Only the pure of heart can make good soup - Beethoven

So I have a rant. On Sundays we have swimming lessons. I thought I was so smart putting the girls together. HBear is at 10am and SBean is at 10:30. Yeah, not so much.

HBear goes in on her own, then she comes out and I get her dressed and Ninja goes in with SBean or vice versa. For the 1^st half an hour SBean is freaking to go in and for the last half an hour HBear is whining to go back in.

So this week we got smart J

I went in with SBean and Ninja came in with us and played with HBear. It took 10 minutes and they were kicked out for not paying!!!!

WHAT? Actually I am paying $50 to blow bubbles at my 10 month old. I could do that in public swimming but then she can’t get into her next levels! This is a racket!!!

So I talked to the front desk after and explained. She said we need to pay. OK but the other babies in our class have both parents in so why should we pay for Ninja to come in?

And really HBear is only staying in for 30 minutes past her class. So HBear is $1.00 and Ninja is $6.00… for 30 minutes! That is crazy! I’m not trying to be cheap but it is the point! We go public swimming tons and I am flabbergasted that they are going this far!

I have written an email to the director. Yes, I am a letter writing person lol Did you doubt it?

I hope they see that this is ridiculous and that trying to squeeze money out of families like that is… well, it is just shitty!

I am sure I have more to say about this but SBean just woke up and is saving you from my ire! LOL

So I know you are wondering about what happened to that lovely beef stock I made the other day.

I made beef barley soup of course J

Beef Barley Soup

Beef Stock

2 cloves garlic, pressed

2 onions, diced

2 small turnips, cubed

2 small potatoes, cubed

1 cup frozen peas and carrots

½ cup barley

1 can stewed tomatoes

1 handful of herbs (parsley, thyme, oregano, rosemary)

1 bay leaf

Leftover roast beef, cut into small pieces

 

Ninja cutting up the delicious roast beef from the other night

Out of our garden!

Heat a pan over medium heat. Add oil and the onion and garlic. Sauté until soft and fragrant.

Add in the turnip and potato, season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender.

Add some beef broth after to deglaze the pan and get all the bits into your soup :)

Scrape your pan into the beef stock. Add your bay leaf, the barley, your beef and your chopped up herbs.

Simmer for an hour.

Add frozen veggies and can of tomatoes.

Simmer for another hour.

Cool and portion.

This weekend was full of pictures!

On Saturday we had a family portrait at the Summerland Gardens. The sun was out and it was so Fally J I just loved the colors. Here are a few pictures that we took AFTER the photoshoot.

On Sunday we drove to Kelowna to go to the Westcoast Momma Collective Fair. It is an organization of Mommies Entrepreneurs. It was super nice to buy some Xmas gifts from local Mommies with so much talent!

All in all it was a fantastic weekend! My Dad is back from his trip J and we are ready for another busy week that includes parent/teacher interviews, playdates, Sparks, gymnastics, Pretty Little Liars!!!!, early dismissals, our 1^st in-service day, VIP day, and hopefully a family bike ride and a trip to the pumpkin patch!!