tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18883758030462043512012-02-10T11:11:44.673-06:00Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.comBlogger1321100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-42203012352836861712012-02-10T11:11:00.001-06:002012-02-10T11:11:44.902-06:00

For the last few months ive been trying to master the art of curing my own salmon. At the back of my head I always worry about poisoning myself, but so far so good! Ive found that there is a big flavor and texture difference between cured Sockeye and cured Atlantic – I prefer Atlantic! The first couple of rounds were cured Sockeye on crackers with homemade crème fraiche and

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-25014086154468292512012-01-28T17:15:00.001-06:002012-01-28T17:15:17.213-06:00

I did a bit of a shop update over the last few days; I still have plenty to add! Here’s some of the new pretties available at http://www.heavensearth.etsy.com ♥ xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-83231337445034288252012-01-23T15:20:00.001-06:002012-01-23T15:22:41.236-06:00

How to distract a 3 year old in 20 seconds or less… Ingredients: jar with lid sparkles water Method: 1. pour sparkles in jar 2. fill jar up with water 3. tighten lid 4. shake, shake, shake! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-41396687883758676932012-01-19T07:53:00.001-06:002012-01-19T07:53:29.862-06:00

It’s time for my first sale of the year! 20% off! I don't think ive ever done 20% off before! use coupon code TWENTYOFF (good until Friday January 20th at noon CST). http://www.heavensearth.etsy.com/ xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-74808551995295659072012-01-13T21:03:00.001-06:002012-01-13T21:03:35.280-06:00

Happy New Year! its my first 2012 post and im doing it on Friday the 13th?! I have nothing spooky or gory to post about, but I do have some sweet squishy whales to share! N0, I didn’t make them, and that’s ok. Being artsy, crunchy and loving handmade, doesn’t mean that you have to do it all yourself, at least to me it doesn’t. These sweet little whales were made for us by Ashley from

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-48126913634569080262011-12-18T11:02:00.001-06:002011-12-18T11:02:51.902-06:00

The month of December has been much busier than expected for me, and this sweet little blog has feel idle. I thought I would share a quick post on wrapping gifts for the holidays and give everyone a little preview of what's to come in the new year. Lets start with wrapping gifts – I LOVE wrapping gifts! I LOVE wrapping paper, but when it comes to my families gifts, it just seems wasteful. For

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-50837130691303400422011-11-16T20:49:00.001-06:002011-11-16T20:49:45.202-06:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that ill be at the Creative Collection Craft Fair this Sunday. Ill have plenty of jewelry (necklaces, rings, earrings) as well as some original paintings and of course, prints of my art. I will also have prints from my newest series “Discovering Insects” and will be selling them as a set of 5 for only $45! Please stop by and say hi! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-79532041033782716292011-10-31T13:56:00.001-05:002011-10-31T13:56:46.847-05:00

What a great surprise in the mail today – swatches of my new fabric!!! Designing my own fabric has been something that has been in the works for such a long time now, so its great to see a sample of the finished product ♥ My designs are available through my Spoonflower shop in the following fabrics: Quilting weight, Organic Cotton Sateen, Organic Cotton Knit, Upholstery-weight twill,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-41109552787739312392011-10-19T20:49:00.001-05:002011-10-19T20:49:21.377-05:00

Some pics of my new series “discovering insects”. Some of the images in this series are from a vintage book also called Discovering Insects. Enjoy!   These originals are available in my etsy shop www.heavensearth.etsy.com right now ♥ xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-14525503852922199872011-10-14T14:53:00.001-05:002011-10-14T14:53:09.632-05:00

Im getting back into the art swing of things (yay!) and working on some new pieces for my shop http://www.heavensearth.etsy.com and for an upcoming sale, but first I wanted to finish off the letters I bought for the kids rooms this summer. I painted both of the letters, added some other elements (paper, part of a map, stamps, pastels and glitter) to them and voila! they were done and ready to

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-10660539070476627372011-09-28T13:30:00.001-05:002011-09-28T13:30:28.110-05:00

What to do with all those tomatoes?! to be honest, we did not have a an overflowing abundance of tomatoes that we normally have. I don’t know if this is because of when we started our seeds or the crazy weather we have had this summer. Our garden did still produce enough for us and enough for us to share ♥ This year, our favorite way to eat them has been by oven roasting them with olive oil, sea

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-21259089720864191972011-08-18T17:54:00.001-05:002011-08-18T17:54:40.900-05:00

Im feeling like my babymoon is coming to an end, and its time to start blogging again. Ive been waiting to make my first blog post all about the Kiddyloo! Childish Notions – a Canadian company that imports innovative and practice childcare products, gave us the most amazing opportunity to own and review the Kiddyloo potty trainer made by Thermobaby. A wonderful thing about Childish Notions is

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-24643952423092265912011-07-19T11:43:00.001-05:002011-07-19T11:43:46.936-05:00

What does ultraviolet (UV) index 9 mean? UV 9 means that even if you put wool out in the shade and it gets a tad bit of sun later in the day, the color will get bleached right out of it! boo! We rarely put our wool outside to dry because the sun is bad for it, but it was shady and it was only for a couple hours, so we threw it out on the deck – big mistake! Can you imagine that a shady area

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-20391980842269318792011-07-11T09:42:00.001-05:002011-07-11T09:43:18.140-05:00

