Past and present!

Hey Bloggies,

I didn't get to post last night again because I didn't have the device with me to transfer my pictures to the laptop..go figure! But noon isn't too far off, right? Okay let's get to it!

The Wednesday before the move, I flew into Vancouver for a workshop for work. Ya, it was wonderful timing..lol! I wasn't too impressed with work to send me out there the week of my move but oh well so is life. The workshop was the Dale Carnegie High Impact Presentations workshop. It was two days (although the last day I had to leave early to catch my flight).

Initially I was skeptical as to what this workshop was going to do for me professionally. Right off the bat the teachers told us that we were going to give 6 small presentations in front of the class and all of these would be video taped. Fear was radiating through my veins the minute I heard this and I wished I was invisible so I could sneak out and run, run away! Public speaking is not my strong point, is it anyone's? Anywho, I did my first presentation and cringed as I watched myself on camera but I also learned a lot about how I project myself. I talked a lot with my hands, talked too quietly, and stood a lot on one foot. After the first couple presentations I was beginning to enjoy myself. The guys at my table were really nice and I enjoyed talking with them. I also became more aware of myself in front of a crowd and would catch myself if say, I would be flailing my hands. I learned a lot of techniques that not only apply to the boardroom, they can be used in real life situations where you need to project confidence and poise..say getting a bank loan or in a job interview. In the end I thought the workshop was really wonderful and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to attend. If your boss ever sends you to one of these, don't worry it's not as bad as you think it will be.

My flashy certificate that they even put in a frame! Not sure if it will ever go on the wall, but I will for sure be putting this training on my resume:)


After leaving the workshop on Friday, I had to take the Skytrain to the airport which was an experience in itself. I had to transfer 3 times and so I was like a tourist asking the patrolling cops where to go..lol! But I made it in perfect time! I was really nervous because the weather had been pretty disgusting earlier that day and I thought there was the possibility that the flight could get cancelled. The airport I was flying into is not called "cancel-gar" for nothing! Yet, the afternoon cleared up beautifully and we were off! I don't mind flying although I have this hidden fear of falling from the sky to my death lol! When I can't see houses anymore, I'm good. Apparently I think my chances of death are less at HIGHER altitude..lol. We landed safely and my ride arrived in good time too! My MIL and her hubby were driving up to Nelson so they picked me up along their route.

Zipping along to current day! This past week I didn't want to take a cab/bus home again so I decided to start walking home and get Ry to pick me up along the way. I didn't think it would be more than half and hour so I took a leisurely stroll along the country roads and took some picts of course!

Nothing quite like the BC countryside without prickly blackberry bushes..and some power lines!

What's that hiding in the tall grass? Is that horns I see?

Here's a cute little one trying his best to follow his mamma's orders to stay low in the grass:)

The yellow grass area is actually cranberry fields!

Ah good ole CN rail! I get to hear the train many times a day and its actually fun to hear it. I definitely feel like its "back in the day" where I work which I don't mind one bit!

I love snow-capped mountains and Mt. Baker is just that!

Okay, this house is pretty much my dream home...acreage, tree-lined drive-way, pond, horse paddocks, country-style home. Simply gorgeous:)

I ended up finding the perfect car on Friday! Thank you all for your good car vibes..it worked!! After the disappointing events on Thursday, I did some mad searching on Friday. I searched craigslist all day and nothing too promising was coming up. I was trying various search words to see if something different would come up. Finally, the last search I did on Friday I found a car that was listed on June 8. I thought it would have for sure been sold by now but I emailed anyways. The owners responded and we headed out to take it for a test drive. I mean she is old but that's what I was looking for! I really only need a commuter car. The owners were two seniors who didn't need it as they were now close to the skytrain. The guy was only the second owner and the car is an '87 with only 151, 000Km on it! The car is in excellent shape and the owner had all the receipts. Ya, that is very rare to find someone having all the receipts for an older car. Ry thought it was great and that was that! I love driving my new Betsy around and she is quickly becoming a good friend...lol! I'm just so excited to not be stranded at work as that was not a fun time.

