Step 4. F

Friday 30 May 2014

Baked Quinoa Burgers

I may just die a little bit on the inside after eating these! The other day I found this recipe through Super Healthy Kids who has AMAZING recipes for kids of all ages- but I knew that if I made these I'd be eating them too, they just looked so good!

Super Healthy Kids found the original by Vegetarian Times who did the Crunchy Quinoa Cake recipe.

I had to tinker with it because I can't eat eggs or flour, and I didn't have any red/ white vinegar in my cupboard so I used what  I had at hand (a usual in this household).


  • 1 tbsp of chai seeds with 3 tbsp water (egg replacement)- stir and let this sit for 6-7 minutes to thicken into egg consistency
  • 2 tbsp rice flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp tahini
  • 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa (I boiled mine in a vegetable broth which I think gave it amazing flavour)
  • 1/2 cup finely grated yam
  • 1 handful of fresh spinach diced
  • 2 oz. regular cheese
  • 2 tbsp finely diced onion
  • 1/2 tsp salt
If you don't want to sub the rice flour or chia seeds you can follow the original recipe from their website Crunchy Quinoa Cakes


The method to follow this recipe is all just taken from their site. What an easy dish to make!

"Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Combine egg (or chai seed mix), flour, tahini, and vinegar (I used olive oil) in bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients, then mash together until mixture is firm enough to shape into cakes. Shape mixture into 1/4-cup patties with wet hands. Bake on prepared baking sheet 25 minutes, turning once, or until cakes are browned."

I must say, this dish was a HIT! We even had a friend drop by to help us move some boxes into our new place, and he loved them too! Toli was a bit wary at first and started on the spinach, yes, every mothers dream. He started with the spinach! It didn't take long for him to try them out though, and once he started he didn't stop until he was full :) He even brought some to his Dada who came home full already- such a little sweet pea he is!
For the sauce I used a little dollop of mayo (yes, I know I said I can't eat eggs, but I'm a tad obsessed with mayo for burgers especially so I eat just a little).

I think this dish is going to become a staple in my home. Our friend said it would make a nice side to some protein (even though quinoa already has protein- I can see his point).

Thursday 29 May 2014

Coffee Is A Mommy's Best Friend


It's to be expected as a mother to have tired days. Newborn to toddlerhood so far I experience almost daily some sense of tiredness. Some of you may blame the co-sleeping for it, and lack of sleep training, but I don't believe in that. As I say

To each their own 

-Originally quoted "to each his own" by Cicero 

Our son has had THE worst teething pain I've ever seen him in the last few days, and it broke my mommy heart to see him so inconsolable. We had a lot of cuddling and rocking on the living room couch in the middle of the night until his medication kicked in.

He still woke up around his usual time 7 am, so you can sort of see why I'd be so darn tired!



I buy my coffee from Choices Market here in Yaletown, and my favourite coffee is the Level Ground based out of Vancouver Island which does fair trade with Bolivia in South America. Its a nice medium roast and tastes just awesome! I use organic raw sugar, and almond milk in my coffee- perfect way to wake up after a long night.

On a side note, we won't have internet at our new home until next Thursday, and I'm leaving on Wednesday to drop my son off in Prince George- a lovely 9 hour drive before we leave for Mexico. Toli's grandparents are super excited to have him for his birthday on June 11th (We leave for Mexico June 9th), and I'm excited to have the best birthday party for him when we get back.

I'm going to do my best to post at least a couple times a week in the next couple of weeks, but if you don't hear from me- you'll know where I'll be- I'll be tanning on the beach in Playa del Carmen or swimming through some caves on an adventure :)

Have you been to Playa del Carmen? If you have what are some fun spots you liked there? We have a few extra free days there with no planned excursions yet.


Wednesday 28 May 2014

Cleaning Our Closet to Feel Good

This photo is courtesy of franky242/ freedigitalphotos.net

Since we're moving this week I've been de-cluttering my space over and over again. Might as well, right? Who wants to pack a bunch of crap that they don't actually like?