Our sweet little Poppy is finally here ♥ She was born on July 7th @ 12:43 pm weighing 7lbs 5 oz and 20 inches long! My caesarean section went really good, no problems to report other than my dear husband passing out at the very end of the surgery – he wanted to steal the show! The hospital stay was pretty incredible! The whole maternity floor had been renovated since I had been there to have

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-657325518481318052011-06-28T09:06:00.001-05:002011-06-28T09:06:04.388-05:00

We are still waiting on our little baby to make her arrival, and while you wait with us, why not download the article that I wrote for the May/June 2010 issue of Cloth Paper Scissors?! My collage article, along with three other mixed media collage articles are available as part of a free e-book that Cloth Paper Scissors is making available to everyone! yay! I do have plenty of new art to show,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-48184547975042073452011-06-11T18:55:00.001-05:002011-06-11T19:05:42.198-05:00

I know that ive mentioned this salad on my blog before, but I don’t believe ive ever posted the recipe?! Our chives and mint are growing like crazy right now, so I knew I had to make a batch of this salad for dinner tonight! The original recipe is from the cookbook Earth to Table: seasonal recipes from an organic farm.  I change up the recipe using what we have on hand, sometimes

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-46382841390036553062011-05-17T17:26:00.001-05:002011-05-17T17:26:24.588-05:00

I saw a playhouse at Costco a few weeks ago and fell in love with it. The problem was/is that after 5 years, we are finally done landscaping our backyard. I actually considered digging up some of our shrubs and getting rid of a flower bed just for the playhouse, but I couldn’t do. As the week went on, I decided that we needed the playhouse; it wasn’t a want anymore! We always intended on

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-35213500779041612172011-05-14T16:42:00.001-05:002011-05-14T16:42:20.055-05:00

I've had big plans to work on a scrappy quilt ever since my bag of fabric scraps from Monkey Foot Designs arrived in the mail. I didn’t have a quilt pattern, which is a good thing because I have no idea how to follow a pattern properly. I started cutting up the fabric in random sized pieces and all seemed to be going pretty darn well! It was time to start sewing….. I got the 50+ year old

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-4110404866786013352011-05-07T14:28:00.001-05:002011-05-07T14:28:12.499-05:00

Sebastian loves hats – even if they are meant for his sister ♥ We are so blessed that we don’t have to fight with him to wear a hat outside or put his winter toque on. Ive been looking for hats for Poppy and came across some beautiful wool hats made by Dover & Madden and had to order some for Poppy! I decided on a brown bear hat with a removable yellow flower (I thought yellow was pretty unique

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-52796945363669422272011-04-17T15:39:00.001-05:002011-04-17T15:39:17.372-05:00

This little blog of mine has been suffering from a lack of updates! I hope to get back into the swing of things soon. For now, here’s some pics of Poppy’s room! We had a little incident last week that really made us realize that this little baby could be here sooner than later, so we got right to work! I am so happy with how the room is turning out ♥ First up.. the light fixture from RONA of all

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-70079177286956804452011-03-23T20:40:00.001-05:002011-03-23T20:40:05.476-05:00

Just a look at what ive been up to this month…. 24”x36”  commissioned piece– finished! It looks a million times better in person! some of the texture up close.. WIP – im working on 3 pieces that have my art printed on fabric; they’ll be used to embellish two chairs and a pillow I believe ♥ I also have some new paintings in the works, but those will be a surprise! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-15444249858820679192011-03-10T15:41:00.001-06:002011-03-10T15:41:50.254-06:00

We’re so thrilled to be able to share that we’re having a girl! Ill be getting back on the blog bandwagon soon! ive been swamped with commissioned pieces – that’s always a good thing! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-34359415986797641932011-02-21T17:34:00.001-06:002011-02-21T17:34:55.346-06:00

About 6 weeks ago, maybe longer, I made my very first batch of homemade vegetable bouillon. The recipe that I used was inspired by the one found on 101 Cookbooks. The only change that I made to the recipe was that I did not add any fennel (bleh) and did add in a handful of green onions – my favorite ♥. I felt that making the bouillon was actually a lot of work, but totally worth it in the end.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-29706639776317603052011-02-14T18:53:00.001-06:002011-02-14T18:53:10.931-06:00

  On Friday we received a huge care package from a dear in France full of wonderful foods, including lots of chocolate! so for Valentines Day I decided to stay away from chocolate and make some cupcakes. We’ve been on spelt kick in this house, substituting it in every recipe that calls for white flour and so far so good; no problems to report. I don't think I would use it for an actual pastry,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-66345835409457698412011-02-05T09:26:00.001-06:002011-02-05T09:26:15.089-06:00

As an a artist, I have the most amazing opportunities to trade my art for other art and that’s exactly what I did when Amy of  Amy Peters Studio contacted me a couple months ago. It turns out that we are both fans of each others works and had to do a trade! Amy makes stamped inspirational jewelry in all shapes and sizes – necklaces, bracelets, earrings; she’s got it all! but it was easy for me

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-30828268512380439942011-01-29T17:17:00.001-06:002011-01-29T17:24:43.731-06:00

