A Jaunt to Seattle

In the weeks leading up to the season, we slipped down to Seattle to do a little holiday shopping. As always, we had a delightful time.

Lisa and Tessie and I went for a walk in the chilly air. Tessie is SUCH a good dog. After the main event (in which the pup was covered in muck), and despite the freezing wind, she made her way to the hose and let Lisa wash her down.

We went shopping at a local import food shop and enjoyed the fabulous bins in which they keep their herbs, spices and other dry goods.

Paully took us on a tour of his work place where we enjoyed the sign on his door.

And, as always, we went for some fabulous meals, including brunch at this place....

.... where both Mister Man and Paully had some strange reactions to their libations.

But it WAS Sunday after all, so maybe that explains Mister Man's beatific pose....

A Glimpse of a Life in Three Acts

Mister Man and I are heading south this festive season, to spend a few days with Bob 'n Mer in Arizona. So, in a moment of utter practicality, we decided we wouldn't go to the trouble of putting our tree up this year, (or any holiday decor for that matter), seeing as how we wouldn't be here on the day and all. Consequently, my heart hasn't done its usual holiday flip flop upon entering our wee home, because I haven't been greeted with a show of tiny twinkle lights and little festive figgers.... However, it IS my favourite time of year, and despite the paucity of Christmas paraphernalia in our home, there have been some gorgeous moments over the past couple of weeks that are absolutely blog-worthy. And so, without further ado, here in 3 Acts, are some images of what's inspired me of late....

Act 1

A lovely vision in Whistler

Act 2

A stunning sunset

Act 3

..... in which a most wonderful husband sneaks home after work, puts up the tree despite our attempt at practicality, and surprises me when I walk through the door with a beautiful blast of the season. Even the Shaw Yule Log was aglow (as was my heart)... How I love this festive season. How I love Mister Man for lighting up my life.

O Canada! Welcoming Diyan!!

If you've felt a new tingle in the Canadian air of late, it's probably because a whole bunch of folks were recently made Canadian citizens here in Vancouver. And ONE of them was our dearly beloved pal Diyan. Why, here she is now - ever the early bird, sitting in her seat waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Not only was this momentous event cause for celebration, but it provided AMPLE reason for some of us to slip away from our day jobs to witness the event.

We were armed with iPhones, digital SLRs and video cameras.

Of course, we were posting play-by-play messages on the interwebs.... Ah technology!!

After all, it's not everyday that one gets to see a friend join our ranks as we all bustle with national pride!

The crowd awaits their new Canadian status....

We weren't allowed to shoot the proceedings, but we WERE allowed to leap up like proud parents and snap away once the deed was done! Did some of us shed tears during the ceremony? In the words of one American conservative "you betcha!" I've altered the colour on this one (note Canadian spelling of COLOUR -it was, after all, a CANADIAN citizenship ceremony.) But this was taken moments after the swearing in...... the arrow points the way to our gal. The New Canadian.

Newly minted:

With lovely sister:

With proud partner:

This made me cry a little.

So did this. And I don't even KNOW these people!

With Her Majesty, the Queen:

And later that night, Susan hosted a New Canadian Party for Diyan in which Mister Man got to play his Canadian song set on his iPod.

And Diyan - well, she got to dress up. And you have to love ANY occasion in which you get to don the red and white.....

O Canada!!!

Hopscotch

A few weeks back, we packed up our troubles in our old kit bag, and made our way to Hopscotch, an annual scotch and beer festival here.

So how does one play Hopscotch? You gather some of your favourite people (Annie and Lara and Karen and Kathrine) and you head on down to the Rocky Mountaineer Train Station. You pick up your scotch tasting glass and you buy some "tasting chips" (which look like poker chips, but they'll be buying you tastes of some of the finest scotch from around the world....) And then you sip your way from booth to booth.

There was so much flavour in this room: from peet-y scotch that tasted like it had just been scooped from the moors and mountains of Scotland to smooth, smooth scotch that would give Chet Baker a run for his money with the smooth factor. And we got to sample to our hearts' content!

Oh yum!

Still my fave....

There was much exchanging of notes....

And laughter....

And love....

And that glorious glow that is brought on by an excellent game of hopscotch...

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Sweater

It's from the sickbed that I write this catch-up post. Some sort of buggy flu/cold thingie has been running up and down the corridor at work, taking us out one by one. So my good blogging intentions were replaced instead by a hacking cough and an "icky" feeling that was followed by being horizontal and sweaty.

But I'm happy to report that I'm on the mend, so please accept this belated post from moi to toi.

A few weeks ago, the BBQ Club gathered. Mister Man was in charge of the main course. He decided he'd do pork chops. He picked out some fine specimens at WholePaycheque - I mean Whole Foods, and set about brining them. We arrived at the Grossyjadis (our pet name for Susan and Diyan) and were serenaded by Ms. Susan herself, who has been taking guitar lessons. Okay, she may only know one song so far, but it's a great song!! Isn't she adorable?

Mister Man hit the grill. What you CAN'T see this in this photo, is that his camouflage hat is adorned with a built-in light on the brim...... He is nothing but classy!!

As we waited for dinner, Susan brought out the most recent acquisitions from her mom. (We can't WAIT to meet the world-famous Ann G. who will be arriving in July!!!) Ann G. is a knitter. And she makes some extraordinary sweaters and such....

Recently, she sent a package to Susan and Diyan that contained a GORGEOUS sweater. There was only one hitch. The sweater seemed a little large for our tiny friend Susan.

I know it's common for our mothers to think of us daughters as larger than life.... So maybe that explains it! We decided that we should ALL try on the sweater for size. Perhaps it was meant to be for ONE OF US!!

Vanessa put it on and showed us her best Tyra pose.

Then Mister Man tried it on.

Then E. tried it on (while Vanessa modeled another item that was made for Diyan).

Then it was my turn. (Pardon the funky colour...) Here, Ms. E. is modeling an item that gave us all a great deal of pleasure as we played with the many ways in which it could be worn. And we decided that we would TAKE TURNS wearing the sweater. We would each take it for one month, and have the pleasure of wearing it and taking it on adventures. I am the first member of the sisterhood to wear the sweater, so you can anticipate a sisterhood of the traveling sweater post soon!!

Now back to the white thingie..... Part "shrug", part "scarf", what could it be?

And how should it be worn?

or???

Okay, okay - we know it should be worn like this:

And then, it was time for the main event. V and E seem fairly fixated on the table.

As do S and D.

Of COURSE they were chomping at the bit! Who wouldn't??

We finished the evening off with V and E's Bananas Foster. What a wonderful, filling winter dinner...

And I, for one, was a little relieved that the sisterhood of the traveling sweater featured a slightly oversized garment....