Boston Vegetarian Food Festival

This event was super crowded, but a lot of fun. We found some new recipes, new restaurants, and new encouragement to eat healthy. We are not vegetarians, but we try to eat meat sparingly, and many of our meals are vegetarian. It just feels good to have a nice balanced diet, and for me that includes utilizing interesting grains, proteins, dairy, fruits and vegetables to make meals satisfying but not overly heavy on any one thing. We are not perfect at eating healthy by any stretch, but it is fun to try and continually be better at it.

The loot.

Maine

Well hello again. I've got a list of things to catch up on so I'll just go ahead and start with this little gem:

Our day trip to Maine!

I had the day off work on Columbus Day and Job didn't have classes until the evening so we decided to head of to beautiful Maine to enjoy a little getaway. Neither of us had been to Maine and we just loved it. The weather was perfect, the Fall leaves looked amazing, and we did some really fun things. (yes I know, lots of pictures! And this was me editing down! ;)

We drove to Portland Maine first and wandered around a little craft market which was fun. It gave me inspiration on some Christmas gifts I want to make! We also met and chatted with this guy for a little while. He was a hardcore fisher/crab/lobster man and was lots of fun to talk to :)

After that we hopped on a ferry to Peaks Island. The ferry over was really fun, we passed some private islands with our future vacation home ;), saw a seal and lots of cool birds, and enjoyed the breeze.

Once we got to Peaks island (it is adorable!!) we rented a couple of bikes to do a bike ride all around the island (about 4 miles).
(*side story: we first were going to rent a tandem, and the guy said "do you want to try that first?" so we did, and then we decided to get separate bikes ;) haha but it was fun to try tandem for a while. I just have no coordination with it.)
This was my favorite part of the whole day. It was picturesque, the bike riding was so energizing and fun, and it was an awesome way to see this little island.
At one end of the island there was a little stand set up with this honey. How cute and trusting is that! We got a little bottle and I love it :)

After our ride around the island we wandered around on foot for a few minutes, went in some shops, and then took the ferry back to Portland. Then we headed down to Cape Elizabeth for a Lobster Shack meal (long line, awesome views, pretty good food), saw some lighthouses- including the famous one that you always see on things, called Portland Head (it is the oldest in ME too).

After Cape Elizabeth we started our little journey home so Job could catch his evening class. On the way home we got stuck in traffic because R.I.P.D. was being filmed on the highway that day (sheesh Ryan Reynolds, you made Job late for class ;)

It was such a wonderfully refreshing day trip. I can't wait to take visitors up there some time. Oh Maine, we shall be back again!

Oh I can't help it. I'm putting more on just for our personal enjoyment ;)

Another item off of our Boston Bucket List :) Yay, we are making good progress ;)

I now present to you....

Canned Peaches! :)
Locally grown in MA and canned by yours truly, and the ever talented Jessica.

Do I feel like a bit of a domestic goddess? You bet I do.

A much needed weekend

We went camping in the White Mountains of New Hampshire this past weekend. It was so refreshing and just what we needed :) Until I get pics from our friends we went with (our camera battery died. I never learn.) here are some teeny tiny shots I took with our not-even-close-to-an-I, phone.

P.S. I am officially in love with New England.
P.P.S. Another thing crossed off our Boston Bucket List :)

For like as herbs and trees bringing forth fruit and flourish in May, in likewise every lusty heart that is in any manner a lover, springeth and flourisheth in lusty deeds. ~ Sir Thomas Malory

 My herbs are flourishing! And I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that lusty deeds are ok if you're married.

While my mum was here a month or so ago she bought me some gorgeous herbs to plant and use. (In May no less!) Oh and as displayed below, I recovered some of the pictures off my soggy memory card! Needless to say I am happy about that :) These are old pictures of when I first planted them, and they are even bigger and more beautiful now. Score!! No longer a plant killer. (but only because Job reminds me to water them. Otherwise they'd be pretty dead.) I am also proud to say that I have actually used them in cooking. Nothing beats fresh herbs!

Like how I am just blending into the background here? I let my herbs take center stage. But sadly I think the school bus is beating both of us here. 

Basil, Mint, Rosemary, Oregano, Cilantro, and Parsley.

Now, onto lusty thoughts and deeds....Job and I have been having some fun lately (yes that kind of fun too, but that's not what I am talking about here). I am talking date fun. Since we both have season tickets to the Boston Pops we try to go at least once a week. It has been amazing, to say the least! We also try to score a few extra tickets from some of Job's student friends not going, so we can take a few of our other friends with us to enjoy. There have been some fantastic guest artists this season, and of course the Pops are as always super entertaining and mucho talented.

Aren't they just so cute?! :) Thanks for coming with us Kelsey and Ryan!

(Oh and sorry for all the red eye, I don't have any photo editing abilities on the computer I am borrowing)

McKay and Jessica, you rock, we always have a fun time with you guys :)

Cam and Emily, it was sooo much fun getting to know you better and laughing with you :)

 I never get tired of going to these concerts, they are always so fun and different each time, I could go every night ;) Thank Jobito for always picking up our tickets!

Since Job has been working on putting together a concert with some of his fellow students he has been really busy lately. Meaning I haven't seen him much. But Saturday morning he took some time off and we headed to IHOP for some breakfast (I singed up for a free breakfast 'cause my birthday's coming up. Yay free! ;) It was our first (and probably last) time there. The food was definitely not impressive (anyone could have made it at home. And better) but it was so nice to just spend time together without extra guys hanging around (even though we love our "exchange" students and all of Jobs studio. Alone time is nice ;) (do you like my excessive use of parenthesis?) (I thought you might).

Get ready for some serious picture overload later this week. I am going to save those few remaining pictures in every way I can, which includes packing them into posts here.

