New Years Resolutions

I've never been a person that is good at following through with things. You should see the half finished projects that I have! It's impressive.

I've made resolutions in the past, but I'm not really motivated enough to keep them. This year, my resolution was to read a book a month, which I was doing very good at until my kobo broke a couple months ago (which isn't an excuse I know.)

Side note: I stopped writing this earlier in the day, and just started again (at 11pm) FURTHER EVIDENCE.

I guess what I should do is get to the point! New years resolutions for 2014. Yes. I'm setting some. Will I fulfill them? probably not.

1. Write a blog post once a week
2. Do more creative things like writing, crafting etc.
3. Read a book a month. You can do it!

I've found the goldmine, ladies.

I say "ladies" because I'm fairly certain only about 2 or 3 of my lady friends actually check my blog.

But I've found the most amazing website for cooking on a budget! it's http://www.budgetbytes.com and it's FANTASTIC! This lady has created delicious, yet budget-savvy recipes that make your mouth water! I'm testing our her sesame chicken recipe tonight!

Happy cooking!

Roadtrip 2013!

Recently Jordan and I had the opportunity to go on a road trip with his family through the United States. The plan was 6 states in 10 days. Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Arizona and California, and we made it! the 6 of us were in an Astro van, which was very very comfortable for our long travelling days. Here are some highlights from our trip! If you want to hear more stories, I would love to have you over and make you a coffee!

Bryce Canyon, Utah - This place was absolutely beautiful! 

  Enjoying the Utah sunshine

 Jordan and Ike not paying attention to the guard rails

 Family portait (missing a few lovelies) at the Grand Canyon in Arizona

 Grand Canyon, AZ

Delgadillo's Drive In, Seligmann AZ. One of the most interesting places! 

Our greeter, welcoming us to Oatman, Arizona! (this is called a Burro) 

 Stuck his head right into the van and accepted our present!

Hannah and I make friends with the Burro's who walk around the town 

Our slight detour to see the Hollywood sign led us on a drive through Beverly Hills, Bel-Air and Malibu! 

A beach full of Elephant Seals on the way to San Francisco up the #1 highway 

Exploring Fisherman's Wharf in Downtown San Francisco 

San Francisco's Chinatown 

 Finally found a beach worth stopping and exploring in Oregon on the way home.

Happy to be back at the Pacific Ocean (even though it was a little cold!)

Our Monday Adventure

Jordan and I try to do something fun in the city every Monday, since that is the day in the weekend when Jordan is the most awake. This week we decided to go to the aquarium! Even though we've been tons before, it's still always fun to go see all the different creatures.

The night before we had the opportunity to see Great Big Sea at the Orpheum theatre with our brothers Steve and Ike and my Dad, and in a completely random happenstance... our good friends Dan and Amanda (read their amazing blog here) were sitting right next to us! We bought our tickets at the same time, in separate towns and without knowing, bought the seats that were right beside each other, I would call that divine providence, serendipity or whatever you would say. Anyways, it was an amazing concert, definitely in the top 3 I've seen... though they didn't play a few songs that I was looking forward to... (but I think that I can forgive them)

Great Big Sea!

Waiting to see the dolphins at the Vancouver Aquarium

 My favorite shot of the day from the Aquarium...

IT. IS. FINISHED.

Practicum is FINISHED! I have completed my hours officially and my Mondays and Tuesdays are officially free. This last 4 days was my first break since I started practicum at the end of September, and I already have tons more energy than I have over the last couple months. I feel like I can go to work tomorrow and actually put more energy into my job as a nanny than I ever have before. The other day, Jordan and I got the opportunity to go to the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth park on Cambie St. It was lovely!! It's not too expensive to get in, and you get to see all sorts of tropical plants and birds! at only $7 dollars each to get in, it's a great way to spend a rainy day!

Almost finished...

I'm almost finished! Only 3 days of practicum left to do and I will be free from daycare! (then after that I just need to read 1500 pages and write two huge papers by the end of april, woohoo!)

