snickerdoodles

it's our last day mon!....

  That's  "Mon" as in man with a Jamaican accent.   Stepping out of the sun and sand and onto the computer has been a challenging task.  Tuesday's wedding was wonderful but a very busy work day and yesterday I finished up all my uploading and backups so I can play today, our last day in this gorgeous place. 

Last Friday we arrived at Beaches and it didn't take Ry long at all to find a new little friend....he adores these tiny frogs that are plentiful all over the grounds.  No time for photoshop on holidays so all these images will be straight out of the camera for now.

My most favourite place to be here, there are plenty of places to tuck away for a little downtime in between the fun, except when Ryan accidentally drops his friend "Horny" the toad on me and he gets lost behind my back!  ...I shot this in the pink sunset light.

A sunset shot on our first night, we ate on the beach that night and got to meet all the friends and family that gathered here to help Shannon and Marwancelebrate their wedding.   The ocean is clear and calm, it's warm  and slightly irresistible when it comes to midnight swims by tiki light.

I have got to meet a lovely new batch of friends and there is always someone to lounge around and chat with, have a cocktail or dance into the wee hours with.  Almost 60 people gathered here for the wedding this week, the staff has given us the royal treatment.   

It's almost rainy season here and a couple of afternoons the heavens opened up and offered warm summer showers.   This day we were at the brick oven pizza restaurant, playing in the warm rain turned out to be a glorious way to cool off and have some giggles.   

A close up of unfortunate little "Horny" before his tragic fate in the hammock.

A stranger on a stroll took this with my camera, we were on our traditional straight out of bed early morning beach adventure digging for crabs and letting hubbie sleep in.

That will have to be all for now, I'm due to play tennis in a few minutes and sunscreen cannot be skipped.

miss ya friends,

oxo

 

 

finally found a card reader that works and managed to pull myself away from the beach....I'm getting to work on yesterdays wedding flow and I'll share some photos soon,

oxo

off we go again...

  At least 2/3 rds of the family is headed off again.

  Flying to Toronto bright and early tomorrow and then to Negril, Jamaica the morning after that!   So excited...it's been a huge challenge getting organized and caught up around here to take off for a week but we pulled it off.   Thank goodness for our Mastercard Adventura card for all it's travel perks.

Anyways, as I packed up all my camera gear for this adventure I realized that I had yet to share some pics from our whole family trip to visit my folks in Mexico in March.   I do love all things to do with Mexico...except obviously the gang violence that bombards our media and those gross worms they sometimes put in the tequila for tourists!   As much as I love Nuevo Vullarta, I am dying to see the Caribbean again, Turks and Caicos is on my bucket list and Negril is not so far from it.   

We did have a wonderful holiday once pre-Liam to Punta Cana and I remembered being amazed by the pure white sand and warm Topaz -hued sea.    While I ran around like a complete spaz this week I kept picturing myself on a stand up paddleboard on the calm blue ocean and was able to take a deep breath and chug along...except for a couple instances when I had a complete hissy (sorry Mom) but I blame that on that darn supermoon which seemed to give me some sort of super-human PMS! 

While at Beaches Negril, I will have the honor of capturing my friend Shannon's wedding to Marwan...her prince of a fiance I have yet to meet.  So, needless to say I will have my camera and computer to stay in touch the next week but here are some random Mexico photos for now.

 

We passed some gorgeously grungy fishing boats in the harbour and I got some of my fave shots of the trip, there are a few, this is just one quick pick.  These are all going to be straight out of the camera...just so you know if they are a tad wonkey...

Here I am with my folks headed out on an eco-tour our first days...look how pasty I am smothered in SPF 60!   I hate getting fried on holidays, especially at the beginning of a trip when everyone knows you are the silly new tourist in town when you show up at dinner beet red with crazy tan lines!  Us Polish people love our wildlife adventures....we are so smiley, it makes me laugh.  You don't ever want to watch Babe or any movie when real animals talk with us...we laugh ridiculous amounts.

It was our first time venturing onto a Mexican river by boat and we were anxious to see some big critters, we weren't disappointed...

