“It’s all crackery!”
And he liked it! 🙂
Category Archives: Food & Cooking
Post-party pictures with Gramma
One of my mommy group friends invited a bunch of people over for Christmas dinner, so we all went! I made mashed potatoes and peas and peanuts. I forgot my phone (EEK!) so didn’t get to snap any pictures. I grabbed my friend’s phone to take a cute picture of Katie eating a candy cane, but long story short I didn’t end up with it. The kids had a blast running around playing with other kids—and Katie tested my nerves by wanting to go up and down the slippery wood stairs by herself! The dinner was delicious and there was about as much dessert as dinner!
When we got home, I managed to snap a few pics of the kids with Gramma—but we didn’t get any with me and the kids. (We had planned to before the party, but it was chaos trying to get out of the house on time.)
Helping make cookies for Santa
Of course, his help involved stirring for about 13 seconds total. 🙂
Pre-Christmas Chili Dinner & Parade
We were invited to a friend’s house for a pre-Christmas chili dinner today. This is before we headed out. Yes, it was unseasonably warm.
Owen accidentally found his old Buzz Lightyear that I was going to surprise him with on Christmas…so I made him “help me around the house” to earn it—and he never set it down except to get dressed! (We just watched Toy Story for the first time a few weeks ago and he loves it!
Katie wanted to go outside.
Owen had fun playing with all the kids there—running around outside (with Buzz, of course!). And Katie had fun wandering in a new house. There were enough other parents there that you didn’t actually have to keep a dedicated eye on your kids so it was more enjoyable than I thought it would be.
We originally weren’t going to stay for the parade because it started at 7 (Katie’s bedtime) but they changed it to 5:30 so we were able to go! Our first parade! And a small-town parade at that! It’s been A LONG TIME since I’ve seen any parade—let alone a small-town one—and I was reminded just how interesting they were…about five police cars (county and city from surrounding areas), six fire trucks, ambulances, people who were running for mayor/commissioner/whatever, girl/boy scout troops, etc. Blah. Let’s just say I’d never have gone except I wanted Owen to see it since he’s in love with everything Christmas. And it was warm (it was 65).
But I have to say a parade in the dark is kinda crap. There’s lights on the trucks/floats/etc. but you can’t see any of the signs. But Owen had fun so that’s what matters!
Waiting for the parade to start:
The posse we were with (not everyone):
Yes, Buzz came with him. Owen never set him down all night.
Clapping!
Waving!
They were throwing candy and Owen got a raspberry lemonade sucker that he didn’t like—but Katie did!
The fire trucks were loud!
Happy boy!
Santa ending the parade!
Then it was a quick walk back to the host’s house, goodbyes, and we were home by 6:40!
Lobsters!
So pretty…and so daunting. Mom had to help me with mine. 🙂
Carcasses!
How good mac and cheese starts.
Gramma Jean requested homemade mac and cheese and I willingly obliged.
Helping Grannie make apple pies!
I requested Lin’s apple pies for the freezer, so that was today’s project…and Owen was “helping.” Lin said he was very patient the whole time. 🙂
Owen was playing with Stuffy (the blue dinosaur from Doc McStuffins) and was attaching him to the apple peeler using a rubberband as a safety harness.
Helping Papa make cookies for daddy
He wasn’t terribly interested in helping so I was lucky to get one picture.
I just had a MAJOR kitchen scare!
In the middle of making a double batch of double chocolate banana bread, I thought I was **GASP** out of butter! HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?! I ALWAYS HAVE AT LEAST 2-3# IN THE FREEZER! After a frantic five-minute search through both freezers, I finally found 4# stuck in the side of the main freezer drawer! Phew!
Today my laziness bit me in the ass.
I’ve been woefully neglecting my basil plants…and today I finally got around to harvesting what was left of the wildly overgrown mess. And it was pathetic. By the time I picked around the caterpillar-eaten leaves and the brown leaves…I didn’t even get a full food-processor’s worth. Last year I gave a ton away plus filled a bunch of containers and ziplocked muffin-tin pucks for my freezer. This year? Barely enough for a few meals.
Last year? I think I made at least THREE full Cuisinarts full. This year? Barely 1/4 of one. 🙁
Chicken pot, chicken pot, chicken pot pie!
I really need to learn moderation when prepping ingredients for chicken pot pie —at least now I have one for the freezer plus some extra! (And yes, I did put top crusts on!)
