November Fun ('13 Edition)

It's November already! How on earth? Here's what we've been up to this month.

Crusty bread for Thanksgiving. I added cheese and garlic. Yum!

Also for Thanksgiving, cheesy broccoli and cauliflower. If my mom had made veggies like this when I was younger, I would have eaten quite a bit more veggies.

Final item for Thanksgiving, strawberry pretzel salad. So yummy!

My new favorite picture. Love these two.

Fish with tomatoes and parsley. New recipe that we'll tweak and try again later.

Henry looks so focused and mesmerized here. And intense. Wonder where he gets that from?

LEAVES. These leaves need to leave me alone... That was rough. But seriously, this was only the first round. There's another round out there that looks to be just as big waiting for our attention. Thanks, nature. Thanks so much.

October Fun ('13 Edition)

October marked the end of my maternity leave (boo!) and the start of a new routine. I say that like it was just a matter of flipping a switch. Truth is, we're still trying to figure this out and I'm sure that it won't be quick and/or easy. On top of that, Henry got his first cold and ran his first temperature. I knew those were bound to happen, but I was hoping he'd be much older. Like 14.

Alas, here are some of the highlights from this month.

The last BLT of the season. Sniff. Oh how I'll miss you my sandwich delight!

On my "honey do" list for Drew this summer was fixing the ice maker and fixing the light bulbs in the fridge (we replaced them and they still didn't turn on). On my to do list was cleaning out the fridge and giving it a good once over with some cleaner. Well, the fridge crapped out on us so we had to get a new one. I then proceeded to cross out the three to do items on our lists.

Playtime on the floor. Poor Drew. Kramer just has to be involved so he gets jumped on and sat on quite often. Also, Henry slays me in those baby jeans.

Cuban Beef. Delicious.

This face! We bundled up for a walk one afternoon and he just loved it! Props to my mom for making both the adorable hat and the warm and comfy flannel blanket.

September Fun ('13 Edition)

Here are some of the goings on around these parts for the last month.

Kramer kept on looking cute. I'm not sure what she was trying to convey with this expression, but I'm sure it has something to do with walks, treats, food, or scratches.

The first day the daily high temperature dropped below 80, Kramer decided it was time to start using her bed again. Typically she gets to spend the days in here in the winter, rather than her kennel. I think she was trying to move up the start date for the bathroom stays.

Drew and I went to the UCLA game. It was... a great first half! And beautiful weather.

Spotted at the game, this guy. In a full on red unitard. My dad said he saw him the previous week and he wasn't wearing the shirt. Also, I'm pretty sure it's a Power Rangers costume.

Chicken Pomadoro with tomatoes from the garden! Delicious!

Spaghetti using spaghetti squash instead of pasta. It was so tasty and we'll definitely be making it again. What a great low carb alternative!

Granola Bars Revisited

A while back I posted a recipe for granola bars. These bars are great and it's still a great recipe. However, we've made some modifications around here so I thought I'd share the changes.

First, we've pretty much switched to almond butter in our house in general, so I switched the peanut butter for almond butter in the recipe. And, we had to use unsalted almond butter once so I added sea salt to the recipe to make up for it. Turns out I like the bars with a little bit of salt added so that's on the list of ingredients now too.

Almond butter and sea salt.

Second, we had a small portion of dried cherries and dried cranberries around the house and I wasn't using them for anything. One day I got tired of looking at them in the cabinet so I added them to the granola bars. Delightful. So, we either buy dried fruits in bulk to add to the mix or use some of our own dehydrated fruits. We had a big batch of strawberries earlier in the spring and some peaches and apricots from earlier this summer. I chop them up with kitchen scissors and mix them right in.

Dried fruits.

Finally, I didn't have sesame seeds one day and so they didn't get added. I didn't miss them and it was one less thing to buy at the store so they're gone.

So, here's the updated recipe:

Mix the following in a large bowl:

5 Tbsp. melted butter
2/3 cup almond butter
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup whole flax seeds
1/2 cup ground/milled flax
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
2 tsp. vanilla

sea salt to taste

Then stir in:
1/2 cup steel cut oats
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 bag of dark chocolate chips

dried fruits of your choice

Press into a greased 9x13 pan and bake for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. I usually let them cool for a bit before I cut them and then I store them in the fridge.

Enjoy!

August Fun ('13 Edition)

Here are some of the highlights from August. With an infant in the house, I fear most of the highlights involve him. And I'm OK with that.

Henry getting ready for a morning walk. These sunglasses lasted approximately 40 seconds before he decided he did not appreciate them. We didn't even make it out the door with them on...

Kramer doesn't know what to do with herself since she doesn't have to go in the kennel all day. This is her after one of our walks. Poor pooch gets all sorts of tired without her 8 hours of sleep in the middle of the day.

We decided to use cloth diapers. We are any and all of the following: nervous, excited, terrified, overwhelmed, hopeful. We crunched the numbers and decided to take the plunge. I'm sure there will be more on this at some point in the future. For now, how cute are those diapers?!?

I think his shirt pretty much sums it up!

July Fun ('13 Edition)

Here are the highlights for July around these parts. OK, let's just be honest here, this is, hands down, the highlight of the year here!

Baby Henry is here!

Already in love with this bundle of joy!

Dad is totally in love too!

How cute is our little guy?!?

June Fun ('13 Edition)

June went by WAY too fast! Here are some of the highlights from our world.

I was tuckered out after work one day and laid down on the couch to take a nap. Kramer decided to join me and rest her head on the nugget.

Roses! The backyard roses are just popping with color. This picture is of 2 of the 5 bushes along the garage. It's lovely out there.

First BLT of the season thanks to a trip to the Farmer's Market. Still not quite as good as tomatoes from the garden, but man have we been craving these beauties since last fall!

I converted a pair of Drew's old khaki pants into shorts and he couldn't resist using the leftover leg piece to wrap the dog. Her face cracks me up.

Root Beer Floats! Hello, Summer!

A new pizza on the grill! We used a pesto sauce and topped it with chicken, artichokes, sun dried tomatoes, garlic, cheese, and fresh basil. This might be my new favorite homemade pizza.

We went to a carnival picnic event with some of Drew's family. Our youngest niece enjoyed dancing on Uncle Drew's lap. How cute is this little gal?!