Personally, today was a good day. Ran 4k in the morning and took Sean’s route down the road and though Balfour Woods. It felt great to be out in nature and I made it back just before the rain. For lunch, I made tortilla soup with leftovers and then tried a recipe for sweet potato gnocchi. It was my first time and they turned out pretty good! Watched Netflix at night and made bracelets to send to friends in the mail. Parenting wise, today was a very challenging day.

Was not feeling great today. Felt sluggish and unmotivated. Did not exercise. Started a new book, read outside in the sun. Hung some new plants in the kitchen window. Had a dip in the hot tub. My arm has been very sore. Have been applying CBD cream and heating pad all day. Made a nice lentil coconut curry for dinner with rice. Took an afternoon nap and then went to bed at 8 pm. Tomorrow is a new day. Still have about 10k to conquer on my monthly NTC Challenge so hoping to get up early and go outside like I used to. I think my body and mind are exhausted. It’s ok to rest. This whole experience is tiring. Read a great article on Medium, see below.

I finally made bread! I didn’t take a photo because tbh, it wasn’t that pretty. I’ll try again but I turned out pretty flat, a flatbread. ?It tasted great right out of the oven with some butter. Today was a lazy day and I did next to nothing other than baking bread and eating it. Took a 24 -hour break from Instagram to laze around and recharge my batteries. Found this book from my childhood and am rediscovering my love for bracelet making. We’ll see how I get on with this, would be nice to send these to friends in the mail.

Wow, 40 days! Thankful I’ve kept a diary because all the days would have mixed into weeks by now. It’s taken about forty days to figure out what balance looks like right now. It’s been a bit challenging to adjust to this new way of life but I think we’re getting the hang of it. Below I’ve linked to a few of my favourite posts since the start of isolation. We ordered takeout for the first time in 40 days today and it was so good! Muskoka Beer Spa offers pizza, beer, and a few other local pre-made items for pickup at the brewery in Bala. Aside from pre-made pizza from Pie Muskoka we got butter tarts and meat pies. When we were driving back we say the most beautiful fox. I think we interrupted him having a little snack. Looked right at me! Yesterday by 10am I’d written a blog post, done some client work, and ran 2.6K. Some days are productive others not so much. I did 3.85K today and I’m on track to complete my goal of 55k by the end of the month. I can’t believe how much I look forward to running. Order new shoes today because I’ve worn mine out! Looking Back, 40 Days of Isolation

Fitting that the 20th post in this series is being written in 2020. It’s been a while since I wrote one of these. This year started out pretty good, we woke up January 1st at the cottage and six days later I was in Cuba. The month flew by and I saw a lot of friends in February. Little did we know what March would bring and now, April is almost over and the world is a different place. We’re in a global pandemic, the death toll is rising everyday, people are out of work, businesses are collapsing. Yesterday 19 22 people died in a mass shooting in Nova Scotia. It’s a lot to process. I feel tired, sad, grief. I woke up overwhelmed by it all. I’m cold, my arm aches, maybe it’s the weather? I didn’t workout today. All I want to do is lay on the couch, read, or watch a movie that makes me feel warm inside. Around noon, I pulled myself together and put on a nicer sweatsuit for a trip to the post office. It was the first time I’d driven somewhere alone since lockdown. My weighted blanket of anxiety was heavy on my chest as I got in the truck and backed out the driveway. Why did I feel so nervous? I’m an experienced driver, I’ve driven the truck on the these roads heaps. I had a mask and gloves, my tracking numbers. You have to mentally and physically prepare every time you leave the house right now, plan your route, give yourself extra time. It’s hard to adjust to the way things are right now. Some days I’m happy in the isolation bubble, creating, making things, then days like today, it all hits me and I’m filled with anxiety. It’s ok to…

I’m at the stage of isolation where I have now cut and dyed my hair. It’s just temporary but I feel like a change, so why not?! Nothing holding me back from making things and doing stuff at this point. Inspired by Briony (amazing Toronto artist) and Martina Martian (fav artist in Australia), I’ve been drawing on iPad Pro more. Made this line drawing yesterday. Took ages but it’s nice to just sit and create. Click to see the video animation from image to art! View this post on Instagram A post shared by CASIE STEWART ☀️ (@casiestewart) on Apr 19, 2020 at 5:33am PDT I used to love drawing on iPad and when I got my first one a decade ago, my old blog Borderline Artistic was thriving. I was drawing almost daily and posting art I made. Around that time I created the ‘Unnecessary Wheels Collection‘, might start that up again. It’s nice to get back to creating just for fun. Not sure I can stop now! I also bleach dyed a pair of denim and they turned out AMAZING. WHAT WILL I MAKE NEXT?!

After getting heaps of comments and questions about my turmeric dye, I’m writing this post for you! It’s very simple to turn your clothes a beautiful bright yellow. THIS TURNED OUT SO GOOD. It has faded with a couple of washes but it’s still a nice yellow. There are lots of tutorials on Pinterest, I checked a few and went for it. I made a COVID19 board that has a couple DYI videos if you’re looking for more info. I am so happy with the final result. I worked with a white hoodie, a leopard print top, and a vintage tank top that was a washed-out yellow. You Will Need Clothes – Older stuff that has been washed works best. Gloves – Otherwise you will have yellow hands! Turmeric – Find in the spice section at the grocery Big Pot – To boil water Tongs – To transfer the hot fabric Roasting Pan – To rinse/transfer to sink/drying area Sink – To rinse clothes Water How to Dye with Turmeric Step 1: Soak Your Clothes in Hot Water Soaking your clothes before you dye them will loosen up the fibers so the colour can really soak in. I soaked my hoodie in a roasting pot in the shower. I didn’t soak the leopard print or tank top before dying them. Step 2: Boil Water & Add turmeric Grab a huge pot and fill 3/4 with water. Bring to a boil. Once boiling add the turmeric. I eyeballed it and didn’t use a specific amount, kinda like my cooking haha. I started with about 1/4 tablespoon and then added about 2x more. The water will turn a bright amber. Step 3: Add Clothes & Soak Transfer the clothes to the pot and you will start to see the colour right away.…

Woke up to about an inch of snow and it’s -3 outside. Went for a run anyways. When Sean got back from his, he was covered in snow! At night, I joined a Houseparty for Brock’s 30th birthday and watched Ocean’s 8 in bed. Found some new hair inspo!