Pughs' News

Saturday morning daydream {tv boyfriend edition}

2012-02-11T00:05:00.000-08:00

Dreaming of spending some time on the LOST island with this man, and a mix-tape...

Is your imaginary boyfriend as adorable as my Sawyer is? I doubt it.

But hey, Happy Saturday anyway.

swoony photo via here

Happy things to end the week with

2012-02-10T00:09:00.000-08:00

It's been a good week around here. Oh sure, I'm looking forward to the weekend like I always do, but there are plenty of things to feel good about on this rainy Friday morning. Things like skype dates with some of my favourite people, all the green shoots popping up all over our garden, a stack of good books to read, a tweet from a famous {and fabulous} author, several good training runs, and...

Dylan's beautiful painting of winter birds. It's still up at school, but I can't wait to frame it and get it up on my wall just as soon as he brings it home.

Plenty of playground weather for the first part of the week. Wheee!

Winter walks. Rain or shine, I walk fast for the first 30 minutes of my lunch hour every day. The fresh air feels so good. And the scenery really is quite nice.

Vintage Valentines like this one. Love it. That reminds me, I've organized a "Secret Cupid" staff gift exchange and festive potluck lunch for the 14th at school. I'm looking forward to shopping for my partner's present after work today, and to seeing all the pretty packages on the staff room table come Tuesday.

I finally got a Valentine cup at Starbucks last night! My vanilla latté tasted that much better because of it. And Em, see that letter there? It just might be for you...

Are you ending the week on a happy note, or with a festive cup from Starbucks? Perhaps you're doing both? I hope so! And I'd love to hear all about it. Leave me a comment with a link to your list, won't you please?

Happy Friday, friends!
E xo

E & me {mouse}

2012-02-08T16:27:00.001-08:00

This week on E & me, we're all about the mice. Not the beady-eyed, long-tailed kind {thank god!} but the computer kind.

As you've probably noticed, Em and I are online quite a lot. And a wireless mouse comes in very handy when working away on the laptop, non?

Can you guess whose mouse is whose?

Unexpected, getting stronger, light-hearted

2012-02-07T23:28:00.000-08:00

I've been too busy to blog these past few days, quite literally running from one thing to the next. But I'm making time tonight for a quick 3BT before I collapse into bed.

1. A good friend popped by unexpectedly after school today, with cookies! It was lovely to see her, and to catch up over a cup of tea.

2. I am getting so much exercise these days, and it feels so good. My running group is going well, and I'm feeling stronger all the time. Soon, I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of running shoes.

3. Got some fabulous news yesterday. News that makes my heart feel lighter than it has in a long time.

Hope you had a lovely Tuesday. I did something today that I've needed to do for ages. It's a step in the right direction, and just knowing that I've taken it makes a world of difference.
E xo

festive photo credit: emily miller

Scenes from the weekend

2012-02-05T22:57:00.000-08:00

What a weekend it was. The sun shone from Friday right on through, and it felt positively spring-like. I loved it, and took many walks to soak up the vitamin D and smile at the big blue sky. Had all sorts of van troubles, but with the help of my dad, got them sorted out without spending my life savings to fix them {thank god for my dad, seriously}. We spent a lot of time at the mall, checking out all the displays at the annual hobby fair {trains! boats! a giant telescope!} and taking ourselves to Starbucks for tea whenever we needed some refreshment. We worked on our Valentines and played in the garden and hung out for hours with my mom. I went running twice, and got to talk with a few of my favourite people. What did you get up to this weekend? I have to say, I didn't turn on the tv once. I hear there was some sort of sporting event on... Did you see it?

Sawyer, sending some love in the mail

You can never have too many stamps

Model trains!

Even better... Model trains that kids are allowed to operate!

Enjoying a walk through the woods

Blue water + blue sky = happy me

A cuddle with Mummy after a good, long nap {love those rosy cheeks}

Dylan and Grampa checking out the treetops with his telescope

February flowers in our garden!

Boys on bikes

Celebrating World Nutella Day- yum!

Plenty of paper hearts

Happy things to end the week with

2012-02-03T00:00:00.000-08:00

Is it Friday? Please, please tell me it's Friday. I am so ready for this week to be over! I've had some really stressful stuff going on the past few days, and I'm in desperate need of some time off from it all. I'm ready for some good food, time to spend with my boys, lots of fresh air and exercise, a girly romantic comedy and a glass or two of wine. Doesn't that sound good? Makes me happy just thinking about it. Which reminds me... here are a few other happy things to end the week with:

A new trailer came out for The Hunger Games yesterday {just 50 days left now until its release!} Oh my. Can't wait!

It's February! January is a thing of the past, and the worst part of the year is over {sorry, all you January fans out there, but it's my blog and I'm allowed to hate the wretched month if I want to}. Before you know it, it'll be March. And in March, I'm going to New York!!!

beautiful Brooklyn Bridge photo via here

The groundhog is in my good books this year {am totally willing to be all superstitious about some furry little rodent if it means I can believe that there will be daffodils coming up in my garden soon}. Apparently he did not see his shadow, and that pretty much guarantees that it'll be an early spring, right? Good. Because I love the spring.

susannah conway via pinterest

My first {homemade} Valentine card arrived in the mail yesterday. Yay! I love that pink and red are allowed to go together in February. And I may have purchased the supplies to make some lovely little cards of my own this weekend...

festive inspiration via pinterest

Finally, I am loving Librarian Hey Girl on Tumblr, featuring photos of the oh-so-dreamy Ryan Gosling and amusing quotes about his love of the library {and the librarian...}

{You're welcome, Cassie.}

It's a short list, and a bit of a silly one, but sometimes it's the little things, right? I hope you're ending your week with all sorts of happy little things, too. Link up in the comments to let me know!

Have a fabulous weekend, friends.
Erin xo

E & me {scarf}

2012-02-01T00:02:00.000-08:00

Hooray! January is over! It's February now, and that means spring will soon be on its way {as well as big bowls full of cinnamon hearts}.

In the meantime {even though we're both dreaming of springtime}, Em and I are well aware that it's still winter, and we're dressing accordingly. Hence, this week's E & me theme- our scarves!

One's from the Gap, one is handmade, and they both do the job of keeping us warm and cozy on a cold winter's day. It's pretty obvious who's who, non?

Do you have a collection of winter scarves? Do you even need them in your part of the world?

Do tell!

Scenes from the weekend

2012-01-30T21:46:00.000-08:00

I feel like every weekend lately is low-key and spent mostly indoors. It seems as though it's always raining, and I'm always trying to catch up on housework and keep the kids entertained. Getting out on my own once in a while is my saving grace. I love meeting up with friends for coffee or dinner, working out at the gym, sitting in Starbucks writing a letter. I took the boys to my parents' house twice this weekend, and it was great to watch them play and race around with their cousins. These are the things that are helping to get me through the winter. I could really use some sunshine now though, and an early spring {you hear that, groundhog?} My seasonally affective disordered self has had enough!

Anyway, here are some scenes from my not-too-bad weekend. Enjoy.

We went to visit my grandpa on Saturday morning. I love this wedding photo of him and my grandma.

Alan takes an all-day nap! {here's hoping I don't get what he had...}

Getting ready for my Saturday night run.

The boys built a castle in their bedroom.

Grey skies and bare branches outside my office window.

Filling in forms {Sawyer's now registered for French immersion kindergarten!}

The boys and I played Monopoly Jr for ages.

"I'm a piano man!" {at my mom & dad's, Sunday night}

Hanging out with Grandpa

Alan's been working on this puzzle for days. I've been helping. It's so hard!

Dylan made me a robot for the desk in my office. I wonder if it does housework?

How was your weekend? Are you happy it was the last one of January? I sure am.

Saturday morning daydream

2012-01-28T00:04:00.000-08:00

A pretty little tent, some bunting {love bunting, seriously}, a bowl of berries and a cold drink, green grass and trees and sunshine... What more could a girl want on a Saturday morning?

via here

Fill in the blank Friday {travel edition}

2012-01-27T14:36:00.000-08:00

Here's something I haven't done in a while... a Fill in the Blank Friday! The theme this week is travel, so of course I couldn't resist.

* * *

1. My favourite place I've ever travelled to is London. I adore it. The art, the culture, the architecture, the shopping, the tea...

2. Annecy, in the French Alps, is somewhere I'd like to go someday soon. I miss Em.

3. I pass the time on a plane by reading books and writing in my journal. On a train or bus though, I absolutely cannot read or else I'll get violently motion sick. So instead I listen to music and watch the scenery going by.

4. My three must-haves when I travel are a good book, a pen and paper, and a drink.

5. My favourite travel companion is ... sort of dependent on the trip. Alan is an excellent travel companion in the UK. He always knows where he's going and can navigate pretty much any train station with ease. My mom and my sister are great to travel with, too. We always have fun together and laugh a lot {NYC, here we come!}

6. The craziest thing that ever happened to me while travelling is meeting my future-husband during the total solar eclipse. The sky went as dark as midnight at 11 o'clock in the morning. Très romantic, non?

7. The most exotic food I've ever tried while travelling is barbequed bison {in Northern Manitoba}.

8. If I could live anywhere else I'd live in London. There is still so much there that I have yet to see and do. And it would be fabulous to be able to take the kids to every single park and museum, too.

9. I have been to 5 US states {Washington, New York, Michigan, Minnesota, Florida} and 8 Canadian provinces {all of them except for New Brunswick and Saskatchewan}.

How about you? Want to play along? Link up over on the little things we do, and leave me a message in the comments so I can read your travel stories, too.

Happy Weekend, friends! Come back tomorrow and join me in my Saturday morning daydreaming, won't you?

image via here

Tulips on a Thursday

2012-01-26T14:39:00.000-08:00

A little splash of spring sunshine on my kitchen table.

At Alan's prompting, I took myself out last night and bought not one but two bunches of tulips! They were just what I needed on a dreary {and challenging} January day...

E & me {what I'm reading}

2012-01-25T09:16:00.000-08:00

It's cold, it's grey, it's pouring rain. What's a girl to do but get cozy indoors with a cup of tea and a pile of books?

Here are some of the things that Em and I are currently reading.