A good way to do this is to have 3 piles

  1. The 'KEEP' pile
  2. The 'GIVE AWAY' pile
  3. And last and definitely the most important the 'THROW AWAY' pile 
You know you have those clothes! Its either the odds and ends socks that never found their partner again, or that ratty shirt you've had since highschool- lose it!

The way we dress can have a significant effect on how we feel about ourselves- something I learned from Stacy London and Clinton Kelly on What Not To Wear. So if you feel crappy in it, its time to say your goodbyes and remember the good'ol days.

I found this great article on closet cleaning called 7 Simple Steps To a Clutter Free Closet by Natasha Burton. It can be hard for some, it can even be hard for me- a person who's always looking for the next thing to get rid of. A fact I remember from a while ago, and that Natasha Burton brings up in her article for clearing closet clutter is that people usually only wear 20% of their wardrobe most of the time, which is so true! 

Sometimes we can become emotionally attached to clothing even though we will never wear them again, or never have. And sometimes we save clothing for "when I lose weight". Lets be honest we all have those lying around making us feel bad. I've let go of probably the most expensive pair of jeans I'll ever own because the only time I fit them was after I came back from Thailand 6 years ago, and I know I won't be that skinny again. It hurt letting them go, but I also don't feel horrible looking at them wishing I could fit into them everyday. Every time I look at a piece of clothing I ask myself very honestly 

Does this make me feel good?

That is the tricky part though, the honesty

Do you ACTUALLY feel good in it? 

REALLY? 

Ask yourself again, put on that piece of clothing and go take a look in the mirror. Do you feel AWESOME? If not, take it off and put it in the 'give away' pile, or the 'throw away' pile. Here's a good tip

Don't think about it, Just Do It!

You may miss it for a short period of time, but that feeling will eventually fade when you see how beautiful your closet looks, and how awesome you feel. Trust me. 

Guess what? I also let go of a shirt that I'd never actually worn before. Gorgeous shirt! But it just wasn't my style. I actually envisioned so many different outfits with that shirt but every time I put it on it didn't feel like me. Wanna know something else? In the very back of my closet I put away an amazing jacket that I'd only wore once, only once because when I became pregnant it didn't look right with a big belly popping out of it, so I saved it- Thank God I did! It was like Christmas all over again just by sorting out the gigantic mess I had in there. This is a beautiful navy blue Gap blazer. My favourite part of this jacket is the cuffs which are tucked up with pattern showing through. It still fits like a charm too so it is now sitting with the rest of my spring jackets to be used with an outfit in the near future.




Think this is a challenge your ready to take on? Let me know what you think of this challenge, and when you plan to start. I promise you, you'll feel better!

Tuesday 27 May 2014

To Do List

This photo is courtesy of digitalalart/ freedigitalphotos.net

Well, as you can guess if you've been reading my posts- I am all about 'To Do List's.

They make me feel organized, and ready to tackle whats at hand. I find if I leave it in my head I'll end up missing a few things, sometimes a few *important* things.

So I've already made my way out for grocery shopping, along with de- cluttering. I think I've de- cluttered about 3-4 times since spring started, but there's nothing wrong with that! The less we have, the less I pack. Yes, that's right, I haven't packed a box yet, and we're moving on Saturday!

At the moment my son has his feet kicked up on my lap as we eat a quick snack, and as I type out my day for you. Once I'm finished here I'll be completing my list before we pick up Toli's Dada to check out a storage unit for some of our things.

I talked about making a priority list in Feelin' Good as well if you wanna take a peak.

Last night I made a long list of things that need to get done this week, and out of that I extracted what the top priorities were for today. I'd like to add that as much as I love 'to do' lists, they can become overwhelming. This is why I like to add the extra step of creating a priority list for a specific day. 

