We've been chillin'...cookin'...playin'

Hi everyone!

We've had a somewhat laid back week this week.

Our small group Christmas party for church was last night and I made a couple of Pinterest inspired appetizers...they were good...so. good.

Mini pigs in a blanket, shaped into a wreath with red bell pepper bow...and I made a cranberry BBQ dipping sauce...YUM

This would be a cookie brownie with cookies n' cream candy bars and chocolate chips among other amazing ingredients.

We had a lot of fun and we were sooo tired and ready for bed afterwards...so we went to sleep.  I was awakened by a little person saying, "Mommy, I lay down wif you?"

This has never happened before but I was so tired, I just grabbed him up and laid him in the bed with us...he fell fast asleep.  

Then, about 7am, I was awakened again by a foot in my side...someone decided to take up the whole bed and kick the rest of us out.  It was cute, as long as it doesn't become an every night thing!

Then, the little zombie was surprised with his very own play nativity.  I thought about making our own but honestly, Caleb's too little to really help me make it and I would rather just buy this plastic one so that we can keep it for years and years...he was slightly excited.

He opened it and said, "Baby Jesus!"

Very excited that somehow, he already knows about baby Jesus in the manger.  I was waiting until I bought this nativity and I also bought a book to explain to him about Jesus and Christmas but he already has a head start...that little smarty pants.

Just goes to show they watch and listen all the time, even when you don't think they are!

The Green, Lean, Mean Wrinkle Machine

Wow! I made something delish today.  It's not full of cheese or grease or sugar or butter like you might think..although I will admit, those are some good things too.

  Nope, it's made from all of these goodies!

It's packed full of antioxidants and age fighters..which are both great for your health, your beauty and wrinkles!

Here's the recipe (I found the original on pinterest and tweaked it a bit):

1 banana

1 green pear

1/2  cup of cucumber

1 1/2 cups of pineapple

2-3 cups of spinach

Blend together and ENJOY!

This will make 2 large smoothies.

Still interested/skeptical on HOW this drink really benefits your body?  

Here's the break down on just a few of the benefits of each ingredient:

CUCUMBERS: Full of fiber, vitamins A and C, folic acid, as well as other vitamins and minerals.  They also have high amounts of silica...silica helps strengthen our connective tissue, which is what holds our bodies together!

PEARS:  High in fiber, folate, Vitamins A, C, K, B,and boron (boron helps our bodies store calcium)

PINEAPPLE:  Contains fiber, Vitamins E, B and C, potassium and can aid in preventing mouth diseases.

BANANAS: High in potassium, iron and vitamin B. Contains fiber . Helps fight depression.  Aid's in healthy kidney function, helps maintain low blood pressure which in turn reduces stress levels.

SPINACH: This list could go on forever...High in fiber, a great cancer preventative food.  It's an anti-inflammatory, strengthens immune system, lowers blood pressure, high in vitamin A which promotes healthy skin (including acne and wrinkle prevention!!!) Also full of vitamin K and a ton of other vitamins and minerals!

Plus...it's so good!!!!

Like this recipe?
Pin it for safe keeping!

Ruby Red

How I love you Ruby Red.  I like you fresh or in the can but I prefer the can because I can eat you anywhere!  In the car or in the bed.  Your bitter sweetness calls my name!

I spilled you on me

Did I mention I ate two of these....for breakfast?  It was wonderful.

Oh little one in my belly, you are determining my every move right now.  Is this a sign of what's to come?  I heard your heartbeat today, it was fast!  You must be working hard to take in some of these calories I've been eating for us ;-)

My fall wreath!

Supplies...check

Final product!

I made it "au naturale"  

Mostly from stuff out of our yard...pine cones, sticks, the usual.

I like that our last name begins with "W"...a very easy letter to conjure up from old twigs.

Caleb even got in on the action.

His craft involved taking all the glue sticks out of the bag and lining them up on the table.

He was very proud of his final product.

I also took Caleb out for a special Friday treat.  

He chose a sprinkle donut. 

