Life is a balancing act

the dubs' new case

2012-03-09T09:34:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time the Hubs and I bought new shiny iPhone 4S'. We outfitted them with new screen covers to keep them clean and scratch free and new cases to keep them from breaking. Then, one day the Q dude threw my phone, the Dubs, on the floor and it broke a little bit. Just in the corner. Nothing a little super glue and time couldn't fix.

But then, the Q dude did it again and it broke. It broke real good. It was a sad day for the Dubs and the Mama Dubs because the Mama Dubs really liked her case. It was white and funky and just right for her. It was part of the fancy Andy Warhol collection and it was c.o.o.l.

But like most cool things that come into contact with little toddler mischievous hands, it died a slow and painful death.

So yesterday, while I was in Pleasanton in the middle of the day. - Why? you might ask. Was I in Pleasanton in the middle of the day. Well, that's a story for another day.- But while I was there I stopped by the shiny Apple store and noticed one. that my name is still shining in all it's shiny glory on the iPad screen. and two. that there WAS another case out there that the Dubs and the Mama Dubs could love.

And so, the lion fell in love with the lamb. I mean, the phone fell in love with the case. Welcome to the crazy Dubs family new fancy iPhone case. I hope you stick around longer than your predecessor.

kelly's krazys :: the clipper card

2012-03-08T06:50:00.000-08:00

I lost my clipper card a good long while ago. It's my beepy transit pass thinger for the SF East Bay Area. It has a pretty substantial balance on it, considering I used to ride the BART train to and from work five days a week, and have funds subtracted directly from my paycheck.

But I lost it. Well over, um, six? months ago, I think.
Yeah, I know.
Slacker.

Well, today I got a serious bug in my ear about getting it replaced. I even scheduled a reminder on my calendar to get online and do it! Look at me, being proactive and all. So at 2pm when my reminder sounded and I hopped onto the Clipper card website I also got a text message from Eric asking 'did you lose your clipper card?'.

I was overjoyed thinking he's found it! He's found it! So I replied 'yes, why?'. And then I held my breath. With my mouse pointed at the 'report a lost or stolen card' and my iPhone showing the three dots meaning that someone is typing on the other end. And then his reply came 'because I saw your calendar reminder to order a new one' and I woke up and remembered that our calendars are synced and our iTunes accounts are too because we both use mine and that he sees what I see and what I put on my calendar when I set up a fancy reminder thinger.

And then I went ahead and clicked the 'report a lost or stolen card' and laughed at myself. Because seriously, after six months would the Hubs really find my card at the exact same moment that I was about to order a new one?
I mean really?
Right?

mama dub style

2012-03-07T13:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday!
This is seriously my favorite day of the week. Especially this week, for many many reasons. Do you have a favorite day of the week? Is it weird that I do? Well, I do, so there you go.

I've been rather pleased with my outfits the past few days so I decided to share them with you, along with the growing belly. It's definitely sticking out there. Like waaaay out there. I feel like I'm already five months pregnant, but I'm only three! Is this normal for a second pregnancy? I'm assuming so, otherwise I'm just getting fat, but my scale does not support that theory, so maybe this is just 'normal'. Either way, it's sticking out there, and I'm seriously love it.

Looking back through old posts it was 16 weeks when the belly finally made its grand appearance, and even then it was about half the size it is now. Seriously, is this normal?

But right, back to the outfits, because that's what this post is all about. Or something.

yesterday's outfit. Top - H&M maternity. It totally almost fits.

Bottoms - Motherhood Maternity linen pants.

Super comfy and they have the low elastic waistband

so I don't even feel like I'm wearing maternity clothes!

today's outfit. Tank top - Down East lacy tank.

Sweater - Forever 21

Jeans - Banana Republic, low waist.

The only pair of non-preggo jeans that still 'fits' right now.

Don't you love how the bed and bathroom are always visible in these photos?

Seriously, in our next house I will be more purposeful with the hanging of the long mirror.

PS. The belly.
PPS. Eric brought me home 'just becuase' roses. He's so stinking cute!

steak and potatoes

2012-03-07T07:02:00.003-08:00

Cheesey, Bacony Awesome Potatoes

Adapted from that one quick verbal conversation about the breakfast potatoes.

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

1 Small pkg of red potatoes

1 1/2- 2 Cups of cheese - I used a 3 cheese blend from Trader Joe's

4-5 slices of bacon - mostly cooked & cut into pieces

Some garlic olive oil

A bit of rosemary

A good bit of red pepper flakes - because these and bacon make the world go round.

Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425*. Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces and place in a brownie pan (9x9?). Coat to your liking with garlic olive oil, just not too much because of the cheese. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt & pepper & red pepper flakes. Cover with bacon and cheese.

Bake at 425* for 45-55 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

Eat.

Enjoy!

Awesome steak marinade. Boom!

Adapted from that photocopied, typed out version from the Darsow Family.

1 tsp. Ground Coriander

1 tsp. Ground Caraway

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

1 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Pepper

2 Tbls. Brown Sugar, packed

1 Tbls. Lemon Juice

1 Tbls. Soy Sauce

Mix together in a bowl, then pour/scrape into a plastic bag and allow your steaks to marinade over night. Covers 2 steaks quite well. Feel free to double the recipe if you like your marinade strong and/or your steaks borderline too salty.

*Also works well with flank Steak. I recommend doubling the recipe for larger cuts.

**Also works well in a slow cooker. I recommend at least doubling the recipe, depending on the size of your roast/flank steak. And cooking with Potatoes, Carrots & Onions.

P.S. Did you try out the Pasta from last week? How did yours turn out?
Truth - We're having ours tonight. Things got a little crah-zay around here last week, but I am super excited to try them out tonight!

mothers

2012-03-06T06:51:00.000-08:00

This is one of those long, personal posts.

In church this past Sunday our Relief Society lesson was on the Family. Specifically, our roles as mothers in our families. (Was yours too? I do love how they try to keep them all in sync these days.)

It really got me thinking about my current role in my little family. No, it's not the role that Eric and I both want me to be playing, but it is the role that our family needs at this time. Right now, I work outside of the home. Right now, I am the sole income for our tiny little family. It is a huge responsibility and I try my hardest to do it to the best of my abilities. It's been especially hard with this latest career shift because the truth of the matter is that I'm just not happy with this new move. It's not what I was expecting. At all. In fact, I'm hoping for a shift back to the print and packaging project management world rather soon. But in the mean time, I make do with what I have and I provide for my family. And that is all that I can ask for at the moment. Happiness in the work place will come, I know it will. Obviously not with this current role, but hopefully soon.

I've said this before and I'll say it again. Ultimately, I want to be a stay at home mom. I want to be there from sun up to sun down to raise my children the way Eric and I see best and to teach them everything that I possibly can. I want to be there for all of their firsts including their first mistakes and I want to be able to experience life with them, in the thick of it all, not standing on the sidelines getting regular updates from the sitter. (which I do really appreciate at this time!)

I know my dream life isn't for everyone. I know my dream life isn't what society even thinks is a good one, but this is the life that I want. That I can't wait to finally have.

I think this post pretty much sums it all up. and then some.

I can't wait to be the Queen of my home all day, every day, ad nauseam. Because these are the BIG things that matter to me. The board meetings and the campaigns, the graphics refreshes and the trade shows. Those are all fun and exciting and something that I get to look forward to every day these days. But someday, hopefully very soon, I can look forward to tea parties or monster truck races or coloring and outdoor adventures. Learning the colors of the rainbow and how to properly articulate yue-wow (yellow) and gween (green). How to draw the letters of the alphabet and then how to do it in cursive, because it is still important.

I want to be able to volunteer in my children's classrooms and go to battle for them if they need it. And to teach them how to pick their own battles and how to let somethings slide because the end goal is the only thing that really matters. All the rest is just the really cool and exciting stuff along the way.

Right now whenever we go outside Quinn immediately runs over to the the neighbors lawn and plays with her yard ornaments. She has ceramic birds, and turtles and cats and deer and all kinds of animals and things to explore. There's a bird bath that I'm always trying to keep him out of, strictly for sanitary reasons. I do thoroughly encourage playing in the dirt and smearing it all over your face. (But maybe the church parking lot, while wearing a white shirt and tie isn't the best idea, yup, we've been there.)

Right now, I love to watch Quinn explore our entryway and jump off our porch onto the moss below. I love watching him run laps as he races over to the stairs so he can race back over to the end and jump off again. I love watching him find puddles after rainy days and jump for joy in them, even when he's not wearing his wellies. And I especially love attempting to pick up all of his millions of cars that he spreads around the house every single day. They're usually inside of things. Like in the clothes hamper, or in the trash can, or even in the washing machine when I mistakenly leave it open even just a crack.

My role right now is equally as important as my dream role. And I know that. And I love that. And I look forward to my dream of being the Queen of my own roost.

the end.

sushi, hand washing and sundays

2012-03-05T10:06:00.000-08:00

Thursday night my girlfriend, who's hubby also happens to have take these awesome family photos for us, Gaby and I made it out for some girly time. We met up at this great new sushi find over in Castro Valley and had a blast chatting away and eating the tasty food. They had quite the assortment of 'well done' rolls, so I was able to find one that was fully cooked and just my style. I wasn't so sure if my super sniffer and slightly off palate could handle the fishy-ness, but I am happy to say that I handled it like a pro. Hooray! I do believe I see the light at the end of this morning sickness blah.

On Friday, we were able to all three attend the funeral for a man whom Eric has know since he was two and who is also my very good friend's father. It was a very heartfelt service and the spirit was very strong there. I know I was crying through more than half of it because of the very strong spiritual presence. Hearing stories about his last few years was very inspiring his conversion story was truly amazing. Those are the types of things we don't really get to see on the day to day but are so amazing to hear all the little bits and pieces of.

We spent the rest of our Friday afternoon attempting to nap with a super active Quinn tornado running around us, visiting with Auntie in the hospital and then visiting with Auntie TeTe at her house. She was watching Under the Tuscan Sun, a personal favorite, so we just had to stay and finish it with her. She put on UP in the other room for the Q dude and he stayed perfectly happy watching the 'woof woof' and the 'rawr' (the evil dogs? kevin?) on TeTe's bed.

On Saturday we made a Costco run and a stop at the 'wee' aka the neighbors front yard for some much needed outdoor play time. Quinn decided to 'find' a bag of Doritos and eat about half of it. I still have no clue where he pulled that bag from, and it was still fresh! We worked on his hand washing after that adventure, which turned into more of splash time in the sink, but whatever.

I received a phone call from the Stake President's Secretary…dundundunand we were asked to come in for a chat on Sunday morning at 8:40am. Church doesn't start until 12:30, so any chance of sleeping in we may have had just flew out the window. Plus, a meeting with the Steak President???? What the what?