This article here also discuss's the importance of prioritizing your life called Are You Too Busy? Prioritize Things and Find Joy In Your Life

My priority list for today:
  • Grocery shopping (check!)
  • Box up all the books on the book shelf
  • De-clutter my dresser
Heres a helpful blog post on organizing for a move from IHeart Organizing called Easy Tips for an Organized Move, I cover 4 out of 5 of her steps (I haven't started packing as the writer Jen suggests in step 1). How are some ways you stay organized for a move? 

I'm going to post another blog tomorrow on tackling the closet, so come back soon!

Now its time for me to get back to my list!

Thursday 22 May 2014

Timing is all off

I must tell you, this past week has been completely off for me. I wrote a blog on Monday, to get it ready for Tuesday, and I ended up posting it that day because I got into Tuesday mode in my mind as I was writing.

With our move coming up fast my head isn't in place with organizing my blog, or life for that matter. My thoughts are more of a frequent 'here and there' motion, and I can't seem to keep them straight.

Yesterday I also ended up going to a walk in clinic, and left with a prescription for antibiotics (not something I'm proud of). So I've been sitting in a little bit of a daze since then, and not wanting to do much other than sit on my butt. 

Personally I don't like these days. The days where nothing gets done. But that's life, isn't it? Imperfect, and always changing- here's a fitting article on imperfection that has helped me let go of these past few days "4 Ways to Embrace Imperfections" by Nicole Franco. My favourite part of this article is where she talks about accepting our humanness, because humans are messy- yes, we can be. 

Anytime I think of how I'm not on schedule with my son, how the house isn't clean enough, or that my hair and makeup isn't done, I think of the movies (what a terrible comparison!) and how energetic and happy stay at home mums look. Usually when I get on a schedule I like to stick to it, but life had different plans for me in the last 48 hours. So no movie like features in this household!

By June, when we're nice and settled I'll be back on schedule with my blog. I'll have a post coming up very soon on packing light for a vacation. I've seen so many people overpack their entire closet before a trip, but life is so much easier when we can carry as little as possible around- also this lazy chick wants to get back into the beach body mode I was in before I left for Vegas. So stay tuned, I may not be consistent right now, but I'll be back!

This photo is courtesy of Stuart Miles/ freedigitalphotos.net

Tuesday 20 May 2014

Moving Time

This photo is courtesy of Stuart Miles/ freedigitalphotos.net


It seems my son has been in a little bit of a mood the past few days. He's been waking up in tears the past few days, and we just came back from the park after a short and grumpy visit. I decided it was time to come home when he clearly wasn't having a good time.

I think he's feeling the change that is coming up- when we move to our new apartment at the end of the month, because there is no other explanation to the fussiness. Toli is usually in very good spirits, and this behaviour is completely out of the ordinary. 

Children are very intuitive little beings, and I know he is picking up on the energy around the house. His grandfather will be moving into his own place for the first time. Dada is missing our current apartment already, and I think with all of the sentimental feelings in the air about our near future, its getting to Toli. I'm not one to stay home on a sunny day, but I think the next little while before the move we will have some play outside, but a lot of snuggling at home as well.

I remember when we moved into this apartment last year how difficult it was for the unexplained change for an almost 1 year old- I can only imagine how it will be this time around. Until then I'll be giving as much love, and attention to my son as I possibly can.


Monday 19 May 2014

Sleep, Eat, Repeat.

Today is one of those days where I just had to let go.

I read an article called "3 Tips to Help you Be Present" by Hayley Hobson the other day which really resonated with me as her daughter helps to keep her present, and 'in the moment' just like my son does.

This morning I woke up in sort of a daze, and lucky for me, my son wanted to hang out with me (so no sleeping in this morning). On a usual morning he wakes up and hangs out with his grandfather and watches some russian cartoons, but not this morning. He insisted that Mama wake up, and watch "The Hive"- which is a cute little bee cartoon that he's really into right now with some cut up fruit I prepared to watch the show with. I warmed some matcha with almond milk, and a little bit of raw sugar (I usually use honey like this recipe here, but I'm currently out).



