[ sweet sweet monday ]

EVER JUMP out of bed so fast that you give yourself vertigo? That was me this morning. My guy left early for work but no sooner had he left, he returned with a package in hand! What a great way to start off the week!

My dear bloggy friend Janis at Pinecone Camp sent me this lovely package - I won her giveaway back in June and can you believe it took 2 attempts to get this to me? The first package disappeared into obliviion {or it was too darn cute that someone helped themselves to it?}. So you can imagine my excitement when this one actually fell into my hands!

Oh, the anticipation....

the cutest little package with a custom notecard attached with fancy striped tape...

a lovely handmade fabric pouch....

containing the most beautiful recipe cards I've ever seen...

recipes printed on the backs....

The photography is so mouth-watering gorgeous, it makes me want to run over and preheat my oven stat!

If you haven't discovered Janis' delicious blog, check it out here. Janis is an incredible photographer who shoots for numerous magazines and every week she bakes up some delectable treat, and most are even healthy! {no excuses not to try them!}

Thank you my sweet friend! I will treasure these recipe cards and think of you everytime I bake up one of these delicious treats. xo

lisa

[ crazy about crochet ]

AREN'T THESE  pillowcases charming? I came across these at a lovely blog called rose hip and I was instantly smitten. The crocheted trim really adds the finishing touch to these pretty patterned pillowcases and would be equally as cute on some plain ones.

You can pick some up in Beata's Etsy shop here or try your hand at crocheting some of your own with this tutorial at You Go Girl.

I remember learning to crochet granny squares when I was a kid so this is probably something I could tackle. Do you crochet?

lisa

[ I'm over here today! ]

THE LOVELY Marianne of Style for Living is featuring me today in her ABC's series! I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be included amongst the other fantastic bloggers she has featured.

If you're not familiar with Marianne, she has her own design business {Marianne Simon Design} and her blog is always oozing wonderful design eye-candy. If you have a moment, check it out here! xo

lisa

[ so sweet ]

THE LOVELY Carolyn at Sweet Chaos Home has passed along the versatile blogger award to me - thank you!

To accept this award you must thank the person who awarded it to you and include a link to their blog. Then choose 15 fellow bloggers that you've recently discovered or follow regularly to pass the award along to and share 7 things about yourself.

So, since I don't want to be a party-pooper, here are 7 things about me you may or may not know...

1. I was born and raised in Canada but my family is Finnish with a pinch of Swedish thrown in for good measure.

2. My favourite car is the Mini Cooper and I used to own a cream one before moving to Ireland. I called it my little rocket.

3. Chocolate cupcake or vanilla? Definitely vanilla. It reminds me of birthday cake and we all need birthday cake more than once a year.

4. Shania Twain and I are from the same hometown.

5. I grew up playing the piano and played the saxophone in highschool.

6. My favourite TV shows are Modern Family and Mad Men.

7. Beach cottage or ski chalet? Definitely beach cottage - someday I want to retire by the sea and wake up to waves lapping the shore.

I'd love to pass along this award to a few of my favourite fellow bloggers - they all have lovely blogs that I always look forward to visiting...

Fern Creek Cottage

Strickly Simple Style

Plain and Fancy Living

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Razmataz

Beach Coast Style

Inspired Design

Use the Good Dishes

The Hairy Peach

Dreams on 34th Street

Style for Living

A Happy Little Life

A Delightful Design

Pinecone

In Corners of My Mind

Happy Monday!

lisa

[all pics: Google]

[ my thoughts on guest posts ]

GUEST POSTING is popular in blogland and it's a fun way to connect and discover other lovely blogs. However, not all guest posts are created equal.

Have you been bombarded lately with requests from companies to post guest posts on your blog? Well I have! And I just had to share my thoughts on this practise {please bear with me if this post gets long!}

To me, guest posts by companies are an entirely different ball game. They are like advertorials - those special advertising features you see in magazines - like when Scotties tissues runs a spread showing various bathroom decorating ideas, all the while, promoting their newest tissue box designs. And in magazines, placing those advertorials costs money.

While some people may feel flattered that they've been approached by a company wanting to post a guest post on their blog (their emails gush with compliments on how great your blog is), I feel differently. These companies should be paying you to do so. These posts are exactly like magazine advertorials but in blogland. Why should they be allowed to target your blog readers for free? They're YOUR blog readers - people kind enough to tune in regularly to read what YOU have to say, not to read what is essentially an "ad" by some company. {Unless of course they want to offer a fabulous giveaway - then that's a different story}.

I've been approached by lighting companies, real estate companies, vacation rental companies, design companies, clothing companies... all wanting to put up a post on my blog with no benefit to me or my lovely blog readers. No giveaway. No discount. All of them wanting links back to their company website. One company even said they'd do it at NO COST TO ME! Gosh, really?

Rather than purchase a sponsor ad in your sidebar, they take the approach of offering up some original content for your blog ~ they'll do all the work and all you have to do is post it. To me, it's sneaky and a free way for them to get traffic to their websites through you, if you fall for it.

What are your thoughts on these types of guest posts?

lisa

[ mom jeans ]

SHOPPING FOR jeans can be a frustrating experience and what if you found out you could be wearing mom jeans and not even know it? gasp!

I came across a great blog post at grasping for objectivity and not only was it funny, it was eye-opening! Essentially, Rachel went on a quest to try on numerous brands and styles of jeans and her husband photographed her from behind to show what a difference a good cut, fit and pocket placement actually makes. Could Gap jeans almost be mom jeans? How about Old Navy? Hmm... maybe they are...

