SimpliciTEA

Happy New Year!! 2023 already, my oh my.

How are you feeling going into the New Year?

Do you have a new word for the upcoming year?

Resolutions? 

Anything you're looking forward to or looking forward to leaving behind? 

Dish the TEA here, we've got a safe space 💗

I am very much looking forward to January 1st! 

I love a Monday, a months start, a new season and although I am not a big resolution maker, I LOVE to try again. Make a list, brainstorm things, try something new, get knocked down, pick myself up and try it again, try it again. 

My word this year is something like 'Simplicity'.

You may know that we have been doing some pretty major home edits this last year.

We built a beautiful new shed, moved all the items from the unfinished basement into the shed & garage. 

Our amazing contractor then took the basement from a concrete room to a beautiful finished space with multiple bedrooms (we had to knock out windows!! windows from scratch! We didn't even have windows down there), full bathroom, rec room and all the fix-ins. 

We also added built ins to our main living room, a feature wall in our dining area, added a light fixture in the dining area, dimmer switches, painted everything, all the walls needed it after so much construction and materials being brought through this main level. 

We did paint the kids bathroom upstairs as well, this had never been painted by us and was painted with the wrong paint years ago. A satin paint was used by the house builders and it was SO dirty. I scrubbed and scrubbed but could not get that paint to look even remotely clean. 

Our primary ensuite had a leak early last year and unfortunately we have not dealt with that yet. Our shower has been unusable for many months but we are hopefully crossing that bridge in the new year and phew, we will finally be done!!

We really created our dream space, I am feeling so grateful and thankful for this space and these people who brought our vision to life!

I am thankful, thankful, thankful, I am so happy.

Along with all this change came a lot of dates, choices, appointments, meetings, picking things, designing things, choosing things, prepping things, cleaning things, moving things, you see where I am going with this.

I had to be available all the time to a lot of people and my, I am a creator but this project has been my biggest to date!! I felt pretty burned out by the end of it. 

Our house still has some finishing touches to add - cabinet doors, carpet on stairs, etc but its pretty much wrapping up/wrapped around December 23rd. 

We dove straight into the holidays after that with Nicks Birthday added into that week and a trip to Cape Breton.

So what does 2023 hold for Holly's House?

I am hoping a whole lot of nothing! 😂

I am craving some hot drinks, warm baths, good books, Netflix binges, skincare routines, craft room organizing, creating, creating, creating. 

I want to CREATE!

I want to play with makeup and chat about lipsticks. 

I so badly want to find myself again and reply to friends texts. 

2023 I hope to sleep more, bed earlier, yoga again, text back (at least half the time!😆) 

I dream of getting ahead of the planning for school PTO events, knit more, walk outdoors. 

Take more photos in front of Post Offices, go bowling, play board games, bake, soups (soup gets its own category. thank you), print photos, scrapbook, etc. etc. etc.

It sounds like a lot and it is a lot 😂 but I've always loved A LOT.

I am looking forward to moving all the things I love into a space with more simplicity. Now that the construction is done, I can construct a fresh set up in this home. 

I can't wait to fill my craft room with my treasures (aka my garbage finds😆) I look forward to showcasing my books on my new built in shelves, I can not part with books, its a problem!! Now they have somewhere to be 💛

 The kids toys have a new home downstairs and its encouraged more playing because they can see what they have, overall we can organize the chaos a bit more and  I can't wait to putter into 2023 with my slippers on and a good cup of tea in hand. 

All the love to you this New Year and beyond!💖

The Clarke Family

 

How can you lose something you never really had?

 Like sands through the hourglass..

As an '80's baby the saying is burned into my brain, all those summers filled with daytime TV and 'sick' stay home from school days. 

So are Days of our Lives.. 

This may be a painful post for some to read and I want to give you the heads up, pregnancy and loss.

So much of my day(s, like everyones) get filled with go-go-go and back to back appointments, meals, meetings, bath time, bedtime, repeat.

When I was younger, I was unsure if this busy 'mom life' - sports, school drop/pick ups, the never-ending fighting.. breaking them up, potty training, sleepless nights, days are long but the years are short.. was what I wanted for my future. 

I wanted a career and a home. I wanted lots of pets! Hoped to live in Nova Scotia, be near the ocean and enjoy little summer vacations. Take lots of photos, fill up my walls with picture frames and vintage trinkets. 

