Domestic Diva tip #2

I decided a while back that seeing as I spend so much time on Pinterest I may was well take the time to test some of the life altering domestic tips I have painstakingly pinned.
I do spend way to much time on Pinterest...I can admit it.
I'm actually addicted to tell you the truth......don't tell my husband!!

Honey..if you're reading this....just remember all the yummy recipes I've prepared for you recently, and understand that without Pinterest, none of those recipes would have made it to your dinner plate!!
I LOVE YOU!!!

So here's one I tried out again today and, I am happy to say, with pleasing results.

This pin comes from DIY Project Network.com and is titled "Scent your entire home".

Here's what all of you winter loving, furnace using folks in the great white north are going to do.

Pick yourself up a bottle of room fragrance or a bottle of essential oil.
I use the body shop room fragrance green tea and lemon, occasionally switching it up with mandarin and tangelo...also from the body shop. 

I find that the longer you use the same scent the less you notice it and changing it up every once in a while makes your house feel fresh and shiny all over again, just like the first time!!!!
We are big fans of citrus scents in this household. Citrus body wash, citrus hand soap, citrus moisturizers, citrus everything!

Next you're going to head on down to your mechanical room, you know, the room that houses all of the vital organs of your home like the hot water tank, furnace, electrical panel. I like to call it the man cave.
In that room you should find a furnace, maybe it looks a little like this...

The next step is to gently slide out your furnace filter and drop some of your room fragrance or essential oils directly onto the filter.

And, as my children will tell you...my favourite saying........put it back where it came from!!!!

I have used this domestic diva tip in the past and have had complaints from the hubby as I was a little too generous with my droplets, my house smelt like one of this ladies you get stuck behind at the cashier wearing waaaaaay to much perfume. So tread lightly until you find just the right amount for your personal smelling preference.

For those of you currently living in the southern hemisphere and do not have a furnace, you can also try this domestic diva tip on your air conditioner as directed on the link from DIY Project network.
Apparently it works just as well, feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how it went. We have a heat pump at our house that cools us down in the hot summers, so I have a while to wait to try this tip out.

So that concludes today's Domestic Diva tip, stay tuned as I experiment and test out my pins for usefulness and general domestic zen-ness??? Is that a word?

Meh.......see ya!

P.S. Feel free to check out my pin board titled Domestic Diva...click here

Vintage goodies galore

I have come to realize something about myself as I age. I have great potential to be a seriously awesome hoarder.
It's in my genes! My Nana is a hoarder, I'm pretty sure my mum is too and I really, really think I would be fantastic at it!!!
I have these great memories from my childhood, and maybe you have some similar as I know that people from my Nana's generation didn't throw ANYTHING away. Or maybe you don't and as it turns out my family is just plain weird!!!

Every Sunday we would go to my Nana's house, for as long as I can remember, that's just what our family did and still do..for me at least until I moved to Canada at the age of 26.
After we had eaten our "Tea" or dinner, we usually would play a board game, watch Walt Disney or 60 minutes and if we were lucky, on a warm summer evening, we would be allowed to go look for treasure in Nana's garage.
Nana and Poppy's garage was more like a covered carport or lean to, attached to the side of a shed that housed their caravan and seasonal stuff.

In that carport, there may have been a car buried under all the "stuff", I'm not altogether sure but my brain is not letting me access that information.
Now remember, I'm about 8 years old and to me, that garage was like stumbling upon the cave of Ali Baba and his forty thieves.
We would ask Nana if we could go pick something from the garage to take home, sometimes she would say yes and sometimes she would decline and we would sulk and go find something else to do. BUT......if she said yes, my two sisters and I would race to that hoard pile of treasure and climb up to the top of the "Stuff" and look for something fantastic to take home.
It was dark in there...and dusty...and soooooo much fun!!!

