The Ultimate Outdoorsy Gift Guide This guide has been a long time coming! We are outdoorsy people – we love hiking, adventuring, and exploring. And, if you’re here, there’s a good chance you do too. We put together this list of outdoorsy gift ideas to give you some inspiration when it comes to finding the…
Favourite Things Gift Guide No one wants to get or give a gift that they won’t use. Am I right? In this “favourite things gift guide,” we’re dishing on our own personal favourites we actually own and use every day. These are items that we’ve either purchased or received from loved ones as gifts and…
Experience Gift Ideas Need some experience gift ideas this year? Experience gifts are a great alternative to traditional gift-giving. It’s also something we, ourselves, have been doing for years because it addresses several concerns that we have during the holiday season. Here are a few things we love about experience gifts: They’re the perfect…
The Ultimate Travel Gift Guide There are as many types of travellers as there are types of travel which is why we’ve put together this travel gift guide. We’ve rounded up some unique gift ideas for travellers to make gifting a breeze. Our travel gift guide solves the problem we hear all the time… “So…
64 Gift Ideas for Foodies We all know some foodies! You know, that friend who spends countless hours in the kitchen creating and always has their finger on the pulse of every new restaurant opening? Heck, maybe YOU’RE the foodie and this list can serve as a wish list. Luckily, there’s no shortage of interesting…
Local Gift Guide You didn’t think we’d create all of these gift guides and not make one that celebrates Atlantic Canada, did you? Of course, we wouldn’t! We have never been more proud of our local businesses than we are after these past couple of years and we’re excited to share our Atlantic Canada gift…
Our Holiday Wish List Like any other upstanding blogger on the interwebs, I’ve spent the last couple of weeks neck-deep crafting holiday wish list ideas and gift guides for you! I’ve been going cross-eyed staring at my screen, categorizing gift ideas “for the traveller”, “for the foodie”, “experience gifts”, etc. And, like any other living,…
“Pick My Brain” Session We love connecting with people, providing resources, sharing insider information and doing the leg work on the ground during our trips and travels so you can skip the line and plan an epic vacation. We love suggesting opportunities and sharing the lesser-talked-about “things to know” about a travel destination. We…
Ultimate Bay of Fundy Travel Guide The Bay of Fundy lies between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and also touches the U.S. state of Maine. It’s most famous for having the world’s highest tides and offering world-class adventures like Tidal Bore rafting and whale watching but the wonders of the Bay of Fundy go much…
We Got Covid | Our Experience Yep, you read that title right. We got Covid-19 and had to isolate ourselves throughout the holidays. I don’t tell many personal stories on this blog, we aim to keep it very “reader” focused so we prioritize travel, itineraries, top 10 lists, etc. Our goal here is to help…
10 Inspirational Books to Read During Lockdown Here we are, in another lockdown to due the unprecedented time we’re living in. My hope is that we’ll look back at these blog posts a year from now say “remember that time we lived through a pandemic?”. Until then, it’s my goal to be a bright spot…
MICROBLADING BEFORE AND AFTER I had eyebrow microblading done back in 2019 when it was first gaining popularity. At the time, microblading in Halifax was a new service being offered with limited options when it came to microblading eyebrow services. Now, just a couple of years later, if you Google “microblading near me”, you’ll find…
The Ultimate Guide to Container Gardening So you want to start a container garden? Think your small space means you can’t have a beautiful garden this year? Think again! In this guide to container gardening for beginners, we’ll break down everything you need to know to achieve a beautiful balcony garden in any size space.…
Personal Outsourcing & Winning Back Your Time I don’t think it’s helpful to “should” all over people so before you read another sentence I want to address my title. 10 things you should outsource immediately is a bold statement. The purpose of this blog is to show you the possibilities. Not to make you feel…
