Exactly one year ago today, I loaded up the car and drove eight hours solo, with only Rex and a queue of podcasts for company, to move from Calgary to Kelowna. The entries from my one-line-a-day journal from this time last year are kind of nuts; frantic descriptions of packing, cleaning, and purging, interspersed with lawyer meetings and nervous breakdowns. I said to myself a million times, between crying to myself singing along to The Climb and Unwritten, there will be a time after this. And there was! There was a time after that! This is the time, and it’s good.
Here we are one year after that time of pure chaos, and so I give you:
Nicole’s Favourite Things: The One Year Anniversary Edition
Better Homes and Gardens
While it’s true that I loved my cozy little bungalow in my warm and wonderful community, with the gardens that we designed and built and planted and cared for over twenty-three years, wow, do I love my new home and gardens. There’s something amazing to me about upsizing to a spacious house with clean lines and huge windows and lots of light, with a giant yard and garden and a growing season that is over twice as long as what I experienced before. Every single morning I go into my garden, and every single morning I am filled with delight and happiness.
I cannot even believe the amount of produce we’ve had so far and how gratifying I find it, harvesting vegetables and incorporating them into my meal plans. And the things I don’t grow, I can buy at the local farm market for what seems to me to be incredibly low prices.
Now, am I going to have approximately one million tomatoes and half as many zucchinis? Possibly. But I will take on the challenge of Extreme Produce Glut with gusto.
Scrub a Dub Dub
I’ve always wanted an ensuite bathroom, and now I have one, complete with the makeup table of my dreams. I love the light colours of the walls and tiles but I noticed that I was getting weird, gross orange and black stains on the floor tile grout. I mean, I’m all up for seasonal Halloween decor but not on my grout and not year-round.
You know me, I am all about the hippie cleaning products and using white vinegar and Scrub Daddies for everything, but nothing like that was removing these stains, no matter how much elbow grease was applied. I don’t like bleach and I don’t like harsh-smelling products that make my eyes water, but the stains were making me insane. Or, in-stain.
Desperate, I bought this CLR cleaner as a Hail Mary, and HOT DAMN.
I realize that this would be a much more dramatic photo if there was a “before,” but you’ll have to believe me, this is an incredible, almost total improvement on the situation.
Hair Affair
If you, like me, always squint and look with extreme interest at bathroom photos to decipher the types of products that are kept in a shower, well, squint no more! I am more than happy to talk about my new favourite hair product, Prose, and I am not even a little bit embarrassed to tell you that I heard it mentioned on a variety of podcasts many times over, and because the algorithm is always listening, those products also started showing up in my social media feed. Then I started to get codes for 50% off and I ask you, what’s a girl to do?
Now, you know I’m never going to talk about beauty products unless I’ve used them for at least a few months; I started using Prose shampoo, conditioner, and something called a pre-shampoo mask in early March and I do not think I can adequately express the metamorphosis that I have experienced.
How Prose works is that you fill out a survey about what your life is like, including things like your postal code, exercise routines, and diet, as well as what trauma you put your hair through on the daily and what your hair goals in general are. For me, I heat style and colour my hair and my main goal is to KEEP my hair. Then they send you products that are specific to your needs, including scent preferences. The labels have your name on them which is an adorable touch, I think.
I admit I was skeptical at first but not anymore. I feel like my hair has a new lease on life.
You Put The Lime In The Coconut
I try to spend as many hours a day as possible outside, and in the heat of the day, the shade of my deck is a perfect place to be. And what could be nicer on a Friday afternoon in summer than an icy cold cocktail?
Now, my friend Liv (HI LIV) told me at least a decade ago about coconut tequila, but to be honest, it fell off my radar, at least until last December when a friend made me an unseasonable, but very welcome, margarita. What made it so delicious, I asked? COCONUT TEQUILA. It was everything Liv had been trying to tell me for ten years, and more.
My coconut-lime margarita life was on hold until about a six weeks ago, when I a) found a lime margarita mix at the grocery store, and b) actually went to the liquor store in search of coconut tequila. There’s no going back now, it’s my new favourite drink for the summer.
You Put The Pine(apple) In The Coconut
But of course one cannot survive on coconut lime margaritas alone. I like a refreshing non-alcoholic beverage for regular weekdays, and Bubly came out with a pineapple coconut flavour that I am obsessed with.
Look, the can is so friendly! Hola!
Outfit of the Month
Do you have a Summer Uniform? I sure do, it’s a plain black tank top with a Lululemon skirt, the kind that has shorts attached underneath so I can go about my daily business without being worried I am going to show my panties to the world, or, more specifically, my children. No need to traumatize them.
