Archive by Author | Life With The Mcgavins

Fabulous February

Hi friends! Sorry my updates have been so sporadic! I intended on updating last weekend but to be honest I did a whole lot of napping after a busy Thursday!

Thursday morning we were up bright and early to head into Chilliwack with my brother for his doctors appointment. He really needs to find a family doctor that isn’t a forty minute drive each way away but I digress! It was a gorgeous morning. No it wasn’t!! I lie! It was raining and cold with a side of miserable.

Even in the rain the BC mountains are majestic!

On our way home from his appointment we decided to make a pit stop at the yellow barn market.

It is sort of a step back in time when you walk through the doors. A mix of homemade bakery items, fruits, veggies, preserves, etc. I spent a long time looking at the pickles and jams but decided not to buy any. We have lots of pickles left from or summer canning and I have farm strawberries in the freezer dying to be turned into homemade jam.

Kevin and I purchased some homemade farmer sausage, pork for him and turkey for me! While pricy it is very tasty.

On the topic of pricy food products have I ever told you I am a water snob? Well I am! Whenever we are out and I forget my water bottle or finish my water I always finds self making a pit stop for more. I also find myself drawn to the Smart water which tends to be pricier then it’s generic counterparts but for some reason it just tastes better!

After our adventure we headed home and I didn’t have much time to kill before it was time to get my cowgirl on and head to the Eric Church concert! Yes folks I’m a country girl at heart! I was raised on a farm, in a farm house and had horses. I’m that fine line where country girl meets city living! In other words I have expensive taste in everything from groceries to hobbies! Grocery shopping at Whole foods then a day trail riding topped off with some wine sounds perfect to me!

Before the concert we headed to a local pub called Finnagans, near the venue for dinner and it was really good. I’d definitely go back. I ordered grilled chicken which came with veggies, mash potatoes, and a mushroom sauce. Very tasty, despite my eating less then half.

Luckily we had a never ending supply of napkins with dinner! Which if you’re anything like me is a good thing to have handy plus you never know when you might need some cleavage help right Katie!!!!

The concert was a full house, loud and awesome!

However while Thursday was a great day it left me seriously exhausted. I am still getting use to this whole business of my illness and how much it takes out of me.

The rest if the weekend was pretty low key. I hung out at home and did some grocery shopping. I had lunch on Sunday with Katie and bought some new garden owls. I have an addiction!!

I was even to exhausted to go to the Superbowl party with Kevin. This made me sad but alas I’m learning to listen to my body. I did however drown my woah is me I missed the party feelings with a cupcake!

This week at work has been pretty low key! I’m heading to the gym shortly for a repeat of Mondays awesome workout! I may also repeat Tuesdays Starbucks visit and midday cloudy Muff walk!!!

I am really hoping this weekend comes with a side of sunshine!!

For now I shall go and conquer my work out!

Later lovelies!

That’s A Mighty Big…

Jan30

Grapefruit? Orange? Lemon? No, No, And no! It’s a Pomelo and let me tell you it was a real bitch to contend to!!

The before picture

The carnage

The reward

Apparently this member of the citrus family is the largest and is chock full of vitamins and healthy junk!

I suggest you try one if you have the patients to break into one!

Is It Wednesday Yet?

Jan29

Terrific Tuesday? Terrible Tuesday? I guess time will tell!! Well friends I’ve had a busy week! Last Wednesday I left work early to venture into Vancouver to the Lupus clinic. I met with my new specialist and I have to admit I really like her. My appointment was two hours long and incredibly through. I am on new pain meds, have to go for a mile long list blood work and tests on my kidneys, gallbladder, etc. I don’t have to go back for three months unless something major arises or changes. I do however have to decide if I am going to let them do localized injections into my hips and wrists. So much to think about.

The drive into Vancouver was quiet as I think we both had a lot on our minds. The weather on Wednesday was a direct reflection of how I was feeling!

After the appointment Kevin took me grocery shopping at Whole foods to cheer me up!

We bought some yummy things but my favourite by far was a loaf of cranberry pistachio bread made my Terra breads in Vancouver. It was amazing! We also bought organic maple sausages, vegan chocolate mousse, turkey cranberry apple dinner sausages, pineapple mango salsa, etc. Have I mentioned I love Whole goods and grocery shopping!!

After grocery shopping we went to Metrotown mall and wandered around Lush, Lululemon, and the Nike store. What can I say the man knows how to cheer me up and take my mind off things!! I ended up picking out a couple of bath bombs and a new Nike tshirt for the gym.

