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

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

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

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

Weekend Review - Booger Style

This weekend was full of stomach-sicky goodness, and by goodness, I mean badness. Both Boyfriend and I got the stomach flu and had to stay in. We made the best of it, but since there's nothing fun for me to tell you about, may I present Sad Dog Diary. My bestie showed me this on YouTube a few weeks ago. There's nothing better than laughter when you're feeling under the weather!

Enjoy!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Well Hello There!

Hi!

I dissapeared for a while there, but I'm back!

Over the past couple weeks life has been crazy bananas busy. So here are some highlights:

- I got my hairs cut, so now I can see. I don't know if I'm mentioned this before, but I'm basically in love with my hair stylist, Julie. Every time I go there I leave after laughing, yaking and getting dolled up, what's not to love?

- I got the world's most painful and angry pimple. The picture doesn't do it justice, guys, this thing was a monster. It's gone now, but it left a lovely little scar so that I'll never forget our time together.

- My friend Tanya left the office for bigger and brighter things. I miss her every freaking day! On her last day, we went out for lunch and each came back with a buttload of cupkcakes from this really cute sweet shop. Can you say 'bad influence'?

- My very best friend in the whole wide world moved away on Sunday. I spent the whole weekend helping her stuff her car with unnatural amounts of things (while crying every time she turned around). She and her fiance are like family to me, so I may have to follow them to Toronto. If you guys are reading this, the joke's over, come back now...

- I've been keeping up with exercising on the elliptial. I've lost two and a bit inches from my waiste. You can't really see the difference, but I'm feeling a lot stronger lately, and much healthier.

- My Momma-in-law came out for a visit and brought Boyfriend's nanny and cousin too. Their visit was really fun, but we ate more food than should be physically possible.

- Holly's birthday was on May 15th! We didn't do anything fancy-schmancy to celebrate, but she got lots of kisses and treats, so I think it was a day well done.

I'm going to try much harder to blog during busy times, but I'm a lazy, lazy lady, and bed time seems like so much more fun than playing on the computer after a long day.

How have you spent the last couple of weeks?

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

A Beautiful Mess App

Just trying out my new app from A Beautiful Mess! I'll post more info about it later if you're interested :)

I'm also testing out my new blogger app, so if this post is a mess, you know why!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

What Is Love?

Recently I've wondered about love and what it really means to tell someone that you love them. Realistically speaking, many relationships end and both partners move on to meet someone else, but when do you stop loving one person to love another one? On the other side of the coin, did you really love the previous person if you can stop loving them?

My problem has always been cutting people out of my life. If I'm being honest, there's no person I've ever been able to cut out of my life completely; I still care , and even love some people who won't speak to me now. I often wonder that if they won't be a part of my life in some small way, did they ever love me to begin with?

Maybe I'm thinking too much about this (which is another problem I have), but what are your thoughts? I'd love to hear other people's opinion on this.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Weekend Review - S'more Castle Please

Ahhhh, what a relaxing weekend!

On Saturday Boyfriend and I went on a bit of an adveture with Rhyder and Claudia. We all had some errands to run, so we did them together. We then had a huge BBQ feast and a little camp fire. Claudia had never had s'mores before, so of course I had to force feed her one (and I may have snuck a couple in too). Oz and Holly were lurking around the fire like hungry sharks, just waiting for us to drop marshmallows and graham crackers - sorry puppers, but no chocolate for you guys!

I've been trying to catch up on my Castle episodes over the past week, so I had a couch day on Sunday. Is there anything more perfect than a day spent with Nathan Fillion?

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Renovating With Dogs

Renovations aren't exactly the easiest things to deal with. The constant mess and stress that go along with them is enough to drive anyone batty, but change (even something as simple as moving around furniture) can have an especially strange effect on animals.

Holly is a bit nuts to begin with, but for whatever reason she found the renovation process very stressful. Normally when she's not playing or out for walks, she's snoozing away her time on the couch or one of the million dog beds we have in the house. As soon as we started taking the furniture out of the bedroom she started to panic.



She started pacing back and forth and couldn't be without Boyfriend or myself at any time.
To Holly, by ripping up the carpet we weren't just cleaning up the bedroom, we were blowing up the world. With each piece of scrap and nail that came out of the room, Holly became further convinced that we were going to either abandon or stop feeding her at any moment.

