my new favorite go-to recipes

I love cooking and baking.

Here are 2 of my favorite things to make and take to different events and I've even made for the occasional family dinner.

Paula Deen is a favorite of mine. I borrowed my mom's Paula Deen magazine awhile back and came across a trifle dessert...it's amazing!

Ingredients:
nilla wafers
2 containers Philly cheesecake filling
1/3 cup lemon curd (I've made it with and and with out both are good - and like my grandma told me once- you can't miss what you don't have and the first time I made it I didn't have any).
fresh and/or frozen mixed berries (i do a combo of both)

Take a box of nilla wafers and pour into a plastic bag, seal it and smash the wafers until nice and crumbly. Once done, place a nice layer of smushed wafers in the trifle bowl.
Then open up 2 containers of Philly cheesecake filling and pour into a large bowl.  Add the lemon curd and stir until combined.  Then place a nice layer of cheesecake filling on top of the wafers.  Then add your mixed berries to the top of that.  Make sure your layers are to the edge of the triffel bowl so you can see each layer from the outside of the triffel bowl.  Repeat all 3 steps ending with cheesecake filling.  Garnish with any remaining fruit.

It's delicious.  It's refreshing and it's not your typical trifle.  I get so  many compliments on this dessert and I know you will too!

enjoy!


The other recipe will follow later tonight...I have a 4 year who needs some love and attention!

it's summer time

Yay for Summer Time!
I can't believe this time next year I'll be one of those mom's crying because their baby is going to kindergarten.  How can it be?  Here recently Cade has been asking me if I remember when he was, "this little" or "this little".... How can I? Time goes by so fast you really do forget how small they once were... but somehow I manage to say, "of course I do" .... boo-hoo.

Day one of my vacation started off with me dropping my iPhone and having the screen shatter.  yay. 
My day got much better after that.  I watched Luke and Hudson for the first time!  I had my little helper with me to ensure that we wouldn't "lose one."  We had so much fun!  We played, and played, and played. Afterwards we headed to lunch to meet Mary.  Travis stopped by and joined us for a few minutes before heading to overtime. After lunch we went to HEB and then home for some rest (twins can really wear you out) and then we topped off the night with an evening session of Yoga. 

Day two is in the planning stages.  We will most likely have breakfast here and then venture out.  I'm thinking Gym, lunch and movies with the possibility of a little pool time.  Can't wait for swim lessons this summer. Cade says, he'll only do it with goggles.  I guess I'll put that on my shopping list. 

Catching up.

1.  We celebrated Travis' 34th birthday last week on Cinco de Mayo.  We really didnt' do anything too exciting since he had to work but we have a nice lunch at Hook's Airport and then nibbled on a few cupcakes from Gigi's. 

2. Mother's day was great. We had brunch at Julia's then came home and made the Pioneer Woman's Lasagna. Hands down the best lasagna- ever. 

3. Travis surprised me with one of the rings we picked out on our anniversary.  I love it and will treasure it always.

4.  School is out in 3 days.  Yay for me but it will be a sad time for Cade.  He loves school.  To him summer means asking the ever popular question of the day:  Are we going to school today?

5.  I completed my first 5k run/walk. 

6.  I am looking forward to having more $$ at the end of the month.  We no longer have a house phone. For 5 years we never even plugged one in but we were paying for one. We also switched tv packages to channels that we actually watch.  It doesn't have all of them but really... we don't watch tv that much to really need/want 5000 channels.

7.  Boot Camp is going well.  I'm in week 7.  I'm really liking it. I"m looking forward to doing more classes this summer since Travis is home Monday and Tuesday mornings I can get in an additional 2 workouts!  yay!

------

Seven is all I can think of right now... more later!

My Very Own "Royal" Wedding

Who knew April 29th would become such a historical date (Royal Wedding Wills & Kate).

5 years ago this is what my day looked liked in pictures.

Trinity Lutheran Church

Stonewall, Texas

my beautiful hair, from rollers to pins, it really was just what I wanted.

Daddy walking me down the aisle

first dance: Keith Urban- Making Memories of Us

wedding cake with grandparent's wedding topper, they celebrated over 50 years together.

Luke Horton Photography

Yesterday we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary by having Granddad pick Cade up for the day!  Of course the first thing Cade wanted to know was, "Where's Nana?"

