feist.

Being on vacation is the best, a girl could get used to this ;) I'm catching up on so many things that i've wanted to do, including watching Feist's documentary Look at What the Light Did Now. Have you seen it? Oh what an amazing film about her journey and so beautifully shot. She is quite the artiste! Well i'm a fan, if you didn't already notice that by my profile photo ;) A couple of years ago I asked my husband to help me recreate her The Reminder album cover for fun. I recently dished the photo out which I had forgotten all about, we had such a laugh trying to get the pose right.

I'm off to enjoy more vacation time, I hope that you're catching up on things yourself and wishing you a lovely new year!

merry and bright.

Happy holidays to you and yours!

I can't wait to enjoy everything that this wonderful season has to offer, and take time to reflect on the year that is about to end and the fresh new year ahead. I've had so much fun joining the blog world and have met so many inspiring, lovely people! Your visits have been truly loved, looking forward to seeing you in the new year!

{image by besimo}

winter wonderland.

My husband photographed Sonia and Eric's e-session during a lovely snowfall last week, it was exactly what the couple wanted, snowy engagement photos leading up to their winter wedding in March. Their photos turned out so romantic and magical, i'm especially loving this one!

It's been snowing here every day so far, we are so having a white Christmas. And Christmas in only 9 days?!? *Eeeek!* There aren't enough hours in the day, my list isn't getting any shorter and I only seem to be adding things to my constant list! This weekend I hope to finish my shopping and wrapping, and then all I want to do is plop myself on the sofa and watch my favorite Christmas movie Love Actually with a nice glass of wine :)

sparkle.

Shiraz insisted on being in at least one of my tree photos :)

























We finally added a bit of sparkle to our little tree this weekend, all that's left is finding a star for the tree top. There were lights on our tree, but they stopped working so we've decided that our tree is going au naturel this year. I would love to add more color and decorations around the house but time is flying by and I still shopping to do, gifts to wrap, cookies to bake with the girls and plan our Christmas dinner. I can't believe that Christmas is next week! How is your holiday planning coming along?

willie nelson's famous banana bread.

I don't know if this is Willie Nelson's recipe or if it's one of his favorites, but when I read that it was also the ultimate banana cake, aka UBC, over on Everybody Likes Sandwiches {love this blog!} well, I had to try this recipe. Oh my gosh, the UBC turned out absolutely delicious! The top a cinnamon and sugary crust and the inside full of banana and chocolate yumminess. The cake was a hit with these two little ladies (our girls Alicia and Bianca), so i'll be baking it again real soon.

warm and cozy.

This weekend we bought a real Christmas tree for the first time! We haven't had time to decorate it yet but it's no more than 4 feet tall and just the cutest little tree. I did get around to filling up a few vases with pinecones which I scatter around the house. I usually just bring a bit of the outdoors indoors and keep my decorating very simple and natural.

My hubs was busy with event photo shoots {'tis the season} all weekend long so last night we plopped ourselves on the sofa in front of the TV to watch our favorite show, Dexter (sooooo good!) with two big cups of hot cocoa. The fireplace was going and our little tree was looking so darn cute. I was looking around feeling so blessed for my home and for my fantastic husband, who made the hot chocolate by the way. He followed this recipe. Real chocolate... dangerous.

How was your weekend?

vintage style.

I love all things vintage inspired. Aren't these just the prettiest hair accessories?

happy friday!

homemade granola.

I sure do love warm butter croissants for breakfast but {unfortunately!} I can't have that every day. Another one of my favorite things for breakfast is a big bowl of yogurt topped with fresh granola. We are big on the yogurt in my family and my homemade granola always goes real fast. Here's my recipe although you can toss in chopped figs, dates, raisins, sliced almonds or whatever else you like really... it always turns into absolute goodness.

homemade granola

2 cups large rolled oats
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup flax seeds
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 tbs vanilla extract

Mix all the ingredients and spread evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until brown and a little bit crispy. Toss and check periodically.