Quinn didn't mind so much getting ready early for church. We could tell he was a bit confused however when we walked out of the church building the first time without letting him go to nursery and play with all his buds. I blame that confusion for the no napping business he pulled on us and the little monster routine he played during sacrament meeting. Fun times.

In related news - After our morning meeting I got all comfy cozy

at home in my Sunday dress and slippers that I didn't even realize

I was still wearing my slippers when we finally made it to church that afternoon.

Yup, that's right, I went all three hours in my slippers.

Thanks everyone for not mentioning it, I was thoroughly embarrassed as it was.

Happy Monday!

What was your weekend like?

In unrelated news - I made some pretty amazing steak and potatoes for dinner

last night. Look for the recipes on Wednesday!

boxes

2012-03-04T07:12:00.001-08:00

Just popping in to say hi!

PS. The steak president wants to meet with the family this morning. Whatever can that mean...? Wish us luck.

Sweet hairdo

2012-03-02T10:51:00.001-08:00

Happy Friday everyone!
We have quite a busy day planned, but we're hoping for a nice relaxing weekend.
A SIL update - she is still in the hospital but things are looking pretty darn good and she is in very high spirits.
PS. Boy do I have a Kelly's Krazy to share with you next week!
PPS. The birthday King says hi.

king for a day

2012-03-01T09:54:00.002-08:00

So as I mentioned earlier Master Quinton had a blast on his birthday. There was birthday song singing via iPhone, early morning present opening, family visiting, special birthday dinners and of course the smasher cupcake. Apparently Q-tip has a thing about having stuff on his hands (I blame dad, he has the same 'thing') so I had to clean off his hands at least five times during the smashing, but he ultimately enjoyed himself.

First thing in the morning, after the Nana, Papa & Uncle Mike phone call Q-ball got to open the present from our super cute neighbor lady. There were cars, and Elmo finger puppet books and a hungry caterpillar card, and lots of tissue paper. Which is very exciting stuff to throw about the room with lots of enthusiasm. One sheet over here, and one sheet over here and another sheet over here, all while daddy runs around trying to gather it all up and place it in a trash bag.

Later on Q and Daddy went over to thank the neighbor lady for her super present which of course requires ringing her door bell multiple times and attempting to torture her cat while said cat simultaneously attempts to stay asleep on the sofa. When leaving her house the neighbor lady very kindly reminded the Q dude to 'not trip over his blanket' to which he turned and with much enthusiasm (aka attitude) replied 'i know!'. Can you believe this kid?!? I swear. He's too much sometimes. And yet, just enough.

When I FINALLY got home from work and Q-tip and Daddy FINALLY got home from visiting Auntie in the hospital and all the other family members who were there we sat down for a super tasty grilled cheese sandwich with green beans dinner which only halfway ended up all over the floor. And was rather entertaining to watch Q eat the sandwich bites like Oreos.

Open. Lick off all the cheese. Toss the bread aside to possibly be eaten later.

Then came the cupcake. Oh the cupcake!

With bubble gum frosting!

And candles!

The candles were about the best part. Quinn looked at those candles with eyes wide as saucers and looked at his mommy and daddy like 'are you seriously putting fire in front of me? are you crazy?' and then he blew. And he blew. And he spit. And he spit-blew. And then that fire. It died. It died real good. And then the Q dude. Well, he wanted some more fire to spit and blow and blow-spit at.

And then there was cake smashing and cake eating and cake mashing with great. enthusiasum. between his two fingers. like they were the strongest little two fingers in the world.

The world I tell ya. And then, after some more fire and an almost tantrum to top all tantrums because the fire stopped, there were presents.

Have I mentioned that he loves cars. Because seriously. he. loves. cars.

We found these super toddler friendly shake-n-go cars with a race starter thinger and he just about died and went to car heaven. He played with those things for an hour. solid. And was very perplexed when his hot wheels didn't shake-n-go too when he placed them on the magic race starter thinger.

It was magic.

A little slice of heaven.

And then, it was bed time. And boy was he ready for bed time. Momma said 'baba' and he said 'baba' and mamma said 'go night night' and he said 'go night night' and then he gave super huge kisses and wrapped himself up in his blanket and let mamma carry him all the way to bed. And then he passed out. A the house was a wreck and the baby was asleep and the mamma was exhausted and the daddy did the cleaning, like super awesome daddy's do, and the best second birthday came to a very awesome close.

the end.

creamy chicken pasta

2012-02-29T13:58:00.004-08:00

Well we survived the very happy second birthday! We kicked it off with a happy birthday song via iPhone to Nana, Papa & Uncle Mike, and then kept it going all the way until bedtime. Don't worry, there are a ridiculous amount of photos soon to come.

Let me just sum it up by saying that the birthday King didn't understand why today was just like every other day when yesterday was 'all about him'. Daddy may have had a handful of drama to handle this morning. Love you daddy-o!

This amazingly creamy pasta dish caught my eye on Pinterest the other day (@kellywestover if you want to follow along). I love the color of all the veggies, plus I'm a bit of a pasta-aholic and cream sauce is one of my favorites! We're trying out this recipe tomorrow so here it is if you want to try it with us. Mmmmmm k?

Happy Wednesday!

RECIPE FROM BAKECAKERY.COM

CONFETTI CHICKEN PASTA RECIPE

Veggies & Pasta

16 oz. of Whole Wheat Penne Pasta (always cook al dente in salt water according to pkg directions)
2 tbsp. olive oil, divided
2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, cut in 1″ cubes
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
½ c. Onion, diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 Yellow Bell Pepper, long thin slices (mom uses red, yellow and orange…)
1 c. Broccoli florets
1 c. Asparagus, chopped in 1″ pieces
1 c. Grape tomatoes

Cook your pasta and let it drain. (tip: I always add a bit of olive oil to my pasta water during cooking so the noodles don’t stick together). Sprinkle the chicken breast with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook chicken until done and golden on all sides. Remove and let rest in a large bowl.

Add the remaining olive oil and begin sauteing the onions for 2 min. Add in the garlic and bell pepper and saute another 2 mins. Then toss in any other woody veggies (broccoli, asparagus) saving the tomatoes until the very end.

When everything is cooked, combine the veggies with the chicken in your big bowl. (I’m all about reducing dishes here) Now its time for the sauce!

Spicy Cream Sauce

2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. flour (I used whole wheat)
2 c. half & half
1/4 tsp. of red pepper flakes
1 c. Feta cheese (mom uses Parmesan)

In the same pan you cooked the chicken and veggies in, melt the butter over medium heat. Toss in the flour and stir, cooking 1-2 minutes. (We are making a roux)

Slowly add in the half and half while stirring to prevent any clumps from forming. Sprinkle in the red pepper flakes and allow to simmer until you see boiling action. Stir periodically.

When your sauce begins to thicken and bubble, turn off the heat and add in your cheese. Stir until melty (yes that’s a technical term).

To assemble everything I like to add the pasta first so it gets nice and coated with sauce and then pour the rest of the goodies in. (see photo above). This makes enough for 4 people (or two if you want lunch the next day!)

turning two

2012-02-28T07:21:00.001-08:00

Today's the day! On this day two years ago I awoke at 7am in very early labor. It was three weeks before my due date and my body was simply out of room for our new little baby boy. Five hours later we checked into the hospital and eight hours after that at 8:28pm on February 28th our 6lb 8oz baby came into the world just as perfect as perfect could be. Now, two blissfully happy years later and we can't imagine our lives without our little man. He brings joy, wonder, imagination, and a perfect kind of balance to our little growing family.

Happy birthday Quinn!

We love you with all of our heart and soul and are so happy you chose us as your eternal parents.

Photo by Jenice Ray

dark. light. bright.

2012-02-27T11:20:00.000-08:00

We've had a pretty crazy week over here. For starters, my Sister-in-law has been in the hospital since Wednesday morning. Which means Eric has been basically living there as well and the Q dude and I have been going over whenever we can. Which also means I'm in single mom mode. It's oddly reminiscent of Finals week with a whole lot more stress and anxious waiting.

The good news. My SIL is doing much better. The doctors are very happy with her recovery and things are looking much brighter in our little universe. Also, Eric finally came home on Saturday night and is making the long drive whenever he can.

Apparently a toddler doesn't really 'get' that a stressful situation means less play time and what nots, so I tried to keep up some kind of normalcy with his schedule. He visited with all of his aunts and uncles who all flew into town, we visited with auntie TeTe and we went to church yesterday. I was able to take a few days off of work last week which Q and I both loved, even if most of those days were spent in the hospital.

It's always so hard to leave my little munchkin after having a few whole days with him. It reminds me exactly what my goal is and just how hard I need to work to get there. And, exactly how hard I need to push Eric to get us there *wink, wink*.

Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers, they were felt and appreciated.

And now, Happy Monday!

Quinn's first Desitin painting adventure.

Haircuts, because those are generally a good idea.

Daddy did my hair.

Food therapy. Always a good idea.

Prayers

2012-02-23T10:36:00.001-08:00

Our little family is healthy and well, but our larger family is in need of some prayers right now and some positive thoughts.

Xoxo

(A little food therapy for the dramatic morning we had yesterday.)

sponsor

2012-02-21T12:41:00.001-08:00

Spaces are now open for March! Grab em before there gone.

For a full list of prices click here.

kelly's krazys :: fresh is best

2012-02-21T09:26:00.000-08:00

How did that end up in my Costco cart last night? So weird...

The good preggo news is that the morning sickness is lifting. It's now more of an afternoon blah rather than an all day icky. At least I can effectively get out of bed and get ready without feeling the need to hunch over every few minutes.

Things I've noticed:

The fresher I eat, the better I feel. IE: Fresh veggies, apples, oranges, all citrus seems to be a good thing. Plus, the more bitter the better. I bought an entire bag of grapefruits on Friday and am more than halfway through them. Thanks Erika for the citrus tip.

Reheated anything makes me gag.

I LOVE this jalapeno yogurt cheese from Trader Joe's. It's become my daily snack. As in I'm typically craving it first thing in the morning, around lunch time and afternoon snack time. I have to remember to pace myself. It's pretty amazing though and lactose free which helps with the gagging thing I've got going on. The most amazing part about it is that's is pretty darn spicy... and I love it! I'm such a spice wimp, but this stuff is amazingly perfect. After you get over the initial tongue burn, naturally.

I sometimes gag, randomly, while walking down the hallway. It's only happened at work so far. It's very odd, and not so much fun.

Panda Express no longer sounds tasty, ever. It kinda makes me want to remove my stomach. Silly rebellious stomach!

Riveting information isn't it all?

I switched to the Paul Mitchell Tee Tree oil shampoo and conditioner right before we got pregnant and it kinda saves my life every morning. Waking up to the smell of peppermint is a beautiful thing, it really helps open up these stuffy nasal passages, not to mention how silky smooth my hair is these days.

I'm dead tired by about 8pm. Eric and I put Quinn down for bed and then I typically sick on the sofa and either read or veg for another hour before I all but pass out and end up dragging my sore body to bed.