We loaded up and headed to Riva Row on the Waterway to rent a kayak.  We both realized after about 5 minutes (make that 2 minutes) that only one of us was actually good at rowing.  I'll let you make up your own mind as to who you think it was. haha.

It was fun.  We are going to attempt to do it again, soon. Next time we'll just do our own rowing in our own vessels.

Afterwards we did a quick 2 mile walk around the waterway and then headed home to shower and dress for our lunch date at Landry's.  We sat outside and enjoyed the beautiful day.  Afterwards we went to the mall and shopped for an anniversary band/right hand ring.  We found several that were just what I wanted. So now, it's up to Travis to decide. 

We then went to happy hour at Goose's Acre.  It was such a fun day.  We talked about the next 5 years:  another baby, a new house, and a hopefully a new position with HPD for Travis.  Lots of hopes and dreams to make happen.

Happy 5 anniversary Travis.

i love you.

our weekend

Travis made the best ribs tonight.  I'm not kidding. He actually surprised me! ;)

This morning I decided to go grocery shopping at the crack of dawn (or 8 o'clock in the morning) to beat the crowd. I picked us up some pork ribs for tonight and pork butt for tomorrow night (pulled pork sandwiches)!  That will last us a few days.  I'll make sandwiches and tacos with the meat.  Those are my favorite with homemade guacamole. YUM-O.

The rest of the weekend was filled with volunteering for the Junior League. Our event was a huge success.  We were able to give 475 children FREE books.  Both pups got a much needed bath and tomorrow Travis and his mom are spring cleaning in our backyard.  yay for mother in laws that like to do yard work!
I like to mow but pulling weeds and raking isn't much fun to me.

Hopefully we'll have some before and after pictures of the yard!

breakfast for dinner

Tonight was Breakfast for Dinner.  Cade thought it was so funny that we were having breakfast for dinner and when I told him we were having dinner for breakfast he didn't seem too worried....I really hope he doesn't expect a hamburger in the morning.

I tried out 2 new recipes for tonight's meal:  pancakes and an egg frittata. 

Both dishes alone had less than 600 calories per serving combined. Nice!

Pancakes:  wheat flour, flour, cottage cheese, soy butter (earth balance is delicious) and a few eggs, dash of cinnamon. a bit of milk and a banana is all you need to make this yummy plate of deliciousness.  To top off the pancakes you mix a sliced banana with 1 cup of sliced strawberries and 4 tbs of PURE maple syrup (have you made the switch)? 
You layer the pancakes with the fruit and really don't need anything else since the syrup is on the fruit. It was delicious!

The Potato Frittata was just as good!

1bag of garlic and rosemary potatoes (thawed), 1 can diced tomatoes (drained), 2tbs olive oil (heat the oil first then add the first 2). Cook for a few minutes, then add 6 eggs that have been whisked. Cook that (we kind of scrambled ours but the recipe suggest lifting the edges to let the uncooked eggs flow to the bottom to cook (it was a little challenging so we just scrambled it up). Add feta and cook for a few  more minutes. 
Sooooo yummy!


We will definitely be having breakfast for dinner again!  If you want the exact recipe let me know, I'll email it to you!

Spring has Sprung

Thanks again Susan!!

Today I met up with Susan and her boys at Creekside Park to take pictures in the Bluebonnets. Susan has this amazing camera that takes a dozen pictures in a split second. It makes the background blurry and the object crystal clear and vice-versa. It's amazing!

I want one.

When she got there she unloaded her boys and immediately one went one way and the other one went the other direction! It was SO funny! (It's one of those things you think is just an exaggeration but it's not, they seriously split the minute their feet touch the ground). But that's just part of being a mommy of twins! Double the run... I mean FUN. =)

Somehow we managed to get pictures of all 3 boys and no one got lost, hurt or sad during the 30 minutes we spent in the flowers.

Here is sneak peak of the pictures she took of my little guy!

Thank you Susan for taking them!

You are the BEST!

Darn. The rest are being stubborn and not wanting to upload. So we'll both have to wait until I get the rest on a cd. Here are 2 that I took on my iPhone. I still can't believe he is 4.

week 2 of bootcamp

I've had 3 sessions of bootcamp.  I wish I could go to more classes but they are either super early or at time when I don't have anyone to watch Cade.  BUT at least I'm going and I'm still alive!

