Guess what? Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly… sign up: here
I have read a couple of my blogger friends' blogs and have seen that they are receiving some free holiday cards just by blogging about Shutterfly's cards! Well, I am jumping on the bandwagon now. I love pictures and really enjoy sending Christmas cards. Shutterfly's great because there are so many options! You can do a single photo, or if you have trouble choosing photos, they provide you with photo collage templates. These cards have to be pretty nice since they are printed on cardstock and not just the shiny photo paper that most stores use for their holiday picture cards. I am just not sure which card to pick since there are so many different options from whimsical to classic. Better get to narrowing the options down... Can't wait to get my cards from Shutterfly just for being a blogger!!! Thanks, Shutterfly.
If you are interested in Shutterfly products, you can purchase Christmas cards, photo mugs, and canvas wall art on their site.
November 16, 2010
September 5, 2010
Happenings...
Here are a few things happening around our house these days...
It's been a while since I've posted. Wish my blog wasn't all messed up. One day I thought I could mess around with HTML codes and switch things around, and now everything's a mess. This former Education major, English teacher/Reading Specialist should've just left the HTML codes to those who actually know how to use the other side of their brain.
Anyway, here it is!
Laird decides it's faster to just eat by putting his mouth to the tray. Sometimes I feel the same way...
Finlay learns air guitar with a sand shovel he found in the "storage side" of the basement, which translates into the deep, dark, dirty cave of our house...
Finlay's expressions have been great lately. Only a 2.5 year old could react like this to his first Trader Joe's biscuit with butter & jelly.
Finlay found an old pair of shoes in my closet from some wedding I was in a while ago. He wears them well!
Picking strawberries off our strawberry plant. We're pretty sure the little bunny we see in our neighbors yard is eating our strawberries! Because there really aren't many strawberries!
"Mowing" the lawn. Why wear shorts?
"Mama, make fort!"
Playing Memory. Which really means turning all the cards right side up & just looking at all the pictures.
Bath time!
It's been a while since I've posted. Wish my blog wasn't all messed up. One day I thought I could mess around with HTML codes and switch things around, and now everything's a mess. This former Education major, English teacher/Reading Specialist should've just left the HTML codes to those who actually know how to use the other side of their brain.
Anyway, here it is!
Laird decides it's faster to just eat by putting his mouth to the tray. Sometimes I feel the same way...
Finlay learns air guitar with a sand shovel he found in the "storage side" of the basement, which translates into the deep, dark, dirty cave of our house...
Finlay's expressions have been great lately. Only a 2.5 year old could react like this to his first Trader Joe's biscuit with butter & jelly.
Finlay found an old pair of shoes in my closet from some wedding I was in a while ago. He wears them well!
Picking strawberries off our strawberry plant. We're pretty sure the little bunny we see in our neighbors yard is eating our strawberries! Because there really aren't many strawberries!
"Mowing" the lawn. Why wear shorts?
"Mama, make fort!"
Playing Memory. Which really means turning all the cards right side up & just looking at all the pictures.
Bath time!
CSA Market Basket Recipe: Pesto
I got sooooo much basil in my Market Baskets this year. And to make matters worse, I somehow managed to grow two large basil plants in my backyard too. So, "when life gives you basil, make pesto". And that we did.
My favorite recipe?
Here it is, from the one, the only, the Queen of Butter & Sugar (but not in this recipe)....INA GARTEN!
(Little known fact: I once drove 3 hours each way from Annapolis to King of Prussia with Finlay just to see her at a book signing. And it was so worth it. She's so nice!)
My favorite recipe?
Here it is, from the one, the only, the Queen of Butter & Sugar (but not in this recipe)....INA GARTEN!
(Little known fact: I once drove 3 hours each way from Annapolis to King of Prussia with Finlay just to see her at a book signing. And it was so worth it. She's so nice!)
Pesto:
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
- 3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
- 5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups good olive oil
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Directions
Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 30 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Serve, or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.
July 18, 2010
Birthday Boy & His Birthday Week
Josh celebrated the big "31" on July 9th.
All week I teased him that it was "Birthday Week" and every time I did something remotely nice, I said "...because it's Birthday Week" and he just rolled his eyes at me. But secretly, he loved it.
Anyway, here are some highlights from Birthday Week.
One morning we got up early (as in, got up normal time, which is indeed early, but I let Josh sleep in)...
Finlay helped me make Josh's favorite sticky buns. I told Josh if they were heavy on the cinnamon to blame Finlay...
Finlay was also hard at work on his bird house. We scored this at Joanne's for $1 and couldn't pass it up. Josh has made some bird houses before out of old pieces of wood, so he's a bird house kinda guy. Finlay did great painting!