The children question remained unanswered, until around the time I met Nick. We dated a few years & I really started to consider what a future with children would look like. I knew Nick would be a great dad, I knew his calm complimented my crazy. I caught the marriage bug, I saw a future of swaddled little babies and a child filled, noisy home.

If you know me, I tend to go all or nothing, ADHD, Scorpio, oldest child.. I say it all the time. All or nothing, fake it till you make it!

Kids? *ok. adds to cart.*

You never know what the universe has in store for you, I always want to acknowledge that and I do try to pay attention to wording- children. I decided I would like to have children. We were already a family, families come in every shape and size!

I was open to whatever my guiding light offered me. Somehow the stars aligned and we first had a beautiful baby boy! Then a beautiful baby girl! and another one (DJ Khaled)! 1 Boy & 2 Girls, perfect!

I haven't mentioned this yet, but once I got with the idea of having children in my brain a number stuck out in my mind, 4. 

I remember specifically being asked throughout my life: "how many kids do you want?" This question.. it's so personal, there's so many factors, it is such a loaded question. 

The few times I dared to answer, "4". 

I remember certain conversations "I want 4, Nick wants 2, we would probably try for 3." 

And so we did and we were blessed. 

Families with 3 children... our homes are noisy and it can feel like you have double the amount of kids you do! Most of the time there is double the amount hanging around because we've entered 'the kids friends are at our place' phase of life.

3 is a great and a LOUD, BUSY, MESSY number.

 

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Fast forward. The last couple of weeks have been the same bustling days and tired nights.

We have enjoyed summer so much and had a wonderful PEI vacation, everyone is feeling hectic and happy. I was feeling off, which is not unusual for me because I have chronic illness but I decided to use a strip pregnancy test.

There was the faintest line, another day I took another and another and although faint, they were there.

I told Nick the news (I have ADHD, I cannot wait a single second to tell anyone anything. No, cute little unboxing, I just say it right away 😆)  and we were excited but busy so days passed. 

I took a Clearblue and it said 'Pregnant 1-2'.

I waited a couple of days and took another Clearblue, it said the same. 

I suddenly felt HUGE, like my belly popped a foot outwards! This was also one of the first signs I felt when expecting both girls. Once my uterus expanded with Elliott it was very easily and more rapidly expanded again! 

We didn't tell anyone else, we knew how early on it was but we were very happy and chatty about what this could look like. I was hesitant to be excited, during all my previous pregnancies I had a terrible worried feeling, the anxiety is real. 

I felt exactly like that quote from Charlotte York: 

Nobody gets everything they want! Look at you, look at Miranda. You're good people and you two both got shafted. I'm so happy and... something bad is going to happen.

I feel that feeling so often. I feel so much guilt for being happy and its so hard to balance. 

I just had a feeling, it was my time for the bad.. then I started bleeding. 

It was late at night, we were still awake but we were busy cleaning and tidying. 

We have been prepping our home for some renovations (guilt feeling) and I was already wondering why I didn't feel morning sickness like I did with my other pregnancies.

I had HG with all those babies and it is awful!

But I was able to reassure myself, it was still so early, and I specially remember HG starting a little later than this so it was ok. 

I did have a very odd few days of extreme back pain while we were away on vacation, my back was thrown out so badly I could hardly walk. It was so unusual for me to 

A. have back pain this severe. 

B. for it to last as long as it did

but again, it was just a thing that happened and then it was behind me. 

Unfortunately, the bleeding did not stop. 

It's confusing and sad and stressful.

Honestly it has felt like an out of body experience to me. 

'Did any of this really happen??'

'Did I imagine all those tests?!' 

I did not. 

It  is/was very real and is the reality for so, so, so many people. 

Technically I think this would be considered a Chemical Pregnancy, a pregnancy that miscarries around 5 weeks or under. 

I don't personally love that term, but that's just my opinion.

I'm fine with it as a descriptive or medical word but when you read about 'Chemical Pregnancies' I feel it slightly diminishes the pain and the seriousness of the loss. 

It's similar to the word 'Fat' for me. 

I would rather not be referred to as "Fat". I feel there are so many more creative and intelligent words to be used. I am not speaking for all fat people, I'm being transparent about how I would like to be addressed. 

The same goes for our loss. 

I consider this a miscarriage. 

