My Magic Shoes

They're not red and they're not new. The story about these shoes goes back all the way to 1992. It was the first pair of shoes I bought upon arriving in Munich, Germany. I needed something very comfortable for long walks. This pair of Rieker shoes was just incredibly comfortable, very flexible, made from soft hazelnut brown leather with a buckle on the side. Not my style at all, but, although normally rather expensive,  they were reduced by 70% because one buckle was detached. I new I could sew it back on so I bought them. They served me well, my feet were very happy and light in them and they took me places...

When we left Germany for Canada  in 1998, I must have thrown them in one of the bags and so they moved to another continent with me. I wore them a couple more times but soon they started looking old and really worn out. Somehow I couldn't bring myself to throw them away and so they lived on quietly in a dark corner of my entry closet.

Then one day I was reading an article on FlyLady about effective house cleaning and she said you should put your shoes on  when doing chores. This tip really picked my curiosity and I wanted to try this method and see if it makes a difference. When I started looking for a pair of shoes to use I found my old, comfortable Riekers again. And it made a difference. I felt more stable, I was stronger and faster. From then on, I didn't put my old shoes on every time I had to clean but I thought of them when I had an incredible amount of things to do at home and very little time. I was always under the impression that, with these shoes on, I was able to accomplish such an amount of chores in very little time that I myself was in awe... I started to call them "My Magic Shoes". Soon my husband started to notice the ginormous positive effect of these old shoes on my speed and my mood. He loved the change so much that he himself suggested often: "Why don't you put those magic shoes of yours on?" 

 I can't believe I have an 18-year-old pair of shoes that I still use! They're barely holding together, but I'm pretty sure that they can't be easily replaced by any pair of shoes - they must be very special. They are my very special old magic shoes.

My Magic Shoes

Very Special Family Portrait

I woke up one day and my children were gone...somebody took my little princess and my smart little boy and left me with two troubled teenagers I didn't recognize at all. They were not bad in pretending to be my children so I played the game and pretended to be their mother for several years. Nightmare! I'm so glad it's over... I'm now a happy mother of two wonderful young adults! My princess lives in her own castle far, far away from us. My smart big boy still lives with us for the moment but I can see his wings getting bigger and stronger. They're both working, studying and dreaming... Soon I'll be left with memories and photos wondering where the time went. We actually don't have so many family photos, we have lost almost all of them fleeing from the danger of war in our country. I learned only much later that that was the most prized possession we had. Even after that, we  didn't take so many photos. I guess we humans have this fascination for capturing moments in our lives, whether by camera or paint. So I was very pleasantly surprised when my son gave us a very special family portrait, made by him, as a Christmas gift.

Several days before Christmas, I couldn't help but notice that something strange was going on, my son was very busy with something. Any attempt to learn what was going on failed miserably. Till the day we saw a very mysterious big package under the Christmas three. What a nice surprise it was! My very talented son created a "warholish" family portrait of our family using individual pictures, framed it nicely and made a gift for us. We just instantly fell in love with it and decided to expose it permanently in our living room. We placed it strategically  in our home, so we can all constantly be reminded of each other as we hectically chase through life. The value of the portrait my son made for us can be measured only by hearth. 

"A heart is not measured by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others." — Wizard of Oz

Very Special Family Portrait

Playing in the Dirt

Normally I wouldn't even dare to think about gardening at this time of year. Upon arriving to Canada, it took my inner clock several years to learn that there is nothing green before the beginning of May and even then you have to wait till almost the end of the month to begin to work outdoors because there is still a danger of frost. But this winter, so mild and with so little snow... I started dreaming of playing in the dirt, sinking my hands in the soil, moist and velvety to touch, and spending hours incredibly happy, forgetting time, worries, everything...
I discovered gardening only several years ago when we bought our first house in Quebec and I wanted to plant some greenery because there wasn't any. Creating my flower beds and planting my first annuals and perennials made me discover a whole new world, it was a very therapeutic experience for me, I was truly happy for the very first time in Canada. I could spend hours working in my garden, preparing the soil, sowing, planting, weeding, I don't feel fatigue nor pain. I can't wait to start playing in the dirt again this spring, I might even try to grow some vegetables this year. Till then here are some pictures from my Canadian garden:

What about you? Do you have a garden or even a balcony? Do you like playing in the dirt?

