This is...show off time!

This weeks theme was provided by Katie at May The Cloth Be With You. She asked us to "show off" something that you are proud of.

I was dumbstruck by this question all week. I know that I'm a great person and have many talents; however when it comes to tooting my own horn, I'm not really my best cheering section. The following answer actually came from my Big Man -- he's my best cheering section ever!

I am most proud of having walked 60 KM on September 8-9, 2007 in the Toronto weekend to end breast cancer.

ME AND MARILYN - IN THE RED TRIANGLE

OMG this is the hardest thing I have ever trained for. It practically took over my life for nine months. Every day I would walk 5-8 KM on my own; then on the weekends Marilyn who was my partner in this adventure, together we would walk 20 KM on Saturday AND Sunday!

Marilyn and I had great support from all our family, friends and co-workers. There were poker tournaments, bake sales, raffles and puppy dog eyes. Together we raised over $4,500.00 for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation.

I'm off to watch the new season of The Amazing Race, I love this show! Oh, I know that many of you are still wondering about the big news -- to update, things are still going back and forth between the Lawyers, any guesses yet?

It's beginning to look a lot like...

As much as I love the summer, I adore fall.

It must be the creative part of my being that loves it so much. To see the beautiful show of colour that nature changes with each day's display is just breathtaking. Plus having to shave my legs less is an added bonus!


1. Autumn Web, 2. fall leaf from Toronto, 3. http://flickr.com/photos/92249513@N00/634471160/, 4. spring or fall?, 5. This Spider Had Her Web Bedazzled, 6. Batman., 7. DODO'S NEW BED, 8. autumn's heart, 9. Autumn's colours !, 10. My Fall guy, 11. Busted!!, 12. All Smiles, 13. Untitled, 14. P1040201, 15. P1040173, 16. 10 minute a day

Click on the #16 10 minute a day picture link....HILARIOUS!

Not sure if everyone knows how to create the above mosaic but the program can be found over at Big Huge Labs. I really enjoy just randomly browsing Flickr and have added the "Photo of the Minute" gadget to my igoogle page. Don't have igoogle set up yet? Well now, you better find some more time to waste in your day (tee hee).

I promise the exciting news is still forthcoming and I should be able to divulge the details by this Saturday. As a hint, I'm waiting for the legal work to finish up.

This is...what I want to be when I grow up.

Tardy, tardy, tardy....I was supposed to have this posted yesterday but I do have VERY exciting news to tell you about. You'll have to have some patience and wait just a few days before I can divulge all the details. Till then, have fun guessing what's up!

Until then, Bug and Pop asked this Sunday's question which was what do you want to be when you grow up. I'll be the first to admit that I have never really had much ambition career wise. Sadly, I have worked for the same company since 1988.

BUT IF I had ever had the experience of going on a Cruise Vacation prior to completing High School you would have found me on a dock the day after graduation!

My first cruise was for our honeymoon in 2000. We went on a 7 day Caribbean Cruise. These pictures are when the boat was just coming into the Bahamas by the Atlantis Hotel.

Our second cruise was a 7 day to Alaska in May 2004. This was a beautiful cruise, very picturesque. The seas were very rough on this cruise. On this ship, the promenade deck was open at both the front and the back of the boat. My favourite memory is being at the front of the ship one morning. As the boat rose in the waves, it was like you were weightless, as soon as it dropped, it was like your knees were being crushed. It was the best amusement ride EVER! The waves were so rough even the staff was sick!

My most recent cruise was a 12 day Canada-New England out of New York last October. Again, what's not to love about this. It was close to home, the weather was crisp and the fall colours were at their peak. We did tons and tons of walking on this trip. I fell in love with New York and Boston and definitely want to visit these cities again.

I have so much respect for anyone that works on cruise ship. They are worked to the bone, have very long days (and let's face it have to listen to people complaining all the time). But if you look past all this, they have a great community on board. They have social areas designated just for them. They eat the same food as the guests and they get days off to enjoy the sights and see the world along with the passengers.

Hmm, hard work = free food, lodging and pay while seeing all corners of the world....count me in!

Friday Flyer and Fine Wine Night

I'm cheating a little bit with tonight's entry since yesterday was such a special treat for me. You might not know that I work straight afternoons. Due to some appointments I was able to have dinner with my Big Man! We decided to have Greek take-out and this bottle of Cave Spring 2006 Gamay wine that we had been saving on the "special" side of our wine rack.

