Ace
- on: January 18, 2016
- By Gabi
- theme: family life, life with vizsla
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It has been ages since I posted anything about Ace. He has grown quite a bit and will be turning 18 months in a few days. He has such a fun personality. He is definitely living up to the nickname of “velcro” dog, he loves to cuddle with us and be close to us. And yes, he knows how to push the buttons too…!
Now he is able to go for long runs with Ivo ( I think the longest one they have done was around 25km) and he absolutely loves it. Ivo took him also for a few bike rides on the trails to get him used to run along the bike. So far so good! His two brothers live in the same city so he is running with them on regular basis. I’m still trying to get a good shot of them together but you can imagine how almost impossible this is! Hopefully one day..
We got him this cave bed from Snoozer for Christmas. At first he wasn’t sure about it but now he definitely calls it his space. He buries himself deep into the bed and sometimes we can’t see him at all, sometimes only a leg, his tail or a nose will stick out a little bit.
You can tell that he is definitely comfy in there.
I’m hoping to update the Vizsla page soon with some new photos so you can compare how much he has grown and changed.
Leave a comment...our adventures during Christmas break
- on: January 09, 2016
- By Gabi
- theme: family life
- 2
During the last Christmas break we moved and explored our area a lot. We are definitely not people who would sit two weeks at home and just eat. We did a lot of hiking, walking, and biking and were joined on our adventures by our friends sometimes as well. We really do live in a beautiful area. Around our neighbourhood there was no snow but only 15 minutes drive and we were in a provincial park and surrounded by snow. It’s a win-win.
I took quite a lot of pictures during our adventures, most of them are just iPhone photos but for me it is more important to have at least those than having them of a perfect quality. One of my “goals” for this year is definitely take more photos of us, as a family.
Walk on dykes on Christmas morning with our friends.
Hiking in the park.
We did the same hike twice because the first time it was very foggy and we couldn’t see the mountains. Few days later the park was filled with sunshine.
At this point we were chasing the last sunrays of the day.
We are definitely very fortunate that we don’t have to travel to see such a beauty because it is just in our “neck of the woods”.
And yes, we did some biking in the freezing weather as well.
I can feel that this year will be full of family adventures.
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reflections | fifteen unforgettable moments of twenty-fifteen
- on: December 30, 2015
- By Gabi
- theme: everyday life, family life
- 0
In just a little bit over a day we will say goodbye to twenty-fifteen.
It’s crazy how fast this year has passed by. I usually don’t reflect on stuff but this year has seemed like a rollercoaster ride and I think it deserves a recap. There were lots of firsts and ups and downs and I know in a few years I might forget them if I don’t write them down.
So here are our unforgettable moments of twenty-fifteen (in a random order):
- becoming Canadian Citizens
- first parents’ weekend without kids
- job changes for both adults
- walking Patrik to a surgery room and helping to put him into sleep
- being a single parent while Ivo went to Vietnam and Denver
- watching Katrin become a Provincial Champion in cyclocross
- developing stronger relationships with my friends and making new ones
- experiencing first earthquake
- girls trip with Marjo to Whistler + first visit to spa
- cheering on Ivo on his first ultra-marathons
- picking up our car from a deserted parking lot after park hours in a wind storm in pitch black darkness in a local provincial park
- bonding with Ace (can’t imagine our family without him anymore)
- learning about essential oils and switching to more natural ways of living
- seeing black bears just down our street
- re-discovering the benefits of yoga once again
Quite a mix, isn’t it?
I’m ready for new adventures and experiences. Looking forward to twenty-sixteen!
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around here | december
- on: December 10, 2015
- By Gabi
- theme: aromatherapy | essential oils, around here, family life, photography
- 0
Getting into the Christmas mood over here. I love love this time of the year!
Improvising during challenging times. This year the weather has been crazy and we are getting one storm after another followed by power outages. The longest power outage so far lasted over 15 hours. We were ready to prepare dough for our gingerbread cookies when the power went out so we put running head lamps on and did it anyway. One has to think outside the box sometimes.
Celebrating that our Christmas cactus has blooms! Last year we didn’t get any so it makes me double happy that it has decided to bloom this year.
Switching to a greener way of living. I’m on a journey to transform our household to greener and more healthier one. Last week I said goodbye to dryer sheets and said hello to these wool balls. I put a few drops of an essential oil on them and add them to the laundry. Simple and effective. These balls should also shorten the drying cycle.
I also made homemade foam soaps and air sprays using essential oils. I’m loving the smell and also the fact that there are no chemicals in them and those are safe to use every single day. We are also diffusing the oils daily using this diffuser from Young Living. I grabbed it when it was on sale two weeks ago and loving it! I can’t wait to get the second one with my starter kit for Christmas. Kids are already fighting over who is going to have it in their room overnight. Once we get the second one, this problem will be over.
Baking my grandma’s gingerbread cookies. We use the same recipe every single year and they always turn out so delicious!
Opening our advent calendars every day. Kids can’t wait each morning to discover what’s hidden in their Lego calendars and I love tasting new teas every day.