Thursday I attempted to sleep in on the advice of my specialist. My body had other plans and I was up at 8 am!! I made a big French toast breakfast and then we headed out for the day. We took Muffin for a walk around the duck pond, went to some thrift stores and got mini cupcakes before coming home and making yummy tasting plates of pickled veggies, crackers, meat and cheese. Yummy!!!!

Afterwards I headed to the gym with my Katie and Krista for an awesome work out and some girl talk! There may or may not have been Starbucks afterwards!

Friday we spent the day in Vancouver once again. This time on the UBC campus while by brother was at the MS hospital. To pass the day Kevin and I had lunch at a pub on campus, wandered around, found Menchies for some froyo then went for a walk on the beach at Pacific Spirit Park. BC really is a beautiful province and an great place to live. We have access to the Ocean, Rivers, mountains, country and city living.

After we came home I had the epic kitchen fail as you may have read about last week! Though I did have a great run that night so they was a plus. The rest of the weekend I tried to keep it low key because I came down with a cold. The germs finally got me! Yuck. Thankfully it didn’t get too bad thanks to my daily combination of honeyand cinnamon and my water with apple cider vinegar. I have to say I was skeptical at first but I’ve never fought off a cold so quickly not easily! The cinnamon honey mix doesn’t look glamorous but it doesn’t taste bad. The apple cider vinegar is another story!

We ventured out Saturday afternoon to the pub and had lunch with some friends. I couldn’t help but giggle at Patricia when Colin ordered her a shot. She took it like a champ!

There was no drinks for me as I’m still getting use to my new pain meds. However there was a cookie!

After our adventurous couple hours out I came home, put my pj’s back on and cuddled on the couch with the pups and my man.

Yesterday morning I woke up feeling considerably better and headed off to the gym for an hour long workout before returning to work. I have Muffin with me at work this week so I’m pretty content. I keep hoping we get a break in the icky weather so we can ho out for a walk. Until then… Cuddles!

And a snack!

Do You Smell Something Burning?

Jan25

So I have lots to share with you about my life the last few days but for now let me tell you a quick story!!!!

We got home from being in Vancouver all day at 6 PM. Upon returning home I turned the oven on and popped in the meatloaf I prepped last night. I then did a few things and in my heightened sense of frustration I decided to go for a 6 km run! I’m not suppose to be running but more on that later! After the run I went upstairs *we share a duplex* and had a chat with my brother. I mentioned to him I smelled something burning. Ten minutes later at 8 PM I realized what was burning!!!

It is safe to say the meatloaf is cooked and E Coli free!!!!

I don’t usually screw up in the kitchen but when I do it’s epic!!!!!

A Week In A Blink

Jan22

Please pardon my MIA status for the last week. I’ve been feeling very stressed with my up coming appointment at the Lupus clinic. I’ve been doing my best to keep myself occupied and busy. I succeeded at both for the better part of the last week!

Wednesday night after work my best friend, Katie and I hit Starbucks for some tea and small talk. I’ve found myself becoming more closed off these days even around those I love deeply. I think it is a combination of being unwell, the unknown, and the inability to even get out what I want to say. With that being said it was nice to have some one on one BFF time.

Thursday I ventured out to get my nails done, toes painted, and eye brows waxed! A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do! Unfortunately that meant venturing outside in flip flops. Let me tell you it was not a warm experience!!!

I came home from my nail appointment to get love attacked by Maple and Muffin!

After I managed to pull myself away from the pups, Kevin and I ventured out to run some errands. We went to the wild bird store and then to edible arrangements before heading to Starbucks and to visit a friend. Our friends recently finished a kitchen renovation and oh my gosh it is seriously gorgeous!!!! So jealous! Once we got home Kevin had to force me to eat dinner before I was allowed to bust open the box of chocolate covered fruit we picked up at Edible arrangements!!!

If you have never tried anything g from E.A. I suggest you go… Go now… I will wait!! But seriously, so amazing…so not cheap! You’ve been warned!

Friday I got up early and headed to the gym. I got my workout in despite the pain!

I promise I burned more then five calories!!! I only have this photo because I’m still getting use to the iPhone! After the gym I had coffee with a friend and walked around the mall before coming home to a little family work party of wood chopping and stacking!