We named my old car (ya, only a year ago I was driving a car that was only a couple of years older than this one, what can I say I like the oldies..LOL!) "eggnog" because that was the color of the paint, so now I need a new name and everyone thought "milk" if we wanted to stick to the dairy products...but I say "mylk", "snow white", or Ryan's suggestion "White Russian" (I think making that liquor cabinet really got to him:) You have any suggestions?

Okay so I was going to show you the cassette player except my picture wasn't supposed to be from outside. I didn't want to go dig my keys out so this will have to do for now..lol! Lazy blogger I know. And yes you heard right, it has the STOCK cassette player still in it. Ry is going to put in a deck one of these days but for now its radio baby...and fuzzy radio at that. The one good station I get is oldies classics..suiting wouldn't you say?

As for the dinner plans, they ended up not working out. It was pretty much my fault they didn't but I made my apologies and it wasn't my proudest moment but I'm trying not to beat myself up too badly. Remember how I said I was all emotional and on edge?..ya well this one of those times when it really got the best of me. As for the food, I bought all the ingredients for a thai salad and for Kelli's chocolate cream that she recommended. Yet, I didn't even have dinner that night because we were busy getting the car home and I was emotional about the whole dinner party cancellation thing. So, the goodness would have to wait for another day!

The next day I picked up my mom and we did some plant shopping..I was so giddy it wasn't even funny!! They even had this cutie-patutie!

I love goats! They have such characters! I think Nemo and a goat would be best buds LOL!

Feed me already!

I see the goods!!

Ahh..finally!!

Once we said goodbye to Spot and I spent my paycheck stocked up, we headed into town to pick up some indoor pots for some of my plants. I had them in outdoor pots for some reason and because I just picked up all these bedding plants, I needed those pots!

I love this one! It's the first thing I see when I walk into the front door:)

These plants were actually from last Christmas! This was one of those holiday planters that has a pointsetta in it. The pointsetta died but these plants are going strong!

I love how this pot looks old and almost Roman:)

My prayer plant! Oh she has been good to me. Through underwatering and overwatering, she has stuck by me. I other words, if you want an easy plant to care for get one of these!


It rained most of the week and so the lawn was stretching for the sky by Saturday! I had to cut it twice but man it looks awesome. Mom did the weed eating part! We then tackled weeding some rock beds that in the end we took the rocks out and put soil in. We planted some canna lilies and these beautiful blue flowers to fill in the remaining space.

When Ry got home we decided that it was time to take out the rose bush. It was pretty much dead and was quite diseased. Two ladies, one man, an electric saw, and one shovel later we were able to cut the darn thing down. Holy, are they strong and the root is big! It looks so much better without it there its quite amazing! We also planted some trailing flowers underneath to fill the space.

The rhodo stands alone..lol! I think it looks a lot better with just the three rhodo bushes in there!
These are the cute trailing plants that are planted in the bed around the rhodos. I love the mix name "tequila" woot woot!

Phew...this catching up business is work I tell you:) I love sharing it with ya'll though so its fun too! Hope you have a fabulous rest of your day. I plan on going for a run on my favoritie trail (picts to come!) and then picking up a flat of strawberries..yum!

PS I watched the season finale of Glee last night and they sang one of my favorite songs. Its such a beautiful song..and ya I cried LOL! Enjoy! Do you love Glee...it's one of the only shows that makes me smile that's on TV right now!! Can't wait to see what happens in season 2.

Going Back in Time!

Hey Bloggies,

I've been such a slacker in the blogging department but life has been pretty busy and aunt flo's visit this month has got me down for the count..literally! It's come to the point that I'm going to see my ND because I can't take it anymore. I was so emotional this past week that I fought with Ry, cried, was constantly on edge, and repeated many times over..not fun! I also don't want to be taking pain relievers every time she comes for a visit either. I think I should get some blood testing to make sure I'm not really low on my vitamins, minerals or if something else is out of wack! If any of your ladies have found a natural solution to combat aunt flo, I'm all eyes!

