Day 6: Adjusting

I love the mornings up here, so peaceful. We set up Alexa in the kitchen and I made coffee. Sean and I did yoga by the fire in a class hosted by City Shred on IG TV. My calendar has more workouts & FaceTime meetings scheduled than ever before and it’s giving me some structure, for now. Through this, we’re all adjusting to a new way of life in isolation, communication through technology, and trying to maintain a routine. I am so thankful for social media and the ability to connect. Sean thought it was H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S to send me a Zoom meeting request from the other room. Look how much he’s smiling? I have to try and not start little arguments over nothing, it’s hard to be at home with your partner for days on end. Kindness, remember to be kind. Choose your battles, there’s nothing we really need to fight about right now. Before the COVID-19 outbreak, I was in the interview process for a job I was really keen on. Today I had a call with HR and the process is put on hold, I knew this was inevitable and they’re going to reach out when this passes. My afternoon was full of friends hangouts. I FaceTimed with Hawley who’s in TO near Bellwoods. Spring starts tonight and I thought about being Bellwoods drinks beers with friends. Remember those days? Just here thinking about hanging out with other people and celebrating the first day of spring in Bellwoods. ?? pic.twitter.com/SlP56lH7by — CASIE STEWART ☀️ (@casiestewart) March 19, 2020 I FaceTimed with Keri for two hours, we drank beers and laughed a lot. Checked in with my sister and it was nice to see her face too. I hung out with Jen & Jess on FaceTime talked about boys…

View Post

Day 5: Routine

Today we started the day with a trip to town to pick up our Click & Collect groceries. It was the first time we’ve ordered them like that and it was quite convenient. They had to substitute a few items for smaller quantities (ex. 3 avocados instead of a bag) but it wasn’t an issue. I forgot a couple of things so had to run inside, making sure to distance myself and leave the aisle if I saw an older person coming close. We all have to do our best and we’re living under the notion that we could all be carrying this virus. I also ran into the LCBO, I have cut down on drinking over the past year but honestly, it’s challenging times so I want to have a few things on hand. I had a FaceTime with Talia & Nelson who are also up at their cottage. She took me for a walk in the woods, I gave them a tour of the cottage, and we watched Nelson hit some targets. I did a workout from Fit Factory TO in the kitchen and then we made salad & cannelloni for lunch. I watched Miley Cyrus hang out with Cameron & Lauren from Love Is Blind and there are so many people going Live right now, there is lots to watch. We got our cottage WIFI properly active as there was a delay from Bell because they have limited staff on hand. I am able to login to our account and watch our home cable on the iPad. Sean also got the hot water working so I finally had a nice shower. I needed one after all my workouts lol. Sean and I went for a walk on the lake which I thought would be romantic but tbh…

View Post

Day 4: Connecting

Today was a-ok. Aside from the almost constant anxiety rolling through my veins, some good things happened. I worked out when I woke up. I decided a workout by the fire was kinda romantic and sweet but it got hot realllllllly fast. Might skip the fire tomorrow morning! ? I had a client call in the AM and did some work for another client project in the afternoon. At lunch, Sean and I did the Fit Factory TO Live workout on IG. It was hard to finish and I really got my sweat on. I’ve managed to eat pretty healthy and feel good overall about my food choices. I was concerned I would eat all the snacks out of stress but the habits I started months ago are paying off. I had a FaceTime with Brigitte and we laughed so much! It was amazing to hang out. FaceTime is really coming in handy for this isolation time. I’m loving how so many people are using Instagram Live to share music, workouts, meditation, cooking, their life at home. It’s bringing us all together in an amazing way. I found a way to remove my shellac at home which is going to be necessary soon. Luckily, my IG friend Katie responded and introduced me to Ka Yee who made a story highlight on how to do it. Find it here if you’re in the same boat as me! The sunset was really nice on the lake tonight. Despite its beauty, I’m feeling stressed and the news gives me heightened anxiety. I know it’s going to be ok and it will be over eventually but it doesn’t take away the feelings we get while going through it. Here’s some enjoyable things that might help you and your family while we’re all at home…