I'm not gonna lie, we watched quite a bit of "The Hive" this morning, but my body just needed to relax. Once we finished our apples and mangos I began making my homemade, gluten free, dairy free, egg free pancakes with organic maple syrup. Completely delicious! 

Monday's are usually "Monday Toli Day", so I tried to keep with the pace as Toli pointed outside at the park so I asked him if he wanted to go, but he didn't seem to want to go anywhere either (thank you!). So we just cuddled and talked about what was outside while the morning left us. We ended up in the bedroom cuddling where he fell asleep on my back.

Today, we both needed rest it seems, and I'm glad we were on the same page. I can be hard on myself when the routine is broken, but on days like today I'm sure glad that I gave myself permission to just 'be' with my son, and listen to my body.

I usually hear people say how they feel a cold coming on, like an itchy throat, or a runny nose. A submission to the germs. There was one teacher in my Wellness College who said she never got sick, naturally I was intrigued so I found out as much as I could about it and the gist of the story is

Listen to your body.

If your feeling tired, take a nap! If you feel an itchy throat or a runny nose coming- drink water, take it easy, and eat for your health. I know most people work, so if you do, and you can't take a mid- day nap- go to bed early! Our bodies have the capacity to stay healthy if we let them guide us. 

So yes, the motion of my day was 

Sleep, Eat, Repeat.

And now I'm sitting here feeling quite well after my nap. The house is clean, peaceful, my son is still sleeping, and I am blogging with a nice cup of organic liquorice tea by Traditional Medicinals that is a wonderful immunity booster for my body.







Friday 16 May 2014

Another busy One

Well, it seems I'll be feeling busy a while longer. We're just in the middle of having our apartment shown for new tenants as we are moving at the end of this month, so I'm busy maintaining my home. I've also been keeping up with our weekly classes for Toli, appointments for myself, writing and blogging daily, and running errands for Toli's new career.. I smile as I write this. Thinking about my almost 2 year old with a resume is really quite cute! 

But I'm digressing. With the move also comes my sons birthday which we are planning on having before we leave to Mexico in 3 and a half weeks. Some personal issues are running around in my head as well, and I can't put them down. I don't want to put it down. I'm feeling a bit helpless in a certain area of life where I wish so much that I could be super woman and take pain away from people. Logically I know its impossible, but another part of me is still wondering how I can accomplish this while running the rest of my life.

Also, I just found out that I've been accepted as guest blogger on another site- which will help me get exposure for my blog. A lot of exciting things are coming up! I actually really enjoy moving, as it gives me a chance for newness, de-cluttering, re-arranging, and re-organizing. As for Toli's birthday, I'm feeling like time is just passing me by too quickly right now, and I'm a bit scared that it won't be as awesome as his 1st birthday.


This image is courtesy of adamr/ freedigitalphotos.net

Which brings me to my reason for writing this.

Sometimes life can take us on a really crazy ride full of hustle, bustle, and sometimes a bit of crazy, mixed in with a bit of who knows what! I'm feeling the need to accomplish everything as perfectly as possible, while maintaining 'fun' in life with my family.

We've been at the beach with friends the last two evenings for dinner, and I've been keeping most of my friend dates as well. Sometimes I think I may go bonkers, and if life were like this every day, every week- I'd probably lose my cool.

So the next few weeks I'm really going to buckle down, and accept my fate with

  1. This move
  2. Organizing my sons birthday
Which are my two top priorities (I talk about prioritizing in Follow Your Heart  as well). The more I write down what needs to get done, the more it solidifies those goals, and then they get accomplished. A-mazing! Who knew? 

Here's another blog that talks about Staying Happy and Healthy When Your Busy by a writer who goes by Catalina (wish I could give her more credit with her full name but I cannot find it!).

This image is courtesy of Naypong/ freedigitalphotos.net

So friends, I shall see you on the other side when I'm not so busy. Life has this gal in high gear, so here I go!

