life.and.littles

Santa’s been making a list, have you?!

My kids went from Halloween to Christmas in .5 seconds and I’m not mad at it! - Our friends at get it!

This year I want to (key word here) attempt - to avoid the Christmas shopping panic and start checking the list off early.

You can shop on Etsy with up to 60% off! So many cute toys and decorations.

Amira is loving her personalized name puzzle, I loved being able to add all the cute accents I know she would adore.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet?

I’m saying it…. The C word!! We are getting Christmas ready! With help from The Holiday Collection, bringing festive scents to freshen our home so we are guest-ready no matter who stops by.
 
With kids, cats, sports, and even a hamster sometimes, I worry about our house smelling more like a circus tent than a home! Cue to the rescue! The Cranberry Tart and Apple Cider scents are incredible but are limited edition, so head to the link in my bio for yours before it’s too late.
 
What’s your favourite Holiday scent?
 

Big girl room in the works with help from our friends at !

Their designs are SO cute and add the perfect touch to any littles room. Want a revamp? Need a cute gift? You’re in magical unicorn luck because we are partnering on a ! Yay!

Win any free product from the shop. Here’s how:

🦄 Follow .and.littles &
🦄 Like and Save this Post
🦄 Tag some magical friends! Each tag is an extra entry
🦄 BONUS - Slide and share the next image to your stories and tag us!

Want a hard copy? Open to Canada
Digital copy work! Open worldwide

Winner will be selected from comments and announced Friday, October 21st

Check them out on Amazon
www.amazon.ca/iamgurukid

Or Etsy
www.etsy.com/ca/shop/iamgurukid

Made with love by moms and definitely (this) mom approved!

How are your kids rooms decorated?

Happy Fall Y’all!!

Its officially F A L L
It’s also officially that time of year we get pumped for our favourite chunky sweaters and crisp cold mornings.. just to end up overheating, sweaty and a little confused by the afternoon.

But hey, at least we can still get our pumpkin spiced iced!

Have you traded in your shorts and flip flops for pants and boots yet?

Self care and small consistencies. These have been helping me keep my go, going.

Making the bed daily, working out, taking care of my skin, and checking in with friends. Getting back into reading and writing. Spending extra time outdoors, relaxing baths and time to myself. Hand washing dishes as they come up, folding the laundry out of the dryer. Being more selective of where (and with who) I am spending my time and energy.

All simple, but for a long time these things would end up piled up, neglected, and overwhelming. I would feel piled up, neglected, and overwhelmed.

Thing is all it really took was me. Me caring enough about myself, my mind, body, soul. My needs. All that cliche stuff. Turns out it matters! Funny how that happens.

What are some of your small consistencies that make a big difference in your day to day? How do you practice self care?

K I N D E R G A R T E N

My baby is in kindergarten. I know she’s ready, but I’m not! Who gave her permission to grow up so damn fast?

As an added bonus Amira is in French immersion - so basically one day she will be able to cuss us out and we will have no idea what she’s saying. Yay!

We are actually all excited for her and the new learning opportunity. I can’t wait to see all the amazing things my little badass is about to accomplish.

In the meantime you can find me crying into my phone watching baby videos

Have your kids ever taken a language you didn’t know? How was it for you? I’m a little nervous!

How do you feel?
“Excited and nervous”
Me too, kid.

We have ditched the uniforms and started at a new school!

This morning the outfit I had picked for him was met met with an unimpressed face and “these kind of shorts aren’t my thing” - so that’s where we are at now!

I can’t wait to see what this new school year and new school bring! I know he will kick ass, cause he always does.

How were your kiddos feeling on the first day back?!

You know when you have a favourite pair of jeans but they don’t fit quiet right? You don’t want to get rid of them because you know you’ll work on yourself and get back into them eventually … well this page was my jeans and finally my ass fits in again.

The break was needed. This last (almost) year away has been a roller coaster. Big and small moments, ups and downs, highs and lows. But overall it’s been a time of growth. Self reflecting and rediscovery. Life lessons and blessings. Plus a whole pile of memories.

I’m excited to be back. Excited to talk my ish and hopefully get a laugh or two. Winging this life thing with my not so little, littles. Strap in.

