Out in the woods...

There's a 500 acre wood where we walk Griffin and for the past 4 years the other dog walkers and ourselves have taken to decorating a tree near one of the ponds.

Al and Bev, who own Niki, come in with the truck with all the necessary luxuries...

fire pit to keep warm...

camp stove for the coffee...

cookies for our belly's...

...and Baileys just for fun!

We've all brought a few decorations over the years to contribute...

And have made this our own little surprise for others walking in the woods.

Here's the gang...

Looks like every one's enjoying the treats!

Tom getting into the spirit...

Brenda and myself as well!

Al and Bob...our very own giddy elves!

Griffin spreading his Christmas cheer to Bev...

Benji with Nancy and Stu looking for cookie crumbs...

Niki and Griffin TRYING to be still...

That didn't last long!

So here's to hot coffee and a bit of Christmas spirit...

All we need now is a little bit of snow!

For my beautiful baby...

Today is the birthday of my girl, Aja.

 She is my love, my light, my reason why I struggled and survived.

30 years ago I was young and lost.

Aja brought my heart into fruition.

  She taught me to see the world through wonderful eyes.

 Through child's eyes.

 While the years have moved on, we've laughed,

we've stumbled,

we've fallen,

and got back on our feet again.

We've travelled..."smoked with the hippies, drank with the Irish"...

We've loved and lost.

But the greatest gift is that we are now two women who are Friends.

My beautiful baby is 30 today.

1980 was a Very Good Year.

 Happy Birthday Sweets!

Here's a song for you....

Song for Friday...for the skaters...

One of my great joys in life is skating outside in the winter...

We don't get to do that much of it at all around here ,but when I was a kid in Toronto, we used to go to the local park where they made a rink with lights and all!

Parents used to have to come and DRAG their kids home at night...

it's the best feeling in the world to glide on ice...even if you fall a few times...

Happy gliding, you lucky ones!

Have a great weekend!

I've got mail!

The other day I received a package which I ordered off of Etsy.

I love how you just never know what the shop owner will do to make that parcel a little extra special.

Then I see that the gift tags I bought are even more lovely than on her site!

The gorgeous images...

The vintage feel she gives to them...

And the pretty ribbon, carefully chosen to match each one...

They are so beautiful, I can't quite use them yet so I've incorporated them into some of my Christmas decorating...

For now...

If you would like to see more of Brandy's pretty things, check out her shop...

http://www.etsy.com/shop/brandywine/sold

An alternative...

Every year I struggle with the idea of what to do about a Christmas tree.

I grew up having the big cut tree with it's lovely smell and grand size.

The tradition of going to the lot with my dad on a snowy evening to pick one out...

the excitement of decorating with my brothers and sister and the thrill of seeing pretty wrapped packages underneath it on Christmas morning.

Then I grew up and had my own ideas about the whole industry of cut trees and how I thought it wasn't right somehow.

For a few years I would go out to the power lines, where B.C hydro allows you to take a tree (which they will cut down in the spring for maintenance anyways due to too many crowding the lines).

Truth be told, our house is small and I still am not completely comfortable with taking a perfectly healthy young tree for a few weeks and then out to the compost or burn pile.

So last year I started a new spin on things and have begun...

The Christmas chandelier!

 Quite simple, really.

I took a plant support (kind of like a tomato cage but made for large perennials), took the spikes which would normally go into the ground and wired them together like so...(usually there's 3 spikes)

Then I gather up whatever prunings I desire...(this year it's huckle berry and split leaf alder.)

Bundle them all together and wire them onto the support frame...

Next you add your lights...

Check out these beautiful lights...

No they are not hand blown amber glass...guess again!

Dried apricots! 

This was an idea my friend Irma saw a few years back and we've been spreading the news ever since.

Just put a tiny slit in it and slip it over the fairy light.

Then all that's left to do is hang said chandelier over your table or wherever you want and get your precious ornaments out to decorate...

Once again, another way to bring the light into the house on these short, dark days.

Diggin' it...

Today we celebrated my nephews 13th birthday.

Nick is into 'everything archeology', so when I saw this...

I figured there wasn't anyone else I knew but him who would really enjoy such a thing.

And so began the dig.

Even with his recently broken elbow, the enthusiasm was high...

Chipping, scraping, hammering...

 and brushing dust away for a good while until...

 There! Do you see it?!

The quest for treasure grows more and more intense...

Finally, after about an hour, not one but  4 artifacts are uncovered...

They are all made of metal, quite heavy and realistic...

Nick especially loved the coin.

After he uncovered them, all of the chipped away stone was crushed to powder and mixed with water...

Then he added his own artifacts...

Put it all back into a mold and it sits drying and ready for the next amateur archaeologist to find the treasure...

There's nothing like seeing the joy and passion this kid has for discovering.

His quest to learn will take him on grand adventures.

Happy Birthday Nick!