Five On Friday

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Good morning and happy Friday to you! I'm hoping to spend the weekend doing some major cleaning and organizing of the three messiest places in our house right now: the garage, basement, and master closet AKA the places we shoved all the stuff we didn't want to deal with right away :)

We will also be celebrating the birthday of a very special girl who is turning FIVE on Sunday. 

Seriously, how do I have a five year old already? Wasn't it just yesterday when I was trying to get my locker unstuck and worrying about being late for Chemistry or whether or not we'd be playing dodgeball in PE? (Seriously, am I the only one who dreaded that game?).

At any rate, we'll be celebrating with a special dinner, cake and presents. 

Today I'm starting a new series called "Five on Friday". Each week I'll be highlighting five of my favorite things. Sometimes it might have a theme, other times it will be random. This week, it's a random assortment of stuff I'm loving right now.

#1: Sabra Supremely Spicy Hummus

I've long been a fan of the Roasted Red Pepper variety, but a few weeks ago I saw this and knew I needed to give it a try.

Note: When it says supremely spicy it means supremely spicy, so I wouldn't touch it if your taste buds are super sensitive to things with some heat. Personally, I can't get enough of the stuff. The only negative is that they don't have this particular flavor in the Aldi brand (pssst...if anyone from Aldi happens to read this, if you start making this I would be eternally grateful :)

I did find some copycat recipes on Pinterest that I'm looking to try. I'll let you know if I find a winner!

#2:  Zinio

I first found out about this app while I was on our library's website renewing some books. Basically, it's an app where you can purchase magazine subscriptions and view them all in one place. But the COOLEST thing is this: you can actually check magazines out from your library (if they offer that capability) for FREE on your iPad or other mobile device! I've done this before with books but never knew it was possible with magazines!

I've got the latest issue of  DIY Magazine waiting to be viewed on our iPad right now and can't wait until I have a free moment to look through it!

#3:  Second Street Creamery Can't Tell Me No Cookie Dough Ice Cream

Yes, it's a mouthful of a name but you will want more than a mouthful of this stuff once you taste it (you see what I did there? ;) This stuff is ridiculous, in the best possible way. Just check out the description:

"Sweet Cookie Dough flavored Ice Cream, rich Cookie Dough swirl, and (Naughty, naughty!!) Chunks of Chocolate and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough"

It's like eating cookie dough with a little bit of ice cream mixed in. So in otherwords: perfection. Just try to only eat the 1/2 cup serving size listed on the carton. I dare you.

#4  Maurices Military Shirt/Jacket

My Pinterest browsing fashion research tells me that military jackets are a big trend this fall. I LOVE this military jacket. It's lightweight enough that you can still feel comfortable wearing it inside but roomy enough to layer underneath. And it is sooo versatile. You can wear ir in the spring or in the fall. Check out   these posts  of  Sheaffer's for tons of outfit ideas that feature a military jacket. And while you're there, check out her other posts! I love her style and her sense of humor!

Sidenote: why is she standing on her heels like that? I would sprain my ankle in 2 seconds flat if I tried to pose that way. That's what's always kept me from a career in modeling I guess ;)

#5: This.

I would love a picture like this with each of my girls. So sweet! (And no this is not a pregnancy announcement, Mom! :)

(I couldn't find credit for this photo, so if its yours let me know and I will gladly link to you!)

That's all for today! Hope your weekend is a good one!

Something Is Wrong With Me

I don’t know how it happened, but somehow I have become a bread making machine.

This is coming from a girl who for years has been intimidated by the very thought of making something with yeast. For some reason I had labeled any such recipes as being too complicated, almost on a “Julia Child’s only” level.

Then, my mom got me a bread machine for Christmas. She created a monster.

Since then I have been experimenting with all different kinds of recipes and all different kinds of techniques. Sometimes I use the machine, sometimes I don’t {GASP!} I’ve found a fairly decent recipe for whole wheat bread that I make on a regular basis instead of buying store-bought bread.

I know.

It’s like I don’t even know who I am anymore. Next thing you know I’ll be grinding my own wheat.

I’ve found a yummy recipe for rolls that is quick and easy and that I’ve made approximately 27 times in the past month.

Just last night I made some French bread and a couple of weeks ago, a honey wheat poppy seed bread that was out of this world.

To me, there is just something indescribably delicious about the taste of real homemade bread. I’m an addict. For reals. I’ll buy bread at the store in a pinch but as long as I have the time, I’m totally hooked on making my own.

Some things I’ve learned:

**Whole wheat bread is really hard to get right. It tends to be tough. I’ve got a recipe I like but I’m still trying to make it better.

