When Mama's Happy...

Summer hiatus...

2009-05-26T07:22:00.000-07:00

I love this blog and devoted many hours to it during the winter months, but now that summer is here, and more importantly, our wedding season, I am rethinking my balancing act. I've recently decided that if I want to do my two most important passions, parenting and photography, to the best of my ability, I must cut back elsewhere! I am keeping this blog, however, and will be picking up right where I left off this fall.
See you then, and have a great summer!

Orange and fennel salad...

2009-05-04T13:07:00.000-07:00

- two large navel oranges, peeled and sliced
- 1/2 bulb of fennel, sliced as thinly as possible, some fronds reserved and coarsely chopped
- olive oil
- salt
- freshly ground black pepper

Arrange oranges on a large plate. Top with sliced fennel and sprinkle fennel fronds over the top. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Linked to:

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-05-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

Monday: Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce (made in the crock-pot) with green beans and fruit.

Tuesday: I'm hoping to try this new recipe for Chicken cooked in milk.

Wednesday: Leftovers from Tuesday.

Thursday: Late afternoon appointment, will be eating out.

Friday: Breakfast for dinner: eggs, toast, cheese, fruit.

Modern day mad hatter...

2009-05-04T05:35:00.000-07:00

The theme at i ♥ faces this week is hats!

{kid entry} I'll try to make a long story short. This photo was taken on Friday while we were out riding around taking photos for the local Relay for Life's "May Day for Relay". We wanted to make the day fun for the kids as well, so we did a few fun things along the way. One of them was lunch at, you guessed it! Burger King. We ended up going to the BK at the mall, and while my husband was getting our lunch, Milo started to point at something near the cash register. I asked him what he saw and he said "Foo-foo-ful hat, mama" (foo-foo-ful = beautiful, btw), so I asked, "Do you see the crowns, baby?" and he said "Foo-foo-ful princess hat! Me?". So of course, my heart melted and I had to rush over to get my baby a crown so he could be prince for a day (or princess, if that be his desire, lol)! No joke, this crown stayed on his head for two days. And the glasses? Well, that was just a lil' purple bling to show his support of cancer awareness!

Lazy girl's pasta primavera...

2009-04-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

1/2 pound of linguine
1 package frozen spinach and artichoke dip
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 bell pepper, any color, roasted and sliced (I used some from my freezer)
1/4 cup thinly sliced sun dried tomatoes
Salt & pepper to taste

Cook linguine to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water. Return pasta and reserved water to pot, add remaining ingredients and season to taste with salt and pepper, heat on medium until hot. Serves 4.

Reflection...

2009-04-27T06:10:00.000-07:00

The theme at i ♥ faces this week is refection!

{kid entry} To me, this is a double reflection. First it's the obvious reflection of Lola on the glass wall of our local bio-dome (she looks so darn surprised cause she's watching monkeys, by the way), and secondly, she looks so much like her big bro and is dressed to match him, so I see that metaphorical "reflection" as well. But I am their mama, and I'm crazy like that, so lets just stick to the reflecting glass...

{adult entry} This is from a wedding that my hubby and I shot this spring. That quiet moment of finishing touches before walking down the aisle...

Don't forget to check out all of this weeks entries, and while you're there leave them a comment! Enjoy!

Fix it Friday...

2009-04-24T07:56:00.000-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i ♥ faces!

This is the original...

For my version I first brought the photo into Aperture and rotated it, cropped it and removed the blemishes. Then I reopened it in Photoshop where I dodged it a bit, and then, using Totally Rad Actions I applied Clare-ify, Grunge Rock at 30%, Bitchin' B&W and then Boring Old Sepia. The last step was adding a Fairy Tale overlay, changing it to blue and adjusting the opacity to 50%...

Have a great weekend all!

Stepping out to cure Scleroderma...

2009-04-23T08:06:00.001-07:00

If you live in the North Country you are probably all too familiar with the blog One Day at a Time and the story of Randy Duprey and his beautiful wife, Kate and son, Alek. You are also probably very familiar with the turmoil and heartache that he and his family has faced for the last couple years because of Scleroderma. At this point the causes of this disease are unknown and there is no cure. On January 6th Randy lost his battle to this incurable disease and now Kate has decided to step up and Step Out To Cure Scleroderma by organizing a walk to raise money and raise awareness in Randy's honor. The walk will be held on Sunday June 14th, and there will be a meeting this Saturday to go over details. Anyone willing to help organize or contribute to this event should be there to show support and take part in a great cause for a great local family. Volunteers are needed! You can visit Kate's blog for details.

Let's not let this happen to anyone else...

Mother's Day gift ideas...

2009-04-22T11:34:00.001-07:00

In honor of Mother's day (which is less than 3 weeks off, people), I thought that I would compile a list of my favorite things. That's right. My favorite things! Well, I am a mama, right? Besides, I thought it might help you decide on a gift for the mama in your life.

This necklace is gorgeous and the price is pretty spiffy too. It tops my list! *hint, hint Jason*

Anything LUSH! Now if you've been reading this blog for a while, it's no surprise that I am a huge LUSH fan. It's all natural, Canadian made (although available in the U.S.), earth friendly (Happy Earth Day, by the way) and everything smells good enough to eat. My faves are Avobath Bath Bomb, Godiva Solid Shampoo and Rock Star Soap. So yummy!

I love to go for mini hikes with my family. Add a picnic and you've got the perfect Mother's Day afternoon. Include some brie, a French baguette and some chilled NY produced Pinot Noir Blanc or a bottle of Perrier and it's even better!

I wouldn't mind getting a certificate for a massage or a facial at a local day spa.

Nor would a refuse a clean house that I didn't have to clean.

You can never go wrong with candy. Yes, very cliché, I know. But really, who doesn't love their own private stash of Godiva or Jelly Belly?

Flowers are always appreciated, but I would personally prefer a couple of flats of perennials to plant around the garden or a potted plant for the deck. They last longer and mom will have a constant reminder of how much you care.

And last, but certainly not least, a family photo session with a professional photographer is the perfect gift for mom. And, how convenient! I happen to know a couple of really good photographers that can do just that ;)

Baby proofing a hotel room...