She very early on decided that we couldn't possibly do anything bad if she stayed as close to us as possible. READ: AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE.



My new velcro-like friend was with me every step of the renovation process AND every day life. When I used the bathroom she was as close to me as she could get without actually getting peed on.

This went on for a week and a half.

When the room was finally done and the furniture was put back in, the first thing she did was jump on the bed to have a nap.

**For anyone out there who is about to do renovations or construction around your furry friends, keep in mind that this can be a very stressful thing for them. It's important to try and keep life as 'normal' as possible. Take them out, get them away from the house, and be patient. They aren't trying to drive you insane, they just don't know what's going on and they look to you for stability. Though I played up the humour of it for the purpose of the blog, I love my dogs more than anything and was sure to take great care of the little stinker while she was feeling stressed.**

On the plus side, the room looks great and my calf muscles look fabulous from lifting doggy weight for two weeks. Also, I now know how to lay flooring and paint with a forty pound dog on my feet. Isn't that a magical skill? Definitely something for the resume.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

For a really hilarious read about animals and stressful situations, check out Hyperbole and a Half's comic. I've read it about a million times and it still cracks me up.

Home Renovation Celebration!

We're finally finished the bedroom!

We ripped up the terrible, old white carpet and put down some nice laminate floors. We also painted over a vomit green colour with grey. I'm really happy with the way it turned out, but it wasn't easy. I'll tell you a bit more about it tomorrow, but right now I'm going to snooze!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Modern Day Romance

If I watch this video one more time my computer might explode.

If you watch Girls you know all about Charlie and Marnie's on again off again relationship, and even though they are just two characters on a show, I think there's a lot of reality in them. I know that I very easily fall into old habits when it comes to my relationships with people. I have a really hard time letting someone go once I love them.

Watching the different relationships on Girls has got me thinking about romance in my own life, and in modern day. Things often don't play out the way they do on TV or movies, but that doesn't mean that the same type things don't happen. I have memories that will stay with me until the end of time, but would they be romantic to someone else? What about heartbreaking? Does this beautiful dialogue, perfect moment happy ending stuff really happen? I hope it does, because watching this really makes me smile.

:)

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Have You Seen This Girl?

Boogers!

I've been really sick for the past week, so any spare time outside of work were spent sleeping. Sorry about the lack of updates!

Last summer we re-did the hallway downstairs by pulling up the ugly old carpet, putting down laminant flooring and painting the walls. Today Boyfriend and I started phase two of our renovation process by dragging everything out of the bedroom, ripping up a bunch of stained, stinky carpet and (you guessed it) making a huge mess.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend so far! I think I bit off a bit more than I could chew today because I'm totally beat out now. Back to bed!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Being Childish Is Delicious

I will never grow up.

Well, okay, I'm getting older, obviously, but certain aspects of my personality will never mature. Yesterday Boyfriend The Easter Bunny left me treats all around the house. Call me immature if you like, but I love that kind of stuff!

Everything had to be hidden where Harvey Cat couldn't get it, so it was pretty fun trying to find/ reach everything (I'm only 5'2"). Because everything was up so high, I didn't even notice that there was anything hidden around the house until I noticed Harvey hoarding something under the chair. He looked like a tiny Golem, all wide eyed and excited. When I took his precious treasure away he was poisoned with me. Apparently the little fart is way more clever than Boyfriend gave him credit for.

I think it's important to have fun and not give up on things that make you laugh as you grow up. I'm really lucky to have a partner who indulges these silly things.

What kind of traditions do you guys still keep up on?

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Weekend Review

This weekend I figured out exactly how much I can eat without being able to move comfortably. What an amazing problem to have! This was actually a pretty jam packed weekend, here are the highlights:

- Friday was a holiday, so Boyfriend and I used our combined powers to clean up the house a little bit. There's no way I can describe to you how big of a job that was. I'm a PIG.

- After cleaning and not killing ourselves or eachother, we met up with Rhyder and Claudia for a day of video games, hot chocolate and turkey sandwiches. What is it about hanging out with friends that makes you eat like you're starving?

- I ran into two old friends who I was really excited to see, I love it when that happens! I also ran into my cousin and his girlfriend (who I'm basically in love with), wich was really nice.

