I'm excited for October and the total dissent into fall.
Friday, September 28, 2012
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
Chalk the Block
Husband and I had a grand mid-day date to Chalk the Block this weekend, where I finally learned the grand secret to amazing chalk art: Don't use chalk. The amazing bright colors are all done with pastels. Now you know. And now I'll be sidewalk-pasteling this place up.
A blanket for baby.
Why yes, I actually sewed something.
More accomplished crafters would probably cringe at my seams, but baby won't care!
It took me five trips to two fabric stores before I would commit to a fabric. See what I mean about the overwhelm and consequential indecisiveness of the first time mother? I'm livin' the dream friends, livin' the dream.
More accomplished crafters would probably cringe at my seams, but baby won't care!
It took me five trips to two fabric stores before I would commit to a fabric. See what I mean about the overwhelm and consequential indecisiveness of the first time mother? I'm livin' the dream friends, livin' the dream.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispy Treats
You heard me, pumpkin spice rice krispy treats. Courtesy of these little guys, discovered yesterday in the holiday baking display at Walmart:
I made these in under 5 minutes, and they taste like autumn incarnate.
Yummmm.
Pumpkin Spice Treats
1 8 oz package pumpkin spice marshmallows
3 Tbsp butter
5 cups puffed rice cereal
1. Spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray. If you like thinner treats, use a 9x13, if you like thicker treats (me!) use an 8x8.
2. Put the butter in a large microwaveable bowl, microwave for 45 sec, add the bag of marshmallows and stir until the mallows are coated. Back in the microwave for 45 secs, then give it a good stir. If everything is melted and smooth, move on, otherwise, back in for another 20-45 secs.
3. Once its melted and smooth, dump in the cereal and stir with a big spoon until the cereal is evenly coated and combined. Press into your pan. If you touch it with your hands, spray them with Pam first or you will have a sticky mess on your hands, literally.
4. Now just wait as long as you can for them to cool and harden. 1 hour? 5 min? Ok, 5 min. The fridge might help if you're in a hurry.
I made these in under 5 minutes, and they taste like autumn incarnate.
Yummmm.
Pumpkin Spice Treats
1 8 oz package pumpkin spice marshmallows
3 Tbsp butter
5 cups puffed rice cereal
1. Spray a pan with non-stick cooking spray. If you like thinner treats, use a 9x13, if you like thicker treats (me!) use an 8x8.
2. Put the butter in a large microwaveable bowl, microwave for 45 sec, add the bag of marshmallows and stir until the mallows are coated. Back in the microwave for 45 secs, then give it a good stir. If everything is melted and smooth, move on, otherwise, back in for another 20-45 secs.
3. Once its melted and smooth, dump in the cereal and stir with a big spoon until the cereal is evenly coated and combined. Press into your pan. If you touch it with your hands, spray them with Pam first or you will have a sticky mess on your hands, literally.
4. Now just wait as long as you can for them to cool and harden. 1 hour? 5 min? Ok, 5 min. The fridge might help if you're in a hurry.
Shopping without the shopping...
I still haven't bought a single thing for this baby, partly because I don't know what to buy, and partly because we will be moving before he is born. Once we found out he's a boy, I wanted to start getting stuff, but every time I walked into a baby store I was baffled and overwhelmed, so I left empty handed.
Enter my perfect solution: Baby Registry! I signed up on myregistry.com because it allows me to add stuff from anywhere, and I even have an app on my phone that I can use to scan bar codes if I see something in a store to add.
So in an effort to make some effort to prepare for the little dude, I started adding the most random things to the registry. I started with the familiar, some of my favorite children's books from Barnes & Noble. Then I took Ian on a "date" to Babies'R'Us where we scanned any little boys clothes we liked that didn't have silly sayings on them like "Mommy's little rock star." Since then I have ventured into the blogging world looking for suggestions and added a few more odds and ends.
The farther afield I go, however, the more foreign the language and the terrain becomes. What, for example, is a wubbanub? I go on to these sites and read through these baby registry lists and I feel like I'm trying to decipher Swahili. Not to mention all the bossing around and guilt tripping.... Baby wants this, and baby will sleep better if you buy this, and you will pretty much fail as a mother without this. Are you kidding me? Who can make sense of this barrage of information?
My list is still woefully haphazard and incomplete, I'm sure, but registering makes me feel like I'm doing something to get ready, sort of.
Enter my perfect solution: Baby Registry! I signed up on myregistry.com because it allows me to add stuff from anywhere, and I even have an app on my phone that I can use to scan bar codes if I see something in a store to add.
So in an effort to make some effort to prepare for the little dude, I started adding the most random things to the registry. I started with the familiar, some of my favorite children's books from Barnes & Noble. Then I took Ian on a "date" to Babies'R'Us where we scanned any little boys clothes we liked that didn't have silly sayings on them like "Mommy's little rock star." Since then I have ventured into the blogging world looking for suggestions and added a few more odds and ends.
The farther afield I go, however, the more foreign the language and the terrain becomes. What, for example, is a wubbanub? I go on to these sites and read through these baby registry lists and I feel like I'm trying to decipher Swahili. Not to mention all the bossing around and guilt tripping.... Baby wants this, and baby will sleep better if you buy this, and you will pretty much fail as a mother without this. Are you kidding me? Who can make sense of this barrage of information?
