the one where I ramble ...

Last night, while hanging out with my two best guy friends (who are brothers), we headed to a concert ... for 16-18 year olds. Oh yes, I must be the coolest twenty-something that you know, eh? It wasn't too shabby and I found myself "whoo"-ing and "oww owww!"-ing at the end of songs (the band was called The Penske File which I thought was neat). 

At the beginning of one song the lead singer went, "So, this is a song about when you're trying out new things, and you try weed and you don't really like it, but you kind of like it. And then you're older and you look back on it and you kind of miss it." At first I was like, "Err, dude, you're a kid, how can you 'look back' on it ..." and then I thought, "Wait, this concert is going on in a community church building, why is he talking about weed?" 

But at the same time, I kind of appreciated the fact that there was a gathering of 16-18 year olds (me and one of my guy friends were probably the oldest people there) on a Saturday night where there was no alcohol, no drugs, and just music ... made me feel like maybe the younger generation will grow up well after all? [Note: Reason I say this is because I've come across too many teenagers who abuse those substances, so it's nice to see teenagers who can enjoy a night without either of those two things present.]

And I know I'm only about six years older than them, but I feel that period from the end of high school to the end of university/earlier half of the twenties ... well, you learn some things. I'm still completely clueless on how life works, but I know who I am, I've realized which friends are worth holding on for and friends I love to be with, I've come to appreciate and respect responsibilities rather than defy them, and I know that anyone who pressures you into doing something you don't want to do is not worth it. 

So even though some girls there were wearing the shortest shorts known to humanity and one girl kept reaching into the ass pocket of a guy and just said, "Oh, I'm only reaching for your wallet!" when he asked why she kept doing that ... hopefully I won't grow up hating teenagers after all.

Other than that, I've been soaking in the sun rays as much as possible in case this fickle Canadian weather decides to go all cold and rainy on me again, studying for my night class midterm on Tuesday, planning things out for The Boy's birthday this Tuesday (day of test, yay~) and going fishing at the lake!

By "fishing", I mean The Boy and his dad decided to go into the lake with nets while I stood on land and took lots of pictures of nature ... but it was good :) Plus we had a barbeque afterwards, so that made me a happy lady.

The lake and ... being shy about having his shirt off?

My no-make-up face trying on the classic Miley Cyrus pout (she ain't got nothing on me, yo).

A gorgeous butterfly and a birdie! (yes, I call them birdies.)

Yellow in the form of a lily and lemon sorbet ... mm, mm good~

My mood's elevated from Debbie Downer to Apprehensively Appreciative Anna ... or something. Either way, I'm feeling better about things, just really nervous because I'm graduating in a week. Egad! It's exciting but I'm just worried about a) falling on my face as I go up the stage; b) the entire day being horribly organized; and c) how badly they're going to butcher my last name. But in the meantime, maybe you could try out some mozza pita-calzone, the recipe of the week (I'll be sharing the German Apple Cake soon!) and I'm going to go eat some ice cream soon ... my simple smile of the week is that there's ice cream at home to help me endure the heat!

What's your simple smile of the week?

And what have you been up to this weekend?

If you happen to have a long weekend - enjoy it :)

bitten, burnt, and bothered

Well, doesn't that blog title sound like a bed of rose petals? (I have no clue if that's even the proper metaphor, but I'm sticking with it.) The title refers to: A) got bitten on the face by a bug last week which left a lovely red mark; B) burnt my boob (of all things) while straightening my hair due to it being so long now and wearing a tank top ... it hurt; and C) bothered by having an infection for the last few days and having gorgeous but incredibly hot weather.

It's mostly reason C) that's kept me away from here for the last few days - feeling under the weather means the only time I was on the computer was to do schoolwork (or plays The Sims, I'm not gonna lie), and then I tried to soak in the sun as much as I could, either by myself or with friends. 

In between learning about the Tibetan Book of the Dead and other death rituals, I'm longing for those carefree summer nights (even though it's still spring, but shhh) where you'd just run around in a park, go by the beach and dig your toes in the sand,  go biking ... GAH, it's taking every fibre of my being for me to not run down to my basement to grab my bike - I know the second I do, I'll be out of the house every moment and I'll most likely fail my class. And granted, this class is only two nights a week so I still do have time to have a life - but lately the hangouts are too serious, too weighted, it just makes me wish for those "good ol' days" (I seriously sound like I'm an elderly woman right now, don't I?).

I'm still loving life and I'm trying not to be a Debbie Downer about things - so I'm going to share some happy moments from this last week (in picture form, of course). 

And I have to ask:

How have you spent the last week? :) 

I know I've been out of the loop on your blogs, and I will catch up ... 
but tell me in a comment, too!

