Don't Cry... Don't Cry...

So I did something stupid tonight at the gym, I got on the scale.. BIG MISTAKE! I'm obviously not going to tell you what I weigh, haha that will never happen but let me tell you what I saw on the scale nearly knocked me over. Its not like I didn't know that I've gained weight since we left Alaska, my clothes fit differently, I even had to buy a pair of capris in a bigger size (lord help me, it almost killed me!).... but I had absolutely no idea until tonight that I have gained a whopping 15lbs!!!! THAT'S A SMALL PERSON!! What the hell have I been doing??

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Thankfully I didn't get on the scale until we were leaving the gym and I spent the whole walk home trying not to sob hysterically. I know some of you are thinking I'm being absolutely ridiculous but in my defense I have struggled with life long body image issues and this is a HUGE freakin' deal to me! I worked really hard to get where I wanted to be and apparently it wasn't important enough to keep it off. Ugh! Clearly I am not a person who can eat whatever they want and maintain my weight. 

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The whole way home in my attempts not to cry I blamed everyone else (out loud, to Jason) for my weight gain! Jason, for not letting us have a scale because we travel so much and its just another thing to carry around. My mother for cooking all my favorite things for me when I go home. My Aunt and Uncle who we stay with for buying us treats and spoiling us when were home. Travel, if we didn't have to drive all over hells acres and stick to Jason's "TIME" I wouldn't have the option of crap to eat (one can only eat so much subway). Jason for wanting things like hotdogs for dinner. Birthday parties for having dips and crap at my finger tips. Being in small town no where, where work is impossible and therefore I'm not as active as I could be. Then there is little ol' me... well to the contrary apparently at this point in time there is absolutely nothing little about me! 

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Good lord I cant tell you how bothered I am by this fact, there is no way I am going to sleep tonight even though I need to because tomorrow starts my twice a day at the gym routine.. cardio is going to be my new best friend for the next two weeks until I think about trying to lift again.. which has to come eventually. 

I guess truth be told I'm just really disappointed in myself, I knew damn well I had gained weight (however not this much and I knew that what I was doing wasn't making it any better. Truth be told (not to make excuses) but I do think that some of the weight gain can be attributed to muscle because before I hurt my shoulder I was lifting 5 nights a week, not a lot but a lot for me and seeing a lot of improvement. So now I really dive into a super clean eating regime and make the gym my second home and hope in the next month I get it together because unfortunately I am the type of person that this will sit with me in a really bad way!

On another note I didn't blog earlier today because I am very much into a new book I'm reading... I figured in taking steps in regards to yesterdays blog I would crack open a new book and like always I cant put it down. I'm reading the New York Times Best Seller by Kathleen Grissom called The Kitchen House. 

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I'm not going to lie this book is amazing, much like The Help by Kathryn Stockett. This book is such a different world, its almost hard to believe that at one point in time this is really how people lived! I won't discuss the book in too much depth until I'm done but I found it at Walmart for 40% off, next time you are there take a look, you wont be disappointed with this buy! 

Well I'm off to read and dwell... and not cry! I am NOT going to cry about this I am going to RECTIFY this!! 

Good Night!

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On the Flip Side...

I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself, I constantly have a list of things in my head that I need to improve on...

- Be a better blogger, get more followers, write better posts...
- Be a better friend, send more cards, emails, letters...
- Be a better wife, don't let the little things matter so much, pick you battles, be more appreciative...
- Be better at the gym, work harder, run faster, lift more...
- Read more, you're slipping in your old age and need to exercise your brain more than you are...
- Try new dinner ideas, you're always making the same things (regardless of whether they are good or not)...

Truth is I am doing all those things, one day at a time.. sometimes it doesn't feel fast enough and I don't always see the progress I hope to as quick as I hope to see it, but I'm trying, I'm making an effort and that's all you can ask of yourself!

So although having goals to work towards, things to improve on.. you could also look at it like this.

- Today I wrote a post on my blog that I was happy with, that I felt good about and I hope my readers feel the same.
- I have no unanswered emails in my inbox, I have a closet full of stationary I put to good use.
- I tell Jason I love him everyday, I make sure he has breakfast, lunch and dinner and I kiss him before I go to sleep.
- I have had to face some obstacles at the gym but I still go 4-5 times a week and regardless that is still effort.
- I may not read books as much as I would like to but I read others inspirational stories, hilarious anecdotes, and worldly tales everyday on Bloglovin'.
- Tonight I made something for dinner I've never made before, I try really hard to always make healthy, balanced meals rather than quick and easy and they are always enjoyed.