Moving on, I've decided to go back and share some of my life that I haven't had a chance to share with you. This is going back to the good 'ole Nelson days. Can you believe its been nearly 3 weeks already. It already feels like our time there is a distant memory. I do have to admit that I really miss it there. I miss the vibe, the relaxed people, the walking everywhere, and the no rush hour! I was so used to having mountains literally stare at me in the face when I went outside and now I feel like I'm living in the flatlands. For those of you living in BC or have been here you know it is NOT flatlands and there are tons of mountains, its just different in Nelson. Yet, my backyard reminds me of Nelson for some reason and so I'm loving it!

Nelson Backyard!! It's nice to know we have friends up there so we can go and visit anytime!

My backyard! Not quite as big but it'll do:) I immediately feel at peace when I go out here!

I also knew I wouldn't be finding a replacement for Oso coffee here so I literally stocked up for a year lol. This is another excuse to go back up to Nelson. Yes, I'm saying I would drive 8 hours to go get coffee..lol! I don't even drink the stuff all the time but gosh damn it's good!

The coffee shelf in the freezer lol! It smells so good when you open the door:)

This "Prince of Darkness" roast...delish! I love their label too!

Yep they roast their own coffee beans like 5 minutes away from the cafe! Oh and its made with love too so you know its gotta be AMAZING!

Here's the little story behind the name. LOVE IT! I wish more companies had this philosophy and would give people choices to not be so "culturally removed."

I didnt talk about The Preserved Seed at all when we were in Nelson because we only went there near the end of our stay there. It is run by a group called The Twelve Tribes. I don't know much about them but they remind me of Mormons or Huterites as they live together in the same communities and work together. Super nice people and doing some great things in their cafe and bakery.

The cafe is located in an old house and its super cozy inside. I forgot to take pictures but its so nice for a afternoon tea or lunch! They grow a lot of the food served in the cafe which I really love and everything is homemade.

Love the wreath! Their main beverage served here is yerba mate. I grew up with this drink so I was very excited to try it here! I would call yerba a much stronger green tea? I love it and holy the buzz you get off the stuff is crazy..haha!

We moved up to Nelson so the hubby could attend school there (in case you didn't know the story:). Every year once the program is finished they hold an open house in the local gallery so the public can see (and even purchase) their completed works. So, this time had come and I finally got to see Ry's two big pieces in their finished form. I had heard him talk about his projects for 6 months but I never saw the final product so it was an exciting time! A lot of Ryan's family and friends had come up for the event (and to help us move the next day) so it was a great celebration. It was also a sad time because it was going to be the last time he and I would see his classmates. Hopefully we can keep in touch as they all are amazing and so talented!

I love this gallery and we would check it out all the time when we would be strolling downtown. It features great, local artists with everything from jewellery and scarves to pottery and lamps.

Ta Da..the hubby's liquor cabinet! Well it's kind of an everything cabinet but he placed the shelves at a certain hight so 40 pounders can fit in there...lol! Like we ever will have those in there but oh well..maybe some fine china one day! We got to the gallery at 7:30 and someone already was asking if it was for sale. We weren't planning on selling it but we did have a price in mind in case we were in that situation. Oh well, now we get to enjoy it in our new house:)

For some reason I don't have a picture of the finished table at the show but here it is nearly complete..it's gorgeous and fits in perfectly with the house.

This was one of their first projects at school. It's such a funky box that you could use for so many things. His Dad was the lucky receiver of this piece!

I love the little cut-out in the front and the dove tails look pretty funky too!