I asked Josh what he wanted for his birthday dinner, and he decided on getting nice steaks from a new, local butcher we wanted to try. We don't much red meat, so this was a treat. They were delicious! And Josh grilled them perfectly. He also wanted scalloped potatoes. I've been getting a ton of potatoes in my CSA Market Basket, so it was fun to make these. I don't use potatoes often so it was fun to finally use them.
And of course, the birthday boy deserved his most-favorite dessert ever, Outrageous Brownies. The poor thing can never remember their name. They're most often called "Incredible Brownies", but who really cares. The point is they have coffee in them, nuts, approximately 18 pounds of chocolate, and they are stinkin' good. We got all fancy for Birthday Boy and cut the brownies into circles and put a scoop of ice cream on top, chocolate & caramel sauce, whipped cream, & a fresh cherry on top!
Finlay loved blowing out the candles & staring in awe of the brownie...
After dinner & dessert we opened presents. But, not really. Josh isn't really into gifts. When he wants something he usually buys it. And when he buys something he usually finds a deal, a coupon, or gets it on eBay or Craigslist, or some outlet store...You get the point.
So...instead of buying him "stuff", I bought him experiences/things to do. The following morning I scheduled a SUP (Stand up Paddle) lesson here in Annpaolis. The sport is taking off like crazy. Josh went out with a guy from SUP Annapolis and had a great time. I think we're going to try and go together sometime. I'm not one for speed or too much adventure. But being outside on the water together is something I think I could like!
I also got him a camera lesson through the Nikonians Academy and we finally got reservations at Talulas Table in August. I think the Birthday Boy had a pretty good Birthday Week. And he deserved it!
Happy Birthday, Josh!
All week I teased him that it was "Birthday Week" and every time I did something remotely nice, I said "...because it's Birthday Week" and he just rolled his eyes at me. But secretly, he loved it.
Anyway, here are some highlights from Birthday Week.
One morning we got up early (as in, got up normal time, which is indeed early, but I let Josh sleep in)...
Finlay helped me make Josh's favorite sticky buns. I told Josh if they were heavy on the cinnamon to blame Finlay...
Finlay was also hard at work on his bird house. We scored this at Joanne's for $1 and couldn't pass it up. Josh has made some bird houses before out of old pieces of wood, so he's a bird house kinda guy. Finlay did great painting!
I asked Josh what he wanted for his birthday dinner, and he decided on getting nice steaks from a new, local butcher we wanted to try. We don't much red meat, so this was a treat. They were delicious! And Josh grilled them perfectly. He also wanted scalloped potatoes. I've been getting a ton of potatoes in my CSA Market Basket, so it was fun to make these. I don't use potatoes often so it was fun to finally use them.
And of course, the birthday boy deserved his most-favorite dessert ever, Outrageous Brownies. The poor thing can never remember their name. They're most often called "Incredible Brownies", but who really cares. The point is they have coffee in them, nuts, approximately 18 pounds of chocolate, and they are stinkin' good. We got all fancy for Birthday Boy and cut the brownies into circles and put a scoop of ice cream on top, chocolate & caramel sauce, whipped cream, & a fresh cherry on top!
Finlay loved blowing out the candles & staring in awe of the brownie...
After dinner & dessert we opened presents. But, not really. Josh isn't really into gifts. When he wants something he usually buys it. And when he buys something he usually finds a deal, a coupon, or gets it on eBay or Craigslist, or some outlet store...You get the point.
So...instead of buying him "stuff", I bought him experiences/things to do. The following morning I scheduled a SUP (Stand up Paddle) lesson here in Annpaolis. The sport is taking off like crazy. Josh went out with a guy from SUP Annapolis and had a great time. I think we're going to try and go together sometime. I'm not one for speed or too much adventure. But being outside on the water together is something I think I could like!
I also got him a camera lesson through the Nikonians Academy and we finally got reservations at Talulas Table in August. I think the Birthday Boy had a pretty good Birthday Week. And he deserved it!
Happy Birthday, Josh!
July 17, 2010
First Family Pet
I decided the other day that we needed a pet.
We had just returned from the beach & I thought it would be fun. Since we didn't come back with a token hermit crab, I thought the least I could do was get a fish. I mean, my mom was so creative that she somehow got her hands on an incubator and we hatched chickens one summer. Unfortunately, it also never occurred to my mom that one day our cute little chicks would grow up & we'd have full-fledged, nasty chickens running wild. Nobody would take them...except apparently a random dog that wandered into our yard one day. He took them...oh, he took them alright. Anyway, I thought the least I could do for my child is get him a fish.
And so we did.
After consulting with the poor, awkward, pet-loving, teenage PetSmart employee...and after gathering the bowl, the stones, the live plant, the fish food, and water conditioner, we finally came home with a little blue, Betta fish. Actually that's not entirely true. On the way into the house we ran into our neighbor. We let Finlay show her the little plastic box with the fish inside and of course he dropped it, water spilling everywhere, fish flailing, and me dropping everything for Josh to gather, as I ran inside to put our new fishy-friend in water. All was well and we got him set up in his new "house", as Finlay calls it.
