banff national park

Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada had been on our travel list since we saw pictures of the glacial blue waters. The mountains (and award flights) were calling...

Canada is a sweet spot award redemption for using Delta miles, affectionately termed Sky Pesos in the points and miles world because it typically takes a lot of miles to redeem award flights. When our friend Adam noticed that DL award flights were extremely reasonable last spring, we decided to make a long August weekend of it, baby in tow and all. 

Airfare Breakdown: Delta MSP-YYC 

↟ 19,000 Skymiles + $55.36 for taxes per adult

↟ flights at this time of year cost at least $500, so this was a two cents/mile redemption which is good for DL

↟ $19.60 for lap infant taxes 

We would have loved to backpack or camp, but with a seven month old, we needed to keep things simple, sleep and budget friendly this time around. Points hotel options were a little interesting, but we made it work. We flew in late Friday evening and flew out early Monday morning, so it was convenient to stay right at the airport for those two nights and for the car rental pick up and drop off. For the other night, we stayed in Golden (about an hour outside of Banff NP and west of YoHo NP).

Hotel Breakdown: three nights

↟ Delta Calgary Airport In-Terminal Hotel for 20,000 Marriott points

↟ Holiday Inn Express and Suites Golden Kicking Horse for 20,000 IHG points 

↟ Delta Airport In-Terminal Hotel for 20,000 Marriott points

Car Rental Breakdown: Saturday morning-Sunday evening

↟ $144.33 for an intermediate car booked through Costco

↟ Offset using Barclays Arrival travel credit. Free is always a good price.

This was one of those trips that will be forever in our minds. Our little glory babe was due on this exact weekend a year prior, so it was a special weekend as we recounted sweet memories from our first pregnancy. Not only that, but Matt had just started walking about two weeks prior (since his Achilles rupture in May), and we had such fun exploring and making memories together as a family. 

On Instagram, I wrote... oh globetrotto, your first trip to the mountains, and it was a good one. you absolutely loved being in the airport and on the plane - literally the biggest smiles we have ever seen, happy shrieks, bouncing up and down, yet you still somehow managed to sleep most of the actual flights. we love seeing you explore new places, watch and learn from watching intently, and go with the flow. there were times in the car that it was so quiet, we thought you must be sleeping. but much to our surprise, you were wide awake, looking out the window and taking it all in. you were full of sweet snuggles, loved being cozied up with your sherpa blanket and Albert the donkey, and now have a second passport stamp. 

The only downside to visiting in August were the crowds (and lack of cribs...ha!). It was much too busy for our liking, but we tried to avoid all the people (unsuccessfully I might add) by doing as much as we could in the morning or late afternoon. Along with that, all (two) of the cribs were checked out (first come, first serve) at one of the hotels, so globetrotto had to sleep between us one night. He was quite pleased with the arrangement, but we sure didn't sleep well. 

We would love to return to Banff at some point, either in the winter to cross country ski or in late September when the larch trees are on full display. If Banff isn't already on your travel list, we highly recommend adding it. And if you are by chance planning a trip in 2017, Canada is currently waiving all national park fees this year in celebration of their 150th birthday. Who doesn't love free park entrance?!

Other area recommendations: 

↟ Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters + Sidewalk Citizens Bakery located in the east village at the Simmons Building: 618 Confluence Way SE in Calgary (there are six locations, but this is where the roasterie is located)

↟ Mount Norquay

↟ Lake Louise

↟ Moraine Lake

↟ Johnston Canyon

↟ the town of Banff

↟ Emerald Lake in YoHo National Park

↟ the Icefields Parkway

↟ Peyto Lake

lemon dill soup

In December, I finished the book The Year of Living Danishly by Helen Russell. It was very insightful and since then, we have embraced the Danish concept of hygge. We have been all about warm drinks, savory and simple comfort food, wool socks, slippers, sweaters, candles, dim lights, blankets, flannel, listening to vinyl, and most importantly -- togetherness at home. Winter is one of our favorite seasons, and despite the warm temperatures this week, we are still hoping for more snow before spring officially comes.