This Friday I'm going to a pilates class with my friend Kandace and Julie (not Witten)! The class is set to start at 7 o'clock and will be done by candlelight! Afterwards is a small social and then home, fully relaxed!  Yay!

This weekend we have another Home Depot Kid's Workshop on Saturday and then Sunday is church and small group.  I've been trying to get my hands on a copy of the movie, Tangled. Hopefully we can watch that at some point. It was such a cute movie!

Day 1

I'm alive.

I survived my first night of BootCamp.

I got there a few minutes early to prepare myself for the intense workout.  I laid everything out (mat, gloves, weights) and then wandered on over to some girls who were standing around.  They were all newbies too, but this was their 2nd workout.  They all said Monday was really hard but the good thing is that came back. That's what I'm hoping for- even when it hurts- Just GO.

I didn't go all out during every exercise but I definitely worked out! I felt like JELL-O after my first run.  Red Jello.  My face was a nice rosey red color during the runs and ground work.  (If you are familiar with TWUMC you run from the church bldg to the Loft bldg (we did that 3 times).

I met a few older ladies too.  Most were veterans of almost a year.  I got some advice-  don't look at the marthon runners, or the ones that are out doing you, do what you can do and you will see results.   That's exactly what I wanted to hear.  I know I'll never be skinny, but I can be confident, healthy and feel good in my own skin and right now, sometimes I don't.

So, atleast I'm trying this route to challenge myself and do something for me. 

Now, I'm off to drink my water and wash the parking lot grim off of me!

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the day (drum roll) I'm starting Boot Camp. 

No, Mom I'm not joining the Army.

Just the Texas Boot Camp Fitness program.

I received 2 emails this week about signing up.  The awesome Groupon is what sold me. 

I had also heard that a lady at my school is going through the program too but she does the morning classes and I'll be doing the evening ones.  There is a chance that I could join her on Friday mornings assuming that I don't pass out and die during my first day "at camp" on Wednesday.

I also know that Susan is doing baby bootcamp and I think she might be slightly addicted to it- she's up to 5 days of sweating it out all while toting around 2 precious little boys!

wish me luck. 

Spring Break 2011

This spring break we loaded up my mom's 4Runner and headed to the hill country. We made it all but 2 minutes into the drive when we heard the most popular phrase of all road trips, "ARE WE THERE YET?"

We decided to stay over night in Austin to break up the drive a bit and to visit with Nini and Noni...oh, and Uncle Travis, too! We saw Maxie practicing her beam routine at gymnastics, very impressive! We went to a few shops and made a visit to the park in Buda, but mostly just hung out at Stephanie's for the night.

We left in the morning to go to Fredericksburg. Gigi was happy to have company. We did most of our exploring on Friday, when we went to the Pioneer Museum. I had been once before but in the last few years they have expanded it and during the week of spring break they have the exhibits "working". We heard a folksinger sing, Hickety, Pickety. We watched a blacksmith turn iron into a nail. Cade helped make a rope and we sampled homemade biscuits cooked over a campfire. I definitely enjoyed it. Cade loved the school house with the wooden desks, blackboards, etc.

While downtown I went to Rather Sweet for an Iced Coffee and then to a new store, Eve Couture. I bought a few hair accessories and then made my way down the street. Mom and I met up to go to Phil Jackson's and then had dinner at Bejas. If you go, be sure to try the tacos.

Travis and I are planning our 5th wedding anniversary out there. I know there are a million other places to see and visit, but I'd pick Fredericksburg over all of them.

Here are some of the places I'm interested in: The Sunset Grill, Fredericksburg Herb & Farm and SilverCreek Grill. There is also my great Grandfather Althaus' house which is now known as Chateau Merlot, a bed and breakfast just a block away from main street. The list will probably continue to grow. There are so many unique places popping up, I just want to try them all.

Thanks for the fun time MOM!

Rodeo

This past week we went down to the Rodeo at Reliant. My cousin Alex had a few extra tickets to see Martina McBride and we (my parents, Cade and I) jumped at the chance to go.  Martina was amazing.  She belted out the words... it was beautiful.