Okay enough formalities- welcome back to the s**tshow!

Listen..I’m sorry I ghosted!

I’m still here, sort of. Y’all I needed a break. In fact, I still do. I’m listening to myself and myself says to P A U S E. As fun as this is, it takes a lot of energy and energy I do not have to spare right now.

But, I’ll be back! I’ll be back when I regroup. When I can breath and remind myself this is supposed to be fun. Back to sarcastic words and honest messy captions. Back to capturing my kiddos and back to family fun moments. Back to me.

So huge thank you to everyone still here! I see you! To those who I have lost while going all mIa - hopefully we will see you again.

You can’t get rid of me that easy. Like most ghosters I’ll inevitably get lonely and be hitting you up again real soon. (I’ll come back with better jokes. Take what you can get for now, people)

Hope everyone is thriving. Catch y’all soon.

I’ve been pretty bahhumbug these last couple of weeks but my Christmas spirit was lifted when I opened this is the mail! This silly adorable hotmess with removable antlers from

Definitely Christmas ready and super cozy. You couldn’t possibly be a Scrooge wearing a giant reindeer head. Also, you can play ring toss on me so I’m pretty sure

I still have a ton to do but at least I’ll look fabulously hilarious doing it. Are you ready for Christmas or anyone else feeling behind like I am!?

Does your family help you decorate? If they do, do you end up rearranging when they go to bed? Asking for a friend..

This was the first year the kids actively wanted to help! I ended up finishing most of it on my own but it was nice seeing their excitement brining it all out and decorating the tree.
They even got little trees for their rooms to decorate however they wanted.

Inevitably I did end up rearranging everything downstairs. They didn’t notice. Hubby was out and thankful he wasn’t forced into some good old fashioned mandatory family fun time! I’ll make up for that when the lights go up outside though.

Shout out to the Moms covered in tinsel trying to create long lasting family holiday memories! Fun fact - that venti Starbucks cup your clutching for dear life can also hold a bottle of wine! You’re welcome .

Have you gone full Christmas yet?










**toutoflife

Santa’s coming! I know him!!

Oh wait that’s just the epic Black Friday Sale at ! Turns out we are all on their nice list and can get early VIP access!

Use these links to subscribe
🇨🇦 https://bit.ly/3BRFvvn
🇺🇸 https://bit.ly/302yoDt

I’ve already grabbed goodies for Amira and my niece! Plus Christmas came early with this super fun balance board - the kids couldn’t get enough of it.

What on your wish list?

Brace yourself… company is coming! Are you ready?

Between kids, cats, and let’s be real the biggest worksockcouchsprawling problem of them all.. a husband, I can use all the freshness I can get my hands on!

Febreze Unstopables TOUCH Fabric Spray eliminates odours and keeps our home and hard to wash fabrics smelling fresh and clean so I have no more worries when company comes. It has touch-activated scent technology so you get a burst of long-lasting freshness with every touch, up to 100 touches. The scent is airy, clean and like fresh laundry, so I can be confident guests will be greeted with a burst of freshness when they sit down on my couch. Even if that is followed by cat hair and animal cracker crumbs.

What are you going to spray Febreze Touch on in your house?
.

The face of a boy who found a solution to his greatest love but biggest upset. This is the milk moustache of happinesses.

We have a family of dairy lovers. Correction… We have a family of lactose intolerant dairy lovers. You can imagine the struggle.

is answering our call with their dairy free, plant based . Daniel drinks milk by the glass multiple times a day. So having an alternative thats better for him, easier on his stomach, uses less sugar, but still tastes like milk has been a huge win!

Find Not Milk at Save on Foods, Georgia Main, and Choices Market in British Columbia.

What do you love that you could use an alternative for?

Sure they look innocent but they are absolutely scheming about bribing their way to the nice list with these huge gourmet stuffed holiday cookies from


The decorations will stay packed away for a couple more weeks but these Holiday flavours are getting us excited for Christmas time!

Chocolate Candy Cane - Stuffed with Milk Chocolate
Gingerbread - Stuffed with Cookie Butter
Apple Cider - Stuffed with Apple Pie Filling

Which would you try first?!

