Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Update with all random things...

   Ok, so ever since posting my blog onto YouTube, I 've kept reminding myself that I need to do updates. The last post I had was sadly far to long ago, but I promise there are reasons.
   The first and foremost thing that has prevented me from being in the mood to blog is that a close friend recently passed away, and to be honest I've noticed I'm not always in the mood to share alot of my feelings about smaller meaningless things, you know? I'm trying to be there for my BFF (whose brother was tragically taken) and also trying to re-evalutae my life so to speak. To look at those around me differently and to be a lot more thankful for everything I have, big or small. To say that it's changed me is an understatement. I still feel for the mourning family, and I see how broken they all are, but I know that it's also helped me to treasure my own family more. I've complained about my sibling, I've complained about my parents, and I know there have been times where I've just been a major grouch. But why? Because I'm a pessimist and in a bad mood? That's no excuse to constantly belittle what I should be lucky to have. In a way I feel like it's taken me far too long to notice that I have things really quite good. I have a great family that I get along with (most of the time), I have friends that I truly love, I have a pet who is my little fur baby, a job that I completely love, and an apartment that feels like my home. I'm secure in my life, and though it may not be perfect, it's mine. I don't want to regret anything that's led me to become who I am or where I am today.
   Secondly, let's face it, everyone is busy at this time of year! I feel like ever since the middle of November I've been swimming just to keep my head afloat. On top of the experience I talk about above that happened, I also had my mother's, sister's and father's birthday in November, and immedietly after that it was time to start planning things happening for Christmas. Between finishing the birthdays, helping planning and attending my work Christmas party, and Christmas shopping I am spent. Don't get me wrong. I love Christmas, very very much so. But it's hard some years when everything seems to need doing. I don't doubt that everyone probably feels stressed, but I guess in a way I will be a little happy to have the refreshing beginning of the New Year start. And on top of all this I also managed to finally get my license at the ripe old age of 25, and am now starting to look at my first and biggest purchase, a car. So yes. Fingers crossed I will be posting VERY soon about something that is a new addition to my life.
   And that, in a nutshell, has been my life for the past 2 months. Busy, eventful, but also very important to me. :)

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Yummy yummy...

Geez, I m the worst blogger ever! Who goes months and months with no post??


Anyways, it's Thanksgiving long weekend here in Canada and I wanted to contribute something to my family's delicious dinner planned, so I thought I would try some sort of pie or tartlet recipe. Personally I'm a big fan of pumpkin or apple spice pies in the fall, but because my family is a little on the picky side, I thought I should be a little safe and choose cherry for the filling. In terms of the crust, well this was my gamble. I actually didn't use a recipe at all for this! I really do love baking, and I think sometimes half the fun of it is coming up with an idea of what you want, and just try different ingredients until you get it! For me it was simple. I wanted a quick graham crumb shell, and the filling had to be easy enough as well. So here is the final result. Enjoy!!



And now, here's the recipe!

Ingredients:

Tartlet crust:    2 cups graham crumbs
                  1 cup butter, softened
                  1 cup brown or white sugar


Filling:      2 lbs, or 2 and 1/2 cups pitted and halved cherries
              1 cup sugar
              1 sachet of pectin       
              1/2 cup water

In large bowl cream together butter and suagr until well blended. Add in graham crumbs slowly until entire mixture clumps together. Press into an empty muffin pan, adding about 2 tablespoons of mixture into each muffin tin. make sure bottom and sides are even in terms of mixture thickness. Bake in a preheated 350 degree over for 7 minutes. Let cool completely and dish out onto a plate or cooling tray.

In a saucepan, add cherries and water and bring to a gentle boil. Add in sugar and pectin until mixture forms a thicken gelatinous texture. Remove from heat and spoon into cooled tartlets or mini pie shells. Place in a fridge or cool area for a few hours to let the filling set. And there you go!

Makes about 16 tartlets or 12 tartlets and one mini 8 x 8 rounded mini pie





Wednesday, July 27, 2011

July showers bring...

Wow, has it really been almost 2 months since I got my butt on here to do a post? How sad! I can’t believe I let it fall by the waist side as bad as this.

Anyways, to stay on topic, it’s been a horrible summer so far in terms of rain. I don’t know if I’ve seen this much rain in Alberta for a long, long time. It wouldn’t be so bad if it was say April or even May, but being that it’s almost August and we’ve barely had a summer, many Albertans are starting to get fed up. That doesn’t even begin to explain how bad the bugs are because of all the extra moisture too. It’s not that this is just to rant about something as silly as weather. But when you are hoping for a warm summer to go camping or to outdoor markets and festivals, weeks or even months of constant rain can sure feel depressing.