I unfortunately had to call in sick today because I pulled a muscle in my left leg yesterday when I bent down to tie a child's shoe, leaving me unable to walk without pain today. Fortunately it's gotten better over the course of the day, so I will be able to get back to work tomorrow (at the best job ever, mind you!)

Jordan and I have been doing weekly menus instead of buying random things at the grocery store, and we've actually been really enjoying it! (and spending less money on groceries) Tonight I tried to make one of my favorite recipes that my mom used to make us when we were younger, but it went horribly wrong, which I was very disappointed about. But hey, maybe next time it will work! 

Tomorrow night: one of my favorites! Taco salad!

Photography

I've really been enjoying taking photos with my phone. Since Jordan and I aren't in the place to afford a new camera right now, my phone is all I have! Here are some of my favorite photos I've taken over the last couple months...

Who's terrible at blogging?

ME! ME! pick me!
I have been completely neglecting my blog as of late, I feel like I have no energy to do anything other than cook dinner when I get home and tidy up a little before I go to bed. I have 4 days left of practicum (which sorts out to 2 weeks, because I only do Monday and Tuesdays) and I am very VERY relieved that it is coming to an end, but at the same time I will miss (some) of the kids and the teachers that have taught me so much over the past 4 months. I have one more course to finish and I will be a certified Early Childhood Educator (yay!) By the end of March I have to read 1500 pages, and by the end of April I have to have written a 20 page paper. Just one more push through and I can finally be done.

I have made the transition from extrovert to introvert lately, and find myself being quite the homebody. I never used to be like this, I always went out with friends, hung out with people etc, but lately I'm finding myself dreading going somewhere where I'll have to talk to anyone, and nights spend reading and busying myself at home have become my favorite ones. I've even started to play with poetry. Something I have never even thought about doing before. I am not sure if this is a healthy change, I mean... I still see friends sometimes and I have a great and healthy relationship with my husband. Is it wrong to like to stay home and be quiet? Is it normal to go through phases where you're an extrovert (like I was in high school) then change to an introvert?

I am trying some exciting recipes this week and I am looking forward to posting them!
Falafel tutorial on Saturday!

Holiday Eggnog! (Non-Alcoholic, Alcoholic or Dairy Free!)

• 2 cups whole milk*
• 2 cups cream*
• 8 egg yolks
• 1 ½ tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg, preferably freshly ground

⅛ teaspoon ground cloves ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice 4 tablespoons raw honey or maple syrup pinch of sea salt Bourbon, rum, and cognac to taste (optional) To make it dairy free, replace cream and whole milk with coconut milk. So tasty! With the holiday season here I am a huge fan of eggnog. It's a seasonal tradition that is definitely one of my favorites, and this is a great tasty recipe!

Stay Positive.

I've been struggling with staying positive and motivated lately.

I have been doing my daycare practicum  on Mondays and Tuesdays at a great daycare centre in South Vancouver. The kids are great, the teachers are supportive, but I've realized this is not my calling. This is not what I was meant to do with my ECE certificate. God is calling me in a different direction in working with children, but I do not know where that is, or when that will be. I have a heavy feeling on my heart that I am needed somewhere else with children, not in a daycare centre. just need to get this done so I can begin to pursue whatever it is that God is wanting me to do. Prayer for motivation to continue this, and that I would stay positive would be greatly appreciated.

Crock Pot White Chili

A gem from http://www.getcrocked.com . It really turns into a soup with beans, and less of a white chili, but it is still majorly delicious. Instead of cubing the chicken, my mother in law and I added the chicken in, bones and all. When the chicken was cooked we removed the bones and added the shredded chicken. It is also very good if you add some shredded cheese over the soup before you serve it (this is optional of course)

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 medium onion
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
2 15.5 oz cans northern beans (drained) (we used 1 can of northern beans and one can of black beans)
16 oz chicken stock
16 oz corn frozen or canned
2 TBS olive oil
1 tsp mexican or southwest seasoning (I used taco seasoning)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp black pepper ground
2 TBS chili powder

1. Cut chicken into cubes and place in bowl.
2. Coat with olive oil and mexican/SW seasoning.
3. Place in bottom of crock pot.
4. Dice vegetables and place on top of chicken, layer corn then beans.
5. Cover with chicken stock and add remaining seasonings.
6. Cook on low for 4 hrs.