I'm on somewhat of an art hiatus right now while waiting for my new studio to be finished, but decided for one last time to occupy the main part of our house to do something creative… I read about Cloth Paper Scissors altered fabric exchange in the most January/February 2011 issue and was immediately intrigued! The rules specified that you may “paint, dye, discharge, stencil, stamp, journal,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-53655985174665584522011-01-26T14:10:00.001-06:002011-01-26T14:10:11.339-06:00

I had posted back in October about the progress on Sebastian’s big boy room and im happy to say that it is finally finished! In Sebastian’s nursery we had a beautiful set of vintage style alphabet flashcards up on the wall that didn’t make it through being taken off the wall, so the search began for a set of alphabets for his room. Luckily, the search didn’t take too long and I found a

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-18750367559188792462011-01-17T09:14:00.001-06:002011-01-17T10:23:44.548-06:00

Ive been a little MIA these last few weeks, but that doesn’t mean that we haven't been up to all sorts of fun stuff! We had Sebastian’s uncle visit with us for a few day’s last week, celebrated Jason’s birth with friends at a favorite restaurant of ours – Hermanos (The Chivito is hands down the best sandwich ive ever ate. It’s a Uruguayan sandwich with shaved angus beef, provolone cheese, smoked

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-35118070900781435742011-01-01T16:33:00.001-06:002011-01-01T16:40:21.790-06:00

Happy New Year! I hope that everyone had a wonderful break from the norm and got to spend lots of time with family and friends (and eating too!). As always, we made our lucky food for New Years day (check out last years post “a day of ‘lucky’ eats” to learn all about our tradition). This year we made Hoppin’ John – it’s a black eyed pea, smoked pork hocks – another wonderful product from

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-30034993072847880962010-12-27T18:06:00.001-06:002010-12-27T18:06:34.992-06:00

Its been non stop go go go around here, as im sure it is for everyone during this time of year. Our Christmas gatherings started last weekend with get-togethers on Jason’s side of the family on Saturday and Sunday. It was Sebastian’s 2nd birthday last week too, so we had a little celebration just the three of us that including our favorite cupcakes from Sweet Impressions. Just a couple days

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-68440212323644395022010-12-16T16:33:00.001-06:002010-12-16T16:33:21.498-06:00

We need a renaissance of wonder. We need to renew, in our hearts and in our souls, the deathless dream, the eternal poetry, the perennial sense that life  is miracle  and magic  - E.Merrill Root Oh how we love to buy books for Sebastian! I remember before he was even born Jason bought him the most elaborate and complete book of Grimm’s Fairy Tales that he could find. Sebastian has a wonderful

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-90862175832222369932010-12-13T17:58:00.001-06:002010-12-13T17:58:51.097-06:00

So, I got a call last week from my mom saying that they - they being: my mom, her boyfriend and my youngest brother (who is an adult) were going on their annual Christmas tree cutting down adventure. My brother insists on cutting down a tree every year, not just any tree, it has to be a blue spruce and it most definitely not be from a Christmas tree farm! Apparently Christmas tree farms take all

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-85563530043238061932010-12-01T17:34:00.001-06:002010-12-01T17:35:33.340-06:00

We started giving Sebastian oat baths when he was about 4 months old and had a super dry scalp (not to be confused with cradle cap). I was buying colloidal oatmeal bath powder, which worked great, but were pretty expensive for what you were getting. I started to make my own bath mix when I too started to get dry skin, and there was no way I was going to pay a fortune for ground up oatmeal!

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-27102429072388543722010-11-27T18:28:00.001-06:002010-11-27T18:28:26.863-06:00

Never did I imagine that I would be canning at the end of November, but our fruit basket  was over loaded with pears – yellow, green, brown, we had them all! What else was I to do?!  I decided that pear chutney was the best way to use them up. I've never actually made or even tried a pear chutney, but I love chutney and couldn't imagine it going wrong. my wispy haired little helper in his

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-29160656152265704002010-11-24T13:59:00.001-06:002010-11-24T14:00:43.815-06:00

Just a quick note to say that over the next few days I will be updating my Etsy shop with all kinds of goodness just in time for the holidays! Suggested mailing dates from Canada are as follows: Canada – December 11th USA - December 8th Europe - November 29th Now for a preview of what’s to come…     This is just a wee preview, there is so much more!!! Enjoy!

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-52783593375307269632010-11-16T19:04:00.001-06:002010-11-16T19:07:02.693-06:00

It’s been way too long since my last post, I am sorry for that. Life has been, well, life around here! busy as always! I've been enjoying trying out recipes from Lucid Food and hope to do a book review on Amazon.com soonish. I've been working on new art for my Etsy shop and the Creative Collective Craft Sale this weekend, and  also been taking an online Free Motion Persona’s course by Danita Art

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-64503228385339682892010-11-01T21:38:00.001-05:002010-11-01T21:38:21.851-05:00

I made Sebastian’s Halloween costume this year. Ive never actually sewn anything like it before, I think it turned out awesome!  Below are a couple pictures of our little octopus..     I also made a matching costume for Sebastian’s little bebe ♥ Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween/Dia de Los Muertos/All Saints Day! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-42030965977860878042010-10-25T00:15:00.001-05:002010-10-25T09:17:24.993-05:00

