Me Want Cookie

As many of you know, before I became a momma, I was an elementary school teacher. I was really fortunate to teach at an amazing school where I made many friends. This was key for me; I started teaching the day after we moved to Cincinnati. I had roughly three friends when we moved to Ohio, so these women really became a family and a support system for me. I really love them and miss them.

They started back to school a few weeks ago, so Griffin and I decided to make them some cookies as a little treat. After the first batch went into the oven, Griffin became very upset. I couldn't figure out why, but as soon as I did, I started recording him on my phone. Bless his cookie loving heart.

I'll be honest-- before this day, Griffin had probably had two cookies ever. I didn't even know he knew the word for cookie (or COO-GAH). He was pretty smitten with them, though, and he might have gotten two once they came out of the oven and cooled off a bit.

We took two different cookies up to school-- Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies and Lemon Sugar Cookies. Both are so tasty and so different, which was what I was going for. I know that not everyone loves chocolate, so I wanted to provide them with an alternative. The chocolate cookies were so soft and decadent. I can't wait to make them again! The lemon sugar cookies are one of my favorite cookie recipes! My friend Traci brought them to a Christmas cookie exchange three years ago and they've been one of our favorites ever since. They are so unique, but SO delicious. I hope the teachers enjoyed them! I know I always loved a little pick-me-up in the work room during the day when I'd pop down to my mailbox.

I thought y'all might like the cookie recipes! Apparently I've turned this into a food blog this week. Never fear, I will be back soon with some posts that won't tempt you to add inches to your waist.

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies

via Paula Deen

Makes 2 dozen

• 1 (8 oz) brick cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 stick butter, room temperature 
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 box moist chocolate cake mix
• Confectioner's sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to firm up the dough so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls (I used my cookie scoop) and then roll them in confectioner's sugar.

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for 12 minutes. 

The cookies will remain soft and gooey. Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioner's sugar. Enjoy!

Lemon Sugar Cookies

via my friend Traci's aunt 

Makes 2 1/2 dozen

• 3/4 c. white sugar, plus more for rolling the cookies
• 3/4 c. softened butter
• 1 beaten egg
• 1 Tbsp lemon extract
• 2 c. flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the sugar and butter together. Add egg and combine thoroughly. Add lemon extract and mix.

Add flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt, and mix until well combined.

Roll into tablespoon sized balls and dip in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet and press down with a fork in a criss-cross pattern, as you would for a peanut butter cookie.

Bake for 10 minutes. DO NOT let them start to brown. Remove from cookie sheet immediately to cool. Enjoy!

Salmon Salad

Well, I promised y'all that I would blog the recipe for the salmon salad this week and HERE I AM DELIVERING ON THAT PROMISE. I think this is the first blog promise I've ever kept. Sigh. I want to be a good blogger, I really do. Maybe this is the start of something new!

Anyway, this salad. Oh, people. This is such a good, good salad. I have to tell you-- I am a meat and potatoes girl. We had ribeye steak for supper on Monday night and it doesn't get much better than that. Rarely do I think to myself, "Ooooh! We're eating salad for supper-- CAN'T WAIT!" But this is one of those supper salads that I can't get enough of. I'm actually forcing myself to take a few weeks of a break from making this so that we don't get sick of it. 

I have to give credit where credit is due though. I said this in my blog post from Tuesday, but a few years back, my girlfriends and I put together a cookbook and we each got a copy from Tastebook (great website, the books are so quality). My friend, Katie (who just moved back from the Cayman Islands-- woo hoo!), included this recipe from her sister. I have had this recipe in my book for almost two years and I just got around to making it. SHAME ON ME. It's so good. I should have listened to my girlfriends about this one a long time ago. You were all right, ladies. Shame. 

So, here's the recipe. Do yourself a favor. Don't wait two years to make this. You'll regret it. 

Salmon Salad

Serves 4

• 2 lb. grilled or broiled salmon (I squeeze lemon juice over mine, brush it with olive oil, and cook it at 425 degrees for 15 minutes)
• 1 pear, cored and coarsely chopped (leave the peel on)
• 1 avocado, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 c. sliced green onions
• 1/2 c. honey-roasted almond slivers (I found these by the nuts. You might also find them by the croutons.)
• 2 oz. blue cheese
• 1/3 c. dried cranberries
• 2 c. spring greens (I eyeball this per person)

For the dressing:

• 2/3 c. canola oil (I use vegetable since that's what I have)
• 1/2 c. cherry preserves
• 4 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 4 tsp yellow mustard

In a blender, combine oil, cherry preserves, vinegar, and mustard. Blend until combined. Since I don't have a blender, I use my food processor and it works like a charm.