It was sudden, it was painful, it is not over. 

I don't know if anyone ever gets over a loss like this. 

Intertwined with the loss I feel all sorts of other emotions and things swirling around inside me - guilt? sadness? but also, thankfulness? worry? stress? pain? love? joy? sorrow? uncertainness?

It's something that so many go through, yet so few openly talk about. 

It's the reminder that we never know what our neighbours are dealing with or feeling. 

So kindness and empathy are key, support and love everywhere for everyone. 

If you're going through or have gone through anything similar or if this reminds you of something heavy you have been carrying, know you're not alone and I'm wishing you all best, love & strength your way.

Sending everyone lots of love, light and summer sun this month 🌅🌈 

Thanks so much for being here, I enjoy getting to know you all so much! Take care of your body, 💜 & soul.

Happy Anniversary!!

It was our 8th Wedding Anniversary this week!!

15 years together and so much history. 

I truly believe every love story is unique, some are short, long, rollercoasters or steady straight ahead.

I love hearing others love stories, its always a favorite blog read of mine, maybe I'll ask you to post a blurb about yours on my instagram photo post. 

Anywhoo, this week we were lucky enough to spend a night at the Halifax Marriott Harbourview.

My mom babysat the kids and we headed into the city for a night away!

We were really excited to get out of the house early and we actually did pretty well.

If you know my mom, you know her and "early" do not go hand in hand lol. 

So we tossed a 1pm babysitting time out there in the hopes of getting into the city at a decent hour. 

Check in at the hotel isn't until 4 but usually you can sneak in a bit earlier and we were just hoping at the very least to get parked in the parkade, then we could take a walk around the waterfront.

Our plan worked!

We got into the city and checked into our hotel room around 2:30.

This is an absolute record for us, usually we're checking in around 4-5, rushing to get ready, supper, casino, then we're tired and want to hit the hay. 

I was kind of anticipating not haven't enough time and being rushed as per usual so I took a shower at home in the morning and let my hair air dry etc. 

This ended up saving me loads of time in the long run and although my hair isn't at its best when its a fuzzy Airdried mop, the humidity was so bad I wasn't about to have a good hair day no matter the dry method! haha

We immediately dropped our bags and headed down to walk the waterfront. 

Now, if you know me, you may know the waterfront is NOT a favourite place of mine. 

Not because I have anything against beautiful breezes, waves crashing or vendors.. no, no, love all these things but the waterfront can tend to be bustling, busy and crowded. 

I get anxiety just thinking about it.

I need to pee urgently when I can't get to a washroom. 

I'm just a laid back country roads kind of girl, I like lots of space around me, and to pee in the woods if need be. LOL

However, due to it being the middle of a weekday, the waterfront was AMAZING!

It was so quiet and calm, just enough of a crowd and people walking around leisurely. 

We had a wonderful walk, hand in hand, looking at the vendors, food trucks and local businesses. 

We bumped into Nicks aunts. 

It was too funny, we were walking and I heard his aunts voice talking, I had just turned to Nick and said "Look around I'm sure I heard XYZ.." When his other aunt popped her head out of a line up and we all laughed about what a small world. 

We went to Peace By Chocolate, grabbed an iced coffee and went back to the hotel, it was lovely. 

We got back at a weird time, had not had lunch yet so we ordered a sandwich to split and watched some tv. 

That morning shower really saved me because our 6:30pm restaurant reservation really snuck up on us, so I quickly curled my hair and threw on some makeup. 

Now, what to wear?!?

I wish I had gone shopping in advance but at the last minute I remembered this dress that I had bought back in 2018. Its a bit on the fancy side so I had only worn it a small handful of times and it actually worked perfect for this night out! I felt fancy and pretty but very comfortable.

*My dress was from Le Chateau but sadly they're no longer around.



Still full from our sandwich, we went with some appys.

The Nachos at the Marriott are my very favourite in the city! It's all about those slow carmelized onions.

Wait a minute, this sounds so familiar... did I write this before or am I having deja vu? 

*Searched the web to see if I have wrote this but I came up empty handed.. did find some super cool articles I have been mentioned in.. Thank you!!! awwww!*

I took my Nan's Vintage purse out for the night!

Its not in mint condition and its not any brand name but my oh my, its cute and it reminds me of her!

We brought this LULU wine that I absolutely love!