This was the kids chair he made! So cute and love the legs on it! Our little godson proudly has this chair in his room:)

It was very packed in the gallery so I didn't snap too many photos besides Ry's work! What can I say, I was a proud wife:) This piece was Ry's favorite and I love it as well. I would so sit at that desk and blog away! To the right of this table was a beautiful tea cabinet. I really wanted this! Cute little drawers for all the tea and room for some nice tea cups too!

I think this is all the writing I can do for now but maybe I'll sneak in another post later on today! We shall see.

Talk to you soon!

Putting my words in my mouth and dessert ideas!

Happy Friday bloggies!

Oh thank heavens its Friday! I had quite the adventure last night and I thought I'd share it with you all. It has to do with buying a car...so ya, you can probably see where this is going. Anyways, here's my story.

So, yesterday Ry went to look at a car from Craigslist that looked pretty good. As I was working, I was not able to go look at it with him. He is very good with cars and so I had full faith that he would detect problems, if there were any. Okay, so I get a call from him saying that the car looked good but the guys he was going to get it from looked a little sketchy. Light bulb #1. I should have taken this apprehension and told him not to go through with it. Yet, I was getting pretty desperate for a car so my danger! danger! radar was not functioning optimally at this point. He bought the car and did all the paperwork which the guy already had on hand. Light bulb #2. Usually people don't carry the paperwork to transfer cars with them, you usually have to go to an insurance place. Luckily my mom had just come into town and so I had a car to go meet him at this place (over an hour away). We arrive and Ry is driving the car in front of me and I notice that when he punches the gas there is blue smoke. Light bulb #3. We get to the shady car dealership and Ry tells me the guys wouldn't let him take it out of the parking lot for the test drive so he didn't see the blue smoke. In case you didn't know, Blue smoke = burning oil/engine is crappy and may die on you. To make things worse, right before we met up with Ry, he got a ticket for talking on his cell phone while he was pulling into a parking lot. Ya, it wasn't his night I tell you. PS in BC they just made it illegal to have any electronic device in your hands while behind the wheel. So, we go back to the shady guys running this questionable car dealership and ask them for our money back because its burning oil yadda yadda. Well, his options were A) leave the car there and once they sell it he would give us the money back. Can anyone smell a scam brewing? B) pay for his "fees" and get the hell out. We chose option B and chucked down that night as a complete write-off. I was so disappointed and angry that Ry didn't do more investigating into the car and that those shady guys were such a**holes. I guess I felt let down because I was still car-less and we wasted so much time. On the way back I rode with my mom and I was just spewing out negative words left and right. I was so pent up but I really should have said this or remembered what I just wrote about on the blog HOURS earlier. Yet, I let my emotions take over. Once I got back to our place I had forgiven Ry (he felt SOO bad) but I was still grumpy. I should have been thankful we at least got some of our money back and that we made it there and back safely. Like Nelly said in the comments yesterday, "things happen for a reason." We could have bought the car and maybe it wouldn't have even made it home and we would have been out all of our money! There is always something worse that could happen and I need to realize that. Can I blame it partly on my upcoming visit from aunt flo? 1% maybe..not enough to justify it!

So, there you have it.. My Thursday night! The lesson of this whole story?

1. Trust your instincts! If you have just the slightest flutter of doubt..walk away!
2. Really be sure that something you want to buy, be it a car or anything used for that matter, is in good shape and they have receipts to back up their claims of repairs, upgrades, etc!
3. Don't buy from a guy who seems to have a bodyguard and has two phones! I can laugh about this now..lol!
4. Take it for a test run, drive etc and look at EVERY nook and cranny to make sure things aren't falling apart or burning oil, in our case.

So, I'm still on the hunt for my new "betsy" lol! We found a few to look at locally so hopefully by this weekend I'll have some wheels. I really wish that I could get around with a bike or bus but my work is in the boonies and I already had to take a cab to a place where I could catch the bus and the cab ride alone cost me $10. So, $12.50 to get home everyday is ridiculous. Wish me luck and send me good car vibes:)

Onto something much more exciting and happy..I'm having my sister-in-law and her boyfriend over for dinner tonight and I want to make a quick and easy dessert for them. I won't have much time after work to prepare something extravagant. I could search the blogosphere but I thought I could go straight to the source..you guys!! (plus I'm pretty tired and don't have the energy:( Let me know of your favorite, quick desserts that would be loved by non-vegans. Think meat and potatoes kind of guy!

