the family life - an inspiration story.

my family is incredibly talented. my cousin chad is a musician in a great band called fox island collective. my cousin amanda is a photographer, who shoots weddings and families, and tons of nature. my cousin melissa is an architect, who designs incredible instillations, and creates magical pieces of furniture. my cousin lara is an amazing and fantastic photographer, painter and creative wonder. other cousins (with less easy to showcase talents) are bricklayers, mothers, dancers,
my dad's siblings are yoga teachers, models, brick layers, athletes, spiritualists and teachers. my mom's siblings spend their time being artistic and totally insightful on the farms they run.
i am lucky to be from an amazingly close family, who spends copious amounts of time together - and who truly ENJOYS spending so much time together.

and there's always been a theme. everyone in my family is incredibly artistic - in one capacity or another - and is a teacher or a coach. i can't think of one cousin, aunt, uncle, or sibling who i am related to, who isn't creative in their own way - be it music, photography, painting, singing, dance, bricklaying, reading/writing - and who hasn't been an educator in one way or another - mothers, fathers, coach's, teachers.
and at some point in life, i started to realize this. started to see a trend. and began to realize that the people in my family who are happy - the ones who lead fantastic lives - are the ones who have wholeheartedly embraced their loves. music. art. who have thrown caution to the wind, and run full speed ahead.

and i want that. i want to throw caution. want to embrace this. and being surrounded by so many wonderful people in a family i am proud to be part of - lucky to be part of. we can easily surround ourselves by people who inspire us - friends, mentors, art that reflects the things we believe by strangers who we feel a connection to. 

i, however, am one of the lucky ones. my friends, mentors, and artists are frequently those related to me. i have a painting by my cousin lara hanging in my apartment. songs by my cousin chad on my iTunes. inspirations for jewellery by my cousins melissa's architecture in my head. photos from my cousin amanda over my bed. 

all of it - i have an innate connection to. a bond with. and i am inspired by the people closest to me - sometimes moreso than strangers i've never met. 

and for that - for the natural born inspiration i get to be surrounded by constantly - i am exceptionally lucky. 

photo by amanda shea; photo by lara shea; bike shop that melissa and her partner designed - featured in the toronto star; download chad's newest album here

my weekend in summary

this weekend was spent mostly outside, being young again. didn't take a ton of photos, which is sometimes good - both for lack of evidence, and in truly enjoying the moment.

jays game; what happens when sister’s friends work for frito lay; father chop tends to the swine; pig spectators; the ants liked the beer; ‘slap cup’. Apparently; jeff changing a tire while a tired little boy watches. 

friday: after work, i met my little sister and her boyfriend for dinner at everest (one of my faves near my office), and then after a quick pit stop, we headed to the jays game. for her first time in the 500's, darcy was pleasantly surprised - nothing like a $13 ticket to hilarity. unfortunately we had to leave the game early to catch our Go train, but managed to miss most of the rush. insert 3 exhausted 'kids' in 4 go train seats, and we had a long trip to the cottage that night. over the course of the trip, i developed a wicked migraine, and when my mom came to grab us at the station, our first priority was a 24 hour drug store, and as many pain meds as I could stuff in my mouth. we found one, and made our way to the cottage, to meet everyone who had been hanging out and partying all night. had a very brief hangout, and went to bed, while everyone else stayed up and hung out.
saturday: woke up late (with a bit of a migraine hangover), and spent the day outside - some sports, some swimming, some boating in inflatable rafts, some drinking, some family time. dinner was a potluck with a cooked pig - though i stuck with vegan chicken fingers and some bbq'ed tofu. the night went event heavy, and everyone was up late - ending in a campfire late into the night.
sunday: woke up and immediately did damage control - after trying to sleep longer didn't work. had some breakfast, went for a swim and a boat ride, and had a visit with my cousin and his girlfriend who stopped by with their dogs, and her 4.5 lb fish she caught the day before (we were excited). spent some time at a small beach across the lake, and then packed up to get back to the city. drove back quicker than thought, and jeff and i stopped for dinner at my local viet restaurant, and then for a short hangout before he headed back home.
it was a weekend that i'm still recovering from. not sure if it's because it was too busy, or i'm realizing that i'd rather be hiking a trail, than partying all night long. either way, it was a beautiful weekend, with lots of fam, and celebration of a good chick (my sister) turning 25.

