Very Special Family Portrait

I woke up one day and my children were gone...somebody took my little princess and my smart little boy and left me with two troubled teenagers I didn't recognize at all. They were not bad in pretending to be my children so I played the game and pretended to be their mother for several years. Nightmare! I'm so glad it's over... I'm now a happy mother of two wonderful young adults! My princess lives in her own castle far, far away from us. My smart big boy still lives with us for the moment but I can see his wings getting bigger and stronger. They're both working, studying and dreaming... Soon I'll be left with memories and photos wondering where the time went. We actually don't have so many family photos, we have lost almost all of them fleeing from the danger of war in our country. I learned only much later that that was the most prized possession we had. Even after that, we  didn't take so many photos. I guess we humans have this fascination for capturing moments in our lives, whether by camera or paint. So I was very pleasantly surprised when my son gave us a very special family portrait, made by him, as a Christmas gift.

Several days before Christmas, I couldn't help but notice that something strange was going on, my son was very busy with something. Any attempt to learn what was going on failed miserably. Till the day we saw a very mysterious big package under the Christmas three. What a nice surprise it was! My very talented son created a "warholish" family portrait of our family using individual pictures, framed it nicely and made a gift for us. We just instantly fell in love with it and decided to expose it permanently in our living room. We placed it strategically  in our home, so we can all constantly be reminded of each other as we hectically chase through life. The value of the portrait my son made for us can be measured only by hearth. 

"A heart is not measured by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others." — Wizard of Oz

Very Special Family Portrait

Ideas For Decorating With Leftover Wallpaper

After my last visit to the Home Depot I came home with two beautiful wallpaper samples. Actually I wasn't even looking for wallpaper, I'm not really a fan, I'm way to lazy to put it on and I would be even lazier to eventually remove it. But as I was looking for new paint for my second bathroom, I spotted some beautiful wallpaper rolls in the corner of my eye. There were so many new and beautiful  designs to choose from. Finally I decided to ask a salesperson for a sample from some of them. It should be enough for a little decorating project, I thought of a lamp shade for the base I already have. I also did some research on the Internet for other ways to use wallpaper samples or leftovers. So many intelligent, surprising and beautiful ideas crossed my way that I decided to share them with you. Here are some of them:

Isn't it obvious why I chose the pictures above with loads of pink? No? Look at the calendar...

For more new, lovely, surprising, inexpensive and DIY-doable ideas please continue looking after the jump (click on 'Read more'):

Ideas For Decorating With Leftover Wallpaper

White Christmas in Quebec

One thing is guaranteed in Quebec: we are going to have white Christmas for sure! If you are dreaming of a white Christmas this year, you may want to consider spending a day, or even a couple of days in Quebec City. Even if I'm not really a fan of a cold and long winter, I must admit that the time before and around Christmas in Quebec City area is magically beautiful. The snow is white and crisp, covering everything like icing sugar over the cake. In the evening, with all the decorations and lights, it glistens and glows like a billions of little diamonds covering the city. It pays to get out and to brave the cold, marching slowly and listening to your steps making a crunchy noise in the snow, gasping for breath in the cold air and getting rosy, healthy glowing cheeks. You may have winter and snow in your country and in your city - but the experience of the winter in Quebec is rather unique.
Today we had a very cold day, around -20°C (-4°F) so I finally preferred to stay at home and dig out the pictures from last winter. Those pictures were taken during a stroll in the Domaine de Maizerets parc.

Here is a little description of the atmosphere in the city that I found on the Internet:

Click on the picture to go to the web page.

Sounds wonderfull! And it's true! I'm really lucky to live here...

White Christmas in Quebec

Confession of an image junkie

I have a confession to make, I must share this secret with you : I am an IMAGE JUNKIE ! Those of you who suffer from the same addiction know what I am talking about... My computer is full with pictures, thousands of them, heck, tens of thousands of all sorts of pictures found on the Internet. I love them dearly, I save them, organize them, watch them for inspiration, or just so, because they are beautiful and they can lift my mood any time ! I organize them in folders (or at least I try to...) by interest : deco, toys, craft, vintage, sewing etc. I am especially flabbergasted by so many talented girls out there, from all over the world, who share they talent with as others, less courageous to show off our work. Thank you all, girls !

My family mocks me about this addiction of mine, but, nonetheless, they bought me a brand new computer with loooooots of storage space for my little darlings - did I say that I love them ?

What about you ? Do you have the same (no, I won't say "problem") hobby ? Tell me about it !

Confession of an image junkie

Jewel in Quebec City

Quebec City is my hometown since 1998 and I continue to discover it. Here are the pictures from the "Parc des Moulins" (The Mill Park). It is located in the borough of Charlesbourg, 8191, Zoo avenue. Covering an area of nearly nine acres, it comprises the eastern part of the old Zoo in Quebec.
My DH and I went strolling there last weekend (btw, I learned my English from movies, so I am sorry if there are errors - feel free to mail me corrections).

Jewel in Quebec City