Nalena and Jon – Page 6 – Cooking stuff, then eating it

A Giveaway (updated with winner)!

Post author By Nalena
Post date April 21, 2012
25 Comments on A Giveaway (updated with winner)!

Well, the moment has arrived for the unveiling of a new look.

Jon and I have been working on the redesign of this blog for 5+ months. Well, working isn’t exactly the correct word. More like thinking about it, and working on bits of it here and there. We now have a favorite blog’s list, a facebook fan page, an Amazon store where you can shop all of our beloved kitchen items, an RSS feed for your blog reader, a pinterest page, and a search box.

To celebrate such a joyous occasion, I am personally sponsoring our first ever giveaway. What I am giving away is nothing that you can purchase at a store, but instead something made by me for you with much love.

The winner of this giveaway will receive two dozen decorated sugar cookies made in our little kitchen and mailed to anywhere in the USA, Puerto Rico, England, or Guatemala. The exact design will be a surprise for you to discover in your mailbox.

Travel

5 Days in Cancun and Isla Mujeres

Post author By Nalena
Post date April 20, 2012
1 Comment on 5 Days in Cancun and Isla Mujeres

I must admit that when my parents first suggested meeting in Cancun during Easter I was not automatically sold on the idea. My entire perception of Cancun centers around MTV Spring Break. Back in the day my sister and I would spend Spring Break on the couch eating raw pasta watching teens go crazy in Cancun. Cancun is for you to go loco, that’s all I understood about this foreign place.

But I wasn’t going to pass on the opportunity to spend time with my parents and the sun. So on the plane I got and met my parents and two of their friends in the land of Cancun. It didn’t take much to convince me that Cancun was it, it simply took walking into our room and seeing the view. The Cancun beach is more than noteworthy; it expands infinitely with gorgeous turquoise waters and pristine white sand.

Easter Bunny and Egg Sugar Cookies

Post author By Nalena
Post date April 4, 2012
4 Comments on Easter Bunny and Egg Sugar Cookies

I ran.

Yes, I know, it’s truly shocking. So much so that I broke down into tears after I finished the race. I was overwhelmed and elated.

For as long as I remember I have always been impressed by runners. Folks that are willing to go through the pain and hardwork to achieve that final goal. There is the resolution on their face, their pumping arms, their outstretched legs.

During my first year as an AmeriCorps with Habitat for Humanity in our small bio’s I wrote, “I love runners” as my final statement about myself. Yet, I had never ever ran, I couldn’t get myself off the couch, I just observed in awe from afar.

In high school we had the infamous mile run, man I hated and dreaded that day. It was so awful that once at the end of the run I told my friend that I had never seen the grass turn neon green before, she kindly told me the grass was not neon green and steered me towards the nurse.

Travel

Twenty-Six Hours in Portland

Post author By Nalena
Post date March 23, 2012
4 Comments on Twenty-Six Hours in Portland

Alongside the stories of food and making your tummy happy I will be sharing travels to here and there. My problem lies in that I am awful in taking pictures when I am traveling. So, for your sake and my memories sake, I am making a renewed effort to start snapping more. And along the way I hope to improve those photography skills that are quite lacking. Seriously, I had no idea what ISO or aperture where before starting this blog. I have since then kind of figured out how to make the food thing work, but when I snap anything that isn’t food I am back at square one.

Alas, let me tell you about this trip, since I actually did snap a couple of pictures.

It all began on a rainy Seattle Thursday when I met up with my friend Tania out on the boat she lives on (living like a true Seattlite). Within an hour of me arriving and us chatting she convinced me to make a two-day rendezvous out to Portland. As in leave the next morning. You only live once, right?

This wasn’t my first saunter over to Portland, but hey, there is always something new to discover. And there are always donuts to be enjoyed. Voodoo donuts to be exact. They are most famous for their maple bacon bar—yes it has slices of bacon on top. Tania and I opted for the Voodoo dozen which consists of a random assortment of 12 donuts. There is a full spectrum of options: donuts covered in mini M&M’s, Butterfinger crumbles, Captain Crunch, and the list continues. Some were filled with cream and fruit jellies. We ate donuts for breakfast for several days. And, ahem, dinner.

Cranberry Chocolate Chip Biscotti

Post author By Nalena
Post date March 15, 2012
6 Comments on Cranberry Chocolate Chip Biscotti

This most certainly is not a parenting blog. And I most certainly am not a parent. This is very evident when you compare my pinterest to my sister-in-law’s pinterest which is chock full of fun, cute children crafts. But, with that said, in my current temporary job I nanny different children in their respective homes. Meaning, everyday I drive to a new location and watch a child whom I am a complete stranger to.

This little job has given me some major insight into how parents operate. Let me rephrase that: how differently parents operate.

First, let’s talk changing diapers. Some people use changing tables, others just use a pad and do it on the floor, others on the bathroom counter, and then there are the ones that get their diaper changed while the toddler stands.