I Think It's About Time... and Vegan MoFo #1ish

Hi Friends!

   It's so nice to be blogging again!  Summer is slowly winding down and I am doing my best to establish a new routine.  Okay, I haven't actually established a new routine I'm just thinking about doing it.  That's the same, right?  I thought so.  Speaking of routines... I totally failed the July blogging challenge that I set for myself, but, in my defense, it wasn't about food so I lost interest quickly.  Sorry about that.  But, the good news is that Vegan MoFo (Vegan Month of Food) is on for this month and I've signed up for it.  You can check out last year's posts in my archive under October 2012 if you'd like.  I haven't really come up with a theme for this year but I'm thinking it will center around food from the Farmer's Market.  There's an amazing one near my house that I try and visit every Wednesday.  That's the plan so stay tuned for some yummy recipes.  Before I get to any recipes though, I thought I would share some of the highlights from my summer.  Enjoy!

 4th Of July....

4th of July Highlights:  The Food

 Food:  I always try and make "American food" for Independence Day or at least what I think is American food.  In this case it's coleslaw, potato salad, corn on the cob (thanks to my sis-in-law for bringing that) and veggie burgers.  For dessert I made shortbread cookies and a Vanilla Pudding and Berry Parfait.  Drinks: My sister found this really fun drink called Crazy Uncle - Basil and Lime Daiquiri.  The flavor combo was super yummy and it even comes with sugar to garnish the rim of your glass.  So cool.  The only downer is that this particular drink has honey in it.  Bummer.  There's two other flavors by Crazy Uncle so maybe I'll try them... after I read the ingredients!

Sushi...

Note my mad chopstick skills

This wasn't my first time trying sushi but it was my first time going out for sushi on purpose.  My friends and I went to Spring Sushi which is really close to my house (incentive to visit again!).  I love that you get to order off an iPad.  You get to see the photo and description of every item which is so helpful if you are a newbie like me!  Luckily there are a lot of veggie options so I was able to try a variety of different items from the menu.  What were some of my favorites?  Well, any roll I got with avocado was the bomb; there was a bean curd one that was really good (not the very top right... I wasn't a fan of that one); and one with sweet potato... so good!  But my absolute favorite thing was the seaweed salad.  We ordered it twice because we couldn't stop eating it!  Plus they serve it in a bowl the size of a tea cup so you don't get much. Ha!

Vacation in Nova Scotia!

Airport Shenanigans

I love that my youngest nephew Michael dropped me off at the Hamilton airport and my oldest nephew Connor met me at the Halifax airport!  That was such a nice surprise seeing Connor and my parents as soon as I got off the plane.  Connor was waiting to board the flight home and since he was a minor traveling on his own, he needed an escort to wait with him.  Both my parents were granted permission to wait at the departure gate.  Which means that I was the only one with an entourage greeting me before baggage claim!  My mom and I went down to the airport restaurant to catch-up while my step-dad waited for Connor's flight to take off.  We ordered the only vegan thing on the menu plus a glass of wine and enjoyed some girl talk.

Highlights...

Savary Park

My mom's gardens, super hero step-dad, my parents house, silly girls, Bear River, crazy cat...

Green and blue fire and fireworks for my last night.

Last day in N.S....

Halifax Harbor Front

We spent my last day in Nova Scotia walking along the Halifax Harbor front and then stopping to eat lunch at the Hart & Thistle.  My vacation was super relaxing and there were many, many highlights in between my arrival and departure.  But, if I were to include everything then this blog post would never end.

A very special Birthday...

The Birthday Girl, her handsome brother and her cakes.

My sweet little niece Alexandra celebrated her first birthday last month.  It was such a nice day.  So many people came out for her special day, we enjoyed delicious food and the highlight (for me) was getting to make her birthday cake.  I couldn't just make her one cake so I made three, plus two kinds of cupcakes for good measure.  To say that I spoiled her would be an understatement.  Of course, she won't really know that until she's much older... but that's okay!  And since I baked everything, it was all vegan.  I think that was the best part.  And also, hearing everyone say how much they loved the cakes and how they never would have guessed they were vegan.  I never get tired of hearing that.


