PHAB Lifestyle A blog dedicated to a healthy balance

The 2nd part to our vacation was spent camping with the hubby’s parents.  When we got home from B.C. we only spent 24 hours at home and then we were off again!  It was pretty hectic!  We had to unload and then reload to head out to my in-laws the next day.  We store our trailer on their property when we are not using it.

When we got there I needed to clean out the camper and then we went to town and got a some groceries and few other things we needed.

We went camping to a place called the Hummingbird.  It is kind of out in the middle of nowhere Alberta.  It was also a little chilly at night even though it is July.  We had the heater on in our trailer every night!  During the day the weather was pretty nice but at times windy.

It took us about 2 hours to get there from my in-laws place.  A good part of the drive was on dirt roads.  It was so darn dusty!  The inside of our trailer had a film of dust on everything and I spent an hour cleaning when we got there! 

But after everything was cleaned and set up we were all set!

We were camping with a bunch of people that the hubby’s parents camp with every year.  They have quite the set up and it does not feel like roughing it at all even though we were technically “dry” camping (no water or hook ups for the trailer).

Here is a shot of our camp town! Most of the people also bring their horses along to ride the surrounding trails with.  My in-laws brought their horses as well.  The hubs got back on a horse after YEARS!

He got on his Mom’s horse Cash and went with his Dad down to the river to water the horses.  Not a long ride but a ride non the less!  He had to wear his rubber boots since he forgot his cowboy boots!

My father in-law on his horse.

I also got on Cash to make the hubs happy!  He wanted to snap a picture of me…of course!

I was not the happiest person…since I am not really a horse lover!  I sat on Cash for about 5 minutes and then got off!

J also had a seat on the horse with Daddy….

It did not last very long.  J did not like it very much…hmmm..maybe it will grow on him??

Most of our days camping were spent around the campfire and chatting with everyone and just relaxing.  I did a lot of reading and managed to finish a book for once!

J looked so cute sitting in his little chair.  He was a good little camper.

He had a lot of fun.  He went for rides in the cutest little wagon.  I want to get one of these for him.

He loved it!

He played outside a lot!

We tried our best to keep him out of the dirt!  He played with the rope for like an hour..too funny!

Such a cutie patooie!

We also had great camp food of hamburgers and steaks but breakfast is always my fav.  We had eggs every morning with either bacon, sausage or pancakes.  Yum!

It always tastes so good when cooked over the fire.

We also took a little trip and did some very short hikes to see Hummingbird Falls and Ram Falls.

Hummingbird Falls

These Falls are really pretty and a little smaller than Ram Falls.

We could not go too far since we had to carry J in his chariot.

We stuck to the wide trails.

The hubs did a little 4X4 with J in his Chariot!

Next up we went to Ram Falls.

Much bigger!

With a bit of walk down to the platform to get a closer look.

Walking down was easy but coming back up was a bit of a workout!

There were also some mountain sheep soaking up the sun on the side of the hill.

Walking back to the truck.

All in all we had a relaxing vacation.  I sat on my butt most of the time…but that is usually my intention while on vacation.  I like to relax since when I am home I am mostly on the go all the time with J.  I read, played cards did a little hiking and just enjoyed the quiet it was great.

Now we are home and back into the swing of things.  I got my butt back in gear, did a mountain of laundry with still more to DO and got back into our routine.

I also got my lazy self exercising again!  I will post more on that later.

Ta for now!

Just returned a few days ago from 2 weeks of vacation time with my family.  I spent most of it unplugged and away from the computer and cell phone.  It was for the most part relaxing.  We started our vacation at the end of June by going to British Columbia.  We went to Silverstar Resort in Vernon to be exact.

The hubs likes to downhill bike and during the summer at Silverstar you can ride the chair lift and ride your bike down the ski hills.  We met up with a few of his friends and he rode his bike to his little heart content for 4 days.

I hung out with J and relaxed.  The drive to Vernon takes about 8 hours with a toddler since we had to stop and eat and take little breaks so we could stretch our legs.  I packed a cooler with lots of healthy snacks and lunch to munch along the way.

When we got closer to Vernon I made a pit stop at a lovely fruit stand and got some very fresh and local strawberries!  I love the fresh ripe fruit you can get in B.C.