You see either way I'm getting to the same place, "I may not be there yet, but I'm closer tan I was yesterday."

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Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup!

OK, so here it is the much awaited homemade chicken noodle soup recipe I talked about earlier but hadn't finished to be able to post!

I woke up this morning to the perfect weather for homemade chicken noodle soup, I am always somewhat against making "winter meals" in the summer, summer is the time to enjoy barbecues, salads, lighter meals which is also great for the waist line! Fall and winter is the time for homemade soups, roasted chicken, things of that nature. However it has been chilly around these parts lately and this morning it was dark and gloomy, and that turned into the most fabulous thunder storm! I'm telling ya, it rained cats and dogs and the apartment lit up every time lightening struck, the thunder shook the whole apartment.. it was GREAT! I know its weird but I absolutely LOVE a good thunderstorm, I feel like I haven't gotten a good one in forever so I quickly made my way to the living room with the big window, curled up on the couch with all the lights off and enjoyed it to the fullest!

Its too bad its literally impossible to get a picture of lightening! These pictures don't do the force of the storm any justice but none the less I thought I would share!

As you know I roasted a whole chicken the other day for the soup, truthfully I should have boiled the chicken and made my own stock for the soup but I did not to that! I simple put the chicken in a pie plate (you can you whatever oven safe dish you have but it fit in here and this thing is a breeze to clean so I went with it), I added a bit of water to the bottom of the pan to prevent the chicken from stick or burning. I then seasoned the chicken very lightly with pepper, seasoning salt and garlic powder. I cooked the chicken at 350 degrees for an hour. It is recommended that these chickens are cooked approximately 25 minutes per pound but with poultry it never hurts to give it an extra few minutes.

In regards to veggies for your soup you can really use whatever you choose. Unfortunately Jason is super fussy when it comes to vegetables and therefore what I put in my soup is a simple mirepoix of onions, celery and carrots. If I was making this soup for myself I would definitely add things like zucchini! 

I started off with a large soup pot, you can use whatever size will best suit the amount of soup you choose to make. 

Adding veggies to my soup was super easy as they were already mostly prepared in the fridge, which you can see from my recent post Healthy can be Convenient too! I started with onion, mostly because Jason hates onions and therefore I have to chop them as small as possible so he wont complain!

My onions were already partially chopped so I pulled out my handy Ulu knife to finish the job. For those of you who have never seen these before they are a traditional Ulu knife made in Anchorage, Alaska and I absolutely love it! Mine was purchased at the Ulu Factory in Anchorage and truthfully I don't know how I ever lived without it. The Ulu makes chopping so easy, you can easily fillet meat as I do when making chicken cordon bleu, it stays super sharp and is extremely easy to use!

Once the onions were chopped (as much as you like) I added them to my pot which was already on medium heat with approximately 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and a couple cloves of crushed garlic. 

I continued chopping the remaining celery and carrots, as I mentioned these are the only vegetables Jason will tolerate. I personally would have cut them a lot large to make the soup feel more hearty but Jason would never eat it. Good lord its not easy cooking for a fussy eater!

I personally cant stress the importance of a good sharp knife when cutting up vegetables, it definitely makes the process quicker and more efficient, especially when you have to chop things so fine as you can see I do! At this point I have everything in the pot together as you can see and I really am just letting the vegetables sweat and get soft! This is a great time to add any spices you might like, I added some thyme and pepper.

At this point while the vegetables are sweating I pulled the chicken I roasted yesterday out of the fridge (which Jason so graciously pulled off the bone) and gave it a really rough chop. I like to keep the chicken in larger pieces because it will break down a bit when the liquid is added and it boils a bit! 

After cutting up the chicken I added it all to the vegetables so it could warm up and soak up the yummy flavors that have become in that pot!

As the chicken is soaking up the flavors of the veggies I give it a little boost with one of my favorite flavor boosters! Knorr Homestlyle Stock these are new and come in a varieties of flavors. Instead of using those cubes that need to dissolve in liquid these are WAY more flavorful and can be put into any consistency and basically melt! 