Thank you in advance:)

I hope you all have a wonderful Friday and weekend. It's supposed to get sunny and HOT here finally so I'm so excited to catch some rays. Mom is going to come over tomorrow to help me plant some more flowers and veggies so that will be fun!

LOTS OF LOVE

Quotes for the day - Life

Happy Thursday Bloggies!

Today's post is short and sweet. I really wanted to share some words of inspiration with you all that will help you push on in life, no matter what is thrown your way. Everyone struggles at some point in their lives (or everyday!) and sometimes you need a hand to help you get up off the ground and dust yourself off. Sometimes you even need tough love! I love quotations as they really "speak" to me and help me get my thoughts out of the negative ditch and back onto my path. I know a quote may not be enough to help you with all you are dealing with, but, if even for a second, you can have some peace or contimplate good change, I think it's worth it.


I know God will not give anything I can't handle. I just wish that he didn't trust me so much ~Mother Teresa

NOTE: I'm not pushing religion here. You can apply this quote to whatever religion you want..or none at all. Also, I don't think we need to argue how special and AMAZING Mother Teresa's work was. Trusting in ourselves is so important and its a huge struggle for so many people, including myself, and apparently even the sweetheart, Mother Teresa. See, even powerful people have struggles. You are NEVER alone!

You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you ~ Walt Disney

Change is NEVER easy and sometimes if we procrastinate for too long, a little boot is exactly what we need to get moving again! This was me and is still me in certain situations!

I have been wildly, disparingly, acutely miserable, but through it all I still know quite certainly that just being alive is a grand thing ~ Agatha Christie

I think about people in other countries who haven't eaten in days or live in mud shacks or suffer from unbearable diseases, and I realize I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I used to complain a lot about life, but now I think to myself : have you eaten today? yes! Have you had clean water today? yes! Do you have shelter? yes! Are you loved? YES! This brings me off my high horse and I become thankful for my life. Sometimes this process brings me to tears because I had taken for granted all the luxuries that I have in my life.

That's my food for thought today! And remember I think you are all wonderful and are doing fabulous things in your life. Trust in yourself!!!


PS - my dear Nelly is having an AMAZING giveaway for Ani Phyo's new book Ani's Raw Food Essentials!! So go check out her awesome blog ASAP!!

Home wrecker plus garden picts!

Happy Tuesday!!

The whirlwind continues in my neck of the woods!! I'm car-less and I work in an area that has no bus stops so Ry has been dropping me off. Today his boss asked him to be at work for 6AM..that meant I was at work at 5:30 (I usually start at 7)..eek! I am looking at this as a positive thing though because that means that I get off at 1:30..wahoo!! Anywho, things are coming together...slowly...at the house. I didn't take any time off so I've had to organize after work and, well, sometimes it just doesn't happen. The hubs is working this weekend so I am planning on spending a lot of time in the closets..ha..jk..more likely the garage which looks like a battle zone right now with boxes, tools, gardening stuff etc! As for time in the kitchie....ya...umm...it hasn't really happened. I've been eating on auto-pilot: salad with avocado, pickled beets, carrots, cauliflower, parsley, cilantro, cabbage..etc etc! I really need to stock up my pantry and haven't had a chance to make it to the ONE health food store that I can get to by walking. I was searching meetup.com and found an organic food buying group in my area so I'm going to be in contact with them soon!