Over the last month, I've been brainstorming about what to do with Sebastian’s new big boy room. He got his bed at the end of August, moved the chair and ottoman out mid September, and suddenly with that, the room redo came to a halt! we went on vacation, spent time canning and cleaning up the yard and did nothing to the little Mr’s room. This weekend, I got on it! Sebastian’s Godparents gave

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-29509622176858477842010-10-18T16:47:00.001-05:002010-10-18T16:50:23.131-05:00

Today I made Tofu Banh Mi’s from the Lucid Food cookbook. The recipe was super easy to follow and pretty quick too! Im a pretty big fan of Vietnamese sandwiches, but what I don’t like is the ‘gristle factor’ – I don’t like gristle, cartilage and bumpy things in food that shouldn't be there. Sausages rate very very high on the gristle factor and so does the assorted meats that are normally

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-84857865248668892162010-10-15T18:39:00.001-05:002010-10-15T18:44:44.420-05:00

Just a quick post here to say that next week I will be a busy little bee cooking up a storm from Louisa Shafia’s  book: Lucid Food: Cooking for An Eco-Conscious Life. Lucid Food, is so much more than just a gorgeous cookbook, yes, its full of wonderful recipes, but its also a guide to making eco-conscious food choices and eating local, healthy, sustainable food in season ♥. Louisa

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-57638299609129268232010-10-12T16:48:00.001-05:002010-10-12T16:48:24.862-05:00

Oh, it seems that my blog has lapsed over this past week, but  back on track now! Ive wanted to post about our homemade laundry soap sooner, but I thought it was best to give it a really good trial run before I did. Im happy to report that its awesome! It cleans Sebastian’s cloth diapers and Jason’s grimy work clothes like a charm. Honestly, it works better than anything else that we’ve tried (

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-10600884712895681272010-09-28T21:03:00.001-05:002010-09-28T21:03:25.982-05:00

When I saw Louisa’s recipe for Beet Cakes on her blog/website Lucid Food, I knew I had to make them! We have an abundance of beets from the garden and normally eat them in soup or roasted with a bit of orange, but never have we had them in a burger. Beet Cakes  from Lucid Foods - my condensed version of the recipe is posted below, but please visit Louisa’s site to read her suggestions on how

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-83948509852443404222010-09-25T17:14:00.001-05:002010-09-25T17:14:19.759-05:00

The one thing that we always have in our refrigerator is goat milk – lots of it! Mr.S drinks almost 10 liters a week! He sure loves milk ♥ We get our goat milk delivered weekly with our ‘fresh box’ from Fresh Option Organic Delivery. Aside from the health and environmental benefits to drinking goat milk, its local too. We drink it, cook and bake with it too, and most recently, we made cheese

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-6625153382759532642010-09-19T20:20:00.001-05:002010-09-19T20:20:07.076-05:00

Im still in full on squirrel mode here, trying to use up every last bit of goodness from our garden ♥  I found myself with about a dozen red and orange tomatoes and knew exactly what I wanted to do with them – make ketchup! not that sugary stuff that normally comes out of a squeeze bottle, I want to make what I think real ketchup should be like! Every time we go to Edmonton, Canada, we stop

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-70263882404175425422010-09-12T18:02:00.001-05:002010-09-12T19:24:57.092-05:00

The last week around here has been nonstop preserving summer for the winter.  This time around, non of the ‘preserving’ had anything to do with canning - it was all freezing, with the exception of a jar of tomatoes preserved in vinegar (not too sure about these yet!). Tucked happily away sleeping in the deep freeze is: 20 lbs of peaches, sliced 20 lbs of nectarines, sliced 1 pot of

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-73685583573848793402010-09-06T21:20:00.003-05:002010-09-12T09:00:50.965-05:00

A few months ago, in a very round about way, I had the opportunity to chat with AmyPixton of Indestructibles about her books. If you’re not familiar with these books, you’re missing out! Sebastian has had his Indestructibles all summer now, and they still look as good as the day we got them. I love that there are no words, just beautiful illustrations that inspire you to create your own story.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-1304354509902512482010-09-03T15:35:00.001-05:002010-09-03T15:35:45.646-05:00

While we were on vacation I came across a Le Creuset outlet and decided I was finally going to take the plunge and get a beautiful french oven!  Best of all, it appeared that the already discounted price was an extra 25% off! woohoo! turns out that it was not true and only certain colors and by colors I mean, black, was on sale. I wasn’t impressed with how misleading the sale info was, so I

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-41075727972763821932010-08-31T19:17:00.001-05:002010-08-31T19:17:21.680-05:00

It’s been a couple weeks since Sebastian happily moved from his crib into his big boy bed ♥ The transition was unbelievable easy with no tears or complaints from the little Mr. It could be his age that made the transition easy or that he as bed-shared with us on and off his entire life? either way, its been a really good thing for everyone! Nine nights out of ten he sleeps through the night

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-41960858879100615552010-08-16T20:28:00.001-05:002010-08-16T20:28:41.079-05:00

It’s been non stop rain for the last few days and prior to that insanely warm, so warm that you just don’t want to be outside. Today was cool and felt like fall and even better, I took the day off! I had an early morning breakfast date with two lovely friends. followed by a little bit of shopping with Jace for some new dress pants as his “ass keeps eating them”.  I don’t know what it is about

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-62117277370599674432010-08-14T20:04:00.001-05:002010-08-15T06:17:17.351-05:00

