"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity" ~ Seneca

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Baking Extravaganza

So now that round 1 of baking for teachers & acquaintances is complete- now it's on to round  2. These are to share with our friends as we visit throughout the next week.

These are a few of my favorite recipes this year:

 Pomegranate Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Chocolate Caramel Tartlettes

Chewy Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

All are easy to make and delicious!!

Friday, December 21, 2012

Inspirational?

Whew, made it thought the kids last few days if school. We are now it the run up to Christmas. I've done 'some' Christmas shopping, but enought to say I'm set.
I'm not thrilled about the deep-freeze weather that is setting in, but hey it's mid-December in Canada.
What's more intriguing to me is the number I'm seeing on the scale. I'm guessing the last time I saw this number was high school. What is even more curious is that it's lower than it was at the start of December. The number is: 144.6

I've got a lot of mixed emotions.  It didn't help when I saw an old acquaintance who looked fabulous & I told her so. She said she had lost 20 kg (44 lb)! How awesome is that?! No, it was when she said I was her inspiration. I was at a loss for words and mumbled some sort of thank you.  Several hours later it is still kicking around in my head, I'm an inspiration?
Do you have difficulty accepting compliments & praise? I know I do. How do you work through that to become more accepting of yourself?

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

I went to my first hash!

Now, it's not what you think. My friend K has been asking me to go on a hash for the past year and I finally said 'yes', since it was taking place close to home.
The group here is called the Calgary Hash House Harriers and has been around for quite a while. The hate sets the trail earlier in the evening, and then the runners go and try to follow it.
Last night, K and I were lucky as we didn't get too far off trail.
As a hash 'virgin', I got to stand in front of the group afterwards while they serenaded the other virgin & myself. We then had to chug a beer- yum! I think I may be able to handle this running group :)

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Catching up

The month of October flew by. It was the beginning of soccer season and even with only one child playing the sport it overtakes the family's life. Practice, games, team technical training=busy!
Throw in team manager (me?!) duties
and personality clashes between me & the coaches and it's a royal mess.
Trying to stay sane, keep myself on plan and healthy.
Speaking of staying healthy. We all just got our flu shots. The kids & dh went for the nasal spray. I went for the traditional shot. Here's to staying healthy.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Guest Post-September Foodie Pen Pal Reveal

And lucky readers- get 2 Foodie Reveal posts today!!

I sent my September box of goodies to Lauren in Vancouver.
She doesn't blog, so I asked her to send a post

Take it away Lauren......................

 Hello Mel’s blog! I’m Lauren, from Victoria BC. I was Mel’s foodie pen pal for September and I am super stoked on the box she sent me. There was a minor kerfuffle when my box was arriving, I was checking the package tracking because I was this excited for it

















well, probably more. But, the day it should have arrived, I went out. While I was out it got delivered, and the internet confirmed this. But to who?! I was sad and confused....
But I called my building manager and he had it! So all was well, but I was at work... However, guess what was waiting for me when I arrived home!!!!





I opened it right away and found wonders!



Mel got me such a wonderful mix of things! The ones that got gone right away were the wonderful pumpkin spice cookies, which I also now have the recipe for (world domination is imminent)! They are moist and have a lovely little bit of spice. Amazingly, there were more cookies!


















These are a gluten-free, vegan chocolate orange cookies. I am not gluten-free or vegan, but mentioned I like trying products and recipes for altered diets. They are pretty tasty, though I suggest having them with a nice glass of vanilla almond milk, as they are a tiny bit dry. They are all separately packaged, which is super awesome because I am in University and need snacks for school. Speaking of snacks,



There are delicious crispbread crackers and sweet potato chips! I adore non-regular potato chips, and we have so many good local cheeses on the island, I’m gonna have to get some to snack on with these crackers. Maybe even with a delicious cup of...







Blueberry tea! I love love love tea, and there is currently a dearth of fruit teas in my cupboard. But for dinner rather than tea there is


Quinoa! Specifically southwest black bean quinoa. Two of my favorite things, spicy bean dishes and quinoa. So much protein for my vegetarian body. I haven’t cooked it yet, but I am excited.
Last, but definitely not least, is this soap




it smells like heaven and makes me yearn for some way to communicate smell over the internet for all the blog readers to experience this.
Well thanks for giving me a soapbox to rave about the excellent box you sent me. 

Lauren T
ps. I don’t have a blog, but if anyone wants to follow me on twitter, my handle is @lotuslolo

Foodie Pen Pal September Reveal

Well hello there.  I know it's October, but it was requested we don't reveal until today-so it would be during the week rather than on the weekend.

This month, I received my Foodie Pen Pal Box from Dr. Ayla in the Vancouver area.  And what a cornucopia of goodies she sent.  We were blessed with  loads of goodies from her very own garden.

An apple, with a handmade cozy to protect it.
Homemade pickled watermelon rind and crabapple & rhubarb butter.  Both are absolutely delicious. 




more scrumptious garden goodies- potatoes and rosemary in their own personalized potato sack and some garlic


sun gold tomatoes fresh off the vine- delicious.