**If you have a bread machine, use it for everything but the actual baking. For some reason, bread tastes better when baked in an actual oven. You can just use the “Dough” setting on your machine and let it do all the hard work, then get it out, put it in the pan, let it do the second rise and then bake it.

{You see that? I’m using terms like “second rise” and I actually know what I’m talking about!}

**If you don’t have a bread machine, make some anyway. Seriously. It’s not that hard. If I can do it, you can too!

**In order to fully appreciate the deliciousness of the bread, you should always slice and butter a piece and eat it hot out of the oven.

**It’s ok if you make a recipe that doesn’t turn out. Turn it into croutons and move on!

And just for fun, here are some of my new favorite recipes:

Here’s the French bread recipe I used last night.

 

and here are the rolls I have been making with every meal lately

And this is my current favorite whole wheat sandwich bread recipe. It’s pretty good but I am on the hunt for one that is spectacular. It’s only got 6 ingredients – gotta love that!

On my list “to try” are focaccia bread and sweet Hawaiian rolls.

What’s your favorite thing to make homemade?

Nerd Alert!

FACT: I love to read so much that Dave has nicknamed me “Belle”. You know, from Beauty and the Beast? Always has her nose in a book?

I didn’t really like to admit it when I was in middle school, because reading was SO NOT COOL, but I have no shame in admitting it now. There are few things I love more than getting completely immersed in a really great book.

Lately, most of what I read is non-fiction stuff – parenting, marriage, etc. but back a few months ago several of my friends had recommended a series of books to me so often that I decided to check them out.

Oh, yes. I jumped on that bandwagon.

Honestly, when I first heard the premise I was a little horrified. A bunch of kids get thrown into an arena in a kind of “fight to the death” version of Survivor? It did not AT ALL sound like the kind of book I would be interested in.

So I just downloaded a sample of the first couple of chapters onto my Nook and once I read them I was completely totally hooked. I read all three books within a week’s time. Yes, I am a pretty fast reader

Source: bookfessions.tumblr.com via Megan on Pinterest

 

So very true.

Luckily, the movie comes out in only 11 days. Or something. It’s not like I’m counting or anything.

There really are so very few movies that I feel like are worth seeing in the theater anymore, and it can be tricky to make a movie that’s as good as a book so hopefully this one won’t disappoint!

So…anyone have any recommendations for what I should read next?

Friday Favorite: I Can’t Believe I’m Recommending This

Ok, let’s get something straight here.

I am not a health food girl.

For me, the phrases “this is super healthy” and “this tastes delicious” do not belong together in the same sentence. Or even the same paragraph, really.

Ok, so maybe I’m exaggerating a little. I do like some healthy food. I love fruit. And the older I get, the more I appreciate vegetables and fresh, whole foods. But generally speaking, my experience with “super” healthy foods that supposedly “taste awesome” has been…disappointing.

However, ever since Lily’s chompers first came in and she started eating table food, I’ve been making a much more valiant effort to incorporate healthy, whole foods into our home.

I believe our bodies are temples and we have a responsibility to take care of them and fuel them properly. I believe that what we eat can make a difference in our physical AND mental health.

I want to eat healthy…I just want it to taste good!

And I know the two things are not mutually exclusive – but it takes some experimenting to find recipes that are healthy and excite the taste buds.

So I was, admittedly, a little skeptical when I ran across this recipe for a “Green Monster Smoothie” the other day on one of my favorite food blogs.

Source: iowagirleats.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

I mean…really? A spinach smoothie?

And she swears that “it doesn’t taste healthy at all” and she “almost feels guilty enjoying one of these babies, as it tastes like a sweet, indulgent ice cream shake”.

REALLY?

I was skeptical.

But intrigued. So I gave it a try, and

OH. MY. WORD. SO. GOOD.

Now you understand why I had to give you all that background about me not liking healthy food because you need to believe me when I tell you that this ACTUALLY tastes good! I’m not sure I would go so far as to call it a “sweet, indulgent ice cream shake”, but it is HANDS DOWN one of the best tasting smoothies I have ever had.

However, I knew it still had to pass muster with arguably the most discerning food critic in our house.

This girl can eat her body weight in chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese but practically has to be force fed her vegetables every day. Fruit is not an issue, she eats MORE than the slot allotted on the food pyramid for that, but vegetables are an entirely different story.

If I could find a way to get her to eat spinach that didn’t involve plugging her nose and chugging glass after glass of water, well, I would be all over that.

So I made up this concoction with some slight modifications and let me tell you…it was a winner.

