WOW. Has it really been THAT long since my last post?!
Now, any other sane person, after going a full year and a half without a single word posted would probably finally admit that blogging is not for her and quit. But no, not me! The fighter in me says I can still make up for it. Besides, I've been having way too many adventures this past year and a half that I CANNOT WAIT to share!! So my guess is, there's no stopping me now (except of course when real life gets in the way and blogging takes the backseat again!).
So, to say that I got a bit “sidetracked” would be a gross understatement. Now I am not making any more excuses for neglecting this little blog of mine but let me just say, that the past year was officially THE MOST EVENTFUL year our little family has ever had.
Leave it to the Universe to throw us the best life surprises... Here's a quick rundown of the mighty BIG things that happened in just the past year:
.. we decided to close our cafe and give up being entrepreneurs for now
.. we decided to finally check off one of the places on our MUST TRAVEL TO list and took our Little Boy on a three-week trip to Vietnam (one of our big dreams come true!!)
.. we decided to go on a loooooong vacation in the US to be with family and to see what's in store for us on this side of the world
.. we decided to stay and live in the US!!!
.. Oh, and somewhere along the way, we had a baby!! Another beautiful baby boy!
So in the span of a year and a half, our little family has gone from a family of three, living in the Philippines to a family of four, here in Washington State in the US. Big changes? Yes. HUGE changes.
It's actually been a little over four months now since our Little Baby joined us earthside and as hard as I tried to type down our birth story (especially before I forget all the awesome details!), life in a new country with a now 6-year-old and a little newborn baby just didn't make it easy. So while I let our beautiful birth story sit quietly in my brain for a little longer before I get it written down, here's a peek, courtesy of our amazing birth photographer friend: http://kaethejobinderphotography.zenfolio.com/blog/2012/6/baby-rain-bellevue-washington-birth-photographer-kaethejo-binder-photography.
I WILL be posting more, I will. I think that after about four months of getting adjusted to all the big changes in our life now, I am finally, finally starting to get the hang of it.
There is so much to say, so many stories to tell, so many photos to share. But for now, as another peace offering for the long silence, let me leave you with a quick and super easy recipe for a sinful vegan chocolate dessert! I actually found this recipe in my current favorite vegan recipe book, The Vegan Diner by Julie Hasson but I made several changes to the original recipe (I used a ready-made whole wheat pie shell instead of making the chocolate cookie crust, added more chocolate, used vanilla extract instead of strawberry/raspberry liquer, etc.) to make it much easier (meaning more mama-with-babies-in-the-house-friendly!) and a lot more chocolatey!!!
Vegan Chocolate Strawberry Pie on Whole Wheat Crust
1 whole wheat 9" pie shell (I used a whole wheat pie shell from Wholly Wholesome)
2 1/4 cups of dairy-free semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup soy milk
3 tbsp all-natural vanilla extract
about 4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled, rinsed and sliced in half or quarters (We used strawberries since we got a box of beautiful locally grown fresh strawberries from the Farmers' Market that morning but I would imagine that fresh raspberries would be yummy in this recipe, too!)
Prepare and bake pie crust according to package directions. Let cool completely.
For the filling, I made our chocolate "cream" in batches so that it's easier to melt the chocolate with the soy milk. You can do this on a stovetop or you can do it in the microwave. (I am usually so against using the microwave but really, it has been so good to us especially during our little newborn's first few months so it has been a friend lately. So yes, I used the microwave.) Combine 3/4 cup chocolate chips and 1/4 cup soy milk in a microwave-safe glass or ceramic bowl and heat for 30 seconds. Remove from microwave and stir. Pour in a tablespoon of the vanilla extract, stir and heat again for another 30 seconds. Remove from microwave and stir again until chocolate mixture turns smooth. Pour into the pie shell and top with a third of the strawberries. Make another batch of the chocolate "cream" with 3/4 cup chocolate chips, 1/4 cup soy milk and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract following the same procedures and pour on top of the berries. Put in another layer of strawberries. Repeat procedures for the last batch of chocolate "cream" and top with the rest of the strawberries.
Refrigerate the pie for a couple of hours or until all the chocolate sets and firms up. Be patient!
...
This was super easy to make (and super easy to consume, too!!) and really hit the spot with all the chocolate dessert cravings we've been having and it's incredible that it's dairy-free, too!
With so many other recent changes in our diet, we have come up with quite the portfolio of recipes so I imagine that this would be just the first of lots of quick, easy "green" recipes that are in this little blog's future. And with a new baby and a new home, we really have a bunch of new stories to tell.. about everything from natural childbirth, breastfeeding, creating a pretty "green" home, natural parenting, etc etc etc. So I am VERY excited to be blogging again! I'm thinking it's not going to be any easier. I am still learning how to type while nursing or babywearing after all, but I'm getting there!
So yay! I am back and here's to hoping I won't have to stop blogging again! Wish me luck!
Love, light and blessings,
Earthbound Faerie
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