Best Buds...

Sweet innocence.....the simple pleasure of sharing Hawkins Cheezies with a buddy...I watched these two lick their cheesy fingers, and giggle at each other while shouting "go red go, go red go!" (we were at the SFU Clan Hockey Game). It makes me smile that Noah has a true "buddy" one he looks up to, one that makes his eyes smile when they rough around together...a buddy he has shared his first year of Preschool with....

I was just going to post about the picture above, and then I remembered all the great pictures I had of these two together....photos I will cherish forever, and hopefully a friendship these two little men will cherish forever!

To Noah and Ben!!

xoxo

Noah & Benjamin waiting for Santa at Preschool

Hanging out after Preschool

Playing soccer at the cabin in Shuswap Lake

The week ahead...food wise...

MONDAY- Gnocci with Green Salad

TUESDAY- Risotto with Arugula and Oyster Mushroom Salad

WEDNESDAY- Smoky Corn Chowder with Bacon and Garlic Crostini

THURSDAY- Cajun Penne with Green Salad

FRIDAY- Cashew Chicken with Rice

SATURDAY- Orechiette with Swiss Chard and Chick Peas

SUNDAY- Salmon Steaks with Lemon and Dill and Roast Potatoes

I put this together while watching last week's Bachelor that Fredo PVR'd for me! Some of the recipes are new! I am excited to try them....I did get a few from the February issue of Chatelaine. There are some great looking recipes in there! Especially the Tom Yum Thai soup, with Chicken and Shrimp (Fredo is not a big Thai fan), so I will make that for me one day...

Grocery shopping tomorrow!

K

Advice From A Caterpillar.....

I visited a lovely baby store today....my sisters friends opened Advice From A Caterpillar a while ago in Rosedale, here in Toronto, I had the pleasure of taking it all in this afternoon. Upon arrival, I made a mad dash to the bathroom, I really had to pee, and Anabelle needed a new diaper...the back of the store housed an amazingly lovely washroom, adorned with gorgeous framed silhouettes, photos, dress forms, pretty dolls and the most beautiful christening gown and bonnet hanging just so on the back of the door. I knew this would be a fancy shopping experience!

www.advicefromacaterpillar.ca

The clothes were gorgeous, toys that I have never seen before, and a lovely display of Astier de Villate candles, and ceramics! You know I love a sale, so we hit this store at the right time, clearing out end of season sweaters, tops, pants and onesies.... Although, I still couldn't buy the most beautiful cashmere dress for Anabelle, even if it was 60% off of $280. I settled for a slate grey eyelet top, she is going to look so cute in it!!!!

A great place to get something special. Beautiful quality, with many items from Europe. A great selection of Petit Bateau, my all time favorite undershirts!!

K

Black Skirt

I have come to Toronto to visit my new nephew! Today, my sister (the new mommy), and Everett, the new little man ventured outside for the first time since his January 19th birthday..it was a mild afternoon, so we all bundled up and walked down the street to College, met a lovely friend, and had lunch at a new place called Black Skirt.

This place got a thumbs up from me right away, they have prosecco by the glass on the menu! This is rare.....so we all had a glass and toasted the new family member! It went down awfully smooth...gotta love prosecco! Along with our bubbly, we had rice balls, mushroom crostini, arugula salad, tomato and fennel soup.....everything was fabulous! (Anabelle loved the rice balls!)

Like a little Sicilian deli, they carried all sorts of italian grocery items, fruit nectars, espresso....great dessert menu, including a warm nutella sandwich! A must try for next time.

A warm atmosphere; industrial lighting fixtures, wooden planked floors, old school chairs...would be a great place to go in the evening to have a glass of wine. I think my sister will be soon be known by name, as its right at the end of her block!

The coolest thing, were the wooden crates, stacked on their sides on top of one another in the bathroom, held together by wood clamps, housing the paper towels and extra toilet paper...a great design idea!

Another great place to go, while visiting T.O!

Fresh Canoli....

So, when I was in Toronto a few months ago, for my sisters baby shower (she had a little boy by the way, Everett!), her girlfriend brought these Canoli's...they were tremendous!! Thank goodness I grabbed one off the plate before it went into the living room, because they were gone in 2 seconds! It was, by far, the best canoli I had ever eaten! The shell was crunchy, the filling was creamy....they were LOVELY!!

It was on the top of my list to get some while I was visiting this time....to my surprise, I found out they were from a place called Longo's, a family run market, sort of resembling Whole Foods. Turns out there was one right near the apartment we were staying in! I made a trip one night, for half a dozen canoli.....

The key to these tasting so fresh, and still being so crunchy, is they are filled upon ordering, I watched the lady as she piped in the creamy ricotta cheese, and sprinkled them with sugar...I intended to get them for coffee that evening...somehow, one made it into my mouth as we were making dinner!

www.longos.com

I have three left in the fridge....they may just be my breakfast :-)

K

Joyfolie...

