holiday wrap-up

so i was back to the blog yesterday after what i think was a whole week away and i came back in full force with cute photos of the family dog marlowe to woo you back to me.   aren't i sneaky???

what i didn't get to was to tell you about my holidays themselves!  i had a full 4 days to spend at my parents house which was a treat because usually my visits are half that length.  it was still a busy few days though between a late night out with old camp friends, a skype date with a friend who's just returned from africa, brunch with my best girls & former whistler roomies, coffee with 2 of my dearest friends, dog walks with my precious marlowe, coffees with my mom and yes, of course the whirlwind christmas day too!  phew!

our christmas morning always starts with stockings, then a big breakfast over at my grandfather's house around the corner.  on the menu: fresh grapefruit, latkes {thanks to my aunt joanne for making seperate vegan ones!}, johnny cake, scones & glorious coffee.

{dolled up for dinner}

after a little downtime and squeezing in a run, it was time to get dolled up for dinner for more family, more visiting, more gifts, and way more food.  this year we were 18 for dinner, but i think in past years we've squeezed 22 around the table.  m.i.a. this year were my brother jamie & sister-in-law liane who are off adventuring in nepal!  {missed you guys!}

our table extended the length of the room and all along it i clustered these little centre pieces of fresh flowers, fruit & nuts, focused around diy glitter vases i made from upcycled wine bottles.  {you can make your own too!  find the diy tutorial here @ ninth and bird}

{table, waiting}

{nuts}

i didn't capture as much of the dinner as i had hoped to, but after a few glasses of wine i was feeling quite jolly and neglected the camera.  but i can tell you that in addition to the salad & scalloped tomatoes there was the best stuffing ever made by m {seriously, he can make the stuffing every year.  for ever.}, mashed potatoes & gravy, turnip, green beans with basil & tomatoes and dinner rolls. 

i filled my plate once and even did the walk of shame for a bit more - it was all so good!

{mixed greens with pom & clementine}

{scalloped tomatoes}

{big thank yous to everyone who made such an effort to provide either a completely vegan dish or to those who went to the trouble to prepare an additional veganized version of their dish for us.  dear family: you're awesome and i'm so thankful for you!}

there were also 2 cakes for dessert, both of which i'll be veganizing next year: my grandma's apple pudding with rum butter sauce and toby's gingerbread cake.  i manged to be sweetened enough with this cookie plate {not that i had much room left anyway, but i was happy to have worn a sheath dress!  hah!}.   it was piled high with orangettes, ppk's gingerbread cut-outs dipped in chocolate, orange sugar cookies, peppermint fudge & chocolate truffles.  not for the faint of heart.  or diabetics.  but it was enjoyed all around the table.  mmmmm...

{cookie plate, veganized}

also, knowing me oh so well, i was gifted a pile of gorgeous new cookbooks that i can't wait to dive into!  in fact, i've already started to break 2 of them in... expect me to report back soon.

{unwrapped}

peace & love to you in these last few days of the year.