We went in the morning and the forest canopy was absolutely covered in iguanas sunning themselves...don't do this tour during rainy season, that's when the boa constrictors join their lizard buddies, no thanks.

Well, good morning to you scaly sir!  

We saw lots of crocs on the banks and that made me wonder how many were in the river and also if maybe our boat was a bit too low to the water...glad there weren't many of us that day.  I definitely kept the kids hands  and faces well away from the sides...I do not have a zoom lens and this bad boy was big.

Back at the beach when the boys weren't looking for more sea creatures they hung poolside styling their Ray Ban knock-offs.  This picture cracks me up because Liam and Ry are the best of friends and play together like a couple of old souls...we are only able to bring Ry this trip and these two will miss each other so much.  Last night they slept cuddled up together like a couple of cats.

Being a huge fan of beach rocks I found this breathtaking, especially when I saw the artist at work...

No, they don't have lions in Mexico but the Puerta Vullarta zoo is pretty fantastic for $10.

Surprisingly none of my boys lost a finger that day...Mexican zoos are pretty hands-on.   We actually got to feed many of the animals special veggies.  The best part of all was definitely the beautiful young giraffe...

Feeding a giraffe a carrot from you mouth isn't something you get to do everyday.

I'll share a few more another day, or perhaps when I get around to editing them.  Any travel website or brochure will show your gorgeous Mexican beaches and resorts but these creature based moments were some of my families most treasured last trip...glad we ventured off the beaten path a bit this time.

oxo

Suffering from a serious case of blossom love....they are everywhere right now in the Okanagan, orchards full of spring blossoms.
It makes me swoon everytime.  At last Saturday's wedding the lucky couple got to have some apple blossom shots in a lovely orchard.  On my way home I couldn't resist pulling over to sit there for a wee bit and take some more images.

Tomorrow is my last busy day before we leave for Jamaica, it's been a challenging week getting organized but it will all be so worth it.

oxo

Guilty of all of these lately...I'll have to share this with hubbie and fill him in on what I've often been telling him in not so clear terms the last 24 years!

bo.ttega...

happy Eco Friday friends....
I am very excited to visit a cool new venue in Kelowna tomorrow called Bo.ttega. It's a super chic retreat tucked into the woods....so gorgeous, beyond words but best of all they have made a strong environmental comittement to being green. http://bo.ttega.com/

Second shooting a wedding with my ever so talented bro-in-law Brian Reilly...getting some serious practice in before Jamaica next week!

oxo

rescue bands for adverturous kiddos...

  Had to share these finds from Rescue Bands on Zulily yesterday....SO excited!  

for Liam...the firefighter wannabe who doesn't mind a bit of bling

for Noah who likes neutral and bling-free...only $12!

Rescue Bands

Fashion and function meet in every Rescue Bands product! Crafted out of 550 parachute cord, the company's accessories, which include bracelets, key chains and rings, can be unraveled to support up to 550 pounds. With hundreds of uses, each Rescue Bands offering ensures you're stylishly prepared for life's adventures.

We had a wack of parachute cord from an Uncle who was an ex army guy and it was so fun, the boys used it endlessly and I am sure we still have pieces tied to inventions around the house.

they also have key fobs with lights...what a great Mother's Day or Teacher present!

and since it's spring and navy and turquoise are super trendy I had to share this pretty style...

All under $20...check out the sale on now at Zulily.

If you haven't been to Zulily Daily Deals for Moms, Babies and Kids, it's a pretty amazing sell off site...lots of popular brands and high quality items...from Crocs to cashmere, you never know what you'll find.  The ladies shoes they are featuring now are calling my gimpy foot's name, they look divinely comfy and fun.

oxo

terri is a SUPER STAR...

(sorry couldn't resisit as I'm a big sucker for older SNL stuff)

Congrats Terri on being the winner of our first blurb giveaway!

 Drop me a line and I'll send the voucher code your way so you can start your book right away. 

Thanks to everyone else who entered as well, I loved hearing all your project ideas for blurb books.

I am going to be using blurb a lot in the near future for wedding projects for the Jamaica wedding I'll be shooting in fourteen days at Beaches resort in NEGRIL!    I promised the beautiful bride to be Shannon that I would make momento books that captured the week for all the guests for this special event.  

