Saturday, December 11, 2010

Fash that Dress!!

A new tradition for many recent brides out there is to get that beautiful wedding dress on that you paid hundreds (maybe thousands!) of dollars for a go and trash it!

Well, if your mom is anything like mine, she just about had a conniption fit at the idea of my trashing my beautiful Maggie Sottero wedding gown. It calmed her nerves (a little), though, when I changed the name to the also common "Fash the Dress".

So what is "Fash the Dress", you might ask? It's a fashion shoot with your wedding dress!! It gives us brides the opportunity to put on our beautiful wedding dresses again. You know, the one that we spent hours and hours looking for, only to wear it for one day? Yeah, that one!

Put on the dress, doll yourself up again, and go take pictures in areas that you wouldn't have on your wedding day.

Why?

Because this time it doesn't matter how dirty it gets! And the best part? You don't have to be at the reception hall by 6, so you can take as much time as you want!!


I'm thankful to have a wonderful photographer as my mother-in-law, Bunny Ninaber, who was more than willing to take me out for a photo day! And I think she was just as excited about the idea of going out as I was!

We took a trip to downtown Galt, along the river, where there are beautiful stones and archways and ruins.

Here's a sneak peak of some of the shots we got! Enjoy!
(Oh! And comment to your hearts content! I love seeing them!)











Wednesday, October 20, 2010

What I Learned from Halo Reach

For those of you who know me, you'll know about my huge disdain for a little thing we like to call XBox 360 and specifically a game called Halo. I was the person who declared that I would never have one in my house because they were a waste of time, brain space, etc. etc. and the list goes on. 

There's the occasional time that I don't mind playing at other peoples houses, if it was Street Fighter or UFC (these bring me back to my childhood, so it doesn't bother me as much). 

So I'm sure you could imagine my dismay when I got a phone call one night a few months back, informing me that my husband to be (at the time) had gone out and purchased a beloved XBox's.

I had decided from that moment on that I hated it.  I hated the time spent on it, the shooting, the sound effects. I couldn't understand why I'd come home to a bunch of guys on my couch shooting people, telling me how much fun they were having. "It's male bonding time, Jacq!" I was told. Sure.

Well, my thoughts towards XBox took a sudden change the other day.  We were on our way home from dinner with friends, and were trying to decide what to do for the evening. Going to the movies was an option, but we really didn't want to spend money.  I wanted to rent UFC for XBox, but we decided against it once again due to the "not wanting to spend money" factor.

When we got home, Matt talked about how he wanted to play Halo for a bit.  A part of me inside got a little riled up, because I wanted to spend time with him. Then I realized: "If I want to show my husband how much I love him, and that I just want to spend time with him, I better learn how to play Halo."

So that's what we did. We sat down, he showed me the controls and I tried to journey through a maze to search and destroy.  I have to give the man credit.  This game is harder than it looks. And quite possibly not as mindless as I thought.

All of this is to say, sometimes there are things that our significant other enjoys doing that we can't stand, such as watching sports, listening to certain music, looking at cars, etc. etc. That's when it becomes important to lay down our pride a little bit, and try to find the enjoyment too. It's amazing how much that can change your relationship ... for the better, I might add.

Do I still hate XBox? No, not really.  Do I like XBox? Not particularly.  But am I willing to give up some time to play with my husband because I know it means a lot to him? Absolutely.
I know he enjoys it and I enjoy it too.

Oh, and apparently it makes me look pretty hot too!


Cheers.


Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Etsy Love

I was randomly searching Etsy yesterday, and the knitter in me wanted to see what people are selling their scarves and other knitted items for.

Well I came across something called an Egg Pod - probably one of the most adorable things I have ever seen knit before.  They're basically "photo props" for newborn babies. I could keep trying to describe them, but words don't do them justice.  All of the pods are created by DarnFanciful on Etsy. Take a look for yourself!






The stork pouch is my favourite! Hmm...maybe a gift idea for all those new moms out there?

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

For all you soon-to-be-brides!

I decided to act like an "almost" bride today, and start looking through some wedding blogs.  Even though my wedding is over and done with, I still love looking at what's going and on and what's out there so that I can maybe help future brides and give them some inspiration!

Anyway, while on my travels today, I came across I blog I WISH I had known about when I was getting married!  It's called Once Wed and MAN do they have some awesome ideas.  They have everything from Real Wedding Inspiration to DIY ideas; but I think my favourite section was the Used Wedding Dresses.  This part gives girls the opportunity to post their dresses after their wedding, and for others to buy designer dresses at a fraction of the cost!!!

How do I know this to be true? Possibly because my very same wedding dress was posted on there for $600!!!!! And I can guarantee I did NOT pay that price for mine :)  If only I had known sooner. BUT ... now you know! I think having the opportunity to buy a designer, once-used wedding dress (in normal people sizes, mind you) is a great opportunity. You can save yourself so much money and then put it towards other areas in your wedding that are lacking in the budget area.

Here are some of my fave dresses with the retail price AND the sale price!

What's your fave?


Eugenia Couture Drop Waist

Ideal for a night on the dance floor
Street size: 6
Dress size: 10
Original Price: $3800.00
Asking Price: $1500.00

That's $2300.00 in savings!!


