things i'll miss about toronto...

-walking out and seeing the cn tower
-how dog friendly the city is;  if i was going out browsing, she usually came with me.
-santa clause parade *we've gone for 5 years :(*
-st lawrence market
-being a 5 minute walk to whole foods (their pizza and paninis are so good)
-the beaches
-steps to literally everything; every kind of food, books, malls, shopping, museums, parks, movies, etc.
-subway system (even though i rarely took it; i walked literally everywhere-that was my mode of transportation for my time there).
-my favorite used book store, where i bought many books over the years-bmv
-dessert lady tradition (again, we've gotten our anniversary cake from here for 5 years. ugh, this one really sucks)
-nuit blanche-the all night art festival that takes over downtown.
-tiff-the film festival where all the celebs are in town for 2 weeks.
-kensington market
-rom
-tiffany & co-walking past it almost daily and admiring the windows, and getting my ring cleaned whenever i want.
-holt renfrew-browsing this store weekly (even though i couldn't afford much in there) and their amazing christmas windows.
-my apartment and my own space. i love this place.
-it's where i raised chloe!! endless training, crying because it was so hard, and wanting to take her out of her crate when she cried, but it was all worth it now that she's a ball of well-trained love.

st. lawrence market, cn tower in the distance, santa claus parade, and michael c hall (!!) at tiff 2 years ago.

the beaches, holt renfrew christmas windows.

she was soo tiny back then!! that's a UofT sweatshirt that goes on a little bear, it doesn't actually belong to chloe ;) *2007*


"there are things that we never want to let go of, people we never want to leave behind. but keep in mind that letting go isn't the end of the world, it's the beginning of a new life."

miscellaneous on my last day in the city...

today is my last day here in toronto, so my mind is kind of elsewhere. it doesn't really feel real yet...the fact that this place isn't mine anymore, as of july 1st. we go to get the keys tomorrow and my dad is going to start painting, and then saturday is when we come back to get the last big pieces to bring to our new place- like my couch, tables, and all the things that couldn't go before the end (dishes, food etc.) so i leave you with some photos that had no real home in their own post...

after the baby shower, we picked the little one up from the groomers.

summer shave down! who knew she was such a skinny mini under all that hair?!

lattes on a patio with mom.

sent this picture to dyl as i was getting ready for bed. this is what he better get used to!

dried flowers i got from dylan eons ago.

enjoying my last few coffees on the porch. which will soon be replaced by a deck.

a stroll through philosophers walk the other day.

someone is totally not stressed about the move.

there were tears last night. and i'm sure there will be more to come :(

a baby shower...

last month, my cousin had an adorable little baby girl. sunday was her shower, and boy oh boy was that little one spoiled! the company was nice, the food was delicious, and the desserts were never-ending. my mom had ordered some cakepops from a patient where she works, who just does it for fun, and they were awesome! she's only recently started charging (a very decent price) because more and more people are asking her for orders.

adorable, no?

i don't shy away from the dessert table.

the feet! i die. and a little soother. oh my.

me and my grandma (dads mom). she's about to be 90 :)

i think i need an excuse to order some type of cakepops from this woman! because a baby is most definitely not in my near future!

updates...

a few updates as to where we are purchases for our  new place (mostly for us to read back on)...first of all, moving and furnishing is expensive!! i hate it and it kills me to see the money leaving my (and our new joint) account, especially because for me, it's not being replenished. you know, with no job and all! (for those new here, i quit my job here in the city 2 weeks ago, and i'll be looking again once we're all moved in.)

we've bought most of the big things; the bed frame, a new queen mattress, box spring, bedding and sheets, cutlery, couch for the living room, light for the living room, and some  miscellaneous decorative pieces. one of the big splurges which we definitely didn't need, but dylan wanted oh so badly? a brand spankin' new 50" led tv. which also means we got a beautiful new tv stand (well, hopefully beautiful in person, dylan ordered it online).

there are a few things that we're using from my current place, like my kitchen table and chairs, dresser for the bedroom, couch (for the 2nd bedroom), and a living room table that belongs to dylan...these pieces aren't ideal, but they'll work for now until we can slowly replace them with new stuff.

of course, there are still things we need, like a patio set (so we can enjoy our deck!), pictures and what not to make it 'homey' and a bbq (which my parents are getting for us!) we have plans to make our own headboard, so hopefully that will happen sooner than later. as for 2nd bedroom, the plan is for it to be an office, but i think for a while it will be a 'collect all the things' room while the other rooms get finished first. it's a lot of work this whole moving thing.

currently hanging out in my parents dining room.

wanna know something cool? our good friend since college is moving into my place!! how cool is that? he needed a place as of july 1st, and when dylan told him that my landlord was showing my place all day last week, he asked if he could get in. i let my landlord know and he was one of the 7 or so people that came through. at the end of the next day, it was official that my landlord had picked him!! honestly, it makes me feel so much better that i know the person moving in. knowing that me and dylan can still come back to toronto, and see my place, it makes leaving it a little bit easier.

end of an era...