J was a good little traveler for us and did not complain much

We rented a two bedroom condo for the 4 days it was really very nice.  We were however a little disappointed.  We had rented the condo with a hot tub but when we got there we discovered that none of the suite hot tubs were working yet!!  The hubs was not a happy guy!  We did get a refund for it but they really should have told us that when I booked the reservation because we probably would have stayed somewhere else on the hill instead.

This is the main living area and off to the left was a bedroom and then off to the right was the mudroom, bathroom and the master bedroom.

  While we settled in J got out his toys and started playing.Over the next few days the hubs hit the trails hard and J and I just hung out and took little walks.  The weather for the most part was quite nice but at times it could be cool.

I had a little photo sesh with the hubs while we were waiting for his friends.

  Oh…I think there is a bit of a smile in that picture

My seski man!

Getting suited up and ready to go….

Ready and waiting for one more…

off they go.  I hung around the village with J and took a few more pictures.

The village is not very big but it was cute and had a few stores and restaurants.  I did manage to shop while I was there!  I got a t-shirt and a really cute pull over shirt that was half price.  Score!

Pretty hanging baskets of flowers.

I went to this cafe a couple of times for some very delish cafe lattes.  They also had the most amazing pastries and sandwiches.  I should have snapped a picture of them but I did not have my camera with me then. 

A few views of the hill.

The front of the condos we were staying in.  Our condo was on the bottom floor we had a patio and a bbq which we used while we were there.

I did not snap a pictures of what I ate.  I just sat down and ate.   For breakfasts we ate eggs mostly with sausage and bacon for the hubs and one morning was pancakes.  For lunch and suppers were sandwiches, hamburgers, turkey sausage and we had pasta the first night.  One night we ate at one of the restaurants because they were having a party for the first weekend being open for the summer.  They offered free appetizers and prizes so we went to partake in the fun.

Also one night we had a lovely sunset so I snapped a few pics of it.

I loved the orange colors on the clouds it was so pretty and calming.

The day before we left I thought that I would do J’s laundry since he pretty much got everything dirty.  We had a washer/dryer combo in the condo.  J was pretty intrigued with it!

He just sat there and watched it work through the whole cycle…it was too funny!

I would never get a machine like this!  When it went to dry the cloths it did not…would NOT dry them!  I ended up hanging all the damp cloths in the bathroom overnight to finish drying. 

The 4 days that we spent at Silverstar went by pretty fast.  Before we knew it, it was time to pack up and head home.  However, we would not be home for long!  We stay just overnight and then packed up again the next day to head out camping with my hubby’s parents.

Vacation part II to be continued……

I can’t believe that is has been 7 years since we were married!  We were married on June 21st the first day of the summer the longest day of the year!  It was one of the best days of my life that I will never forget.  We had an awesome time!  But the last 7 years have been just as awesome!

We celebrated this year with a fancy shamancy dinner at Capo!

It is a lovely intimate Italian restaurant with a-maz-ing food!  I have always wanted to eat there and had heard and read outstanding reviews about it…so I thought it would be perfect for our Anniversary dinner.

The restaurant was small but quaint with a modern twist.  I loved the dim blue bubble lighting they had.

I started out with a bottle of sparkling water.  I was a little thirsty.  Plus I like to drink a lot of water if I will be consuming wine.

I had a delicious glass of Merlot/Syrah/Sangiovese, Gaja “Promis”.  I am not good with wine lingo but all I can say is it was good!!  I sipped and savoured it throughout my dinner.

The hubs had a martini of sorts.  It had vermouth, vodka and mint leaves and something else I can’t quite remember…it tasted very refreshing but it was strong and meant for sipping that is for sure!  He did however, have another one!

Before we had a look at the dinner menus they brought us a little amuse bouche of a beef meatball with the most incredible sauce and sprinkled with cheese with a little crostini.  It was awesome!

I can still remember tasting this…so darn good!

While we waited for our order they served us some very tasty, chewy and cheesy bread.  The butter was whipped with roasted garlic and sundried tomatoes..again  OMG!  We had seconds of course!

