First attempt at vegan baking

I've been looking for a new recipe for banana bread muffins that's healthier than my current go-to one... and I stumbled upon this recipe. 

It looked simple enough - only 6 ingredients are required - also, it doesn't require butter. I picked up some coconut oil and maple syrup at Trader Joe's this weekend (the only two ingredients I didn't already have), pulled out 4 frozen bananas that have been waiting to be baked for weeks, and got down to work.

I substituted the whole wheat flour for white flour (I don't have whole wheat flour), and also himalayan pink salt for sea salt (also don't have himalayan pink salt - but memo to self, must try because it sounds amazing!). I added walnuts as well as about a tablespoon and a half of finely ground espresso (Parallel 49 grounds of course!).

I didn't take more pics because I didn't want to mess this up ;)

While these were baking, my apartment was filled with the yummy smell of banana bread, espresso and coconut!! A good sign that this is an awesome recipe ;)

Just pulled these out of the oven and my first bite impression: very yummy!!!

Portland haulage!

So we went to Portland (with a one night layover in Seattle) for Oregon's Brew Festival 2014. The beer fest was pretty organized. We got there right when it opened at noon (before actually), but we got in at a good time - it got really busy (and really HOT) by 3pm.

While in Portland (and en route at the Seattle Premium Outlets), we did a little haulage:

First stop was at the outlets, Bobby got two pairs of jeans and some shorts (all for under 100$! That shit is cray!). I got a hat to wear to the brew fest since I knew it would be 30 degrees that day.

In Portland, I hit up Victoria's Secret for undies (a woman can never have too much), and some moisturizer (I finally used the giftcard Aleks gave me for my birthday). The moisturizer I picked up was Origin's A Perfect World moisturizer, which I picked up at Sephora.

Floppy hat from Roxy at the Outlets, Victoria's Secret and Sephora in downtown Portland (tax free!!)

I hit up Ulta for the first time and its seriously such an awesome beauty store! I got the two giant bottles of shampoo and conditioner... and I also had to pick up the two smaller bottles because they were soooo cuuuuute (impractical reason) and because they would be awesome for traveling (practical reason). Aaand, I got a face mask (I've been dying to buy a face mask but Sephora's cheapest option I would consider buying is a single use mask for 8$!!). Anyway, I hauled all of this shampoo and mask for just under 22$. Seriously, Canada, go home, you are too expensive!!!

Lastly, I got some wellies at the Nordstrom Anniversary sale. I actually bought these online and picked them up at the Nordstrom in downtown Portland. These boots are awesome!!! Plus they were on sale, and tax free. I got the Hunter "Tall Moto" boots. I seriously can't wait for the rain to come.

The Nordstrom anniversary sale is awesome! I was good though and only bought the wellies (I had to really restrain myself from buying a new purse too... next year ;) )

Hello boots!

Here's some Bobby haulage: beer, beer and more beer. The peach beer is for me.

Beer from a super awesome liquor store called "Belmont Station" and a few from Trader Joes as well

We also hit up not one, but two Trader Joes to get everything we needed. We were smart and hit up the ones in Portland - they were less busy than the ones in Bellingham and plus we were able to drive straight from Portland (minus a lunch break, coffee break and gas break).

The border line up home was surprisingly quick (it was an hour wait, but it went by really fast because we kept moving). We got home just before 10:30pm... and today I have the day off so I am cleaning and unpacking and playing with my Kiwi-Keys, who was deprived of unwanted human attention for two days!

One last thing the mailman just dropped off this morning: I bought the Kate Spade Rain Check umbrella. I have been wanting this umbrella and it was finally in stock at Chapters. I bought the umbrella and rain boots online last week when it was pouring rain and cold in Vancouver. I decided to be proactive and be ready for fall ;)

Rainy day Saturday

As I write this blog, the rain has finally stopped! But this morning, it was pouring rain... but humid (making getting dressed awkwardly difficult).

I had a dentist appointment this morning... here was my morning view.

Rain, rain, go away

After getting my gums scrubbed to death, I went to Winners to return something, and then Save On to pick up some things for my lunch and for dinner, and then Costco for gas.

