My Adventures in Cooking

After watching Jaime Oliver’s Food Revolution., I was left with a profound need to start cooking wholesome unprocessed meals. Nothing over the top and not too organic (although I’ll try if it’s cost effective). So who better to lead me down that path than Jaime Oliver, via his new book Food Revolution. I wouldn’t recommend the book if you don’t like spices/exotic food. There are a lot of Indian and Asian inspired meals so not for the faint of spice.

Anyhow, today we tried Sweet and Sour Pork, and it was very good. The best part that it was very little prep and mess, can’t complain about that. Click on the link below for the recipe:

http://www.hubcom.com/recipe/cgi-win/recipe.exe?3$2$0$9$1465

A few notes: I used a pinch of crushed red pepper in place of the red chili, only used yellow bell pepper (but think I will use half of each next time). Also, it took me a while to fine Five Spice Power but it’s in the Asian food section.

Good luck!!!

Spring Time Mystery

Since we moved into our new house at the end of November we are seeing spring time for the first time. Every bloom is a new mystery for us, and certainly a learning experience as I am completely ignorant when it comes to horticulture. Today as we played in our yard, I decided to make my next blog entry an opportunity for people to help me identify what some of our blooms are.

I could not resist posting a picture of our little papoose playing in our front yard. Yes I know it's bad enough we have the ugliest house on the the street (I am not joking when I say ugliest), but we have our toys in the front yard. We'll change that eventually once our grass comes in some more. She's playing on my consignment sale bargain. I paid $5.00 for that entire setup.

This view is of our backyard. You may remember that this area was a mess after we removed the concrete slab. We had a lady with a company called "A Girl and Her Tractor" level out the yard and plant rye grass. Most of the brown you see is the hay she laid to shade the seed for better germination. It was a bit late to germinate, but we are very pleased with it's appearance. She did a fantastic job, although I was a little skeptical of hiring a women in this field. I will never again underestimate a woman in a male dominated industry, she did a knock out job!!! We'll eventually build out an outdoor space, but that will be much later down the line.

The two mysteries to us are the below pictures:

The tree to the left we thought was an Oak Tree, but to our surprise it's something else. These trees are pretty popular in Atlanta, but are a complete mystery to us. The bloom is best described as a red ball with tentacles coming out of it.

The yellow bush, I just noticed today as I was taking pictures. I was just wishing I had one as I was driving home, and low and behold I DO!!!!! It's on the other end of our property near the AT&T substation (that I just love) which is why I had overlooked it. Any ideas what it could be?

Finally the last picture is of a rose tree that we have in the yard. The blooms seem a little sad, but I think it's been neglected for so long. My goal is to trim it well at the end of the season, and see if they bloom a little more brilliant next year.

Walkers visit The Highlands, NC

We received an invitation from Tim’s boss to join him over the weekend at their cabin. So we quickly packed our entire house and jammed it into the car. Before heading out, I stopped at Wal-Mart and bought a portable DVD player for Isabella to watch on the way up. She watched about an hour and a half of Baby Einstein during the entire 2.5 hour ride. Although I felt guilty about using the TV to entertain her, we arrived in a much better mood than shorter trips we’ve taken in the past.

The big highlight of the weekend was Isabella’s interaction with Matt and Michelle’s two dogs Nelson (after Nelson Mandela) and Louise (after the famous King). Nelson was an adorable French Bulldog and Louise a black pug. She was fascinated with the two dogs, but the second they came toward her she would freak out. No best friends were made between her and the puppies, but we were all genuinely entertained. Saturday we walked around the shops in downtown, most things were way out of our price range but we still had fun exploring the area. Tim suggested that I get a manicure, and of course I jumped at the opportunity. Lunch was spent at a dinner in the local grocery store, where I had the best burger and fries I’ve had in a long time.

After Isabella’s nap, we found a little park and set her loose. It was a short trip, but it was so nice to get away from our to-do list here at home. I also got to know Tim’s boss a little better, which is always a good thing.

