just seeing if it still works...

Hmmm, I'm thinking the blog may have run it's course.

After the previous post, I had a couple of people ask about the recipes I mentioned that we tried and really enjoyed. I'll try to remember to post about them as I re-make them. Here is one we tried that I made again last week. Super easy, all basic ingredients and it was even found in a weight watchers magazine. I'm not a weight watcher by any means but it was on the cover and I had to grab it.

Pasta. Yes please. Every day if possible.

Sun dried tomatoes? Oh yeah. Double the amount for me :)

And bacon. I could eat bacon at every meal. It is probably the sole reason I could never be a vegetarian...without bacon in the mix, I could easily be a veggies and pasta girl!


Bacon & Sun-Dried Tomato Alfredo Pasta

• 8 ounces uncooked multi-grain penne
• 1 (10 ounce) package refrigerated low fat alfredo sauce (such as Buitoni)
• 1/2 cup sun dried tomato, packed without oil cut into strips
• 10 slices of pre-cooked bacon (I bought regular bacon and cooked it myself though)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (much prettier if you sprinkle on top of your bowl rather than mixing it all in like I did :p)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

1. cook pasta according to package directions; omitting salt and oil.
2. while pasta cooks, combine alfredo sauce and sun-dried tomatoes in sauce pan. cook over low heat stirring occasionally. 6-8 minutes or until thoroughly heated and tomatoes are juicy and plump.4
3. while sauce cooks, microwave bacon according to package directions. crumble bacon and set aside.
4. combine cooked pasta and alfredo sauce in a large bowl. top with bacon, basil and black pepper.

I bought the magazine for the recipe but I searched around and found it here as well - enjoy!

And, a few other links that I bookmarked just because and the old blog is as a good a place to save them as any!

• we LOVE Oliver Jeffers books and his site is gorgeous
• another book we love and are anxiously awaiting the movie release in the fall...waiting patiently for the movie tie-in site to go live!
• and while we're talking about books - have you ever ordered a blurb book (not one created from your blog) I adore this guys art and am so tempted to get the book. He has an etsy store too :)
• and while we're talking artists - I stumbled on her work somewhere around one of the billion blogs I like to ogle and really love it.
• and this site just makes me laugh :)
  
• has anyone tried this? does it work? I've never bought anything from an infomercial but I am so damn tempted (and, they sell it at Target so I could even pretend that I didn't buy some cheesy infomercial product)
• hehe
  
• I really dig this photo for some reason...aaaaaaand, I think I need to set up a photobooth for Izzy's birthday party (because I don't have a hundred other things to do for the party that are slightly more critical...like cook. and clean.)
• and these photos too...so awesome!
• possible birthday present? so fun!

OH! And one more thing...if you're a hybrid scrapbooker, check out this post for info about a current BHG call.

March...was a bust. Do something for myself every week? Yeah right. Moving on :p

I *did* have a "do something" goal for April even though I never posted about it. I cooked a different meal every night for the entire month. We had three leftover clean up nights...didn't want the food to go to waste! But I didn't repeat a meal the whole time. And we haven't eaten from a restaurant (other than the occasional coffee) in close to two months now. Feeling a little bit healthier and proud of myself for trying some new things (nothing complicated but we did discover some easy new favorites :)

For May, I want to sew something. I've had the machine for like 3 months now but haven't summoned the courage to try it out. I suck. I will sew *something* in the next two weeks though. And I promise to share it even if it looks like something the cat coughed up. I have a few fabric remnants that I bought to try some stuff out and plenty of inspiration. It's the skill and motivation that's lacking. It will come.

Miss Izzy turned 10 months a couple of days ago. Pure craziness, I tell ya. Still just two little teeth on the bottom but one of the top teeth is visible just under the gum. She's not thrilled with that. She's walking along furniture, starting to let go for brief moments, carrying stuff in her mouth when she crawls (no, we don't have a dog so the smarty pants figured that out by herself) sleeping in her crib all night and for one or two naps during the day, LOVING food - especially pasta (because she is mine through and through) saying mama and dada all the time, still not a cuddlebug at all watching her brothers like a hawk - she is so into what they are doing! Basically, we love her to pieces and am trying to stall these last 2 months before one as long as possible. Oh, and obviously, she's in that won't-sit-still-for-a-second phase :p


School is over in four weeks and in that time we have one day off (Memorial Day,) three field trips, a school picnic, field day, a kindergarten program, a graduation open house and an awards ceremony. How will I handle it when I have three kids in school AND involved in actual activities? I don't know how you all do it.

Yesterday was my dear husband's birthday (happy birthday, sweetie!) And we celebrated low-key with hamburgers and the richest chocolate cake ever. Thanks for joining us, mom and Scotch...errr, Scott.


And watermelon. Definitely can't forget the watermelon (looking forward to diaper changes today - woo hoo!)

so I really don't have a lot to say

I downloaded this ages ago and have played with it a ton (even did a couple of layouts using the results) but never thought to share here...check out Poladroid here :)

nine in, nine out...

This photo was taken on Izzy's 9 month "birthday" a couple of days ago - see the two little teeth! she's crawling like a champ, pulling up on furniture to walk along it and starting to let go to test her legs before plopping on her butt. Kid #1 and kid #2 were 10 month walkers so it's only a matter of time...sigh.
Also, how serendipitous is it that little missy moo learned how to say mama the same week I started putting her in her crib to sleep at night? (dripping sarcasm)

do something feb/mar

So, February the month has officially reached it's end but I'm still a bit short of reaching my goal. 24/28 notes written...4 to go. I'm not giving up! I've been saving all of the notes/cards/packages...piling them up so I can mail them all together. Honestly, the documentarian in me just wants a photo of all of them together :)

Since January and February were HARD and since my birthday is this month, I'm doing something fun for March. Something for me. Every week. Nothing extravagant (because 1. money and 2. my little missy moo joey that is attached at the hip) Like most moms, I feel guilty doing anything for me. But I shouldn't. Let's face it, I rarely even leave the house unless it's to take the kids to school or buy food. Getting out for a coffee and some quality time at the bookstore is an absolute delight. I thin I'll do that one week. So that's March How about you?

PIF :)

I have a vast and wide array of topics to blog about but this one is at the top of the list for the moment :)

Who doesn't love getting some happy mail? Something unexpected. Something handmade. Something that doesn't require a check to be written to some nameless jerk in Hoboken. My super talented and funny and beautiful friend G is on board for a fun pay it forward project she found on this blog. It's a total pyramid scheme but a good one where everyone wins :)

I signed up to get some delicious G goodness at three random times this year and it's my turn to pay it forward to my blog readers! So, the first three people to comment that they're interested will be on my PIF list. The only catch is that you have to promise to do the same on your own blog! I think in this economy, we could all use some surprise happiness every once in awhile.

And, to sweeten the pot, I'll let you in on a secret. I got a hand-me-down sewing machine yesterday so you might just find yourself receiving some horribly cobbled together crookedly sewn handmade goods. Now, before you all run screaming in the opposite direction, I promise to include something that's actually well made along with the botched sewing projects ;)

Who's in?