Thursday 15 May 2014

A Busy Day

Well, I'm back to blogging again this morning. Yesterday was a day full of activity, hence the lack of time to post a blog. 

Recently I've reconnected with an old friend I used to go to university with. We started with some shopping at H&M, and then took our boys for a walk towards the waterfront to let Toli roam about- as he requested (my friends boy is 5 months old, so he won't be joining Toli for a few more months).

Afterward Toli and I came home for nap time which didn't last long as we had an appointment to make for Toli's head shots. We needed to do this to complete his online portfolio with our talent agency Kool Kids Talent 



This is the headshot we decided we'll use- taken by World of Fairy Tales Photography who did such an amazing job with my son! 

Before making our way home, I had called Rom to see if he was down for some sandwiches and salad at the beach for dinner. So I began making dinner for our picnic, and we ended a wonderfully busy day with some relax time at the beach until the sun set. 

The perfect end to another wonderful day! I hope your enjoying the spring weather as much as I am! Its not summer yet, so bring a sweater- I'm so glad I did as we were able to stay right until sundown. 

Below is Toli walking on the beach with the sun setting at his back.



Tuesday 13 May 2014

Follow Your Heart

Do you know what you really want? And if you do, are you truly following that want? 

I can say that I was not. 

I'd become more, and more inspired the longer I waited for my new book, "The Desire Map" by Danielle LaPorte- who is a Canadian bred 'inspirer'. I was just itching to read her book! So while I waited (impatiently I may add), I watched her videos on her website, and Youtube.

(This is a more current photo of me finally enjoying her book with a cup of tea)

On her website daniellelaporte.com she has a video, and in that video she asks if your doing what you want, and if you aren't then 

STOP!

 Why? Because what will you really achieve if you aren't?

Maybe your driven by money, or love, or happiness which I talk about in Life changes, whatever drives you, are you doing it? Are you TRULY happy with your life as we speak? 

I started to feel like I was working too hard, like what I was doing wasn't for me. Something deep inside of me was telling me it wasn't right anymore. 

So I stopped...

I'm not gonna say that looking into just this one book (that I hadn't even read yet) changed my life, but it sure did help me listen to that very quite voice in the deepest part of me that was asking me to 

STOP!

And so I did.

Now I'm writing. 

I don't think you know how freeing it is to have finally come to a place in my life where I'm actually doing what I've been dreaming of- or maybe you do know how freeing it is, maybe you took that step already. I never gave myself the opportunity to write before. Yes, I've journaled on and off since I was a teenager, but I haven't written like this.

To be honest with you, I didn't think I had it in me. There was always that daydream 

"God I'd love to write!"

THAT was my inner calling. That was my desire. And yet I was scared as shit to follow it! Because I had another part of me that would say right after that 

"what would you write about?" (in a very critical voice I may add)

Oh the inner turmoil I had for years! I cannot tell you how long I've been back and forth. But I'm so glad that I took the plunge. Everyday, everyDAY I have constant ideas flowing through me, most of them I catch now that I'm writing more regularly.

Are you doing what you want with your life? If you aren't, I highly suggest looking into The Desire Map. It doesn't have to be a career change (or maybe that's what you really want), or a divorce (unless you want that). It could be that you want to feel happiness everyday, because you know what? That's a pretty awesome goal!

There are 2 goals I'm working on as we speak- Priorities to be exact

  1. To spend quality time with my son everyday
  2. To post my work 4 times a week

You would think the first goal would be a given, seeing as how I have the privilege of staying home with my son, but I've been dealing on and off with adrenal fatigue which can make it hard to do much. 

As for writing, I write almost daily, and post 4 times a week- if not more. 
I started with a list of about 8-10 goals I wanted to achieve, and since reading this article How to Be More Consistent (by Terri Cole) it helped me to simplify- I was intrigued by this article because I love simplicity, and hadn't thought to simplify my goal list. My old list is stored away to be looked at at a later date once I feel like I've accomplished my 2 goals (which are currently being worked on successfully as we speak).

