Gingerbread Cookies

Yesterday I woke up with a pounding headache for what ever reason (probably from a crumb of gluten me thinks).  Anyway, I had a long list of things I needed to get done before Christmas so I was trying to madly sew while my head pounded at every stitch.  I had trouble sewing straight, ripping out seams left and right, ruining a zipper trying to rip out a seam.... yeah, not a good sewing day for me.  I could hear the time ticking away, slipping into oblivion, inching Christmas ever closer to my unfinished projects.

Suddenly an unexpected interruption knocked at the door.  An invitation to a cookie decorating party at the neighbour's..... I looked at my mess, then looked at the clock, then put my boots on and walked out the door.  The neighbour's house smelled of warm spice and my son was already there acting like he was the top cookie chef, handing out freshly baked cookies to people and coming up with his own little creations like the Mom and baby cookie or the baby in the heart cookie.  He made those especially for me.

It was rather therapeutic to sit there and decorate cookies while soaking up the festive ambiance.  I wanted to stay there all day as I felt my body settle into a happy buzz.  Sadly, it was short lived as the baby needed her nap and I really had to get back to the mound of fabric sitting on the kitchen table.  I will, however, savour that blissful moment for days.

Autumn Winds Blow In....

I couldn't help myself, I just love these photos of the day Banyan and I played in the leaves at Granville Island.  I dragged him all the way to ECUAD to get some stuff done so his reward was a little fun time at the park.  By the way, Banyan insisted I take his photo next to the chariot.

Southlands Heritage Farm

Just when I think I know my city, I find my self in a tucked away corner that I've never been before.   Our friends invited us out to the Southlands Heritage Farm for a barbecue and to watch her do some equestrian training.  It felt like we couldn't be further away from the city, yet we never left the city limits.

Anna Emilia

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My friend posted this illustration on her blog filly + foal because it looked so much like her daughter and herself.  I agree.  It's such a beautiful illustration and its slightly uncanny nature to the resemblance of living people I know, I couldn't help but to post it too. 

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Anna Emilia is an illustrator from Finland and after briefly being introduced, I am already a big admirer of her work.  I love the colour palette she uses and her sense of whimsy.  As I was looking through her work I recognized one of her illustrations that was recently published in the Kinfolk Magazine. 

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I always have this epiphany moment when I can make a connection to an artist.  

Lazy Rainy Saturday

Sometimes it's nice to be lazy on those particularly cold rainy days.

Tanya's Tomatoes

My Friend Tanya moved to Vancouver Island in August and left me with a giant tomato plant.  It looked like a monster sprawled out across my patio with an explosion of green tomatoes.  I pruned it up, tied the stems and hoped for the best....

Now I am enjoying the fruits of her labour.  It's been a good season nourishing my family with life from the garden.  

Infiniti G35

 Try shoving a baby car seat into this...

Pretty darn hilarious if you ask me.  What kind of mom drives this around?  A mom whose dodge caravan broke down and is left with her 20 something brother-in-law's vehicle.  It's an awkward dance getting in and out with Georgia.  Won't the  boys at Banyan's preschool be impressed when I go to pick him up later? 

;)

Harvest Festival

Every fall the Strathcona community puts on the Harvest Festival which includes a pie tasting contest, live music, crafts, and other things to do with the fall harvest.  We arrived late so we missed the pie but we got there just in time for a community hay fight.  It was awesome.  Who ever thought to dump a giant pile of hay in the middle of the park was a genius.  It never got old throwing hay in people's faces.  It was such a great feeling to be part of a tight knit community.  Even the little girls got themselves together and organized their own potato sack race.

Near the end of the fest, I was chatting with a friend when suddenly we heard a roaring noise and saw black smoke billowing into the sky.  An old wooden heritage house caught fire at the end of the park and everyone started running towards it.  I think it's so crazy that people throw themselves right in front of danger to get a good look.  It didn't take long for the fire department to put the fire out and no one seem to be hurt.  All the commotion kind of killed the party but made it extra memorable.

What's so special about East Van?

Everything.

Peaches!

I really wanted to try canning peaches this year but thought I would never make it with a new baby in hand.  However, an opportunity presented its self and two cases of peaches arrived at my door step.
I was told the peaches would take a few weeks to ripen up.  That should be enough time to do some research!

.....nope.  

The next morning McKay's brother Landon, who was staying with us, said if I didn't can the peaches that day, I would probably have to throw them all in the garbage.  Panic!!!  

So in the end, canning peaches isn't as crazy as I thought.
I just want to say thank you to Landon and Brittany because I probably would have eaten most of the peaches and made the rest into jam if they weren't around.