friday was our last day in toronto together before the big move. so sad; this chapter is coming to an end, and quickly at that. we started the day early with breakfast at our favorite place; over easy, which is across from the ROM. we've been coming here for the whole 5 years i lived here, so it kind of made sense to end with breakfast there, too. then we did a little shopping for our place, stopped and rented harry potter 2 for later that night, grabbed a latte on a patio, hung out with the dog at the park, and then hit up the grocery store. we needed some dinner and of course, snacks for the movie. guacamole, nachos, and layered sour cream/salsa/cheese dip it was.

 love a little latte art. @ l'espresso.

 she cools off in the fountain after every walk.

 feet.

oh, just us.

somehow, while we were out and about for the day, i had forgotten that i wanted to get one last red velvet cupcake from the best place in toronto, the only place that makes a proper red velvet cupcake, and the place i rave about all the time on the blog; dessert lady. after dinner, we hightailed it over there, and i picked up the last one they had for the day :)

 father, daughter-walking home.

 yaa!

a small piece of heaven.

the next morning; i have the laziest dog ever who lays in hilarious positions.

a little story: mr. dylan cannot handle any heat, and with the temps being just over 40degrees C for a few days, even with my air at the coldest, it was barely cool in my place. therefore, dylan decided to move my coffee table and bring my mattress in the living room for us to sleep for the 2 nights. the bedroom was just not getting the breeze. one night, someone was breathing a little too loud so i grabbed the blanket and headed to my room to sleep on the floor (it was already 5am, so i knew i didn't have to sleep too long on the floor). dylan comes in 2 minutes later to ask me what the hell i'm doing and of course, chloe follows him and jumps on the bed she's jumped on for 5 years. except there was no mattress. it was just wooden slats (you know, on an ikea bed frame, like 3 inches apart). i can only imagine what went through her mind as she just launched herself onto wood; she was completely frozen! i took her down and we spooned (still on the floor) until 7am :) luckily, she wasn't hurt, and the experience didn't scar her because as soon as the mattress was back on, she was jumping back on it. 

and that was our last sleepover and time together in my apartment. the end of an era.

a dessert lunch...

patios; red velvet anything; s'mores; dessert in general-all things i love. last week, i combined all those things together when my mom and i went for a dessert lunch at moroco in yorkville. i pass this place almost daily and had always wanted to try their dessert. i had been into the store part before and they have macarons beautifully set up in clear glass cases and i'm always tempted to try one (even though i don't like them). some items in the store are pretty pricey (i mean, they have a raspberry white chocolate bar no bigger than a jersey milk and it's $16), so i've never gotten anything. but one day when i walking by, i saw a sign out front for tabletop s'mores. i was intrigued; i love s'mores! i googled the menu when i got home only to discover that the price wasn't, in fact, all that bad. so, while my mom was spending time here last weekend, we decided to go and try it out as a last hurrah here in toronto. plus, when looking at the menu, i saw they had a red velvet crepe-decision made!

the s'mores! caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, marshmallows, graham crackers, and dark chocolate.

so so good. i was a happy clam.

'red velveteen: red velvet crepe filled with cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, fresh strawberries, red velvet cake crumbs, finished with a chocolate sauce, and  berries.' and the little ball on the side was i'm guessing cream cheese and mascarpone cheese together? topped with gold flakes. oh so fancy.

toastin' her up.

...

the pretty all white outdoor patio.

it's pretty cool to be able to have s'mores on a patio, while actually clean groomed, instead of you know, when you're camping and disheveled. and that crepe? oh my word. i wish i had more time to try more dessert items on the menu, everything sounds mouthwatering good. 

but really, if you're in the area, go to this place. i demand you to.

where it started...

after dylan's grad ceremony, we went stopped by the college where we first met (in 2nd year) to see if some of our old profs were in their offices and see what's new. we chatted with 2 of them for about 10 minutes, and gave them the run down of what's been going in the last 5 years.

it was so weird to walk around those hallways again. the hallways where we had our first conversation almost 6 years ago, the lounge where we studied countless hours, and the pub where our group of friends all had snacks and drinks between classes; all memories. 

conGRADulations...

this passed thursday, dylan had his grad ceremony, very early in the morning. it was a little long, but some of the speeches were quite good. i was pretending they were speaking to me too, since i didn't go to my own ceremony last year. it made me so happy to see dylan walk across that stage and shake the hands of all the important people and know that it's now official.  we made it through college, and now university, with the help from each other.

we were on the first balcony (i was with his parents), and it was rather dark in there, so i was nervous about how my pictures would turn out. i still have no idea about aperture, f-stop and all that. luckily, i had my close-up lens and i kind of fiddled around while other  names were being called to get the right settings on manual. i think i did alright!

 pre-ceremony.

 all the grads who had just walked in. and they went further back, too. there was a lot.

the important people. dressed to show they are.

 dylans turn!

 so happy :)

 stride across the stage.

the handshake.

woohoo!

afterwards, dylan changed into regular clothes and we went for a quick little celebratory lunch at our favorite pizza place; NaRoma pizza. i swear i could eat this pizza every day. it's that good.

dylan isn't really a fan of the one i get, but i'm obsessed!! which is weird because i don't normally eat onions or prosciutto. (mozzarella, triple cream brie cheese, prosciutto, fig jam, caramelized onions, arugula, and reduced balsamic). i want a piece immediately!

after lunch, we stopped by the place where it all started, 6 years ago...