Before and After

Our tasty bird before....

and after!

thank you Jamie Oliver for your excellent tasty chicken recipe! this is most definitely a repeat!

I am thankful....

I'm thankful for the blessings that God has bestowed upon Jordan and I, he has allowed us to take root in a place that we are passionate about, and has paved our way.

I'm thankful for my wonderful husband, Jordan and how he blesses me continuously.

I'm thankful for my community and my neighbourhood filled with beautiful and wonderful friends.

I'm thankful for our apartment and the wonderful home our landlords have provided us with.

I'm thankful for my mom and her wonderful phone calls

I'm thankful for my dad, for always knowing exactly what to say, and for valuing our memories so closely.

I'm thankful for my brothers, who always make me laugh.

I am thankful for my "step" siblings, Sabrina, Savanna and Blake, who over the years have become my real brothers and sisters.

I'm thankful for my Shaw family, who have taken me in as their own and brought me into something beautiful.

I'm thankful for my grandparents and the love that they constantly show me.

I'm thankful for living so close to the ocean, smelling the salty air again makes me feel at home.

I'm thankful for my wonderful job, finally doing something I love.



I am thankful.

No Bake "Energy Balls"

I was looking for a recipe that included things that I had in my cupboard, and things that I didn't have to bake.. so I came across this lovely recipe and it yields amazing results!

No-Bake Energy Bites Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup (dry) oatmeal (I used old-fashioned oats)

2/3 cup toasted coconut flakes

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup ground flaxseed or wheat germ

1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)

1/3 cup honey

1 tsp. vanilla

Method:

Stir all ingredients together in a medium bowl until thoroughly mixed.  Let chill in the refrigerator for half an hour.  Once chilled, roll into balls of whatever size you would like.  (Mine were about 1″ in diameter.)  Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Makes about 20-25 balls.

Recipe and Photo found at this amazing blog

Tuna and Black Bean Soup

To tell you the truth, a soup with canned tuna as an ingredient never interested me at all. To me, canned tuna was a lunch for when I was feeling extremely lazy and uncreative.. is that a word?

Anyways, the family that I am a nanny for had me make this for them one night for dinner, and I couldn't resist but to make it myself. It is one of the tastiest soups I've ever had!

You will need:
1 Fennel bulb chopped small
1 Small onion, diced
2 Garlic cloves, minced
1 Large can of stewed tomatoes
1 Can black beans, drained/rinsed
1 Can of clam nectar (sounds nasty, but adds to the flavour of the soup!)
2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 Can tuna, drained
1 Tsp Parsley (dried)
1 Tsp Oregano (dried)
1 Tsp Basil (dried)

First, you want to open all your cans and drain what needs to be drained and rise what needs to be rinsed.. (Or not, I'm just weird like that)

Chop the onions and the fennel bulb so they are roughly the same size, so they cook evenly.

Heat up your pan on medium heat with your 2 Tbsp of olive oil and garlic

Add the onions and the fennel and cook on medium heat until the onions start to become translucent.

 When the onions are translucent, add the clam nectar and the can of tomatoes. (also add your herbs)

When that has come to a boil, add your can of rinsed black beans and the can of tuna.

Mix well and add salt and pepper to season

Turn down to low, cover and let sit for about half an hour to an hour. The longer you leave it, the more tender the veggies will be!

Slow Cooker Thai Coconut Soup

1 (14 oz) can coconut milk

1 Tbsp Thai curry paste

2 cups water

2 tsp chicken bouillon granules

3/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into small cubes 

4 oz white mushrooms, sliced

2 lemongrass stalks, bruised 

2 limes, juiced

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Salt and pepper

1.  Combine milk, curry paste, water, bouillon, chicken, mushrooms and lemongrass in slow cooker.

2.  Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours, or on HIGH for about 2-3.

