Daddy's helper

C had a big weekend in St. Louis--visiting with Bosco (Sarah's new puppy who reciprocally loves C), going to a wedding in Poplar Bluff (where he got to spend most of his time on the farm at the reception walking, throwing rocks, dancing, sitting on tractors, and checking out the horses--a little boy's dream).  He did really well considering it was a 4 hour round trip and we were there for over 4 hours. 

He's been pretty exhausted so yesterday we stayed home and did laundry.  I ironed 12 men's dress shirts (no exaggeration--it took me almost 2 hours).  If you know me--you know I never iron my own clothes.  I'm more likely to iron a tablecloth than my shirt, but I will iron Scott's stuff.  But man was that a lot of shirts. I had kept telling him to pull some out for me to iron-and I wouldn't see them and tell him again.  This resulted in lots of shirts when I found them hanging on the back of the door.
 

Last night he helped daddy mow the lawn.  He loves to help. 

Busy working

I'm like a chicken with my head cut off.  We left at 9pm last Thursday night to head to STL.  I came straight from my book club, and Scott had everything loaded up, and we took off.  Thursday was crazy.  We had a mom's picnic in the morning and then I had the book club that evening.  I made a Mexican chocolate cake (which turned out great).  I was too busy to even dream of taking a photo of it.  But rest assured it was enjoyed by all.  I think all 7 of the women at Book Club were in a chocolate coma after a few minutes.  We all brought chocolate food in honor of our book Like Water for Chocolate (which turns out not to be that much about chocolate--but we didn't know that when we set the date and food theme).  It takes place in Mexico, so I was inspired to make a Mexican flavored cake.  I took my trusty chocolate cake recipe, courtesy of Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa, and substituted cocoa for 1/2 Mexican cocoa and 1/2 Mayan cocoa (which gives you in addition to cocoa a chili pepper, vanilla, and cinnamon flavor).  I added extra cinnamon and a hint of cardammom.  I made a filling type frosting to put between my layers (a mixture of semi-sweet morsels, a little light corn syrup, and butter).  It poured over but didn't run off the sides.  Then I sprinkled that w/a mix of my cocoas and extra cinnamon.  Then for the top and sides I made a frosting w/8 oz semi-sweet Baker's chocolate and 2 oz bittersweet Baker's chocolate.  I melted this w/2 TBS butter.  In a bowl I took 6 TBs of softened butter and whipped it til creamy w/some of my special cocoa/cinnamon mix (just a little) and then added the chocolate.  I then added some whipping cream and powdered sugar--no idea how much-not very much--just until I creamed it to a consistency I liked for spreading and not too sweet.  Maybe 1/2 c of each then add as necessary.  The frosting set up a bit--really perfect.  I decorated w/sliced strawberries and bananas to cut the chocolate (the frosting tasted a lot like fondue--so the fruit went well with it).

Getting it there was fun.  I couldn't find my cake taker (maybe in the attic in some random box?) You don't get into our attic, so I put it up on a pedestal cake plate.  Stabbed it with 100 toothpick (hyperbole) and covered w/plastic wrap.  I had set the cake on a springform pan bottom so I could pick it up and move it from stand to tupperware later.  Good idea if you aren't transporting--bad idea for car travel.  I had to wedge the holder between my purse and boxes in the floor board and drive nice and slow into turns.  I did make it, but I was certain it would be destroyed before I made it.

I have been working like crazy on stuff for C's b-day.  I need to take some photos of stuff I'm making.  It's going to be fun--as long as it doesn't rain.  It will still be fun, but not as fun.

B-day invitations

So we are having C's b-day in a couple of weeks.  Here are the invites

Here's the front

the back. Do you notice any vital info missing?  The date.  How embarrassing.  Other than that they turned out just how I wanted.  I made them up on scrapbook paper and then took them to Kinko's to be shrunk.  I should have made them on 8.5 x 11 paper instead of 12x12 paper b/c I lost a little of the trim, but lesson learned.  They could be really detailed and cute w/o being as much work for each invite by making one and then having them copied.  If I wouldn't have had to have them scanned and shrunk (to lose the least) they wouldn't have cost very much--but silly mistakes get you every time. 

I had to make envelopes b/c the size that worked were nonstandard.  Not hard but time consuming.  I'm going to post my first shot at a tutorial. 

Lots more fun b-day stuff to come.

Envelope tutorial

So I made C's invites for his b-day and b/c of a copying issue/creator error my invites ended up a weird size, so I made my own envelopes.  Here's how I did it. 

Please be patient as this is my first tutorial.  I have not idea if it will make any sense.

