Technology...

Some days I REALLY love techonolgy! This is one of those days.

PS

Rhonda - the cookies in the vase below are Cranberry Pecan Chocolate Chip. I just use a really basic chocolate chip cookie recipe and add a cup of dried cranberries and half a cup of chopped pecans. Way yummy! And even good for you - adding the fruits and nuts!! Okay, maybe I am stretching that a little, but it sure helps make you feel better after you have eaten 5 or 6 of them...

Thanks for asking about the cookies!!

Finally

January is over! Holy cow!! Has this NOT been the longest month ever?? Seriously. And I am very very very tired of cold/snow/fog! Wow. I have lived in BC all my life. I am used to the rain/gray weather for January. That is normal. But the fog we have been having lately - not normal! It totally freaks me out! Happy to see January end.

Okay, enough of that. The January rant was spurred by the email I got from Plum re: the Spring 2009 line has come in. I am inspired by the ease of the outfit above and I look forward to switching the wardrobes soon and going out and supplementing my Spring line.

I am off now to make crepes. Tomorrow night we are having a young man over to dinner who is so near and dear to our hearts. He leaves for his mission and we are going to miss him so much!! So I though I would cook S one last Italian meal to send him off, plus some chocolate explosion cake for good measure!! So I am making crepes and I am going to stuff them = cannelloni. Way tastier this way! I am not a fan of the cannelloni tubes you see in the supermarkets. They really don't produce a good end product. But the crepes - wow!! So velvety soft and fresh... mmmm...

Have a good night all and have a good weekend.

Ciao

To add to my addictions...

Virgin Radio International - Italy. LOVE it!! I love Internet radio. I usually listen to channels that come out of some stanky basement in Paris that crank out techno remixes. My taste in music is very VERY particular. I don't like mainstream music. But I do love bands that keep coming up with the hits, like U2 and AC/DC. They amaze me - how they can be current and still keep true to their sound. Anyway, we just got a new radio station in Vancouver - Virgin Radio took over an old station. So I was surfing their site and noticed an international link. Clicked on that and voila - radio Italia! I am sooo excited. The music is all western and the commercials and the DJs are all Italian! It is awesome. And it helps with my Italian - listening to "modern" talk and trying to keep up. Give it a listen, if you dare... hee hee

Ciao all.

(NOTE: just listened to a song from an Italian artist and now I am listening to "Mexican Radio"! How awesome is that??!! What a great mix! That is cool radio.)

Why not?

WHY NOT use a vase as a cookie jar?? That is my question to you. The cookies don't last much more than a few days, so why not display them in a very attractive vessel that is easy to get to?? I am just asking...

Ciao all.

Oh ya...

Almost forgot. My new home project - I am re-doing the lighting in the entire house. The builder lacked inspiration with the lighting. It has been a thorn in my side for 3 years now. I want a more rustic/Tuscan inspired look. I found this piece at Restoration Hardware. Love it. Now I have to find similar pieces for the lights in the indivudual rooms and the lights above my art niche in the great room. This should occupy me for a while... Hey, everyone needs a hobby!!

Ciao all.

Ummmm....

Where did this week go? Holy cow. I blinked and it was over. Crazy. I forgot to mention that my Ethan is now the proud owner of a first degree recommended black belt. Two more testing cycles and then he will be a black belt. Insane. Testing was before Christmas (which is cruel if you ask me), and then the academy was closed for Christmas and then with all the snow and bad weather we did not get back until last week. It was a LONG time for a little guy to wait to see if he passed. But he did! He is very proud of his accomplishment. We are all proud of him. I have said this before - my nerves can't take much more of this though! I was nervous for his jump side kick board break. This cycle he has to do some crazy flying jump kick board break thing! Yikes! I really hope a trip to the emergency ward is not in our future... REALLY hope...

I am off to the salon tomorrow to get my hair cut. Time for something new and different. I have always prided myself in having funky hair. It keeps me young (well that and the extremely loud music I play in the car and sing along to...). But this last year I have let my sense of adventure go. No more. Time to spice it up. We will see what I come home with!

That's about all I have to say. Not too thrilling. Such is my life. But I like it that way!! I only look for adventure in my hair, my handbags and my shoes! hee hee

Ciao all

Weekend Stuff

I am glad it is the weekend. It was a very long and exhausting week. Funny how life twists and turns each and every day. On Monday we were battling weather and getting the kids back to school and making sure everyone was safe driving. It was terrible and very stressful. On Tuesday Marc's car died. Big shock to us. Big financial hit at the most inopportune time. On Wednesday we had already had the car thing sorted out. By Thursday we had adapted a new routine to get everyone where they had to be. And on Friday we picked up Marc's new (to us) VW Jetta. And now here we are on Saturday and life is back to "normal". This morning we picked up my car from VW. It is all fixed from the accident. All is well with my Benny. I really REALLY missed my car. I won't disclose the final bill - it was very high... Again thank goodness no one else was involved in this accident. And thank goodness the car was the only thing that had to be "fixed"... I had to pay my deductible to get my car back though, so hopefully by Monday ICBC will have figured everything out and refund me my deductible. Not that it was a lot, but still. It is the principal of the matter! The accident was NOT my fault in any way, shape or form. So I was less than impressed to pay the deductible today, but such is the method of how this all works. I am trying to remain calm and not stress and not be my over obsessive self. Hard to do...

So tonight I plan on baking and watching "Mama Mia" and that is all.

I am glad it is the weekend.

Ciao all.

I would like to run away...

To New York. Stef sent me some pics from New York. She made me laugh - she is a "country" girl - she lives outside of the big city back home so she is not used to any noise/crowds. She said that for the past five days she has not slept one wink because all she could hear was ambulances and police cars and fire trucks and taxis and people yelling... I am sure that aspect would really bother me too, but I want to go for the shopping! Come on. Get real. And the food! Oh ya. I am not a Broadway gal - I hate musicals. So that does not appeal to me. But the shopping... Ohhhh. So I would like to run away, right about now. But alas, life has other plans for me. Like having to buy a new car for Marc since on Monday his decided to die. Finally die. Really die. We can't complain though. That car was an answer to prayers. For the past two years we have been able to accept so many business opportunities because of that little car. And our mechanic has another VW that he can sell to Marc, at a pretty fair value. I think we will take it. So good bye to Bee - the 1989 VW Fox. And hello to _________ (?), the 1990 VW Jetta. It will have to be another "B" name. That is the rule in this family. Only VW vehicles and all "B" names.

I am off to watch a movie with my kiddies. I need some down time.

Ciao all.