Casey Evertove Palmer

Now, it should be said that I'm a Sauga boy born and bred (i.e. the OTHER side of Toronto), made ABUNDANTLY clear by how turned around I got during an 8-minute walk from @ShopSTC @cineplexmovies to the Scarborough Centre Library in a snowstorm once the movie was done for the afterparty, but regardless, Brother still had an air of familiarity. Growing up in Mississauga in the largely unsupervised 90s, we played in hydro fields with our neighbourhood friends and rarely came home till dark. We'd travel far and wide on rollerblades and bikes, down hills, across streams, and discover life as it happened to us. We were young Black kids living life before we really needed to WORRY about what it meant to be Black—but just like Brother shows, it doesn't stay that way FOREVER. Brother is the story of Michael and Francis, the sons of a Jamaican immigrant mother doing everything she can to provide for them in '80s and '90s Scarborough. Told through the boys' eyes as they mature into men, it's equally an exploration of Black pride and Black joy as it is one of Black FRUSTRATION and Black PAIN. With 14 Canadian Screen Awards nominations, Brother helps Toronto show up as ITSELF instead of some SUBSTITUTE for another city, like all too many past films. It was a pleasure chatting with @justsayrad, @LamarJohnson (and how @TheLastOfUs did him dirty!), and of course, Clement Virgo, whose vision for this came together. @brother_movie hits theatres on March 17th. #gifted @elevation_pics #MeetMeAtSTC #ScarboroughTownCentre @torontolibrary @thecdnacademy @telefilm_canada @ontariocreates @cmf.fmc @shawrocketfund @bronstudios @cravecanada @cbcgem @conquering_lion_pictures @hawkeyepicturesinc #cdnscreenawards #brotherthemovie #afilmbyclementvirgo #canadianfilm #movies #movie #film #cinema #films #hollywood #actor #love #s #art #cinematography #actress #netflix #moviescenes #music #filmmaking #horror #instagood #bollywood #movienight #cinephile #cine #drama

Day 7 of these High-Intensity Interval Training lunchtime workouts in my basement office as I look to bring fitness back into my life. Four sets of seven movements, 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest, ten-pound weights. Today's workout was: * Alternating rows * Russian twists * Leg raises - no weights * Shoulder presses * Bicep curls * Pushups * Mountain climbers(cardio) Was my form horrible on the alternating rows as I tried to figure out how to squeeze my shoulder blades together, bend over AND lift the weights? Yes. Was I barely able to get a single push-up on the fourth set because my pectorals were too tired by that point to keep up? Sure. But I'm still showing up Monday to Friday, putting in a half-hour of HIIT a day while I try to figure out this new routine in my life. It feels like my body and I speak the same language more often. I'm making better dietary choices. There's still a RIDICULOUS amount of work to do, but I will keep taking these little steps. I didn't get to managing a large team overnight or raising tween children. Or working on book deals or developing a brand. These are early days, and I'm here for the journey ahead. See you at the next post! —case #fitness #workout #fitnessmotivation #motivation #training #health #love #lifestyle #healthylifestyle #healthy #exercise #weightloss #fitnessjourney #fitnessaddict #instafitness #fitnesslife #fitnesslifestyle #fitnessgoals #igfitness #fitnessfreak #anytimefitness #mensfitness #fitnessfirst #lifestyleblogger #lifestyleinfluencer #blackblogger #microinfluencer #contentcreators #tdotbloggers #torontobloggerscollective

One thing we've learned over the last decade is that when family and friends offer to watch your kids so you can spend some time alone, you do NOT say "NO." 😂 This past Saturday, the stars aligned for an impromptu date night when our kids' godmother offered to have dinner with them and put them to bed, so before we knew it, we were dolling ourselves up to FINALLY check out some of the nightlife in our #DanforthEast neighbourhood! Our first stop: @RedRocketCoffee, where @CellarDiveTO hosted a pop-up wine bar, and we could spend time sipping while sharing some charcuterie and trying to decide which Fitbit I'd get for my newfound fitness journey. We watched people pass by who looked very different from the neighbours we knew, likely home putting their OWN kids to bed. And dinner was just steps away at the recently-opened @TavereneTamblyn, a French restaurant owned by Chef Ben Gundy. Named for the Tamblyn mosaic at its doorstep from the Tamblyn Drug Store that stood there DECADES before, it's a welcome addition to the #DanforthEast landscape! We had seats booked at the bar right in front of where the talented chefs made all the food and spent the night taking in sights while stuffing the night's fare to our faces! Dishes like: * La Fleur d'Or — a cocktail with elderflower, gin and lemon * Gougères — savoury pastries of dough mixed with cheese * Mussels in a champagne sauce with shallots, crème fraîche and chives * Striploin-cut pepper steak with cognac and green peppercorn jus * Steak haché with cepes, shallots, mushroom jus and raclette cheese * Frites cooked in beef fat * And a double chocolate mousse with chantilly cream! It was nice to add a little spontaneity to our well-planned lives—a big thanks to our friend that helped us feel like adults without parental responsibilities again—even if only for a few hours 😂 Thanks, everyone—we'll catch you at the next post! —case #datenight #love #foodie #date #food #dinner #couplegoals #wine #foodporn #fun #dateideas #nightout #dating #happy #relationshipgoals #cocktails #datenightideas #couple #couples #toronto #canada #ontario #torontolife #yyz #tdot #thesix

