My Clumsy Life and a Vase Make Over

I have always been a clumsy, awkward person. I have at least 3 moments every day that show off these attributes. Let’s take yesterday for example: I was having a good day – drank tea without getting any on my white shirt, didn't have anything stuck in my teeth all day, and managed not to trip or fall over anything. Fast forward to the end of my workday – I had met someone for coffee around three so I had been sipping on an iced americano for the last hour or so and still wasn't halfway finished. My hands were getting a little shaky since I'm not used to caffeine that strong (can you see some foreshadowing happening?). Well, I had packed up everything for the day and was about 2 minutes away from leaving, one of my co-workers waved good bye and just as I go to wave… Iced Americano was dumped all over my desk, wireless keyboard (which I got about a week before), telephone and computer monitors. I now have iced cubes and black coffee all over my desk, I quickly reach for my Kleenex box and of course, there is only 2 left so then I scramble to the bathroom to get paper towel hoping that my co-workers don’t see the mess I just made and quickly try to clean it up. Let’s just say my white shirt wasn't so white any more and my keyboard no longer works ( I guess it was never meant to be). Thinking that I was done being clumsy for the day, I come home and start tidying up – well I break 2 glasses in the process (still don’t even know how I managed that) and then was sweeping up the glass with one hand and trying to keep Harvey away with the other hand since he thought that the broken glass is something he wants to play with. Finally, when I was done with all of that I went outside to start spray painting a project I am working on (should be done next week) and let’s just say I stepped in a little present the dogs left for me on the front lawn. A day in the life guys – aren't you happy it’s not you jealous?

So, after the circus that was my afternoon, I decided that I needed to just sit still and work on something. 

I found an old vase in the garage that looked like it had seen some brighter days. Since I had some left over paint, I decided to spruce it up a little. I washed it first and then wiped the outside down with alcohol so that there would be a nice clean surface for the paint.

I used three colours, black, grey, and silver and applied it with a sponge.

I started out with black and then grey and finally finished off with the silver.

It changes the look of the vase and I like how you can no longer see the stems of the

 flowers since that is a pet peeve of mine.

The dark colours contrast nicely with the bright orange 

and it doesn't look like a sad, old vase any more.

stay clumsy

xo Jamie

Mason Jar Date Night Ideas

Mike and I have fallen into a bit of a rut. We usually do the same thing every night which includes us making dinner and then lounging on the couch watching recorded TV until it's time to go to bed. This is fairly new since we started living together a few months ago however, as much as we have tried it is a hard routine to break. When we are trying to make plans it usually ends up like this:

Me: We should do something tonight.

Mike: Ok, what do you want to do?

Me: I don't know, what do you want to do?

Mike: I don't know.

We sound just like the vultures from the jungle book and we always usually don't really end up doing anything and fall back into our old routine.

So I decided that it was time to stop that. I remember there was a post from Lauren Conrad's website so I decided to do something like that for us. Over dinner the other night we brainstormed some ideas for easy date nights. Some cheap or free and others to splurge on ourselves a bit. The more we began talking, the easier it became to come up with ideas. We came up with about 20 ideas so the next time we find ourselves in the vulture spiral again - one of us will just pick a stick out of the jar and that is what we will do! 

This project was actually really cheap. The paint was on sale at Michaels for under 6 dollars for both colours, the jar I already had and the popsicle sticks were from the Dollar Store for 2 bucks for 20. The stones are just fish tank stones that I had left over from goldfish a few years back - they are so Mike won't cheat to see what he's picking :-)

We also made sure that we agreed to all of the date ideas so there was little chance for us to pick one of the ideas and not want to do it. The only complaint that will probably come up is when it is my turn to pick the movie - did I see a cheesy rom com in my future?

Here are some of ideas and the others included things like: A Round of Golf, Billiards, Stanley Park, DIY Project and so on.

We wanted a mix of active and sedentary activities depending on our moods that day as well. 

It has already come in handy since yesterday we found ourselves watching a movie we had already seen (Almost Famous anyone?) so we picked from the jar and it told us to Take the dogs for a walk and so we got our shoes on and out the door we went. It is nice sometimes when you don't have to think or plan something. 

Hope you guys like this idea and it can be done with anything! You can put dinner menu ideas on it, activities to do with your kids or even girls night ideas for your friends!

stay clumsy

xo Jamie

My Happy Place

I am a hiker - I don't enjoy running and I am not in love with the gym (it's more of a platonic relationship really), however, if you have a forest with trails in it, count me in. I have lived in the same place for most of my life and luckily enough for me, there are great hiking trails around every corner. One in particular is the High Knoll (claim to fame – it was the location for Jacob’s House from the movie Twilight, meaning there were many prepubescent hormones around at that time). We have family pictures from when I was no older than five on that trail. I've done the hike with friends, dates, family but I love it the most when I'm alone. When I take the dogs and get into the forest - it seems like all the small stuff just melts away and the stress just drains out of your system (sure - panic ensues when Harvey starts chasing the birds and falls into the water, but other than that it's great :P ).