We shared two of their starter plates because we wanted to try almost everything! So we went with:

SEAFOOD
SWEET & SOUR CALAMARI;
WILD SCALLOP CEVICHE WITH TRUFFLE-LIME;
ROASTED PEPPER WITH PRESERVED TUNA AIOLI, 12 YR BALSAMIC

and

CLASSICS
BEEF CARPACCIO WITH PICKLED EGGPLANT;
PARMA PROSCIUTTO WITH CONFIT MELON;
MASCARPONE ARANCINO WITH CHEESE FONDUE

By far our favs were the Sweet and Sour Calamari and the Mascarpone Arancino with cheese fondue…holy YUM!

This was perfect for sharing because everything was small enough for the hubs and I to have a bit of each of them.

Next up we had a course they call in-between.  We decided to share the gnocchi.

HOUSE MADE RICOTTA DUMPLINGS, LOBSTER AMERICAINE SAUCE, BLACK TRUFFLE OIL & MICRO GREENS

This dish was off the charts de-lish!  It was KILLER!  I loved…loved…loved it!  So rich and creamy.  I savoured every single bite!  The gnocchi were so tender and practically melted in my mouth.  This was the best gnocchi I have ever had.  Plus having the big chucks of lobster in the middle was so decedent!

The hubs enjoyed his too!

He was tempted to lick the bowl…

but did a pretty good job with just his spoon! HA!

After we had a chance to digest a bit it was time for the main course!

I had the Ocean’s Three

SCALLOP:  SEARED WILD, ISRAELI COUS-COUS, VERJUS;
GREEN TIGER PRAWN:  POTATO-APPLE SALAD, SMOKED PAPRIKA OIL;
FISH OF THE DAY:  BAKED, PUTTANESCA SAUCE, MICRO GREENS

It was again delicious!  The best part of the dish was the Seared wild scallop with the Israeli cous-cous…Oh my goodness!!  The scallop was so tender and just melted in my mouth…wonderful!  The Fish of the day was halibut.  It was meaty and tender and went so well with the puttanesca sauce.

My meal was also served with the cutest little pot of grilled veggies

It contained zucchini, grape tomatoes, onions and snap green peas sautéed in EVOO and garilc with herbs.  I ate it all!

Hubby had the Lean Cuts

LAMB:  GRILLED RACK-CHOP WITH TOMATO & OLIVE VINAIGRETTE;
BEEF:  CREPINETTE OF FILET WITH CAMPANIA’S SUNDAY RAGOUT;
VEAL:  CALZONE STYLE, TALEGGIO-HAM FILLING & BEECHWOOD MUSHROOM SAUCE

I had a bite of the Lamb.  Usually I am not a real fan of that type of meat but it was very good and very tender.  He enjoyed his meal thoroughly!

You would think that we would not have room for dessert after a feast like this but since this was a special dinner we had to partake in dessert.  Plus their dessert menu sounded way to good to pass up!

I picked the Panna Cotta

VANILLA BEAN/BUTTERMILK PUDDING WITH RHUBARB
CONSOMME & ORANGE CAT TONGUE COOKIES

It was light but rich and so darn yummy!  The berries and rhubarb consommé paired so well with it!  I practically licked the plate clean.  I also had a few of the cookies, they were light, crisp and slightly sweet.

I also had a decaf cafe Latte that I forgot to snap a picture of.  It smelled and tasted amazing.

The hubby had a very rich dessert of:

HOT TORTE, BANANA-CARAMEL ICE-CREAM &
GIANDUJA MOUSSE

I am not sure how he finished it all but he did!  I had a small bite of the Hot torte is was very good and very chocolaty!

It was a very gastronomic evening but hey it was a celebration and we love our food!  So every once in a while it is fun to indulge especially when you visit a restaurant as nice as Capo.

Now I have plans to pack..pack..pack!  We leave for vacation in T minus 2 days!  We are headed to B.C. for a little relaxation and mountain biking fun!  Then after that we are off to go camping with my hubby’s parents.

Better get my butt in gear…

Bye for now!

On Saturday Devin, Jaxin and I did a 3KM walk for Ups and Downs.  It turned out to be a very lovely sunny day for it too!  Thank goodness because our weather has been pretty crappy thus far this spring!

This is a great association for people with Down Syndrome that we support and are a part of.  Lots of families turned out for the walk.  Team Jaxin managed to raise $6,710.00 in total for Ups and Downs and was the top fundraising team!   We were thrilled to say the least!  In total about $40,000 dollars was raised by this event.