Is there anything you picked up during the pandemic that stuck with you as the months wore on? *** Eleven years ago, before parenthood or jobs that needed a lot of time and energy to make a DENT in my to-do lists, I could still try new things and experiment with other interests in my life. Heavy into @Groupon at the time, I enrolled in a 12-class sewing course at @meDeniseWild's The Sewing Studio, which took students from not knowing how to sew at ALL to walking out with a finished product—I wound up sewing a dress for Sarah that wouldn't win any FASHION awards, but it fit and did its JOB. And then I never did it again. But then we had kids. Time moved on. We found ourselves with two boys in @ScoutsCanada who got badges for every accomplishment they made and trip they took, some that went on their clothes and others wherever they wanted. Inspired by the blankets their Scout leaders brought on camping trips, plastered with badges from their years of Scouting, the kids had me buy Scouts blankets for them, TOO. It'd be a great place to put the crests they'd collected over the years—but there was no way I was about to sew them on by hand! My pinpricked fingers and limited free time eventually had no more to give, and I ordered a @SingerSewingCompany MX60 sewing machine because there HAD to be better ways to sew them than sitting in front of the TV for HOURS with a needle and thread. It took some getting used to at first, but the more I sewed, the better I got, eventually sewing more than thirty crests onto their blankets! Now that I've gotten a little better at it, I'm dreaming up new sewing projects to pursue, like learning to make my own clothes or using it to add to what I can do with my Cricut! In any case, this is something I learned to do during the pandemic—how about you? Until the next post, — case #sewing #handmade #sew #sewingproject #diy #fashion #sewinglove #handmadewithlove #design #sewingaddict #sewistsofinstagram #memade #sewersofinstagram #sewsewsew #craft #sewingmachine #isew #makersgonnamake #dadlife #dad #parenting #fatherhood #family #love #dadsofinstagram #parenthood #kids #daddy #father #familytime

Let's talk about progress. When I bought these Adidas track pants just under a year ago, they simply did not FIT. I was quick to blame it on my body type, thinking that they were perhaps too slim and narrow-waisted for my curvier physique, but I was shying away from the truth—two years of sitting around snacking through the day and drinking at night had definitely caught up with me, and a lot of what I had wasn't really fitting anymore. So when these didn't fit like I thought they would, I meant to return them but never got around to it. And when the return window closed, I put them into our donate pile, figuring someone else could make better use of them than I. Flash forward eight months, and I'm suddenly realising that drinking water was more than just this thing our parents often told us to do—it improves digestion, enhances flexibility, and keeps aches and pains away from you. A month after that, I started cutting out sugar and salt when my diagnosis showed me that water alone wouldn't cut it. And this week, I started working out regularly for what I'm pretty sure is the first time EVER, hoping to nip those worrisome holiday stats of mine in the bud. And you know what? Today I suddenly remembered that those pants were in our drawers, and you know what? They FIT! I'm learning to live a life where I'm starting to appreciate progress, not perfection, and taking moments to celebrate along the way. See you at the next post! —case #fitnessjourney #fitness #fitnessmotivation #motivation #healthylifestyle #fitnessgoals #weightloss #weightlossjourney #fitnesslifestyle #fitnesslife #workoutmotivation #fitspo #health #fitlife #exercise #instafit #healthy #goals #transformation #getfit #selflove #love #fitspiration

