some of my favourite things...

nostalgia...i've been thinking about my childhood...and how carefree and beautiful my days were...i use to travel to italy during my summer vacations and i spent about 4 months in italy every year until i was about 16...and at 16 i decided i was too afraid to fly home so i lived there for 2 years, went to school, and had quite possibly the most amazing time of my life...

i was very fortunate to have such amazing grandparents...who taught me so much and showed me the very wonders of this beautiful world...they had the most beautiful farm, with the most beautiful animals...and they treated them with such compassion and love...and they had the most beautiful trees and gardens filled with fruits and vegetables...it was here that i learned and developed my everlasting bond with mother nature and all of her amazing creations...i use to sit in the barn with the cows and their babies, and i'd give these cute little babies my hand to use as a soother...i'd watch all of the mama hens strut proudly about with their beautiful little baby chicks...and i'd play with the piggies and look for all of the stray kitties and try to entice them with cheese i had pretended to eat earlier in the day...i would literally sit for hours and wait patiently just to try and pet one...i remember riding in the tractor with my grandfather on our way to pick up hay from one his fields and i wouldn't even flinch when mr. spider decided to use my legs as a crosswalk...

i remember being told about a few little baby chicks that had died and were placed by the side of the road...i was told that if fed them milk they would come back to life...and so i ran over to the baby chicks with milk in hand, ready to save their lives...bees buzzing around them...and i without a care in the world except to save these babies reached in to scoop them up...i remember getting stung 10 times...and all i could think about is how i had blown my chances to help these little creatures...and one more funny memory of sitting underneath one of the bulls in the barn and trying to milk him...my grandmother flipped her lid...i had no idea what the big deal was...i was only 5...anyway...that bull and i were such good friends...he would let me climb on his back and he'd be ok with me sitting on him for hours...or until i heard my grandmother on her way down to the barn...

such amazing times...such amazing memories...

moving a long to today's eats...i had one of the no bake protein bars i made last week...i had the red lentil dal with quinoa and avocado for lunch...



i snacked on some raisins and apricots...and for dinner i had a piece of toasted organic spelt bread with some heathy's caesar dressing...



which i made this evening...guess what i'm having for lunch tomorrow...can't wait...and this dressing is AMAZING...oh. my. goodness. it's such a treat!

and...i had a piece of the averie's lovely raw vegan cheesecake with a chocolate fudge crust for dessert...man, it was out of this world...it reminded me of ice cream...it. was. so. good.



things that make me smile...sunshine, fluffy duvets, my love, jackson, avocados, chocolate, cooking or uncooking...hanging out with a good friend and driving all around toronto...grocery shopping...reading blogs...sweet potatoes...frank's hot sauce...watching a movie in bed under three or four fluffy duvets...

what are some of your favourite things? and what are some of your favourite childhood memories?

have a beautiful night...sweet dreams...