Tuesday, October 25, 2011

2

Today was our wedding anniversary...two years ago I married the MOST AWESOME MAN EVER!!!!!
...seriously he's like everything awesome, rolled into one. More awesome "than Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, and the Incredible Hulk put togther."

anyways...
 One year ago today we went for a walk at the beach and took cellphone pictures ("1" for 1 year...)

 Today I had two exams and we went out for dinner at Bon Rouge (quite possibly the prettiest restaurant ever, definetly the prettiest patio ever.)
Us in our kitchen, obviously not Bon Rouge, our kitchen isn't that pretty, I know, you can tell me, it's ok...

...and then we took terribly executed self portaits while cracking open a bottle of champagne!


Love times infity plus one!!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Chalkboard Paint Kitchen Backsplashes

I love them, especially how you could create a tile-like pattern if you were in the mood (or any pattern for that matter!)



Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Thanksgiving Recipes

Here are the links to the recipes I used this Thanksgiving!

Crispy Sage Potatoes (From Style at Home Magazine)
These were so delicious, we had some leftover so we ate them fried in a bit of olive oil and sprinkled with seasoning salt for breakfast the next day.

Cinnamon Spice Carrots (From Style at Home Magazine)
These had a really unique flavour, we couldn't find heirloom carrots (big surprise) so we just used regular organic carrots.

Mom's Saucy Apple Cake (A Trish Magwood recipe found in House and Home Magazine)
This made a good breakfast the next day too and it's a super easy recipe.

"New" Nightstand

Months and months ago when we decided that a dining room chair was no longer a suitable nightstand for poor Andrew (who before that had been using a bar stool) we went out to Salvation Army and spent a whole $6 on a real nightstand.
This ugly thing sat next to his side of the bed for a long time while the can of white spray paint I bought for it sat unused waiting for inspiration/motivation to strike. Finally, last week I was out for a brisk walk with Jack and I became suddenly energetic and proceeded to tackle a bunch of projects, one being the sprucing up of the nightstand. I used almost a full can of spray paint that we bought from home depot with a gift card I got from airmiles points. For the drawer pull I used a bit of black acrylic paint we already had laying around and then a tissue to wipe a bit off for an almost oil-rubbed bronze effect....
It's not perfect, but for $6.00 it's better than an old bar stool! Now I just have to do my nightstand to match.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Thanksgiving

This year Thanksgiving was at our place. Eleven people in our tiny little suite! My Grandma brought the Turkey, stuffing and gravy, Momma-in-law made carrot cake and pumpkin cheesecake (a.k.a.thebestthingever), Mom brought salad, beer and wine, and I made mashed potatoes, crispy sage potatoes, cinnamon spice carrots and saucy apple cake. (Cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie (as if we needed 4 desserts) were provided by Safeway!) Recipes to come...
 Andrew and his momma
 My sister Victoria
 The Newlyweds
 Supertable
 Our post-dessert jam session (Andrew's brother Jon on Indian Accordion)
Table
Embarassing poseface
OM NOM (via)


The aftermath of too much food and wine...

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Mom's Wedding Part II

Now that you have seen the lovely wedding day 1 it is time to turn our attention to wedding day 2. Wedding day 2 was an open house on August 6th, the day after the official wedding day and the day before Andrew and I left for Europe. It was a busy time. The open house had guests from the night before plus a more extended group of friends, family and coworkers. There was lots of food, drinks, gifts and it gave everyone a better chance to get to know eachother and to just chat and relax. However, as fun as it was we all learned that throwing a big party the day after throwing a huge party is not the greatest idea. We were all exhausted and would probably not go the two night event route again. Anyways, on to the photos!
 om noms
 Jack and Bailie
 Gifts Galore
 Looking into the living room from the entrance-way


 Patio people
 The newlyweds in their kitchen
Yes, that's me and a blurry Boba Fett...I'll explain someday.
We hung the dress off the loft railing above the living room for a unique decoration.


Coming next...Europe Part I: The South of France! 

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Rosemary Chicken "Stew"


Fall is here! The air is crisp, the leaves are turning and I am constantly craving stew! Last night I made this chicken stew by adapting a recipe from a Company's Coming cook book. It was supposed to be a slow cooker recipe but I never think far enough ahead to make those properly so I usually just end up making them on the stove as a "pseudo stew." Here's what I did...

Ingredients:
1 tsp Olive Oil
2 large chicken breasts
Salt, pepper and a pinch of rosemary
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
1 yellow onion (chopped)
2 chopped medium-large yellow flesh potatoes (chopped)
1.5 carrots (sliced)
1.5 celery stalks (sliced)
1 parsnip (chopped)
3 roughly diced cloves of garlic

1 can of cream of mushroom soup (10oz.)
2 cups chicken broth
approx. 1/4 cup of fresh rosemary
1 large bay leaf
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup corn starch
1 cup frozen peas
1 small lemon

Instructions:
Place chicken breasts in pan, spread olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary on top of them and bake in the oven until cooked through (avoid overcooking). Set aside until cool and use a fork to shred the chicken.

Place a large pot (one you might use for boiling pasta, best if it's one with a lid) on your burner and turn the burner to medium, add olive oil and diced onion, let onion cook for a moment before adding the other 5 vegetables in order listed, stir the vegetables and let them get nice and hot before adding anything else. Add the mushroom soup right out of the can and add the chicken broth, salt, pepper and rosemary, stir again. Drop the bay leaf in and place the lid on the pot. Cook over medium heat (the stew should be bubbling a bit) stirring occasionally until the potatoes and carrots are tender and cooked. (I wasn't really paying attn to the time but this could take up to an hour).

Mix the corn starch into the 2nd amount of chicken broth in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth and then add it to the pot. Add the frozen peas, the shredded chicken and the juice from the lemon, stirring again. Let the stew cook another 15-20 minutes until the sauce had thickened. Find and remove the bay leaf. This yields four huge servings or 6-8 servings if you are having it with something else.

Note: I adapted this recipe from a book and totally winged it from there. You can probably add or substitute whatever ingredients you want as long as they function in the same way as those you are replacing (eg. cornstarch thickens sauce so don`t sub it for sugar). Cooking times will also vary depending on your stove, pot and ingredients. Enjoy!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Happy Birthday 2...

When we first met it seemed such a crazy coincidence that our birthdays were consecutive. However there were many more coincidences regarding our relationship that if I believed in fate I would say we were meant to be together. Sappy destiny talk aside celebrating our birthdays together is normal for us now, I get my day and then he gets his and for a few hours we have only a three year age difference between us. Today, I made pancakes and raspberry sauce for breakfast, Andrew may or may not have played with the Lego Star Wars set I got him, we went sea kayaking and then out for lunch at glo finally retiring to our warm apartment for a light dinner, race rocks amber ale and pumpkin pie. Happy 26th Andrew!
Every picture I took of him kayaking involved a ridiculous face.

A pump in case the kayak filled with water and a rope in case I "some how end up out of the boat."
I learned it is very hard to take a self portrait while in a kayak.

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Happy Birthday to me...

22 today! Tequila last night, pumpkin spice latte this morning, pumpkin patch this afternoon, drinks and appetizers at ulla and a decadent dinner with champagne and creme brule at Brasserie L'Ecole.