Oh my! its been so long since ive last posted on my blog! August has been so busy for us, but I assure you, there will be a ‘real’ post soon…  but for today, all I have to offer you is a pictures of  “daddy cat”! Mr. S and I fell in love with this cat at Aqua Books Crafty Minions craft sale and had to have him; he was made by Marathon 1981. Jace isn't too sold on him yet, but he’ll grow to love

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-71150524677377460392010-07-31T19:05:00.001-05:002010-07-31T19:12:16.431-05:00

It’s been a busy week! We had the opportunity to get a free chalkboard for Sebastian from the University of Manitoba. The UofM has a waste prevention program where the recycle old supplies, everything from chalkboards to chairs and give it away for free to the public. We decided on a 4’x4’ board that will eventually end up in my studio so Sebastian can do his art with me.   This week also

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-31427698902006579622010-07-24T20:52:00.001-05:002010-07-24T22:16:07.467-05:00

Our little garden(s) have been growing like crazy these past few weeks!                                                                                           gardens/yard in june What’s growing and what’s done?  Peas, radishes, collards, lettuce and kale are done for us now. I planted a second round of collards and radishes; we’ll see how they do. Raspberries are petering off as well.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-25247166198168817612010-07-18T13:03:00.002-05:002010-07-18T22:48:57.730-05:00

We’ve been gorging on raspberries from our yard for the last couple of weeks and realized that we actually have enough to make jam. While I was picking the raspberries, I noticed that we had currents (I really wasn't expecting any of these this year!), so I thought I would add some of those into the jam as well ♥ .Our fresh box from F.O.O.D arrived with a container of saskatoons – one of my

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-45078788398409183852010-07-12T17:57:00.001-05:002010-07-12T17:57:46.736-05:00

I wish I could take all the credit for this brilliant idea, but alas, I cannot… The other day I was trying to figure out how to preserve all the wonderful herbs growing in our garden ♥ I thought about drying them; which I will do with the savory and thyme, but this really isn't the best way to save all of their wonderful flavors for the winter. I considered chopping and freezing them, making

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-2479894318668756192010-07-05T20:21:00.001-05:002010-07-05T20:21:21.209-05:00

I'm a little bit behind on this blog post, but I didn’t want to pass it over for something more recent (ie. this week). Last week we picked up 1,000 live little ladybugs for our garden from Sage Garden Herbs. This is our second year releasing ladybugs in the yard and the first year that Mr.S has been involved – he loved the little ladybugs ♥ Ladybugs are big eaters! one little lady can

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-4790102385782469022010-07-02T12:49:00.001-05:002010-07-02T12:49:10.154-05:00

We took Sebastian to Lower Fort Garry yesterday for Canada Day (and my Birthday ♥). We met up with a couple groups of our friends which made the day even better! Sebastian behind the Farm Managers House Its probably been 20 years since ive been there and now im wondering why we don’t go more often?! The grounds, buildings, carpentry – everything, was just beautiful! From their website:

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-90502232481750348882010-06-29T16:01:00.001-05:002010-06-29T18:19:17.037-05:00

We took Sebastian out to Boon Burger Café the other day to see what they were all about. We knew that they were an all vegetarian burger joint (vegan upon request). We are honestly pretty anti-vegan faux this and that, but do love vegetarian food so we were confident that we would find something on the menu for us. I also heard through the grapevine that it was child friendly – this is a must

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-20212765742767719002010-06-28T21:12:00.001-05:002010-06-29T18:18:52.100-05:00

I recently heard about CSNstores.com and have the wonderful opportunity to review one of their products, but where to begin?! – they have over 200 stores! CSN stores carry everything from track lighting to play kitchens to pet products…. im thinking about review something from the houseware section, maybe a juicer or breadmaker (both are things I don’t have). Any suggestions? xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-63409847328752306212010-06-27T10:44:00.001-05:002010-06-27T11:06:38.451-05:00

Yesterday we had Sebastian’s first Birthday party! With his birthday being right before Christmas we decided that we would celebrate with him on the actual day, but wait until the summer to have a birthday party with all of our friends – it was a hit! I don’t like to post pictures of other people on the internet without their permission, so all of the photo’s with people below are cleverly

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-43954234324929884632010-06-22T19:02:00.001-05:002010-06-22T19:02:04.790-05:00

Its been awhile since I did an update!                   Our little swimmer (yes I took my SLR in the water!) On the weekend after Sebastian’s last swim lesson for the summer, we went to Indigo in hopes of picking up Good to the Grain: Baking with Whole-Grain Flours  by Kim Boyce, but it wasn’t in stock. Ill be ordering it online tonight! While I was there I just had to swing by the huge

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-87201104098578918462010-06-13T22:28:00.001-05:002010-06-13T22:28:58.060-05:00

Around here, Sunday is Family Day. As a child it was spent at my grandparents, when they past away it was at my mom’s place. Over the years people have come and gone, jobs have changed making you unavailable and things have come up, but more often than not, Family Day still happens, whether there is six of us or just three. One of my brothers is MIA, by his own choice, so he doesn't take

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-31683182767101861582010-06-12T16:10:00.003-05:002011-02-13T08:23:40.433-06:00

