October Favorites & Happy Friday

Another October/Fall favorite is the arrival of Honeycrisp apples.  They are delicious.  Apples symbolize Fall for me.  In the summer, berries are my go to fruit.  But when the air cools off, I crave a sweet, tart, crisp, juicy apple.  I've been cutting one every morning for JW's lunch and finishing what doesn't fit in his lunch box.   It seems he likes them as well, the container has been coming home empty.  I'll have to work on some homemade applesauce - just some apples, a little water, maybe some cinnamon or sugar - and crumbles.  I have never made an apple pie, and unfortunately I don't see that happening this Fall.   But the applesauce and crumbles, those are pretty easy to whip up!  Have you been enjoying apples this Fall?



I've posted about apples before and I still have to be careful how much and when I eat them.

Fall/October Favorites

Rather than a long list of excuses about why I have not posted since May, let's just get right to it, what do you say?!?

October happens to be my favorite month for a lot of reasons.  Why, you ask...well I'm going to spend the month telling you why.  I'm thinking if I have a theme for the month, then I will be more inclined to actually post this month.  So, let's start with today.....

OCTOBER FAVORITES

Today is October 1st and happens to be the birthday of one of my favorite ladies - GG Rose (I'll stick with JW's name for her.)  Today she turns 80.  I'm hoping that she won't mind that I've shared her age with you guys.  I think it's fabulous that she is 80.  GG Rose is one of those on the go grandmas.  She still volunteers at the Senior Center in town and plans their trips - from a simple trip to Cincinnati for a show or game to a 10 day trip to Italy - she has it covered.  She's been a loving wife,  mother, grandmother and now great - grandmother, sister, friend, you name it.  She's always there for those closest to her.  She makes a mean batch of noodles, a staple at all fall/winter holidays.  

One of the hardest things about living out of town is missing family events.  We missed GG Rose's birthday celebration lunch on Sunday.  And while we might not have been there in person, we were definitely there in spirit.  I look forward to giving her a big hug for another great year when we see her at Thanksgiving.  

So, if you know her personally, wish her a Happy Birthday.  If not, a quick prayer for a great woman and a great year will do!

Love ya GG Rose!!

(I'd love to post pictures for you, but I'm having trouble finding them right now.  If I do, I'll be back with some)

What we have been up to....in pictures.

JW has been playing a little bit of "soccer" on Saturday morning.

We've Easter Egg hunted

Been to a birthday party that was a fun bus.  

Rocked Daddy's shades while "driving" Mommy's car.

Played at the park while Daddy ran a Half Marathon!

Celebrated Easter at church while visiting family in KY.

Rocked our own shades that the Easter Bunny brought, along with clothes, candy, cars and much more.  (If you look closely you will notice he also brought big boy underwear - which went on over the PJs immediately.  They are Toy Story and he wanted to wear "woody")

Visited a farm with Papa, Auntie Em and Uncle Josh and got to ride a tractor.

Sat in a fire truck and ambulance on that same trip!

Spent two nights in the hospital due to a crazy bad asthma attack.  (this is a whole 'nother post)

Taken Barley to the vet twice.  He decided it would be cool to attack his tail.  He left a sore that was probably 4"x2".  He's still wearing the cone.

Made pizzas with Daddy at our new cabin in the mountains.  (Another post to come on this as well.  The cabin was bought furnished, so there will be posts as we make changes to it.)

Finally rode the train at the mall and was beyond happy!  (It's a ripoff - $4 for him and $4 for a parent because he is too little to ride alone.  He asks every time, so we finally broke down and let him do it.  The smile made it well worth it!)

"Cheesed" in his new hat.

Rode his balance bike for the first time.  This is the bike that Santa brought.  For the weeks leading up to Christmas when asked, he said he wanted Santa to bring him a bike.  Well Santa brought a bike and a big train set to go around the tree.  The train set was a hit and the bike has been waiting in the garage.  The helmet was just purchased.  JW "traded" in his pacis for the helmet.  The bike riding is going well.  Bedtime without a paci, well that could be going better.

Happy Friday!

This weekend is kicking off a bit differently than last weekend - it's about 20 degrees cooler today than last week.

I'm still trying to get into a groove with posting again, so please bear with me.  I'm thinking if I can come up with a schedule of specific topics, then it will be easier.  But for now, I figure if I give you enough pictures of little man, you'll keep stopping by.....

Being silly before bed.  But what really got me was how big he looked in his chair.  I remember taking his monthly pictures in this chair.  (last ones I posted here)  Side note - I just got sidetracked looking back at old blog posts and pictures.  He REALLY HAS GROWN.

Playing outside in the rain.  From waking up from a nap until bedtime JW just wants to be outside - rain or shine.  This day Mommy just went with it and let him play!!!

Other news this week......I decided on a whim to chop my hair.  It was getting too long and I was going to have a couple inches cut off.  I decided to see if I had enough to donate....and I did!!  So I have a fun, fresh new do!  I actually am really enjoying it.

