Tuesday, 25 April 2017

Human Glitter Garbage

Nabbed from Allie Brosh at Hyperbole And A Half. Go there and laugh. You'll be better for it!

I'm kind of a mess.

Four years ago, around this very same time and date, I would have been writing a blog post. At the time, I was heavily influenced by popular blogs that I followed, which all centered around style, baking, and every day lives that seemed so bright and full. Whenever I would visit those blogs, I saw happy, smiling faces, on people who seemed to be constantly productive, and who were making a living doing the very things I would see on their blogs; creating crafty decor, coming up with mouthwatering snacks, and having fun doing it all! It was so inspirational! In my eyes, these people were perfect. They were successful entrepreneurs, with happy families, lots of friends and collaborators, and they were beautiful, strong women.

It was because of these women and their blogs that I started my own.

I dressed up for pictures, I crafted, I baked, and I did everything I could to make myself comparable to the people I admired most. I even managed to gain a little bit of success of my own through my blog, by becoming an affiliate, and having ad banners on my page. I happily did those things, but not always during happy times. Near the end of the summer season, in 2013, I announced that I would be taking a short break from the blog, but didn't go into detail as to why. That short break turned into two years with no posts, followed by two very short posts, and then almost another two years of nothing.

I really wish that I could act this out with puppets for you, or draw super funny cartoons, but I lack the ability to do either of those things, so I'm just going to really quickly explain what happened, using words.

In July of 2013, my doctor took me off work due to illness. I was unable to reliably function enough to care for myself, let alone go to work. This was a major low point for me. I left Newfoundland in August (of that same year) to go to a hospital in Ontario, where I stayed for two months. While I was there, I met amazing people who became like family to me, and because of them, I came back home with a completely new, shiny, happier outlook on life. I returned home and immediately started making drastic changes. I was different, so I needed the things in my life to reflect that. In retrospect, I now see that I tried to take on the world too fast, without allowing myself to process and adjust for everything I had just learned. By the end of December, I'd crashed, and was incredibly sick again. I still haven't returned to work. Four years later, I'm still a mess. Most days, I feel like a pile of garbage.

Why am I telling you this?

I've decided to try blogging again. Once upon a time, this was a cathartic, fun, and easy way for me to reach out to the world. I felt good about myself when I was blogging, and I felt productive. I'm not the same person I was, and because of that, the blog will be different now too, but I'm hoping that I will rediscover and reawaken parts of myself that have been long in slumber. I used to be a much sillier, more whimsical and creative person; I hope to be that way again! I am, however, still very honest, open, and (most importantly) still amused by fart jokes. I have a lot to share, and, hopefully, a lot of fun to have.

So, yes, I'm a mess, and I often compare myself to a pile of garbage, but you know what? Garbage is just a big pile of stuff that's been tossed to the side. Perhaps it's been deemed unnecessary or unusable to some, but not every little bit is seen the exact same way to everyone. If I'm a pile of garbage, then I'd like to consider the fact that there could be some recyclables in here! Maybe there's some glitter, an old, but still awesome DVD collection, some cool toys, and even the potential for candy that was thrown away (unopened, and still delicious, but just not someone else's favorite)!

Happy day to all!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole





Tuesday, 7 July 2015

Shark Week!!!


Getting back into regular blogging has been way harder than I anticipated, but since it happens to be my favorite week of the year, I couldn't resist the urge to babble via the internet!

ERMAHGERD! ERTS SHURRK WURRK!!!

Given the fact that shark week is a much anticipated, annual thing, and that this awesome soap from Lush is sold out, I'm not the only person who loves learning about sharks. Why do I love sharks so very much, you ask? Well, not only are they incredibly impressive hunters who have adapted to survive over many, MANY years, but they are beautiful and misunderstood creatures.

Like many humans, the first knowledge I ever had concerning sharks came from Jaws. That film instilled an uneducated fear of an animal that lived nowhere near me, and also played a huge part in keeping me out of the water from my teenage years onward. Shark Week began as an educational celebration of this animal who needed to clear it's name, but in more recent years actually played up the vicious, man eating reputation to bring in viewers. Thankfully Discovery Chanel has returned to its roots this year and is just as much about educating as it is entertaining. I definitely recommend checking out at least a couple of the specials during the week, no matter how you feel about sharks. Learning is fun!

If you don't have enough interest to watch hours of divers and scientists chase after big fish, here are a few key points that will catch you up on the subject enough not to be ridiculed and questioned by friends or co-workers who, like me, might corner you and not shut up about shark week.

1) There are many different types of sharks all over the world. Though they have commonalities, they also have varying personalities, behaviors and things they like to eat.

2) Though they occasionally munch on humans, shark attacks happen way less than you think they do. There's probably more chance of getting hit by a bus than killed by a shark. Besides, there's only so many times something can jump onto your dinner plate without you at least taking a little bite, right!?