Which is why I wanted to share this picture. I woke up one morning after it had rained all night (and would continue to do so that day as well) and as if it was almost perfect timing, there was a break in the dark clouds and the rising sun was able to peek through a bit. It caused one of those beautiful bright pink skies that you don’t see very often. I grabbed my iPhone (my new multitasking love) and quickly snapped this picture to make sure I remembered how wonderful it all looked.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Oh how I love being a girl!...

So what's a girl to do when she finds a new favorite makeup item and wants to share it with the world. Well as Ron Burgundy would say 'I want to shout it from the roof tops - I love Veronica Corningstone'. Oh sorry, I got a little off subject. But anyways, that's not the point.

The only mountain top I have is my blog, and so this is where I'm going to share my new love with the world.

Is it possible to love a piece of makeup at first sight? I really hope it is, cause this little bad boy has sealed the deal for me.
I know, it's kinda sad that a little palette of makeup can be so amazing, but if you're a girl and makeup makes you happy then by golly so will this baby.
I mean, how cute is it?!!

Ok, so to calm down a bit - heres what makes it so great.

In this tiny little thing, it hold 4 VERY versatile nuetral shimmer eyeshadows, and 2 sweet pin and coral shimmer blushes. Unfortunately there's no description of what the eyeshadow and blush colors are, but you can see for yourself just how nice they are!

I mean, how nice are those colors? The thing is that the stuff is actually pretty good quality too! So far I've only used each color once, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what's good and bad quality makeup.

If you're a makeup junkie like I've lately been, you definitely need to check this palette out foryourself!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Let the rain come down...


From the title, I gather it would be easy to figure out the type of weather that's happening right now where I live. It's wet, drab, cold, and just overall a very sad atmosphere for what should be a happy, camping-filled May long weekend. So why is it that even with the despairing weather, I feel a sense of renewal happening? Well to put it simply, it's because that's what rain symbolizes to me, especially at this point in my life. As you can tell, I've not been much of a blogger lately, and I will admit that it's directly because of the mood I've been in for the past couple of months. And sadly I have to say it was mostly because of something as simple as the starting of a new relationship. Now, most people would think a time like that is supposed to be surrounded by happiness and excitement, which for a little while, it was.

*Warning, this is where the post will get a little on the long side for some!*

What I didn't plan on was feeling as confused and unsure about it all, as I did. Because I don't have the luxury of being surrounded by tons and tons of suitors in everyday life (then again who does in these busy days?), I had started delving into the world of online dating about a year ago to see what else was out there. I was definitely surprised at the type of people who now seek refuge in online dating and matchmaking. It seems filled with normal guys and girls just looking for a connection from someone who they'd never meet in their everyday life otherwise. I'd heard of all the possibilities before starting, but it wasn't until I just listened to a dear friend and took the plunge that I really noticed just how misunderstood online dating sites can be.

After meeting a couple of people from one site in particular, I started dating a guy who I'll call 'John'. Now, of course the intial excitement of getting to know him was definitely fun, not long after we met did I start questioning just how much John was willing to do in terms of showing his excitement as well. We had the cute nervousness and coyness at first, but after almost two months of seeing each other on a regular basis and him still acting just as shy, I couldn't help but be worried that John might never warm up to me. He'd met my closest friends, we'd hung out or had gone to restaurants almost 3-4 times a week, had more intimate settings like dinner at his house, and yet still he felt ultimately too nervous to even hold my hand or really get somewhat physically close to me. Although it was still only a month into the actual relationship itself, we had been talking online for almost 7 months prior, AND had a few initial get togethers at the very beginning that were only to see if we did enjoy each others company, and wanted to date. In my mind, this would have meant that by the time we'd decided to actually call each other boyfriend and girlfriend, we could be comfortable enough with each other to feel a closeness and intimacy that would show we were more than just friends or casual acquaintances.

And this is why I was so confused. It didn't matter that I talked to him about my feelings towards this, it didn't matter that I tried making the 'first moves' that girls often have make these days; he still felt too nervous to even hold my hand. In public it was almost worse. Going to see movies and not even touching your boyfriend at all, is a very strange and awkward feeling. Although I am not experienced in dating, and have never had a serious relationship at 25 years old, I still knew that I wanted someone I could feel close with and not have to push to want to hold me. Is that so wrong to expect from a guy? I don't know...I know my expectations can run away with me sometimes (trust me I'm working on them), and not just in terms of dating, but I also know that in order for me to feel connected to someone I need them to be able to both share AND show the way they are feeling too. It's not enough to tell me these things only when I bring up the subject of feelings, or even to have a guy 'text' them to me thinking it's easier. I need him to prove I'm worth the effort of opening up, I guess.


