33 THINGS ABOUT ME

I’m not one to get hung up on age. I’ve felt youthful at every age and I think as long as I keep this mindset and lifestyle to match, I won’t have a problem keeping it that way.

Personally, I look at each year as 365 days of new lessons to be learned. I realize we only get one crack at life and I want to make the most of it. Each year of personal development and evolving deserves some sort of a celebration. I’m not talking about being selfish, petty or narcissistic. More about acknowledging the dedication, discipline and hard work it took to level-up and become a better version of yourself.

As I approached my birthday I always reflect on my year, where I’m at in life, what my future goals are, and how I’ve changed and / or grown as a person. The last few years have really helped me become comfortable in my own skin, a feeling I can only imagine will get better the older I get. Self confidence truly is the best feeling. With that said, here are 33 things about me you probably don’t know:

1. I work well under pressure: I am a type A ‘planner’ but if sh*t hits the fan I know I work excellent under pressure. Something just clicks and I go into overdrive. Honestly wish I could harness that energy more consistently.
2. I need my sleep: they say you can sleep when you’re dead but I need at least 7-8 hours of undisturbed sleep every night to feel human in the morning. It’s no surprise getting a good sleep helps you work more efficiently but I definitely notice a difference in how sharp I am depending on how many Z’s I got the night before.
3. I practice a lot of self-care: I treat my body well, eat right, exercise regularly, get good sleep and take my vitamins. I know what my body needs and have learned to listen to what it’s trying to tell me.
4. I’ve refined what I want: I’ve always been hungry for a full and exciting career. It use to be more about getting that glass, corner office and working my way up the corporate ladder but now that I’m well into my thirties, I’ve refined what I want. I’m driven by other reasons now, like being able to build up my savings, support my family and build community.
5. I’m excited to design our next home: nothing’s happening [yet], but we have started looking for our next home and instantly, the number one thing that rushes to mind is decorating! We’d prefer to find something that hasn’t been updated since that takes all the fun out of everything. Pinterest has been giving me MAJOR design inspo lately and we’re just so excited for the next phase. We love our spot now so much, it’ll honestly be hard to leave but we need more space and are ready for a change after almost 6 years here.
6. I interned in New York for a summer: in 2008 (right after I met my future husband) I had accepted an internship opportunity to work for a Guerrilla Marketing firm in Times Square. My experience with NY has come full-circle a few times now but I’m currently making plans for something really exiting this spring… more to come later.
7. Skincare is everything: it’s become an easy splurge. I LOVE trying out new products, serums and masks — anything that makes me feel luxurious and I’m in.
8. I’ve learned to trust my gut: I use to ignore or set aside those weird feelings in my stomach, but now I know they were trying to tell me something. Lately, I’ve really been super in-tune with my ‘gut-reaction’ and it’s led me to make better, smarter decisions in life + business.
9. I practice self-love: when you’re younger you don’t get all that talk about self-love. You’re still trying to figure out who the hell you are! But with time, life and experience, one thing has stood true. That no one in this world will love yourself the way you need to be loved, but you. Loving myself, also means trusting myself and feeling confidence in myself. Show yourself some love.
10. My style is basic: more (of anything) isn’t necessarily the best. Over the years I’ve narrowed down my must-haves, which tend to lean towards neutral basis that can be mixed + matched with lots of other pieces in my wardrobe. You know I’m a huge fan of the neon trend this summer, but aside from a few pops of bright colors I’m all neutrals at heart. I’m a girl who needs options but without being excessive about it.
11. I’m relentless: don’t let Instagram fool you, this year was the most challenging year of my life. My emotions were all over the map after experiencing severe and sudden loss and grief. I’d almost go as far as to call it a triple-tradegy. The point being, instead of letting it knock me off course (which it most definitely almost did) I’m choosing to use it to fuel me, slowly building back into better habits that support the life I’m trying to create. The grief still comes in waves but overall I’m proud of the little by little progress I’ve made.
12. The challenges make for a stronger story: it’s the slow, steady, day-in, day-out grind that makes the journey more rich. If things went perfectly right off the bat, there’d be nothing to learn. Nothing gained. I was taught at a young age that failure is the most important ingredient for success.
13. I’m obsessed with reading: preferably about personal development, philosophy, mindset and business. There is so much to learn from reading, so I make sure to block out at least 30 mins a day.
14. My favourite drinks are frozen: margarita, mojito, belinis….