I don't recollect any of the objects that I selected so much as the thrill of the hunt..and climbing up as high as possible so I could maybe find that perfect something to be mine. In my mind I picture the scene to be like something out of a Dr Seuss story and I'm positive that the garage was not, in fact, filled to the ceiling with stuff but probably just had lots of boxes stacked around mixed in with important, necessary objects.
But that's my happy memory and I'm planning to keep it that way.

So I'm pretty sure that's where my hoarding gene was burned into my soul.

Now I'm not talking about being the type of hoarder that keeps stuff like clothing, garbage and useless stuff around. I'm more of a vintage/ furniture/ tchotchke type of hoarder.
I especially like going to thrift store's, the one's run by little old ladies where the store layout had no rhyme or reason and you really have to dig for your treasure. Remember, I'm all about the thrill of the hunt!!!!!

There is a fantastic antique store in Enderby which I pop into a couple of times a year. I usually end up leaving empty handed as I am married to a non hoarder and I can't justify purchasing 95% of what I would really love to bring home.
My mum was here recently so we took a family excursion to the store and spent a good hour in there looking at all of the treasures. My hubby was on the hunt for antique razors, his new addiction. Zoe collects old bottles and picked up a few lovely ones.
And me????? Well, I just took some great pictures of all of the things I wished I could bring home with me.

If you ever find yourself in Enderby with some time to kill, go check out Jerry's Antiques.

Pork, spinach, feta and pear sausage rolls.

As a mum of two, I can confidently say that some of the most rewarding and fulfilling moments that I have enjoyed are the one's that centre around feeding my family.
To me food is not just sustenance, it's also a declaration of my love for my tribe. And by tribe I also mean my friends and their families.
Food is love...good food, made with care for the one's you hold most dear.
Whether it's cooking with my children and passing on family recipes and techniques or simply cooking FOR them, there's not too many moments these days where we are all centred around the family table at the same time.
Life is busy, hectic and at times down right insane......you all know what I'm talking about.
I enjoyed a yummy meal tonight with my girls, hubby MIA,  probably on his way home from a long day at work. Not unlike every other night, we try our best to have at least one meal, each week day, all together.
Some days there is happy chatter and catching up on the events of the day; these moments usually occur when all of the stars align at just the right moment ( the food is well received!) and all parties have had an awesome day and are in good moods!!
Other days there are cranky kids, who don't want to eat what I have cooked, making for a cranky mum and dad who are left wondering why can't we all just GET ALONG?? REALLY???? It's the one time of the day we get to all be together, sitting, without distraction and the food becomes a battle of wits between the kids and the parents.
My kids are older now, and I'm proud to say there are not too many things that my kids won't eat...mushrooms for example.
But I find as the main food prep slave in the house, I do get stuck in a rut and struggle to keep things interesting at the dinner table. Sometimes I find myself on Pinterest scanning through all the beautiful food styling and recipes, I'm pinning like a woman possessed yet don't seem to get around to actually making anything I pin.
My compromise tonight was to take a recipe I found on Pinterest and tweak it to my liking.
SUCCESS!! Not only did my kids eat it without complaining, they actually went back for seconds and thirds. The recipe even made enough for the kids to take some for school tomorrow, as long as hubby doesn't go in for seconds.
UPDATE: Hubby only left two sausage rolls for the kids to fight over.

Pork, spinach, feta and pear sausage rolls.
Makes 16 rolls.


300g frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
500g ground pork sausage
1 cup of crumbled feta
1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs
5 green onions, chopped
1 red pear, finely diced
2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning
salt and pepper

1 pkg pre-made puff pastry, defrosted
1 egg, beaten
Parmesan cheese

Preheat your oven to 375f and line a large baking tray with parchment paper. 
I found that during baking the sausage roll released a lot of oil, so use either a tray with sides or place another tray underneath to catch the hot oil.

In a large bowl combine the sausage, spinach, feta, breadcrumbs, onions, pear, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
Mix well.

I used plain old No-name frozen spinach, Maple leaf pork sausage, Skotidakis feta and Presidents choice frozen puff pastry.

Cut the pastry sheets in half. 