But you know what? I. Love. Every. Minute. Of. It.

I love thinking about the little one we get to snuggle and raise and educate. The sibling that Quinn gets to grow up with and spend the rest of forever wrestling or fighting or laughing with. The tiny little life that we get to play a part in for eternity and I especially love that we didn't have to struggle for another two years just to get pregnant. All this other stuff is totally worth it.

the great tahoe toddler adventure

2012-02-20T08:18:00.001-08:00

Yes, that's Quinn. Asleep. In the Trader Joes shopping cart. Poor kiddo was just wiped out from a full day at the sitter's house without a nap. If only he knew how awesome naps were, maybe he wouldn't fight them so hard. He did manage to make it all the way to the checkout counter before passing out and needing to be carried. Which means we did get to finish our pre-Tahoe shopping trip. Wahoo!

We started off our Tahoe adventure with a bit of sledding. The snow was pretty sad, but there was enough on the front lawn that he and Auntie could go 'wee' for a bit. I think his gloves kinda freaked him out though. He kept holding his hands straight in front of him as if he didn't know what to do with them. Too funny!

Master Quinton got a cold about 2.5 seconds after we arrived and refused to sleep in his port-a-crib, which meant we got to co-sleep all weekend. This how that adventure looked. Basically, Quinn takes over the bed while Momma and Dadda try their hardest to simply stay on it. But heaven forbid you move the Q dude, because he will let you know that is not okay! (Eric may have tried that one. It took a bottle and half and a half dozen songs to get him back to sleep.)

Well, the church in Tahoe is true too. Isn't that just super duper. Quinn looked rather dapper in his shirt and tie, and he had the time of his life flirting with TeTe during sacrament meeting. This kid kills me I tell ya! Just kills me.

Everyone finally got some R&R on the drive home, how ironic is that. But, I would totally do it all again if it meant spending another great weekend with my family and friends.

Thanks for the great weekend Whitney, Ashley, Christy & Family.

Oh, and happy Monday!!!

happy thank you

2012-02-17T09:18:00.000-08:00

I am sometimes overwhelmed by the love that you all give to me and my family. Thank you for such a supportive outpouring, it was felt and appreciated and is helping keep me buoyed throughout the days. I am excited, and worried, sick and extremely happy at all once. There are too many emotions surging through me, but mostly right now I'm grateful. Grateful for you, for my family, for the gospel. Grateful that the sun shines everyday and that the birds sing their beautiful songs. That my son learns daily how to be a man and also a little stinker. Did I mention that he just pulled two keys off my keyboard? I'm not so grateful for that, but I am grateful for teaching opportunities... Cuz there's gunna be lots of learning going on right now.

Happy Friday, I hope you all are able to get out and enjoy some sunshine or some snow or some of whatever you're dearly hoping for. We're willingly heading up to the snow this weekend, I think we need to have our heads checked. Mostly I'm just looking forward to some time away and some relaxation. The snow... meh, a side effect I suppose.

Happy Weekend!

a love note

2012-02-16T07:25:00.000-08:00

Newbie. You are growing inside and you are loved already by a million people. Mamma and Dadda, Brother, Auntie, Grandma & Grandpa, Nana & Papa, Aunts & Uncles... the list goes on.

I hope you can feel this love, I hope you can always feel the love that I have for you. I will spend eternity raising you, teaching you and eventually letting you go to fly on your own. I will be kind and careful, I will be nurturing and stern, I will cater to your sweet spirit and try to help you see those things that are beautiful in this world.

Newbie. My Newbie. I can hardly express my gratitude for you coming to join this little family. We are ready for you, we are anxious for you, we are here for you.

All my love, mamma.

A few notes about this pregnancy so far:

1. I have morning sickness. This is new to me, and not so much fun.

2. I had a stomach bug that I mistook as REALLY bad morning sickness,

but then lovingly gave it to Quinn, Eric and my sister, so now I know.

3. I'm exhausted. All the time. No matter what. - With Quinn I was only exhausted in the

third trimester, but I guess this exhaustion now comes from chasing Quinn

around while growing the Newbie.

4. I struggle even more with the fear that I might have to go back

to work after having this baby.

I talked a little about this before.

5. The rhinitis is back. Yay!

A few things that I love, but can't eat/drink right now:

1. Greek Yogurt - it's a texture thing.

2. Tuna Melts. Because, well you know, the Tuna.

3. Dr. Pepper - Because of the caffeine. Although I did manage to find

Caffeine free Pepsi for the Super Bowl. Oh happy day!

Pregnancy is a riot. Like the last one I'm going to start up Kelly's Krazy's again,

but this time, they'll be found right here. Happy almost weekend!

our love story

2012-02-15T07:05:00.000-08:00

Today I'm sharing our love story over here. Click on over to check it out!

Wedding photo c/o Ryan Warnick

Engagement photo's c/o Erika Comfort

PS - I hope you all have a fun/romantic/relaxing Valentines Day!

lonny finds to swoon over

2012-02-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Love Day!

Kiss your lover, kiss your friend, heck kiss your dog!
Just get busy kissing.

xoxo

I died and went to gift heaven with the Nov/Dec issue of Lonny Mag. Check out these great gift guides for the color-aholic in all of us.

That sassy red or yellow gal.

The stand out gold and neutral gal.

That super awesome silver, black and white gal.

That to dye for blue and green gal.

alcatraz, inmates and sick babies

2012-02-13T10:06:00.000-08:00

Like I said before, the work crew hit up Alcatraz on Friday along with Pier 23 for some Crab sandwiches and Fish & Chips. The food was meh, but The Rock tour was super awesome. You learn something new every time, plus this time there was a real live former inmate doing book signings and telling people all about his experiences. It was a bit surreal. What do you say to a former Alcatraz inmate besides something horribly embarrassing like 'how was your stay?'. I chose not to say anything, but did manage to still be that girl as I snapped a photo and ran for my ferry boat.

Robert Luke, in the flesh. When I walked by he was chatting up the son of a former guard and telling him how Alcatraz was the place you went when you broke the prison rules.

We had game night on Saturday with the old gang - there were 8 of us in total. We ordered Chinese delivery which in and of itself was a freaking miracle. Who knew you could order in Chinese in the suburbs???? We all pretty excited, and it turned out to be pretty tasty too which was double plus good.

Quinn and Elie actually had a moment of playtime - which I of course missed capturing because I was just too stunned to get my butt into gear in time. This was taken the moment just after. One moment too late, but close enough to call it good. Quinn had a blast running around all night and was happy as a clam all the way up to the part where he barfed all over the floor. Poor kiddo.

We got him all cleaned up and were heading home when he exploded again in the car. Good thing my sister's house was on the way, and we were able to save the car seat and get him all rinsed off. It was the saddest thing to see how exhausted he was after the whole ordeal. He nearly fell asleep in the car, while covered in throw up.

Question for you all - Have you experienced a car throw up? What do you do, and how do you react?
I apparently yell at Eric to pull over regardless of where we are, then clean up Quinn as best I can - scoop out his mouth, wipe off his face and anything else I can with only a handful of paper towels - and then hop back into the passenger seat and tell Eric to drive like a bat out of you-know-where while I try to calm down the Q dude with soothing words and such.

We played hooky on Sunday and spent the day relaxing at home and keeping a watchful eye on Q. He ate really well all day and hasn't had any repeats. (I say, as I knock on wood while crossing myself which is very odd considering I'm not catholic - but hey, just in case, right?)

Have a super Monday!

Some stuff I chatted about last week:

I wrote a love note to the Q dude. Made some tasty cupcakes,

and had a sick day of my own.

alcatraz circa 2008

2012-02-10T10:03:00.000-08:00

That up there is the Hubs and me with Alcatraz in the background. Circa 2008. The last time I actually went to Alcatraz was 2005 with my fellow nanny friends. We did a night tour because we'd been told it was a little more 'creepy'. I'm not so sure it actually was, but I do remember having a good time. Miss you ladies, Heather & Caroline!

Today, the work crew has just finished up a week long summit and is taking a fun day into the city. Food, ferry boats and creepy prisons are on the menu. I hope the 70* weather we've been enjoying the past week holds up for us today.

Happy Friday! And, have a very happy weekend!

xoxo

sick days with action quinton

2012-02-09T07:17:00.000-08:00

One Tuesday I got sick. I had to kinda run/drive like a maniac home so as not to lose my tasty lunch all over the parking lot and my car - which is in need of a good wash and vacuum, but not that bad. So I took the afternoon off and for good measure, and because I was still feeling less than A-ok, I took Wednesday off of work too. A sick lady needs her rest, and snuggles, they're kinda the same thing.

Shortly after I got home, and got my tummy settled down, Quinn went down for a heavenly long nap. So naturally, I joined him. Naps are a.m.a.z.i.n.g. I highly recommend them. The work institution would surely get so much more done if they encouraged afternoon naps. And that's my professional opinion.

One super awesome part about being home is getting to snap some sweet shots of the Q master in action. Because action is the only setting he currently has, that and TV zoned. The kid loves his Cars movies, and backyardagans, and Shaun the Sheeps. But currently he's way into books. Which is super awesome, because books are great for learning and stuff. And that's my professional opinion.

I may have gotten called out on Instagram for 'over sharing' just a bit. I guessing running six photos at the same time was a bad idea. Batch processing is overrated, or something like that. I really couldn't help it though, I mean, look at that face!

salted caramel cupcakes

2012-02-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

I made these cupcakes the other day. For the Superbowl actually. I've heard they were mighty tasty.
I say heard because I didn't actually get to enjoy one. Sadness I know.
The reason: I overindulged on frosting and made myself sick. Yup, that. just. happened.

Don't be that girl.
But do enjoy these tasty treats.

I found this recipe on 20 something cupcakes.

Chocolate Cupcakes
Adapted from Martha Stewart

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup warm water
Salted Caramel Filling, recipe below

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk together flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. With mixer on low speed, add eggs, buttermilk, oil, extract, and the water; beat until smooth and combined.

Spoon the batter into liners about two-thirds full. Bake approximately 15-17 minutes, or until tester comes out clean. Transfer tins to wire racks and allow to cool for 10 minutes; turn cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 1 month in air tight containers.

Use a paring knife to cut a cone-shaped piece (about 1/2 inch deep) from the center of each cupcake and throw away the pieces. Make the salted caramel.

Salted Caramel

2 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 1/2 teaspoons flaked sea salt, preferably Fleur de Sel

Heat sugar with the water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until syrup is clear; clip a candy thermometer to side of pan and stop stirring.

Cook until syrup comes to a boil, washing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush as needed. Boil, gently swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is caramelized and just reaches 360°F. Remove from heat and slowly pour in cream; stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in sea salt.

Let cool for about 15 minutes; if caramel begins to harden reheat gently until pourable. Spoon 1 to 2 teaspoons warm caramel into each hollowed-out cupcake. The caramel will slightly sink into the cupcake – just add a bit more. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt over filling.

