winding down, winding up

just catching up on canada's next top model and enjoying a glass of wine. winding down from a busy weekend. my parents came in which was awesome. even though they are a huge help, the girls (mostly ryan) seem to have an extraordinary amount of energy...i'm tired! looking forward to being back at work tomorrow...even if it will be chaotic.





tomorrow is inventory night. starts when we close tomorrow night. the company thinks it will only take about 3 hours but i honestly can't see how that can be done. i guess it will depend on how many people they bring with their team. whatever the case, i am happy to NOT be counting! we also have a trade show starting tomorrow, however i doubt that we will get a chance to check it out until tuesday. we'll see how it goes. the next little while is going to be very busy!





things are finally looking like they are coming to a close with the landscaping. the fence is being finished tomorrow and i think the last of the planting is going to be completed tomorrow as well. the only thing left is the lighting. they have been ordered, but it's going to be another 3-4 weeks until they arrive. i'm super excited! check out the lighting that is going down the stone staircase

i think that's it for tonight. gotta shower cuz that just doesn't happen with 2 kids in the morning!

have a good night!
j

where has the week gone?

is it seriously friday tomorrow? it has been such a busy week at the store. we hired another great employee, have done a bunch of prep for inventory on monday and the sales floor has been hopping...love it! we had a great night out with the cravings gals on tuesday night. i think we stayed out for 5 hours just chatting. i love that becca & i have found such a great group of people that we enjoy spending time with! was also out last night for an overdue birthday dinner with 2 great friends. only downside was waking up this morning so tired from 2 late nights and feeling blah from eating out so much. it made me remember how i used to feel when i would be on the road for 2 weeks at a time with my previous job. eating out all the time can sure get to you. i enjoy not having to cook but hate how it makes me feel.

working tomorrow and then my parents are coming in for the weekend! super excited to have them around. perry is off to a wedding in laurentians so it'll be nice to have another set of hands around here.

so tired- off to bed!

j

long day

was such an exhausting weekend and it didn't help that we had some computer glitches today. my brain is fried. i feel like i need vacation and i know that the next few weeks will be far from that! maybe i am anticipating all the work ahead.

on a bright note, i bought the boots today! went back and tried them on again and it took me less than 1 minute to get them on and off...much improved from my first few attempts...who knew trying on boots could be a sport! so happy with them and they will look great with my new grey skinny jeans (couldn't find faded ones)!

have the day off tomorrow, but have an eye appointments & dentist appointment and i really need to get down to the passport office. so many things to get checked off my list. we will definitely need passports if we are going away this winter. i have decided we really need to...i'm just not sure where to go that is kid friendly. please, if you have any great suggestions, pass them along!

off to sit and do NOTHING for awhile!

have a good night,
j

shopping

chaos in the house! perry's brother and our niece are here from toronto this weekend and it's been non-stop go, go, go! just when i've finished cleaning up from a meal, i am thinking of starting the next one! this morning menu included daisy shaped pancakes (coincidentally our cravings logo!), hashbrowns, bagels & lox, fruit, etc, etc. i am full and am hoping the kids (including the big kids) won't be hungry for lunch. tonight is dinner a la fuddruckers!

so, i went boot shopping yesterday. i really needed my BFF and shopping partner from calgary yesterday. i just couldn't decide. i went to 2 higher-end independent shoe retailers yesterday...have to support the small businesses in saskatoon :) anyway, was disappointed with the first store because of their lack of selection. didn't have much in my size but i did find one boot i could special order in which was great. went to the next store and i have to tell you...the customer service has steppedd up a notch. i was completely blown away. not sure if it's because there is more competition in saskatoon now? i guess there could be a number of reasons, but i did get great service. i fell in LOVE with a pair of boots...only one small problem...it took me half an hour to get them on & off. now i know i am pretty much the last person you would call "practical", but with 2 children....i can't spend 15 minutes getting my boots off :( i guess this has been a problem for most trying them on. so i came home and went on the internet...problem solved...apparently they break in and this tug-of-war will end! going back to get the boots on monday :) i even dreamt about them last night!! that's when you know you NEED the boots. my b-i-l says that when you know you are CRAZY...i totally disagree!

anyway, i have now decided that i need a new pair of faded skinny jeans...my mission for today!

j

around the house

seems like we can't get a project finished around our house...finally got the front step tiled and now i noticed that the grout kinda bubbled in a few places. gotta call the guy back. our yard is still not finished...don't even want to discuss that! our 2 week project turned 3 months in a blink of an eye. it's looking great, the workmanship is superb, but it is taking forever! perry is outside building our shed right now so we can get all our "junk" out of the garage. can't wait to be able to open my car doors properly again! we decided that the play structure he put together last week could wait on all it's aesthetic additions so we can get the shed completed.

we have company coming- my BIL and my niece from toronto- this weekend. i'm hoping to get out for a bit. i am dying to do a bit of boot shopping. we'll see what plans perry has. layla isn't such a great shopper these days so i'm thinking she's out for the boot shopping!

aside from that, plan to relax this weekend. still can't shake this cold. busy week ahead so i need to be clear headed! count down to inventory...yay! can't wait for it to be over :)

have a great night

j

our to-do list

can't believe the sun is actually shining today. apparently we are going to be getting a few nice days of weather...we'll see...i'm already in fall mode so i guess a few nice days will just be bonus now.

