Day 232: It’s November!

Day 231: A Full Moon & Halloween, on a Saturday! During a Pandemic!

We’re up in the woods and don’t have any plans this year. We have to pick up a few things in town so I plan to wear a witch costume to fulful my halloween haunting desires.

Here’s a few of my fav costumes from years past. I’ve always loved dressing up but this year, the world is so spooky, I just haven’t had it in me.

Tonight is a full moon and a GREAT time to charge those crystals in the moonlight, put some water out, burn sage, candles, and cast some spells for good things to happen. If you’re looking for Full Moon Rituals, check out this IGTV I made around this time last year.

IG post via @sarahhudsonxx

With the full moon on halloween, Daylight Saving Time tomorrow, and the election on Tuesday, the next few days are gonna be very emotional.

Please stay safe out there.

Day 227: Witches In The Woods

It snowed today for the first time this season. I’m not ready for it but I also feel so romantic about it. I instantly want to start playing Christmas music while it falls slowly outside the windows.

The sun came out for a minute in the afternoon and the snow finally stopped. I needed a break, so I put on my witch outfit and went into the woods. As one does!

I am definitely my fav subject to shoot and highly recommend taking your own photo once in a while. I could have asked Sean but I find I like to do it myself and take my time.

I don’t always know what I’m doing when I start so I like to just go with the flow and feel it out. Sometimes it works out and sometimes I just pack up and go inside and do it another time.

I usually end up with a couple of good photos and a whole bunch that get deleted. I also like to take Live photos so I can turn them into short videos with the Lively app.

I set up my tripod and use a self-timer or one of these handy Bluetooth remotes from Amazon. Most of the photos in my Instagram posts are taken by me with this method or a straight-up selfie.

I made this video and was laughing so hard at the witch cackle, Sean was like ‘what are you DOING?’. Oh nothing, just being weird haha. See the video with AUDIO on Instagram here.

With love from the woods!

Day 226: Gloomy Monday

The sky is grey and it’s raining, again. We’ve hardly had any sun over the last week, today is a gloomy Monday in the woods. Friday was beautiful and over 20 degrees, but I was inside working the whole day. We had a really relaxing weekend, I swear I could have used another two days to charge my batteries. I did nothing but watch Netflix all day on Saturday and it was glorious. I’m on S3 of Gossip Girl now.

Yesterday I did a bunch of food prep and then took I nap. Things are really exciting these days lol. Sunday afternoon, we met up with Emily’s mum in Gravenhurst to do the switchover.

This morning, ‘Stage 2’ is trending on Twitter and Ontario is seeing the highest Corona cases since the start of the pandemic. Sean and I are thinking to stay up here in the woods for most of the week. The cottage isn’t fully winterized but I would be happy to stay up here as long as we can.

Please stay safe and wear a mask. We’re all dreaming of the day this is over. I hope you have a great week.

Day 223: Summer in October

It was absolutely gorgeous today! The sun was shining and it was over 20 degrees. I spent most of the day working but got out for a run in the am and gazed out at the lake from my desk. The air was warm and it felt like summer.

At 4 pm we got alerts about a tornado warning as the sky turned from bright blue to dark and grey. We got hit with some pretty insane hail that ranged from tiny bits to about the size of a quarter.

Sean and Em went out to get a some stuff in town and the cottage power went out for a few minutes. They were in Bracebridge when the whole city turned black from a power outage. Crazy!

Day 221: Riding The Rollercoaster

This week has been really busy. Come Friday, I’ll be taking my business head off and retreating to the cottage from some much-needed creative time.

I feel like each day lately has so many ups and downs from work, personal, and everything going on in the world around us. Trying to maintain an equilibrium can be a real challenge. I think we need to ride the rollercoaster and feel this wave out. Stay home, wear a mask. Take breaks.

I’m so looking forward to being back in the woods tomorrow, sitting down with my sewing machine, and curling up beside the fire w/ Kindle.

Day 220: Sit Down and Let It Out

I’ve wanted to write for the last few days and I didn’t feel like it. It wasn’t until I just started writing whatever came into my head that I was reminded how much I love to write things down. It might seem silly but sometimes you just gotta sit down and let it out. Having a diary (online or off) is so good for thinking through your own issues and reminding yourself who you are. It’s a great way to get to know YOU again.

On Day 7 back in March, I wrote a post called Give Yourself A Break and I’m surprised I haven’t started a series with the same name because we all need it right now. The theme for this post is the same.

