Manning Park

A few weeks ago, we spent a couple of nights in a cabin in the mountains with my dad, brother and his girlfriend. We started coming to Manning Park with my dad when we were kids; it's where I learned to snowboard and the scene of many happy memories. After not visiting for so long, it was a real treat to go back and see that not much has changed.

My dad calls it the "anti-Whistler" and he's spot on. It's not trendy or fancy in any way, but the resort has everything you need and a rustic charm that can't be ignored. More importantly, it's breathtakingly beautiful at this time of year. I felt like I was in a postcard and despite the frigid temperatures, I kept trekking back outside to take photos.

Clementine, however, was less than impressed with all the snow. We've learned on this trip that she is definitely not a winter baby. It snowed in Vancouver shortly after we arrived, and when we finally convinced her to get out of her stroller, she leaned over, touched the snow and exclaimed dramatically, "NO, NO, NO, NO." So you can imagine what she thought of Manning Park… She seemed to be getting the hang of it all by the third (and last day), but I think she was happy to get back to the milder weather of Vancouver.

a toque for me

My mom knows me down to a tee. Familiar with my penchant for anything mustard-coloured, she had been saving this wool for me. As soon as I saw it, I knew that I wanted to make myself a toque. Just a simple, chunky toque with a big pom pom. I decided to wing it, sans pattern, and hope for the best. It's pretty close to what I had imagined, though not quite 100% perfect. But the beauty of this kind of knitting is that it's so quick that it wouldn't take me long to modify my pattern and make another one, which is exactly what I think I'll do...

home for the holidays

Two weeks ago, we left the sweltering Sydney summer for the icy cold winter that is Vancouver in December. I'm sure it'll come as no surprise if I tell you that the longhaul flight here with a toddler was rough, as was the ensuing jetlag. But now that we're more settled, we are just so happy to be here. We're soaking up all of the goodness that this city has to offer at this time of year. My husband keeps exclaiming, "I feel like I'm in a Christmas movie!" and I couldn't agree more. The 3rd night we were here, we ducked out for a quick drink at a local restaurant. There was a roaring fire, a Christmas tree in the corner, hockey playing on TV and a menu of festive cocktails (hello eggnog and rum!). You could not wipe the grin off my face.

Since then we've taken Clementine on the Christmas train at Stanley Park, gone to the Vinyl Cafe Christmas concert, and spent a few days at a ski resort. The best kind of winter fun.

Of course, the main reason we're here is to spend time with family and friends and that has been wonderful. Last time we were in Vancouver, Clementine was a newborn and it was difficult to do anything. We had this huge list of things we wanted to do here, and managed almost none of them. This trip has been completely different. We've been able to see family and friends, do festive/wintery things AND get to lots of yoga classes. It's been awesome.

p.s. home for the summer

pretty as a picture dress

I have been wanting to make this dress for Clementine forever. Probably since the very first time I saw it in the book Handmade Beginnings, which was, in fact, before I even had a baby to sew for. But I knew that if I ever had a girl, she'd be in this dress sooner or later.

So I had the fabric (the exact fabric that's used for this dress in the book), I had the pattern, I had the baby girl but I didn't have the gumption to give it a shot. Enter my mother in law. Over three afternoons, she showed me everything from how to painstakingly transfer the right sized pattern onto paper to how to use a padded ham to press every seam perfectly. She even did some of the trickier bits herself to make sure the end result was flawless.

And it really is. When we finished it yesterday we both kept looking at it and sighing. It's just so beautiful. The buttery voile, the colours and prints, and the little one who really isn't into modelling these days.

p.s. on a completely unrelated note, the husband and I are off to see Alt-J tonight and I'm so excited it feels like Christmas!

one year on, by gui jorge

I'm so happy with these photos, and so happy with our life right now. It's not perfect (whose is?) but it's lovely nevertheless. And having these beautiful images to document it all, well that's just the cherry on top.

I wanted to do this shoot to celebrate Clementine's first year, and as always, Gui and Michaela have blown me away with their talent. They were there 2 weeks before Clementine was born, and 2 months after. They got some sneaky shots of Clementine when she was a cheeky 8 month old and a couple of months later as a part of my sling diaries. I know that not everyone is lucky enough to have photographer friends, and I honestly feel so grateful for all these memories captured. Gui and Michaela are just so damn good at what they do, and such a pleasure to hang out with.

As an aside, I realise that these don't really look like family photos; they look like Gaby and Clementine photos. That's because I don't share pictures of my husband online (he's a private kind of guy) but there are some very sweet captures of the three of us that will soon be framed and hung on our walls. There were so many images I wanted to include here, so later this week I'll be posting part 2.

p.p.s. You can see all the photos Gui has taken of our family by clicking here.

away: to the south coast

While my mom was here last month, we went down the South Coast for a few days. When we left Sydney we intended to stay for just one night, but we changed our minds as soon as we got there. It was just too good. I always love getting out of the city, and the South Coast really is the most magical place. The green rolling hills come right down to the ocean, and while you're swimming in the sea you can see cows grazing in a field next to you.

