Rainy days, snowy days...

Last year we got my mom's Christmas package in February. (she mailed it early December).

This year it didnt take quite that long for the parcel to get here, but it still missed Christmas. Not a big deal though. I know the postal system pretty much crashes around the holidays. Some of our friends work for the post office and they said the number of packages this year is 3-4 times more than last year. 

All that to say.... we were really happy to receive our little package from Hungary. Thank you Mamita and Papita<< Benjamin loves his little ambulance and art supplies<< 

And we love all the Christmas bonbons<<

Thank you!!!

Tavaly Februárban kaptuk meg a karécsonyi csomagot, amit anyuka december elején adott fel. 

Idén nem tartott olyan sokáig, de még igy is karácsony után érkezett meg. Nem nagy ügy amúgy. Tudom, hogy a posta-rendszer összeomlik az ünnepek tájékán. Néhány barátunk a postának dolgozik, és ők mondták hogy ebben az évben 3-4-szer annyi csomagot adtak fel mint előző években. 

Az a lényeg, hogy nagyon nagy izgalommal bontottuk ki a csomagot amikor végre megérkezett otthonról. Köszönjük Mita és Pita++

Benike nagyon odavan a kis mentőautójáért és a rajzolnivalóért!!! ++

éS A SZALONCUKROT IS KÖSZÖNJÜK!! ++

What do you do on a rainy and gloomy day?

Go to Meijer! <<

Mit csinálunk egy esős és felhős napon?

Irány a Meijer áruház! ++

Then the snow arrived! <<

Scott and Benjamin shoveled snow for at least an hour!<<

Végre a hó is megérkezett. Scott és Benike legalább egy óráig lapátolta a havat! ++

We went to the mall the other day just to walk around and hang out. Benjamin wanted to ride the ice cream truck. He was so cute<<

A plázában mászkáltunk valamék nap :)

Benike felült az elektromos kisautóra... Olyan cuki volt... ++

Happy New Year<< 

Boldog Új Évet kivánunk++

Pinterest-girl (idea-hoarder)

So I have talked to not one, not two but at least three individuals in the last few weeks who found Pinterest merely a virtual time-killer and not actually practical. I must disagree although there might be a slight little teeny tiny truth in it. Because most of us just "pin" most of the time and never actually make anything. We love the ideas.... but.... have no time to do it. In my case.... I LOVE pinterest. It is just the perfect solution for me! For years I have piled up over 50 gigabytes of pictures that I had saved, all craft ideas, useful home and gardening tips, fashion, knitting.....etc. I also filled up several journals with the same thing. Magazine cut-outs, quotes, poems, drawings.. and the list just goes on. I am an IDEA-HOARDER. The end. Tonight I was thinking as I was soaking in a hot bath... (as a European I despise showers but I LOVE baths! )I should start making stuff, ideas that I saw on pinterest, try recipes, home remedies, photo tricks etc and share them. Knowing my history I probably wont stick to it anyway, but as long as I am doing it it will be fun.
                          

3 reasons why you should eat Brussels sprouts

I must speak up for Brussels sprouts today. I just don't think it's treated with the adequate respect. Yes, every time I mention brussel sprouts I get sour expressions in response.
Especially from men.... What is the deal? Scott would rather have papercuts in his eyeballs and swim in salt water than to eat them. Well that's too bad because I have just found the most delicious, most mouth-watering, most elegant b.s. recipe. I was like... Take a bite....mmmmmm...take another bite...mmmmmmmm...omg unbelievable...mmmm....take another bite....etc. you get my point.

Why you should consider eating brussel sprouts:

1. It's in season. Local. Fresh. Cheap.

2. It's good for you! It contains sulforaphane, a chemical that contains potent anti cancer properties. It is also a good source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical which boosts DNA repair in cells and appears to block the growth of cancer cells.

3. It's delicious! You might not believe me today, but after trying this recipe you will. Really. Believe me! ;)

LEMON GARLIC BRUSSELS SPROUTS

Ingredients

2 lb Brussel Sprouts
4 tbsp olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon, juiced and zested
3 tbsp gruyere, grated
sea salt
pepper

Clean the brussel sprouts by trimming off the ends and peeling the outer layer of the sprout off. Cut each one in half.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
Once heated, add the halved brussel sprouts to the pan and saute for about 7-8 minutes on each side until the outer part is a caramelized brown and the inside is soft and fully cooked.
Add the garlic half way through the cooking.
Reduce the heat to low and add the lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper.
Stir to combine and taste. Adjust seasoning if needed. Add the cheese on top and serve.
Let me know how it goes.
Buon Appetite!

