Grandma Moran Turns 100

The most common question people asked me after they heard I was in Ontario for a 100th birthday was, "Is she still... moving?" Ohhhh if Grandma Moran could answer those people herself.  This lady still lives in her same home, still cooks meals, still travels out of the country, and will sass anyone who has it coming.

Our first night in Ontario, we did not have big plans and all of our relatives were widely spaced out over Toronto, making it difficult for everyone to get together just for dinner. (If you have not experienced driving in Toronto- consider yourself lucky). Therefore, we decided to go to Great Grandma's unannounced and kidnap her for a little pre-birthday party dinner.

The day of the party, Grandma Moran walked alongside a traditional Scottish bagpiper into a room full of her family and friends, without a dry eye in sight.  We shared news about our lives, memories from our childhoods, and too many laughs to count.

 Celebrating with her, a century of life, was truly a privilege for me and something I will not soon forget (not to mention there was about 5000 photos taken, so it will be impossible to).

Jeffrey and I with our Grandma

The party was held in August to accommodate more family members.  TODAY, however, is Grandma Moran's official, once in a lifetime, century awaited, 100th birthday!!! This is a very joyous occasion, and hopefully one that is being celebrated by my family everywhere.

Some of the Great Grandchildren 

You deserve a standing ovation, an honour, a salute.
You've been a blessing to us all and today we celebrate you!
Congratulations are in order, for you're 100 you see,
and many wishes for a birthday that took 10 decades just to be!
Happy Birthday Grandma Moran!

Best Meal of my Whole Life

I'm not even kidding you, my mouth is watering before I have even begun to tell you about this.

My BFF and I went to Phoenix for a few days in September, basically just to get the hell outta here. If you have been to Scottsdale before then you know it is sort of the shopping/bars/restaurants/full of people sort of area in Phoenix. Well we didn't know where was good to eat, but having made so many trips to the local lululemon, the staff there had recognized us Canadian girls and gave us a whole list of great places to try.  We stumbled into a place called the Culinary Dropout.  We were seated on a trendy patio with super comfy couch/chairs. The only problem was the table was really low and we didn't feel we could stuff our faces sufficiently.  Naturally, we were moved to the only 'closed' section of the restaurant- being only lit with candles... furthering our lesbian impression to everyone in Phoenix. It was really quite magical. Anyway, half the menu was antipasti, written in Italian of course, so we had no clue what exactly we were ordering. There was an appetizer, however, that was written in our kind of language.

Pretzel Bites coated in Sea Salt Rocks with a Provolone Fondue. 

HELLO?!! It was only the single greatest food I have ever ingested. Even better than cactus cuts at BPs. Yeah... I said it. For the one and only time the entire mini vacay- we were silenced. We ate the entire meal only speaking words like "mmmmmm" and "mmmmggggdddddrrrrrghhtt???" with our eyes rolling to the back of our heads.  There were moments while our cheeks were puffed out, full of food, that we just stared at each other in disbelief. It is a mystery why we do not order a second helping. 

The food made her go a little crazy.

We also learned what antipasti really was when our two meat and one cheese orders arrived. I loved it, but Cassy didn't like the thought of eating little meat with her hands (she's so classy). We also had cold asparagus glazed in malt vinegar. Also amazing.

THE POINT BEING if you are ever in Phoenix- make the drive to Scottsdale and eat at this place. Definitely worth it.

I also found a recipe for pretzel bites and would like someone to make me them and bring them over. I don't know how/where to buy yeast(?) so can't do it myself/ too lazy to. 