Two of my favorites from the concert were:

"Anyway"


and

"Where would you be"



We had a great night. Travis met us at the Reliant Center (he had to work that night so he joined us for exhibits and dinner).  We went through animal portion of the reliant center then headed to the food tents. We did not venture out of comfort zone. No chocholate covered peppers or pickles.  We stuck with what we knew- Pappa's BBQ.     The rodeo was pretty entertaining.  Cade liked watching the people standing around in the pens more than the actual cowboys riding and roping. Once the concert started he was getting pretty sleepy.  He passed out by 9:30 which is 2 hours later than normal... what a champ! 

 The easiest way to get from one place to another with a 4 year old, SHOULDERS.

My mom said this picture reminded her of someone..... hmmmmmmm. 

Cade riding, "Cowboy"

Home Depot

This weekend Cade and I headed over to the Home Depot for their FREE children's workshop class.  We arrived promptly at 9 o'clock and headed to the workshop area.  We waited in line to receive our materials:  an apron and a race car kit was all that was needed.  We found our work space and began by reading the instructions (yay, mom).  From start to finish Cade had a blast.  He finished the car and tested it out on the wood stack and then the floor.  The car can roll for sure.  Once done test driving we received a certificate of completion and a pin to wear on the apron. 

Next month is a flower planter!  I told him we'd buy some flowers to plant in it if it holds up.

Thanks to my cousin, Alex for mentioning this workshop to us. 

(the song:  if I had a hammer- just popped into my head).

mission completion.

Irish Dancers

Today I took Cade (along with my Mom) to see the McTeggart Irish Dancers. 

We arrived at the Cypress Creek Community Church at 2:30 for our 3 o'clock performance.  The lobby was full of elderly people, some of which apparently love dressing up for St. Patty's Day (think shiny green garland worn as a headband). I was expecting to see a younger crowd for some reason but it was wall to wall old folks here today.  It was really quite funny but once we sat down in our seats, mom and I decided that Grandma probably would have enjoyed something like this too.  Maybe next time!  While we waited I shared the story of how we learned about the Irish Dancers with my friend, Hilary who met us there with her twins. 

Cade first saw the Irish Dancers on Elmo's World.  They were on a 3 minute segment on one episode and he was fascinated by them.  We must have watched those 3 minutes over 100 times.  A few months ago Cade and I were flipping through a community magazine and found an article listing upcoming events, plays and concerts and there in black and white was photo of the Irish Dancers.  Ever since that day he has wanted to see them.  Well time when by and we both forgot until here recently when out of the blue Cade asks when we were going to go see them. I was worried that I might have missed the date but I went ahead and googled "Irish dancers Spring, TX" and  found the tickets at cypresscreekFACE.org.  I purchased them and the countdown began..."How many sleeps until the Irish Dancers" has been asked for the past 25 days.    

Cade enjoyed it.  He smiled.  He clapped.  At the end he asked, "when we were going to see them again." 

4 things that were funny about this experience:

1. Cade was one of 4 children who attended this performance.  The rest of the viewers were OLD folks from the retirement home down the road.
2. Hilary and I were probably the only 2 people who didn't buy discounted "senior" tickets.  Even my mom said she felt young!
3. During one of the performances Cade stated that he didn't like the guy's voice that was singing on the soundtrack.  It happened to be one of two songs with vocals.  It was not the obnoxious version of the Cotton Eyed Joe.
4. When asked if anyone in the audience was Irish, Cade raised his hand.   Cade is German, not Irish. Haha.

The dancers are so talented.  Their ages range from 7-18.

Cade wouldn't smile with them. So they smiled for me.

An Irish Blessing

Wishing you always...

Walls for the wind,

A roof for the rain

And tea beside the fire.

Laughter to cheer you,

Those you love near you,

And all that your heart may desire

This past week I cooked 3 amazing things!

1. Pioneer Woman's Lasagna- the best lasagna I've ever made.... actually it's the only lasagna that I've ever made and will ever make.

2. Pioneer Woman's Beef Drip- THANK YOU Julie for the recipe.  Shredded beef on a toasted hoagie roll. YUM.  Even Cade ate it.