I think it is really important for people to have a place like this. Somewhere that they can share but enjoy alone just as much. A place for thought, for relaxation or for nothing in particular. Especially as I get a bit older and things in my life are changing very quickly, even in ways I don't want them to - I find having a place of my own like a type of therapy. I didn't realize that this is what the High Knoll was to me until a few weeks ago.

I went for a hike to the high knoll Sunday morning and the sun was warm and the skies clear. It gave me time to think about my To Do list for the week, my goals for the future and just life altogether. Don't get me wrong, I love Instagram, Facebook and social media just as much as the next person but once in awhile it is nice to stop looking into other people's lives and really look into your own. Of course, after I did the hike, I got ice cream and scrolled through all the updates on my phone - but having that hour and a half to just pause, was definitely needed.

Plus with a view like this why wouldn't you want to get to the top:

I know this isn't a DIY or a post like that however, just wanted to share! I have a couple projects that are going to be posted this week and I'm pretty excited about them - hope you all had a great weekend!

stay clumsy
xo Jamie

High Five for Friday

Holy Smokes! Has it already been a week since I did the last Friday post? Clearly I have been mighty busy and didn't even get any projects done this week! I have a few in the works now so next week will be a week full of fun stuff!

For now, here is what I have been up to this week!

1. I got these beautiful flowers from Mike for our anniversary and they are still alive! Plants and I don't tend to get along too well :( We may have had a few casualties on some succulents a few weeks ago... I know, I know, succulents are the easiest to take care of! 

2. I bought new hiking boots! I have been wearing them around the house like a nut job since I need to break them in. My friend, Kelly and I will be doing the West Coast Trail at the end of the summer!

3. I loved this Buzzfeed list of shirts that all 20 somethings need

I was laughing at all of them, my favourites are:

 

4. As mentioned before, I went to visit my sister in Campbell River. We had tons of fun and lots of sissy bonding but she had made this photo her BBM profile picture this week and I think it just represents us so well. She is posing to look her best and I am just in the background being goofy and trying to make her laugh

5. Lastly, the nicest thing of this whole week is that Mike is working at a job site only a few blocks from my work which means I have a carpool buddy. He is NOT a morning person so I don't even talk to him until he had eaten something so you know what that means? Car selfies :P

 What are your plans for the weekend? I am going to go to a huge Asian Night Market tonight so hopefully I will find some great, cheap stuff!

stay clumsy 

xo Jamie

High Five for Friday!

Hey Everyone,

This weekend couldn't have come soon enough!
I had a great week and these are the highlights:

1. Mike and I went to Seattle last weekend and went to see the Mariner's beat the A's! 

We had such close seats and it was Mike's first time gong to an MLB game

2. The weather in Vancouver has been BEAUTIFUL! Hot, but so bright and sunny that I have worn my all time favourite shoes to dinner this week. They are 5 inches tall and I know one day I will probably break one of my ankles, but hey, at least I'll look good doing it! 

 3. Because the weather has been so nice, I have been able to ride my motorcycle to work everyday and that also means cheap gas for me too! I love riding to and from work on my motorbike because you get lots of fresh air and actually enjoy the commute! 

4. It was my little nephews birthday and he turned three! His mom made an awesome monster truck brownie cake (yum!) and I got to get creative with wrapping his present into a paper Sushi Roll!

5. Lastly, it's Mike and my anniversary today! Three years have blown by so fast and I wouldn't want to spend it with anyone else! We are just as goofy (as you can see below) as we were when we first started dating. I think the plans for tonight include dinner and wine!

Hope all of you have a great weekend!

stay clumsy

xo Jamie

Sushi Gift Wrap

My nephew Colton turned three today! Although this kid loves monster trucks and hot wheels, he has enough toys to last a lifetime! The one thing that I really did want to get him (and something his mom mentioned she wanted for him) I actually found on the island when visiting my sister. In the picture below, you'll see the little monkey attachment for chopsticks - perfect for a youngster who loves sushi. Heck, I could use it for myself sometimes!

So we decided that we would put an investment into his piggy bank for his birthday instead, however we didn't want to just give the kid some money (that's too boring) so on my way home I decided to stick with the sushi theme and make a game out of it! I thought it would be fun to make a fake roll of sushi and hide some money in it that Colton would have to find.

I stopped at the Dollar Store on the way home and picked up some supplies - all of the above only cost me $5.00! I needed white for rice so I thought streamers would be perfect because they are already the right height so I would only need to make one cut, some green tissue paper, pipe cleaners (the brighter, the better) and that little basket to hold it all and make a little tray!