When I came across Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's savory muffin recipe, I knew I would have to make them! its not often that I find a savory muffin recipe and Hugh’s recipes have never let me down!As many of you know, I am still learning to bake. I have problems following directions and substituting a whole bunch of ‘stuff’ in lieu of essential ingredients, that's why im always blown away when a

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-15683239551504638412010-06-09T21:07:00.001-05:002010-06-09T21:07:49.875-05:00

Sebastian has graduated from being trapped on his deck to exploring the backyard. When he’s done exploring he goes up the stairs back to his little deck.  The first time I saw him do the stairs, it totally freaked me out (I did manage to catch it on camera)! we have no stairs inside our home, how does he know how to do them?! Here’s some pictures of the little explorer in our backyard…

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-19503537177817442142010-06-06T09:36:00.001-05:002010-06-06T09:36:22.700-05:00

Yesterday was the first farmers market of the season! we were slow going, didn’t get there until 10:30 (that is very late for us!) but it was still great and full of local good stuff. One of the things I was most excited to find was wild rice orzo from Nature’s Farm. They had a huge selection of their pasta’s as well as their free-run eggs – yumm! Nature’s Farm is a Manitoba pasta company

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-4083555457613075732010-05-28T16:11:00.001-05:002010-05-28T19:15:49.687-05:00

Friday brings so many wonderful things, one of them being our “fresh box” from Fresh Option Organic Delivery (F.O.O.D). When I stopped breastfeeding Mr.S  in March, I knew that we were going to go through milk like crazy!  We used to drink soy, but there was no way I would Sebastian drink it all the time, so we switched over to goat milk.  We choose to drink local goats milk because its better

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-44957538593896716422010-05-23T14:18:00.001-05:002010-05-23T14:18:07.273-05:00

Today is my dad’s birthday, so Sebastian invited him over for bunch ♥ On the menu was: Fresh organic strawberries and pineapple Salmon frittata made with smoked salmon, gruyere, fresh dill. The recipe I use is from my friend Tiffany, its posted on her blog. I've made it both with crème fraiche and sour cream and it works out great! This time added some fresh chives from the garden. Pea

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-25121728656123301642010-05-20T15:56:00.001-05:002010-05-20T15:58:03.679-05:00

My friend Marissa makes excellent marshmallows (I blogged about them last year, check them out here). Have It Sweet also makes amazing marshmallows (and caramels too!) so why can’t I?  turns out I can!!!   I knew that I didn’t want to make them with corn syrup, its just bad for everyone and so hard to find organic, so I wanted to try to make them with brown rice syrup, turns out you can!

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-29142840894359967782010-05-15T22:34:00.001-05:002010-05-15T22:34:13.069-05:00

I recently came across Sun Hollows Etsy shop and was instantly in love! Sun Hollow is a small, family run business that creates handmade goods for children. The family lives on a homestead in rural Maine, in a solar powered home ♥  How great is that?! Turns out that Danielle from Sun Hollow also loves my art! so we had to come up with a trade! I knew that I just had to have a wooden

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-25853431357041657772010-05-11T20:21:00.001-05:002010-05-11T20:21:38.310-05:00

I love it when we start and finished a project in one day (or two, but no more than two!). The other day I was looking at our overcrowded book shelf in our family room and thought that it needed a punch of color. All the books are colorful, but the shelf itself  just blended in with all the other earthy hues in the room – what to do? bright blue paint! Jason cleared off all the books

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-5799056672947737212010-05-06T20:29:00.002-05:002010-05-07T07:41:17.651-05:00

“Ahhhh, another day down!” Monday through Friday, that is exactly how I feel when im walking to my Jeep after work. The second im in the Jeep and start it up, the “Ahhh” mode ends, and turns into a race home (never speeding of course) so Jason can get to work. Im totally in the zone, until im about a block away from the our home, then everything changes – ill be seeing Sebastian soon ♥ . So many

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-11312438780258132492010-05-03T19:02:00.001-05:002010-05-03T19:02:45.488-05:00

  My copies of the May/June issue of Cloth Paper Scissors arrived today!!! How cool to see my art is such an amazing magazine ♥   xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-61978033714936304612010-05-02T18:43:00.002-05:002010-05-02T18:44:35.421-05:00

sneak peakOriginally uploaded by heavens earthJust wanted to let everyone know that ill be stocking some new art in my Etsy shop this week ♥xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-45719702282512435832010-04-29T22:43:00.001-05:002010-04-29T22:44:25.644-05:00

A couple weeks ago my friend Tiffany blogged about these cool looking veggie savers that she had won through Kitchen Boutique. I'm all about kitchen stuff and winning things so I had to check it out! Kitchen Boutique has two brick and mortar stores, one in Canmore, AB and the other in Cochrane, AB. They also have an online store and blog. It was on the blog that I was lucky enough to win a

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-39362147087169880842010-04-24T15:15:00.001-05:002010-04-24T15:16:50.482-05:00

I planned on posting about our worm bin on Earth Day, but was way too busy enjoying the beautiful weather, and never got around to it! So here it goes.. We’ve been vermicomposting since 2006 and have been pretty amazed by how great it works! We decided on a vermicomposter because we didn't want to have to deal with everything that goes along with an outdoor compost bin – turning, sifting and

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-39951147971855877752010-04-20T18:36:00.001-05:002010-04-20T18:36:46.028-05:00

