a peek inside the fishbowl

Many of you Fishies already know how passionate I am about shopping locally. It’s something I’ve written a lot about here before and try to do whenever I can. It is a perfect fit with my shopping philosophy:

Buy fewer things, that matter more.

I do what I can to be a conscious consumer, and part of that means supporting local businesses. I’m a local business too, and local businesses help pay my wage, so this topic is important to me. When I spend my money locally I am keeping dollars in our community, and ensuring that my neighbourhood stays the vibrant, fun place that I want to live.

A few months ago I was one of five bloggers across Canada who was hired to write about seven different shops in our respective neighbourhoods for a very special campaign. Shop The Neighbourhood is an initiative of Yellow Pages, a company that has a very long history of working with Canada’s small businesses. The Shop The Neighbourhood campaign encourages Canadians to support the small businesses in their communities by making a local purchase on November 29. (You can learn more about the campaign on their Facebook page.)

My job was to visit each local gem in the neighbourhood, interview the owners, and take photos at each stop along the way.

It was really cool to get to know the people behind each store and hear their stories; their challenges and successes. I’m very happy to (finally!) be able to tell you that their stories are now online at the Shop The Neighbourhood website. I’d love it if you clicked over and had a peek. Who knows, maybe you’ll discover a new place to visit?

The other part of Shop The Neighbourhood is actually shopping, instead of just reading about shopping. :) I’d be so happy if you marked your calendars and chose an independent shop – any shop in your neighbourhood – and made a purchase on November 29. Whether it’s an early Christmas card, a stocking stuffer for the child/chef/gardener/golfer/cyclist in your life, or something bigger, your support of local merchants will make a big difference. What better way to show how much you love the city in which you live?

Tell me, what’s YOUR favourite local store? Leave a link below and let me know. I’d love to hear about it!

I have been known to procrastinate as much as the next person, but there are a few things on my list that I simply must do, and I’ve been putting them off, worrying about them, and then putting them off some more. Gah!

I’m sharing this list here so I can hold myself accountable.

1. I need to offload the 5000 photos on my iPhone.
2. I really need to make a doctor’s appointment, for myself and for the girls. I can’t even remember that last time we all had a checkup.
3. I need to give blood again. (Did you know you can make appointments online? No excuses here.)
4. I really need to have my hair coloured. And speaking of grooming:
5. I really need to get Piper trimmed and groomed.

It boggles my mind that I haven’t been able to see these things through. It’s such a short list. What on earth is my problem?

Who’s got something on their list they need something to strike off? Shall we do it together?

Piper is thankful for…

Sunny spots:

Squeak toys:

Chewy things:

Having family who helps out when life throws you a curve ball, or a bunch of burrs:

We can learn so much from our furry friends, don’t you think? Piper reminds me every day to be thankful for the simple things in life.

I’m off to find a good sunny spot! Happy Thanksgiving!

p.s. fans of Piper should know that she has her own Instagram account. :)