I trimmed the pipe cleaners so that they would fit nicely into the rolls, I also fold the ends over so there were no sharp edges! I decided to use orange (carrots), red (pepper) and green (cucumber)  to make it look as much like sushi as possible.

I took the white streamers and rolled it on itself to make the roll bigger and bigger, about halfway, I tucked the pipecleaners in and kept rolling it until I got to the thickness that Then I put a bit of glue to hold it all together.

I then took the green tissue paper and trimmed it to long thin stripes and wrapped it around the outside of the roll until it was all covered.

Here is what the rolls look like when they are complete! Super cute and a quick DIY. Because I live in Canada I used loonie's and toonie's (1 & 2 dollar coins) and tucked them into the rolls and then for a special one, I rolled a 5 dollar bill for Colton to find as well.

Here's what the completed gift looked like! How cute are those chop stick? He will be handling sushi like a pro in no time! I made 10 pieces in order to fill the tray I got however, this would look cute with as little as 2 or 3 pieces.

See the coins? I didn't want to make it too hard for him and what kid doesn't like putting more into their piggy bank!

I am so happy how this turned out and it was fun to see him interact with it rather than just handing him a bill or two. I am definitely going to find more ways to wrap money or gift\cards for future presents!

stay clumsy
xo Jamie

Campbell River Trip: Sisters

My sister Elle and I weren't always the best of friends, there were the days when we were younger and she would cheat at monopoly and as the younger sister I never knew any better. Then there were the days that I outgrew her, at the ripe old age of 10, I was taller than my 14 year old sister and the power that came with that: I would pin her down until she had to call for mom and dad; on the days that she thought wrestling would be fun, she would never win and then best part of all: no more hand-me-downs!

After we grew up a bit, we grew closer and closer, it was less about being sisters and more about enjoying each others company and being friends. She lived 10 minutes away and it was great! Then, she got an amazing job in Campbell River, so that meant she was moving away.

Unfortunately, I was a bad sister and it took me a few months to get my butt over there and see her place finally! 

As you've seen before, this is my sister and Maddox. Within 5 minutes he can be the biggest pain in the ass and then the most loveable dog after.

I am always so amazed by how pretty the island is

There was a chainsaw carving competition a few weeks before so they had all the entries on display

This was Elk Falls by the John Hart Dam, I love penstocks (the water pipes) so I had to take a picture!

It was a beautiful spot to hike and even though it was raining a bit, we didn't mind at all

This was desert for after the Pita Pizzas were made! We made a fire and enjoyed some s'mores! But of course we needed to make cinnamon rolls as well! Can you tell we like our sweets? 

and of course on the way back to the ferry we had to stop at Coombs!

Goats on the Roof!

I wanted to take all of these lampshades home! 

 These lights were so cute and super affordable! I am definitely going to get one or two next time I'm there! There figurines were so cute as well, they would be perfect for a cottage or somewhere beachy

These tiles are to die for! I didn't get any this time and I still am thinking about it, I have to figure out a good DIY for these and make something!

There cars were so cute - they had so much detail and are so colourful

I had an awesome time on the island with my sister! I missed her! My friend Kelly and I will be going there for a night in a couple weeks on our way to Kelly's cabin so I'm sure I'll have more Maddox pictures!

stay clumsy
xo Jamie

Pita Pizza

My sister moved away to Campbell River in January which from me is a long ferry ride and an hour drive on either side. She used to live about 10 minutes away so it's quite the change. I got the chance to go visit her this passed weekend and there is two things that usually happen when I go to my sisters.

First thing is that this little guy manages to turn everything I own to a blonde sweater. I can't wear black tights around Maddox unless I know there is a lint brush somewhere nearby. 

The second this is great food. My sister is an amazing cook, she can make any thing to an amazing brisket to

quick appetizer's in no time flat. My favourite dish she makes: Pita Pizza's. 

All you need for Pita Pizza's:
Pita's
Pizza Sauce
Cheese (Shredded mozzarella)
Pizza Pepperoni
Genzoa Saussage
Banana Peppers

These are the ingredients and while we were cooking, Elle prepared a snack for us!

Look how good that looks! and I don't even like tomatoes!

We decided to saute some onions and mushrooms to top our pizza.  We added was a bit a coconut oil and pepper and it turned out great.  

Here is the finished product! I always like to put the sauce, then meat + peppers, then cheese and finish off with the sauteed veggies!

It's one of my favourite so I hope you all give it a try!

I am going to post more about my trip to Campbell River tomorrow but isn't Maddox a cutie?

(and my sister is aright too)

stay clumsy

xx Jamie