I did a post on my Instagram on Christmas day, in case you missed it!!! Get ready for an influx of baby related posts :P
Until next time day dreamers!
I did a post on my Instagram on Christmas day, in case you missed it!!! Get ready for an influx of baby related posts :P
Have you ever gone through a phase where you feel like you just aren’t “momming” right?
I am constantly feeling overwhelmed, exhausted and short-tempered. I have a great kid, but let’s be real he is WILD. He has so much energy and is in his full-blown terrible twos. He is testing me any chance he can get and I feel like he is winning. More than once I have literally hid from him in my room, since I was actually at the end of my rope.
I feel like I am in a funk. One that goes from okay moments to why did I ever decide to have kids moments. I know I’m not alone. It’s hard being a parent and I know people right now are feeling what I am feeling. Yet, I feel so alone. My husband owns his own business and does some consulting work which takes him into the City a few days a week. I fully support him in what he does, it is just hard when the majority of parenting and house hold responsibilities ultimately falls on one parent.
The combo of a lot of solo parenting and my kid being super into mom right now, means that I rarely get a break. Even when I have a chance to sit and relax, I am the toddler play gym. By the end of the day I am so touched out I can’t even stand my cat sitting on my lap.
I know this is a phase. But I need to break out of this funk.
Like every other mom on the planet I have mom guilt. Every time I ask someone to watch my kid, every time I don’t have enough energy to take my kid to the park or cook him some amazing dinner. Serious, MOM GUILT.
I am aware of this guilt and I am aware that I shouldn’t feel it. I am a great mom, my kid is allowed to be a kid, he always has a full belly, he has structure in his life, he has parents, family and friends that love him. Nothing to feel guilty about here. But that’s life, we all feel it.
So, what inspired this post? The look I get when I pick my kid up about 10 minutes before his daycare closes.
Could I pick him up earlier. Yes. I work from home and I can grab him whenever. So why do I wait so late? My daily routine involves a 4:30pm CrossFit class. This class time gives me the flexibility to work a full day at home, get my hour of butt-kicking and still grab my kid from daycare before closing time.
I am picking him up before close. I am staying within the guidelines, so don’t give me those judging eyes. Yes, I have clearly just worked out, that is obvious, and yes for the last 10 minutes of the day he might be the last kid left in his class. Still, I don’t want your judgement and I refuse to feel guilty.
That class is the ONE hour during the day that is 100% mine. I don’t have to be a mom, a wife, a cook, a personal trainer, a brand marketer, a blogger, or a house cleaner. So no, I don’t feel guilty for taking an hour to myself EVERYDAY, especially when all my other responsibilities are taken care of.
So I say screw off mom guilt and to those who judge me keep your looks to yourself please.
I am going to the gym. And I am going to lift heavy.
Post workout/Pre daycare pick up photo! #AllSweatyDontCare
Ah, the Bala Cranberry Festival. It feels like this is now an annual last trip to the cottage to enjoy fall fun, in typically horrid weather!
After a super rainy morning, we were so lucky that the temperature was mild and the rain held off all of Saturday. We had a great walk around town, enjoying the farm animals, candied cranberries (the best thing on the planet by the way) and even a little time sitting in a fire truck.
B has been such a trooper the past few weekends as we have hit up fairs and festivals, it sure has made night times easier when that little man has a full day of fun and fresh air.
Check out a few pictures, from our family adventures last weekend.
Getting all fancy this time on vegan eats!
For thanksgiving I decided to get creative and try out a new recipe and according to my taste buds I thought it was a success. I followed a recipe from Delicious Everyday, with a few minor tweaks/cheats, to see the original recipe, click here.
Mushroom Wellington – with Spinach & Onions
Vegan Egg Wash
Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan, add onion salt and pepper, sautéed 10-15 minutes or until golden brown, on medium-low heat. Place in a bowl to cool. Add second Tbsp of olive oil, add spinach, sautéed until wilted, 2-3 minutes on medium-low, move to bowl to cool. Add final Tbsp of olive oil to pan, place mushrooms stem down, cook for 5 minutes on medium to medium high. Flip and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove and place on paper towel on a plate to cool (will release water as it cools). Pop all three dishes in the fridge to fully cool.
**I sautéed my veggies in the late morning and left in the fridge. Then assembled about 45 minutes out from dinner time – it seemed to work well and saved time if you are having company!**
Pre-heat oven to 390F.