Can you guess who's reading which?

And... please won't you recommend something fabulous for us to read next?

Merci! And Happy Wednesday.

Rain, run, mysterious

2012-01-24T22:17:00.000-08:00

I really need a new umbrella

1. I like the sound of the rain on the skylights in my library.

2. My 10K running clinic started tonight. We ran in the pouring rain and the most blustery wind. It was hard, but I felt fabulous after.

3. The final episode of this series of Sherlock was ah-mazing. I love Martin Freeman.

Time for bed. Hope your Tuesday was full of beautiful things, too. Good-night!

image via here

Scenes from the weekend

2012-01-23T11:10:00.000-08:00

The rain poured down all weekend and gale force winds blew {for real}. So we stayed warm and dry indoors pretty much the entire time. We did go out to a little Greek place at the mall on Friday night for dinner, and I went to the pub on Saturday night with some girlfriends, but during the days we mostly hung out inside, doing jigsaw puzzles & Lego, watching movies, painting and colouring and staying snug by the fire. Sawyer actually stayed in his pajamas all weekend long! It was good, and necessary, and I feel well-rested and full of energy. Always a good thing!

Now it's Monday morning and the sun is out. I'm looking forward to a busy week ahead. But more on that another time. For now, some scenes from our cozy weekend...

Friday night at the mall, I spotted this chair. Now I want it in our living room.

Puzzled

A Lego extravaganza!

It rained so much that all our lovely snow was washed away almost over night

I tidied up my office. You can see my beautiful desk again!

The boys had a spill whilst painting. They cleaned it up, and made a warning sign so I wouldn't slip when I came downstairs. Love it.

Crepes for dinner, Saturday night

With raspberries and whipped cream!

Girls' night out at the pub. Who knew Music Bingo would be so much fun?

Sunday night grocery shopping.

It took every ounce of my willpower not to buy all of these dvds as an early Valentine's Day present to myself!

How was your weekend? Let's hear all about it...

Saturday morning daydream

2012-01-21T00:19:00.000-08:00

via

A window seat and built-in bookcases? On a landing as pretty as this one? Yes, please! I could happily spend an entire day sitting right here... How about you?

Happy things to end the week with

2012-01-20T00:07:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a week, this third one of January {is that all? I'd swear there have been at least 5 weeks in January so far!} The weather has been wild, and it's allowed us to stay home, slow down and enjoy the little things more than we usually would. Here are a few of the things that have made me happy this week:

Coming inside from the cold, putting on the tea, and changing into a cozy pair of socks that have been warming by the fire. All of this is especially nice when experienced on a surprise day off in the middle of the week!

An impromptu hot chocolate party with my kindergarten class yesterday. All 17 of us tromped down the hall to the staff room to borrow the kettle, then came back to drink our cocoa picnic-style on the classroom floor. The kids were thrilled.

Starting to think about Valentine's Day cards. This set from POSH Chicago is cute, non?

Crazy carpets! Best $5 spent this winter, that's for sure...

Other things making me happy include: a date with my sister at Starbucks this afternoon {weather permitting}, long walks in the snow every day on my lunch hour, Em and I wearing matching red toques while we Skyped, a surprise delivery of Timbits from my dad in the middle of a blizzard, the new season of Portlandia, an upcoming evening out to celebrate a good friend's birthday, and the sudden realization that there are just 2 months {and one day} left until I leave for NYC!!!

Yippee!

What's making you happy this Friday? Did you make a list? Leave me the link in the comments, won't you please?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend. Have fun, and stay warm!
E xo

image 1/2/3/4

E & me {recycling}

2012-01-18T22:21:00.000-08:00

It's Wednesday and, even in the midst of this winter weather chaos, Wednesday means E & me.

This week, Em and I are taking out the recycling.

It doesn't matter if you're in Canada or France, you still need to sort through your paper, metal and plastic and separate it from the rubbish, non?

Ours gets picked up curb-side every other Monday. And the boxes are always full.

I can't even imagine how much must have been thrown away in the days before recycling programs were in place!

Do you have regular recycle pick-up {in the bright blue box like mine} or do you have to take all your empties to a recycling centre?

Snow day!

2012-01-18T13:33:00.000-08:00

My wish came true! It snowed all night and this morning, when it still hadn't stopped, pretty much everything shut down! It's officially a snow day and we're having the most fabulous time... working and playing outside in the huge snowdrifts, then coming in to get warm for a while{sitting by the fire & drinking hot chocolate mainly} before heading out again. This afternoon we're going to try the crazy carpets on the first hill we can find. Wheeee!

There really is a lot of snow. See for yourself!

PS: I haven't forgotten E & me. Have just been distracted by this crazy winter weather. Watch for our recycling-themed post later today...

A wintry 3BT

2012-01-17T22:30:00.000-08:00

Tuesdays are 3BT day around here now, aren't they? I was so busy digging out the driveway, I forgot! Better a little bit late than never though, right? So here they are, three beautiful things on this cold January night...

1. Chenille socks to keep my feet warm inside my boots.

2. Hot chocolate and fresh-baked cookies to welcome the boys in from the cold. Oh, I love those rosy cheeks!

3. The preschool presidents' meeting was cancelled tonight {thank you, icy roads} which means I get to stay home and sit by the fire to watch Glee and Parenthood {my favourite!}

And a few more, for good measure:

My hard-working helper

Sunshine on the snow

Snow drifts on the juniper

Dylan's class mural- isn't it fabulous?

We got almost a foot of snow in the past 24 hours. But, it wasn't a snow day today. Even though the buses weren't running, school was in session. It was a bit of a harrowing drive to and from work, but we made it safe and sound. Here's hoping everything's closed tomorrow, so we can go sledding...

How was your Tuesday? Have you got three beautiful things to share? I'd love to hear them if you do.

Scenes from the weekend

2012-01-16T00:02:00.000-08:00

We had a good weekend. Freezing cold, but good. It was a weekend of eating out, and staying in to do puzzles and play games. A weekend of long walks and playing in the snow, of sitting in Starbucks writing letters, and drinking lots of tea. Time together and alone time. It was pretty much perfect.

Helping Daddy open presents at Gramma's house

I love my mom & dad's kitchen

Sawyer loves puzzles

Tea break

Cozy evening in

Playing with Bob

Letter writing & a latté

Winter walk

Sawyer gets a shoulder ride

Heading home

The cold weather and snow are supposed to carry on for the next few days. If they do, and school gets cancelled, I'll be making soup, baking muffins, reading books, relaxing, and getting some more stuff done around here, too. I'm not counting on it, but you never know, right? I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

Saturday morning daydream

2012-01-14T00:40:00.000-08:00

This looks rather nice, doesn't it? I'll take the chair on the right.

Who wants the other one?

via here

Birthday wishes

2012-01-12T08:26:00.000-08:00

Today is Alan's birthday. There will be cake and balloons and presents, of course. There will even be a birthday pinata {an absolute must, according to Sawyer}! Tomorrow night, we're going out to dinner and a movie while the boys go to my parents' place for a sleepover... I can't wait!

In the meantime, who wants to see some photos of my husband when he was a kid?

Yep, I thought you would...

In his high chair, circa 1969.

School photos with big sister Wendy {aren't they adorable?}

Hanging out with his cousins.

Can you guess which one is Alan? {hint: he looks a lot like Sawyer!}

12 years old here maybe? {I love how that cat looks just like Bob!}

Happy Birthday, Dar! I hope the year ahead is wonderful.

E & me {bread}

2012-01-11T22:58:00.000-08:00

Okay, so is it just me {& E!}... or did Wednesday just turn up out of nowhere? This week is flying by, and I can't seem to keep up with it.

As a result, this week's E & me is coming to you late Wednesday night, as I chop veggies and make sandwiches for work & school lunches tomorrow.

Can you guess which loaf of bread is mine? And which one is Em's? I'll give you a hint...

Em lives in France.

Hence the french bread. {doesn't it look delicious?}

Had I known we were photographing our bread this week, I'd have got mine from the bakery, where le pain is a lot prettier than the loaves they sell in the grocery store!

Oh well, the boys won't mind, so long as they have sandwiches in their lunch bags tomorrow...

Hope you had a wonderful Wednesday!

Tuesday 3BT

2012-01-10T22:25:00.000-08:00

via slidesideways

Remember when I used to write about three beautiful things all the time? I''d find lots of little things that made me happy and ramble on about them. It was a little bit Pollyanna, but a whole lot of what I needed.

I think it's time to bring that feature back. I definitely need it again. It's cold, it's dreary, it's January... and Lord knows I hate January! What better time to re-focus and find 3BT to make me smile and remind me {and my seasonally depressed self} that things aren't all bad? I've been writing them down in my journal every night since New Year, and I think I'll make it a weekly thing on my blog, too. So here it is, the first of many, Tuesday 3BTs...

1. Tea in my pretty new mug + a book that makes me laugh out loud + some festive confetti {courtesy of Sawyer} = a pleasant hour spent lounging on the couch.

2. A lunch hour walk in the bright winter sunshine {finally! a day without rain!}

3. One of the kids at my school- one of those really rough-around-the-edges kind of kids- came to the library with her class today. She'd finally remembered to return her library book and she'd brought me a drawing. On it she'd written, "I love you, Mrs P." Made me smile.

Can you think of three beautiful things about today?

Making the most of my Monday

2012-01-09T02:09:00.000-08:00

I am determined to have a really great day today. I plan to get some stuff accomplished, to spend some time outside in the fresh air, to sit on the floor and play with my kids, to exercise my ass off, to treat myself to something nice, and just generally to start this week off happy. Why? Because I deserve it. And so do you.

Happy Monday, y'all.

image via here

Go hang out in France this Saturday...

2012-01-07T14:56:00.000-08:00

So you all know how much I love my best friend, Em, who lives way too far away in France, right? Well, I love her little blog, too. And today, she introduced a fab new feature, Instasamedi, a weekly post showcasing her best instagram photos from the previous week. I have to confess, I was a little bit jealous of her iPhone and its awesome apps before. But now that I've seen this new post, I'm pretty sure I need to ask for one for my birthday. It's still several months away, so there's lots of time for the people who know and love me to start saving... ;~)

Anyway, please go check out Em's blog, Rue de France, and her fun new feature {which will be posted every Saturday}. Leave her lots of lovely comments, too, okay? Okay. That's what I'm off to do right now.

