Just in time for Christmas.

It's been four months since I posted on this blog.

I feel like I was inconsistent for quite some time with blogging because this summer was so hectic. I was working two jobs all summer, and three jobs at one point in time. Once school started back up again things got difficult in my personal life which put blogging, not even on the back burner, but completely off the stove top. 

Now that life has settled down I want to get back to making time for the things I love. Not only have I not blogged, but I also haven't been making time for reading, exercising, or taking photos. I've bought new books (which I will share soon), I've gotten back to the gym a few times over the past couple weeks, and now I am here - writing this blog post. 

Going forward I'm hoping to do Blogmas again (no promises though). 

I don't want to make a schedule or anything, instead I'm going to write and upload when I feel like it. Hopefully this means at least once a week, but if I'm not feeling it it probably won't happen. 

I've started listening to my body and mind. I don't do things I don't want anymore (except things like school and work). Right now, this feels right. My diet has changed a lot as I'm not practicing crazy portion control or depriving myself of certain foods. If I want to eat junk food I will- in moderation. I do things that make me feel good- wether that's going to the gym, hanging out with friends, or laying in bed. 

Things have changed for me and I'm excited to share it all going forward. 

Until next time, 

Snow & Lace | Holiday Undergarments

"Lingerie is the maximum expression of a woman's femininity." - Dolce & Gabbana

It's finally my favourite time of year again! From dinners to parties, the Christmas season is the perfect time to pull out all your cutest and sexiest dresses. From your favourite scent to your go to heels, Christmas is a wonderful excuse to bust out all your best, feel good pieces. 

For me, feeling good goes right down to the undergarments. Nothing makes me feel more on top of the world than a sexy, lacy bra and panty set. A ladies delicates can be quite expensive, especially when they're good quality. AdoreMe has a wide variety of feminine and sexy bra and panty sets for amazing prices! The sets are really customizable as you can choose the underwear style you like as well as the type of bra you prefer. And your first order is just $29.95! 

This holiday season for me, it's all about lace. I love the delicacy, femininity and sex appeal of lace. I think it's the kind of fabric that leaves a lot to the imagination. 

What is your go to piece to feel good for the holidays? Do let me know in the comments! And make sure to check out the amazing things AdoreMe has to offer- from bras and panties, to lingerie, to sleepwear and more. Happy holidays ladies!

Christmas Re-cap | Photo Diary

Every Christmas is amazing, but this year happened to be one of the most pleasant Christmases that we've had thus far as a family. On Christmas Eve we went to my aunts house to celebrate with my Mom's side, Christmas Day was at our house with my Dad's side, and Boxing Day was a pyjama, brunch and board games day with just the four of us of my family. I hope you enjoy this photo diary from my Christmas 2015!

Christmas Eve

The dinner we feast on for Christmas Eve isn't your traditional Christmas dinner- instead my mom makes a huge pot of seafood Alfredo to serve over homemade fettuccine. The photo above is the "adult" table, however they happened to be a touch more rowdy than the eight of us who were at the "kids" table in the kitchen haha. 

Capturing people laughing is one of my favourite things to photograph! My cousin Ben and his girlfriend Ali always look great in photos and they're a beautiful couple. The two elderly ladies are my Great Grandma (97 years old) and my Great Aunt Marlene. They are such kind and gentle women and they still look so youthful despite their ages! My cousin Ashleigh and her husband welcomed their son, Tate, to the world seventeen months ago and he has been such a joy all year round, but especially at Christmas. We haven't had a young child for a Christmas in quite some time! He got so many toys but his favourite gift was the nut cracker that our Opa gifted to him. The photo of my Aunt Ursula laughing has to be one of my favourites! She's such a beautiful and gracious woman with an amazing smile and laugh. I'm so happy that I got to capture this moment for all eternity.

For Christmas Even I wore this stunning maroon dress from Dynamite with diamond solitaire pendant on a gold chain. 

Christmas Day

For makeup on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I just used my go-to makeup that I wear everyday- 1. Revlon wake me up concealer in 230 on my face 2. Revlon wake me up concealer in 125 under my eyes 3. NYX stay matte but not flat powder foundation 4. Revlon blush in ooh baby pink 5. Revlon brow fantasy in brunette 6. Baby lips dr. rescue 7. Covergirl lash blast volume (not pictured) in black. For my hair I wanted to try out my new NuMe tools that I got myself for Christmas! On Christmas Eve I did curls with the straightener and on Christmas Day I curled my hair using the wand. I don't have a single bad thing to say about these tools! Let me know if you guys would like a review on them.

Santa was very good to me! Some of the things he brought me included two pairs of PJs, a cook book, and a colouring book! My outfit for the day was a black high waisted flared skater skirt from Urban Planet and a deep red knit t-shirt from Dynamite. I loved capturing the reactions of my family opening their gifts- such surprise and excitement and joy!

After opening presents and enjoying each other's company for a few hours, six o'clock brought dinner time. We feasted on turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, carrots, green beans, and gravy. For dessert we had an array of cookies as well as my Grandmas homemade pies (cheery cheesecake, pumpkin, and banana cream). 