so much going on at the store these days. our to do list is growing by the minute. our year-end inventory is coming up and there is so much to do to prepare for that. it will be nice when that is over. we have a trade show in saskatoon the same week as inventory and then becca and i head to vegas for the ABC show. i'm so NOT complaining about that. i actually can't wait. we are far more efficient at spending thousands of dollars in a limited amount of time (ha!) so i'm hoping we'll have some time for shopping and maybe even the pool. we have lots of other projects underway as well. our new gift cards should be ready soon...along with our custom gift card wrapping. can't wait to see how everything turns out!

anyway, i am exhausted just thinking of everything that needs to be done!

have a great day!
j

quick edmonton trip

not surprising at all that i would get sick after the busy schedule i've had lately. i'm actually feeling a little better today- yesterday was the worst and we had a super busy day at the alberta gift show in edmonton. we shopped the entire day, found lots of great new products for the store (and ourselves!) and flew back last night.

the hour flight to edmonton was just enough time for becca and i to think up a dozen more things to add to our "to do" list. lots of things to accomplish in the next little while, including one big project that we're hoping to get started right away. stay tuned for details!!

off to get cup of coffee #3!

j

chaos

i'm back...at least i hope so! the last week has been chaotic and it ended with a bbq that i was intending to have outside for 30+ people...it ended up being inside as the rain started to come down while the guests arrive. it was an extremely challenging day trying to cook 7 dishes, appetizers, stock a bar, etc with 2 kids right beside me begging for attention. i typically wouldn't do this on a day perry is at work but literally it was the only day left this "summer" that we could manage it. it ended up being a great evening...my house still shows evidence of the fun. that will be tomorrow's project!

becca and i are off to the alberta gift show tomorrow. it's going to be a crazy trip. wish we could have planned to be away for 2 days, but it's just too difficult with perry's schedule and not having family around. we've managed to plan out our vegas trade how/trip well so i'm hoping to get in some serious shopping while we are there!

i'm off to bed as i have had very late nights the last little while....and i've got the girls to myself all day again...thank goodness for coffee!

have a good night
j

busy week

wow - super busy week at cravings! can't believe how much traffic we've had these past few days! on sunday, jor and i go to edmonton for the alberta gift show. should be fun - looking for some new unique items for the store...and maybe some things for ourselves :)

we still have a few racks of summer maternity & baby clothing: BUY 1, GET 1 FREE!! come in and take advantage of these fantastic savings...and help us make room for all our new fall stuff!

have a great weekend!!

r.

new arrivals

hi! i haven't written for ages...and jor has been too busy to write since sunday. super busy times for both of us! we have started getting tonnes of our new arrivals for fall. sad to think that summer is almost over :( but...the new stuff is gorgeous! this season both baby and maternity is featuring charcoal, grey, purple & jewel tones (and my favourite, black)! i LOVE fall and winter clothing - hate the cold, but love cozy sweaters, dark colours etc, etc.

gotta run...shuttle van is here to pick me up and take me to my clean car. had it detailed today!

r.

quick calgary visit

just got back from a quick weekend away in calgary. was so great to see so many friends that i haven't seen in years. did some great shopping yesterday with my bff and then had dinner at her place afterwards. her husband cooks the most amazing meals! she has two little girls as well so ryan and layla were entertained!

perry was out way too late every night...he and layla are taking a nap right now. ryan and i stocked up on some groceries. i was actually quite excited to get groceries today. one of my friends in calgary is a nutritionist and she had lots of food suggestions for layla- she is very picky. now this does mean that i have to be somewhat organized...which will be the major challenge for me! i am typically very organized but there just seems to be way too many things to organize these days. something has got to give and it seems like food prep is one of them. i'm going to try my best anyway.

hoping to spend a few hours outside this afternoon. weather is beautiful. we have a new outdoor play structure that i would really like perry to build so the kids can enjoy it a bit this summer. hoping this little nap of his will give him the boost of energy he needs to get a few more of the 30 steps completed!

day care is back on after a 2 week break! i'm back at work tomorrow and the regular routine returns!! looking forward to it!

j

cravings update

it seriously feels like fall these days....and so it is fitting that we are getting our fall & winter clothing in. for kids- mexx, blu, appaman...have all started to arrive. did you know that we are going up to size 6 now? our fall & winter maternity clothing has also started to arrive. enjoy summer merchandise at a discounted price right now! fall & winter shoes have also started arriving...little soles, pedi peds, robeez, umis...and they are already flying off the shelves...really cute patterns this season with chocolate brown sticking around and grey making it's move for the new neutral in children's clothing.

it's such an exciting time around our store with so many projects on the go. looking forward to tackling the next big one which we will announce in a few months. lots of work to do beforehand. our new full time cravings gal started this week and we love her already! she fits in with the team perfectly!

anywi think it's time for me to say good night...way past my bed time!

have a good one,
j

4 days

oh my goodness...itès sunday (there goes that french thing again...i still donèt know how to turn it off...somebody please tell me!) and i just realized i havenèt written in 4 days. i can honestly say i forgot. been tending to my babe who is now on the mend...although she looks really bad! her poor face. i counted over 20 chicken pox on her forehead alone. hoping they donèt scar.

was at the store for a few hours yesterday...just hit the big afternoon rush. was perfect timing. got a bunch of paperwork done this morning too. feels good to get caught up on something, although our to-do list keeps growing and growing...weèll never really get caught up! itès been a quiet weekend overall. lots of work going on in our back yard. most of the plants are planted. weère just waiting for curbing (supposed to be tomorrow but doubtful now becuz of the rain) and sod tuesday! they just have the rasied planter in the front yard left for stone work and thatès it!! maybe a another week...ièm hoping!

no big plans for tomorrow. wouldnèt mind heading downtown for awhile. maybe ill; make it out of the house for a few minutes sans kids!

have a good night!
j