Last Sunday my husband and I took a trip to downtown (Portland, OR) with some friends to see the gorgeous cherry blossoms on the waterfront. After a lot of walking around, we wanted to grab some coffee and decided to try Petunias pies and pastries. It's a cute little corner cafe that makes gluten free/vegan soups, sandwiches, desserts and drinks. The coffee is served with either soy milk, almond milk or coconut milk. I tried the very berry donut and, as I have never had gluten free treats before, I was surprised at how good it tasted! Wonderful place for anyone vegan, gluten free or both. So many options and such a friendly staff. Definitely going to bring my gluten free friends here!
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Last week I had the pleasure of joining my sister at the grand opening party of a new restaurant called Yauatcha. It is located at the international market place in Waikiki. Yauatcha is a contemporary dim sum tea house and european inspired patisserie offering a range of fresh seafood, delicate dim sum and oriental style meats. They were awarded a michelin star in their opening year so my expectations were quite high but I must say, my expectations were exceded! The atmosphere in the restaurant was friendly as exceptional drinks flowed and wonderful food was tasted. I am excitedly looking forward to a more formal sit down at this restraunt.
Here are some photos from the event. Sweet little faces and pink roses. Who doesn't love that? Here are some lovely shots of Jemma, Leah and Janelle. Photos taken by Maria (@marussiaofficial) and belong to @miss.lendel & @miss.derinskiy.
Its not always as easy as it looks... Being a new mom, I'm obviously not used to having a million things to pack when I am heading out to the beach. During my pregnancy all I ever needed to take with me was a beach towel and a big bottle of cold water. Now there's an endless list of things to take "just in case". So, the fact that I'm still getting used to taking all these things combined with "mom brain" has me failing here and there on our (often cut short) beach trips. Here's a few fails so you can laugh and I'll feel better about the frustrating moments...
- Somehow ran out of diapers in the diaper bag and didn't think to make sure I had any... yep, she pooped while we were at the beach and we had nothing to change her into. Put on her swimming bottoms without a diaper and she peed all over me while I was carrying her home. This happened more than once. - Forgot to grab baby wipes and yet again she had a full diaper at the beach. Yay for "just in case" socks and some water. ( Yes we probably could have come up with something better but we panicked) 😂😂😂 - Took the bottle of pumped milk with the storage cap but forgot the nipple top to actually feed her. That ended up being a VERY short beach trip. - Forgot her pacifier and of course on the way home she suddenly decided not to nap but scream at the top of her lungs instead. Let's just say we got home faster than ever. I have a feeling this list may grow because no matter how hard you try to take everything you may or may not need, something will be forgotten during the hectic scramble to get ready and get out of the house into the sunshine. But that's how memories are made, right? 😉 Haleiwa bowls is a stand in North shore Hawaii that serves acai bowls and smoothies. Living on the island I've developed a love for acai bowls and this is a wonderful place to get yourself a delicious bowl when you're passing through the quaint town of Haleiwa. They top their bowls with organic granola, fresh fruit, raw coconut flakes, and honey along with other toppings of your choice. It's a great little place to get yourself a filling healthy acai bowl.
Waimea Bay, located on the North Shore of Oahu, is a beach spot like no other. There you'll find a mix of locals, tourists and the occasional turtle. A day spent there in the summer is a day spent well, soaking up the hot sun, snorkeling with the fish in the calm waters and jumping off the rock that outcrops the bay. In the winter however, it is totally different scene with high surf making the waves as big as 20-30 feet. That is why Waimea Bay one of the most popular places to surf, with some of the best surfers in the world gathering to take on the largest swells in the world. Here is a video of Waimea bay and some of the activities we were up to when we spent a day there during this summer. Lately I've been pretty obsessed with acai bowls. They are these thick smoothies that feature the Brazilian super food acacia berries and are based on vitamin rich ingredients. Acai bowls are wonderful for breakfast or brunch because you get delicious creamy sweetness from the smoothie without feeling bad about any calories. It's topped off with fruits and granola so you get an extra confidence boost that you did good for your body. Here in Hawaii you can get yourself an awesome bowl of this yumminess almost anywhere on the island and I’ve had many a bowl myself. But recently at our local whole foods, a packet of frozen acai caught my husbands eye and he just had to get it for me so I can make my own acai bowls at home. I'd like to share with you my go-to recipe and you can mix it up to your personal taste. Ingredients: 2 bananas (frozen, sliced) About 5 frozen strawberries 1/2 cup almond or coconut milk (frozen in ice tray) 1 tblsp Honey 1 packet sambazon frozen açaí Toppings: Fruits and berries Granola Honey Directions: 1. Put the frozen fruits, milk, honey and acai powder into a blender. Blend until creamy thick. Consistency should be thicker than a smoothie, almost ice cream like. This is the hard part, trick is to keep mixing between blending. 2. Spoon into a bowl and sprinkle with granola. Top with assorted sliced fruits, berries and drizzle with honey. this recipe is for about 2 bowls. There are many variations of the recipe that include other fruits such as blueberries, raspberries and even pineapple in the smoothie. Also coconut milk or soy milk can be substituted instead of almond milk. Many people add nut or seed butter (such as almond butter) to the base as well. Topping variations include coconut flakes, chia or hemp seeds and granola. Make it to your taste and enjoy! Living on an island may seem to have a limit to what you can do and how much there is to see, but Oahu is no such case. We find ourselves exploring new places every week and seeing parts of our island that we haven't seen before. Recently, during one of our many island explorations, my husband and I finally had a chance to visit the famous historical town of Haleiwa, North Shore. This quaint town is a one of a kind gem that attracts tourists like flies, and I don't blame them. The streets of Haleiwa are lined with sweet little shops that carry all sorts of cute souvenirs many of which are made on the island. There are clothing stores, jewelry shops, restaurants and more. Most of these shops take pride in the fact that they carry locally made or grown products. There are so many things to see and try a few being a Clark Little art gallery, a baby clothing store, a fruit stand selling local fruits and the famous Matsumoto shave ice. We spent the morning getting lost in the many shops and stores as we admired what they had to offer. If you're visiting Oahu and have a chance to explore the island, this is a wonderful place to go.
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