- Saturday was scary because it was sandwiched between two holidays. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but people seem to go insane when they can't shop for a day or two, and they feel the need to shop A LOT right before and after those days. The crowds were huge and I swear that people were buying things up like they were preparing for the appocalypse.

- March 31st is my best friend's birthday! Happy birthday Marissa, I love you long time! We went out for wings and had a great time. Our friend's girlfriend was really sweet about me awkwardly talking about how pretty she is and telling stories about me peeing my pants.

- I woke up to hidden chocolate all over the house this morning. Boyfriend is really sweet and indulges my favorite childhood traditions :)

I hope everyone else out there had a great weekend too!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Filthy Books = Funny Looks

Okay, I'm going to be honest with you guys, I read romance novels.

When I was growing up, I always thought romance novels were something really gross that lonely old women read because nobody wanted to makeout with them. My earliest memory of of such a book was when I was sitting on a bus with my girl guide group. It was a long drive to wherever we were headed, so all of us kids were occupied singing songs or picking our noses, but I remember looking up and seeing the parent supervisor reading a novel. She had a really strange look on her face and she was getting pretty sweaty. Some of the older girls explained to me that she was getting sweaty because she was getting turned on by her boner book. Whatever that meant.

About a year ago, my sister lent me a book and told me it was about vampires. I was three chapters in when I learned that these vampires weren't just sucking blood (IF ya know what I mean).

I was intrigued. I went to Chapter's to pick up the next book in the series, but I was mortified to carry it around the store. I felt like everyone was watching me and just KNEW that I had a dirty book in my hands. I did everything to cover it up, and when I got up to the cash, the cashier all but died laughing at what I was buying. At first I felt a little bit embarrassed, but then I quickly realized that there's nothing wrong with it! Am I a sweaty woman reading romance novels on a bus filled with children? No. Am I old and lonely? No. In fact, even if I was, there would be nothing to be ashamed of anyway! I quickly ran back to the shelf, grabbed another dirty book, and proudly made my purchase with my head held high and my books out in the open! I didn't even take a bag!

It's fun to read stuff that makes you laugh, shocks you, or even provokes you! It's also important to know that you should never be embarrassed by something you do. Be proud and open! Some people might not like it, but those who accept it will love you with their whole hearts!

Besides, boners are hilarious.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole Woodman

Weekend Review

I've said this a million times before, but the best weekends are the ones where you end up doing random but simple things.

Highlights:

- Upon realizing that I've gained an inch around my waist, I naturally decided to go on a diet to become a famous model. That lasted about ten minutes before I slipped into a blissful few days of eating cheesecake and spending time with people who love me and make me feel beautiful no matter how many inches I gain on my waist.

- Finally felt well enough to take Oz and Holly out for a really nice walk. I now have some lovely calluses on my hands because they took me for a walk instead.

- Woke up this morning and got breakfast in bed delivered to me by Boyfriend.

- Tried to make some melted crayon art on canvas... I'm pretty I gave myself a crayon tattoo. Also, does anyone have any tips for getting crayon off a hardwood floor? I should have taken some pictures of the end result, because it was hilariously hideous.

- Frightened another pharmacist by trying to be friendly, but being creepy instead. Are there classes I can take to fix this?

- The car started leaking some kind of car juice, so we brought it to a garage. Oddly enough, the guy at the counter had no idea what car juice was.

I hope that everyone had a great weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

How To Be A Friend

Holly's method of helping with depression is to chew on the sad person's face. This method is not for everyone.

One of my most popular posts of all time is Bomb Drop. I'd like to say a big thank you for taking the time to read that giant post, and for giving me so much positive feedback. One person (who happens to be a very lovely friend of mine) mentioned that it's hard to know exactly what to do when you have a friend who is struggling with depression or anxiety, so I thought it would be nice to do a follow up post about just that!

Let me just say that every person is different. What works for some people may not work for others, but one thing's for sure, we all need help sometimes. The suggestions that I make here might not suit everyone's needs, but the imporant thing is to try. If these things don't work, talk to your friend about what might help them out. Communication is key.

Without further delay, here's a list of stuff you can try to make someone's day just a little big better:

Be observant.

