He was thrilled to pull everything out of this cabinet and give it an obligatory taste. It sure is amazing how different he is from the tiny baby I stared at in the hospital.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Life of a 9 month old
Today, Eli is 9 months old and he is living this day to the fullest. After refusing to nap he played with a birth friend, Zadak, and has been busy exploring every nook and cranny of his home.
He was thrilled to pull everything out of this cabinet and give it an obligatory taste. It sure is amazing how different he is from the tiny baby I stared at in the hospital.
He was thrilled to pull everything out of this cabinet and give it an obligatory taste. It sure is amazing how different he is from the tiny baby I stared at in the hospital.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Pass the chop!
What a day. Eli has what I expect to be his first of many colds over his lifetime and though smiling through the sneezes and snotty nose (he actually started laughing after a double sneeze!) he is a bit more cuddly than normal. He was happiest today while unfolding the clothes I was trying to fold. Or maybe he thought he was helping? He kept taking items over to our dog as if to say, "hey, aren't these socks cool?"
So in an effort to simplify life and have some fun with the little booger (pun intended) dinner as a shared affair and oh so yummy!
Smokey BBQ chops
We had one big chop so I sprinkled it with cayenne pepper, dried thyme, and garlic salt on both sides and sat it on a rack in a pan lined with foil for easy cleanup.
Make some tasty sauce. Combine equal parts packed brown sugar and ketchup then (I did about a quarter cup of each) then throw in about 3 shakes of low sodium soy and worcestershire sauce. Here is my favorite part, liquid smoke. This stuff is awesome! A little drop makes it taste like you grilled out. Just be careful, when spilled on a diaper bag you will smell like a mobile BBQ joint and face being hungry at all times. Don't ask how I know. The memory is too painful.
Anyways, mix these together and reserve about half of it to dip your finished chop in. Baste the top of your chops with some of the sauce then place it on the center rack for 6min. Flip it over, slather on the rest of your basting sauce and let that side cook for about 6 more minutes.
Oh, so good I barely remembered to take a picture!
So in an effort to simplify life and have some fun with the little booger (pun intended) dinner as a shared affair and oh so yummy!
Smokey BBQ chops
We had one big chop so I sprinkled it with cayenne pepper, dried thyme, and garlic salt on both sides and sat it on a rack in a pan lined with foil for easy cleanup.
Make some tasty sauce. Combine equal parts packed brown sugar and ketchup then (I did about a quarter cup of each) then throw in about 3 shakes of low sodium soy and worcestershire sauce. Here is my favorite part, liquid smoke. This stuff is awesome! A little drop makes it taste like you grilled out. Just be careful, when spilled on a diaper bag you will smell like a mobile BBQ joint and face being hungry at all times. Don't ask how I know. The memory is too painful.
Anyways, mix these together and reserve about half of it to dip your finished chop in. Baste the top of your chops with some of the sauce then place it on the center rack for 6min. Flip it over, slather on the rest of your basting sauce and let that side cook for about 6 more minutes.
Oh, so good I barely remembered to take a picture!
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Success
Success means a lot of things to a lot of different people. Heck, success meant a lot of different things to this girl over the years. Each day has its own successes and failures and over the different phases of my life these have varied greatly. What I'm getting at (I've been told I'm long-winded) is that I had no idea how simple a success could be and how happy I could be about little things in life.
Take for instance my life 4 years ago:
Success meant having a phone conversation with my deployed husband (this was my Christmas card from him!) that didn't end in frustration due to crazy lag in the connection and nothing to talk about when you hadn't talked in a week. It meant getting through a 12 hour shift without having to call your boss because a ship was deviating from course too much or had sustained some damage from seas you told them not to go into. (we always told them, they just didn't always listen...that's my story and I'm sticking to it!)
But today, success is something completely different. It's having a clean kitchen counter. A toilet that doesn't have a ring of yucky stuff in it (what is with the water here?!). It's getting a 30 minute workout AND shower in before Eli wakes up from his nap.
Today's success? Well, we went and had lunch with some great people and Eli fell asleep on the way home (despite me singing up-beat songs to him encouraging him to stay awake). I successfully pulled my sleeping baby out of his carseat, carried him upstairs and deposited one sleeping baby in his crib with not so much as a peep out of him. Ahhh, the bliss of silence :)
Success in the kitchen hasn't changed much for me over the years. So, what is a successful dinner? Well, today it is one that is no fuss and makes you remember not only your Moma but your Nanny; Chicken noodle soup!
Bring a pot of water to a good boil.
Add about a cup of egg noodles to the pot and let them boil for 5-7 minutes. If you aren't too concerned about salt, add some salt to the water before you cook them to season the noodles a bit. I think they taste fine without it though!
