Our September boy!

At 6am on September 17th I woke up to pee, only to walk into the bathroom and find my bladder had a mind of its own. It seems my water had decided to break right then. You were on your way, and just like your parents, early to the party despite planning to arrive late.

That whole day seemed like some surreal dream. We weren't quite expecting you to arrive for at least another couple weeks, as you were due to arrive October 3rd! In retrospect, I think we were in shock and any of the stress or worry I may had built up if you had gone the whole 40 weeks

I had been diagnosed with a bacteria (GBS), quite normal for most women, and was told to go straight to the hospital once my waters had ruptured to start a penicillin drip.

We showered and packed the rest of our bags, called a cab and off we went to Mt. Sinai.

By 7:30am we were set up in triage, waiting.

As I hadn't yet experienced contractions, the roaming doctor needed to confirm whether we were actually in labour. I was 2cm dilated, and he agreed you were on your way. They hooked me up to the IV drip and the nurses attached sensors to listen to our vitals. It was so comforting to hear your healthy heart beating away, eager to make your way and find us!

The cramps rolled in and out. I breathed my way through them — distracting myself from the pain (thanks Hypnobirthing) with Vogue's September issue and some TV in a room marked private for expectant parents. 

The delivery ward was very busy that day and like the contractions, the hours rolled by too. Every delivery room taken as we patiently waited for our own. Turns out we weren't made priority as I had decided not to scream my way through the pain. And I suppose forgotten, to some degree. At about 10:30pm we had had enough. The contractions were intensifying. We finally urged the nursing staff to find us a room. 15 minutes later we were settled in our delivery room, where I think my mind/body decided to jump into full labour.

I hadn't been checked since the very early morning when it was noted I was 2cm dilated. An oversight, I think. But our nurse promptly checked to understand the progress we had made. She exclaimed, "this is very interesting", which alarmed your daddy and I. She followed that up with a laugh and screamed "you may be a full 10cm!". My labouring was so quiet that she barely believed I was as far along. She brought in another nurse to confirm my progress. That nurse checked me again and also thought I was a full 10cm. Dr. Sherrif was then brought in to confirm where we were in our labouring — she was satisfied. Even if I had changed my mind about wanting the epidural there was no time! We were doing this! You were on your way. And fast!

With a bit of work, a few good pushes, you made your entrance into the world at 11:53pm after 18hrs of labour. All 6lbs, 3oz of you!

Daddy cut your umbilical cord just after a minute, as your cord was quite short and we didn't want to delay bringing you up to see us!!

Your cries were the most beautiful sound we had ever heard!! Your daddy and I both cried with joy at seeing you. You were gorgeous, healthy and alert! Your eyes opened and you saw your mama. We spoke to you gently, welcoming you. Your screams softened and stopped almost as soon as you heard our voices and settled into me. You knew who we were and knew you were safe with us!

You were home!! Completing our amazing family of 3!

How proud we are of you!! We love you so very much Keaton Jónas Kimmett!!!

Gift: Holiday Wrapping.

Holiday Tree Gift Wrap

Now with Halloween done away with, the inevitable happens. Christmas music and festive lights fill every space, eggnog is enthusiastically stocked and consumed, talk of snow and plans for the upcoming year ahead makes an appearance in most conversations. 

The holiday season is upon us!

I do love this time of year. There's something very cozy about it. If only I had a fireplace to sit in front of while I sip my whiskey-spiked eggnog. 

Holiday Woodland Gift Wrap

Holiday Woodland Gift Tags

Earlier this year I designed and made plans to produce my own holiday wrapping paper and gift tags, but with our upcoming move it became clear I didn't need the added stress. 

It seems a waste not to do anything with the designs though, so I'm happy to offer them as free templates to you all. It does mean there isn't as much surface space for the wrapping paper, but it should wrap tinier gifts quite nicely. 

Holiday Tree Gift Tags

All 4 templates fit 8.5" x 14" (legal) size paper and are available for download from the following links:

Holiday Woodland Gift Wrap
Holiday Woodland Gift Tags
Holiday Tree Gift Wrap
Holiday Tree Gift Tags

Happy early Holidays! xo

Wander: Vilnius, Lithuania

 

Lithuania has a rich history going back centuries, taking architectural influence from their Pagan roots, the French, the Italians and subsequently the Russians as well. 