15. I spent my childhood travelling: every summer my family and I spent a month boating to Alaska with my Grandpa. Throughout the year when we went in school, we’d take all holidays to visit Europe, SouthEast Asia and Africa. Some of my favourite places in the world include; South of France, Kenya, Egypt, Spain and Switzerland.
16. I have a lot of siblings: you usually only see my sister on here, but I actually also have 3 brothers, too! I am the oldest (aka: the boss).
17. My first job: after high school was to run a summer painting franchise. That’s right! I ran 3 crews of painters and managed clients all over South Delta. I didn’t make a killing but the experience of running a small business was invaluable. While my friends were all out clubbing I was learning the ins and outs of managing teams and building up clientele.
18. My biggest inspo in life: was my Grandpa (my Papa). He influenced my perspective on everything from business and design to how to build a good campfire. He was my go-to person to chat about the blog (funny enough) so this past year without him has left a huge void. I know he’s around, watching, which gives me comfort.
19. I’m currently developing a new capsule! It’s all still super hush, hush but I’m sooo excited to start dropping hints on the new collection. *Hint: we will be releasing five pieces
20. I always knew I’d be in Business: I vividly remember being asked to write out (in grade 4) what career I wanted to go into and writing out ‘business’ — bc that’s what Grandpa did. I remember bc I was so young, I couldn’t remember how business was spelt!
21. I have a MAJOR sweet tooth: I love milk chocolate anything but if it’s not chocolate I’m craving it’s sour candies. When I’m trying to stay on track the best to get are Smart Sweets, my fave are the Sour bears or the Fuzzy Peaches.
22. I’m married to a Spaniard who can’t speak Spanish: my husband was born in Mallorca, Spain and came to Canada with his family (his Mom is from Vancouver) when he was 2 or 3. SO, he never learned any Spanish! When his Dad came here he was trying to do the right thing by learning/speaking english, so that became the way at home.
23. Nature centres me: living on the West Coast of British Columbia, I have been surrounded by the ocean, mountains and the forests for my whole life. It’s something that is so special and important to me. I try to make conscious decisions in our household to make sure we are minimizing if not eliminating our use of single-use plastics and waste where we can.
24. My Eos Collaboration: last summer I went to New York to visit the #EosFlavorLab & lend my ideas to the development of the lip balms for summer 2019. All 6 flavors just launched in-stores now, you can find them at: Shoppers Drug Mart, Rexall, Loblaw’s & Jean Coutu.
25. Our condo is under 900 sq. ft: I think a lot of you think our place is a lot bigger than it is! We have under 900 sq. ft of space to work with so we’ve had to be smart about our choices and make the most of what we have. There’s a lot you can do with minimal space and a little budget.
26. My dog’s name is Xavi (cha-vey): I lost a bet to my husband in 2008 about who would win the Soccer Championships (Spain: for him or Germany: for me). Sadly, I lost the bet so he got dibs on our future dog’s name. Which sounds kind of psycho, now that I’m thinking about it.
27. We want to have kids: we’ve chosen to take our time when it comes to expanding our family. We both wanted to get established in our careers before jumping into anything. We’ve spent the last 11 years together (4 married) and have had the best time ever getting to know each other through all seasons of life. We’ve built a solid relationship and foundation that I know is going to serve us in the future. While we aren’t in any hurry, we are both definitely excited about what the future holds.
28. We also want more dogs: lord help me. We are just so completely in-love with dogs that we couldn’t imagine not adding another one to the mix when the time is right.
29. Last meal: I could eat chips + salsa + guacamole every day of my life. Just saying.
30. Working out is my therapy: there’s something SO satisfying after getting in a good sweat. Not only am I working on keeping my body healthy, more than that, I’m keeping my mind in check. I notice a big shift when I start skipping workouts here and there so I block out time to get to the gym, no excuses. My favourite things to do for exercise are: boxing, running, yoga & weight training.
31. Hydration: I use to be stingy about drinking enough water each day but now I can’t seem to get enough. I add collagen to my water, lots of ice and sometimes some lemon slices in the morning. It’s so refreshing, helps my skin, digestion and overall health.
32. Good vibes only: I’ve learned (the hard way) that exposing myself to certain people and situations drains my emotional energy. I’ve learned what type of life I want to live and how to say no to everything that doesn’t support that.
33. The best is yet to come: ppl tend to act scared about getting older but I feel the opposite. In my twenties, I got lots of life / work experience, earned my degree, bought a condo, got married and travelled. In my thirties, we added Xavi to our home and worked hard to build our careers and grow into the people we wanted to become. I’m excited to see what’s next. A new house? kids? A trip to Spain? Ready for it all!