Ollie & Koko Update! She's 1! He's still 3.5!

I suppose even though I did a "Happy Birthday Dakota" post, it's still important I write an update. After I do have TWO kids. We shan't forget all the happenings in the world of Mr. Oliver Wolfe.

The kids have been well: they are transitioning to the fact that now Mommy & Daddy both go to work in the morning. They are watched by my mom, Cal's mom or our wonderful nanny/friend Laura. Oliver announced two days ago at 6:45am, with his arms out to the sides, "NOBODY IS GOING TO WORK TODAY. NOBODY." It's definitely hard to leave them, but they're in good hands. 

Oliver is still quite obsessed with "inventing". It's ruining our home. We find piles and piles of electronics ("Leck-ronics") plugged into each other, often in correct pathways but definitely sometimes not. We haven't lost anything to an incorrect voltage yet, but it's almost certain we will at some point. If you have any spare usb cords, or things with usb ports that cords could plug into, please consider donating to the Oliver Thinks He's the Main Character From Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Fund Inc. When he's not inventing, he always says hilarious things ("I want to marry Abby because she gives warm hugs, and we have true love, and she is easy to hide things from") and he is beginning to be a better eater. It's not that he's picky, in fact he recently asked Laura if she could make him a salad because he was hungry, and ate sushi like a champ, he just doesn't have time for eating. I'm trying to give him more calm tasks like writing in notebooks (it's actually a detective pad, sorry!) and playing with dinosaur stickers. He is sweet and lovable, but also gets a ton of time outs.

Dakota is crawling up and down the stairs like she's a compulsive exerciser looking to lose weight before a vacation. She can walk with assistance, but no steps on her own yet (very soon I imagine). She is long, long, long, to the point that we may have a car seat flipping to forward facing earlier than expected (or desired). She has just a smidge more hair now, which is lovely. At this rate she'll be able to have a french braid by age 13. She has figured out that when she's done eating she can just cry really loud and I'll take her out of her high chair, so that's been a fun one.

Here is Oliver using my lens cap as an eye patch, and a toy from his doctor set as something else? Dakota isn't pleased about any of it.

Here is a photo I took in the Apple Store at Masonville mall while our friend Mariza (visiting from Brazil this month) bought an iPhone. I kinda wish they could fit in one mall-car forever. Also, that their dispensing thing would be broken forever so that the car rental would be free, like it is now.

This was literally the best photo I could get of them together on the couch. NOT having it.

Here they are at the cottage "playing chess". You can see who the bossy one is.

And here they are in a snowball fight on the lake. It's everyone vs Calvin, as you can see, except for me who happily documented it from inside the warm cottage.

It's been a fantastic January: my littlest little is one year old. I can't wait for the months to come -- especially the warm ones!

My Ultimate Sweet n Sour Pork

There is only one recipe that I am willing to break all of my dinner rules for. Those rules you ask?
1. Quick to make
2. Quick to clean up
3. Relatively healthy
I mean, I'm okay to break one rule for let's say a really good one-pan brussels sprouts & bacon dish that's going to end up being easy to clean up and totally nutritious. Or I'm cool to make a few too many dishes if the final meal was fast to make and great for our health. Orrrr, I'm fine to throw in a quick meaty pizza every so often that only keeps rule 1 and 2. But breaking all three? How dare I!

Sweet n Sour Pork is the ultimate. It's meaty, it's salty, it's sour, it's sweet. It fills you up and leaves you so happy. It feels like the greatest indulgence (and it kind of is). I like to add tons of veggies to mine so I feel somewhat okay with feeding it to my family.