My sister sent me a link.....wow, so glad she found it, and so glad she forwarded it onto me! My heart fluttered as I searched through the pages of shoes for little girls.....take a look! I am going to buy the "Piper" shoes for Miss Anabelles Baptism!

www.joyfolie.com

Please read their philosophy, I think it's lovely...

"10% of the profits of Joyfolie go to Giving Children Hope, a non-profit organization that refurbishes medical equipment that would otherwise go in a landfill for use in impoverished areas and for disaster relief"

10 things that make me smile...

Told you this would come up soon....here are my top 10 things that make me smile, what are yours?

1. the sound of brewing coffee in the morning

2. a perfect pink lip gloss

3. crawling into a bed with freshly washed sheets

4. looking at photographs of my kids

5. a good meal

6. laughing

7. a genuine hug (no back patting)

8. hearing "mommy, your so beautiful" from my 3 year old son...

9. playing footsie with my husband after we have both snuggled into bed

10. the sound of my moms bracelets clanging together, makes me feel at home..

Gosh there could be many more...

Would love to read yours.......

K

never on a saturday....

Never attempt to go to Whole Foods on a Saturday at Park Royal...especially with a massive headache and two kids.....the sound of the humming fans (really LOUD humming fans) and the bustle of all the people put me in a really bad mood....why did I bother, well, to get something special for dessert tonight of course (and to hit up Old Navy where all the clearance was an additional 40% off)

I have only known Whole Foods to carry these.....the brand is Delifrance, they have the most amazing frozen Pain Au Chocolat!!! I first tried them at my sisters house. I could have eaten all 5 that come in a bag......seriously! Like she says, the best part is how they make your house smell like you have been slaving all day, my favorite part, is how they melt in your mouth, they are delicious!!!

At $7.99 for a bag of 5, they are a special treat, but do try them one day, they really are fabulous! We have always cut them in half, why, I don't know, you end up eating a whole one anyways!! Makes us feel better I guess???

K

bittersweet

This was one of those moments when you wished your baby girl wasn't sick, but so happy that she had a cuddle! She fell asleep while relaxing with Fredo, he didn't want to put her down, so he kept working with her zonked on his chest....a very rare moment to get a snuggle with Anabelle!

Here's to getting better, soon!

K

Coleslaw, Ole!

I don't even have a picture to post as this disappeared so fast! I made regular tacos one night, with ground beef, the norm, Old El Paso Taco Kit....but as part of the many toppings...I made a coleslaw. Not a creamy coleslaw, a tangy sweet, vinegary one! I called my mom for her recipe after my sister told me "I can't have tacos anymore without coleslaw after having it at Megan's house!"(my other sister).

Here is the very easy recipe for tangy a coleslaw to top off your tacos!

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 tbsp white vinegar

2 tbsp white sugar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Whisk together and pour over cabbage in a bowl....I chopped up half a green cabbage in thin strips, along with a few green onions...

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

K

Salmon in January..

Salmon steaks with rice and veg was on the menu last night..however it was too cold for me to pull out the bbq, so, for the first time, I baked my salmon steaks in the oven...I had no idea what I was doing, didn't follow a recipe, or even know what temperature to have the oven at, so I took a guess, and chose what usually is the norm..350, and I guessed, 1/2 an hour..I whipped up some tartar sauce, put on the rice, and steamed some green beans. This is what I did to the salmon steaks......

I lined a cookie sheet with tinfoil, placed the salmon steaks down the middle, drizzled them with olive oil (maybe a tbsp?) some salt and pepper...flipped them over and did the same on the other side so they didn't stick to the tinfoil....once both sides were slippery, I added some sprigs of dill, slices of lemon and a shake of soya sauce. I covered the salmon with another sheet of tinfoil, and kind of folded the foil around them like a pocket. Baked them at 350 for 30 mins (that time seemed perfect for my oven), at around 20 mins, I flipped the pocket of fish over to the other side for the remaining 10 mins.

Here is what you need.....

salmon steaks

olive oil

dill

fresh lemons

salt/pepper

soya sauce

If you want to make the tartar sauce....

1/3 cup mayonaise

1/4 cup green relish

2 chopped green onions

salt/pepper

Voila! We gobbled it all up, no leftovers! YAY!

K

Back in the day.....

What the hell did we do with ourselves before Facebook and reality TV like the Bachelor!? My cousin and I laughed at each other last night while she was over watching the unrealistic reality show. We were both checking our Facebook profiles for new statuses and photos....while we oooooo'ed and ahhhhhh'ed over the hilarious date strategies on the show. She was on the couch, me on the opposite chair, laptops positioned so we could keep our eyes on both....embarrassing....chatting to each other on Facebook chat....KIDDING!!!!

