We're Engaged!

Aaron and I have been together since August 2008. In December 2008, he lost his job and moved in with me. He started school soon after, and in October 2009 graduated from The Academy of Learning for IT. But he found it difficult to find work in his chosen field. We struggled, we sacraficed, but we did it all as a team. Finally, in late June 2010, he got the call that changed everything - he'd been hired by a global crane company for inside sales. He started in July, and loved going to work every day.

It was my birthday on November 29th, 2010, and he wanted to do something nice for me for my 31st because he felt that I'd stood by him for all those many, many months of struggle, so he arranged the perfect weekend away. He drove me up to Whistler on the Friday, where he'd arranged for a king-sized 1 bedroom suite at the Delta Whistler. He cooked me dinner, we drank a bottle of wine, and we snuggled by the fire. Perfection! On Saturday morning we went to our favorite Whistler breakfast joint, Elements, for our traditional Whistler breakfast, then roamed around the snowy village. We adjourned back to our room for some lunch and a quick nap. At 2pm, a shuttle pulled up and whisked us away into the hills to the most decadent, luxurious spa I'd ever seen... a Scandanavian spa with different hot tubs, cold tubs, saunas, steam rooms, waterfalls, warm rooms, and an outdoor fireplace. It was beautiful - covered in snow and steaming from the heat of the water. We had side-by-side massages, and then soaked some more in the pools. After that, he had made dinner reservations at Ariva in the village, where we enjoyed some wine and a delicious meal. After dinner we changed into some warmer, more comfortable clothes, and he insisted that we go for a walk. We ended up at the base of Whistler mountain, under the stars. That's when he told me, our faces cold with the crisp breeze and blowing snow from the mountain, that he loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me, got down on one knee, and asked me to be his wife. I cried and said yes (I think), and we started celebrating being engaged!

Weekend Adventures

On Saturday, Mr. A and I ventured down to the Eat! Vancouver festival. I'm in the food industry, so it was supposed to be a nice relaxing treat to be able to finally attend one of these shows instead of working one of them.

When we arrived, it was a MADHOUSE! It was jam packed with people trying to get free samples of delicious fare. I was more interested in the cooking goods, but Mr. A was all about the food from around the world.

After we'd gone through each aisle twice, we decided to take our seats to watch Chuck Hughes from "Chuck's Day Off" on the Food Network Canada cook up some good eats. I must say, ladies, he's even cuter and funnier in person. Tattoo arm sleeves, wicked grin, slight Montreal accent, quick wit, and macho ruggedness = HOT! But he also cooked up some great new things I'd never thought to try before: avacado and tomato salad with croutons and fried cheese, salmon tartar, and fresh scallops with a relish topping. It all looked amazing! :)

After the show, Mr. A was still starving, so we headed to one of our favorite local jems, Me & Julio's for their prawn and fish tacos! Yum-o and perfect food to cap off a great day before heading home to watch X-men.

Sunday was all about renos on our new place... it's slow but it should be done. The countdown is on... less than 4 weeks to go! AHHH!

Asian Soup

Needless to say, I try to watch my food intake because I've always struggled with my weight. I remember being in grade 4 and taking rice cakes to school because a kid called me fat, and I realized that he wasn't just doing it to be mean - I was a little chubby. Anyways, I'm always looking for filling foods that are low in fat and calories, but still satisfying.

Soup is a great meal if you're watching your calories - it is filling, warm, and can be packed with flavor, vegetables, and protein, all in one bowl!

I made up this recipe one night, and Mr. A and I absolutely loved it...

Asian Wonton Soup
Recipe:

1 Carton Vegetable Broth or Chicken Broth

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar

1 tbsp garlic

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp cumin

1 sliced onion

Sliced carrots

Broccoli florets

Bok Choy

To top:

Cilantro

Bean Sprouts

Options:

Wontons, wonton skins, or dumplings

Noodles

Sliced Chicken

Cooked Shrimp

Tofu - fried or puffed

Fry the onions in a large pot until translucent. Add crushed garlic and grated ginger. (Note: I

keep my ginger in the freezer. It grates finer and more easily, and will keep forever)

Stir until fragrant, then add cumin. Add the broth of your choice, soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, and sugar, and bring to a simmer. Add carrots, broccoli, and bok choy. You can add any vegetable you want, however, as it is a very adaptable recipe.

Once the vegetables are tender, add the protein of your choice as well as any dumplings you want. As I'm a vegetarian, I like just wonton skins and maybe some tofu that has been fried so it has some texture. This also keeps it low fat. But any protein and any type of starch or dumplings you would like to add is fine - make it your own.

To serve the soup, add some toppings - I like beansprouts and sprigs of cilantro. Top it off with another small splash of soy and sesame oil to taste.

It is low in fat, high in taste, and just plain warm and satisfying after a long day!

Dreaming of peonies...

I had a rough weekend. I was feeling emotional and a little weapy, so what is a girl to do? That's right - buy herself a big bunch of peonies! I love these bushy, aromatic floral gem in any color and in any level of bloom. They are gorgeous as closed little buds, but oh so charming when opened and inviting your nose in for a little sniff!