Note:  All pictures are from my iPhone, but I edited them with a new app....PicTapGo....I think I'm going to like it!  It's an easy way to apply filters to edit pictures on the iPhone.  Now if I could just find one that is easy on the computer for when I use an actual camera to take pictures ;)

Weekend Recap

What I thought was going to be another quiet weekend at home, turned into a busy weekend that FLEW by!  Our weekend started with visitors on Thursday night.  Our friends from Texas spent their Spring Break in Orlando at Disney and decided to stop and visit on Thursday night.  We enjoyed hot dogs and hamburgers, mac and cheese (with jalapeños for the adults) and salad for dinner.  The kids enjoyed about 2 1/2 hours of solid play.  After they left on Friday morning, it was back to work for Mommy and Daddy.  The weather was beautiful, so JW and I had our "snack" on the front porch.  Graham Cracker and juice for JW and a glass of wine for Mommy.

Our neighbors were out playing catch, so we spent a bit in their yard with the baseball and JW's soccer ball.  Not wanting to be done playing, JW played in the backyard for another hour.  This kid loves to be outside!  We made fish and chips for dinner and headed to bed somewhat early.

Saturday was beautiful as well!  JW had "soccer" first thing and then a play date at the park.  It was a busy morning for him and resulted in a 3 hour nap!!  Daddy had tennis  and then his long training run (he is running a 1/2 marathon at the end of the month).  We ended the day at dinner with Mollie, Lauren and Noah.

At the end of the lesson, they get to play with the "squishy" balls....(TWSS)

Sporting Mommy's shades after soccer.  It was bright!

Sunday was another warm day, but the sun wasn't shining as much.  We went to church, or "Sunday School" as JW calls it.  Then to get the car washed - oh my gosh - that thing was nasty!  In fact, I think it needs a detail.  I'm not sure how it gets so bad - maybe it's the toddler in the back who insists on bringing drinks and food in the car :)  Momma played tennis while JW and Daddy played outside.  It was back outside for more playtime after nap - I seriously do no think our child can get enough of playing outside.  It's a good thing our back yard is small and we have a ton of windows on the back of the house - he can play out there for short periods of time by himself.  I did indulge in my one Guinness in honor of St Patrick's Day.  (We are in Lent and I gave up carbonated beverages....but it was Sunday, so I splurged.)

It still doesn't taste as good as it did direct from the source in Ireland......

It was such a fun weekend.  I look forward to being outside more with JW.  He's absolutely has a blast. Hopefully he will start riding the bike he asked for from Santa but never touched.  (Santa got him a balance bike.)

Pictures

Life seems really busy right now, so I thought I'd share a few recent pictures.

I have been fighting this congestion monster since the beginning of the year. It comes and goes. Last week I had a day where it knocked me out. So JW ate dinner at the counter standing on a step stool. Yes, with the iPad. I just didn't have any fight in me this night.

The next two are from out trip out to CA wine country. I owe a post on specifics but thought I'd share these landscape pics.

JW went about a week or so where he was obsessed with the mr potato head glasses. Wore them everywhere.

Like daddy like son....looks like someone learned a few tricks from daddy while mommy was away.....

Easy Dinner

Not sure why but this my go to dinner when home alone. Hubby is out of town or out in the town and I generally crave some comfort food. Truth be told, I generally enjoy these nights of alone time (unless there is a long string of them). There's something about a comfort meal, glass of wine (usually a white since hubby isn't overly fond of them), and catching up with the DVR. Be honest, I bet some of you out there feel the same way. So I thought I'd share this meal with you. There really is no recipe to follow. This is loosely based on an idea given to me by the wife of a business associate. And I even took pictures for you (even if they are poor quality iPhone pictures)!!!

Things you will need:
Spicy chicken sausage (level of spice up to you)
Onions and garlic
Veggies (my favorite in this dish is zucchini but you could use whatever you have on hand)
Goat cheese
Pasta

Start by browning the sausage (out of the casings if it is in links). Once browned put aside in a bowl. Add some EVOO and sauté the onions and garlic (I always through my onions in alone for a few minutes). (Picture 1). Also you'll want to start boiling water for the pasta here.

(Picture 2). One of my time saving secrets. I get these frozen herbs at Trader Joes and I love them. I use the garlic all the time and basil in the winter

Once onion and garlic start getting soft add in your other veggies until desired doneness. (I think I just made up a word) (picture 3)

Add your cooked sausage to the pan and then add about 4-6 oz of goat cheese. Stir until mixed. I use some of the pasta water to help it thin out and mix better. (Picture 4).

Drain cooked pasta and then combine with the veggies and chicken. Pour onto a plate and enjoy!! (Picture 5)

Blogging from my phone so can't get the pictures to line up with the words. But I'm hoping you will look past that since I am finally blogging ;)

Vacation

I'm taking advantage of the last bit of a short 5 day vacation. James and I snuck away to wine country for a few days. Back in my own bed (after squeezing little guy!). Going to read a few pages and relax. It's back to the grind tomorrow. Trip recap and review (though we didn't take many picture), as well as a purse update this week. Happy Monday night!!!