Nicole Miller HG0013



A perfect beach wedding dress!
Street/Dress size: 8
Original Price: $1760.00
Asking Price: $1400.00

I think savings of $360.00 for a dress with tags still on is great!

Pronovias - Telma



This beautiful, champagne colour dress is perfect for someone who wants a dress of sheer elegance...and for a price that is the ultimate steal!


Street size: 12
Dress size: 10
Original Price: $1800.00
Asking Price: $350.00

Maybe I'm stating the obvious, people, but you'd be saving yourself $1450.00!! How could you go wrong?



And for those of you who have a larger dress budget, but still want to save, may I introduce you to the Monique Lhuillier Miracle.  It is a miracle, indeed.




Monique Lhuillier - Miracle



Street/Dress size: 2
Original Price: $17,750
Asking Price: $13,350
Savings: $4400.00


For those of you with a budget for Say Yes to the Dress, maybe you should be saying YES to this dress!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Mmm...Potatoes!!

As a newlywed, I'm finding myself becoming a little housewife more and more everyday. From cooking to cleaning, I'm starting to realize I'm becoming quite the adult! It excites me, yet scares me at the same time.

Anyway, I'm always on the lookout for a new recipe to spice up the dinner table. The other day I stumbled upon my favourite website (www.kraftcanada.com) and found a great recipe for Shepherds Pie. Here it is below.  I think my favourite part of this recipe is the new way I figured out to make mashed potatoes!

When you're boiling the potatoes in the water, stick 3 cloves of garlic in the water.  The flavour of the garlic absorbs into the potato and then the cloves soften.  When you're ready to mash, they mash right into the potatoes giving you garlic flavoured mashed potatoes! And then, instead of adding milk and butter, add sour cream.  It gives it this great, smooth consistency. So yummy!

Enjoy some Shepherds Pie tonight!

Updated Shepherd's Pie
Prep time: 30 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes
Makes 6 servings, 1-1/2 cups (375 mL) each

What You Need
1-1/4 lb. (565 g) red potatoes, cut into chunks
3 large cloves garlic
3/4 cup light sour cream (or you can use the real stuff - kick the light)
1/2 cup shredded Cracker Barrel Cheddar Cheese Light, divided (I used Cracker Barrel Old Cheddar .. gives a nice kick to it!)
1 lb. (450 g) extra-lean ground beef
2 Tbsp. Flour (I nixed this one ... mainly because I didn't feel it was necessary. Turned out great without it)
3 cups Frozen mixed vegetables (corn, beans, carrots), thawed
3/4 cup 25%-less-sodium beef broth
2 Tbsp. Ketchup

Make It


COOK potatoes and garlic in large saucepan of boiling water 20 min. or until potatoes are very tender. Drain; return to saucepan. Add sour cream. Mash potatoes to desired consistency. Stir in 1/4 cup Cheddar.


HEAT oven to 375°F. Brown meat in large nonstick skillet. Stir in flour; cook and stir 1 min. Add vegetables, broth and ketchup; cook 5 min., stirring occasionally. Spoon into 8-inch square baking dish; cover with potatoes.


BAKE 18 min.; top with remaining Cheddar. Bake 2 min. or until casserole is heated through and cheese is melted.

 
Let me know how yours turns out!

Friday, August 13, 2010

193 - The Winning Number

193 was the magic number.

As many of you know, for a month straight I had a social media campaign going: to win the title of the Young & Free Ontario Spokesperson. Last week I found out that it wasn't going to happen. The votes were cast and counted, and a mere 193 votes stood between winning and well ... not winning. 

So what did I take away from this? What did I learn? Well, let me explain.

When I was growing up, I was an avid runner. I trained with a local track club and LOVED my 100 meter sprints. The one thing that you always learn as a beginner is to NEVER SLOW DOWN at the end of your race. When you see the finish line, speed up. You never know who is right behind you, just waiting for you to slow down, ready to pass. If you want to win, push it to the end and never give up.

Well, if I take what I learned from track and applied it to my  time campaigning, I slowed down. I thought I had it made. There was NO REASON why they wouldn't pick me. I was already winning (in my head).  Well, my pride (for lack of a better word) got the better of me, and now here I am standing in the dust.

I could kick and complain, saying people cheated and I should have won, but really...it's time I take ownership of my part in all of this.  I could have (and should have) tried harder. I could have gotten (and should have gotten) more votes . 

But all of this is to say how important it is to never slow down and to always take ownership for your part.

And now that being said, another lesson to be learned is: If you think your vote doesn't count, think again. Your vote (and opinion) always counts. Whether you think so or not.

May the number 193 always be your reminder :)

Cheers.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Starting Fresh - Again

So as many of you know, I had started a blog called My Life as a Wife. I decided to switch it up a bit, because I felt it was a bit too centralized (and the website I was using was tres confusing!)

So here I am. Back on Blogger. Still talking about my life as a new wife, but as well as other thoughts and ideas that come up throughout life that I may feel might help you!

If you want to see some of my old posts to find out where I started, check out http://lifeasawife.weebly.com  I'm excited about using blogger because now people can actually comment! I love to hear feedback. Actually, I kind of thrive on it. So please post away!

That is it for this present moment. But I PROMISE there will be more to come.