You Can Achieve Anything You Want If You Work At It

You Can Achieve Anything You Want If You Work At It

I found this photo in a box of tax receipts and it gave me such a warm feeling. I’m pretty sure mum has this costume still hanging up in a closet at home. When I was about 9 my jazz class did a competition number to the Inspector Gadget song and to this day I still remember some of it.

I spent heaps of time at the dance studio as a kid. I started ballet around 3 and a half, had my first recital at 5, and spent a few years competing. I went all over Ontario, NY, and the National American Dance Championships in South Carolina a couple times.

First ballet Recital, 5 years Old, Fluffy Cloud

I distinctly remember times ballet was hard. Sometimes I hated it. I’d be crying after class, begging mum to let me quit. But she never did. And thank god for that.

Although it was tough, dance taught me so much.

It taught me hold my head high when I walk, how to enter a room, how to be on stage. I learned to not give up.

I’m so thankful for the decade I spent dancing as kid. For my teacher Miss Lisa at Meyerhofer Academy in Cambridge. I’m grateful for mum who taught me to persevere through all the tough times. Also thankful for all the late nights, mum sat at the kitchen table making ballet skirts for the studio to pay for it.

As I get older ,I appreciate more and more the hard work I put in when I was younger. This week Emily and I signed up for Tae Kwon Do. It’s her first go and my first time back in 20 years. [Side note: WHERE DID THE TIME GO, HOW AM I THAT OLD?] 


TDK is another thing I spent a few years doing that taught me so much.  I have my green belt, won an Ontario trophy for 3rd in sparring, and once broke a guys jaw with a roundhouse kick.

Before signing up this week I inquired about it twice over the last year and I’m glad I finally did it. Even after all these years, the five tenants of Tae Kwon Do have never left my memory.

Explanation of Tenets

1. Courtesy (Ye Ui)

2. Integrity (Yom Chi)

3. Perseverance (In Nae)

4. Self-Control (Guk Gi)

5. Indomitable Spirit (Baekjul Boolgool)


I’ve been working hard at yoga the last couple months and I feel so much stronger in  my muscles and my mind. I’m not sure if I’ve lost many lbs but I’ve for sure made some muscle and lost some of that muffin ’round the middle.

This post is a reminder: Don’t give up. When something is hard you have to push through to get to the next level. It’s like playing a really hard video game, and working hard to beat The Boss, and make it to the next level.

When you get there, it’s always worth it. And you can do it again.


Have a great weekend, 

Escape to Free Your Mind

Escape to Free Your Mind

This winter I didn’t  travel as much as last year because things kept coming up. So, my bff and I decided we needed a local getaway that was short and fun. Like us, haha! 

On Friday we drove about an hour to our hotel, shopping and getting food along the way. Our penthouse suite looked like a grandmas apartment from the 80’s but we had all the things we needed to make it fun. I was so into to our own party I didn’t even photograph the place. I hardly used my phone at all and didn’t update anything about where we were to the internet. It was kinda nice.

Sometimes you just need to ESCAPE!

We walked to a Mexican place for dinner, treated ourselves to the best tequila, and had a dance party on the balcony. It was perfect.


I absolutely did not wear the right shoes. They were soaked!

In other news, I was really excited to go to the cottage today but both Sean and I have things we need to get done at the house. Going up there makes me so incredibly happy and it’s the most beautiful place. I’ve got a list of DIY things I want to do and make. It is a lot of work but I look forward to it every year, cleaning, putting in the dock, getting the boat, doing the gardens. I also can’t wait to get back on my paddle board!


Today, I’m off to yoga and then a manicure before I knuckle down on food and work prep for the week.

Feeling great about spring, longer days, and warmer temperatures.

Take the sunshine wherever you go! 



Water bottles Are So 2003!

Water bottles Are So 2003!

Carrying water bottles is so 2003! They’ve been banned at Hong Kong Uni, Adele concerts, and for all of San Francisco. I’ve stopped buying bottled water since getting my new Bkr water bottle, but now, there’s a new way to save our planet…


I’ve always been a fan of Paris Hilton and along with SodaStream she created the Paris Hilton Institute for Plastic Pollution Solutions who developed NanoDrop. Cute, right?

A revolutionary scientific achievement, a highly condensed form of water that is 5,000 times more hydrating than regular water.”

One little drop is equal to 1 glass of water. 

Say whaaaaa?


“This is the beginning of a new era for humans, sea turtles, oceans, and all other living creatures on the planet.”


Ok, so if this seems a *bit* far fetched you’re right, NanoDrop is not a real product. Did you check the calendar today? heh heh ?

However, the water bottle crisis is totally real and Paris Hilton is serious about saving the planet. She’s also a big fan of SodaStream and if you saw my IG story this week, I just got one!