Flake your cooked salmon into large chunks.

Divide your spring greens among four plates. Top with remaining ingredients. Enjoy!

This is a great salad for the spring, summer, or fall. You can change it up as you like, but the combination of the salmon, greens, toppings, and homemade dressing is scrumptious. I hope you love it like we do! 

Menu Monday. Or Tuesday.

I'm linking up this week with my friend Rachel's Menu Monday! Every week, I want to do this, and every week, I don't get around to it. With Labor Day being today, Tyler is home and Griffin is worn out from a morning at the zoo, so I have a bit more free time. We've had some delicious meals lately and I want to share them with you. These are a few meals that we've had over the last few weeks. Maybe one of these days I'll get my act together and actually post the past week's meals!

Salmon Salad

A few years ago, my girlfriends in my small group put together a cookbook. It's one of my very favorites. This recipe for salmon salad is in there, compliments of Katie, and I've just never made it. The other girls have talked about how amazing it is and I just have overlooked it time and time again. Well... I finally made it and we had it twice within about 10 days. It is SO good and good for you. You don't need any sides because of all the goodness that is packed in. I promise I will post the recipe soon. Now I'm sad that it isn't on the menu for this week!

20-40 Garlic Clove Chicken and Parmesan Quinoa

Crockpot 365 is one of my favorite cooking blogs, especially since I'm a busy mom now. This was an easy meal to throw together and it was pretty yummy. Griffin loved this chicken-- he ate two whole legs! I forgot to put the onions in the bottom, but we didn't miss them. I also bought a jar of the peeled garlic cloves in the produce section and used probably 28ish cloves. It wasn't overly garlic-y. The quinoa was good too! I used Trader Joe's quinoa and before throwing the quinoa into the pot, I sauteed some chopped onion and minced garlic with some olive oil. When the quinoa was done, I added a little fresh grated Parmesan cheese. It was good! The next day, I shredded the chicken and added it to the leftover quinoa for lunch. Delicious!

Grilled Dijon Chicken Thighs and Corn Saute

Speaking of my favorite cooking blogs, you must head over STAT to The Dough Will Rise Again. This is probably my current favorite food blog and I visit their site every week when I'm menu planning, no joke. Crist and Tina are excellent cooks and bakers, and they're funny to boot. You've GOT to add this one to your reader. Anyway, this Dijon chicken marinade is to die for and it's my new go-to. We love dark meat, so we popped a few thighs on the grill. That corn saute is so, so yummy! I just sauteed a chopped zucchini and 1/2 of a chopped onion in olive oil until softened. Then, I threw in two ears of corn (cut off the cob) with some salt and pepper. Once I pulled it off the heat, I threw in some quartered cherry tomatoes. Tyler LOVED this and we've had it a lot over the past few weeks. The mac and cheese was Griffin's supper leftovers-- Annie's Four Cheese Elbows. That is some good stuff right there.

Angie's Ribs and Molly's Twice Baked Potatoes (and Corn Saute, again!)

We LOVED these ribs-- another crockpot meal! Angie was talking about them on Twitter one day and I knew we had to have them. They were easy and fell off the bone. Here's her recipe that I used. Take 3 lbs of baby back ribs and cut them to fit in your crockpot. Rub the ribs with salt, pepper, and Dijon mustard. Mix 10 oz. of cherry jelly (I pureed cherry preserves since I had them in my fridge) with 1 cup of BBQ sauce. Top ribs with the mixture and cook on low for 5-6 hours (my crockpot cooks HOT so it only took me 4.5 hours).

We had Molly's twice baked potatoes on the side, which are so delicious and easy! I can't find the link to the recipe all of a sudden, but once I do, I will link back to it. And of course, we had the corn saute again. So yummy.

So, there you have it! I promise to post that salmon salad recipe this week. That is one you will DEFINITELY want to make soon. Thanks for the fun link up, Rach! I hope I'll be back sharing meals with you all next week. Let's see if I actually get my act together. 