Hope you're having a super samedi!
E xo

Happy things to end the week with

2012-01-06T23:40:00.000-08:00

On this cold Friday night, the first Friday night in January... I'm feeling fairly content. It was a long and exhausting week, and I struggled to get back into a routine after the holidays, but somehow I managed. And so, as promised, here is my list of things for which I am grateful:

My living room feels huge now that all the decorations are put away.

I stopped in at the public library today and Mindy Kaling's book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? was there on the "New Titles" shelf! I scooped it up right away, and just a few pages in, I've already laughed out loud more than once. Excellent.

We're going back to Sorrento this summer! We've booked a week in the cabin next to Amanda's family again. Wahoo! Bring on the adirondack chairs, the summer sun, the lake, and all that time to relax and laugh with my sister. How soon is July?

I love my new white mugs from Starbucks. They're red inside, and they are gorgeous.

The boys and I stopped by my mom & dad's tonight after we picked up some groceries. I'm so glad we did, because it was just so much fun.

I went for a power walk on my lunch hour every day this week, even in the pouring rain {I am talking torrential!} It felt great. Definitely going to keep it up.

The winter season premiere of Parenthood was fantastic. I love Zeek Braverman.

I've got a phone date with Em tomorrow. Phone dates with Em are my favourite.

Oh, and did I mention... it's Friday night?

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! Are you doing anything exciting? Please, do tell! I'll need to live vicariously through you, because so far my plans include several hours of sorting empty pop tins and bottles for the preschool bottle drive {it's for a good cause, but ick}, catching up on mountains of laundry, and going to the gym once or twice. Oh, and I'm going to make soup. It's a glamourous life I lead.

PS: The adorable photo above is of a print by Stephanie Fizer Coleman. Check out her pinterest boards- they're lovely.

Good-bye, Christmas

2012-01-05T21:57:00.000-08:00

It's Twelfth Night, and in our house that means Christmas is officially over. We spent the evening taking all the decorations and the beads and the lights off the tree, and packing it all back into boxes. The tree is in the garden now, waiting to be chipped up and made into compost, and the boxes are back in their corner of the crawl space. It's looking pretty bare in the living room, and not even a little a bit twinkly. Sigh.

Taking down the Christmas tree always makes me sad. I know that about myself. So, I tried to make the most of it, this last day of Christmas. I put on my She & Him Christmas cd one final time, and sang along while we worked {man, I love that album! have you heard it? it is marvellous}. I thought about having some chocolate, but that is so not in keeping with my new year's goal of eating healthy and losing 10 lbs, so I decided on a glass of wine instead {only marginally better, I know!} I ended up having two. I don't drink very often, and probably for very good reason. Alas, it did not make me feel merry. I just got all weepy instead. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" came on, and I was a mess.

So. Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to call it a day, climb into bed, and get a good night's sleep {always necessary after a noisy day in kindergarten, but even more so tonight, I think}. Hopefully I'll wake up happier, and in a better state of mind, in the morning. Once we get the living room re-organized, I'm sure I'll be feeling glad of the extra space, and inspired to start anew. I might even learn to like January a little bit.

I'll be back tomorrow with a gratitude list. It's been too long, and I think it's time to get back into that routine. I'll end the week on a happy note, I promise.

Until then, good-night, dear blogging friends.
Sweet dreams.

image via here

E & me {new year, new calendar}

2012-01-04T22:24:00.000-08:00

Bienvenue à the first E & me of 2012!

It's a New Year, and you know what that means, right? A new calendar!

One of the calendars below is on the wall chez Em in France, and the other one's here in Canada. Can you guess whose is whose?

This year, I happen to have several, and one of them is pictured above. So far for 2012 I have a "Mummy" one for the fridge {to write down every little thing I need to remember regarding the kids' schedules}, a more professional one for my office {with spaces to write down work stuff, and preschool-presidential-type items}, a dayplanner that comes with me everywhere I go {for appointments, coffee dates and favourite quotes or interesting ideas that pop into my head}, and finally a "Perpetual Paris" one that Em gave me, just because it looks so pretty on my wall {and because it's French, of course!}

With all of those to keep me organized, I'll never miss a date/meeting/appointment ever again!

Do you have a new calendar {or two, or three...} yet?

Not long until New York!

2012-01-03T22:01:00.000-08:00

My sister sent me a text tonight that read "10 weeks to NYC!" I checked, and she's right. 10 weeks tomorrow morning, we'll be boarding the flight to New York. How exciting is that?

It's time to start planning! So far we know that we definitely want to: see a Broadway show, check out the view from the top of the Empire State Building, have breakfast outside Tiffany's {oh, the photo opps!}, visit Times Square, take a stroll through Central Park, and eat a lot of bagels...

Of course there are so many more amazing things to see and do in the city that never sleeps, but I'm a bit overwhelmed with all the options. We've got 5 nights and 4 1/2 days to fill, and we want to make the most of every single second. So, have you been to New York? And if you have, tell me please... what are the things that we simply must do?

image via here

Scenes from the weekend

2012-01-02T20:16:00.000-08:00

The first weekend of the year was a low-key one, which is good because tomorrow morning we jump right back into our crazy work/school routine. We played board games, read books, built Lego... We ate and drank and ate some more! We rang in the New Year with sparklers and Skype, hot chocolate and a Cadbury's yule log. On Sunday we went grocery shopping {lots of salad fixings in that shopping cart, let me tell you!}, and to the park to breathe in the fresh air. All in all, it was a nice way to start the year.

Dylan's new "around the world" game is a huge hit!

3 pm in Canada = midnight in France, so Em and I skyped to say "Bonne année!"

Sawyer snapped my photo {and oh boy, am I ever wintry-white!}

Cheese fondue for dinner

Hot chocolate & whipped cream for the boys {plus my pretty poinsettia}

We got them up at 11:30 so they could join in the fun at midnight

Sparklers are hard to photograph

Dylan's sweet New Year card

Two lovely boys on the first day of 2012

Did you have a good weekend? Hope it was as relaxing and sparkly as ours!

How did you say good-bye to 2011?

PS: My look back at 2011 is here. It took me forever to do, so be sure to take a look, won't you please?

A look back at 2011

2012-01-01T22:52:00.000-08:00

The holidays are over and January has arrived. It's a brand new month, and a shiny new year. Tonight, I'm taking a look back at 2011. Care to join me?

January arrived bright and brisk. We got back into our routine, celebrated Alan's birthday and I started running again. We spent as much time outside as we could, to try to beat the January blues. I made about a million resolutions.

In February, Em came home to visit! We had a wonderful girls' weekend, complete with Colin Firth and pedicures. There was Valentine's Day, and a snowstorm. I went to Vancouver to see Em again before she flew back to France, and on the way home walked off the ferry and into an ambulance {my gall bladder wasn't happy with all that fancy French cheese I'd eaten}. It was all very dramatic.

March was busy, as it always is. Dylan turned 6, and we celebrated his birthday {among many others}. Spring began to blossom. I was scheduled for gall bladder surgery but had to cancel due to a bronchial infection. I spent all of spring break sick. No more running for me.

In April I turned 37 {oh gawd, I don't look that old, do I?} and celebrated with family, friends, flowers and wine! I went for day surgery to have my gall bladder removed. Took two weeks to recover and spent my days blogging and reading and lying on the couch. I got loads of lovely mail and started feeling better. At the end of the month, Shannon and I attended a middle-of-the-night Royal Wedding tea party. It was fabulous.

In May it rained a lot, and our garden grew. Our lilacs blossomed. We went to the parade and celebrated Mother's Day {I'm a big fan}. We had fun at the rodeo. Summer was on its way.

June was mad. I was so busy with school and preschool, and couldn't wait for summer to arrive. Em and I began our weekly E & me posts. Dylan finished kindergarten, Sawyer turned 4 {we had a picnic party with all his little friends}, and a special guest came to visit from San Diego {hi, Brandi!} Oh, and there was a lot of bike-riding... And eating of ice cream!

July was fun. So much fun. It was finally summer vacation and so good to relax. Alan and I saw Harry Potter on opening night. We went on a family holiday to Sorrento and had a wonderful time relaxing and eating and sleeping and playing by the lake. Spent oodles of time with my sister. It was summer at its best. With some thunder and lightning...

August. Monica and Emily came to visit from Manitoba, after too many years apart. We went mini-golfing and camping and swimming and stayed up way too late. It was perfect. Dylan went to French camp. I hung out with Amanda some more. We spent lots of time at the beach and outside in the sun. Summer was winding down.

September. Blackberry picking. Back to school. Dylan started in French Immersion at a new school {best decision ever} and I started teaching kindergarten {still figuring out how I feel about that!}. Sawyer began his last year of preschool and I was full-swing into my new role as preschool president. Busier than ever, all four of us.

October. Yuck. I usually love October. But not this one. It was awful. The autumn colours were pretty though. And the boys loved Halloween as much as ever.

November was cold and the days grew dark. I wrote a lot, and read even more. Alan put up our Christmas lights and we began to think about the holidays.

December came, and with it, everything festive. Music and lights, movies and magic and all things Christmasy. It was exactly what I needed. We went to parades and for more than one hot chocolate. I went away for a weekend with my mom and Amanda, and came home to a mantle on my fireplace and a Christmas tree in my front yard. We decorated and shopped, wrapped and baked. It was a lovely month, and it didn't last long enough. We ended it at midnight on the 31st, with sparklers and sparkling wine, and hopes for a very happy new year.

Welcome, 2012. I've got high hopes for you.

new year blackboard via here

Happy New Year

2011-12-31T08:26:00.000-08:00

***

It's the last day of 2011. It's been quite a year- busy, fun, infuriating, happy, heartbreaking... I'll be glad to bid it farewell tonight {over board games, a cheese fondue and a glass of champagne}, and to welcome in a brand new year. Here's to 2012. May it be joyous.

I hope you have a wonderful time tonight, and that the year ahead will be one of good health and great happiness.

