Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Spring Break!

This week is Spring Break... for Little Miss.  As she said, she has Spring Break, but I don't because I have work.  So, she went to Williamsburg with my parents, Sister and Nephew.  Sister has been great at sending pictures and video and, so far, Little Miss has allegedly been a good girl for them.
From what I gather, they kept her fed with pizza and she pet a horse.  She's such a brave girl.  She also loves horses.  It amuses me that she won't pet a dog, but she's always gone up to horses ready to pet them.  Luckily, she's been around tame horses because she only has a healthy respect to dogs and cats, not to horses for some reason.  I should take her horseback riding eventually.  

Week 47

This was a tough week.  He's always on the move.  He wanted to grab the camera or only look at his sister.  One of the puzzle pieces he is holding is his favorite.  Whenever he is home, he carries it around with him everywhere.  He will shriek if you take it away from him.  He's not dependent on it though.  He sleeps without it, eats without it and can leave it at home.  However, when he's allowed to roam and play, that's the first thing he grabs.  He empties his blocks and scatters them everywhere and goes straight for the train puzzle piece.  He never even plays with his blocks.  He just scatters them.

Monday, March 30, 2015

In a Perfect World

Tonight, Husband came home and said Little Miss was angry with him.  There was some activity after school that we weren't planning on attending.  She wanted to participate.  He explained that we need advance notice and planning.  So, they get in the car, pick up Baby and head home.  She gives him the silent treatment the entire time.

Later, Husband joked that she didn't like him, but she protested.  I told her that she will be upset with Husband again in the future.  She will be upset with me in in the future.  She will be upset with both of us in the future.  She will be upset with Baby in the future.  At that, her head snapped up.  She said she would never be mad at her brother.  

I felt it was very important to put these words in writing because the day will come when her brother makes her angry.  Guaranteed.

Friday, March 27, 2015

The Humor of a 7 Year Old

Little Miss:  How do you spell "UP"?
Us:  U-P
Little Miss:  You pee?!  

L
aughter erupts.  

Little Miss:  Get it?  You said the "P" word.  

She shouldn't give up her day job.

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Big Day!

Baby has been standing assisted and taking steps while holding onto a ledge or the couch.  Today, he pulled himself up on my leg.  He had a block in each hand.  Then, he leaned back and stood on his own, unassisted.  We were very impressed.

After, I kneeled on the floor and stood him up and he took steps towards me, but then his little legs got tired.  We gave him tons of praise, and he was very proud of himself.  

It's only a matter of time before his legs pick up strength and he nails this walking/running/jumping.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

March Madness!

Husband entered a pool with his friends.  I entered my work pool.  For fun, we had Little Miss fill out her brackets this year.  She really took her time and made her picks like many of the country - totally random.  

  1. She wanted to chose Hampden against Kentucky because it starts with "Ham" and she loves ham.  
  2. She chose Butler because (hehehe) it starts with "But(t)".
  3. She chose Xavier because she has a friend named Xavier.  She actually chose them to go to the final game which is a risky move.
After Day One, she is tied with me at 13 - which is 5 ahead of Husband.  We'll see how it all plays out.  I don't think she has good long-term chances, but it will be respectable no matter how it plays out.  Her goal is to get more than 7 (which she's already done) because then she will have improved upon her final score in the Oscars pool.  

After the first weekend, we all took hits, but she's still hanging in there.  She made a few fatal flaws so we'll see how she does when it's all said and done.  She may in the gutter with the rest of us, but she's very proud of herself and has been following all the games.  


Sunday, March 22, 2015

Yummy!

This past weekend, I went to lunch with friends - one made a yummy chicken picante soup, one made a yummy Greek salad.  I made a roasted vegetable pesto wrap.

You can find the recipe here, but the recipe makes it seem much more complicated than it really is. The recipe calls for caramelizing the onions in a sautee pan, but I roasted them with the rest of the veggies. Because of an allergy, I eliminated the portobello and substituted black beans which I added to the veggies after they roasted. I bought store-bought pesto, too. The vegetable mixture makes a ton of little wraps. I brought 6 to lunch and we only ate 1 each. I made some more today to bring to my mom's, and we had 2 each. I left her with 4 and have enough to make some for lunch this week. I will run out of pesto eventually. I have tons of veggie mixture though - and that's including sharing the veggie mixture with the baby who loves the sweet potatoes and black beans. Other than the roasting, it takes no time. If possible, I would freeze the ingredients and make the wraps fresh, but I didn't add that much cheese. The wraps got a little soggy so I worry about that during the thawing process. It's really not a big deal to throw them together after the roasting is done. 

Roasted Sweet Potato Wraps with Caramelized Onions and Pesto 
Makes 8 to 10 wraps 
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes 
1/2 cup pesto, store-bought or homemade 
3 large portobello mushrooms, cleaned and sliced 
1/4-inch thick 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half 
1 large yellow onion, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch slices 
8 to 10 whole-wheat burrito-sized wraps 
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese 
Olive oil 

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Arrange the sweet potato cubes, mushroom slices, and tomatoes on the baking sheets. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and then spread in a single, even layer (keep tomato slices with the skin face-down to avoid sticking to the pan). Roast for 30 to 45 minutes, stirring several times, until the tomatoes and mushrooms have softened and the sweet potatoes have browned. The sweet potatoes will likely take longer than the other vegetables to cook, so check and remove vegetables from oven accordingly. While the vegetables are roasting, caramelize the onions. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, and when hot, add the onions. Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until soft and caramelized. Turn down the heat if onions begin to brown too quickly. This process may take anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes. Once the onions are browning and the pan begins to dry, add a few tablespoons of water to deglaze the pan and allow the moisture to cook off. Wipe the skillet clean and return to the oven. When ready to prepare the wraps, warm the skillet over medium-high heat. Heat each wrap for about 10 seconds on each side in the skillet, or until the wrap becomes pliable. Spread 2 teaspoons of pesto across middle of wrap. Add handful of sweet potato cubes, several mushroom slices, and a tablespoon each of caramelized onions, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese. Close the wrap by first folding in the sides and then rolling from the bottom up, tucking the sides in as you go. Repeat for remaining wraps. Refrigerate for several days, or wrap tightly in foil and freeze for up to 6 months. 

