Nature, lentil loaves and pasta salad.

I've really been enjoying this month so far, and I feel as if the rest of the month will be just as fulfilling. There have been long walks with Tibbs, photo days at the dance studio, bike rides to the dance studio, bike rides to the North Shore Trails, sunshine, friends, family, wildlife, laughter and love. I couldn't ask for more!

I took a long bike ride this morning after getting the kids off to school. I headed down to the trails as far as the marina. I climbed off my bike and sat on one of the benches for a while, gazing out at the water and dreaming of owning one of the incredible houseboats that were docked there. The bay was very peaceful; barely any ripples. I spoke to a man who was fishing off the end of the boardwalk and had many stories of the abundance of fish he caught on the weekend.

I saw so many beautiful creatures on my adventures this morning. There were ducks guarding their nest. There was a blue heron soaring above the water with the most amazing wing span. There was a family of swans bathing themselves near the rocks in the middle of the Bay of Quinte. There were snapping turtles sunning themselves on logs. There were red winged black birds and robins flying out in front of my bike every few minutes.

The one thing that always has me marveling down by the water is just how happy everyone seems. The smiles are easy and I couldn't even count how many times I heard "good morning!" today. People go down to the trails for different reasons. Some go to sit on a bench and reflect, some go to rollerblade or bike, some run or walk their dogs or their kids. Being by the water definitely lifts your spirits. You can't help but feel so blessed in life. I live in such a beautiful place.

I have a couple of recipes to share from the past couple of days. No meals to share from the weekend, though. Fun Food Friday was a repeat dinner that we love - paninis! Saturday after photo day, we headed out to a birthday party for Tiernan's best friend. This friend of Tiernan's lives in the most serene location, wow! We had a great time there, and enjoyed some veggie dogs and a great vegetable spread. On Sunday we watched a two hour episode of 'So You Think You Can Dance' that we had downloaded from the previous Wednesday, and ate a pasta salad and a big bowl of popcorn! I love popcorn dinners. Yesterday I made a curried lentil loaf from the Vegetarian Meat and Potatoes Cookbook (which I got from my lovely friend, Jill, for my birthday years ago) that was OMG SO GOOD, but... really not terribly loaf like. More like slop. Haha! I looked up some reviews online and apparently I'm not the only one with this issue. I think when I make it again (and I will! It's so crazy tasty!) I'll cook it in a more shallow dish and crisp it up more. With the loaf I made some quesadillas and some sliced cucumber with a splash of apple cider vinegar.

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Pasta Salad

2 cups small noodles

3 cups broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces

1 cup medium cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes

1 cup monterey jack cheese, cut into small cubes

1 cup thinly sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

2 tsp mustard

4 tsp liquid honey

1 tsp garlic powder

3 tsp soy sauce

Cook the noodles according to package directions. Drain and place in a large bowl.

Add the broccoli, cheddar cheese, monterey jack cheese and mushrooms. Stir to combine.

Mix the red wine vinegar, mustard, honey, garlic powder and soy sauce together and pour over the pasta salad. Mix well.

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Curried Lentil Loaf/Slop

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 large carrot, grated

1 medium sized yellow onion, grated

1 large potato, peeled and grated

1 small red bell pepper, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 ripe plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped finely

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp curry powder

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

salt, to taste

2 cups cooked lentils, drained and mashed

2 tbsp creamy natural peanut butter

1/4 - 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the carrot, onion, potato, red pepper and garlic. Cover and cook, stirring a few times until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, curry powder, cayenne pepper and salt. Stir to combine well. Cook, covered, for another 10 minutes until the veggies are soft. Remove from heat. Add the lentils.

In a food processor, combine the peanut butter with 1 cup of the lentil mixture until smooth. Put it back in with the rest of the lentil/vegetable mixture. Add the bread crumbs, and combine well. Transfer to a lightly oiled 9x5 loaf pan.

Bake until firm - about 30-40 minutes. Let it sit at least 15 minutes before slicing.