See you in the New Year!
E xo

Christmas Day in photos

2011-12-30T11:40:00.000-08:00

I know most people are moving on to New Year's Eve {I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of 2011}, but I'm still sorting through my Christmas photos! Here are some pictures of our Christmas Day, starting bright and early. The boys had us up shortly after 6 a.m., when they woke up and discovered that Santa had left bags of goodies at the ends of their beds {just like he does in England}...

Not too sleepy to be super excited

They're big bags, no?

#1 on Dylan's wish list was a spinning top. Look how thrilled he was to find it!

After the Santa sacks were emptied, we moved downstairs to the stockings and the Christmas tree. Mummy's pretty sleepy still, as you can see...

#2 on the list was a hula-hoop! Can you believe Santa didn't even try to wrap it?

Sawyer's Christmas wish was for a jack-in-the-box. Hurrah!

This present was at the very back of the tree, behind everything else. Sawyer kept asking, "Can I open that enormous one now? Please?" But, as is tradition, the biggest ones have to wait until last. He tried very hard to be patient, and was so excited to find a Playmobil volcano and dinosaur set when he finally got to open it

In the afternoon, we headed to my mom & dad's for Christmas dinner. It was lovely, and very noisy, and I hardly took a single photo. Too busy keeping track of all the crazy kids! I did get this one of my mom's beautifully decorated mantle above the fireplace though. Oh, and can you spot me in there somewhere?

Sawyer and I cuddled up to have dessert.

Home again, and straight to bed after a long and exciting day.

Sweet dreams!

Christmas Eve this year

2011-12-29T00:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve this year was lovely. We had a fun-filled lunch at my aunt's house with all the cousins {did you see E & me yesterday?}, and then came home to scatter magic reindeer food across the lawn {to ensure Santa's sleigh would easily find our house}. We skyped with Alan's mum, ate cookies, and the boys put their carefully wrapped presents under the tree. My parents came over to sing carols and wait for the elves to magically shower us with candy. We exchanged presents with them, and the boys opened their festive new pajamas. We hung our stockings, left goodies out for Santa, and then we tucked two very excited little boys into bed where they promptly fell asleep {a Christmas miracle!}

It was Dylan's turn to put the angel on the tree this year

I adore my Christmas village on the mantle... which includes these lovely little vintage trees from my Grandma, and this sparkly new {vintage-style} house from my mom

In the front yard... candy canes and a tree of lights, constructed by my talented husband

Our twinkly tree through the front window

There's my dad with his crazy Santa beard again!

New pajamas, a Christmas Eve tradition since I was their age

Hanging stockings by the fireplace

Mince pies, rum & eggnog for Father Christmas

Santa's been!

Our tree at midnight... blurry, but beautiful

Next up- Christmas morning, which came soon after this last photo was taken!

E & me {Christmas cousins}

2011-12-28T12:49:00.000-08:00

No matter which side of the Atlantic you happen to live on, Christmas is pretty much always about getting together to celebrate with family, right?

So this week's E & me features the cousins at Christmas. And they're having a very merry time together as you can see!

I won't bother asking you to guess which ones are the Canadian kids and which are les enfants françaises. If you've spent any time reading Pughs' News before, you'll recognize my two in their Santa hats {with cousins Thomas and Kilian} right away... The two cuties in the photo below are Em's niece and nephew, Juliette et Arthur.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some Lego-building to get back to!

'Twas the week before Christmas

2011-12-27T15:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Day-After-Boxing-Day! Can you believe it's two days past Christmas already? Where does the time go? I hope your Christmas was as merry as ours was. We had a wonderful time with family and friends, singing and opening presents and celebrating and we are now in serious relaxation mode- sleeping in, sipping hot chocolate, reading books, watching movies, building Lego, eating way too many butter tarts... I have taken so many photos, I'm not sure where to begin really. So I thought I might start with the week before Christmas and work my way up to the New Year {crazy! 2012 is just 5 days away now!} We were very busy last week, getting up to all sorts of festive fun. Check out all these signs that our favourite holiday was just around the corner...

So many Christmas cards! {and can you spot the gingerbread sleigh and reindeer?}

The most beautiful tree in our living room

Making sugar cookies

Baking sugar cookies!

Pretty new snow globe in the living room {and my cute new Santa, too}

Speaking of Santa, my dad grew out his beard for the occasion!

Festive fireplace {le sigh... I just love it}

Santa and reindeer artwork on the kitchen wall

Our tree-top angel finally in place

Next up, photos from Christmas Eve {and an awesome E & me tomorrow}... Until then though, won't you tell me how your holiday was? I'd love to hear! Did it snow? Did Santa come to your house? Have you consumed as much shortbread as me? Are you still on vacation? I hope so. Because I am. And I've got to tell you... it is bliss.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T00:09:00.000-08:00

May your days be merry and bright, and may you always be surrounded by the ones you love the most.

Happy Holidays!

Erin xo

via here

Advent Window- December 24th

2011-12-24T10:02:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas Eve! Hooray! Santa Claus comes tonight!

via here

Advent Window- December 23rd

2011-12-23T00:30:00.000-08:00

In all the hustle and bustle of the next two days {tomorrow is Christmas Eve! can you believe it?!}, be sure to take a moment to sit, relax and sip a cup of tea {or coffee, or Baileys...} by the tree. Breathe deeply, and savour the season. I'm saying this to remind myself, as well, because in about 15 minutes I'm heading out to the mall. I've got a few groceries to pick up, and am planning to stop at the chocolate shop and the bakery too. Wish me luck as I brave the crowds! And as I wrap more presents tonight!

Are you all ready for Christmas?

photo from my friend Tricia's house- isn't it lovely?

Advent Window- December 22nd

2011-12-22T09:00:00.000-08:00

Okay, seriously? December 22nd? How did that happen? We're having a Christmas party at our house tonight, so I'm making sugar cookies. I've already made mince pies and butter tarts, shortbread cookies and ginger snaps. But sugar cookies are sort of necessary, right? So I'm going to whip up a batch before I start the housework and grocery shopping {we need rum! and egg nog!} Angels and stars and snowflakes are on the menu... hooray!

Have you been to any yuletide parties yet? {or done a crazy amount of Christmas baking?} We're expecting at least 40 people over the course of the evening, so I've got a lot of work to do today! Guess I'd better get to it...

via here

E & me {Christmas collage}

2011-12-21T20:21:00.000-08:00

Dylan told me tonight, with a huge grin on his face, "Mum! The day after tomorrow is the day before Christmas Eve!" Isn't that adorable?

It's also correct. Christmas is practically here! Excitement is in the air! So this week's E & me features four photos instead of the usual two {because we couldn't choose just one theme}. With Christmas so close, we're in full-on preparation mode in both countries. The tree is up, the house all aglow, and there are plenty of gifts still waiting to be wrapped.

Can you guess which tree is chez moi, and which is chez Em? And whose wrapping paper collection is whose? It's fairly obvious, but it's still fun to read your guesses, and hear why you've chosen the way you have. Leave me your email address with your comment and you just might find a little something in the post if you're right...

Happy Holidays et Joyeux Noël from E & me!

Santa Photo 2011

2011-12-21T14:00:00.000-08:00

We went to the mall last night to see Santa. As you can see, it was a jolly good time! Alan and I were surprised though, when the boys started telling him about the things they wanted for Christmas... things they had never mentioned before until they were sitting on his lap! Good thing Santa still has a few days to get things organized in his workshop before Christmas Eve rolls around!

{see last year's photo here}

Advent Window- December 21st

2011-12-21T05:44:00.000-08:00

***

It's the first day of winter. This calls for a Bailey's & hot chocolate, and "Let it snow" on the iPod, wouldn't you agree?

Ornament swap update

2011-12-20T16:02:00.000-08:00

As you may recall, I was pretty excited to join in the fun of Micaela's third annual ornament swap this year. And for good reason! Here's what I sent my partner Elise, in Florida:

A pretty paper ball, found at a Christmas craft fair. It looked a bit like a picture she'd pinned on one of her Pinterest boards, so I hoped she'd like it. {I did! So I got a few for my tree, too!}

I couldn't resist this little green bird to go along with it.

Here's what Elise sent me. Isn't it lovely and twinkly?
Thanks, Elise!

I first "met" Micaela through her original ornament swap back in 2009. She drew my name, and I received a lovely package of goodies from her. We started writing, and have been friends ever since. And we've kept up the tradition of sending each other an ornament each Christmas. It is a wonderful tradition!

I found this little deer for M at The Papery this year, and some rockin' Christmas cocoa à la Elvis that had Micaela written all over it {I know what a fan she is of both}!

All wrapped up and ready to go to the post office!

I got a similar sized parcel from my dear Texan friend

...with the sweetest little snowman inside!

Come to think of it, perhaps it's a snow girl. Isn't she pretty on my Christmas tree?

Thank you, Micaela!

Did you play along in the ornament swap? I hope so, because it really is such a fun way to meet new people and add some lovely decorations to your Christmas tree... And for me, it was just so perfect. After all, mail + Christmas = a few of my favourite things!

Advent Window- December 20th

2011-12-20T00:38:00.000-08:00

Every night while we're sleeping, Santa's elves sneak into the house and leave treats in the advent calendar- stickers, candy canes, mini-ornaments, chocolates... Every morning, we rush to the calendar to see what goodies they've brought for us. It's a holiday tradition I just adore. And speaking of which, aren't these little pinecone elves adorable?

We're just five days away from Christmas now. Five! How on Earth did that happen?

PS: Come back later today for an ornament swap update, and lots of photos :)

via martha stewart

Advent Window- December 19th

2011-12-19T12:16:00.000-08:00

Love the red and white, the open staircase, the greenery and skates, the pretty presents on the stairs... Love it all. Wish my house looked like this!

via here

Scenes from the weekend

2011-12-18T23:33:00.000-08:00

It was the first weekend of Christmas vacation, and wow! What a busy one it was... I finished work at 3 on Friday and headed straight to the church hall to get set up for our preschool's Supper with Santa {a smash hit with the parents and kids, in case you were wondering}. Saturday we cleaned and organized, brought in the tree, decorated, wrapped presents. Sunday I got to the gym for a good workout {my thighs still hurt}, worked on the tree some more {it's a really big tree, and we have a lot of ornaments!}, went grocery shopping, and had a lovely time in the evening watching White Christmas at my sister's place.