So I want to leave you with this, whatever it looks like, in any shape or form it takes

Follow your heart, where ever it takes you

Because your heart knows the way.

Saturday 10 May 2014

One of those days

Life can't always be peaches and cream. 

Yes, today is one of those days that I am wishing to be over. So instead of lulling over it, I took a nice, long, hot shower to ease the stresses of the day.

There are a lot of ideas floating around in my head today, and suggestions about topics to write about. But today is just not one of those days to start it. Today I need to do some good self care- which I've started by taking a shower, and now blogging.

Here are 5 things I do to unwind from a crappy day:

  1. Take a shower, or a luxurious bath if you have time! It'll do wonders for your skin, and stress (which I  talk about in Take a Time out- For Yourself!)
  2. Clean. This article "7 Feng Shui Tips to Boost Happiness and Vitality this Year" (read step 2. especially) talks about how how having a clear space is beneficial to ease stress. I've been working on making my bed every morning, and picking up everyone's clothes off the floor before making breakfast. And the blinds in my home are never closed. I love light! It can be an instant pick me up if feeling tired or low.
  3. Get lost in a novel. This is one of my fav's to do! Usually if I'm feeling tired, or irritated from my day I'll read- once I put Toli to bed at night to unwind.
  4. Call up a friend, and chat over tea or a glass of wine- again, another fav.
  5. Write it out. Sometimes we can get so stuck in our heads about what is happening, which can fester, and stir up emotions. A good way to get it out is to write it out! Do some art, or talk. You could do whatever feels more natural to you. Maybe you like to dance, and that would help. Who knows? Its yours for the making!
Are there any methods that you find tend to work for you best? 

Hope this can help you out on a not so pleasant day. Next on my list now that I've started in self care mode is to eat. So I'm off to my favourite pasta place Basil Pasta Bar.

Friday 9 May 2014

Enjoying the Simple Things in Life

Let me tell you how happy I was to have the entire day with my son! What a blessing it is to just watch him be himself. 

We started our day at our favourite coffee shop Blenz for a little snack, and drink before we made our way to the post office to pick up a couple of parcels. As we walked, Toli was dancing to the beat of life. I smiled the entire way there as I watched his head sway, his arms and legs swinging around in and outside of his stroller.

Afterward we walked to the waterfront where I let the little monster loose for some play time on the grass where we played cars, and bears (this is where we growl like bears, I chase him, and tickle him).


Once he started getting tired we made our way home for nap time- cue Mama's time to clean, and blog. 

After such a long time away from our son, and home, Dada and I were so glad to have a quite night in to catch up on Game of Thrones and just chill on the couch with Toli. Dada played piano while Toli danced, which was just the sweetest thing ever (I could not get a clear photo for the blog.. only problem of my evening), and then we made our way to a little restaurant downstairs for some easy food. 

I decided it should be Toli's first 'puddle jumping' experience so instead of taking the stroller I
dressed him for the rain with his little rain boots. Let me say how long it took for us to make it half a block with puddles all around! It was fantastic! 


I find myself realizing how blessed we are to live where we do. We have family all around us to help raise our son, and the ability every once in a while to just have some 'Mama & Dada' time, which I think is so important for the family household. I find myself daydreaming about moving to another country to experience another culture, but its times like these where I'm glad we live here in Vancouver. It really is a city full of activities for Toli and I while Dada is at work, as well as family that we see pretty often. Come check out this short blog on gratitude! As I stated in my Vegas Baby! post how much gratitude I felt for the men in my life's success's, it really is a celebration of life! But it doesn't even have to be big celebrations, in Beyond The Gratitude Message the writer Jan talks about being grateful for the sun rising, or even a nice commute to work, she asks us to challenge and expand the awareness of what we receive each and every day.

You can find gratitude in every little nook and cranny of life, its there!

Hope you all have an awesome weekend with family and friends!