BREAKING NEWS! As of 7:03 this morning, no six-year-olds are left in our house! It's January 27th, 2023, and as of today, our youngest is OFFICIALLY seven years old! Now in the second half of Grade One, it's clear that his brain is BURSTING at the seams, always thirsting for more knowledge to expand his understanding of the world. Ontario's curriculum asks Grade 1 students to count up to 50, and he knows his 12-times tables. He's asked to understand basic four- and five-letter words but often speaks like a teenager when it comes to expressing his thoughts and feelings. While he could MAYBE work a little on following instructions and not spacing out as he focuses on his thoughts and dreams at some very inopportune times, it's amazing to see our kiddo develop who's markedly different from his older brother but still very clearly demonstrating parts of both of us more and more over the years! A very happy birthday to you, kiddo—here's to many more! — dad #birthday #happybirthday #love #happy #celebration #family #birthdayboy #son #boy #kids #cute #smile #familytime #myson #myboy #fatherandson #dadlife #children #fun #kidsofinstagram

"Allow me to reintroduce myself!" — JAY Z, "Public Service Announcement", The Black Album (2003) *** So here we are in the third week of 2023, and I'm finally finding enough time to get on social media and talk my TALK. *** After a 2022 filled with difficult lessons, it didn't take long for me to see that this year was starting to go in a direction that was all too similar to the one I JUST swore never to go through again. Something I learned from 2022—one of the MANY things—is that you can choose to pour your evenings and weekends into going above and beyond for your team; try to give your kids everything they ever ask for; and do all the chores needed to keep your home in a livable condition, and it's still never ENOUGH. You can try to do everything you can for everyone else, but as my teacher, Mrs. Geh, famously used to say back when I was in the fifth and sixth grades, "You Are Responsible for Yourself", or "YARFY"—if you don't establish your own boundaries and decide where and when you'll invest your time and energy, the world will decide it FOR you, and others will take advantage of you, whether they mean to or NOT. Which is why, for 2023, I've decided to crawl out of my creative slump and get back to WRITING again. Start finding time to bring life to all the ideas that've been sitting around on notepads, in text files and in the back of my head and just get back to living life on my terms instead of having them dictated by somebody else. What I hope that means is more stories. More sharing. Showing up more in a space I've really MISSED, hoping that it gets back to being a REGULAR part of my life and not something I sometimes get around to. I hope you've all had a great year so far and I look forward to sharing the 2023 ahead! Until the next, —case p. #newyear #happynewyear #happy #goals #life #dadlife #selfportrait #portrait #photography #selfie #portraits #myself #portraiture #portraitphotography #selfshot #photographer #selfportraitphotography #selflove #newyearnewme #newyearsresolution #newyearnewyou #newyearresolution #motivation #blogger #lifestyleblogger #lifestyleinfluencer #blackblogger #microinfluencer #contentcreators

If 2022's taught me anything, it's that we're not nearly as invincible as we think we are when we're young and bounce back much EASIER from anything that life has to throw our way. It's been a year of challenge and a year of loss, almost as if we need to walk around with one eye over our shoulders in anticipation of whatever's going to hit us next. *** A few days before Christmas, I finally saw my doctor for the first time in a while, only to learn that my blood pressure was in the high pre-hypertension levels and my sugars in the pre-diabetes range, making it CLEAR that I hadn't taken very good care of myself. (Especially considering that I'm genetically pre-disposed for BOTH.) I may have managed to do well as a bureaucrat with the Ontario Public Service and in my work with Casey Palmer, Canadian Dad, but all those years up late at night sat in front of a screen sharing my stories, developing spreadsheets and editing photos until I couldn't see straight take their toll, demanding that I make the right choices TODAY for the sake of a better TOMORROW. It's things like this that've made me start realising that we can't take our moments with family and friends for granted, because they're not guaranteed to last forever. And so I push for family pictures. Even when we don't feel like them, I insist. Because we won't be these people forever, and things will continue to change. The human memory is only so RELIABLE—capture the moments while you can! I hope you're all having an amazing holiday season! ❤️ #familyphoto #familytime #familyportrait #familyphotos #familyfirst #familylove #familyportraits #familygoals #familylife #kids #familyfun #familyiseverything #familyovereverything #family #love #happy #life #beautiful #smile #happiness #familia #generations #dadlife