Nova Scotia Accommodations with Outdoor Hot Tubs Winter is long, and we could all use a staycation. Between the lack of travel most of us have been able to enjoy in the last year due to the global pandemic, and the fact that winter tends to dampen our moods, we’re determined to help you find…
Everything You Need to Know About Botox Ah, my skin care routine. If we’re totally honest, it’s never been a top priority for me. I was “that girl” who spent a huge part of my life not just outdoors in the sun, but also in tanning beds! Lots and lots of tanning beds. Yes, that’s…
My Skin Journey Let me preface this by saying, I’ve only just started my skin care journey with Katy at Bedford Skin Clinic. My intention is to keep you updated as the months tick by so that you can get a full picture but I didn’t want to wait any longer to share the…
Reasons to Visit Barrington We’ve talked about Barrington a couple of times (you can find the links here and here) in the past, but we felt that putting together a list of “18 Things To Do” would be a great way to make sure that YOU know the many reasons to visit Barrington this year.…
100 Night Sleep Review with Endy There was a time when tackling a 100 night sleep review would have sent me into a panic. Let me start by saying that sleep has always been an important part of my life. I never pulled all-nighters in University. Frankly, I couldn’t, and to this day I don’t…
ULTIMATE GUIDE TO SHELBURNE COUNTY A remarkably underrated part of Nova Scotia has got to be Shelburne County. This wasn’t our first time visiting Shelburne County (check it out here and here), yet we’ve still discovered new and exciting things each time we go! We decided that it’s time to put it together in one, big,…
How to Stop Peeing Your Pants Vagina. Say it with me…vagina. There, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way and none of us burst into flames for naming our parts can we all agree that open, candid conversations about female anatomy are important? Now brace yourself for another one. I use to pee…
Our Urban Balcony Garden Reveal Urban gardening is (apparently) a thing! However, urban gardening in Canadian climates is severely under-represented as we’ve learned. Yes, we’re travel bloggers! No, we have never talked about gardening before. But here’s the thing. Not being able to travel outside of the Atlantic Bubble has allowed us to create space…
The Ultimate Armchair Travel Guide Whether you’re a seasoned globe-trotter who finds themselves suddenly stuck at home or a home-body who prefers to dream from the comfort of their living room, we’ve got you covered. Staying home doesn’t mean you can’t continue to explore, learn, and grow through travel. In this ultimate armchair travel guide,…
Questions to Ask Before Starting a Balcony Garden We’re apartment dwellers. We made a decision years ago that we wanted the freedom, flexibility, and security an apartment offers so that we can prioritize travel. But, as such, there are some sacrifices that come with apartment life…like outdoor space. It only recently occurred to us that…
How to Choose the Right Plants for a Balcony Garden Figuring out how to choose the right plants for a balcony garden was the easy part. Finding the right planters and containers for a small space garden was another task entirely! And, dearest blog reader, the container (as I’ve learned) is an essential part…
Post-Travel Depression Have you ever felt bummed after a trip? The first time I felt the pang of sadness that comes at the end of a trip I thought something must be wrong with me. How could I be so selfish? How could I possibly be sad after coming home from a wonderful (and privileged)…
7 Cozy Nova Scotia Winter Getaways Finding the perfect fit for your travel style Here in Nova Scotia, we’re notorious for complaining about the winter and wishing for warmer days but we’ve got 7 cozy Nova Scotia winter getaways that we think will change your tune. You know by now that we don’t hit…
Creating a Winter Capsule Wardrobe When it comes to creating a winter capsule wardrobe, there are a lot of “rules” out there. You’ll find no shortage of blog posts that tell you that you’ve got to have 37, 40, 20 or even just 10 items in your winter capsule. Rather than repeating the hard and…
Minimalist Valentine’s Day Ideas I never thought I’d be married. I thought I just wasn’t “one of those people” and that I wasn’t cut out for marriage. Then I met Brent and he literally swept me off my feet on our first date. Since then, it’s been one incredible experience after another and nearly 7…