2009-04-21T07:55:00.000-07:00

Whenever we go to a hotel with our youngsters, we pack a roll of painter's tape along with the rest of our overnight necessities. It is the perfect baby proofing tool that can be used in a number of places to protect your babies and toddlers, and it easily peels away when you are leaving, so you can be confident that every surface will go unharmed, both on your baby, and on the room!

Use #1 & 2: plug protector on an empty plug or, on a used one, it also makes it tamper proof.

Use #3: drawer lock.

Use #4: cupboard lock.

And it works!

Do you have any tips or tricks for travelling with youngsters?

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-04-20T06:54:00.000-07:00

Okay.

So here's the deal.

Every week I come up with a menu plan fully thinking that I'm going to follow it exactly as written, and each week, things change. Unexpected errands or outings come up and I flake out on the menu. Then I feel like an unorganized loser.

But honestly.

My week can not revolve around a menu. The menu must revolve around my week.

So, I'm going to continue to plan a menu based on what I have in the house, but I'm only going to follow it when it's going to work in our schedule.

Cause really, life can't be planned, it has to happen.

Monday: Crock pot pork chops (scroll down for recipe), brown rice, steamed broccoli, Oreo pudding.

Tuesday: Tofu and veggie stir fry, rice, fruit.

Wednesday: Salmon cakes, brown rice, steamed veggies, fruit.

Thursday: Lazy girls pasta primavera (recipe coming on Thursday), salt and pepper crostini, fruit.

Friday: Errand day, getting take out at our fave Vietnamese place.

Saturday: Photo shoot and a meeting, supper out for mama and dada.

Sunday: Burgers on the grill, potato salad, fruit.

Crock pot pork chops

4 boneless center-cut pork chops
1 onion, sliced
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp vinegar (I used cider vinegar)

Arrange chops in bottom of crock. Cover with onion slices. Mix remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over pork and onions. Cover and cook on low for 6 hrs or until tender.

Fix-it Friday...

2009-04-17T04:59:00.001-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i ♥ faces!

This is the original...

And this is the one I adjusted in Photoshop with Totally Rad Actions. I used to work exclusively in Aperture and I am relatively new to TRA, so I have been experimenting with them a lot lately. I find that, although I love the ease of the basics, like cropping, straightening and vignetting in Aperture, using the TRA's in Photoshop is adding a whole new dimension to my photos that I have not been able to achieve before. The cropping was already perfect for my taste, so I left that alone. The actions I used were Grunge Rock at 70% to smooth everything a bit and add a touch of whimsy, Boutwells Magic Glasses to sharpen and pop, and then it needed just a touch more sun so I added Warm it up Kris at 30% ...

Have a great weekend all!

Exploring nature, one leaf at a time...

2009-04-16T11:37:00.001-07:00

Nature walks are one of our favorite things to do as a family. Even before having children, my husband and I would pack up some snacks, hop in the car for a drive, and stop at any hiking trails that we stumbled across to get out, explore and enjoy nature. Now that we have two little ones, hiking has become a much more structured activity. We time our hikes between meals and naps, and we always end up at the same handful of trails that we know are safe, clean and maneuverable by stroller of wagon. And, you know what? Even structured, a day out on the hiking trails watching the little ones explore and touch everything around them just feels so magical. Like I'm the one seeing and feeling everything for the first time. It really is a breath of fresh air!
In fact, I think that this is how will be spending our afternoon tomorrow...

I ♥ faces {Easter}...

2009-04-14T07:21:00.000-07:00

The contest this week at I ♥ faces is Spring and Easter! Enjoy!

And don't forget to head over to I ♥ faces to see all of the other awesome entries!

Menu Plan Monday (...on Tuesday, shhhh, don't tell anyone)...

2009-04-14T06:36:00.000-07:00

So here it is! Late, but still here. So I guess that makes me fashionably organized! *Ha ha, chuckle, chuckle, snort* I crack me up!

Monday: We cleaned out the fridge of all of it's leftovers and I attempted to make bread pudding out of leftover rolls from a local restaurant. Turns out, when you are eating a bunch of garlicky Italian food, it can be really hard to tell that the rolls have been brushed with garlic oil. Smelled awesome. Just like bread pudding should smell. But tasted garlicky. Gross. Lesson learned: don't make bread pudding from Italian restaurant leftovers without first licking the top of a roll.

Tuesday: Errand day without the diaper duo. We will be eating out and bringing back some of our kiddos favorite Indian dishes for Wednesday night.

Wednesday: Indian food take-out from Karma. Mmmmm...

Thursday: Chicken and veggie fried rice, egg rolls, fruit.

Friday: Tofu something. Not sure what yet, but I have a block in the fridge, so I would like to try a new recipe.

Saturday: Would like to take the kids out for a mini hike if it's nice, but we may go to the mall if it's not. Either way, we'll eat out.

Sunday: Milk Pork (see photos below) with maple roasted sweet potatoes, balsamic roasted onions (both recipes coming soon) and fruit.

Figs with goat cheese, pepper and honey...

2009-04-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Well, there isn't much more to say than that! This is a simple starter (or midnight snack with a glass of wine) of fresh figs with about a teaspoon of soft goat cheese per fig, drizzled with honey and dusted with freshly ground black pepper. Delish!

FYI: roasting frozen bell peppers...

2009-04-07T06:36:00.000-07:00

I recently posted about how I like to freeze sliced bell peppers. Well, this week I tried roasting the frozen peppers for the first time and they turned out wonderfully!
I just tossed them into a pan directly from the freezer, coated them with a bit of olive oil, seasoned them with s & p, and roasted them for about 45 min at 400˚.

I used these in one of my pesto pasta salads. YUM!

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-04-06T05:58:00.000-07:00

Cupboard clean out! This week we are skipping our weekly trip to the grocery store and are eating what we already have on hand in our fridge, freezer and pantry. We will still be needing a little of the necessary milk, fruit and yogurt for the kids, but that is it!

Monday: Chicken and green bean Curry from Sunday with brown rice and strawberries.

Tuesday: Steak with red wine reduction and Gorgonzola butter (we don't use a food processor for this, we just mash it together in a bowl, then we wrap leftovers in waxed paper and store them in the freezer), green beans and carrots, Italian bread with oil and balsamic for dipping, fruit.

Wednesday: Eggs and peppers, salt and pepper crostini made with leftover bread from Tuesday, cheese, olives, fruit.

Thursday: Shopping day for mommy and daddy and dinner out! Yay! It's a date!

