Sprinkles

To celebrate turning a big FIVE, Emilia shares with her classmates...

A Sprinkles kind of birthday treat.

Simply sweet. Just like my #growing_up #not_so_little girl.

Happy birthday!

Note: Sprinkles also has a Vegan - dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free Red Velvet cupcake for Liam to participate in the birthday cupcake yumminess!

Parental Fail : Forgetting Picture Day

Apparently it was picture day at school sometime ago. We vaguely remember a notice about it after receiving the proofs.

Never mind that we sent her to school in mis-matched pink T-shirt under an orange/white striped dress.. and a lopsided-braid. At least she got photos. Liam on the otherhand, missed picture day all together! No school photos for him this year.

School Stress

For the past two years, we have on and off looked at the potential schools for our kiddies to go to. Every time, I go into Asian Tiger mama stress mode and so far, have not found a school solution that satisfies. The point of frustration is always reached, arguments ensured, and then we drop the subject until the next time I am reminded that these decisions dictate my kids future directly.. their social peers that will influence them, propensity for academic success or failure, nurture or squelch their passion to learn, think, mature, and to develop into a productive or non-productive member of society.

Finding the right school is hard in the area we live where schools are not known to be top-notch. There are many factors - academic performance/history, resources of the school, student:teacher ratio, safety, parent participation, location, teaching style, cost, moral compass/religion, etc. We have digressed long enough and now we are at a point where we are forced to figure out the school thing. STRESS!

Based on numbers, the more we apply, the more chances we have of getting the kid into a good school. So, I am in a mad rush now of figuring out all the forms and documents that are required... and no school form is the same. We are filling out interdistrict forms, intradistrict forms, exception request forms, and have to reach out to our current district for approvals to potentially transfer as well. There's public schools; There's private schools; There's charter schools; There's home schools. Oy!

Acai...I said "Ah-Sah-EE"!

Latest obsession : Acai!

Many moons and lifetimes ago, I went to a gem of a local surfers' cafe and on a whim, ordered my first Acai bowl. It was a superior bowl of a creamy, frozen fruit blend with fresh fruit, granola, coconut flakes, and bee pollen. Acai bowls weren't popular then, so I did not encounter Acai bowls again until now.

(photo from Yelp of the delicious Acai bowl from that surfers cafe)

2015 started off with a reset in the clean eating category by doing a month of the Whole30 Program. It is pretty much a strict version of Paleo to get me back on track after the holidays. One morning, looking for breakfast alternatives, I decided to check out a grand opening of Nektar juice bar. Apparently these juice cleanse bars have have been popping up all over the place. Instead of juice though, I saw they had Acai bowls, which triggered my memory of the decadent taste of yummy goodness.. so I had to try it again. I must say I was disappointed. The Acai still tasted good, but it was expensive, small portioned, and topped with only a few slices of banana.

And so the hunt began, to find the best Acai bowl that was somewhat convenient. Granted, the original surfers' cafe was still around and according to Yelp, still has many reviews of having the best Acai bowl around... but it's a good 45 minute drive and completely out of the way. After getting a couple more expensive Acai bowls ($8-$12) at different places and still being disappointed, I came across a random happenstance of a search on Yelp and found a wholesale distributor that also was willing to sell to the general public, Acai products at wholesale prices! Oh the joy of the inner hoarder in me! Icing was added to the cake when I found that the distributor is a mere block away from my work.

And.. flash forward to the present day. I am the happy owner of an entire case(.. cause you know.. it's wholesale..), 64 packets (er...we're down to 52 packets) of frozen Acai puree to finally make my own best tasting Acai bowl. Ryan is also a fan of the Acai bowls. So that it itself, says a lot. He usually rolls his eyes at me anytime I go off on a healthy food obsession. Apparently, Acai bowls are highly popular within the Brazillian Jujitsu community and also promoted by the Gracies.

Many different ways to make these.. I don't do it the Gracie way. These proportions seems to work for me:

* 1 packet of frozen Acai puree
* 1 frozen banana
* 1/2 cup of frozen berries
* 1/4 cup of coconut milk
* 1 scoop of Supergreens powder (optional)

--> Vitamix on high til smooth!

* Add toppings of banana, berries, and unsweetened shredded coconut (and granola for Ryan).

Homemade Acai bowls were calculated to be ~$3/bowl with double the amount than the restaurant/store bought ones.

Other Acai bowl recipes which the distributor passed on to me...

Additional Acai Tidbits of Information

My Acai bowls are now exactly the way I want them to be - Pure acai with fruit, no added sweetener and high in antioxidants. A bowl of yummy, healthy, dessert for breakfast. Yes, DESSERT FOR BREAKFAST! Score!

Fire Department Open House

Fire fighting cadets for the day!

Sunshine Giggles

Liam and Emilia were independently playing on the deck. Emilia was busy sitting close by to the screen door and in my direct eye sight. She was busy peeling stickers off a sticker book. Liam was on the other side of the deck, short out of eye sight. I could hear his little footsteps running away, and then stopping... and then bursts of giggles, and then footsteps running back. Still short out of eye sight. He kept doing this, back and forth, with bursts of laughter and giggles. What was going on?

Me: "Liam, what are you doing?"
Liam runs back to me with a big smile, and says with delight: "The sun is tickling my eyes!"

He then runs off again, and more bursts of giggles. =)

If we could all see the world and appreciate it through the eyes of a child. Happiness and fun is as simple as feeling the warmth of the sun.

The fun continued with a snack time picnic to enjoy the last rays of the sun today.

When was the last time you stopped to feel the sun on your eyelashes? When was the last time you had a picnic or ate outside? Enjoy the simple things in life. Thanks Liam for the reminder.

#simple_joys