To say that we arrived home and hit the ground running is putting it mildly. Because of my having booked our family holiday so in advanced it meant that my kids missed the first week back after a three week winter holiday. I know, I’m bad. Due to this poor planning, I was on a mission to get my kids back to school as soon as possible. Soooo, on the morning we arrived, yes after a gazillion hour journey, I sent them to school. Yep, we arrived at 5am, were picked up by my in-laws, had breakfast, showered, and off my cherubs went. Please do not tell the authorities, but I came home a took a nap! STOP! Do not call the authorities I said. To be fair, the two of them slept on the plane, whereas I did not. I spent most of the flight being kicked by them so they could get comfortable on the sky couch. Also, I left my phone on in case the school called to tell me either of my children had fallen asleep. See I am a responsible mother!

This being our first year in NZ we have been met with a few surprises. The school system is somewhat similar to that in Australia, but there are a few differences. One of them is the School Cross Country Races. In Australia the kids had a fun sports carnival starting in Year 3. No scores were kept and the distances were just across part of the cricket field.  But here, Year 1 students and up are expected to race cross country. Year 1 ran 1.5K and Year 4 ran 2K. All students are mandated unless there is a doctor’s note.

We had an idea this was coming because on the day we left for our holiday there was a homework assignment for Lana to run 10 times for 10 minutes at a time while on holiday. Unfortunately, I got the note while we were on our way to the airport and her running shoes were at school. Although she did log about 150 hours swimming in the pool, we only did about 3 workouts. Okay, so maybe I am a bad mother.

So day two of being home I go to pick Nuno up from school and he says, “Mom, can we go on a trip again?” To which I respond that we are going to Portugal next year. He then replies, “No mom, I want to go away not this Friday, but next Friday. I want to leave the country.” The date he was requesting we not be in town coincided with the date of the upcoming Cross Country meet! So I respond, “Training didn’t go so well.” And he says, “No mom, it didn’t. I hated it. It was horrible.”

Lana was not so excited either. On the day of the race she was all good to go until we headed out the door and she broke down. And let me tell you it ain’t pretty when that girl gets upset. She doesn’t just cry. Nope, she argues. So every sympathetic, sweet, supportive thing you say is met with an argument. People, we have a lawyer on our hands.

So it was with great pleasure that we arrived at the school and saw Lana looking like this.

She was in among her friends and actually looked excited.

The course was not an easy one. And it was a cold day. One of the coldest on record. Oh, and did I mention the mud? The mud where kids where losing their shoes before having to run up the hill?

So it was about this point where we caught up with her. This point where we were being dutiful parents attending a Cross Country Race cheering our daughter on. It was this point where she laid into me telling me off. Yep, that’s her walking up the hill, telling me I lied. That this is NOT fun, that this is horrible….

How do you answer to that? You don’t. You just clap, smile and continue to cheer. And she kept going and finished the race. She was 13th out of 13, but I think deep down she was still proud of herself. It is her sweet friends and teachers cheering her on that pushed her through the end of the race. Well done Lana!

Nuno spoke to his vovo the morning of the race and informed him that he expected to win because in his words, “I am speedier.” Not wanting to discourage my son, but still prepare him for what was sure not to happen, I just reminded him that the purpose of the day was to work on one’s fitness level not necessarily win the race. Well he went out there and gave it his all.

The woman in green is my friend Joss who was cheering Nuno on. It was actually very cute seeing the parents shouting out every boy’s name not just their son’s. And the boys all ran their little hearts out. Especially Nuno….

So I have this niece who’s gorgeous (they all are to tell you the truth), smart and to top it off, she can cook! She kindly shared a recipe with the family this holiday that I became addicted to. Yup, I’ll admit it. That night I made sure I got my fair share of that yummy goodness.

The next morning, there was none left, and I was desperate for more so I was left to try and replicate it for breakfast. Yes, it’s that delicious.

Since getting ‘home’ I have substituted the pasta with buckwheat pasta as well as whole wheat pasta and it’s still so good.

Thanks again for sharing Ali!

Kale and Sesame Spaghetti

• 12 Cups Kale, cut in thin strips across the spine, tough stem discarded
• 13 oz (375 grams) spaghetti or other pasta
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup tamari
• 3 Tablespoons dark sesame oil (or regular sesame oil)
• 1 teaspoon salt (if necessary)

1. Bring a large pot of water to boiling.
2. Add spaghetti and boil for 3 to 4 minutes.
3. Add the kale to the same pot and stir carefully so that it’s all
combined.
4. Continue cooking until the pasta is al dente (just cooked)
5. Meanwhile, place sesame seeds in a single layer in a frying pan, and
cook over low heat, stirring occasionally,  until the seeds are toasted.
Watch very carefully that the seeds don’t burn. Stop cooking as soon as
they start to turn brown.
6. Drain the kale/spaghetti and transfer it to a large bowl.
7. Add the sesame seeds, tamari, sesame oil (and salt if you’re using
it) and mix well.
8. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I am sharing these because each time I have made them they have been a hit. Funny, everyone BUT my oldest vegetarian friend likes them. But that’s the way it goes.