My list is still woefully haphazard and incomplete, I'm sure, but registering makes me feel like I'm doing something to get ready, sort of.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Chicken Kabob Pizza
Husband and I are a match made in pizza heaven. In high school he made his own dough and sauce from scratch and sold it to his classmates. During college, I spent summers working at the super-delicious Gourmet Pizza Shoppe. So home-made pizza is a dinner time favorite around here. If you have a baking stone it cooks the crust perfectly evenly, its awesome, I highly recommend them.
Last night we put together one of my favorites, the chicken kabob pizza. It's like BBQ chicken and a luau had a baby made of pizza. That makes sense, right?
Enjoy!
Chicken Kabob Pizza
1 batch of pizza dough
drizzle of olive oil
sprinkle of corn meal
1/2 cup-ish BBQ sauce, I use Sweet Baby Ray's
1 cup-ish Grilled chicken
half a green bell pepper, sliced thin
2/3 can of pineapple chunks
two thin sliced rings of red onion
1/3 of a tomato, sliced thin
bacon bits, to your hearts content
1 cup to 3 cups mozzarella cheese, depending on your cheesiness tolerance.
1. Preheat oven to 425, with the baking stone inside if you have one. Once hot, remove the stone from the oven, or prepare the cold cookie sheet. drizzle with olive oil and spread the oil evenly across the surface, sprinkle the surface evenly with a dusting of cornmeal. No need to go crazy with the cornmeal, you want just enough to help the pizza keep from sticking so that it will slide off easily later.
2. Stretch the dough to desired size and thickness and lay out on the baking surface. Spread the BBQ sauce evenly across the dough, top with remaining toppings. I recommend putting the cheese on last, because it holds the toppings on, and you have a lot going on here that could easily fall off if unconstrained.
3. Put the pizza in the oven, bake for 10 min, turn the pizza 180 degrees, bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until the crust is done on the underside. I usually take a long knife or spatula to life up the edge of the pizza and check underneath.
Last night we put together one of my favorites, the chicken kabob pizza. It's like BBQ chicken and a luau had a baby made of pizza. That makes sense, right?
Enjoy!
Chicken Kabob Pizza
1 batch of pizza dough
drizzle of olive oil
sprinkle of corn meal
1/2 cup-ish BBQ sauce, I use Sweet Baby Ray's
1 cup-ish Grilled chicken
half a green bell pepper, sliced thin
2/3 can of pineapple chunks
two thin sliced rings of red onion
1/3 of a tomato, sliced thin
bacon bits, to your hearts content
1 cup to 3 cups mozzarella cheese, depending on your cheesiness tolerance.
1. Preheat oven to 425, with the baking stone inside if you have one. Once hot, remove the stone from the oven, or prepare the cold cookie sheet. drizzle with olive oil and spread the oil evenly across the surface, sprinkle the surface evenly with a dusting of cornmeal. No need to go crazy with the cornmeal, you want just enough to help the pizza keep from sticking so that it will slide off easily later.
2. Stretch the dough to desired size and thickness and lay out on the baking surface. Spread the BBQ sauce evenly across the dough, top with remaining toppings. I recommend putting the cheese on last, because it holds the toppings on, and you have a lot going on here that could easily fall off if unconstrained.
3. Put the pizza in the oven, bake for 10 min, turn the pizza 180 degrees, bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until the crust is done on the underside. I usually take a long knife or spatula to life up the edge of the pizza and check underneath.
"I love jobs!"
Not too long ago (read: anytime in the last 5 years) there was skit on SNL's weekend update where they joked about how any weird random jobs James Franco had had that year.
... About a minute after this clip ends, he comes back on holding the que cards and says, "I do this now!"
My life feels a little bit like that right now, and I kind of love it? One minute I'm blogging, the next I'm doing billing at a dental office, the next I'm doing online marketing, then laundry and dishes, then sewing slip covers, then teaching a class, then career consulting, growing a baby, editing a paper... then maybe I'll go be a cab driver for 45 minutes.
... About a minute after this clip ends, he comes back on holding the que cards and says, "I do this now!"
My life feels a little bit like that right now, and I kind of love it? One minute I'm blogging, the next I'm doing billing at a dental office, the next I'm doing online marketing, then laundry and dishes, then sewing slip covers, then teaching a class, then career consulting, growing a baby, editing a paper... then maybe I'll go be a cab driver for 45 minutes.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
To make the bed, or not?
"A man would prefer to come home to an unmade bed and a happy woman than to a neatly made bed and an angry woman." - Marlene Dietrich
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Baby Boy
So we had our ultrasound last week and we were so excited to find out that we are having a boy! I can't wait to dress him in bowties and teach him how to ask out girls and watch Yankees games and go hiking and pull him out of trees. Knowing that we are having a boy has made it so much more real for me! I realize I'm supposed to be enjoying the journey and appreciating each unique stage of pregnancy, but let's be honest, I just want to get this little guy here and start hanging out with him all the time.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
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