Memorable Mondays

October 26th 2009 started off like any other day. It was a slower Monday for us at the shop, got lot's of paper work done and I was REALLY looking forward to a visit from my dear friends Nick, Lizzie and the latest edition... Porter!

I had become friends with Nick and Liz when I was working at the Granite Club.  Nick(crazy Auzzie) is the Member Services Manager at the Club,  and he would always check in on me when I would work all those long hours! Lizzie(who totally puts up with the crazy Auzzie..LOL) worked in the Playschool.  Liz and I had  met when Liz and Nick first started dating a few years later.

Interesting enough they then became my neighbors when I lived with Lousia on Aerodrome Cres. in T.O.  Lizzie and I would spend..oh...I would say every spare minute we had drinking wine and watching all the latest T.V shows.

When I found out that they were expecting I was over the top excited! 

Nine (okay... more like ten) months later Porter arrived and so did the opening of Baden Salon Spa! (Porter came a little sooner!)

Yesterday was Porter's very first visit to a Salon Spa

Is he not the cutest kid you have EVER SEEN! (I think so too!)

Later that evening at Milstones, Lizzie and Nick surprised me with a very special gift!

At first I thought when they said "We have something to tell you" I was sure they were leaving for Australia never to return..BUT then... they said...

"We would like for you to be Porter's GODMOTHER"

I was so excited I couldn't believe it! (Then I thought..."What would Porter think?")

He was as excited as I was! Yippee!

It is amazing how the world works... just a simple slow Monday

can become a

Memorable Monday!

Smashing Sunday

I love this time of year... a beautiful fall day and a planned visit to our new spa from some very near and dear old friends!

This friend is a special one.....we go way back...when Baden Salon Spa was just a glimmer in my eye!

Meet my friend Mel..............

You see, Mel and I attended "The Canadian College of Massage and Hydrotherapy" together right out of high school.   We also both dropped out of massage school!

HOWEVER, Mel went on to do a fabulous jewelry  program and I was off to beauty school.

Mel and I have had some crazy adventures together and had a blast doing so.

While Mel was in jewelry school...she had the pleasure(okay that might be a stretch ..HA Ha Love you!) of meeting Pete...

This is Pete

This is also Pete's favorite spot! HA HA

Today I also had the pleasure of having two little visitors to Baden.

It was a private session that included some nerds, m&m peanuts and the movie Monsters Inc.

This is Sammer's(Sam)

and this is Kamilla

They were both instant fans of having their nails done by Auntie Cath .... I mean does this look like fun or what??

 

Kamilla (purple shirt) has already told mom that she will be working at the Spa when she grows up!

(I am so looking forward to the help!)

Both the girls loved the new CND polish and chose "Smoochie" & "Girlie Pink" (how fitting!)

It looks like Kamilla loved the movie! Sam is more of a picture poser!

I loved having Mel, Pete and the girls visit...

it makes for a Smashing Sunday!

Our Inventory Comic Relief.... Nicky Pickles

It's amazing what can happen when family gets together to build a Salon Spa.  When I say amazing I mean what can happen when your dear cousin fly's in from Vancouver!

Nicky Pickles and I have had many an amazing adventure, like in the above pic... this is us having dinner  Christmas day in Costa Rica! What a blast we had on that trip!

To be honest Nicky is more like my sister than my cousin.  She's an only child ..so I adopted her as a sister! Normally Nicky is pretty well put together...HOWEVER...she has a small, tiny, itty bitty...

WILD STREAK..

that happened one night while doing inventory for Baden days before we opened......

This is Nicky Pickles before wine.....(white tank top..with her mom..My lovely Auntie Cathy.....awwee)

Time: 10pm

and this is Nicky after one glass of wine.....

Time: 10:30pm

(Did I mention that in her hand is our bar code scanner??)

 glass two.....

Time:11pm..

glass three....TIME: 11:30pm..... involved friends (Oh.... Jen and Tanya.....)

Glass....FOUR???? Time:12am....maybe it was 1am??

Okay... is that Jen holding wine for Nicky??

Oh GOODNESS!

Let's just say that if it wasn't for my dear cousin Nicky Pickles

(also known as Peanut by her boyfriend Malcs)

Inventory would have been just no fun at all!

Thanks Nicky for finding the humor in all the boxes of

Aveda Product! xo

Deliciously Simple...

There I was in the middle of a crazy renovation, just days before opening and my aunt says to me;

"Cath, the family wants to get you a gift for your opening...but flowers die so fast??"

It was hard for me to think on my feet at the moment and didn't know what I needed

but then....

My Aunt Cathy is an extreme shopper and to say the least always digs up some incredible finds. SO in traditional "Auntie Cathy" style( with a little feedback from mom) she cam across this fabulous little invention just perfect for my new Salon & Spa .........

Your all probably thinking...What is it?  I did too. 

Well... this would be the most deliciously simple SINGLE CUP COFFEE maker ever made!  

It's name is the "Keurig" and we love it here at Baden!

Our guests get to enjoy not only our Signature Aveda Tea through this little wonder ( it allows for loose leaf tea ..WOOT!) but also an array of  coffee ..Timothy's, Emeril's, Van Houtte AND Twinings tea!

Again the family pulls through with yet another great gift for our success!

Thanks to my Nanny & Papa, Aunts, Unlces and cousins for this  

Deliciously Simple delight..our guests love it!

In the begining.....

It all began back in February 2009 when I decided to buy my very first property with the help of good friends Emma & Dave! As you can see I had a little muscle in my corner which always makes for a good fight! 

Together with my brains (Ha Ha) and Dave's bronze (all that midnight McDonalds and Gremlin type behaviors..LOL)  I purchased my first home...and Business Location!

With my parents along for the ride (not sure they knew how much of a ride...) we started the 6 month process of building a Salon Spa! 

It was quite the process really.... to think that a place that once looked like this

                                                         ...would soon look like this!

I was so lucky to have my family helping me out while building the Salon Spa

 

....I had my Dad consistently going cross eyed with my demands

My Mother.... who resorted to paint eating during the times when she just didn't want to make lunch for one more person!

My Auntie Elda ... who sat and painted every one of these 13 stairs to the basement so that we could have the "Designer" look like my favorite TV show "Design Inc."

My "You Got Beer & Steak...I'll be there!" brother who rounded up the troops...(my super cute nephews)

Brent....

& Braydon 

who drove all the way from Everett, ON to help out Auntie Beautiful build the Salon Spa!

Now I can't forget my Uncle Brian ... who's regular therapy sessions kept us all calm and collected during the intense decision making.....

And of course my Auntie Cathy... who kept us well fed breakfast, lunch and dinner

A big thank you to everyone in my family who helped make this dream a reality!

It's officially off the ground.... and so the story begins for

Baden Salon Spa Inc.