Getting excited about my next professional step. Only four more sleeps until my new job starts. Can’t wait!
Soaking up the little moments this beautiful season is bringing to us. Taking it slowly one day at the time. Enjoying the little stuff. Making new friends, reconnecting with the “old” ones.
Bring on the magic!
Leave a comment...homemade epic hot chocolate
- on: November 22, 2015
- By Gabi
- theme: family life, from our kitchen, handmade
- 0
Who doesn’t love hot chocolate, right? Since we tried Jamie Oliver’s homemade epic hot chocolate recipe, we haven’t looked back. I would not go for the store bought anymore. This is the one and only recipe we use at home and everyone in our family loves it. It’s fun to make it from scratch too, kids love to help with grating the chocolate and eating the little pieces left. It’s thick and simply amazing.
We just did ours yesterday and put the mix in a large glass jar. We multiplied the recipe by 4 so it will last for a while.
Jamie Oliver’s Epic Hot Chocolate
- 2 tablespoons Horlicks
- 2 tablespoons cornflour
- 3 tablespoons icing sugar
- 4 tablespoons quality organic cocoa
- 100 g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids) , finely grated
- 1 pinch ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 2 pints (1 pint = 2 cups) semi-skimmed milk
Pour the milk into a large pan, and bring almost to the boil over a medium heat.
Meanwhile, add all the chocolate mix ingredients to a large jar and give it a good shake to combine. You need around 10 heaped tablespoons of the chocolate mix for this amount of milk. Simply spoon the chocolate mix into the hot milk, give it a good whisk and leave to bubble away for a few minutes before serving. You’re looking for that gorgeous, thick, almost claggy, knockout texture.
sometime in November
- on: November 18, 2015
- By Gabi
- theme: aromatherapy | essential oils, creative living, everyday life, family life
- 0
Well, hello there!
This place has been quite for a while so I think it’s time to dust the corners and make an update on what’s going on with us. To be honest, not too much is going on but at the same time a lot is going on. The last couple of weekends were pretty hectic with cyclocross races and practices but luckily the cycling season is almost over and our routine will finally slow down. I can’t wait!
I love this time of the year when it’s cold outside so we get a chance to get together at home, play board games and just relax. I know we won’t sit on our butts the whole winter but it is nice to take a break from all the programs and schedules and just enjoy some good family time.
Kids started (finally!) drinking tea which makes me so happy. We prepare our tea into a ceramic teapot (which I brought from my home country) and make this our little ritual. They really enjoy it. I bought an advent tea calendar – 24 days of tea from David’s tea and can’t wait to taste new tea flavors with them every day during December! It’s definitely a fun way how to try different teas without buying it in bulks and to discover some new favorites.
I still can’t believe that in just little bit over a month Christmas will be here! Kids have started their wish list already and I did mine as well. I signed up at Young Living Essential Oils community and ordered the Premium Starter kit. It’s arrived more than a week ago but I’m saving it for Christmas so you can bet that I’m counting the days until I will be able to open the box and try my new diffuser!
I’m new and not to essential oils. I have been using oils for several years now but mostly in my aroma lamp. Time to time I use lavender for burns, scratches or any other skin problems but that’s about it. So I’m really excited to start changing our home to less/no chemical one. I’m in a researching mode right now and trying to get as much information as possible. I already bought some rollerball bottles and plan on making my own mixes. The next on the list is a hand soap and house cleaning products which will be chemicals free. Luckily there are tons and tons of recipes online and also an amazing local group of ladies which do get-togethers and lessons. If you have any favourite recipes or tips, please don’t hesitate to share with me.
I’ve also started knitting again. It’s still a huge learning curve for me but I promised Ms. K that I will make her a cowl so I’m trying my best. And if I screw up, I know one creative expert who will save me from disaster of destroying the whole thing.
So there you go. It’s a tea time, aromatherapy and knitting kind of a day and I wouldn’t change a thing on it. I might squeeze a yoga class in there tonight as well.
Hope life is treating you well in your corner of the world.
Leave a comment...around here. right now.
- on: July 13, 2015
- By Gabi
- theme: around here, self care
- 0
Right now I am…
Listening to kids screaming upstairs. They love each other one minute and in a split of a second they fight each other. The never-ending circle of sibling-hood.
Feeling overwhelmed and confused. I’ve lost my job last week and right now I need to figure out what is the next step for my career. I have a rough idea but don’t know how to get there.
Reading Chasing Grace and photography tutorials.
Planning our family’s mini staycation. We supposed to go away but due to the wildfires we cancelled and will be exploring new places locally.
Training for my upcoming biking race (87km) which will take a place this Sunday.
Practicing patience. Being suddenly stay-at-home mom with two kiddos and one active dog during the summer months brings not just a lot of joy but also a lot of conflict resolving and day to day schedules planning.
Choosing living in the moment, being more patient and family above everything.
This post by Kelly Rae Roberts is a perfect lesson about ourselves. Exactly what I needed to read at this moment.
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