So first I pulled apart a good size envelope to see how it was put together.  Then I cut out a mock up and created some measurements to fit my invite.

I measured and wrote out everthing.  Turned out for me it was easier to just cut the pattern each time.  Then I would measure for my folds/and use the tabs/wings for a guide.  I didn't like the way my point wasn't uniformed so I nixed it for a straight edge (which is how the envelope I ripped apart was.)  I had to make some changes to work w/the size paper and invite-I folde my insides differently.

I made all my folds and then opened up for gluing

Fold up the bottom--no glue (if you glue here nothing will go inside your evelope--defeating the purpose)

Put glue on sides.  You can kind of see it here. 

Edges folded. Now you're ready to slide in your invite.

I used scrabook glue w/a combo of double sided tape to ensure the whole thing wouldn't come apart in the mail.  Then press all down.  Make sure your glue and tape won't touch your invite.

Finished envelope w/a sticker.  And of course blogger hates me and decides some pictures should be oriented as a portrait no matter my best efforts.

Thanks, hope this helps anyone wanting to make their own envelope.

Things I love today

1. Bubbles

So I've always hated C playing w/bubbles...until now that is.  I hated the sticky mess and that we both got messy.  Now I think they are the BEST THING EVER!  At a meetup last week I discovered the best bubbles.  They are spill proof, come in various sizes (the smallest is perfect for little hands), and C can do them himself w/virtually no mess.

Where can you get these puppies?  Target for sure, and I think Amazon. 

2. The new M &Ms pretzels.  Wow.  In the words of Scott, "these are ridiculous good"  You've got to try these if you like salty sweet stuff.  The only problem is our grocery store only sold the small bags. The two bags I bought were eaten by the three of us in a nanosecond.  No doubt!

3.  The Normal fire department close to our house.  Today we went to get a burn permit (a whole other annoying story about the idiosyncracies of this town). The firemen had just come back in, and when they buzzed me and C in the station C went straight for the door into the garage to look at the trucks through the windows.  The firemen asked C if he wanted to see them.  They took him into the garage while I waited on my permit.  A couple minutes later one came to see if I had a camera.  He was "driving" the truck.  They honked the horns and turned on the lights.  He was in heaven.  He asked to wear a helmet.  They let him see it and touch it, but it was way too heavy.  These guys were sooooooo nice.  They made his day. 

the fireman is telling C to cover his ears for the horn.

Retraction

Fresh Market is a chain.  How embarrassed I am.  I thought it was a local place.  Evidently there are lots of them--especially in Florida.  Sorry for the misrepresentation.

Father's Day Activity

One of C's favorite activities w/daddy is tent building.  He loves pillow tents in our bed--that's what they call it.  Daddy even made him a tent over part of his bed for yesterday, which he loved.  Cracked me up when I went to get him up this morning and he popped up out of the tent. 

I think this pic captures his personality perfectly!

Brazilian Food was yum-o

This was a close second to the Paella night.  Pinto beans, rice, tomato salad, pork chops, and coconut drink were all a success and worked so well together. 

The beans were quick soaked then I added fried bacon, onion, and garlic and a bay leaf and s & p.  Then I brought beans back to a boil and simmered for 1.5 hours.  It was that simple.  I drained them w/my slotted spoon to serve.

The rice was super easy as well.  In the saucepan, fry a small amount of minced onion and garlic in olive oil for 2 min.  Add rice, cook for 3 min.  Add hot water, bring to boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer.  I used Basmati rice cuz we like it and I don't have any other white rice.  It turned out great. 

Tomato salad was the Brazilian version of salsa or bruschetta.  Tomatoes, a little minced onion, parsley, green onions ( I omitted b/c mine went bad), oil, vinegar, s & p. 

You serve the tomatoes on top of the beans.  I liked that mixed w/the rice as well.

The pork chops were simple.  You put the pork chops in a bowl.  Over the pork chops you pour lemon juice ( I used 1.5 lemons), 2 garlic cloves, parsley, and s & p.  Marinate at least 1 hr.  Then you fry them in oil or I guess whatever you like.  I didn't have them covered in oil, so they didn't really turn out greasy--and not very garlicky.  Very subtle taste. 

I surprised Scott w/peanut butter cupcakes (a choco. cupcake w/a vanilla/peanut butter icing, dressed w/peanut butter cups).  They were huge.  The three of us ate 1.5 of the 2 cupcakes I bought from Fresh Market. 

I forgot to take pictures.  Sorry.  It really was good.  The drink is unsweetened coconut milk, sugar, and rum over ice.  We squeezed a lime, too cuz we likey the lime.