Thursday 8 May 2014

Back in Vancouver

Well, now that we're back home it's time to feel healthy again. I'll admit I had one, or two burgers sent to my room for dinner (I ate maybe just a tiny smidgen of the bread), and a few margaritas for Cinco De Mayo during the days with lunch (that's a complete excuse). I will also admit to feeling nutritionally depleted on one day -so I had a salad. 

Still, I'm ready for some good ol' smoothies, and dark leafy greens to feel energized. I'm happy as can be back home with my baby. How much I missed his face, hugs, kisses and snuggles. Nothing will ever beat being with this kid. 



I was listening to Marie Forleo on a Super Soul Sunday episode before I left Las Vegas. She talked about doing EVERYTHING with passion. We think we need to find it, and that's just not the case -according to Marie- she says to exercise it like a muscle, and put passion into everything that we do, so I vowed that day, as we left Vegas, to do just that. 

I must admit, I started off really strong. I passionately ironed the last clean, wrinkled dress I had for the trip, and brushed my teeth as passionately as I could, but as the day went on I got tired. It IS like exercising a muscle!

To be passionate, you must exercise that feeling like a MUSCLE!
- Thanks Marie!

So I will keep up this fantastic practice and put forth more passion to my morning. Because I usually wake up with the first thought of 

"uuhhh, I'm tired" 

And of course, I figured this out after reading some good ol' "The Desire Map". How did I wake up? Feeling exhausted. What did that do to me? It took me a looong time to wake up and get my ass outta bed every morning. How do I WANT to feel? Alive, refreshed, rested, and ready for the day! So tomorrow morning I will wake up with enthusiasm and passionately start off my day by making my bed, and preparing breakfast for Toli and I before we head out for a walk, and go to his toddler dance class.

Here's a smoothie that is one of my current favourites that I've been obsessed with for the past few weeks- so I'm gonna stay simple, and hop back on the health train with a smoothie.
I call this one my

Simple Green Energizing Smoothie

1 banana 
1 cup of blueberries
1 rib of celery
1 tsp of spirulina
1 cup of water
2 tbsp of hemp protien
2 tbsp of chia seeds



Try it out, and let me know what you think!

Tuesday 6 May 2014

"Worlds toughest job"


Yep, I thought this video that I've been seeing circulate the 'net the past few days would be fitting for today. Have you seen this video yet?

Technically, I don't work. I have the most amazing fiance who fully supports any decision that my heart takes me in, and for that I am forever grateful- and know I what a lucky girl I am.

Our son is getting the last of his molars in (teething pain!). Once these 4 have cut through I'll feel like I've just completed the worlds longest marathon race! Yikes! Sometimes I wish he wasn't one of those poor children who have to go through this pain (apparently I didn't have too much teething pain as a child, so I'm sort of envious of myself if that makes any sense).

This morning I woke up early to go finish shopping for his "Easter egg hunt". I started shopping last week- and I'm really good at starting projects, but once I start I tend to think I have all the time in the world to finish. So hence, this was part of my stress.

But he also threw a tantrum while shopping today, and was not a happy camper when we were home. I made homemade, gluten free playdoe and chickpea snacks- like I was talking about earlier this week- and also had to tend to my poor, cranky baby. 

Now that he's gone I do feel like today was part of that marathon race, and I'm glad to have some adult time with my honey, and some new friends for the evening. 

.. Hopefully I'm not the first to fall asleep tonight like I usually am. But we'll see. 

Happy Easter!

#worldstoughtestjob
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Vegas Baby!

Well, I seem to be on an emotional roller coaster today. I awoke after 9 am this morning, thinking that I had the day to relax at the spa, and hang out at the pool tomorrow for some sunshine before we leave. My honey then proceeded to tell me that we were leaving at 11 am. So I had a bittersweet feeling because as much as I miss my son, I haven't had as much alone time as I originally thought I was gonna have- hence not blogging until tonight.