hope everyone had a good one!

relaxation on a dock.

this weekend, i'm headed to my cottage for my sister's 25th birthday celebration... though i assume it'll be a bit less relaxing than the photo above, i anticipate the water, the nature, the quiet of the lake, and the company will make it worthwhile and destressing, nonetheless.

hope everyone has a fantastic weekend - take a moment to decompress.

image from lala sparkles

a bonus weekend

i was supposed to be in NYC this weekend.... so instead:

father's day. in case you forgot. i'm spending the weekend at a jays game, then checking out NXNE, then perhaps a stroll through the forests, and finally, with my dad.

and something to make you cry. i've written about it before, but it's worth another mention... 

"Tell her she’s beautiful. Say it over and over again. Someday an animated movie or “beauty” magazine will try to convince her otherwise."

- 50 rules for dads of daughters

the first and best man in a girl's life

I’m happy to say that I have a fantastic relationship with my dad – it wasn’t always that way, and most of my closest friends are constantly shocked to see how we ended up… based on my years living at home, and the things we put eachother through. nevertheless, I am lucky to have a strong, wonderful, compassionate, talented, likable man as my father.
so when i found this post, on an amazingly wonderful website, i was awestruck - how could strangers possibly understand the relationship that a little girl has with her dad? and yet, they did. not only does this website understand the relationship that a girl has with her dad, but it understands how important a dad/daughter relationship is... and notes what dads can do to establish and mold that bond that no one can replicate.
a few of my favourite ones, as i read through:
2. Always be there. Quality time doesn’t happen without quantity time. Hang out together for no other reason than just to be in each other’s presence. Be genuinely interested in the things that interest her. She needs her dad to be involved in her life at every stage. Don’t just sit idly by while she add years to her… add life to her years.

6. Buy her a glove and teach her to throw a baseball. Make her proud to throw like a girl… a girl with a wicked slider.

18. Tell her she’s beautiful. Say it over and over again. Someday an animated movie or “beauty” magazine will try to convince her otherwise.

20. Take her camping. Immerse her in the great outdoors. Watch her eyes fill with wonder the first time she sees the beauty of wide open spaces. Leave the iPod at home.

22. She’s as smart as any boy. Make sure she knows that.

41. Take it easy on the presents for her birthday and Christmas. Instead, give her the gift of experiences you can share together.

146. Take lots of pictures together. You never know when one of you won’t be around to smile for the camera anymore.

126. Take her on a date. Show her how she should expect to be treated when she turns 30 and can start dating men other than you.

121. She can run just as fast as any boy. She will forget this fact from time to time. It’s your job to remind her.

113. “Kids are like bowling balls. Sometimes you just gotta let ‘em go, and hope they don’t end up in the gutter.”

106. The storms of life will come. When they do, offer her your umbrella.

103. Brush her hair when she’s a little girl. It will be one of her fondest memories someday.

97. What’s that you say? You need daddy to paint your nails? Absolutely!
93. She will cry. Often. Always have tissues. If a tissue cannot be found, your shoulder is a great substitute.

I have a father who has been using the past 5 or 6 years to make sure he does all of these things – he calls me just to talk, we spend father/daughter weekends together, he has heart-to-hearts, and makes sure to say, ‘I love you’ at the end of every phone call, no matter how menial the conversation was. when we were little girls, he let us paint his toenails, and wore his pink, blue and green toenails like medal of honour (despite the harrassment he received on the baseball field when he removed his socks to display our art to the team). he brought us camping, took us on dates (my baby sister and him had a standing tim hortons date every day for a year when he took a year off of work in 1995), took tons of videos of us growing up, and let us weather our own storms.

and perhaps most importantly, he told us we could run, throw, hit (a baseball), and play like any boys we knew. and that we were smarter than any boy - because we were strong, independant, and beautiful women. and despite how much many of my teachers and friends probably despise that feminist streak in me now, that has stuck with me. he never ever wished he had 3 boys instead of 3 girls - because he simply did those things with us that a dad would do with his sons, as well as the things a dad can do with his daughters.
these are things we should all do with the people we care about - but specifically, if you are the father (or mother) of a little girl.... focus on these things specifically. they have a whole life ahead of them... they need to be prepared with a wicked slider, and a confidence that can't be shaken.

(found via unbrelievable; more on the author’s website, here)