I hope you enjoyed my summer recap.  Tomorrow I'll share some of my food obsessions over the past couple of months.  There have been many but I will try and condense them!

Happy Labor Day Monday and Vegan MoFo!

Love,
Ves xx

Blog Every Day # 5... Home

Hi Friends!

No, I haven't forgotten about my challenge... really!  It's just that I am totally in summer mode and to be honest I am in that place where if I don't feel like doing something then I won't.  Ah, summer!  It's so laid back and carefree.  I love it.  But it's a really poor excuse and I did promise myself (and you) that I would blog more.  I mean, I'm only on Day 5 of the challenge and we are 17 days into July.  That's a little bit pathetic!  I will totally try and make it up to you guys (and myself).  I will say this:  My summer has been pretty awesome so far.  I've been to the beach a couple of times already and have lounged by the pool (I know that may not sound like much, but we've had so much rain that it makes it hard to plan anything).  On top of being in summer mode I'm also in vacation mode!  I still have a week and a bit of work left before I leave for Nova Scotia, but it's so close I can feel it. 
   But... before I get carried away, I'll get back to the challenge.  Today's post is about home and I thought the best way to articulate this would be through pictures.  Here goes...

I'm from California so this says 'home' to me:

My actual home:

Home is also wherever my parents are: 

I. Will. Blog. More.

Love you guys!
Ves xx

Blog Every Day # 4... 5, 6 and 7 Coming Soon!

Hi Friends,

   I'm a little behind on my blogging challenge so I will use the rest of this week as a kind of "catch-up".  I've been recovering from my super busy weekend as well as dealing with some craziness at work.  By the time I get home I just want to hop in a bath and then chill out with Patchie and watch some TV or read a book.  I know, I know... it sounds boring, but it's exactly what I need!

Day 4: Something/Someone that makes you happy.

The beach at Mavillette

   There are so many things that make me happy, but the first thing that comes to mind is this:  In exactly 2 weeks I get to go on vacation and visit my parents in Nova Scotia.  I'm so looking forward to this time away from work and "real life".  But mostly, I'm just looking forward to spending time with my mom, visiting the farmers markets, hanging out at the beach, and walking everywhere and anywhere!  I love my parents' little corner of the world and can't wait to enjoy a bit of the quieter life.  That's a kind of joke as I think my parents are busier now than they were before they retired.  It's a good busy, though, and they are only doing what they love.  I am so happy for them and the life they are living right now.  They picked an amazing place to retire and I absolutely LOVE visiting them.

By the way, Patchie also makes me super happy!

Stay tuned for days 5, 6 & 7... hopefully tomorrow!

Love,
Ves xx

By the way... What makes you happy?

Happy 4th of July!

Hi Friends!

   Even though I don't live in the States anymore, I still celebrate all the holidays!  It's Independence Day today and I wish I was back home celebrating along side other American's.  There is just something about the way we celebrate everything that is pretty amazing.  Everyone is just so patriotic and proud to be an American.  I kind of wish more Canadians were like that.  I'm probably not helping matters much because as a Canadian citizen I probably fly the American flag way more than I fly the Canadian one.  Shhh... don't tell anyone.  It's a bad habit, like nail biting (except that I don't actually bite my nails), that I've been trying to break for years.  No joke.

Whether you're living in America or you're an American living in another part of the world have a wonderful 4th of July week/weekend.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, I am definitely celebrating this weekend.  And maybe, just maybe I'll be making these...

If I do, I'll post the recipe.  And if I don't, I'll still post the recipe!

Happy 4th y'all!

Love,
Ves xx

Blog Every Day # 3 & WIAW 29

Hi Friends!

Today's post is supposed to be about what I wore, BUT, since it's Wednesday and all I figured I'd share what I ate instead.  I just got back from a new Middle Eastern restaurant called Paramount that just opened up down the street from me.  Tonight they had an opening night of sorts and were offering complimentary meals to all of the diners.  They only asked that we leave a donation for the local children's hospital.  How awesome is that?  I'll be honest, I was looking forward to this dinner so much that I barely ate all day!

Here's a look at some of the dishes we ordered:

I know what you're thinking, "Holy pita's Batman!".  Yup, that's what we said, too.  We munched on these while we waited for our order.