Get on the nice list with your own festive treats delivered right to your door and save with code LIFE.AND.LITTLES10

I hate when I fall in love with a pair of runners and then realize I need have my day figured out before I wear them out. Will there be mud or rain. Will I be on my feet long. Will it be too hot.

This is why I am obsessed with my runners!

Shoes for my everyday. No fuss, no stress, no planning. I can be the crazy yelling soccer mom in the rain. I can be superhero mom getting all the things done all day on my feet. I can head out for a walk with the kids or go chase them around the park. I know my feet won’t get wet, won’t ache, and can breath no matter what situation I find myself in.

If they get dirty, I can easily wash them without the need for special products. Anything that simplifies life - I am here for it.

Jump into your own and even save using my code life.and.littles to take $15 off each pair - link in bio.

Our annual pumpkin patch tradition lives on! It was a rainy muddy mess but we made it happen.. and the kids had a BLAST.

They were jumping in all the mud puddles, doing all available actives - multiple times, and just so excited to be out and playing freely in the rain. Amira kept saying “I’m having so much fun. I love Halloween”. It was cold, windy, wet, and turns out a really great time.

My initial feelings at the situation quickly changed when I saw how much joy they had. They didn’t care that is was a muddy or cold or wet. They loved it. Then, I loved it too.

So glad we didn’t skip our tradition and spent a fun afternoon playing in the rain. We came home, ordered pizza, carved our pumpkins (mines absolutely terrible) and had hot chocolate while we watched a Halloween movie. Was the best festive family Sunday.

What are some of your Halloween traditions?

The days are shorter, the air is colder, noses are runny, and throats are dry. It’s inevitable - cold and flu season is upon us folks.

The month of a October has been ROUGH in our house. We have had colds, lingering coughs, and allergies. Plus the kids are back in school… . Luckily we are stocked with all the essentials from

For times we missed stocking up, we have been able to run to a near by to get exactly what we need. Definitely had a midnight run or two when the littles started teething

This is your sign - Head to and stock up on the essentials you need this cough and cold season. If you’re not sure, talk to their amazing and knowledgeable pharmacists who are always happy to offer helpful advice.

Then get yourself a treat while you’re there. You deserve it. Look at you being all prepared.

T H A N K F U L

This year has had a lot of lows but forever thankful for all the amazing highs along the way.

For my beautiful little family. For incredible friends and friends that become chosen family. For our home, and our health. For full bellies and happy hearts.

This year I not not planning on cooking a full dinner since we were lucky enough to be invited to two.. Then I found myself at the grocery store at 830 at night grabbing everything needed to cook a full thanksgiving meal. Now theres a turkey defrosting in my sink.

From ours to yours - Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!

What are you thankful for today?

Sometimes you just have to hit p a u s e.

Last week we had to make the unexpected and completely devastating decision to say goodbye to our sweetest fur baby, Cali.

We know it was the right and humane thing to do. But, it was the hardest decision I’ve ever made. We spent her last hours showering her with cuddles and love, letting her feel the wind in her fur and the sunshine on her precious face.

This was a whole different kind of heartbreak and I’ve really struggled. One of my friends said it best, she was a constant.

I’ve been through some s**t in life. I have lost family. I’ve had struggles and really low lows. She was always there. For over 12 years. On my lap, with the purest love.

Thank you to everyone who reached out, I so appreciate the kinds words and support. Slowly crawling out of my sadness and jumping back into my usual sarcastic smartassery shortly.

Do you have your own fur babies? Would love to hear about them.

One shoe for all weather? Yes please! When you live in a city where you leave your house with sunglasses and an umbrella because and some days can see all seasons, in a single day, you need these shoes.

keeps our feet comfortable and dry no matter the weather. So the kids can keep playing and our house doesn’t smell like wet socks. It’s a

They are 100% waterproof, lightweight, breathable, vegan, and super cute! They’ve become our families every day shoe from long walks and running earrings to park trips and soccer games. Bonus, the laces on the kids runners are perfect if your kiddo is still learning to tie their shoes.

Get into your own before your size sells out! Use my code life.and.littles to save $15 on each pair - link in bio.

