I ain't no Cougar, Leopard on the other hand...

Leopard should be a color.

 

I find it looks fabulous on females of all ages

 

 

 

I have a hard time resisting purchasing anything with a leopard pattern on it

 

 

A tiny glimpse of a fraction of Leopard items I own..

Purses, shoes, scarves, bathing suits, socks,

undergarments, blazers, blouses, makeup bags,

 slippers, eye mask... you name it,

I'll probably have it in leopard. 

 

 

One of my favorite items is my travel pillow,

of all things.

 

 

Id be that person walking down the street

in a full on leopard jacket.

 

One day, if I'm blessed with a girl of my own...

she will resemble that of a leopard.

I will start her off at birth in one of these:

and then proceed to dress her

like she belongs in Africa

 

 

A shout out to those of you who share

my love for this sexy pattern.

 

Embrace the animal in you!

 

Prrrrrr

 

 

 

 



Arbonne Consultant Vidal, At your service

 

I'm the New kid on the "Arbonne" Block

 

 

My decision to "sign on" to Arbonne as a consultant 

was based on the fact that 

I actually LOVE these products!

 

The fact that the Arbonne is organic and comes from nature, personally, doesn't mean as much to me as it would to many of you... They could be made out of Big Macs and I wouldn't mind,

as long as

 THEY WORK!

 

Being a user of Arbonne products for a bit over 2 years now,

I am confident this skincare line actually make a difference in your skin,

and overall well being.

 

*Above is the current collection of Arbonne products I use daily*

 

The unfortunate way I discovered that I relied on the Arbonne RE9 facewash,

was when I ran out of the stuff before re-ordering,

and thought Bath and Body works soap would suffice in the meantime.

My face broke out in the most ridiculous rash I've ever seen in my life.

 

I actually went to work with band aids on my face. #noshame

 

I have extremely sensitive skin, and any other products I've used either dried out my skin, or didn't clear up what I wanted it to.

 

Arbonne offers many different lines including:

Skincare

Bath and Body

Makeup

 Hair

 Sun

 Fragrance

 Nutrition

Men  

(Jesse is testing this line out for me, my pretty boy :) lol

Infants

 

The thing I find the most reassuring about Arbonne,

is the 45 day money back guarantee

if you are not satisfied.

 (which I can personally guarantee you will be!)

 

So why not give it a try?!

 

If your interested, I have a sample pack I can give you to try - no pressure at all!

 

For any more information - or if you are interested in improving your skin... wrinkles... or tan

please feel free to contact me by email or phone :)

 

tvidal4730@gmail.com

 

Alright, go Hump this Wednesday away!

 

 

 

 

 



What's cookin at the Casa

Saturday night Special

at the Casa de Vidal
 

 

Breaking in the new stove with

a top notch dinner cooked by

Master Chef Vidal
 

 

 

 

 

 

My husband is an incredible cook;

I like to think of him as my personal chef.

 

 

 

 

About once a week,

he'll cook us a restaurant worthy dinner

 and pair it with one of our

"special wines" from the wine cellar.

 

 

 

 

 

This Saturday was Italian Inspired.

 

 

 

 

The wine of choice was an outstanding

bottle of 2007 Chardonnay Reserve

 from

Gann Family Estate in Napa.

 

 

 

 

For the Chardonnay lover,

this wine was buttery, thick and flawless on my pallet.

Retailing at $29.95, I'd purchase a case..

it was THAT good.

 

 

 

To start, we had a Caesar salad and Garlic Bread

 

 

While he focused on the "more important part"

of the dinner, I prepared the starters. 

My Caesar wasn't nearly up to caliber

with the one my husband makes..

he does his like the restaurant "Jacobs and Co." in Toronto,

and makes the dressing from scratch.

 

 

 

For the main,

he made

Pasta a La Vodka with Lobster and Prosciutto

 

 My husband rarely follows a recipe,

 so all he could give me was the ingredients he used:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Penne

Vodka

Garlic

Shallots

Diced tomato's

Prosciutto

Butter

Lobster

Heavy Cream

Salt/Pepper

 

 

 

It was delicious and the Chardonnay paired beautifully.

 

 

 

 

My taste buds were doing the tango Saturday night.. and after that meal.. so were we ;)

 



A little bit of August in February

 

http://www.augustrestaurant.ca/

 

On Friday, our "Vineland crew" of foodie friends

 decided to take advantage of

FREE CORKAGE FRIDAYS (WHAT!?)

at August Restaurant in Beamsville.

 

 

Being the winos we are, it's always a selling feature when a restaurant offers a corkage fee...

But FREE corkage?!

That's fabulous!

 

Together, we brought 4 bottles

to accompany our food selections.

 

To start, I had a small side Caesar salad

and the Crispy Duck Rolls.

 

For the fellow duck lover,

this is an exquisite appetizer.

 

My husband and I's wine contribution was a bottle of 2011 Tempranillo

from a winery we visited in BC called "Moon Curser."

*Another fantastic point - the wine doesn't have to be local*

 

My main was the Potato Parmesan Gnocchi,

with double smoked bacon,

chicken and spinach

in a tomato vodka cream.

