My Latest Trials in the Kitchen

Beau and I have made a couple of good meals recently and I thought I'd share. If you think for a second that I'm trying to have a foodie blog here, I will laugh at you laughing at me. :) I just love to know what my friends make on an average day so I thought I'd share some of ours...


We have done this first one many times and I finally took pictures. On my IPHONE. Nothing says "appetizing, bulbous raw pork" like iPhone pictures. But you get the drift....this one is on Beau's diet and pretty guilt free. Not to mention, delicious.


Mediterranean Stuffed Pork Loin
Courtesy of The Slow-Carb Cookbook (page 28)


INGREDIENTS: 
1–2 lbs pork tenderloin 
1 red pepper, finely chopped 
1–2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
6 oz spinach 
1/4 cup chopped almonds 
Pitted kalamata olives (neither of likes olives so we don't use these)
Olive oil or butter for sautéing 
Optional: 1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese (optional? Cheese is not optional)


ACTIVE COOKING TIME: 15-20 minutes
TOTAL TIME (START TO FINISH): 1 to 1 1/2 hours 
SERVINGS: 3-6
DIRECTIONS: 
1. Drizzle some olive oil or butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Add red peppers 
and garlic to the pan. After a few minutes add the spinach and cook until it wilts. 
Remove from heat.
2. Butterfly cut the pork tenderloin (cut vertically down the middle until almost 
through, but not quite through the pork). Place saran-wrap over the butterflied 
pork and pound it as flat as you can without breaking through the pork (use a meat 
tenderizing hammer for best results). 
3. Once the pork is thin, add the ingredients from the pan on top of the pork, spreading 
it all over. Add the almonds, and optional feta cheese and olives.
4. Gently roll the pork into a tube/roll. If you are using a smaller pork loin, or were not 
able to pound it very thinly, you may just be folding the loin over rather than rolling it. 
In this case, securing the loin with toothpicks or kitchen twine will be necessary.
5. Drizzle the pork with olive oil and butter and bake at 375°F for about 40–60 minutes 
(depending on the size of the pork roll). When the pork is cooked to your liking, let it 
cool slightly and then slice.

Step 3 - We actually used too much stuffing this go round and the meat almost didn't meet back up. You can't have a stuffed anything if the sides don't meet! So, beware of your stuffing amounts.

Please refer to the "bulbous raw pork" comment above. Eww.

I think my favorite flavoring are the almonds and feta. Shocking, I know!

Next up, my first recipe from Crockin' Girls. You remember, these 3 girls from Texas had the digital world buzzing when their Facebook page for crock pot recipes (you know, the things that have been around pretty much since electricity) racked up over 1 million followers in like 3 days. Brands like Geico, American Airlines and Lexus don't even have that many "likes"! But I digress. So, I skimmed their recipes and the one titled "My Husband's Favorite" jumped out. Done! The comments were very favorable as well. And you have SIX very full, very satisfied Thumbs Up from the Reynolds! 


My Husband's Favorite
1 can golden mushroom soup
1/2 cup white cooking wine
1/4 cup butter
1 pkg of cream cheese
4 chicken breast
Cook on low for 5 hours.
Pour sauce over angel hair pasta

SO easy and SO good! But you really can't go wrong with butter and cream cheese! I served it with asparagus and garlic bread. Delish.

Side bar: I guess I should add this part since I opened my big mouth about their Facebook numbers. If you follow that link, you will see there are only TWO girls and now only 500K fans. One girl bailed early on and then they had to start over with a new page when Crock Pot threatened legal action against them for using their name on the original page. And FB doesn't allow a company to simply switch names with that kind of following. Probably a HUGE miss on Crock Pot's part since women haven't been this excited about crock pots since our moms were barefoot and 9 months pregnant with us but whatev. Oh, the DRAMA! You bet I was interested in all that! ;)


Fun Food for Kids
I got this idea off Pinterest since I have no desire to invent anything on my own with the internet at my fingertips. I tried to name it but YOU try coming up with a name with the words "weenie" and "noodle" and still sound kid-friendly. Go on, I dare you.

Thin pasta strung through turkey dogs. This part was a breeze and took only a few minutes.