Very occasionally I’ll swap out the black tank for a white one, but since I am a walking disaster, I will almost inevitably be ending the day with stain remover when that happens.
When it comes to clothing, I’m not a very colourful gal generally, except in the summer. I have this same skirt in a variety of colours. I’m at the point in life where if there is a piece that fits, feels good, and is cute, then I like to get multiples of that piece. The Uniform fulfils the three C’s: cool, comfortable, and cute. The sandals are Skechers slides, which are absolutely perfect for slipping on and comfortable enough to walk around in.
One whole year! Thank you to all my wonderful friends who have made the transition so smooth; my Calgary friends who wished me well, my Kelowna friends (especially Sammi, HI SAMMI) who welcomed me with open arms, and every single reader who sent love and encouragement my way. I love and adore you all. xo
I’m glad you’ve landed on your feet in Kelowna. Your zinnias are so pretty… Ours haven’t bloomed yet and deer keep getting into the cherry tomatoes, but there’s plenty of summer left for both.
Zinnias are such cheerful flowers, I think next year I am going to plant more!
I love that you’re here now, Nicole. I remember last year with its stressors, and remember how you screwed your courage to the sticking place when you set off with Rex. It alls sounds blissful–summer, garden, relaxation… and great hair!
Thanks Maya, it was certainly a nutty time and the whole summer was swallowed by it, so this summer I’m really trying to soak up every minute!
So much to love here! That Bubly- I have not tried that flavor but now I want to. And I’ve definitely heard of Prose but never tried it. I’m guessing it’s expensive, BUT so is the shampoo and conditioner I’m currently using from Aveda, so I could definitely make the switch. You’ve convinced me. And we also have a grout Situation here, so I will try that product!
I’m very glad you’re happily settled and love your new home. Proof that “there will be a time after this” is really true.
It’s expensive, but I think it is on par with other specialty shampoos. Interestingly enough, I feel like I have to wash my hair less often now, so I don’t use as much as I thought I would. The Bubly is so good – I like a lot of the flavours, but this one is really excellent!
I went down the rabbit hole of where you live, as I’m not very good with Canadian geography and forget how huge Canada really is. You have a big lake by you! And have you been to Mission Hill Winery?🤣 I could go on and on! It’s such a good feeling to move and be happier. We are celebrating our 12 year anniversary in this house and still so thrilled we upsized (when everyone was asking if we were moving to downsize 🙄). We love our big windows and big closets!
Thank you for the review of CLR. We have what looks tone the same shower wall tile and get little black dots of mold. The contractors told me to not use bleach or vinegar, so I’ve been frustrated. I’ll give CLR a try!
I’ve never even heard of coconut tequila. YUM!
I do indeed have a big lake and I live in wine country! In fact I live on a vineyard just down from a winery – not Mission Hill though, but it’s not far from me. I’m happy we upsized too; I thought when the boys left home I wanted them to always have space to come back to for visits, plus families if they have them.
How nice to be able to look back and celebrate what a good difference a year made! We are bubbly twins, that flavor is in my house right now. I also like 1800 Coconut Tequila in Lime Seltzer…mmmm. Your hair does look so full and bouncy, maybe I should take the plunge.
1800 coconut tequila is what I have too! I didn’t think of lime seltzer, what a great idea. I am going to try that for sure!
I’m so happy that you are so happy! I cannot imagine how stressful moving provinces could be. I’m pretty boring moving only about 100km west in my entire life (25 km per move). Your garden is so gorgeous. All that fresh produce would be amazing. I think high quality shampoo is actually more cost effective. I have very thick hair and use maybe a dime-size amount versus the handful I need with the lower quality products.
IT WAS SO STRESSFUL PAT. So very stressful and so many details to iron out, but they are all ironed now!
I agree – high quality products, you need less of. They are still more expensive per use, but I only need to use a little!
I’m so happy that this was such a positive move for you and your family! The gardening prospects alone were worth it.
I’ve got to look into Prose as I’m going through a bad hair trend lately.
Coconut tequila? Hmmm…sounds interesting. One of my fave margarita flavors is cucumber and one time I took it upon myself to infuse my tequila with cukes. It was so good. But it was also work. (Not a lot, but I’m getting lazier now) I’m intrigued with the coconut version.
The bubly flavor is right up my alley and I’m gonna look for it.
Mmm like a cucumber lime margarita, is that what you mean? I could definitely get behind that. It feels like the season for it!
I wasn’t sure about Prose but you can usually get a discount code, and then once I tried it I was hooked!
Wow, it’s already been a year since your big move! I’m so glad you’re enjoying life in “the time after this.” ❤️I love seeing pictures of your yard, produce, refreshing beverages, and everything! You always brighten my day with your posts!
