trick or treat...

our pumpkin is carved

and the mr and mrs are back !!!

i just have to mow down the weeds leading to our front steps and

we are almost ready for halloween.

it looks like it is going to be a wet one this year (but our block is still expecting many little goblins to come knocking at our doors)

this is the first year, both my children (a.k.a sugar babies) are not trick-or-treating.

we have graduated from going door-to-door and on to teenage halloween parties and dances,

oh...to turn back the clock !!!!

wishing you all a fun and safe hallows' eve...

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: blue-ey greys

welcome to another

'what i wore' wednesday

when i link up with lindsey and the ladies for some fashion fun !!

the rain and grey skies of november have arrived,

yet the last time i looked, it was still october ?!?

according to the weather network, 

it is going to be a wet, bring-your-umbrella-kind of month...

so many of my west-coast friends are already planning their get-a-way to drier lands.

i found my favourite blue-grey sweater the other day...

in my daughter's room,

 at the bottom of a pile of more of my clothes

 that she has confiscated to use as her own.

this sweater is great - not just for comfort and coziness and easy wear,

but it somehow matches/camouflages all the grey strands of hair

 that keeps multiplying on my head (ugh!!!).

life has been busy and good - so busy and good that i need to apologize 

for neglecting this blog and all the blogs i normally visit.

i'm off to parent-teacher interviews this afternoon.

can you tell how excited i am about going? (NOT)

happy humpday everyone!!!

erica

xoxo

fun stuff: ever so slowly

my purple/blue and yellow/pink blankets are still on the needles

growing ever so slowly these past few weeks.

with my mother-in-love in town, the dial of life has been turned up to busy

i've been playing catch up for a few days now...

i had to return my seven day loan copy of camille gibb's this is happy before finishing it.

i have it on hold and will have to wait a few weeks to see how it ends

whenever i am in between books or when i don't have a book in line to be read, 

i always fall back on mark nepo and his writing and poetry.  

have you read his beautiful collection in the book of awakening?

what are you knitting? reading?

care to share?

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

daybed

the weather has turned beautiful again (actually, we haven't had much rain yet)

and i am having trouble staying indoors and keeping still.

the daybed on the back deck was a favourite spot this past week,

especially for watching the barbecuer barbecuing the barbies.

today is another pro-d (professional development) day for my children

and we are starting our long weekend helping their grandma 

settle into her new, subletted (only for the winter) apartment.

everything in her place is modern, marbled and minimalized 

(a complete opposite to the rustic shabbiness of our home)

i can already hear it (the conversation on the car ride home)

"why don't we have heated bathroom floors?"

"why don't we have a dishwasher?"

"why, why, why, why, why????"

we've had these discussions umpteen times before.

i believe it's educational and important to 
expose our children to different lifestyle choices,
and the physical, relational, emotional, environmental, 
(um...did i forget anything, oh yah...)
blood-sweat-and-tears costs behind them.

then, it's great to come home to that 
daybed on the back deck !!!

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: go green !!

its been an exciting few days in canadian politics,

we heaved steve and trudeaumania two is on !!!

this was what i wore to the polls on monday.

can you tell which underdog i was cheering for?

this thrifted retro sports jacket

is a hand-me-down from my son.

at one point it was his 

'where is my favourite ? did you wash it because i'm going to wear again today' jacket, 

until he woke up one day, too big for it.

well...it's mine now!!!

the green party didn't do too well in our riding

and canada ended up with a majority government (UGH!!)

but we were all dancing and celebrating

at the farewell to steve party 

which went into the wee hours of monday night

happy humpday everyone !!!

erica

xoxo

joining lindsey

fun stuff: scrunched

my needles are still needling my scrap blankets.

here they are...

all scrunched up

calling for me !!!

life has been good 

(all four of us are healthy, thriving and happy)

but extremely busy 

(i've somehow said 'yes' to too much - plus my MIL is arriving TODAY- for the WINTER)

so my knitting...will have to sit scrunched and dormant for the now,

and my reading...i'm almost halfway through and thoroughly enjoying

 camille gibb's this is happy.

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

perspective

today was the absolute worst day ever
and don't try to convince me that
there's something good in every day
because, when you take a closer look
this world is a pretty evil place.

even if
some goodness does shine through once in a while
satisfaction and happiness don't last.

and it's not true that
it's all in the mind and heart
because
true happiness can be obtained
only if one's surroundings are good

it's not true that good exists

i'm sure that you can agree that
the reality
creates
my attitude
it's all beyond my control

and you'll never in a million years hear me say that
today was a good day

                                                    now read from bottom up (if not...i've flipped it for you below)
                                                     - pinterest

today was a good day

and you'll never in a million years hear me say that

it's all beyond my control

my attitude

creates 

the reality

i'm sure that you can agree that

it's not true that good exists

only if one's surroundings are good

true happiness can be obtained

because

it's all in the mind and heart

and it's not true that

satisfaction and happiness don't last.

some goodness does shine through once in a while

even if

this world is a pretty evil place.

because, when you take a closer look

there's something good in every day

and don't try to convince me that

today was the absolute worst day.