Playing in the Dirt

Yellow My Love !

I always loved yellow, since I was a little kid. This color cheers me up and makes me happy instantly no matter where I see it. Yellow brings sun and light in your life and home but it also attracts regards wherever you put it. Warning: this color isn't for the Faint of Heart, you must be a very special person to love it and use it. There you go blue-lovers !

For more inspiration in yellow you can visit my album 'Yellow My Love'

Yellow My Love !

Salvation Art

I had an opportunity, completely involuntarily and independently of my will, to build and rebuild what is going to be my home three times in my life. And when I'm talking about building a home, I'm not talking about building a fancy house with an architect and a designer on my side. I'm talking about building a feeling of home after having lost it once for historical reasons and another time for political reasons. I promise I'll explain it all to you one day when I'm ready.
My first home was a very humble rental, I can remember exactly how it was furnished and decorated, but at that time it didn't matter at all. What did matter was that I was madly in love with my husband and so over happy to live with him under one roof after four years of being together. Then we had our first child and two years later our second. I still remember how impatient I was to fill that fourth chair around our little table.
Our happiness was brutally interrupted by an (now) historical event in 1992 and we were forced to leave our home with nothing but our lives - yes, we were lucky.
Then we were installed in Germany for six and a half years, working hard to build from scratch a sense of home for children, to protect them and to give them them a happy life. Tragically, for the political reasons this time, in 1998 we were not allowed to stay in Germany any longer  and we were forced to search for a new country to call home.
Since 1998, we have been living in Canada. It wasn't easy at all, starting a new life from scratch again, learning a new language, a new culture, having to acclimate to the new weather conditions. But from the first day on, I continued to dream about building a home for my little family, I wanted my children to be able to play in their own yard. We started by learning a language first (French, imagine!) then finding a job and saving every penny in order to realize our dream. It took us six years, many sleepless nights and lots of tears to get there. I didn't know we could be so strong...
A hell of an introduction for what I was going to show you today! I can't change it, it's my life...
I thought often about things that make me, make us feel home. Each time when I was confronted with an empty space, aside from getting the basic furniture, I went and bought large plants and art for our walls. This two elements gave me instantly the feeling that I was already there for a long time.
Arriving in Quebec, Canada, I discovered the Salvation Army shops and, to my surprise, I was able to find many original paintings and prints for a couple of dollars only! And so I started my Salvation Art collection that didn't stop to grow since.

This was my first one. It's an original print named "Flammes" ('Flames' in English), 4/5 prints signed by an artist named Marc Martel in 1972. I really liked it so I readily payed 19$ for it even if the glass was broken.

I still like it very much. It hangs in my dining room with two other pieces. I'll continue to present you the rest of my Salvation Art originals collection. Many of the pieces that I found are made by renowned artists and are worth much, much more than I payed for them.

Salvation Art

Indian Carrot-Ginger Soup Recipe

I promised you yesterday the recipe for my favorite Indian Carrot-Ginger Soup. I got this recipe from a German vegetarian cookbook 'Schlemmen ohne Reue' (Indulge without regrets). You can buy it at Amazon but it happens to be on eBay just at this time for only 5 Euro, go for it if you understand German language, it's an excellent book with plenty of colorful, tasty and healthy recipes.