Bobby has to work today, so it was just me and my Kiwi-Keys today:

In between cleaning up the apartment, I painted my nails. I am loving this new nail polish I just bought this week. It's "Love's a Beach" by China Glaze. It's a neon pink with just a hint of shimmer - perfect for the summer. You can buy this polish here.

PMS blues

Yesterday,  I spilled tea all over my keyboard (luckily, its still functional!)

Today, I spilled tea on my label maker.

Soooo ... I decided it was time to sneak into someone's candy stash and help myself to a kitkat.

Kiwi's resting bitch face

Kiwi's got a serious case of resting bitch face - especially when she's next to her fluffly friend Prickles.

However, she also has the cuuuuutest face ever when she's sleeping... How can you not love Kiwi!?!?

Happy birthday Bobby!!!

A recap of Bobby's birthday festivities/Khatsalano Fest 2014

Bobby celebrated his big 2-8 last Thursday. I haven't bought his actual present yet (he needs a new watch, but the one he wants will not be available until the end of the summer). However, I wanted him to be able to open a present. Now if you know Bobby, you would know that nutella is his favorite food group (in Bobby's personalised food group chart) - he is constantly sticking his face in nutella... so I decided to buy him a tub that's actually big enough from him to stick his face in! I bought this 3kg tub at Ninja Bubble Tea for 40$ with tax. I told Bobby to be sure to keep note of when he opens this tub (July 12/14) and when he finishes it (likely two weeks or so away from that date ;) )

I also wanted Bobby to be able to blow out some birthday candles! Cake is a slice of the "chocolate explosion" cake from Whole Foods. I also picked up some super awesome candles (the flame is the same colour as the candle, which unfortunately is not obvious in this picture) from Michael's.

And then in true Bobby fashion, he celebrated his birthday with some Scotch - he finally opened up the bottle of Laphroig I bought him for our anniversary months ago! And that wraps up Thursday night's festivities.

We have a whiteboard on our door where we can write notes (usually along the lines of "Bobby, don't forget your lunch"). Bobby is constantly writing himself "notes from me" though. 

Friday night: I planned to take Bobby to the Keg for his actual birthday dinner. Our friends Brad, Janice and their adorable son recently moved about 10 minutes away from us, so I invited them along. The Keg never disappoints! Steak is always awesome! :)

Whenever I go the Keg, I get a Kiwi-tini. Sorry Kiwi!!

How cute is the kid's menu?! Tinier steaks for tinier people :)

What I like about the Keg (in Coquitlam!) is that they always ask if you are celebrating an event once seated. The first time we visited this restaurant, it was our anniversary. When they find out we were celebrating our anniversary, they gave us dessert! Totally unexpected, but such a sweet gesture! This time, they asked us again, so we mentioned it was for Bobby's birthday. They were so kind, they brought our dessert a good 30 minutes after we finished eating because our server saw how we were all ready to explode!

Warm brownies with ice cream = best dessert idea ever!

Yesterday (Saturday): Bobby opened his tub of nutella. Here's the ceremonial first dip.

We hit up Khatsalano Fest 2014 in the afternoon. I went mainly for the food ;) It was soooo hot and there were lots and lots of people... but we managed to find some square footage in the sidelines where we got to enjoy our poutine, and beaverstails (and chips courtesy of Brad/Ja). We hit up a liquor store afterward to get some refreshing adult beverages... I picked up the Stiegl Radler Grapefruit (the zitrone one is better). We all settled into a park with this awesome view... and we took turns entertaining Luca while he entertained all of us. 

We all had dinner at "Topanga's" after. The food was amazing! We were pretty much sunned out at that point and went home.

Happy birthday Bobby! I love youuuu! Hope you got to enjoy your weekend of festivities :)

Serious wedding planning starts... Now

I bought an agenda from Chapters so that I can write down and track of all our appointments to view venues (etc) and also so that I can have a keepsake of planning.

Over the weekend, we made a rough guest list... And tonight, I finally wrote down our very first serious venue viewing appointment.