Friday: Teriyaki pork loin in the crock, brown rice, julienned veggies, fruit

Saturday: Leftover pork from Friday along with anything else we can wrangle out of the fridge.

Sunday: Easter dinner with family at a local sugar house!

Fix-it Friday...

2009-04-03T06:15:00.001-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces!

This is the original...

And this is the one I adjusted in Photoshop with TRA...

Have a great weekend all!

Super hero capes...

2009-04-02T13:26:00.000-07:00

Sunday was rainy here, so while the kids were busy playing with their water table, my husband and I were busy making them these darling super hero capes.
They were so simple to make. We started by cutting the material into triangular pieces minus the tip. Then we folded the edges in a 1/4 of an inch, ironed them in place and repeated once more to make a double folded hem, this made it easier to run through the sewing machine (real seamstresses out there, I apologize, I am so clueless with the sewing lingo). Once the capes were completed, we cut their first initials out of felt and then Jason sewed those onto the middles of the finished capes.

We did not add neck ties to our capes because we didn't want out kids strangling each other or using the capes to pull each other down. We know all too well that our kids would try both, so why tempt them? Instead we just made our capes about 5" too long and tucked the top bit into the back of their shirts. So, yeah. There will be no naked cape wearing in our house, but safety first, right guys? If your kids are less wild, more trustworthy, or if you are just plain braver than I am, by all means, add the neck ties!

This is one of the finished capes (ours measured 21" long by 14" wide at the bottom and 6" wide at the top)...

They really did turn out very cute for such a simple design...

And they were super fast...

Zoom!

Emergency chocolate cake...

2009-04-01T06:55:00.000-07:00

I got this recipe idea from my very thoughtful mother-in-law (Thanks Mary!), and after playing around for a while in the kitchen we came up with this very moist, nearly flour-less recipe.
This cake literally takes 5 min, start to finish. I even had just enough time to clean up while the cake cooked!

Emergency Chocolate Mug Cake

1 teaspoon flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons softened butter
Splash of vanilla extract

Add all ingredients to a large microwaveable coffee mug and mix well.

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 2 minutes on high.

The cake may rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed it will sink back down as it cools.

Allow to cool for a couple minutes, and invert onto a plate if desired.

This cake is somewhat fun to share, but it is more fun to hog it all for yourself!
Enjoy!

Chasing those rainy day blues...

2009-03-31T13:07:00.001-07:00

Saturday was beautiful, we had sun, warmth and a hike at the beach. Sunday, not so much. It was rainy and cold, and after a nice day out we were all itching for more fun activities. So what did we do instead? We got out the water table (a steal from Target at 34.99$), spread out some towels and stripped down to our shorts...

The kids had a ton of fun and when they were finished, our kitchen floor was sparkling clean. The table is easy to store and will come in handy for many rainy days this spring. Oh, how I only wish that we had it back in the boring old dead of winter...

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-03-30T06:09:00.000-07:00

Monday: Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce (made in the crock-pot) with green beans and fruit (never got around to this last week).

Tuesday: Beef & Broccoli, brown rice, fruit.

Wednesday: Leftovers from Monday.

Thursday: Working on a new recipe *top secret*.

Friday: Breakfast for dinner: eggs, toast, cheese, fruit.

Saturday: Photographing a wedding.

Sunday: Mango chicken curry cooked in the crock pot with jarred V-H Mango Curry Sauce, I think I will be pairing this with the Bombay potatoes from my best ever curry cookbook, fruit.

Fix-it Friday...

2009-03-27T07:02:00.001-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces!

This is the original...

And this is the one I adjusted in Photoshop entirely with Totally Rad Actions. My recipe was: Clarie-ify x2, then Bullet Tooth, and then Warm it up, Kris!...

Have a great weekend all!

Pesto tortellini salad with roasted grape tomatoes....

2009-03-25T07:49:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that at first I felt a little ripped off about shelling out nearly three bucks for a tiny jar of sauce. Then I brought it home and discovered that that one tiny jar contains enough sauce for numerous dishes. It can be spread on sandwiches and used as pizza sauce or a marinade for grilled chicken or baked fish. But it's the pesto pasta salad that has become a favorite meal around our house over the last few weeks. It is just so versatile and easy to make. It can be made with any type of pasta, red or green pesto, any kind of veggies and can be served hot or cold! What's not to love?
For this particular salad, I roasted up a pan of grape tomatoes. If you have never tried roasted tomatoes, what the heck have you been waiting for? They are so sweet and intensely flavored. My faves for roasting are these little grape tomatoes or Roma's slit lengthwise. I just toss them with a bit of olive oil and salt and roasted them in a 400˚ oven for about 30-45min or until wrinkled and slightly browned.

I also used tomato pesto to keep with the tomato flavors...

While I was boiling the tortellini for this dish I tossed a handful of frozen peas and a package of frozen artichoke hearts into the past water. When the pasta was cooked, I drained it, tossed it with a touch of olive oil and let it cool. When it was cool I mixed in a tablespoon or so of pesto, the roasted tomatoes and a bit of salt and pepper. If I was going to serve it hot, I would have done exactly the same, but skipped the cooling part... but I guess that was pretty obvious...

Depresssion cooking: eggs and peppers...

2009-03-23T11:33:00.001-07:00

I have to start by saying that I usually do not get sucked into the hype of viral YouTube videos, but ever since I saw my first episode of Depression Cooking with Clara, I have been hooked. This woman is adorable, lovable and wise with a buck! What's not to love? Her eggs and peppers recipe looked too delicious to be ignored, so guess what we had for lunch yesterday. You can start by watching her peppers and eggs episodes and if you get hooked like I am, you can visit YouTube to see more.

I started pretty much the same as Clara, by slicing my peppers. I bought these three colored bell peppers at Aldi for 2.79$ so this recipe is pretty thrifty...

Instead of making our own bread we cheated and warmed up a loaf of rustic Italian bread in the oven while my olive oil and butter were heating in a pan on the stove top...

When the pan was hot, I added a few of each color of pepper to my pan and seasoned them (pretty lightly, compared to Clara and her salt shaker) with salt and pepper...

So what did I do with all the leftover peppers? I stashed them in a freezer bag and stowed them in the freezer for a later use. Peppers freeze beautifully and I like to do this so that they are always fresh, ready and on hand for a recipe...