Who doesn't like chocolate? How about chocolate shortbread cookies with cacao nibs?  I might try to recreate these with our Hawaiian cacao.
I just opened these up yesterday.  And while not a huge fan of figs- unless they are in fig newtons, these are Good.  Loaded with figs, olives and seed- I'm sure these would go great with some hummus.

Ooh- look a pretty pink box all wrapped up revealed upon opening these lovely chocolates from the Granville Market.  I've sampled the strawberry heart.  Not sure if I'm willing to share these. 
and a lovely handwritten note describing everything. 

thank you Dr. Ayla for the wonderful food!  XOXO

To learn more about the Foodie Pen Pal program- visit Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Training Run 2

Ran with my friend K.  We'll be running the Rock the House run 10K together
We ran the route I did last night. It's actually 2.69 miles- I'm surprised a running site would actually round up on a route.  It was a good run as we are able to chat while running.

Friday, August 31, 2012

Training Run 1

Well- since I'm actually running my first 'official' timed 10k in less than a month- I figure I better start training.
The race course has been posted.
Now when I've run my virtual 10K's, I didn't really train- just went out and ran them.
Maybe with a few runs before the race, I just might run a little faster on race day & feel stronger.



  Running Log powered by RunningAHEAD
 

Foodie Pen Pals August Reveal Day

I received an awesome box of goodies from Amanda in Ontario. There was something for everyone in this box that was filled with all sorts of snack foods. We'll start with the healthy items and then descend to the not so healthy (but oh so tasty) ones.

Did I mention that the box was HUGE?
Straight from the tomato capital of Canada- Leamington Sweet, juicy & delicious. How did she know that it's near impossible to grow tomatoes here in Calgary? I had to fight my daughters for these.

 Who knew you could mail tomatoes and that they would survive?

Next up, not one but 2 bags of Old Dutch Corn Twists. I like these as a snack because they don't have a huge amount of calories and they have a lot of crunch, which triggers my satisfaction. Amanda recommends making the caramel corn recipe on the back, which is on the agenda for this holiday weekend.


The next tasty item was cinnamon sugar pita chips that were baked. So tasty. I've been nibbling on these when I get home from work to take care of any hunger pangs. These hit the spot.



And last, but not least, a pair of chocolate mice. They didn't look like mice when they arrived, but they sure were darn tasty. A shortbread style cookie topped with peanut butter mousse and covered in chocolate- YUM!  I shared this with my hubby.
















 Thanks again Amanda for all the tasty treats.

I was paired with Sharana. If you want to see what I sent her visit her blog Living the Sweet Life.

If you are interested in participating on Foodie Pen Pals- please read on...

What is Foodie Pen Pals?

If you want to join the new food revolution of Foodie Pen Pals- visit Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean or read below for some details about Foodie Penpals. Here is what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.

If you’re interested in participating for September, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.

You must submit your information by September 4th as pairings will be emailed on September 5th!

*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month


Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Knitting doh

I was excited to ride the bus into work, as that meant I get some time to knit. I brought my sweater along that is in the early stages.  I was happily knitting along until I realized one of my markers (and maybe two!) had fallen off.




Now I am in the stages of doing math to try & place the marker in the correct spot.  not sure if this is the smartest thing to, but since this is my first attempt at a sweater (and since it's for me) I will accept it with all it's idiosyncrasies.






Sunday, August 19, 2012

Socks are finished

Yes they are done. They have their quirks (pattern not matching, a few ladders or holes here & there) but they fit like a glove and are awesome.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Various Knitting Projects

I work a lot on my iPad and I haven't figured out how to upload photos to my blog from the iPad itself.

But here a few pictures of my recent knitting projects which can also be seen/found on Ravelry ( a cool knitting site)
Circle baby blanket

Basket weave baby blanket



My first pair of socks- This is the first sock which is now finished & I've started on the second sock.  No second sock syndrome for me!

Yesterday I stopped by my LYS (local yarn store) The Knitting Room and splurged on some Cascade Heritage Hand Painted Yarn in Tropical Seas.



I'm going to use this to do a pair of socks- two at a time following Wise Hilda's pattern.  I'm using her pattern as I'm using her Wise Hilda Basic Ribbed Sock pattern which I am finding easy to follow and the first sock fits like a dream!


Thursday, August 9, 2012

Big Island Love

Got a mention from Kona Boys today on Twitter, along with this great photo.


Can't you just feel the love?
Must get back to Hawaii, soon.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Guest Post from my July Foodie Pen Pal- Andrea C


I just received the following email from my foodie Pen Pal Andrea C.- here's her take on what I sent her.

In Mel’s blog post “July Foodie Pen Pal Reveal” she writes “I mailed my goodies to Andrea C. She doesn’t have a blog currently … but I hope she like what I sent her.”

