{quotable thursdays...off to Quito!}

{to travel the world}

Raised mostly on a ship, I was travelling around the world at an early age. The need to travel runs deep...

& so this Christmas, I will not be home for Christmas, but at the centre of the world, visiting my sister in Ecuador. Half of my family will be there, and I'm so looking forward to it! We are spending a week on the beach too...bring on the sun!

If you read my blog regularly, you'll know that I spent Christmas in Quito a few years ago. It was amazing and I'm looking forward to heading back! (you can read the blogs for that trip here, here, here & here)

Below are a few of my favourite pics from the last trip...

Happy Christmas!

xo

L

{Christmas Party!}

{the invite}

Last weekend I had a lovely Christmas party with dear friends. I had a huge pot of mulled wine brewing, following a fabulous recipe I used last year & there were mince tarts, cheeses, and other nibblies...

I didn't get any pics when everyone was here, but here are some befores (including some with my cousins & cat):

{plenty of wine for mulling!}

{I got this idea off of pinterest--a great rosemary & olive wreath}

{cousins!}

{one large pot of mulled wine, all of which was drunk!}

{the table}

{my friend Heather was the first guest to arrive & we managed to take a photo before it got too hectic!}

My cousins stayed the weekend, so I made sure the flat was in good order with plenty of decorations and warm welcomes...

{nothing like the smell of oranges & cloves}

{welcome agenda for my cousins}

{christmas cat!}

Have yourself a merry little Christmas!
xo
L

{London at Christmas!}

{my Christmas card this year, painted by me!}

There's nothing quite like London at Christmastime....the streets all decked out with lights, the shops all decorated in their finest, and the homes sparkling from within. It sometimes feels like you've stepped back in time and the city evokes all the positive aspects of a Dickensian Christmas....without the scrooges and the tiny tims!

Last weekend I had my cousins over and we went to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. It was rather crowded but pretty fantastic... I also attended the Courtauld carol service (as an alum) earlier that week, which was simply lovely....
Below are pics from in and around London, and I'll blog soon about my Christmas party last weekend too!

{The Courtauld/Somerset House all decked for Christmas}

{skaters at Somerset House}

{lovely decorations at Covent Garden}

{my friend Mel, in her fabulous hood with mulled wine at the Christmas market, Hyde Park}

{steamy camera pic, after emerging from the Magical Ice Kingdom}

{cousins & Mel at Winter Wonderland, Hyde Park}

xo, 

L

{quotable thursdays}

At this time of year, when there's so much to do and there are so many people about, it's easy to become Scrooge...but rather than be fast-paced, I think we should try to slow down. That's what christmas is all about. To sip slowly & taste the mulled wine spices, to look closely at a Christmas tree and admire the lights or one decoration...and savour all the moments with friends. Most importantly, it's a time to think of happiness and joy and try spreading that love, rather than concentrating on our consumerist, pessimist, selfish self!

So, in the words of Mother Teresa:

{beautiful words--spread love!}

{love balloons!}

I had my Christmas party on the weekend, so will post more pics from that soon...
xo,
L