peek-a-boo blooms

il y a 

des fleur partout

pour qui veut

bien les voir

          - matisse

there are 

flowers everywhere 

for those

who wish to see them

           - matisse

 

yesterday,

i convinced ian to walk with me

during his lunch hour.

we visited government house

and were delighted by all the peek-a-boo blooms.
because they are tiny and low to the ground...

you have to bend down and look closely to see them.

it has been unseasonably warm 

here, in the west coast.

everything is popping up,

not afraid of

impending frost.

erica

xoxo

moment: 01/30/15

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

blue bottle lovin

the sun was so beautiful all week
it came shining through my dusty cobalt blues...

i don't know what it is about blue glass that triggers happiness in me.
even when it's grey outside... i think they are beautiful.

but boy oh boy...
when the sun decides to beam out its radiance,
my home transforms into something like a chapel.

a little bit cluttered and needing some dusting, mind you,
but a blue glass sanctuary nonetheless.

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: stripey dress

welcome to 'what i wore' wednesday

where i link up with lindsey at the pleated poppy

and blog what i actually wore tuesday (did you follow that ramble??)

my free pass to the art gallery came in yesterday

so we went to check out the current exhibitions.

have i already told you how wonderful our library is in victoria?

we are so lucky because there are so many cultural venues 
made available to residents through the library system.

so...because the mild weather has stayed with us,

i wore this thrifted striped dress.

originally... the dress (size extra larger) was huge on me.

but with some minor alterations under the arms and in the length, 
it's perfect and very comfortable to wear.

i paired it with some grey leggings and an indigo scarf...

and i was ready to go.

the gallery exhibits were wonderful...

i really enjoyed 'in another place, and here', 

a collaboration of eight artists and their amazing photography.

if you are in victoria... it is worth a visit.

erica

xoxo

wishing you all a beautiful day !!!

knitting and reading: 01/27/15

it only took a little over a year, 

but my blue blanket is finished.

it is currently covering 

my favourite spot on the couch

in my favourite corner of the living room..

talk about marking your territory !!!

the blanket was made from odds and ends of yarn i picked up from thrift shop bins

 and thrifted old scarves that i unravelled in order to repurpose their yarn.

it was such a fun project to do because i wanted to experiment 

with as many variations of yarn (in colour and weight) to see what i would end up.

this is the 5th or 6th blanket that i've knitted...

and each time i casted on more, to see how much larger i could make the end product.

it is amazing how large a blanket one can knit on two straight needles.

i'm still reading miller's
the drama of the gifted child

due to the subject matter, it is a very difficult read.
miller deals with abuse and the importance of finding authenticity 
in order to break the cycle of abuse.
the 'gifted child' that she refers to are those children that were strong enough 
to withstand abuse and live through it.

in between chapters of alice miller's book, 

i'm rereading on of my favourites,  cutting for stone by abraham verghese

lucky me, i found a used copy in a neighbourhood free library.

if you haven't read this one- it is a must !!

a beautiful story about two brothers set in ethiopia and then new york.
verghese does a wonderful job building up all the characters in the story.

what are you knitting and reading lately?

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

bonding over bubble tea

isn't it wonderful when everyone

 in the household agrees on something?

we may argue about which movie to watch,

or where to go for family brunch,

or what radio station to listen to in the car,

and on and on and on...

but there is one thing we all agree on

for us... it is bubble tea 

and how much we love it

if you haven't already tried this taiwanese delicacy, 

bubble tea is a naturally flavored iced tea fusion 

served with chewy tapioca pearls

here are some testimonials:

ian says, " i like how it taste like a smoothie but  

is a healthier version of it, i think it is lower in sugar..."

favourite flavour:  peacock feather -a mix of taro and coconut

my son says, " i love chewing on the tapioca bubbles,

when you drink it, it feels like heaven going down your throat !!!"

favourite flavour:   dairy queen -a mix of strawberry and vanilla bean

 his sister says, " it's yummy and not too cold so it doesn't give you brain freeze"

favourite flavour:  watermelon

i love it because i get to try three different flavours every time we go downtown to treat ourselves.

