Balsamic Barbecued Beets

My new favourite winter veg is beets. We have been beeting it up since January and using the entire plant in different recipes. Husband found this gorgeous balsamic beet recipe to accompany our Easter lamb. They were so delicious! 

Marinate beets in a simple herbed balsamic vinaigrette before sticking them on the grill for a delicious and healthy barbecued side dish. These easy balsamic barbecued beets are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free. 

Preparation:

In a wide flat dish, whisk together all the ingredients except the beets and 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar until well combined.

Place the beets in the dish, coating well with the vinegar and allow to marinate for at least one hour. Wrap beets in foil, drizzling with extra marinade and folding the foil to seal well.

Grill for 20 to 25 minutes, or until beets are soft. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATHER!

PASSION

MY SEEDS

This will be our second year planting seeds for our vegetable garden. Last year I was getting ready to have Romilly. Thinking back, I am pretty impressed with how well our garden turned out. The credit has to go to Husband for making sure the garden was watered for the first few weeks. After last years success we have  bought a few more things to try this year. I always go a bit overboard but I can't help it I'm so excited to grow my own. I'll become the best little produce farmer yet! *chuckle* The kids helped us out with everything over the weekend. Euan has become an expert grass seed guy.

SOUNDS LUSH

GLUTEN FREE CUPCAKE

I tried my first gluten free cupcake today. It was at a beautiful little cafe with a great kids play area tucked in the back. I have been there before under a different name and management. I was pretty excited when I walked through the door and saw some gorgeous baked goods. I got my grump on when I figured out that I had ordered a gluten free cupcake. I was even grumpier when (in my opinion) my cupcake tasted like a $4 sand mound  with no diet benefit- boo! ( keep in mind I love gluten cupcakes and have no gluten intolerance) 

After talking to Steve's cousin about it this afternoon I feel kinda bad for being so judgmental. She informed me that gluten is easily cross contaminated when baking. The Thimble takes extra care in making sure this doesn't happen. After checking out their FB page I have a better understanding about cross contamination. How awful for people who have a gluten intolerance. The majority of the cafes not even serving a gluten free option. For all you gluten intolerant Mummy's out there. Check out the Thimble Cafe in Barhaven!

YOUR BEST

THE BEST THINGS HAPPEN

The best things happen unexpectedly!

 Look who just happen to show up in O-town today. My guest blogger and fabulous friend L! Such a nice treat indeed L. xo

88

Yesterday the Queen of England turned Eighty-Eight. David Bailey took this photo to mark the occasion. She is lovely. 

Happy Birthday Queenie! 

ELLIE

Explosion is about her Dad who she hasn't spoken to for over 10 years. I've loved Ellie for quite some time but I took some time to get to know her music a little better tonight. She is getting all the success she deserves and more. The Live@Home show is incredible. Enjoy! xoxo

HOPPY EASTER

Our Easter weekend is in full swing. Euan's been hopping about since getting over his GI infection and Romilly isn't far behind him. She's getting her 6th tooth in this weekend!

Today is our last full morning with Grammy  before we drop her off to go back home to Guelph. We've enjoyed her visit and will be sad to see her go. The trees are pruned and she brought life back to our house with some lovely new easter plants. Thank you Lynn. It wasn't the visit we all expected but we made the best of it and had a lovely time. We've had lot's of great meals with family and friends and will wrap it up tomorrow with an Easter Egg hunt with friends before heading on vacation to the USA.

Hoppy Easter! xoxo

BUNNY CAP

GOOD FRIDAY

HOPE

THE THREE BEARS

I am pretty sure this book was thought of while having the same conversation that I had with my children this morning; though Romilly doesn't actually say English words yet. There is a lot of baby talk agreeing with Euan's "it's too hot!, It's too cold!" statements while eating porridge.

It's too hot- I pour milk on it. It's too cold- I put it in the microwave when in actual fact at this point my children are just enjoying the show of Mummy running around pandering to their every whim and are saying it just for a laugh. 

The words that are most used by Euan right now are too hot, too cold (this is used at bath time as well ), snack, all done! (mostly used when I sing) please, thank you & Nooooooo! 

ALWAYS BELIEVE

3:45

The full moon will be completely caught in the earths' shadow. At the onset of the eclipse the moon will gradually appear to become a rusty red color.  We North Americans are going to have one of the best views of it so set your alarm clock's for 3:45am people!

I COULD

I could eat a dozen of these after the weekend we've had. They look delightful!

Who knows what happened with C. He probably forgot to mention to his mother that he was coming until the last minute and she freaked out. We will never know for sure what the true story was. 