Pretzel Bites

Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 & 1/4 cups warm water
• 5 cups flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar, plus 1 teaspoon
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted and divided
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 2 egg whites
• Kosher or coarse sea salt, for topping
• cooking spray

Instructions

1. In a measuring cup dissolve the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water. Set aside for 10 minutes.
2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine the flour, white and brown sugars, and salt. Pour the water/yeast mixture and 2 tablespoons melted butter into the bowl. Knead for 6-8 minutes until the dough is smooth. Add extra water if dough is too dry, until you get your desired texture.
3. Lightly oil a large bowl. Shape dough into a ball. Place the dough ball in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for one hour.
4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
5. In a large bowl, combine 4 cups of hot water and baking soda. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg whites and remaining 2 tablespoons of melted butter.
6. After the dough has risen, punch down the dough and then knead with hands for one minute. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and break off small chunks of dough - Roll the chunks into 1 inch diameter balls (I got about 20-25).
7. Dip the pieces in the baking soda water and place on the baking sheet. Gently drying with a paper towel if they become too wet. Brush each pretzel ball with egg whites/melted butter then sprinkle with kosher salt.
8. Bake for 7-8 minutes, until browned.

Doing Something Amazing

As you may know, I have blogged a few times over recent months about various charities that touched my heart and interested me enough to seek donations from my family and friends.  I know that money can be tight sometimes, which has taught me to appreciate every single penny that has been donated towards these amazing causes, from you.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.

This love of helping others is clearly something I got from my mom.  For the past twenty-five years she has been volunteering her time to countless organizations.  While I was in elementary school, my mom volunteered around the classroom and assisted on field trips.  She would help the teachers during our computer class (which is actually hilarious because she technologically challenged), would take students aside individually or in small groups if they needed some extra help with spelling or math, and she volunteered to run our hot lunch program.  While I was in junior high school, she helped students during exam time who struggled with the pressures of being tested, and would read the questions out loud to them.  She was also responsible for planning, organizing, and implementing our local block parties (UNREAL) for four years.  With four soccer playing children and a coach for a husband, she was basically forced to become involved in the sport.  She volunteered as a board member for house league as a registrar (which was actually super annoying because I was the one who had to alphabetize EVERY youth soccer player's registration and group those who requested to be on another persons team, you're welcome), and as a board member for our local rep soccer club as a team representative.  She also had a major role in the Western Canada Summer Games as a Sport Director.  That was a week where our family starved every night at dinner time because my mom was MIA.  She basically got 5 hours of sleep each night while ensuring that everything ran as smoothly as possible.  She's obviously somewhat crazy... and OCD... either/or. 

Blurriest picture ever but there she is! Lady on the left

Now, she has signed up to do something for those far less fortunate than we are.  My mom will be joining the LoL Church and Beaumont group for a humanitarian trip to Mexico in July 2014.

She will be living in a local community while building homes for families living in 

extreme poverty.

Taking care of her family has always been of the upmost importance to my mom.  She would do and has done anything and everything she can to support us.  If we ask her to, she would stop whatever she is doing to help us out.  This grandma of two (almost three) is putting the needs of others ahead of her own to help them get back on their feet.  

One family that previously had their house built through this organization requested just one expensive item to be placed in their home: an oven.  The mother wanted the ability to bake on a daily basis, and to sell those baked goods enough to provide for her family.  My mom wants to be a part of that process, to give other families a surviving chance.  

During her stay, she will be sleeping in a bunk bed next to a number of other people, her hard efforts will be completed during the hurricane season, and she will be forced to use a hammer that does not have a floral pattern on the handle like the ones on her cool-tool kit at home.  

This is something I never pictured my mom doing.  This is the same lady whose idea of camping is borrowing a luxury motor home.  All of her previous visits to Mexico have been spent at five star resorts.  This. is. amazing.  While my mom has volunteered countless hours of her time already, this is the first time she has ever sought help from others.  In order to participate in this trip, she needs to raise $2000.  She has already received $450.  Her fundraising progress has a long way to go!  A really easy way to help her towards her fundraising goal is to buy a gift card to Superstore or Sobeys.  If you shop there already, this would be win-win for you and my mom. Simply buy a gift card in $50 denominations.  You would receive a gift card for face value that can be used in the store or at the gas station.  FYI a little fact according to my mom's gas tracker app- Superstore is one of the top three cheapest locations to fill up with gas each week in Sherwood Park.  For each gift card purchased, the grocery store will give my mom a percentage of the sales.  Every little bit helps!