A little bit simpler

Friday night was our "American" cuisine night.  I wasn't feeling well and Scott still had a cold (still does).  I had already planned for us to make hamburgers, but I really didn't want to do it.  I did though, and they were a welcome reprieve from all the rich foods.  We had them with a salad--nothing else. 

Sat. C played w/daddy in the am and they gave Kona a haircut.  I went to the Farmer's Market and downtown Normal for a couple of hours.  I had a craving for Chinese food-- so I picked some up and checked out a cool sewing store on the way.  We had our food--C loves lo mein and the green beans.  Then we walked down to our landlord's garage sale, bought a desk for $30 and found C a stuffed horse (he found it in about a milisecond and started to ride it (it is small--not rideable).  After C's nap we took him to the Catholic church's carnival.  C had a blast--petting zoo (where he wanted to be held by daddy and not touch any animals--a waste of $4)--we should have just let him look at them from outside the fence.  Then he got to ride a pony (excellent $2 spent--we should have just let him have 3 pony rides). He kept saying he wanted to ride.  We got his ticket, I took him to his chosen horse, a cute brown pony, but as soon as we got close he started freaking out and telling me no.  I had to force him onto the horse--and he kept saying no and trying to get down.  He finally settled down by the time the worker came to buckle him in.  Then he sat up straight, Simon the pony got going, and then it was magic.  He was smiling and loving it.  When it was over he started to cry for more.  I asked him if had any more money in his pocket to pay for another ride (I knew he didn't), so that stopped the whining.  Then we went to look at the fairway.  He rode in a mini-train w/about 7 other kids (his cheeks were shaking the entire time), and then he "drove" a corvette on waht appeared to be a fast carousel of cars.  I took some pics w/my phone, so I'll have to figure out/remember how to upload them.  Then we headed back to the animals.  C of course wanted to ride the ponies again, but we held our ground and just watched.  He made animal noises looking at the lion cub, chickens, zebra, llamas, goose, ducks, goats, turtle, and lemur.  His favorite noises were the goose and lion and tiger of course--even though no tigers were present.  He was cracking us up dancing and making noises and hand motions for these animals.  I seriously don't know where he gets this stuff--my theory is too much Wiggles in the car.  We took C to Carl's Ice Cream and eatery for dinner.  We ate there and took our ice cream home (we live like 2 minutes away).  Successful and fun!!  His new stuffed horse is now named Simon after his brown pony he rode (which looks very similar to the stuffed version)

Tonight's big finish is Brazilian--pinto beans, tomato salad, pork chops, and rice--followed by a coconut drink.  I'm going to try to sneak out and get Scott a dessert as today is his actual b-day.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Tonight was a French theme.

We had French style green beans--fancy name in French for a very simple, tasty dish; cream cheese/sour cream garlic mashed potatoes, and chicken cordon bleu.

The Fresh Market did the hard work on the chicken--it came stuffed and breaded.  I pan fried it in butter (this is French night) for 5 min per side.  Pulled the chick out of its bath and put on a baking dish--into 350 degree oven for 20 min.  In the same pan I kept the butter going and added milk, sour cream (I subbed this w/the milk b/c I was out of heavy whipping cream), a little white wine, chicken broth, lemon juice (just a hint), and a tsp of dijon mustard and 1 T cornstarch.  Oh, forgot I added a piece of swiss cheese--couldn't resist.  When it thickened I poured 3/4 of it over the baking chicken and reserved the rest for plating. 

The green beans were just fresh beans, a little finely chopped onion (I couldn't find shallots this AM), and butter, of course.  No s & p until they are finished.  You just cover em and let em go.  I had to add a bit of chick broth to de glaze the pan half way in the 30 min b/c I was using stainless steel cookware. 

The potatoes were boiled then I added crushed garlic, a little butter (seeing a theme here--the whole meal had 10 T of butter all together--yikes!), 2 T cream cheese, 1/2 c sour cream, and a little chicken broth (no milk).  They were so creamy.

Just some fancy looking rolls to go along--we never eat bread in addition to dinner unless we are eating a sammy of sorts, so it was a treat. 

I recommend for a nice, fancy dinner that's not all that hard.  I've made the chicken all the way before and it's really not that bad if you roll it instead of stuffing it, but definitely makes a bigger mess.

No drinks or desserts.  It was a welcome change.

