Losing my intuition

 It is quite confronting when you look at your resume, and you have to come to the conclusion that it is full with things you don't really care for anymore. That is what happened to me about 2 (or more) years ago. I looked at it and I thought, damn girl - what the f***. I spent almost my whole working life just rowing my boat in a pond. I've spent too much time just ignoring my interests, my creativity, my intuition, my guts. And that is of course only my fault. I was happy with the money, the car, the many advantages, the security and all those superficial (but also needed) things.

When you are 18 and have to decide what line of study you want to pursue and you don't really have a calling, you just choose something that keeps all options open. I chose communication management - a term that says nothing and does not really mean anything either. Then you get your degree and you think: What now? What is my value to the world? I certainly did not know. So I thought - okay, let's give it one more year -maybe then I will know. I like(d) to travel and I like hotels , so I chose hotel management. Again the same story,  and then the moment comes - you start working, with still no clue of your place in the world. The only thing that matters now is making money & preferably according to your diploma . Don't get me wrong, I am grateful I got to study and that I was able to start working  on a "higher" level, because of that I had the luck to live comfortably for some years.

However, I think I went in a sort of hibernation mode intellectually for more than 10 years because other things got more important - money, living on my own, travelling, having fun, making some bad choices, and then... I met the man of my life and I became a mother. I slowly noticed that since I had found my personal happiness in life, my superficial motives were not enough anymore. It was time for something more. In my motherhood I learned to trust my instincts again and to trust myself.

Since then I have been on a road of discovery, or maybe recovery is a better word, listening to myself, trusting my intuition. I still make mistakes against this every day, as it so much easier to listen to other people's opinions and to go with what society tells you to. But in the end, other people and society are not responsable for my life. I'm so tired of seeing other people realizing ideas I also had and succeeding. I feel it is going to be a much longer road than I hoped because I come from far and I have a lot of interests but unfortunately my ideas are not always the most lucrative. But I feel there is something...my intuition says something is coming. I don't know what, I don't know how - but I will have to trust my guts and start to listen to my intuition.

Maybe then I will get out of the pond and into the open sea.

My problems are clearly first world problems (very aware of that) and maybe to most of you I am not making sense at all, but maybe some of you will recognize this feeling...
I just want to find my space in the world and do something useful with my life while earning a living.

Sunday Morning Huevos Rancheros

Sunday Morning, the time to spend some quality time at the breakfast table. And huevos rancheros is one of my favourite dishes to do that. So I thought I'd share this 3L Syndrome Favorite with you.

Here is what you will need for 2 people: (I know it seems a lot, but it is totally worth it)

 4 hands full of baby spinash - 4 eggs - 2 hands full of cilantro - 1 hands full of tasty cheddar - 1 onion - 1 tablespoon of coconut oil - 2 cloves of garlic - 1 red paprika - 2 bay leaves - 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika powder (pimenton de la vera) - 1 pinch of cayenne - 2 cans of tomato cans - 200 ml of filtred water - salt & pepper - 1 ready-to-eat avocado -1 tablespoon of olive oil - juice of half a lime - 2 spring onions 

Here is how you do it:

1. First make the tomato sauce. Fry the onion in the ghee or coconut oil over a medium for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.

2. Add the garlic, peppers, bay leaves and all the spices to the pan and cook for another 2 minutes.

3. Add the tomatoes and water, season generously with salt and pepper, then stir everything together and leave to simmer for 10 minutes until reduced to a thick, rich sauce.

4. Make the guacamole. Halve and stone the avocado, then scoop out the flesh and roughly chop. Place in a bowl and stir in all the remaining ingredients and seasoning. Set aside.

5. Check the seasoning of the tomato sauce, adding extra salt, pepper and cayenne as needed, then stir through the spinach and cook for a few minutes until just wilted.

6. Use a spatula or a spoon to make four wells in the tomato sauce mixture and crack an egg into each. The eggs will poach in the sauce and cook in about 4 minutes (lid on) for set whites and runny yolks.

7. Scatter over the coriander and cheese. Serve immediately (as the eggs will keep cooking) with big heaped spoonfuls of guac on top.

 So there you have it, give it a try next Sunday! And let me know!

 

 

Recipe adapted from  Hemsley Hemsley

De Tiense Vierkante eter

 Ik ben 1 van de 10 Tiense koks die meedoet aan de Tiense Vierkante Eter, een cool project dat 10 Tiense wijken verbindt. We hebben allemaal een recept ontwikkeld en de groenten voor het recept kweken we in in een vierkante meter tuin, voor de gelegenheid een typische fruitbak uit de regio. De mijne (ik ben de wijkambassadeur) staat in de Paterskerk en hebben we pas ingezaaid met courgette, sla, pijpajuin en rode ui. Dus woon je in de buurt , en je ziet wat onkruid of de bak staat wat droog - aarzel niet om mee voor onze buurtbak te zorgen! Let's do this together! In augustus tijdens Parklife stel ik mijn gerecht dan voor, hopelijk met de zelf gekweekte groenten - als we geen 15 000 liter regen meer krijgen!

Mijn gerecht: Stukje Gelakt buikspek met panzanella van courgette

Dit gerecht zal ook gepaard worden met een lokaal biertje.
Voor meer info en de locaties van andere bakken: kijk hier 

De Tiense Vierkante Eters kadert in ParkLife 2016 en is een samenwerking tussen Horeca-Vlaanderen, Hagelandse Biergenieters, OpgewekTienen, Riso Vlaams-Brabant en Unizo.

Wedding Vows in Tangier

 As you have seen in my previous post, two weeks ago we were in Morocco for a very special party.

Lolo's friends have been together for over 20 years and they thought it was time to celebrate this event together with their close friends and 3 children. Julie styled a real pinterest- worthy party with beautiful flowers, table settings, and a wonderful backdrop in the backyard of their friends. Everything was so beautiful and done with taste - I loved it. Of course, the food was good too, but we knew it would! It was so moving to see this couple with their kids celebrate their love and life together. In this world where things are not always easy, it is important to stand still for a moment and be grateful for what you have and that's what the evening was all about. 

Because Love is Love is Love (As Julie herself puts it (& Obama too :))

What I also really liked was the fact that they had a wedding 'cake' of layered cheeses instead of real cake. Very original and very French.

Thank you for having us G+J!

P'tit Week end au Maroc

After only 3 days at home, after America, we got back on the airplane to Morocco to see Lolo's friends and a party (more on this later). Our friend Julie booked me a hammam with the royal treatment again, which was heaven (including blowdry and mani-pedi). I felt like a new person. We had good food and we went to the sea. It had been so long since I really swam in the sea and I really enjoyed it. It was so much fun in the water, we were like a kid! We had sardines on the BBQ, drank rosé in the little house by the sea, and stayed at the beach until the sun went down. Olivia had the best times playing in the waves and with her little friends. I really like Morocco. Lolo's friends live in Tangier (see more here) and I think in a few years this will become a even more trendy and pleasant city to go for a city trip. They are constructing everywhere with eye for open spaces, while keeping their own cultural identity.

You can wake me up any time to go here! Thanks friends for the nice weekend!

 

 (how beautiful is this kid?)