The pre-blog Hallowe'en photo shoot

Lemon Fresh was a Christmas gift from the not husband last year and so these photos were never published. I'm thrilled to have a chance to finally share them as they are among my favourite shots of my favourite time of year. The talented Greg did us the glorious service of documenting our ghostly festivities last year. We started in the studio showcasing my first attempt at homemade costumes. The ginger haired lovelies are the offspring of the lovely Ginger. As you can see we had dual Batman and Robins and one reluctant Dorothy. The trick or treating was joined by Ramona and brood and the street shots are a reminder of the exquisite weather of Hallowe'en 2008. Happy Celebrating everyone! My clean pathology results are making today an extra special celebration.

Tuesday Look: Post Operative

The complex thyroid nodule with cystic and solid properties and microcalcifications is gone. Expertly (and swiftly) removed by the talented Dr. Philip Solomon, plastic surgeon at Richmond Hill's York Central Hospital. Good riddance to the lump that has given me some sleepless nights and bring on the clean pathology report. Thanks to all for the well wishes and support. It means a lot. I look forward to being back at full tilt soon. Happy Tuesday.

Tuesday Look: The Nydia Necklace

I was at a lovely fete at the chic home of Ron and Laura on Saturday night in celebration of October birthdays. This crowd fails to disappoint when it comes to fashion inspiration and Saturday was no exception. The stunning Nydia was wearing this necklace in dark grey with a gun metal tunic, skinny jeans and patent flats. I've been thinking a lot about wearing necklaces lately to cover my upcoming scar and on a recent trip to Club Monaco I had seen it in their accessories collection. It could not have been more beautifully showcased than around the handsome neck of NiNi. The whole line of baubles and bags from the Club is fabulous right now and if you haven't been- Go! You don't even need to buy. The browsing was museum grade. And the fashion show of Saturday night as delicious as the food.

X-Nail Biter Gets Her Reward

This is Georgia. She is five. She bites her nails. That is she bit her nails. Since she was a baby she has been gnawing on her nails and given the fact that I have rarely had to trim her toenails, I suspect she is not discerning when it comes to the nails she wishes to bite. As a parent I add this to my list of worries. Is she nervous or anxious? Is she worried about something? Is it an indicator of an underlying problem? Or does she just like to bite her nails?

When I have my nails freshly done the kids are always fascinated with the choice of colour and want to talk about the how and the why of the manicure. I have been holding out the manicure experience as a reward for stopping the chewing. It worked. Georgia is a good six months into non biting and last weekend we took the journey to a little nail bar and got the works. I love these photos and she loved the results. She even got little flowers carefully painted on each of her tiny fingers. If only all issues were this easy to solve and as nice to look at as freshly painted nails.

Tuesday Look: Tuesday Looking

This is a picture of me taken after a long day at the office. Make up worn off completely and the overall disheveled exterior of someone who needs to get more sleep, take more vitamins, exercise more, eat better and get really disciplined about work/life balance. This is the Tuesday Look of me looking for the Tuesday Look. And while maybe this is cheating, this picture perfectly captures how I'm feeling in general right now.

The now that is happening in the first few weeks after my assistant (who is not really assistant but actually my boss) has begun her maternity leave. At a time when we are recruitment blitzing for multiple kiosks of Aveda. A time when my daughter is switching from regular SK to french immersion SK. A time when I'm trying to ready myself to be away from the office to take care of some wellness business. A time when half of my summer clothes and half of my winter clothes are mingling confused together on my dresser, on the floor of my non-closet and in the spilling over laundry basket. At a time when my house is being taken hostage by notes from school and bills and appointment cards and unread Saturday Globe and Mails that I mean to read but only ever make it to the back page of the Review section for some wordplay. When my taxes need doing and my teeth are overdue for cleaning. When I can't remember what is waiting at the dry cleaners for one hundred dollars. At a time when falling asleep and waking up are punctuated by mini panic attacks about something pretty important that I have or will forget to do. At a time when walking to the car is the most fresh air that I'm getting. When giving feedback to employees means being honest and careful and feeling crappy after because their lives are just as riddled with worries and cares. When the deadlines are bearing down and the season is winding up. And yet when I think about the changing colours and the all spice smell and the costumes and the poppies and the advent calendars and the holidays, I am joyful and grateful and more than a little excited about the beautiful brand of fatigue brought about by a rich life.

Mel's List and the inspiration of my family

I love the reality of multiple generations co-existing the way they do in families. There is my dad who is eighty-five, full of wisdom and knowledge and the sensitivity to aging that he teaches my kids. Then there are my four twenty-something brothers. As I met them later in life through the miracle of the Adoption Disclosure Registry and one very dedicated Children's Aid worker, I am grateful everyday for my relationship with their special fraternity. They keep me connected to all things Gen Y. But it's their girlfriends that make me feel like I have sisters (minus the competition). One such pseudo sister who keeps me in the latest nail polish shades and the right height heel and the correct shaped toes on my pumps is Melissa. Here are her loves of the moment.

Big Sassy Hair! I love big hair....60's inspired hair. Teased, back combed and curled to new heights. I think women should embrace their locks, put the flat irons away and showcase what your mama gave ya!

A well organized closet. Easy to find inspiration makes me feel ready for any day. I like to be able to see the accessories, shoes, jackets, scarves, earrings, and whatever else I need to feel ready to face the world.

Heels. With my 5'2 frame, I could always use some extra height. I have a great appreciation for shoes...I mean, a great appreciation. If I'm ever feeling crappy about myself, I will be wearing my tallest, highest, pair of pumps.. and I KNOW i will feel better! Who cares where you're going to go with them on. My favourite pumps for this season is the from Gucci - black patent leather platform pumps, the exact inches of this master piece is 5. Gucci should consider making shoes for common people as well.

My new apartment. This is where I am living away from the sanctuary of my parents' home for the first time with my fabulous boyfriend Frank. I love it more everyday and I love nesting and making it feel like home. (photo courtesy of apartment therapy as I'm not yet ready for the reveal)

Wine and cheese. My girlfriends and I have a tradition of wine and cheese nights and try to shamelessly outdo each other with new, better, prettier tastes! I'm waiting to serve Liza's famous cheeseball but I'm afraid the secret recipe is never coming.

Pretty colours. I didn't know what to call my latest colour obsession for this season, actually, I still don't know. It went from nude pink, dusty pink, pastel pink, toasted pink..etc. I've decided the best way to describe this shade is, to envision a piece of pale pink fabric being left out in the sun for days on end and voila! Vintage Pink

Tweezerman tweezers. I swear by these! I'm an asian girl that has extremely bushy eyebrows. Yeah that's right, it's tragic. They use to look like a pair of caterpillar's across my forehead. I realized this fact when I was old enough to pluck them in the 9th grade. Let's just say my brows got worse before they got better. As a result, I like to take great care of them, to make up for all the abuse of over plucking during my high school years.

69 Vintage. This fabulous previously loved clothing store makes you feel like a fashion insider. I love to pilfer through the not yet hung items on the floor for the gem that hasn't flown out of the store yet.

Chloe fragrance. My first encounter with this scent was during my visit to St.Johns, Antigua. My dear friend Sunny Derrick greeted my arrival at the airport with this intoxicating chloe scent.I bought the biggest bottle they carried at duty free.