Spanish food

So Scott's pick game today was Switzerland vs. Spain (total upset w/the Swiss victory).  I chose to make Spanish food.  We had paella (which was delicious) and sweet catalan cream (the spanish version of creme brulee)  The paella turned out delish, but took a long time to make (see below) and the creme didn't set the way it was supposed to even though the taste was yummy.  I think I will try the cream again b/c it is easy and a do ahead, but will try to make it w/a traditional creme brulee method (cooking in the oven in water bath) instead of cooking it all the way on the stove trying to get it to thicken b/c after 20 min. of stirring constantly it wasn't thickening.

I'm including the recipe for the Paella b/c it was so incredible I want to get it down before I forget my revisions to the recipe I followed. 

Paella
Feel free to adapt however you see fit.  I did!  It's not traditional paella b/c I included chorizo (which is a Mexican sausage) and I chose crab meat instead of squid and/or mussels. 

3 T olive oil
chicken thighs (1 per serving) or chicken breasts cut in cubes
paprika
oregano
salt and pepper
12 oz chorizo (out of casings, ground up--mine came easy to remove from the inedible casings)
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
12 oz arborio rice (or 2 cups short grain rice) * I combined the two w/half of each amount
5.5-6 c chicken broth (I used a mix of chicken broth, clam broth, and clam juice since I wasn't using mussels--was not overly fishy tasting)
1/2 c white wine
1 sprig thyme
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
bay leaf
lemon zest from 1 lemon
10 saffron threads
salt and pepper to taste
crabmeat (I used imitation b/c real crabmeat is 3 times the price--no extra splurging w/ a week of meals)
1 can diced tomatoes
2/3 c frozen peas
1 bag frozen shrimp (they were large, uncooked, peeled w/tail on)
1/4 c parsley, chopped
lemon wedges

Heat olive oil.  Season chicken thighs w/oregano, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Sear on both sides.  Add onions, peppers, garlic, and chorizo.  (My pan was so full I took out the chicken until these all cooked down a bit)  Add rice-cook 2-3 min.  Stir in 3.5 c stock, the wine, thyme, red pepper, bay leaf, zest, saffron, salt, and pepper.  Bring to a boil and simmer until done (the cook time will vary depending on type of rice you choose--b/c I used a mix w/brown rice--it took 50 min--long time).  You will likely need to add some or all of the rest of the broth (2 -2.5 c or so) as the rice cooks.   Add crab, peas, and tomatoes.  Cook 4 min.  Arrange shrimp and cover.  My pan was so full this took a long time.  Again I had to remove my chicken, turn up my heat a bit, and get the shrimp to the bottom of the pan to get them cooked.  It took about 10 min. which is way longer than normal for shrimp).  If necessary, add chicken back in and you're ready to go

Garnish w/parsley and a squeeze of a lime wedge. 

This is what it looks like when you add the first of the broth.

The finished product (there is not room for anything else in this pan)

This is how much was left after we ate.  Craziness.  We barley made a dent.  I pulled out all the meat and enough rice for leftovers and then froze the rest of the rice for a side dish later. 

Here's the cream.  It was like drinking it b/c it never set, but the taste was really good.  It was similar ingredients to creme brulee except you flavored the milk w/vanilla, a cinnamon stick, and lemon rind.  Very subtle.

Backyard Bounce Playdate

Here's our mom's group playdate from yesterday.  C had a blast. 

I wasn't sure if he would based on past experience, but he loved this bounce house.  It was smaller than he tried before and didn't have 10 year olds bouncing around him.  He bounced and bounced and bounced while he said, "jumping, jumping, jumping"

It's like he almost knows what this is for.  He was interested for all of 90 seconds in hula hoops.

Swinging w/momma.  I had to hold this ball while he held a little ball (you can't see in this picture) and I had to swing us.  It was cute.

Playing at Children's Discovery Museum

Wow--this museum is cool.  We're definitely going to get a membership.  C was entertained for 2 hours--could have been more.  If kids are a little bit older it would be even more fun for them.  C is too little for a lot of the interactive stuff, but wow is this a cool thing in town.  Worth a stop for anyone going to Chicago from St. Louis.

3rd floor where they can paint there hearts out.

trying for more paint

at the train table (one of his favorites). they had a truck table he LOVED as well.  they also have a climbing area for 4 and under he loved.

Portuguese Chicken

So here's our meal from last night.  It was uber rich and creamy w/lots of steps--to essentially be a casserole.  It was good, but I probably won't make it again--the pay off wasn't tasty enough for the 2 hour prep/cook time.  We had port w/pineapples for dinner--we should have skipped the port.  We like the pineapple w/o it better.  Oh well, it was fun.