What I found interesting (and not at all expected), was Vilnius' narrow Medieval streets as well as its Renaissance, Baroque and Gothic buildings! Given Russia's occupation, it's amazing they had the decency to leave most of Vilnius' Old Town alone. The city's beautiful character charmed them too, I guess?

With naming Vilnius a Unesco World Heritage Site, much has been done to preserve the integrity of this section of town. While many buildings look to be on the brink of falling over, people still inhabit them. Whether they're safe structures or not, is another question. Although, from where we were standing it looked as though architectural engineers are kept quite busy here.

Creatively speaking, there's so much to draw inspiration from. With all of its complexities, dark, long history and ultimate beauty, I would definitely say Lithuania is worth exploring! I'm really happy we included Vilnius on this holiday, not just for personal reasons, but also for a deeper appreciation of Eastern Europe's triumphant nature. 

We'll most certainly be back! 

Home.

My posts about our European holiday haven't ended yet, I have a couple more at least.

But I've been writing this post in my head for a while now and thought it was finally time I shared it in a more public space. Tales of Europe can wait.

It's hard to know how to feel, really. Home can mean so many different things. It can represent a place, people, a story, a collection of memories and even a feeling. 

Whatever your definition, we've definitely made Vancouver home these last 7+ years. A more beautiful place to call your own, there could never be. We count ourselves lucky to have had the life we've had here and the friends we've made over the years. Vancouver has forever changed us, and that's something we'll gladly take with us wherever we go.

And the all-too-glamorous 'wherever' has turned out to be Toronto. Yes, that's right. We're moving back, and likely no later than late January/early February. I'd say I'm as shocked as many of you, but then again, I think I always knew that's where my heart had remained all these years and where I would eventually return.

That city gave me my first concert, my first design job, my first apartment, my first cat Charlie and my first REAL love, Kevin. Those kinds of milestones are pretty tough to beat and when you have that kind of romanticized connection to a place whether it be a faded memory (real or imagined)...the pining tends to be difficult to shake. Over the years, the thought of moving home to Toronto had come up a lot, but then we'd sit by the ocean and look up at the mountains and all distant memories of a former life would fade. Life in Vancouver was too great to give up. Why even consider walking away?

The truth of the matter is, we could give you hundreds of reasons for 'why', but the one that speaks stronger than the rest...

We're ready! What excites us more than anything else – we get to come home to a place that feels familiar yet feels completely brand new as well. A chance to rediscover Toronto with new and curious eyes feels like a real gift! 

We will of course forever look at our years in Vancouver with absolute pride and smiles. Not seeing the mountains or breathing in that fresh air everyday, yeah, we'll miss that. We'll miss our friends and we'll miss this city that has truly been home for the past 7+ years...but it's time to redefine what home means to us, with family nearby. 

Wander: A sort of homecoming. Lithuania.

Feeling like I've come home.

Why come to Lithuania? Where is Lithuania?

We often got quizzical looks when we mentioned Vilnius being part of our travel plans. Much of Eastern Europe is still unchartered territory for the average traveller, so we understood anyone's surprise. Especially when its lumped in with our other heavy-footed destinations of Scotland, Berlin and Paris.  

I've always proudly identified as Lithuanian (at least in part), as I'm first generation Canadian on my father's side. As Lithuanians of a certain generation, my grandparents lived through atrocities that we have never been privy to know. Between hiding from the Nazi and Soviet armies, their last few years in Lithuania must have been filled with absolute fear, distrust and God knows what else. My father was born inside a German DP (displaced persons) camp and at the age of 6 months, he and my grandmother bravely escaped by boat to Canada. My grandfather left several months before to work as a minor in Northern Ontario. He was determined to firmly root his family in a new life away from the chaos.

Knowing part of your own history is quite dark, you're both in awe of your grandparents' strength and determination but also horrified this could ever be possible and you weep for their innocence. Lithuania finally gained its independence from Russian occupation in 1991, which has had a strong impact on how the country has flourished since. 