I was out on stacking duty because let’s face it I’m not chainsaw or axe handling material these days!!! After the work was done I was thoroughly exhausted but rallied to go out for the night with some friends. One of our friends is a musician and was playing at one of my favourite pubs! We spent most of the evening there, had dinner, some drinks then hit the hot tub!

I’m such a fan of tasting plates and this one was amazing!!! The pub makes their own marinated veggies and beer infused Dijon mustard! As well as the pretzel buns! I would order this again in a second!!!

The waitress and I become quick friends so she made sure my wine arrived as full as possible!!

The hot tub felt amazing in the freezing winter night. Thanks to my autoimmune issues I can only handle about ten minutes at a time so I got out and wrapped my self in blankets on the patio. I’m no fun!!

Saturday morning saw me power clean the house before heading into Vancouver for the day with a group of eight friends. We had a very entertaining day and a wonderful meal at a quaint little Italian restaurant.

The butter was rose buds!! I was a fan !!!

The rest of the weekend was rather low key because I was exhausted. When I think about last year at this time I get insanely frustrated because of how much my life has changed. Being sick has caused me to have to slow down. I haven’t been running and I miss it. I am going to the gym three days a week as opposed to five days a week as I was before. I guess I should be happy I’m able to go at all. I have to be honest I’m not feeling overly optimistic today. I really can’t wait until this specialist appointment is done with.

Anyways this week so far has been good. The gym yesterday was helpful temporarily in helping me forget how much I’m not enjoying my to do list this week!!

Tonight I made home made black bean burgers and they turned out awesome and of course I neglected to take a photo!!! Blogger fail!!

A few more pictures from the past week!!

Enjoy and goodnight friends 🙂

Snack Time With A Headache On The Side!

Jan15

Good afternoon! I have a headache that I can’t seem to shake today! Oh well.

I was in the mood for a snack and thought I would share one of my favourites with you all! Baked kale chips! So easy to make and jam packed full of nutrition. They are quick and require very few ingredients.

I started by tearing the kale leaves off of their stalk and ripping them into smaller pieces. This step makes me feel like a cross between Popeye and the Hulk!!! I’m so tough! Those kale leaves don’t stand a chance!!!

Once you have conquered the brutalizing of the veggie simply rinse the leave pieces well and pat dry with paper towel. I like to make sure they are good and dry so they don’t turn out soggy.

Once your leaves are dry pour on about 1/2 tablespoon of oil. I used grape seed but you can use olive, vegetable, whatever you like. Once the oil is on massage it through with your hands and then season. Again use whatever seasoning you like. I used organic salt free seasoning and garlic powder. In the past I’ve used everything from salt and pepper to chilli flakes, Italian seasoning. Really whatever you have a taste for will work.

Once seasoned to your desire simply toss again and place in a cookie sheet. I like to line my sheet with foil for easy clean up.

That is it they are ready for the I’ve oven! Pop them into a warm oven, I Usually go with 365 degrees for about 15 minutes flipping half way through. The edges will brown slightly and the whole chip will get crispy. I keep a close eye on them near the end cuz they can go from just nicely crisp to over done quickly.

They bake down substantially, so make lots or don’t offer to share ! Kale chips are a healthy, low calorie, fibre rich, filling snack. Kale itself is a little nutritional powerhouse, full of iron, vitamins and antioxidants.

Give them a try!

Snow Day!!!

Jan14

Good morning blog world! So we woke up to a dusting of snow this morning in beautiful Langley BC!

Thankfully I’m warm and cozy on the couch at work and don’t have to travel on the roads. Such a light dusting of snow wouldn’t be a big deal if there wasn’t a layer of ice under it! Oh well the ice factor and the fact we BC folk panic at the mere mention of snow!

Anyways yesterday started out as a laid back Sunday morning. Kevin ventured out to watch Football at the pub with his friends while I got a few things done.

I picked up a few of the new reusable Starbucks cups over the weekend and decided to give ’em a try yesterday. Thankfully my Tassimo beverage maker has a removable cup shelf or else this baby wouldn’t have fit! The cup is a grande size, made of plastic and designed to look exactly like the Starbucks to go cups. Apparently they are good for 30 dishwasher cycles or indefinite hand washes. What I take away from that is the cup will last me until I drop it on the cement or I drop something heavy on it in the sink!!! I also don’t pretend this will be much different then the multiple reusable grocery bags I own, which I only remember to take into the grocery store one in five trips!!!! But alas I like the premise behind it and I will make an effort to take it with me on my visits to Starbucks!

