The Journey of a Friendly Giant

I've always been a giver. Always obliging to the needs and desires of others, while thinking of myself last. At least that's what it looks like from an outsiders perspective. But something I always like to share with those that care enough to listen is that self-love has many different faces depending on who you're speaking to. For me an act of self love involved not* skipping my workout; it involves taking good care of myself by being mindful of my dietary habits and ultimately my health. From my perspective that often looks like ingesting a green smoothie that is my personal favourite life-hack to consuming more raw green superfoods, fruits, nuts and seeds that are all very useful things for digestive health and a high energy lifestyle. That being said however, if you speak to some of my family members for example, indulging in a piece of chocolate cake is their act of self-love. From their perspective, it is because they love themselves that they do not want to deprive ...

New parents have a bed reputation for being overbearing, too rigid and strict and worried for nothing ... because according to the generation before us, yes I'm talking about our parents, we turned out "fine". I used to agree. When I was pregnant. In fact  I didn't even buy any parenting books, and thought the best source of information were my midwives and my family.  Now that I have a child however, I realize that I was wrong. I'm exactly the kind of over bearing parent I've described above and I couldn't care less about your opinion.  I love my son more than anything else in the world. And when you love someone that intensely, their wellbeing becomes your obsession.  So yes... I do have hard limits and cringe at he thought of my baby eating junk food... but who the hell cares? Is respect too much to ask for? The midwives have also done a wonderful job of empowering me to be confident in my decisions about parenting. My family as well, ...

It's very rare that your first time traveling will be your only time. Once exposed to the exciting and unpredictable newness that often comes with leaving home, the chances of you making more travel plans are very high. What I enjoy most about traveling is the reminder it gives me that life comes in different colours, flavours, tastes and smells. Traveling also does a wonderful job in teaching lessons of humility and tolerance of different ways to live life. I'm no rookie to the traveling game, my travel bug has become more of a monster; I've lived in over 5 countries and visited over 25 in my lifetime so far. In fact, this blog originated as a travel blog for an international internship I was fortunate enough to experience with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). I wouldn't be the person I am today without having traveled as much as I have, and I hope my now 14 month old (already!?) can say the same one day. Needless to say however, like most thi...

"So how's daycare going?" When I say ‘okay’… what I really want to say is that it’s not that great.  Daycare isn't getting easier for me, but it is getting easier for him (apparently). He still screams "MAMA!" every morning with big tear drops streaming down his face. It still crushes my heart every morning, (how can it not?...)  I'm not numb to his crying yet (What If I never am?)....  Plus I'm still breastfeeding so physiologically, and quite literally… I'm a hot mess. This is the beginning of week three, and he has now started crying for the entire 20-minute car ride to daycare. He then proceeds to fight me when I try to take him out of the car seat when we arrive. He's strong too! He has ripped a blouse and a necklace almost effortlessly because he didn't want to let go of me when I tried handing him off to the daycare attendants. He also head-butted one of them right in the mouth, taking her by surprise and frankly,...

I've returned to work this week. *Moment of silence for all of the new moms going through this difficult and tragic time.* When I’m asked “how is daycare going?” and I say “ okay… ” what I really want to say will be in the following blog posting. Day 1 –I drop off the unsuspecting man-cub who is quickly distracted by new toys and new friends to play with. I proceed to sneak away when he’s not looking because I hate goodbyes. Phew! Made it to the car, scotch free, he didn’t see me, so he didn’t cry. Avoided situations always turn out well right? … The French daycare he’s in has a smartphone app that very much resembles this blog. It has pictures and text updates as well as a timeline of previous postings. I am distracted in my office constantly checking the app for updates all day, missing my baby like CRAZY. Do you blame me? He has become my 24/7 loyal little side-kick and companion until today, cold-turkey style, a full 8hr day without him. I digress... I...