I'm Back! & Our December in Pictures

Well hello there.  It's been awhile.  I took a long and unexpected break from blogging for over a year and you know what? 

 It feels lovely to be back.

  I've been contemplating returning to this blog for several months now and today, after reading blogposts by several of my favourite bloggers, I felt inspired to give it a go again. 

However, after my year-long hiatus, I feel I am not the blogger  I was before.  Most simply because I am not the same person I was before.  

As I inch closer and closer to my 40th year, my priorities have changed.  Where I put my energy has changed.  How much energy I have  has changed.  

I used to be a blogger that felt she had to post 3 times a week, each time with a new and exciting crafting/baking/decorating blog post.  

Not anymore.  Now you get ME.   As I am, what I am thinking about and what I am doing today.  

I may have just scared a few of my followers off, but what can you do.....

So without further ado....  a blog post about December with my lovely family of five.

 (This one is a little pic-heavy. But I assure you... they are ALL lovely photographs! )

During the busy and festive month of December,  we:

...visited many cafes and enjoyed gourmet hot chocolate, lattes and a variety of delicious baked goods.

At home, we spent a fair bit of time cooking and baking together.  We began the month with homemade gingerbread cutouts, 

..then made 3 batches of caramel corn.  Each batch lasted no more than 2 days!!

Later in the month, we had several friends for dessert and drinks and I  "threw together" a Black Forest Pavlova (recipe here.)

And Camden helped create these gigantic chocolate chip cookies complete with Christmas coloured candies pressed into the top.  

The weather throughout the month was moderate for winter in Canada, so we took advantage with several outings. One such outing was a  visit to the European-style Christmas Market in Toronto where we ate super-sized Bavarian pretzels and took in the gorgeous light displays.  

 We had several days of thick snow in December , but with the "warmer-than-normal" temperatures it never lasted longer than 24 hours.   We got outside and into whiteness as often as we could!

And of course, we feathered our nest for the festive season. The boys wanted their own tree this year so I helped them collect a few "boyish" ornaments (robots,  cars and golden nutcrackers) and they put together this tree in Camden's bedroom. 

Afton had a tree too - hers was pink and silver and covered in twinkly lights. No pics though,  I'm afraid.  

I did my usual "more is more" decor throughout the house with splashes of red, green, blue and pink throughout every room.  

And of course, the centre of our decor was the 8 foot tree that stood in the heart of our home - the kitchen.  We've had the tree here for the last few years because, frankly, it wouldn't fit anywhere else in the house!!  The kids happily sit around it to open their presents on Christmas morning, and its light adds a bit sparkle to mundane tasks like washing the dishes and vacuuming under the table on an everyday basis.  

I love the mix of vintage, homemade and gifted ornaments on our tree.  Every year each little trinket brings back so many sweet memories. 

Looking forward to sharing more of my thoughts and photos with you over the next months.  

We have had so many marvelous adventures in 2014 that I hope to catch you all up on.  And 2015 holds so much promise, too. 

Happy New Year to all of you who have spent a few moments looking over my little part of blogland. 

Much love to you and yours!

XOXO,

Bronwyn