I can't wait to fill this agenda (and notebook!) up with appointments and ideas :)

The True North Strong and Free

Happy birthday, Canada!!!

I had a great time celebrating Canada Day at Buntzen Lake yesterday. I hadn't been to Buntzen Lake in years but we are like 15 minutes or so away from it now and it's a great lake! You can rent canoes or kayaks, there are hiking trails and there's even an enclosed dog beach area! Lots of picnic tables for bbqs (but you have to get there early!) and the lake is huuuge.

So we bbq'd with my family. Bobby and I also went canoeing and hiking. My body is a little sore, but a good kind of sore. It's the "I didn't sit around all day and I feel very accomplished kind of sore". It was really hot though. It was about 30 degrees, but it probably felt like 32/33 degrees. We were at the lake though, so we got the occasional breeze. Bobby and I went to the fireworks at Lafarge Lake at night, and wow, I am impressed with the soiree the City of Coquitlam put together. The fireworks were pretty impressive. Plus we were able to walk home.

Now, a little side note on why I love this country:

I moved to Canada as a 4 year old. My parents left our somewhat comfortable life (my dad had a job he loved, and my mom worked part time - she spent most of her time taking care of my brother and I, but she also worked part time with friends who my parents still keep in touch with today) in the Philippines and moved to Canada, this wonderful free country where dreams really do come true. We left pretty much everything behind. Everything. I remember being told I could not bring my tambourine on our move because it would not fit in any of our luggage. We moved to a country where I did not speak the language at all (my parents and my brother spoke English but not perfectly). My parents both had to start over career-wise, and they both took on whatever job they could to help provide for our family.

I never truly realized how lucky I was to live in this country until I went back to the Philippines in 2009. It was a real eye opener for me because when you grow up in a country where education is free, and the opportunities are seemingly endless, you tend to take things for granted. I am forever grateful that my parents made the decision to relocate our family. They seriously gave up so much for my brother and me that I am seriously getting teary eyed just writing this blog.

Happy 147th birthday, Canada!

First 1k in my new car... Done!

So I hit the 1k milestone while driving home today. I couldn't take an actual pic of 1000 because I was driving.. But it happened just as I excited highway 1 onto Lougheed Highway.

Side note: the last time I had a car (over four years ago) using your phone while driving was only frowned upon... Now it's illegal.

Passion Tango Teavana

The verdict:
A bit sour but refreshing enough :) good afternoon pick me up pre two hour work meeting

St Jean Baptiste Day!

Yesterday was St Jean Baptiste Day but Bobby has school on Tuesdays... So I decided to hold the celebrations for my Montreal export today.

For dinner we had poutine -  I had regular fries with bacon and gravy. Bobby had spicy fries with cheese, bacon, sausage and gravy. It was so yummy!! Paired with beers it was pretty damn amazing :)

Summer Solstice, etc

So, the first official day of summer came and went... and apparently it will be raining a few days this week (wtf summer!!). As Bobby and I move forward with wedding planning, the major barrier is the date. We want to get married in the summer, on a sunny day -  is this too much to ask??? Obviously, neither one of us has a crystal ball. However, its rained so often this June already... its making me nervous having a wedding NEXT June :/ Anyway, I digress...

Let's recap the weekend festivities instead, shall we?

Saturday:

Bobby got his work car last week.. So he started driving that around because the company pays for his gas.. which meant that he left our personal car at work. We went to pick it up on Saturday... on the way home.. on Pinetree and David (just at the very end of Town Centre), the light is green, everyone is going about their business... and Bobby just STOPS. I'm like WTF WHAT?!?! He was like, "there's a bear!!". I look over and sure enough, there was a black bear that jumped the fence and into the forest/wooded area. The bear wasn't small (therefore, no scary momma bear lurking I hope), and it also wasn't giant (therefore it wasn't a scary momma bear itself...). But its still freaky running into a bear! Even though we were in a car...

