Auntie Claus

Happy Christmas Eve Everyone!

Breakfast this morning was a no-brainer. When I first saw gingerbread oats on Caitlin's blog one year ago, I knew that someday I would HAVE to have them. This is that day folks. My version is called Gingerbread Mocha oats:

2/3 cup coffee, 2/3 cup almond breeze unsweetened, 2/3 cups quick oats, 2 t mini chocolate chips thrown in while cooking, dismembered gingerbread man, 3 chocolate covered cranberries.

In light of it being Christmas Eve, I have a special Christmas survey for you that I found on Crystal's blog:

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Neither
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Both - except big gifts are just set up without being wrapped
3. Coloured lights on tree/house or white? I love both
4. Do you hang mistletoe? No, but I want to :-)
5. When do you put your decorations up? First Saturday of December usually.
6. What is your favourite holiday dish? Gravy :-) Hehe.
7. Favourite Holiday memory as a child? Watching movies on Christmas eve and eating chips and dip. Also, the magic feeling of walking out to the living room on Christmas morning.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I was about 4 - but I didn't believe it.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We never did that before, but now we celebrate Christmas with my family on Christmas eve, so we open those gifts. The hubby and I wait until Christmas morning.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Different every year.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? I like snow, but I hate the cold.
12. Can you ice skate? Yes, but not as well as I used to be able to.
13. Do you remember your favourite gift? Phone (for my bedroom) in grade 6.
14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending time with my family
15. What is your favourite Holiday Dessert? Naomi Bars
16. What is your favourite holiday tradition? Stocking :-)
17. What tops your tree? An ugly star.
18. Which do you prefer: giving or receiving? Giving for sure. I love finding people the perfect gift and seeing what they think of it when they open it.
19. What is your favourite Christmas Song? Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Yuck

I would also like to thank DairyFreeBetty for this lovely award:



I am to pass this award on to 10 people and then list 10 things that make me happy.

I would like to pass this on to everyone - but since I can only pick 10 they are:

1) Burp and Slurp
2) Girl with the Red Hair
3) Greens and Jeans
4) Eating Machine
5) Jocelyn Eats Fresh
6) Joy of Food
7) My Marble Rye
8) Low and B Hold
9) Daily Moderation
10) Simply Life

I decided to do a photo list of the 10 things that make me happy.

1) My angel faced nephew Giovanni

2) My wonderful husband of 5 1/2 years - Chris.



3) Travelling. This picture is from Vegas.



4) Christmas!! We are going to my dad's for our a Christmas dinner and gifts tonight.



5) Blogging



6) Clothes! I got this little dress at Costco for my trip to Dominican in about a week!!

7) Being done my Thesis and my second degree!! The thesis got bound yesterday, and dropped off in my department.



8) Finally having a finished basement.



9) Hello Kitty :-)



10) Cooking! I made homemade cranberry sauce today to take to my dad's.



Tonight we are going to my dad's for Christmas dinner. I am looking forward to giving my family - especially my little nephew Giovanni their Christmas gifts.

Giovanni saw this picture of me on the computer a couple weeks ago:

He said to his mommy "There's Auntie!!!!!! I like her!!! She helping Santa work Mommy?? I wanna do dat." And because my 2 1/2 year old nephew is so darn witty, he started calling me

"Auntie Claus".

Only one more full day until Christmas!

This morning I slept in :-) It was awesome. For breakfast I had leftover wifesaver again:



Along with an orange and some java:





As promised, here is the recipe for "WifeSaver Breakfast"

Ingredients:
- 16 slices of white or brown bread (or combo of both) - crusts removed
- Sliced ham (I use real, but you can also use sandwich meat)
- Sliced cheddar cheese
- 6 eggs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp dried mustard
- 1/2 cup minced green onion
- 1/2 cup green pepper
- 1/2 cup red pepper
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 3 cups whole milk (3.25 %)
- Dash of Tabasco sauce
- 1/2 lb. butter or margarine
- Crushed corn flakes

In a 9x13 buttered, glass baking dish, put 8 pieces of bread (no crusts). Add pieces in to cover the dish entirely. Cover bread with ham. Lay slices of cheese on ham. Cover with slices of bread to make like a sandwich. Sprinkle the onions and peppers on top.