We sat down to eat and he proceeded to bite and lick every last sprinkle off the top of his donut and even tried to eat the ones he had dropped on the floor.

Then he asked for more sprinkles...

See this delicious food? It's a boiled egg loaded with tons of PEPPA!!!  Seth thinks I'm crazy for eating these....especially when I eat them in the bed while we are watching TV together.  He gags and says it smells like rotten eggs....go figure...bahaha

Happy Weekend!

Ooooo I just LOVE Fridays!!!

When should you buy organic?

I worry about chemicals and pesticides and all that other junk that is added to our fruits and veggies, especially now since Caleb has started eating food.  But, if you are on a budget, buying everything organic can end with a daunting price tag. If you visit foodnews.org you can find a full list of the produce that has the highest amount of pesticides.  If your pocket book won't let you buy everything organic, this list will help you figure out which organic ones you should not scrimp on and which ones won't be a big deal if you don't buy organic.  Here is a quick list of some of the worst and best:

Worst- peaches, apples, nectarines, strawberries and celery

Best- Onion, avacado, pineapple, mango, asparagus

yummy deliciousness salsa

Here is my favorite way of making salsa:

1 small can of Ro-Tel
1 large can of petite diced tomatoes
1 package of salsa or fajita seasoning, but only use 1/2 of the package
Cilantro (as much as you want, I happen to like A LOT!)
Salt to taste

Dump all the ingredients into a food processor or blender. . .and yummy! Homemade, wonderful salsa.

I stumbled upon this blog today while Caleb was catnapping on me. I know most of you will think this looks gross (Joey!!!) but I think it looks so yummy. Too bad I am not feeling up to making it :( This will go on my list for a few weeks from now! Am I the only one who would like to try this?

Brilliant Beetroot Borscht
(Or beets to you Americans)

Ingredients:
2oz butter
2 large carrots
3-4 medium beetroot (pre-cooked or not)
4 medium potatoes
1 large apple (whatever is handy)
1 large onion
3-4 cloves of garlic
1.5 litres of broth (veggie or meat)
I heaped tablespoon of plain flour
1 small tin/6fl oz of tomato paste
2-3 tbls balsamic vinegar
2-3 tbls brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream
dill or parsley to garnish (fresh or dried)

Directions:
Chop all the veggies up. Melt butter in large pot and add garlic, onion, carrots and beetroot. Add a bit of salt and pepper and cook for approx 10-12 mins. Get the stock ready if you haven't already done so (I just use a veggie broth paste that I add boiling water to). Mix the flour into the veggies and gradually pour on the stock mixing as you go and add in the tomato paste. Next stick in the potatoes and apple and let the soup simmer for 35-40 mins until all the veg is cooked. Add the vinegar and sugar (taste as this point to check the sweetness versus vinegar ratio). Blend the soup and serve with a dollop of sour cream and some fresh dill or parsley to garnish. Great with some warm fresh bread or rolls.

Bummer and a Banana

On Tuesday morning my mom called. She said, "Okay, I am going to tell you about the surprise that you aren't going to get!" What does that mean? So she goes on to tell me that her and little miss Cammy were all packed up Monday night to leave and come here for a surprise visit! So why didn't they come? Well, Cammy woke up in the middle of the night with her throat and ear hurting. She couldn't go back to sleep so my mom sat up with her in the living room while they watched TV. Cammy went to the doctor the next day and they said she had a lot of fluid in her ears. At this point my mom couldn't even come by herself because she hadn't slept all night. Plus, she can't come the rest of the week because they are calling for snowy, icy weather where I live and on the roads from my family's house to my house. I was so upset to hear about it :( I really would have liked them to come visit. Especially now that I am getting bigger by the day and don't really feel like doing much of anything! Oh well, at least I know that in about a month they will be here to see the baby.


Now onto the banana. This has been my staple. A peanut butter, banana and honey sandwich! Seth thinks that it is one of my weird food cravings from being pregnant, but I told him that I grew up eating these sandwiches. They are so very yummy. I keep bananas on hand at all times! You have to try them if you never have.