Ingredients

1 lb pork
1/4 cup San-J Tamari
For batter:
1/2 cup water
2 T flour
1 T cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
Pinch of salt
For sweet 'n sour sauce:
1 cup water
Pinch of salt
3/4 cup raw sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
1/4 cup ketchup
2 T San-J Tamari
2 T cornstarch

1. Cut pork into small cubes and marinate in tamari* for a few hours. Prepare batter by whisking all ingredients together, then set aside in fridge.
2. Heat a skillet, with about 1cm of oil, to medium high heat. In batches, pick up pork cubes, let soy sauce drip off, and dunk in batter, then place in skillet. Don't overcrowd skillet, this may take a few rounds. Let one side get golden then use a fork or wooden flipper to flip battered pork cubes over and cook until the other side is golden. Remove to a paper towel lined plate and continue until all pork is cooked.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together all sauce ingredients. Place in a small sauce pan and heat until thickened, it should only take a few minutes.
4. Stir together cooked pork, and thickened sauce. You can keep this over a low flame to let the flavours marry. Serve with cooked rice and steamed vegetables.

I love this tamari because it's organic and gluten free! They use a totally natural fermentation process and you can absolutely taste it in the final product: mild yet still rich and salty. I think it makes all the difference in a good Asian dish!

What is Raclette?!

My family loves raclette night. Actually, it all started when Calvin and I were engaged and our church asked that we take some time to meet with our pastor and his wife to "prepare for marriage". They invited us over for lunch and just said "bring some veggies with you." We arrived with maybe asparagus and bell peppers in hand, I can't remember exactly what, and Pastor Blair & Angela proceeded to show us a weird looking European grill top device that we would be eating "raclette" from. Well, it was amazing. We received one as a wedding gift and have used it A LOT. We even purchased a new one for my mom at Christmas this year.

Raclette is officially a Swiss thing, a dish they eat using this grill by melting cheese, and serving it on top of potatoes, pickles, onions, etc. It's also the name of the type of cheese you use in the dish. We have definitely made it our own thing, still melting cheese but adding all sorts of things along with it. The grill features a flat top that you can cook meat and veggies on, and an under "broiler" that you use to heat things in small dishes that get inserted, things like cheese or baguette.

We like to offer multiple types of meat but quickly establish a "meat side" of the grill so that there's no cross contamination. We love thin cuts, like philly cheese-steak style meat, and seafood like shrimp and scallops work as well.

We put out a ton of veggies, some raw and some parcooked. For things like brussels sprouts, carrots and squash I'll steam it for a minute or two because it would have to spend too long on the grill to soften up otherwise.

We also put out oil, sea salt, different seasonings like lemon-pepper and Montreal Steak Spice, and often a pot of rice to keep our tummies at bay since this can take a long time much like a fondu dinner. Then you just start throwing things on top, and under, and eat as it's cooked. Everyone does their own but you can certainly share if you come up with a fun combination. Grill some brussels sprouts and onions, then pop them under the broiler with cheddar cheese and lemon juice until melted. Or cook chicken and mushrooms on top then broil them with mozzarella. Anything goes!

Raclette is a fun way to get creative and make sure everyone gets exactly what they're craving. You can even do breakfast raclette (crepe mix, scrambled eggs, english muffins to toast) or dessert raclette (pineapple, berries and sliced pound cake for grilling, and a big bowl of whipped cream!) It's really the ultimate social dinner.

Lentilafels

Calvin and I have a standard list of things we always buy at the grocery store (whole wheat bread, eggs, yogurt, bananas, etc.) and there's typically some more general list items like "easy lunch stuff" and my favourite "stuff Amy would like". Cal literally will go through the store and pick out cute things that he thinks I'd want, if I'm not with him, things like pomegranates, quinoa jambalaya, and cherry lemonade. Or in this case: brown lentils.

Now, typically my favourite uses of lentils would be soup, cold salad and Indian-ish dishes, but unfortunately none of those were a go. Soup wouldn't work because I was looking for something that the kids could eat without any assistance. (How much does it suck to spend half an hour feeding your one year old a bowl of soup, only to finally take a spoon of yours and it's cold? A lot.) No luck on salad because the way I like mine is super acidic and full of parsley which doesn't go well for little ones. And Indian food would require at very least more time, more coconut milk, and a husband who doesn't tell me to take a bath after I make anything with curry.


So falafels it was. The very easiest thing you can do with lentils short of eat them cold and plain. This took me around five minutes, I mean that. Here are the steps:

1. In a blender (regular family size or the small individual kind) buzz up 1 cup canned or recently cooked lentils with a few spoons of the canning liquid, or just water, as well as: a pinch of salt and a pinch of cumin and 1 egg. When it's sort of smooth, try stirring in a spoon of flour.

