Back in the Tent

We didn't get to go camping this year but Sarah's tent has been getting lots of use in our basement. The kids LOVE playing in it!

Calvin is standing and walking really well already!

He loves to jump at the tent when he knows someone is inside. It's actually a pretty fun little game.

Even the squirrels love our tomatoes!

Saw this little critter snacking on one of our tomatoes the other day. Didn't know they ate vegetables!?!

Hanging Around

Peanut Punch

Have you ever hear of Peanut Punch? We hadn't so we thought we'd give it a try. Kind of tasted like melted peanut butter. Not bad but not great.

Sarah saw me taking a photo of Debbie with the juice box and therefore wanted a photo of her holding her juice box as well.

Our Week with Debbie

No blog posts from me means that we likely have an out of town visitor. This past week my cousin Debbie came from BC for a visit. We had a wonderful time catching up, enjoying quality chats, going on adventures, playing games and just spending time together.

I didn't have a camera handy for some of our day trips and on others just didn't take many photos. One morning we went to the winery where David works and had a picnic lunch with him in the vineyard. We then went to the orchard down the road to pick peaches. So fun!

Another day Debbie, the kids and I went to the Niagara zoo together.

One evening we got a baby-sitter (while the kids were sleeping) and went to Niagara Falls to go mini golfing (thanks for the tickets Sonya and Gary). We had a great time mini golfing and wandering Clifton Hill. We then watched the fireworks over the falls. It was so great to get out for an evening without the kids.

Debbie schooled us!

On Saturday we headed out to St. Jacob's to take in the market and walk the old town. This is our favourite time of year to go there since all the fresh produce is available. Great quality and prices!

On Monday we went to the CNE in Toronto. We wondered how the kids would do with so many day trips but they were wonderful!

Looking at the animals.

They had a kids agriculture area set up. The kids had to go through a series of small buildings and set ups to learn more about various kinds of farming. Sarah was keen to milk the "cow."

Loved picking the apples. It seems that almost all of our photos are of her back since she was always running off to the next activity.

Loved fishing.

She was a big fan of riding the pretend horses.

So excited to go for a ride in the barrel (there were about 6 in a row).

David recycled and won a bag. Lucky guy.

Sarah met Dora and Diego. David had to stay close since she still gets pretty freaked out at large costumed people.

In the science centre.

Debbie and little Calvin.

Thanks for the fun times Debbie!

From the Garden...

We've been really enjoying fresh veggies from the garden! This year we planted more of an Italian garden...roma tomatoes, peppers, basil, etc. Our tomatoes didn't grow nearly as big as our neighbours (we didn't dump on a truck load of manure like everyone else), however we are still getting a ton of tomatoes. We eat a lot of tomatoes, so this is great! It's so nice to be able to go outside and pick what I need each day. Today we have a lot more ripe tomatoes than needed, so I may have to make a sauce. This was the first time we've planted peppers. So easy and fantastic. It's Greek salad for dinner!

So easy...Tasty Bruschetta Recipe

6 roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh basil, stems removed (or dried/ crushed if it's all you have)
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 French baguette or Ciabatta Bread
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Combine the first set of ingredients, let sit for about 10 minutes. Spoon over sliced bread, top with some shredded cheese and broil until cheese is melted.

We had a large Ciabatta bread loaf from Costco so I halved the bread and quartered it. I then put the mixture on top. Instead of smaller appetizer portions these were like full sandwich portions. So delicious!

In the Cupboards

Saying Good Bye to Keisha

Today we had to make the sad decision to put Keisha down. We've both been really sad, cried lots. It's been pretty upsetting as she's been a part of our family for about 7 years.

Since most of you won't have seen this coming at all, here's a little background. Keisha starting urinating frequently (sometimes bleeding) while Barrie and Merel were out, so we knew that something wasn't right. I took her to the vet on Monday and they figured that it was a possible bladder infection, stones or something worse. They put her on antibiotics to see if it was in fact a bladder infection, which would have cleared up in 3-4 days max. Keisha seemed a little better the first day so we were hopeful that everything would be ok. We knew that if she didn't get better this would probably be it, as the next steps were x-rays, surgery, etc. However, as the week went on she seemed to be getting worse.