I knew that there was going to be a feature on my art in the next issue of Cloth Paper Scissors, but I had no idea that my art would be on the cover ♥ I can’t wait to see my copy in person! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-39543463536770889952010-04-19T20:28:00.001-05:002010-04-19T20:28:31.460-05:00

Last week we received our wool mattress from Shepherds Dream. It’s really important to us as a family to be as green as possible inside and outside of the home; inside the home paying really close attention to indoor air quality. When we were choosing the materials to dress our home with, we tried to make the greenest choices possible – low VOC paints, no carpet, natural fiber drapes, soy

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-34997013321311662942010-04-16T16:38:00.001-05:002010-04-16T16:41:41.184-05:00

Sold Art What a week for art! This week I said good-bye to a much loved wee little house. This sweet little house is on its way to its new home in California. Aside from that, a few prints are enRoute to wonderful new places as well as a couple of my art pendants! Thank you so much to everyone who has supported my art and continues to support it! What a sweet life ♥ New Art Today my two

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-260077760552686412010-04-13T16:38:00.001-05:002010-04-13T16:54:01.142-05:00

Yesterday was a very productive day considering it was my first day back at work after my surgery… For dinner we made some marinated tempeh on the bbq and served it with a 9 grain pilaf . My neighbor was outside while I was doing the bbq’ing (yes, it’s me who does it for the most part, not Jason) and she said how great it smelled!  she was shocked when she found out what I was making! I don’t

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-20093637897489357712010-04-08T20:35:00.001-05:002010-04-08T20:40:40.376-05:00

Oh how I love chili garlic oil! I love it on rice I love it in noodle soups I love it in chao ga (Vietnamese rice porridge) I love it on fish I love it with spring rolls and I especially love it with shrimp dumplings – my favorite! Ingredients 4 cups canola oil 1 head of garlic about 2.5 cups chopped dried chilies  2 tbls sugar Method 1. chop the dried

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-41140634774713257192010-04-04T12:54:00.001-05:002010-04-04T12:54:25.582-05:00

Happy Easter ♥ xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-86874933720606462562010-03-31T21:04:00.001-05:002010-03-31T21:04:50.216-05:00

Look’s like spring is finally here! xoxo S.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-66220702524819978902010-03-28T11:52:00.001-05:002010-03-28T11:52:20.831-05:00

The other day Bonnie, a mama pal of mine, posted a way too good to be true focaccia recipe on her blog On Baking And The Baby. I'm not very good at baking (as you all know) so I had to give her recipe a try! Of course, I can’t leave well enough alone and had to mess with it trying to incorporate some stone ground wheat flour.   No-Fuss Focaccia slightly adapted from Bonnie's recipe

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-17177538137115382712010-03-24T15:15:00.001-05:002010-03-24T15:20:15.626-05:00

Ever since making Sebastian’s Birthday crown I've been hooked on sewing (or hooked on the idea of sewing)! Over the last couple of months I've collected some fabric and patterns, but have been a little bit intimidated by it all. I decided to take the plunge and cut out my first pattern! This is what I made: What is it? well its a floor pillow/ottoman of sorts! I'm really happy with the way

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-89506037979158943092010-03-23T14:19:00.001-05:002010-03-23T14:19:26.195-05:00

Today we went on a tour of Children’s House, a Montessori nursery and kindergarten. Sebastian is still too young to attend, but we wanted to see the school first hand before we became too sold on the idea. Turns out that it is everything we thought it was and then some! While touring Children’s House we saw a lot of the same practices that we already do at home with Sebastian, and feel that

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-11107687011773705742010-03-21T12:42:00.001-05:002010-03-21T12:42:19.711-05:00

Sebastian did not approve of this breakfast, not even one bit! (ok, that statement isn’t 100% true, he didn’t actually get a single piece of it in his mouth!). We thought the recipe was excellent for a Sunday morning breakfast ♥ The original recipe can be found on Savy Mom. I really didn’t stray far from the original, just a couple minor changes. As always, use organic whenever possible.

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-57699402590905514182010-03-20T23:13:00.001-05:002010-03-21T12:44:33.732-05:00

Seems like it will be a slow recovery from this surgery, im still feeling very ouchy and its already been over a week :( I was able to finish up some of my WIP and will hopefully start some new pieces in the next few days. Im slowly posting these new gems in my Etsy shop (the rainbow flowers found a new home already ♥ )        Hope you are enjoying your

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-31702689866875925842010-03-18T12:53:00.001-05:002010-03-18T12:53:35.460-05:00

Last summer I discovered Juniper Ridge, a line of 100% wildcrafted products at our friends organic greenhouse – Sage Garden Herbs. I picked up a couple packs of incense for our home as well as some treats for my brother and sister in law who had just moved from Winnipeg. From the Juniper Ridge website: The mission of Juniper Ridge is to create unique wildcrafted products from the mountains

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-25252595387570204312010-03-16T17:06:00.001-05:002010-03-16T17:06:32.536-05:00

Originally uploaded by heavens earthJust wanted to do a quick update saying that I haven't forgot about this wonderful little blog! Last week I ended up having some a couple emergency surgeries and am very happy to report that I am on the road to recovery ♥ I hope to have some new posts in the next few days, but until then everyone can enjoy this awesome picture of all the failed IV attempts that