To reheat: Heat wraps in the microwave in 30-second intervals, rotating and checking as you go. Alternatively, heat in the toaster oven or oven at 350°F, wrapped in foil for first 10 minutes and unwrapped for the final 5. Wraps are ready to eat when the filling is heated through and cheese has melted. If frozen, allow wraps to thaw in the refrigerator to speed up reheating time. Recipe Notes: Vegetables can be roasted a few days ahead of time and wraps assembled as needed. Experiment with roasting other vegetables, like cauliflower, zucchini, or beets. Drizzle balsamic vinegar over the filling for extra sweet and tangy flavor.

Thursday, March 19, 2015

So cute!

Little Miss was trying to give Baby a kiss, and I was trying to capture it, but Baby is too aware of cameras and is too much of a ham.  He was having none of it.  Just wants his close up.

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We're not an Irish family or a family that owns a lot of green, but I dug some out.  Little Miss thinks her shirt is too blue/green, but it's the best we could do.  She has a necklace, a bracelet, and a crown.  I think she's covered.  Baby has his shirt and bib.  Little Miss protests his bib because he's not Irish so I reminded her that she isn't either.
 Then, Little Miss begged for a selfie so we made that happen.  She also told me I didn't have enough green on and pinched me.  She's a strict one with the rules.

So big!

This is Baby's favorite thing to do.  We've done it with him, but the Inlaws do it with him all the time.  He just is so proud himself for the interaction.  He's constantly waving his hands up in the air.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Big Show


Give it up for these lovely ladies, indeed! The elementary school extended day program holds a little show every year. Little Miss and a friend sang Taylor Swift's Blank Space. It's amateur video and I had to compress it to link to the blog so it seems low-res. Many children were intimidated being on stage, but the audience seemed very encouraging and she did great. She was more subdued than she is singing at home, but she said she got better by the end of the song. She's definitely a solo act. She didn't look at her friend once during the performance.

Week 45


Sunday, March 1, 2015

Movies Watched in February 2015



  1. The Fault in Our Stars
Poor month, but we were trying to keep up with our television. I squeezed in this movie on almost the last day of the month. I thought the movie was decent, but I did like the book more. Hopefully, I'll get to some more in March. I started to watch a movie, but I didn't get to finish so hopefully, I'll be able to finish that one up in March.

Books Read in February 2015


  1. Flirting with Disaster by Victoria Dahl (NOTE: This is part of the Girls' Night Out series. The order of which can be found here.)
  2. Quarterback Draw by Jaci Burton (NOTE: This is part of the Play by Play series. The order of which can be found here.)
  3. Obsession in Death by J.D. Robb (NOTE: This is part of the In Death series. The order of which can be found here.)
It wasn't a big month for me. I needed light after Outlander last month, and I continued on that streak and read all quick, fun romances. We all got a touch of a cold so there was more exhaustion than reading though.

February 2015 Weekend Update

February was a good month and, as always, flew.  Good golly, February went by quickly.  The first weekend, Little Miss and I did Bingo Night at her school on Friday.  She won a game and had great fun with a couple of classmates.  The next night, she had a sleepover at the In-Laws' apartment with her cousin.  
The second weekend was Presidents' Day weekend.  My office closed early on Friday so we took advantage of that and went to Maryland.  My aunt, cousin and his girlfriend were there and got to meet the baby for the first time.  The kids were showered with gifts.  The weather was bitter, bitter cold though.  We stayed in and played on Saturday, and the couples went out to dinner on Valentine's Day, but we were stir-crazy by Saturday.  Sister, Brother-in-Law (to be), Nephew, Cousin and his girlfriend and Husband, Little Miss and I all went bowling and to the arcade.  It was a lot of fun and nice to get out.   
Surprisingly, Baby was really great in the snow.  He really liked it and giggled even though he's kind of, well, a baby in the cold usually.  It must have felt funny to sit in it.  He also enjoys wearing his snow suit.
The third weekend of the month, Husband's friend came over.  It was cold out so we were pretty happy just staying inside and eating our way through the cold weather.  That's pretty much what we did the next day, too.
I'd like to say we had a blast the last weekend of the month, but it was cold again, and we did nothing.  On Friday, Little Miss and I went to Family Gym Night where Little Miss wore herself playing basketball, jazzercise and scooter hockey.  It was tiring to watch her.  Unfortunately, I had plans, but we wisely cancelled due to the ice storm we received.  So, we kind of just stayed in and played games.  Little Miss did her homework.  All in all, it was a nice, quiet weekend. 

What We've Watched - 2020

I forgot a bunch!  So, just to round out 2020, here we go. Let's see... I watched Enola Holmes on Netflix which I found adorable, and I...