The Lol Church and Beaumont group will be hosting a silent auction in November.  Unfortunately, my mom is unable to attend.  She is, however, looking for donated items that can be put up for auction.  If you have something you wish to donate, please contact either myself or my mom by email at kents@telusplanet.net.

If you are at all interested in simply donating money, donations can be made online here.  All donations will receive a tax receipt, and if you prefer they can be made anonymously. Even small donations make a big difference and are greatly appreciated.

While my mom prepares for what people say is a life changing experience, please keep her and her efforts in mind.  This humanitarian trip can only be accomplished with help from others.  

- Audrey Hepburn

Banff



Finally, I actually booked time off from work, made plans with my best friend to get out of town, and relax for a couple of days.  It was so nice to be free of responsibilities, not to worry about school, work, or bills, and to just do what we wanted and when we wanted to do it.  The Rockies were gorgeous as always, and simply breathing in the fresh air was enough to make us feel at ease. Regardless that I had been battling the nastiest bug I've had in quite a while, we had an awesome time and feel refreshed enough to finish our semester with a bang.



Showing off our new toques :)





Taking in the scenery at Lake Louise



As a skier who always chooses Marmot over all other mountains, Lake Louise may just be my new favourite! 



Banff Avenue





Baby Boy

Our little pooch is already one year old!  How did that happen?  Gone are the days where he was too timid to chase cars at a full sprint down the street, sat still and quiet throughout the long drives across Sherwood Park, and had a head well proportioned to the rest of his body.  Before my trusty blackberry loses everything I have ever saved on it (again), I figure it is time to share some home videos of Finn.  Honestly, I think one post is a little less obsessive than entire page dedicated to his name.  Oui?  C'est bonne. 

Here we go!    

Finn falls off the couch.

Finn dreaming of running through a field of daisies.
(Not really necessary to watch ENTIRE clip)

Spying on Finn as he plays with a beetle.

Finn scared of Ceasar Milan

(The best part is right at the end; watch his facial expression)

Finn scared of a cartoon character. 
(Actually, he did not stop barking for so long that we never did get to watch this movie)

Finn playing with his bff, Belle.

Finn understanding who "Belle" is.

Well I suppose that's enough for now.  I hope you enjoyed these as much as I do!  Finn sent me a text this morning, saying that he wants everyone to know he received their birthday wishes and says "Thank you."

Cookie Exchange

Started with these...

My beautiful friend came up with the idea of a cookie swap between some friends.  For our cookie exhange, there were twelve of us who RSVP'd attending, therefore we had to bake enough cookies that we could give about 4-6 to each person.  Once together, we handed out our baggies or boxes of goodies to everyone, and in return we received eleven different packages of various sweets.  It was a wonderful way of getting all of the girls together for an evening of laughter and story telling, while enjoying some

Ended up with these!!

festivities this holiday season.  The picture on the right is just some of the delicious baked goods my friends came up with!  That plateful is less than half of the cookies I got to take home!  You could try something like this anytime of the year (possibly with bevvies in the summer ;) at a barbecue), or even a recipe swap for those who would like to try something new.  Either way it's a great excuse for all of the hens to gather when everyone lives such busy lives.  

Smooth Moves

 I am not a morning person; at all (just ask my brother who used to share a bathroom with me).  I am a snotty little biatch with an extremely short fuse (ugh, yes Mom- even more than usual).  Lucky for all of YOU, I have finally discovered what will make me happy in the morning, and even has me laughing out loud by myself- the kind of laughing where I find myself 'knee slapping' my gear shift on the way to work.  Now Radio (102.3) has Crash and Mars in the morning, an absolutely hilarious duo, who may or may not be an item (it's the never ending mystery), talking about everyday topics with a twist.  I just can't find the words to describe how they run their radio show- solid blogging.


Crash and Mars!



