Fall Calls

...More like beckoned me from the tallest rooftops..saying time to break out the crockpot, tart apples, casseroles, butternut squash and sweatshirts. I replaced my Scentsy warmer from 'sunkissed citrus' to 'sentimental cider.And that, in and of itself kicks my olfactory nerves right into motion. Which in turn triggers all the things feel good and cozy.

 I don't know what it is but the older I get the more that I crave the fresh, crispness of fall.

For me, the first few weeks of fall is the ONLY time blustery,grey, damp days are acceptable. Almost like a transitionary period where mother nature says you better start realizing that you are in store for many many many months of this so enjoy it now. And she, in turn she puts on a spectacular show.

                                                          

of the deciduous kind..

                                            Somebody else is putting on a show for us lately.
                                                         

                                                    

                                             In all her domestic divaness                                                

                                                    And the literary tip of the day?
                                          The brain absorbs more if you read upside down..
   

 The clouds lifted mostly every afternoon last week and it called us all outdoors for a family walk.
                                                                 The WHOLE family.

So for now we must say..So long to late sunny warm summer nights and adorable summer dresses.

.

Farewell delicious drippy icecream

and beach days that I never want to end....

We will miss you ...

Welcome Fall!!

Desert resort, vineyards, and a wedding!

Equals a little slice of delicious summer pie!
 I have never been up to Penticton before, and the drive thou long with Char, was amazing and as a result of the length Char is now an IPAD master,  nimbling her little fingers around every nook and cranny of that thing!
  I found myself having to manually close my awestruck mouth, marveling at the serious beauty! Everyone NEEDS to do this drive... waterfalls, deer,lush evergreens on neverending mountain tops,  then ever so slowly I watched this transform into a desert scape. Truly and utterly amazing!

 We stayed at the Summerland resort and spa, It was our own little suite - as cute as can be. Every room had it's very own view of Lake Okanagon.
The next day after a lovely melt in the sun, and a swim in the pool. We went for a tour about the city.  Charlotte feel asleep on our way into town and she even transferred into her stroller chaching!! So we had a leisurely lunch at an indian buffet -  I know a wee bit random but we cannot turn down any Indian food even if it is in Penticton of all places!
  Time was of the essence so we were only able to get to one winery. Red Rooster was my pick - we had it with dinner the night before and was delish!! I tell you they sure have a fine plot of real estate !



Check that view!
Doesn't get much better than that !

The most important reason that we chose to head to the Okanagon in the first place is because it was Alexis' wedding, and more importantly Charlotte was walking down the aisle too! Flower girl extraordinaire Right here! What a little peach. I was so proud of her. She did so well - no tears for her or for me for that matter. Still my baby, but already so big. Independance. Can I please mix some molasses in this sand comprised of months, memories, life that is seeping thru my fingers. 18 months ............

                                                   One day she too will be a bride.

Home is your now...

Liam had a few days off and we filled each day to the brim to somehow maximize the first real taste of summer we have seen. There was day trips, eating out, a date night and I even got to go to the spa for a blissful facial! I even whiled away a naptime, napping in the backyard! I actually had a nap - I must have been relaxed!
I normally go home in either June or July and this year will not go back untill Vanessas wedding and I am not going to lie I am homesick more than ever right now and am pining to go back. Nothing beats Kincardine in the summer and I know it is solely nostalgic... because every year that I go back to refresh my dried up reserve of "home" and everything that it represents... and I leave feeling a little empty again. I suppose it is because it isn't what my home is now. Home to me is soo much more now... Liam, Charlotte, our very own adorable house,my amazing friends, Lucy, Irwin, my parents now grandparents. It has evolved - and it will continue to evolve.
Kincardine my small "big" town full of precious childhood memories, my parents, my sister, and teenage fanfare.. was home back then, our amazing house on Manorwood was home, was so comforting,secure, accepting and hearty, happy and calming all of the foundations of my life were formed there, it was vibrant, safe and so much fun, so many lessons and the memories that I have are truly amazing and unforgettable. I guess that it reins true when people say that home is your now.
But to me I feel that your first home is always a truly magical place. Something that can never be replaced in ones memory. Kincardine is really just a teeny tiny town but it was my home and it always will be in some sense. I yearn more than anything to walk once on the pier, to sit on the giant blue chairs at station beach, to trail behind the saturday nite pipe band, to devour Erie belle fish and chips, walk thru tiny tot park and to watch a gorgeous lake huron sunset. All landmarks now, all home to me still.




On saturday we rang in July by heading down to David Lan park to check out the Jazz festival. The music was good and Charlotte had an absolute ball playing in the park - she memorized a little slide by going on it over, over and over again, after all this was no ordinary slide- it had a little surprise bump in the middle just to change it up a bit...she whinied with delight as her little body cascaded over the hump which led her to end up all cockeyed at the bottom with enough unpredictable suspense. Only to look at me with sheer delight say "more?"
 It is days like this that truly represent a b.c summer. Basking in my surroundings. Placed smack dab in a valley of skyscraper condos on one side and ominous beasts of mountains on the other. Drinking in the vendor food carts of various amazingness ( there is a food cart solely for poutine - 12 different flavours!), enveloping a little suntanlotioned slippery warm baby, and holding little watermelon marinated sticky hands, days that you wish that kids hats came with a non removable velcro so you aren't putting your back out  from picking up the hat from the grass that has been ripped quite purposfully off a head - just one more time! 
Watching Charlotte more and more exercise her independance is making me feel so many mixed emotions sad that she is not my little baby anymore but glad that she feels confidant and safe enough to explore. I watched as she threw bouts of " you will not pick me up even if my life is in danger! and if you do I will perform the pencil ( a term I made up when I go to pick her up and she puts her hands above her head and there is no shoulder hook to pick her up with) . I watched as Liam chased her around the park as our wild horse ran. I took in the surroundings and thought you can't beat this city - Our Home.