In a bowl, beat the eggs, salt and pepper. Add the dry mustard and beat well. Add milk, Worcestershire and Tabasco. Beat well. Pour over the sandwich, cover and let stand in the fridge overnight (or freeze). In the morning, melt 1/2 lb margarine or butter and pour on top. Cover with crushed cornflakes. Bake, uncovered for 1 1/2 - 2 hours at 350 (sometimes needs more time). Let sit 10 min. before serving.

Enjoy!

This breakfast is SUPER easy, and very satisfying.

Lunch was a smoothie with almond breeze, a banana, almond butter and 2 amazing grass chocolate packs:





Instead of "dinner", the hubby and I ate junk :-) We had some dry ribs and gyoza:



Some cheese, pickles, and crackers:



Some chips and dip:



And wine :-)



Tomorrow we have Christmas dinner at my dad's house and I am bringing cabbage rolls.

Today I mixed 1 pack of ground pork, 1 pack of lean ground beef, 1 chopped onion, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, and 1 t Worcestershire sauce, and 2 cups of RAW long grain white rice, and 1 cup of water together:



Then I took apart a sour cabbage (finally found one for $7 ... much better than the $19 that safeway was charging - and it wasn't a mistake!!!)

Behold the leaning tower of cabbage:




I wrapped about 3 T of mixture in a leaf of sour cabbage and then put them in this tall stock pot that was lined with small cabbage leaves:



I poured 2 cans of tomato soup over, with equal parts water, and brought to a boil on the stove. Then I covered and simmered them for 2 1/2 hours.

You will see the finished product tomorrow!

What are your plans for Christmas eve?

We are going to my dad's around 3 to play board games, and then have turkey dinner and open gifts. Then later on in the evening we are going to the husband's aunts for visiting and munchies.

I am off to eat 2 Christmas oranges :-) Gotta love 'em.

2, 20, 200

Today is a GREAT day for 2 reasons!

(1) There are only 2 days until Christmas
(2) As of today I am off of work for 2 weeks!

Leaving work today this is how I was feeling:





Can I get a hallelujah? :-)

This first week will be spent at home ... and then the second will be spent in the Dominican Republic.

Tomorrow I am going to sleep in ... and pretty much do nothing all day. Best. Feeling. Ever.

On to eats ...

Last night I snacked on some tortilla chips and guacamole. I also enjoyed a POM and sparkling water "martini." All drinks are better in pretty glasses.





Today's eats were rather repetitive and boring - sorry. I have tonnes of leftovers to devour.

Breakfast was leftover wifesaver (recipe tomorrow - I promise):



A banana:



And OJ:



I had a bigger breakfast than usual because I had to take Malaria pills (so I don't get Malaria in the DR) this morning. They say to take them with food, and there is a high chance that they can cause an upset stomach. I decided that the fuller my belly - the better.

Lunch was provided for us at work by our principal. I had 1/2 cup of Caesar salad, 1 slice of garlic toast and 2 small pieces of veggie pizza. I also had an orange. Sorry, no pics.

Dinner was leftovers again - ham and scalloped potatoes.



And a chocolate for dessert.

This evening the hubby and I went to the movie Avatar. It was REALLY cool!! We shared a popcorn.

This post is my 200th post!!!
I wanted to share 20 ways that I have changed during the time since I started this blog:

1) I used to HATE oatmeal before I started this blog. Then I discovered toppings :-)

2) I hated breakfast in general before starting the blog, and now breakfast is a meal that I look forward to. I don't know why this changed.

3) I think about food and recipes LESS now that I have started the blog. I don't get it either. It may be because I have been too busy this semester to think about anything other than school and work - but that will all change now!

4) I tried my first green monster, and LOVED it.

5) I have developed an intense desire to run that I never had before.

6) I feel more and more comfortable taking photos of my meals in restaurants.

7) I find it odd that I try to prolong my breakfast as long as possible so that I can get some natural light for the photo. Summer is way better for food photography.

8) I have learned a lot more about how to use our DSLR camera.

9) My pants are all too big - must be the green monsters!