Practical memories

I found this awesome idea on Pinterest (of course. Where else.)
The description below the picture said, take a ticket stub or plane ticket to Kinkos, have them blow it up, print it on a fabric transfer sheet and make this pillow. 
The link didn't work so I can't properly reference the source. Nevertheless this is a great memory maker idea and I will definitely make it someday. When I have my own house. And I don't have to move to a different place (and state) every six month. :0 Not complaining. 

MEMORY PILLOW

Similar concept below 

this awesome project on designsponge.

POSTAGE STAMP COASTERS

This is the perfect project for a laid-back weekend. It is one of my favorite ideas in December. I should definitely take time to make these. :)

Let's see how to make it.

Materials:

• White felt
• White cotton fabric
• Iron-on transfer paper, available at office supply stores
• Postage stamp images
• White thread
• Computer and printer
• Iron
• Scissors
• Pinking shears
• Pins
• Needle or sewing machine

Instructions:

1. To make the coasters pictured here, download the printable 2-page PDF and skip to step 3. If using your own images, scale each postage stamp to approximately 4″ x 4″.

(note: images in PDF are reversed so they will transfer properly)

2. Reverse each stamp to create a mirror image. Many printers have a setting called “flip horizontal” that will reverse the image, or use your software application’s settings.

3. Print the stamps onto the iron-on transfer paper.

4. Following the instructions on the transfer paper package, iron the images onto white cotton fabric and remove the paper backing.

5. Pin the printed fabric to the felt and stitch around the edges of each stamp image.

6. Trim the stamp with a pinking shears to create a border with a perforated look.

YOU’RE DONE!

Just do something!

"I’m not really even sure what this post is going to be about, but I’m just going to start writing and see what comes out. Because somehow, I feel like it’s time to revitalize this blog. I don’t really even feel like writing to be honest, but I’m going to do it anyway lest I put it off forever.

It can be easy to set a big goal for yourself, only to get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of work ahead of you and get cold feet because you just don’t know where to start. I had a friend in Japan who was a terrible slob. I mean seriously, you could have spent years digging through the layers of stuff in his apartment before finally discovering what color the floor was. He said he knew he should clean, but every time he thought about it, he “just didn’t know where to start”. My response? “Start anywhere. Just pick up something, anything. It really doesn’t matter. Do something.”

Few of the things I really want to do are easy, because nothing worthwhile is easy. It’s a lot of work to get a good job, or run a marathon, or learn a foreign language, or cook a great meal, or maintain a friendship, or build a successful blog. But why do we so easily forget that we don’t have to do all that work right now? A little at a time. You don’t have to be super-human to do a little at a time. It’s something anyone can do.

So there’s my attempt at inspiration for the day, which is really more for myself than anyone else. Lately I’ve been in sort of a slump, not feeling motivated to do much of anything, because I just want too much too soon. And, um… I don’t want to have to work for it either. But the truth is that I can’t do it all right now, but it’s really not that hard to do what I can do right now, so… Yeah, anyway. You get the idea." 

by Janna Fadness

LOVE this article, it made me think about my own procrastinating ways. I am normally an impulsive and self-motivated person who knows what she wants and works for it diligently. There are some areas in my life however that so far I haven't been able to conquer. 

Working out- for one. There is not a minute of the day when I dont think about some new "fun" way to work out... Japanese professor's 4-minute miracle workout was my latest find for example... I have piles of fitness magazine cutouts, diet journals, ideas, motivating pictures, testimonials, before and after photos, recipes, plans........ Every night I decide TOMORROW will be the day when I start working out! Tomorrow rolls along and I have a tummy ache. Or I gotta run errands. Or "I just washed my hair". Or I am too busy today. But TOMORROW! I will just start tomorrow. The task seems huge and I just can't get myself to get started. Did I mention past failures? Oh, those little flies... buzzing in my ear.... telling me that I just wont be able to stick to it, so why start it anyway.

And I just have to mention one of my friends here as a positive example.... she inspires me in ways she will never know... She ran a marathon last month. For months before that she trained, in scorching sun and rain downpour she was out there, on days when she "didn't feel like it", she took control over her body and just DID IT! She also gets up at 4 every morning to run her little business. IDiscipline, commitment, character!!! Yes, you EB! :)

Janna's little meditation really inspired me today to just jump in with a LITTLE one. Just get my toes wet. Just grab those dumbbells while watching a show. Just have ONE little bowl of snackies tonight. Just do 10 pushups. Just do a little. Just do SOMETHING.