Honestly, you would think I'd be doing more while I'm here in Vegas, but I guess as a mother of a younger one.. of course I've been sleeping life away. So I was sad that I haven't been living the full Vegas experience. 

Let me start from the beginning. We drove to Bellingham on Friday evening to spend the night with one of my cousins, and friends (whom I adore), and left early Saturday morning to start our Vegas experience 




Yes, this is my 8 am mimosa here at the Bellingham airport

On a Saturday morning! I'm pretty darn sure I've never started drinking this early, but when have I ever had the chance to indulge like this? Well, never. And indulgence is one of life's wonderful experiences (in moderation).

Our flight ended up being one of the most turbulent flights we've ever experienced. My babe and I ended up snuggling and doing some deep breathing exercises (as we both thought we were gonna die) while the plane took some nice deep dips, and gurgles on the descent into Las Vegas.




This is Rom before the turbulence started- he was taking a nap

We ended up staying at the Flamingo (worst, WORST hotel to stay at FYI- coming from newbie Vegas travellers), where we proceeded to be woken by screaming neighbours. Five rooms flooded at 3 am, including ours, and we waited outside our flooded room for an hour to then be taken to a downgraded room from where we slept- with no refund on the room at all. Can you say a hell'ish experience? Probably. But it is what it is. We dealt with it, and moved on. 

The next day we attended a pool party where mommy (aka: Me) decided to let some of her inhibitions go and let lose a little bit. Trust me, it was worth it! Usually this one is so stuck in mommy mood that she forgets what its like to not be so responsible- I have to say what a freeing experience it was! But I will let you know that I was down for the count- after a full day of pool dancing- sleeping from exhaustion at 8pm that night :) 




Since then, we moved to the HardRock Hotel, where I've recently had a wonderful spa experience, and squeezed in a bit of sunbathing at one of the pool areas close to my room. Once I arrived back at my room I called my grandparents to see how my baby was doing- he missed me, and it just tugged hard on the heart strings. I miss him so much, and I'm not sure how I'll survive a seven day vacation in Mexico next month without him around.

Another reason I couldn't blog is because the internet connection isn't that great, Rom couldn't even work in our room. So as I sat contemplating how to start writing about my experience, I decided to stop struggling with the weak internet issue alone, and called the front desk for help. As I sat in my comfortable bed awaiting room service dinner, Rom ran into the room with intense excitement about his night. He received an amazing award from his company, and as I jumped out of bed to congratulate him the internet just started, and my emails became visible- where I saw Toli's acceptance letter from the KoolKids Talent Agency. It felt like within a 30 second window I went from intensely missing my son- to having the most extravagant excitement for my little family- and realizing I'll have my little super star back in my arms by tomorrow night.

Gratitude has hit my heart like you wouldn't believe tonight. Not only are my two men thriving, but so am I. The love and support of everyone reading my blogs, and supporting me on Bloglovin' has been immense, and for that I am also grateful for.

I will end my night with thanks for all that I have, because I will tell you when I let go of my previous business I envisioned myself writing and blogging while travelling... and guess what? That's exactly what I'm doing right in this moment. My heart is full of joy. And I don't want to leave it at that...

What brings you joy? What makes you feel grateful? As I was at the pool sunbathing today I was reading Danielle LaPorte's "The Desire Map". The section I read was on gratitude. So what are you grateful for? Are you grateful for your baby's sweet little smile everyday? Are you grateful that your home is always a comfortable temperature? That you always have another breathe? That the sun always rises again? Danielle talks about how we need to get really detailed in what we're grateful for. The reason for this is we can become really complacent as to what we are grateful for, yes, we can say "I'm grateful I have a roof over my head", or "I'm grateful for my children". But we can say that everyday, it doesn't really dig deep into the gratitude we feel as individuals. Get detailed, and write it down! Today, my blog is sort of an extension of my gratitude journal that I'm sharing with you, and I hope it inspires you to start something similar for yourself.

Please share one thing you are grateful for in the comment section below if you feel so inclined.