After adding the bouillon jelly cube, I give it a good stir to make sure everything is coated and the flavor is maximized!

 At this point I am ready to add to actual liquid stock! I like to use the Blue Menu no salt added chicken broth, yes yes.. I could have made my own but I didn't so this is what I used! For the amount of chicken and vegetables I have used and the amount of soup I'm looking to make I went with two 900mL containers. If you wanted more you could use another container, half of another container as they are easy to reseal and stick back in the fridge or just add some water with another bouillon cube!

Then pour them on in!

I apologize for the quality of the photos, I was using my phone and praying desperately I didn't drop it in my soup.. can you imagine? At this point your chicken and veggies should be covered and you are going to want to bring it to a boil and let it simmer for about 20 minutes to a half hour, then turn it off and put it aside. 

I made my soup this morning, that's why I am putting it aside as I don't want to cook the flavor out of everything. If you are cooking your soup at meal time then I would definitely let it simmer at least 45 minutes before serving. 

I am still going to add noodles to my soup, you can also add rice. Keep in mind with rice it is going to soak up quite a bit of your liquid, so you may need to add a little extra, or account for that when adding the stock in the beginning. 

At this point your kitchen should absolutely smell amazing! 

I will tell you that I generally would prefer to add rice to my soup over noodles as I absolutely HATE soggy noodles, this is mostly why I will not eat canned soups, that and I think they smell like wet dog food, I kid you not! But the last time I made soup Jason INSISTED that I add noodles and it actually wasn't that bad! I'm using Fusilli which is a much smaller noodle therefore it doesn't get soggy as quick as a larger noodle might. I put the noodles in the soup long enough to cook them and then eat, I think they still soak up the flavors and are still a great texture!

So here you are, the finished product! I hope yours tastes as good as mine does and your family enjoys it as much as I know Jason and I do! 

Bon Appetit!

Not the Smartest Cookie in the Jar!!

Well I had the best of intention of posting my first recipe blog but it didn't occur to me that I wouldn't be able to do so until I was completely done... which wont be until tonight when I add the pasta because I hate soggy noodles! So although I am most of the way through the recipe I wont be able to post it all until later.. my apologies... but cut me some slack I'm new to this food blogging!

Anyways I thought I would stop in anyways and share last nights dinner with you, as well as the tale of my run in with karma!

If ever Jason has a day off which isn't often it is generally a Sunday and he will usually make dinner. Jason is an amazing cook and therefore when he decides to make dinner it is generally something that isn't my forte, like ribs. I'm not a lover of ribs to be honest, I have a huge issue with any meat you have to pick off the bone while you eat it.. it seems so barbaric! But Jason made some fabulous ribs before our last vacation and gave me a piece with no bone.. SCORE! I'm not even going to lie, he will generally pick the meat off the bone so I can eat it, did I mention how much I love him?

Unfortunately Jason had to work yesterday but he was sure that we still needed to have ribs and was confident I could make them (as good as he could!). I wasn't too keen on the idea, not that I don't like to try new things but I don't care to compete with Jason in the realm of cooking and I knew when he got home from work he would poke at all the things that were different from when he made them without actually saying he liked his better!

I defrosted the ribs the night before and when I got up in the morning I put them in the pan with a bit of water to prevent them from burning or sticking to the bottom of the pan. I put a dry rub on them of Mesquite, garlic powder, pepper and a touch of seasoning salt!

Jason was recommending cooking the ribs a lot longer than I thought necessary but I took his word for it because as I said cooking ribs is not my thing! I put the ribs on at 2:50pm at 350 degrees, just as you see but covered in foil! I did not check them or open them up until 4:15pm. At 4:15pm I opened them up to make sure there was enough water, smothered them in Maple Bacon BBQ sauce, covered them back up and put them back in the oven at 400 degrees. A half hour later I opened them again, put more BBQ sauce, turned the oven up to 450 degrees and put them back in uncovered to cook for the remaining half hour! (Doesn't that just seem like such a long time?) However this was the final result!

