Happy Autumn Equinox!

Today is the first official day of Fall.

But to me, it's felt like fall since the day after I got back from our trip to Prince Edward Island. When we landed, it was close to 30 degrees Celsius. The day after, I think it went down about 15 degrees and has not got any warmer since then.

I'm not complaining though, Fall is my favourite season. The cool crisp air, leaves changing colors, tea or hot chocolate and evenings sitting cozy on the couch with a warm blanket and a good book, are all things that come to mind and things I love.

I've embraced fully the cool weather by bringing out our warmer clothes, baking anything I can with spices such as cinnamon, ginger and cloves, and having fresh chilli simmering on the stove.

But today is officially autumn equinox. And what's happening here? The weather is getting warmer. Much warmer for the next little while apparently. It's throwing me for a loop! I'm not sure weather to take out my flip flops out of the closet, or keep on knitting scarves and such. Whip up a batch of raw vegan ice cream, or bake some ginger cookies. Whatever mother nature may have in store for us around here, I'm going to embrace all of it and do the best I can to live in the moment, and enjoy all of it. Nice warm day? Take the kids for a bike ride or nature walk. Cool wet day? Bake and cook to stock up the freezer.

Weather Autumn is your favourite season like me, or it makes you sad to see summer really ending, I hope you can take a moment and see the beauty all around you and take the time to enjoy every moment.

So what about you? What are your favourite things about fall?

Photography series: Water as blue as can be

Here is part two of my photography series.

Again, all pictures taken while in Jasper not too long ago.

I don't think this post needs any explanation or that I need to say much about it...

Except that this last one is my absolute favourite!

Photography series: Mountains and Glaciers

As promised in my post about our camping trip, I thought I'd share some of the great pictures I took while away in the Jasper (Ab) area.

Mountain to the side of the Columbia Ice Field.

Glacier at Mount Edith Cavell.

Part of the mountain was peaking through the fog at Horse Shoe Lake.

Columbia Ice Fields glaciers.

I've taken so many pictures of this mountain, the first ones dating 8 years ago, yet I still have no clue as to the name of it... If you happen to know, please let me know it the comments, I would really appreciate it!

Another mountain peaking through the fog.

Mountain facing the Athabasca Falls.

I love these pictures and my hope is that it can give you a small idea of just how beautiful and grandiose these mountains and glaciers really are. But the truth is, it does not even compare to the real thing. If you've been to some areas with mountains this size, you know what I'm talking about.

This feeling that reminds you how small you are, and how big the world is.

This feeling of the last thousands and even millions of years of history that have transpired here, vibrating through you as you stand there.

This feeling that just leaves you breathless, as you look around in awe, at the miracles of Mother Nature.

{this moment}

Cupcake on the wall

{this moment} - (inspired by Soule Mama) A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

~ This is my moment from last week. I didn't have time to post it, but I really wanted to share. This picture really makes me smile :)

I'm back! And a few pictures to share...

Well hello there! It's been a while since I updated here. My best friend came here on vacation to surprise me for my birthday, we went camping and now she's gone again. The entire week she was here was great, but it sure went by in a hurry. I guess time flies when your in good company!

The weather didn't cooperate with us so much, but we did get a few good pics of us.

It was elk rutting season when we went to the Jasper National Park, and elk we saw. All we had to do to see them in the campground is open the door of the camper. They were everywhere.

The weather didn't really cooperate, it was mostly rainy, foggy and grey the entire time. At the exception of one late afternoon, we did not see the sun shine, nor were we able to see the peaks of the mountains most of the time. But I still managed to take about 200 pictures in 2 days. Of course, I can't share all of them with you, but I decided to group my best pictures in a few themes and will be sharing those with you over the course of the next week.

Can't wait to share them with you!

Entering the wonderful world of play silks...

Seems lately that the more I thrift, the more I score amazing finds.

Last week, I went to the thrift store, as I have been getting into the habit of doing almost weekly (you just never know what you might find!). One bin I never look in, is the one with all the fabric pieces. I mean, why would I look in it? I don't even own a sewing machine!

But that day, I felt compelled to look in it... and I found this beautiful play silk!

A few of the edges are slightly frayed, and I don't even know if it's actual silk, but it certainly is as soft as silk. I had been wanting some for the kids to really encourage open ended play and for them to use more their imagination.