I have a rooted connection to my heritage, but I lacked any connection to the land itself. Being an artist there's always been something inside of me that felt very in-tune with my Lithuanian (and French) heritage. When we began planning our month-long trip my husband made a huge plea for Lithuania. Yes, Kevin was the main force behind our decision to visit my 'homeland'. 

My vision of Lithuania growing up was often a place of fear, despair and sadness, but eventually of triumph and determined spirit. My trepidation with visiting was that of fear itself. Fear I would regret coming. Fear I would find a total disconnection to the people, culture and land. Fear my heritage was only a blood line and nothing else. You have such admiration and pride for your ancestors that I feared I'd leave with a confused identity.

What my time in Vilnius has shown me is that I am in fact, Lithuanian. Our short time there brought me solace and a new sense of 'home' and belonging. While this was a personal trip to my 'homeland', it also opened me up to a whole other part of Europe!

Eastern Europe doesn't get the credit it deserves. While Western Europe is being overrun with tourists, Eastern Europe has its own thing going on. 

We'll most certainly be back! In the meantime, I've come away with a full heart and plenty of inspiration to feed my new found creativity.  

I'll share additional thoughts on our time in Vilnius in a separate post. Stay tuned.  

Wander: Berlin, after my own heart.

Whenever we spoke of our travel plans to Berlin we were often told, "Berlin is great, you'll love it...but it doesn't really look like Europe." 

That last comment was always an interesting one to me. Europe is often perceived as the "old-world" and visions of beautiful and decorative early century buildings flood the mind. Did I expect to find that in Berlin? No. About 90% of it had to be rebuilt after the war due to all of the destruction it had sustained. Would that change my perception of its worth or affect how we experienced the city? Not at all! 

Those big beautiful buildings found in other major European capitals are gorgeous, yes. But there's so much more to a city for me! It's the people, the culture, it's infectious energy and promise. There's an obvious beauty to Paris or Rome, whereas in Berlin you have to look a bit deeper which is why I find it so fascinating.

At face value, Berlin appears rough around the edges with its graffitied Soviet-style architecture which graces many parts of the city. But there lies the beauty!

Given Berlin's VERY dark history, I found Berliners to be very resilient people who have embraced change. They've had to rebuild (literally) and imagine new identities for themselves to numb the memories of the past. The creative presence found on every wall, and every passerby is a testament to that change. There is a creative energy here that I have never encountered in any other city. It's rather difficult to put into words what I mean by that, except to say open yourself up to Berlin and you'll see what I mean. 

After all, Berlin is all about self-discovery. 

A few things we've learned while in Berlin:

- Berliners are very friendly and ready to chat

- it's a very international city, with ex-pats from every place

- it's not all sausage and sauerkraut

- to be curious

- bike culture is alive and well

- public transportation is easy to navigate

Wander: Berlin, Germany

Sprechen sie Englisch, bitte? Do you speak English, please?

This is our first time visiting Germany, and I suppose the first place neither of us could speak the language. So upon landing in Berlin our lack of German was immediately sobering. Tegel is probably the most chaotic airport I've ever flown into (and that includes Heathrow) - pair that with a couple of tired travellers who don't speak the language...fear certainly took over.

What we quickly learned though is most people in Berlin speak great English. As long as you're prepared to learn a few greetings, niceties, work on pronunciation and at the very least know how to ask them if they sprechen sie Englisch, they're more than happy to converse with you in English with a smile. 

We feel much braver exercising what we've learned and are inspired to look into language classes when we get home. German may not be the prettiest language but its a really fun one! 

Being in Berlin the last several days has been nothing short of amazing! The people here are great - friendly and fascinating! The sights, the food, the graffiti and the eclectic culture that envelopes you as you wander through, has an infectious effect. There's something about Berlin that feels like coming home. Especially if you're a creative person! The fashion and overall style of Berliners is exactly what I'd fill my "personal style" Pinterest board with. 

In just a short few days, Berlin has captured my heart and my imagination too. The thought of leaving makes me sad as I feel we've only just scratched the surface, but I'll forever dream of a return trip. 

And when we finally get back here, we'll be armed with a whole new vocabulary.

Ich liebe dich, Berlin. I love you, Berlin.

Ps. I'll be following this up in the next few days with a second post about Berlin.