reprieve

they call it a pineapple express

in other words, heavy rains (100-120 mm) with gusty winds...all coming from the hawaiian islands

it was around one o'clock, yesterday...

we were settling in for the surge of moisture

getting use to the grayness outside and the dimness in the house

when all of a sudden, 

it seemed like someone had turned all the lights on

glorious sunshine had broken through

it only lasted for about twenty-five minutes

just long enough for me to wash the dishes and enjoy a cup of tea

...and then the peltering of rain on the windows and roof began again

and we were back to dimness

erica

xoxo

wishing you all a beautiful weekend !!!

moment 02/06/15

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

rolling in....

i cannot promise

i will never become restless,

that i won't ache

in ways you don't know

how to help.

there are clouds in me
and they roll in

from time to time,

i hope you learn to love
the dark mornings,

instead of always

fumbling around

for your umbrella.

      - tyler knott gregson

 the clouds have rolled in
enveloping our corner of the island

bringing plenty of rain and colourful umbrellas

after living in the west coast, for almost 20 years

i have to admit that although i have grown to appreciate them... it is not love

the sky goes sinister gray, at times ...ominous black
for days... sometimes for weeks
in between downpours, we are cocooned in mist,
the air so full of moisture...that moss and lichen grow prolific
and even the straightest of hairs starts to the curl

these are the days... of sitting by the fire, woolly blankets, and extra hot cups of tea
the doggy towels are by the door... and rain boots ready for puddle play

at times... the gray becomes too oppressive
some buy tickets to sunnier, drier destinations 
while arm chair travellers start clicking their remotes to keep up with rick steves


then one day...
the clouds roll out again
the sun shines and the crocuses open

erica
xoxo

thrifted threads: back to woollies

the rain has come back and so has the damp weather...

brrrr... and right through to my bones !

so i pull on my woollies, because fleece 

just won't do the trick for this west coast momma.

welcome to 'what i wore' wednesday.

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

won't you join us???

yup...it's another thrift shop sweater !

fyi...most of my clothes (99.999%) have been thrifted

or handed down to me from my three younger, stylish and so lovely sisters.

this is a conscious choice of mine and my way of doing my bit 

with the whole reduce, reuse and recycle movement
(besides - it is also so much fun !)

for a mere toonie, (since it was 'any sweaters for a toonie' day),

i rescued this beautiful handmade wool pull over 

from the thrift shop bin a few seasons ago.

i figured if it didn't look good on me, i could always unravel it for the yarn.

i took it home and ended up loving it.

it's perfect to wear over a long sleeve t-shirt and a pair of comfy jeans.

i think it might have some angora in it because of all the long fibres...

but surprisingly, it isn't a bit itchy.

for extra warmth and a touch of colour 

i added a matching scarf 

(a christmas gift from long ago from ian and my kidlums)

yes...it may be raining and a bit chilly and oh so damp.

but like other well seasoned west coasters...

i've got my woollies to keep me warm and cozy !!!

wishing you all a beautiful wednesday...

erica

xoxo

knitting and reading 02/03/15

yes... it's another blanket

my needles have been idle lately,

mainly because the weather had been so nice for the past week... 

and we felt the strong pull to be outdoors.

so this week, i thought i would show you one of the blankets 

that i had finished prior to the blue one.

i'll call this my retro blanket because i followed a retro colour scheme- 

colours that i remember from my mother's and aunts' kitchens...

 lots of browns, yellows. avocados and oranges with pops of other colours

the blanket was very inexpensive to knit, because i used only left over yarns 

(my neighbour was clearing out her yarn basket and had a ton to off load) 

and balls that i thrifted or unravelled from old scarves or sweaters.

although my needles were idle,

i have to confess that i have been reading so much lately... 

with so many on my list from book recommendations i've picked up from other blogs.

i'm passed the half way mark of nerburn's neither wolf nor dog and it has 

only been a few days since i picked it up from the library.

it is such a beautiful read, nerburn writes with such honesty and wisdom

and it gives the reader invaluable insights into first nations' philosophy.

what are you knitting and reading lately?

care to share?

erica

xoxo

joining frontier dreams and small things

hello monday: 02/02/15

hello friends...

today, i'm linking up with lisa

where i greet the brand new week and all the gifts it brings.

hello february

i've noticed that the flower counters are already gearing up for this month's flower count

hello rain 

goodbye sunshine...the forcast this week is for very fine duck weather

hello 5 min ab workout 

i think you are actually working...

even though it is taking me much more than 5 minutes to do half the reps

hello new book to read 

i can't seem to put this one down...also, there are rumours  that there is a movie in the making

hello big brother big sister truck

thank you for picking up my donation bags (i'm up to 30 bags for my decluttering challenge)

hello mounds and mounds of laundry that i ignored all weekend long (sigh...)

hello monday... i need another cup of coffee and then i'm ready for you !!!

erica

xoxo

weekending

wow - february first already

where did it go????

january had gifted us with lots of sunshine and early blooms.

so when the busy-ness of our day (step aerobics, soccer, and more soccer) ended

we spent yesterday afternoon on victoria's dallas road walkway

celebrating the end of this beautiful month.

the day ended with pepper steaks for dinner 

and a very interesting japanese film called wool 100%.

today, will be a morning of puttering and baking.

our cookie jar and muffin tin seem to empty so much faster lately (the mom in me loves this !),

so i will grind more flax seed and more steel cut oats to hide in the bake goodies.

this afternoon... i am attending the third week of a series of five training sessions.

i've signed up to do some community volunteer work, 
and this year i've decided to devote my time outside of the school system.

due to confidentiality... i can't really discuss much of it... 
except for the fact that it has been 
so very interesting, exciting and uplifting 
to be a part of.

as i write this post, it's still very early in the morning, 

harlow is sitting by the front door...beckoning me, eager for his walk.

so i'm off...

wishing you a wonderful start 

to this month of love !!!

erica

xoxo

joining karen