3) Sharks are in serious danger of extinction. The more we learn about them, the better we can understand their behaviors, protect ourselves, and live harmoniously.

4) Any excuse to dress yourself, your dog or your cat like a shark should wholeheartedly be celebrated with themed cupcakes and said apparels.

End Rant :)

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Saturday, 18 April 2015

That Time I Fell Off The Earth

This is a loaf of bread that looks like a butt. I'm not great with ice breakers or segues.

Remember when I said that I was going to take a break from blogging for a couple of months, but I actually disappeared for a year and eight(ish) months? My bad. As it turns out, life is much harder to predict than one would think. It's both amazing and terrifying how one decision can lead to a series of events, further choices, and a completely different situation than you ever could have imagined. I've really missed spewing random photographs and thoughts onto the internet, but until now I was more comfortable anonymously creeping on other people's lives and laughing at cat memes from the comfort of a sequestered blanket fort. Please bear with me while I try and get back into blogging. My social interaction skills, grammar, and personal hygiene all need to be brought back up to code, but I'm confident that, with time, I'll be able to provide minimal entertainment for at least a handful of people (or at least be a decent source of adorable pet pictures and funny internet links).

I will become a strong and confident creature again soon (at least on the internet!), but until then...

I can't find the original source for this, but if you know it, please share :)
   I hope everyone is having a magical day :)

Hugs and poops,

                                                                                               Nichole

Thursday, 1 August 2013

Small Bathroom Makeover

You know how in magazines you see pictures of these big, beautiful bathrooms with designer finishing touches and shimmering tile? Guess what? None of those are my bathroom. Here are a few things I did to make my tiny bathroom a little more efficient.



I painted an accent wall a bright blue to give it a splash of colour without making the whole room too dark. I didn't want it to seem as small or smaller than it is, so I also put up a large mirror on the wall parallel to the accent wall.  The mirror really helps to elongate the space.

I hung a towel rack over the tub so that I'd have space for towels and facecloths, instead of just tossing them over the door or laying them on the side of the tub. This really cleaned up the room. I also organized all of my soaps and tubby time things into a basket instead of just having them strewn along the side of the tub. This makes cleaning up a lot easier.

Basically what I did was clean up the room and organize it more efficiently.



I put in a medicine cabinet instead of a regular mirror to help with storage and clean up clutter. Then, using a white board and magnets, I made a makeup board to help organize my very messy makeup collection.



Last, but not least, I organized my cupboard. The clutter that used to be in here was overwhelming. I used to dread opening the doors, but now that it's all clean and organized, it makes the room seem bigger and more orderly.

I know this was kind of a boring post, but I'm always curious to see how people organize, so I thought I'd share!

Hope everyone is having a lovely day!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Tuesday, 30 July 2013

Doggy Ice Cream


Holy Poop!

It's been scorching hot here over the past couple of weeks, so staying cool has been almost impossible. What's that? The best thing to do on a hot day is get ice cream? I agree! But what if you're covered in fur and sweat through your feet? Still, the answer is ice cream!

Last week on our way home from an adventure, Boyfriend and I stopped off at a local pet food store to get some 'doggy ice crem'. Oz and Holly loved it, but it was pretty expensive stuff. Since I'm  super cheap  a creative person, I decided to make my own ice cream for the puppies.

Here's what you need:

 

Mash the banana into smithereens and then mix in the yogurt and peanut butter. It's important to use plain yogurt because you don't want any added sugars or aspartame. For similar reasons use natural peanut butter. If you want to play with flavours, add strawberries, blueberries or raspberries instead of peanut butter! Now put your mush into a clean ice cube tray and freeze until ready to serve!



Once it's frozen, serve a cube or two (based on the dogs size) and wait to become their favorite person!



Always remember that it's just as hard (if not harder) for your pets to stay cool on hot days, so make sure that there's lots of shade and fresh, clean water available to them. Never leave your pet in a car, even with the windows rolled down. It's an oven in there!

If you like this recipe, you might like this!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Weekend Review


The hightlights of a very lovely weekend:

- My friend Claudia just bought her first house (congratulations Claudia!!!), which called for some celebratory champagne sipping, toasting, and of course, the dreaded painting. Myself, Boyfriend, Rhyder and Claudia all spent the weekend putting things together, cleaning and getting paint all over ourselves.

- SIPPER-SAURUS! My bestie and I love dinosaurs (especially t-rex's and velociraptors), so when I saw this I immediately snapped a picture and sent it to her. She moved away back in the beginning of June and I've been missing her terribly. When I see little things like this that remind me of her my day gets brighter.

- I kill all things green and leafy, so imagine my surprise when I saw this beautiful lilly in one of my pots. I grew something beautiful! My nan would be so proud (until she took a peek at the rest of my house plants)!