He's a cute little guy. Typical Finlay, he was fascinated with him for about 3 minutes, and then moved on. There are bigger, faster, more adventurous (and recently, we've added louder...) things to do than sit still watching a fish swim.
But, if was fun watching him discover his new little friend, if only for 3 minutes.
He doesn't have a name yet. Josh wants to name him Alejandro. I want to name him Bluey, you know, in an attempt to teach Finlay his colors and give him a fighting chance at actually being able to pronounce it.
But, for now he's just "the fish". And I should probably go feed him. It's been a couple days. Yikes.
We had just returned from the beach & I thought it would be fun. Since we didn't come back with a token hermit crab, I thought the least I could do was get a fish. I mean, my mom was so creative that she somehow got her hands on an incubator and we hatched chickens one summer. Unfortunately, it also never occurred to my mom that one day our cute little chicks would grow up & we'd have full-fledged, nasty chickens running wild. Nobody would take them...except apparently a random dog that wandered into our yard one day. He took them...oh, he took them alright. Anyway, I thought the least I could do for my child is get him a fish.
And so we did.
After consulting with the poor, awkward, pet-loving, teenage PetSmart employee...and after gathering the bowl, the stones, the live plant, the fish food, and water conditioner, we finally came home with a little blue, Betta fish. Actually that's not entirely true. On the way into the house we ran into our neighbor. We let Finlay show her the little plastic box with the fish inside and of course he dropped it, water spilling everywhere, fish flailing, and me dropping everything for Josh to gather, as I ran inside to put our new fishy-friend in water. All was well and we got him set up in his new "house", as Finlay calls it.
He's a cute little guy. Typical Finlay, he was fascinated with him for about 3 minutes, and then moved on. There are bigger, faster, more adventurous (and recently, we've added louder...) things to do than sit still watching a fish swim.
But, if was fun watching him discover his new little friend, if only for 3 minutes.
He doesn't have a name yet. Josh wants to name him Alejandro. I want to name him Bluey, you know, in an attempt to teach Finlay his colors and give him a fighting chance at actually being able to pronounce it.
But, for now he's just "the fish". And I should probably go feed him. It's been a couple days. Yikes.
Outer Banks
We went to the Outer Banks with my family a couple of weeks ago, and boy did we have fun!
We stopped in Williamsburg on the way down to break up the trip, got lunch at the Cheese Shop, and continued on our way! The boys did great on the way down. (The portable DVD player helped!) But, seriously, it went really well, especially since we went of Day 7 of Potty Training...a little risky, don't you think? :)
Our house was fantastic. Can you think of anything more fun than packing 13 people into one house? I think not!
We celebrated Josh's 31st birthday, ate Puppy Dog Pancakes & the best donuts ever, swam in the pool, played iPhone games with Poppy, drank lots of morning cofee, played on the beach, whined about the itsy bitsy cut on a certain-someone's big toe, flew kites at Jockey's Ridge, and took lots of pictures to remember it all...
We stopped in Williamsburg on the way down to break up the trip, got lunch at the Cheese Shop, and continued on our way! The boys did great on the way down. (The portable DVD player helped!) But, seriously, it went really well, especially since we went of Day 7 of Potty Training...a little risky, don't you think? :)
Our house was fantastic. Can you think of anything more fun than packing 13 people into one house? I think not!
We celebrated Josh's 31st birthday, ate Puppy Dog Pancakes & the best donuts ever, swam in the pool, played iPhone games with Poppy, drank lots of morning cofee, played on the beach, whined about the itsy bitsy cut on a certain-someone's big toe, flew kites at Jockey's Ridge, and took lots of pictures to remember it all...
June 26, 2010
Summer Pleasures
Our local radio station has a segment where listeners call in and tell their "simple pleasures". Well, here are our simple "Summer Pleasures"...
Watching Daddy cut watermelon for the week...
Making Panna Cotta for the first time & finding out it's delicious!
Bathing a little boy at night...
Then snuggling with him...
Dancing in big boy underwear!
Laughing with your brother...
Helping mommy stack the toilet paper...
Looking up at the sliding glass door & finding THIS face ...
A little boy, a hose, and lots of laughter...
Yellow, hanging flower baskets...
A morning bike ride with Daddy...
Popping out cubes of homemade baby food. Mango, spinach...
Making sponge balls...
Having a friend meet you for lunch & surprising you with a case of Cheerwine!
Hydrangeas cut from your back yard...
Writing down your Summer Bucket List...
Getting a $20 coupon and ordering yourself monogrammed, summer stationary...
After a long day...you stay up late, and have Daddy give you a "bumpy ride" up the stairs...
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