 I modified this recipe slightly in order to keep it simple. So here it goes:
Indian Carrot Ginger Soup
Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp curcuma
• 1/8 tsp chili pepper
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 lb carrots, chopped in thick slices
• 5 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
• 1/2 cup yogurt (or 1/4 yogurt + 1/4 sour cream)
• Salt
• Pepper

Optional: Freshly chopped coriander leaves and sour cream for garnish
Preparation:

• Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and stir often until soft, about 5 min. Meanwhile, peel carrots and slice them into 3/4-inch- (2 cm) thick rounds. Grate ginger in a separate little bowl, add all the spices. Add ginger with spices to onion mixture and stir again to warm the spices trough. Add carrots, vegetable broth and lemon zest. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Let simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender.
• Add yogurt and puree the soup with a hand blender, scraping down inside of bowl as needed. At this point, don't let the soup boil, let it simmer at low heat, add pepper and salt. I usually cut some coriander leaves with scissors and add to the soup, not too much, you don't want to overpower beautiful spices. The soup is ready to serve, you can swirl a little sour cream on top and add a coriander leaf, if you like.

This soup will keep well, covered and refrigerated, at least 5 days or freeze up to 1 month.
You got to admit that a colorful bowl of silky-smooth velvety carrot soup sets the mood for a nice autumn or winter dinner. Enjoy!

Indian Carrot-Ginger Soup Recipe

First Snow

Don't you think first snow is always beautiful? I still can't believe it's not icing sugar (see? icing, made from ice) carefully spread allover in the night by Snow fairy. When  I was little, it rarely snowed in my city. And if, the sparely white flakes melted  floating  in the air before they touched the ground. I was often disappointed and I dreamed of a day when it will be snowing so much I could go out with my spoon and eat all of it...

Yeah, I remember the time when I was excited about the first snow of the season after I moved with my family to another  part of my country with more white goodness to enjoy. Well, not anymore since I live in Canada and we have tons and tons and tons of snow every winter till may. Now I need something bigger then spoon, say shovel! We have so much snow each year that it would kill the excitement of any winter lover in the first winter. Well, maybe in the second... Nuff said !

And even if I'm not really winter lover anymore, I anticipate with joy beautiful things that come with it. Cocooning is one of them. Nobody speaks of it any more,  it isn't "in" anymore but it is surely one of the reasons I can survive winter here without going nuts. Let's see: you take a basket, you throw in a nice warm blanket and a pair of hand knitted socks, couple of nice books or magazines (deco thingies, hmmm) and you cuddle on the sofa with a cup of coffee or tee, watching the snow flakes dancing in the wind...

First Snow

Everyday Schmuseday

Do you know what "schmusen" means? Yeah, I thought so! It's one of the German words that I conserve in my personal Love Dictionary. Just so you know, German isn't my mother tongue, but I've studied it and I love it - after all, it is the language of Goethe... To translate it in English words like cuddle, snuggle or smooch are used. Attention: not to be confused with "schmooze" even if it does have some connection with "converse casually, especially in order to gain an advantage or make social connection" as in "cuddling" yourself in a conversation.

More than a word itself, I like the mindset behind it, smoothness and goodness, rarity of the moment, emotions and aftertaste of it. You can "schmuse" with your lover, your husband, your children, your mom and dad or other person you love tenderly. You can, you should even "schmuse" with your animal, especially dogs and cats are very big Schmuse-Fans. Even if "schmusen" (pronounced shmoozen,) implies body contact, it never means very intimate relationship, but it implies deep relationship between two beings. You really don't need much to schmuse : just a moment of time and the person you love near you. Schmusen should be prescribed by the doctors, it'so god and beneficial for all involved. Shouldn't we proclaim every day of the week "Schmuseday"? It would be a self medication of sort, no more need for antidepressants. It is free, green, benefits two or even more persons at same time. Start today, start this weekend: proclaim your own oficial "Schmuseday" at home. Make it twice a week after that and you will wonder how it affects you and those near you. You could even create a poster to display it at your place telling everyone that it's your "Schmuseday" holiday. From there, it is literally just one step to the official national "Schmuseday" holiday!

Everyday Schmuseday

My finger in the ocean

I would like to share with you the journey from house to home, stories from my life, my little and big loves...

My finger in the ocean