Most magical Santa ever

See what I'm saying?

Opening presents at the Santa Supper

Dylan loves his British book

Time to decorate the tree!

Work in progress- pretty, non?

Fab new Christmas CD, a last-day-of-school gift to myself

Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye in my sister's living room

I'm super tired now. I have a mile-long list of things I'd like to accomplish tomorrow, before we head to a friend's house for a Christmas baking party in the afternoon {shortbread, butter tarts and mince pies are on the agenda}, so I'd better get my sleepy self to bed right now.

But before I go... won't you please tell me what you got up to this weekend?

Advent Window- December 18th

2011-12-18T12:16:00.000-08:00

"It must be beautiful in Vermont this time of year. All that snow..."

It's the annual Girls' Christmas Movie Night at my sister's place tonight. Her husband brings home the big screen and projector from school and sets it all up for us in their living room. Then we get cozy on the couch, drink hot chocolate, eat shortbread and gingerbread men, and watch a Christmas classic. This year it's White Christmas. I can't wait!

Do you have a favourite holiday movie? I'm all about the classics- White Christmas, Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Carol {with Alastair Sim... by far the best version}, and my all-time number one favourite movie ever, It's A Wonderful Life. They really do fill my heart with Christmas joy!

via j'adore

Advent Window- December 17th

2011-12-17T22:23:00.000-08:00

We put up our Christmas tree today! Now it feels like Christmas! And it smells like it, too...

image credit: becky kelly

Advent Window- December 16th

2011-12-16T00:05:00.000-08:00

Whee! It's the last day of school! As of about 2 o'clock this afternoon, I will officially be on Christmas vacation! Bring on the tree-trimming, carolling, gingerbread-baking, merry-making good times!

PS: I have taken loads of photos lately of everything from Christmas concerts to pretty paper decorations, from parcels I've received to fancy hotels and the twinkly downtown lights, and will share them all with you in the week ahead. Get ready for it! And in the meantime, hope you are having the happiest of holiday seasons. I want to hear all about it, so get commenting, won't you please?

image via here

Advent Window- December 15th

2011-12-15T00:02:00.000-08:00

It's my last day with the kindie class before Christmas vacation {tomorrow I'll be in the library}, so we're breaking out the sequins! Don't you love how they've been used as cheeks in this little nativity? Adorable. And pretty much a must-make project for me and the boys.

Only 10 days until Christmas now. Can you believe it?!

Advent Window- December 14th

2011-12-14T12:00:00.000-08:00

I love vintage glass balls in pastel colours for the tree. It reminds me of my childhood, when many of the baubles on our Christmas tree came from my grandparents. I picked up a few "new" ornaments at an antique shop this past weekend, and I can't wait to hang them on our tree this year. One of them looks just like the striped silver ball above, and I love it! Stay tuned for photos later this week, when the Pugh family tree gets decorated!

via tumblr

E & me {Christmas window displays}

2011-12-14T00:06:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe, but it's less than two weeks now until Christmas!

So, this week on E & me, we're going Christmas shopping.

Check out the fancy window displays we came across as we wandered through the shops...

Très festive, non?

Care to guess which window is here in Victoria and which is in Annecy with Em? {Get it right and maybe you'll find some chocolates in your stocking. Or a guitar!}

How's your shopping coming along? Have you finished yet? I still have a few things left to buy, and then I can start wrapping...

Advent Window- December 13th

2011-12-13T00:10:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas Craft Day today in Kindergarten! We'll be making candy cane & pipe cleaner reindeer, paper plate wreaths and other treasures. If my class were older {and less enthusiastic with the glue!}, we'd attempt these tissue paper trees. Aren't they beautiful? And don't they remind you of the scene in Charlie Brown's Christmas where Charlie Brown and Linus go to the tree lot? Love...

Advent Window- December 12th

2011-12-12T11:30:00.000-08:00

We've got our Christmas tree! It's currently leaning up against the cherry tree in our front yard, but hopefully it will be in our living room tonight, and decorated in the next few days. Yay! I can't wait. Trimming the tree is one of my very favourite things about Christmas...

Is your tree up yet?

image by Richard Faust, via pinterest

Scenes from the weekend

2011-12-11T23:22:00.000-08:00

I had such a lovely weekend away with my mom and Amanda. We ate out and lounged about, got manicures and pedicures {thanks, Mom! it was such a treat!}, drank wine, ate pizza and watched holiday movies, wandered lots of little shops {including a fun one full of gorgeous antiques}, watched a Christmas show at the Chemainus Theatre... It was wonderfully relaxing, and so much fun. We were too busy having a fabulous time to take many photos, but I did get a few.

The Beach Club Resort, where we stayed

Eggnog infused whipped cream and hot chocolate in the lobby... yum!

Our hotel room was beautiful

And it had an amazing view

A Christmas Carol + festive feet + a roaring fire = happy me

Vintage glass baubles. I may have bought a few...

Pretty packaging from the 1950s, and sweet little angels

I'm so grateful to have had such an indulgent and relaxing weekend, with two of my favourite people. It was just exactly what I needed. And then I got to come home to my lovely boys, a house with more Christmas lights up and a brand new mantle over the fireplace! Hooray!

I am one tired but happy girl. Good-night. xo

Advent Window- December 11th

2011-12-11T00:09:00.000-08:00

I let Alan choose the picture for today's advent window. Seems he and I share a love of snowmen. And so do our boys! You should see their beds, piled high with stuffed snowmen of every description. Oh, how they are longing for the real thing, though. Sawyer keeps asking me, "When is the snow going to come, Mum? Soon?"

Advent Window- December 10th

2011-12-10T00:07:00.000-08:00

I'm hoping to finish the last of my Christmas shopping this weekend. Then I really must start my wrapping. Aren't these boxes wrapped beautifully?

Advent Window- December 9th {and gratitude}

2011-12-09T00:03:00.000-08:00

This pretty pink Christmas decor is far too girly for my house full of boys... but I can indulge in a bit of glamour here on my blog, right? That's what I thought. Isn't it beeeautiful?

Hope you all have fabulous weekend plans! I'm off on a getaway with my mom and my sister until Sunday night {we're "practicing" for New York City this spring!} and I'm so excited. We'll be staying in a snazzy hotel, lounging about in the hotel pool, eating out, Christmas shopping, watching holiday movies in our room, and just generally having a fabulous time. On Sunday afternoon, we're heading to a matinee of Christmas music at the Chemainus Theatre {remember our trip there last year?} I have no doubt it's going to be a wonderful weekend.

Oh, and since I'm in such a good mood, here are some other things that I'm grateful for this week, too!

* peppermint bark from Purdy's

* a Christmas parcel from the lovely Micaela {photos next week!}

* dinner out with girlfriends {paid for with a gift card I've literally had for years, and had forgotten about!}

* Christmas cards in my mailbox every day

* Burt's Bees lipbalm {with cranberry shimmer}

* all the twinkly Christmas lights in my neighbourhood

* paper angels with tinfoil wings = best bulletin board ever

* good friends who are always willing to help me out

* my best friend, who is on the other side of the world, but is always with me

* Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLachlan singing God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen {listen and you'll love it, I swear}

Happy Weekend, friends!

E xo

Advent Window- December 8th

2011-12-08T00:01:00.000-08:00

Much as I love vintage glass baubles, I am also a fan of simple, homemade ornaments. This Christmas tree made of colourful felt circles is pretty, isn't it? I have a friend who teaches Grade 6, and she's making them with her class this week. I wonder if I can convince her to make an extra one for me?

Does your tree have homemade ornaments on it?

via sew, mama, sew!

spotted on pinterest

Advent Window- December 7th

2011-12-07T10:26:00.000-08:00

I love these little paper houses. My mom bought me a vintage one last year that I adore. Its glittery roof is just gorgeous! I can't wait to get out all the ornament boxes {some time this week} and see it again. I'd love to have a few of them to display in a little village like this. Will have to keep an eye out next time I'm thrifting...

How has the first week of December been for you? Feeling overwhelmed yet? I am. Trying to keep calm and carry on, though. To enjoy the music and the magic of the season. All the more reason to get out those decorations, right?

image via here

E & me {light trees}

2011-12-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

Well, it's official. We're a week into December and it is definitely Christmas-time!

As promised, Em and I are sticking to our festive theme for the entire month. This week on E & me, we've got Christmas trees. Well, sort of...

It looks like the Canadians and the French agree when it comes to outdoor decorations. It doesn't matter if you don't have an actual tree. You can make one out of twinkle lights! It's a pretty effect, non?

We have some fabulous "trees" like this downtown in the Inner Harbour. I'll try to get some photos next time I'm there.

In the meantime, anybody want to guess which of these trees is in Canada and which one is in France?

Advent Window- December 6th

2011-12-06T00:01:00.000-08:00

I love these bright red and green stockings and the felted ball garland. Stockings on the mantle piece make a house so festive, don't they? We don't hang ours until Christmas Eve, though, just in time for Santa. How about you?

via pinterest

Scenes from the weekend

2011-12-05T10:53:00.000-08:00

This weekend, we were busy getting festive. Well, to be more precise... staying up late, sleeping in, and getting festive. We made a huge dent in our Christmas shopping, got some more things sent off in the mail, put up more lights and decorations, and spent an evening downtown watching the lighted trucks parade. It was lovely.

Making paper chains {thanks, Nanny!}

Our gorgeous new advent calendar {thanks to Nanny for this, too! didn't she do a fabulous job?}

What's in today's pocket? I hope it's chocolate...

Langford's "Main Street"

At the chocolate shop

Sawyer can't resist getting a close-up look at the chocolate Santas

More cards to mail!

The Lighted Trucks parade downtown on Saturday night {Micaela! See the cafe across the street?}

Toys + books = best shop ever

Dylan made his own laptop computer! Check out the name of that website :)

Skyping with Nanny is always fun

Sunday night at Starbucks {the boys adore our friend Kristina}

How was your weekend? Is it beginning to look a lot like Christmas where you are? I hope so! We could all use some more twinkle in our lives, right?