I added cheese. Only b/c I add cheese to everything. Oh, and salt.

Success! But only in the beginning. It quickly became the world's most fun food. He started lasso-ing them over his head and never ate another bite. We will not be doing this one again until he's older. :)

Send me your recipes if they a) are easy and b) make me look like a hero in the kitchen! :)

Happenings this past week

First, I want to sincerely thank everyone who commented and sent emails/texts/calls regarding the post below. I mentioned that we have friends that love us but I just had no idea how many! My heart is so full! And I had no idea most of you even read my blog. It makes me even more at peace with my decision to post something so personal. I'm still going to the doctor a couple of times a week for blood work. Hopefully next week will be my last! But rest assured, I'm almost back to 100% both emotionally and physically, moving on and excited for Spring! :)


Some things we have been up to this week:


Play dates!
We definitely caught up for lost time this week! We had several play dates and had a lot of fun with our friends. We met up with our friends Alison and her daughter London and welcomed them to the stay at home mom and child world! We met them at Arbor Hills Nature Preserver and had a ball. What a beautiful day and place to hang out. We'll definitely be doing that more often. This video is taken from Friday's play date - these boys crack me up! Grayson is definitely the loud one here and I can't wait to see what kind of things they get into as they get older!





More Spring weather
This winter has been crazy! Beautiful 60 and 70 degree weather this week so a lot of time spent outdoors and in our new spring clothes. And SOME people thought I was crazy for buying spring so early [*cough*BEAU*cough*] ;)

Always has a hand in his pocket these days. 

His eye contact gets me every time.

We paid off the truck!!
I have to brag on Beau for a second. Goodness, he works hard. And thankfully, his company recognizes it. He received a bi-annual bonus this week and we were able to pay off the truck! I think we had like 2 more years on that loan so it feels so good! We now have zero car payments and will hopefully continue to move forward and meet more of our financial goals this year. Thank you Beau for all that you do for our family! I thought you were a stud in that truck when I first met you and it has been an honor helping to pay it off. :) xoxo

Our very first picture together was in this truck. We had been dating for a couple of weeks
and he was dropping me off after dinner. Those EYES! I was smitten. 

The only picture I have of it. I wanted to post a picture of it
so I can remember someday when I'm 60 looking back. But Beau said no need, since
we're never getting rid of it. ;) That probably goes for the house too!

Preschool registration
Have I mentioned how ridiculously stressful preschool registration can be?! Albeit, it's self-inflicted stress. But the lines on registration day, the no guarantees, the waiting lists and process in general. We have been on a waiting list at Bright Beginnings since last semester and while we LOVE Teddy Bear Junction (G's current school), BB is half the price. :/ So, I woke up uber-early Tuesday morning for BB's New Student Registration Day for Fall 2012. That's right. In February. I headed that way arriving 30 minutes early at 8am. While I was prepared to throw some 'bows in the general direction of any mom that stood in my way of getting Grayson into our #1 choice, I didn't have to because I was first in line! They opened early and Grayson got the LAST available spot for the 2 y.o. class! That means they have all returning students from the year before except one child and G got that spot! The Preschool Director was right: The early bird really does get the worm. :)


Office Makeover!
I have BIG things planned for our home office! Of course I don't have it completed b/c that's not my style. But I have major visions for that room! I want to turn it into a shared space with two (preferably matching) desks facing each other in the center of the room, matching chairs and some awesome, sturdy shelves on each wall for books. You know I have a Pinterest board that captures all my "wants"! I need to do less wanting and more doing but that requires a budget. And the office has as much of a line item in our budget right now as a new Mercedes does. Get it? There isn't one. Moving on...

In true Stacey fashion, I only have a "before" picture and then moved on to something else... :)

The matchy matchy. My vision is still different than this but you get my drift. 