We’ve wanted a SodaStream  for a while and I’m so happy to welcome it into our home. It takes 2 seconds to turn tap water into carbonated water and I can’t wait to start experimenting with flavours.

We’ll be totally cutting out sparkling water purchases at home and in the office.


STAY HYDRATED BB!

casiestewart, blog, blogger, toronto, canada, travel, tech

 

Ok so this post is like, totally in partnership with SodaStream. Duh! One step closer to working with Paris Hilton! ?

Enjoy A Little, Endure a Lot

This week felt like a long one and it’s finally Thursday. As Keri would say, “Best night of the week!”. Tonight I’m heading to my BFFs house out of the city and tomorrow we rented a sweet hotel room in a random Ontario town, not too far, for a well deserved girls getaway.

Sometimes when I look back at my story of the day, on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, or Facebook, my short term memory forgets things even happen. This was the case a few times this week. I started the week slow, was super tired, and had a sore shoulder from an awkward sleep on Sunday.

New jacket from SheIn

Tuesday I spent most the day dragging my a$$ through the motions, but, by the end of the day I was so inspired I couldn’t sleep! I was a judge at the Women in Wearables Tech Meetup for the Female Founders Cup.  It was  great to be surrounded by incredibly amazing women making waves in the tech community. You can watch the livestream here if you’re looking for some inspiration. 


Women & Wearables: An evening of celebration, discussion & activism


Wednesday seems like a blur. Did yoga at 7:30 then drove home, picked up Emily and took her to school. Shawn Hawaii came over for quick head shot shoot around 9am and by 10:30, Sean and I we were heading to 1188. The rest of the day was non-stop and by 9:30pm I was finally ready to sit down and do things on my computer.

I am SOOOOO looking forward to a 2 night getaway with my BFF and a s-l-o-w pace. I love what I do but life is exhausting and I’ve had to teach myself to take breaks. Also, I can’t wait till we open the cottage and my regular weekend escape from the city is back in action. Cottage life, baby!

Here’s to the balance of hustling hard then taking time chill!

casiestewart, blog, blogger, toronto, canada, travel, tech

 

There is no sponsor today but I found the inspiration for my title from this (Brainy) quote.

Light Up Your Life with Best Buy Smart Home

Last week I went to the National Home Show as a guest of Best Buy Canada to check out smart home accessories. After CES and the Interior Design Show this year I’ve become obsessed with making our home more efficient with smart things. Upgrading appliances in your space can help save energy (thermostats/appliances), make things more comfortable (lighting), and keep you safe (security camera).

For the National Home Show, Best Buy partnered with designer Christine Dovey to design a fully stocked smart home pop-up where you could see all kinds ways to pimp your place with technology. I left dreaming about new appliances for the whole house complete with a super skinny & smart Samsung QLED tv.



I was obsessed with the Samsung ‘Family Hub’ fridge, this thing is totally from THE FUTURE. It’s got a wifi touchscreen and three inside cameras that take a photo every time the fridge closes. Then, you can check your phone to see what’s inside, it also knows what’s inside, it make recipes, it can track expiration dates. Kinda hard to wrap the old brain around! I LOVE THE FUTURE. My friend was telling me about how they recently got a new smart AV system from Crestron System and I think she is as much in love with the future as I am!


When I was at CES in Vegas this year, one of the award winning new products was the Nanoleaf Aurora light panel.All the lights connect to my iPhone and can change a zillion colours and different shades of white (warm vs cool). I was so excited to order this for our house! I would love to say I went for the cool lights knowing Emily (9) would love them but they were totally for me too.

We had guests over this weekend and I set the Nanoleaf up on a table in our living room and it was so awesome. I set the lights to slowly go through colours of the rainbow (this gif is fast so you can see). The 9 little triangles can be moved around to any shape as long as they’re connected. I plan to put them on the wall eventually.

Some other things I ordered from Best Buy) were a set of Philips Hue A19 Smart Wireless bulbs, a cheap IP camera and the little Hue Go Portable Smart LED Light. They both can all be controlled by my phone and adjusted to encourage moods or be programmed to timers.


My mum stayed over the other day and this works as a great little night light. I easily fits on your hand, isn’t to bright, and is super light.

Phillips wireless HUE light in action

By changing a couple lights in the house to smart bulbs we’re saving energy and changing the way it feels. We’ve also compared Cirro Energy plans to our own to find where the most competitive rates are so that we can save money. These were all pretty simple to set up but you can always have someone from the Best Buy Geek Squad help you out.

Learn about the wide variety of Smart Home products available and determine what fits your home and lifestyle by visiting your local Best Buy or BestBuy.ca.

This post in is in partnership with Best Buy Canada and the National Home Show. In exchange, I received perks in the form of products and/or compensation. All opinions on this blog are my very own! Thank you for reading!