Kitchen Calamity
So you all know I hate our kitchen—it’s just ENTIRELY too small (even if every single counter was completely cleared off, there’s still no good place to put a cutting board or mixing bowls, etc.). So I was getting dinner ready for our little grilling dinner party—starting the water boiling for rice, turning the big pan on for sauteing onions, and chopping onions on a cutting board on the stove. (I had debated cutting them across the sink, but I had already dirtied up the too-small cutting board so figured why change mid-stream?)
So I’m peeling and cutting onions and I see a small wisp of smoke and notice that my cutting board is a little too close to the rice pot, so I move it and continue. A few minutes later, there’s suddenly way more smoke and a putrid toxic smell and HOLY SHIT—I had turned the wrong burner on and my big plastic cutting board was melting. 😯
So in about the span of three seconds, I grabbed the melting board and set in on the sink, turned off the burner, and turned on the fans…just as Ruth was walking in from outside. She was surprised, of course, but there wasn’t much she could do. I opened the sliding door and was fanning the smoke out to hopefully keep the smoke detector from blasting…when it hit me: GET THE BURNING PLASTIC OFF THE BURNER. So I grabbed the always-handy razor blade from the drawer and scraped off the melted plastic which just about immediately halted the toxic smoke (and man was it TOXIC—it was literally burning my nose and throat). The smoke alarm never went off and the kitchen was back to normal in about five minutes.
Thankfully the rest of the dinner went off without a hitch and was super delicious!
I joked that I cursed myself because just that morning I ordered three new bamboo cutting boards to replace some of my plastic ones that were getting a little janky…
Happy 12th Anniversary!
Happy 12th anniversary from halfway across the world, baby! It feels like just yesterday but also like we’ve been together our whole lives as I can’t imagine my life before you. I love you and miss you desperately!
And this year—after a respectable 11-year run—we FINALLY ended our accidental-turned-scheduled anniversary tradition of having Chinese for dinner. Damn marine corps not offering anything remotely Chinese in Afghanistan today. Hmph.
However.
We’re possibly starting a new tradition as Tom had steak and shrimp…so I figured instead of me just grabbing Chinese take out, I’d go and get steak and shrimp as well!
However.
I didn’t really want to get it take-out (who wants steak and shrimp to cool off on the 20-minute ride home?) but I honestly didn’t want to go by myself (well, with the kids)…so I sent an open invitation to my moms group…and one mom offered to come out with me (well, plus one of her kids). So…YAY for friends! And new traditions!
That said…WOW. I don’t think I’ll be taking the kids out by myself anytime soon. Or if I do, it will be to a FAST FOOD place or somewhere we can get much faster service.
Those of you with small kids will understand—you do everything QUICKLY. You order quickly (you quite possibly even order the kids meals first), you pay the check quickly, and you’re hopefully out of there before the squirming and whining begins. But unfortunately that was not how tonight played out. I fully blame the waitress, who constantly disappeared for loooong periods at every stage of the meal. Tom and I can usually get in and out in under 40 minutes. Ruth and I were there (at the same place) for just under ONE AND A HALF HOURS. Good god.
Ruth was a godsend, though. At one moment when it was a bit of a circus—everyone was noisy, there was too much crap on the tables and nowhere to put anything, Katie had reached for the knife three times in under a minute and was spilling corn all over the floor, Owen was asking for the third time where his milk was (damn slow waitress!), we were trying to share the onion appetizer…all while trying to place our food order—she volunteered to take the kids (my two and her one) for a brief walk so I could have a breather. And then she noticed Katie needed a diaper change so she did that, too.
/sigh
Of course, Owen didn’t follow along quickly enough and then Ruth was too far away for him to chase after so he stayed with me. Then announced he had to pee…so I had to take him back to the bathroom anyway. But then I left him with Ruth and went back to the table as they took a quick roundabout tour of the restaurant and I got to eat three bites of my salad in peace.
Overall it was a great meal—the steak and shrimp were REALLY good. It may have spoiled my usual order at that restaurant as well (I have ever only ordered one single thing every time we’ve gone there). The only thing that could have made it better? To have been able to calmly and slowly eat the yummy meal in peace and quiet—appreciating the food—instead of just shoving in a random bite here and there between managing two kids. Well, I guess that’s technically more than one thing. 🙂
I am so glad to have made a few new good mom friends who just UNDERSTAND and are willing to lend a hand—or supportive meal—when it’s needed.