Oh and any recommendations for an inexpensive camera for us to buy? I am totally missing having one and would like to get a new one soon.

Green Machine

I am thinking green might be my new favorite color. But then I feel like I am being a traitor to blue which has been stalwart pretty much my whole (albeit short) life! And what about pink, I have loved that one for a long time too! What will they think if I just suddenly start saying my favorite is GREEN?! Am I the only one who feels they must stay loyal to colors, of all things?! I mean, I don't really think "blue" would mind. Maybe if I break the news to blue in a nice way.....

I need more friends.

Anyways, speaking of Green, feast your eyes. And your bellies because you should make some.

When Job saw what I was putting in it he just said, "Sorry hun, I love you, but I am not eating that." He was serious!! I was shocked! I pleaded, puppy eyed, "demanded" etc... but he was pretty firm. But finally after I drank mine and mentioned how delish it was he sipped it. And LIKED it! ha!

Kale Apple Smoothie

Serves 1| Hands-On Time: 05m | Total Time: 05m

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup chopped kale, ribs and thick stems removed
• 1 small stalk celery, chopped (go easy on the celery, it can get too strong)
• 1/2 banana
• 1/2 cup apple juice
• 1/2 cup ice
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• (I also added flax seeds the next time I made it for an extra boost of nutrients)

Directions

1. Place the kale, celery, banana, apple juice, ice, and lemon juice in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth and frothy.

(From Real Simple)

Don't let that gorgeous green color scare you. It is gooood! :)

Homemade Glass Cleaner

Wanna see my bathroom mirror?

Of course you do!! ;)

See how pretty and shiny and clean it is? :)

Wanna know HOW I got it so clean and shiny? (don't answer that, probably most of you don't care ;)

Well I'll tell ya anyways.

Add two drops (yes drops) of dishwashing soap to a spray bottle of water.

Spray and wipe people. It works. No steaks, no nothin'.
And it is pretty much free.
And is pretty darn natural considering it is mostly just water and the amount of soap in it is teeny. I could drink it and be fine :) (but I don't recommend drinking it...)
I was skeptical at first but I tried it and really like it now. 

Oh and I didn't have Joy brand soap which is what the recipe called for. So I just used whatever I had and it worked-Dawn or whatever. So probably any nice liquid dish soap will work.

Here is the official recipe:

4 C water

2 drops Joy brand concentrated dish detergent (I can't promise any other brand will work. But for $1.12 you have a life time's worth of glass cleaner.)

1 drop blue food coloring (otpional)

Combine in a 32 oz spray bottle and shake to combine. Use as you would any glass cleaner. 

 
(from http://groceryshrink.com/) 

No more smelly, chemically glass cleaner for me! :) 

Linked to: iheartnaptime

Homemade Laundry Soap

I am finally getting this recipe up! Job and I really love it. It is "green", saves us lots of moola, makes our clothes feel and smell good. What's not to love?! :) This post is long, but I promise this is easy peasy to make. And once you make it a batch lasts a good long time. Enjoy!

Homemade Laundry Soap

1 bar soap such as lirio or zote. They are both laundry soaps and we have tried them with great results. (I have also heard ivory soap, Kirk's Castile soap, or Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap will work well. I've heard any vegetable-based bar of soap will work but I have only tried lirio and zote so can't say for sure)
1 cup Borax
1 cup Superwashing soda (found in laundry aisle of store)
5 Gallons water (or less if you want more concentrated soap) *Update, we found it was a bit too thick using 2 1/2 gallons. I would stick to the full 5.

 1. Grate the bar of soap into a bowl. Fill a small pot with water and heat on stove over medium-high heat. Slowly add the grated soap and stir gently over heat until it is completely melted.
Note: Try not to let the water get to a high boil, this will make the soap too foamy. Adjust heat higher or lower during melting as needed.
2. Fill a large container with the 5 gallons of water, making sure there is enough room for the other ingredients.
3. Add borax and superwashing soda and stir gently*
4. Add melted soap and stir gently without making too much foam.
5. Let the mixture cool off completely (we let it sit overnight). Once it is cooled it will be gelatinous and a think layer on top will have formed. Mix it very well once again before dividing into containers for use (we use old laundry detergent bottles, softener bottles, very clean milk jugs etc...). The soap will be a little lumpy, goopy and gel-like as your pour it out of your bottles for use. This is normal. Just give it a little shake before pouring out.


----For a medium load of laundry use 1/2 cup
----For a large load of laundry use 1 cup
----Adjust amount of soap used if less water was used in the recipe. This time we used half the water so halved the amounts of soap we used.

*We really like to add 1 cup of liquid fabric softener such as Suavitel during step 3. We think this makes the soap smell even better, makes our clothes feel comfy cozy, and saves us a step during laundry time :) But if you actually follow directions and add the softener half-way through the laundry cycle instead of dumping it all in at once like we do, feel free to leave it out ;)


1. Grate your bar of soap

 2. Melt your soap

 3. Add super washing soda

 and Borax to water (and softener if you wish)

and stir.

 4. Add melted soap to mixture and slowly stir in.

5. Let sit overnight to cool and "harden"
It will be really goopy and chunky in the morning. Give it a good stir

 And it will become more liquidy

 Funnel the soap into your containers.

 And enjoy your eco-friendly, super inexpensive, lovely smelling, and super effective laundry soap!

I linked this up to the iheartnaptime  linky party and

Soap!!

Job and I made soap last night as part of our date night! Not just any soap though, it is divine smelling laundry soap! It was so fun to make and Job has been doing laundry all morning because he loves it so much. It was easy and fun to make, not to mention it will save us a ton! We made 5 gallons (yes gallons) of this stuff for about 3 bucks.

Don't we feel all crafty and resourceful ;)