So needless to say, I am using this rain as a form of renewal. To wash myself clean and let go of the anger I hold towards yet another failed relationship. To let go of feeling like it was because I did something wrong or because I'm not worth it. I know I'm not perfect, and I'm sure I confuse men more than the other, easier-to-read women out there, but I still have hope that there's someone out there who is willing to put the effort and time into figuring me out. A man who, with his warmth, will allow me to be myself and show him just how long I've been waiting to feel loved.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

My new skin care routine...

I thought I would post this since the new products I have been using so far seem to be definitely helping my skin look clearer. I picked these up one day on my way home from work last week, mostly out of desperation, and to be honest I had not put much faith in them. I'm sure most people with acne and scarring issues can relate, but I'm beginning to feel fed up with constantly searching for something that works and doesn't irritate my skin or break me out worse. I haven't put much thought into these products, simply because I'm so used to getting excited about something and it not giving me any results (the Burt's Bees stuff being a prime example). With Avene products though, I must say, so far so good. Anyways, here they are:


AM:
Avene Cleanance Soapless Gel Cleanser for blemish-prone skin
Avene Hydrance Optimal SPF 25 Moisturizer (I'm so pale I have to wear sunscreen on a daily basis)
Impruv Cream around my eyes (my driest area)

PM:
Avene Cleanance Soapless Gel Cleanser
Avene Cleanance K Moisturizer (to help clear pores and smooth out my skin)
Impruv Cream around my eyes

So there you have it. A gentle routine that will hopefully, in time, help with the skin issues I have. :)

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Another baking treat...

Well, I'm due for another post and I thought I'd add another favorite recipe of mine. This one involves 3 very very delicious things. Cheese, green onions, and herbs; lots of all three. The bonus of this recipe is that it's one of the easiest ones ever. It literally takes less than half an hour, including baking time as well! It's my


Cheese and Herb Scones

Ingredients:

2 cups of flour
2 tbsp baking powder
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 green onion sprigs, chopped
1 tsp each of your favorite dried herbs or
1 tsp each of your favorite fresh herbs
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 medium eggs
1 and 1/4 cup milk (may need a little less depending on moistness of mixture)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Mix together the first 9 ingredients in a large bowl. Use whatever fresh or dried herbs you prefer (my favorite mixture is dill, marjoram, sage, and oregano). When well mixed, slowly add the eggs and milk. Fold into dry ingredients until again fully blended. Spoon mixture into greased muffins pans. Muffin cups can be used if you'd like to skip a messy step. I personally like when they are a little more rounded, which happens when you skip the paper cups. Bake for 13 minutes or until lighted golden.

Makes roughly 14-16 scones. Enjoy!~



Sunday, March 6, 2011

My Birthday!

As you can tell from the title, this weekend was all about my birthday (March 5th). Yay! I got to celebrate it with my best bud and not only was it filled with yummy cake and awesome presents, but she also planned tons of surprises and basically a whole day of pampering for me. I couldn't have asked for a better time. We went shopping with another friend of ours, saw the movie Beastly, had a great lunch out and ended up going back to her house for a really cool Stella and Dot Jewellery party. If you haven't ever seen Stella and Dot jewelry, I really recommend you check out the website. They have such pretty and unique items! I ended up getting a free ring, since it was my birthday, and also a cute little bracelet with this white and gold flower that just happens to match a set of earrings that I bought weeks ago from Forever XX1! Then I also order two necklaces from out of the catalog that should come within the next week or so. One is a cute little gold bumble bee, and the other this little pink and gold owl...both are pendants on a simple gold chain. Since I have been slightly obsessed with the whole woodland and enchanting animal style lately, I had to get these piece as soon as I saw them! I'm so excited, so I'm sure they will be one of my next blog posts. :)

Anyways, unfortunately because I'm such a dork when it comes to remembering to bring my camera to special events, I didn't get any pictures of my birthday. Dang it! But I did make sure to take a picture of all my wonderful gifts so I could remember how amazing everyone was to me this birthday. And especially not with just with gifts, but with making me feel so special and spoiled. I had a great day, and it made me feel so loved. I'm very, very lucky to have the friends and family that I do. <3



Not only did I get all those cute presents, but I also got the rocking chair as a gift too! Can you tell why I get the nickname 'grandma' all the time from my friends? lol I saw this chair at a Antique mall with my mom and sister one of these last few weekends, and just totally fell in love with it. Sadly though, we didn't have a way of getting it home in our dinky little car at the time. So as a suprise, they called the place and had it delivered to my house as an early birthday present!

