Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Yesterday, I made some really delicious cookies.  I mean REALLY delicious.  Dangerously delicious.  ;)

I don't have a favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe from growing up.  My mom made them, I just don't really have any memories that resonate from them (unlike oatmeal cookies made from the recipe that my Grandma Audrey wrote out for my mom- now that, to me, is the taste of childhood).  Actually, the chocolate chip cookies that I ate most often as a child were the Safeway No-Name brand.  I think they came in a blue package and were dry, and yet somehow delicious in spite of their relative crappiness. However, I do enjoy a real chocolate chip cookie every now and then.

I love Pinterest and frequently stalk the Food and Drink section on my phone, pinning random delicious looking recipes for possible future use.  One of my New Year's Resolutions (which have more or less fallen by the wayside) was to attempt to use some of the things I was pinning.  And trying new recipes has been relatively successful.

Like yesterday's attempt!  Yay! I love when delicious treats turn out amazing! I got this recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction.  Here's the link to the recipe.  There are several awesome tips for getting a really soft, chewy, thick, delicious, amazing cookie.  Like all the hyberbole?? :)

These cookies tasted great the next day.  She says they will hold up for a week but we ate them too fast to tell.  All in all, a great recipe that I will definitely make again. 

How do I know these were good? Between my husband and I, we ate all 16 large cookies in a  day and a half.  And that was mostly me.  Yummy but bad for my diet.

Finished Product!

Of course, part of the fun was watching Mr T tear apart my tupperware cupboard while I was busy.

Cutie Pants! And Vest, LOL!

Love that little boy!  The Husby told his work pals that he had eaten enough cookies this week and apparently, they very casually asked if I was baking again soon.  I used to send treats in with him to work a lot but that has mostly stopped since I've been busy with T.  I guess I'll have to resume my wifely duties, lol.

Keep on Sparkling, friends!!

Love,
     Krista

Nutrilite

One of my very best friends in the world, Liz, came over to visit with T and me the other day.  We have been friends since we were in junior high and our parents live 2 doors apart in the town where I grew up.  Liz is an amazing woman.  She is so caring and thoughtful, it actually makes me feel bad because I am not nearly as nice as she is.  Liz is an incredible wife, mother, friend, and business owner.  They weren't able to make it to T's party because of a business obligation so Liz and her little girl M came to eat leftover spinach dip and cupcakes.  I made sure to save some of the really good snacks just for her.  When she got here, I told her I wasn't sure if the spinach dip was still good since it has never lasted 3 days before in my house!  There goes that part of my diet!

We had a super nice visit and opened up the presents she brought for both me and T.  She got T the cutest swim trunks and rash tee and a cute pink t-shirt.  We'll see what Daddy has to say about that!  She brought me a super fun apron (that is from Washington, DC and says First Lady on it!), some nail polish and some vitamins.  I love pink, polka dots and frilly things, so that is just perfect!

Part of her business is through Amway and she always gives me the best things to try and see what I think. 
See, incredibly generous as well as beautiful!

For the next month or so, I am going to be taking the Nutrilite Women's Pack.  It says that it is a "Dietary Supplement for Active Women".  That seems to fit me!  I'm pretty active these days chasing around T.

Included in the daily pack is a Daily Multi Tablet (general multi-vitamin), Cal Mag D Advanced Tablet (calcium, magnesium and Vitamin D), SHiNe Tablet (for hair, nails and skin) and Ocean Essentials Balanced Health Capsule (EPA and DHA Omega-3 Fatty Acids).

I currently take a prenatal vitamin that is from Costco, so I'm interested to see how I feel with this pack.  I am particularly curious to see if I notice a difference in my hair, skin and nails.  Being healthy is pretty important to me, especially since I now have a baby relying on me.  But let's face it, looking good ranks up there, too!

Definition Lifestyles: What Defines You?

I will check back in and let you know how it goes half way through and then again at the end.  Apparently, these vitamins are top of the line and "food in tablet form" according to Liz.  If you are interested in checking out anything available through Amway International, please do so through Liz's web business!  She is wonderful and the customer service can't be beat!  Just click the link above.

My Little Man Turns One!

Dear T,
Yesterday was your first birthday.  I remember waiting to meet you.  It seems both a long, long time ago and yet only yesterday.  We didn't know if you were going to be a boy or a girl, we didn't know when you would arrive, we didn't know what you would look like or who you were going to be.  I didn't even know for sure what labour or motherhood were all about.  I guess we have both learned a lot in the past year.