It’s been a whole year!!! Unbelievable. I was just thinking when I woke up this morning that today is the anniversary of the first walk Rex and I took here!
My summer uniform is a dress. LOL. I do not want waists in my clothes. I have serious ones for the office and fun colorful ones for at home, but I basically only wear a skirt if I have to, never wear pants, and grumpily wear shorts/pants for workouts. But just grabbing a dress means I don’t have to worry about multiple pieces and people always think I look put together, but the trick is that I’m just wearing a dress and jazz it up with accessories if I’m going to the office.
It is so exciting that you are finally at home and comfortable with it. I remember when we were moving between two places and we kept saying “the apartment” and “the house” and neither one of them felt like home until one day “the house” became home. Like magic!
Your dresses always look great! My skirts are all stretchy, because I know what you mean about waists in general. But you always look fabulous in a dress, it’s such a smart uniform!
Happy 1 year! Wow did that go fast! I know that is a cliche thing to say but it doesn’t seem like a year ago that you were packing everything up and moving provinces and here we are! You live in such a gorgeous area so I can see why you are so very happy there. I wish I could take some of those tomatoes off your hands because there is nothing like a garden-fresh tomato! Or cucumber! Or squash! Or tomatillo! And so on and so forth. I do miss having a garden but I know this is not the season for that. In 10 years I could be retired and then I can have a massive garden and can can salsa and spaghetti sauce (which I used to do before I had kids and then I think twice more after having kids when I had to come to the realization that my life was not conducive to gardening or canning…).
I am tempted to try those hair products! But I’d need 2 sets – 1 for the season of life when I wear my hair curly/let it air dry and another for Oct-May when I blowdry my hair nearly daily.
I love your summer outfit! I just bought a skort with built-in shorts at Target in bright pink. I liked it so much that I bought 2 in black and another in bright pink (they only had 2 colors). It’s very comfy and nice to not worry about showing my underwear or what have you when I’m crouching down to pick up the toddler.
It went fast and slow at the same time – time is so weird! So much has happened in the past year, it’s crazy.
10 years from now you’ll have your giant garden and it will be great! I certainly couldn’t have had a garden like this when my kids were little. It was all I could do to just keep up with perennial beds back then!
Wow, it’s been a year already?! I do remember how stressed you were prior to move and look at you now. Blooming where you’ve been transplanted and loving it. I’m so happy for you. I love your summer uniform, mine is generally shorts when kicking around the house but I do prefer skorts when I want to look a little more pulled together. In fact, I’m wearing one now.
I was SO stressed!!!! But yes, a whole year and I love it! There have been bumps and adjustments but it feels pretty smooth now.
I can hardly believe it has been a year and, in typical Nicole fashion, you’ve squeezed every ounce of joy and sunshine out of your new home.
It takes a while to recover from something as stressful as a move and I’m so glad that you’re well on the other side of such a big transition.
I will have to keep my eye open for that Bubly. I haven’t seen it here in Nova Scotia yet but my stash of sparkling water is getting low!
I’m with Engie in that I LOVE wearing dresses in the summer. I have rather enormous hips and shorts and pants in general are a nightmare. Dresses are perfection!
I usually only wear dresses if I’m going “out” but I love the idea of a nice cool cute housedress. I was actually thinking of you and my Bubly, because I know you love your sparkling water!
Oh, congrats on this year of such change! I’m so happy for you, loving where you are.
I have been working on building an everyday uniform for the last couple of years; it’s so much simpler. Though menopause threw a wrench into it when I suddenly gained 10-15 pounds this spring, so it doesn’t all fit the way it did. Sigh. Still, I love the idea!
C, I HEAR YOU. I just rage-went through my closet because I have so many items that just don’t fit right anymore. Without going into too much detail, what happened to my waist? It seems to have disappeared.
Wow – it’s been a year already. I’m so glad you are enjoying your new home and the garden is so productive. I love the outfit. My summer uniform includes a skirt with built in shorts too. I have a few different versions from different brands, but one is a clear favorite. The hair product custom to you – amazing.
The skirt with shorts is such a cute and practical look!
Your hair looks fab!! Love the joy you take from your life.
Thanks so much Sarah! Right back atcha on both fronts.
Coconut tequila? I’ve never heard of that and while I like both coconut and tequila, maybe I like them in separate ways. Your hair looks wonderful, those products are doing their thing. My summer uniform? T-shirt, jeans shorts, Birks, a ball cap, and sunblock!
Oh yes, the sunblock! My signature scent these days seems to be Hawaiian Tropic! I never leave the house without it.
