the festive month

Hello bloggers,

Boy, it has been one hectic month and now the holidays are here! Unfortunately, this Christmas isn't so white and just plain cold; Christmas lights are dispersed as some houses did not bother to put up the lights this year. However, like every Christmas, I make it my favourite holiday as it becomes a time for generosity, peace and baking. I will save you the long post about how much I have learned this year and how I have grown but I do want to say that the acceptance of my life has been the theme this year. I have definitely changed a lot and I assure everyone that I will continue to do so. I will continue to be humble and become a more giving person. I intend to maintain relationships and commit to activities.

I hope all you bloggers out there have had a wealthy year, full of opportunities. May the new year bring you more happiness and positive changes. Happy holidays everyone!

Cheers,
-t

p.s. I have photos to post but I'll leave that for one gigantic photo post. Instead, here's one of me knitting. Hah!

Keep it coming

As some of you may know, I volunteer at a rehabilitation centre and I specifically work with patients who have had major brain injuries and strokes. Sometimes there are slow days where I walk around and there are only a few patients who need some attention. However, each time I go back, I am reminded of how lucky I am to be walking, eating with my hands and anything else we take for granted.  I am rewarded with a feeling of appreciation, as the nurses and patients loudly express how nice I am to give me time up to spend time with them and help them out wherever I can. And as selfish as this sounds, I am so happy to hear those compliments.

Today, I was introduced to a new patient who had memory problems. He was sarcastic and didn't have much to say; he stared at me like I was an annoyance more than anything else. But being stubborn and patient, I broke him. He started to listen to me and would open up a little bit more. By the end of my shift, I had him smiling at me all the time and I understood his odd sense of humour--it felt so good.

And at the end of the day, I know I have made a small difference--and that is all that matters.

Eggplant Spinach Lasagna

Initially a joke, I had promised a friend to make eggplant spinach lasagna--that was two weeks ago. However, I try my best to keep all promises, no matter how long they may take me. So naturally, I knew my first attempt at lasagna was in the near future. I finally got the courage to give it a go this morning and you know what? It wasn't so bad! The preparation took the longest, layering was a little too much fun and I may have added extra, extra cheese to it but hey, it looks pretty delicious if you ask me. My family is going to bake it for dinner tonight and hopefully I can drop off a small slice for my friend. Afterall, someone has to taste it before I give it to him right?!

Yes, I cheated and used canned tomato sauce.

The finished product!

Cheers,
-t

Tomato Basil Pesto Flake Pastry

I finally gave this recipe a try but rather than using a puff pastry, I decided to try a flake pastry. If I were to make this again, I think I would wrap it a bit better and perhaps add a few more tomatoes inside. Other than that, it was extra crispy and the basil pesto and tomatoes combined made for one tasty treat!

Cheers,
-t