for a lovely dinner at the new cajun/creole restaurant in town. Delicious! I had alligator that was super yummy and watched Marc down some oysters which was less than pleasant for me. He seemed to like them though so it's all good. High point of ridiculous for the evening had to me the pair of girls at the next table. For most of the night I thought they were having a fairly indepth and intellectual conversation about a book they read. I thought they might be a tiny little book club or something. That is until I heard one of them say "Voldemort" and I realized that they'd been discussing Harry Potter the whole time. Now don't me wrong, I love the Harry as much as the next girl but under no circumstances are you to spend the better part of an hour picking the books apart and analyzing the symbolism of why the Weasley's have red hair and picking apart the order of what happened in each book and absolutely under no circumstances are you to quote full sentences from the books. Ever! It was really something. It was like they were picking apart War and Peace and I just really wanted to shake them.

Sunday was more snow, snow and then some more snow. We hunkered down and put up our Christmas decorations, got the tree up and the mantle done (I'll post pics later) and Marc kept chipping away at our baseboards. They look so good and I'm so happy they're turning out! Cuz of the weather we opted for hardcore comfort food and made Butternut Squash Cannelloni with a Walnut and Sage cream sauce that was so good it's hard to describe. Thank god for leftovers I say.

It hasn't stopped snowing for what feels like forever and today I apparently was out before the sidewalk plows. By the time I got to work I thought my legs were going to fall off. Ahh winter walking...at least it's good for the calves.