Some of our favourites from our short trip include:

• In Kiama, we loved the shop Deer Willow. My mom and I picked up matching Turkish beach towels that are so nice, they double as a drapey scarf.
• We stayed here, which was very kid friendly and has a beach and a pool. Score.
• In Berry, we had lunch at the famous Berry Sourdough Cafe. I know the lines there can be insane (we were there midweek and it was totally fine) but luckily there's Milkwood Bakery if you just can't wait for your pastries and coffee.
• Upon a recommendation from a friend, we checked out Harp Handmade in Berry. Beautiful Australia-made clothing and gelato, what could be better?
• Me oh my did I love the rock pool at Werri Beach. 

another goodbye

photos by Luisa Brimble

My mom left yesterday, and, as always, I'm left in a funk after yet another airport goodbye. I know I harp on about it a bit, but I really do wish we lived closer to my family, especially now that we have our own family. Having my mom here was just so nice. My husband works crazy (and unpredictable) hours, and so most of the time it's just Clementine and I. With my mom around, the everyday tasks of parenting a baby were made so much easier. Everything from mealtimes to car trips went smoother with an extra set of hands. And I feel like I finally got caught up on some sleep because my mom let me sleep in until 8/8:30am in the morning (after a quick breastfeed around 5am).

Even when we were just sitting at home, reading or resting while the baby napped, it was great to have my mom around. There's so much comfort to be found in the company of family.

Now that she's gone, I'm doing my best to take it easy and go gently. I've been eating the leftovers from meals she made, using a few more disposable diapers than I normally do and not scheduling too much. Sometime soon we'll be booking our flights to Vancouver for the summer, and then the countdown will be on. I can't wait.

grandmothering

My mom arrived in Sydney last Monday. In the first 24 hours that she was here she bleached our shower curtain, mopped, washed dishes, did laundry, vacuumed and let me sleep in! She also took care of Clementine, and we wondered how much she might remember given that the last time they saw each other (in person) was 5 months ago.

The relationship between grandparent and grandchild is such a wonderful thing. I only wish that we could get all of the grandparents to live in the same city! But for now, we'll be here, enjoying the time we do have with her abuela.

celebrating

This year, I had the most wonderful BirthdayChristmas. As always, I missed my family, but knowing that would be the case, my husband really tried to make it special. I don't normally do anything to celebrate my birthday, but my good friend (who also organised my blessingway) insisted that I do something. And so, a last minute email was sent inviting people to a vegetarian picnic in the park, and what do you know? People came. There were old friends, new friends, babies, babies in bellies, a puppy and a gaggle of kids. It was chaos, of the best kind.

A couple of days later, on my actual birthday, I slept in and was treated to pancakes and tea in bed. It's always been a tradition in my family for the birthday person to open their gifts in bed, and that's just what I did. I was spoiled with everything I asked for and more. My husband somehow tracked down The Horse watch I asked for (it was the only one in Sydney!), and a pair of sunglasses while my mom sent me clothes from my favourite Vancouver shops. My husband and I also received an iPad as a Christmas gift from his mum and step-dad, and boy oh boy, we are loving it!

In the afternoon we had Christmas lunch at my in laws' home. This year, for the first time, there were two babies there: Clementine and her second cousin. It really is true that children make Christmas magical, even when the children in question have no idea what's going on. Clementine was just happy that there were piles and piles of wrapping paper to play with. The first Christmas... what a milestone!

bogota baby

We are home from our whirlwind adventure abroad. Over two months we visited two continents, 3 cities, 1 island, and 3 towns. We caught up with old friends, introduced Clementine to nearly all of her extended family, and had some precious family time while my husband didn't have to go to work. It was marvellous, but it was also exhausting. By the time we got in on Sunday I felt like hibernating for a week.

You already know all about Canada, so today I bring you Colombia. Part 1. The above photos are from our brief time spent in Bogota, which is where my family lives. On our drive home from the airport, I immediately remembered what always astounds me about this city - the traffic! So much traffic. And so many roads with no lanes at all; however many cars fit, that's how many lanes there are. Occasionally you'll even see a horse drawn cart on the freeway, quite a sight for this Canadian.

Mostly we hung out with my aunts, uncles, cousins and my 95 year old abuelo. But we also enjoyed some shopping, lunch at the Bogota Beer Company, eating my weight in areas and the views from a penthouse apartment overlooking Bogota. An absolutely massive city, it was amazing to get a bird's eye view of it.

For our last weekend in Colombia, we ventured to Choachi, a funny little town an hour from downtown Bogota. My husband said it was exactly how he imagined Colombia to be - tropical, warm and lush. We stayed at an amazing house, surrounded by coffee plants and banana trees.

One of the days we were there we went for a walk along the river. Where the white river and the black river meet there's a tiny town called La Union. It was a Sunday so most of the town was at church, and while we sat in the shade enjoying our popsicles we could hear them singing hymns. A guy rode down the main street on horseback and a stray dog followed us; it felt like a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel and it reminded me why I love this country.