Advent Window- December 5th

2011-12-05T00:05:00.000-08:00

I absolutely must get my Christmas cards finished and posted by the end of the day today! Isn't this vintage one lovely? The scarves, hats and mittens are oh-so-festive and old-fashioned. They remind me of something you'd see in Little Women...

I'll be back later today with scenes from the weekend. Until then, Happy Monday!

Advent Window- December 4th

2011-12-04T00:11:00.002-08:00

I love the vintage look of these pretty pastel ornaments! And how cute are their mugs of hot chocolate?

Advent Window- December 3rd

2011-12-03T00:14:00.000-08:00

I just love a snowman, don't you? Leave it to Martha Stewart to figure out a way to give hers rosy cheeks {spritz him with a spray bottle of one cup water water and five drops red food colouring!} Isn't he adorable?

If it snows this year, I am absolutely doing this.

Advent window- December 2nd

2011-12-02T11:34:00.000-08:00

There was a chance of flurries last night, and Dylan was beside himself with hope that there'd be snow in the morning. It never materialized, but we did wake up to a world of sparkly frost, so the boys were happy enough.

I love this photo, with its lampost and snow and that gorgeous wreath of berries. Do you have a wreath on your front door? I like to make mine with evergreen boughs and holly. You?

pretty picture via here

Advent Window- December 1st

2011-12-01T22:55:00.000-08:00

via susanestellekwas on etsy

Happy First of December! This post is coming at the end of a long, busy and exciting day. I spent most of it teaching kindergarten, and oh boy! Did we ever use a lot of glitter today! {stay tuned next week for some scenes of Christmas around my elementary school... where things are getting pretty festive}. It was a fun day, and it was exhausting. I was glad to get home and drink tea by the fire, even more than I usually am.

At home, the boys opened a lot of advent calendars. Like seriously A LOT. We have nine of them, so we're pretty much all about the countdown to Christmas over here, all day long! We've got paper chains and online advents {have you ever seen a Jacquie Lawson advent calendar? they are amazing!}, paper calendars, chocolate calendars, miniature calendars, and the most gorgeous little numbered pockets that Alan's mum sent us {watch for a photo this weekend} and which get filled up be elves each night while we're all asleep!

In keeping with the countdown to Christmas theme, I'm bringing back the advent window series this December. Every day I'll post a different pretty picture that has something to do with Christmas {sometimes in addition to a longer post, other times instead of...}

Do you like today's one? It's one of a set of cards I found on Etsy, and it seems like a good way to start off the month... with a mailbox! I've got several parcels left to send off this weekend, and a stack of cards to finish writing. I'd better get off the computer and down to work then, huh?

Happy December, my friends. Let the Christmas joy begin!

PS: I saw Breaking Dawn tonight, and I loved it {in a cheesy, vampire-love-story kind of way, of course!} That final scene was fab...

E & me {start of Christmas decorations in town}

2011-11-30T22:58:00.000-08:00

You guys! It's practically December! Can you believe it? In Victoria and Annecy, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! And so this week, E & me is getting festive, too.

The decorations are starting to go up in my neighbourhood, and Em's.

Here we've got festive banners and hanging baskets {and big, tinselly 1950s style "Season's Greetings" signs that stretch across the streets}. There they've got lots twinkly light archways over the road. Lovely, non?

And it's only just the beginning!

Pretty sure you can expect plenty more Canadian and French Christmas-themed photos in the month ahead... right, Em?

Happy December, only an hour away now! Is your town all decorated for the holidays?

E xo

PS: I've decided to do my December advent windows again this year. {I do love perusing my Pinterest and Tumblr for the merriest photos I can find!} Take a peek back at 2010's and I'll be back tomorrow with window #1 of the 2011 countdown to Christmas!

"I believe in primping at leisure and wearing lipstick.... I believe happy girls are the prettiest girls." ~ Audrey Hepburn

2011-11-29T00:02:00.000-08:00

I got my hair cut and coloured yesterday. What do you think? Sassy, right?

I feel like a brand new girl! And the way I've been feeling lately... that's a good thing.

It was a good day, Monday. I skyped with Em for an hour before I took the boys to school, and it was lovely. I got my hair done. I mailed some parcels. I came home to stacks of mail from loving friends {4 letters in one day! not too shabby! and just wait until you see what Kim sent me...}, and had lunch with another friend I haven't seen in a while. I sat in Starbucks and sipped a latté. I got some more Christmas shopping done. I enjoyed the feel of the sunshine on my face, and the way my hair looked every time I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror. Yesterday was all about me, and every once in a while, I think that's just fine.

PS: Don't you just adore Audrey?

Scenes from the weekend

2011-11-28T00:24:00.000-08:00

Things were starting to get pretty festive around here this weekend. Take a look...

Alan and the boys put up some Christmas lights while I was at work on Friday.

We couldn't resist a visit to the tree lot at Canadian Tire to smell the fir trees! Aaah.

Working on the lights on Saturday afternoon

At the Santa Claus parade, Saturday night

Loving the lights

The Rudolph bus

Trying to decide... do I send these pretty paper tree ornaments off to friends, or keep them for myself?

Tea and pomegranates. Two of my favourite things.

The boys were so excited that we let them put up the Christmas village in their bedroom.

Writing Christmas cards at the kitchen table.

I did laundry too, cleaned the kitchen & living room, sorted the recycling, and went to the gym a couple of times. I didn't get any photos of that though!

What did you get up to this weekend? Do you have any fun plans for the week ahead? I'm getting my hair cut and coloured today after way, waaaay too long, and I can't wait to feel like I look good again. Stay tuned for photos!

Happy Monday.

E xo

Saturday morning daydream

2011-11-26T00:43:00.000-08:00

A beautiful bed, a comfy armchair, a good book, a fireplace... and the winter sunshine pouring in through the window. That's what this Saturday morning's daydream is made of.

via birch & lily

Gratitude

2011-11-25T00:03:00.000-08:00

via seasonal love

Wow, this week flew by! Is it really Friday again already? Excellent, because I could use a sleep-in this weekend. I'm putting it on the calendar for tomorrow! I haven't been getting anywhere near enough sleep lately and I'm really feeling it. I have been getting some other good stuff though, and for that I'm grateful. This week I'm thankful for:

* cups of tea brought to me

* a magazine in the mail {thanks, Claire!}

* warm socks and a hot water bottle

* time with my boys to write Christmas lists and sing songs

* a phone call from a dear friend {hi, Kelly!}

* an advent calendar card in my mailbox {Dylan would like you to know, there are just 6 more days until December 1st!}

* working with friends

* Pro-D day and a change of pace
* after a workout, sitting in Starbucks and writing to Em

* twinkly lights going up around the neighbourhood

* a week without any meetings
* chocolate covered almonds {just a few}

* the silliness of a sparkly vampire wedding! {might be going to see Breaking Dawn this weekend}
* my family and friends who are really just the very best
* this blog, and all of you!

Happy Friday. Hope there are lots of things making you feel grateful today, too.
E xo

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T00:31:00.000-08:00

mary kate mcdevitt via papercrave

Just wanted to wish all my lovely American friends a very happy Thanksgiving today! I'm so thankful for the wonderful friends I've made in this blogging world, and many of you are south of the Canada/US border. I'll be thinking of you all today while I'm at school doing parent-teacher interviews...

I hope you're having a marvellous time celebrating with family and friends over pumpkin pie and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! Enjoy your extra long weekend {what a genius idea! a major holiday on a Thursday...} and the official kick-off to the holiday season. Today's the day all the American radio stations start playing Christmas music. Yay! Nothing perks me up during my morning commute like Bing Crosby...

Happy Thanksgiving, friends.
E xo

PS: Don't forget to swing by Dolce Vita to wish Micaela and her darling Max a very happy first anniversary! Kisses to you, dear M! I think it's time for another skype date, don't you?

E & me {bike lane}

2011-11-23T17:55:00.000-08:00

We're on the road this week for E & me. In the bike lane.

In theory, I think bike lanes are fabulous. But I have to admit, biking in traffic makes me way too nervous. I'd rather stick to the local trails and side streets {but without a bike of my own, that never happens either!} Maybe now that my town's started a "free bike rentals for locals" program, I'll give it a go. The boys in this family are bike enthusiasts, and it would be nice to join in the fun once in a while.

Anyway... anybody want to guess which photo is Victoria and which is Annecy?

I wish they were both in the same town, and not half a world apart. If they were, I'd hop on a bike and head for Em's apartment so we could hang out and drink tea all afternoon. And on the way, I'd stop at the bakery for some macarons. A vigorous bike ride and an afternoon with my favourite friend would definitely call for some tasty treats, non?

J'adore

2011-11-22T22:57:00.000-08:00

Does anyone know the original source of this print? I discovered it on Elizabeth's Pinterest and I love it! E Tells Tales is an awesome blog, so I'd expect nothing less of her pins.

Anyway, I'm having troubles with my Yahoo mail at the moment and can't access the photo collage for Wednesday's E & me... but it will be there later in the day, I promise! In the meantime, I'm off to be fantastic... You do the same, won't you?

love, E xo

Post-edit: Kim's right. It's a bluntcard. I spent a good twenty minutes on their site just now, laughing till I cried. And being mildly offended on occasion. But mostly just giggling!

I believe that everyone should...

2011-11-21T23:09:00.001-08:00

mary kate mcdevitt is a wise woman

Lately, more than ever, I am enjoying sending and receiving real mail. Email is great, but there's nothing like opening your mailbox to discover an envelope with your name written on it in a friend's handwriting. Am I right? {Em? I'm totally right, aren't I?!}With Christmas coming {in less than 5 weeks! gulp!}, I'm buying stamps and gathering up pretty cards and making lists of who to send which card to. I've even begun to write some festive messages. It seems a little bit soon to mail them though, so I've been writing lots of plain old letters in the meantime. But "just because" letters don't have to be plain or boring. Look at some of these lovely notecards...

I think I'd like to buy some of these lovely grey and yellow notecards from sparrownestscript. Everyone can use some cheering up once in a while, non?