They turned out amazing, super tender and falling off the dreaded bone they unfortunately come on! At this point Jason was home and although he took credit for the end result (because he came home three quarters of the way through the cooking process and occasionally checked to make sure I was following directions). He cut them up and got them ready for dinner while we finished up the asparagus and twice baked potatoes!

Not to shabby right? I thought they turned out great, and now I am MUCH LESS intimidated to tackle ribs if Jason isn't home! Growing up Sunday dinners were a pretty big deal, it was definitely a night to have bigger dinners while we all sat around the table (as we did every night) and I definitely think last nights dinner was a perfect example of a great Sunday night dinner.

After dinner I was sufficiently STUFFED and however much I would have loved to sit on the couch the kitchen needed to be cleaned, the dishes needed to be done and put away... all those things you dread most after a big dinner (this is exactly why I hate big dinners). Once I was finished all the clean up (which Jason felt no need to participate in) Jason was ready to go to the gym, I however was not. I pitched a fit as I would have much rather gone for a nice drive, taken some pictures, read a book.. you name it. I was stuffed and the last thing I felt like doing was hitting the treadmill, but when Jason is set on something there is no changing his mind and Sunday night is a gym night.. so I went... quite unwillingly. I was super cranky on the 5 minute drive and was the least bit pleasant signing in.

I got on the treadmill and thought if I was there I was just going to make the best of it... well that only lasted about 10 minutes and my Ipod died.. seriously? Who does cardio without music? I decided to just push on, I didn't need my Ipod, there were 3 TV's in front of me, each with a different sporting event on... I could manage. A few minutes after talking myself into pushing on the back on my foot started to hurt. I have been saying for awhile I needed to get higher socks as I really like the ones that sit below the ankle but I find sometimes my gym shoes rub, which is exactly what happened last night.. hello large blister!! I tried to continue at this point I was just determined to get through it, but when the blister broke I was done!

I got off the treadmill told Jason I was done and got in the truck and came home, leaving him there to finish his workout. Don't freak out, its literally a two block walk from our apartment, I didn't leave him stranded... truth be told I'm not even sure why we even drive there. I came home, had a shower, washed the floors and planted myself on the couch to watch the new Keeping up the Kardashian's... judge me if you will.

I'm pretty sure all my complaining and miserable attitude was really the cause for the dead Ipod and blister... KARMA!

So I'm off to finish laundry and start a new book I just got, I will keep you all posted on that and maybe get something under the Book section of my blog too. Because I explained how I cooked the ribs does that mean this post constitutes a recipe? I think so!

Check back later for homemade chicken soup!

Pinterest Love for our New Home!!

As you all know from all my house update pictures we are building a home in Raleigh, North Carolina! We couldn't be more excited to have the opportunity to build and design our own home but I'm not going to lie there are definitely some stressful aspects. Generally when buying a house you are focusing on one number, the price of the house and how you can negotiate that price. When building a home you are focusing on the price of every little thing as well as the larger price. There we things we knew would be large numbers to contend with on top of the price of the house itself, flooring, counter tops, cabinets, etc... but we didn't realize all the little things we never expected, lighting, wiring for ceiling fans, cable outlets, phone jacks, etc.

We have had our final price for a long time now and as we are nearing our closing date we have started to do a lot of thinking about decorating. Jason and I generally sit on totally different sides of the decorating spectrum, I love bright and colorful, unique and decorative and Jason would just as soon paint the whole house beige, throw in some earth tone colored furniture and call it even... that wasn't going to happen.

I will admit I am SHOCKED at how much we have both willingly compromised and come to some decisions that we are both really happy with. We are focusing on certain rooms in our home because as you know we do travel quite a bit and we have no idea at this point how much time we will actually get to spend in our new home before the next project.

I really wanted to share some idea we had with you that have absolutely been inspired via Pinterest! I have blogged about my love for Pinterest before but it has been such a huge help in inspiring decorating ideas as we are not in the house right now and with our current location don't have the option to walk through furniture stores or the wonderful Ikea to get ideas.

So for our bedroom we have decided on a Grey color for the wall, at this very moment I cant say we have decided on a shade of grey, although I assume it will be darker. We would love to have dark wood furniture (I can already see the dust...ugh!) and for linens I am thinking something like this...