It's been one helluva year. *** Like every year, had I understood on January 1st everything that'd be coming our way in 2022, I don't know whether I'd believe we had the strength to make it through. Six months into my second year as a senior manager of financial management, I've learned that the job is so much less about delivering the multitude of work we get every day and more about nurturing a team to deliver it, and that often means plenty of challenging conversations and situations that come along WITH it. And while I'm blessed to work for an organization that offers plenty of vacation each year, letting us camp twice and visit both Thunder Bay and Calgary, making sure that everything still gets done while I'm away is a tricky thing I'm still trying to figure out. The kids' worlds are growing bigger, needing us more every time new conflicts arise and juggling it all with our ever-growing list of social commitments is an ongoing struggle... but you know, still, we stand, grateful for everything we have—family, friends, and the means to give our family wonderful lives. We hope you've all had a Merry Christmas, and here's to many more of them ahead! — The Palmer Family #christmas #christmastree #christmasdecor #xmas #merrychristmas #christmastime #love #christmasdecorations #holidays #holiday #gift #navidad #december #noel #family #christmaspjs #christmaspajamas #familyphoto #familytime #familyportrait #familyphotos #familyfirst #familylove #familyportraits #familygoals #familylife #kids #familyfun #familyiseverything #familyovereverything

One of the things we've gotten to ring Christmas in with this year is the Chic Sophistic Holiday Survival Kit from @chicsophistic x @alexanderaketa x @ok_kovtun, filled with goodies that'll bring smiles to the special people in your life! With goodies from @hasbro @playdoh @woodmanws @eldoradorums @coliowinery @highroadcellars @_thentix@squishcandy @betheroster @beayoutiful_org & @taylorlinhui, it's a whole lotta awesome all in one box! #ChicSophisticSurvivalKit #December2022 #Holidays #Holidays2022 #HolidayCheer #LastMinuteGiftingIdeas #Hasbro #HasbroToys #PlayDoh #PlayDohAdventCalendar #AdventCalendar #WoodmanWS #WoodmanWinesAndSpirits #ElDorado #ElDoradoRums #HolidayCheer #ColioWinery #HighRoadCellars #PinotGrigio #CabernetMerlot #NoSugar #LowSugar #Wines #HolidayCheer #SQUISHCandy #GourmetGummies #FemaleOwned #ProudlyCanadian #Classic #Vegan

On Friday, November the 25th, on an autumn day whose weather couldn't seem to make up its mind, the Coca-Cola Caravan made a special stop at 288 Bremner Blvd, in the HEART of Toronto, with the iconic Red Truck proudly positioned in front of Ripley's Aquarium. It was one of the more than 150 stops the Caravan will be making this holiday season, looking to ignite joy and optimism across the nation from coast to coast no matter what people celebrate—or if they even celebrate at ALL! It's all part of Coca-Cola's 2022 holiday campaign, "The Holidays Always Find a Way," which looks to capture the unstoppable, magical force of the holiday season in bringing people together. The Red Truck stood as a symbol that Torontonians could come together to spend some time with Santa—after years of pandemic living with so little feeling ANYTHING like it had before, it was great to see families coming together to resemble something even CLOSE to normal. The Coca-Cola Caravan's Canadian tour runs until December 19th with its last stop in Vancouver. If you want to find a stop near you, make sure to click the link in the reel and plan to go visit it today! See you at the next post, —case #ad #deliverthemagic #CokeCaravan @cocacola_ca #christmas #xmas #merrychristmas #love #christmastime #winter #santa #christmasdecorations #christmasiscoming #holidays #santaclaus #christmaslights #noel #family #photography #familyfun #familytime #fun #kids #familylove #thingstodo #familylife #familyadventures #christmasdecor #coke #cocacola

"It's the most... wonderful time... of the year..." — Andy Williams, "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" (1963) *** Despite being around for 118 years, I don't know whether we ever made it out to the Original Santa Claus parade before. My mother might've taken us when we were young, but as someone who stopped believing in Santa from a very young age, it was never something that rated very highly on my radar for the holiday season. But those were in the years before I had a family of my own and things like the Santa Claus Parade made sense to explore as a part of my holiday season again. So, when @HarbingerIdeas invited us out to visit the 118th Original Santa Claus Parade from the Snowman Zone on one of their "Reindeer Islands" in the middle of University Avenue, it seemed like a good opportunity to bring the kids up close and personal with a true Toronto STAPLE. After all—you couldn't get a whole heap of people to put a parade together 118 times if it wasn't something worth SEEING, right? But it was a good thing that they sent us a care package to suitably prepare us for the parade, because it was -14°C out and my kids and their cousins didn't exactly LOVE the cold. However we were feeling, though, it was nothing compared to the procession of people in front of us, with everything from marching brands to ballet dancers and elaborate floats putting on an EXCELLENT show! We don't know how they managed to march for HOURS without the layers we had on keeping US warm, but march they did and we were all VERY grateful for it! So, a big thank you to everyone who made the #SantaClausParadeTO a reality—in such an uncertain time where we've had to do away with so much from the Before Times, sometimes it's good to be part of something that makes us feel a little more "normal". We'll see you at the next post! —case #gifted #santaclaus #christmas #santa #merrychristmas #christmastime #xmas #winter #christmasiscoming #christmasspirit #christmasmood #christmasmagic #december #holidays #christmasvibes #christmascountdown #santaclausiscomingtotown #holiday #happyholidays #family #parade #celebration #christmasparade #holidayparade #kids #familyfun