How was your weekend?

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Tuesday, 23 July 2013

Peanut Butter Banana Cookies For Dogs


I was really in the mood to bake the other day, but didn't want to eat a million cookies, so I decided to make some cookies for the lovelies in my life - my dogs!

Here's what you'll need:



Mix everything together and spoon the desired cookie sized amounts out on a baking tray. Bake at 350 degrees until the bottom of the cookies become golden brown (you'll notice the browning along the base of the cookie).

Let them cool and then this will happen:



Just incase you were wondering, these cookies are great for kitty cats too, just break them into smaller treats and be sure not to over feed!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Friday, 19 July 2013

Friday Finds

Sweet Supplies Store - Doggy Tape
Okay, I know that tape is a weird thing to love, but I like craft tape a lot because it adds that little extra 'oo la la' to a project. The reason I love this particular roll of tape is pretty obvious... puppies!

Zooz Jewelry - Sterling Silver Dino Necklace
I had a really hard time picking just one design from this artist to share. I picked the T-rex for you, Marissa! There are so many cute designs, definitely go check them out!

Hooligan Alley - Acorn & Thimble Necklaces
How cute are these!? If you don't know the story behind these pendants and you enjoy a bit of whimsy, check out Peter Pan (it's one of my favorite movies).

Paperface Studio - Dandelion Necklace
I found a lot of beautiful pendants on my Etsy adventures this week! This dandelion necklace reminds me of running through the grass when I was a little kid. Great memories :)

Lenny Mud - Panda Mug
Who doesn't love a hot beverage and some cookies? I died laughing at this when I saw it, I'm not sure why. I think my brain reached an awesome overload and picked laughter as the knee jerk reaction.
Ovejita Be! - Owl Brooches
Aren't these brooches cute!? I have a nice little collection of brooches from Ovejita Be!, but I just can't stop adding to it. These owls have quickly been added to my 'want' list.

Remember when I said that every Wednesday I would update you guys on my attempts at healthy living? Well, I fell off the wagon and was eating lots of take-out food and goodies. I actually sat and glared at my elliptical trainer daily, but didn't use it. I'm officially two days in to my new eating/working out regiment, and this time I'm going to put some serious effort into posting updates on the blog (both good and bad results).

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Tuesday, 16 July 2013

Weekend Review


This weekend was crazy hot! Boyfriend and I went out for ice cream almost every day (I know, not the healthiest choice), and the ice cream was basically melting before we could eat it! In an attempt to cool Oz and Holly down we went for a little hike into Pippy Park - where there is a place for them to swim. After that we got them some doggy ice cream. They seemed pretty happy, and I now know what it feels like to be covered in peanut butter frozen yogourt.

How was your weekend?

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Friday, 12 July 2013

Friday Finds - Favorties Edition!


So today I thought I'd do Friday Finds a little bit different than usual (since I hadn't spent much time shopping around the internet this week). Above I've listed a few of my favorite products that I'm using right now. I don't know if anyone else does this, but I'll become a little obsessed with certain products at a time. These are my current obsessions:

1. Avon brightening concealer - This concealer is great for covering up those random spots that want to jump off of your face and say 'hello!' to everyone. Death to the spots! To get the concealer onto the brush you have to twist the bottom of the wand. This took me a couple of tries to get used to, so I sprayed concealer all over myself the first go around.

2. O.P.I's Bond Girl Series nail varnishes. I bought almost every colour of this stuff! It has a rough texture to it when it dries, which takes a little getting used to, but it dries super fast and has a beautiful shine and color.

3. Avon's Flawless BB Cream. Last year I went on a mad hunt for a foundation that would give me buildable coverage, but not make me feel as though I'd just dipped my face in mud. This BB cream gives a nice coverage, has lots of different shades for skin tone, and doesn't feel heavy on your skin. Please note: a little goes a long way with this stuff, so don't slap a bunch of it on your face right away!

4. The Body Shop's Aloe Calming Toner. I use this stuff to wipe down my face before I put my moisturizer on in the mornings and nights. It's really gentle on my skin, makes it feel clean and smooth, and gets all of the leftover gunk off my face.

5. The Naked 2 Palette. It seems like every colour in this palette will make any skin tone look like a million bucks. Sometimes I'm too lazy to actually put time into my makeup, so I just slap a couple of colours on my eye lids and go; with these shades, it always looks like I made the effort!

I hope everyone has a sunshine-y weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Thursday, 11 July 2013

The Ambulance Conspiracy


I love finding ridiculous things!

The other night Boyfriend and I couldn't think of anything to do, so we went for a drive around St. John's. On our adventure we came across the world's tiniest bottle of Vaseline. I'm not sure why, but this amused me greatly and I had to buy it. We also came across the biggest cat tree I've ever seen.