10) I have realized that that slice of cake in the staffroom is not worth going to get my camera for. Besides, I hate cake.

11) I have realized that most people have never heard of a food blog, and are really intrigued and confused by the idea.

12) I have found that blogging relaxes me, and helps my unwind at the end of my day.

13) I have discovered that people in the blogosphere are some of the nicest people around. Your support and encouragement are heartwarming.

14) I have felt more energized (again - must be the Green Monsters).

15) I have gotten sick less, and the 2 colds that I got were the most MINOR colds I have ever had. I got over them quickly and painlessly.

16) I am willing to try dishes I would never have thought to try before - next up - savoury oats!!

17) I have discovered how difficult it can be to blog everyday, when sometimes I feel like I've got nothing.

18) I have discovered that people actually read my blog - never thought that would happen when I started this :-)

19) I had "stomach issues" for about 6 years. For at least 3 of those years I suffered daily with what felt like nervous stomach - I won't get into all the details here ... but it wasn't fun. I thought it could be lactose intolerance, or IBS. The doctor told me it was neither. He gave me some pills to relax the muscles in my stomach area - they kind-of worked. My doctor is not the kind of guy that wants his patients on prescription meds. so instead he told me to take psyllium husks. I started taking the capsules daily, and the problem went away completely. BUT, if I stopped taking them for over a day, the problem would return. This went on for 3 years ... until I started my blog!!! I know it is weird, but about 1 1/2 months ago I realized I had forgotten to take the psyllium pills for about 2 weeks - and I was fine!! I haven't taken them since! I don't know if it is something in my diet that has changed that has caused this problem to be cured after 6 years ... or what exactly it is - but I will take it!!

20) Even after all this time, I am still nervous to tell new people about my blog. They think I am weird. What do they know? :-) I was weird before the blog.

Do you blog? How long have you been blogging? How have you changed since you started blogging?

We are almost there ... and I am almost ready! Tomorrow is my last day of work, and then I am off for 2 weeks!! You have NO idea how excited I am to be on holidays for 2 weeks. Also, we leave for the Dominican Republic on the 29th ... so I have even more to be excited for.

Last night we had the hubby's family over for dinner. I made a spiced ham with scalloped potatoes, and honey balsamic carrots.



I also made a homemade applesauce and honey mustard sauce.





I enjoyed 1 glass of red wine with dinner, and a nanaimo square for dessert.



This morning I had leftover wifesaver of course (recipe to come soon - I promise!!)





I also had a glass of orange juice. Mmmmm, I don't drink juice often, but it sure beats water in the morning!



At work I had an orange and a small cinnamon bun (gotta love staffroom snacks around the holidays!)

Lunch was another orange and a mini lasagna from Costco - really good!



And since we made a GIANT ham for dinner yesterday, I had leftovers for supper. You might be seeing ham for a few days ...



Are you traveling at all over the holidays?

We will be going with 10 friends to the Dominican for a week - but unfortunately I won't be here for my sister's 23rd b-day which is on New Years Eve.

Stay tuned for a special post tomorrow night :-)

It's Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Christmas

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas ...

Some presents are wrapped.

The snow has freshly fallen and the scene out my front door is beautiful.

The gingerbread house has been eaten.

By this little goober ...

(2 1/2 year old nephew Giovanni)

Now onto the recap from yesterday ...

Last night while getting ready for a Christmas party, the hubby and I had subs for dinner:

I had a 6 inch turkey breast with veggies and honey mustard on whole wheat.

The spread of food at the party was absolutely mouthwatering.

We are so fortunate to be invited every year into the lovely home of our friend's parents, for delicious food, and mingling with wonderful people. We look forward to the party every year.

We were up early this morning to prepare breakfast for my family.

The wifesaver breakfast cooked away while the hubby and I wrapped gifts, and cleaned the house.

We enjoyed a breakfast of wifesaver, bacon, and fresh fruits.

After brunch and coffee we started prepping for dinner. We are having the hubby's family over for dinner tonight. We are making ham, scalloped potatoes and carrots, with a homemade honey mustard sauce and apple sauce.

I started the applesauce this afternoon.

It has been a busy but wonderful day!

How has your weekend been? What did you do?