• Cat Cuddles and Cookies

    10/07/2018 - By 

    It’s a cloudy and rainy morning. I’m currently curled up on our pink couch with Isabella and Kali-cat beside me, sharing cuddles. It’s one of those lazy mornings where you plot things to do from the couch, without the energy to actually do the plans. We want to bake- PB cookies and carrot cake and hummus. I would like to make more almond butter and homemade granola. I just did a bunch of painting and home updates. We had a water scare in our bathroom that we thought was a pipe leaking into our wall from our shower head! We…

  • easy recipes!

    Easy Recipes: Cook Up Some Fun Food With Your Kids !

    05/07/2018 - By 

    Richa Iyer has generously gifted us with some easy recipes for your kids to help you in the kitchen this summer. Isabella is ten years old(!!!) this year and will probably need minimal supervision with these, plus I can get Hunter in there to help us. This article was generously written for Babbling Panda so let’s get on to the recipes!   It can be difficult to find new ways of spending quality time with your kids. Sometimes it can feel like you’re on completely different wavelengths on what makes something “fun.” And, as a busy parent, it can get frustrating to…

  • Home for the summer!

    School’s Out For Summer!

    28/06/2018 - By 

    It has been one day since school was officially out for the summer! I have to admit, it’s been nice to have the kids home for the day. No packing lunches or rushing to the bus. Today we are going to take it easy. It is a luxury for the kids to be able to stay in their pajamas during a weekday, so I am going to let them. Both Hunter and Isabella say it feels strange to be home from school. Strangely good, they say, haha! The whole day is open! Maybe we will make popcorn and watch a movie,…

  • with my love, who adores my crows feet

    Falling in Love with Crow’s Feet

    26/06/2018 - By 

    Remember being a little kid, say 7 or 8, and declaring, “When I’m an old person of 20 years old with crow’s feet, I’m gonna fall in love, live in a big house, and invent flying cars!” Old person, at 20? I’m laughing so hard at my childhood self right now. I did picture something right- I did start to get laugh lines or “crow’s feet” at around that age. They were almost imperceptible, but they had begun. Also- I think the crow is a majestic and amazing bird, so if it is meant as an insult, it goes over…

  • gluten-free breakfast at Pacific Hideaway.

    When You Become Gluten-Free & Your Whole Life is Food.

    23/06/2018 - By 

    I  have a confession to make. I’m sick of being gluten-free. But I have no choice, which sucks and there is nothing I can do about it. My whole life is thinking about food. Being gluten-free isn’t a lifestyle choice but a necessary part of my health. I became gluten-free a few years ago when I had food poisoning so bad that it ruined my gut. So what happens when I eat gluten and become “glutened”, as I put it? Horrible things. You don’t feel slightly sick. A lot of people have asked me if it is a similar feeling…

  • Affordable Gluten-Free Shopping

    21/06/2018 - By 

    I have to eat gluten-free, due to a severe gluten-intolerance. Eating gluten-free isn’t cheap, so here are three quick ways to shop more affordably. Here are my three easy tips to save while shopping gluten-free: Buy frozen!! Frozen is cheaper, lasts longer and is quick to prepare. Often picked at the peak of ripeness and flash frozen, they are just as nutritious (sometimes more so) than fresh. We love frozen veggies, fruit and fish. Shop at the end of the day. Sometimes when you shop after 6 p.m., things like meat are usually on sale. I buy hormone AND antibiotic…

  • Happy 34th Birthday Husband!

    20/06/2018 - By 

    Happy 34th birthday to my husband! Josh was born in B.C. and I was born in Saskatchewan, but we met in Alberta at a Halloween party when Josh was 23 years old. I’ve known you for 11 years, Husband!   Yes, we have known each other for 11 years, but it feels like more- in a good way. The minute I met you, it felt like we’d known each other for lifetimes. It was if our souls hugged the minute that we met. In those years, we have moved houses twice, bought a house once, had two babies, changed jobs…

  • What Kind Of Party Invitation Kid Do You Have?

    16/06/2018 - By 

    Does your kid hem and haw when they get a birthday party invitation? Or do they jump at the chance? I was a jump at the chance kid, until a certain age. My kids are of the hem and haw variety. They don’t connect with a ton of kids, so when they do and they get a party invitation, it’s a pretty big deal. But there is a lot of considering they go through before accepting. Will it be too loud? Will there be a large crowd? How long is it? Will it be really bright? Does the party include…

  • Chilling real-life ghost story

    A True Ghost Story. Haunting My Child: Part 2

    14/06/2018 - By 

    This is a continuation of THIS POST. You’ll want to check it out and then come back here to finish this true life ghost story. Where were we? Oh yeah, my new nighttime routine with Isabella: Put Isabella to bed Wake at 3am to the repeated throaty call of “MommyDaddyMommyDaddyMommyDaddyMommyDaddy” Walk to the third stair and have Isabella snap her head up a little as soon as your foot touches it. You realize it is very cold at the third stair just as Isabella starts to sing-chant the same three sentences over and over in a deeper voice while you…

  • Chilling real-life ghost story

    A True Ghost Story. Haunting My Child: Part 1

    12/06/2018 - By 

    Our last house was haunted. I tell this story over and over, but this ghost story still gives me chills. So far, so good at Blue Moon Cottage- no ghosts. This is an old story and I can’t believe I never shared it before now- probably because I was too freaked out. We moved into our last rental (last rental EVER, now that we own!! WOOT),  when Isabella was 2 years old and I was 6 months pregnant with Hunter. I remember moving day. I was bringing boxes into the kitchen and saw Isabella staring into the dining room. She…