Hello everyone! I’m Andrea C., and yes, my blog is currently in development. Did I enjoy the goodies Mel sent me? ABSOLUTELY!!!
I was really excited when Mel reached out to me in early July to get a feel for my food preferences. She asked me to answer a few questions such as what’s my favourite kitchen gadget to if I prefer salty or sweet food items. I told Mel that although I eat just about everything, I do prefer gluten-free treats/snacks but told her not to worry if she couldn’t find anything – my love for gf foods is just a preference.
I was so touched when I discovered that the box she sent me contained so many delicious gf snacks … all of which I’ve never tried before. 

The first item I ripped open was the Yum nuts. Who can resist chocolate covered cashews? They were amazing … not too salty or too sweet.
I have the box of lentil crackers at my desk at work. They’re a crunchy version of one of my favourite soups – lentil!
The Turbana plantain chips have a hint of garlic and are simply delicious! I haven’t tried the sesame crepes yet. I’m saving that goodie for the upcoming long weekend. I’m thinking of making banana foster to put inside those tasty crepes! What do you think?
One of my favourite items is the Kona Bar. In Mel’s handwritten note, she mentioned that she picked some up during her trip to Hawaii. One of her friends has a coffee plantation and supplies the coffee that goes into the Kona chocolate bar. Very cool!!  (if you are interested, Kona Bars can be purchased here)
Mel also included lavender face/hand wipes (to wipe away the chocolate from my mouth, perhaps J) and a recipe for chocolate hummus. I’m in heaven! I’ve never made chocolate hummus before … I didn’t even know there was such a thing.
Thanks again, Mel, for putting together an amazing package and for allowing me to be a guest blogger. As I mentioned to you in my email, you made a girl from Ontario very happy!!
 Andrea

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

July Foodie Pen Pal Reveal

This is my second month of Foodie Pen Pals.  I mailed my goodies to
Andrea C.  She doesn't have a blog currently...but I hope she liked what I sent her (updated)

I received my box of goodies from Tiffany K who blogs at
The Adventures Of A Canadian Housewife.  It was such a cute box...and here's what was inside........



Skor Fudge - I found this too sweet, but the kids LOVED it!

Milk Chocolate Covered Peanuts

Raspberry/Wasabi dipping mustard- Yummy! Very Good- my favourite item of the box

Pretzels to dip in the mustard.

A pretty card.





Thank you Tiffany!!


What is Foodie Pen Pals?

If you want to going the new food revolution of Foodie Pen Pals- visit Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean or read below for some details about Foodie Penpals. Here is what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.
If you’re interested in participating for August, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
You must submit your information by August 4th as pairings will be emailed on July 5th!
*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Olympic Readathon

Today I've joined the Random House of Canada's Olympic Readathon.
 I've set my goal at 800 pages.
I'm starting with Pam Houston's Contents May Have Shifted

Come join the fun!
Follow along on twitter #OlympicReadathon.
What are you reading this summer?

Friday, July 20, 2012

New knitting project-a Sweater

I've just cast on (started in knitting terms) a comfy raglan sweater. I'm following this pattern :
http://therunningyarn.wordpress.com/2008/04/03/comfy-raglan-sweater-free-pattern/

I'll give periodic updates as I make progress.

Rock the House

I'm running the Rock the House 10K in September.

If you want to help me raise some money, visit the Rock the House donation page. Thank you for your support!

Saturday, June 30, 2012

June Foodie Pen Pal Reveal

Hooray! The day has finally come. We get to reveal the goodies we received from our Foodie Pen Pals! Sorry for the delay- I thought I had this set to auto-publish, but it didn't. Note to self- just post it yourself. Anyway- without futher ado.... I was paired with Deanna who blogs at CoastalStorm I received her package on a busy day, so I had to wait until the next day to open it up. Ooh what could be inside?
All sorts of goodies- all of which I've never had before. It's so fun to venture out and try new foods. Mmmmm- granola. Not overly sweet (surprisingly) unless you get a hunk o' chocolate. YUM!

Some cool Tupperware containers that look like hockey pucks.
A healthier granola bar

Australian liquorice

And CHOCOLATE- with cashews- what an awesome combination
This was topped off by a handmade card!
Thanks for all the goodies Deanna!!!
I sent a package of goodies to Jaqueline who blogs at Cooking with Jax. I hope she liked her goodies- which apparently arrived on her birthday! Happy Birthday Jax!!
If you want to going the new food revolution of Foodie Pen Pals- visit Lindsay at The Lean Green Bean or read below for some details about Foodie Penpals. Here is what the program is all about:
-On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!
-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)
-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you are to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.
-Foodie Penplas is open to US & Canadian residents. Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We've determined things might get too slow and backed up if we're trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa.
If you’re interested in participating for July, please CLICK HERE to fill out the participation form and read the terms and conditions.
You must submit your information by July 4th as pairings will be emailed on July 5th!
*If you're from somewhere besides the US, Canada or Europe and want to participate, send me an email and I'll see if we get enough interest this month!