I always laugh at the response a status gets when someone posts something about the Bachelor (myself included). I usually get a kick out of hearing about what people are eating when I ask them, but the passionate responses that people share about Emily or Ashley or Michelle....(she is crazy by the way) always make me crack a smile.

Thanks to these shows, we have unrealistic ideas of what dates should be like...having not been on many...I don't really know what they should be like anyway??? But surely I know that my husband gets the cold shoulder because he has never set up a Carnival for me! I do remember however, years ago, when Alfredo was playing soccer in Edmonton and I went to visit, he sprung a function on me, to which I had no proper attire (I think I was like 16). Off to West Edmonton mall we went...by taxi.....there he bought me a new dress, shoes and some earrings I think...closest thing to the "Pretty Woman date". At the time, I was dazzled...I even remember where he bought me my dress....Jacob, and I think my shoes were from Payless, OOOOOOOOOOoooooooo. It was great fun though, I felt like a million bucks!

A big part of my new years resolution I have decided, is to send more paper mail...personal notes, letters...I miss the days of getting personal mail, and not the kind from Terasen or BC Hydro....the mail that comes from family and friends...man it feels good to open the mail box and see a hand written address! Sometimes when writing a letter to my grandparents, I catch myself writing things like "lol" or using the "@" symbol instead of writing "at". Thats terrible! Shame on me.

Shit, its 9:05..........see....these electronics consume you! I have to get Noah to school! Send a letter this month! It will feel good! Make sure you put a stamp on the envelope, you get those at the POST OFFICE :-)

K

Great find!

I love a nice candle, especially the $40 ones by Voluspa, Saijo Persimmon to be exact, and I like to keep the wax clean. I love it when they burn evenly, and the trick to this is never letting the wick get too long...when that happens, the wick curls, the flame favors one side, and your $40 candle is junk! A pet peeve of mine, is a candle with black smoked out glass.......that means the wick is too long. Take pride in a nice candle, they aren't cheap for heavens sake, and you want to get the most life out of them. So if you really want them to last, take care of trimming the wick, every time you light the candle!

I used to just use scissors, they worked great, but then sometimes I was left fishing out the broken piece that slipped off the blade..I would get totally pissy if the wax was soft and it got stuck...until the other day, when I found something at Winners....

Wick trimming scissors!! And they are pretty! They have engraving on them, an angled handle, and a perfect little shelf for the wick to rest after you trim! Not bad for $4.99! They work like a charm. I would recommend getting yourself a pair :-).

K

Wine Wipes

I prefer red over white.....but its really not nice to have a gray mouth after only a few sips from a glass of red wine. I don't know about you, but my mouth, teeth and all, along with both my sisters change into a hideous colour of putty purple. I guess you don't really mind when you have had more than a few, but I sure hate of photo of myself with gray teeth!

Ta da!! Wine Wipes! These beauties wipe the evidence right from your mouth! We got them as a little gift from my mom and dad this Christmas, I keep mine in my purse (diaper bag, does that make me a bad mom?).

You get 20 wipes in a perfect lip gloss sized container, thin enough to fit in your pocket! They can be found at Everything Wine!

K

Dinner Dice

I was reading an old copy of Real Simple the other day, and stumbled across a solution for my slow, procrastinating, picky eater of a 3 year old!! Some days its like pulling teeth to get him to finish his breakfast/lunch/dinner.....so I thought this little game would work wonders! Lately he has been into games......he asked me the other day, "mommy, can we play cards for monies?" hmmm...wonder where he is getting that from......

The simple trick is a pair of dice. When he seems to be slagging, I grab the dice, and let him roll them to determine how many more bites he has to take! The first try was a success! He loved the idea of it being a GAME! Tonight, he finished all his chicken!

Give it a go if you have a picky eater! Its worth a shot!!

K

Bloggers Block!?

I have been absent for 2 days....well, almost...I have been sitting here at my computer trying to think of something to write......nothing...it's one of those nights....so I will share with you this, my list of 10 things that drive me crazy...

1. listening to people eat, especially chips, bananas, nuts, smarties....

2. the sound of a dry cough (like the one Noah has right now)

3. when the Brita water jug is empty, and no one fills it up

4. people who budge in line

5. able bodied individuals who take the elevator before you, when you have been waiting with your stroller

6. wearing socks to bed

7. rude sales clerks

8. tailgaters

9. breathing in my ear

10. when people don't straighten the hand towel after drying their hands...

Tomorrow, if your lucky, I will write about the 10 things I love! HA!

K

Best tuna sandwich EVER!

Today we had a tuna sandwich for lunch, with some apple slices and corn flax chips (from Bosa Foods, SOOOOOOO good!). I spruced up the tuna a little bit...here is what I did...