3.  Remove lemongrass and discard.

4.  Add in juice of limes and cilantro.  Plenty of salt and pepper to taste.  Stir and serve.

Recipe found HERE

"To Die For" Garlic Cheese Rolls

Okay, I absolutely HAVE to share this recipe.
I found it about 3 days ago on pinterest and have made it twice since (so you know it's a good one!)

You Will Need:
Flour
Sugar
Salt
Yeast
Warm Water
Cheese
Garlic
Butter or Margarine
A 9 x 13 casserole dish

First I start out with my all purpose dough (I used this instead of the dough recipe that was on the other blog) I've used this dough recipe for everything. Cinnamon buns, dinner buns, pizza crust, calzones, cheese sticks... the possibilities are endless!

Carlye's Amazing All-Purpose Dough Recipe:
2 1/2 to 3 cups of Flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tsp Salt
1 Pkg or 2 1/4 Tsp Yeast
1 Cup very warm water

Mix all the ingredients together with one cup of flour to start, gradually add the rest of the flour and knead to create a ball of doughy goodness. Let rest in a warm spot for half an hour before preparing.

Next what you want to do is roll the dough out just as you would to make cinnamon buns, except you are not putting a sweet filling in this.

Mix about half a cup of butter or margarine with 1 - 2 garlic cloves (depends on how much you love garlic) Spread this all over one side of the dough. Then, add some grated cheese (or just parmesan) and roll up like you would with cinnamon rolls.

Slice into 2 inch long buns and arrange in your casserole dish (you don't need to grease the pan, these suckers will do it themselves!) if you would like to, add cheese to the top.

Bake at 350 until golden brown! Your family will be fighting over these things!

Recipe originally found HERE

Visiting Home...

This weekend was amazing.
We had the privilege of visiting our home church in Abbotsford, Emmanuel Mennonite. To be honest I wasn't looking forward to it because I knew leaving was going to be hard. We got to see so many good friends, and people we truly missed. Sitting with our friend Amanda during the service was such a blessing, I got to hold Micah as he fell asleep on me for a good part of the service, and seeing Joel so happy and actually have him remember who I am was a lot of fun. I am already looking forward to our next visit to Emmanuel. I remember when we first moved to Abbotsford and I had a bad attitude about moving there. At that point in my life I was never prepared to call Abbotsford "home". But over the almost 2 years we lived there I have grown to love Abbotsford, especially the people and the community. Vancouver is also my home. This is where I have made lifelong friends, and where I met the love of my life. It is where sometimes, I feel closest with the Lord than I have anywhere else. I think about this and look at the art piece that Jordan's mom gave us last christmas which says "Home is wherever we are, as long as there's love there too" and this reminds me that I have lots of homes. Vancouver, Abbotsford, Nanaimo, Ucluelet... wherever we are is home, as long as there's love there too.

Practicum!

For those of you that prayed (if anyone even reads this) it worked! I have a meeting with a practicum site across the street from my house next week! Now I just need you to pray that everything goes smoothly!

Our new home

Jordan and I are settling quite nicely into our new place in Vancouver. Jordan is working full time at Grace Mansion (a second stage housing project for people coming out of treatment) and casual at Union Gospel Mission, both of which are across the street from our house! I have started my position nannying for a family that lives very close to our house. Here are some photos of our new place if you haven't seen them on facebook!

 I absolutely LOVE our antique gas stove!

 Our bedroom is absolutely tiny, but it's cozy!

 All of the doors are original to the house, including door knobs, leaded windows.. so beautiful!

 No bathtub, but I can deal with that!

 The living space

 Our very cute little fireplace! (excited to hang stocking on this for christmas!)

 Our view out onto our patio, reminds me of Europe!

 The backyard

 The front (back) door!

And the queen of the castle!

Our place is small but comfortable. We're settling in and getting comfortable with our new but familiar surroundings. I'm still looking for a daycare to complete my practicum hours for my ECE certificate, so prayers would be appreciated! The plum trees in our backyard is going to yield some tasty jam in the next couple weeks, I will be sure to post photos of that!