Bethany sent me a beautiful set of Katie Daisy notecards a while ago. I love writing letters in them.

I was so excited yesterday to discover I'd won some very pretty quote notecards from the Etsy shop lettergirl. My address stamp is from her shop, so it's perfect! Can't wait for them to arrive.

And since we're talking about stationery, I'm pretty sure I need this tote from shopsaplingpress. I love writing paper. I love good grammar. It's pretty much meant to be.

Do you like to send handwritten letters? Who do you write to? And have you started your Christmas cards yet???

Scenes from the weekend

2011-11-20T22:16:00.000-08:00

I didn't take many photos this weekend. Not sure why. Perhaps because we didn't do much? Maybe because I was too cold to dig the camera out of my bag? We spent time doing our usual weekend things... yardwork, housework, shopping, swimming lessons. We went to two family birthday parties {both for Kilian, who is now the grand old age of 4!}, and the boys had a great time playing with their cousins. Dylan told me several times that "this time next weekend, it will be the Santa Claus parade!" He is his mother's son.

To celebrate the arrival of the weekend, Alan bought me my first bag of Christmas Cadbury Mini-Eggs. Mmm!

Friday night bubble bath!

Auntie Pat knows Sawyer is a little bit ticklish

You can't tell, but they're gathered around the campfire, trying to keep warm!

I like this frosty flower photo so much, I've made it into my new blog header {what do you think?}

Blurry but happy

Coming up, it's the last full week of November. I've got parent-teacher interviews this week {urgh}, and pro-d on Friday {hurrah!}. I can hardly believe it, but I've checked my calendar several times and I haven't got a single meeting this week! Every evening is open! With all that free time I'm hoping to get some Christmas parcels wrapped up and to the post office, and my Christmas cards written. And god willing, I'll get my sorry ass to the gym a few times, too.

Hope you had a lovely weekend, friends. Looking forward to visiting your blogs this week, and catching up with all of you.

Until then,

E xo

Gratitude

2011-11-18T00:32:00.000-08:00

Oof. What a week. It was long and cold and stressful. I'm glad it's almost over. It's Friday now, and I'm grateful for a lot of things. Mind if I share my {rather long} list? Here goes:

getting good news {finally!}

emails from Em

gingerbread lattes and peppermint mochas

the red Canada Post truck

some hypothetical mail from Kimbirdy {who inspired this gratitude post with her weekly thankfulness}

my lovely mom who happily babysat my boys twice in one week, and cleaned my kitchen!

a successful preschool fundraising auction

Micaela's Christmas ornament swap!

a surprise parcel from a friend {thank you, Brandi! can't wait to read The Night Circus!}

skyping with Cassie {and getting her gorgeous baby announcement in the mail}

thick socks and cozy slippers
Starbucks with my sister

a woodshed that's stacked to the rafters

a mug full of hot tea after coming in from the rain

rosy-cheeked boys singing Frosty the Snowman

quiet Fridays in the library

a stack of books on my bedside table

did I mention emails from Em?

and...

it's almost the weekend

Happy Friday, friends!

via pinterest

Winter's on its way

2011-11-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

It is fuh-reezing outside today. The wind is icy cold, and I'd almost swear that snow is in the air. Which, I must admit, would be sort of fun. But only if I didn't have to drive anywhere.

I think this is what we'll be doing tonight. Getting cozy by the fire in the thickest, comfiest socks we can find. I figure hot chocolate is probably in order. Ooh, and it would be fun to roast marshmallows, wouldn't it? I wonder if we have any...

Tell me... has the snow started to fall where you live yet?

PS: No E & me today, I'm afraid. I have only just cleared my camera card, so I didn't get a chance to take any photos for Em and I to compare this week. Never fear though... I'm sure we'll be back next Wednesday. Until then, why don't you visit Rue de France and say hi to my favourite friend in the whole wide world? Her blog is full of beautiful photos of the French scenery, and stories of her life in France. And I happen to know... she loves comments!

tree in snow via here

cozy socks via here

May the odds be ever in your favour

2011-11-15T16:38:00.000-08:00

I am a huge fan of Suzanne Collins' book, The Hunger Games {you can read my review here}. Such a fan that, when I first saw this trailer, I wasn't so sure about it. Gale and Katniss didn't look quite right to me, and I was in the mood to be nitpicky. It should also be said that I was watching on my netbook, which has a pretty teeny screen, and I think my dishwasher was running in the background at the time, making it sort of hard to hear. Basically, I didn't really give it a chance. However, a friend of mine encouraged me not to write it off so quickly. She reminded me that the author of the book wrote the screenplay, and that the actors playing Katniss and Peeta were both big fans of the book before they read the script. So, I watched it again. And I'm pleased to say that upon second {and third and fourth and fifth} viewing, I am now beyond excited about the release of this movie in March. I got goosebumps watching this. I think you will too!

Have you read The Hunger Games? And will you be lining up to see it on the big screen like me?

Hopeful

2011-11-15T00:06:00.000-08:00

I found this on Pinterest tonight, a quote I loved once and had forgotten. I'm holding onto it again. Thank you, Emily Dickinson.

image via here

Scenes from the weekend

2011-11-14T00:37:00.000-08:00

I love a long weekend, don't you? When Thursday night feels like Friday, and Saturday afternoon rolls around and you realize, "Hey! It's Saturday! It might feel like a Sunday, but it isn't!" That extra day makes all the difference. We had a lovely day on Friday, making wishes {it was 11/11/11 after all...}, attending birthday parties and hanging out at my mom & dad's. Mom, Amanda and I ordered Greek food for dinner and sat around for hours, discussing our upcoming Christmastime trip to Parksville, and {of course!} our March break holiday in New York! All of that before the weekend had even truly begun. Here are some scenes from Saturday and Sunday...

I made us waffles for breakfast on Saturday morning. Love our waffle iron.

Raking leaves in the rain

A well-stocked woodshed

Admiring my poinsettia... the first sign in our house of Christmas on its way

Saturday evening shopping trip to the card store {more signs of Christmas here, as you can see!}

Bedtime stories {check out Dylan's snowmen on the wall}

Sitting in front of the fire on Saturday night

Sunday fun in the leaf pile

Some of those leaves are enormous!

A brisk walk in the fresh air led us here for hot chocolates. Of course it did!

Sunday evening reading material {and a favourite card from my sweet Em}

It was a nice weekend. Relaxing. Productive {laundry done, letters written, a few Christmas gifts bought}. Emotional. Sometimes you've just gotta cry, right? {stomping and shouting are good, too} And then pick yourself up and carry on again. That's what I mean to do this week. I'll be keeping busy with preschool meetings and fundraisers {our big Christmas auction is this Thursday night... yikes!}, family birthdays and the usual madness of kindergarten. Going shopping for Christmas ornaments and cozy mittens, and putting together a fabulous parcel or two. I intend to get to the gym at least three times, starting first thing this morning, and to make a whole bunch of healthy meals to take us through to Friday. When I'm organized, I'm less stressed. And less stressed is good.

How about you? Did you have a nice weekend? And have you any big plans for the week ahead? It's the middle of November! Can you believe it?

Happy Monday.

love E xo

Musings on an ornament swap

2011-11-12T20:56:00.000-08:00

Later this week I'll find out who my partner is in Micaela's third annual Christmas ornament swap, and I'm pretty excited about it. The first year I joined in the swap, Micaela got me and sent the loveliest little package of ornaments. We have been friends ever since, and I can't say just how happy I am to know her. One of these days we'll meet in real life, and it will be like a fabulous reunion of two old friends! I've also been paired with Lauryn and Sheba, two darling girls, and had loads of fun with them, sending and receiving ornaments {click on the variuos links above to see all the pretty tree-trimmings from previous years}. Needless to say, I can't wait to find out who my partner will be this year! I love choosing the perfect ornament for a new blogging friend, and packaging it up with lots of red tissue paper... {insert dreamy smile here}

So. While I wait for that much-anticipated email from Micaela, I've been cruising Pinterest and choosing out all my favourite ornaments. The gorgeous things I have found are all so very me. Take a look:

I adore these little wooden dolls in their adorable dresses, from my sweet imaginations.

The glittery church and ice skate {complete with pom-pom} from a field journal are beautiful, aren't they?

I'm swooning over the Nutcracker and Clara from halinka's fairies in the UK.

These Russian skaters, also from halinka's fairies, are gorgeous, don't you think? Pretty sure I loved every single item in her shop.

Isn't this red coat from Posie Gets Cozy pretty? I love the mittens, too!

And I'm always a fan of vintage glass balls in pretty pastel colours. I found these ones on pinterest.

Did you sign up for Micaela's swap? And are you dreaming of your Christmas tree already? I know, I know, it's not even mid-November... but just the idea of stringing up the twinkle lights and unwrapping all the decorations is making me smile. And that can't be a bad thing.

Saturday morning daydream

2011-11-12T00:20:00.000-08:00

A grey, rainy day, a cozy cabin on the lake, a stack of books and a pot of tea. Plenty of peace and quiet. A wander by the lake and then coming back in to sit by the fire. An afternoon nap. It sounds just right to me.

via pinterest

Happy things to end the week with

2011-11-11T00:09:00.000-08:00

Today is Remembrance Day. My kindergarten class painted poppies yesterday and we attended a very moving assembly in the school gym {several hundred kids singing a song about peace was enough to bring me to tears}. Nobody got stabbed with their poppy pin either, so I'd call that a success!

Because Remembrance Day is on a Friday this year, it means we get a long weekend. I'm so grateful for that. I could use some time to get some things done, and some more time to just do nothing. I want to get cozy and relax, and since I don't seem to be getting anywhere near enough sleep lately, maybe spend some extra time in bed... Anyway, here are a few other things, besides that extra day off, that have made me smile at the end of this busy week:

Fab holiday mugs at Starbucks

Pretty autumn colours on my drive home

My little superhero {forgive the blurry cell phone photo}

The snowmen and Santas on display at Homesense. I'm a sucker for a cute snowman.