1 can of tuna

half an apple sliced thin (gala or spartan are the best)

shake of salt and pepper

dollop of mayonnaise

tsp curry powder

Give a good stir, and put it between your favorite bread!

Enjoy!

K

ps......its good with red grapes instead of apples too!

Back on track!

I love to have a plan, especially for dinners. I find that shopping all in one day, makes it easy through out the week to be organized, especially when you have kids, even more so when there is more than one! Gone are the days when you could just clip your one child in the car seat and run to the grocery store as needed, it takes a whole half hour, at least, to just get out of the house with two kids...who the hell wants to run to the store after that!

I have always made my own meal plan, but while reading the January 2011 issue of Real Simple magazine (love this magazine!) I came across this meal plan....I have printed some copies off this morning, and plan to do my meal plan, and shopping this afternoon.

http://www.realsimple.com/static/pdfs/dinner-plan.pdf

I have slipped over the holidays. My cupboards weren't stocked, dinners were on the fly (lots of spaghetti) and snacks were sparce! There was lots of baking, lots of eatmore bars, but not nearly enough hearty meals, that I usually love to make! My first real meal, seemed to be on New Years Eve, when I made my "all day lasagna" which I must tell you didn't have a chance! It was gobbled up in no time!

So if you like to plan like me, print out this list, do your meal plan for the week (the only thing I don't like is it doesn't have weekends!) do your shopping...I also find that it saves me money, no impulse buys, I just get what's on my list...and man is it nice to have everything on hand when you go to make something through out the week!

Happy planning!

K

Coming to an end..

Photo taken by Devon Hall

www.devonhallphotoarts.com

The greatest thing about living here is the benefits of maternity leave that we are offered....we get to stay at home with our kids until they are 1 years old...we get a full year to be at home with them...still, to me, it's not enough, lol. My maternity leave will finish at the end of March. This is scary to me, but what is also scary, is that also means Anabelle will already be 1 years old! But on top of that, the most scariest, nerve racking thing, is that I have to get a job....a new job.

I was so hurt when my sociology teacher at Capilano College told me that I would never be able to be a stay at home mom..she looked me right in they eye and said, "no way"...this was something I always wanted to be....I'm afraid she was right, things have just changed way to much, things cost way too much, and we expect way too much. So If I want all these things, its back to work I go! Good thing is, I plan to have another baby, so another maternity leave will come, eventually.

The luxury of being able to attend every function because you aren't stuck at the office, or being able to plan a holiday without thinking about getting the time off work is lovely. I am already thinking about the events I will miss in the summer time...I am being selfish, I know. On the other hand I am eager to get out and be an adult again, leave the house without the kids, and know I am getting ready for something other than a trip to the mall...

I won't lie when I say I am jealous of those who had babies after me..they will still be on mat leave! And I am always to first to tell someone on mat leave to relax and enjoy, don't stress about going back to work..I still have three months, but I know how fast time flies! The events that are set to take place in these next month will just put it in super duper speed!

I will try and enjoy these next few months to the fullest, even though I have to get a resume together! Something I have not had to do in 7 years!! (that freaks me out!). And know that my kids will be in the hands of there daddy, and that I will get to see my husband when we go to bed at night.

Cheers to Mat Leave!

K

When I was a kid...

It was a gorgeous Sunday, the sun was shining, weather was crisp, my family and I headed down to Granville Island. When we were little, my mom and dad would take us girls to Granville Island on family Sundays. Often to have breakfast as Isadora's (which is now Cat's Socialhouse) and to play on this same boat that I watched my son play on today........

Those days seem like yesterday...such a trip that I am now 29, married, and have two children of my own! My own family to bring to Granville Island, to create family days.

I stood back and took this picture of Noah waving on the boat, he was waving at his daddy...I smiled to myself just looking at his face...how good was life when we were this age, carefree, not a worry in the world. No bills to pay, meals to make, or houses to clean (maybe our bedroom!). Just pure happiness, simple happiness. Nothing these days seems simple...

My sister posted a quote on her Facebook profile the other day, it rang so true....it went like this......"Enjoy the little things. For one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." So today, watching my son play on the same wooden boat that my tiny little hands grasped so long ago, and letting him run through the sand despite his shoes getting filled, and watching him squeal with excitement just seeing the ducks on the water....were my little things...for today anyway.

"Enjoy the little things.

For one day you may look back

and realize they were the big things"

K

Out with the old, in with the new!

Its a new year. Fresh starts, new beginnings, new furniture! Yesterday, my new sideboard arrived in my living room! I said goodbye to my IKEA, which served me well for a few years, and replaced it with a beautiful reclaimed mango wood sideboard from AG Living. I fell in love the minute it walked through my door....can you see why...

www.agliving.com

It did not take long for this piece to feel right at home :-)

Check this stuff out online www.agliving.com

K

ps...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!