Help me decide

OR

which color would you choose?????  I'm looking for something that will go with most everything.  I only buy a new big purse once every 2ish years....thoughts?

(BTW Piperlime has 20% off today and tomorrow with XOXO - that's why I'm looking.....)

Random

It's a Monday morning and it's raining.  Not a good combination for motivation....so instead I'll give you this hair tip I stumbled upon last week and tried on Friday - amazingly easy and my bun stayed all day.  I love it so much, I have sported it every day since.  Go see C Style and check out her tutorial for the Everyday Bun.  I promise, you'll want to wear it everyday!!!!!!  (And while you're there check out her style - I love it all.  I'm inspired to clean out my closet - she has few posts on that - and get organized to dress more "put together" every day.)

Happy Monday!!

(slowly but surely I'm coming back.....I'm working on my mojo and what I want out of this little space in the internet world.)

Two Years

(I know I've neglected the blog for awhile and I am planning to be back soon.  But, I couldn't let this day pass without a post to my sweet baby.)

Little man, two years ago you came into this world with a bang.  You came with a little scare, but shortly after you made it home and we began our journey as a family of three.  The past two years have not been easy, but they have been awesome.  I'm amazed each day with how much you are learning.  You're developing a little personality - a little bit sweet and a lot rambunctious boy.  You hug and kiss our boo-boos the same as we do for you.  You love to snuggle on the couch with Daddy and watch TV.  Speaking of TV, you've been through several favorites this year:  Curious George, Thomas, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Little Einsteins and now Cars.  You love balls - tennis, basketball, soccer and hoof ball (football - but that's how you say it).  You've traveled internationally again this, even it was just to Canada.  You are saying so many words - new ones every day - and making complete thoughts (not sentences, per se, but we get it).  You are becoming an independent little dude and I'm so very proud of you.

I'm very honored to be your mommy and I can't wait to see what the years ahead will bring.  So, today I hope you know you are loved more than words can describe and I hope we do a good job celebrating your birthday (since you know it's so close to Christmas.)  I love you sweet boy!

***All pictures from our recent session with Michele Poole Photography

Because I can't leave you without pictures of my little man, here are two from the nanny the day I left (I left in the early hours before he was awake).








(he still has not gotten a hair cut though a snip in the front might be in the works. Daddy says no, but it's really getting in his eyes.



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I had a post in mind for today but apparently I can't add pictures when using safari on the iPad. And the pictures are on the iPad, so that didn't really work out for me. So instead I'll just give you a random rundown of life since my last post, almost six weeks ago. I traveled two of three weeks for work. (gone two nights each time) hosted a KY derby party in between. Celebrated our anniversary with a movie and home cooked dinner. Enjoyed a fantastic anniversary trip that started with 36 hours in Las Vegas, continued with 9 glorious nights in Tahiti and ended with a red eye flight from Los Angeles. Little man growing like a weed JW getting accepted to a Montessori program and will begin two days a week in the Fall. Interior downstairs walls were painted. Furniture moved around. Front landscaping updated. I think that might be all the major news. Most of the items require a separate post (and pictures) to give you the full story. Hopefully I will have that figured out soon, or at least use my computer again instead of the iPad. Happy weekend. Its our first home in awhile so I have many projects planted. Painting the kids table for the playroom, hanging pictures in JW's room and (there was a third I can't remember now but I'm sure it will come to me). (apparently i can't do any formatting posting this way on the iPad. I promise it was a bulleted list and paragraphs when I wrote it!)

Self Feeding

This is what happens when you allow your 16 month old to eat yogurt on his own.....






















He did really well with the spoon to start. I guess he just figured it was easier to use his hands!!!

My new favorite JW picture

And my lock screen picture on my phone.





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I finished a Half Marathon

I did it - finished my first half marathon. It was definitely rough, but I am pleased with my time. 2:05:20. Yes, that's a long time to be running!!! I heard someone say there were 22 hills. That is probably not far from the truth. Several of them kicked my butt (I walked a short stretch 3 times). I had updated my music from Hubby's collection and that helped power me through. I really felt like I had trained well for the hills, there were just a lot of them.

Still a little sore today but thanks to a post race massage, it's probably less than it could have been. The only lingering marks are the blisters on the tips of about four toes.  I am not sure if it was the shoes, the hills, or both.  No chafing anywhere else though, so that's a bonus.  One other side effect - an appetite of a teenage boy. I think I'm either going to have to rein that in or get back in the running program. (probably a little of both.).

Notice I said my first half marathon. I do believe another is in my future. Not very near future, but somewhere in the future!!


(the picture is terrible but the only one I have right now to document the moment......hopefully the one from the race is much better.)
(thanks Mom for my awesome running outfit - it was perfect!)




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