If you're unfamiliar with my 31 Days topic, please take a moment and visit this post.
It is October 3, 2012 and Griffin is 18 months old.
Today is going to be a short and sweet post. We had a busy day and were out the door by 9 am. Griffin looked so dapper today in his SheShe Made today. I'm sad because his tractor jon jon is just on the verge of being too small! This isn't the best picture, but when the child is constantly on the move, it's hard to get a clear shot.
We managed to get to story time at the library this morning, which is always so much fun! Griffin loves playing the bells during song time and really gets into it. Maybe he'll play percussion someday! The boy does have some enthusiasm. We're not sure where he gets it. We usually see an old work friend of mine with her daughter at story time, who is a few months younger than Griffin. We had a great time playing with them after the story and are going to see them for a park play date on Friday morning.
When we got home this afternoon, the best surprise was waiting for Griffin-- DADA! That's Griffin's preferred name for Tyler, not mine. I hadn't mentioned this, but T was in Orlando for three days for work. He stayed right outside of Disney, lucky dog. I wish we could've gone with him, but it was a short notice trip, plus I got sick and I wasn't about to take Griffin to Disney World without his dad! I'm so glad Tyler is home. Griffin had a little bit of a rough day today. He was just sort of fussy and ornery. But he sure perked up the moment he saw his daddy! They are best buds.
Tonight, I'm off to my women's group for church. I love this group of women and look forward to meeting with them every month! This warm steak salad just came out from under the broiler. It's one of our very favorite meals, thanks to Kate! Make it soon; you won't be sad about it.
If you're unfamiliar with my 31 Days topic, please take a moment and visit this post.
Today is October 2, 2012 and Griffin is 18 months old.
I'm going to admit it right up front. Today we stayed in our pajamas all day long. I don't remember the last time we did that and it was glorious! It was a rainy, gloomy day and it felt good to just do nothing outside the house. We had a lot of fun and were super comfy all day. Griffin didn't seem to mind one bit! I started my day with one of my favorite mugs. When we were first married, we really didn't have many coffee mugs, so my parents gave us a few of their old ones. This one always makes me smile because not only does it remind me of my mom and dad, but it is so encouraging! Ha! How can you have a bad day when you're using this mug for your coffee (and pumpkin creamer)?
Griffin and I hung out on the couch while I drank my coffee and we watched his very favorite show, Super Why. I've finally found a television show that he likes. Nothing else keeps his attention, and even Super Why only engages him for about 10 minutes. But I will take those 10 minutes! I knew he was done with old Super Why when he started biting my shirt. It actually made me laugh SO hard until he caught my skin with one bite. At least it took my mind off the pain in my ear for a moment!
We played and played ALL day long. It was so fun. I let the chores go and just hung out with my boy. He rewarded his mother by taking a 2.5 hour nap which is highly abnormal. I'm saying that so that I don't jinx myself. I rewarded myself by relaxing on the couch and being sad about my ear infection. Somebody get me a violin, geez.
That was the gist of our day! We read, we laughed a lot, and we played. He was in a goofy, silly mood today and made me crack up multiple times today. He's such a funny little guy and a great dancer. I had Dancing with the Stars on in the background this morning, and when Melissa and Tony danced, he stopped and just boogied down. When their dance was finished, he kept signing, "more, more!" I rewinded it so many times, but it was totally worth it. He was just full of delight today. I think he's relieved to be feeling so much better after being sick last week.
There are two extra sweet things he's been doing lately. I realize that no one probably cares about these but me and the grandparents, so bear with me. My favorite things he's said lately are turkey, turtle, and Tokyo. He says Tokyo because that's where his Papa is right now. He enunciates his T's so clearly and they are SO sweet. I'll try to get a video.
He's also been saying "AAAAAAMEN" at the end of every prayer. He always wants to hold hands when we pray for meals and he has begun saying "AAAAAMEN" before Tyler or I can say it at the end of the prayer, but totally at the appropriate time. Such a sweet little smart guy. I love when he says it!
Now my little critter is in bed, and I'm about to pull dinner out of the oven. On the menu for tonight are individual margherita pizzas! Here they are before I put them in the oven.