Shelves! Beau is doing the happy dance over the idea of putting more holes in the walls! ;)

Happy Hour!
I so look forward to my one-on-one time with my friend Lori. We met at Cru for a real life Friday night happy hour, enjoyed a great bottle of wine and a cheese board, and then moved over to Jasper's for some good people watching and blue cheese potato chips. Ohmygoodness, love. Lori and I get along so well because our conversation is the perfect balance of parenting, personal, funny stuff and career (past, present and future) and she's one of the most level-headed, realistic, funny people I know. I look forward to these dates with her. :)

Blessings

I talk a lot on this blog about blessings and I'm sure it gets old to the average "glass half empty" person (for the record, I'm one of them...or used to be). I know it's annoying. But I view things so much differently than I once did. I used to be able to complain about or curse something and leave it at that. Now I seem to end my bad thoughts on a positive note, which is so not me. I guess I'm growing. :) It's kind of like sorority membership selection: Pro, Con, Con, Pro...anyone with me?! ;-) Anyway, this has helped me when there have been unforeseeable dark days - the days and experiences that you just can't prepare for. It's those days when I seem to get slapped in the face (not that God slaps but you get the perceived force to which I'm referring :)) and reminded of everything I HAVE. Versus what I don't. A tricky place for us all, no doubt.


You see the story goes that in a matter of recent weeks I was pregnant but then I wasn't anymore. And we grieved and then we were good again. And then we found out it was still in there! But it wasn't a viable pregnancy. An ectopic pregnancy actually. 7 blood tests, 2 sonograms, 1 shot in the bottom and some intense side effects later and my physical self isn't quite caught up with my stronger mental self. But I'm doing okay. Beau and I are both doing okay. Things are more normal around here than they've been in a while. I like to think that my "restart" button has been pushed. Forcing me (allowing me?) to take a step back and get back to experiencing the joys of the three of us. And especially the TWO of us. Instead of some preoccupied psycho who was more interested in a relationship with her ovulation calendar. I had totally become "that" wife and mom. I never thought I'd feel this way but a huge weight has been lifted.  I think I'm over the "planning" of it all with the siblings that would be 22 months apart putting 1 grade perfectly between them, blah, blah, blah. It sounds cheesy but I really have given it to God. After all it was with Him all along, wasn't it? :) I was foolish to think any different.


I actually wasn't going to put any of that on my blog. Ever. But it just came out and there it is. It looks very exposed and personal. But it's one of those experiences that shapes you...so here we are at the positive part. Anytime I would let myself get into the Why's?, before I could finish the question, I was slapped in the face with HELLO, you have Grayson! And Beau! And an incredibly supportive family! And so many friends that love you! And two dogs that are incredible cuddlers! Countless blessings, for sure. 


I'll end with the one that is filling my heart in the greatest way today....


Grayson and his health. In light of what we've been through, I think a lot about how pregnancy (creating life, really) is truly exceptional. If you've read up on how a baby is formed, it's not lost on you how every step of their billions of cells and complicated insides have to come together perfectly in utero to form a healthy baby. Grayson has been perfect and healthy and a gift that I cherish every day and I pray for many more perfect and healthy days with him. He is definitely my biggest blessing in the wake of some dark days. 





I could really spend a billion more words talking about how perfect Beau has been through all this. But just trust in me that I tell him all the time and that he knows how much he is needed, loved and respected.    :)

The Many Faces of Grayson

If you never watch another video of my toddler, just watch this one ;)

1st V-Day at Preschool (or I'm such an amateur)

Grayson's Valentine's Day party at his school was today and he had a lot of fun! Not that I really know since the parents weren't invited but I hear he had a ball! :) I'm the most out-of-the-loop parent at that school since Grayson started in the middle of the year and I haven't passed out Valentines since like 1989 or something. Do they still do those little cards and envelopes? Stickers? Candy?! GIFTS?! But we live in a Pinterest world where moms try to win the creative award for cutest, most-time consuming everything! 

So I decided I should copy this idea but use my Mom's scrap booking scissors for scalloped edges and a single-hole punch to tie the label to the bag with curly red ribbon! How cute, right?!

Damn you, Pinterest.

But come on now. I may stay home but I have a LIFE. So this is what I did:

Damn you, reality. Dum Dum Valentines courtesy of a 4 minute, $4 trip to Target. 

I then slightly panicked about what they should arrive IN. Since it would be whatever the other kids drop their valentines in....was I supposed to MAKE him some wrapping paper-wrapped shoe box with a slit in the top (remember those?!). A collaged paper bag?! Since I wasn't about to do that either, I grabbed his lunch box (above) b/c at least it has his name on it. 