I lost count of the number of times she thanked me for “making her a special smoothie”. And she has asked me daily since then if I would make her another one. You bet, baby girl

You can find the original recipe here. This will give you a practically neon green looking smoothie. I wasn’t sure Lily would be able to get past the color, so I subbed 1 cup of frozen mixed berries for 1 cup of the spinach and it turned a beautiful, girly purple.

If you’ve got a little boy,  who knows? Maybe you can convince them the green will turn them into the Incredible Hulk or something and they’ll think it’s super cool

So that’s my Friday Favorite. A spinach smoothie. WHO KNEW?

What about you? Any healthy recipes up your sleeve that actually taste good?

I’m starting to notice a trend here…

 

 

 

 

…in the outfits I’ve pinned on Pinterest lately.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yellow…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

…yellow…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and more yellow….

Source: polyvore.com via Amy on Pinterest

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Problem is, yellow doesn’t really work well for me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blonde hair + fair skin + yellow = total washout

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So I’m thinking I need to find some small ways to incorporate it. Maybe a scarf or a bag.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you think? Are you digging yellow this spring?

 

Friday Favorites

My friend Emily occasionally does “Friday Favorites” on her blog and I thought it was such a great idea I’m stealing it

Today – favorite cleaning products.

1. Bar Keeper’s Friend – if you have a porcelain sink, this stuff is a MUST.  My mom introduced me to it when we moved into our house and I’ve used it without ever looking back. It EFFORTLESSLY cleans those dark marks that you get while also disinfecting – 1000 times better than Comet!
   
   
2. Mrs. Meyer’s Countertop Spray in Lavender – I love all of her cleaning products but they tend to be on the pricey side so I don’t usually buy them. But THIS is one thing I splurge on. It smells so clean and so fresh without being harsh and I love using it to instantly freshen our kitchens and bathrooms.
   
   
3. Magic Eraser – this is no secret, but these are truly magic. I hardly remember how I cleaned without them! I’ve used them to clean crayons off the wall, clean our white kitchen countertops, get soap scum off our shower door and they work wonders on tile and grout!
   
   
4. Canister Vacuum – I’ve written before about my love for my “Red Devil” – I use it to vacuum my hard surface floors before mopping them. It gets up every bit of dirt without leaving that annoying little line that you get with a regular broom. I also use the attachments to clean our vents, baseboards, and furniture. Without this, cleaning our hard floors would be a long, tedious process.
   
   
5. Swiffer Extender – I swipe this over our ceiling fan blades once a week and I never have to worry about cleaning a nasty film of dust. These are also great for getting cobwebs up out of corners and off of light fixtures and for swiping off electronics like TV’s and computers.

So those are a few of my favorite cleaning products – what are some of yours? (I mean, besides Norwex…I’ve already heard that pitch several times ) Maybe I’ll find a new product that I can’t live without!

All images courtesy of Google Images

Photo Booth Friday: Indian Summer

Autumn Storehouse

I'd like to take October days
And store them in my mind,

To warm me during Winter's reign
When nature proves unkind.

Then I remember sunshine,
The Autumn rich with gold,

And tawny fields a-flower
With wonders quite untold.

My thoughts will ease the moments
When in reverie I dwell,
And linger for the present
In some bright majestic dell.
Virginia Borman Grimmer

"Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."
Albert Camus

"I cannot endure to waste anything as precious as autumn sunshine by staying in the house. 
So I spend almost all the daylight hours in the open air.
Nathaniel Hawthorne

Happy Friday!

There’s an app for that…

I know, I know…

I’m totally late to the be jumping on the  smart phone bandwagon. As per usual with any kind of trend, I resisted at first but now I’ve fallen for them hook, line and sinker.

Just to give you some perspective, these were the phones we were using:

And this is what we have now:

I think saying we got an “upgrade” would be putting it mildly. My old phone didn’t even have a camera.

Dave got his first and I was like, “I don’t need that. Just give me something that makes and receives phone calls,” but after about 569 times of me saying, “Can I see your phone for just a second?” Dave told me to get my own I decided that maybe it would be nice to have one for myself.

Do I need a smart phone? No. But it sure is handy.

And just for fun, I thought I’d share with you some of my favorite apps so far.

1. Craigslist – I’m a big fan of Craigslist, but always struggled with the fact that I just didn’t have time to sit down at my computer and keep browsing for what I was looking for multiple times a day. Often by the time I saw a posting for something I wanted, somebody else had already taken it. This app lets me save searches on my phone and then notifies me whenever something new is posted.
   
   Right now I’m looking for a double stroller and I love that in just a couple of minutes I can go into my Craigslist app, check out all the new listings and email the person right from my phone if I’m interested!
   