Divide the spinach mixture into 4 equal portions, place down the centre of each of the 4 pastry halves. 

Brush a little of the beaten egg along the longer edge and roll to cover the filling.

Cut each roll in half so that you have 16 rolls and place them, seam-side down, on the prepared baking tray.

I scored and x into the top of each roll, brushed each roll with beaten egg and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. Bake for 25 -30 minutes, until golden.

I served these hot from the oven with a side salad full of veggies, mango and more feta and some homemade tomato chilli jam.

nom nom!!!!

Post Secret

Did you ever have one of those mornings full of good intention, chores all planned out for the day, a checklist of things you hope to accomplish before the day is through. And then you innocently decide to check Facebook, maybe take a quick peek at pinterest while sipping your morning coffee, just a quick peek though....after all you have a million things you could get done today after you finish that coffee.

And then out of nowhere, something catches your eye, an image or catchy headline that makes you decide to click on that link, just a quick peek....I have a few minutes to spare. And then two hours later you come out of your computer induced coma wondering WTF?? Where did my morning go?

Yeah....that's me this morning. Damn it Kylie, you did it again.

Now, I know you are all busy people, so if you have things to do today STOP READING NOW.

Otherwise you will end up with a morning that went like mine and you will be cursing my name later tonight when you are lying in bed wondering why you got nothing done with your day.

Go on.......get on with you day, I won't warn you again.

If you're still here, take 5 minutes and watch this video and after that go to Post Secret and lose yourself in other people's secrets. Maybe I'm a closet voyeur....I dunno but there's something so satisfying about reading strangers deepest, innermost secrets.

I can see this becoming a regular Sunday thing for me. Put the coffee on, find a nice comfy place to sit and read until either my cheeks hurt from laughing or my heart hurts from reading and relating to others pain.

The "secrets" are updated every Sunday.

I don't believe that all secrets need to be shared with the people in your life, sometimes they can do more damage than good.

But, how great is it to have a creative outlet like this? A place where you can air your dirty laundry, to take the burden or guilt from within your heart and lay it out on the table.

Not that all secrets are destructive, some are just plain embarrassing or funny. 

So take a boo....when you have a moment...or an hour to spare. 

Maybe you can relate.

Going commando

Who has a teenage daughter? I DO!!!!!!

Who wants to dress vicariously through their teenage daughter? I DO!!!!!!!!

Who wants commando boots? I DO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Who can afford $200 boots? I CAN'T!!!!!!!!!

But boy oh boy do I ever want a pair of these beauties.

Check out these boots from Freebird by Steven. I sooooo would have a pair of these in my imaginary pinterest wardrobe. That is, if I could have everything that I've pinned in my "MY STYLE" pinboard I'd be a happy lady, can I order my body in 2 dress sizes smaller while I'm at it so that my dream wardrobe looks just right on my frame?

A girl can dream can't she?

I stumbled across these bad boys a long time ago on pinterest, pinned the image and never went back to check out the website...until today. The boots pictured above are no longer available.....

"insert whimper" 

....but I could easily take home one to ten pairs of their vintage looking commando boots. 

With prices ranging from $195 - $395 I'll have to wait for a lottery win or for a wealthy relative to kick to bucket to get me a pair of these bad boys.

Here's the bio:

Freebird by Steven boots are handcrafted from start to finish, using a traditional Goodyear construction, in which stacks of leather are hammered together and carefully stitched to create a virtually indestructible sole. This technique has been used to create the highest quality boots for centuries. Each pair starts with carefully selected materials and is finished with extreme attention to detail, going through 5 or 6 final steps to ensure each pair is one of a kind. Our original designs inspired by vintage Americana and created using time-honored craftsmanship are a unique way to finish any look.

A girl can dream right??

Olive Us

Hello, hello, hello my Lovelies.

Long time no see.........or read! BAD blogger...bad, bad blogger!!! Someone give me a swift kick in the butt please.