View Post

Day 3: #stayhomechallenge

We had fun yesterday. I mean, it seems hard to have fun in this situation but, if you think about it. You can still have fun if you want to. Sean and I had a good time driving to the cottage, listening to oldies on 104.1 The Dock. We had fun driving over the mini snowbank driveway at the cottage right when Black Betty came on, I cranked it and we plowed through the driveway in the snow. As much as unpacking the car is work, it was still kinda fun. Navigating the snow, carrying bags & boxes, trying to balance, while inside started to warm up. We worked from about 4:30pm to 8pm getting the cottage ready. I remembered Alex was going Live on IG at 8pm, so I joined. We talked about life in isolation and doing a fireworks show on Friday night. It was really fun! We haven’t hung out IRL in ages but it was just as good. I chatted for about 15min and jumped out before she ended the chat at 8:30pm. I left to help Sean get wood and get batteries. At 9:30 I called my friend who recently came back from two months in Asia and traveled through China to get home. She’s been in quarantine for two weeks already. We chatted about everything from COVID-19 to workouts and she helped me with some ideas of what I can do up here. I want to share positivity. I want to be your sunshine at this hard time. I don’t know what else to do. I’m not sure exactly how and what I’m going to do but each day, I’ll try to share some good. If nothing else, I’ll share how I’m feeling. Maybe a smile or a beautiful sunset. I’m happy to be…

View Post

Day 2: Isolation

We made the decision to come up to the cottage and make it our work from home space. We have a stocked fridge and fireworks. The fire is heating the cottage and we’ve got the water turned on. This morning in the city I went for a run outside (no gym!) and it gave me so much joy that almost every person I passed gave a little wave and a smile. We’re all in this together. The cottage isn’t fully winterized so each time we come up for a stretch of time in the winter we have to clean everything, put the water in, turn the fridge back on, and remove the shutters from the window, among other things. It takes about an hour to get the place liveable and then about two more hours to get fully set up. Sean’s workspace is in the living room while I work in the kitchen. It’s nice to have our own spaces to focus on the work we need to get done. We spend almost 2 weeks up here each summer and a week at Christmas so we know how to make it work. We’re not sure how long we’ll be at the cottage with everything going on. Emily is at her mum’s this week and we might have her up here with us next week. I packed all my old drives to sort through, my favourite books, a stockpile of beauty products, and my most cozy outfits. Being here makes it a bit easier to socially distance myself from the news. At home, I had CP24 on non-stop, or the radio, and was constantly scrolling. At the cottage, I find it easier to put my phone down and focus on work, being creative, or making things in the kitchen. I was…

View Post

byMINISTRY Enlightened Dining Club

I recently attended a new kind of dinner with amazing food that was infused with cannabis (THC & CBD). The entire experience was highly curated to take us on a journey through incredible food and unique experience. The team at byMINISTRY aims to show how cannabis can be integrated into life through food & drink, culture, and wellness. They’re taking your plant-forward lifestyle to a higher place and I am here for it. The Experience Sean and I arrived to be greeted with a non-infused temperance cocktail as there was no alcohol on site. Before each course, the chef (Ted Corrado) walked us through what we were about to eat and if it contained CBD or THC. It was nice to learn about the food before eating it, including how the mushrooms were foraged or fish arrived at our plates.

View Post

2020 Home Renovations: The Plan

It’s happening! We’re starting renovations on our house and I am so excited. This past summer a good friend reached out to me about her client to see if we had any plans to renovate our bathrooms at home or the cottage. After a few months of talking, making plans, and sign-off, we’re renovating both bathrooms at home with American Standard. I am 100% at the age where things like this give me great joy. I loved picking out fixtures, toilets, sinks, and faucets. For years, Sean and I have been thinking about doing renovations but it can be kinda overwhelming. We’re also planning to paint and make some changes to the kitchen. I’ve been building a Pinterest board with ideas and DIY tips for ages. All the current bathroom fixtures and accessories will be moved to the cottage to update that space and saved for our future shipping container project. During our staycation at Hotel X Toronto, I was admiring the nice toilet in our suite when I noticed the brand, American Standard. This is the Townsend Vormax toilet we are getting! Yes, I ‘m excited about a toilet, this is my life now. For the upstairs full bathroom, we’ve picked out matte black fixtures from the American Standard Studio S Collection. They’re modern and similar to the ones below. I can’t wait to paint, tile, and install everything. I’ve been looking up a nice radiator to keep it warm and found some good heating tips. We’re planning to do most of the work ourselves, both Sean and I are pretty handy. We’re starting with the downstairs bathroom in February and making our way to the second larger bathroom next. If you have any tips or thoughts to share about home renovations, I’m all ears! My goal is to…

