yoga day.

a local yoga studio that I go to on a regular basis hosted a yogathon to raise funds for amnesty international.  what a great cause- I wanted to thank all the lovelies who sponsored me to participate in this event.  derek, mom, dad, teddy, les, bucky and gramma, meg and tye.   thank you all SO much. the studio appreciated every penny.  

they had a great set up: lots of drinks, fruits, snacks and I brought these double banana chocolate chip breakfast bars.  apparently they were good? I didn't taste one because I wanted to leave them all for the participants.  every class you entered you had the chance to put your name into a draw for some wicked prizes.  they had it so well organized and everyone was so upbeat and the atmosphere in the studio was fantastic.  there is something to be said about a room full of yogis all there to share their energy and raise awareness for equality and rights of women and children. 

unfortunately, I had to work today so I could only participate in three classes.  the three I participated in were: rise and shine yoga, vinyasa flow and then the last class of the day was fun, flight and funk vinyasa.  GOOD TIMES! what a great way to spend a few hours.  next year i'm in for all 8 classes!!

I can't imagine life without yoga- most recently it has taught me so many amazing things.  patience, awareness, gratitude and an appreciation for my whole self.  I have really gotten into my practice lately and it helps me get through each day.  I love that when I am on my mat, I know I have nowhere else to be and can completely indulge in a little time just for myself.  

I dedicated my practice today to:

a.) equality and happiness for all beings (human and otherwise) don't forget those whales!!

b.) to all the lovelies who sponsored me!

here is the process of making the double banana chocolate chip breakfast bars- which are vegan because the recipe uses dark chocolate.  great vegan treat!

 

hope everyone is having a great weekend!

I'm exhausted to say the least and still alice is calling my name. busy day tomorrow!

--m

fashion victims.

a few months ago, a very fashionable friend of mine and i were shopping in downtown van.  she (who won't be named) is shall we say obsessed with animal furs.  she owns a lot of pieces made from rabbits and raccoons and on this particular occasion was actually on the hunt for a real fur coat.  while i tried to convince her otherwise, the only thing i could say in my defense was "what about the poor little rabbit who had to die for you to wear him?"  well, it turn's out that poor little rabbit went through hell of a lot more then just dying.  literally that animal went through hell.

tim gunn, from project runway, recently teamed up with PETA for a project called: making it work: with tim gunn--an attempt to stop designers from using fur in fashion.  his goal is to get every designer to consider the alternatives to using fur in their collections.  his plan is to expose fur farms, particularly ones in china, where the majority of our fur comes from.

this extremely graphic video shows fur farms and even clips of the process of skinning an animal which is usually done alive.  i am warning you-- it is terrible and if you have any kind of love towards animals, it will be hard to watch without shedding a tear.  with that being said though, i urge everyone to watch it to completely understand how serious and terrible this is, show it to others and stop the support of fur in fashion.

making it work: with tim gun

like tim says, there are so many things to wear, why fur?  if consumers refuse to buy fur, leather and wool clothing companies will stop using it.  simple as that.

*cA

what a week.

thank goodness it's friday. what a week- so happy it is the weekend. although I will be devoting the majority of my weekend to school work.

on thursday after a rough day at school(too much lab work/studying/presentation prep for my brain to handle) I returned home to check the mail and unwrap a parcel to find this...

then I open it...

and finally...

let's just say my day went from really bad to awesome quite quickly. nothing a little chocolate and candy can't fix. carissa and I have had a valentines tradition for a few years and I always look forward to my valentines treat from her :) she is the best.

tonight after a crazy week I attended a "karma class" at my local moksha yoga studio which is a class with a minimum donation and all the proceeds go to charity. this week I made sure to attend because the charity of choice was the cove guardians from our local area that are going to Taiji, Japan in March to document the dolphin slaughter that occurs there annually. (if you haven't seen the cove- it is a fantastic documentary.) needless to say, I enjoyed supporting the cause and got to see some of my fabulous girlfriends as well.

of course, I had to devote some of my time to the kitchen. this is what resulted:

blueberry yogurt muffins- yum yum! check it out- so easy and delicious.

hope everyone has a great weekend!

--m

times running out!

have you sent out your christmas cards yet?  better hurry, times running out.  here are some adorable and super crafty christmas cards available online:

bip&margot cards from topshop $6 for 4

tree trio cards from cardmaven on etsy $4 for 2

3d xmas tree card from kate's paperie $16 for 8

or, if your feel really creative (and have some time on your hands) you could make your own!

*cA

---

* red fridays is a non-profit canadian organization that helps canadians send christmas cards to soldiers away in mission.  all you need to do is set aside an extra christmas card, address it to "a canadian soldier" and write a message of thanks and seasons greetings.  then put it in an envelope and send it to:

     

          Red Fridays Foundation of Canada                

          Christmas Cards to the troops
          PO Box 31063 Westney Heights RPO
          Ajax, ON
          L1T 3V2