This Christmas was such an amazing time with all my family. I couldn't have asked for better people to spend the holidays with and I feel so incredibly blessed. I hope you all had such a wonderful Christmas! What did you get up to? Please do let me know in a comment!

This Christmas recap marks my last blog post of 2015. It's been such an amazing year- I started my blog in April of 2015 and I'm still loving writing it just as much! Thank you all for your support, from page views to comments and so on. I love being part of this wonderful blogging community and I can't wait to continue writing this blog well into the New Year. Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas (if you celebrate) and I wish you all the happiest of New Years!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

23. Our Christmas Traditions | Blogmas

As a family, we are all quite festive people as well as incredibly habitual. This results in having a plethora of Christmas traditions that we make sure we tick off the list every year! We love doing things as a family, especially around the holidays and these activities always put us in good spirits and bring us so close as a family. Some of these we have already done, and some are yet to come! Here's a list of the Christmas traditions myself and my family have for every year!

1. Decorating the tree/house

2. Gingerbread houses

3. Light hunting

4. Christmas film marathon

5. Lots of baking

6. Christmas Eve dinner at my aunts

7. Wearing our new pjs to bed on Christmas Eve

8. Stockings on Christmas morning

9. Christmas morning brunch

10. Desserts all day and being lazy on Christmas Day

What are some traditions your family has for Christmas time? I'd love to know so please do leave a comment!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

21. I'll Be Home For Christmas | Blogmas

Being that it's my first time living away from home, it's also my first time flying home for the holidays and boy was it an experience! I arrived at the MacDonald-Cartier International Airport in Ottawa at 9:10am as my flight was scheduled for 10:15am. As I was checking my bag the lady working at the desk (who was quite rude I have to say) informed me that my flight to Toronto was delayed until 12:15pm. She then proceeded to charge me $85 freakin' bucks for an oversized luggage fee because apparently their weight limits changed but the website wasn't updated. 

So little distraught me ended up boarding the plane to Toronto at 12:15pm and landing safe and sound in TO. The girl sitting beside me on the flight was an absolute doll I have to say and even grew up just a little ways away from me back home! What a small world it is. 

Then came the Toronto airport...

"Ladies and gentlemen waiting for flight 687 to Sault Ste. Marie, we're sorry to say your flight has been delayed again due to poor weather conditions."

The Sault was supposed to be having it's first green Christmas since the 90s, which of course broke my heart. It's not Christmas without snow! Well the Lord clearly heard my prayers as he blessed SSM with this lovely snow storm... the day I was meant to fly home! I can't say I was the happiest of campers having spent five hours sitting around an airport. But, I eventually did make it home safe and sound which is really the most important thing at the end of the day!

I really do love flying. There's something about being above the clouds that's so calming to me. The turbulence tugged at my anxiety a little bit, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. Landing in SSM was the best feeling! Hugging my parents- and finally eating food- was amazing!

My first solo travel experience is something I will never forget. It was a learning curve for sure but I'm really proud of myself for keeping my anxiety under control and "putting on my big girl panties" to get through the whole travel experience.

If you're travelling home for Christmas I hope you make it safely with as little delay as possible! Have you ever travelled alone? If you have any tips to make the whole travelling experience less stressful please do let me know!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

19. Favourite Christmas Films | Blogmas

Something that really puts me into the Christmas spirit is a good holiday film! There are SO many holiday films that I absolutely love so I tried my best to narrow it down. Today I'm going to share with you (in no particular order) my five favourite holiday movies!

For me a good Christmas movie is one that leaves me with that warm feeling of holiday joy. I love a film that can make me laugh but also hit me right in them feels haha. Of course a happy ending is a must for a feel good Christmas film!

Holiday Inn

This is quite an old film- from the 1940s I do believe- but still so amazing! It's not exclusively Christmas, but a great one to watch this time of year none the less!

Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas

An absolute classic, the Grinch is one of those movies I just have to watch at Christmas time! Unpopular opinion: the Warner Bros original twenty minute short is infinitely better than the newer Jim Carrey version... sorry not sorry haha.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

My mom is a huge peanuts lover and she's passed that down to me. We watch every Charlie brown special for each holiday but the Christmas one has got to be my favourite! It doesn't feel like Christmas until I get to watch Charlie Brown with my mom!

Love Actually

Nothing better than a good rom-com, am I right ladies? I really enjoy the multiple plot lines in this movie and just the feel good Christmas vibe that this film has! It's one that makes you laugh and cry and leaves you with a warm feeling that I just love, especially round Christmas time!

Elf

Is it really a complete list of holiday films if Elf isn't mentioned?? I'm a huge Will Ferrell fan and he definitely doesn't disappoint in Elf! It's a must watch.

I hope you enjoy these films and if you have any favourites that I haven't mentioned please do leave them in a comment below!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

17. Christmas Bible Verses | Blogmas

I was very hesitant to write this post as I know any time religion is mentioned it can be a sensitive area for some people. I am a Christian woman and my faith is very important to me but I leave it out of my blog as I never want to offend anyone or make anyone uncomfortable through my posts. This being said, Christmas is about the birth of Jesus so I felt that sharing bible verses for Christmas time was appropriate. If you are offended by this post then I do apologize most sincerely and I can say that odds are further posts of faith will not be present on my blog. If you are a Christian or interested in some Bible verses that are perfect for this holiday season, then enjoy!

Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Jesus so please, if you celebrate Christmas, remember why you are celebrating. What is your favourite bible passage to read round Christmas time? Does your Christmas have a Christian element to it? Please do let me know in a comment!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

16. Ribbons & Bows: Wrapping Gifts! | Blogmas

Everything about gift giving at Christmas time gets me so darn excited!! From the planning to buying the gift to watching someone open it and everything in between- gift giving is a christmas favourite for me! Of course to give a gift, you have to wrap a gift... Now some people really dislike gift wrapping as it can be quite tedious and time consuming. However, I really enjoy it! I love the ribbons and bows and paper and boxes and all that jazz! So for todays blogmas post I thought I'd share my gift wrapping process and a few tips and tricks I've learned along the way!

I always begin by buying everything I'll need for everybody's gifts all at once. I hit up DollarTree (they've actually got amazing stuff) and picked up some cute gift boxes, wrapping paper, ribbon, gift tags, and bows. I used all the same wrapping paper just because in my family there's so many people that we all wrap our gifts in the same paper to avoid confusion in case any tags fall off. I also really happened to fall in love with this one particular paper this year so it worked out perfectly!

Once the gift is in the box, it's time for wrapping! A tip I learned to get the perfect piece of wrapping paper size wise is to place the box in the bottom corner, roll it over twice and up once. It's always seemed to work for me! For clean edges, make sure your scissors are sharp and don't use cutting motions- instead slide your scissors straight along the paper. Be sure to hold the paper taught!

Now I know I'm not the only person out there who struggles with the end bits. They're super tricky!! a little tip I learned from my mom is to fold down then tuck in. Once the sides are tucked in to get that triangle shape at the end, tape the middle where the two sides of the wrapping paper meet. This will help to avoid those bubbles that tend to appear upon folding the triangle up. I also recommend using the Scotch gift wrapping tape as it doesn't show at all on the paper!

And voila! I used a matte ribbon and a sparkly ribbon to add some contrast to the gift. I really like the way the white bow looks with the tag against the paper and ribbon colours! I have to say though that I much prefer the gold ribbon against this paper. It feels much more warm and Christmassy. I kept the ends of the ribbon on the gold one and curled them tight to the bow which I really quite like! Wrapped gifts just looks so cute! It's almost a shame we have to open them, don't you think?

I did a few just with the gift boxes because they're too cute not to show case- sorry family, I broke the rules ;) 

I'm really happy with how all the gifts turned out- they look so cute! Here's hoping they fare well in the flight home haha. Do you enjoy wrapping gifts? If you have any tips and tricks for gift wrapping do leave them in a comment!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn

15. Holiday Morning Routine + Updated Workout! | Blogmas

Now that school is out and I'm finished with work, I've got four more days completely to myself until I fly home. I've been really enjoying having mornings to myself to relax and take my time starting the day as mornings really are my favourite time of day! If every day could be Sunday morning I'd be in heaven. 

In the spirit of the holidays and blogmas, I thought I'd share with you my chilled out, holiday, no rush, no fuss, morning routine! 

I've been waking up naturally- no alarm- around 7:30am. Instead of getting up straight away, I've been spending some time in the morning reading The Fault In Our Stars (for about the eighth time) in my bed until around 8:15am or so. By this time getting out of bed is a MUST as my bladder will be screaming haha. Once I void my bladder, I fill up my water bottle and do a little 15-20 minute workout. 

For my workout as of late I've been doing:

100 high knees

25 jumping jacks

20 leg kicks

20 standing knee to elbow crunches

15 squats

50 mountain climbers

10/side fire hydrant donkey kicks

10 pushups

10/side one leg raise with crunch

5 pilates roll ups

Repeat entire circuit x3

Sun salutation

Big stretch

Once my workout is complete, I will wash my face, brush my teeth, and put my water on the stove to boil for a cup of cinnamon tea. My makeup takes no time at all, so once that's done my water will be boiling to make my cinnamon tea. I then take my tea into my bedroom and sip it whilst I do my hair and get dressed. Hair wise, I've been doing one of two things: curls with my straightener (which you can see how I do in my holiday hair post) or dutch braids!

By the time I'm all ready for the day it's about 9:45am-10:00am; time to prepare some breakfast! Like always, I make a bowl of oatmeal with raw cacao and cinnamon, topped with a dollop of greek yogurt. Whilst I eat my oatmeal I will write in my journal and spend some time with my Bible. This morning I read through Thessalonians 1 and 2. 

After breakfast I have been enjoying going for a little stroll around my neighbourhood (still bitter about not having snow in December!) as well as writing blog posts and catching up on social media until lunch time!

I hope you all enjoyed my very relaxed, holiday morning routine! What is your favourite thing to do on a morning when you're not rushed? Please do let me know in a comment!

Thanks for reading, xo, Katelyn