SOMBOUN X SOCIETY

Hair cut, colour and style by Somboun at Society The Salon in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

I'm off to Boston tomorrow and Kelowna the week after- time for some beer and wine tasting! Finally got my hair done today for wedding season.

My girlfriend Somboun has been doing my hair for years and if you live in the fabulous city of Winnipeg, I would highly recommend giving her a call. She is everything a hairstylist should be: she's talented, has loads of personality, supremely funny and has an amazing sense of style. Come to think of it those are the main reasons we became friends in the first place.

Happy long weekend to all of my Canadian readers! Oh, Canada! 

DOG DAYS

Last week/ weekend consisted of me drinking my weight in sangria and sunbathing with some of my best girlfriends. It's been so nice to have some down time with these girls.

While lounging on party island, we were talking about how much we love Winnipeg and our province.  After graduating, every single one of us had sincere intentions of moving away- Vancouver, Australia, Calgary and New York City were just some of our hopeful future homes. Some of us moved for a few years but inevitably, we are all back in Winnipeg.


Now, this isn't a bad thing. Quite the opposite, actually. We talked about how, although Winnipeg isn't exactly the hub for our dream jobs of being investment bankers, lifestyle magazine editors and careers in foreign policy- we all agreed that this city has a lot of opportunity and luxuries that many other cities lack.

We have the luxury of driving 1-4 hours any direction and finding breath taking freshwater lakes. Ask anyone from Winnipeg what they're plans are for the weekend and chances are it'll be: Lake of the Woods, Clear Lake, Lac du Bonnet, Grand Beach or Victoria Beach. Each of these places has a unique charm about them.

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I'm off to Boston tomorrow, so I hope to come back with some great pictures and hopefully a mini weekend city guide! Stay tuned!

THE FIFTY ETC.

So I've become a pretty great cook over the years. I can 'Iron Chef' my way through most kitchens with  random ingredients, making some sort of dish that will satisfy just about anyone. I hate recipes. Which is probably why I've avoided trying my hand at baking- until two weeks ago.

On a long drive back from the cabin, my boyfriend and I were talking about my Fifty list. I've realized that several things on the list have changed since I first wrote it last September. Time to update it, I thought, eventually. But going through the list made me realize that - a) time flies, and b) I should probably get on top of this list before I, you know, die.


So I made a goal for myself this summer in order to knock at least one thing off of my Fifty list: become a solid baker.


I figured taking baby steps was a smart way to approach the world of baking, so my first try was at making chocolate chip cookies. They were awesome! The confidence I gained from making the cookies got me excited to try something different. Organic carrot cake and blueberry banana muffins followed. Both received rave reviews from the boyfriend and friends. Woo!

I decided to make my carrot cake with double the icing: one cup of butter, two blocks of cream cheese & eight cups of icing sugar- eff ya.

HIGH SCHOOL

I was fortunate enough to have a really great high school experience. I played lots of sports, enjoyed my classes and teachers, and was lucky enough to be a part of a really special group of girls. A funny, athletic, down-to-earth, adventurous, smart group of babes.


After graduating high school, a lot of us went our separate ways. Some of us (guilty), had gone years without speaking - not intentionally, but each being busy with our own individual lives. Some travelled, some moved. We'd all gone out into the world and made new friends. 


Now that we're finding ourselves reaching a new stage in our lives: toning down the party dial and turning up the babies + engagements, I see my group of high school girlfriends gravitating towards each other again. And it's awesome.


Two weeks ago I got to spend some quality time with my Louis girls. We surprised one of our girlfriends with cheese, wine, beer, steak, prawns, salad and jello shooters at Riding Mountain National Park, as a congratulatory send off to her new life in Georgia with her fiance. 


After catching up with all of the girls, it amazed me how much we had all grown and changed, but somehow we have remained the same. They're all the same funny, athletic, down-to-earth, adventurous, smart group of babes that I loved so much way back in high school.


One of my favourite moments of the weekend was the private belly dancing lessons secretly arranged by Natalie- it was absolutely hilarious. 


Enjoy the shots from the weekend!... Les filles, je vous aimes tellement! XO

RIDING MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

I really can't complain about my summer so far. It's nearly mid-June and I've spent most of my weekends at the cabin and filling up the remainder of my free time during the week reconnecting with my friends and family.

This past weekend I drove up to Riding Mountain National Park. I canoed, hiked, explored, snoozed and ate everything imaginable. Over the past week weeks I've seen black bears, a beaver, loons (my absolute favourite), and a ton of white tailed deer.

On Saturday, eight of my closest girlfriends from high school celebrated a wedding engagement. We surprised her with TONS of cheese, beer, wine and hugs. A belly dancing lesson was even organized- but I'll save that for another blog post.

I've got two exciting trips coming up in the next month. I'm hoping to be more consistent with my photography and blogging- so keep posted!