haunted laughs

happy halloween! 
i love watching ellen, i love that she can easily make me laugh, and i love it when she puts one of her writers, amy, in uncomfortable situations.  last halloween she sent amy to experience a haunted house for the show.  be sure to watch right to the end of the video - poor thing, she gets a double scare.

and this year she sent her again, this time with her mom who apparently is more afraid of spooky things than amy is.  it is so funny, do enjoy the video and happy laughing!



weekend pics

during the day on saturday, i had brunch at the shaughnessy restaurant located at van dusen gardens with some awesome co-workers, they are such a great group of women.  afterwards, i went shopping, well i tried, but didn't purchase anything although i was tempted to buy these boots.   we also carved the pumpkins we brought home from the pumpkin patch.

i love that kai drew out his design first.

 

 

stefan and i we went to hear anthony bourdain speak at the centre in vancouver for performing arts .  he is a celebrity chef, traveler, bestselling author, and host of the travel channel's anthony bourdain: no reservations.  it was a one night only performance and it was exactly what i thought i would be getting - profanity, crazy travel adventures, and his love of food.  he was an entertaining and awesome storyteller!

on sunday, i breakfasted with my boys at granville island. back at home we played pictionary - kai impressed us with some very awesome drawings. he was focused and detailed, it was very cool to watch.  stefan has been eager to shop so i accompanied him for a quick and successful shopping spree (he bought a shirt, belt, and boots and i came home empty handed, so unfair!).  stefan also prepared another pot pie from martha stewart.  it was a delicious braised beef and potatoes take on a potpie.  kai has a second helping but i prefer the chicken pot pie from last week which was more flavourful and healthier.

jerome is stefan's favourite vendor at the market

this french bakery makes the best buns - my boys go through alot during the work/school week

it's so practical to have a wine shop at granville island, stefan picked up a bottle to braise the meat for the pot pie

  

the winner of pictionary!

martha's pot pie lovingly prepared by stefan

 

one cozy bunny

wherever you are, i hope your weekend is nice and cozy... we are expecting rain!

a gorgeous home

i came across this blog recently and instantly loved these rooms.  the blogger, emma, has a very good eye for design.  i think the bedroom, the kitchen, and the entry way are gorgeous rooms.  she dreamed of having her home in a design magazine.  well, once she started her blog (about her house) she got noticed by the people at house and home magazine and was featured in their magazine. very cool, yes?  

birthday time

today is my birthday! 

last night i was out with suji, a good friend of mine.  i love spending time with her and only wish life didn't get too busy for us to spend more time together.  however, we always manage to celebrate our birthdays.  not only is suji smart, lovely, and stylish but she is also ridiculously creative (think martha stewart protege).  isn't the birthday card she made me absolutely adorable?  and i always love her prezzies for me.  this year i received the perfectly simple stud earrings that i have been coveting and the perfect mascara to give me some lashes! thank you suji!

this evening the celebration will involve my boys plus a cake!  and some yoga too (while kai is at circus class).  the cake we will indulge in tonight is a thomas cake, of course!  and i am told that there will be a prezzie too - all i know is that it is fragile and smaller than a breadbox.

image from here, stefan wanted me to make clear that this is not the thomas haas cake.

tomorrow evening, stefan is taking me out for a candlelight dinner.  over 100 restaurants across b.c., participating in the bc hydro candlelight conservation dinner, will be "dimming the lights, dialing up the ambience and demonstrating how simple actions can add up to make a big difference when it comes to saving energy."  we have lots of lovely memories of diva at the met, our restaurant of choice for the evening. it was the first 'fine dining' restaurant we frequented over and over to celebrate special occasions when we first moved to vancouver.  through the years the restaurant has changed chefs and each and every one has never disappointed. i love that we have 'our' restaurant.  should be fun... and romantic! 

 

michael tickner

michael tickner is a local vancouver artist who paints scenes of his homeland.  when he started painting, back in the 70's, his intent was always to use bright colours and to ensure his paintings lifted one's spirits.  the colour and the happiness of his artwork is exactly what appeals to me.  so, when i laid my eyes on this print below i knew i had to have it.  i imagined kai's room as its perfect home.   the catch was that i had to win it in a silent auction (i attended a fundraiser for a local women's health center last week).  and i did win it, barely!!! 

although it isn't an original painting (they are way too expensive for my modest budget), the framed art poster was the only way i would be able to own one of michael tickner's pieces.  kai approves of my purchase and is now eager to give his room an update... me too!

do visit his website to see more of his art.

weekend pics

we vancouverites have been having lovely weather.  the sun is shining, well most of the time anyway, especially for this time of year.  we spent lots of time outdoors.  kai's highlight of the weekend was the pumpkin patch. stefan's highlight will always be our weekly pilgrimage to thomas.  and my highlight would have to be stefan whipping together a chicken pot pie from the martha stewart living magazine - yes he did!  

  

stefan was giddy with excitement about thomas' new addition to his pastry selection, a chocolate double baked almond croissant!

it was stefan's first visit to the pumpkin patch - i usually accompany kai there with his school class or we have gone on our own during a week day.  it was very, very busy this weekend which we expected considering the sunshine.  we enjoyed some hay time, building forts and tossing hay.  we then took a wagon ride to the pumpkins and corn maze. thankfully we all wore our rubber boots, it was very muddy!  we indulged a little too much at the end of our visit with some pumpkin pie and donuts!  the pumpkin patch is located at the richmond country farms, an organic farm where we picked up some veggies and fruits. 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

let me present the chicken pot pie that we ate by candlelight. the pot pie was perfection, the perfect comfort food for a fall evening.  after kai devoured his bowl, he said to his dad, "that was amazing, you get an A+."  i couldn't agree more.  stefan also writes about it on his blog, stef's road trip.  thank you stefan for finding my martha stewart magazine, it led to a very delicious meal!

 
 

'new' glasses

do you wear glasses?  my daily pair (small, metal frame, discreet) are getting repaired - the coating started to smear giving me a dull, hazy view of the world.  despite this, i continued to wear them for a few months because the alternative was to wear my back-up pair which i think are nerdy (tortoise, plastic, darker, bigger).  when i did finally put them on (for home use only), i could actually see things in full colour and have since been wearing them for about a week, indoors and out.  i am being very brave! 

i felt the need to tell anyone that knew me how i came to be wearing my nerdy glasses.  surprisingly,  i have actually received a few compliments on my 'new' pair of glasses.  so now i am thinking maybe i don't look so dorky after all.  maybe i do love my big nerdy glasses.  maybe.  maybe not.

i did some research and it turns out that wearing nerdy glasses is a trend at the moment - apparently celebrities are sporting them.  anyway, i am not so brave as to post a photo of myself wearing them but this bride is brave.  isn't she just adorable in her glasses?  i love that she wore them to her wedding!

images from here

have a lovely weekend, do something brave!