Our baby is on the mend. He asked to have pancakes for supper tonight. I'm going to keep him home and away from any other kids for a couple more days just to keep every one safe. 

 We are blessed to have each other and our beautiful children. There is a lot of love and laughter in this house and we have so much to be grateful for in this life.

 I should also throw in that it was 25 degrees here in Ottawa today. What a change from the pile of snow that was here a week ago.  

Xoxo Superhero Mummy

ROYALS

Our royals spoof.

UNITED IN RED

Well played boys!

LIFE IN STYLE

Bayshore Life in Style

Complimentary programming to suit your life... and style.

Join us every Tuesday and Thursday at 10:00 AM for a Free 'Mommy & Me' Yoga class!

Instructor, Jill Kiolai, discovered yoga during her days at the University of Wisconsin and moved on to train over
an 18-month period in triyoga in London, UK. She also completed triyoga's prenatal yoga and gental yoga training, learning from teachers all over the UK. We are happy to have her teach our Mommy & Me yoga classes
to you!

In Addition, you will receive a complimentary DAVIDs Tea
just for attending the class!

I went to the mall this morning to pick up a few things and noticed these complimentary YOGA classes on my way in. What a great idea, I can't wait to try it out.

GUILTY PLEASURE

HAPPY PEOPLE

WINE BARS & BOOKS

Last night was book club night. The book was The Book Thief.  I'm not going to review the book, there are already many favorable reviews out there on it. I joined book club mainly for a girls night out and have had the bonus of reading some great, some not so great books in the process.

What I will review is the wine bar we met at. It's called 4th Ave wine bar. We had a big enough group that I saw a bit of everything that they offer on the menu including the dessert.  I had the triple chocolate mousse cake.

It has the great atmosphere and ambiance I've been missing in Ottawa. The wine was described by one of the girls last night as delightful. Our waitress was busy but attentive. She was also pretty awesome to share some of her favourite Ottawa restaurant finds, which was pretty nice of her.  The food was a little slow coming, but I only noticed that because a few of the girls had to leave early. If that wasn't the case it wouldn't have mattered because we were all busy catching up and enjoying the great wine!

They are located on 107 Fourth Avenue in the Glebe just east of Bank street. In the first row of old houses on the left east along Fourth avenue. They don't take reservations but heard they are pretty good at squeezing everyone in. It's my new favourite for that part of town. It's super cozy I can't wait to bring Husband!

 Here is the WEBSITE

DO

BUILD A PERFECT SALAD

I can't remember where I found this but it's a perfect reminder for me when I'm having a brain block on what kind of salad to make. Just looking at it makes my mouth water. The problem is so do pictures of cakes. I love cake and vegetables equally..  very dangerous!

YEARS AND TEARS

I've invited a few friends over tomorrow for tea and play. I've bought our kids a few Easter crafts to do while the Mums are busy having a catch up.

 Here is a craft I'm interested in making. I wonder how many years and tears this plate of goodies would take me. xoxo

ASK AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE

Connor mentioned while on skype last month that he didn't particularly like the colour of his room. This weekend was spent creating something new for him. I perused the internet and found some really cool rooms which we can take inspiration from. A few of these are over the top but really really cool.

WANDERLUST

NURSERY SCHOOL

My blog has taken a back seat the past few months. I miss writing. The thought of looking back at it in a few years and missing all the post I might have written about our wonderful life makes me sad. My children are growing up so fast and it's a very emotional time for me. My baby started nursery school this week. Steve had a few days off and we both took him.

Steve and I were writing and adding pictures to Connor's book tonight. One of the questions it asked was what did he wear on his first day of school in Ottawa. Connor's book has a lot of questions that Steve has trouble remembering but in time it comes back to him.

 This is how I will remember for Euan... You wore a grey and white stripped gap shirt and an electric blue RL jogging suit and croc runners. You had your blue snow suit, snow boots and your Elmo hat. All the way there you pointed out all the school buses. You cried for 20 minutes about an hour after we dropped you off when you realized we weren't there. Euan, you are loved so much and nursery school is going to be one of many great experiences you will have in your life.

Let's not forget about our Rose. Massive smiles all day long unless she's hungry or tired and then the exact opposite happens. Climbed your first stair this week, just one thankfully! We let you crawl around the driveway and make a huge mess of your white snow suit. You were so happy though. We took Livia, Euan and you on a trip in the wagon around the block. You were laid back staring up at Livia with your shiny blue eyes and the biggest smile. We were all smiling because spring might finally have come to Ottawa. 

TALENT

Steve's cousin Kelly crochet this dress and head band for Romilly Rose. What an amazing talent and one I would love to learn. She said she would teach me as soon as I have the time to learn. These two red heads are awesome!

SPRING IS HERE