After they are to your liking (careful not to burn your tongue while you test the noodles, you'll need those taste buds later!) drain the water and then return the noodles to the pan.
Add a can of Cream of Chicken soup and if you want it creamier (who doesn't??) add about a half a can of milk.
Place this back over low heat and stir in a handfull of frozen peas (mmmmm, tasty little bursts of flavor!) a pinch of black pepper and as much crushed red paper flakes as you like...I was a two shake girl today.
Let this warm through and then dig in! This made about 2 servings (big bowls!)
So, if the kitchen is a disaster, the laundry doesn't get done or I am unable to do anything else today, I will still consider this day a success because I have a sleeping child and a bowl full of memories.
Take for instance my life 4 years ago:
Success meant having a phone conversation with my deployed husband (this was my Christmas card from him!) that didn't end in frustration due to crazy lag in the connection and nothing to talk about when you hadn't talked in a week. It meant getting through a 12 hour shift without having to call your boss because a ship was deviating from course too much or had sustained some damage from seas you told them not to go into. (we always told them, they just didn't always listen...that's my story and I'm sticking to it!)
But today, success is something completely different. It's having a clean kitchen counter. A toilet that doesn't have a ring of yucky stuff in it (what is with the water here?!). It's getting a 30 minute workout AND shower in before Eli wakes up from his nap.
Today's success? Well, we went and had lunch with some great people and Eli fell asleep on the way home (despite me singing up-beat songs to him encouraging him to stay awake). I successfully pulled my sleeping baby out of his carseat, carried him upstairs and deposited one sleeping baby in his crib with not so much as a peep out of him. Ahhh, the bliss of silence :)
Success in the kitchen hasn't changed much for me over the years. So, what is a successful dinner? Well, today it is one that is no fuss and makes you remember not only your Moma but your Nanny; Chicken noodle soup!
Add about a cup of egg noodles to the pot and let them boil for 5-7 minutes. If you aren't too concerned about salt, add some salt to the water before you cook them to season the noodles a bit. I think they taste fine without it though!
After they are to your liking (careful not to burn your tongue while you test the noodles, you'll need those taste buds later!) drain the water and then return the noodles to the pan.
Add a can of Cream of Chicken soup and if you want it creamier (who doesn't??) add about a half a can of milk.
Place this back over low heat and stir in a handfull of frozen peas (mmmmm, tasty little bursts of flavor!) a pinch of black pepper and as much crushed red paper flakes as you like...I was a two shake girl today.
Let this warm through and then dig in! This made about 2 servings (big bowls!)
So, if the kitchen is a disaster, the laundry doesn't get done or I am unable to do anything else today, I will still consider this day a success because I have a sleeping child and a bowl full of memories.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Snow!
This winter has been A LOT different than last winter for many reasons:
For Eli:
Potato-Broccoli and cheese whip
1 baking potato peeled and cubed
about a handful and a half of broccoli florets
1/2 cup cheese or in my case, 1 mozzarella string cheese
Simply boil the potatoes 5-7 minutes and then add in the broccoli for another 5-7 min. If you stick a fork in the potato and it falls apart as you are pulling it up, they are done! Drain the veggies and depending on your babies likings you can simply mash with a potato masher and then add the cheese (the heat will melt it) or since my little guy still isn't too sure about broccoli, I put it in my new, most fabulous, how did I ever do it without it food processor (I LOVE this if you can't tell!) and processed until it was a nice "whip."
He loved it :)
I can't say the same about his snow suit...
- We are in a house and not a teeny-tiny apartment
- We have a little boy that is into EVERYTHING
- Our dog gets walked even less
- I can eat whatever I want (caveat is that I shouldn't eat whatever I want!)
- We aren't digging ourselves out of 6 inches of snow every few days, in fact, we have seen a little more than a dusting!
For Eli:
Potato-Broccoli and cheese whip
1 baking potato peeled and cubed
about a handful and a half of broccoli florets
1/2 cup cheese or in my case, 1 mozzarella string cheese
Simply boil the potatoes 5-7 minutes and then add in the broccoli for another 5-7 min. If you stick a fork in the potato and it falls apart as you are pulling it up, they are done! Drain the veggies and depending on your babies likings you can simply mash with a potato masher and then add the cheese (the heat will melt it) or since my little guy still isn't too sure about broccoli, I put it in my new, most fabulous, how did I ever do it without it food processor (I LOVE this if you can't tell!) and processed until it was a nice "whip."
He loved it :)
I can't say the same about his snow suit...
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
In the other room!
Eli is one of the happiest kids you will meet. As my grandma said, "he'll laugh for just about anything!" We have found though, that the key to wiping that smile off his face is to wipe your nose. Seriously!