I will warn you, this recipe yields a ton of burgers. I just share them with friends and family and store the rest in the fridge. They keep for a few days. I just eat them on bread with ketchup/tomato sauce, but my husband crumples a cooked burger on salad.  My sister-in-law mixed it in with some pasta as if it was ground beef and she said it tasted great.

So for Jen, my most carnivorous friend, because her daughter LOVED these.

You know Jen, she just might turn out to be a conservative vegan. Wouldn’t that be a hoot!!!

It’s official. I’ve decided to eat vegan. Does that make me a vegan? No. You see I know once in a blue moon I will eat meat. And once in a blue moon I will eat a delicious ice cream and cheese. I know myself. I know I love meat and dairy. So I will allow myself these when I REALLY want them. But you know what? I have decided that living a long life without disease and feeling healthy is my priority. So I will do my best to live a vegan lifestyle.

It ain’t always easy. Like when you’re on vacation with all your friends and they order pizza and your daughter talks about how delicious it is. Or when your friends wear shirts like this…

But that’s okay, I still love them. They are forgiven.

Hey y’all! We’re home.

It’s all sorts of awesome to be here. I am feeling absolutely spoiled. Not with gifts, but rather with love, which happens to be my favorite kind of spoiled. My kids are also at the center of so much love. Hugs and kisses 10 million times a day. Nuno has become a kissing monster. No joke. He was on the attack yesterday with his Auntie Diane and it’s to the point I hope he doesn’t drive her crazy. But something tells me she loves his love.

When we were little I never understood why my mother insisted that the house be immaculate before we would head off on a trip. She would always be running around making sure every last thing was put away as we were all ready to head out the door. I always assumed it was a matter of what people would think should we all die and then perhaps after our funerals our friends would be for some reason be traipsing through our house. I always thought it was ridiculous on her part. Really, who cares?

Now 30 years later, days before heading off on a big trip, with a million things to do, I find myself cleaning out the pantry, the fridge and all my office files. I have officially become my mother. I don’t think I am doing it for the aforementioned reason. For me it’s the joy of returning to a house that is in order. It makes sense to me, but I think it makes my husband and kids wonder (and comment). Mom, I think I now know how you felt.

I said I would share recipes. And here you are. This one is so easy to make. I am not sure how copyright laws impact sharing of recipes, so I to be safe I will only share one recipe from each cookbook, maybe two. After that I suggest you check out the book.

This one comes from Kris Carr’s Crazy, Sexy Diet, but is credited to Chad Sarno, the Raw Chef. My friend (and nutrition adviser) Stephanie P. put me onto her. In 2003, Kris Carr was diagnosed with a rare and incurable stage 4 cancer. Rather than give up, she did loads of research that led her to completely change her lifestyle. She is now a vegan. But more importantly, she is still alive and very well. I don’t like her style of writing. It’s akin to listening to a cheerleader cheer you through a book. BUT, there is so much information that will make you reconsider how you eat. The reason I got my hands on the book was because I did her 3 week cleanse. For three weeks my husband, my sister-in-law, Stephanie and Mandy ate an only alcohol free vegan diet. The not drinking bit was the challenge, the food was surprisingly yummy and filling. Not once did I feel hungry. There were a few meals that we conitnue to cook now that we are off the cleanse. The kale avacado salad is one of them.

Oh, and if you aren’t sold yet, did I mention that Lana LOVES it. Yes, my daughter, the hater of all things green. The same child that will not eat avocados begs for this. Just yesterday I was having some after school and the words that came out of her mouth were, ” Mom, can I PLEASE have some.” Being a good mother I shared. Well actually sharing is the wrong word because she finished it all off!

You start with some lovely kale. I am not sure how many varieties of kale there are so I’ll show you what I use.

Pull the leaves off the stem. Chop the leaves & toss the stem.

Kale-Avocado Salad

• 1 head of  kale, shredded
• 1 cup tomato, diced
• 1 ripe avocado, chopped ( I just mash it with my hand when mixing ingredients)
• 2.5 tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp sea salt

In mixing bowl toss all the ingredients, squeezing as you mix to ‘wilt’ the kale and cream the avocado. Enjoy!

*I was craving this salad and didn’t have tomatoes, so I made it without and it was still delicious.