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Jason and I really love the grey and white, and the pop of yellow is definitely me but Jason doesn't seem to be opposed and for that I am grateful, truly I think just grey and white might seem to cold and sterile. The master bedroom is probably for me the most exciting to decorate, I really want something cozy and inviting.. Oh how I cant wait for a king size bed!! Travelling we generally have a queen size which obviously works but thinking we wouldn't be on this job long we are actually using an air mattress... no I'm not lying!

This is also a really great template for bedroom ideas, I love the different components of this, the lampshades, the sunflower pillows, the fabulous mirror! I'm not sure Jason will go for the sunflower pillows, I try not to push too far with flowers and other girly stuff, haha!

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Another aspect of our decorating thoughts is our front entrance. The front entrance of the house is actually quite a large hallway and obviously a focal point in the house, something that will be peoples first impression when walking in our home. Its so hard to decide what will look best, and again I'm sure a huge part of this is that we are not in the house to actually have a concept of space, etc. So I have been playing with idea's on Pinterest and have a few idea's of what I think we will be leaning towards in regards to decorative accents. 

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There are just so many ideas that it is really hard to decide what will look best. I am strictly going off the fact that we have dark hard wood floors, a wide space, tan walls, nine foot ceilings, etc. I absolutely cannot wait until we are actually in the house and can put these thoughts and ideas into effect!

When we aren't focusing on specific rooms I am definitely focusing on little things that will make the house ours, represent us as a couple and our (or my) taste! I absolutely LOVE the idea of accents chairs, I would just as soon have them in every room, I believe they can be a focal point, or just a pop of color. They can be used strictly as a decorative accent or a function piece of furniture! These are a few I have come across on Pinterest that I love. 

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I believe our biggest area of disagreement is the main living space! Jason is hell bent on having a recliner (lazy boy) and let me tell you first off, I hate those things... they are never nice looking, they are chunky and bulky and in the way, not to mention the fact I believe a lazy boy creates a legitimate lazy boy!! Because Jason has made a lot of compromises I absolutely wont tell him that he cant have one, as much as I want to... but I want in on the choosing process. It isn't something we are thinking will be a first priority, we will be looking at couches and coffee tables first. These are a few "pinspirations" I have...

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Its funny putting my ideas all together and seeing how different they are! I am so anxious to get into the house and see how things turn out, I cant wait to share it with all you either!

Last but not least I will share some of my office ideas... truth be told I always thought when decorating an office I would really stick towards very old fashion, dark woods, leather wing back chair, very classic! Lately though in all my pinning I have been leaning towards a much more modern, clean lines, white office themes. I do believe this is something that wont actually happen, its just a thought. Jason and I have always thought that an office would be a very mutual place, somewhere for my to write, blog and there is always the potential of Jason working from home. So these probably aren't ideas that will make their way into our home, but none the less I love them enough to share. 

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As you can see absolutely none of these ideas are classic, dark wood or anything that I said we would actually want. In all my office findings I really got into all of these modern looks!

I have a ton more ideas, just little things that make organizing more convenient, and I look forward to sharing more in the future as we get closer to actually putting our thoughts into action! Unfortunately I must end this post although I could really sit here all day sharing my Pinterest thoughts with you.. but as I was writing I got a little bit distracted (this tends to happen when Pinterest is at my finger tips) so it took me a lot longer than I was expecting and I have to get dinner ready! Feel free to check out my For the Home board on Pinterest in the meantime and see all my many ideas!

I will admit, although I slept in a little late this morning I was actually quite proactive and roasted a chicken to make homemade chicken soup tomorrow for dinner! I will make sure to add pictures and maybe finally get something in my recipe section! Check out my chicken. 

Thanks all for stopping by, feel free to share some of your decorating ideas and suggestions! 

I survived the Dentist.. Barely!

Good Saturday afternoon lovelies!

I didn't make it around these parts yesterday, I meant to but the day kind of got away from me! Thursday I gave in and called the Dentist to make appointments and they told me they would put us on the cancellation list because at this time they were only taking appointments for October (CRAZY!) So I agreed hoping it would be at least a week or two as I had just read the horrible tail of Jaclyn's bloody (literally, bloody) trip to the dentist that day! Well, no such luck on that front as she called me back a half hour later and said they could get Jason in at 7:00am and me at 10:00am! Great... I absolutely HATE the dentist and as soon as I knew we were going the next day I was extremely anxious! I have ZERO pain tolerance and I wince and whine the entire time I'm there.