Really excited to see How To Train Your Dragon on our 2-year celebration. That movie made me tear up behind my 3D glasses, I loved it.

A beautiful bouquet of blue roses from The Boy :)

Made some German apple cake! Pretty good for my first try.

Fireworks on Victoria's Day! Basically an excuse to have fireworks until 1 in the morning.

Yesterday I met up with a classmate I haven't seen in a while and we went to this Asian vegetarian restaurant for a buffet and ... this was my plate. So delicious. And I had banana ice cream - yum!

Me and my friend - it was so good catching up and sharing our fears about graduating in two weeks (ah!). I was also having a very "bad bangs" day yesterday hehe.

After we said our farewells, I headed to the downtown mall and walked by this fountain.

I wanted to jump in there so badly because it was so freaking hot ...

... instead, I headed inside and had a pomegranate berry chilled drink to cool me down.

After I browsed around the mall, I headed to the farmer's market and ahh ... that place is amazing. So many home-made goods, from food to little trinkets. I was on my way to see my friend who I have my night class with and spotted two things for her - flowers, and then cat grass for the new kitty her and her roommate have!

So adorable! He ended up nom nom nom-ing away on it, but my camera didn't capture it too well.

It's supposed to have a ton of nutrients and good stuff for them. Bon appetit, Kafka!

Hope you're all having a good hump day and I'll try to update within a few days rather than a week later :)

it's a good thing we're both creepers.

Two years ago, your persistance finally paid off. We had been getting to know each other, and every time I deflected a hand-holding, heck, even that day when I came back from Poland and you leaned in to kiss me and then I backed away and said I wasn't ready - you didn't give up, and I'm glad you didn't. Otherwise, neither of us would have gotten to experience what we have over the past two years. And I'm so thankful for that.

... Okay, you're probably wondering who this "you" is, and don't worry, I'm not accusing you all of trying to hold my hand or something. I don't want to make this into a completely mushy post even though I'm feeling all giddy and happy, so forgive the corny talk, but - today me and The Boy are celebrating two years together. And he's confused why I call him The Boy on my blog but the main reason is because, even though we're only getting older, he brings out that childlike spirit in me, that gal who can do anything and can be herself and be adventurous and crazy, so it's only fitting :)

Happy two years to you, the one I've shared so many different experiences with, laughed and snorted until I cried with, made animal noises like we were 5-year olds in the downtown area of our city, chased storms with on summer nights, endured me complaining about the lack of a bathroom when we went camping for the first time in a place with no bathroom, who's always cheered me on through school and other areas of my life, to someone whom I will never tire of hearing, "Uh-oh, better get Maaco!" It's a good thing we're both creepers, or we never would have met that night on the bus - so thanks for that too, haha.

Two years ago, we watched the fireworks on Victoria's Day - you cuddled me, I ooo'ed and awwwh'ed at every pretty flash of light in the sky and when we went back to hang out at your place, I knew my feelings weren't meant to be hidden away and bottled up. We shared a first true kiss and life hasn't been the same since :) Thanks for the memories (oh boy, Fall Out Boy song) and cheers to the memories we've yet to make.

Us, err, celebrating last year :)

Hope you can forgive the cheesy talk, but this day is definitely my simple smile of the week. 

What's making you smile this week?

thank you for the music ...

Yesterday, I had a bit of a revelation - as long as I have musical accompaniment, I can (almost) always accomplish/finish something. I've always been a girl whose longed for a musical soundtrack to follow her around everywhere she went - or to have Morgan Freeman narrate my life. Instead, I listened to a mix CD and then the best of U2 while baking cookies (using my sister's recipe!) as an early birthday present for a friend ... and for once, I didn't mind washing all the dishes afterward as I sung along with Bono (this song still remains one my favourites, I don't know why).

Does music motivate you too? What keeps you going? :) 

This week I also realized some others things: 1) I'm actually not that bad at baking/cooking and I want to do more(!) and; 2) I've realized the difference between talking to and talking with someone. To me, the latter means you have an ongoing conversation, you geniunely love talking with someone, hearing feedback, hearing what's going on with their life, responding to it, and then having the conversation flow. On the other hand, talking to means that I feel like I'm talking to a brick wall, someone whose eyes are dazed and it feels like they aren't listening to a word I'm saying and as soon as a few seconds of uncomfortable silence kicks in, they launch into a completely unrelated story. At least pretend you're interested, or something. Ah wells!

It's been one of those weeks where, before you know it, it's already Friday. TGIF!

What are you looking forward to this weekend?

And now, a segway of things that made my week before I move on to questions!