The walk was held at Fish Creek Park in the south side of the city.  We got to the park at 9am for the registration.  Then we hung out a little bit and chatted with a few other families before the walk started at 10:15am.

While we waited we listened to some music.  They had a girl singing some cute catchy tunes and they also had a clown for the kids who was making some animal balloons.

Jaxin sat in his stroller and watched.

After a little bit we took him out and let him stretch out his legs a little.  He went for a walk with Mommy!

Then it was time to get lined up at the start for the walk.

There was also a 10Km run as well.  The runners started first.  There was just a few of them.

Then it was our turn…

We started off in a huge pack then we spaced out a little once everyone set their pace.

It was such a warm and beautiful day for a walk.

When we finished the walk it was time for a little BBQ lunch!

They gave out hamburgers, hotdogs, all the fixins, chips, water and juice.  It was very yummy…we were a hungry bunch!

We got our lunch and sat down and enjoyed it in the warm sunshine.

  After lunch it was starting to get warmer and Jaxin needed a little stretch again so we went for another little stroll.

He was so funny…he kept wanting to walk towards the bushes and play with them.  He was very fascinated by it all!

He was very happy after doing some big boy walking!

We hung around for a little bit after all the festivities to see if we won anything from the raffle tickets that we had bought.  There were some great prizes.  I was VERY excited when she called my number!!  I had won a $100.00 dollars in gift cards to spend at one of our malls in the city.  I practically sprinted up to get my prize I was so excited!!  The hubs unfortunately did not get any pictures of it…boo!

After the numbers were called we packed it up and headed home.  It had been a long day!

Next up….a celebration!

My morning started off early with a 4KM run with my running buddy.  We did 4K in 26 minutes…it was a little slow.  However, we were not out to beat any records or anything just for some fresh air and some exercise.  It was actually a really nice morning for a run it was warm and just a bit of a breeze.  Refreshing!  I love those kind of runs.

When I got back home I was hungry and made some breakfast before hitting the shower.

A lovely ham and egg white sammie.  Twas delish!

On a whole wheat muffin I layered an egg white puffy, white cheddar, deli ham and spinach.  With a side of sweet strawberries.

Of course breakie is not complete without a cup of joe!

My morning hustled along nicely.  I snacked on a unpictured bran muffin with a little spread of nut butter. Then J and I spent some quality time playing around on the PBS kids website.  He loves watching the videos and I help him play some of the cute games.

My lunch today was a big salad with the leftover salmon and veggies from last night.

In my bowl was:

• Mixed salad greens
• cucumber
• leftover bbq salmon, yellow pepper and red onion
• 1/4 of an avocado
• goat cheese Holy YUM this salad was delicious!

I warmed up the grilled salmon and veggies just a bit to take the chill out of them which made the goat cheese all melty…so good!

After I put J down for his nap.  I had a little quiet time and snacked on an Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookie from the Clean Food Cookbook and a warm cup of Vanilla Earl Grey tea.

I love the Clean Food cookbook everything I have made from it has been wonderful.  This is the second batch of these cookies I have made.  Just love them and a least they are somewhat healthy!

Supper tonight is one of my favourite casserole dishes with something special I made this morning for dessert!

Off I go….

The weather today was totally awesome so I just had to fire up the bbq for supper tonight!  I had a hankering for salmon so I searched for a great salmon kabob recipe and found one on the Wholefoods website.

They have some of the best recipes and this one did not disappoint.  The salmon turned out delish!

It was super easy.  I just cut up a large red onion, zucchini, yellow pepper and some salmon into chucks.  It got marinated in olive oil, fresh rosemary (from my garden), garlic and lime juice.

It marinated for about 30 minutes then I threaded the kabobs.

They grilled for about 10 minutes not very long on a med-low heat.  I basted them with the marinade that was left in the dish.

I served it along with quinoa and I made a little sauce with greek yogurt and dill.  YUM!

I also had a small glass of white wine with my supper.

This meal was so darn good.  The yogurt sauce was so refreshing with the salmon.  Plus the salmon was cooked just right it was still moist.  I love these kinds of meals.  Simple but oh so delicious!

Also yesterday was a certain someone’s Birthday….I just have to say Happy Birthday to my awesome friend Michelle!  She lives across the country and I don’t get to see her or talk to her as much as I would like.