And on that note… I mentioned that I’d probably order steak every time I went out because I wouldn’t be eating it at home because I don’t grill. And Ruth pipes up “I GRILL!” So I’ll provide the protein and the grill, she’ll provide the actual grilling, the kids can play in the pool…YAY!
What’s in the box?
If you know me at all, you know we order a lot of stuff from Amazon (and online in general, really—I mean, with two kids, it’s really the convenience factor). And with the quantity we order PLUS my sketchy swiss-cheesed mommy-brain memory, I often have NO idea what’s in each box when it arrives. Tom and I sometimes play a game: Can he open the box before I remember what’s in it? 🙂 (If you’re curious, I think it’s about 60/40 to him.)
Well, in my internet travels, I recently saw a really delicious recipe that I saved to Evernote post haste (Chocolate Chip Cookie Peanut Butter S’mores Bars by Cookies & Cups if you’re interested ) but what got me was the beginning text…which sounds just about like our household:
A few weeks ago I opened up my front door to a package.
Now I am no stranger to the package on the front door.
I consider myself a bit of an online shopping expert.But sometimes when you are such an expert internet shopper you forget about the things you buy…
That is until the box ends up on the front step.
ORRR the husband intercepts said box, which is basically the worst day of my life.
In these cases he generally stands over me while I open the box, all while I over-explain about how it was “on sale”, a “total bargain” or (my favorite) “for the children”.
Anyway, when you open the box it’s like a surprise! What did I order? I can’t even remember!
It’s basically like Christmas.
I mean, you all know how much I LOVE CHRISTMAS… 🙂
But now, all I can think about is those yummy-looking S’more bars. Mmmmmm. I wonder how they’d travel to Afghanistan?!?
Last family dinner
What else but sushi…since it’s not really something Tom can get over there!
And Katie tried the pickled ginger! And ate a few pieces!
The last 300 miles.
The only good thing about driving too far the first day is that the second day is a lot shorter. BUT…the day started too early with Katie screaming good morning about 6:15. 😐 But it meant we were on the road at 7:30 again.
As usual, we stopped at our favorite park near Raleigh and Owen had a blast.
He’s getting SO much older. Now, he just takes off across the park without telling us…so we had a few chats about that. 🙂
And here’s how packed in things are—including Maggie! And it’s missing the last outside row that we had to take out at the park (the stroller, backpack, Maggie’s bag, etc.).
Look at that pathetic face. But don’t let her fool you…she’s perfectly happy. We had to literally DRAG her out when we stopped at the park.
Also, does Katie want her bottle at the park, when it’s convenient to do so? Of course not. She wants it 10 minutes later as soon as we’re back on the highway. Babies are annoying. But at least it put her to sleep so both kids thankfully napped almost the last two hours home…
My vacation is complete.
I took Grandma Jean to Dairy Queen tonight after we dropped off a Redbox movie at Walgreens. I was keeping my fingers crossed that they would be able to make my all-time favorite blizzard that no one can make anymore…that I grew up eating at this exact DQ.
So what is this magical flavor? Peanut Butter Crunch. It used to be on the menu everywhere like 20-25 years ago—it’s just peanut butter sauce and cookie crunch but not every place carries the crunch.
I started my spiel like I always do: “I’m hoping you can make a Blizzard for me that used to be on the menu. It has peanut butter sauce and cookie crunch.” She barely batted an eyelash and said sure.
Be still my heart.
Then I asked the next most important thing: “Can you please make sure to mix it really, really well? Most places where we live mix the top half and leave the bottom all vanilla.” Of course, she said.
Oh my.
I splurged and ordered a Large (I typically only order a Small because it’s some waaaay-distant-second-place-flavor like Mint Oreo).
And it was HEAVEN.
Dinner in Traverse City
We took Grandma Marsha and Uncle Rob out for dinner to Traverse City and we picked Harrington’s On The Bay. It was quite yummy—and while Owen was really good, Katie was pretty good but got a bit antsy/squawky towards the end. Owen was a MUCH better diner than Katie is so far…but she’s a MUCH better eater (tonight she ate calamari, French fries, asparagus, filet mignon, yogurt, and chocolate cake).