Its very tart but I just love the sweetness of it, and its made here in NS!

Click here to see it at the NSLC

We also brought some of the XOXO spritzers and they're amazing!

Click here to see the XOXO at the NSLC

Sorry for the awfully dark photo, but view from the room!

After Supper we headed down to the casino where we won $150 from putting in a $20.

Well, Nick turned the $20 in $200 then went down to $150 and called it a night. 

I put in $25, lost $25 and said that's enough of that. lol

Then we decided to stroll along the boardwalk again.

It was around 10:45 and cows ice cream closed at 11 so we snuck over just in time and grabbed a cone each. 

We walked back towards the hotel and there was a beautiful breeze heavy with salt air hanging around us.. the perfect end to this night on the town for an 8th wedding anniversary. 

HAPPY AUGUST!! x0x

Girls room Makeover: Paint and decals

Eeeekk!

This has been such a long time coming and it's still not done but I cant wait to share.
I am taking my time to complete it and really consider what will work well and make the transition from baby/toddler to young children for my girlies.

I LOVE a navy room but it just wasn't working for us anymore and honestly, it was looking worn and chipped.

Noelle's favorite color is PINK!
So I knew it would be some form of pink but I wasn't sure if I wanted to go pale blush, I feel like I have so much blush in the house, I wanted something a little different.

Primer, primer, primer!




It was going to take a few coats of primer!
We did 2 but we could have done 3.




I gave Nick some colour inspo and asked him to send me the closest thing he could find, he sent this colour trio from Kent Building Supplies Sico line and I love it!

2 walls in Cherry Bubble Gum
2 walls in Cherry Parfait




2 coats of primer and 3-4 coats of paint, it looks amazing!
Even better in person in my opinion :)

I had wall decals in mind from the start, I have often used Urban Wall decals and they have been amazing quality and low to zero damage when removing from the wall.

We have used these Triangles in Elliotts room (click here) $29 USD

This PLAY in the playroom (click here) $59 USD

We have this cutie, HELLO on our exterior garage door (click here) $10 USD



I initially thought I would like the gold hearts, I've seen them used in many homes and they're so cute but the more I browsed the better choice seemed to be the pastel dots.

I went with the full-size pastel dots (click here) $45 USD

They pull colours from the rug and pillows, they're 'something' for that wall but not too, too busy of a backdrop.

Plus the girls can grow into them for many years while changing the colouring of accessories if they get tired of all the pink!

Although I doubt Noelle will hahaha.




The dots are also great because you can freehand apply them, I didn't need to measure or line anything up.

They're peel and stick decals so they could not be more simple to apply.

I started with one colour and used one of each then back to the first colour again.

My goal was to not have many of the same colour side by side.










A TIP:

To make your decals look more custom, almost wallpaper-like.

Cut some decals in half, 1/3, 2/3

And place in the crease of where the wall meets another wall or window or ceiling.




If you look to where the wall meets the ceiling you'll see what I mean by cutting some of the decals to fit that area and it really does make it look more professionally done.

via GIPHY

More DIY's to come!

Trash Tuesday: Garbage stool makeover

I have no shame in digging things out of people's garbage piles.

There is so much life left in items & maybe the owner cannot see it but with a fresh set of eyes..
you can turn trash into treasure!

The kids and I did a little drive around trash hunt last night and I found some great things.

My mom is always giving away fantastic items so that's where this love came from.

She will give away something better, just to pick up something worse sometimes.

But isn't that the fun of it?!
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

My first find was a planter but that's not finished yet so let's show off this adorable step stool.



It was at the end of someone's driveway and it was rough man.
ROUGH.

Covered in cobwebs, dirty and icky.

You may want to drive around with some work/gardening gloves in the car for when you find these dirty things.




But I could see that it had good bones and it could be used for so many things.

First off, I sprayed it with the hose outside and left it overnight to dry.



Then I sanded it down a bit.

This is the sanding block I use - CLICK HERE affiliate link

Then I washed it with some TSP and water.
Tsp is a multipurpose cleaner and it works sooooo well.

Click here for TSP - CLICK affiliate link



 

I wanted to paint it in a pop of colour but I knew a darker shade would hide any imperfections so I went with the Fusion Mineral paint from our Local spot: The Painted Attic Click here for FB page

The Painted Attic is awesome and will help you with all your paint needs.
I have used fusion mineral paint on a handful of projects now and its suppose to hold up really well, indoor and outdoor.