When we came home I took it out and showed them. They were excited : "Yay! A play silk!" Followed by: "What's a play silk?" It never occured to me that they had no idea what it was therefore they did not know what to do with it.

So I explained it to them. My daughter immediately thought it would be perfect for all those little dinosaurs they have, and she got busy playing. But my son was more reluctant and did not want to play with it.

But within a few minutes of seeing his little sister playing pretend and enjoying it so much, he got right in there with her and they had so much fun!

We are going camping in the mountains this weekend, and it's calling for a few days of rain, so I will be bringing these with us, in case the rain is so bad that we can't enjoy the great outdoors as much as we'd like. It should keep them busy and happy, no matter what the weather turns out to be!
I was worried that my kids might be a little too old to start introducing them to some of the wonderful natural toys out there, but I guess all I had to do is show them and the rest happened without any effort.

What a surprise!

I had so many things to share with you and talk about, that the possibilities for posts were almost endless on this Monday. But then something came up, and I just had to share this first.

You see, today is my 30th birthday.

I've been very excited at the thought of turning 30 with all those changes I've been going through. If turning 30 means being wiser, more confident and knowing yourself better, then I'm all for it! But I was starting to feel slightly sad this morning knowing my hubby is at work for another few days, my family and best friend all live across the country and all my other friends that live close are busy since it's a holiday weekend... basically, it was just the kids and I today, and there's nothing to do, since a lot of things are closed because of the long weekend.

But then my hubby came to the rescue with a wonderful surprise this morning!

He told me that he got my best friend in the whole wide world to come here for a visit. She's arriving in two days!!!

You see, she also was my "present" for last year's birthday. I was shocked and so happy. It truly was the most wonderful birthday I've ever had, surrounded by the most special people in my life. (You can read about it HERE on my old blog). I even told my hubby that he would never be able to top it off, but I guess he just did!

(Photo taken last year when Val came to visit for my birthday. We toured around the mountains and this was at the Athabasca Falls in the Jasper National Park. That's me on the left ;)

I feel so blessed to have such amazing people in my life. A truly amazing hubby, and a kind of friendship that is so rare and can only come around once in a lifetime. I truly am a lucky woman.

I hope your week all started as great as mine did!

Felt Owls

The other day, I stumbled upon this tutorial for a felt owl and I just had the sudden urge to make my own.

The materials were easy to find, but the googly eyes were not quite as big as I was looking for, so I am going to remove them and just making bigger eyes out of felt so it's more proportionate.

Though there was a tutorial, there is no real measurements and you just kind of have to figure it out. I kept my templates so I can make the adjustments needed for the next one. I whipped this up within a couple of hours. I just love projects I can finish in the same evening I started.

Isn't she cute? (aside from the tiny eyes, lol)

Now... I have no clue what I am going to do with her, or with the next one I make (Ha!), but they sure are fun to make! Maybe my kids would like them as a Christmas gift? What do you think?

Carrot soup

When we got out of the airport after our trip, it was a scorcher. But literally overnight, it went from summer to fall. This sudden drop in temperature left me craving comfort food. I had soup on my mind for a couple of days. But I didn't feel like making my usual curried lentil soup, which is just about the only soup I've ever made from scratch. I thought it was time for a change.

So I decided to go with a puree of carrot soup. I had not had carrot soup in years I think, though I've always loved it. It was so easy, filling and tasted so amazing (not to mention it's so healthy!), I had to share with you!

Puree of Carrot Soup

Olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 pound of carrots, peeled and sliced

2 medium russet or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced

1 vegetable bouillon cube (I use the brand CelifibR, they have no MSG, are all vegan, even the chicken and beef ones, and are Gluten Free. )

Freshly ground pepper

Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and carrots and saute over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden, 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the potatoes, 3 cups of water and the bouillon cube and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer gently until the vegetables are quite tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

With a slotted spoon, scoop out all the solid ingredients and transfer them to a food processor. Process until very smooth, transfer back to the pot and stir back in all the liquid. (You might think there will be too much liquid at first, but it will be just perfect actually).

Add additional water if it's too thick.

Season with freshly ground black pepper and serve.

It was just perfect for a cool fall-like day, especially served with fresh whole wheat bread we had just bought at the farmers market.

Lunch just doesn't get any better than that!

I shared this recipe over at...