So yesterday morning Jason got up and headed to the dentist, he picked me up after his appointment and I took him to work so I could have the truck to go to my appointment. Unfortunately there is pretty extreme road construction going on in Estevan and on the way to take Jason to work he told me the road that I knew how to take to get there was closed... ugh! I honestly I'm sure I have mentioned this before but I have the WORST sense of direction EVER! I get lost all the time and generally don't venture too far out of my comfort zone because I would never find my way back. If I know how to get some where, but there is a way I could take that would get me there a lot faster I would never try, I will always take my long way because that's what I know... ridiculous I know!

I made it to the dentist, although I went right from Jason's work because on the way he showed me how to drive that way and I didn't want to forget and I still feared getting lost so I wanted to give myself plenty of time in case that happened.

The dentist was tolerable, the girl cleaning my teeth was super nice and the fact that we chatted throughout gave me something else to concentrate other than pain and the taste of blood.. did I mention I hate the dentist? They took 18 x-rays which seemed excessive and their technology was a little outdated so it was kind of uncomfortable but I made it through it. The cleaning itself goes about how it always does, I was quite thankful when it was over! When I left the dentist I went out a different driveway of the building then I went in and took a wrong turn (which I immediately realized) and had to turn around.. you see I wasn't exaggerating though.. one change in scenery or direction and I'm totally screwed!

The afternoon went by quickly and I had to pick Jason up at work because I had the truck, I didn't mind because I never have the truck and I miss driving sometimes, and it was a cold but beautiful day! Here is a picture of Jason's work and its surroundings!

Believe it or not in the mornings these fields are full of cows! Unfortunately when I went to pick him up they weren't out or I would have snapped some pictures of them. I know it sounds funny but I absolutely LOVE cows.. I don't know what it is. I especially love baby cows, I get so excited when we drive to see a field full of mama cows and their babies.. they just seem so peaceful and content!

Last night Jason and I went to the movies, when I was on my way to the dentist yesterday I noticed that they were playing Grown Ups 2 and Jason has been dying to see that movie. He is a huge fan of Adam Sandler and absolutely loved the first movie! I was a little hesitant to see that movie because when we were home my little cousin Brittney and her friend Sophie went and saw it and proceeded to tell us the ENTIRE movie when they got home, haha and truthfully I didn't think it sounded nearly as funny. We went anyways and I wont lie it wasn't all that funny. You know those movies that have parts that are so stupid and unrealistic it just isn't funny? Well that was this movie, some parts were just so ridiculous I just couldn't get into it, but none the less I am always happy to have a night out with my hubby!

When we got home last night and got out of the truck all I could smell was a camp fire.. I love that smell, it was such a great way to end the night!

I love the smell of campfires and fresh cut grass.... I love the sound of baby laughter and a Harley Davidson.. haha!

So before I sign off I will share my super exciting news.. I don't talk a lot of our immigration stuff on here because its pretty personal. But if you are new around here or havent made the connection Jason is American and I am Canadian. We met while working on the same job in Toronto (where I am from) and it kind of progressed from there. Since deciding to get married immigration has dictated much of our lives. After we got married I received my two year green card which expired in March, two months prior to that we had to apply for a removal of conditions and if approved I would receive my 10 year green card. I have always had a really hard time dealing with immigration, we have never had any problems but in the back of my head there was always the thought that someone else could take away my happiness, someone else had a say over what my future would be and that is terrifying. We sent in our last round of paperwork in January, I had my bio-metrics in March and we waited. We waited to hear if they would request more information, if they would want to have an interview with us or if my green card would come.. and today.. my green card came! I got out of the shower and there was an email from Jason that our lawyer had sent the confirmation papers from Homeland security. I sat on the edge of the bed and sobbed.. happy tears of course! This is such a relief, I feel like I have absolutely nothing in the world to worry about! Jason and I are starting a whole new chapter in our lives with our home and I just feel like everything is falling into place in the best way possible.

I am so grateful for all I have in my life, for all the so many blessings!

So on Tuesday we find out a definite closing date on the house, we were set to close for sure on August 30th but there was a few hiccups (windows were delivered in the wrong size, etc) and therefore we thought the date might be pushed. We will find out for sure on Tuesday and then start getting house insurance, etc in the works. I am so excited.