Last night I awoke to hear her crying in pain, it was horrible to hear. She was panting heavily, wouldn't eat and would no longer go to the bathroom. Her stomach area also felt like the muscles had seized up and/ or she had a possible tumor. She was clearly in a lot of pain. I called the emergency vet this morning and they told us what procedures and fees we would be looking at. Spending about $1000 just isn't an option for us.

We knew this day would come eventually. Just over 2 years ago we went through something similar with Keisha and the meds worked and she was fine. We were blessed with a couple of extra years. Sadly, this time it wasn't the case this time. We didn't want to see her go through that kind of pain any longer, especially knowing that there wasn't any other meds that they could give her and there really wasn't any other alternative.

Therefore we brought her in this morning. It was horrible and sad. We both feel like we made the right decision, but that doesn't make it much easier. We both just keep thinking of her and talking about her. I still can't believe she's gone. She will really be missed in our home. We loved that little dog a lot.

Moments in Motherhood

This morning we had to bring Keisha to the vet (possible bladder infection or stones). Walking and an appointment with both kids, single stroller (barely fits in the vet office) and dog is no fun activity. Sarah would only walk part of the time and the other times whine and go limp. This often resulted in me having to carry or drag her, push the stroller and hold the leash. Every person that saw us (there and back) made a comment about how I had my hands full, etc. Once we were at the vet office she was trying to go everywhere and get into everything. When it was time to leave she decided she didn't want to come since it was more fun to play with the rabbit, cat and dog. Most days this walk/ experience would have been fine. However, today Sarah was in an especially independent and unpleasant mood. Goody.

By the time we got home I felt like I was going to lose it! It's moments like these that make me think that 2 kids is plenty for our family. It's amazing how irrated and angry the little ones that we love can make us feel.

Thankfully I had made Spaghetti last night for David's lunch. There were lots of leftovers so getting the kids meals toghether was easy. I was still feeling irritated from the whole morning vet ordeal when I looked over at Sarah. She was sitting in her chair, hands folded, eyes closed and praying for her food. My heart melted. This was the first time that she had actually done this fully on her own. And just like that, everything seems ok again. This is one of the moments that I will always remember and treasure.

Some moments are bad, some are good. Every moment passes. We try to remember the good moments and forget the bad ones.

Calvin eating his lunch. Such a mess, but yet so darling at the same time.

Calvin eats Macaroni

Three Cities of Spain Cheesecake Recipe

Today seemed look a good day to post this great recipe since it always reminds me of my sister in law, Libby. She loved it while they were out visiting at Christmas. Today is Libby and Matt's 6 year anniversary; happy anniversary you two! Love you both!

This favourite recipe was taken from “The Gourmet” cookbook by Ruth Reichl. The recipe explains how the "recipe comes from Santa Fe’s long closed Three Cities of Spain coffeehouse.” This is a very simple cake, just 5 ingredients, however the taste is amazing!

3-8 oz packages of cream cheese (softened)
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar/ plus 1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 lb sour cream

Crumb Crust: 1 ½ cups graham cracker or cookie crumbs, 5 tbsp unsalted butter melted, 1/3 c sugar, 1/8 tsp salt. Mix together ingredients in a small mixing bowl. Press onto the bottom and of buttered 9” spring form pan.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in the middle of the oven. Beat cream cheese in a large bowl at medium speed until fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add 1 cup of sugar and 1 tsp vanilla, mix well until combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Pour cheese mixture onto crumb crust. Place spring form pan on a baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake until cake is set 3 inches from the edges but centre is slightly wobbly (about 45 minutes). Cool in pan on a rack for 5 minutes.

Stir together sour cream, remaining 1 tbsp sugar, and remaining 1 tsp vanilla. Drop spoonfuls of topping around the edges of the cake and then spread evenly over top. Bake for 10 minutes more.

Run a knife around the top edge of the cake to loosen it then cool completely in a pan on rack. Cake will continue to set as it cooks. Refrigerate cake, loosely covered, for at least 6 hours.
We put some of my freshly canned cherry and rhubarb fruit topping on the cheesecake. So... good!

Last Day with Barrie and Merel

Yesterday we had to say good bye to Barrie and Merel. We had a great visit with the two of them! I dropped David off at work in the morning so that I would have the car to bring them to the airport in the afternoon. We thought we would make the most of our last few hours together, so I packed a picnic and we went to the park/ lake before going to the airport. Thanks for the great memories you two!