Covid-19 Aware Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to you!

I hope you get to spend the day with your loved ones or yourself if you choose.

With Covid19 still being a factor and having little ones, this year our Valentine's Day is at home. Might cook or order in but spend the day with family!

My son is older this year and with being in school, there is talk of Valentine's day party for his class and what to bring. He is a little bit aware that Valentine's day involves sweets and chocolate.

Being one with a sweet tooth, I will gladly oblige him and help his understanding of Valentine's day by making things that have chocolate ( he got a lot of candy from school).

With working and having the kids around, I try to make things that are easy and quick to bake and my current go to things are brownies and oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookies. This weekend, I am making them again.

The brownies are Ghirardelli box mix and I absolutely adore them. I decided to try to make a healthier version 😉 and added shredded zucchini and it turned out super moist and delicious. And I will tell you, my son had no idea there were veggies in it and he enjoyed it.

Here is what I did:

1 bag Ghirardelli brownie mix, 1/2 cup shredded zucchini (drained) , 1 egg, 1/3 cup water and 1/3 cup vegetable oil. Bake according to box instructions

For the oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookie I follow a recipe I found here. Since I am nursing, I add ground flax seed to the recipe. It is not a full fledged lactation cookie but with the oats and the flax seed in it, it helps with my milk production.

The brownies did not last more than 2 days in the house- they are that delicious. The cookie recipe makes over 2 dozen cookies for me which I enjoy with my morning coffee during the week whenever I make them.

Here are some pictures below.

Enjoy!

Ps, if you are on Instagram; let’s be friends @izorapodcast 😊

A oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookies

A oatmeal raisin chocolate chip cookies

Zucchini brownies

Zucchini brownies

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Lessons I Learned in 2020

Happy New Year!

We are already in the 2nd week of 2021- and the first week was quite eventful.

I had been thinking of how I was going to write this blog and how I am going to make it super amazing and filled with pen and microphone 🎤 drop moments. This was keeping me back from just writing the blog! I was over thinking it and not getting my post written, so here we go

Things I learned

  1. Stop over thinking and do it! There are so many times I have over thought if I should buy this vs that, write a post vs don’t, record a podcast episode vs not recording one. Over thinking cost me time and ideas and I am hoping to get away from that this year

  2. Family is important.

    Corona Virus had us quarantined and I learned to appreciate and be thankful that God had this people around me. I was fortunate that the people around me were people that I could talk to and also not be tired of spending time with them. Many were not so fortunate.

  3. Life is important and very precious

    In 2020, we had buried my younger brother, I lost a very good friend and mentor, and Corona Virus showed us all how fragile life is. I learned to love the people around me and reach out to the people important to me. We do not know tomorrow or what it will bring Psalm 27:1

  4. Impossible is nothing- Mohammed Ali's shortened quote. 2020 taught me that O can cook what I have at home and be thankful. When the first lock down started, I decided to try to eat foods I had not had before. This is when I tried red lentils and red lentils are now a staple in my home. Another instance; I learned to braid my hair myself- see pictures below

    If you're African American or African descent, you know how much it costs to get your hair braided. It took a pandemic and salons being shut down to think of getting my hair done myself. I went to YouTube, followed a few ladies who gave tutorials and then I bought what I needed. I will not call my self an expert yet but i am super proud of what I have done and how much money I have saved. If you would like to know: whenever I want to braid my hair at a salon or by a stylist, it costs me about $200 to $300 but by doing it myself, I spend $50. That my dears is a good lesson.

    And lest we forget 2020 was the year

  5. Toilet paper was an essential commodity.

I will stop here.

What are some of the lessons you learned in 2020?

The second set of crochet braids I did for myself.

The second set of crochet braids I did for myself.

First set of crochet braids. I had just got to work 😊

First set of crochet braids. I had just got to work 😊

I Choose Thanks

I received a picture today from my old boss. It was from 16 plus years ago. I looked at it and was amazed. It got me thinking about the past years that I worked and this year 2020.

This year 2020, we buried my younger brother, I had not seen him for 10 years, we talked on the phone, swapped pictures but because he lived in a different country we couldn't see each other. There were plans made to go and visit and the year we planned to go, he passed away after a bout of being sick…

This year I was blessed with a baby boy. To be pregnant and give birth during a global pandemic is not something to take lightly. For God's grace, strength and protection through the pregnancy, I am greatly amazed and thankful.

I look at the picture again and am thankful, thankful to have a job to go to also is a reason for me to be thankful this year and this season.

I posted this on Instagram on I want to share it here;

Thankful!
This year has had many ups and downs for me. I want to share what I am thankful for this year.
I got this picture sent to me today from the archives 🤭
  It is about 16 years old and it was right about the time I started working in the lab.
🔬
I worked for a lady who took the students who worked for her and gave  them her all. Most times, student were  there to work and leave but she took time to share her knowledge and she made histology fun for me.
🌍
She took me, an international student and made me feel at home. The holidays were usually sad for me, being so far from home but she opened her home,  and Invited me and other students for Thanksgiving when my family was oceans away. She tried to make holidays special and I appreciate her for that.
🙏
Today I am thankful, that God brought her my way to be a blessing to me. I work in a lab today because of the foundation she laid that I stood upon.
Thankful for her being a mentor to me and other students who are still in the histology field.
Thankful to call her friend.
🌻
To all of you who have been kind to a stranger, a student for from home, I want to say thank you. 

Do share,
Whom has God brought your way to be a blessing to you?
What are you thankful for?
🦃 Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

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