That's okay though b/c they already made him a Valentine bag at school (whew!)!

 

I'll be better next year - promise! I love this age where they still don't have a clue :)

I gave him one of the treats from his V-day bag for the ride home.
Ahh, a quiet car ride thanks to some fruit snacks.

I hope the teachers share the pictures they took of the kids all together (you know, since I wasn't invited to the par-tay). I did manage to snap some pictures before we left the house.

My big boy.

This should go in my ear.

In other V-day news, while we were all at home last week, we prepared for the big day with hand-made painted cards and "Mail-A-Hug"s for G's grandparents and great-grandparents who live out of town. Another Pinterest idea that was relatively easy and with 192 logged hours of the 3 of us indoors, we had plenty of time to knock them out.

Can you tell I traced one hand and Beau did the other? Ha!
They look like 2 different kids' prints! 

Grayson went to town with the paint. And by "town", I mean the table, the bench,
his hands, me and Beau ;)

Lastly, since Beau is back on the road this week, G and I spent a quiet Valentine's Day evening together sitting on the kitchen island with Domino's pizza and stickers. I caught this one as he reached over for more pizza...he had no idea it was on the bottom of his foot. I sent it to Beau... <3 

Be my Valentine, Daddy!

20 Months!

• 29 lbs (down from 31 after being sick/loss of appetite last week)
• You are my mischievous little child. You like to tease us and the dogs with something and then take it away, giggling the whole time you run around the house. You are particularly bad with the treats once the dogs are kenneled! This drives me crazy when it's something serious like my toothbrush that you're using on the walls.
• Probably my most favorite new thing that you have begun doing is during our night time routine: You used to fight going down but now we can't get through 3 pages of your book before you quietly close the book and point to your crib. We lay you in there with your monkey and you just smile at us as we turn the light out. I hope this happens forever. :)
• You are so very interested in feeding the dogs (sometimes up to 5x a day - we empty it back, of course). You know how to take the lid off the bin, that Brinkley gets a full scoop, Shelby gets much less, which bowl is which and that you should put the lid back on afterward. You clap and laugh because you are just so proud of yourself. I hope you always feel that content with any accomplishment in your life!
• Putting things in your pockets - mostly just your hands for now, which is adorable. But I've found acorns too.
• You now voluntarily walk up and give us kisses and hugs. Warms my heart! This is the sugar I've been waiting for. You will let me sniff up your hair and kiss all over your face now! That won't last long. :)
• You love to draw, play ball, are obsessed with vacuums, the shop vac in the garage, leaf blower, hair dryer, anything with motors. Kitchen tongs are SO last month! 

Tantrums of epic proportions when it's time to leave
this behind and get in the car. We will probably hide
it soon since it's such a problem :)

Oh, the sounds you make with the leaf blower!
Bruummm, Bruummmm!

• You get into anything that can be pulled out or taken apart: my purses, bags, wallets, baskets, pantry, under the bed, drawers, etc. Not at all interested in putting them back together!
• You sneak gum out of my purse. You are at your quietest when this is going down :)

• Playing fetch with the dogs will keep you busy for quite a while. Except you like to do this indoors, which sends the dogs FLYING on the wood floors! Of course, that's your favorite part. :)
• Starting to watch a little bit more of movies and TV - not any more than 10 minutes, except for when you were sick. But I'll take the extra snuggle time!
• Picky eater now :/ It used to be that I couldn't keep enough fruits in the house for you: bananas, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, apples, grapes, etc. Now you won't touch them at all. I can never tell what you will eat from one day to the next so we have been throwing out quite a bit lately. :(
• No interest in the toddler section of the park. Only the big and tall stuff. And you aren't as shy as you used to be. You ran in the middle of a soccer scrimmage the other day trying to play with the big kids. Oops. It's tough keeping up with you! 

Swinging high is exciting!

• You like to get naked. You are learning to take off your clothes and I especially like to watch the reactions of others when you decide that should happen :)

You couldn't phase Aunt Andrea with your striptease.