My Mother's Day, in many photos.

My Mother's Day was fantastic from start to finish. I took about a million photos to remember each moment with, and here are some of them. :)

As I mentioned earlier, I got breakfast in bed. It was amazingly good.. you could just taste the love that went into it. There is nothing sweeter than having your children and husband make something especially for you. I enjoyed every bite I had, and even those that I shared with a certain little someone or two (coughRhiannacoughTiernancough) or even three (Scootie cat 'shared' my toast with me.. she loves margarine and she's too sweet to say no to, so she licked a slice). I even enjoyed the bites that were ruined by the orange juice flood after Kyle accidently knocked my glass over onto my plate. Haha! I may not have eaten those bites, but I appreciated every single one of them.

Nothing beats the company I had in bed while I ate it either. ♥

I got some beautiful handmade cards from all three kids. This is the front of the one from Ave. Avery is not one to enjoy card making, so for him to go ahead and make one without being prompted? That means the world to me. He doesn't enjoy drawing or spelling... he'd rather be out playing sports. I LOVE that he drew the two of us holding hands since he really doesn't do that with me anymore.

Awww. What a sweet boy he is. He may be full on into the almost teen years (hello, eye rolling!), but he's still a really good kid.

I love Tiernan's attention to detail! The rainbow's colours, the height between us, the words 'red' and 'blue' being written in those colours, the heart instead of an 'o' in love. He's so thoughtful. I also love that he signed the back with 'love, TBone'. :D

Rhianna, in true Rhianna form, made me two cards. She made one at school (as well as the cutest CD photo), and then came home and made one more. This is the inside of the one she made me at home. So sweet! I love the little cut out hearts and extra messages.

This is the front of Rhianna's school card. How I wish I had lips like that! ;)

The letter she wrote for me on the inside brought tears to my eyes. Heck, all of the cards did that. I'm a big ol' sap.

And my most amazing husband gave me the most beautiful card I've ever seen. A perfectly beautiful card, and a perfectly beautiful day.

After breakfast and morning chores, I helped Rhianna with her school project of a map of her neighbourhood while I baked some date square for my Mum. She loves date square (as do I.. and all my kids I later came to find out!), but never makes it because my Dad can't stand it. Seemed like a perfect Mother's Day surprise. :) I meant to take a picture of a slice and put up the recipe on here, but blanked out. I'll add it to tomorrow's blog post.

We sat outside on the back porch for hours watching the birds. Okay, the kids sat for a while, but then went to ride bikes. Kyle and I on the other hand? We enjoyed every second on our porch. I was taking pictures of robins (and morning doves and crows and chickadees...)... but more importantly....

... I was waiting for birds to find my new bird feeder that Kyle and the kids bought me for Mother's Day!!! Oh, I am one happy woman. :) If I ever go missing you'll likely find me on my back porch. I love birds so much, and could watch them all day long. When this little sparrow landed and I managed to get a photo (or 15!), I was giddy!

One more bird picture because I can't resist. This grackle was fun to observe. He stood on my neighbour's chimney keeping watch and communicating with all the other grackles in the area. Very, very cool to listen to their wide array of calls.

My parents came over and Kyle cooked up his specialty - crepes! Oh my, you have not lived until you have eaten Kyle's crepes. Everyone loves them. People try them, and then they keep coming back for more. They really are that good. Anyway, we ate crepes, and then we headed to the 'cheese park' for a little while. I figured it was fitting to get a picture of me with my own mama. :)

After my folks left, the kids went into their rooms for some quiet reading time so Kyle and I could watch the latest Doctor Who episode, and then we brought the kids out of bed to watch the two hour season finale of the Amazing Race. What a way to cap off my day!

And because without this guy....

... or this guy....

... or these two, I wouldn't have been a Mummy in the first place. So a big thank you for being so wonderful, for making my job so easy, and for all your love you show me. Today was awesome. I couldn't have asked for a better day. I love you!