One day I hope to take all my years of Snickerdoodles ramblings and book-ify them as well as something to leave for my boys and their children one day.   Loving this idea for pretty covers...my blogging journey started over four years now,  so I'm bound to need a lot of books! 

Thanks to the mint love social club blog  for sharing this image of Pinterest for inspiration.

oxo

the MOST comfortable summer wedges ever! ...

   Plantar faciitis is not fun...it is:" a painful inflammatory process of the plantar fascia, the connective tissue on the sole (bottom surface) of the foot. It is often caused by overuse of the plantar fascia or arch tendon of the foot. It is a very common condition and can be difficult to treat if not looked after properly. Another common term for the affliction is "policeman's heel".^{[1]  -wikipedia}

At Christmas I thought I'd simply bruised my heel but it got worse and worse and eventually was diagnosed as PF, I wasn't surprised as my Mom and sis have both had bouts of it and now my dear ole Daddio is also having a flare up.   Anyways, if you have had PF you know that finding some shoes that bring relief is pure bliss.   Flat shoes are the worst ones to wear...so long beloved Havianas and ballet flats.  I'm not a big fan of wearing runners other than for sports and I am not a heels kinda gal but I can do wedges.   When I saw these beauties by Crocs I knew I hit the jackpot for working wedding season this year as it means long days on my tootsies.  Presenting the A-Leigh Wedge...

Okay, that's a mighty big picture but I'm rather excited by them obviously.   The soles are so cushy and it's a perfect height for sundresses and even shorts if they are the right style.  Love the brown and the cork too.  They also come in black and a cream colour they call Stucco.   You can order off Crocs.com or I found mine at our local Art Knapp garden store for $69.99.

I asked hubbie to get them for me early for Mother's Day as I'm second shooting a wedding next weekend with the ever so talented Brian Reilly.   Since he brought them home I have worn them for two full days in the house with my sweats, house cleaning and all to test them out and I still love my A-Leigh wedges.

Crocs has some awesome new styles...if I didn't have a sore tootsie right now I'd be wanting some of these Adriana flats, as they remind me of the Jelly Shoes I loved so much as a kid...

Also love these Waverunner styles for the boys as they look cool but still have great arch support and won't get stinky like ordinary skate shoes.  There are plain styles too but I like this funky stripe.

Anyways just had to share my Crocs news with you all.  Summer is just around the corner and it's so important to take care of your tootsies.

oxo

p.s. last night to leave a comment and enter my Blurb book giveaway...win a $50 voucher to make your own book.

 

hello green! ...

Spring has sprung.

This week the buds all opened to leaves on the aspens and they are happily twinkling away in the breeze. Today I had every door and window open to enjoy the sunshine and fresh spring air.  I've been doing another photography course with Creative Live and having the house wide open was just as good as being outdoors.   All this green goodness makes me want to start playing in the dirt. One  sunny day last week I started sneaking seeds into pots and loaded my front planters with tangerine hued pansies that will be fine with the cool nights tucked in by the door.

On a quick trip to the garden center last weekend I couldn't resist scooping up some basil plants for my deck off the kitchen. Every summer I plant basil and it does fine but I have yet to have a big thriving plant to harvest, and really you can never have enough basil so I would love some thriving plants this year.

 I took a boo on Tipnut and found some great advice on how to grow basil year round indoor and out.  Pesto anyone?

 Also spotted this eco-friendly, inexpensive way to start seedlings indoors...

Buying those flimsy plastic trays with soil pucks can be expensive and they are awkward to more around as they aren't reinforced onthe bottom.  I am constantly saving recycled paper toilet tubes to re-use so this got me rather excited!   Thanks Pinterest for the clever idea...I shared this pin which originally came from lone home ranger on my Eco-Savvy board.  It's eco-Friday so take a boo.  Follow me and I'll follow you, I love seeing all the images and ideas my friends share.

happy weekend friend!

oxo

p.s.  enter away at our $50 Blurb book giveaway here...http://www.snickerdoodles.ca/snickerdoodle_life/2012/04/blabbing-about-blurb-and-a-blurb-giveaway.html  good luck, we draw the winner on Monday!