Here is a picture we got from the builder today, I'm not sure if you guys can tell the difference as most of the work being done is in the house but I see changes!

I hope you are all having a fabulous weekend, I will be back around tomorrow with some of my favorite Pinterest finds for our new home!!

Cranky Blogger!

I know what you're all thinking, so much for getting sick of me when I couldn't even manage to blog today before 9:00pm, well let me tell you why! I woke up this morning CRANKY, everything was bothering me and I just couldn't sit down and think of anything positive or refreshing to write about, so I didn't write anything.. until now.

I started this blog to document our travels and keep our friends and family informed but truth be told in a lot of ways its been like a journal for me as well, I complain and share excitement here so I figured although I'm having a bad day today why not drop in and vent a little, maybe someone can relate or if nothing else maybe I will feel better just getting it all out there!

Truth be told a big part of my problem is being back in Estevan, I was really excited to come back because Tanya was going to be here for a visit but now she's gone and I'm back to life in this miserable place. Jason is working all the time, I still absolutely HATE our apartment, there is nothing to do here.. its miserable! I know this might sound crazy if you consider all the extreme change that tends to come along with our lifestyle but I don't always deal well with change. We just had a great vacation at home, got to enjoy summer like I hoped we would this year and coming back here was a change I just didn't want to have to deal with. I know we cant stay at home, and really that's not my problem.. my problem is I hate this place and I don't know how to shake it. I am doing things to make it as tolerable as possible but when I get in a mood like this, they could open 6 new restaurants a mall and 3 parks and I would grimace! Good attitude right?

On top of that I'm dealing with another ongoing issue with people in my life that at this point I don't know how to go about dealing with anymore. I cannot make someone treat me as I treat them, I cannot make someone have respect for me regardless of how I act towards them, and more than that I really cant make a situation better with others who aren't willing to make the same effort. I have a really hard time when someone directly hurts me, directly disrespects me when all I have ever wanted was positive things with them. Sometimes you just have to let go what you know will never be and stop trying, but when people are directly linked to you and not going anywhere.. and you know that civility would be the best possible case is there really a point where you can say enough? Maybe I'm a gluten for punishment as I have tried and made a continuous effort only to get burnt, but yet here I am venting about it, looking for the strength to continue my efforts.

I'm just having a bad day, and I would love to tell you that I am one of those people who can wake up in a bad mood and turn it around with a "Plucky good attitude and a can-do spirit" but that would be a lie! I'm a bawl ass! When I wake up in a bad mood all I want to do is cry, be stubborn and miserable! I can do things that I think would help improve my mood, make a pot of tea, curl up with a good book, put on my favorite movie, buy something new but in the end I'm still cranky!

Not to mention when you're having a bad day and you have to deal with those people who give you the "there are starving kids in Africa" speech as though that it going to change what is going on in my life today. Yes I understand there are starving kids in Africa and I am very sorry for that but that doesn't change the fact that I'm pissy and things aren't going my way... not to mention you telling me this repeatedly which is a nice way of telling me to knock it off I have nothing to complain about puts you on my list.. and let me tell you its not a good list!

So tonight when Jason came home from work we had dinner and headed out to run a few errands and get frozen yogurt! I'm not sure Jason was sold as he had just eaten a huge dinner but I wasn't really in the mood to negotiate, I was getting frozen yogurt! We use to go for frozen yogurt all the time in Alaska and we loved it, the place we went tonight has been in the works for awhile and when we got back from vacation to our surprise it was open! Tanya and I tried it out the other day while she was here which made me that much more sure we needed to go tonight!

Maple Walnut and Vanilla yogurt with sprinkles, walnuts, coconut and caramel chips.... divine!

Aren't these the most hilarious napkins too? We have been to a Yogurt Lounge and a Menchies but never a Spoon Me.. too funny!!

