made it!

today was my last day of work of 2012. this is the first year that i haven't been in school for at least part of the year. it feels really good to be doing a job that i love. and it feels amazing to have a few weeks off. i'll still be blogging a bit from j's mom's place in PEI, and my parents place in NB during the holidays. looking forward to some of my mom's gingerbread men, and j's mom's roti and curry.

we have been asking all the kids we see at work what they want for christmas. most of them say video games or ipods or laptops or easy bake ovens. but j asked a six-year-old the other day, and he said he didn't want much, just maybe a sled, and for everyone else to have a good christmas. and that's what i want. maybe some snowshoes or something, but mostly for everyone to have a good holiday.

on the weekend

(christmas supper and kraft paper) 

(sunday morning winter walk) 

(my secret santa gift. love him) 

(sparkly bauble for the tree) 

(my christmas present to me)

the days are getting soo short. it might just be the extended darkness, but i feel like i need way more rest during this time of year. this is what i've been doing to try to combat the fatigue: napping after work and in the afternoon on weekends, reducing my gym time to only half an hour every few days, going to bed ridiculously early. avoiding shopping. and watching christmas movies instead of doing actual housework. let's just say j and i will be eating out quite a bit for the next week. i think other people get this pre-holiday mid-December exhaustion? i am trying to embrace it. i'm sure it's healthy to go into hibernation mode a little once in a while. 

homemade coconut cream larabars

there are so many sweets in my life right now. there was the cookie exchange on the weekend, so now i have 15 different types of amazing super sugary cookies. and at work, there seems to always be a package of those butter cookies that come in a blue round tin. and there's candy. and candied nuts, and the boxes of chocolates where you have to bite into a bunch before you find a good one. so i made these larabars. they seem healthier and more filling than candy. and super easy. and really really good. they taste just like my favourite larabar flavour.

homemade coconut cream larabars

1 cup raw almonds
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 cup dates
1 tablespoon melted coconut oil (optional, but awesome)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (also optional)

throw the almonds in the food processor and process to a fine crumb
add the coconut and process some more
then add the dates. i add them one by one through the appendage on my food processor
then add the melted coconut oil and the vanilla and process a little more
take the mixture and push it onto a cookie sheet. parchment paper makes the whole thing easier
let it cool in the fridge for an hour or so before you cut it into bars

on the weekend

(a little bit more snow) 

(chilling with a familiar pound pup, Striker) 

(someone's getting a new sign) 

(homemade oreos from here) 

(confetti sugar cookies for a cookie swap)

such a good weekend. there was a double date dinner, hot yoga with j, puppy walking, a visit to the pool hall. we watched 'A nightmare before christmas', which was pretty good. we are totally addicted to game of thrones, though i think it's giving me nightmares. they keep chopping people's heads off. 

in other news, my billiard skills are seriously sharpening. i am getting a few balls in every time. this is major. i plan to be pro by the end of the winter. 

a little part of our story

j and i have been married for almost five months now, and it's got me thinking about what it was like to start dating over 5 years ago. the moment that i really thought we would end up together is so clear in my head that i feel like i have a photo of it. j was waiting for me at the corner of hollis and morris in halifax. he was wearing this big woolen navy blue sweater and faded jeans. as i walked down the hill toward him, a man and his  big dog walked near j. he immediately bend down to pet the dog, and started chatting with the man. when he looked up and saw me, he had a huge smile on his face. i just thought that he was exactly where i wanted to be. i thought that his whole approach to life seemed to be caught in that moment with the dog and the stranger and me. he treats the world and everyone in it with such a positive energy. people really are drawn to him. and me most of all.

i really knew after that moment that i loved him and wanted nothing more than to spend as much time with him as i could. it was another year before he realized he felt that way about me. so funny to think about that now.

friday

(j loading up our tree last year)

i feel like december moves faster than most months. this is true, right? at work, the christmas tunes are playing and there are decorations everywhere. i honestly feel like it makes people more cheery. this weekend j is taking me out for supper, and i'll be baking christmas cookies. since we are heading to the mainland in two short weeks, a christmas tree may not be in the cards for us this year. but i am so ready to watch a few classic christmas movies like elf or the family stone.

on the weekend: santa clause parade

it was the kind of working weekend where i barely took a picture. the santa clause parade was soo cold (minus 15) that i could barely keep my camera in my hand. we went last year too. this time we drank coconut hot chocolate, and wore full snow suits. it really put me in the holiday spirit.  december is such an awesome month. i love seeing the christmas trees in living room windows as we take our long commute home. over the next few weeks we have a christmas party or five to attend, a cookie swap, and the nutcracker ballet.

my favourite thing lately is to ask every kid i see what they want from santa. i am shocked by the responses. laptops and ipads seem to be the main thing kids want. crazy.