Use the leftover caramel for the frosting.

Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting (this is the stuff to watch out for!!!)

1 stick salted butter
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon flaked sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 – 4 cups powdered sugar
About 1/2 cup leftover caramel sauce from above

Caramel should now be cool enough to use for the frosting. Make sure it’s slightly warm to the touch, and still pourable. If it’s hardened too much, gently reheat until pourable.

In a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter and salt together until lightened and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the caramel. Beat on medium-high speed for a few minutes until light and airy, and completely mixed. If the frosting looks like it needs to set up a bit, refrigerate it for 15 – 20 minutes. The caramel walks a fine line between being either too warm, or too thick and unpourable if it gets too cool, so this affects the temperature of the frosting and you may need to compensate for that by refrigerating if the caramel warmed the frosting too much. Add more confectioners’ sugar, in 1/2 cup increments, to make the frosting stiffer if you need to.

Use a pastry bag with a medium open-star tip and pipe frosting onto each cupcake, swirling tip and releasing as you pull up to form a peak. Garnish each cupcake with a pinch of sea salt. Cupcakes are best eaten the day they are filled and frosted. Store at room temperature in airtight containers.

Makes approximately 21 cupcakes.

*I only managed to make 17. Guess I overfilled mine a bit.

Happy Hump day!

P.S. This site is now listed on top babyblogs{dot}com!

You can click once a day to vote.

(that brown badge on the left hand side)

A few cool posts from last week ::

I participated in the 2012 Blogging party, Shared a few

deets about the daily life.

And made some tasty lemon garlic pasta.

a love note to the Q dude

2012-02-07T09:57:00.000-08:00

Little Q dude. You melt my heart and give me the biggest smiles.
The way you wake up in the morning just as I'm getting in the shower and stand beside the tub, playing in the water while soaking everything possible in the process. The way you stand at the bottom of the stairs and yell 'mama' at full volume when you think you've lost me.

You run laps around me and your dad and literally run. laps. around the house daily. Your vocabulary is growing and you are enjoying making new sounds and tonal inflections.

Like when I ask you to say 'thank you mamma' and you reply with 'mam-ma mamma' with the same inflections. You're calling 'wawa' water now and have stopped running around babbling 'ba-dee, ba-dee' but instead emphatically pronounce 'cars' and 'baa' and love to read your books and learn all about the 'dudes' (sea turtles - thank you Finding Nemo) and the fishes.

You are kind and loving and snuggle non-stop, which we love and adore about you. You are fearless and timid all at the same time. Like when you weren't afraid to climb up the slide at the indoor play place with the same kid who had just shoved you down on the ground. One day you'll learn that you can push back and that it's okay to stand up for yourself.

One day your love for the outdoors might blossom into a life long journey. Or a career move, or just a fun past time. For now, I just love to watch you wander through the grass and trees and explore the world around you. From the bugs to the bushes, you love to touch and feel it all.

Right now, you are pushing boundaries and buttons and learning just how far you can take things before they become 'out of control'. You are learning that actions have reactions and sometimes consequences. That teeth are for chewing food or toys and not mama's arms, legs and shoulders. You are social and kind with girls your age and a bit pushy with boys your age. Learning how to deal with testosterone and recognizing the more gentle side of estrogen. Like that time you helped the neighbor girl pick up her fallen dolly but then put that slightly older boy in a playful headlock.

You inspire me and drive me to the best example and teacher that I can be. I admire you more than you will ever know.

Here's to a lifetime of loving and learning with the most handsome Q dude I know.

Love,
Mama

xoxo

reading, cleaning and sleeping

2012-02-06T07:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a fun and safe Superbowl. Which commercial was your favorite? I'm gunna have to go with the Doritos slingshot baby. That one made everyone laugh.

one. We started the weekend off with lots of book reading before bedtime. Master Quinton is way into books right now. Like if I brought a book and a handful of cars this kid would be set for hours. Gotta love the simple things in life.

two. While tidying up the house a bit I came across this peculiar sight. You can tell which cold remedy we prefer around here, eh? Good ol' VapoRub. There's nothing like the smell of menthol when you just can't breathe.

three. Quinn surprised us all and slept through both hours of church! (And check out that sweet drool spot.) Yes, we skipped out on the last hour. You would have too if you had to drive a half hour to get to your Superbowl party. Little Q dude even slept all the way to my sister's house. Two and half hour nap, and all is right in the world.

Have a super Monday!

costco comes late

2012-02-03T09:27:00.000-08:00

Looking back at this photo I can immediately recognize my error.

That's a tired baby.

In a Costco cart.

Around dinner time.

Um, yeah. Sometimes I need to have my head checked. Last night was one of them.

I literally got asked multiple times by the guy at the exit door 'are you serious' as I held my now all but shredded receipt up for him to 'check'.

I. am. so. sorry. was all I could say while Quinn wailed and growled in the shopping cart seat. Even the tasty chicken bake wasn't helping satiate the crazy in his eyes.

It might as well have been a full moon. He turned into a werewolf baby I tell ya! - All but the hairiness.

Our weekend plans:

Naps, Food, Superbowl (somewhere), Church, Some park time and lots and lots of snuggles.

Happy Weekend!

car conversations with quinn

2012-02-02T16:10:00.000-08:00

Um mom, there's something on my finger....

I wonder what it tastes like. Hey maybe it's a booger, those are pretty tasty.

Never mind.
Don't worry, mom, I've got this.

And for his next act.

Quinn will drag the Wii remote across the floor.

Using nothing but his mouth!

out for breakfast, cousin love and the big red car

2012-02-02T11:54:00.000-08:00

Better late than never.
Here's the weekend recap:

one. This past weekend Eric wanted to go visit our favorite breakfast spot. This cute little local diner where we're the youngest in the crowd by far. It had just undergone some fancy renovations and was finally open once again. This was Q's first experience and I'd say he had a pretty great time. In case you had any doubts, cars are for sure his most favorite thing these day.

two. My SIL had a birthday (shout hooray!) so we all got together to eat some tasty food and play some games. Cousin love was a plenty between Master Quinton and Kaelin.

three. Playing at the neighbors is still a pretty cool thing to do. Especially when they have giant red and yellow cars with fancy back seat compartments specifically designed for holding Master Q's hot wheels.

oh, and then we went to church dressed like this.

As you can see, it was a pretty low keep weekend.

Happy almost Friday!

Keep smiling, keep trying, keep on keeping on.

out with the new in with the old

2012-02-01T17:02:00.000-08:00

~~Strike that title~~, reverse it.

Happy February! Can you believe the entire month of January is over?!? 2012 is literally flying by and leaving tread marks all over my backside.

To kick off February I'm participating in a blog hop critique.

A what?

A critique. You know, an honest accounting of what you think of this here little spec of the bloggisphere that I posses and try to make pretty and witty and bright. (and I pity.... sing the rest with me now!)

So here it is - The hop. You're welcome to participate, and please leave your feedback in the comments below. I'm a big girl, I can take it. (as I wince a little in preparation)

Ideas for yor critique:

Appearance: Does it appeal to you? Is it too busy, or too plain?
Layout: Is it difficult to navigate? Is it cluttered, or sparse?
Frequency: Does the blogger post too often? Not often enough?
Content: Are the posts interesting? Unique? Are they focused, or all over the place? (hey, what's wrong with all over the place????)
Quality: Are the individual posts too long, too short, too sloppy, or too generic?

Image source

lemon garlic pasta

2012-02-01T07:21:00.000-08:00

Little boy Q eats in phases... sometimes he scarfs and sometimes he nibbles. Lately he's been scarfing. in a big kinda way. Like he ate half of a chicken breast, an entire container of peaches and some pasta all in one sitting. You may be saying 'bid deal' my kid eats twice that amount in one sitting, but for the Q dude that is a big deal. I do believe we have a growth spurt on our hands. I mean, he is looking mighty tall these days.

Lemon Garlic Pasta – serves 2
adapted from i nom things

4 oz dry spaghetti
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 lemon
~~2 tbsp pine nuts~~
(I wasn't a fan of putting these in and neither was Eric.)
5-6 basil leaves, chiffonaded

Directions
I started by taking my chicken breasts out of the freezer and placing them in the oven lightly sprinkled with salt and pepper. 375* for 45 minutes.
Then with about 25 minutes left on the chicken I boiled my water and started the pasta.

The Sauce
First, start your garlic oil. Pour in olive oil and chopped up garlic into a small frying pan and let it cook over low, until the garlic starts to brown on edges. Immediately remove from heat and reserve.
Chiffonade some basil leaves. (it means dice in thin slices)
Then you take some cheese…
~~Some pine nuts…~~
And dump it into a large bowl, with the garlic oil, garlic chunks and all. Squeeze in lemon juice. Throw in the spaghetti and toss until well combined. Plate, crack some black pepper on it, and nom.

*I served mine with a side of chicken and topped it with freshly sliced tomatoes. Yum!

Happy Hump Day ya'll!

Some good reads from last week:

vintage pick me up

bacon wrapped scallops. that's right, bacon yo!

photos, playtime and the park
my top five give and get gift picks for valentines day.

2012 blogging party

2012-01-31T15:18:00.000-08:00

Casey, Alycia and Danielle are most graciously hosting this amazingly fun and adventurous 2012 new years link up party. I was paired with the super awesome Delphine from France and so I had just enough time to brave amazon.fr to make sure her package was delivered in time! It was a close one I tell ya.

Delphine is a super star crafter who is always posting the cutest little pick me up phrases to her Facebook page. She does crafts, and writes fancy blog posts in french which my new BFF google translate helps me out with. Her cooking looks amazing and her smile is heart warming!

Unfortunately, Delphine's package is still stuck somewhere over the Atlantic or Pacific or wherever FedEx has decided to misplace it. But lucky ducky for me Delpine photographed everything she put in her little care package and sent me all of the photos so I could share them with super cool dudes!

Wow! I can hardly wait until this little package arrives. All the way from FRANCE!

So awesome. Thanks a ton for the party ladies.

And a HUGE thank you to Delphine for making my year that much more awesome!
You. Are. Awesome.

guest post :: learning to enjoy the here and now of motherhood

2012-01-31T07:33:00.000-08:00

Today I have a special treat for you. Alison from If coffee could talk has stopped by to give us all some insights into her mothering experiences. I can't wait to hear what she has to say! Take it away Alison...

'Enjoy every moment. They grow up too fast.'

I wish someone would have given me this piece of advice before I gave birth to my daughter.

Ok, I'm lying. Those of you with children know this is advice given to you by complete strangers
and put on repeat, starting the day you find out a new baby is in your future.

But, the truth is, I didn't truly understand its meaning until recently. My daughter is almost 17
months old.

Why is it so difficult to remember you might ask?

These days...