But when we are together we always have a great time and we can be pretty goofy.

She is just the best and I hope that you had a WONDERFUL Birthday my friend!

Well I am off to give myself a little pedicure before I hit the hay….

Good night!

Last night I was thinking what I could have for breakfast this morning then I discovered that there was a nut butter jar with only a little bit left in it!  Perfect time to have OIAJ!

I did a batch of overnight oats with the following:

• 1/3 cup muesli (Bob’s Redmill)
• 2 tbs rolled oats
• 1 tbs chia seeds
• 4 oz of Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp of cinnamon
• 2/3 cup of Almond Milk

It was waiting for me in the fridge after my workout this morning.  I got up nice an early and cranked out a weight session.  I found a great workout in one of my favourite magazines.

I love this magazine and I pretty much buy every issue.  I really should just subscribe.

I did 2 circuits of the following group of exercises. These exercises are performed one right after another and then I rest 60 to 90 seconds between circuits.

1. Pile Squat – 10 reps (25lbs)

2. Dumbbell row – 12 reps (12lbs)

3. Alternating dumbbell curl – 12 reps (12lbs)

4. Dumbbell set ups – 10 reps (holding 10lbs)

5. Flat-bench dumbbell chest press – 12 reps (15lbs)

6. Seated dumbbell shoulder press – 12 reps (15lb)

7. Seated triceps extension – 10 reps (12lbs)

8. Stiff-legged deadlift – 10 reps (15lbs dumbbells)

9. Cross-bench pullover – 12 reps (12lbs)

10. Standing dumbbell cross-chest curl – 12 reps (12lbs)

I usually would do 3 circuits for this workout but I only had time for 2 this morning. It takes about 30 minutes to complete the full workout.   I was kind of dragging my butt this morning.  But I really like this workout and most of these exercises happen to be my favs so that helps.

After my workout and a good stretch I gobbled down my OIAJ!

I topped it with the rest of the strawberries that were in the fridge and some granola.

Along with a lovely cup of fresh coffee.

Breakfast was scrumptious!

FINALLY the weather here today is glorious!  I have big plans to fire up the bbq for supper tonight!

Be back later!

I cannot get this song out of my head!  I LOVE rocking out to it!

This afternoon I took a little time to myself and went and saw Sex in the City 2…by myself…yes I do go to the movies by myself sometimes.  I am a total Sex in the City fan and I loved the movie!!  It was great!

The movie was over the top and the fashions we fabulous! 

I of course packed myself a little snack of sunflower butter and jelly on Ezekiel bread.  I did not snap a pic because I was in a hurry!  I ended up eating it before the movie even started since I was hungry.  I had an expensive bottle of water to sip on throughout the movie.

After the movie I made a stop at the grocery store to pick up some ingredients for tonight.  The hubs and I are having a friend come over later to watch UFC with us.  Tonight it is Rampage vs Evans!

So we will be partaking in some munchies and beer!

I could not decide which one to get since I like both of these beers so I got both!  I am also making a dip that I have not made in ages.  This is usually my go to recipe for get togethers.

This recipe is from an old Company’s Coming cookbook and it is just delish!

Tonight for supper on the menu is leftover’s.  I had some extra pasta sauce left in the freezer so I am making a quick meal tonight.  Thought I better have something so I don’t over indulge later.

Time to eat…

Hi there!  This weekend we spent the weekend at my hubby’s parents.  They have a lovely acreage  in the country.  It was a relaxing weekend spent with family. Unfortunately the weather was not very nice.  It rained and was very cool for most of our stay.

But the main reason we went was to see our new little niece Hayli.  The hubs and I became an Auntie and an Uncle last Friday and J now has a little cousin!

   She is the cutest little girl and I forgot how tiny a newborn is since J is so big now.

I enjoyed holding her and just watching her investigate her surroundings.  Of course it was a little hard to relax too much with noisy little J in the room.

He pretty much just played but he did come over to investigate her a few times.  He was actually pretty gentle with her.

Uncle Devin did most of the baby holding!

Zoei enjoyed herself too.  She played and ran around outside which pooped her out a little.  She loves having the freedom to run around outside.