My favorite part of it was the bacon. Yum.

 

 To finish off our meal,

we shared the Warm Sticky Toffee pudding.

 

It was DIVINE!

 

What surprised me the most, was the bill!

 

For the two of us to enjoy a 3 course meal,

 with a beer to start, and wine flowing

graciously throughout the evening,

the bill came to $96.00 .. with tip!

 

I'd highly recommend hitting up this local Beamsville

hot spot on the next Friday you have

 a great bottle of wine you'd like to pair with some fabulous food!

 

Bon Appetite!

 

 

 

 



My favorite pair of Genes ;) - Part Two

 

You all have them... 
that favorite pair of jeans that always seem to fit perfectly, and look great on.

 

My favorite Jeans.. or rather Genes,
 are the ones I got from my parents.

 

 

 

+

=

 

People have questioned me in the past if all I eat is salad and health food..
and I have to laugh..
 because that is so far from my reality...


I am blessed with a fantastic metabolism
and was raised by very active parents.


My mother goes on daily walks and is an active volleyball player,
and my father is a dedicated cyclist,
and mildly obsessed with lifting weights.


Growing up, my parents always had us playing sports and keeping active.

 

But there was a time where I took my genetics for granted.


Prior to turning 21, I had never been to a gym.


All of a sudden, I noticed a big change in my body.
I went to see my doctor,
and turns out I had an underactive thyroid.


At my peak weight, I was 22 pounds heavier than I am today...
and of course,
it was around the time of a best friends wedding.


After seeing her wedding pictures,
 I was determined to kick my thyroid problem.


I tried dieting - but was grumpy and hated every second of restricting myself from certain foods.


I had no choice but to start working out
to get my body back into a shape.


25 minutes at the gym, 5 days a week over the course of 3 years is what it took for me. I didn't change my diet what so ever.
*On a future blog, I will give my tips on how to get yourself in a routine and outline my 25 minutes*


A year after my own wedding,
I lost my final 12 pounds.
My thyroid problem was kicked,
and my old body came back to life.


I continue to workout more now than ever before, without limiting myself from any food or drink.


Gaining that weight 4 years ago due to my thyroid,  was the reality check I needed in order to appreciate how lucky I am to be able to eat whatever I'd like,
but also,to realize how important it is to have  some physical activity in your life even if you are blessed with good genes!

Eating to live... or living to eat? - Part one

 

 

FOOD

 

My favorite four letter F word.

 

The first thing I think about when I wake up.. is what we are having for dinner.

 

The first thing I wonder when we get invited to a wedding.. is what dinner choice they went with.

 

The best part of the weekend,

is the food we eat.

 

It wasn't until I was about 22 and met my husband that I developed a passion for food.

 

The definition of Food according to Wikipedia 
is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support to your body.

 

My definition of Food,
is any nourishing substance that sustains life while giving you
Foodgasms, enjoyment and an experience.

 

 

 Salmon tartar at the Banff Fairmont

Lamb, garlic mashed, asparagus

Homemade risotto, bok choy and bruschetta salmon

 

I spend hours every week, perusing pictures of food on facebook, pinterest or my sisters instagram.

When someone uploads a picture of what they ate,

 I am ALL OVER it.
 Pictures of food are my favorite  to take, post and to see posted.

 

There isn't anything I wont eat, or at least try once.

 

My greatest attraction to my husband was, and is, his love for good food and wine...
but also having no shame taking down a couple Big Macs.

 

I am so fortunate at this point in my life, 

I don't have to watch what I eat for dietary reasons or weight loss.

 

I thank God for the good genes I got from my parents.

 

Which leads me to Part 2...

coming tomorrow.

 

 

 



Crock Pots and Kitchen Renos go hand in hand

 

McDonalds, Wendys, Pizza Pizza......

Just a few of the "hearty" meals consumed while
undergoing kitchen renovations

 

As thrilling as a Big mac, Baconator and Hawaiian slice are... 
one can only have so much of it without feeling like a walking Garbage disposal. 

So my solution for an oven-less kitchen,
is the crock pot!

A favorite meal in the Vidal household during the winter season, is homemade chilli.

 

Pre-reno, we cooked up a big batch and froze it in meal sized containers.

 

Another favorite is pulled pork with a side of coleslaw...and during the Superbowl this weekend,

we'll surely be whipping that up again!

 

 

 

Tonight's crock pot creation compliments of pinterest, seemed to easy to be good...

 

"Zesty Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken"

on a fresh Kaiser bun.

 

Throw in your frozen chicken breasts, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, BBQ Sauce of choice, and Italian Dressing.

Set on High for 3  - 4 hours... pull, and plop on Kaiser.

 

BRILLIANT.

 

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe-Tools/Print/Recipe.aspx?recipeID=65896&origin=detail&servings=6&metric=false

 

This kitchen reno has been a breeze thanks to our Crock Pot of deliciousness.

 

Next time your oven-less, and about the make a stop at your nearest drive thru,

Stop, Drop and Crock.