I managed not to buy this ridiculous item... though I considered it. I can just imagine having people over and showing them my prized cat tree. They would be so envious.

Also, the strangest thing happened. On our adventure, we ended up going to a couple of different Lawton's stores in town (I was searching for a certain kind of makeup brush that just didn't want to exist). When we left one store there was a lady being taken out by an ambulance. We drove across town to another Lawton's store and what did we see? A lady being taken out of the store by an ambulance! Naturally we assume that there is some sort of conspiracy happening, but we have no proof, so the world may never know...

Also, the other day I got taken off work again due to illness, so if you start to notice that I'm losing my mind, you'll know it's because I have way too much time on my hands.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Wednesday, 10 July 2013

Birthday Settlers


Yesterday was Claudia's birthday, so naturally it meant that we had to stuff our faces with pizza and play board games. I never win board games, especially games that involve being a little bit cut throat.

Settlers of Catan is about growing your settlement, gaining resources, and beating the pants off of your friends while doing so. It can get a little ruthless. I had to take a picture of the board when I won, because I'm pretty sure it will never happen again.

Happy Birthday Claudia! I love you lots!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Friday, 5 July 2013

Friday Finds - My Favorite Blogs Edition

Love Elycia
Elycia is a wife and new mommy! Her blog is great if you're interested in vintage inspired fashion, crafty goodness and kitty cats. I always find her blog to be uplifting. It's like catching up with a friend on a daily basis, but in a creepy way, since I don't actually know her.

A Beautiful Mess
Emma and Elsie's blog is my number one spot for all things lifestyle! Whether it's cooking, hosting, decorating, fashion, photography or crafting, these girls have tips for it all.

The Dainty Squid
Kaylah is my go to lady for all things style. She also posts some beautiful pictures!

Skunkboy
Katie is a wife, mom of two, and another fashionista that I like to follow. Her blog is really down to earth. I find it really inspiring, especially on days when I'm down in the dumps, because she's so happy and positive!

Drink On It
Stephanie loves her dog as much as I love my dogs, so she's my go to girl for cute pet pictures! She's a lot of fun and easy to connect with, so I don't feel super creepy for catching up on her blog every day. :)

What are your favorite blogs? I'm always interested in finding a new blog to follow!
I hope that all of my Canadian friends had a lovely Canada Day and my American friends had a wonderful 4th of July!

Happy weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Tuesday, 2 July 2013

Music Break


I've been listening to this song on repeat for weeks now, so I thought I'd share it with you.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Monday, 1 July 2013

Weekend Review: Plant Killer


I'm a plant killer.

I should explain, I love plants, but I seem to be unable to keep them growing.

I got my first plant from my cousin when I was a teenager. I named him Gerard. Gerard is still the exact same size he was the day I got him. How is this possible? I'm not exactly sure, but it's an affliction that affects every plant that comes into my house.

When my nanny passed away a few years ago, she left me many of her house plants. This may not seem like much, but it was a pretty big deal to me because my nan loved her plants. You could say that nan had a green thumb; she had a beautiful garden and the loveliest house plants. Since aquiring these leafy lovelies, I've been determined to aquire more plants and watch them grow. Well, that was the plan. So far I've been watching them either die or remain the same size. It doesn't help that Harvey chomps on them from time to time (don't worry, they're all pet safe).

This year I've decided to really buckle down and try to get these plants growing! It's one of my goals for 2013! If anyone has any tips on how to make plants happy, please comment below!

I had a pretty quiet weekend. Lots of plants, pets and relaxation, what was your Canada Day weekend like? Oh! And a very happy 4th of July to my American friends!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Friday, 28 June 2013

Friday Finds

Dawn To Something Sunglasses -ModCloth
These remind me of advertisements and movies from the 70's, I think they're great!

Vintage 60's Retro Black Sunglasses - House Of Hades
Simple and beautiful, I love these black heart shaped sunglasses. Who can go wrong with a pair of little black shades?

Vintage Saphira 4155 Made in Germany Sunglasses - Comodos87

These shades are super unique and sophisticated. I hereby deem them 'movie star chique".

Pinup Rhinestone and Red Bow Heart Shaped Sunglasses - Jucy Lucy
Hearts with rhinestones!? Yes please.


The Tortoise and the Glare Sunglasses - ModCloth
I really like the unique shape of these frames.

Red Cat Eye Frame Sunglasses - American Deadstock
I'm so glad that cat eye frames are coming back in style because it means they're easier to find. Love these red frames.

Red Heart Shaped Sunglasses - Anna Jeanette
These are by far my favorite choice of the week!

Wire Wrapped Cat Wearing Sunglasses - 1ofAkinds
I found these while I was hunting for sunglasses on Etsy and I thought they were too cute not to share!

Since the summer days are finally here, I thought it would be nice to find some fancy pants sunglasses. I hope everyone has a lovely Canada Day Weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole