Trick or Treat Disney Style

I know I'm posting these photos a little late, but I had to share the kids halloween pictures at Mickey's Halloween Party in Disneyland. It was a huge day and a very exciting night. We felt pretty lucky to be visiting Disney this time of year. We were all such a hodge-podge of costumes, but we had so much fun, it didn't matter.

The weather was still beautiful, but not too hot, and it was so amazing to see the incredible grounds transformed into a halloween wonderland. Morgan looked darling as Strawberry Shortcake, and Cove suited his lil indian costume perfectly. Although it was impossible to get a good shot of him, well, because he was a crazy man. Here is a glimpse of our spooky but magical adventure at the fabulous Disney.

Presenting, Miss. Strawberry Shortcake!

Morgan and Cove's partners in crime, Kierra and Jude.

My handsome Mad Hatter

This family photo was taken at the very end of the night. It was so late and the littles were beyond exhausted...we all were. This was the best one we could get. Makes me giggle. Great memories together...oh yeah, I was Alice, a very, very sleepy Alice indeed. If you are thinking of doing disney in the fall, make sure you are there during Halloween Time. We loved it, every sweet and spooky bit.

We're home now and she's still rocking this amazing wig- kind of suits Little Miss Cupcake Sugarpants, don't you think?:) Happy belated halloween. xo

Christmas Bits

I am such a sucker for gingerbread houses. Although mine never turn out so adorable, like this one off of pinterest. Maybe thats because I have a wee artist, whom I allow to go crazy. So it turns out a little more...abstract, to say the least. Picasso would love it! Maybe mommy needs to indulge in making two this year, so Morgan and I can both artfully express ourselves:). I love hand picking the candy so its a little different from the traditional. I think I'll use this pretty lil pad as my inspiration. Ya?

I just bought a whole bunch of little Christmas cookie cutters, and this is a great way to get creative and make something healthy with them! Morgan will love this for her preschool snack time.

DIY advent calendar- simple and so pretty

As much as I try and stay away from Christmas baking, its all part of the fun. Baking with my two kiddos right now is kind of a wonderful nightmare. A bit stressful, messy and takes a heap of patience and focus on my part. Morgan loves it, but wants to be involved in every step, which is awesome but super tricky, when Cove wants 'up, up' too. Too many fingers in too much sweet, sticky fun, so it will be limited this year.

What I do decide to bake will be prepared in plenty, and with a lot of extra hands around, big and small. I'm thinking gingerbread men (Morgan will love that), these devilish salted caramel and chocolate shortbread bars, peanut butter ball pops, and...the ooey gooey lemon cookies below. I can always count on my brother to make my mom's amazing recipe of melt-in-your-mouth traditional shortbread, so we're covered there. Oh, and of course a gingerbread house with some whimsy. Three year old little girls and gingerbread houses just go hand and hand. Duh;)

I'd love to get creative with my wrapping this year, and I sometimes think the simpler, the better. The idea of pictures really personalizes everyone's gift, and since I take so many- why not? The black and white look great and the kids would love looking at the familiar faces under the tree. 

The classic lemon bar done as a soft cookie- oh boy. 

Every Christmas, my mom and I would make chocolate peanut butter balls, which are so simple and to die for. But I'd love to modernize them a bit and make them into peanut butter ball pops! Maybe adding some Christmas sprinkles on some of them, although, they are so delish just the way they are.

So tell me, what is on your baking list this Christmas? Any must haves? I may be able to sneak one more special recipe in there. Please share your traditional favs!

I had to share this picture with you. This is Morgan's first Christmas. So stinkin cute and her expression is just priceless. I'll share a few more oldies over the holidays. Thanks for stopping in, and don't forget to share your favourite Christmas baking. xo

These Mornings

Its been a couple weeks since we've been home from our holiday. I sure miss these early mornings at our beach house. Coffee on the patio, snuggled in a dozen blankets, hearing the ocean glide into the shore, gazing at the quiet beach, picking up spilt cheerios- even the mundane on holidays seems wonderful. 

We're just trying to feel grateful for our home here in chilly Edmonton...this is our focus for the month. Brydon and I are such lovers of a warm climate and the ocean. But...we'll have to love it from a distance for now. We plan to decorate the house tomorrow with the jolly contents in our twelve christmas boxes stacked in the hallway, decorations and lights busting out the sides, just waiting to shine again. Morgan can hardly wait. Here are a few pics of our mornings spent on the coast. So dreamy...

Now on to enjoying the chilly mornings we have here in Edmonton. I do love the massive evergreens covered in snow outside my front window. Its not the beach, thats for sure, but it sure makes the Christmas season feel cozy. Can't complain about that.

I remember my mom telling me this when I was little. I would go on and go, giving her wild scenario after wild scenario, and she would just keep smiling and shaking her head, yes. So I love that I found this adorable gem on pinterest. 

My mom was telling the truth and so is Pablo, pretty much everything you can dream up has happened or will happen. Thats what I love so much about this crazy world. The possibilities are endless, so keep dreaming, and more so, keep creating a life you love. It doesn't matter where you call home, just do your best to live in the moment and don't take anything for granted. xo

A Little Joy

Talk about a drastic change of scenery. We've been home for only two days and now our city has been swallowed by a massive dump of crystal white snow.  Morgan instantly thinks its Christmas, and Santa is going to drop in at any moment. So I put a little early-bird decoration up for her, as she has been begging me to drag out every box we have. Not yet my wee elfing, not yet. We picked up this little JOY banner in Cali at a children's boutique in Carlsbad. Love it in my hallway tucked under some family pictures. 

Roasted red pepper and goat cheese alfredo-

perfect comfort din din for our winter wonderland. 

Those in Edmonton, snuggle in. 

With all this snow, I hope you are feeling a little joy today.
If not, make this yummy pasta dish
followed with some good dark chocolate,
 and that should do the trick! xo 

California Dreamin

Most of our days were spent frolicking on the beach, visiting other coastal communities along the  golden shores, coordinating meals, nap time, snack time, surf time, shop time, and just lazing around our beach house, well as much lazing around you can do with five rambunctious kiddos racing around. 

Every community hosts a fabulous farmers market, so we would often stock up on fresh local fruit and veggies. Not to mention the delicious fresh coconut water and honey sticks. They have such a healthy mentality there, supporting local farmers. We were in fresh food heaven. The boutique shopping was amazing. When the boys were back from their surf, and Lisa and I could sneak away from the kids for a few hours, we hit up a few shopping districts we fell in love with. No chains, many local designers and artists, so we were happy mamas on hunt for some lovely treasures. 

Scenery in California is both rugid and dreamy. Just the sight of palm trees make Brydon and I happy. They remind me of something Dr. Sues would dream up, playful and spunky. The weather was perfect, a balmy 25'C most days, even hotter inland when we went to Disneyland. I guess this is rare this time of the year, so we lucked out. Below are some pics of our favourite coffee shop and bakery, they had the best cinnamon croissant twists I think we indulged in everyday. We were in full-on vacation mode, so nothing was off limits. I engulfed an entire caramel apple to myself in Disneyland with not an ounce of guilt.