•  Mimi has spoiled you rotten during your evening bath time routine: Full body baby massage with night time lotion. It's now a staple in our house too since it calms you so well. 

• Okay so maybe the tongs aren't completely out of your life! :) 

•  Your favorite time is still with Mimi and Pop!

Oops, Jeff is blinking.

•  You're still my little one sock wonder on occasion. <3

• I was watching you eat this morning when I noticed that the orange that was once in our fruit bowl is now outside! You and Brinkley are always up to something. :) 



Apologies for the lousy iphone pic - but SEE the orange?!

• It has been unseasonably warm this winter and you have been taking full advantage in the backyard. I love watching you play. The "25 Rules" article below encourages parents to simply follow their kids around while they play and to get down to their level and see what they see. Sounds simple enough but I wasn't DOING it. What a different take on things you have! I love seeing what you see and how you discover things! You brighten up this world, Grayson Luke and I love watching you and being here to see it! xoxo

A family who croups together stays together

Beau stayed home this week to be with us and we are so, so happy that he did! Not just because of our time together but also because Grayson became sick over last weekend. :( We took him into the pediatrician Monday morning and it was official, our baby had the Crap Croup. Croup is a big mess of a barking cough, pretty high fever (G's peaked at 102.5), cold symptoms like congestion and a lot of snot. The barking cough and drainage translates to sleepless nights and loss of appetite which then means a pretty cranky, miserable child. He is such a healthy kid so we can't complain but it has lasted ALL week. That's a long time for 3 people to stay cooped (they should call it crouped!) up in the house. And naturally Beau and I became sick as well. Not nearly as bad as Grayson but a lot of kleenex being used!

Poor baby couldn't get relief.

I am so thankful that Beau was here with me! He really did everything: got up with Grayson in the middle of the night, held him while he slept, moved him into our bed some nights and even cuddled him on his side of the bed so that I could sleep. What a dream! I don't even know how miserable it would have been if it was just up to me!

Father of the Year, I call it! :)

I was one Springer Spaniel away from being kicked out of my own bed! 

We spent a lot of mornings like this. Whatever we could do to get him to sleep!

8 days in the house together looked a little like this...

A lot like this... ;)

Sometimes like this (when he chose to eat)

...and a lot of standing around. Doesn't he look like a little man here?!

It wasn't all rough - Beau and I had a double date last night at Josephine's while my parents kept Grayson overnight. The food and wine were delicious as always and we headed to a bar afterward to meet up with more friends. Amazing cheese fries and a $4 margarita - I was in heaven there too!

Beau heads back on the road tomorrow, Grayson goes back to school and I have a doctors appointment,  meeting a friend for coffee and our church Life Group kicks off again. I don't want to go back to normal! :)

Mama giveth a fort; Toddler taketh away

I have probably said this before but I learn a lot of new things every day now that I'm a Mom. Random things that, while they aren't resume building, open my eyes to new, fun things. :) 


While Beau had a session with a trainer this morning, Grayson and I transformed our living room into a fun fort where we read some books. I think he enjoyed himself but honestly, I enjoyed myself more!

Moment of truth - 1.5 people can NOT fit in the tunnel w/o getting stuck!

Beau showed up in time for the reading fun..

 Things I learned:

A fitted sheet is the BEST for making a sturdy roof. 

Incorporate random toys for support beams and you don't have to use your leg. :)

A tunnel entry/exit will wear a child out! Nap by 11:15am...works for me! :)

Boys have more fun destroying forts rather than building them. This is probably my most important lesson learned since I put so much energy into it just for it to be knocked down! But he had so much fun. :)

Last, twinkle lights make everything better. Not just back patios or kid rooms or urban tree-lined streets with fun, trendy restaurants. Nope, they also make forts better. I only know this because of Pinterest but I guarantee we will be incorporating them into our forts soon!

Oh and random note, Beau made us breakfast before he left this morning - Cinnamon pecan pancakes to go with our Snickerdoodle coffee. I'm a cinnamon fiend so it was a delicious, perfect breakfast. Grayson chowed down after a week of not eating at all. He completely lost his appetite from having Croup so it was good to see him inhale the pancakes! :)