Easter

We were blessed with a beautiful long weekend this month; blue skies and temperature in the twenties. We spent the whole weekend in the garden for some much needed outdoor time. On Easter Sunday, Sebastian woke up to find Poppy, that resourceful bunny of ours, had been up all night hiding easter eggs in the yard. So we all took a walk around the garden together and found the treats. The thing about rabbits is that they can't go to the grocery store, so the eggs were filled with things from the kitchen: raw cashews, cranberries, apricots and chocolate chips. A suspicious resemblance to lazy parents! Still makes me laugh.

Getting into the Holiday Spirit

We're walking the fine line of Christmas and the ambiguous yet-to-be-properly-defined holiday that we'd rather celebrate. We're not Christians and as parents we're crusading against over-consumption and abundant materialism, so Christmas is a frustrating time and a delicate one. We try not to be too overbearing with the Christmas lovers in our life, as long as their enthusiasm doesn't cross too heavily into our minimalistic values, as long as they don't muddle our more important parenting tactics.

But we have a homemade tree, we have lights, we have an advent calendar which a dear friend made and leant us this year. We have candles, cards, ornaments, stockings. These are nice things. Almost all the things we  have we've made, or a friend has made, or a relative has given us. Everything has a story and Sebastian always wants to hear it. 

Somehow Sebastian knows all about Santa Clause. He doesn't know what he does exactly but he knows a lot considering we haven't gone there. This year I think we're procrastinating making some holiday decisions, just enjoying the season. But we can all agree that Christmas time is going to be a constant and relentless attempt to avoid consumerism and materialism. This year I don't want to get hung up on fighting anyone. I just want to enjoy the season. December is my most important month. It's my birthday month, and it's a time when I feel the most connected to the earth, and it's a time when I absolutely cherish living here. I've travelled home to be on the Coast every single year, no matter where I am because I have my own private traditions with this place in December. This year, family-wise, there will be lots of winter walks, hopefully some snowshoeing, lots of lights, and lots of crafts. 

Our handmade Christmas tree

Sebastian and the Christmas Roman

Gettin in the spirit if things

I guess it's inevitable that the older you get the more people you know die. There's something about December and the holidays that seem to be an extra common time of year to lose someone. I'm not sure why that is, but it's true. It's been a year since Rio's suicide, a day I don't think I could ever forget. I also found out the other day that a friend of mine from Victoria just died of cancer. It's strange to suddenly have this time of year laced with something other than light-hearted anticipation and time with family. I'm sure there will be more December deaths over the years. There's something  about having a friend's suicide on the mind at this time of year that especially cheapens the aspects of Christmas I already dislike. But death is the most inevitable part of life. I want to a way over time to celebrate a more honest holiday that can incorporate the realistic parts of our lives without it feeling completely bizarre.

A belated Halloween picture

We think he was a French pirate but you'd have to ask him.