It's been forever and a day since I last promised to answer the Ask Nikolett questions, so here goes! If you have any more regarding advice-related questions or things about me, don't hesitate to ask :)

Monster Girl asks ... What are your top five things in your life that are better than coffee to you? :)

I should've seen this coming haha. And I feel like my answers are a bit boring but here goes:

1) Cuddling with The Boy.

2) Laughing with my friends so hard until I'm snorting and we're all crying. 

3) One of those delicious meals that after you finish it you go, "Whoa, I wish I had eight of those." 

4) Feeling the sand between your toes (it's a natural exfoliant!). 

5) Singing along to music at the top of my lungs.

Krissy asks ... What song can you dedicate to me, and why? :D

Right now, I totally want to say "Survivor" by Destiny's Child - you're such a trooper in all that you do, all you go through in your life with people and what recently happened to you (I'm so sorry that you had to go through that, but again, I'm so thankful that you're okay!). 

Oh, and "Ang Gando Ko" by Sandara Park, because it was the first Filipino pop-ish song I heard and me and my friend (who has the same name as you!) sing this, complete with dance moves :) Oh, and because you have long hair haha.

Andhari asks ... If you could have a little menage a trois with two super hot celebrities, who would you choose and why? 

Hmms, umms ... I love your questions, lady hahaahaa. I'd say Henry Cavill and err ... I think that's really all I'd need. Maybe throw in some Tom Wellings, or Chris Evans, or maybe one of the Supernatural brothers (wait, scratch that, just Jensen Ackles). You know, Matthew Goode is pretty good too (haha, Goode - good). But mostly Henry Cavill ... because, look at him (+ his accent, his charm, his outfits on The Tudors):

I had to crop myself out of the right picture, sorry about that ;)

Thank you for the questions! :) I hope you all have a great rest of Friday (or Saturday, or whatever day you might be reading this on) and have a great weekend!

tiramisu, anyone?

One of my favourite desserts is tiramisu, which means 'pick-me-up' (due to the espresso/coffee flavour). And thanks to my sister surprising me with The Illustrated Kitchen Bible (a recipe book that I have been obsessing over for the last few months) and a friend's birthday party this past weekend, I decided to ... attempt to make this cake. Thankfully, it didn't turn out so badly :)

If you choose to try out this recipe sometime, hopefully it'll look like this (or better than this):

Here are the weapons ingredients of choice:

And some brewed coffee (I'm using this one) mixed with a few teaspoons of liquer (I used brandy):

Mix the mascarpone (threw in a bit of ricotta cheese since there wasn't enough of the former) and the sugar together; in a separate bowl, you whip the cream and then you combine the two, folding it together instead of mixing or whipping it further. An option is to grate chocolate and combine it into this mix!

Take any serving dish of your choosing, and put a thin bottom layer of the mixture:

Dip the ladyfinger into your coffee - I found I soaked mine a little too much, but I love the strong flavour of coffee compared to others - so it's up to you how much you want to dip it in for! I accidentally dipped my thumbnail in there (it was yummy ... errr, yes).

And place it on top of the layer. Repeat as many times as needed!

Once you're complete setting your ladyfingers as you like, cover with another layer of the mixture:

And after you've spread it around, you can cover it with cocoa powder and grated chocolate:

Add another layer of dipped ladyfingers:

Cover once more with the mixture! As you can tell, there's lots of repetition with this cake:

Here's what the side view looks like at this point:

Cover again with whatever mixture you might have remaining until its spread thoroughly. I just took the bottom of my spoon to spread it vertically, then horizontally and I thought the little waves/ridges were a neat effect:

Then, I grated some bitter-sweet chocolate and placed on top before I put more cocoa powder:

I ended up having some leftover mixture, and since this was for a party, I decided to make a couple of extra ones for my parents ... in some cute little cups:

Et voila! Petit tiramisu! Don't mind the paper towel ... I realized after I made the main cake that it's handy to have some PT underneath while you're sprinkling the chocolate/cocoa on top:

Then, put the cake and the little cups in the freezer. I'd say for at least 4 hours.
Take it out, and enjoy!

That's The Boy's index finger making an appearance. That cake slice looked so pretty before he blocked it haha.

I know there's probably a few things I could tweak with it - I found the taste of the ricotta cheese more satisfying than the mascarpone, and maybe dipping in the ladyfingers for a shorter period of time - but overall, everyone really liked it at the party which made me happy (and then hungover, meep). My simple smile is that I was able to my favourite dessert for the first time and not fail horribly haha.

Here's the recipe in case you would like to try:

 LARGER IMAGE HERE | PDF VERSION (coming soon)

So ... tiramisu, anyone?

Please let me know what kind of recipes you enjoy and I'll see if I can find something to your liking in my beautiful new cookbook and share it! I'm off to my night class in a few hours (happy happy, joy joy). How's the start of your week been so far?

for all the mamas out there ...