I remember talking to a friend about a week before you were born, saying "I know I can take care of a baby.  That part doesn't scare me.  But I don't know how I'm going to be someone's Mom."

Each and every day, I watch you learn something new and you teach me something new, too.  There is a whole world full of mystery and delight out there and I am going to enjoy showing it to you and having you show it to me.  Both Daddy and I love you so much.  You are bright and cheerful.  You are loving and happy.  You are the apple of my eye and I can't wait to watch you grow.  You already have so much personality and we are going to have so much fun together!

It turns out that I didn't need to know who you were before you came.  I know now and that is more than enough.

Love always,
Your Mama

Morning Fun (and a Craft, too!)

I was going to say good morning (since that is what it feels like to me, for some strange reason).  It is actually 5 PM and I need to get a move on if I want to have dinner ready for Husby when he walks in the door.  One nice thing about summertime is that it usually isn't very busy at his work and so he rarely needs to stay late.  Unfortunately for me, I have gotten used to him coming home later and have been having a hard time with supper. 
It is absolutely beautiful out today.  Hot and sunny with a breeze so you don't feel too warm.  T had an almost 3 hour nap this afternoon and I sat on my deck with a book for a large portion of it.  Total bliss!

I did some clean up, played with my little guy and made some broccolettes.  What are broccolettes, you ask?  Apparently, they are a tender relative of broccoli.  They had a big bag of them (organic!) on sale at H&W Produce last week so we picked them up!  Tasty!  Makes it easy to stay on the diet plan!  T ate them a little bit.  Finger foods are starting to be a little bit better.

Here is a quick craft that I whipped up yesterday.

Magnetic Pencil Holder

Cute, huh?

It is a pen/pencil holder that is magnetic so it sticks to the fridge.

I used a can (from the refried beans that I used to make the 7 layer dip I took to Saturday's fiesta), some scrapbooking paper I had kicking around and a little bit of leftover ribbon.  Also needed are a form of adhesive (I used my trusty glue gun) and some magnets (mine were 2 business card sized magnets, left over from the save the date magnets that I made for my wedding 3 years ago).

Now for some instructions:

1. Wash and dry empty can.  I chose a can that was relatively tall and narrow so as to not be too large and yet tall enough to hold pens, pencils and markers neatly.  I might move my scissors there, too!

2. Measure tin can and cut paper to appropriate size, making sure to line up the height of the paper with the can and leave a small amount of overlap for the width.  I used my handy Fiskars paper cutter thing.

3. Glue edge of paper and align.  Press down to set glue.  Apply glue to far edge and wrap around tightly and press down.

4. Measure and cut ribbon.  Glue ribbon down all the way along the top of the can.  I applied glue to the ribbon 2-3 inches at a time and then rubbed it down until it was all glued. Repeat for bottom ribbon.

5. Assemble bow.  Basically, this bow is one piece about 3" long with a second 1" piece.  I took the long piece and put a dab of glue in the centre.  I then folded one end into the glue and pressed.  I then put another dab of glue over top and repeated with the other side.  Then I place some glue on the back and wrapped the small piece around. 

6. Glue magnets to back of can covering up where the paper overlaps.  I made sure that my ribbon overlap was also in the same place as the paper overlap.

7. Lastly, I place my cup on the fridge and glued on the bow making sure it was centred.

See!

Now I won't lose my pens and they're close to the grocery list!

I love crafts so hopefully as I work on things I can add them here!  When I was a kid, I called myself Crafty K (dorky, I know!)

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!

Happy Cinco De Mayo, Everybody!
I have had a super busy handful of days here.  On Friday, I found a china hutch on Kijiji that I liked for cheap so Husby, T and I went all the way out to Morinville to pick it up yesterday.  Then we went to a Mexican fiesta party at a friends.  Today, we went to Mass and then out for lunch and to Lowe's to look at Cabinet reno ideas.  My plan is to redo the cabinets and this hutch at the same time.  I had wanted to get all of that done before T's party but that doesn't look likely at this point. We also bought a new ceiling fan for the kitchen.  We are very slowly accomplishing some of the things on my list.  Bobby did a whole pile of yard clean up today, which was awesome!

The weather the last couple of days has been amazing!  Plus 28!  Woot, woot!! Apparently, we more or less skipped spring this year and went from warm winter to full on summer!  We actually have our air conditioner running right now to make it cool enough to sleep.