Place parchment paper on a baking sheet. Gently lay first sheet of puff pastry on the paper. Place half of the onions on the pastry (leave about a two inch edge, so you can close it once filled). Place half of the spinach on top of the onions and sprinkle 1 tsp of thyme. Place the 4 mushrooms (I did them in a square), spread dijon on each. Cover with the rest of the spinach and 1 tsp thyme. Finally add the remaining onion.
Very carefully place the second sheet of pastry on top and fold the edges under the bottom sheet (you want the seams down and tucked underneath). Once assembled, add all ingredients of the vegan egg wash in a small dish and whisk. Brush the top and edges of the pastry with the wash and place in the freezer for 10 minutes. Brush with the wash a second time and place back in the freezer for another 10 minutes. I did a few small cuts to let the steam out (see picture), then bake in oven for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown.
BOOM Vegan Thanksgiving dinner!
*I also made up some mushroom gravy…store bought…who do you think I am?!? It was a lovely addition to this dish!
I am a lover of summer weather, but as we sat through a heat wave the last few weeks of September, I was very ready for actual fall weather to arrive. The sun is still out and we have been enjoying these first few days of October. Cue the pumpkins, mums and gorgeous fall colours.
On Thanksgiving weekend we went full-blown fall family fun mode. We started the weekend off with a drive down to Rockton, Ontario for the Rockton Worlds Fair. We had so much fun, B loved the rides and the midway, it was too bad he was just shy of the height requirements for many of the rides, but he LOVE the ones that he was able to go on, especially the ship swing. His excited smile was priceless and he spent the entire time waving at us from the ride.
The next day we had a low-key morning at home with a very sleepy toddler, who decided to nap before lunch on the couch. So we took advantage of a full afternoon, by heading over to Strom’s Farm in Guelph to check out the activities and pick out a few pumpkins!
Overall such a great weekend and a great start to fall. I hope you and your families are enjoying October as well!
Take me back!
Last week the family gathered together in beautiful Tuscany for a week-long food and wine extravaganza. What a gorgeous part of the world. We stayed at a villa in San Casciano dei Bagni a small village about an hour South of Siena. Our villa was an old farmhouse tucked away in the hills of a farming and wine community.
We had a pretty jammed packed schedule, but our days mostly consisted of pasta, wine and beautiful views. The highlights would include 3 amazing wine tours in Montalcino, where we enjoyed some pretty fantastic brunellos, an in home pasta making lesson with Chef Eleonora, a walking tour of Siena – my mum may disagree with me – but I enjoyed the hills we had to climb while walking through this amazing city, finally we went to a farm to table and cheese factory tour (I wasn’t so keen on cheese – as the token family vegan – but there were many animals for me to play with – so compromise!).
If you have the chance, I suggest staying in Tuscany at some point, rent a villa, eat great food and just enjoy the village life!
1 – Our gorgeous pool. 2 – Our farmhouse. 3 – The most amazing outdoor dining area
1 – Siena skyline. 2 – Siena horse race. 3 – Lunch and Beers
1 – Learning to make pici.
1 – A barrel o’wine. 2 – Pertimali family, private wine collection (1912-2016)
1 – Cheese Factory. 2 – My new best friend, madame goat. 3 – My new pet, Padro the pig.
1 – Sunset views. 2 – Final evening in Tuscana.
I will likely say this every year that passes, but how are we already celebrating our third anniversary?? Some days it feels like yesterday I was walking down the aisle and having the greatest party of my life.
Each year brings new adventures and makes me appreciate us even more. So much has changed in three years, with B, with our home, with our jobs. I can only hope the next three years will bring as much excitement and change!
Happy anniversary D. I love you.
– A
Hello my friends!
I have been thinking about posting for weeks now. My life has settled down a bit and I finally feel like I have a routine going. So of course my first thought was to hop on here to say hello. I cannot believe I posted my going on hiatus post in January and we are already into July! Life is going forward full speed and you would not believe the changes.
To start, I am still trucking along with personal training. I have a good client base going and I am truly loving it. B is keeping me as busy as ever, he is no baby any more and his second birthday is just around the corner. EEP!
I miss posting, so I am going to try my best to check in and give you some life updates as they happen. For now, if you enjoy fitness posts, be sure to check out the IMPROVE Fitness Facebook page, occasional blog posts and lots of workouts and pics are posted there!
From my family to yours.
