Occasional musings from a Left-coast Canadian ExPat in Oxford.
I just got around to reading Anil’s recent post on 15 lessons from 15 years of blogging. Poignant, since I’ve been thinking about what to do with this site. I’ve been blogging for over 10(!) years, with a few defunct blogger and livejournal accounts before that. The blogosphere has changed a lot since then, but my … Continue reading The personal blog is an important, under-respected art form.
I keep remembering (and forgetting, and remembering again) that Easter’s coming up. Holidays are often a little tricky as an ExPat (assuming you want to celebrate), but this one is trickier than most. The toddler thing is tripping me up. Easter Chicks on a Boat by Nickstone333 on Flickr I’m not convinced Isaac will really … Continue reading Hop to it?
I’ve always wondered what it’s like for people who take trips “home” for the holidays. When they live somewhere either away from family or the place they’re from, and make their way back to that place at Christmas time. Now I know. And it’s simultaneously very nice and very strange. First of all, I have … Continue reading Home for the Holidays
Someone turned into a pumpkin! Happy Halloween! Continue reading At the stroke of midnight…
I never realized how much I look to Thanksgiving as a passage into Autumn. A time to start reconnecting with family & friends after the frantic, flighty summer. And while it might be Decorative Gourd Season all over the Northern Hemisphere, England doesn’t have Thanksgiving. Photo by Reclamation Revolution on Flickr We’ve started down the … Continue reading Thanks
2012! Hello! Since four resolutions last year seemed ideal for resolution domination, I’m going to go with four again this year. 1. Resurrect CookTheBook.ca. I really enjoyed starting my “cook through a cookbook” project, and then all of the authors (myself included) went and had babies, and the thing died as our priorities shifted. But … Continue reading And a new one just begun
So, that was 2011. I’m sure a whole bunch of stuff happened, and if you click on that archives link in the sidebar, you can read all about it. It can probably be summed up by saying “We had a baby, and were quite busy with the care and feeding and globe-toting of said baby. … Continue reading Another year over
From us, to you! Continue reading Merry Christmas
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the winter holidays. Give me a seasonal celebration around food, family, lights and merriment and I’m IN. I hope everyone has a reason to celebrate something around the solstice, and I love learning about and celebrating other cultural and religious traditions that also happen this time of year. My … Continue reading Christmas Lexicon: A rant of sorts
2010 was quite a pivotal year for our little family. In fact, it splits quite neatly down the middle into BC and AD – Before Conception and After Deathwatch. The year started with our awesome trip to Thailand, a few frantic months when we thought we were going to move to England, trips to las … Continue reading Twenty Eleven
From Sasha and Santa and Neil and I. Wishing you much cheer, fine company, great food and elastic pants. Continue reading Happy Christmas
I love Christmas like a fat kid loves cake. So it pains me to admit this year, I kindof hate our tree. Specifically, the lights. We switched to all LED lights this year for our tree, and (as I suspected they might be) they are aesthetically hideous. The thing I love about a beautiful Christmas … Continue reading Oh, Christmas Tree
I’ve told many people about one of my favourite Christmas Decorations: Satanic Fiber-Optic Santa, and now that we’ve hauled out most of the decorations for another year, I shot a quick video of him last night, so you may also share in the horror glory! The jingling/clicking noises in the background are the dog – … Continue reading I wish you a Creepy Christmas
Hello lovelies! I hope everyone had a fantastical Christmas (or whatever it is that you do or do not celebrate). Despite a rocky start with the weather being what it was, mine turned out really quite splendid. Also, our ambitious feast for 14 featuring a homemade turducken was nothing short of awesome. Of course, after … Continue reading The 12 Days of Christmas
Cookie Party by the numbers. Ladies descended on my house: 9 Stand mixers going simultaneously: 2 Hand mixers also running: 2 Hours of continuous baking: 5 Pounds of butter used: 12 Adorable babies passed around: 1 Batches of fudge the dog managed to get to: 1 Trays of cookie casualty (landed on the floor): 1 … Continue reading Cookie Monster