Dressed up in Love

 Her girly girl ways are more and more seeping into the daily things that she does -  her little pixiespun hair is now long finally long enough that I can fit two little piggys on her head !! I cannot express my sheer happiness when I now get to play with my daughters hair... oh the possibilities! As I began to play ..I fretted the usual "a-a-a-" followed by a look of dismay and a sure fire pull to dismantle my fancy do - but this did not happen. I was almost waiting for it  but she sat ever so still. she let me brush, wind that elastic round and round, fix, perfect. She still waited - waiting to see the end result ...as she gently gestured her "up" movement to see in the mirror and then looked at me in anticipation for my celebratory song and dance of
" so so pretty!" - when I say the word pretty she correalates that now with her hair and pats it....

A purse is now - the ultimate accessory- a vehicle as such - used to carry necessities like peek a boo blocks and the like around in. Rules include - needs to be worn on the shoulder and no one - not even her dear friend are allowed to touch. This of course is coupled with a "rasta man" style beige beaded necklace resurrected from my early twenties. We did not teach her these things. It truly reins true in this case that male/female genetics are embedded and present and are not taught!

She is growing more and more selective lately about food - Liam and I were getting a little cocky - saying "Oh she seriously don't not dislike anything", before if prepared in a kitchen - any for that matter- it was considered a good thing to eat and she would devour. Now she has more of a discerning palette it seems. She does go thru the motion of putting it in her mouth and tasting it - then as if it performed mini fireworks inside her mouth - she abruptly with disgust spits it out. Guess we WERE lucky...and it was only a matter of time.  

When she was here for a visit with Daddy and to see me - she was physically drawn to sparkly bright shiny objects! So I just had to appease her (and I personally couldn't resist).  I had to relent and buy her some fun things! When I have my camera handy I will take pictures. 

This is for you CharChar 17 months - 17 words that describe you right now - as we all know it is bound to change in a matter of weeks.

delightful                     brave                     beautiful

huggable to no end     vivacious                amazing

carefully risky             curious                   confidant

purposeful                  caring                     hilarious

animated                    lovable                   steady

dancing machine                                      entertainer

It is Canada Day tomorrow and we are going to Julia and Dougs for a bbq . Happy happy day!! We are lucky so so lucky to live here!!!!

Inspiring To Do's

I Love lists -isn't there is just something soooo appealing about taking a big sharpie and just striking out the items as you complete the tasks? I use them all the time for errands and tasks..,, but when it comes to my life and my goals the list seem to fall flat. Is it because I don't feel worthy of the things that I enjoy doing and guilty for doing them when the dishes need to be put away or laundry to be folded? True..the needs of everyday do far outweigh the dreamy goals that I want to achieve to better myself. So here goes a fun spring list of fun things to do - for me in no particular order..
1) Organize my craft room with neat little boxes for all neat diffferent things.
2) read more - in general but blogs in particular- because they are very inspiring and fun
3) have a girls night full of great movies, great food and great chats
4)start to transform my house into an eclectic oasis of greatness that defines us as a family- as I look around our walls that are still the bland construction paint...
5)find 3 hours a week where I am working on sewing projects or doing crafts
6) plant a vegetable garden with herbs
7)be more daring and different in the kitchen by finding 3 recipes that I have never tried or cooked before.
8) go to a gulf island
9) reach out to my distant family more by writing handwritten letters.
10) exercise more
11) take a class of some kind -

Concrete Jungle Where Dreams are made of - New York!

I had a fantastic opportunity to head to the big apple this past weekend to meet up with my oldest friend Leslie and a few other wonderful ladies. I had a whopping 72 hours in this blissful place. My senses were assaulted - in a good way save the street meat vendors and sewage.  Every little street told a story with the token fire escape staircases winding down brownstones,  yellow taxis whizzing by me at questionable speeds, imposing skyscrapers, delicious food, street music, broadway and yes SHOPPING.. all with the accompaniment of different languages, including
the tell tale New York accent. I didn't even begin to scratch the surface of my ambitious list. West village,East village,Chelsea, central park, Barney's, canal street, museums I will be back to see you...  What an amazing time. I tell you, nothing beats this city. It is a truly incredible place!

A little bird, he told me so

He said come on, get on the go

Open your eyes, the sky is full of butterflies

The blossoms on the trees stir up the honeybees

Spring makes my fever right
-Elvis Presley


We set out for brunch downtown with family Sunday it was delicious and great to catch up!

I also had resigned to not letting another year go by and it is too late to photograph the infamous Vancouver

cherry blossoms.

Turns out I'm a bit eager and have to wait a little longer....

On the other hand the craving to take pictures and try my hand at being "artsy" couldn't.

So we went to a place I had never been or heard of before. I'm glad Liam's brother has, and that is the

biodome at Queen Elizabeth park. It satisfied the urge to be in a warm, humid climate..even just for a little

 while. Gave C a huge feast for her eyes and I got to practice taking pictures of something that I really enjoy.

Just for awhile I forgot about the gloomy day and was transformed to a tropical paradise!