I'm still alive....

Hello long lost internet friends. I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since my last post. 

Well, I've certainly been busy.. or preoccupied anyway.

As if moving to a remote northern village isn't scary enough, but starting to work as an independent doctor up here... straight out of training... now that's terrifying! That's the real reason I haven't had the time or energy to post on the blog lately. I've been working for the past 12 days straight, and spending my evenings reading medical textbooks about illnesses I never thought I'd ever have to deal with.

But I finally have an entire weekend off to do some more exploring (and some much needed sleeping).

Here's what I've been up to lately...

I've been riding my bike everywhere... they get 9 months of winter up here, so I have to soak up the warmth while I can! The days are very long, and it doesn't get fully dark until around 2-3am... which is very cool to experience, but it also means that I haven't been able to see any northern lights yet.

There is a little grocery/general store up here where I can buy semi-fresh produce. I find myself becoming much more reliant on my own cooking and baking. I've started baking my own bread (in a bread machine) and growing herbs and sprouts in my windowsill. I didn't think of bringing up plant pots, so I'm using tin cans to grow basil out of.

I've become very aware of all the little luxuries I took for granted while living in a big city. It's very humbling. 

They other day I realized I was experiencing shopping withdrawal. 

I was wandering down the aisles of The Northern (that's the grocery/general store) desperately looking for something to buy... Anything! I even caught myself longingly looking at a Glade plug-in! I settled on a little dish scrubbie-thingy and a chocolate bar, and I surprisingly felt better! 

And then I realized how ridiculous that was.

As I write this post, I realize that I've only shared pictures of the beautiful side of things up here. And it is beautiful, but there's a lot of less beautiful sights and realities as well. I'll try to take some pictures of the actual village this weekend.

I hope you're all doing well, and that you have a wonderful weekend.

oxo

Vanessa.

Le Grand Nord - our new life begins...

Hello everyone!

So we're finally settling into our new life up north. 

Wow, what a change! It's so different up here.

I'm still kind of in shock with my new reality - but it's definitely exciting, and I think it's going to be a great experience.

We live on Wichishkw Road- it's a Cree name and I have no clue how to pronounce it.... but I think I like it.

I hope you're all doing well.

We finally got our internet hooked up. It's frustratingly slow, but better than nothing.

I hope to have some time this weekend to catch up with you all.

oxo

Vanessa.

Our great northern adventure begins...

So our car is all loaded up and we're moving up north.

We're about halfway up our 18 hour drive right now, and the landscape is really changing... thinning taiga forests, lichen mosses on the ground instead of grass, and almost complete isolation. It's so weird driving on open highway for hours without seeing another car.

So anyway, it might be a few days before we get our internet hooked up. So if I don't post for a while, it's not because I was eaten by a bear.... I'm probably just getting settled in : )

I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

oxo

A little bit western...

I'm loving all the western romance of July's Free People Catalog. The little hidden tassels, the oversized tops and skinny jeans (I'm not quite ready to move back to wide leg yet), the short fat boots...  perfect for those dog days of summer.

Lady Grey Loves.... WeWOOD Watches

I adore these wooden watches by the environmentally-conscious Italian company WeWOOD. The  watches are made with all natural materials, and a tree is planted with every single watch that is sold.

Aren't they pretty?!

Beaches & clouds - and back to reality

After a magical 5 day vacation by the sea, we are back in Montreal and have to face reality again. On Saturday morning we embark on our big move up north.

Our seaside escape had temporarily removed all the stresses of moving from my mind - but now that we're back in our box-filled apartment it's all coming back to me again.  

There's so much left to do... but at least for tonight I'm heading off to bed early, and will dream of the rhythmic ocean waves and pretend I have no other care in the world.

Happy Fourth of July Weekend!

 Hiya folks!

We're beach vacationing in LBI this weekend with my in-laws. And I must say, it feels incredible to be away from our box-filled apartment and all the nonstop packing we've been doing.

It's definitely a welcomed little break : )

To all my American readers out there, I wish you a wonderful fourth of July weekend.

oxo

Happy Birthday Canada!

Just wanted to pop in and say happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians out there.

I don't really have much time to celebrate today, but as you can see, I'm flying a little flag off my balcony as I pack up my apartment : )

I hope you have a fabulous weekend. 

Tomorrow we're off to LBI to visit my in-laws (one last hoorah before we move up north). For the first time in my life I will get to experience a proper Fourth of July celebration (I'm so excited!).

oxo