And a few more, for good measure... * Getting my partner for the Cold Hands, Warm Hearts Swap. She lives in a town called North Pole! Can you believe it? * Drinking a gingerbread latte with Kim {I was in Victoria and she was in L.A., but it was at pretty much the exact same time, so that counts as being together, right?} *Finding the perfect advent calendar {it's a London scene, complete with Big Ben!} * Having a conversation in French with Dylan! * Putting on my pajamas and slippers, getting under the covers, and watching Becoming Jane.

Have you got a happy list this Friday? I'd love to hear it. The more happy the better, right? So please do share, and have a wonderful weekend, wherever you may be.
E xo

PS: It's the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the eleventh year. At 11:11 {and 11 seconds} today I am totally making a wish. And I know exactly what it will be.

The grammar snob in me loves this

2011-11-10T00:04:00.000-08:00

When you could use a laugh {or some validation that yes, correct grammar and punctuation are important} someecards are fun, aren't they? I especially like the one above.

Confession: It drives me crazy when people don't use you're/your, and they're/there/their correctly. Sometimes I get a bit wound up and judgy about it. But I'm still a nice person, I promise.

Happy Thursday, friends!

PS: I can't believe nobody called me on this~ I spelled grammar wrong in my title and it was there all day long, spelled with an e! Gaah! It's fixed now, but oh the shame...

E & me {town clock}

2011-11-09T00:06:00.000-08:00

This week's E & me is all about time. The time on our town clocks to be exact.

You can probably tell which clock is in Em's town of Annecy and which one is here in Victoria {well, Sidney, really, just north of the city}. The stonework and lovely French architecture sort of give it away, non?

Our blue one has got a fun, 1940s kind of vibe going on that I like though, even if it does lack the certain je ne sais quoi of the historic French clock tower.

You know what I wish? That these clocks weren't 9 times zones apart. Because if they were in the same time zone, Em and I could meet up for tea at a café, and hang out all afternoon.

And that would be merveilleuse...

J'adore

2011-11-08T13:30:00.000-08:00

Yes. Yes, it is. And that's why I stayed out way too late last night at Bolen Books, listening to Ami McKay read aloud from her new book, The Virgin Cure. She is just lovely, and I would have happily listened to her for hours. I hung out, bought a copy, and even got her to sign it for me. Very exciting! After that, I did a little bit of Christmas shopping, wandering the aisles of books for over an hour. Let's just say, I have a feeling there will be plenty of reading material under the tree this Christmas...

Oh and by the way, I'm pretty sure I need that t-shirt. Are you listening, Santa?

richard scarry tee via style hive

Much Love Monday {early November edition}

2011-11-07T00:14:00.000-08:00

Hello! So, I didn't actually intend to take a five day break from blogging, but it seems that I just did exactly that. Weird. It's been a long time since I've disappeared from my blog for days on end.

I was productive while I was away though, working on cleaning out and re-organizing the kitchen cupboards and the boys' bedroom, catching up on the ever-growing mountain of laundry, helping Alan in the garden {planting bulbs and clearing limbs} and even picking up some presents at the first craft fair of the season {where I won a huge red poinsettia... yay!} I didn't take any photos this weekend- I need to clear the camera card first- so how about a Much Love Monday post instead?

Here are some of the things I'm loving on this first Monday of November:

Catching up on my letter & postcard writing, and looking forward to some super fun swaps
Peppermint hot chocolate from Starbucks
The warmth of the woodstove and the crackle of the fire on cold nights
Sending a parcel to wee baby Sam {that's right! Cassie's baby has arrived!}
Collecting some great items for the preschool fundraising auction and keeping on top of my never-ending list of presidential jobs
Making all sorts of tasty soups from my Twelve Months of Monastery Soups cookbook- last night's was "Caldo Gallego"... aren't I fancy?
Super Sawyer in his new red cape
My Pinterest boards. Damn, that site's addictive!
Drawing snowmen with the boys and reading Snowmen at Night together at bedtime
Dreaming about New York {4 1/2 months to go!}
Bubble baths. Long ones.

I'm looking forward to today, even though it's going to be rather busy. After the usual school and preschool drop-offs, I'm heading downtown to renew my passport {did I mention... I'm going to New York?!} and hopefully I'll have a bit of time to pop into my favourite stationery shop, where I always like to pick up a little something for Em. I have one last auction item to collect at a friend's place, and then I'll be heading back out to Langford to run some errands and prep some meals for the week. In the afternoon we're having firewood delivered so I'll try to help Alan get started on stacking that, before I make dinner and head out to an author reading/book signing with my friend Charlotte {Ami McKay, who wrote the wonderful book, The Birth House, is going to be at Bolen Books tonight!}

All in all, my Monday is looking pretty good. How about yours?

image via we heart it

The red cups make me happy

2011-11-02T22:10:00.000-07:00

So happy that, after two days of being sick at home and one very long night-time meeting at preschool, I decided to take myself to the Starbucks drive-thru for my first festive red cup beverage of the season. Why hello there, decaf gingerbread latté! How are you?

Yes, the photo is blurry. But it's late and I'm tired and I really can't be bothered to take another one. Anyway, never mind the blur. Check out that cup. It's red! And you know what that means... It means that Christmas is just around the corner! And anyone who knows me knows that I am a girl who is all about the Christmas cheer. Even if it is only the 2nd of November, it still makes me happy. And a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do to be happy, right? Now, please excuse me while I go sip my latté from under the covers of my cozy bed...

* Ooh, and speaking of the holidays, don't forget to sign up for my sweet friend Micaela's Christmas ornament swap. It's always so much fun! There are 9 days left to join, so head over there right this second!

E & me {jack o'lanterns}

2011-11-02T00:02:00.000-07:00

October is only just behind us, so I hope you don't mind if I carry on the Halloween theme for just a little bit longer. Because this week's E & me is all about the jack o'lanterns.

We ended up carving 4 of the 8 pumpkins at our house, one "really scary" one and the rest with big smiles, like you see on the left hand jack o'lantern below. It's Sawyer's favourite.

Way across the ocean in France, Em and her niece Juliette carved a pretty spectacular one themselves. Check out that fancy, star-shaped lid! And those fun, imported-from-Canada, Halloween umbrellas on top... Très festive, non?

Em says France is "not very Halloween" but now that she's in residence, I think all that's about to change :)

Scenes from Halloween

2011-11-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

I wasn't feeling so great yesterday {and I'm still not, for that matter!}, but we managed to make the most of a beautiful autumn day and night. I think it's safe to say that the boys absolutely loved their Halloween, and really... that's what matters most.

Scooping out pumpkin guts before carving our jack o'lanterns

Gorgeous chestnut tree in our front yard

My little paleontologist {he had a magnifying glass, paintbrush and dinosaur notebook in his pocket}

Taking a chocolate break in the mall parking lot

Wicked witch of the West {coast}

Trick or treat!

At the "Halloween House" up the road, very excited

Awesome pumpkins at the last house we went to...

Surveying the results of our efforts {check out all that loot!}

Boys are in bed, and I am straight into the peanut butter cups... {it's a Halloween night tradition, what can I say?}

And now it's November. November! How on earth did that happen?

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T11:48:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Hope it's as spooky, and candy-filled, as you like it. I'm looking forward to raiding the kids' treat bags tonight for the peanut butter cups. All the peanut butter cups. They're my favourite.

image via here

Happy things {well, sort of...}

2011-10-28T00:11:00.000-07:00

This has not been what I'd call a happy week. In fact, it's been pretty horrendous. But I guess when life's like that, that's the most important time to try to find some little things which bring you joy? And so here are a few little things that have made me feel happy this week. I'm grateful for them...

A long bubble bath, a hot cup of tea, and a scented candle on the side of the tub {no... that's not my bathtub, but isn't it lovely?}

Decorating our haunted gingerbread house with the boys {check out that black icing!}

Watching Sawyer do the Monster Mash, in his paper-bag monster costume {there's nothing cuter}

Autumn leaves and hot drinks, brought to me by friends

Ordering my Christmas cards {see that quote? it's from my favourite movie ever}

Sending my love in the mail

Have a happy weekend, won't you? I have a feeling ours will be all about the pumpkins. How about yours?

last two images via here and here

Cold hands, warm heart

2011-10-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

It was cold outside yesterday. So cold I made the boys wear toques and winter coats. And when I was outside on the playground with my kindergarten class, I found myself wishing for a scarf and, even more than that, a nice warm pair of gloves. So, it was probably meant to be that last night while I was cruising Twitter, I came across this post and the most perfect swap!

It's the Cold Hands, Warm Hearts Swap 2011, and it took me all of about ten seconds to decide I simply had to join. Here's how it works:

Visit much love illy and get all excited about the awesomeness of the swap. Decide right away that you absolutely must join in the fun. Sign up by November 4th by filling in the online form. You'll get your partner's info on November 9th and then, the fun begins! Your job will be to put together a fabulous little parcel containing a cozy pair of gloves and some other things to warm your partner's heart this winter. Send it off by November 30th and wait for your own parcel full of goodies to arrive. How could I resist that? I couldn't! Can you? Pair it up with darling Micaela's 3rd Annual Christmas Ornament Exchange, and your mailbox will be bursting with love well before the holidays are here. And what could be better than that?

Now, time to make some cocoa...

image via much love illy

E & me {Halloween decorations}

2011-10-26T15:15:00.000-07:00

Well, the end of October is fast-approaching, and that means Halloween is practically here. We're big into the holidays at our house {have you noticed?}, so the decorating started at least a week ago. Around the same time, Em and I were on Skype, opening the Halloween parcel we'd sent her. France is fabulous, but they don't really do Halloween, so we figured some festive bits & bobs were a must.

The boys helped me pick out the spiders and bats. Don't they look fab on {and around} Em's fancy red clock?

That witch on our fireplace {still sans mantle} was a craft Dylan made in kindergarten last year. Just wait till you see all the other spooky things we've been making lately. Would you believe me if I said a haunted gingerbread house? Not. Even. Kidding. Stay tuned for photos soon...

Are you getting into the Halloween holiday spirit in your part of the world?

Yield to broomsticks in roundabout

2011-10-25T00:02:00.000-07:00

Look what we discovered on Goldstream Avenue yesterday... The street signs have been changed to reflect a certain upcoming holiday!

Yep. It's official. I live in the coolest town ever.