That being said, we have certain soup and chili recipes on repeat over here season after season, and this particular recipe has been in the rotation frequently this winter. I am fairly certain that this soup has been made at least once a week for the past two months. It is easy to make yet full of fresh flavor and just begs me to cozy up under a soft blanket with a mug of this in hand. I will sometimes eat it for lunch and dinner in the same day, and the best part is it is even better as leftovers when the flavors have a chance to meld.

lemon dill soup
from the book Savor, by Shauna Niequist

ingredients:
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken or vegetable broth (i use homemade chicken stock)
1/2 cup brown rice (for a shortcut, use a packet of the trader joe's freezer brown rice)
2 cups chicken, cooked and shredded (for a shortcut, use a rotisserie chicken)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (i always add more)
4 sprigs fresh dill, finely chopped (dry dill works as well)
salt and pepper

directions:

saute the onion, celery, and carrots in olive oil until soft, then add garlic.

add broth and rice and allow rice to cook most of the way through.

five minutes before rice is cooked through, add chicken and lemon juice and dill.

add salt and pepper to taste. adjust dill and lemon according to taste preference.

>> i always add extra lemon and dill until it's just right. i will also add more chicken for additional protein and so it has a thicker consistency.

enjoy! and please by all means, cozy up under a blanket and savor this soup goodness.

homemade strawberry pop tarts

It's been one of those weeks over here with teething, colds, and lack of sleep. I tend to prefer cooking over baking (probably because I love to use recipes as a guideline and adjust ingredients freely which tends to not work as well when baking), but I really wanted to attempt homemade pop tarts as a special treat for Valentine's Day. With the week we were having, this was a fun distraction for me during nap time one afternoon with the extra bonus that the house smelled amazing for hours afterwards!

Since these pop tarts have both egg and dairy, O isn't able to taste test these (we did allergy testing a few weeks ago and learned that he is currently allergic to dairy), but M and I have been sharing one every evening after he is in bed. This is also an attempt to reintroduce egg back into my diet to see if O is still sensitive to it through nursing. So far, M has given raving reviews every time he bites into one, and O hasn't broken out (huge praise!). I highly recommend making these, especially if you have littles who love to help in the kitchen or eat sweet treats.

homemade strawberry pop tarts

ingredients for the pastry:
2 cups gluten free all purpose flour from trader joes
1 tablespoon organic sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut roughly into 1" squares
1 large farm fresh egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 additional egg, whisked (for assembling pastries)

ingredients for the filling:
3/4 cup of my grandma's homemade strawberry jam

ingredients for the frosting:
1-2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1 cup organic powdered sugar
juice from half a lemon
{optional} 2-3 drops of food coloring
{optional} sprinkles

directions:

mix the flour, sugar, and salt. add butter square one by one and mix with an electric mixer until the butter is pea size and the dough holds together.

in a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons milk and 1 egg.

add the milk and egg mixture to the bowl with the dough and mix with your hands until it is combined.

on a floured surface, knead the dough carefully until it doesn't stick.

divide the dough in half and roll out each half to form a 9 inch x 12 inch rectangle. one of the few times my marble rolling pin has been used. i really need to bake more...

once rolled, divide each rectangle of dough into twelve squares, using a knife to make clean cuts.

top half of the squares with a spoonful of strawberry jam and lay the other half on top, sealing the edges by pressing a fork into each side.

using a pastry brush (or in my case a spoon since i don't have one! again, i really should diversify my baking more...i tend to stick to crisps and cobblers), brush the whisked egg over half of your pop tart squares. i would also poke a few holes in the top because otherwise the pastry cracks while baking.

bake on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes (i cooked mine close to 25 minutes).

remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. cool completely before frosting.

mix all the frosting ingredients in a bowl until well combined and adjust to thin or thick accordingly. for kids, it would be a fun, festive touch to color the frosting and add sprinkles too.

frost pop tarts, and enjoy! and store any extras in the fridge. they are delicious cold!

>> recipe adapted (and for different filling ideas) from these versions here, here, and here.