It's a weird feeling when your kids get old enough to start making significant decisions for themselves without needing to consult you about them WHATSOEVER. This past Friday, my eldest's teacher coordinated the Remembrance Day assembly for his school and sought out volunteers to read out a passage on Canada's indigenous peoples and their influence on the world wars, and my kid took it upon himself to raise his hand to join the team to read it in front of the 450+ students in his school! We only happened to find out about it when he said an impromptu prayer for courage while reading in front of the school one night at dinner and we had absolutely no idea what he was talking about! 😂 It was a good reminder that our kids are capable of some pretty amazing things if we give them enough building blocks to succeed and then... just get out of their way. It's important to support them wherever we can and to give them guidelines to work with, but it's also important to remember that we can't live their lives for them, and will continue to surprise us with their choices as they grow up—in good and bad ways alike! In the end, he did a great job, not missing a beat as he read through his section. I was impressed that he not only managed to read through it all without any trouble but also keep his composure for such a sombre ceremony! I hope to have many more moments like this in the future, even if they're from a few steps away as I see my kids continue to try new challenges for themselves! —case #proudfather #love #fatherhood #dadlife #father #dad #fatherandson #parentlife #fatherlife #parenthood #fatherslove #fathers #daddy #fatherson #family #lovemyfam #prouddad #publicspeaking #publicspeaker #leadership #motivation #speaker #confidence #speech #speaking #inspiration #publicspeakers #remembranceday #lestweforget #remembrance

IT'S SOMEBODY'S NINTH BIRTHDAY!!! *** Despite everything we've been through these last nine years of parenting, over time you start to lose the details behind WHY everything happened. Why did you have that fight? What drove you to that decision? As the years go on, it's the moments with the greatest impact that start to stand out the most, and with your kids, it always goes back to that very first moment where your life would change FOREVER. I was in a very different place when our eldest first came into the world, believing the lie so many men are told that a baby would ruin their life and that I should do everything in my life while I could because once I became a parent, there'd be no going back. But he didn't ruin my life at all. Sure, his personality and emotions are larger than life, and his snappy replies get under my skin because they remind me of myself more than I'd care to admit, but he's only ADDED to my life, making me arguably a better man than I was before I had kids. At nine, he's really starting to come into his own, the kind of kid who's always making new friends and starting to show more understanding of his responsibilities. He'll dive into his homework without prompting. He shows more interest in wanting to be able to help. He's not the little kid we used to pick up after for so much of the last decade—he's becoming his own person, and we're here for it. Happiest of ninth birthdays to you, kiddo—looking forward to celebrating it with you and many more yet to come! —dad (+ mom) #bday #birthday #happybirthday #love #happy #family #photooftheday #celebrate #instabirthday #celebration #instabday #happybday #son #father #dad #boy #kids #cute #smile #familytime #myson #myboy #dadlife #fatherhood #parentlife #dadlife #parenting #dadsofinstagram #daddy #blackfatherhood

It's that time of the year again, where the Palmer family fixes up, looks sharp, and gets our annual family photos taken by none other than Meghan Gilmore from @oliveandivyphotography! Meghan's been taking photos of our family ever since our youngest's newborn photos back in early 2016, and I enjoy looking at them each year to see how much we've grown since then. And our youngest was ESPECIALLY well-behaved this year after remembering that I posted a profile photo a couple of years back with just his older brother in it as he'd been causing so much trouble that it was impossible to get a good shot with them and me together. All said, it's good to mark another year of growth in this family—ESPECIALLY vertically as far as these kids are concerned—and we'll see what's in store for the year ahead! We'll see you at the next post! —case #familyphoto #family #familyphotography #photography #familytime #love #familyphotoshoot #familyportrait #familyphotos #photooftheday #familyfirst #familylove #familyportraits #familygoals #portrait #photoshoot #photo #familylife #kids #familyiseverything #familyovereverything