Author Archives: Kara

Listy Friday

Posted in Lists, Listy Friday, Random by

– Starting on Monday, Kyle is on holidays for 12 days. Yay! We had plans to go to a wedding on the 17th down in Victoria, but we’ve opted not to go because of Isla. I think we/I was thinking a little too ambitiously when I thought a 6-hour trip including a ferry ride would be easy with a 6-week old baby. I’m sad that we’re no longer going, but I’m looking forward to spending some time with my little family :)

– Kyle and I have an appointment at the bank next week to set up an RESP for Isla. I’m already sad for the day she leaves for college.

– Campbell has taken it upon himself to “groom” Daphne. He’ll cozy up beside her and start licking her face/paws/ears/whatever. It’s hilarious, especially when Daphne’s had enough and yells him where to go and how to get there.

– Come the fall, I may be hopping aboard the iPhone bandwagon when the iPhone 5 is launched. There have been several moments when I’ve wanted to throw my phone into traffic/in the washing machine/off a bridge, and Kyle suggested we buck up and get me one. I’m not going to lie, I’m a little excited.

– My hair is in serious need of a trim, and I still have to wait another 2 weeks to get it done. This is the worst thing about having bangs. I’m not brave enough to trim them myself, but they’re driving me crazy!! At least they’re now long enough to pin back on top of my head; I was starting to look like some emo-vampire chick.

– I’ll leave you  this photo I Instagrammed Wednesday morning. Isla decided she wanted to see the sun rise …

Happy Friday!

If You Really Knew Me …

Posted in Life by

I’ve seen this floating around the blogosphere a bit lately, and thought I’d jump onboard the train.

I like to think that my blogging personality and my real-life personality are one in the same, but if you really know me, you’d know that …

… I’m a relatively quiet person unless I’m in “professional” mode. When I’m working on freelance work (interviewing people) or doing something that requires me to be, well, professional, I’m well spoken and to the point. The rest of the time, I’m pretty quiet and non-vocal. I don’t know why this is, but it drives Kyle crazy, especially when he’s trying to get my opinion on something.

… I have a dirty mind. Seriously. I’m right straight in the gutter, and I can be pretty offensive. So, I’m an offensive quiet person. I’m full of zingers and one-liners. Huzzah.

… I have great ambitions but little drive to actually do them. For example: I had great plans of growing tomatoes. I bought a tomato plant that basically just needed to be watered. Yeah – It’s dead now. (Although I did get two tomatoes off of it … which were the size of large marbles.) Also dead: My hanging basket, which Kyle is attempting to bring back to life for the third time.

… I can sing Baby Got Back word for word like it’s no one’s business. I’m straight-up from the hood, yo.

… I’m a pretty big UFC fan, and I’m sad that I won’t be able to hit up the pub to watch the fights anytime soon. At least I can order the PPV events at home if I really want to, for a little less than what Kyle and I ring up in a pub bill.

… I make an amazing, yet messy, chocolate cake. Amazing in the way that it tastes, messy in the way that I can rarely get it out of the pan in one clean piece.

… I hate Hawaiian pizza, specifically the pineapple on the pizza. I do, however, like fresh pineapple and pineapple within fruit salad.

… I don’t feel bad about enjoying shark fin soup. I’m probably going to hell for liking it, but it’s really good.

… I’m a Chinese food snob. I giggle at my friends who love Americanized Chinese food but have never had the real deal. (Note to self: Fix this the next time I go to Vancouver.) Nothing freaks you out more than whole chickens served up on a platter, or watching little old Chinese ladies fighting over who gets to eat the fish eyes.

… I have a Chinese name that my grandparents gave me when I was born. It’s not a legal name, but it’s pretty awesome to have something to tie me to my Chinese heritage a bit more.

What do people who really know you know?

Mom Knows Best

Posted in Family, Life, Motherhood by

So many of us grow up thinking that our moms know nothing, especially when we’re teenagers. I was one of those teens.

I rebelled, fought, and disregarded my mom’s opinions on almost everything. From school to boys, I challenged her constantly, thinking she didn’t know what she was talking about. As the standard rule goes, parents just didn’t understand what us teens were going through.

Today, however, I have a completely different way of thinking about my mom. I look back and see that she was only looking out for me because she only wanted the best for me. What parent wouldn’t? And now that I have my own daughter, I really do believe that my mom knows best. I’m constantly asking her for her thoughts, opinions and relying on her experiences raising my brother and I as I stumble across the day-to-day challenges of raising Isla.

Sure, it was 26 years ago when my mom had to go through raising a child, but so much of her advice is still relevant and of course, extremely helpful. My mom has a bag full of tips and tricks that work wonders. I don’t know what I’d do without her, really, and I’m so thankful that I have her living just a few minutes away (by foot!).

I don’t know how women raise their kids alone, not only without a parter or spouse but without their mom’s advise as well. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to rely on my mom, but at the same time feel guilty because I know women who don’t have their own mom to lean on. I know it’s something I shouldn’t feel bad about, but I do. I know I’d feel lost without my mom’s help. She’s been a lifesaver for me; if Isla’s crying for no apparent reason, my mom figured out in a second that it was just gas. She can put my baby to sleep in a matter of minutes and can burp that baby better than anyone else.

Mom’s really do know best, no matter how long it takes us to realize it.