When I'm not feeling the best, I tend to cut myself off from friends by declining hang out times and not responding to texts/calls. I also skip the little extras that normally make me feel good about myself (like showering, doing my makeup/hair, putting effort into my outfits, saying big hellos to people at the office, ect.). If you're close to me, you'll notice this stuff pretty quickly just be being observant.

Knowing when someone might need a friend is half the battle. I've lost a lot of friends because I'd cancel plans frequently, and because I found it hard to be in crowded places (like parties and bars). Sometimes, If you can, the best medicine is a night in. A bit of laughing, chatting and a movie can work wonders when you're feeling down in the dumps.

Be available.

When you know that someone's got a big ol' rain cloud over their head, get in there with a mop and some sunshine! I send mixed signals when I'm sad (I know, annoying, right!?). I'll tell people that I'm fine all by myself, but what I really need is a kick in the pants and someone to say "I'm here, I love you, get used to it".
I have no idea why I push people away when I really need them, but I do it all of the time and I can't be the only one!

Be yourself.

Sometimes everyone needs to be asked if they're okay and maybe have a bit of a cry, but a lot of the time your friends just want you to be good old you! When I'm not feeling my best, I love to see my best friends Marissa and Andy because when they show up they don't bring a pity party. Marissa is like a best friend out of a movie who knows everything I like and exactly when to say the right things. Andy talks about Batman with me and regales me with stories that usually crack me up.

Be patient.

Depression and anxiety can make people say and do all kinds of stuff. Try to be patient with your friend.
I get really frustrated with myself because I want to get up and take over the world, but my body won't let me get out of bed to even get a glass of water. This can make me a pretty cranky person. On more than one occassion I've snapped at Boyfriend for no reason at all, just out of pure frustration with myself. I'm not saying to be a doormat, but if your friend snaps at you and says something completely out of character, talk to them about it. More than likely they will follow it up with and apology and maybe an explaination of why exactly they're feeling so testy.

There is absolutely nothing you can do to cure depression or anxiety, but you sure can help to make dealing with them a lot easier.

I hope this was helpful! Please remember that this is all based on my own personal experiences, and that the opinions and ideas here are my own. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. If you don't want to ask them publically, just shoot me an email :)

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Weekend Review

First of all, HAPPY BELATED ST. PADDY'S DAY!

This weekend was actually pretty jam packed! Friday night I had a nice little hermit evening for myself that included popcorn and Grimm. If you haven't seen this show before, and you are a fan of fairy tales and monster-esque stories, I recommend it! It's definitely my favorite show on TV right now.

On Saturday myself and Claudia adventured out into to world for some random shop hopping and female bonding. What ended up happening was me stuffing myself with food and spending money like I was playing Monopoly. Hooray! That night I went to a friend's party and somehow managed to put more food in my face. I'm noticing a trend here... Nichole + Food = No more food. Your tasty morsels aren't safe around me, friends!

I also did this:



Gorgeous, isn't it?

Bruises are like a fine wine; they get better with time. It took a day or so for this bad boy to get all of those fun rainbow colours, but I think it's going to rank pretty high on my 'best bruises' list.

Sunday was all about cheesy Paddy's Day movies (Leprechaun 3, I'm talkin' bout chu), great friends and, you guessed it, more food. I think I'll just roll myself to work on Tuesday. Hopefully I'll fit into my chair!

I hope you all had a great Paddy's Day weekend!

Hugs and poops,

Nichole

Rainy Day Wears

Dress - Rosie The Rebel (also available through ModCloth)
Tights - Forever 21
Sweater - Garage

It's raining! I absolutely love the rain, especially this time of year because it washes away all of the snow that has been scum-ified by the plows and salt trucks. I can't wait to be able to leave the house without tons of layers on (although I do love the snow when there's lots of it to play in).

I think I scared away the co-worker that I was trying to befriend. She seems to be a little bit skiddish and quiet around me. Maybe my awkwardness is contagious or fear inducing. I'm not giving up, but I am accepting applicatons for friendship via email *cough* loner *cough*. Here are the qualifications for friendshipery: must like animals; enjoy laughing; not be crazy. It also helps if you tend to make strange noises instead of answering questions... because I do that all of the time.

Hugs and poops,

Nichole