How to Pack for Carry-on Travel In my experience, packing is a point of contention for a helluva lot of travelers. You’re either overwhelmed trying to stuff everything you own into your already oversized suitcase or you’re worried that you’ve missed something crucial in your attempt to pack light. Am I right? Figuring out how…
Oh girl (or dude), this is a loaded blog post! I’ve been sitting on this one for a while because I know it will trigger some of you. How do I know? Because it triggers me! Every other post, ad, and commercial you see this time of year is about weight loss and fitness. The…
Men and Group Fitness As stereotypes go, group fitness for men is right up there. Have we made progress? Sure. But there are still massive misconceptions that exist about group fitness as a viable option for men. Why? Because historically, fitness classes have largely been marketed towards women. Let’s look at some other common misconceptions…
How to Build a Capsule Wardrobe A Beginners Guide What does building a capsule wardrobe have to do with travel? Well, a helluva lot more than you think! And why am I (a non-fashionista) talking to you about fashion? Precisely because I’m NOT a fashion blogger! It’s easy for a professional stylist or established fashion…
Oceanfront Beach House Retreat In what world does an oceanfront beach house retreat sound like a bad idea? None! Am I right? AibBnb has taken the accommodation world by storm! While not all traditional accommodation owners are loving the competition, I personally think it’s holding everyone to a higher standard. And that, I can get…
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT MICROBLADING Microblading is all the rage right now in the fashion & beauty world. Admittedly, that’s not MY world but I am all about simplifying and systematizing my life to save time. Efficiency is everything in our biz (and lives). The last thing I want to do is spend…
Essential Travel Medication A first aid kit is typically a no-brainer when it comes to travel. Most people know to have the basics handy. Bandaids, surgical tape, gauze, etc. But. over the years we’ve seen too many people get injured, ill or worse on trips and not have access to the over-the-counter medications that they…
AN OPEN LETTER TO MY OLDER SELF Open letters are a common thing now. If you google “an open letter to my…” you’ll get a whole slew of common search terms from Google. People write open letters to their parents, their siblings, their younger selves, their exes, their friends and their bosses but what you…
10 Essential Bar Tools If you’ve ever been to a high-end cocktail bar you’ve seen the magic happen. I’m always mesmerized by the mixologists shaking, stirring, mixing & tossing ingredients around with a seemingly encyclopedic recipe and ingredient knowledge. It’s also fun to watch them use an endless array of bar tools to craft something…
HOW TO CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOSET Take a deep breath friend, because shit’s about to get real over here. Today marks the beginning of a series of blog posts that will (if you know me) shock the hell out of you and I wanted to give you fair warning. We’re talking minimalism. And we’re starting…
Essential Oils For Travellers Tell me if you can relate. You like the idea of natural alternatives to support your health and wellness, you’ve heard about essential oils, maybe even bought some (or many, like me) but you really have no idea what to do with them. Can I get an amen? This is totally…
The New Quarterdeck Menu That’ll Make You Drool We’ve lost track of how many visits we’ve made to the Quarterdeck! This is, hands down, our very favorite place to stay in Nova Scotia and we love everything about it. The amenities are incredible, the area is just amazing and hand-crafted cocktails are to die for…
OUR FIRST RV TRIP 5 Things You Need To Know Before Your First RV Trip We are brand new to RVing and, if we’re honest, it can be intimidating if you’ve never done it. It’s that reason alone that RVing has never really been on our “must do” radar but when Stone’s RV reached out…
The Ultimate 90’s Playlist Oh.My.God. Becky, look at her butt… If you’re a 90’s child (like me – I was born in ’83), there are some lyrics you’ll never forget! Music has always been a BIG part of my life and though the trends have certainly morphed over the years, I stand firm that the…
We ADORE our home province of Nova Scotia on Canada’s east coast. I feel like a lot of travel bloggers spend a ton of time exploring the world but very little exploring their own backyards (or maybe that’s just my perception). Brent and I made a conscious decision when we started that while we’re not…