All in all, I have had a great birthday. I got to spend it with my friends, and even still have this coming weekend ahead to celebrate it with some of my family. Thank you everyone for giving me a great day and making me feel so loved. Sometimes I wonder what I did to deserve such great friends and family like you. <3 <3<3

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Cold Winter Remedy - Hand Cream...?

Ok, so it's a little bit of a strange wording for a title, but hear me out. When I woke up today I knew this weekend was going to be one that didn't involve alot of outdoors activities. Although the snow has let up now, and the sun is actually somewhat shining, it was the complete opposite this morning when I got out of bed. Here's my proof. Any typical Canadian would not be surprised by this picture...it's what most winter scenes look like for almost 6 months out of the year in Canada!

Scary eh!!!

When it looks this dry and cold outside, I sometimes inexplicably feel the need to surround myself in warming moisture. How many times has anyone felt the roughness of their hands after a long day in the cold? I admit I am one of those women that carries hand cream with them constantly. I just can't stand the feeling of dry skin! lol Because of this, I know my moisturizers. My face is a different matter completely (I am a bit of a skincare junkie) but when it comes to body and hand lotions, I have my absolute fav's with me all the time. In terms of hand creams, I without a doubt have my tried and true's. One of those is the wonderful and retro Crabtree & Evelyn Lavender Hand Cream.


Now, it's been a long while for me since I bought this...sadly there are only a few select stores that carry it in my city. Thankfully though, I went to the mall and purposely made a point to go to the Crabtree & Evelyn store to pick more of it up. And it was just my luck when they were having a sale. Instead of almost $20 for one tube (I think it's something like $18.50 now) the sale was 2 tubes for $25...deal! :)


I picked up a Rosewater one as well since it too has a really nice floral warming smell that reminds me of a garden in the spring. And how cute are these tubes! I have to admit that their look is a big part of why I love this hand cream. Don't get me wrong though. Whatever's in this stuff really works. If you have dry and rough hands, you GOTTA try one of these creams! There's quite a few scents of it out now, but the base cream for each one is the exact same. The formula is never greasy. It just leaves me with smooth, soft and beautifully moisturized hands. Regardless of what the weather does to them!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

All things vintage...I wish!

So to say that I have a love for anything vintage would be a bit of an understatement, I think. I'm sure just by looking at this blog, it's not hard to tell that. In a way I feel actually somehow physically drawn to items that look like they've come from the countryside; things that seem a bit 'weathered'. Most of the time I could only find these things in thrift shops, or if I was lucky, an interesting find from one of the very few flea markets in my city. I used to love garage sales for this hunt, but alas, they also seem very few and far between. Not to mention that more often then not it's a pityful excuse for finding any treasures.

Thankfully though, it seems that more and more places/companies are designing things to look vintage inspired. I've even lately been drawn to the more woodsy and enchanting themes. Birds, trees, owls, greenery, deer, etc. It all seems very whimsical and almost child-like in a way. When I can find something styled like that, as well as having a vintage feel to it, well there's no question that it really draws my eye.

The reason I am explaining this is because of some recent purchases I made this weekend. It's a long weekend in Canada and my mom, sister, and I all decided to go shopping at one of the local antique malls.

Now I know these look 'grandma-ish', but honestly that's just how I like them. I'm actually pretty sure these two were owned by some little baba sitting in her house knitting with a cup of tea! :)

Now this item isn't a vintage or antique per se, but  it sure does look that way, doesn't it? I found this at a store called Winner's, which usually carries a very eclectic and unusual variety of housewares. It was only $12.99 as well. Bonus and bonus, I say. I meant to take a picture of it before I put all my jewellery on, but because I was so excited about my new pretty thing, I just couldn't help but start putting it to use!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Baking - to keep warm, happy and full

On a cold, blustery winter Sunday I sometimes think there is nothing better than to spend an entire afternoon in the warmth of a kitchen, baking. Today was just the day for it too. With the temperature getting close to -35 degrees celcius, there was no way I was going to leave the house if I didn't have to. In comes one of my favorite recipes: Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins. They are simple, quick, and I somehow always seem to have most, if not all, of the ingredients on hand.

Ingredients -

1/2 cup margerine/shortening
1 egg
1 cup mashed bananas (2-3 small ones)
2 tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
~
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chocolate chips (more if desired)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees farenheit. Cream margerine and sugar together. Add in all other wet ingredients, including the sugar. When throughly mixed, add in the flour sifted with the baking soda and baking powder. Then mix in your desired amount of chocolate chips. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and place in preheated oven. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Then simply let them cool 10 minutes before eating...this really is the hardest part of baking these delicious morsels!