I've recently discovered a sketchy little grocery store on Commercial Drive that sells flowers for a pretty decent price. I've become a huge fan of The Flower Box on Commercial over the years, but alas, today (being the Monday of May Long Weekend) they were closed for the holiday so I ventured over to the grocery store on a hunt for something floral to lift my spirits. There, in a large white bucket of dirty water sat the most gorgeous bundles of these merlot colored beauties for only $10.99. It's as if they were calling for me by name! I snatched them up, brought them home to be trimmed, and placed them in this simple white vase to live out their lives on my kitchen table... in the middle of my slow packing for the big move next month.

They are a reminder to stop and smell the... peonies... on a day where I feel like I need a reason to smile and breathe and be happy that I'm here and able to smell the beauty of life. Thank you pretties!

Tea

I've recently rediscovered my love of tea. When I was a kid, my mom used to make me a cup of Orange Pekoe with a squirt of honey when I was feeling under the weather. It was really the only time I drank tea. But as I'm getting older, I'm enjoying it more and more, realizing that it is a great relaxation method at the end of a long, stressful day. In fact, I rarely get through an entire mug before I'm asleep - even if it's not decaf.

Here are my favorites right now:

Mighty Leaf - Vanilla Bean

It is delicious and relaxing - especially with a biscotti in the other hand!




PC Brand Ginger Peach
It is refreshing and fruity - just the right notes on a cool summer evening

Stash Pumpkin Spice

This is my go-to fav in the fall, but all year long it's soothing and warm!

Try a cup and enjoy... it's even good for you!

My new outfit...

I was feeling a little blue today, so after returning a defective hairdryer, I walked through the mall window shopping.

I spotted a sale inside Smartset, so I wandered inside.

I was in search of a black bridesmaid dress for Miss J's wedding, but alas, there was none there - as usual! How hard is it to find a nice formal dress in black in the spring? Who would have thought!

Anyways, I happened to spot a lovely black, grey, and taupe dress on the sale rack, and decided to give it a go - just because I was blue and needed something pretty to cheer me up.

IT FIT! And it was LOVELY! And it was on SALE! Done and done! I'll be wearing it to my anniversary dinner with Aaron in Whistler this August.

I ended up also finding a lovely strand of "faux" pearls and a set of 3 earrings also on sale.

Ready to see my beauties?

In total, guess what I spent? Take a wild guess! Give up? A whopping $37! Jealous? :) I love it, and when I got home and tried it on for the Mr., he agreed that it was perfect for our approaching big night out!

I love it, and I love him! :)

Last weekend...

Aaron was recently given one of the highest honors anyone can be given when our friends Cliff and Stacey asked him to be the godfather to their youngest son, Rylan, who is 9 months old. Aaron was more than blown away by this prestigious request, and has been taking the responsibility very seriously.

This past Sunday was Rylan's baptism in South Surrey. We all gathered at the house beforehand to go over the ceremony, then headed off to the church. It wasn't something that he or I had ever been to, so everything was new to us. It really was beautiful, as three babies were being taken into the hands of God and three sets of Godparents were given the responsibility of helping to raise a child. Neither of us are religious, but it was something that we both took to heart and wanted to be a part of.

Aaron and Rylan

(Isn't my guy gorgeous!)

Aaron is a goofy guy, but nothing means more to him than his friends, his family, his cat, and of course yours truly! So when he was asked to be part of Rylan's life, on a permanent, spiritual, life-long basis, he made a committment to me as well, that I would forever be a part of Rylan's life too, and together, if anything ever happened to his parents, we would take over as his guardian. What a great responsibility and a tremendous honor!

Welcome!

I love blogs! I love blogs about crafting! I love blogs about cooking! I love blogs about weddings! I just love blogs! I love to craft. I love to cook. I'm not getting married anytime soon, but maybe sometime. I am, however, in a wedding this September, so I still get to read wedding blogs and not feel weird about it! :)

Well, I decided to create my own blog about my life because, well, I love reading them, and I'm a writer, so why not create my own! And at the urging of my fabulous guy, I decided to give it a try!

Life if crazy right now between moving at the end of June, being in a wedding in September, and helping my guy look for work, but I love my crazy life.

I live with my guy and our two cats... Keiko and Halo. Aren't they precious?!?!?!? Yes, they are!

KEIKO



HALO

I love to cook. I mean, I REALLY love to cook. On my days off, my kitchen is full of wonderful vegetarian food - soups, stews, pasta, baked goods. I have a passion for it, and I also have a passion for the dishes they are served on. I love dishes. I love putting wonderful looking, divine tasting food in a beautiful dish and serving it to the people who make me smile.

A tapas platter I made for a dinner party

Anyways, I am in the food industry (marketing for a food and packaging broker), I have a great family, caring friends, a wonderful boyfriend, two crazy cats, and coworkers who could easily challenge The Office to a disfunction competition and win!

That's my life so far... and I love it!