Happy Birthday Nancy Reagan!

Happy Birthday Mom! A friend made a comment after seeing this picture that my Mom looked like Nancy Reagan in - it's been a family joke ever since! Love you see you Sunday!

So looking forward to this week end. Taking a class tonight with some great friends followed by drinks and appy's. Tomorrow morning I'm off for a fun girls week end in Vancouver!

daddy's girl

here's a few pics of Amelia hanging out with her dad in the "man lair" this week end while I was at work. I'm kinda hoping she turns into a big Seahawks fan as well so I can continue my Sunday afternoon scrapbooking routine!

pesto shrimp pizza

here's the recipe that started tonight's antics:
pizza dough
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 whole wheat flour
1 tbsp cornmeal
2 1/4 fast acting yeast
1/2 tsp sugar and 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup warm water and 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
combine ingredients in order listed into a food processor or stand mixer, once dough forms into a ball continue mixing for 1 minute to knead dough. Let rest for 10 minutes.
1/2 cup pesto
1/4 cup chopped red onions
1/4 chopped sun dried tomatoes
1 cup shrimp
1/4 cup shredded parmesan
3/4 cup feta cheese
sprinkle pizza stone with cornmeal, roll dough to cover pizza stone (I make a thin crust) spread pesto over entire surface, sprinkle onions and tomatoes, sprinkle parmesan and feta. Place in 400 degree oven for 12-15 minutes. Yum ( Aiden loves pesto and shrimp so it's a family favorite around here)

My little sous chef

tonight while Aiden was helping me make dinner I offered him this lettuce core to snack on. He took a bite and said " yum, what is this Canadian salad?" Funny how a four year old mind works.
The reason I offered him the lettuce is because I walked in on him licking cheese off the counter! "I'm just your little mouse mommy"

your friendly neighborhood...

yesterday if you drove past our house this guy would have greeted you from the back of his daddy's truck. Dale was doing some work outside and we have used the truck box as a "redneck playpen" for a couple of years. Aiden loves to wave at people as they drive by our house and we are on a busy corner of our subdivision. He was decked out in a hockey jersey, fireman hat and boots, "bumper stickers" what he calls stickers on his shirt and an assortment of bungy cords made into a safety harness to imitate his daddy's who had been working on the roof. You've got to love a child's imagination.

this picture says it all...

Harvest Pork (or chicken)

one of my favorite fall recipes! This Sunday is the first day of fall!
1tsp butter
1 tsp oil
4 pork loin chops or chicken breasts
1 1/4 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp curry
heat butter and oil in a frying pan, add pork/chkn, turning meat, evenly sprinkle with cumin and curry. Cook over medium heat, turning often, until lightly browned, about 6 minutes.
Pour 1 cup of apple juice over top
Cover and simmer for about 12 minutes ( I find it always takes longer) turning often. Remove meat and cover. Boil juice uncovered, stirring often until reduced to a 1/2 cup. Stir in 3/4 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt) Pour over meat. I make rice with this meal and the sauce is really good over rice!

welcome

to the world sweet Connor! He arrived just after noon today- 7 pounds 11oz 20 inches! Mama and baby are doing well. We can't wait to meet you!

I must really love him

I realized this as I was reading this book to Aiden this morning. Boys! Aiden asked my why the snakes eat mice " mice are nice they eat crumbs for us, mommy!"

wishing for rain...

sort of! Yesterday I saw these boots and had to have them! They are so cute red with polka dots- super cute! Today I woke up to a beautiful fall day - not a cloud in the sky. I'll take the sunshine but I am looking forward to the day I can wear these cute boots!

me and her

I tried so hard to get a picture of Amelia and I hanging out this morning while Aiden is in school. Amelia always smiles when the camera comes out but it must be that mama needs to be behind the camera. Oh well! We're off to run errands before we pick up Aiden.

poached pears

this is not a recipe post. Last night Aiden requested dessert after dinner so I was trying to find something I had on hand. How about poached pears? Dale is not a fan of pears so he asked what was in it. As I was listing off the ingredients cinnamon,vanilla, sugar... Aiden pipes up from the dinner table "mmm sugar, I am so 'into' sugar" LOL. By the way Dale liked the poached pears. This is a pic of Aiden this summer at my parents cabin. King of the wilderness!