When my peppers started to brown and soften, I added 4 scrambled eggs to the pan, reduced my heat a bit and started stirring...

We ate these for lunch with some of the bread and some olives...

This was a simple, filling, cost effective lunch and it was so yummy. The peppers were nice and sweet, and it was so good spooned over the bread, it really would make an awesome sandwich! And if you're not on a budget, or have a budget-friendly bottle or eco-friendly box of wine laying around, this would make a fantastic rustic style Italian dinner! Gotta love that Clara!

Not Me Monday...

2009-03-23T07:12:00.000-07:00

This week we did not go to a local amusement with friends and knowingly break the only two rules that were mentioned to us upon admittance. We didn't even want to use our flashes anyway and it was very easy to say, "nope, no cookies or sippies for you!", to these two little faces...

I did not have an I'm-so-tired-and-I-think-the-kids-are-trying-to-kill-me pity party at all this week, so saying I did it more than once is just ridiculous. I am always well rested and full of energy, even with a one and two year old!

I am not getting a major kick out of finally being able to say "one and two year old" without it being a lie because they are really just two one year olds.

On a similar note, I also did not enjoy being able to replace my usual "no, they are not twins" with "no, they are not twins, they are one and two" when we were out this week.

NOTE: When I just went to post this in the Mr. Linky on the My Charming Kids blog, I read about the awful situation that MckMama (the woman who organizes Not Me Monday) is currently experiencing with her youngest child, Stellan. Please keep them in your thoughts. This little guy is a fighter, but I'm sure that both him and his family could use a little positive energy right now...

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-03-23T05:48:00.000-07:00

Monday: Orange Roughy with tomato, caper, olive and lemon sauce over brown rice, with peas and fruit for the kids, and spinach salad for us.

Tuesday: Peruvian chicken from Rachael Ray's Magazine, roasted root veggies, and fruit.

(Click on the photo to make the recipe larger)

I followed the basic recipe, up to the point of marinating it in the storage bag, and then I adapted the cooking portion of the recipe to the Crockpot by lining my crock with two small inverted ramekins, like this...

And then placing the seasoned chicken on top of the ramekins, covering with the lid and cooking on high for 5-6 hours (I've since discovered that by placing the chicken breast down in the crock, it will come out much more tender).

Wednesday: Tamale pie made with leftover chicken from Tuesday, fruit.

Thursday: Working out of the house without the kids so we will be going to a quiet dinner at our fave restaurant (Anthony's) alone. Mmmm, I can taste the wine and creme brulée already!

Friday: Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce (made in the crock-pot) with brussel sprouts and fruit.

Saturday & Sunday: No real plans. Depending on the weather we want to take the kids out one day and on the other day we will be eating leftovers from Friday with some veggies and fruit.

Fix-it Friday...

2009-03-20T05:43:00.001-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces!

This is the original...

And this is the one I adjusted in Aperture before opening it in Photoshop to add an action and an overlay...

Have a great weekend all!

Hummus sandwich...

2009-03-19T08:05:00.001-07:00

Such a simple lunch, but one of my favorites. I don't have an actual recipe for it, that's how simple it is. I just spread two slices of my favorite sandwich bread, in this case, oat, with hummus and then pile one side high with any combination of lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber, carrot, bell peppers or roasted peppers, and top it with the second slice of bread. Delish!

Milo's birthday bash...

2009-03-18T07:58:00.000-07:00

On Friday we celebrated another big birthday in our home! Just last month I posted about our daughter turning one, and this week we celebrated our son's 2nd birthday! (Yes, our children are just 11 months apart!)

We celebrated Milo's birthday with a simple, bright decorations, cupcakes and plenty of homemade vanilla ice cream.

We had an impossible time finding simple party hats that didn't have a character on them, so we ended up purchasing some themed hats and covering them with some cute polka dot paper that we ran off of our bubble jet printer. After they were wrapped in the new paper, we trimmed the edge with scissors and then finished it with a bit of leftover ribbon from Christmas...

For Lola's birthday we made homemade cupcakes from scratch, and they were good... but everyone actually enjoyed Milo's "cheater cupcakes" even more. To make them I prepared a box of chocolate cake mix to the package's instructions with the addition of 2 chocolate pudding cups, baked them off in cupcake cups and then topped them with Betty Crocker's Whipped Frosting in the Whipped Cream flavor. These were some seriously moist little treats...

My birthday boy enjoyed them after our simple birthday supper of Shepherd's Pie topped with cheddar garlic mashed potatoes, rustic Italian bread and Greek salad...

Not Me Monday...

2009-03-16T06:30:00.000-07:00

For my son's birthday party I did not mix pre-made pudding cups into the cheapest boxed cake mix I could find and try to pass the cupcakes off as homemade. No one would have fallen for that one, not even if they were the most deliciously moist cupcakes ever. Which they were not (but they actually were!).

I did not witness my daughter doing somersaults, screaming like a banshee or shaking it like a Polaroid picture at her brother's birthday party on Friday night. Nor did I watch helplessly as she stayed up till midnight on Saturday guzzling bottle after bottle of milk, but refusing to sleep. My daughter would never do any of these things. She is always very calm and well behaved, and is always in bed at eight o'clock on the button.

I did not get brave enough to finally give my two year old a piece of bread crust while having dinner with friends. I also did not have an immediate panic attack about the possibility of him choking and quietly snatch said piece of crust and hide it under the edge of my plate. That's just ridiculous. What kind of basket case parent wouldn't allow their two year old to have bread? Not me.

I did not get behind on my work last week and then spend most of my morning freaking out, just to realise that I really don't have that much work to begin with. I am way too organized to ever let that happen and I always know exactly what needs to be done.

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-03-16T05:24:00.000-07:00

Monday: Steak with red wine sauce and Gorgonzola butter, baked potatoes, steamed broccoli, fruit.

Tuesday: Homemade cranberry meatballs from the freezer, brown rice, peas, fruit.

Wednesday: Mango chicken curry cooked in the crock pot with jarred V-H Mango Curry Sauce, I think I will be pairing this with the Bombay potatoes from my best ever curry cookbook, fruit.

Thursday: Leftovers from Wednesday.

Friday: Errand day: Take out.

Saturday: Photographing a wedding.

Sunday: Stuffed talapia, brown rice, steamed mixed vegetables, fruit.

