Bloob picking and vacation time

Happy Monday everyone!

How was your weekend? Mine was busy, busy! On Saturday I got a workout in then I went grocery shopping to numerous stores, picked blueberries, and then had my sister-in-laws over for dinner and a movie! Ya, Let's just say I didn't quite make it through the movie before sleep got the better part of me:) It was a great day though because I LOVE to grocery shop and see what's fresh and in season!

What I love more is to pick bloobs! It's so much fun to be outside in the sunshine picking glorious blueberries. My picking philosophy is 2 in the mouth, 1 in the bucket. HAHA! I was so full by the time I had to go.. but I just couldn't help myself:) The farm that I pick it is literally 2 minutes from my work so I just stop in there on my way home, pick 5 lbs, and I've got dessert! I actually picked on Friday and Saturday..all those berries are gone! Ryan and I are addicts and then we shared a bunch with my SILs on Saturday night. I can't wait to make some fresh, raw dessert with them. I've been drawn to raw pies and tarts lately so I can't wait to try one of those out!

Oh the blueberry...such a marvelous fruit! How I have missed thee!

Mmmm..blueberry heaven!

My stash!

A nice close up!! Are you drooling yet? Or am I the only blueberry fanatic out there?

On Sunday we slept in and man that was nice! We then went to the mall and we did a bunch of shopping for upcoming wedding showers. It's the first time I've been shopping in forever...bummer it wasn't for me lol! I then went to my cousin's wedding shower and we had a good time chatting and playing some fun games! Ohh the memories:) Then I spent the evening stringing up my beans in the garden and working on my secret wedding project!

And some exciting news..well for me anyways..I'm on vacation as of tomorrow!! I'm heading back home to celebrate my best friend's wedding week! She is getting married on Saturday and I'm the maid of honour! I'm going by myself too (Ryan's staying behind until Friday to tend to my garden...and to work) so it's going to be a nice time with my BFF, my mom, and of course this little guy...

Yep, I'm taking Nemo with me because Ryan's schedule is all over the place and so this way he doesn't have to worry and Nemo can hang out with the ladies:) He's such a pro traveler now so we just put him in his cage and go!

I've got a million things to pack including five flats of raspberries and 10lbs of blueberries that my family back home have ordered! I hope my little car makes it!

And for a little bit of fashion...here is a pict of my dress! I'm actually going to pick it up today in its altered form! I had to take it in a little and I shortened it so that it sits above the knee. Since I'm on the shorter side, I find dresses that go beyond the knee make me look funny. So, I'm showing off a little more leg!! Ha!

I'm not sure if I'm going to be blogging at all the rest of the week as my mom doesn't have the Internet! I may go for an early session at a coffee house or something but I am going to soak up all the time I can because I don't get to see my bestie very often as she lives 10 hours north of me! So, you might see me you might not! If not, I will for sure have a MASSIVE post for you on Monday:)

Have a wonderful week everyone and remember that you are ALL AMAZING!!

Chow for now!!!

Food Stuffs!

Happy Friday!

It's Nemo and me checking in! He loves the computer , in fact, he would like to sit on it every time I have it on my lap. He smiles like that too! Hope you have some great things planned for the weekend. I have to work during the day on Saturday and Sunday so I don't have too much going on. I don't mind though, a quiet weekend is a great time to catch up on some reading whether it be books or blogs. Another relaxing activity the hubby and I love to do is walk around the town with our coffee and tea discovering new stores, have-to-try restaurants, and cool houses. Hope you have fun discovering new in your own town. I'll let you know if I find anything blog worthy!

So, I thought I haven't posted anything about what I eat so here it goes:

In the morning I try to drink a glass of water or herbal tea before I eat anything. It helps to wake up my body and get it ready for the food to come. I then wait 10 minutes before I eat my breakfast.

Breakfast usually consists of 2 pieces of Silver Hills bread, Squirrelly is our favorite, with some almond butter and just a few shavings of raw coconut butter. Otherwise, I have a green smoothie usually with kale, bananas, hemp protein, and cinnamon.

Just a little side note! Silver Hills is located in Abbotsford, BC and so if you live on the coast and have time to stop by it is definitely worth the trip. They have a little store on site where they sell the "seconds" and if you aren't worried about slice size or having a bad that says Squirrrley, then you can save yourself some dough (sorry, couldn't resist). For instance, my mom is bringing me up some of their bread next week and she got the loaves for $2 each, here they are close to $5. Great deal!

Lunch is a highly variable meal for me. I might hav some leftovers like soup, chili, steamed veggies, or rarely, pasta. I also might make a huge salad. This week I had an awesome salad made up of two kinds of kale, romaine lettuce, carrots, red cabbage, parsley, and dulse. I used the Mediterranean Olive Oil and Lemon Vinaigrette from Veganomicon . This was so great and exactly what I was craving. I also made the Ginger Carrot dressing from Brendan Brazier's The Thrive Diet. This was pretty good except the apple cider vinegar was a bit too overpowering. When I make it next time I'll try it with less ACV and see how it goes.


Dinner lately has consisted of a lot of chili, quinoa, steamed squash, yams, and salad. I am on a pretty strict budget so I have to buy food items that will stretch my dollar. Beans or lentils are one of those items and so I have been buying a bulk bag of them every couple of weeks. I mainly buy kidney beans, and split peas. I like the split pea soup recipe from fatfreevegan and usually replace the potato with some sweet potatoes or yams. I like the texture and flavor these give to the soup. I never remember to buy the celery seed powder so I add marjoram and increase the amount of the other spices until the flavor is fantastico!

The following recipe is somewhat based on the Skinny Bitch in the Kitch Cha Cha Chili recipe but I made some modifications to spice it up a notch and I also added some more veggies. This is so great as it will last for a couple of days and I can have some time away from the kitchen or some time for experimenting.

Vegan Chili Extraordinaire (makes enough to last me three days worth of dinner and lunch for two people)

2 Cups Kidney beans, soaked overnight ( you can add more beans if you like). I've also done it with different beans like pintos.
2 Onions , chopped
3 Cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup chili powder
salt, as desired, or add some dulse
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano or 2 tablespoons fresh oregano
1 teaspoon dried sage or 1 tablespoon fresh sage
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or more if you like it spicy
28 oz can of chopped or whole tomatoes
1 can tomato paste, or 1/2 can of tomato sauce
1/2 cup rice or lentils
1 can of organic corn, or 1 ear of organic corn
2-3 kale leaves, chopped finely in food processor
2 carrots, chopped or grated
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped

Rinse the soaked beans and add to a large pot. Add fresh water so that there is about an inch of water covering the beans. Cook the beans until they reach a boil then reduce to medium heat. Cook for approximately 30 minutes, checking their softness regularly after 20 minutes.

In a large pan melt some coconut oil (or oil of choice) and fry the onions. Fry them until soft and then add the minced garlic along with the chili powder, salt (if using dulse, add later), pepper, oregano, sage, marjoram, and cayenne. Cook until the onions and garlic are coated with the spices. If the mixture starts sticking to the pan add some water and scrape the bottom lightly. Add this to the beans. Also add the rice or lentils, tomatoes, carrots, and celery. Cook for 20-30 minutes.

Add the corn, kale, pepper, tomato paste, and dulse. Cook until veggies are tender (15-20 minutes). Enjoy!

I had a couple of picts to show you of my latest pot of chili but they were on my memory stick that has now erased all my picts:( So, I'll be sure to take extra the next time I make this, which will most likely be next week.

Have a great weekend and do something relaxing and fun!