fake friday

(entertainment schedules)

(newfoundland band) 

 (blizzard today)

every other week j and i have fake friday. fake because we have to work the next day. we try to treat these fake fridays with respect by doing something fun despite having to work in the morning. last night we went to see Sherman Downey play. he sang a song about a dancer named Isadora Duncan who was killed by her scarf. true story, apparently. it was an awesome show. also, just for the record, we are having a blizzard here today. 

pei weekend, briefly

(many potato farms) 

(the "hurricane simulator" in charlottetown) 

(sunshine and coffees at timothy's)

sometimes weekends happen where you don't want to take a bunch of pictures. this was one of them. we just really enjoyed hanging out with j's parents and brother. we were also on a hunt for wedding bands, a part of the wedding process that i am loving. we are hoping to find rings made locally (aka in the maritimes).

highlights:

curry and homemade roti (j's mother is from trinidad-she is a pro)

hot yoga (i so miss this!)

beers at the old triangle 

saturday market with smoked salmon bagels 

dairy queen sundae (also, i really miss this)

sushi lunch

flight delays

(approaching the red island)

our return flight was cancelled over the weekend. i used to get pretty upset when cancelled flights delayed me from returning to work, but i am learning to relax. being stuck in a hotel or an airport is not the worst thing, especially if i am with j. but i am ready for spring, and not having to worry about blizzards for a while. our work schedule is a little screwed up due to the flight delays, but it was all worth it as we had a great weekend on the red island. 

happy friday

j and i are heading to pei to visit his family this weekend. looking so forward to stepping on the plane and leaving work behind. also excited for the saturday morning market in charlottetown with the smoked salmon bagels. also j's mom's famous curry and roti.

let's be fair

i just want to keep it real about this whole spring/summer/early warm weather. the above pics were taken this morning. here in central newfoundland, we are still having snow. it snowed this morning. and yesterday. and the day before. also, it is still below zero. we have had snow for almost 6 months straight now. it's cool though. our 2 weeks of summer get warm enough so you can take off your sweatshirt as long as it's not too windy. so that's a plus.

short weekend

j and i work every other saturday, leaving us with just one day off before we head back to work. we try to make the most of it in our tiny town. this weekend we bowled and celebrated st. patrick's day with an after work beer. oh, and i think i overdid the whole chocolate mousse thing. i ate it until i felt sick, and then just kept going because it was so good. and now the thought of it makes me ill. this happened to me with crepes when i was a kid in denmark. i have not enjoyed crepes since that day i ate like 15 of them at the age of 8. wtf.

also, we fully committed to a paperless wedding. no hard copy invites, menus, save the dates, rsvp cards, programs. the only thing i feel we will need is place cards for the dinner. i will probably make them from paper we already have around the house. maybe even make my own paper?

happy friday

i finally laid my uggs full of holes to rest in the garbage last night. so now i am ready for shoe weather, flip flop weather. maybe the winter is coming to a close? this weekend j and i are going bowling! i am so excited. and j is making his amazing sushi. and we may or may not be drinking some green beer tomorrow. happy weekend

paleo chocolate ice cream

this is actually the best thing in the world. between chocolate mousse, chocolate pudding, and this ice cream, i pretty much go through a tin of cocoa every week. 

paleo chocolate ice cream:

2 frozen bananas sliced up

1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey

2-3 tablespoons cocoa

1 tablespoon almond milk

all in the food processor. so easy, and i'd say pretty much the best soft serve ice cream i ever had. also, i am definitely not on the paleo diet. i am just really into how many paleo recipes have banana, cocoa, and coconut.

blueberry muffins with rice flour

these are awesome. the different flours make them heartier. adapted from gwyneth's cookbook, which i own and love. also, no sugar, eggs, or butter, which is cool.


blueberry muffins:

1/2 cup oil (i always use olive oil)
1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
1/2 cup almond milk
1 cup rice flour
1 cup spelt flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon guar or xantham gum
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups blueberries

mix wet ingredients.
mix in dry ingredients.
fold in blueberries
put in 12 cup muffin tin
bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 min until a toothpick comes out clean and they are golden brown.

our weekend: sam roberts and reunions

 (extra large beers in the hotel lounge)

 (playing pool at the ship pub)

(between sets at Sam Roberts) 

(view from our round hotel room window) 

(signal hill at sunset)

j and i had an amazing weekend in the city. we ate tons of good food, saw some friends, bought a few things. notes:

-sheraton hotel is sweet. it has a hot tub, pool, gym, sauna. and it has a cool lounge to have a drink in, which i think is important. and you can walk to all downtown things from there. and free parking. 

-we discovered my new fav clothing store. i prefer secondhand always.

-we ran into friends on george street who we haven't seen since graduation. it was like no time had passed, which is the best feeling. 

-we finally got to visit this lunch-only organic restaurant, hungry heart cafe. lived up to the hype. 

happy birthday bff

(early university days, 2004 ish) 

(in paris 2008) 

(europe 2008)

just a few of my fav old school disposable camera pics of one of my greatest friends on her birthday. happy birthday jenny.

happy birthday J

happy birthday to the most important person in my life. i love every single day with you, and can't wait to make it official.

snow day

(carrot muffins)

(birthday carrot muffins + cashew frosting) 

(my singer) 

(pickling green beans)

monday we had a snow day. the roads were so bad, we actually had to turn around and come home. i think our entire town closed down. i made carrot muffins for j's upcoming birthday. they are pretty healthy, with the icing made up of mostly cashews. i am not sure how i feel about cashew cream. maybe i really need a vitamix to know for sure. 

i also pulled my sewing machine out from the basement. dusting it off was as far as i got. and i am into pickling these days. it is really easy, and all you need are some jars, vinegar, sugar, spices (pepper, dill, whatever). i loosely used this recipe for carrots and green beans. they are really good. and i'm pretty sure pickled stuff is really good for you. but don't quote me on that. 

on the weekend

(very much into homemade granola these days) 

(cookies made using this recipe in a muffin tin) 

 (at the local pool hall)

(pool) 

we had a quiet weekend here in gander. we worked, we went to a sweet barbeque with some friends, we played pool. we booked flights to visit family at easter. i am excited for this week because we are going to see sam roberts play in st. john's for j's birthday celebration.

other things from the weekend:
-i am totally going gray. i sorta like it with my "natural" blonde hair color, but i am still surprised when i look in the mirror and see gray patches.
-the bowling alley in gander is opened for only 3 hours per day. seems odd to me.
-honeymoon planning has us debating costa rica vs hawaii. both look awesome

happy friday

this is supposed to be the coldest day of the year around here (-22 Celsius without the windchill). makes me want to plan our honeymoon to a hot place. and stay inside and bake cookies. this weekend j and i have plans to go to the nearby ski hill and continue my snowboarding lessons.