me and him

this week end Dale and I went camping just the 2 of us! We dropped this kids off at my parents Saturday morning and after a few stops to gather supplies we were on our way! We arrived at our campsite around 1p had some lunch and set up camp. After that we crawled into our tent and... napped! The kind of afternoon nap where you wake up drooling- it was that good. We missed our opportunity to go for a hike but we didn't really care. It was nice to hang out without being interrupted every few minutes. I forgot how Dale can make me laugh harder than anyone else. Even now thinking about it I am laughing! We enjoyed a fine dinner of sushi, wine and smores. I was trying to take as little camping equipment as possible. So we didn't have the camp stove. It was great no dishes to wash either. Of course our carefully selected camping neighbors turned out to be party animals but I still slept great - something about sleeping outdoors. We woke up this morning and it started to rain so it was a quick pack up! It was great to spend some time just me and him.

lime grilled chicken with fruit salsa

a really easy meal that looks pretty on the plate!
1/2 cup fresh lime juice ( I use Nellie & Joe's key west lime juice)
1/4 cup oil
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp rosemary
1 garlic clove minced
4 boneless skinless chkn breasts
in a bowl combine marinade ingredients, marinate chkn in marinade for 1-2 hours ( longer the lime juice will start to cook the chkn) broil or grill approx 4 minutes each side until chkn cooked through.
while chicken is marinating make the fruit salsa. I use whatever I have on hand for fruit. choose what you have

2 cups of chopped kiwi, fresh or caned pineapple,canned mandarin oranges, nectarines,peaches, or melon
3 tbsp green onion or red onion finely chopped
3 tbsp chopped cilantro if you have on hand
2tbsp apple cider vinegar
pinch of sugar
pinch red pepper flakes
dash of salt and pepper
combine ingredients in bowl and refrigerate until chkn is cooked
serve with rice and salad or your choice of vegetable!

simplify the utensil drawer!

I love kitchen gadgets and for the most part I find the right tool/gadget for the job makes life easier. But my kitchen drawer was overflowing and I was digging forever and still not able to find what I was looking for. So I took everything out of the drawer and made a pile of specialty tools that I only use a few times of year like a melon baller, pineapple corer, crab forks etc Those all went into a plastic bag ( a cute basket would be great but I didn't have one on hand) and it's down in my basement pantry. Those few a times a year I need a specialty gadget I can run down there and dig through the bag instead of digging through a drawer everyday. I've noticed a big difference when I'm preparing meals and open the drawer and can immediately see what I'm looking for.

ole!

Yesterday my mom came down to watch the kids while I was at a re certification class. This is a little video of my mom and Aiden doing the Mexican Hat Dance! Sorry mom! Thanks for yesterday!

preschool update

there are 45 million kids in his class and they did the YMCA "it's a dance, mommy!" Sounds like a fun school.

first day of preschool!

Today was Aiden's first day of preschool at St.Paul's. I had to wake him for school which I am sure is the first of many mornings. He woke with a smile and was so excited to be going to school. The first day of school pictures was a bit of a fiasco with Aiden being to excited to stand still and the beautiful (but horrible for picture taking) sunlight at the front door. Can't wait to pick him up at noon and hear all about his first day!

yesterday...

this little one got her first tooth, crawled across the room and and was found almost escaping from her crib. Busy, busy.

momento bins

I'm sure this isn't a breakthrough organizing tip for most. But I think I just wanted an excuse to post this pic with Dale's high school momento's. Check him out! A few weeks ago when I was sorting, organizing and purging I found that both Dale and I had keepsakes scattered in a bunch of different places. I designated a tote bin for each member of the family. In Dale's and mine there are our high school yearbooks, childhood keepsakes, etc. Aiden has some things in his and Amelia is just starting out but the outfit she wore home from the hospital now has a designated place. Of course I labeled each bin - Aiden's memento's etc. They are stored in any easily accessible place so as I find other items throughout the house they can be quickly placed in there designated place.

FYI: I thought the word was momento but spell check said memento!

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

The roasted vegetables make the difference!

1 small chopped zucchini

1 bell pepper chopped

1 onion chopped

4 carrots sliced

1 cup frozen corn

2 tsp minced garlic

2 tbsp olive oil

salt, pepper, basil etc to taste

combine vegetable on a cookie sheet, drizzle with oil and seasonings and roast at 400 degrees for approx 30 minutes until cooked but not mushy

fresh or frozen spinach

lasagna noodles

2 jars pasta sauce ( I use Haggen brand traditional)

16 oz container of cottage cheese

1 egg

3 cups grated mozza

use no boil or cooked lasagna noodles, in lasagna pan pour one jar of sauce, lay a layer of lasagna noodles on top, place spinach in a layer on top of noodles (use a lot of fresh spinach because it really shrinks while cooking, combine cottage cheese, beaten egg and 2 cups of cheese, place mixture on top of spinach, place another layer of lasagna noodles, then roasted vegetables, pour another jar of pasta sauce, sprinkle leftover mozza cheese and bake in 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes until cheese melted and bubbling around edges.

The picture is Amelia when she was around 4 weeks old.