Okay so you are probably at the edge of your seat wondering why I would admit to being a home wrecker? Ha...well I didn't even know I was one. What? Let me explain. On Sunday I was outside almost all day in the garden and didn't take my phone with me. When I finally looked at it at 5pm, there were 9 missed calls from this weird number. One time the caller left a message saying her name was Cindy and if I could give her a call. I don't know a Cindy so I thought it was probably a wrong number. Then on Monday morning..literally 7Am on the dot.. I get another call from her and she flat out comes out and says if I'm with "her man" that I should tell her so she came kick him to the curb (apparently this man works with me in some way or another). I tell her I'm married...and am not with her man but she still doesn't really believe me. I'm in total shock at this point and aggitated. I can't believe I get a call like this at 7AM. I finally tell her in a firm voice that I'm not with her man (she still hadn't said his name) and so she doesn't need to worry. She hangs up and I'm immediately in contact with Kelly..AKA office gossip lover..and so she tells Tommy who is the boss of all the guys working here. He phones her up and she admits her name isn't even Cindy and she was assuming because "her man" had a post-it with my address and phone number that he was up to funny business. Well, I found out her man was the guy who dropped off my soil on Saturday and so he needed the post-it to know my address!!! Crazy hey? She was really embarassed and even called me to apologize.Made for good Monday chit chat at least lol!

Onto something a bit more..classy, shall we say? My garden is in and 90% planted...wahoo!

It was quite the adventure as we were making raised beds vs an in-ground garden. I didn't have the time to rent a rotatiller and do all that. It was pretty awesome too because the previous owners of the house left some wood behind which was just enough to make my two beds. I love it when things like that happen in life, don't you? I was pretty lucky too that Ry and his buddy were there to help me. Although working with two "construction" guys has its own challenges..LOL! No, they were fantastic and the beds look fabulous as a result.

First off, I needed to start the day off right so I made a PURPLE MONSTER!!

Don't fall over...fast food joints are not serving smoothies now..wouldn't that be the day! Don't worry I don't eat here either...the hubs.."attained" this mug when he was really young and its perfect for large purple monsters. This monster had romaine, banana, frozen blueberries, Chai Vanilla Vega, cinnamon. Sooo delish! I thoroughly enjoyed sipping on this in the morning sunshine:)

Look at all those bubbles! I have to admit that I haven't been eating too many of these monsters lately. I really need to get into it again and I know I will be for sure especially when berry season strikes the coast!!

This is how Nemo started his morning. You think he likes it here? Oh ya, baby! He loves being around people no matter what they are doing. The hubs had the saw going and he was sitting on the table nearby just checking out the scene..love him!


Once we were fueled..the digging began! I didn't know exactly how it was going to work when you put a garden bed above turf so I did a quick search and found a source that said you need to dig up the turf. I later read ,after all the pain-staking work was done, that there are easier ways..oh well.

Before!!!

After!! The hubs and his good buddy dug up the first bed but I did most of the second bed because they had to go pick up more supplies and I wasn't going to sit around waiting for them. I loved it! It was really hard work (everything was sore the next day..including the thumb muscles..ha ha) but I loved feeling the earth and seeing all the wormies in there. Man, there were some HUGE worms, some like small snakes! I take that as a good sign that my soil is pretty good ( more worms mean your soil is bacteria-driven). Next year I'm going to get a full soil analysis done to make sure I don't have any contaminants in there because more likely I will only be using the raised beds for this growing season.

I call this area operation central!! As you can see by the sawdust below the hubs was cutting a lot of wood that day. I am very appreciative to have a handy hubby who loves doing new projects:)

The boys had a few levelling issues with the beds, so while they were busy creating solutions for that I started filling the planters. My work garden had so much lettuce that they said I could take some home for my own garden..and I was the only one who took any..oh well more salads and green monsters for me:) I just learned a couple days before doing my own garden how fragile plants are, especially frail types like lettuces, when they transplant them. Once you dig them out of the ground they need to spend the least amount of time as possible out of the dirt. I thought they could survive at least a 1/2 hour but its literally minutes. The large leafed plant right in front is a member of the mustard family...oooh she is spicy! I also planted other pots but I forgot to take a picture:( There was re-potted sage, rosemary, and lavender, a pot with parsley, another with purslane ( techinically a weed that has large amounts of omega 3), and one with a tangy lettuce mix that contains cilantro, arugula, and other leafy goodness.