This is the pic before cooking.  When it's finished you top w/sliced Black Spanish olives--which was really good w/the creaminess of the chicken, onions, peppers, and fried potatoes inside.  If you're wondering those are shredded carrots on top.

Cardinals Game

I can't believe I forgot I had pictures from this a couple of weeks ago--when we were visiting peeps.  It was his first game.  We made it to the 3rd inning--pretty good since we got there an hour early.  He loved it!

His favorite thing at the game were the statues and of course Fredbird.

We knew it was time to leave when he started tickling the woman in the seat in front of him.  She didn't mind, but it was a sign that he was done.

Pumped by the world cup

I know lots of Americans poo-poo soccer in general and the World Cup, but in our household it is a major event.  It always coincides w/Scott's b-day, so it is part of his zone this year.  We are continuing a tradition we started last time of sampling beers from pick teams every day (well not every day, but games we're especially pumped about--and only 1 per day).  So far we've tried a German beer and English beer.  Both were new to us, and we liked.  I am expanding our tradition to include foods since we are attempting to curb our alcohol consumption a bit.  So we are splitting a beer when we indulge.   This attempt to really curb will definitely be attempted in earnest after this first round of games is over--as you can tell from our menu.  The opening night we had curry (not S. African style, but curries are big in S. Africa).  We also had a S. African wine (Sebeeka a Gallo product) and a S. African dessert.  It was a crustless milk tart.  Super duper easy and very yummy.  C loved it.  He pulled himself into my seat after vacating his own and proceeded to eat the piece I'd dished for myself after he'd refused to try it from his seat.  He kept saying yummy.  Here's a link for the recipe.  We highly recommend it.  I will have to take some pictures as we continue. We had fish and chips yesterday--not exactly glamourous but very English before the big game.  Tonight we are having german style brats (sauerkraut, potatoes, and all).  Tomorrow is a house favorite for the Italian game-carbonara.  Tuesday will be Portuguese.  I'm trying a recipe that's chicken in bechamel sauce w/a Portuguese interpretation (supposedly) with a white wine from Portugual and then fresh pineapple in port.    I'm going to try a Paella for the Spanish game--not sure how it will turn out--kind of anxious about it.  Then for dessert a Spanish interpretation of creme brulee (one of Scott's favorite)--supposedly it is less rich thought--sweet catalan cream.  Then we're going for a French deal-chicken cordon bleu courtesy of Fresh Market w/aparagus argentuil.  Sushi for Japan's Sat. game (also courtesy of Fresh Market--the coolest grocery store in town).  I don't have anything planned after that.  These meals are all part of Scott's 30th b-day zone (14 days celebrating Scott w/things he loves--30 items in 14 days).  So far he's loving it!

Project updates

So I've been working on lots of stuff over the last couple of days.  Working on C's b-day ideas/invites, a crayon roll, and my inspiration board.   So I took all the old photos off the board.  Then I went crazy w/a can of black spray paint.  Then I played w/an aqua can--possibly a mistake--and then back w/the black.  It gives it a cloudy look.  The cork didn't paint well, but the frame did--which is all I cared about really.

Then some pretty, inspirational papers.

As I find some other papers I really like I can add to it.  I just mod-podged the papers onto the cork in a pattern I liked and then mod podged over the top.  I might spray it w/an acrylic spray--not sure yet. 

The crayon roll.   I followed the tutorial on the Pleated Poppy and ended up w/this.  For C's little hands I bought chubby crayons, so they fill up the roll thicker and taller.  I should have adjusted the dimensions, but didn't realize they were taller than normal crayons.  I like it for a first attempt though.  Cute fabric for boys is really hard.  I highly suggest this project.  It only takes 2 kinds of fabric less than a 1/4 yard each, flannel, crayons, a button, and a pony tail holder. 

C and I used it this morning while we had our oil changed and he LOVED it.  He loves having a place for them all, and they don't all fall out while you're using other colors. 

Zoo Day

C and I joined a mom's play group in town.  Our second activity we could attend was today.  It's a very active group, but C and I haven't done much yet.  We went to the zoo here in town (small but good) and then played in the splash park outside the zoo at the park.  C had a great time.  It was really hot even though we started at 9:30 am. 

Riding the carousel.  Here he's complaining about it being over.  He's very unpredictable on carousels and horse rides  He thinks he likes them, but then gets scared.  The verdict today was fun.

Enjoying the tiger exhibit.  About 2 min. later the tiger started roaring as he paced.  This freaked C out big time.  He's still scared about it.  If you ask him about the zoo he gets really upset.  He's very sensitive about certain things.  Noises are one of them.  The tiger really got him worked up.

He especially loved "swimming."