Happy Labor Day!

We didn't do much this weekend. We were all fighting allergies and colds and it was best to just lay low. But today, we got out in between the rainstorms and played at the zoo for a few hours. We took our water bottles to stay hydrated and enjoyed the fact that Tyler was home from work for the day. We saw some fun animals, ate some popcorn, and then headed home. It was a great, low key day with my boys. It doesn't get much better than this.

I love that last one. They are the best of friends. Hope y'all had a great Labor Day!

The Zoo

We are so fortunate to have a great zoo where we live. Growing up, I'd really only been to a few zoos, and the one in Detroit is a good one. When we moved, it took a few years, but we finally made it to the zoo. Here is a highly embarrassing picture from that trip. I'm not even sure why I'm posting this, but it's my only picture from that trip. It was fun and my mouth is ginormous.

Yes, I had seen an elephant before and no, I'm not sure why I look so excited. This is a typical picture of Tyler and I. I look like I'm having some sort of medical emergency and Tyler looks mortified. Moving on.

A little known fact is that I have actually spent the night at our zoo twice. I didn't get trapped overnight, but that sounds like a fun movie. The big third grade trip (where I used to teach) was spending the night at the zoo at the end of the year. It was actually a really fun trip. We'd arrive after supper, and we'd get to walk around the zoo in groups with zookeepers and go behind the scenes! Then, we'd go back to the education building and get to meet some animals. When it was dark, we'd get to go back out into the zoo for a night walk. The great part was that so many parents chaperoned that Ginger (my teaching partner) and I would get to sleep in our own room. I can get on board with that, but thank God for an Aero Bed. Then, we'd wake up, eat breakfast, and watch a cool animal show. Finally, the kids would walk around the zoo with their chaperones while Ginger and I got a few hours of peace. The third year, I did go to the zoo, but couldn't spend the night because I was still breastfeeding. The overnight trip was my second day back from maternity leave-- what a welcome.

Now that I have a sweet little baby, I have a much better reason to go to the zoo. Last summer, he was only a few months old, so we only went once with our playgroup. Then, Griffin got a zoo pass for his birthday-- SCORE! Not only is the zoo fun, it's super close to our house-- about 10 minutes from my door to the zoo entrance. That makes it really easy for us to go anytime, even if it's for just an hour or so.

Lately, Griffin and I have been taking 1-2 morning walks per week at the zoo. I really love it! We go right when the zoo opens (9 AM) and it's so quiet. It's also nice that it doesn't turn into the surface of the sun until later in the day.

It's really nice taking walks there because not only do we see the animals, but there are a lot of shaded paths where it is on the cooler side. There are lots of these trails through (what I think is) bamboo forests. I love this picture. G was just trying to do his best to be healthy by chugging his water. I can appreciate that. There is a nice loop for walking and if you walk around the whole zoo, you're forced to walk up at least one massive hill. It's always good to get the heart rate pumping!

Someone really loves the polar bears.

I really love animals. I loved them a lot more before I had a baby, but I still really enjoy seeing them at the zoo. Now, I'm pretty sure I don't ever want a pet, but that's another issue for another day. I really like seeing the bears at the zoo and the Cincinnati Zoo has several different kinds. Griffin loves looking for the polar bears in the water. Another great thing is that a lot of these exhibits allow you to get really close with the animals. I think G will love this more and more the older he gets.

The manatee exhibit is one of my and Griffin's favorites. The other day, it was practically empty, so I just let him run around and play. He kept running up to the manatees and growling. Animal sounds, 1. Griffin, 0.

As you can see above, a few weeks ago, Grammy went with us to the zoo when she was visiting. It was fun to go to the zoo with another adult! I'm fortunate that a lot of my girlfriends have zoo passes, so we have a nice mix of going with friends and going just the two of us. Tyler hasn't been able to make it to the zoo with us yet, but we're planning on it soon!

This gorilla was obviously very exhausted. He probably has been staying up way too late watching the Olympics. Not that I'd know anything about that.