To the boy who made me a mommy…

You’re growing up and it’s unavoidable.

You no longer want to be seen holding my hand and would prefer to call me “Mom” instead of Mommy.

You would rather spend time playing with friends and you gravitate towards your dad while bonding over sports, video games, and play fighting.

But, I know you still need me.

You come to me when the world is quiet and you need affection. You will take your blankets off so I can be the one to tuck you in each night.

I am the first one you come to when you need something and the one you look to when you’re excited. You still call me Mommy.

Yes, you are growing up and it’s unavoidable. But, I am so blessed to watch you discover life along the way.

I am so proud of you. I cherish you. I love you.

Thank you for choosing me to be your Mommy.

Picture this: you just got home from school. You have MTV top 10 music videos on the cube and you’re logging into your MSN account. You are sipping on a Capri Sun and snacking on your fav funfetti dunkaroos - life is good.

Fast forward to today and you finally get the kids to bed, throw on a true crime documentary and break into the hidden stash of gourmet giant stuffed Dunka Cookies from - life is good.

These delicious and nostalgic cookies are only around until October 4th so get them while you still can!

To make this even sweeter you can use my code life.and.littles10 to save on your own box. Link in bio - They deliver Canada wide! You can thank me later eh.

And they are BOTH off! I can’t believe both kids are in school. Definitely in my feelings today.

Perfect time for a kids interview edition.

Amira
Age 3
Preschool
Favourite Colour : Pink and Purple
What do you want to be when you grow up: A Teacher
Favourite Class : Art
Favourite Thing To Do : Play
Favourite Food : Cheese Gnocchi and Chocolate
Favourite Movie : Cars-Toons
What Do You Love : My Family

Daniel
Age 7
Grade 2
Favourite Colour : Black and Gold
What do you want to be when you grow up: A Professional Soccer Player or Fortnite Player
Favourite Class : Math
Favourite Thing To Do : Play Fortnite and Soccer
Favourite Food : Steak
Favourite Movie : Space Jam - New Legacy
What Do You Love : My Family

Final Thoughts
Amira : Jumping
Daniel : I still love you more than Fortnite. I am excited that next year I get to go upstairs for class.

Alright need to go cry.

It’s a

If I am being honest I was a friggen hotmess for almost the whole summer and definitely for the entire month on August.

My workout and eating routine went out the window. Mount laundry piled up for weeks. Yes, plural. Bedtime was a loose term, and my general parenting style was pretty “I’ll allow it” heavy. If I had to compare it to a movie, it was like the hunger games up in here and the odds were not in anyone’s favour.

But, with summer ending, school and activities starting we are getting back to our regular scheduled program. Less Survivor and more Modern Family type vibes.

Do you stick to a schedule during summer or so things go a little (or a lot) off track?














**toutoflife



*No children were harmed or neglected in the making of these

Saying goodbye to summer! I can’t believe how quickly this break flew by.

Even though things looked different we still made the most of it. We had SO much family time. We took a little mini road trip to Whistler. Went camping, swimming, had beach days, movie nights, and many trips to the park.

Next week Daniel will be back to school and Amira starts preschool! So excited for them, not so excited to pack lunches again.

Here’s to cooler days ahead and rainy excuses to not go to that thing for that one person you didn’t really want to do anyway.

Starting off the day with a reminder that YOU are an amazing badass that can do anything!

I regularly practice positive affirmations with the kids but when it comes to myself I often forget to straighten my own crown and keep my chin up.

are your stylish little reminder to do just that.

The bands are sustainably made and ethically sourced with hypoallergenic, lead free, and tarnish resistant stainless steel.

Feeling inspired? Need inspiration? Head to the link in my bio for your own

It’s the little tongue on this first one that does it for me…

Not too much longer and it’s going to be pumpkin spice everything and chunky sweater weather. I’m not mad at it.

But, it was a pretty sweet summer! One filled with so much family time, lots of days outdoors, drinks in folding chairs with neighbours watching the kids play, and not one but two incredible baby girls added to the must spoil list

A summer of love, memory making moments, and happy full hearts. Also like…. A L O T of Netflix.

What did you love most about this summer?