Happy Moving Anniversary! Ugh moving is so awful and I’ve only ever done it as a single person. Something tells me it would not be any better in the couples or family version.
We have a ton of home improvements that we’ve been putting off, and just recently we’ve started the ball rolling. And by “we” I mean that I started pestering the Hubs to get some contractor estimates. We *should* be at the point where our house has less wear and tear from kids and since we’re not moving the longer we wait to do these things will be the longer that we don’t have nice things so there’s no reason to wait anymore.
I use a different CLR product for the shower, so I’ll have to try the one that you got. The one that I use is fine, but I have to use vinegar for those funky water & soap scum stains that our shower gets.
Yep when the universe bombards you with a particular hair product and sends you 50% off deals…it’s the universe’s way of telling you that it wants you to have good hair!
Note to self: get coconut tequila.
Birchie, I know what you mean about wear and tear. I wasn’t there when the movers packed everything up, and so I didn’t see the house empty, but my husband says it was kind of shocking to see what the house looked like without all our furniture, etc. Let’s just say 23 years of living including 19 years of growing boys and 15 years with a dog took its toll.
Vinegar would not budge the stains, to my distress, because I love using vinegar. But this stuff really worked, although I really should have taken a before photo.
MOVING IS THE WORST. Moving provinces in particular was really, really stressful.
I like the idea of upsizing when retired, with plenty of space for two of us, garden, trails, and plenty of rooms for cats, both my husband and I are obsessed with cats.
I love your summer outfit! Mine all year long outfit is jean short and t-shirt (the same brand just different colors). I like colorful outfit for running gears though, and lately also sunglass. It brings me so much joy.
The view from your house is sooooo beautiful! So green and open.
Yes, Coco! That’s exactly what I mean, it’s great to upsize so that you always have room for the kids to come by with their (maybe?) future families. And how you feel about cats, that’s me with dogs!
“same brand but different colours” – exactly me too!
One whole year! It has been quite the year for you and you’ve accomplished a lot, not to mention all the new things you tried, places you’ve travelled and more! It’s been fun to read all about it and inspiring. 🙂 I don’t usually drink flavoured drinks other than coffee or tea but I love the pineapple coconut Bubbly!
Thank you so much, Anna! It’s been quite a ride!
Happy Anniversary of being in your home! When does it stop being the ‘new’ house? Now maybe? My daughter used Prose products for ages and loved it. I’m not sure why she moved on. She now uses Pantene for shampoo and conditioner, and other premium products for styling.
Around here, if you have TOO MUCH produce, you can donate some to a food bank I think. Just FYI in case your garden overwhelms you.
My summer wardrobe is capri pants, a loose, light weight top, and sandals. Every single day unless we have the rare cold day, then I put on jeans.
J, there is an organization here that also takes excess produce – this is a real orchard/ vineyard/ growing area, so there’s lots of great local produce.
I think you’re right, I think it’s just the “house” now, without the “new.”
Happy house anniversary, Nicole!! Ours is May 31, 2014… So I have it on the calendar asa “yearly” reminder – June 1st of every year is the Foxrun anniversary. We call our house Foxrun since we have quite a few foxes here.
Foxrun! That’s delightful! Thank you, Daria.
A WHOLE YEAR! Omg, Nicole, you made it and it sounds wonderful! This made me a little teary: “And there was! There was a time after that! This is the time, and it’s good.”
Your shower is GORGEOUS. And I think you know I covet your gardens with all my heart. Amazing!!!!
Also, your hair looks fantastic. I have been seeing ads for Prose on Instagram and always watch with interest, and now maybe I need to make the leap. Hmmm. Hmmmmmmm.
I am so happy you love your new home so much! What a wonderful change! And so fantastic to be on the other side of that change.
Your hair is gorgeous all the time, Suzanne! But if you do give it a try, see if you can get one of those 50% off deals!
Oh no, no, you cannot tempt me with another hair product (but I’ve been advertised the Prose hair care in many places, too). Are you still taking Nutrafol?
Also, tell me more about your favorite blank tank – it looks cute! (Very much my style!)
San, I am still taking the Nutrafol, and that is the single thing that makes the most difference, I think!
My tanks almost exclusively come from the Gap or Old Navy! I find they have perfect, plain tanks that are long enough to suit me – I don’t love the cropped tops that are everywhere now.
Nicole, I love the joy that radiates from this post. You got Through It, and now you are reaping (literally, in the case of your garden) the benefits. I am so, so happy for you. And also? I WANT YOUR FARM STANDS! Not your kale, mind you, but your farm stands. 🙂
Thanks Anne! There are farm stands everywhere here and they are a delight.