Happy First Birthday Dakota

Miss Dakota:

It's been a year... One that feels like five minutes, and twenty years, at the same time. It feels like I gave birth to you yesterday, but that you've been with our family since the dawn of time. You were always meant to be with our family, that is for sure.

Koty, you are so funny. We should have all known your first "sentence" would be: NO BABA. Which is something you say to stop Oliver from bugging you (Baba = brother) and you say it with one hand up in his face. Most often in the bath, and with a smirk. You also play a mean game of Peekaboo, by pulling the bottom of the shower curtain over your face and then magically appearing, and yelling PEEEEEK! I've never seen it happen where the person didn't burst into hysterics. You are a future Saturday Night Live castmate for certain.

Kota, you are forgiving. This must be a quality shared by first sisters of older brothers. So many times I've seen Oliver come barrelling down the hall and absolutely knock you over and you simply get up and keep playing. Sometimes followed by a clap to congratulate yourself. I would feel like a bad mom to list the injuries you've sustained in your 52-week life, but my-my, you are resilient and kind.

Koko, you are beautiful. I know I tell you this ten times a day, minimum and it must be getting old, but has there ever been a baby so beautiful? You happy eyes and your mouth filled with five teeth that seems to have stopped production at five. Your hands always read to clap. And that puffy belly that houses meals in portions that are meant for teenagers. I am totally mesmerized by you!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For joining our family and making us the fearsome-foursome we've always been destined to be. You are everything I've ever wanted in a daughter and so much more. And I promise I'll never stop asking Daddy "WE HAVE A DAUGHTER? ARE YOU SURE? REALLY? CHECK AGAIN!"

This photo is my desktop background at work so I can stare at you all through the day.

Eating, reading, wearing, listening, watching

Eating: Buffalo chicken burger + sweet potato + chopped salad with chipotle dressing + water
Reading: I just finished Lena Dunham's book (Not that kind of girl) and am maybe 50 pages in to Amy Poehler's (Yes please). Next is a Jamie Oliver cookbook and then attempting Ulysses again.
Wearing: a pile of jeans I forgot I owned then realized the reason I put them away is they are much too big when my mom made fun of my saggy butt.
Listening: Night Verses, check them out
Watching: lots of PVRed Kardashians (so embarrassing)

Family kitchen time

This is my favourite time of day. The four of us gather in the kitchen. The sun is setting so we turn on a few floor lamps and maybe the lights on the Christmas tree that we still haven't taken down. The kids are 5pm-calm, which is a world away from 1pm-hyper. We slowly pull ingredients from the fridge one by one. Onions and garlic, of course. A bottle of white wine? Maybe! "Honey, do you have plans for this sausage?" I ask. "Just save a piece or two for something else I have planned." He says. There's usually a pot of boiling water or a toasty skillet. Maybe the oven is preheated to 400 for sweet potato fries, or 185 for keeping falafels warm. Maybe tonight we'll use our flat top racelette or the BBQ for a beer can chicken...

Unless it's "mommy needs some alone time" night, making dinner is a family affair. We don't go by the women-cook-and-men-grill philosophy. We don't even think the kitchen is off limits for kids. Oliver has been chopping veggies for well over a year. He whisks. He flips. He blends smoothies. Dakota mostly eats.

In fact, the majority of photos I have of Dakota are her eating.

 The photos of Oliver "eating" are just him holding food that he's too distracted to eat.

So we chop and whisk and plan and test, as a family, and less than an hour later we have a fantastic dinner for four - plus leftovers for tomorrow's lunch! We want our kids to be comfortable in the kitchen, able to feed themselves and their future loved ones, and balanced in their relationship with food. Oliver will ask "You gunna blanch those Mommy?" in regards to raw vegetables for Dakota. And she... well, she'll sort the spicy buffalo chicken out of her chopped salad and simply devour the cabbage and kale and other greens.

Kitchen time is family time.