 For starters I ordered the Okra which had garlic, onions, and tomatoes.  It tasted just like this homemade pepper and tomato saute that my mom makes. Mmm...

My salad of choice was the Fatoush salad, which happens to be one of my (many) favorite salads.  However, this particular Fatoush was lacking flavor.  I won't hold it against them as they were super busy.  We dined around 8:30 and there was still a steady stream of people coming in when we left.  So, I think I'll order it again next time before I make a final judgement. 

One of our friends ordered the Tabbouleh (parsley, tomatoes, onions, with a lemony dressing), which I of course sampled and loved.

My main course was the Falafel Plate.  I loved that they served it with an assortment of pickled vegetables.  The tahini sauce was delish!

For dessert they brought us a sampling plate full of assorted treats.  I didn't try any of them because they looked like they were soaked in butter BUT, I didn't ask anyone about the ingredients so who knows... maybe they're vegan?  

 Here's another look at the desserts.  That's my kind of heaven! 

  I will definitely go back to this restaurant again.  There were so many veg/vegan options on the menu and I'm dying to try one of their pizza's. 

Til next time...

Love,
Ves xx

Blog Every Day # 2... My Morning Routine

Hi Friends!

   Well, it's day 2 and I'm still blogging so this is a good sign!  Ha.  Baby steps.  The problem with staying away from the blog so long is that I find I lose my groove and get a bit of writer's block.  Not fun.  Also, I happened to start a new book last night (Divergent by Veronica Roth) which kept me up until 2:30 this morning!  Thank goodness that I didn't have to go into work until 10 today, otherwise I would have been a zombie.  So, right now all I can think of is finishing up this post so that I can get back to the book!  I don't even want to cook dinner.  I blame my friend.  She gave me this book and told me that I just had to read it.  This was a few weeks ago.  I finally got around to picking up the book yesterday, and she was right.  I did not want to put it down!  You guys have to read this book.  I'm sure you'll get hooked like I did.  Insurgent is the second in the series and the third comes out in the Fall.  Promise me you will read them!

On with today's post...

My Morning Routine:

   I feel like you guys might already know a bit about my routine because of WIAW but I'll share in detail.
   Most mornings my alarms (I have 2) start going off at around 5:45 or 6am and I snooze them until about 6:30.  I have no idea why I set them so early since I never get up at that time.  I usually have a cuddle session with Patchie and then I get out of bed.  Before I can do anything I have to feed her and give her fresh water.  Once she's taken care of I make my lemon water, turn on some music, brush my teeth and then jump in the shower.  After that I do my hair and make-up while still sipping on the water (I take forever to drink it) and then I get dressed.

Patchie gets to hang out on the balcony while I get ready!

   Next, I make my juice or smoothie (sometimes both), my lunch and my coffee.  By this time it's usually time to leave for work so I give Patchie a bit more wet food and then pack up my things and head out.
   So there you have it!  This was my school year routine when I started at 8am.  We are now on a summer schedule so my shift will change weekly.  However, the bulk of my routine will stay the same.  The only difference may be that I'll actually get to drink my coffee in my apartment on occasion rather than in my car en route to work.

That's all for now guys.  I'm off to finish (hopefully) the book.  Stay tuned for tomorrow's entry!

Love,
Ves xx

Happy Canada Day! ...And a Little Challenge

Hello Friends!

It's Canada Day in my little corner of the world and I have had the best long weekend so far this summer!  I hope you're all enjoying the long weekend, if you're in Canada, and if not, I hope you're having a wonderful Monday.

Source

It's no secret that I have been the worst blogger ever this year.  I'm looking to change that and figured that I needed a mini challenge to get me back into my groove.  I found a blogging challenge on Pinterest by accident, and have decided to take it.  It's actually a June challenge but I'm starting it this month.  I figure if I say it out loud post it on my blog then you guys would hold me to it.  Or at least that's what I tell myself!  Ha.

Here is the challenge:

Day 1 is: Something beautiful to me.  I thought this one would be hard because I find beauty in everything, however, my baby niece really is the most beautiful thing EVER so this one was a no-brainer!

I love this little munchkin!

Wish me luck in this challenge and enjoy the short work week!

Love,
Ves xx