This was a 1.5 month old BABY cheetah! I nearly died of the cute. I couldn't get a good picture because he was a little rascal, plus this middle aged woman had planted herself in the window of his nursery and was snapping pictures like it was her job. I wasn't happy because there were so many moms with young kids who wanted to see the baby, but she would NOT move to let them see. I'm not talking about Griffin who wouldn't have known the difference if he was looking at a stuffed baby cheetah at FAO Schwartz (do they still have those?). I'm talking about 4 and 5 year olds. It was so irritating. I don't understand people like that. In the picture below, you can see the dog that lives with it. It was PRESH. They were playing and I'm pretty sure that baby cheetah thinks the dog is it's mother. So, so sweet.

We have had some great days at the zoo so far this summer! If you're ever in Cincinnati, be sure to check it out. I love these normal days with my boy!

 

Our Weekend and the Olympics

I know the weekend was over a few days ago, but I figure a weekend update is better late than never!

On Friday, we went to a Children's Ministry Dinner at church. For the past year, we have served every other Sunday in the walkers nursery at our church. At times, it's been a little difficult because it means leaving the house by 8 AM every other Sunday morning, but we've really enjoyed it. We get to serve and we do it with some of our good friends. Plus, as of about three months ago, Griffin joined us in our room! I love being with him during first service. He also devours the animal crackers during snack time. For awhile, I was so paranoid that he would choke on his crackers, but then Tyler told me I had to just let it go. I don't want to be a helicopter mom. He loves his Sunday snack! These are some pictures with his bestie, Lydia. They really love each other. And animal crackers. I love Griffy's face in the third picture. Boyfriend is serious about snacks, like his momma.

While we were at the dinner, Griffin's surrogate grandma came over to watch him. My principal from where I used to teach absolutely LOVES Griffin and loves coming over to watch him. She has been a lifesaver and is our go-to. When G saw her on Friday, he basically hyperventilated he was so excited. She cares for him and loves him so much. She's the best-- one of the things I miss most about teaching is seeing her everyday. She was always so good to me (and still is!).

Then on Saturday, we had a nice relaxing day around the house! I ran some errands alone (SERENITY) and Griffin spent most of the day attached to his Dada like a barnacle. He loves him some Dada right now. During the day, he reacts to every single sound in the house-- DADA?? DADA?? Sometimes I try and remind him of what I went through to bring his sweet life into this world, but again, it's all about DAD. I'm not bitter.

I did some cooking in the afternoon and then we had a new, sweet babysitter come over to watch Griffin. She was AMAZING. We came home to a completely clean house; you would've never known anyone cooked in the kitchen. Bless him, but even when Tyler cleans up, I will find my clean pots and dishes on the counter for me to put away later. It used to drive me nuts, but now it makes me left. Kelley put every single thing away. It was so wonderful and such a blessing. She was also so sweet to my boy and took such good care of him. I never worried about him once the whole night. I am super bummed because she's leaving for college in a few weeks, but we plan to try and keep her busy when she comes home on breaks!

While Kelley watched Griffin, we headed out to dinner with our friends and then went to their house with a bunch of other friends for a wine tasting/ house warming party! Everyone brought a bottle of wine and Todd and Caitlin did a great job of organizing the whole tasting! We ended up having to leave a little earlier than we wanted because I had a really bad allergic reaction to their cat. Boo. I think I would really like cats if I wasn't so horribly allergic. It was a really, really fun night. I'm so thankful for such a great group of friends! I didn't get any pictures-- I haven't blogged in so long that I've kind of stopped taking pictures of things and people other than Griffin and my food. EMBARRASSING. Gotta get better at that!

We were up and at 'em early on Sunday for nursery. We went to second service and headed home. Then a few hours later, Tyler's parents and three of his aunts came by for lunch! They were headed to see Tyler's other aunt in Nashville and came through Cincinnati. It was so fun! I made G.R.I.T.S. crockpot pulled pork, coleslaw, roasted potato salad (recipe to come), fruit salad, and Jennifer's chocolate chip poundcake. The pork, potato salad, and poundcake are staples in our house-- so, so good. Everyone seemed to be a fan of everything! I really enjoy cooking for people, especially family. We were sad to see them go, but we know that they're having fun in Nashville. Griffin was very excited to see his grandpa and grandma.

I honestly can't remember what we did on Sunday night. That's embarrassing. I do know that we grilled hot dogs, had leftover potato salad, and watched the Olympics. NOW. SPEAKING OF THE OLYMPICS. This should probably have a post of it's own, but people-- I love the Olympics. I LOVE THEM. I could sit on my hiney and watch NBC and my Olympic Live App all day long, but I have a small someone who requires food and care, so it's not really possible. My favorite events are swimming, gymnastics, and tracks.