The first bed! Tomatoes, holy basil, spinach, beans, carrots, beeets, and more lettuce.

My carrots that I grew from seed! They are a bit "stringy" right now but I hope that this new, rich soil will help them out:)

The second bed! More lettuce, kale, mustard greens, collard greens, swiss chard. I had the hardest time with my kale and collard seedlings and so I'm not sure how well they will do but I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt! Ryan's great uncles wife bought me the fully grown kale..so sweet! She also gave us a ton of garden tools and even a practically new BBQ!!

Thank you so much Alinne, you are one of a kind!

Those boards on the right hand side are my "walk-through" because immediately to the right of the picture the hubs is putting in a compost..yay! I love "recycling" my food scrapes.

The other end of bed #2. From the left: lettuce (varities of butter), swiss chard, kale.

My lovely zucchini hump..haha..I mean hills!


A swiss chard baby!

I also planted some sunflowers and pumpkins. I have a quarter of a bed left. Any suggestions on some veggies I should be planting? Since this is the first time I was planting a veggie garden on my own, I felt like I needed a little back-up! I purchased The Moosewood Restaurant Kitchen Garden by David Hirsch from a thrift store ages ago mainly for the recipes in the back of the book. Moosewood Restaurant is vegetarian restaurant that focuses on local and organic foods located in Ithaca, NY. I'de heard great things about their cookbooks and so I scooped this one up the second I found it:) It turned out to be an amazing reference for my first garden.

Doesn't the cover just make you want to get your green thumb on!


It had great ideas for a variety of different garden designs. I went with this one that was basically for a raised bed garden. I didn't follow it exactly but it really helped with learning which varities of vegetables thrive together.


Another great reference was the "beneficial companions" page. It showed which veggies and herbs like each other and it also shared pairings that are bad.

The book when through every veggie you ever wanted to plant (well almost) and explained how they should be planted and what they need nutrient wise. The also went over ways to use each veggie-steaming,baking, raw etc!





I know there are a lot of bloggies out there who have a green thumb like Kelli, Lori, Pen, Lauren, Aletheia, and Katie. (If I missed you give me a link to your garden post, I'de love to see:) Even if you just grow sprouts or wheatgrass...that's AWESOME!

Anywho, back to work for me! Even though I'de rather be doing this...

Have a great day everyone! I've missed you all and feel pretty out of the loop:( I've got a lot of posting to catch up on so watch out for my post 10 million posts coming your way!!

PS - The lovely Bitt is having a great giveaway for Jennifer Cornbleet's new book Raw for Dessert plus a flirty apron. So go check out her amazing blog! You have until Saturday June 12 at noon pacific to enter!

internet-less and new house picts!

Happy Friday Bloggies!

What a crazy week! For anyone who has gone on a long vacation from work knows how their desks looks when they return...now imagine 9 months!! Even though I was working in Nelson, being in the lab is a complete different scene and of course more hands on. My boss left the lab a complete mess (nice welcome home present hey?) and so I've been organizing it to my liking which has taken nearly all week! It's good to be back here though because working at home in Nelson made me pretty unmotivated. Pushing myself outside of my comfort zone is something that I used to hide from..but I'm trying to embrace it and take on challenges that help me to do so! I forgot I never posted on my workshop experience a week ago..I'll do that next time as it really helped me with the comfort zone thing! Anywho, while we were in Nelson my work has been putting together test trials for organic soil mixes. This means free greens and veggies for me (and the staff if I don't eat their share..lol). I'm so excited for this project and my boss says I'll be working a lot out in the garden...sweet! Once the weather turns around (seriously, I haven't seen this much rain in forever) I'll take some picts for you to see it.