We got home and parked both cars... and hit the pool. Well, Bobby hit the pool. I lounged around and read a book. After we got enough Vitamin D, we visited our friends Brad-Ja-Luca at their new place not too far from where we live. They just bought this awesome townhome - lots of space for Luca to run around and terrorize ;)

Then, later on in the evening, we hit up Yaletown for my brother's birthday event. It was a low-key night, which is awesome for us suburbaners (especially since I was the designated driver!)

Sunday:

Woke up and asked Bobby to make crepes. Mmmmm crepes! I had mine with nutella and mango.Bobby had the same, but with ice cream.

mmmmm

Then we cleaned the apartment. It was so messy and dirty. I found out that Kiwi relieved herself under our shelf so we cleaned up and she is now locked into her cage - no more freedom little missy! Then we returned the shavings Kiwi hated (they were to small and she kept accidentally eating/breathing in the pieces that she had a tantrum for over a day) and bought the ones that she did like... and after all that hard work, we treated ourselves to gelato... and pulled pork!

Now its Monday. I drove into work today (so awesome not having to wait around for the bus, or the train). The sun in shining! Woo hoo! Let's get this week started!

Viva Italia!

Not really a huge soccer (football) fan... Not watching the world cup either... But since Canada is not in it, I'll cheer for Italy! It'll make the future inlaws proud ;)

Kiwi and Prickles

Kiwi had a rough weekend. For whatever reason, she was really agitated, excited... And paranoid. She wouldn't let us hold her without freaking out. It was really weird. The weirdness lasted over a day which was staying to worry me. Bobby accidentally bought her a different kind of shavings and I think she really hate it so she was acting out. The shavings were really small and she would accidentally eat some pieces or breathe some in, which is why I think she was pissed off. So we bought her the normal shavings and she's finally back to normal. Here she is with Prickles, her new friend :)

Bobby Bieber

Had a lazy day today. We viewed the Stanley Park Teahouse as a potential wedding venue... Not to impressed with it. It's gorgeous.. But I think it would be most convenient to have the reception in a hotel so that people can retire throughout the night without having to drive home.

Anyway, my face had been breaking out like crazy. I feel like I'm 15 again. Ugh. So I went for a facial today. Pimples be gone!!! On the plus side, I finally got to drive our new car that we got on Thursday. It definitely drives smoother than the old car :)

Got home and finally watched last Sundays game of thrones. Took this picture mid show!

Hehe... this is not a trap!

Home made muffins

I got home to this lovely surprise today:

Bobby cleaned his room up! I wish I had a "before" pic to show... but basically, this room was a mess. Whenever our friends' son Luca (age 19 months) comes over, he's banned from this room because its too unsafe for him... And every night, I worry that Kiwi will wander over to Bobby's room and get buried underneath all of the wood planks and tools... Thankfully, she was never curious enough to go into that room... or at least, she was able to tetris her way out of it ;)

... So because Bobby has been an awesome fiance this week cleaning the house up... I've decided to be an awesome fiancee and make some banana bread muffins!

All set up with supplies... and Pretty Little Liars!

The batter all mixed up!

Into the pan!

Finished product!

Happily Ever After

Early yesterday morning, Bobby and I drove up to Whistler for our friends' wedding. I have been super excited about this even ever since they got engaged! And let me tell you, I was not disappointed with the planned festivities!

The wedding ceremony was at noon at the Squamish Lil'Wat Cultural Centre (located in upper village). I'm not a cryer by any means, but seeing Najin walk down that aisle with her father definitely made my eyes water a bit! Her gown was gorgeous. It was just a few months ago that we went wedding dress shopping and she found her dress! It's this gorgeous lace and beaded mermaid gown. Absolutely stunning in general, but even more stunning on Najin!

After the ceremony, a few of us met up for lunch. It was a gorgeous sunny day so we did not want to waste the time indoors! We had lunch in lower village, then we headed to Creekside where the reception was taking place. The reception was at Nita Lake Lodge so we all booked rooms there. The hotel is amazing! It's got a private lake where you can canoe and paddle board. The rooms (all of them I swear!) have stunning high high high ceilings! Our friends and I had rooms on every floor (first, second, third and fourth) and we all had two story tall ceilings. It was a gigantic hotel!