Here's an important Olympic question-- Phelps or Lochte? Here are some thoughts I'd like to share. I love Michael Phelps. LOVE. His mother seems like a doll and I just really enjoy watching him swim. I do not love Ryan Lochte. He seems very into himself and his GRILL. Seriously, Ryan? A grill? I think Nelly capitalized on that circa 2005. And Nelly is a rapper. You, my friend, are a SWIMMER. So, there's that. But I have to say something-- Ryan Lochte is not hard to look at. Not at all. He's got some good genes. He is a great swimmer, though, and I do enjoy watching him in the pool... and on land. Okay, I'm done with that. Obviously, Griffin is also very impressed by Ryan's swimming skills. The Haney Olympic Rule is that you cheer for the good old US of A no matter what your personal feelings may be about that certain individual. USA! USA!

I'm so happy to be currently watching the women's gymastics. I managed to avoid the spoilers all day long, so I don't know anything about the outcome. What I do know is that Gabby Douglas is precious. PRECIOUS. I want to shrink her down and put her in my pocket. I wouldn't have to shrink her much, though. What a doll baby.

And one last thing, let's talk about these NBC commentators who are interviewing the Olympians after they lose. Appropriate questions are abounding, such as, "Michael Phelps, you just let all of America down by losing YET ANOTHER race. How does that feel?" They basically stalked poor Jordyn Weiber while she was breaking down on Sunday night. Give the girl a break, for real! Give them all a break! If you need to do an interview, fine. But have a little compassion. I don't feel like this takes a lot of common sense, but then again, I thought Alaska was an island until I was 18 years old, so what do I know.

Didn't you all miss my spastic blogging? I started with our weekend and moved on to NBC employees. Just a normal day around these parts! I'll leave you with a few pictures from the last few days.

Can't I just take my nap here, Momma?

I turned my back for MAYBE 30 seconds to get some milk at the grocery store, and G took the opportunity to pull three bags of Krispy Kremes into our buggy. He sat there for a long time trying to decide which variety he wanted. Sad to say, I was a mean mommy and we put them all back.

A boy and his DADA! They're really the best of friends.

Gorgeous, gorgeous flowers from my main squeeze. They were such a fun surprise on a normal day. I'm so thankful for such a thoughtful husband!

I forgot I had a blog.

Well, hello there.

Did you forget I had a blog? Because I DID.

Actually, there were approximately one thousand times that I thought, "Oh, I should blog!", but then something screwy happened with my old design. I switched to one of those standard blogger templates and it was annoying to me. So I took an unintentional hiatus.

But now, I'm back with a beautiful new design by Annie, whom I actually know as Stephanie! We went on a missions trip to Poland together about 4 years ago and it was my pleasure to work with her. She was as sweet and patient as I remember, even when I made some crazy demands. If you need a new blog design, go see her! I promise you won't be disappointed.

But all in all, what's been going on since February? Mostly just real life-- that always makes me think of David After Dentist, "Is this real life?" Ha! We've been busy and Griffin has been growing, growing, growing! He is my joy. I love that child so much. He loves me, too, but his Daddy is the current center of his world. Well, Daddy and "BALL". Anything that remotely resembles a ball is G's favorite. He also says it very emphatically. He's also taken to barking at me every time I tell him "no". I think he knows how hilarious I think it is. I have been getting very good at my poker face because he can be a stinker! But all in all, he is such an angel boy. I am so thankful to be his mommy.

I really don't have a lot to say tonight other than a quick HELLO! I have really missed blogging and I'm excited to get started again. I know you've all been missing my information on things such as food and my child and food. Speaking of food, I cooked pork tenderloin tonight for the first time. It was NOT good. So dry and chewy. Any tips?

I will be back soon! I promise! I can't stay away from my pretty new blog. Thanks, Stephanie!

I will leave you all with a few iPhone pictures of my sweet boy. I can't get enough of him!

A morning at the zoo-- we love our zoo pass!

I cannot handle the sweetness of this picture. Those cheeks!

We have entered toddlerhood. Good times!

Who is this boy and what did he do with my baby?

A macaroni and cheese beard and mustache. So happy to be eating carbs (like his mom)!