Fix-It Friday...

2009-03-13T05:02:00.000-07:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces!

This is the original...

And this is the one I tinkered with in Photoshop CS2...

Desk organizer...

2009-03-12T06:43:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get organized for... oh, I'm not sure how long... my whole life. Does that sound completely pathetic?
My desk is one of the places that needed the most improvement, but this little file basket seems to have helped...

It's just a wire file basket from Tar-jay filled with some pretty file folders labeled to help me organize some of my problematic pile-ables. There was enough room left over for my address book, a couple sizes of envelopes and a package of blank note cards. Plus I've been using one of the flowers as a nifty list holder.

So, I'm probably still not completely organized in my office, but when the desktop is clean, I can at least look organized. And that's good enough for me!

Spare change and sanity saved...

2009-03-11T05:29:00.000-07:00

My husband has an awful habit of never using his change. He can have a pocket full, and if he's purchasing something that is, let's say, 4.05$, and he even has the 4 one dollar bills staring him in the face, he'll still break a five before he ever looks for the nickel. What was even worse was that he would empty his pockets out at the end of the day into these filthy little bowls that he had all around the house, and I mean entire contents, pocket lint, receipts and all. Gross! And with a second baby coming into the house I was worried about the chocking hazard, too.
Anyway, it was annoying, but the change does save up quickly, so right after we had our daughter, we went to Ikea and bought this vase...

We wanted something that fit the coins with enough space to get them back out and we wanted something that was not clear. This one fit both requirements and was a pretty good deal at 9.99$.
The vase took it's rightful home of our kitchen counter (out of reach of small and sneaky hands) and has worked like a charm. I have not found a single skanky bowl full of pocket contents since we purchased it, and just look at what we've saved up after only about 11 months...

Not bad!
I have no clue what we are going to use the change for. We always joke that it's our Disney fund, since we know full well that we probably won't attempt that for at least another four years Whatever we use it for, I'm sure we'll have a surprising lil' amount saved up by then!

Baked tofu with sun butter cilantro sauce...

2009-03-10T08:12:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe at Chick in the Kitchen's blog during one of our Menu Plan Mondays and was immediately intrigued. Since having the kids, I have been pretty much obsessed with any recipe than can be done in the crock pot or the oven. Who has time to stir and watch over a pot on the stove top with two babies under two running around like wild monkeys? Not me!
Dara over at Chick in the Kitchen already adapted this recipe a bit from the original, which she found at Swell Vegan. She started by leaving out the mint and instead of half regular and half smoked tofu, she changed it to only regular tofu. Both moves were good ones in my opinion, but I had to change it a bit more to suit our family.
One of my children is completely appalled by cauliflower, so that had to go, and since I don't like almond butter, I swapped it for sun butter (made from sunflower seeds in a peanut-free facility, so it was safe for my toddlers who have not yet been introduced to peanut products).

Baked Tofu in Sun Butter & Cilantro Sauce

1 large sweet potato, cut into 2-bite size pieces and microwaved until mostly tender
1 package extra-firm tofu, drained & cut into bite-sized cubes
1 c. frozen peas
1 c. pre-shredded carrot

2/3 c. sun butter
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced (I used 1 heaping tsp. minced jarred garlic)
1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 c. fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
3/4 c. hot water

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Place sweet potato, tofu, peas and carrots in a casserole dish and set aside.

To prepare the sauce, combine the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir until the combined (the hot water is easier to stir into the sun butter, cold will make it clumpy)

Pour the sauce over the tofu and veggies and gently toss to combine. Bake for 40 minutes. Serve over brown rice or noodles.

I served up the grown-up plates with lime wedges and Sriracha sauce for a bit of kick.

This was soooo good! In fact, the only thing that would have made it better was if my son didn't freak out every time he got the slightest fleck of cilantro on his tongue. Overall, he liked the flavors, but the cilantro just wasn't for him. My daughter, on the other hand, just plain gagged over this. She ended up eating Cheerios, cheese and a huge pile of fruit.

Not Me Monday...

2009-03-09T07:42:00.000-07:00

I did not give my kids cheese cake two days in a row for breakfast this week just because my nearly two-year-old said it so nicely. And I definitely did not try to make it look all healthy by serving it to them with fruit.

I did not get all stumped on how to handle a jumping-on-the-sofa-incident and maybe threaten to take the sofa away. That's just weird. It's my sofa and how the heck would I be able to follow through on a threat like that? I couldn't! So I would never make that threat in the first place.

I did not go for a walk outside with my husband before a dinner with friends and actually do a running jump off of a ledge and onto the squidgy defrosted grass in my heels and dress pants just so that Jason could get this ridiculous photo of someone who clearly isn't me.

And I most certainly did not get my heels stuck in the mud and almost give myself whiplash on the landing.

While we were on our walk and not covered in mud, I also may or may not have taken a series of the most god-awful photos of Jason that anyone has ever seen and then spend the rest of the weekend laughing my buttooski off at him and trying to re-enact his cheesy faces. That's just mean. So I would never do it. And I would never post those photos for anyone else to laugh at either. So don't even ask.

This is not how handsome he normally looks.

Whatever you do, don't have a great week all!

Menu Plan Monday...

2009-03-09T05:49:00.000-07:00

Monday: Baked Tofu in Almond & Cilantro Sauce (following recipe but swapping almond butter for sun butter and cauliflower for sweet potatoes.) with brown rice, fruit.

Tuesday: Crockpot Sticky Chicken , potato salad with peas, fruit.

Wednesday: Errand day (early this week): Take out.

Thursday: Chicken and bean enchiladas made with leftover chicken from Tuesday and canned enchilada sauce, salad, fruit.

Friday: Milo's birthday dinner with family: Shepard's pie, salad with Greek Dressing, baguette, homemade vanilla ice cream, chocolate pudding cake.

Saturday: We're having company! Roasted tomatoes with goat cheese in the crockpot (but without the cranberries, that's just weird, and I use roma tomatoes cut in half lengthwise, no sesame oil for olive oil), rustic bread, Caesar salad, pesto pasta salad, fruit and whatever else I can dig up. Oh, and wine ;)

Sunday: Not sure, I'm thinking something lazy, like leftovers, frozen food or breakfast for dinner.

Fix-it Friday (his & hers)...