Well anyways, so on Saturday night I was at Hawrelak Park during the Rock and Rock Festival.  While things slowed down for a moment I quickly took a couple minutes to browse through the latest twitter updates.  Yes, I twitter, to confess my love to various celebrities.  Who doesn't?  Low and behold, Crash and Mars were also watching the Rock and Roll! Now sending them a casual tweet saying something like "me too, have fun!" would have been the cool thing to do.

Not this cowgirl.

I was just so excited that I lost all control of my thumbs on my blackberry.  I swear I did not mean to twitter stalk them, it just happened.  Let me break it down for you.


Crash and Mars: At the Edmonton Rocks Festival Hawrelak Park, beauty!! :)
Me:  I can't see you!
Me:  are you watching the hoola hoop girl to the left?? (excuse me, but this chick was not slender, damn near naked, hoola hoopin/ dancing up and down the hill and was seriously unreal at it.  Or just had drunk luck.)
Me:  darn toots I can't find that soul patch anwhere! (At this point I was midway through a very intense man hunt)

Slight break here as I had to replenish the towel rolls in the washrooms.  Did I forget to mention I was the janitor at the event?  How silly of me.  As I try to look as cool and casual as possible while snapping on rubber gloves and grabbing a sopping pile of towel into my hands, I spot a woman who looks just like Mars. Identical.  Except she had some highlights that were throwing me off, so I was not sure if it truly could be her.  Naturally, I stared at her until we made eye contact, then I looked promptly at the serious work I was doing, then back at Mars' twin, eye contact, work, etc.  Then I figured, ah hell with it, and just stared as long as possible, trying to figure out if I should call off my search.  Honestly though, she was staring right back.  Probably thinking, "oh Lord, there's that chick that won't stop tweeting me."

Me: I think I had a showdown in the washroom with you.   You were blonder (maybe) than I thought and thereby stared you down in wonder.
Crash and Mars: don't remember a showdown, if I stared you down it's cause you're super pretty! :)  (K, I swear I didn't make that up to sound awesome, it was said)
Me:  haha I'm too embarrassed to say hi now, after twitter harassing you like a psycho.  (umm as a side note, mentioning you look like a psycho probably just enhances their original judgement of you, not lessens it)
Crash and Mars:  OMG!!! Don't worry about it at all! Lol :)

Ahhh yes, well played.  I could have just ended it there, but no.  I found them.  Actually, they were basically in front of where I had perched myself for the evening, so all I had to do was look up, but in the heat of the moment I panicked and started running around like an ostrich.
For the remainder of the evening I stood behind them.  Not creepily!!! I swear I am not a nutcase, I mean I had to be there for the sake of the washroom cleanliness, they just happened to be nearby and I thought it was cool to see the people that make me die laughing every day. 

I can see you...

Obviously I had been keeping my bestie informed of this entire scenario and she was going mental on the texting, yelling at me to go say hello, introduce myself as the twitter stalker, tell them they are fantastic, get an autograph on my body somewhere, and so on.  I couldn't NOT say hi at this point.  She would never let me live it down- that is just how much we discuss their funny show.  It was like life or death important.  So I swallowed what pride I had left, (there really wasn't much left so it was quite easy) and awkardly approached Mars and said hhhhhhyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiii. 

She called Crash on over to join us and we chatted like old pals for at least three minutes!  They were just so darn friendly.  I apologized for acting like a crazy person, laughed, and said "ah well I don't feel too bad - you guys probably get that all time!"
Silence
They look at each other.
Burst out laughing.
They had never been hunted down before. 
And will probably never announce their location again.

Awesome Idea!

Recently, I donated to Sophia Bush's CrowdRise fundraiser for Nature Conservancy, where she ran a marathon in San Francisco.  Just for showing her support, I received a water bobble in the mail.  These are such a great little idea!!! There are filters inside the water bottle, so you don't have to waste anymore money on prepurified water!  The filters even last as long as 300 uses.  Amazing.  A much appreciated gift all in the name of saving our  beautiful Earth.



Ps.  They are BPA free :)

Neighbours

I was going to blog next about my recent painting fiasco (yes, I had another one) where I chose what seemed like a lovely colour but it ended up being neon/glow in the dark on our walls which made Ziggs so angry that he left the house and did not return until the wee hours of the morning, however, recent events have changed my mind.