Beautiful Awakenings

One of my favorite parts of the day is walking into Isabella’s room after a good nights sleep/nap. She usually takes her time to let us know she’s ready, and is in such a playful mood. Her hair would best be described as a beautiful disarray. She plays this little game where she wants me to chase her around the crib, and then proceeds to hand me all her little night time friends. She sleeps with her baby girl, a red valentines teddy bear, a little sheep (given to her by her Auntie Amanda), and a glow worm. The singing glow worm was a gift from her cousin Christofer during Christmas. At the time I wondered why someone would get her a gift that was for newborns, but ironically it’s been a God send. I honestly think it’s helped her sleep through the night, and gives her something fun to play with when she gets up.

My little love bug.....

Isabella has grown into the sweetest baby I have ever know. We have taught her to give besitos (kisses in spanish). She's been doing this for a while now, but she so freely gives kisses to us, Elmo, her Aunts and Uncles, her BFF Mia Sewell, and my favorite....pretty much anyone. She even makes this "mmmmmmmmm" sound as she kisses you. Tonight Tim and I confirmed that she now knows to automatically give Tim a good night kiss after we say our prayers.

I don't know what we have done to deserve such a blessing in our lives, I just hope we never forget to cherish these special gifts.

Mom takes a sick day!

Just a day after I announce to the world that we are expecting, and that other than some first trimester fatigue it’s been great…….I get sick as a dog. We’re pretty sure it’s nothing contagious, probably not food poisoning (since nobody else that at the pizza for dinner got sick), so that leaves a bad physical reaction to the richness of the Pizza Hut Pan Pizza. Around 12am my body started to reject all contents, and it started to settle down by mid morning. Although I have not had any more episodes I don’t have much of an appetite and I am still a dehydrated/fatigued. This wouldn’t normally be note worthy, but with the pregnancy I was really concerned.

Fortunately I have a fantastic husband who also took a sick day to take care of me and watch Isabella. He found a cute website on Fisher-Price that has printable Get Well cards. Isabella added her colorful marks, and it brightened my day. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful care giver as a husband. He’s been diligent getting me lots of fluids, readjusting my covers, and even rented a couple of movies. I know I will have to buck up for tomorrow, as Tim must to return to work, but it’s reassuring to know that he did this for me.

One good thing that has come from all this, is Tim had the opportunity to spend an entire day as Isabella’s care giver. It’s so special hearing them play, laugh, and talk together. Isabella isn’t quite saying words, but she’s definitely saying something. My theory is that it’s a highly evolved/technical language that we’re not intelligent enough to understand. Well that is all for now, I had some time today and wanted to brag on my hubby. Take care friends.

We have so much to be thankful for!!!!

I cannot believe we are in 2010. We have so much to be thankful for. We thank God everyday for two sets of parents who love us so much that they are willing to sacrifice their resources for our family. We are thankful for Isabella, who is developing into a sweet loving toddler. She’s now walking all over our house and giving us open mouthed kisses to show her affection. I am especially thankful for my fantastic husband who works so hard to provide a stable financial and domestic environment for his family. Also proud that his work has paid off at Stevie B’s as he is now the Senior VP of Finance. There are few people I know that work as hard as he does. What our family is most thankful for is the addition that we will have come July 14th. Yes you heard it correctly…WE’RE HAVING A BABY!!!!!!

I am in my 13th week now, and thankful that my energy is starting to get back to normal. The past 10 weeks have been very challenging with the move and a 15 month old, but with the help of a few friends and family (especially Aimee) I have survived. It’s amazing how different a second pregnancy is. I find myself much more relaxed about the do’s and don’ts and I am not obsessing like I did the first time around. I am looking forward to a less neurotic parenting experience. What are we hoping for gender wise? Either way I see it, it’s a win-win. If it’s a boy, I get one of each and there is a little less pressure for a third. If it’s a girl, Isabella will have a friend for life. Being as close as I am to my sister, I hope that she has that bond in her life. That is about all for now...we ask that you keep us and our little peanut in your thoughts and prayers.