2009-03-06T05:15:00.000-08:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces! This week we have a little friendly rivalry happening in our house. Oh yea, a his and hers face-off between my husband and I!

This is the original...

And this is the one I tinkered with in Aperture before pulling into Photoshop and using a couple actions (Super Fun Happy and then B**chin' B & W)...

And this is my sweetie's. He adjusted it in Aperture, hit it with a lil' "Super Fun Happy" Totally Rad Action in Photoshop (copycat!) and then he added in these fairytale overlays from Design Aglow in Photoshop. You can see more examples of the Fairytale overlays in action by visiting our photography blog. It's okay if you like his better, cause, well, it won't hurt my feelings. And anyway, I might (but might not!) sort of maybe like his a tiny teeny touch better. Maybe. Sort of. But maybe not. Shhhh, don't tell him.

Don't forget to head on over to i heart faces and check out the rest of the wonderful editing masterpieces!

Salmon cakes...

2009-03-05T05:03:00.000-08:00

My daughter just turned a year old and has been eating just about everything we eat, but we have yet to try her on fish. I think that I will be making my salmon cakes for lunch today so that she can finally try some. Hopefully she will enjoy them as much as we do!
Do any of you have a favorite child friendly fish recipe?

Salmon Cakes
Makes about 6 cakes
Serve them on buns or as is with a side of rice and veggies.

2 teaspoons old bay seasoning
1/2 small onion, minced
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley (optional)
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 14 oz can salmon, skin and bones removed ( I buy wild Alaskan at Aldi for about 2$ a can)
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon Dijon or yellow mustard
1 cup soft bread crumbs (about 2 slices white bread)

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and form into patties. Broil on
an oiled baking sheet about 5 minutes each side or until golden
brown.

These can be served with mayo or tarter sauce, but for a grown-up taste, my husband and I eat them with Chipotle Cream dipping sauce. We make the Chipotle Cream by combining equal parts mayo and sour cream and seasoning to taste with bottled chipotle hot sauce and salt. This sauce is also excellent with sweet potato fries.
Enjoy!

Fun toddler lunch...

2009-03-04T04:59:00.001-08:00

Sometimes the simple things in life really are the best! A favorite lunch for the kiddos lately has been an array of cold foods. Easy enough for me, and tons of fun for them! These lunches usually include 3 or 4 of the following: veggies, pasta, rice, crackers, toast, fruit, and some sort of cheese. On this particular day they had noodles tossed with carrots, peas and a touch of Italian salad dressing, strawberries and bananas, and cottage cheese. The sectioned trays were 3.99$ at Target and are a big part of why these lunches are such a treat. I will be keeping an eye out for them in the clearance section from now on. Hey, whatever works right?

Printable freezer labels...

2009-03-03T05:07:00.000-08:00

You can print out some of these cute freezer labels by visiting the Martha Stewart website. They have tons of printables over there, including some darling jam labels which I also saved for the next time I make my apricot chutney. Ideally, these labels should be printed on self-adhesive paper, but since I didn't have any, I used regular paper and packing tape.

The recipe for the Salsa Soup that I have in my freezer comes from Stephanie at A Year of Crockpotting , and it is a-maze-ing! I followed her recipe, but left out the mushrooms and served it with the sour cream on the side for dolloping. This can easily be made vegetarian by leaving out the chicken, swapping the chicken broth for veggie stock and adding more veggies. Bell peppers would have been fantastic!

Not Me! Monday...

2009-03-02T04:50:00.000-08:00

This week I did not threaten to kick my children's tiny butts if they did not stop fighting, whining, or using my mouse as a telephone. First off my children are not that wild and secondly, anyone who knows me knows that I would definitely kick their butts if given the chance. In fact, I am not wrestling my mouse back out of my daughter's hands at this very moment.

I am definitely not ignoring her crying so that I can continue typing this. That would just be bad parenting.

I certainly did not show up to my friend's house for dinner, and even though she has just suffered an enormous life-altering loss, complain about how badly my day went. That would just be selfish and weird. And I never do weird.

I did not attempt to cheer up my temper-tantruming-two-year-old with pudding and popsicles a single time this week, so saying that I did it several times would be a complete and total lie.

I did not wear the same sweater two days in a row because it was already out and clean enough.

Oh, and I totally stuck to my menu plan all week.

Menu Plan Monday and balsamic peaches...

2009-03-01T14:26:00.001-08:00

Monday: Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce (made in the crock-pot) with peas.

Tuesday: Cheese tortellini with broccoli and jarred pesto sauce, salad with lettuce, tomato and Greek dressing for mama and papa.

Wednesday: Leftovers from Monday

Thursday: Tofu and veggie stir-fry with brown rice. Balsamic peaches for mama and dada's dessert, scroll down for recipe.

Friday: Errand day - take-out

Saturday: Dinner with friends!

Sunday: I am planning making something that I can freeze half of - maybe a chicken curry or some shepherd's pie.

Note: The kids both eat fruit every night in addition to their meals.

Balsamic Peaches

This is so simple, it really doesn't have a recipe. Just slice your ripe peaches, add them to a bowl, drizzle them with a touch of balsamic vinegar and top them with a grind of fresh black pepper.

So simple, yet so delicious, and definitely company worthy.

Fix-It Friday...

2009-02-27T04:49:00.001-08:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces!

This is the original...And this is the one I tinkered with in Aperture...

I found the object in the front a bit distracting to I used the straighten function until it disappeared. The eyes were what I was wanting to show on this little cutie pie, so I think that the tilt and object removal also helped with that too. Plus who doesn't love a close up of a sweet baby face?

Paprika pork...

2009-02-26T05:05:00.000-08:00

As promised from Menu Plan Monday...

That is the original recipe from my notebook...

But lately I have been making this in the crock pot. To make it crock-friendly I eliminate the oil and start by adding the sliced large onion, the sliced pork and the 1 1/2 tablespoons of paprika to the crock along with a splash of water. Then I cook it on high for 2 hours or until the pork is cooked thoroughly. Once the pork is cooked you can add the tablespoon of tomato paste and the 1/2 cup of sour cream, season to taste and cook for another 30 min. on high or until heated. My crock tends to run a little hot, so you may need more time. I find that it end up more tender cooked this way.

Enjoy!

Teapot centerpiece...

2009-02-25T05:25:00.000-08:00

This is what became of part of Lola's birthday centerpiece...