I'm always a bit skeptical about those commercial holidays that try to make you spend as much money as possible. But I know that so many Moms deserve love, praise, gratitude, so why not dedicate a day to them, right-o? (Of course, in various parts of the world Mother's Day is celebrated on different dates, but in North America it's today!)

Whether you're a Mom to a child (or children), pets, or the mother of a serious DVD/book/clothing collection, you deserve a round of applause and a huge hug for all that you do. And if you have your Mom nearby - even if you might not always get along - give her a big hug :) And if she's not nearby, keep her in your thoughts and throw a big mental hug her way :)

Mama, I love you ... Mama, my friend ...

- "Mama" by Spice Girls (ALWAYS makes my mom cry)

My Mama ...

- is sensitive, just like me :)

- makes some of the best food I've ever tasted

- gives me hugs even though she probably thinks I'm weird everytime I ask for one

- gives me advice even when I don't want to hear it

- plays video games, RIDICULOUSLY well

- is sweet, considerate, with a beautiful smile

- made all my Barbie clothes for me & my sis when we were younger

- loves "Twilight", but is not a Twimom (I hope not, anyways)

- likes to spend time alone, but never says 'no' to quality time with me & Shadow

- has a green thumb, sews, hems, cooks, cleans ... she's a Wonder Woman

 Love this photo from my 2nd birthday :) My mama's got style!

Hanging inside a weird tree!

Right before I turned 14, in Old Quebec City on vacation.

And my favourite 'recent' photo, 2 years ago in Poland.

And my sister deserves some love - even though I don't get to see her as much now (Skype date, soon?) - she is such an amazing mother and my niece is lucky to have my sister as a mom haha. Lots of hugs to both of you :) And of course, there's many (although I'm not listing all!) mommy bloggers out there - Iva, Aubrey, a BonBonRose Lady, Juliana from A Blonde Walks Into a Blog, Sara and her Organized Chaos, and gals like LiLu, Nicole, Michelle from Gooseberried, and Mayra who are mothers to some fuzzy animals :) Hope you all have a Happy Mother's Day!

Ooo, and get ready for a recipe tomorrow ... tiramisu, anyone?

Hope you had a great weekend!

each day is a new life

I've been a little MIA recently (ooo, fitting since one of my last entries was called "get high like planes" ... 4 points to anyone who gets the reference!) due to a few things:

• Night class - my summer school course (which is more like a spring course since it ends mid-June) started this week and with only a few weeks to really get a good mark, I'm already scrambling to read the articles.
• Oh, and the final project for this class? Plan my own funeral. Since it's a course about death and dying, I guess I shouldn't have expected anything else ... just seems really morbid! You don't really think about  your own death when you're still in your 20s, so it's definitely a challenging project.
• Catching up on lost time - friends-wise, The Boy-wise, and exercise-wise. I finally have my weekdays free and I love the fact that I get to see my friends more often, The Boy more often, and that I'm (so far) accomplishing my three-workouts-a-week plan.
• Flipping through The Illustrated Kitchen Bible and getting an amazing surprise - I told my sister about how I got a copy from the library and how I couldn't wait to cook up a storm ... just a few days later, I get a package in the mail with that exact cookbook (except I don't have to return it to the library!) and a Polish cookbook for my mama. Thank you, sis :)
• On top of that, I've been filling up my time with tons of HTML, CSS, and JQuery ... I'm trying to get as much webdesigning done as I can in the next few months, just in case I do end up going to Europe in August :)

But without further ado, here's some pictures from Monday where my friends and I headed to the bay for a yummy meal, a good walk + conversation, and then ice cream. Annnnd, if all goes well tonight, I'll be sharing a recipe of the week very soon that I made, woot woot! Wish me luck :)

Wise words :)

A Canadian goose.

Neat statue.

And then we spotted a rainbow! Just a few hours earlier there was a crazy storm that seemed to come out of nowhere, but it left behind this beauty.

♥ these girls.

 

Love this picture for some reason.

 

Hope you get this, because it made us laugh :)

Weee! Doing an impersonation of the painting behind me :)

I am so thankful for ten-second timers.

The sun starting to set behind the multitude of boats.

Annnd some ice cream once the sun set :) I had N.Y. Cherry Cheesecake, while my two close friends had Rainbow and Reese Peanut Butter Cup (methinks)! The one in the middle was wondering what Moose Tracks tasted like which led us to having a funny conversation going, "Excuse me, may I inquire as to what these Moose Tracks are? I am hunting a moose and so ..." That's how we roll ;)

How have you been filling up your week?

What are you looking forward to this weekend?

And if you could have any meal of your choosing right now, what would it be? :)