Ziggs and I moved into our house in November and at the time the houses on either side of us were still for sale.  Sometime in January (or February...) a young-ish couple moved in next door with their two young boys.  We were thrilled to see they were 'normal' by Sherwood Park means and could not wait to plan our first block party.  While walking to my car one day I noticed the husband on his driveway.  I stared at him the entire walk to my vehicle, waiting for the opportunity to say a friendly hello, but I did not get the chance as he held his ground pretending not to hear me walking down the loud, clanking, metal makeshift sidewalk.  When returning home, his wife was in the garage having a ciggy.  Perfect!  I'll bond with this woman and we will become the best of friends!  Incorrect thinking; because as she saw me get out of my car she hid at the back of her garage and turned her back to me.  'Wtf' crossed my mind.  Since they have moved in and settled into the neighbourhood, I have never had a single conversation with them, until yesterday.

Right as I was about to leave for my exhilirating soccer game, the man who has avoided me for months was walking towards my front door.  At first I was afraid, then I wondered if he was going to tell me his kids just shot a hocky puck threw my car window, and then I thought maybe he was going to tell me Finn pooped in his yard.  After quick name intros he informed us that he was having fence posts cemented in between our yards this Friday and would like us to pay for half.  Well, excusez-moi neighbour Joe but not only is our land not yet graded (regardless of how many times we have been informed it'll be done 'soon'), but are you seriously only speaking to us now because you'd like $300 by this Friday?  'Asshole' had now replaced 'Wtf'.  Now don't get me wrong, paying halfsies for a fence is a definite summer 2011 to-do, and the price is pretty standard in fencing world.  BUT This guy (and family) went above and beyond out of their way to ignore us for months.  This guy parked infront of our houses when he had a paved driveway, forcing us to park in a muddy slew for weeks (no, I am not over that yet).  This guy has been making arrangements for these fence posts for at least two weeks now and is only informing us three days prior.  This guy cannot even wait for our land to be ready too.  Now he wants us to be neighbourly.

Even through my rant and rave about how some people are such douche bags- it continously blows my mind- Ziggs has agreed to pay and get it done Friday.  We agree that at least we can look forward to having a fence blocking our view of this dense family.   




PS.  Pretty please comment (below) on my blogs!  I often receive texts from my fans (mom) but I would love it if you wrote what you think on here, and others can see too!  So instead of texting, facebooking, or stealing my material for your own blog (you know who you are) you can leave a comment on here!  They can even be left anonymous if you choose! :)

Attempt Six: Mother's Day

My mother. She is the best listener, advice giver, role model, cook, shopping partner, beach buddy, Finn puppy-sitter, life coach, and the person I rely on the most in the whole word.  This is clearly a perfect opportunity to cook for my mom on her special day!  

50th & 21st Birthday Trip to NYC

This time I went with the banana fosters topped overnight french toast.  My little bro's contribution was a variety of fresh fruit with a strawberry dip and a chocolate dip.  The two complimented each other extremely well, especially because the topping on the french toast was fairly rich!  The smell of the brown sugar/ vanilla/ banana topping being heated up and melting away on the stove top alone was enough to get the fam drooling.  With the patio furniture set up on the deck, regardless of the Canadian May wind, it was a gorgeous little breakfast made for Mom= Big success.

We may not have bought mom the most expensive gifts in the world, taken her out for a night on the town, or sat in a circle sharing all of the wonderful things about her, but she knows we love and appreciate everything she does for us.  She is there 100% of the time that we need her (except when she is playing 'Angry Birds' on her iPad), can be counted on to back us up even when she disagrees with our decisions, doesn't mind when I help myself to her overflowing closet, and some might even compare her to the amazingness to that of Nora Walker (hmmm wonder where we got that idea from?).  That said, I'm sure she will enjoy our pedicures tomorrow morning!
Besides, when we tell people that our mom is better than theirs they just get mad.  ;)