These gerbera daisies been living quite happily for the past two weeks in an extra teapot from our kitchen. The other two pots of daisies are also quite happy in their new homes on the kitchen counter and on my computer desk.

Organizing kids clothes...

2009-02-23T11:33:00.000-08:00

Clearance season is here! 25¢ socks, 3.50$ p.j.'s, shirts and pants for 1.70 - 5.00$! Between Old Navy, Target and a couple of other fantastic sales, I have gathered up a nifty little shop-ahead wardrobe for my two kids. But I also got a huge storage issue. So then I got smart!
I stored those super cheap socks in resealable bags marked with the size and intended user...

And then stored the baggies of socks, along with the p.j.'s, winter hats (50¢ each), and shoes in the clear zippered bag that our comforters came in...

The hanging clothes posed the biggest problem, but after searching around for clothing dividers online, I decided that I could make my own, for free, and not blow all my savings on storage. So I explained to my personal graphic designer, aka the hubby, what I needed and he came up with these beauties. And since we already went to all the trouble of designing them, here is the template. You just need to mark your own sizes! We printed them out on cardboard (it was actually the cardboard backings that we've been saving from our packages of photo paper) and I carefully cut each one out...

Instead of trying to cram everything into the kid's closets I stored all of the hanging items and my clear zipper bag in the empty guest room closet...

So, this only means one thing, right? Now I can go shopping again!!!

Menu plan Monday and sloppy joes...

2009-02-23T04:18:00.000-08:00

Monday: Paprika pork (recipe to come next week) with brown rice and green beans.

Tuesday: Photo shoot - kids are eating with grandma and papa and we are grabbing a quick dinner out (probably Applebee's Oriental chicken salad for me and a burger for my honey).

Wednesday: Leftover pork from Monday with egg noodles and steamed broccoli.

Thursday: Spaghetti with homemade meat sauce from the freezer and salad.

Friday: Errand day - take-out (probably Chicken Tortellini from Mangia's)

Saturday: Going shopping and getting sushi from our favorite sushi shop. That means that the kids will eat Kraft dinner and peas. Yay! Everybody's happy!

Sunday: Anna's Sloppy Joes (eat one, freeze one) and a fruit plate.

Anna's Sloppy Joes
This recipe comes from my husbands grandma. It is delicious and deliciously easy!

1 lb. hamburger
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup celery chopped

Sauce:
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 T. vinegar
1 T lemon juice
1 T. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 cup ketchup

Cook meat with onions and celery.
Add sauce ingredients to meat mixture. Heat thoroughly.
Serve hot over hamburger buns or toast.

Fix-it Friday...

2009-02-20T04:38:00.000-08:00

Time for another Fix-It Friday from i heart faces! I heart fix-it Friday!

This is the original...

And this is the one I "fixed". The adjustments were done in Aperture and then I added a flare and a texture in Photoshop (okay, so the flair and texture might have been my husbands idea, but don't tell anyone).

Homamade onion soup mix...

2009-02-19T05:42:00.000-08:00

I stumbled across the Hillbilly Housewife's site not long ago, and I must say that Susanne has one of the best collections of frugal and homemade food items out of anywhere that I've ever been on the web. She has everything from beverage mixes to ideas on saving money in the kitchen to this easy and thrifty onion soup mix. I am officially addicted to this site and I can honestly say that it was love at first browse! You should check it out!

Homemade Onion Soup Mix

3/4 cup dried minced onion
1/3 cup beef bouillon powder
4 teaspoons onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed celery seed (I didn't have any so I left this out)
1/4 teaspoon sugar

I just combined the ingredients right in a jar to cut down on the dishes. You know the deal; add, seal, shake and store. Easy peasy! 5 tablespoons of the mix equal one package of onion soup mix.

I can't wait to use this in my Cranberry Meatballs!

Taking the "slip" out of slippers...

2009-02-17T17:41:00.000-08:00

I found this idea on the Mom Advice blog in a very old Amy's Notebook for making socks non-slip with puff paint. Right away I thought of Lola's slippers. We bought her these darling slippers a few months ago at Target and for some reason the darn things were not non-slip. She couldn't even take a step on our hardwood floors without wiping out in them.
I had some fabric paint on hand and it said 3-d so I figured it must be the same as puff paint...

So, I applied little dots of it all over the bottoms of her slippy slippers...

This was very easy to do, and the slippers are actually even cuter now than before... but the slip verdict? Well, I really, really wanted this to work, and she did have an easier time walking in them after I de-slippified them, but she was still slipping anytime she tried to do a quick maneuver or run above turtle speed. Maybe my puff paint just wasn't puffy enough. I guess we will still be using these slippers for car and stroller rides only!

Apple snacks...

2009-02-16T16:57:00.000-08:00

These little apple cubes are a favorite afternoon snack in our house. They are very similar to those little jars of commercial baby apple cubes, but better. Because you made them. They are super easy if you make them in the crockpot, like I do. Ohhh, and they'll make your sticky toddler smell like apple pie till bath time!
To make them you'll need apples that don't go to mush when they've been cooked. I used empire, but I've used honeycrisp in the past and those work well too. I usually use 4-5 apples when I make these and they last my 2 babies about 2 days. This time I only had 3 apples, but since we are on fridge clean-out duty, I didn't run to get more.

Peel core and dice your apples into the appropriate sized pieces for your baby. Since my 12 month old is eating these, too, my 23 month old has to deal, and eat pieces that are a bit small for his liking. Plop them into the crockpot and season to your liking. I do 1 teaspoon brown sugar per apple and then I do a light, but even, sprinkle of cinnamon over the whole thing. Cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours, but start checking for desired doneness at the 2 hour mark. They need to be soft, but stay firm enough to be picked up with small fat fingers.

They'll look like this when they are ready and at this point you can cool them and store them in the refrigerator.But my kids never end up waiting that long. So they eat them warm...

Menu Plan Monday and cranberry meatballs...

2009-02-15T12:46:00.000-08:00

This is my first attempt at Menu Plan Monday! I always try to plan my meals at least a couple days in advance, but I love the idea of planning out the whole week. I hope I can stick to it!

Monday: Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce (made in the crock-pot) with green beans

Tuesday: Savory Cranberry Meatballs (also in the crock-pot, scroll down for recipe) with brown rice. I'll be making enough meatballs in sauce that we can eat one portion tonight and freeze two portions for later.