Here's how I make them: I spread pesto (I actually made and froze this pesto from basil I grew this summer!) on a fresh (not frozen) whole wheat naan from Trader Joe's. I layer thinly sliced mozzarella and thinly sliced tomatoes on top. Then I sprinkle with kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper. Bake them for 10-15 minutes on 425 and you've got a delicious dinner! This is one of my favorites, especially with fresh pesto. YUM.
I'm thankful for a quiet, easy day with my small one. They aren't too common around these parts, so I'm glad when they come. Happy Tuesday!
If you're unfamiliar with my 31 Days topic, please take a moment and visit this post.
Today is October 1, 2012 and Griffin is 18 months old.
Yesterday, I came down with a nasty virus and ear infection, complete with a fever. I visited urgent care in the morning which was a huge mistake. They gave me two different kinds of drops that didn't help at all-- they made my ear 10 times worse. I will never go to urgent care again. I don't even care if I'm dying, for real. The only redeeming quality was that they gave me a carnation when I left. That was nice and yes, I'm serious. A carnation. So weird.
My sweet mother-in-law knew I would need some help with Griffin early this week since I was so sick yesterday, so after spending a weekend in Chicago, she hopped in her car last night and drove 4 hours to be here. She left this afternoon since I'm feeling better and my fever is gone, but I can't express how thankful I am for her. She blessed me so much today and Griffin wanted nothing to do with me because his beloved Nana was around. It was nice to have another day to recover.
Since Nana was here, I went to see my doctor this morning (again, urgent care, huge waste of time and money), and they gave me the prescription I had the last time I had an ear infection (this summer). The nurse also told me that if I get another one, they will probably refer me to an ENT for possible tubes. Am I a 9 month old? Seriously. I never had ear infections as a child, but I will tell you-- my ear HURTS like a mother. It's been plugged all day and the whole right side of my head aches. I feel so badly for all the poor babies who get these on a regular basis.
On the way home, I was able to hit up Starbucks and Trader Joe's ALONE. The angels were singing. Any time I get to run mundane errands alone, it thrills me, since I usually have my sidekick. Don't get me wrong, I couldn't love my baby more, but I do think it's important for moms to get alone time. I get so jealous of my friend's who have moms and mother-in-laws who take their children for entire days. I can't even imagine what that's like!
Anyway, I came home to the happiest toddler with the happiest Nana. He made us laugh so hard when he ran over to our basket of blankets and climbed up to go "na-night".
Yes, my child stayed in his pajamas until (and after) his bath today, and yes, those are Elmo pajamas. I always said I would rather die than dress my child in character clothing, but when said child loves "MEMO", you start to rethink things you said you'd never do.
Griffin and I napped at the same time (I actually napped longer) and after naps, I took a quick run to Target for diapers. I saw on the news this afternoon that there might be a diaper shortage, so I wanted to be prepared. Ain't no one wearing cloth diapers in this house! I came home and gave Griffin a bath before Nana went home. We miss her already!
This evening, my college bestie came over to watch Griffin while our small group had a little outing. It was so fun to get out and spend a little time with our small group. It's been awhile since Tyler and I alternate weeks so the other can stay home with G. I'm so thankful for our friends who come to the house to watch Griffin when we need to get out from time to time. That's the biggest blessing you can give someone who doesn't live close to any family!
When I came home, I opened the refrigerator to find this waiting on top of the freezer drawer.
Those are two dominoes that Griffin found this morning and carried around for a good portion of the day. He must've slid them into the crack between the fridge and the freezer when no one was watching. It made me smile. I love going around the house at night and seeing little reminders of my boy. I'm so thankful for him, even on the days where I don't feel the best. He is my sunshine!
I remember last year when Nester did her 31 Days series. I remember thining that I didn't have any skills good enough to blog about for 31 days. A year later, I still think the same thing. I'm not a great runner, I like to cook but don't really have enough original recipes or tips to blog about for 31 days, I'm not a photographer, etc. You get the idea! I didn't think I was an "expert" or even knowledgeable enough to blog about any specific topic for a month straight.
But this year, I realized something. I am an expert at something-- being a real wife and a real mom. I can tell you in full detail that sometimes I have great days as a wife and a mom where I am ON IT. The house is clean, my quiet time is great, my tasks are all completed, I make a delicious meal, and my child eats and sleeps well. My husband and I are really in sync, too. Then I can tell you that (more often than not), I have rough days. My house is a mess, I snap at Griffin and Tyler, we eat late because I just can't get it together, and my quiet time gets pushed to the next day's to-do list. Those days are a lot more common than the afore mentioned perfect day.