I know I'd rather have a perky bum than a wide or droopy looking one. Needless to say, it prompted me to immediately go try on all of my jeans and take a better look. Hmm... maybe I'll go jeans shopping this weekend! Check out her post and see all of her examples here.

lisa

[all pics: grasping for objectivity]

[ BRAND NEW! digital mag - The Kit ]

HAVE YOU HEARD the news? A new digital mag just launched called The Kit. All about beauty inside and out, it's full of articles and advice on hair, makeup, body and wellness. They're having daily giveaways for their launch so be sure to check it out!

lisa

[ pokin' around ]

ARE YOU all familiar with poke cakes? I had heard of them but have never made one until today! I decided to try my variation of The Country Cook's Banana Pudding Poke Cake...

I don't tend to make many desserts anymore since I've had to change my diet but sometimes I want to surprise my guy with something yummy.

All you need is: a yellow cake mix, 2 boxes of instant banana pudding and some whipped topping.

{I decided to add 2 mashed bananas to my cake mix and I used sugar-free vanilla pudding since I couldn't find any banana pudding here in Dubai}.

Just bake your cake according to the box and after it has cooled for a few minutes, poke holes all over it...

Then mix up your pudding and pour all over it so it trickles down into the holes...

Spread the remaining pudding over top and refrigerate. Then add a layer of whipped topping {CoolWhip or real whipped cream}. You can top with some crushed vanilla wafers if you like.

Done!

For more detailed instructions click here .The Country Cook has all kinds of delicious southern recipes so be sure to check out her blog here. 

What have you been baking lately?

lisa

[ pets on furniture ]

HAVE YOU all been following the Monday Pets on Furniture series on Desire to Inspire blog? I think some of these pics are just hilarious and some of the furniture so stylish. If you have a pet pic on furniture you can submit it for future consideration too so be sure to check it out here.

lisa

[ diy Anthro necklace ]

I CAME across this fun tutorial to create your own Anthropologie fabric necklace and just had to share. Beverly at Flamingo Toes blog happened to be cruising through the Anthro site and spotted the Akela necklace and decided to create a step-by-step tutorial on how you can create one yourself. I think it's so pretty and all for a fraction of the cost! The fabric possibilities are endless! Try it out here.

lisa

[ earth, wind, fire and a giveaway! ]

WHAT DO A 5.0 earthquake, tornadoes and a fire have in common? My week here in Muskoka! In an area that sees little activity, the earth was shaking yesterday as a rare earthquake hit a wide region of Ontario. Later a severe storm system swept through with tornado warnings with some areas just south experiencing a fair bit of damage. And my local UPS store where I pick up my parcels was hit with a fire, the owner still accepting parcels and handing out mail outside of the building as cleanup crews demolished the smoke-filled interior. Bless her. Throw in a G8 Summit with all its security and strange characters descending upon the region and you've got the makings of a pretty weird week! 


Time for fun! Come celebrate Sarah's one year of blogging at Flourish Design + Style! In honour of this milestone, she's celebrating with the ultimate - 11 days of amazing giveaways! And I'm part of the party! So don't walk - RUN to Sarah's beautiful blog to find out how you can win! And you can still enter for Day 1, 2, 3 & 4! Good luck!

lisa

[ don't worry, be happy ]

I RECEIVED the loveliest email on the weekend from Emily at Vita Nostra blog sharing some happy with me. You see, she had visited my blog and said that it had brought a smile to her face and so she was sending some happiness my way. So in accepting her happiness gesture, I will share 10 simple things that are sure to make me smile. [pics: getty]

hydrangeas

waking up to a sunny day

my hubby's famous french toast on a Sunday morning

the smell of freshly mowed grass

sitting and looking out over water

canoeing down our river

roadtrips

fresh clean sheets

travelling

and most importantly, being with my man

It's always nice to pause and take a moment to think about the little things that bring you happiness each day. 

And so I'm spreading the happiness to a few bloggers who always bring me happiness when I visit their blogs.

Privet and Holly

La Dolfina

Flourish Design and Style

West Family Adventures

Pie Bird

[ blog love ]

HAVE YOU MET Janis over at Pinecone Camp? If not, you MUST go and check out her blog!

A photographer from Vancouver, Canada, Janis shoots interiors for magazines including Style At Home, Canadian House & Home, Chatelaine and more. Along with posting great pics of interiors and beautiful shots from around her city, Janis bakes every Monday and photographs her way through each recipe - it will having you drooling on your keyboard! Being the sweetest thing, she recently had a giveaway of her gorgeous recipe cards in a cute little cloth bag and I'm thrilled to say that I'm the lucky recipient (I can't wait to receive my first piece of mail in Dubai!)

..............

I'd also like to give a shout-out to Carol at The Design Pages for sending a lovely award my way! Carol is an interior designer from Vancouver and her blog is filled with lovely spaces and her fun diy projects. Thank you so much - you've really made my day!

I'm passing it along to 5 bloggers I love....

Janis at Pinecone Camp (I think you already know how much I adore her blog!)

and to 4 other bloggers who have lived the life of an expat just like I am:

Kathy at West Family Adventures - she's lived in Germany and has now moved back to the US
Robynne at Robynne's Nest - an Aussie who has relocated to the UK
Chania at Razmataz - an interior decorator who moved from the UK to Canada
Laura at Happy Homemaker UK - an American expat living near London, England


So drop everything and pop on over and say hi to these fellow globe-trotting bloggers! Have a great weekend everyone!

lisa