Most showers are cold and I'm not talking about the water; that's warm! Instead, the
shower curtain opens and closes during the ten minute ordeal, bringing with it a cold
breeze as a giggly toddler sits on the opposite side.

A quick trip to the store means confirmation of a dry diaper before leaving and as luck
would have it, a whole new wardrobe change in the store bathroom thanks to a now full
diaper.

Almost every action is reflected into a toddler-sized mirror. While cooking dinner, I raise
my voice to scold our dogs for begging. As I turn around, I see my daughter pointing at
the dogs and yelling "tah tah tah", mimicking what she saw. Oh boy.

Yes, these are all moments which should be expected during motherhood. But, sometimes, they
seem to overshadow and mask the moments I should be enjoying.

Moments like...

Making ridiculous animal noises and accompanying hand motions while reading stories
together before bed; or

Turning the radio on loud and dancing in our pajamas on Saturday mornings in the midst
of laundry piles as if we are performing an elegant routine on a high-end stage; or

Holding hands and walking outside, even if the stroll takes twenty minutes to cover a
four-foot stretch of sidewalk.

My little lady is already forming her own personality and knows how melt my heart. Even at the
young age of one, she knows a hug and kiss go a long way and is keen to using this sweetness
after misbehaving.

I am now silently thanking the complete strangers for sharing their wise advice with me while I
was pregnant and I hope to squeeze as much out of these days as I can. But in the meantime,
here's my own small piece of advice for moms-to-be: practice your animal voices and take a
cold shower. Once your baby is here, you won't want it any other way.

sometimes. lately. always.

2012-01-30T07:12:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I let the dishes stack up for days. and don't sweep the floor regularly or vacuum the black rug in the front room.
Sometimes I take a hot shower at night just to warm up and unwind. and don't wash my hair, just because.
Sometimes I get lost in a good book and neglect everything around me. and wonder why the world's gone pear shaped.

Lately, I watch my son sleep late at night and think to myself how perfect he is.
Lately, the words of the scriptures speak to me in all the right ways.
Lately, I remember that I can't do it all on my own.

Always, do I say I love you. and thank God for his tender mercies.
Always, do I wonder why life is cloudy sometimes while clear and beautiful at others.
Always, will this life be the best that I can make it.

xoxo

today

2012-01-27T20:50:00.000-08:00

Master Quinton had a blast on the swing this afternoon. And he didn't even care that it was hot pink.

You can't put a color on love man.

Baths are pretty mandatory after sidewalk chalk endeavors followed by tantrums and then Moms remembering that little boys were 'too big' for a nap today.
Yeah. We're not doing that again.

---

P.S.

hehehe.

Happy weekend ya'll!

my top five valentines give and get gifts

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

What to get, what to get??? Think, think, think.
Or.... Check out this sweet give and get list for your valentines love bug.

gifts to give . for him ::

1. Deep fryer/slow cooker .. 2. Headlamp .. 3. Bi-fold wallet

4. Outdoor boots .. 5. Toasty warm pea coat

gifts to get . for her ::

1. Rian bag .. 2. Mama bear mug .. 3. ceramic vases

4. Ban.do hairpiece .. 5. Love you more pillow

vintage pick-me-up

2012-01-26T15:42:00.000-08:00

A little afternoon pick-me-up.

The dreams of a child are a beautiful thing.

images 1, 2, 3, 4

or find them all on my pinterest boards :)

guest post :: budget friendly party planning

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

I have a real treat for you all today. Miranda from Wishlist4kids has stopped by to give us all a few budget friendly party planning tips. Yay! I know with master quinton's birthday sneaking up on me real quick I could use all the advice I can get. Take it away Miranda!

A lot of parents get the party planning blues when theystart adding up all the costs associated with throwing a birthday party. Frompaying for a venue and food, to decor and activities, kid’s birthday partiescan get quite expensive. There are several ways you can cut costs and stillpull off a great bash for your child. Today, I want to share three tips I’veused in the past to plan budget-friendly parties.

Location, Location, Location

Children entertainment and partyfacilities are popping up everywhere, but they don't always offer the mostbudget-friendly birthday party packages. Save some money by hosting yourchild's party at your home or their grandparent's home. If you're planning anoutdoor party, you can use your backyard, or get a permit to use an area of alocal park. If you’re planning a party during the winter, or prefer an indoor locations, checkwith your family's place of worship to see if they rent areas of their facilitymembers. Local town halls and social clubs also let community members renttheir facilities. Not only are these facilities affordable, but they canaccommodate small to medium-size parties.

You've Got Email!

Birthday party invitations tellyour guests where to be and when to be there. Save money and time by ditchingthe stamps, envelopes and printed invitations. There are several onlineinvitation services you can use to send invites and track RSVPs for yourchild's birthday party. Ping, Evite and Paperless Post are popular options, butmany parents even use social media sites, such as Facebook, to sendinvitations. These online invitation services let you pick event appropriatedesigns to match your child's birthday theme. Some services even allow you toupload your own invitation designs.

Skip the Goody Bags

There's an ongoing discussion between parents about whetherwe should give out goody bags, or skip them. Do kids really need more sugarytreats after they've had ice cream, cake and party treats? Probably not. Howmany goody bags, filled with trinkets, actually make it from the birthday partyto home? Not many. Reduce your party costs by skipping goody bags, or bysimplifying. If you want to send each kid home with a "thank you,"grab some cool stickers from the Dollar Store or Target’s dollar bins. As each guest leaves the party,have your child hand out stickers and say, "thank you." You couldalso distribute bubbles, a box of animal crackers or trail mix to each child.

How do you save money on your kid’s birthday parties?

images :: 1, 2

february

2012-01-25T12:30:00.000-08:00

For more details click here. or email me :: kelly{at}kellywestover{dot}com.

Bacon-wrapped scallops

2012-01-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

Ree Drummond makes magic in the kitchen. Not to mention, she takes killer photos of her tasty treats. Anything bacon is a-okay by me and my boys. Wrap it around some fish and you've lost Eric but made a best friend in me for ever and ever. Like, I might stalk your house expecting more bacon-y seafood treats. Watch out now!

As soon as this rain stops - which I am loving by the way - I'm putting these little beauties on my meal planner and busting out my grill. Yeehaw! (a little over the top? Okay, maybe you're right... but I'm for sure wearing my cowgirl boots while making these. Just cuz.)

Bacon-Wrapped Scallops with Chili Butter

Prep Time 15 Minutes
Cook Time 20 Minutes

Servings 8

Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

2 pounds Large Scallops
½ pounds Bacon, Cut Into Thirds Or Halves
1 stick Butter
2 teaspoons Chili Powder
Dash Of Cayenne

Preparation Instructions

Wrap bacon pieces around the outside of the scallops, then attach with a wooden skewer.

Cook in a 425 degree oven (on a drip pan) for 20 minutes, or until bacon is sizzling and brown

Cook under the broiler for 15 minutes, or until bacon is sizzling and brown

Grill until bacon is sizzling and brown.

Melt butter and stir in chili powder and cayenne. Drizzle over scallops before serving.

Enjoy!

disqus.cion time

2012-01-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

Comments rock, and so do you guys! It's been almost a month since I added Disqus back on the blog so I wanted to check in and see how everyone's liking it? It is easy to use? Have you figured out how to update your profile so your name links to your blog and you get a cute little picture next to your comments? Is it working for us is what I'm really getting at...?

Personally, I'm loving it. The Disqus moderating function is easy peezy and I love being able to get in contact with each of you personally. It makes you all feel a little more like family, my big blogging family.

Thanks for being awesome. Let's show 2012 what's up!

xoxo

photos, playtime and the park

2012-01-23T07:53:00.000-08:00

I did it! I broke out the 'real' camera this weekend and snapped away at whatever the Q dude was doing. Whenever he caught me in the act he would smile and say cheese as he scooted over to take a look at himself on the screen. He is a professional photo critic, after all.

one. We battled the terrible two's by seriously limiting TV time this weekend. It helped, a lot. Plus it was fun to see his imagination hard at work as he played with his toys and destroyed the house.

two. As promised I took my little photography en-devour outside and the boys came with. I quickly learned that the Marina play place is not the best park to visit when it's effing cold out and the wind is blowing. However, the play place in the mall is.

three. I braved amazon.fr to purchase just the perfect little something for my 2012 blogging party partner. Google translate and I are now BFF's.

What did you learn and do this weekend?

Also, I'm thinking of making Monday's a link-up party.
I'll add a Linky tool so everyone can link up posts about their
weekends or what they've been up to.
Would ya'll be interested?
Leave a comment below if you are, and I'll look into the linky tools.

up and coming blogs

2012-01-21T07:25:00.000-08:00

The list from Alt Summit is out! Check out these sweet up and coming blogs as noted on Mimi + Meg.

Mimi + Meg's picks:

1. Art Hound
2. Life’s Little Jems
3. Kelly Market
4. Court & Hudson
5. Pattern Pulp
6. The Artful Desperado
7. My Vibe My Life
8. You’re Welcome

Rachel from Black*Eiffel's picks:

1. Angela Hardison
2. Jane Reaction
3. Note to Self
4. Odessa May Society
5. Dandee Designs
6. The House that Lars Built
7. Simple Village Girl
8. Cubicle Refugee

Alix from Modern Kiddo

1. Draw! Pilgrim
2. Frecklewonder
3. Honey Kennedy
4. Katie’s Pencil Box
5. Make Something Happy
6. Midcentury Living
7. Nubby Twiglet
8. Whorange
9. The Red Thread

Natalie from Nat The Fat Rat

1. Field Guided
2. Ruffling Feathers
3. A Merry Mishap
4. She Blogs She Blogs (The Alison Show)
5. An Apple A Day
6. The Homebook
7. Le Dans La
8. Posie Gets Cozy
9. Darling Dexter

I hope you found a few new blogs you love that you hadn't seen before! What are some of your favorite newer or not-super-well-known blogs?

ps

2012-01-20T11:45:00.000-08:00

Say cheese!

Happy weekend yo!

five of my favorite striped sweaters

2012-01-20T06:00:00.000-08:00

Baby it's cold outside - as sung by Zooey Deschanel in Elf, because I just love her sweet voice. And because it is so effing cold I do believe that makes it sweater season! Quinn rocked his Xmas sweater pretty hard, and I recently rocked my neutral grey number over a super short and would have been highly immodest dress, if it weren't for the stockings. And if the budget were extended just a wee bit I would add these little numbers to my dwindling wardrobe. Did you know that I took an entire bag of clothes to the Goodwill! Some lucky duck is getting some of my best outfits....*sigh*

JCrew and Forever 21 are killing it this season with their stripes selection! I mean, killing it! If I had a million dollars I would buy....

1 and 2 sweaters from J.Crew.

3, 4 and 5 sweaters from forever 21. Look at that cowl and, that's right, hot pink!

A girl's gotta mix it up , ya know?!?

Super cute aren't they?

