happy holidays

 i want to wish everyone who visit this site 

a holiday season filled with

joy, peace and hope.

i will be away for a while,

travelling and visiting with friends and family,

but am looking forward to connecting with you all again in the new year.

erica

xoxoxoxoxo

origami christmas balls

we were just sitting around, 

listening to christmas music and contemplating the morning

when my son decided to show me how to make origami christmas balls.

his japanese language teacher at the highschool 

had an origami session during their last class before the holidays.

we didn't have any origami paper lying around the house

but... we had loads of christmas wrapping paper.

after cutting the paper into squares,

(since we needed twelve in total,

we used 2 different patterns and cut 6 squares from each)

he started folding...

 the folding took less than ten minutes...

and soon he had two.

i wanted to give it a try,

so i went for the blues ...

and voila !!!!

 now, to find some hanging space on our tree...

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams

winter solstice

winter solstice came as dark as it could get this year.

because of all the heavy clouds that covered the city 

and the overflowing buckets of rain that fell, 

the darkness was intensified.

but like always, despite the lack of light...

 it was such a happy couple of days of gatherings and celebrations.

we spent the whole weekend 

getting together with old friends and new ones.

each night, the potluck tables were filled with goodies from each of our homes.

to survive the marathon of socializing... 

ian and i enjoyed plenty of napping, sipping of tea and coffee, 

and even a little football on tv in between outings.

on saturday evening, the rainiest of the rainy nights,

we had to drop off our daughter at a skating party by the empress hotel.

although the driving was treacherous, we came upon such a treat.

the rain drenched streets had such a 

magical effect on the lights of the parliament buildings.

erica

xoxo

joining karen

mega muffs

i'm meeting some friends for brunch later today,

so yesterday, i decided to whip up some 

chocolate-banana-flaxseed-steel cut oatmeal muffins.

the bananas were so ripe they practically liquefied when mashed.

and my secret trick is to fine grind the 

cups of flaxseed and oatmeal 

so that even my picky eating son 

will bring himself to enjoy the baked goodies.

 they turned out ginormous !!!

also... i'm happy to report,

they successfully passed the picky eater test 

because several were inhaled 

during the cooling process.

happy baking everyone !!!

wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

erica

xoxo

moment 12/19/14

a moment

a friday ritual, a single photo, no words, capturing a moment from the week
a simple, special, extraordinary moment
i want to pause, savour and 

remember.

erica

xoxo

inspired by soulemama

red balls dangling

a few days ago, 

my friend and i decided to treat ourselves to some 

really yummy food and delicious coffee 

at our our favourite deli/coffee house...

olive olio's in cadboro bay.

it was funny

because on the way there, we were both complaining

of how it was hard to get that feeling of christmas in victoria...

with so many (at least every second neighbour) still mowing their lawns.

 it is so green and lush in our city... 

and everyone is out and about on their bikes and their jogging shoes.

i have a feeling that many of us are craving for some fluffy white 

to fall and slow everyone and everything down so we could all nestle and cocoon .

we were both going on and on...

keeping each other entertained with each other's stories of christmas past

while we waited in line to place our orders and

then finally settling into our favourite seats.

we sat and looked around and they took our breath away...

red christmas balls dangling on every window

they are such simple christmas ornaments

and they carried just the perfect magic for both of us.

(nat king cole singing in the background helped a little too)

quickly... the conversation turned to how wonderful life is NOW !!!

after lunch,

both filled with christmas cheer...

we strolled down to the beach

to give harlow his daily dose of the west coast.

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: charcoal and blue

welcome to another

'what i wore wednesday'

today, i'm linking up with lindsey for some fashion inspiration.

it has been a busy couple of days around here.

poor harlow... doesn't know if any of us are coming or going.

because the weather has been so cooperative

i've been popping in and out of shops, meeting up with friends 

and crossing things off on my list with just my woolly sweaters.

this long charcoal sweater is a hand me down from my little sister.

i'm sure she wore it through her first pregnancy, 

so it should be about thirteen years old.

this sweater is wonderful 

not only because it goes down to my knees and keeps me warm

but the wool is thin enough so i can wear it all year round

the charcoal turtle neck is a thrifted treasure.

so soft, comfortable and warm... a mix of cotton and cashmere.

finally, the blue scarf is for extra warmth and a shot of colour.

wishing you all a wonderful wednesday.

ho ho ho !!!

erica

xoxo

knitting and reading 12/16/14

the fuchsia scarf is finished.

it didn't take too long

especially if one 

can't put down the knitting needles...

with the hustle and bustle of the holidays, 

knitting seems to calm and centre me.

i ended up unravelling the first attempt

to get rid of the brown stripes.

instead, i added hints of reds and purples 

and a little bit of green.

this week, i'm reading my book club's pick

the interestings by meg wolitzer

set in new york city, 

novel follows a group of creative and artistic friends 

from teenage hood to adulthood.

so far,  i'm in chapter 8,

 the interestings has been interesting... 

an easy and entertaining read for sure !!!

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

birthday hike

we celebrated yet another birthday this past week...

and the birthday boy was aching for a hike.

so up his favourite mountain we went...

mount tolmie is just up the road from us.

ian and harlow will usually jog up to its summit 

to break up a busy working day.

this hike is so familiar to us,

we could manoeuvre around 

its stunted garry oaks and mossy rocks in the dark and rain.

lucky us, the past weekend gifted us 
with gorgeous sunshine and warm weather.

ian and i have been hiking together for over 26 years now.

it has become a tradition on his birthday 

because it is always one of his wishes.

so, on his special day

with this kind and kindred soul,

harlow and i climbed to the summit...

to share his present.

erica

xoxo

joining  karen

moment 12/12/14

a moment

a friday ritual, a single photo, no words, capturing a moment from the week
a simple, special, extraordinary moment
i want to pause, savour and 

remember.

erica

xoxo

inspired by soulemama

advent concert series

it was a lunch hour treat...

we were to bring our own lunches 

while hot tea and coffee was to be served.

one of the neighbourhood churches 

was hosting its annual advent concert series.

all proceeds from the concerts were to be donated to a charity.

yesterday's noon performance was 
by heather derome,

a classical guitarist and composer.

we got there early... to get good seats.

it was a smart move on our part,

because the little chapel filled up quickly.

the chapel was a beautiful and intimate venue...

the acoustics of the room was perfect.

no microphone was needed, 

 even to hear the soft spoken performer introduce each piece.

and then the magic started....

r.ramirez, mi favorita

anon, spanish romance

a. barrios, danza paraguaya

h. derome, homage

four miniatures

three catalan folksongs

sanz, pavana

h. derome, farewell to the forest

fifty minutes later...

it was silent again.

we walked out into the rain,

our hearts filled with beautiful music, 

 and admiring all the purple berries outside of the chapel.

erica

xoxo