On the internet front, I'm not going to get hooked up at home until Tuesday so that means I'm going to be sneaking in some blogging time at work..shhh don't tell! It was funny, when I called the internet company they wanted to charge me nearly triple what I was paying in Nelson and so I spoke up and told them the deal I got there and they honored it plus he didnt' charge me another hook-up fee. All that just for speaking up! I tell ya big companies get away with so much because people just accept their fees..not me! I felt pretty empowered after that..maybe I should have called my mortgage company too? HAHA! Anyways, the moral of my blabbering here is that I won't be able to unleash all the random goodness that has happened in my life until next week:) suspense is good, right Averie? Ps good luck to you lovely lady in your first fitness competition..I know you will KILL it!

On to the exciting part of this post...house pictures!!! Except they are more like messy, just moved in, house pictures. Today is the before-I've-organized-to-my-liking...err "our" liking-house pictures. We've done a lot of moving things around and trying different placements of items, plus we got a cover for our dated sofa Ha! I've changed my philosophy on spending over the years. I used to buy things because they were an amazing deal that I would never find again (yet, next year the same sale would take place). If I was consignment shopping I would convince myself that this piece of clothing was so unique and I would stand out because nobody would be wearing it. No more sister! I've adopted a new mantra for my spending (especially when it comes to big purchaces on the house)...QUALITY over QUANTITY. Check out Averie's post on spending habits! I'm actually looking forward to watching my savings account grow which is a very new concept for me but the quality products I'll be able to purchase will be worth it. Also moving all the time has really helped me focus on what I spend my money on because do I really want to pack all those little trinkets with bubble wrap or a million DVD's? Nope, I really do not. Okay from me...onto the pictures!

The front yard with the beautiful rhodo bushes! We may be putting in some garden beds because we will not be using the front yard for anything.

Next to the rhodos is a gorgeous rose bush! Love their color!

My very messy living room, view from the front door! I love that its an open living/dining room

View from the deck!

Kitchie! Complete with a dishwasher! I've never lived in a place that had one. I think I still like handwashing better..is that weird? LOL Notice this is the cleanest room in the house..ya, I got right down to business organizing in there:)

All the cook books organized in one place..yay! In what place might you ask?

It's Nemo's favorite place to hang out or hide out when the crow in the back yard has been chasing him around the grass..poor guy!

It's my first ever pantry!I call this "my space." Oh how I love having a pantry already. It's like a walk in closet for a foodie..lol!

My kitchen sink view! Maybe this is why I love to wash the dishes myself:)

A soaker tub! All I need is some epsom salts, baby!

The master bedroom! Sorry the picture is so dark. I never checked my camera after I took these!

The huge closet! The hubs used to work for a closet installing company so hopefully we will get some shiny new closets one of these days:)

The patio off the master! I have big plans for this deck! I want to place planters on it and hanging off it to make it have some color.

My back yard! It's my oasis already! If you look closely to the left of the picture you will see this brown area on the grass..that's where the garden is going to go! Seriously, sooo excited to get that in! The patio is awesome too..I see many a BBQ's at our place. Out of our friends, we are one of the only peeps who have a significant yard and I'm more than happy to share:)

This right here folks is going to be gardening central. Ry is going to build me a potting bench and we are going to put some gutters up and have a spout to go into a rain barrell!

I got the yard and Ry got the double length garage..lol! It's the white siding on the right. That door you see goes into our tenants place. He is so incredibly quiet and so nice..we really lucked out.

So there you have it! I still don't think its sunk in yet that this is "our" house! I rented so long before Ry and I got together..then after we got together too so its going to take some time..maybe after the water heater breaks down and we have to foot the bill haha!

I get my soil dropped off tomorrow (all organic from my work...wahoo!) and then the gardening begins. Busy weekend for me..but I love it! Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend and hopefully you get some sunshine too:)