A few years back, Brent and I decided that rather than giving gifts of “things” to our loved ones on special occasions we would give gifts of experiences. We’re privileged enough, as a family, that we all have everything need but what we all want more of is time with each other. So we started…
I recently came across a bucket list I wrote back in 2012 and it was a trip! I actually had 100 different things on the list and I remember, at the time, writing down things I never thought would actually happen. But do you know what? Since we started this blog, we’ve checked off an…
Do you know what’s crazy? October & November of this year were a little slow for us in terms of travel. In fact, we even found ourselves saying “this is a travel blog…we need to travel A LOT more”. But, when I actually sat down to recap our year, it was astonishing to me how…
It’s always a treat when we get to work with someone who’s not just a super cool boss babe but when that person is also someone we call “friend”. My HOME Mercantile (sister company to My HOME Apparel) is where I find myself when I’m stuck on gift ideas. They’ve got so much more than…
“If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently. Well, when you look into infinity, you realize that there are more important things than what people do all day.” ~ Bill Watterson, Calvin and Hobbes As we waited for the clouds to clear over Bon…
I know what you’re thinking…weird title right? Who wants and INCOMPLETE guide to Anna Maria Island? Well dearest blog readers, you do. And here’s why… We had the pleasure of spending 4 beautiful days on Anna Maria Island this year and while we had some wonderful adventures, we also realized that this is a place…
We’ve used AirBnB before but only for one off’s at the last minute and never outside of Canada so, essentially, this was our first true multi-night AirBnB experience. If you’re unfamiliar with the site, AirBnB is a place that gives homeowners the opportunity to rent out their properties to travellers. They’re often managed privately (by…
Historic Charm at the Tata House It’s no surprise that we adore the North Shore of Nova Scotia. We have a real soft spot for Tatamagouche, Malagash, River John & the surrounding area not only because there are so many unique things to do but mainly because the PEOPLE are outstanding. Case and point? Just…
Saint Andrews by-the-sea and the Algonquin Resort It was nearly 10 years ago that I visited Saint Andrews, New Brunswick with my Mother and Grandmother on one of our annual “Three Generations Girls Trips” and I remember vividly, driving the trough the famous Algonquin Resort arch and saying, “Wow, I need to stay there”. It…
WINTER GLAMPING AT FUNDY NATIONAL PARK Not all the long ago, if you wanted to go camping in the winter you had to be willing to invest in the winter gear, sleep on the ground, and battle the elements. With the recent rise of alternative camping solutions it’s become more and more accessible for those…
A WINTER RETREAT TO CAMBRA SANDS Cambra Sands is conveniently located directly on the beach in Malagash, Nova Scotia just minutes from Tatamagouche which happens to be one of our very favourite little villages! We’re no strangers to travelling in less than idea weather conditions so while everyone was shooting us sideways glances at the…
4 REASONS TO VISIT THE QUARTERDECK A mile of white sand and sweeping views of the ocean is only the beginning of the luxury that awaits you at the Quarterdeck. Located on the south shore of Nova Scotia, about 15 minutes from Liverpool, it’s no secret that the Quarterdeck is one of our absolute favourite…
5 Reasons to Choose a Vacation Rental with Lease Better This was our first time staying in a vacation rental so we weren’t sure what to expect when we pulled in to the driveway of this lovely vacation rental home in Chester, Nova Scotia. We’re accustomed to all sorts of different scenarios from luxury resorts…
DOME GLAMPING AT TREETOP HAVEN I first heard of domes or tree pods a couple of years ago when Parks Canada put one in one of their campgrounds. I promptly got on the phone to book it, and it was (within minutes of being released) sold out for the season. I remember it being a…
5 Reasons to Getaway to Oceanstone : The Winter Edition This wasn’t our first trip to Oceanstone and rather than do “another” review post about the details of this seaside resort we thought we’d instead entice you to visit. So, here are our top 5 reasons to visit Oceanstone Seaside Resort this year. You can…
