What I'm Loving in February

Here's what's making February a happy month for me.

Happy, healthy kitty

I'm happy to report that Darwyn's miraculous recovery from being a lick-a-holic fur remover continues. For those not following the story, after 50 weeks of wearing a cone due to her mysterious and insatiable licking, we woke up on New Year's Day to see a house covered in fur tufts (oh, the carnage!) and a cone free cat. Darwyn has stuck to her New Year's resolution (so much better than any of us) and remains utterly reformed. Miracles do happen.

Awards show season

Can you believe all the snubs this year at the Oscar nominations? Well, you're doing better than me, because at least you can form a firm opinion on things. I haven't seen a single nominated movie! Fortunately, that does not stop me in the least from watching every single awards show, complete with pre-show, post-show, and post-post show fashion reports. Not knowing the celebrities or having seen their movies will ever stand in the way of my snarky, nacho-fueled nights.

Speaking of which: here's the recipe for my epic awards show avocado-pomegranate-mango salsa

This recipe once won a $50 gift certificate prize from a local grocery store, so I'm not messing around. Mix together: 

4 avocados, finely diced 
1 Spanish onion, finely diced
2 jalapenos, seeds removed and minced
1/4 cup lime juice
seeds from 1 pomegranate
1 cup mango, finely diced
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1 tsp salt

Let sit in the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving. Prepare for accolades. 

Awards shows = girls' night =brownies

One of the best reasons to celebrate awards for films and shows you've never seen? An excuse for girls' night! We made these fantastic brownies for the Golden Globes (and they're from a mix! I tip my hat to you, President's Choice).

Time for decluttering

Sometimes there's nothing so cathartic as completely overhauling your closet and dresser. It's been especially satisfying to realize there's just some travel products and gadgets I'll never, ever use and set them free. 

Planning our summer camping trip

When you're serious about camping in Ontario, you book your summer sites months in advance, as soon as they open in the computer system. Each year it's an elaborate dance of dates, locations, sites, and timing, but somehow we always have a great time. The leading contender so far? Sandbanks Provincial Park

Getting roadtrip ready

No travel for over 2 months? Yep, and it's been great! I've been catching up on writing from my jam-packed travels of 2014, catching up on domesticity, and generally being refreshed. Now I'm ready to capture more great roadtrip sunsets, like the one above I got last year on route to Toronto.

I'm so excited our first trip of 2015 will be to London and Elgin, Ontario. One thing on the agenda? A place called Killer Desserts that has coffee from all over the world and butter tarts that weigh a quarter of a pound.  Don't worry - I'll give a full report! We're also looking forward to taking in a performance at London's Grand Theatre.

But most importantly, I'm speaking at the Southwest Ontario Tourism' Commission's annual conference. My panel's focus is "Inside The Mind Of Travel Bloggers" and I'm looking forward to presenting on how regional tourism boards can maximize their return on investment when working with bloggers.

PS: Join me for "Sunday Brunch"

I'm now one of the regular hosts of Sunday Brunch Twitter Chat - aka #SBTC, which happens every Sunday at 12:00pm EST. Everyone is welcome to join me and my 5 amazing co-hosts each week as we talk about a different travel related topic. Hope to see you there!

In case you missed it, here's what January 2015 was like.

Tell me about your February. What's making you happy and what are you looking forward to?