Mmm. this wine was delish! It is very light in colour and taste. It gives a nice little buzziness on your tongue. Even though it's a red, I think chilling it very lightly would increase the enjoyment factor. I easily recommend as a perfect selection for "Friday Flyer and Fine Wine Night".

Below is the write up from the LCBO, price point is $13.05 for 750 mL

Tasting Note: Light ruby red colour; lots of fresh red and black cherry aromas with hints of smoked meat and spice on the nose; dry, medium bodied, with round, ripe berry fruit flavour and crisp finish.

Serving Suggestion: Quite versatile; roast turkey and cranberry sauce; grilled salmon steaks; roast pork, pizza; cold meats.

Tomorrow I'm off for another swap of the "Round Robin" quilt exchange. I'm so excited; it will be our last pass/border before we get back our original blocks! Here is a picture of the 3 inch border that I added to this last quilt.

3 INCH BORDER OF ROUND ROBBIN

Week 10 of 32point5 plan

Sept 13, 2008 after 4 mile jog!

Wow, week ten already!?

I sadly admit that I did not meet my weight loss goal of losing 1 pound per week. But in consolation, I am down 8.6 pounds which is great considering I ate a big chunk of this on the weekend.

Since the last update at week 5, I have walked/jogged another additional 140 KM (aprox 87 miles). I've also started lifting free weights, skipping rope and punching/kicking a hanging weight bag. In measurement I have not lost any more inches so the total still stands 8 inches lost. It's so scary how I can see a fitter body that's just padded with little pats of fat here and there. The texture of my skin and it's appearance has changed, generally I feel a firmness that was not there before.

I'm still super positive about the 32point5 plan and know it will work out the way I want it to. I'm incredibly happy with how well the blog has come along and with the new people I have met through it.

Thanks to everyone for dropping by and providing words of encouragement. I especially want to thank my Big Man for being the best cheerleader ever! 10 more months to go.......

This is...what I do with a spare 10 minutes

I have no children (Don't be sad, it's by choice. We're far too lazy to have offspring!) so I am more blessed than others with the occasional spare 10 minutes. However when it occurs, this is what I love to do.

Oh how I so love to sit down with a good cup of something--today's beverage is coffee since it might look really bad to the neighbours to be cracking out the red wine at 8 AM--and read some magazines.

These are some of my favourite magazines:

Food and Drink which is a free publication produced by our government liquor store the LCBO.

Canadian Living excellent all around magazine. So much better than Chatelaine who declares you a winner and awards you a great prize that never shows up...crapbags! I'll never forgive you for that nor read your magazine again EVER!

BHG American Patchwork and Quilting, especially the bi-annual "Quilt Sampler". Their web page takes a bit to load, but if you like quilting, worth the 10 second wait.

I also have a book there from the Library. I love the Library as geeky as it seems. Did you know they have Books, Magazines, Newspapers, movie DVD's and music CD's. I figure if I'm paying so much in taxes to maintain a Library I might as well enjoy it. I like that they have an on line catalogue. I can browse from home, make my choices though the internet and then just pop by in the morning before work and they have them all nice and ready for me. How convenient is that!

Hope you can find the time to enjoy 10 minutes for yourself today. This weeks question was asked by Hoppo Bumpo.

Friday Flyer and Fine Wine Night

Woo, hoo--Friday!! My paper boy has certainly smartened up lately and according to my husband he had a little girly-friend with him last collection day.

As I peruse all my lovely flyers tonight I'll be enjoying a glass of Peller Estates French Cross Malbec-Cabernet. Price point $10.95/1 L.

Don't be discouraged by the awful Tetra Pak. Surprisingly I have found some truly tasty wines that are being sold in this new type of packaging. Tetra Pak's are great for taking on the go since no corkscrew is needed and generally they won't break.

It also appears that Tetra Pak's don't seem to be spotted on x-ray like bottles are. This might be especially handy when your smuggling them onto a cruise ship. Don't ask me how I know this and I won't be forced to tell.

This is how Peller Estates described this wine:
Medium bodied with flavours of plum, spice, cherry and blackberry. Hints of chocolate and vanilla touch the palate. Serve with grilled burgers, red sauce pastas, stews, pizza and mild cheeses.

I found this to be a nice light, easy drinking, berry-type wine. I really enjoyed it and think it has the potential to become part of our "house wine" selection.

