Celebrate Family, Friends, Traditions

Every August long weekend for the past few years my parents, sisters & their hubbies come up to the cottage. It’s always one of my favourite weekends because both my families are together. We go swimming, hiking, biking, play yahtzee, tan on the dock, cruise on the boat, celebrate my birthday (I turned 30 this year!) and of course eat great food. Here are a few pics from a great long weekend, and one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had.

Saturday brunch: fresh seasonal fruit, greek yogurt, whole wheat waffles with real maple syrup and scrambled eggs – so yummy

My brunch plate!

Why are cottage lunches so good? Maybe because you’ve worked up an appetite swimming all morning, and like I always say – hunger is the best spice. My lunch plate: homemade turkey burger, avocado, brown rice curry, tomatoes with basil & mozzarella, and raw veggies with hummus, and of course an ice cold Michelob Ultra with cranberry juice – so refreshing & low in calories!

My parents brought fresh, organic kale from my uncle’s farm. We enjoyed kale all weekend: kale chips, kale salad and sauteed kale

Saturday dinner: Almond Crusted Wild Salmon, Roast Sweet Potatoes and Kale Salad with local blueberries, avocado, goat cheese and sunflower seeds with a lemon garlic vinaigrette

I had an Argentinean-themed birthday party complete with bright colours, bbq’d steak and malbec. It was the perfect day – it started with a long hike with the family, some Olympic watching, some tanning on the dock, champagne, yahtzee and a great dinner with family & friends.

Birthday dinner! Steak, roast veggies, potato & asparagus salad and caesar salad. Oh, and my perfect birthday wouldn’t be complete without a healthy dessert. My mother-in-law made a delicious raw Chocolate Avocado Tort – it was too die for (unfortunately I was blowing out the candles so I don’t have any pictures of the cake!)

The best way to wake up on my birthday: my little puppy walking into our bedroom dressed like this (great idea mom!)

Until next year!