Please tell me I’m not the only one in love with vanilla sugar?!?!

I have a large jar of this in my pantry at all times! So simple yet so tasty. Simply fill a jar with sugar and sit a vanilla bean open and scrape out the bean and add to the jar. Every time you use a vanilla bean for baking or ice cream making place the pod in the jar and shake frequently. The longer it sits the more vanilla infused the sugar becomes. I use the sugar in all sorts of stuff, chocolate chip cookies, tea, muffins, etc.

I decided to start a little Pinterest science project. Yesterday while I was doing some meal prep I remembered reading you can grow green onions in a glass of water from the cuttings of your previous green onions!

So I made sure to leave the onion bulbs intact and simply placed them in a small cup of water and put them on the window sill. I posted about it on Facebook and got a mix of reactions. Apparently it does work, which I figured it would seeing as how I have bamboo that lives in a glass of water in my kitchen, and has for five years! I got comments saying it was a cool way to save a few cents on your grocery bill, to comments saying the onions produced aren’t as flavourful as their ground grown counter parts. I’m more doing it for the simple curiosity factor and not to save the 33 to 99 cents a bunch of green onions runs me a week!

I shall keep you posted as to the progress of my little project! I enjoy watching things grow. I can’t wait for spring!! I am looking forward to getting some herbs and veggies planted but mostly trying to devise a plan to grow baby potatoes!

I wasn’t feeling all that adventurous in the kitchen last night so I whipped up a 2 egg + an extra white omelet with ham, cheese, and green onions. I had my omelet with some Trader Joes organic silver dollar pancakes and some grapes. Quick, easy, healthy, and delicious.

Since Costco has stopped selling my favorite honey Greek yogurt I’ve gone on a search to find a suitable replacement.

I tried this little delight as my evening snack at work last night. Oikos honey Greek yogurt proved to be very good albeit pricey. Four of these little 100 gram containers ran me almost five bucks. They are 100 calories a container with 8 grams of protein, which isn’t bad at all. There small size lends perfectly to small evening snack. I would buy them again, hopefully at a sale price!

I have been snacking on oranges all weekend which is stupid two fold for me! Number one I’m allergic to oranges!! They make me itchy and sometimes give me hives just like raspberries! Which for the record I don’t shy away from either! Secondly
oranges are packed with vitamin C, and autoimmune disease sufferers should avoid high doses of vitamin C.

I just can’t help myself!

Well I guess I should do something productive work wise for a while!! Stay warm people!

So Much For Daily!!!

Jan12

Happy Saturday!!!! So it’s been a few days since I’ve updated. The week had its ups and downs that’s for sure! Ups included but not limited to awesome work outs at the gym, my Dad’s birthday, a day trip to Bellingham with Kevin, a glorious day of thrift store shopping, and a day date with my man! Not to mention my kitchen successful adventures.

The only real down side of the week being my pain level. Yesterday was by far the most pain I’ve felt since mid summer. Of course that is a relevant statement considering I live with pain daily. Just the last few days has been very bad. Luckily I see my specialist soon. Enough about that! On to the pictures!

My Food!

I can’t seem to get enough Greek yogurt these days and this passion fruit flavour was spectacular!

I decided to invent a recipe while I was at work…I ended up making high protein low fat banana peanut butter muffins! These little bad boys pack a serious nutritious punch! Lots of protein, fibre and no junk minus six chocolate chips!

My boss and I wanted something veggie packed for dinner so I whipped up a stir fry with lots of veggies, chicken breast and a sweet chilli sauce served on a bed of quinoa. Serious healthy yum!

I tried a new to me oatmeal and it was very tasty served in my usual peanut butter, banana fashion. I’ve tried a few of the Bob’s Red mill products and I’ve never been disappointed.

I’m not sure what I was thinking yesterday morning at Starbucks but in that cup is a grande chamomile tea. Nothing unusual right?!??! Except for some reason my loopy brain decided to dump cinnamon in it along with the usual honey! Luckily it didn’t taste bad because by the time I realized what I had done we were already in the border line up!

I baked my dad a batch of date squares from my Grandmas recipe. They turned out nearly perfect, none will ever be as good as hers! I will share the photos and recipe soon.

I turned those ingredients into stuffed chicken breasts wrapped in prosciutto. They turned out rich and satisfying. Recipes and photos to come soon.