Anytime someone blows their nose in his presence, you can forget about laughter, that bottom lip is coming out! Poor little guy thinks something awful is going on behind that tissue and he doesn't want to stick around to find out what! The key to peace in the household? Blow your nose in the next room over :)
Nope, not this lady. I spent the better part of my afternoon not cleaning the kitchen, putting away Christmas decorations or doing anything else on my list. This little guy was ready to go and we had a ball playing in the living room floor and laughing until neither of us could breathe. That's my kind of living. :)
Anytime someone blows their nose in his presence, you can forget about laughter, that bottom lip is coming out! Poor little guy thinks something awful is going on behind that tissue and he doesn't want to stick around to find out what! The key to peace in the household? Blow your nose in the next room over :)
Who wants to make him frown??
Monday, January 2, 2012
A New Year...
Wait, what just happened? Christmas is over? New Years, too? The obligatory diet has begun? We FINALLY got some snow and it is just now "beginning to look a lot like Christmas!"
I am not sure when this day began. We left Ft. Smith, Arkansas and my parents and sister at 7:45 EST and arrived to our cold, dirty, but cozy home around 7:35 EST this morning...yes, 12 hours of driving through the night and listening to our little Eli try and sleep in his car seat. He was good, all in all, but once home I became a zombie and Zack sent me to bed for as much sleep as I could handle. You see, I don't drink coffee, sodas or pretty much anything with caffeine very often so when I do, I'm like a hamster on speed and can run on my little wheel long enough to power NYC for one night! Needless to say, an energy drink, cup of coffee mixed with hot-cocoa (world's best recipe! If you really want it, I may share!), Dr. Pepper, some Hello Dolly's (thanks Cindy!), Food-gasm brownie, carmel popcorn and some chewing gum, I had all I could handle on sugar and was wired until I pulled our sled into the snow-covered drive.
After a day of rest, snow, play with Eli, consoling Eli as he gets 2 more teeth, and cleaning, a one-pot meal was all I could handle. We don't have much in the house after being gone for the better part of 2 weeks so cans and frozen stuff came to the rescue! As always, it's an adlib so just do the same if you want to make it!
1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion chopped
1 package HOT chili seasoning ( I used McCormick)
1 package Ranch dressing mix
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
1 can Ranch style beans
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1-2 cups corn (depending on your taste)
1 can Rotel (any flavor works, mine was cilantro and lime)
about a tsp of chili powder
about a cup of spicey V8 Juice
I am not sure when this day began. We left Ft. Smith, Arkansas and my parents and sister at 7:45 EST and arrived to our cold, dirty, but cozy home around 7:35 EST this morning...yes, 12 hours of driving through the night and listening to our little Eli try and sleep in his car seat. He was good, all in all, but once home I became a zombie and Zack sent me to bed for as much sleep as I could handle. You see, I don't drink coffee, sodas or pretty much anything with caffeine very often so when I do, I'm like a hamster on speed and can run on my little wheel long enough to power NYC for one night! Needless to say, an energy drink, cup of coffee mixed with hot-cocoa (world's best recipe! If you really want it, I may share!), Dr. Pepper, some Hello Dolly's (thanks Cindy!), Food-gasm brownie, carmel popcorn and some chewing gum, I had all I could handle on sugar and was wired until I pulled our sled into the snow-covered drive.
After a day of rest, snow, play with Eli, consoling Eli as he gets 2 more teeth, and cleaning, a one-pot meal was all I could handle. We don't have much in the house after being gone for the better part of 2 weeks so cans and frozen stuff came to the rescue! As always, it's an adlib so just do the same if you want to make it!
Taco-Chili Soup
1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion chopped
1 package HOT chili seasoning ( I used McCormick)
1 package Ranch dressing mix
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans
1 can Ranch style beans
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1-2 cups corn (depending on your taste)
1 can Rotel (any flavor works, mine was cilantro and lime)
about a tsp of chili powder
about a cup of spicey V8 Juice
- Brown your meat over medium heat along with your onion and crumble as you go. I don't like big chunks of meat so I pretty much crumble the entire time it cooks.
- Drain your fat from the meat and then throw it back in the pot.
- I stir in the packages of seasoning now...Ranch and Chili so the meat takes on more of the flavor. After you have the meat coated, open the cans and dump them in (don't forget to drain and rinse the black beans though!).
I love a recipe that calls for a TOWER of cans. :)
- Once all the liquids are in, add your chili powder to taste. We like it spicey so I add between a teaspoon and tablespoon.
- Let it start to bubble a little and then reduce the heat and let it simmer for at least 15-30 min.
- I put tortilla chips and cheese in the bottom of the bowl and spoon the soup over top then add more cheese and don't forget your dollop of Daisy or in my case, Kroger brand sour cream!
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