I haven’t been feeling great today. I’m low energy and tonight I plan to watch Gossip Girl and go to bed early. It’s ok to give yourself a break, actually, I quite recommend it. I didn’t post on IG Stories for two days (even longer for the feed!) and it’s a small thing but it gives me a small pleasure. Sometimes I just don’t feel like posting. Everything seems a bit harder these days and we gotta know when to take a break.

You never know what might happen so it’s important to try and see the bright side. We all have something to be grateful for, remember those things, write them down if you need to. I really love the caption on my good friend Brigitte’s post today. A good reminder, it’s ok to feel the feels.

I tried to embed the post here but Instagram changed their API and I don’t think I can embed anymore! See the full caption on her post here and give her a follow.
casie stewart, autograph, famous, blogger, canada, toronto

Day 219: Inspire Your Drive

These days it can be hard to find inspiration. I’ve always had a knack for finding it in the little things by showing gratitude for them, a sunny day, beautiful leaves, a fav song on the radio, or a nice long solo drive. I’ve never owned a car so when I get to borrow one from a major manufacturer it’s an exciting time.

This past week I picked up car from MINI Canada (Countryman SE ALL4) with all-wheel drive in one of their new colours. I’ve loved MINI my whole life, a few years ago I took a solo trip to LA and cruised around in a convertible MINI Cooper for the week. It was heaven, I didn’t even mind the traffic!

Since we’re in the middle of a bathroom renovation, it was really helpful to have my own car to pop out and get supplies from the paint store or Home Depot. I also took this as an opportunity to support local and actually pick up orders from local restaurants, instead of getting delivery. The entire time I had this car I took every opportunity to drive it. Friend needs a ride? I’ll drive you! We need something from the store? I’ll go get it!

MINI Countryman: Favourite Features

Besides being fun to drive in the city or on the highway, the MINI Countryman has an ALL 4 All-Wheel Drive System and was great on gas.

  • lots of room inside the vehicle or in the trunk. Great little family car!
  • Easy Opener for the back means you can swipe your foot under the bumper, and voila, the door opens!
  • The rear camera makes parking or backing up a sinch.
  • Apple CarPlay, is great for Audible, music, directions, or using Siri while driving. Safety first!
  • I love the newly designed Union Jack tail lights and the adaptive headlights that help you to see around corners.

To learn more about the MINI Countryman or other models, visit mini.ca. Big thank you goes out to for MINI Canada for letting me borrow this sweet little ride. Next time I’m planning to test out the new MINI Cooper Electric!

Day 214: Mini & Me

I looked at myself in the mirror before I left and thought, ‘wow I’ve clearly been watching Gossip Girl!‘. Halfway through S2 and I love this show. I put on my new fav Stuart Wiseman boots, a sweater with some fur, and hopped in my ride.

Mini Toronto sent a driver to pick me up and I’m borrowing a car for a few days. I absolutely love the freedom that comes with a car! After spending so long up north, I’m stoked to boot around the city for the next week.

I’m driving the new MINI Countryman ALL4 and look forward to testing out some of the features including all-wheel drive, Apple Carplay, parallel parking assist, fuel-efficiency.

Next time, I’m hoping to test drive the All-Electric MINI Cooper SE 3 Door. How cute is it?!

Time to hit the road, vroom, vroom!

Day 213: You OK?

Some days are harder than others. It’s important we check on each other, a simple, ‘you ok?’ might just be what your friend needs to hear. Reach out to me anytime. Yes, I’m your friend on the internet but also a real human typing these words.

Today was the first day back after the long weekend and I had planned to do more work over the weekend than I did. So, I’m starting a short week a day late and behind. I really tried to catch up as much as I could today but I also felt overwhelmed and tired. When I get like this, it’s hard to concentrate. I find myself staring at my screen, knowing what needs to be done but I just can’t seem to connect my brain to the fingers and make it happen.

I decided to start watching The Bachelorette at night as a way to distract me from everything going on in the world, then my iPad died. I went back to trusty Gossip Girl and made it into the second season.

Tomorrow we are going back to the city and I’m borrowing a car from Mini Canada in the afternoon. I’m looking forward to having my own vehicle for a week, taking scenic drives, and maybe going to visit mum. I could really use a hug from her today.

Sending love through the internet. We’ll get through this. It’s gonna be ok. We’re gonna be ok.

This gif of me is actually Taylor Swift from the Reface App! ?