Happy Weekend ya'll!

photos make for pretty

2012-01-19T06:00:00.000-08:00

We all know that I instagram a lot. Like, a little too much, ya think? It's so easy to walk around with my iPhone and snap a few quick shots, because lets face it, quick is about all I get these days with the terrible two's settling in with much wailing and screaming and gnashing of teeth. Two's are hard man. But taking photos, like real photos is for some reason harder these days. Here I go again, making another resolution, but I think I need this one. And sometimes that's all that matters, that we do what we need. I think the two's might enjoy all the time outdoors that will come with this one. Maybe the two's will learn how cool the dirt really is. and where to find all the super awesome creepy crawlies, and to not keep them in open mouth containers and then leave them in the sink for mom to find hours later, sorry mom! And maybe the two's will think that saying cheese and taking lots of photos is fun and maybe the two's will wear a hat for longer than a minute, because it is effing cold outside yo! But if not then maybe the two's will remember how cool snuggling up with mommy really is, cuz mommy loves her good snuggles, k?

I am now looking for February sponsors and giveaways!

Spaces are very reasonably priced, even for the newbie blogger.

I'm pretty picky though, and now you know.

Contact me at kelly{@}kellywestover{dot}com

for more info on the matter.

Have a fabulous day!

yummy - cauliflower & chickpea stew

2012-01-18T09:00:00.000-08:00

Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew With Couscous

Adapted from RealSimple.com

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. chili powder

Kosher salt and black pepper

1 28 oz. can whole San Marzano tomatoes

1 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed

1 head cauliflower, cored and cut into small florets

1 5 oz. package baby spinach, chopped

1 c. couscous

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to soften, 4 to 5 minutes.

2. Add the cumin, chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute.

3. Add the tomatoes, crushing with your hands as you add them, and their liquid, chickpeas, cauliflower, and 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil.

4. Reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender and the liquid has slightly thickened, 15 to 20 minutes.

5. Fold in the spinach and cook until just wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, place the couscous in a large bowl. Add 1 c. of hot tap water, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Serve with the stew.

source

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

or find me on Instagram {at} @kellywestover

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

abs and the art of hard work

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

So I've decided to finally start work out a bit again. I'm going to focus mainly on abs. maybe do a 15 day challenge? I'll post some photos and updates on how it goes along with any tips I pick up along the way.

The long and short of the workout - some planking, a lot of grunting and some sweet abs to write home about.

hard work... yeah, I know a little bit about that.

Like, installing a ceiling fan while seven months pregnant, is hard work.

Or calling a winner for the nose eating contest. it's not as easy as it looks.

oh and creating a fancy new facebook page just for this little blog. wowza, that was a lot of work!

But you know what? you guys are so worth it!

In other news, if you take a few toy cars to bed with you, you have instant play time

when you wake up the next morning. And now you know.

A few fun posts from last week...

01. meet Natalie's pumpkin-coconut chowder

02. free printable menu planner

03. he mopped the floor

a hike, a scripture and a sweet tooth

2012-01-16T09:04:00.000-08:00

Friday was hard for me. I had more than one melt down of epic proportions and even made a quick run to the corner store for some supplies. No, not those supplies silly, it was still ten in the morning! It was emotional to say the least, and most definitely hormonal - yippee - but in the end it all worked its way out and today is looking fabulous!

one - I went for a beautiful hike with my big sis through some awesome woods. The lighting was a.m.a.z.i.n.g. and the day was crisp and sparkly. - Oooooh, sparkly. -

two - I was reminded of the power of the scriptures, and resolved to read mine more often. - I know, I made a resolution, gasp! -

three - My big sis and I visited the John Muir Historic Site, which I've wanted to do for forever now, and just finally got around to. It was beautiful, to say the least, and much less creepy than I anticipated. And now you know.

– – –

day thirteen - what's in my bag. The aforementioned 'supplies'.

day fourteen - what I'm reading. Steve Jobs Bio.

day fifteen - happiness. Bacon and eggs yo!

day sixteen - morning. 7:30am comes awfully early.

And in other news this site has gone {dot}com!

You can still access it via any reader that you currently subscribe through,

but if come over directly you can now do so at kellywestover{dot}com.

See you around you awesome peeps!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

he mopped the floor

2012-01-13T18:23:00.001-08:00

I received this little text from the Hubs the other day. It nearly knocked me over, and then almost brought tears of joy to my eyes. It was a full roller coaster of emotions in a little two minute span. But in the end I concluded that I have a pretty stellar man. I am sooo going to keep him!

Have a great weekend!

free printable menu planner

2012-01-13T06:00:00.000-08:00

Meal planning.... yup, that's what's going on around these parts.

But why can't I just have Café Rio every night - I ask myself. Well, for one thing there are NO Café Rio's in NorCal, a shame really. And B, I'm no longer nursing and burning a million calories an hour, dang it.

But I did talk Eric into driving twenty minutes out of the way so I could grab some tasty Rio while we were down in Anaheim. And dang it was good! And you should so go try some and then send some more to me, k?

...but back to meal planning.

I have to admit, I was better at it last year than I have been this year, why is that? Luckily, it's a new year with all sorts of possibilities to explore! Like maybe finally buying a new sofa - *maniacal laugh* - or finally sprucing up my poor wardrobe, or hey even adding a new little one to the mix?... you never know.

Just for you awesome dudes, I created a cute little printable menu planner (teaser above). I must really like you or something! I know it always helps me to keep things in one special spot, and a menu with an accompanying shopping list is, well one cool little spot. Hey, thanks for the idea Casey!

FREE. Isn't that a beautiful word? I sure do love it. I'd love it even more if it were a FREE new wardrobe, but whatev's - Just for you, a FREE download, all you need to do is sign up for the Balancing Act email list*.

It's that easy-peezy, lemon-squeezy.

If you're already on the mailing list just leave a comment on this post and I'll forward it over to you.

Have a fabulous weekend!

*Your download will be emailed to you the day after applying.

day nine - daily routine. - Eat. Sleep. Play. Repeat

day ten - childhood - Hipster at the age of 8

day eleven - where you sleep - Our bed

day twelve - close-up - The boys

Check out more @kellywestover

lets chat about chatter

2012-01-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

There are many words that get thrown around our house these days.

Car - not to be confused with cars which is in reference to the movie and NOT the millions of tiny cars all over the floors.
Mamma - usually yelled at full volume while standing at the bottom of the stairs holding his blankey. It's his loving way of checking in on me when he's 'lost' me.
TeTe - his abbreviation for Christy, my sister.
Wawa - which is either in reference to actual water because he's thirsty or the movie Finding Nemo. You can typically tell the difference based on the amount of whine he puts into it.
DaDa - I love it when he chatters on about 'my dada' as he puts it.

And then various others like uh-oh, owie, pees (please), pee pee, bye & hi, to name a few.

It's pretty awesome to see the cogs in his little noggin turning. But holy moly is it frustrating to witness the stubbornness of all stubbornness's. I'll admit it, he gets it from me, I have a stubborn streak about a mile long. Which is also why I have a matching competitive streak. And to see my crazy stubborn come through on my sons face is pretty humbling. It just reminds me that we realized so little about how they learn and what they see. It reminds me to be kind and patient and all those things that I desperately want him to be. And to always be setting the example, even when I think no one is looking.

It assures me that I have a pretty awesome road ahead of me. Full of learning and patience building, sporting events and teaching Quinn how to be a gracious loser or winner - did you see that episode of parenthood? - playing to his strengths and learning his weaknesses, and a plethora of other awesome experiences.

For now, I think we're going to figure out talking. Maybe even branch into two word sentences? Maybe. And then, maybe potty training followed of course by the same thing we do every night, Pinky - Try to take over the world!

yummy - meet natalie's pumpkin-coconut chowder

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

I'm so very happy to re-introduce you all to Natalie from Perry's Plate! Natalie and I go way back to the days of putting our husbands through graduate school, because that feels so long ago now. Her hubby graduated a year ahead of mine, and they are now living the dream in their newly purchased home. Yay for being a homeowner! *sigh, someday...* I have been a long time follower of Natalie's blog, definitely for her whole-food recipes, but mostly for her desserts. I mean, talk about yummy! Like this one, and this one, oh and this one. Yeah, she's got some pretty awesome stuff going on over here. For today she's brought us her very own recipe for Pumpkin-Coconut Chowder. I can hardly wait to try this one out!

I'm excited to be here on Kelly's lovely Balancing Act blog again! I love her new look, and I always look forward to the awesome finds and peeks into her life that she posts. In case you don't know me, I'm Natalie and I blog over at Perry's Plate -- a whole-food based recipe blog with a few indulgences scattered here and there.

I've always wondered why pumpkin seems to be off-limits in every season except fall? I think winter is just as deserving of pumpkin goodness, and therefore I unabashedly extend pumpkin season til March. Because I'm pregnant, and I pretty much do what I want these days.

For those who feel the same way (pregnant or not) or are just looking for a bowl of something warm and cozy, I have the perfect dish. A creamy, flavorful chowder that combines a few unlikely ingredients: pumpkin, coconut, and shrimp. The creaminess comes from pureed pumpkin and coconut milk, which is a healthier source of fat than heavy cream... blah blah blah...

What you really ought to know is that this soup is delicious, it took just 30 minutes to make, and both of my girls (ages 3 and 4) cleaned their bowls.

If you're looking for more healthy dishes to get you back on track this year, come see me over at Perry's Plate. I promise you'll find something you like, but I can't promise I won't occasionally wave a dessert under your nose.

Pumpkin-Coconut Chowder with Shrimp
from Perry's Plate

1 T coconut oil (or other cooking oil)
1 shallot, peeled and diced
1 T grated fresh ginger
1 cup chicken, vegetable, or seafood broth
1 cup shredded carrot (about 1 large)
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 cup 1/2-inch diced potato (any kind will do, including sweet potatoes)
1 Roma tomato, diced
1 14 or 15 ounce can of coconut milk (the real stuff, not light)
2 T lime juice
1 tsp fish sauce (optional)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (canned is fine)
1/2 tsp salt
6-8 ounces uncooked shrimp, thawed, tails removed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4 T chopped fresh cilantro

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and ginger. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes until the shallots are tender. Add the remaining ingredients (except for the shrimp and cilantro). Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes until potatoes are tender. Add the shrimp and cilantro during the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Cook until shrimp are pink and opaque.

Serve hot and garnish with more fresh cilantro, roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), pumpkin seed oil and/or Thai sweet chili sauce.

Serves 4.

three things - the year of disney comes to a close

2012-01-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time this happened. And this weekend it all came to a happy close, for now. Thanks for all the memories!

one -the tower of terror is fun no matter how old or all alone you may be.

two - Toy Story Mania rocks socks. But don't take my word, or my super sweet 20,00 point win over the doctor, for it. You've gotta go check this thing out!

three - Cinderella's castle all dressed up for Christmas is magical. It totally took my breath away, or maybe it was the foggy LA pollution, but it was a light headed experience none the less.