~Makes 12-14 muffins~


I love mine slightly warm with butter smeared all over. :D



Saturday, January 29, 2011

First haul(s) of 2011!



So here's one of my first blog posts...yippee! I thought I would share some fun hauls I've had over the past few weeks. A girl always loves shopping, right? Anyways, I'm usually a *budget* shopper, but it has more to do with the fact that I love going to a drugstore, picking up some really cool new things, and going to the til only to find out it was all super cheap. Who doesn't love that! I do spend a little more on things from time to time, but there's just something about getting deals that I love. I'm not one of those people that buys things that are cheap and crappy though, I swear. If I can't use it, it's junkie looking, or just plain poor quality I refuse to spend any amount of money on it!

This was one of the main excitements of my latest haul. I love musky and baby powder like scents, and a few years ago I tried the Jovan Musk line and fell deeply in love. lol There was something about it's smell, and no matter what I did, the scents seem to last all day on me. Fast forward a few years, and I was searching in vain for a Jovan perfume called White Musk, which I soon found out isn't available in Canada (of course my luck!). I ordered some online ages ago and it become one of my favorite perfumes. When I saw this set in my local London Drugs, I knew I had to have it. Not just because of it being all different Jovan Musk's but because it was only $19.95 for 4 bottles with 30 ml's in each. But want to know the best part...when I got to the till, they only rang up for $9.99. That's like $2.50 a bottle! Compare that to like $20 for one typical Jovan Musk perfume, and you can understand my excitement, right?

The second part of the haul that I was happy about was a skin set I have been eyeing for a while. Now, it's important to believe me when I say I am ALWAYS on the lookout for products that will help me manage my out-of-control skin. I have combination skin ( it can be really dry, or really oily some days) and after suffering from some pretty serious breakouts a few years ago, I have alot of scarring and uneven skin texture that I am also trying to deal with. Sounds fun, right? lol Well to top it off, as part of one of my New Years resolutions, I am also trying to user 'greener' product - everything from cleaners, to beauty products, and even food. I have heard great stuff about this new acne line from Burt's Bees, and with it being natural, inexpensive, and targeted for my skin issues I figured, why not?!

Here's a few other things I bought the previous weekend while out on a shopping excursion with my BFF. We like to do them every few weekends and it's a great way to spend time with a buddy and get to buy some fun new things! Anyways, I was in desperate need of a new mascara so after seeing that one of my favorite actress' Zooey Deschanel is the new face of Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara, I was dying to try it out. I have to admit, I really like it so far. It's seperates my eyelashes very nicely, which is my biggest desire for a mascara.

Then I also had to pick up the nail polish and one of my forever holy grail products. The cute green polish (green is my favorite color by the way) from Sin Cosmetics was only $1.99! How awesome is that?! And because I use Vaseline every night as a moisturizing lip balm before bed, a girl can go through a lot of it. Now that the containers have changed for the better, and because it was only a couple of dollars, I had to pick up more of this cute little jar.

And last but not least, again while out with my BFF, I found these two cute palettes/compacts that instantly drew my eye. The pink one on the right is the adorable and simply amazing new Physicians Formula's Glow & Mood Boosting Blush in Natural. Now, I know that's a mouthful, but just look at it! It's the perfect cosmetic to come out with Valentine's day just around the corner and the fact that it suits my pale skin beautifully just makes it all the better! Then this other golden palette was a sheer luck find. We have a cosmetic line in Canada here called Gosh Cosmetics that is a branch of Boots cosmetics. Anyways, I guess they were getting rid of some stock, and they had cute eyeshadow compacts a-plenty. The best part was, that not only are the compacts and colors very functional, but the price was down right awesome. For 3 shadows and a blush I paid all of $4. Can you now tell just how exciting I find deals? :) 

Sunday, January 23, 2011

New year, new blog...

I can never stick with anything. Ask those that know me. It doesn't matter what it is, or how interested I am at first...within a few months/years I'm bored and need to move on to something else. I don't know why I'm like this; it's just been a part of me ever since I was young. lol So what does this mean for creating new years resolutions? Will I be able to stick with something long enough, or will it be just a matter of time before I want to try something else new? I used to be ashamed that I couldn't make anything last, but I guess it's just another part of myself I'm learning to accept, and even appreciate at some times. The real question is - will this blog be another reminent of my boredom, or an outlet for it?