   I think there are several Craigslist apps out there but this is the one I use.
   
   
2. Garage Sale Rover– I was seriously practically giddy when I realized I was going to have this on my phone, just in time for garage sale season. This app lets me:
   
   a. Search for garage sale listings in my area.
   b. Save listings in my phone and view them separately.
   c. Search for sales that have items I’m interested in {like baby girl clothes}
   d. Gives me the shortest possible route between all the sales {to maximize my time and gas!}
   e. Launches turn by turn GPS to tell me where I need to go when I’m driving to a sale.
   
   For an avid garage saler like me, this is soooo worth it!
   
   
3. Mars Hill Church – Dave and I used this app in the car on our trip to Chicago. Rather than surf the radio when we got bored, we pulled this up and listened to audio of several of Mark Driscoll’s sermons {The Peasant Princess – good stuff} It gave us fodder for lots of good discussion and helped us make the most of our car ride!
   
   

 

Of course there are about 80 bajillion other applications out there and I’m sure I’ll find more to love as time goes on. So tell me…have you jumped on the smart phone bandwagon and if so, what are your favorite apps? I’d love to know so I can download some of them myself!

{Re}Fresh

So, I mentioned we went to Chicago. It’s a trip that’s been in the works for several months…like, back before Christmas time.

Dave’s BIG Christmas present from me was tickets to see his favorite NBA team {the Boston Celtics} play the Bulls in Chicago.

He’s always wanted to go to an NBA game and while I would’ve loved to have been able to get him tickets to see them play in Boston, Chicago was a little more feasible for our time schedule and budget.

Not only that, but one of our favorite TV chefs, Rick Bayless, has a restaurant there that Dave has always really wanted to try.

{And yes…I’m aware that most of you probably don’t know who he is because you have cable TV and Food Network, but for us, PBS cooking shows are all we’ve got }

So anyway…the game was April 7, just a couple of weeks after Dave’s birthday, so we decided to leave the girls with my parents and make a nice long weekend out of it. And let me tell you, it. was. WONDERFUL!!

Some highlights…

The game…

I like watching basketball, but I would have to say even if you weren’t a fan, the atmosphere is just so much fun! This was the view from our seats.

Not courtside but not in the nosebleed either.

The food…

Chicago style pizza at Giordano’s (honestly, I'm still salivating when I think about that), yummy Mexican at Frontera Grill, and hot dogs at Portillo’s…if you know me, you know how much I love a good hot dog…I’m weird like that

And I didn’t even really feel guilty about all that food, because we walked everywhere! Apart from our trip to the United Center, our car stayed parked pretty much the entire trip.

We spent basically all day Friday exploring the city – shopping on Michigan Ave. (well, window shopping – we didn’t actually buy anything), Millenium Park and the infamous bean…

…and just admiring all the buildings. The detail on the architecture is just crazy! I love it! I’m sure professional photographers just go crazy in places like that because everywhere you turn, there’s something to photograph.

The Tribune building was one of my favorites:

Buckingham Fountain…admittedly MUCH cooler when it’s warm and the water is on…

We ended our little trek across the city at Shedd Aquarium, which was SUPER busy…this is where we were in the line to get in.

And PRICEY! Holy cow…but it’s huge and definitely worth it. I’d love to go back with the girls someday. Lily would have loved it!

On a side note…if you are planning a trip to Chicago, I would highly recommend the hotel we stayed in for a few reasons:

1. Location, location, location! It’s right in the heart of downtown, near Michigan Avenue and within walking distance of pretty much everything…although it’s a good hike to the museums, but you’ve kind of got to expect to walk a lot when you go to a city like that. PLUS…
   
   
2. The price! We were able to get a discount through a friend of ours who used to live in Chicago and has some connections but even without that, it’s extremely affordable for that area (you can find cheaper hotels near the airport but you won’t be right in the middle of everything)
   NOT TO MENTION…
   
   
3. Free parking! This is almost unheard of – at nearly every other hotel you’ll pay an additional $50 or more/night just to park your car. With this hotel, parking is included.
   
   
   It’s not a 5 star resort or anything, so if you’re looking for super luxurious accommodations…go elsewhere. But it was very clean (a MUST for me) and comfortable and relatively updated. I would definitely stay there again.

Ok. I’m done plugging the hotel, promise

More than anything, it was nice just to get away, spend some time focusing on each other, have a little down time, and just RELAX. We slept…a lot…and it was wonderful. We came back feeling refreshed and ready to get right back into the thick of this busy, blessed life we’ve been given.

Thank you Lord for our beautiful children…and also thank you for giving us a chance to have a little break from them  

Happy Friday!