Truth be told I cant say my mood has improved that much since this morning but I have all intentions of waking up in a better mood tomorrow morning.. maybe. I actually called and made us dentist appointments today, which we've been thinking about for awhile but there are two dentists in this town and each of them only have 1 hygienist in the summer (seriously?) so there was no way to get appointments at the same time and we share a vehicle.. blah blah blah and I absolutely HATE the dentist. Yes I am a dentist hater, I get super anxiety about going, I swear my gums swell up at the thought of it, its the absolute LAST thing I want to be doing tomorrow but I know I will feel better after I go. Jason took the early appointment for 7:00am which is fine because I am not a morning person anyways and then he will pick me up after his appointment so I can take him to work and be back at the dentist for my appointment at 10:00am. Wish me luck!

I suppose we all have bad days and all we can do is move on and make the best of the next day ahead of us. Tomorrows post will be more positive, even if I have to fake it.. seriously.

Healthy can be Convenient too!

First I would just like to say that I am NOT preaching, I LOVE beer and pizza is my favorite food! I know I talk a lot about going to the gym and healthy eating but by no means does that mean that I don't treat myself, but I do that because for the most part I try to eat as healthy as possible.

I find a huge reason people justify crappy eating is because of the time it takes to prepare healthy meals. I completely understand having a busy schedule and I don't by any means deny the fact that hitting a fast food joint on the way home and not even having to get out of the car probably is quicker than coming home and pulling a bunch of ingredients out of the fridge, getting pots and pans out and actually cooking a meal. So I thought I would share a few things I do to make eating healthy on the go a lot easier!

First and foremost I cannot praise the crock pot enough, Pinterest offers a ton of easy recipes that you can get ready in the morning, leave it on low all day and come home to a delicious healthy meal! Most crock pots have the removable ceramic inside therefore you can get everything ready the night before, have it in the fridge to grab the next morning put it on low and run! How easy is that??

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For me the biggest help in creating healthy meals on the go in having everything ready and easily accessible in the fridge all week so when I need to grab something on the run I eliminate the time it would take to clean and chop before cooking! 

After grocery shopping every week I make the time that night or the next day to pull out all the fruits and vegetables we've bought and clean and chop everything! I find for me when I'm looking for a snack if things are ready in the fridge I am more inclined to grab a celery stick than a chocolate granola bar we have for Jason's lunch snacks (we apparently all wont go for a celery stick regardless of how easily accessible they are).

I am a lover of fruit, living in Alaska and not being able to get fresh fruit (because everything is shipped in) I really missed it. Now that we are out here in farm country I absolutely LOVE all the different fresh fruits we can get here. Unfortunately although this sounds ridiculous if I don't go through and cut up all the fruit and have it in containers in the front of the fridge I often forget its even there unless I go digging. So at any point in time I often have multiple containers of fresh cut fruit in the fridge so I'm always inclined to grab it when I feel a twinge of hunger!

Just getting back from vacation and obviously not eating as healthy as we might at home it is really important for us to jump back on the healthy eating band wagon! Truthfully for the most part we ate pretty well this vacation (FOR THE MOST PART!) but with not being at the gym and having access to more snacks than usual I really went overboard last night when grocery shopping with healthy goods!

Tonight we are going to be enjoying stir fry with fresh veggies and marinated chicken! Generally making a meal like this takes a lot of work, cleaning and cutting up all the vegetables, cutting up the chicken or meat of your choice! This meal prep time took me all of 5 minutes today as all my veggies were in the fridge and ready to go!

How easy is that? I know you have to find the time in the day to get everything cleaned and cut up, but an hour one day a week can save your HOURS throughout the week, and I truly believe make you more inclined to cook something healthy than something quick!

We do this with meat as well, after we buy meat at the grocery store we come home and separate it according to meals planned for the week so we just have to grab a bag out of the freezer and defrost it for the meal planned.

If its not possible to do weekly meal prep, which I understand it isn't always I do make a point to at least have some fresh fruit in a bowl on the counter, nectarines, peaches, oranges, apples... some avocados! Easy access!!

Eating healthy doesn't have to be overly time consuming, it can be quick and easy with the right preparation, it allows you to experiment with ingredients and spices, really find what works for you and your family, its absolutely cheaper than eating out and its so much better for you!

I'm off to make dentist appointments.. eek! I absolutely HATE going to the dentist, I love the feeling of super clean teeth but truth be told I am absolutely terrified of the picking, scraping, drilling and bleeding! I suppose there is no avoiding it, maybe they wont charge for a little laughing gas to ease my nerves?