This is the shade Liberty Blue.



While I was grabbing paint from the basement I saw this drink tray that I haven't used for years due to the style not fitting in with my current style.

But I had always loved how large this tray was so I could never bring myself to toss it.

Why not paint it??!





I had nothing to lose so I gave it one coat and I will keep you posted as to how it turns out!





I didn't have any rollers on hand so this was all done with a small sponge brush but I am off to the dollar store right now to grab some rollers and I will keep you posted over on instagram as to how it turns out.




After 2 coats I think it looks beautiful!!

Turned out even better than I had imagined and now I can't decide whether to use ut as a flower pot stand out on our deck or whether to find a cozy spot inside.

It's so cute!

Saved from the landfill <3 <3 <3

H&M Try on Video Links

Hi Guys,

I have a history of being a procrastinating perfectionist but that sucks for everyone so I pushed myself, cringing all the way.. to screenshot my try-on video so I can link the dresses here!

I wore one today and I LOVE it!

To watch my try-on video -
CLICK HERE


Let me know if you buy any of the below items XO

BLACK AND WHITE SMALL FLORAL PRINT $.29.99 - CLICK HERE

I bought the XL hoping it would shrink but I absolutely could have got large.




BLACK AND WHITE LARGE FLORAL PRINT $29.99 - CLICK HERE

I bought the XL but could have got large.



BLACK COMFY DRESS $29.99 - CLICK HERE

Same as above for sizing.





BLACK BUTTON DOWN STRAP DRESS $39.99 - CLICK HERE

This dress is just the cutest stinking thing.
I got an XL and its perfect.
Pair it with a jean jacket, a t-shirt over the top or a scarf/shawl.



BATHING SUIT COVER-UP $34.99 - CLICK HERE

This is a bathing suit coverup that I would absolutely wear as that or as a layering piece on those super hot days when I'm wearing a strapless or thin-strapped top/dress.

It seems to be sold out online but check in stores!
This is a size S/M so you have lots of flexibility in sizing, S/M or M/L would have worked for me.



NAVY/ORANGE/PINK FLORAL PRINT $49.99 - CLICK HERE

I think this is the most gorgeous print and colour combo ever!
I can imagine this super dressed up or dressed down and I think, I really think I tried to buy this in the emerald green but its sold out online!

We had a fall wedding to attend and I'm certain I looked at this dress for that but it was sold out online and sadly, now the wedding has been postponed.

I am wearing a large and it's perfect!
I tend to go up in sizes because I prefer the room to move but I am so thankful I sized down in this because if I ever do wear it someplace with a more formal atmosphere I like the slim fit of it - it doesn't look sloppy, sometimes I can look sloppy due to the LOOOOVE of oversize. hahaha



BLUE CRINKLE DRESS $29.99 CLICK HERE

I bought a large and its great.
Unfortunately, this dress seems to be sold out online in most colours.
What I wouldn't give to get my hands on that purple one!
I picked mine up in-store at the Halifax Shopping Centre.

V-NECK CAMOSOLE $19.99 - CLICK HERE

I bought an XL but I should have gone with a Large.

View this post on Instagram

I popped by @shophsc maybe for the first time this year 🙀 • My oh my, doesn’t it seem like we were just there doing our Holiday shopping blissfully and now all of a sudden it’s July and the world has been changed 🌏🌍🌎💛 • I went for my @nespresso.ca pods but I came out with a haul! • I had a real need for long flowy dresses to wear to the kids sporting events. • Cool and casual for summer but comfortable enough to allow carrying of gear AND a 10 month old in my arms 😅🙋‍♀️ • @hm did not disappoint! • If I’m being honest, @hm is probably in my top 3 favourite if not favourite of them all, spots to shop. • Really happy with my haul! I blew my entire summer wardrobe budget 💸 • Worth it! 💕 • • • • #tryonhaul #plussizetryonhaul #plussize #plussizefashion #plussizemodel #plussizedresses #hm #hmhaul #fashionblogger #dressestryon #summertryon #summerfashion #halifaxblogger #halifaxshoppingcentre #hsc #ecmmedia

A post shared by Holly Clarke (@hollyshousewifelife) on Jul 7, 2020 at 5:58pm PDT