3. Beer Bread- I had bought Travis a 6 pk of LoneStar but he's rarely home to enjoy it and I didn't want it to go bad so I just googled BEER BREAD and picked the first recipe I came to.  It was rated 5 stars and I find that rating to be completely accurate.  food.com

This weekend I'm taking Cade to Home Depot to build a race car.  It's a free class; my cousin Alex told me about it. Then we're heading to Abbey's 4th birthday party at the Children's Museum.  Then home for awhile before we head over to a wedding reception for our friends from church.  Then Tuesday is the Irish Dancers Performance and Wednesday is the Rodeo.   By the end of next week I'll be exhausted and looking for a sitter. 

Kids.Woot.

My friend Kristine had me read this the other day.  It's from Kids.Woot, which is an online "daily deal" type site.  The "daily deal" was a Cranky the Crane train set, which really isn't that important to know in this whole bit.

Bobby, why don’t you put those toys down and come here for a second. Daddy would like to have a little talk with you.That’s a good boy. How are you doing today, buddy? Pretty good? That’s great, really great. And I bet you’re pretty excited about your birthday coming up, aren’t you? How long have you been with us now? Your mother and I, I mean. Almost 4 years! That’s quite a while to go without a self-evaluation, isn’t it?  Don’t be confused. It’s just that, as your Growth and Development Manager, I think it’s important that you and I take just a little bit of time every year or so to, you know, reflect on your past twelve months as a member of our “team”, don’t you? This way, your mother and I can better understand and not just praise your accomplishments, but also discuss areas in which you may need a little… improvement.
For example, what would you say your strengths are? Roaring like a dragon, eh? Let’s put that down under “Thinks Big”. Anything else? Running really fast around corners? Hmmm. I suppose we can put that under “Risk-Taking”. Your refusal to clean you plate at suppertime definitely shows your commitment to your convictions. That’s a bonus.
And how do you feel about your playroom? Do you feel like we’ve created a space in which you would like to stay and perhaps advance, or do you find it boring and stagnant? Oh, good! And what about your toys? Let’s take this Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway Deluxe Sights & Sounds Cranky the Crane, for example. Do you feel like the various lights and sounds engage you enough? And how do you feel about Cranky’s working relationship with the other engines in the Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway series? Does he tease them too much? And, one last question, how easy is it to use the up and down arrows to control his crane? Very nice. Excellent to hear.
Okay, Bobby, I think this has been quite productive, don’t you? Yes, yes, you can go have a cookie in just a minute. I just need you to do one last thing for me. On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your mother’s ability as a caretaker? And don’t worry. This is all completely anonymous. Your answer will stay just between you and me.

 Campout Party

 Camping Equipment: 2 tents, cot, sleeping bag, boat, stove, pots, pans, backpacks and binoculars.

 Camping Activities: Painting Rocks.  We also had indoor fishing and make your own "allergy free" trail mix.

Gift of the year: Star Wars Commander Rex helmet.  And so it starts... whah.

 Happy Birthday to my sweet Cade Christian

 This has to be my FAVORITE picture! Cade and I were unwrapping presents and tossing the paper behind us not realizing she was laying there. After a long while someone told us that she was under ALL that mess. Sweet LadyBird.  Love her!

No Tears

I admit, I almost had tears today but somehow I managed to hold them back!

Cade had a great day.  New bike. New shoes. New toys.  New clothes.  He really raked it in and this is all before his big party on Saturday! Oh to be a kid again!

Tonight we met my parents and Kristine at Brother's Pizza for some pizza and cake!  We all enjoyed it and Cade loved the fact that we all sang to him.  At bedtime I asked him what his favorite part about today was and he said, the singing!

4 years ago today, my water broke.  I remember it vividly.  I was sitting on the couch, watching TV and blowing drying my hair. I finished drying my hair when all of sudden I felt something a little unusual... like, did I just pee in my pants.  Oh my God, I just peed in my pants.  Wait, maybe not, maybe this is my water breaking.  I tell Travis, he calls the nurse line and I call Julie.   She tells me to lay down on my left side and wait to see what happens.  Immediately I heard a loud pop and hung up the phone. Seconds later I'm yelling for Travis (who was probably on hold with the nurse) to walk me to the bathroom because I didn't want anything to get on the bed. As we are walking Travis jokingly tells me to try not to get any of it on the rugs either. I made it to the restroom and then called the nurse line again. They said to come on in.  (If I ever go through this again, I will wait awhile before I go to the hospital). 

26 hours later I delivered this little guy! 

  

Tomorrow morning I will wake up and he will be 4 years old.