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-82424201855736838202010-03-02T19:53:00.001-06:002010-03-02T19:53:15.796-06:00

I managed to snap some pictures of Sebastian playing so contently in our dining room with his wooden fire truck ♥   I love wooden toys for so many reason (and know I blog a lot about it!)… I think its so important to be able to look at toy and still have it resemble and feel like the material it is made out of. Sebastian really enjoys exploring all the different textures of his wooden blocks,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-6026791637139558202010-02-28T13:00:00.004-06:002010-02-28T13:36:07.469-06:00

A couple weeks ago I had some fabric from Ikea picked up for me in hopes to use it on these gumdrop pillows that I’m making.  When I got to see the fabric in person it was gorgeous, but the image was way too large for my project.   I’ve been unhappy with the set of paintings over our love seat for some time now; its not that I don’t like them, they’re just too dark for our very bright room,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-61082699981035184242010-02-24T19:57:00.001-06:002010-02-24T19:57:33.584-06:00

I received a subscription to Vegetarian Times this Christmas and received my first issue last week. I  had just bought a big bag or organic quinoa from Costco and was happy to see a recipe for a quinoa salad in this months issue. I was a little apprehensive when I saw that the recipe called for apples and coconut, seemed pretty bizarre to me, but I decided to give it a whirl and it was delicious!

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-87991774577075859742010-02-23T19:18:00.001-06:002010-02-23T19:18:27.846-06:00

What a day! I was pleasantly surprised to come home from work and see that one of my newest paintings had sold! (along with three others!!!). 2 bird love song - sold I’ve finally finished up on commissioned pieces and have been having a wonderful just painting to paint. I experimented on this piece bringing together my little houses from my Seb’s World Series, flowers from my Flower

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-3823735467975686462010-02-21T15:45:00.002-06:002010-02-21T16:24:38.855-06:00

I've been battling a wicked sinus infection for the last few days and haven't felt like cooking or eating at all until yesterday. I decided to make soup because its easy and will last for a few meals and probably make me feel a bit better too! Broad Bean Vegetable Soup(as always use organic wherever possible) 1 large onion, diced5 stalks of celery, diced3 carrots, diced3 potatoes, diced1 large

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-16170682455064904572010-02-20T10:43:00.001-06:002010-02-20T10:44:00.845-06:00

We have been accumulating wood and felt food for Sebastian for some time now and over the last few months we noticed him playing with them more and more. Often we would open the dishwasher to find a wooden carrot in with the cutlery or open the drawer under the stove to find wooden pieces of bread – we figured it was time for Sebastian to have his own little kitchen. I looked around online and

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-63000777408296221412010-02-12T18:34:00.001-06:002010-02-12T18:34:39.597-06:00

I've been meaning to order from The Silk Road Spice Merchant for some time now and finally got around to it this week. I will admit that I have a serious crush on Penzey’s Spices but they don’t seem to love their Canadian customers the way we love them and charge an absolute fortune for shipping, so off I went to search for a Canadian spice company – that’s how I found The Silk Road…   My

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-38526393707388448452010-02-09T18:48:00.001-06:002010-02-09T18:48:02.681-06:00

After work today I made a big pot of  West African Peanut soup. I loosely used the recipe from Prairie Ink Restaurant and Bakery, who is know for this wonderful peanuty soup… West African Peanut soup – my way                     * use organic whenever possible INGREDIENTS 2 Tbsp olive oil 3/4 cup diced carrots 3/4 cup diced celery 3/4 cup diced white onion 3 cups sweet

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-47309597450780440782010-02-06T11:44:00.002-06:002010-02-06T11:50:38.439-06:00

I’ve been wanting to buy a flash diffuser for my SLR for some time now, problem is they’re huge, ugly and pricey! So I searched online for a tutorial and found one on instructables.com.   A brief rundown of the steps (complete instructions can be found here): 1. Cut a slot in the body of a  film canister big enough to fit your flash. 2. Cut away about half of the circle on the top of the

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-68701718910768121762010-01-31T20:52:00.003-06:002010-02-09T19:01:49.258-06:00

We’ve been hooked on smoothies all of January.. have a feeling it will continue in February. Smoothies are such a great way to add tons of raw fruits and veggies into your diet.This particular smoothie was made with:fresh baby spinach fresh pineapple water banana green apple probiotic powder ground flax seed frozen mixed berries What I do is blend the spinach, water and pineapple together first,

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-67403260185024334672010-01-28T16:47:00.001-06:002010-01-28T16:47:25.865-06:00

We buy good, really good bread, not that garbage you get from the grocery store. It;s made with local flour and grains and we tend to buy a few loaves at a time and just freeze them as we’re not that close to the bakery.  Having a few loaves on hand makes us less frugal when it comes to the end pieces – none of us like them! As always, the collection of end pieces were kicking around so I decided

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1888375803046204351.post-13397100731787208692010-01-25T18:53:00.001-06:002010-01-25T18:53:29.750-06:00

I've been wanting to buy a doll for Sebastian since the day he was born, maybe even before that. I told Jason that I thought Sebastian should have one, not knowing what he would say. Turns out, he thought it was a good idea too. I think its so incredibly important for little boys to have a doll so they can learn to love, nurture and care for their precious little friend. I believe this will

Serenahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13608318036055673128noreply@blogger.com2