White Point Beach Resort: The Romance Package We’re frequent fliers at White Point Beach and although we’ve been to this South Shore resort more than a few times, each time we’re there the experience is different. Oddly enough, we’ve never actually been in the summer so we’re yet to splash in the waves! CHECKING IN…
The Deacon Escarpment Cabins A Blast From Brent’s Past! If you’re looking for a unique, off the grid experience and you love being in the woods then you’ll love the Deacon Escarpment experience as much as we did. The cabins offer all the charms of camping without actually having to sleep on the ground, in…
STAYING AT THE SUGAR HILL INN, New Hampshire The moment those majestic white mountains rose up in front of us we knew we were in for an amazing couple of days in New Hampshire. This was the second leg of our week long trip through New England in search of snow (there was none in…
STAYING AT HARTSTONE INN & HIDEAWAY: A Seaside Village Retreat New England is famous for it’s Inns and B&B’s which was a major factor in our decision to road trip through the area. If you’ve been reading our blog for a while, you know that we adore boutique style accommodations and make a point to…
As (almost) full time travel bloggers there are two phrases we hear just about daily. The first is, “Must be nice to get to travel all the time. I can’t afford that” and the other is, “How do you make money?”. That second question is odd to us, albeit valid since travel blogging for a…
If you’ve done any amount of travelling you’ve likely experienced a guided tour at one point or another. Tours range from historic walking tours that are just a couple of hours long to multi-week guided tours and, of course, the ever infamous booze cruise. Let’s be honest, we’ve all indulged in one (or ten) of…
We’ve spent the vast majority of the last year travelling around Nova Scotia and showing off everything our home province has to offer from food to adventure, accommodations to hiking trails and everything in between. In that time we’ve been invited further and further away from NS to visit other parts of our Country and…
All inclusive resort vacationing isn’t something we do often but there’s something to be said the for no-fuss, stress-free, turn-your-brain-off kind of vacation a resort offers. We recently got married in the Mayan Riviera, Mexico and as we were trying to decide on a resort that would accommodate all 54 of our guests, we had to consider…
If you’re anything like me, you have a running tally of things that drive you crazy when it comes to packing! Yet, somehow I never remember those things as I get ready for my next trip (like figuring out a way to bring my jewelry without spending a full day untangling it when I arrive).…
Oceanstone Seaside Resort As our Nova Scotia Winter Getaway series draws to a close we find ourselves growing quite versed in what makes a getaway stand out. Far and above all else, the level of service is what sets any stay apart and Oceanstone Seaside Resort has that in spades. In fact, the term “customer service”…
This was our first visit to Mersey River Chalets and Nature Retreat and we were looking forward to an off-the-grid getaway. Located in Caledonia Nova Scotia, these chalets were a great place to spend the night – particularly after another big snowfall in Nova Scotia. CHECKING IN: MERSEY RIVER FIRST IMPRESSIONS As we drove in the…
Perfectly perched atop Fitzpatrick Mountain, Smith Rock Chalets offer endless possibilities for a perfect winter getaway. The views are stunning and whether you want to cozy up by the fire or head to the trails for a winter adventure, there’s no shortage of options here. CHECKING IN The trees hung heavy with snow over the…
“Life at Mother nature’s pace” This was our second stay at Irwin Lake Chalets and we knew back in the fall when we visited, we needed to come back in the winter. Even the drive out through Old Barns and then down the winding, dirt Lochaven Road sets the tone for your visit. Earlier…
The Shubenacadie river, in the adventure travel world, is known for one thing…Tidal Bore Rafting! Yes, riding the copper river in an inflatable boat is something you should experience (if you haven’t already) but there’s another side to those mighty waters. There’s a side that’s quiet & tranquil during the winter months when the…
Nova Scotia’s year-round sandbox! In the last few months we’ve been fortunate enough to visit White Point twice, and both experiences were exceptional. The resort is located on a 1km white sand beach but also boasts nearby lakes, rivers and forests – all of which offer different accommodations based on your preference. Upon arrival,…