Wednesday: Leftovers from Monday

Thursday: Stuffed bell peppers with peas for the kids and salad for mama and dada

Friday: Errand day - take-out

Saturday: Mixed baby shower and we are all going!

Sunday: I am planning on trying my hand at homemade mac and cheese! But I have yet to decide on a recipe, maybe I'll go super simple and try this FamilyFun recipe or go gourmet and try this Wondertime recipe. Any suggestions?

Savory Cranberry Meatballs
This is my son's favorite dinner and its super simple to make!

1 can jellied cranberry sauce
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 packet onion soup mix
your favorite store bought or homemade meatballs

Combine first 3 ingredients in crock and add meatballs (this is usually enough sauce for 30-40 mini meatballs). You may need to add a bit of water to make it easier to stir. Crock-pot setting and cooking time will depend on if your meatballs are uncooked, cooked or frozen. I add my homemade meatballs right into the sauce uncooked and it usually takes about 8 hours on low. Frozen would probably be about the same, but cooked and thawed would be much shorter.
This sauce is also excellent with center cut pork chops or pork tenderloin. When I do either of those, I also plunk them into the sauce frozen and cook for around 8 hrs on low.

Fix-It Friday...

2009-02-13T05:39:00.000-08:00

This week I am taking part in the Fix-It Friday Challenge!

The is the original from their website...
And this is the version that I improved on in Aperture...

This is actually what I do on a daily basis since I am the photo editor/corrector of Greer Cicarelli Photography, and I am very surprised by the fact that when I was done it actually ended up looking like one of our photos!

A cupcake party for my cupcake...

2009-02-12T13:07:00.000-08:00

We celebrated our baby's 1st birthday yesterday with a cupcake themed party. Pretty darn appropriated, since Lola is a lot like a cupcake. Small, sweet and just girly enough!
When I first decided on the theme I came across this recipe for chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream in Amy's Notebook on the Mom Advice blog. The recipe can be found over on the Farm Chicks blog. They were moist and chocolaty and they were a cinch to whip up.

The birthday girl completely approved...

To decorate the table we found these sweet cupcake gift boxes over at Target and filled them with white gerbera daisies from the grocery store...

We lined three of the arrangements up on the table and instead of setting it the traditional way, we put our knives in one mason jar and our forks in another in the middle of the table and stacked our plates with the napkins interspersed at the end. The silverware placement was more out of necessity than design, since we do have two little silverware thieves in our house, but the overall effect was cute and tidy...

Last, but not least, we embellished our own bibs with cupcakes made from felt. We purchased a package of inexpensive plain bibs and I cut out the design and had my husband sew them on for me. Sorry ladies, he's taken! Aren't they just too sweet for words...

Seriously yummy Greek dressing...

2009-02-12T11:45:00.000-08:00

There are some very, very big fans of a good Greek salad in my family (especially my sweet little 16 year old niece), so when I was planning the menu for my daughter's 1st birthday, I knew I wanted to include Greek salad. But I wanted to make it better, and better to me means homemade. So homemade dressing it was! I got out a few recipes, played around in the kitchen for a bit, and came up with this version. Enjoy!

Greek Dressing

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
a few grinds of fresh cracked pepper

I combined everything in a jar, gave it a good shake and stowed it in the fridge until the party. Right before the party I made a tossed Greek salad by combining romaine lettuce, chopped tomatoes, sliced cucumber and crumbled feta in my giant wooden salad bowl along with the contents of my jar. I forgot about the olives. Next time I'll add some.

Memory game...

2009-02-12T11:35:00.000-08:00

I originally posted this last week on my photo blog, but really thought that it was very appropriate for this blog as well, considering that it is handmade, and frugal and mostly recyced, and all that jazz...
I'm a bit of a blog junky and right before the holidays I came across this awesome memory game idea on the Mom Advice blog. Each Thursday, Amy over at Mom Advice, posts a list of links that go to really cool craft projects, recipes, money saving ideas and so much more in her notebook entries. And each Thursday I find myself wanting to do everything on the list. But this one I just had to do! And for once I had everything I needed to make this project already in the house. Now how often does that happen? A lot of what I used was leftovers from other craft projects with a few recycled materials added in. The cat fabric for the backing was actually my favorite pair of pyjama pants, that is, until I ripped them last week, and instead of making the drawstring bag to store the pieces in, we saved ourselves some time and stored them in the sweet little burlap sack that our basmati rice came in. The project was a little time consuming, but the hardest part for me was choosing photos that a) meant something to us, and b) I knew my children would be able to recognize. It was completely worth the time and effort, and now we have a game that will make every one of us smile every time we pull it out.

So seriously cute...

Milo is still a little young to play Memory, but he had so much fun looking at the tiny photos and saying the name of each item...

Who wouldn't have fun playing with a game that has them in it?

Homemade teething biscuits...

2009-01-20T11:43:00.000-08:00

Our daughter is teething, so we decided to make our own teething biscuits from this recipe that we found in Wondertime Magazine:

1 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup maple syrup
3 tbs apple sauce

Preheat oven to 300˚. Combine ingredients in a bowl with a wooden spoon. On a floured surface knead dough until smooth. Roll out to 1/3" thick. Cut out cookies using a large drinking glass and to make the ring shapes cut out the middles with a clean bottle cap. Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 30-35 min or until just barely golden. Let cool.

They felt soft at first, but they hardened up as they cooled. A lot. Like cement. Or wood. The kids had fun playing with them, but they ended up more like home made teething rings. Lola liked them a lot, but Milo loved them. In fact, he didn't even want to give his up for bath time, and since we were only having bath time for the play portion of it and were not going to be using soap we figured that there would be no harm with him taking it into the bath with him. So into the tub the cookie went, and even after a 15 minute soak, the darn thing didn't dissolve. In fact, it was still as hard as it was before, and now Milo was insisting on taking it to bed with him! We drew the line there for fear that his precious lovey would be replaced by a disgusting cookie that he would carry everywhere with him for the next 3 years because it would just not dissolve or crumble. I will, however, keep the dough recipe on hand for Christmas ornaments next year. Or better yet, when the kids are done gnawing on and playing with these we can paint them and add ribbons and not bother with making more.

Aren't they cute though?

And they made Milo happy...

Shhhh, it's a secret recipe...