two weeks until the wedding and we took a vacation from planning

This weekend Jeff and I took a vacation from all of our wedding responsibilities and went to Kelowna to hang with our friends Heather and Doug. Some vineyards were visited, trampolines were jumped on, mountains and lakes were enjoyed, and it was very, very hot the entire time! Awesome. If you've never been to the Okanagan Valley it's an amazing place that you would never guess was in Canada. A desert, perhaps best described in Stina's recent guest post. 

Two summery things that I really want to share with you:

The Summerhill Syrah Rose is amazing and fulfills #2 on the Village Voice's list of 11 Things You Really Must Do Before the Summer Is Over.

This zucchini bread is so delicious and easy to make, and I know many of you gardeners must be finding yourself with some extra zucchini these days.

Finally, I just want to say that I was very sad to hear about the passing of Jack Layton this morning when I woke up. I think he led his party with spirit that is missing from many all of our other politicians in Canada and I think his passing is a huge loss for us all. Jeff and I both loved his stint on the CBC working in a hospital ER room. We were always so impressed by his commitment to Canadians. He'll be missed.

sam's rad summer: vancouver island

So this summer, well, has been less than summery for me. I'm finishing my diploma (next week!) so I've been in school full-time and working on top of that. Any break I can take is divine. A couple of weekends ago my sister and I headed to Vancouver Island to visit with my Aunt who was house sitting for my parents (as they were touring Europe - I'm jealous, are you?).

Most of my adventure involved food as I spent most of my time doing homework and scanning 100+ family photos for a special project I was working on. I hope you enjoy a glimpse into my rad summer (and don't get too hungry!).



We started our trip in Horseshoe Bay. I'd been wanting to go to this cute new restaurant, Olive and Anchor, and now was the perfect time. We decided to share the Crispy Cod Po'boy Sandwich. It was delicious (and look at that salad!).



Because their dessert menu looked irresistible we also decided to share their Brandy-raisin bread pudding. It was DELICIOUS, as you can probably see.



When we arrived, we did some grocery shopping at the local Safeway. My sister didn't put her produce into plastic bags (as is our habit) even though I told her that it probably isn't common practice over there. Sure enough, at the checkout, they bagged each of the fruits individually. Oh well!



The next day we went to the Comox Valley Farmer's Market. They had a sweet little band playing while we were there. It was a great market!



At the market I found the most amazing gingerbread cookie. A neon squid! How could I resist. He was tasty, too.



We also bought this enormous tomato. It was so big that it cost $3!



On our way home, I spotted this guy. I can't decide if this is the best or worst summer job.



Finally back in Vancouver after a great trip that was much too short, my sister and I indulged in a summer favourite, rocket popsicles and a walk to Kits Beach.

Hopefully Vancouver will continue to have blissful summer weather!

Thank you so much for sharing, Sam. I'm glad you showed us so much food! That's my idea of an awesome vacation. Be sure to stop by Sam's blog and say hi and check out her great Etsy shop, too! I've featured one of her items in my Friday Favourites before and can't wait to get my hands on one of her awesome leather pouches!