 they are so filling that one can never finish a full serving.

when i'm on my own...
 i usually pick holy guacamole - a mix of avocado and red bean

most of all, i love the fact that as we sip and slurp and chew tapioca, 
everyone opens up a little more...
my son usually starts telling his jokes, 
my daughter gives us updates on who is dating who in the teen world, 
and ian and i come up with anecdotes of our own teen years with hopes of relating to our children.

our favourite spot is still panacea on fisgard st...

a little cafe deep in the heart of  in victoria's chinatown.

 so bring on the bubbles...

and let the bonding begin.

erica

xoxo

the time has come...

yup... it's time to take down the christmas tree.

erica

xoxo

moment: 01/23/15

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

under the duvet

 camilla posed a question, 

"where is your favourite spot in this big wide world?"

for a chance to win some of her beautiful yarn,

i responded:  "under the duvet"

though i've been fortunate enough to have seen many beautiful parts of this world,
i can't think of a place i love more than being home,
snug, warm and comfortable, with a good book, or my knitting needles, 
under the the duvet.

so..... (wait for the segue)

last week,
i found two mismatched flat sheets,
a worn rectangular table cloth (with some easily mendable tears)
and a piece of silk in the dollar fabric bin at the thrift shop.

i don't know about everyone else... but to me,
they were actually a perfect match.
all four pieces had this gorgeous wine colour.

immediately after arriving home
they were thrown into the wash,
and as soon as they were dry...
i pieced them together to make a duvet cover and some pillow cases.

step 1:  centre and pin and sew the table cloth on one of the flat sheets

step 2:  with both their top sides facing, sew three sides of the two flat sheets together 

step 3:  turn inside out and insert duvet into cover

step 4:  enjoy

this was such a fast, fun, and easy project...

special thanks to my sister for handing-me-down her singer.

it runs great...

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: sick of sweaters

 the last time i checked it was still january... 

but i am already sick of sweaters

so i'm boycotting my woollies for the day.

welcome to 'what i wore wednesday'

i'm joining lindsey and the ladies for some fashion fun.

we have been lucky on the island

because the temperature has been hovering 

around 10 degrees celsius during the day

with mr golden sun making lots of appearances.

i found this thrifted cotton blouse this past autumn.

i have a real weakness for comfortable colourful clothing

and couldn't resist the $3 price tag. 

seriously... who could???

the jeans were thrifted as well... now old and comfortable.

it was the perfect outfit of choice

because my daughter's high school dance class 

was performing last night (and again tonight)

and it got extremely warm in the auditorium.

wishing you all a wonderful wednesday !!!

erica

xoxo

knitting and reading: 01/20/15

my first set of dishcloths are complete.

since i didn't follow a pattern,

i had a lot of fun free styling their designs.

i enjoyed knitting them so much,

that i've started another set in green.

this week, i'm reading

alice miller's the drama of the gifted child.

i have read this work of non-fiction as an undergrad, 

a required reading for one of my women's studies courses.

i'm revisiting it again because it was mentioned so often in

meg wolitzer's book the interestings

(the book that will be discussed by my book club this month)

if you haven't read it, it is a classic worth reading.

it deals with abuse and the importance of rediscovering one's authentic self 

in order to break the cycle of abuse.

i'm glad to be reading this again...

i'm getting so much more from it now, as a mother, 

than i did as a student.

erica

xoxo

joining nicole and ginny

soccer madness

after a three week break for christmas ...

soccer season opened once again.

there is a pile of soccer cleats blocking up our entrance way, 

(this house doesn't have proper closets)

and mounds of stinky soccer uniforms in the laundry room.

with two practises a week, games on the weekend, 

and a three player household,

 busy becomes an understatement.

but... talk about community !!!

for our family, soccer has become a true gateway to building one.

each weekend

rain or shine, families cheer for

not just their child but every child on the team.

with each cheer, not just individual strengths are applauded 

but skills that need developing find encouragement.

soccer...soccer...soccer

it's a very long season... especially in a city 

with as many turf fields as it does public gardens.

(well... maybe not as many)

go BAYS go !!!

erica

xoxo