Somewhere in the Middle

Happy Valentines.

Today, I surprised C with a Valentine project... window art. Fun stuff! It's been such a long time since C & I sat down to create. I've miss doing projects with him. Things are just super busy around here. Especially now that we received our long-term shipment. I've been organizing and recycling things like nobody's business but I still feel there's no end in sight.

After dinner, C & I sat down and worked on these little hearts I made earlier in the day. C really enjoyed decorating his little hearts.

I love this heart he created. Love how colorful it is and the little rainbow in the center is adorable.

Crafting is our special time together. We talk and really enjoy each other's company. I really need to set more time aside so we have time for fun projects. It's easy to lose sight of how important quality time is when you're constantly rushing from one place to another, getting dinner/lunches prepared, helping with homework, on the phone, and on and on...

Tonight, letting go of our usual bed time was a great idea. C loved staying up pass his bed time to finish his hearts. ;)

Big win at the Spanish luncheon.

Last week, the Spainards had their luncheon and I won this fabulous Tous black leather bag! I love it! The leather is like butter.  Love that it's a Spanish designer too.

Where did the week go?

Seriously, I don't know where the time goes. Ok, I mean I do know where the time goes but why does it have to go by so quickly!! Can someone please tell me! lol!

I can't believe it was just last Friday that we received our long term storage items. It's been almost six years since we've seen these items. Little did we know back then that we'd be staying in Belgium for more than 3 years.

Sorting through boxes and finding sentimental treasures here and there is a wonderful feeling. Yearbooks, letters from old school friends, photos, etc... For the time being, I've put these boxes aside for a day I can really look through them. I did find a very special book my best friend gave me close to 20 years ago. Reading it made me cry and laugh at the same time. I was so happy to find the book. And it just so happens my BFF will be visiting me next week. Perfect timing. ;)

But before my BFF gets here, I'm trying to unpacking everything. But it's proving to be challenging since I don't have a lot of time to dedicate to this task. But I'm trying.

The item I was most looking forward to receiving was our furniture... a super comfy Crate & Barrel couch & chair plus an armoire. Well, unfortunately the moving company had other plans! They lost my couch. I mean how does that happen. It seems pretty easy to me... take the wooden crate out of storage, place it on a boat, and deliver the crate. Oh, I'm so disappointed!! We love that couch!! There is a tiny bit of me that is hoping they find it safely tucked away in the corner of their warehouse. But I'm not holding my breath. The weird thing is that they delivered all the cushions, pillows, and slipcovers. Which is no use to me without a frame. ;( The armoire has a few nicks but I think we can touch them up.

Our chair arrived in good condition. C absolutely loves this sitting on it and has asked if it can be his special chair. Last weekend, he spent hours lounging on the chair devouring "Calvin & Hobbes" comic books.

I've sold a ton of things already which feels great. I'm trying to be practical and not be too sentimental about things. In our shipment, we found more 110V appliances than I know what to do with. But we're being good... saying farewell to some of our favorite kitchen appliances... Breadmaker, Cuisinart food processor & blender, coffee grinder, mini refrigerator and my all time favorite...  my Kitchen Aid mixer. S has about 6-7 boxes worth of books! He even has text books from his undergraduate & graduate program! I'm trying to encourage him to recycle them but he's not budging. His excuse, "I can use them as reference books." Seriously? I like what Mr. On the Street had to say about these computer books, "Reference books? Maybe for a computer history class!" lol!

Cooking at Mmmmmh.

Cooking is so much more fun when you're doing it in a group!

I cook, you cook, we cook! Love it!

This past week, I took a cooking class in Brussels at Mmmmh with Brocante Grrrl. I love this section of Brussels... The architecture is just amazing. 

It was my first time going to Mmmmmh and I absolutely loved it. The venue is very modern yet cozy. The minute I walked in I was greeted with wonderful smells from the kitchen.

They had two beautiful state of the art kitchens. The one downstairs is used for demonstrations and open cooking classes where as the kitchen upstairs is reserved for private groups. 

Our chef, Filip was charming and funny. Everyone in our group loved him! If I were to organize a cooking class I'd definitely request him as the chef. He was extremely passionate about cooking and enjoyed traveling the world to learn about other cuisines.

The menu for the day was: 

1st Course: Crème de potiron au lait de coco et au curry vert  (Cream of pumpkin soup with coconut milk & green curry)

2nd Course: Saumon écossais mi-fumé, raifort et grenades (Smoked salmon with horseradish)   

3rd Course: Poulet fermier, duxelle et risotto aux herbes (Chicken with the mushroom duxelle)    

4th Course: Sphère de menthe et mousse au chocolat express (Chocolate Mint Mousse)  

 

At the beginning of the course, Filip put us all to work. My job was to grate the horseradish. Not my favorite task! Had I had a cold or stuffed nose this job would have been great! lol!

The food was absolutely delicious. By far my favorite two dishes were the pumpkin soup & the smoked salmon. I'm usually not a big fan of mixing savory & sweet flavors in soups or main dishes so I had my reservations about this 1st course. But after the first bite I was a changed woman. The curry complimented the pumpkin and coconut milk so beautifully. I loved it so much I bought some of the curry to make my own soup. It'll be a perfect soup to make once the weather gets cold.

Now, the salmon was out of this world!! Incredibly moist and flavorful.

I left Mmmmh wanting my own little smoker! That is how much I loved the salmon. But here we are 8 months later & I still haven't purchased one. I think a smoker might be one of those items I put on my Christmas wish list this year. 

The Sphère de menthe et mousse au chocolat we made that day incorporated a bit of gastronomy cooking. Chef Filip had us drop these little green balls into water and as they formed into tear drops we took them out and let them dry on a paper towel. When you chewed one of the little tear drops it was as if a burst of mint popped in your mouth. 

These tiny bite size pieces of mint were a nice addition to the chocolat mousse although I'm not sure I'd go through the extra step.

Mmmmh not only offers cooking classes but also has a nice selection of cooking supplies which include items for Gastronomy cuisine. This type of cuisine is a bit foreign to me but I find the ingredients fascinating nevertheless.

You'll also find a section of wines, cheese, and other foods. If you're a foodie and looking to spice up your pantry, I would definitely recommend this place.