We stayed until Sunday afternoon and then headed home.  When we got back to Calgary it was supper time so we decided to grab some sushi from our favourite place.

Globefish

We started with some water.  I was thirsty!

I had a bowl of miso first.  I love starting my meal with this soup…it is so yummy.

We got J a California roll.  He loves them.

Open wide!

I ordered the Rainbow Roll for my main dish.

Crab & avocado roll wrapped with assorted fresh seafood (prawn, tobiko, fresh tuna & salmon) mango & avocado

It looked so pretty!

It tasted delicious and fresh.

The hubs had a few rolls for his meal.

California Roll

Alaska Roll

Dynamite Roll

My handsome dinner companions!

After supper we headed home and unpacked the van and I got the pleasure of putting everything away.  I then ran to the store to pick up some milk since I discovered we were out.

Today we need to try and get ourselves ready for our garage sale next weekend!  I have to dig through our stuff in the basement and pull out what I want to sell.

The hubs already was busy this morning putting some of the stuff in the garage into the new shed.  Plus he cut our grass!  Thank goodness it was starting to get pretty long.

Well it is almost lunch time and I need to get myself busy.

Later!

Why hello!  It has been awhile and I finally have some time to sit and do a little blogging.  Lately most days I have been busy right up until bedtime and have not felt much like sitting down to blog about it.  I would rather get into bed and sleep.

My days have been busy ones and today was no different.  Spring is pretty much in full swing here and all our garden centres are open and hopping.  So this morning I decided it would be a good time to go and get some herbs for my garden.

I purchased:

Lavender (this one smells a-maz-ing!)

Lemon thyme

Rosemary

Oregano

Chives

Sweet Basil

Jalapeno pepper

But when I ventured outside after lunch to do my planting I discovered that it had got considerably cooler since the morning.  So I planted some of them in the warmth of my garage and then went out back to finish putting in the rest.

Before I got to work I had a tasty lunch of some leftovers I scrounged out of the fridge.

I had some grilled veggies with quinoa and the last bit of tofu grilled up with Carolina Treet.  I love this sauce it is so darn yummy!  It tastes good on pretty much everything!

My hubs ordered this bbq sauce and it is the bomb!

After my lunch I got to work and planted my little herbs. 

I put 3 plants in a hanging box off my deck.

The other 3 I put in my cedar box on my deck.  I just love having fresh herbs over the summer months and try to use them as often as I can.  The herbs that I bought today were so hardy and are in such great condition.  They should hopefully thrive!  I just love the smell of all of them!

The Lavender smells so darn wonderful.  I plan on using this one in a vinaigrette for a salad in the future.

I also got a lovely hanging basket for my front porch.

It also smells wonderful!  I just love when it gets warm enough so I can fill my yard with beautiful smelling flowers.

We also have a new addition to our backyard….

a shed!  They came and built it the other day.  It still needs to be painted.

I just love it!  It is so darn cute.  It looks like a little barn.  It is going to be great to get some of our yard stuff out of the garage that is currently taking up too much space!

After I was done freezing my buns off in the cool and cloudy weather.  Call me crazy but I made a cold green monster for a snack.

I did however consume this lovely drink with my slippers on.  My feet were freezing!

In my smoothie went: almond milk, 1/2 a very ripe banana, blueberries, maca powder, Amazing Grass and a good handful of spinach. 

Also couple of days ago I also got the most cool new toy!

The Cuisinart Single cup brewing machine.  This thing is awesome!  I am in love!  I am the only one that likes coffee in my house so using a regular coffee pot just does not work.  I always end up wasting most of it because all I really need is one cup. 

This machine does that and it makes a pretty darn good cup I must say!  It came with a sample pack of K-Cups so I have been having fun trying the different varieties everyday.

This weekend is the long weekend for us Canadians and we are heading out to my in-laws for a little visit.  You see the hubs and I became an Auntie and Uncle last Friday so we are going to be visiting the new little girl that my sister and brother in-law had.  I can’t wait to meet her!

Plus we need to try and get our trailer ready for camping season.  We store our trailer on their property.

So I have another busy day tomorrow getting us ready to hit the road for the weekend.  I have a bunch of errands to run in the morning while the hubs takes J to school.

Well I have a chance to go to bed early tonight and hopefully do a little reading!

Nighty,..night!