So much to do, so little time in the day. I'd like to tell you that I've been busy but really??? I must stop using "BUSY" as an excuse...everyone is busy...it's December for crying out loud.

No...I've just been neglectful and I apologize for that.

But on a more positive note, the reason why I'm coming out of hiding is to share a fantastic little, local discovery with you all. Now all of my non-Vernon readers I apologise again, for getting you all excited, but maybe you can find a place like this somewhere near you. 

A few weeks ago I gathered up some of my favourite ladies and took a trek out of my snowy covered cave to Vernon to take a boo at a new little store I've been itching to check out.

Located right on main street (30th Avenue), Olive Us is an Olive oil and vinegar tasting room dedicated to bringing Vernonites some gastronomic goodness.

Now I've experienced wine tastings, beer tastings, chocolate tastings and even honey tastings but nothing compares to the wake up call your taste buds get with a balsamic vinegar tasting. And don't even get me started on the olive oils!!

Oh the joy!!

I've been to similar stores in Kelowna and Armstrong, both stores selling products of equal quality and price range; but the folks at Olive Us have created a store that is both beautiful to look at and comfortable to browse in. 

I could have stayed there all day, it's truly like the Wonka chocolate factory for adults.

The proprietors Janet and Ray have done amazing things with the space,  keeping the decor neutral and truly letting their product shine..literally, in their stainless steel urns.

Even their packaging has been carefully selected to match the decor, making their products the star of the show.

Gift sets are thoughtfully selected with different themes and flavour profiles, making gift giving a breeze as all the hard work is done for you.

This is definitely one of those stores that you could spent an hour or two in without realizing it. Bring a friend and get lost in tasting and sampling to you hearts content. 

The store is well stocked with other food items such as flavoured salts and beautifully packaged pastas and decorative bottles for your goodies.

So after your Christmas hangover has subsided and you are feeling up to hitting downtown, do yourself a favour and stop in to see the folks at Olive Us, tell them Kylie sent you!! 

I'll probably be there somewhere in a corner sampling their products to find my new favourite for the month.

The Pumpkin Patch...the happiest place on earth.

I love that there are little patches of awesomeness scattered all over this little valley of ours. You just have to get out there, talk to people and go find them. We were lucky enough the first year we moved to the Okanagan to have some fantastic tour guides who were always up for an adventure and appreciated the thrill of sharing new places with us. One of the most memorable places being the Pumpkin Patch in Armstrong. We have lived here for almost 10 years now and have never missed a year without a trip to this place. 

Last week I managed to sneak an early peek at the patch the day after opening, I was in need of some spaghetti squash and the prices are definitely right at the Pumpkin patch. $1 per squash sure beats out Superstore prices any day.

 

The property is pet friendly, kid friendly....and it even supplies a porta potty for, well.....you know.

There are squashes and pumpkins of all shapes, varieties and sizes. Ornamental corn and free corn stalks for decorating the abode for thanksgiving and halloween.

I plan to take the kids to get their pumpkins for jack o lanterns soon, its a little early yet.

Stay tuned for pictures to come!!!!!!

As you can see, between three ladies we went a little hog wild with the squash. But there are plans for coconut butternut soup, spaghetti squash casserole and much, much more. I thought we showed great restraint at the time....thats a lot of squash!!! But I know I will be back for more before long.

  

There really isn't much to complain about as far as the scenery goes, there were no crowds to deal with.  No impulse purchases (aside from the excessive amount of squash), no rides to tempt your children into throwing a tantrum if they don't get one. Just plain old pumpkin hunting fun. 

We really could not have picked a more beautiful day.

 So with the minivan loaded up full of squash, ladies and kids we follow the pumpkin lined road back out through the field. Its almost like following the yellow brick road, but prettier.

 

The owners operate on an honour system here. You simply pull up to their wonderfully decorated house, ring the door bell and hand them your cash.

Head back onto St Annes road through more pumpkins.

And say bye until next year.....or next week, because we all know that you can never have enough pumpkin!!!!!

http://armstrongpumpkinpatch.com