Cool Stuff*

  • Cool Stuff*

    Dairy Free Advent Calendar Hack*

    I love advent calendars. I have several all throughout my house–a snowman whose nose moves around like a clock, a Santa with a candy cane that moves each day of the month, a felt Christmas tree with decorations… and of course, I’ve always had a chocolate one. As a kid, I loved running down the stairs in the morning, looking for the door with the right number, popping out the chocolate then trying to decipher which holiday symbol it was from the vague chocolate mold. We used to do them for the kids, but with the onset of their dairy sensitivities, the usual chocolate advent calendars are off the table.…

  • My thoughts*,  Cool Stuff*

    Beautycounter Lipstick Review*

    A little over a week ago, a friend of mine posted a giveaway for some Beautycounter Lipstick she was selling. I have several friends who sell products from home so these posts aren’t unusual, and I often enter them… but I never win anything. Seriously. If you want a surefire way to lose a raffle, just put my name on the ticket. I enter them anyway as I keep hoping that someday my luck will change… and it finally did! My name was drawn last Monday and I won a Beautycounter Colour Intense Lipstick of my choice. It was a Christmas miracle. In April. I’ve been interested in learning little…

  • Exciting News*,  Cool Stuff*,  House Projects*

    That Time I Carried a Desk Up a Flight of Stairs by Myself*

    I AM SO EXCITED. I have long been lamenting the fact that I don’t have a proper space to sit down and write. I have a laptop, so technically I can write anywhere, but I have really missed having a desk. Three years ago I sold my big desk from my student days to make room for Ruby’s nursery. I didn’t mind as I certainly didn’t need such a big desk anymore, and I downsized to a smaller table-style desk once I started teaching again. It was in my living room, but as we then needed the extra space for Ruby’s play corner and I was trying to do most…

  • Cool Stuff*,  Recipes*

    Mïrka’s Borscht*

    Follow my blog with Bloglovin If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you’ll know that I was feeling a little “Polish” on the weekend. I had cravings for some very specific foods, and was overwhelmed with the desire to make it myself. It’s not my fault, really. Last spring my coworkers introduced me to the best Polish perogies I have ever eaten in my life. No really. The best ever.  I haven’t really been able to stop thinking about them. And then, on our last trip up north, Spart took me to this amazing little Polish deli. It was home to all kinds of deliciousness, but she bought a…

  • Cool Stuff*

    Feeling Inspired*

    I had a conversation with a new friend at work today, and it has left me feeling so… inspired. She teaches full time and has two small children, and she also runs a really neat side business making clever baby products. I mean–seriously?? I find it hard to find the time to devote 30 minutes to write here some days, and yet I know some incredible women who somehow find the time to run these creative businesses from their homes. And I think it’s awesome. While I love the idea of actually creating something tangible, I know that my creative outlet is writing. While I’m sure I could learn the…