Speaking of sleeping, Little Buddy isn't.  Arrgghhh!!  It seems like every time his sleep gets settled down, something changes and we're back to awful.  Right now, we are in this weird place between one and two naps.  If his first nap is good (2+ hours), then he doesn't have a second nap and will go to bed a little earlier and generally sleeps pretty well (1-2 wake ups).  If he has a second nap, then his bedtime is ridiculously late and he sleeps horribly, which means I am exhausted and both of us sleep in too late.  It's an ugly cycle. 

Well, I need to try to get some sleep! 
Good night!

So Much for May's Goals!

Well, I already missed one day.  That makes me 0 for 1.  Well, if you count right now I am 1 for 2.  That sounds better, right??

But in the spirit of Tuesday's post, I am going to keep persevering.  I remembered last night as I was already in bed and I looked at my phone and saw that it was 12:01 AM (I know, I know, I need to go to bed earlier) and thought "why bother getting out of bed, it is technically already tomorrow"!  But today is a new day.

One of my goals for this summer is to rock a bikini at our family reunion/trip to the Okanagan this summer.  We are going at the end of July.  That gives me 3 months to tone up, tighten up and maybe lose some extra body fat.

I lost all of the baby weight by the time I left the hospital.  I know that sounds crazy but it's true.  I only gained 15 pounds and they were gone super fast.  Well, T weighed 8 lbs even so that was a big chunk right there.  By about 6 weeks postpartum, I was 15 lbs below my pre-pregnancy weight.  I have now leveled out about 12 lbs below but everything feels different.  My waist is thicker than it used to be, my lower belly pooches out some and everything feels looser and... jigglier?  Not very attractive.  My husband keeps telling me that I look great except for the extra weight around the middle.  Thanks, dear.

It isn't going to get any better by sitting at home eating chocolate, that's for sure.

Yesterday, I took measurements of my arms, legs, hips, bust and waist (both natural and lower- the poochy part).  I don't really care about weight, it's size that I am interested in.  I have been pinning lots of inspirational things- workouts, sayings, etc.  But now I need to get off my butt and do them.

T and I have been walking every day this week.  As the weather warms up here, it will be easier to get outside and do some fun things.  I have looked into getting a jogging stroller even though I hate running because that seems like a better plan to do with the boy than to hope he stays entertained on his own while I use the elliptical machine in our basement.  Unfortunately, I have a strict budget and haven't seen anything cheap enough to make me what to spend the money, especially since as I mentioned I don't even like running.  Our stroller is a Baby Jogger but they stated quite clearly that it isn't for actually jogging, lol.

I do feel a little concerned because I am still breastfeeding.  I think that the breastfeeding has been great in terms of helping me to lose that initial weight but I have heard from friends that the last 5-10 lbs is impossible to lose until you wean.  Which makes sense since your body needs a certain amount of fat stores to make milk.  My goal isn't to have really low body fat though.  I have never managed to maintain a restrictive eating pattern EVER.  I like to think that my body has a happy point (that is maybe a little heavier than I would like) that doesn't require too much effort to maintain.  As long as I am working out consistently, I can basically eat whatever I want (within reason, of course) and not worry.  Unfortunately, long sci-fi couch sessions with bags of chips tends to derail my efforts.

Well, today's plan includes laundry, grocery shopping, and exercise.  Although yesterday I picked up 4 new books from the library....  No!  Must stay strong!!! LOL!

Here's to everyone having a sparkly day!
Love,
Krista

Better Late Than Never

Hey friends,
I feel as if I have so much on the go always.  I have a bunch of different directions that I want to take this blog but I end up not going anywhere instead.  I have thought a lot about what I want to write about and have even drafted several different posts in my head but then they don't end up being written.  My goal for the next month (seems appropriate since we are at the start of May) is to write everyday.  For a whole month...   What have I gotten myself in for?

I think the important thing for me to remember here is that perfection is the enemy of good.  I know myself. If I miss a day, I will probably give up the whole thing and come back in another year to try again.  I used to skip university classes if I was going to be late.  But I think at this point in my life and for this project, better late than never.  Better something than nothing. 

I have had this black and white way of thinking for most of my life.  It has been one of my biggest challenges.  If I told my husband that I was a perfectionist, he would laugh since he rarely thinks that what I have accomplished is good enough (sounds harsh, but I think it's true).  However, I think it is more likely that I never really give it my all in an effort to avoid failing.  I didn't really try.  I don't care how it turns out...  That sounds pretty sad, now that I think on it.  Well, better late than never.

Back to writing everyday...

I think I need to get into a groove with this project.  I tend to get all excited about things and then lose steam, halfway through.  So, to start just write everyday.  It doesn't matter about what and hopefully, I will find my voice and my direction as I go.

Still Sparkling!
Krista