So we checked into the hotel around 2-3. We all relaxed for a bit, but against better judgement (especially for me because I had started to get sick on Friday afternoon - sore throat, inflamed sinuses), a few of us went for cocktails instead of napping. At least the drinks we good ;)

The reception started at 6pm. While seated, we were introduced to the lovely new Mr. and Mrs. The food was soooo delicious! I mean seriously, I sampled everything and there was not one thing I left on my plate (which is typical because I am quite the picky eater). The food was so great in fact that a friend overate, got sick, and ended up missing most of the evening whilst he lay in fetal position in his room. As the night progessred, I started feeling more and more sick (my chest hurt, the coughing started and my sinuses were throbbing - ugh!!!). So after the party winded down, a few headed up to Dmitry's room for the after party. I missed out because I was exhausted and feeling really shitty.

We woke up around 9, showered, packed up, checked out, and met up some friends for breakfast. Then after, a few of us headed back to the village in hunt for wings. After we were full, we headed back home. The car ride home was so painful for my sinuses. I got home and promptly napped for two hours while Bobby ran to the pharmacy to get me some medicine. Now I'm awake doing some laundry, tidying up a bit.. before heading back to bed.

Congratulations to Najin and Lawrence. We are so happy for you both!

Beautiful speech where the bride and groom took turns thanking their family, their guests and everyone involved in coordinating this wonderful evening.

Dance floor selfie! Even Luca tore up the dance floor!

Love

Bad, Kiwi!!

Kiwi has a hedgie door on her cage... so Kiwi runs around the apartment at night. I don't know what kind of shenanigans she gets up to... but she ALWAYS makes a mess. She tracks shavings everywhere she goes. The most shavings is always just outside of her cage... but the shavings get as far as the shelf (the one that Bobby built), and underneath the coffee table, under the dining table... and the front door area. I sometimes leave random treats for her to find and she pretty much gets all of them! Its kind of cute.. I like to think she is running around the apartment looking for her mama (Chaos) but I really don't think she is. And even though its cute she does this.. its also kind of annoying because everyday someone has to clean up after her. I suppose we could just lock the door... but then we would be taking away some of her freedom. She is a free hedgehog after all ;)

Oh yea, if you look close enough on our floors, you can even see Kiwi's teeny tiny paw prints.

A little back story about this door. Bobby originally made a door in Chaos' first cage (it was much smaller, pre-babies). I had to teach Chaos how to use the door... and once she learned how to use the door, she pretty much ran away from home every night. Some nights, she would even find other places to sleep in (under towels/mats/inside a bag I left on the ground/a pile of dirty laundry waiting to be washed). Kiwi (and her sisters) learned how to use the door just by watching their mama. When they were babies, they would run out of their cage and explore their apartment. I was always nervous that we would lose a baby.. but it was never an issue because our apartment was so tiny!

Anyway, so I'm pretty tired. As anticipated, the coffee kicked in and I couldn't fall asleep last night. The last time I checked the time, it was 1:45am and all I could think was "dammit, I need to be up in a few hours" :(
Surprisingly, I was not that tired in the morning. I managed to wake up on time, and be on time for work (even though the train was running a little bit behind). I did start to get nauseous towards the end of the day though... and I was pretty exhausted on the way home. Just going to take it easy at home. Going to clean up a bit, eat some left over yummy enchiladas... and hit the hay at a reasonable hour!

Domo arigato!

So Bobby and I got our very first wedding present. Yes, wedding present. My aunt (one of my parents' best friends) and her family got us a super awesome present! Today, I finally had time to make a thank you card to mail them.

My desk is pretty small... but our dining table is huuuge so I have tons of space for arts and crafts on there. PS, our dining table is so big with extra seating that all my Quatchis hang around there all the time now!

I went out for dinner with a friend after work today. We hit up Las Margaritas in Kits for some awesome enchiladas... After dinner, we went to Starbucks for some java... which I know I will regret very soon because its almost 10pm and I couldn't be less tired... I guess I may as well catch up on some Real Housewives of Orange County!