Stella McCartney for Gap Kids

Okay, so I don't have a baby (and that's okay right now, trust me) but when I do I can't wait to dress her (or him) up in the cutest clothes imaginable. My mother made me the sweetest hand smocked dresses in the world when I was little and I love to go through them sometimes, marveling at how small and cute I once was. And what a little fashion plate! There is a wealth of cute kids clothes on the market now and the latest venture to be talked about is the union between uber talented designer Stella McCartney with The Gap. 

Her capsule collection ranges for children from newborns up to 12 years and includes adorable versions of tulle ballerina skirts, boys band jackets and even an incarnation of her super popular leopard face sweater that was seen in a T shirt version on both Megan Fox and Emily Deschanel (which I'm hoping will fit me in a kids XL). So if you have kids or your friends have them and you are searching for a gift for the upcoming holiday, think Stella McCartney for The Gap and give the little lucky him or her a slice of fashion history. 

Visit the collection here. 

What I Miss Dearly About Childhood on My Favourite Things

My lovely friend Chloe of My Favourite Things has been revisiting her childhood this week in the most wonderful way. She has been reminiscing about her favourite things when she was a little girl and asking her friends to do the same. I was happy to regress a few years and think of what I missed most about being a child. There were so many happy memories swirling in my brain but I managed to narrow my list down enough to post. 

Here is my list...

10 Things I Miss Dearly About Childhood

1. Barbies. My Little Ponies. Gem and the Holograms. Care Bears.

2. Gymnastic "competitions" with two of my neighbours; two of us would compete and one would judge but I could do a back walkover so I basically always won. Oh, the good old days.

3. Elaborate and sweet birthday parties thrown by my amazing mother. 

4. Patent leather Mary Janes with white knee socks. The love of fashion started early.

5. Eating all my trick or treating candy in a week flat. I was (and still am) a sugar fiend!

6. Decorating the Christmas tree with Bing Crosby on the tape deck (yes, tape deck) and drinking egg nog while my Dad swore as he untangled the lights and my mother soothed him and then basically did everything herself. Sigh.

7. Cabbage Patch Dolls. I had two. I rocked.

8. Sticker collecting, for sure. I was beyond obsessed.

9. Splashing in puddles with my gumboots and playing in the rain endlessly. I still love rainy weather.

10. What I miss most~ looking at the world with child's eyes. Everything was so big, endless, possible, easy, simple. I miss that childhood innocence most of all.

Thank you, Chloe, for asking me to take part on your wonderful blog! It is an honour. Please read My Favourite Things for more of these charming lists!

Reconnection

The most amazing thing happened to me today. I am giddy with it. I woke up to a typical Sunday morning. My roommate/brother is touring so the apartment was mine alone. I was blissfully lazy, laying in bed while on my laptop. Facebook. Oh, Facebook. Such a love/hate relationship. Today I am grateful for it. 

I had a friend request, intriguing in itself. The name was so familiar. Unfathomable. I blinked in shock, genuinely stunned. My childhood best friend. A friend I only knew for a year in grade 4 before she moved away and I was left behind, devastated and heartbroken in the way you can only be when you are a kid of nine. This was long before the advent of computers in every household, email addresses and convenience. It was not like it is now, where people can maintain daily friendships from across the world. I never saw Sarah again. I think there was one letter and one phone call in the ensuing twenty years. Until today. 

We have been reunited after two decades and while in reality we are utter strangers, we have a hazy past that binds us, fuzzy memories that connect us across this continent, from Vancouver to Florida. I have one photo stored away in a box where I keep special things. It is her birthday party and we are doing a dance routine in poodle skirts (was it a dress up party? I guess so). I am doing the splits. The photo is fuzzy, in the way all photos were then. I must find it. Life has sent us in completely different directions but I don't think that matters. We are still those little girls somewhere inside us. The gift of technology has given us the chance to be friends again and I am beyond thrilled at the amazing opportunity. Hi, Sarah! 

Take that, Facebook doubters. 

Smile of the Day

I'm not really into scouting paparazzi photos but these caught my eye today for the sweet and truly hilarious expressions on these little faces! Shiloh and Zahara are sooooo cute, how can you not smile? Plus, the way they are mugging for the cameras makes me think they are very well adjusted little girls! Love them! 

PS- Angelina looks as stunning as ever, even just taking her kids to dance class! I love long dresses! 

(Photos via Eonline, US Weekly)