Our day trip to Bellingham was great. I was in a lot of pain so we just took our time, Kevin is very understanding and slows accordingly on my bad days.

Our first stop was the mall. We got a few good deals, my favorite being my new drifit long sleeve shirt. After the mall we hit Trader Joes. We got so much good stuff!! We hit Costco and Fred Meyer before stopping at 5 Guys burgers for dinner! My fave part of 5 Guys was the freshly roasted peanuts! So neat! Yes I am easily amused, thank you for asking !

Have I ever told you about my Pyrex and Lululemon addictions?!?! No! Another time I will get into it! Though I will tell you I acquired a few new pieces of both this weekend.

Muffin is currently enjoying some tummy rubs from Dad but she would like you to know she’s had a busy week!!

She had helped keep an eye on dinner!

Checked out some award winning Canadian cheddar !

Hung out with Maple!

Helped Nightlight (her coworker dog) locate misplaced toys at work!

Cuddled with Mom!

And avoided Jasmine! Sometimes sunning yourself on the pool deck is best left to the big dogs!!

Well friends that is a brief catch up on the past four days. The only thing else I can tell you about is my gym adventures. Not going to lie my my gym adventures are pretty uninteresting but necessary. I split my gym time between warm up, weights, cardio, and stretching. I’m seriously missing running but don’t dare until I talk to my specialist. I am considering rejoining water running as its low impact. Thinking about this is making me sad.

Well my blog reading team, Kevin is trying to talk me into going to a movie. I’m gonna talk him out of it with my sneaky ways!

Goodnight all!

One Of Those Days

Jan7

So today was one of those days. You know the ones. Where no matter what you do, you have a case of the blahs! I guess it happens! Tomorrow will be better! My day was pretty typical for a Monday at work. Nothing overly exciting to report, heck even my breakfast was boring!

Boring but tasty. It also kept me full through my mid morning hour long workout at the gym. Despite my case of the blahs my workout was a success, my abs might tell you a different sob story!!! After the gym I returned to work a snacked on some Honey Greek Yogurt. Oh so amazingly good and packs 12 grams of protein in each serving. Can’t beat that as refueling food!

The rest of my afternoon was anything but note worthy. I totally forgot to snap a picture of my dinner. I wasn’t feeling up to making fancy dinner for myself do I made a couple eggs, turkey bacon and a English muffin. While it wasn’t fancy sometimes you just can’t beat breakfast for dinner!

On the topic of food , I bought a bag of Humbles Hummus chips on the weekend. Maybe the best “healthy” snack chip I’ve found yet. Very flavourful and crisp! Much lower in fat then potato chips and more flavour then Popchips .

I got the sesame garlic flavour but I also saw lemon and feta, as well as a sea salt variety. Has anyone else come across these? Anyone tried them? I noticed on the website they make all sorts oh healthier snacks. Might be worth a try if I can find them locally. Check out the link for more information. I love finding interesting new products, especially when they taste good!

The rest of my night is going to include some yoga, my hamstrings are super tight so I figure the yoga will help. I hope! After that I have a date with a long hot shower and some blog reading time!

Hope everyone’s week goes well, I mean we made it through Monday! That’s something right 😉

Soaking Wet Sunday

Jan6

Have you ever spent time with someone who speaks just to hear the sound of their own voice? Who asks the same question repeatedly but never listens to the answer? Someone who accuses you of being cranky because you don’t have much to say at the moment? My frustration level is a little high right now. Not as high as earlier this evening but still higher then I care for.

Before this turns into a full blown rant let me change the subject. How was everyone’s Sunday? Good I hope. The majority of mine was delightful. I got up early and cleaned the house. I mean who doesn’t love cleaning? I made myself a labour intensive breakfast as pictured below!

I hung out in the rain with Muffin…

I made sure the fur kids shared breakfast…

Yes the cat is bigger then the dog!

Once noon rolled around I was happy to meet up with four girlfriends and head out for frozen yogurt and girl talk!

That’s Katie’s classic pout face! You would think she would be happy with a pocket full of candy!!!

Upon returning home I found Kevin and Muffin in the same place I left them, on the couch watching football. I decided to throw together some mini pita pizzas and baked cheddar bacon chicken bites! Who says game day food can’t be healthy!

The rest of my Sunday afternoon was typical and now I find myself at work for the next three days. I’m going to cut this short tonight friends.

I hope Monday goes by smoothly for everyone, sweet dreams.

Life With The McGavins

100% Not Sugar Coated