views and gratitudes

this weekend is proving to be amazingly un-stressful and not what i had feared it would be. i'm done anything that needed to be done within the city....and have saved my last day before i go for cleaning, packing and wrapping pressies!

i'm so thankful for lists. my big ol' list makes it all feel so much less overwhelming. i got everything on my list done easily today, whereas two days ago i was sure i would i would be in complete chaos. no...in fact at the moment i'm enjoying a delicious treat of french goat cheese on sesame rice crackers, cornichons and a glass of sweet white wine and feeling like i'm on holiday already.

i've been reflecting so much these days about what this year has been for me. it held unimaginable beauty. beauty that could not have occured without the really rough year and a half before it. thats gonna be a long post...but i'm already formulating it in my mind and look forward to getting it all from thoughts to words.

yesterday i got to hang out with my super amazing lovely pals who are 3 and a half. i've known them for a couple years and they are amazing little beings. i don't see them so often anymore so it was a real treat to have a day full of art-making and nature walks (i LOVE taking nature walks with kids...especially these two). so here is another addition to december views...which i must say i am thoroughly enjoying. i've recently started a photoblog but mainly to show my favourite stuff, kind of an informal online portfolio. but doing december views has been so good....just to share what i see. and to the lovelies that have commented...i'm super happy to make your aquaintence and be introduced to your blogs.

i'm heading out to watch some gay square dancing. yes, you read that right. some of the loveliest people i know in this city are part of the gay square dancing league. too cute! i'm so excited to see them dance!

so here are some of my views of a beautiful day!

make it all a little easier on yourself!

Okay...its four sleeps until i fly away back east to my lovelies in toronto and to hang with the fam.
And although today was supposed to be an oh so productive day full of shopping, wrapping and packing.
My body had a different plan for me. I slept. Almost all day. I had a really really long night shift (actually 3 in a row) with the loveliest of twin babies. My work is as a postpartum doula (in case you are one of the lovely new people i feel blessed to have visited me here via december views!)

I'm sure I'm not the only one that has a big ol' list right now, listing all that needs to be done.
Last night the first rush of stress arrived in my body, I thought of an old post by the lovely Andrea Scher about making things easier on ourselves. I can't stand feeling stressed....especially about something that is supposed to be a celebration of giving. so i've been sorting through ideas about how i can make this holiday season (and especially the next four days of getting ready) a bit easier on myself?

here's what i've come up with:
-make a star on 'the big list' beside things that need to be done in vancouver (it feels less overwhelming)
-order presents online (at places like etsy) for those folks i need to send things to far away
-be realistic about what actually needs to be done and what would just be nice to get done...for example i have shortened my list of who to send handmade christmas cards to a very select few.
-make sure to get good sleep, eat nourishing food and get outside for exercise....it makes everything easier to handle
-releasing expectations!i had wanted to get all my shopping done in vancouver so i could have nothing to distract me from soaking up the loveliness of my friends. alas, i do have 6 days! so i'm releasing that expection and saving a few tasks for the 6 days i do have there!

how are you making the holidays easier on yourself?

and now for some more december views....yet another indoor views (it was pouring rain out there today....welcome to vancouver!) so here are some of the beautiful art pieces i feel blessed to have on my walls!

three cheers for susannah

beauty arrived in my mailbox today.
a package sent all the way from the UK from a photographer i so admire, the great Susannah
this gorgeous image captivates so much of what I love about her work
its timelessness
its textured
its magical
its simply gorgeous

i was initially drawn to her photography because of our mutual love for holga cameras. her holga shots just blow me away!

and reading her blog is such a touching, honest, authentic experience.

so three cheers for Susannah please!

i'm chock full o' gratitude today for what she brings to the world!

simply beautiful

a beautiful day can come out of the most simple ones!
-a very lovely hair cut by my new friend andrea
-a delicious treat in the mail (that needs to be a post unto itself)
-a scrumptious salad of kale, cashews, goat cheese, cranberries and naam gravy
-a photo adventure in my apartment. i haven't left the house yet today so i thought i'd share what i see here!

december views

i'm a bit late in beginning, but i'm super excited to join in on 'december views'. lately i haven't felt like writing much and am all for speaking in photographs. also...with these cloudy days i haven't gone on many photo adventures...so i'm eager to get out on some more december-views-walks and share what i see in my days.

so here are some of my views and adventures on main st. here in vancouver

How to Cook Your Life

i'm so excited to see the film 'How to Cook your Life'.
do check out the trailer!

etsy love

Lots of new pictures up at my etsy shop and more and more to come!

I'm loving searching etsy for potential gifts and ideas for things to make!

LOVE
LOVE
LOVE
to etsy.

its a rainy week in vancouver, after a beautiful few days of gently falling snow. as a non-car-owning individual, i found the snow to be a gorgeously blissful experience while drivers cursed as they clutched their steering wheels. but the snowman in the front yard is slowly dissolving into a pile of mush and i am missing life back east with a winter filled with snowfalls.
but only 15 more sleeps till i head back there for the holidays. i'm so excited to get back to both my family and my crew of beloved friends in toronto and just soak up the beauty of being in their company.

with love,
v