The Fleece Family Christmas Tradition

For the past, I don't know how many years, our family has followed a tradition at Christmas. A ritual, if you will. This ritual takes place at my father's house on Christmas eve. The usual suspects are there, my dad, step mother, sister Lauren, brothers Thomas and Matthew - and his wife Emily (who is also my sister! and pregnant with a little baby on the way).

Christmas eve day, we arrive in good time (before dark) - and there's music playing, drinks to be had, animals to be played with and some last minute gifts to be wrapped. A fire is usually on and there's an unspoken excitement floating around in the air. The Christmas tree is always quite the sight, with a plethora of gifts spilling out from underneath it.

Each and every year, we have a fondue. We've never had a turkey, roast or any other traditional style meal. For as long as I can remember, it's all about fondue. And each year, my step mother steps it up with her cooking skills. The past few years she's added Guinness beer to the cheese fondue (you can now wipe the drool from your mouth). Yes, that's right. We start off with a cheese fondue. With steamed veggies and an abundance of fresh bread. 

Next up, we have a meat fondue with chicken breast and steak. There's plenty of delicious sauces for dipping and the table is usually a huge mess at this point. But, we're laughing, having fun - and more importantly, enjoying each others company. Lastly, we finish off with a chocolate fondue, with fruits and marshmallows. It's nothing short of sheer decadence. 

And finally, the finale. Every year we get to open one gift on Christmas eve. And every year it's the same gift: Pajamas. This is probably my most favourite part. We each tear open our new pajamas, in anticipation of the new threads we'll be wearing for the next year. And within minutes of opening our gifts, we all run to change into our new found sleep wear. As the night comes to a close, we usually prepare hot chocolate with Bailey's and cozy up by the fireside while watching a Christmas classic. It's simply heart-warming, isn't it?

Pajamas are my absolute favourite. I'm not sure how many I've gone through in the past 10 years, but I can say that it's been about 20 pairs. Fleece, cotton, silk, synthetic, you name it. Leopard, pink, polka dot - it's all there for the taking. My current favourites are an X-Large pair of leopard fleece my mom bought for me. Soooo sweet. Here are my top 5 for this year:

The red plaid classic. These will never go out of pajama style.

One piece. Cute and comfy. 

Sexy and sweet. The boys will love this set.

Pink satin. Smooth and sultry. For special occasions.

Lastly, leopard. I couldn't post my favourite pj's without'em.

Merry Christmas to all! 

Love, fashionflea xx

Annnnd it's a Green Light for Intercourse

Birth control is never a subject that gets talked about enough. I mean, between ladies, sure, we talk about it - but solutions, tips and tricks, well, they don't really exist for the most part. You either take the pill, use condoms, practice the "rhythm" method or you simply play Russian roulette. That or you have an IUD. We are all very much aware of what our options are.

I have always struggled with birth control and my options. I hate taking the pill. I don't like to have to take a pill that I don't really know how it effects me. Not to mention having to take it every day, at the same goddamn hour. Remember when the pill patch came out? WOAH breakthrough. Ya, for all of a few months. I mean, come on, a patch? Ugh. So not sexy.

And so, due to our limited sexy options, millions of women opt for the birth control pill. This scares me. There is just something not right about it. The amount of estrogen that goes into these little tablets. It can't be good for your body. Day in, day out, millions of women across the world are peeing estrogen into our toilets. Isn't that slightly disturbing? To me it is.

What I find really interesting is what the pill has done for women in the work force:

"Claudia Goldin, among others, argue that this new contraceptive technology was a key player in forming women's modern economic role, in that it prolonged the age at which women first married allowing them to invest in education and other forms of human capital as well as generally become more career-oriented. Soon after the birth control pill was legalized, there was a sharp increase in college attendance and graduation rates for women. From an economic point of view, the birth control pill reduced the cost of staying in school. The ability to control fertility without sacrificing sexual relationships allowed women to make long term educational and career plans." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combined_oral_contraceptive_pill

I know this is no new news, as the pill was released in the late 60's and has been going strong since then. However, I was recently sent an article that made me think there could be a change. A very ingenious change, at that. I now introduce you to Lady-Comp: The fertility monitor. This incredible little gadget is able to detect when you are fertile. The only thing you do is press a button once a day, which takes your temperature orally. It takes merely seconds. Red light means you're fertile, yellow means you're probably fertile, and finally it's a green light for intercourse. Amazing! With a bit of a hefty price of $500, it's not the cheapest of options. But when you think of your body, what you put into it and what that's worth, this is

priceless.

www.lady-comp.com

The Movember Movement Part 2: The 'Staches

What a successful Movember month this has been. I have never in my life seen so many moustaches in my life. And just like that, poof, they're gone. There was all but one man in the office left with a 'stache. The rest were proudly wearing their hair free face today. I feel liberated for them too. We can all move on. This past Movember was definitely at it's most successful this year. But, it's December now, so we can all move on without the awkwardness.

Before we do that, let's have a quick look at a few I spotted:

Man on subway. I missed my stop trying to snap this one.

The nice guys at the bar. They were just nice guys.

The dude. 'nuff said.

The Bro. Yo.

My bro. Literally, yo.

The well-kept, tidy moustache. I'd say this is my preference. It doesn't look as ill-placed as the others. I must say, this young man wears his 'stache very well. Kudos, buddy.

And finally, a special shout-out goes to Blair De Verteuil, a colleague of my best friends husband. He raised over $17,000 for prostate cancer. His original goal was $10,000. 

Impressive.

Blair De Verteuil's Mospace

Vagina coat, oh vagina coat, won't you please go away

This right here is a requisition to stop the vagina coats from spreading. It might just be too late, but something has to be said. Vagina coat, you say? Yes, it's called the Vagina coat. Its furry collar that's purposefully wrapped to mimic a woman's labia. And, of course the head looks like its being birthed outside of this god-awful collar. It is a disaster. Not to mention, what the hell kind of warmth is that going to provide to your face? Stupid. Awful trend.

Must go now. 

*Special credit goes out to my brother, Matthew (one of the funniest people I know), for suggesting to write about this*