A few other photos from our trip.

-------

And now, it's time to play catch up on the #photoaday challenge.

day five - something you wore. My favorite J. Crew scarf.

day six - something that makes you smile. My new best-Christmas-gift-ever Kindle.

It makes the road trip go so much faster.

day seven - favorite. Quinn's 'Whoa' face as we embark on the Finding Nemo ride (aka the 'Wawa' ride)

day eight - your sky. On the drive home from Anaheim, the traffic wasn't half bad at 2pm on a Sunday.

And now we're all caught up!

perry's plate kitchen design

2012-01-09T06:22:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you had an adventurous weekend. I have lots to share about mine, but today I'm excited to tell you that I'm posting over at my good friend Natalie's blog, Perry's Plate. Here's a quick peek:

Designing Kitchens is a bit of an art form. It's like a dance between the right amount of counterspace, the position of each appliance and how one works in the space. One great thing I learned from my time in the BYU-Idaho Interior Design Program is the spacial needs for all of these points. Let's take a look, eh?

To read the rest hop on over here.

I'll be back tomorrow with three things from the weekend. Until then you should totally check this out!

calling all bloggers and business owners {closed}

2012-01-06T07:28:00.000-08:00

Do you blog? Do you own a super cool business? Perfect!

I would love some buttons and ads. Buttons of blogs and businesses to showcase on the newly revamped sidebars of my now somewhat bare blog. And guess what. I want to give them away!

If you'd like some free press then email me at kellywestover{at}att{dot}net and I'll send you sizes and specs. I have EXTRA LARGE, LARGE, as well as Medium and small ad spaces available, but I'll only take a certain amount of each. And I want YOUR button!

Dude, it's free. Hop on it!

kellywestover{at}att{dot}net

thoughts, lately

2012-01-05T09:45:00.000-08:00

This is one of those wordy, heavy posts.

We've been thinking about babies lately. Ours is almost two and since we would like to have a fairly large family - God willing - and since we're no spring chickens... we've been thinking about babies lately. It was the hardest day of my life to have to leave my baby to go back to work. It just about kills me every morning to have to walk out the front door and leave him for the majority of the day, letting someone else hold him when he cries, or snuggle with him when we wants to read a book, and smell the top of his head because it's the best smell in the world. It really, truly hurts. The hubs and I have been working toward the same goal for the past, forever, and we're so close to the finish line. He's graduated, he has a job lined up, he needs his license and a good in-flux of patients and then our goal can become a reality. Then this little mama can finally stay at home with her boy and raise him, and hold him and smell his head whenever she wants.

I made a promise to my next child, that I would never have to leave them to go to work. Which is part of the reason why I am so hesitant to be thinking about babies. Those worries and fears, those nasty 'what if' thoughts creep into my mind and I can't fathom not being able to keep my promise. I've had a few nasty break downs over this topic these past few months and every time Eric reminds me that he's here, working toward that same goal with me, and that he'll never stop. I know I have his upbringing, our religion, and many other things to be grateful for that have helped to create this man for me. That allow me that peaceful, calming feeling whenever the world creeps into my heart and tries to turn it cold. I have Eric's love and the love of the Lord to keep me buoyed.

Quinn. 12 weeks old.

day four - letterbox. This one's mine. I was going to get all artsy and drive around until I found the 'perfect' letterbox, but then my body reminded me I have a cold and told me to get my butt into bed. The end.

yummy - cheesy quinoa cakes

2012-01-04T09:00:00.000-08:00

Cheesy Quinoa Cakes with a Roasted Garlic and Lemon Aioli

Makes 10 to 12
Recipe from Spoon, Fork, Bacon

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa

2/3 cup grated fontina cheese

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

2 ½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt to taste

aioli: ½ cup light mayonnaise1 head of garlic, roasted1 lemon, zested and juiced¼ teaspoon cayenne peppersalt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. For the cakes: Place all ingredients, except for the oil, into a mixing bowl and stir together until well combined. Season with salt and allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.

2. Pour oil into a large sauté pan and place over medium heat.

3. Form ¼ cup patties with the quinoa mixture and place in the heated sauté pan. (this will have to be done in batches)

4. Cook quinoa cakes for about 5 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining patties until all of the cakes have been cooked. Set aside.

5. For the aioli: Place all ingredients into a food processor, season with salt and pepper and blend until smooth. Pour into a small bowl and serve alongside the warm quinoa cakes.

*this post is linked up here*

source

day three - something you adore. This one was made easy when Master Quinton put my hat on while I was brushing my teeth. This. kid. kills. me!

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

a photo a day keeps the doctor away

2012-01-03T09:00:00.000-08:00

@kellywestover

Instagram has long been the go to filter for almost all of my square photos. I love the way it lightens, or brightens or enhances or adds a little flare... you get the picture - pun intended. Well this little do-dad floated around on New Years day and my first thought was 'hmmmm', and then it turned to 'nahhhh' but then it ultimately ended on 'sure, why not', with a shoulder shrug and a lip pout.

So to chronicle this month long event I'm going to be posting my #photoaday images here. Don't worry, they won't take over the entire post, like this one, I'll simply slip them in while letting you all know my Instagram screen name - kellywestover - and shamelessly asking you all to go follow me, you know, if you want to.

day one - a photo of yourself

@kellywestover

day two - a photo of breakfast. Sad, but true, it was a Pepsi. I was nursing day two of a migraine, and needed the caffeine in a bad way.

@kellywestover

Are you taking the #photoaday challenge too?

Would you like to share your images with us?
Please send them over along with your Instagram screen name and a short blurb about you.

I'd love to share your #photoaday images with the world of Balancing Act.

Please send all images, to kellywestover {at} att {dot} net.

Interested in doing a guest post? Drop me a line so we can chat about it!

three things - new years weekend

2012-01-02T09:00:00.000-08:00

one - The last weekend of 2011 and Quinn decided to take up reading. He read all the books in his nice new little library, intently studied the menu - upside down - while out to lunch with our NYC friends, and declared all food in the Hungry Little Caterpillar to be called 'mmmmmm'.

two - We spent a good bit of our foggy days over at the play place, which of course has lovely inciting things like car rides and Pink Panther Choo Choo Trains directly next to it. Those vending machine guys are sneaky, at least they put a soda machine there too so I could buy myself a Dr. Pepper while watching the Q dude immensely enjoy himself. Look at that face!

three - New Years eve was awesome! I hope yours was too. We spent ours at our very good friend's house in Walnut Creek where the kids had the time of their lives playing in the play room. They had just about every form of Lightening McQueen and Tow Mater car known to man, so basically Quinn was in car heaven. There was also a rowdy game of tag with Quinn joyously bringing up the rear, an unfortunate head banding around a corner - ouch - and a ten o'clock snatch-and-run-before-he-looses-it-any-more. We finished out the evening at home watching The Party on our computer and enjoying some Ginger Ale and a big 'ol smooch at midnight.

Happy 2012, and Happy Monday!

new list of news

2011-12-30T10:30:00.000-08:00

Last year I made a list of keep it up items to ring in the new year, and I am happy to say I kept up everyone one of them, all the way to the point where I didn't.This year my tiny little family has been blessed with some pretty darn big accomplishments, you know like

Graduating from Chiropractic College

Turning One

Working at Apple

Then finding a job closer to home so I could spend more time with my boys

And the coolest one of all, adding 30+ new followers to this here blog.Thanks for following along you fabulous people. May you're 2012's be just as fabulous as 2011, or far superior, whichever one floats your boat. To get you started here's a little Quinn montage.

tradtional is the old new

2011-12-29T09:39:00.000-08:00

I must admit, I don't know much about the big city. I can find my way around to the major attractions and back... Pier 39, China Town, Union Square, SFMOMA, The Metreon.. you know, the touristy stuff. But I don't know the difference between Nob Hill and Noe Valley other than the fact that they're in different spots, and don't ask me which one is which.

But I do know that the Architecture is like no other. The tall Full House style homes, the traditional style hotels and good ol' boy clubs... yup, I could spend some serious time drooling all over that city.

Traditional Home Magazine did a house tour of one the 'jewel boxes of Nob Hill' owned by Elisa Stephens and designed by Antonio Martins Interior Design. I'm dying over her new master closet!

And check out all that hidden storage. I love how everything gets nicely tucked away. I would love

to have a tuck it away house. A place for everything, everything in it's place.

Happy almost Friday!

Balancing Act is always on the look out for new sponsors and guest posters.

I still have guest posts available as well as a few ad spots for January.

Email me at kellywestover [at] att [dot] net for more info.

yummy - chocolate covered peanut butter ritz

2011-12-28T09:00:00.001-08:00

I do love me some good old chocolate and peanut butter. So finding these chocolate dipped, peanut butter ritz crackers was like magic in my reader. Spoon, Fork, Bacon has some great eats, you should soooo check them out.

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Ritz Sandwiches
Makes 16

Ingredients:
2 cups milk chocolate chips
½ cup creamy peanut butter
¼ cup powdered sugar, sifted
32 Ritz crackers

1. Place chocolate chips over a double boiler and melt.
2. Place peanut butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.
3. Spread a small amount of the peanut butter mixture onto a cracker and sandwich together with another cracker.
4. Repeat until all the crackers and peanut butter filling have been used.
5. Place crackers onto a parchment line baking sheet and place in freezer for about 30 minutes.
6. Once the chocolate has melted, using a small pair of tongs, or tweezers, dip the chilled peanut butter sandwiches into the chocolate until completely covered.
7. Shake off any access chocolate and place back onto the parchment lined baking sheet.
8. Repeat with the remaining sandwiches and set aside to dry, about an hour.
9. Carefully peel from the parchment and serve.

source

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

temple grounds and guest posts

2011-12-27T09:00:00.000-08:00

One thing we missed doing before Christmas this year... Introducing the Q dude to the beauty of the Temple at Christmas time.

Balancing Act is always on the look out for new sponsors and guest posters.

I still have guest posts available as well as a few ad spots for January.

Email me at kellywestover [at] att [dot] net for more info.

What are you waiting for?!

PS. I just added Disqus back to the blog, you know, for comments.
Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

three things - christmas weekend

2011-12-26T09:22:00.000-08:00

We survived! Christmas weekend was such a blast this year. We did some last minute sight seeing, gift giving, gift wrapping and enjoyment of the general splendor that surrounded us. Amazingly enough we still have a few sights left to see on our list so hopefully they stay up until the new year. Our house on the other hand has already begun the post Christmas clean-up, mainly because our house is tiny and just can't accommodate all these decorations for much longer. But it sure was fun while it lasted!

one. The big lady in SF is pretty darn big!

There were a bunch of street performers playing Christmas carols and tons of pretty cool hanging decorations at The Crate and Barrel & Anthropologie.

two. The big family dinner, you know the one that includes all of the uncles and second cousins and their dogs, was pretty awesome. Quinn was extra excited to see the dogs and play with the cousin kids.

three. Christmas morning! Need I say more?

