July 25, 2013

Thursday Tunes.

My favorite songs from this month:

July 23, 2013

Toy camera pictures.

I finally got the pictures of my toy camera develloped! I was so excited but unfortunatelly there were a lot of bad pictures between them. Here's a couple of them. As I said: the quality isn't great, but that's almost always the case with these kind of toy cameras.

July 21, 2013

Strawberry and Rhubarb Crumble.

Who doesn't love a good crumble? I wanted to experiment a bit and decided to use strawberries and rhubarb, a combination that never fails, in my opinion. And just look at it: doesn't it look delicious? I'm a huge fan of this experiment and I'm definitely going to make this more often!

July 18, 2013

Efteling.

Efteling is an amusement park in the Netherlands, not too far away from where I live. When I was a kid, we'd go there every year and I loved it so much! The reason why I loved it as a kid? The fairytale forest, of course! And if I'm being totally honest, that's still my favorite part of the park. I mean, the roller coasters and other attractions are pretty cool too, but I was still looking forward the most to see the tales of Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and so so so much more come alive.
Even though I just got back, I want to go again. I probably could write a very very long post about all the fairy tales, the roller coasters, magical boat rides, the food, the shows ... but I'm just gonna say that you have to visit it yourself... I promise you that within 5minutes of entering the park, you will have found you inner kid again and it will be a magical journey 'til you leave in the evening. And as a way to say goodbye, there's water show called Aquanura, right before closing time at the exit. Here's some pictures of what our day was like.

July 14, 2013

Homemade Ice tea.

What I love about homemade ice tea is that you can experiment with it as much as you want! You can totally personalize it to your own flavour. I happen to love lemon tea a lot, so that's what I tend to go by. But you can just as easily make it with camomile, rosehip tea, ... whatever you get your hands on. I've also heard that you can make this cold brewed. I didn't do that this time but maybe I'll try it in the future! Here's how I made my version:

July 12, 2013

Banana & chocolate muffins.

I first saw this recipe in one of the books of Nigella Lawson (Nigella Express, I believe) and I knew I had to try it right away. The original recipe is with butterscotch but I have no idea what that is. We just don't use it in Belgium (I've seen it on TV before, but I can't find it in the store). So I made it with chocolate instead. Anyway. I'm absolutely in love with Nigella Lawson. She makes everything look so easy. The real reason why I love her are the desserts. She's not thinking about being skinny or low-fat ingredients. NO! I think she understands what desserts are all about: indulging yourself. And if you decide to cheat on your diet (if you have one) you better make it worth it!

July 9, 2013

Bucketlist.

Ever since I made my 22 things before 23 checklist, I'm obsessed with making lists. Crossing of things I've accomplished or done really gives me satisfied feeling. Sometimes it are small things, like vacuum cleaning or going grocery shopping and sometimes it is something I've been working on for a long time, like finishing the Start to Run program (I did it!! Still need to train more to get to the 5km mark though: I'm a slow runner). And with my 22 before 23 list in mind, I've made a bucket list. A mini-bucket list, actually. I came up with 10 things I want to accomplish before I'm 30 or so: it's a long term project.
  1. Travel. This is definitely number 1 on the list. There are so many places I still want to see. I don't know if I'm ever going to have children - I'm still undecided - but if I do, I feel I have to do as much travelling as possible before I'm stuck here at home. I want to see America (I dream of going to New York, Los Angeles, San Fransisco, ...) and I want to do road trips, to see Portugal and travel through France by car. Just me and my boyfriend. We'll have so much fun!

July 7, 2013

Diploma: check!

I did it! I actually graduated university! Yesterday, there was a reception for all the graduates where my friends and I officially got our grades on paper. For the actual diploma I have to wait until April, but I got it, that's what's most important. Oh, and I graduated cum laude (I'm too proud not to brag, sorry).

My friends and I at the reception

I'm just so happy and thankful for the last four years. I've met some amazing people, made friends that will last for a long time (I hope) and learned so much about media (duh) and myself. Going to university and living alone most of the time has made me more independent, confident and pushed me to do things I never would have done otherwise. Being able to finish this without even repeating a year (which is actually pretty common) is my way of saying thanks to my parents (by saving them a lot of money and all). Without them I would never been able to go on this adventure in the first place. They are the best. I probably don't tell them that enough.

July 5, 2013

Grain pancakes with apple.

Call me crazy but I'm not a big fan of pancakes. Don't know why. Never have. I do like fibres and grains (probably the only healthy thing I like) and that's the reason I decided to try this pancake anyway. And am I glad I did! This is a healthy alternative to a regular pancake and believe it or not, it's made with cereal. I learned the recipe from my mom and I think she got it from Weigt Watchers, so it's pretty save to say that this is good for you. It might not look like a lot but believe me, one pancake really fills your stomach.

July 3, 2013

June.

1. Fun to do list for June in Flair Magazine // 2. The amazing scenery where I go running // 3. Rewarding Ice Tea after finishing the first exam // 4. Going pro with the vegetable garden // 5. Birthday Barbecue! // 6. Some of my birthday presents // 7. Last Start to Run lesson! WOOP WOOP! // 8. Countdown to freedom // 9. I drew owls. // 10. Biggest blisters after my walk to the Sinksenfoor // 11. Cleaning out my room. I have a lot of stuff // 12. Trying to make some extra money by erasing packets (Sounds weird, I know) // 13. Wrist band from my boyfriend's graduation reception // 14. Charity evening: comedy show + perfomance of the Voice male a cappella band // 15. Rummage sale

July 1, 2013

Random Pictures.

My internet was down a couple of days. It's when something doesn't work or is missing that you notice how much you actually use it. Luckily for me, I had enough to do around here and my boyfriend got his diploma! Here's a couple of pictures a randomly took during this week, to keep me busy without the Internet.