Baby Shower Gifts

Last Sunday I went to a girlfriends Baby Shower. Her husband is my Big Man's very best friend since childhood.

Since we all know how much I love to surf blogs, I wanted to make some hand-made gifts from craft tutorials that I have found along the way.

I decided on a Diaper Changing Pad from "sewtakeahike" along with a Diaper & Wipes Wristlet from "Blessed Roots".

WRISTLET

Both were very easy to complete and the tutorial instructions are clear. I think the Wristlet is great however when I make it again, I think I will use Velcro instead of a button closure. When your struggling with a squirmy baby, Velcro can be a life saver for the easy open/close functionality.

DIAPER CHANGE PAD

I also gave her diapers, wipes and a gift card for Shoppers Drug Mart. Not to toot my own horn (toot-toot) but I'm pretty sure they were the hit of the gift opening part of the party!! Not too often do you find hand-made gifts given any more; best compliment of all was "I hate you damn sewers"!

This is...my favorite band of all time.

"No Sleep Till Brooklyn".....Beastie Boys, nuff said.

OMG where to start, the year was 1986 and I was in grade nine. A band called the "Beastie Boys" came on the scene and totally changed the way we suburban kids listened to music, dressed and acted.

I remember being so in love (if that is possible at age 14/15) with a guy named Paul G. He had the actual vinyl album of "Licensed to Ill". I swear all of us in our group of friends made a "cassette tape" recoding off his album. Ahh, it's been nothing but good times I've been reflecting on since Wednesday when this weeks "This is" was supplied by CurlyPops.

Back in the eighties, there was rampant vandalism of VW's with kids stealing the hood emblems to hang from long chains copying the Beastie Boy style. It's kinda funny now that I live in a town called Brooklin and drive a Volkswagen. Thankfully the Big Man and I still love the Beastie Boys, their discs are always in constant rotation between our cars.

My favorite songs are "Paul Revere", "Sabotage" and "Ringfinger"--huh, what? Just testing, I had to throw in the Nine Inch Nails as well.

Baked Potato Skins

The Big Man and I NEVER watch NFL football yet come Super Bowl Sunday we always have our own little party with bad-for-you snacks, drinks and the HDTV cranked up loud!

Last year for our party menu we included Potato Skins. OMG they are so freaking good....we just couldn't wait till next February's Super Bowl party, so we caved and made some last weekend. Come along and follow through the process and I can guarantee you'll be wanting some Spud Skins of your own next weekend!

BAKED POTATO SKINS

I found the recipe on All Recipes. Click on the following links for the "Baked Potato Skins Recipe" and instructions on how to make a "Perfect Baked Potato" -- the baked potato recipe alone is kick-butt!

INGREDIENTS

HOLLOWED OUT BAKED POTATOES

SPREADING ON THE OIL

ADDING THE CRISPY BACON

FINALLY THE CHEDDAR CHEESE

Now I do admit that these take a bit of effort. I usually bake the potatoes in the morning so they can cool down; then finish off the rest of the process later in the day. They are so totally worth the effort! So does anyone want to come over to my house to watch the Super Bowl next February 1st?

Labour Day

Ahhh.....I love statutory holidays! Nothing is ever so bittersweet as the last long "Labour Day" weekend of the summer. Years ago it used to be the excitement of going back to school....now I just think "Crap, another summer gone already"! ?

I had promised a wine review and WOW this one is a WINNER!

SUSANA BALBO SIGNATURE MALBEC 2006 -- $22.95

I'll let you read what the LCBO had to say about it first:

Tasting Note - Rich and polished, with almost gushing raspberry, boysenberry and blackberry fruit that's harnessed by suave toast, spice and licorice notes. Long, well-rounded finish has nice buried acidity. Drink now through 2010. Score - 91. (James Molesworth, www.winespectator.com, Web Only, 2008)

OK, leave right now and get a bottle (or two) of this wine. We have a great guy that works in the Vintages section of our local LCBO. My Big Man really wanted to try a "Malbec" and so he recommended this wine. Ugh, fantastic, the taste, smell, everything! After each sip I swear could hear Susana softly singing my name begging me to take another sip!

Relaxing Afternoon

This wine would be fantastic all on it's own just as a treat while spending some quality relaxo time by yourself. Would be perfect split between friends.....save it for the one's you really like!