That, my friends, is our real life. My pastor recently said something in his sermon about social media. He said that so often than not, we post the glamorous things, the perfect things. We're sure to post pictures and tweets when we're making fresh bread or have prepared a delicious meal. When our child is dressed to the nines and our house is tidy. Rarely do we post pictures of the frozen pizza that we overcooked or our trashed living rooms. My friend, Megan (who also made my 31 Days button, THANKS GIRL) said something a month or so ago that hs resonated with me so deeply since. She said, "Don't judge your life by someone else's highlight reel." That is so true and hard to do when we're constantly bombarded with blogs, tweets, Instagrams, and Facebook pictures and statuses of everyone's "highlight" reel, if you will.
So, it's my goal to take the next 31 days and not only get back to blogging, but show you what our real life looks like. Obviously, I won't disclose everything, but I hope to paint a realistic picture of what our daily life looks like, the good and the bad! Maybe it'll simply serve as a reminder to me in a few years of what life looked like for us right now, but maybe it'll also encourage another young wife and mom who is both stumbling and sailing through a beautiful life one day at a time.
Reading has always been my favorite hobby for as long as I can remember. In elementary school, I was the child who got in trouble for reading under her desk while the teacher was instructing. Going to the library always was a huge treat for me. It still is! Griffin and I usually go once per week and typically, I have about 10-15 books checked out at once. That can make for some pretty hefty late fees if I forget to take them back, but I would NEVER do that. EVER.
I didn't get a lot of reading done last year. Blame it on the fact that I was learning how to be a mom, but anytime I had free time, I usually vegged out in front of the television. I didn't like that. I watched a lot of junk and kind of felt gross all the time. So, when 2012 rolled around, I made it a general goal that I wanted to read more this year. I didn't set a book amount because I knew that it would stress me out, so I just made a goal to read. And I have! As of today, I've read 30 books this year and I am hoping to clock about 10-15 more.
I'm not sure I'll get to reviewing all the books I've read, but I sure will try. Remember I'm not the best at keeping blog promises? I do know that a lot of books I read nowadays are books that have come recommended by people I know and by people who enjoy similar types of books. Maybe you'll even find some new books to read here. I won't ramble on, but I'll let you know what I thought. I'll also only review four at a time so as not to overwhelm you or myself. I've been keeping track of my books on my Goodreads app on my iPhone and iPad. It's such an easy way to organize what I've read. If you're on Goodreads, please friend me! I'd love to see what you've been reading.
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? And Other Concerns by Mindy Kaling 5 out of 5 stars
I love "The Office" and I absolutely LOVED this book. I laughed out loud so many times and wrote down hilarious quotes over and over. This is a light hearted story of Mindy's childhood and how she came to be where she is today. Even if you don't watch her as Kelly on "The Office", you should read this. I thought it was a lot funnier than Tina Fey's book.
Keeper of the Light by Diane Chamberlain 2 out of 5 stars
I really enjoy Diane Chamberlain as an author. She writes interesting fiction with good character development that is easy to get through in a few days. I discovered her when Erin and Rachel started their book club. I have a hard time putting down a lot of her books. This was not one of them, unfortunately. I think it might be because this was part of a series and I read them out of order. I hate when I do that! This wasn't my favorite, but it certainly wasn't enough to keep me coming back for more Diane!
Summer's Child by Diane Chamberlain 3 out of 5 stars
See? I told you I loved Diane. This story sucked me in and kept me there. I read quickly to find out what happened because there were some big unanswered story lines in this book. It was a good story that tugged on my mama heart during certain parts. This would be a great, quick beach read.
The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks 5 out of 5 stars
I am a big Nicholas Sparks fan, but I haven't loved a lot of his recent stuff, other than Safe Haven (LOVED this book, LOVED). However, I let this book slip by me for some reason. When I saw that the movie was coming out with my boy, Zac Efron, I knew I would have to see it stat. But I'm funny about seeing a movie that's based on a book-- I have got to read the book first. I picked this up and devoured it. I could not put it down. I thought the book was way better than the movie, but that is normal for me. Zac made it pretty close, though. I cried through this book and thought the ending was so well written.
I'll be back in the next few weeks to review some more of my 2012 reads!
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.
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!
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!