                                                                                 - pinterest

so cool...huh?!?

happy (election day) monday everyone !!!

erica

xoxo

here comes the weekend

i love rainy days with a blanket, a cup of tea and a book...

but can you blame me for loving this 

even more ???

by noon, the temperature soared to the high teens (in celsius)

i brought my knitting out to the back deck to take it all in

school finishes early on fridays (yippee !!!)

with a very early start, ian might be able to wrap up work early too 

(i'm  keeping all my fingers and toes crossed)

if so, our weekend starts promptly... just after three.

here it comes...are you ready?

wishing you all a wonderful weekend!!!

erica

xoxo

peace among the ferns

this past weekend,

we went into the woods

and found peace among the ferns.

we followed the trail into the

deepest,

thickest,

wildest

part of the forest.

a w a y from the due dates of school assignments,

a w a y from the dead lines of work projects,

a w a y from competitive soccer...

a w a y from expectations to perform 

and pressures to produce.

this past weekend

we went into the woods,

to embrace the simplicity and goodness of life

among the ferns.

erica

xoxo

thrifted threads: autumn greens

another wednesday

another 'what i wore' post.

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

it is still a long ways away from christmas...but look at all the reds amongst the green !!!

victoria (and probably most of vancouver island) has been gifted the 

most beautiful and colourful autumn that we've had in years.

i'm wondering if it is because of the lack of rain 

that all the trees sustained over the summer?

the temperature is definitely cooler these days...

cool enough for layering but there is still no need for a proper coat.

this moss green vest was a thrifted find from (at least) five years ago.

it is totally oversized and extremely comfy

and has been a favourite for years.

today...is a busy and exciting one for me.

after all the food that was consumed over the weekend, 

my pantry and refrigerator are empty (oh no...we are out of whip cream!?!?).
as i write this post, there are two teen eating machines still slumbering away.

also, i'm getting some training for the new volunteer work i've signed up for.

happy humpday everyone!!!

erica

xoxo

fun stuff: this is happy

my scrap blankets are still growing, 

keeping me warm

while i blissfully knit away.

i finished emily st. john mandel's station eleven.

this book is incredible...mandel does an amazing job writing about 

the pain of surviving our love ones.

i can't recommend it enough !!

now, i'm reading camilla gibb's this is happy

so far, i find the writing to be raw, powerful (and not very happy).

it's a memoir and i think camilla gibb's fourth book.

what are you knitting? reading?

care to share?

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

gobble gobble

it was a beautiful and bountiful weekend.

gorgeous hike, great friends, good food and plenty of left overs !!!

on sunday, we were fortunate to share a thanksgiving meal with some long-time friends
(we met when the kiddies where still in pre-school),

and then 
had enough leftovers

 for another beautiful sit-down (just the four of us) meal last night.

thanksgiving is definitely my favourite of all the holidays.

i love how it is still relatively non-commercialized

 (i have yet to see a big inflated turkey in anyone's front lawn).

also, a whole weekend's dedication to thankfulness 

and the contemplation about all of the blessings in our lives 

makes me very very happy.

erica

xoxo

joining karen

perpetually thankful

i am grateful for what i am and have.

my thanksgiving is perpetual.

it is surprising how contented one can be 

with nothing definite,

only a sense of existence.

well, anything for variety.

i am ready to try this for the next ten thousand years,

and exhaust it.

my breath is sweet to me.

o how i laugh when i think of my vague indefinite riches.

no run on my bank can drain it,

for my wealth is not possession

but enjoyment.

                                    - henry david thoreau

this is my all time favourite thoreau...

i am so blessed in this life that perpetual gratefulness is only befitting.

the big bird long weekend is upon us...

are you (my canadian family and friends) ready for it?

Happy Thanksgiving !!!

erica

xoxo

still in him

music washes away

from the soul

the dust of

everyday 

life

                          - pinterest

his ipod/gaming system stopped working

but his brain, his fingers ached for something...

he hadn't touched the keys in years,

but the music was still in him.

oooooh...those piano lessons 
were soooo worth 

every penny!!!

erica

xoxo