Outside, after dinner:
The General’s Dinner
A few months ago we went to a USMC charity event called Basket Bingo and a group of us bid on—and won—a five-course dinner at the general’s house. Well, it was tonight.
Our good friends happened to be behind us coming on base—and we were quite early—so we stopped by the water to take some pictures. It was just a little windy.
Karen and Tom
The first couples to arrive.
FIRST COURSE (appetizers on the back deck)
Watermelon tequila shooters
Brie toasts with papaya salad
Chicken satay skewers with chocolate BBQ sauce
Mojitos
Our Hosts, General & Mrs. Lukeman
The table setting.
SECOND COURSE
Plantain soup
THIRD COURSE
Mélange of jumbo lump crab, mango, and avocado in a tropical fruit purée
FOURTH COURSE
Island pork tenderloin with a brown sugar glaze
Coconut shrimp with a mango sauce
Baked green rice
Green bean sautée
FIFTH COURSE
Raspberry sorbet
Layered key lime tart
Molten chocolate cake
The staff from the gourmet club that prepared and served the dinner.
The whole group enjoying post-dinner drinks on the deck.
Then, we got takeaway gifts of a rum cake, spiced nuts, and a packet with ALL the recipes! I will definitely be making the Chocolate BBQ Sauce because it was DIVINE and I could have drank it with a straw!
Overall it was a fun night and a very enjoyable meal…I just wish I hadn’t been running on fumes (zero hours of sleep after our short weekend trip to DC).
Dinner al fresco!
It’s been so nice out that we’ve been eating on the deck! Owen now ASKS to eat outside!
I love that Tom can still make me laugh.
Almost sushi…but good enough for me.
Well, you may remember that I’ve always said I wanted a kid who, when asked where they wanted to go for dinner, would ask for sushi.
And you can probavly guess that I don’t quite have that (yet?)…but I did get a kid who picks the “fish tank resternot.”
I’ll take it. 🙂
Golfing!
We were invited over to our friend’s house (Tom and Karen) for Easter lunch, and then the guys decided to take the kids to hit a bucket of balls. These are the pictures Tom texted me:
And our friend, Tom.
Lobster grilled cheese? Yes, please!
I highly recommend this sandwich from The Grilled Cheese & Crab Cake Co. that mom and David brought back for me today!
I also found this magazine article about the restaurant.
Margaritas, anyone?
When we were in Florida last month I discovered the Kirkland brand margaritas at Costco—holy cow were they good. I wondered why we hadn’t seen them at our Costco… Oh yeah, that’s right, you can only get liquor and liquor-based drinks at ABC stores…which Costco is not. So, I checked South Carolina (since I’d be heading there to visit my mom and David in about a month) and by golly, they carried it. Hot damn! I told my friends that I’d probably buy about 10 of them…and I’m not sure they believed me.
Fast forward a month, and…
Family Breakfast
Pizza Math
Homemade pesto (from the freezer) + Campari tomatoes + fresh mozzarella (from Costco) + pre-made pizza crusts (also from Costco) = YUMMMM!!
Before:
After:
New food #4!
I’m still shaking my head in disbelief—and excitement!
Tom brought home teriyaki (steak and chicken, fried rice, and fried onions/zucchini) for lunch and I asked Owen twice if he wanted to try the chicken (it was super tender with a really yummy sauce) but he said no. Okay, fine, that’s honestly what I expected.
So as I’m finishing my last bite, he looks over and says “What’s that?” I told him it was the last forkful of rice.
“I try it?”
Wait, what? HE ASKED TO TRY IT?
So I scraped up a few remaining pieces of rice and he ate it…and loved it…and wanted more! I was done, but managed to scrape a few more odds and ends of rice for another mini bite—and he wanted more! I felt bad I didn’t have any more…but who would have thought he’d ASK to try rice?
Grannie said she was making rice for dinner so he could have more then. I kept my fingers crossed that he’d still be interested by then.
Katie’s potatoes
Katie ate some of Grannie Lin’s potato salad tonight! (Well, okay, some teeny pieces of mashed boiled potatoes—but with flavoring!) I know it’s normal for babies (kids) to try new foods…I’m just SO conditioned otherwise because of Owen that it still kinda shocks me.
YAY KATIE!
Sharing a PB&J
Owen always seems to sidle over to Papa when he’s eating a PB&J…and of course Papa shares it with him!