P.S. ...

christmas style 2011

2011-12-23T09:00:00.000-08:00

tops here and here

bottoms here and here

The Christmas jammies tradition has been loooong running in this family. Like all five years long. The night before Santa makes his grand appearance one present and one present only is allowed to be opened. I'm a little proud of myself this year, I managed to find the hubs some extra loooong jammie bottoms, a task which I've thus found quite impossible. But this is the year of all years. This year he can slumber in style with his super schnazy jammies. (you can thank me later hubby man)

outfits here and here

And Christmas evening is typically held at the Westovers Grand with tons and tons of food and tons and tons of people. I'm very excited for the honey baked ham and the mashed potatoes, my favorite parts of the big meal. I'm especially excited to see Master Quinn running around with his cousins and ~~torturing~~ chasing the dog.

Have a very Merry Christmas!

first day of xmas break

2011-12-21T14:05:00.000-08:00

The office is closed, like doors locked and security guards in place, closed. I couldn't break back into that place if I wanted to, not that I really want to, it is the holiday season after all.

Yesterday was not so productive. I washed about 3/4 of the dishes that needed washing, and wrapped a few presents, but for the most part I spent my day chillaxin with the boy and eating, oh and drinking Dr. Peppers. Because Dr. Peppers make even the least productive days look pretty darn swell.

Maybe today will prove to be more productive... One can hope.

yummy - peppermint patties & printable reindeer tags

2011-12-21T09:00:00.001-08:00

Tis the season for peppermint. Peppermint everywhere! Peppermint Joe Joe's, peppermint ice cream, peppermint hot chocolate. My mouth and tummy are so so soooo very happy this time of year. Although, where did all the toffee flavors go?

Chocolate Mint Candies Cookies

Prep Time: 20 Min. Cook Time: 10 Min. Ready In: 1 Hr 20 Min

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 (4.5 ounce) packages chocolate covered thin mints

Directions

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the sugar, butter and water, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove from heat, stir in the chocolate chips until melted and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
Pour the chocolate mixture into a large bowl, and beat in the eggs, one at a time. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. Roll cookie dough into walnut sized balls and place 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, be careful not to over bake. When cookies come out of the oven, Press one mint wafer into the top of each cookie and let sit for 1 minute. When the mint is softened, swirl with the back of a spoon or toothpick to make a pattern with the green filling of the mint wafer. For smaller cookies, break mints in half.

Printable reindeer tags, over here.

recipe source

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

or find me on Instagram {at} @kellywestover

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

curated xmas. stocking stuffers

2011-12-20T15:15:00.000-08:00

One last list of holiday goodies for you. All about stocking stuffers. Specifically things I would LOVE to see in my stocking this year. Lucky for me, I usually do all the stocking shopping!

What are you putting in your stockings this year?

Enjoy the season!

1. Linen ruffles apron / Lemon String by Erlina

2. Mini food chop by OXO - easily found at any Target or Sur la Table

3. Mongramed coasters / Nostalgia Boutique 1

4. Teal colander / Forever Fire King

5. City stamps & puzzle set / dwell studio

taking pictures is fun

2011-12-20T09:30:00.000-08:00

So I mentioned this earlier (#4), and now I finally get to share the finished products with you all!

We went to a local park for these shots and the lighting could have been better, but I think mother nature did a pretty swell job. Thanks lady friend! Of course, it's pretty easy to take great photos when your subject matter is so good looking. ;)

That's one good looking family, don't you think?

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

or find me on Instagram {at} @kellywestover

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

content is spelled c.a.r.

2011-12-19T09:00:00.000-08:00

Cars, cars, cars. Master Quinn has become enthralled with cars. Cars the movie, cars the giant push around and scoot toy, cars the Hot wheels. If it resembles a car, he loves it. Like he'll sit there and say 'vroom' with it for hours. Hours, I tell ya! If ever there were something to be thankful for I am extremely thankful for cars right now. From the moment the Q dude wakes up the word 'cars' is on his lips and there is no rest for the half asleep and droopy eyed until the sippy has been filled with milk and cars are somewhere within his grasp. There could be worse things. There could be no things. But I feel very blessed that my son has a thing.

Other things that kept him learning this weekend...

One. Watching Finding Nemo while eating Auntie's grilled cheese sandwich was very enlightening.

Two. After the fact he had tons of stories to tell about 'wa wa' and of course he found a way to work cars into the conversation. Don't ask me how, maybe there was a car fish I didn't see, he would totally see it with his highly sensitive car radar eyes.

Three. The future love of Quinn's life was at game night and he learned all about sharing and the importance of keeping his woman happy.

What did you learn this weekend?

remembering christmas 2010 & a quick survey

2011-12-17T08:15:00.000-08:00

I was flipping through my posts from last Christmas and couldn't believe how tiny the Q dude was. What a difference a year makes!

I also wanted to take a minute to gage how everyone is doing with the site changes. The layout redesign, as well as the content overhaul. My voice, the tone, the design... all that jazz. If you have a minute (literally only takes one) please hop over here to answer a few questions.

And now we return to our regularly scheduled program:

Post from Christmas 2010:

We survived our first Christmas with master Quinton! He absolutely loved it! He was going nuts, crawling all over the floor, 'inspecting' all the presents. We celebrated Christmas as a family on Christmas Eve with gift exchanges, stockings, and of course, setting up the cool electronics we just got. :)

Quinn's favorite part was pulling the wrapping paper out of the trash bag, and pounding on the boxes. I love this age!

The Q man got his first set of 'big boy' jammies and he rocked them pretty hard.

to the survey, ya know, if you want to...

this is how you spell nerd & discounts

2011-12-16T09:00:00.000-08:00

So the hubs and I don't always see things the same way. Like that one time I started bawling in the kitchen because he came in and said hi all nonchalant. But what I wanted him to do was sweep me off me feet, give me a big romantic smooch and a Flynn Rider-esk smoldering hey. I'm sure to him the whole situation felt something like this

movie clip

The same sort of thing seems to be happening when it comes to the chores. Shhhh, don't say that word so loud, it's so... ugly. It kinda gives me the heeby-geebies and makes me want to run to my room screaming you can't make me!!!! Which is why it's such a sore spot in this little Westover Manor of ours. So in typical nerdy fashion I pulled together a super nerdy chore chart.

I did warn you, it's SUPER nerdy. We'll see how it goes... maybe a few of these in nonchalant places, like the bathroom mirror, the back of the toilet seat, the fridge door... might help us stay on top of things. Just maybe.

Toodles.

Have a fabulous weekend!

P.S. The North Face family and friends event is in full swing at ALL retail stores only, Nov. 15-18th. Use code FAM2011 for 25% the store!
*Not useable online or in outlet stores
*This post is NOT sponsored by The North Face.

five guys has an eye on you

2011-12-15T09:00:00.000-08:00

When you leave my house and drive down Hesperian boulevard for about 5 minutes you'll pass by quite a few fast food joints. In-N-Out, Taco Bell, Wendy's, Popeye's, KFC... but the best one of all of them, the one that makes my insides do little flips of joy while simultaneously screaming Noooooo!!!! is Five Guys. Three weeks new and Eric and I finally took a minute to stop by and pick up a few cheeseburgers-all-the-way and some Cajun fries. It was a little slice of burger
heaven in my hands.

The Q dude slept peacefully in the back of the car while I ran in to place our order and share a table with a super cute old dude who informed me it was his first time at Five Guys. He was super cute guys, like I really wanted to give him a hug and invite him over for dinner, kind of cute, only that would have been kinda weird considering we just met. but I'm a pretty straight forward kind of gal so it would have been very me.

A few photos, just cuz.

Happy almost weekend!

yummy - spinach tomato orzo soup

2011-12-14T09:45:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 lb spinach, fresh or frozen, defrosted
1 – 15 oz can diced Italian tomatoes (with oregano and basil)
1 lb package orzo pasta
2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock
2 quarts water
olive oil

Method

1. Preheat a large soup. Drizzle with olive oil. Add onions and saute until tender. Add garlic and saute for 2 – 3 minutes. Add canned tomatoes, spinach, chicken or vegetable stock and water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium.

2. Add orzo cook for 12 – 15 minutes, or until orzo is tender.

source

this post has been linked to.

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

or find me on Instagram {at} @kellywestover

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

curated xmas.three

2011-12-13T15:00:00.000-08:00

1. Stocking stuffer gag gifts | Dippylulu | Etsy

2. Not a quitter tags | Aubree Lane | Etsy

3. Letterpress 2012 Calendar | Albertine Press | Etsy

4. All you need is love | Gayana | Etsy

5. I like to rock | Handz | Etsy

6. I'm tired, can you carry me | Red Bishop | Etsy

Have comments, questions, random babblings to share?

Email me {at} kellywestover@att.net

I try to give credit where credit is due.

If at any time you notice an uncredited source please let me know.

that one time eric graduated

2011-12-13T09:00:00.000-08:00

It happened!

This family has spent the last three years undergoing the transformation of a lifetime. aka Grad school. And this past weekend it all came to a very happy ending.

Complete with trumpet fan fare, tears of joy, tears of pride and just lots of tears, Eric walked on stage, received his diploma and in typical fashion had his head cut off by the photographer for his ‘official’ graduation photo. He’s six-foot-eight people, adjust your effing camera’s eh?! Luckily the entire family was there with many a back-up camera in hand so I’m confident we have a great shot somewhere.

My sisterchristy, my MIL, and myself pulled together a family and close friends luncheon with a menu to die for. It was so tasty, I’m going to have to keep this one in my back pocket for the next big affair.

The menu:Pulled pork sandwiches, Orzo pasta salad, Greek salad, sautéed mushroom bread bites and lots and lots of sparkling beverages. Complete with Tootsie pops and Tootsie rolls galore, since they’re Eric’s favorite sweet.
My mind was obviously in other places so I have no photos of the food, or the after party, but I do have it permanently burned into my memory bank. This was a day to go down in the history books people!

Congrats Eric! You've definitely earned it.

three things - graduation weekend and ties

2011-12-12T11:14:00.000-08:00

One - Eric graduated! {more on this tomorrow}

Two - Quinn wore a tie to church, kinda. A super cute yellow one that was originally for my little BIL-Mike's wedding, but was finally found and re-used on Sunday. It lasted about five minutes and was then unceremoniously thrown down the stairs and never seen again. I swear the stairs are sometimes like a crazy black-hole for Quinn toys and whatnot's.

Three - The cousins re-united. My BIL-Chad and his adorable son Gavin came into town for the big graduation celebration, so Gavino and Quinntonious finally re-united. The first day there was lots of shoving and territory protecting, the second day they played together much nicer and even seemed to like each other, gasp! Oh how I wish they lived closer so they could be bff's. They'd be such cute playmates.