Sunday, September 30, 2012

Pumpkins, pixies and pirates

My dad and his girlfriend, Virginia, came in town this weekend to help celebrate my niece Ella's 5th birthday. We took BooMark and Ginga to Johnson Farms to check out the pumpkin patch in the morning and then went over to my sister's house for Ella's Pixies and Pirate-themed birthday party. Enjoy some of the photos from the weekend!

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Dinner Time: Bacon Potato Chowder and Butternut Squash Risotto

I've always considered myself a "planner." During the first year that Greg and I were dating, he lived in St. Louis and then moved to Columbia, Mo. He would come to Kansas City every weekend, and he claimed that I had his weekends planned out for him the Tuesday prior. This was true. I had to make sure that my plans revolved around seeing him and my girlfriends. This is also when we used to go out every weekend. My how times have changed.

Now, my planning revolves around what to prepare for dinner each night. I used to just have a meal plan for the week in my head. But most nights that quickly turned into the following conversation.

Me: What do you feel like for dinner?
Greg: What do we have?
Me: We could do chicken kabobs or turkey tacos.
Greg: I don't care. You choose.
Me: No, you choose.
Greg: How about shrimp pasta?
Me: Sure, but we don't have any shrimp. I'll have to stop at the grocery store on the way home from work.
(by the way, I detest having to make extra trips to the grocery store during the week.)

Now I use an amazing weekly meal planner that has a section for grocery items on the right side and the days of the week on the left. I simply fill this out Saturday night or Sunday morning before I make my weekly trip to Trader Joes and/or Hen House, and I'm good to go for the week. We pretty much stick to the plan. If it is written down, that is what we are having for dinner that night.

My weekly meal planner has also assisted with my goal to try new recipes and widen our meal variety. I attempt at least one new recipe a week. This was a good week and I made two new meals, both of which were extremely tasty and easy to prepare. I will definitely make them again. Try them for yourselves!

Monday Night: Slow Cooker Bacon Potato Chowder (from Campbell's Soup's website)


Ingredients:

    4 slices bacon*, cooked and crumbled (*I used turkey bacon because that is what I had on hand.)
    1 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
    4 cans (10 3/4 ounces each) Campbell's Condensed Cream of Potato Soup
    4 soup cans of milk
    1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
    2 large potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 cups)
    1/2 cup chopped fresh chives
    2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (about 8 ounces)

Directions: 
  1. Stir the bacon, onion, soup, milk, black pepper, potatoes and 1/4 cup chives in a 6-quart slow cooker. (NOTE: I did all of the prep work the night before and just dumped everything into my slow cooker right before I left for work.)
  2. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours* or until the potatoes are tender. (*I set my slow cooker to LOW for 9 hours and then left for work. It turned out great!)
  3. Add the cheese and stir until the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with the remaining chives.

 Tuesday Night: Baked Barley Risotto with Butternut Squash (from Real Simple magazine)


Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)—peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces (about 3 cups
(NOTE: Trader Joe's has pre-cut butternut squash right now. This is what I did, so easy)
1 onion, finely chopped
kosher salt and black pepper
1 cup pearl barley* (*I couldn't find pearl barley, or any barley for that matter, at Trader Joe's. So I just substituted Arborio rice and it worked.)
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
5 ounces baby spinach
1/2 cup grated Parmesan (2 ounces), plus more for serving
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 400° F. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large oven-safe saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the squash, onion, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring often, until the onion begins to soften, 4 to 6 minutes.
  2. Add the barley (or Arborio rice) to the vegetables and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until evaporated, about 1 minute. Add the broth and bring to a boil; cover the pot and transfer it to oven. Bake until the barley is tender, 35 to 40 minutes.
  3. Stir in the spinach, Parmesan, and butter. Serve with additional Parmesan. (NOTE: I made this dish on Monday and then immediately put it in the fridgerator. I reheated it for Tuesday night and it still was awesome.)

Monday, September 24, 2012

Catching up: The best of September 2011

Grace turned 1 halfway through September of last year, and it was fun to watch as she transitioned from a baby to a toddler.

Here are my favorite photos from September 2011 of Grace.



















Saturday, September 22, 2012

Will and Grace: Hangin' on a Saturday

Grace got to spend some quality time with her favorite cousins today while I got to attend a baby shower "sprinkle" if a good friend (hi Natalie!!). While I helped shower the soon-to-be mommy of two, Grace helped Aunt Lu and Will with their garage sale.

Grace can't get enough of her cousins. Every time we get in the car, she says, "Ella, Will, Westie?" She wants to visit her cousins all the time. They have do much fun together.

Here are two cute ones Laura took today of the two-year-old duo.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Catching up: My little flower turns 1!

This might take awhile, but I am going to attempt to share my favorite photos from the past year of Grace's life starting with her 1st birthday. Here it goes!

She looks so young compared to now! What a difference a year makes! Hard to believe that she wasn't quite walking yet when she turned 1 and now she is running everywhere.

Grace's first birthday was flower-themed. I used colored paper plates to make her birthday sign and attached photos of her first year to make flowers to hang around Mema and Papa's house. It was cute and simple, and I made her birthday cake and smash cake as well.

Enjoy!










Thursday, September 20, 2012

Grace turns 2: Elmo-themed party

I know everyone says this, but I can't believe my baby is already two years old!! Where have the past two years gone? My darling blonde-haired rambunctious toddler looks nothing like the tiny little dark-haired infant we brought home from the hospital two years ago. But it has been an absolute joy to watch her bloom into her own funny little personality.

At Gracie's two-year checkup on Monday, she still measures on the tiny side. She is about 23.5 pounds and in the 15th percentile for weight and height, 40th for head circumference.

She loves to sing her ABCs, Twinkle Twinkle, Baa Baa Black Sheep and The Wheels on the Bus; and I'll catch her singing to herself in the car a lot. But if you try to sing with her, she'll stop you and say, "no Mama, my ABCs." Grace is talking up a storm and repeats a lot of what we say, so now we really have to watch what we say :).

Grace is very independent and wants to pick out her clothes and PJs. She loves to put on her own shoes and socks, and loves to take them off again. She also attempts to put on pants and shirts. She loves to climb up on everything and run around. Graces loves to help us unload the dishwasher, change the sheets on the beds, and put away clothes. She also loves to help vacuum and dust around the house. She is definitely taking after her Dada!

We had Grace's 2nd birthday party on Sunday, and it was Elmo/Sesame Street themed because Grace is REALLY into Elmo right now. I found Elmo invitations on Etsy (and will include those in a future post). I also found the Elmo dress Grace is wearing on Etsy. I probably could have attempted to make this on my own (if I had the sewing skils and a sewing machine), but I am so grateful for someone else's time and talent. It turned out adorable! I got the idea of the veggie and fruit tray Sesame Street characters from Pinterest, and the Elmo cake and cupcakes came from our local Hen House bakery. Everyone had a great time!!

Enjoy the pictures!