View Post

Beat Winter SAD: Book a Staycation

We are almost through January and the countdown to spring is ON! OK, it’s 50 days, and yes I’m counting. I’m really working on finding ways to make this winter not seem as long, cold, or depressing as 2019. Last week, I shared a post about beating winter Seasonal Affective Disorder by taking a vacation. This week, I’m sharing an AWESOME recommendation for a staycation. Sean and I spent a relaxing ~24-hours at Hotel X Toronto in downtown Toronto and it was a really nice mini-getaway. If you’d like to see more of my stay in video, check out my Staycation highlight on Instagram. I magically picked the BEST day for a staycation because we had a major snowstorm that morning. I arrived at noon for a hot yoga class and to see the amenities before checking in at 3pm. From the moment you walk in the hotel, it feels luxurious. It makes for a great staycation because there are lots of plants, several restaurants, a great gym, and amenities, meaning you don’t have to leave the hotel. There’s also a kid’s play center if you have little ones. I have added the Guerlain Spa to my ‘must visit‘ list for next time. Hotel X Toronto definitely has a resort-type feel. There’s a pool on the roof that I imagine is absolutely stunning in the summer. Yes, I did test it out in the winter. Scroll down!

View Post

Beat Winter SAD: Take A Vacation

Last winter was really hard, we had one of the coldest seasons in ages, there was ice everywhere, and my arm was messed up. I spent most of the winter inside our house going Marie Kondo through every cupboard and drawer. This winter, I’m determined to find joy in simple things and actively make an effort to warm myself up and beat winter SAD. I wrote a few posts with ways I’m trying to combat Seasonal Affective Disorder with the hope it will help make our days a bit brighter. Some take a little more money/planning but others you can do at home right now. I’ll update this post with a link to each so you can scroll once they’re live. Vacation The easiest way to boost your mood in winter? Take a vacation. I know this isn’t an option for everyone with work/family/finances but if you can do it, it’s so nice. This year, I took a 7-day all-inclusive trip to Cuba with a friend. We have been talking about doing a low-key beach getaway at the start of January for 2+ years and finally did it! Cuba was a good option because we were not going for luxury, our conditions for the trip were affordable, beach, sun. The beach was beautiful and the sun was hot. The food wasn’t luxe but we managed to eat simple, the main things I ate were bread, rice, fruit, pasta, and eggs. I read an entire book, took heaps of photos, and finished the week well-rested and refreshed. We went to bed early (and sober) most nights. I stuck to Amy’s 1K a day challenge and did some type of activity each day (long walk, dance, NTC). It was just what I needed and a perfect reset to start the year. I…

View Post

Hello from the Woods!

Sean and I have been up at the cottage for a couple days now. We had a pretty chill holiday time, neither of us have a big family so it’s a pretty quiet few days. I’m treating this getaway like a year end retreat. Soaking up the silence of the outdoors, making use of the space and time inside the cottage, and finding ways to pass the time without house wifi. The first night we both crashed around 7pm when we realized the internet/ cable has been turned off for the season. We have mobile service (thanks Telus!) but aside from that the only movies we’re watching are on VHS or DVD. After my workout I did a meditation and listened to a great tarot reading for the end of the year. It reminded me to make the most of this time before the new year to enjoy each moment. Breathe deeply and not to rush things. So, that’s exactly what I’m doing! I’m excited for a new year and hopefully a few new exciting things to share. Enjoy the day! buy Cialis Super active

View Post