August 6, 2010

At the OC Fair

On Wednesday of this week Q took q to the OC Fair while I was at work. We went a few years ago and it was a hot miserable place but apparently this year the weather was better and it wasn't swarming with people. They had a blast doing a whole bunch of things Mommy would NOT have approved of. Like......

Eating a deep fried Klondike bar (ick):

Pony Rides, on the other hand, are completely Mom friendly :)
And q went on the Pirate ride, which he has been talking about ever since. Apparently he was a DISASTER because he couldn't go on most of the big-kid rides since he isn't 36" tall yet. This kid has no fear. Though at least I'll have a roller coaster buddy later on since Q gets sick on the FERRIS WHEEL which means he definitely doesn't go on rides with me.

They also spend a lot of time at the petting zoo.








They had a great day and even made it home in time for a nap.

August 1, 2010

Infant Toys

I don't know what the deal with this kid is but he has just started to LOVE infant toys. He never liked these bouncers when he was the right age and weight.....but now we can't keep him out of them! This one is Logan Scheidlers and every time we go over there q spends the whole time climbing in and out of it. Sigh.......

In other news, I finally found a phone app that will let me blog photos on the go so I'm sure you will all get more posts now :)

Published with Blogger-droid v1.4.9

Boat Ride Pics and Poster Homework

James LOVED our boat ride yesterday. He especially enjoyed driving the boat through the canals. Of course, the first thing he did was find the throttle and push it so that we went faster. Once we distracted him from that, he sat on Bob's lap and relaxed while helping us steer.





In other news, I hate pre-school homework that is completely my responsibility. I do not like craft projects, and super don't like getting judged on my abilities to make a poster. So, much griping and whining, and $40 in supplies later, I made a poster. Since my mother insisted we keep it when the preschool returned it to me (it definitely lives at her house NOT mine) I figured I might as well put the picture up for you guys too.




July 31, 2010

Chicken Pot Pie

James and I are off to go on a boat ride (read: Duffy in the canals and harbor at Naples) and we're going to be having dinner on the boat. I made a chicken pot pie for tonight. The inspiration is my Mom's recipe that EVERYONE loves. This particular version is nothing like it because the day I invented it I happened to have NONE of the ingredients I needed to do it the "right" way and had to improvise. I was asked for the recipe so I wrote it down but please remember that I don't measure or do anything the same way twice. Feel free to improve it as you go.

Chicken pot pie Recipe
Filling:
Ingredients:
Chicken
Potatoes
Carrots
Peas (frozen)
3 tbsp olive oil or butter
3 tbsp Flour
2 cups Milk
2 cups Chicken Broth
2 tsp dried Thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:
Cook chicken in desired method. Chicken should be fully cooked. I tend to season it and bake
it (425 for 30 minutes) but you could easily use a rotisserie chicken from the store, boil it, grill it or use leftovers. Whatever is easiest for you is what’s best. Cut into bite size pieces and set aside.

Cut Potatoes and Carrots into bite size pieces and cook. I roast them in the oven (400 for about
40 minutes...at the same time the Chicken is cooking. I prep the veggies and put them in the oven, then prep the chicken and put it in) but you could also boil them.
Leave the peas in the Freezer. You’ll want to mix them in right from the freezer just before you
put the pie in the oven.

While the Chicken and Veggies are cooking make the sauce. Add the Olive Oil or Butter to a
large sauce pan and heat it/melt the butter over medium heat . Add the flour and whisk them
together to make a paste (roux). Cook the roux for 3 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. You
will need to whisk continuously to keep it from burning. Add the broth and milk and whisk until
the roux is completely incorporated. Bring the liquid mixture to a simmer and add the thyme, salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce leaves a trail on the back of a spoon when you run your finger down the back (about 15 minutes depending on how high you have the flame). It just needs a light simmer to thicken up. I did discover a helpful hint though. Once you add the sauce to the pot pie it does NOT continue to thicken. In fact, it thins out some. So, reduce it until it's just a bit thicker than you want it to be and it will be perfect.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and veggies and stir to combine. Place mixture in a 9x13 glass
pan and make the biscuits.

Biscuits
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
¾ tsp Salt
6 tbsp (2/3 stick) Butter (cold)
1 cup shredded cheese
1 ½ cups Buttermilk (well shaken)

Instructions:
Pre heat your oven to 450.
Whisk together the Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda and Salt. Cube the butter and with a
pastry cutter, fork or your fingers incorporate it into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse
meal. Mix in the cheese. Then add the buttermilk and stir until just combined.
Mix the frozen peas into the pot pie filling mixture. Layer the biscuit mixture over the pot pie
filling and put it in the oven for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy! I know we will :)

Shift

So, (it seems like I start almost every post with this these days...I'm going to have to get more creative) I know some people *ahem, Jeanne* would like to see me post more often. I'm going to give it a shot, but, as most of you know I'm not really a picture person. I rarely think to take them and when I do snap a shot it's usually bad and therefore not internet worthy....or I can't find the cords to the camera(s). I solved the camera cord problem by buying a universal SD car reader so no more excuses on that front. I probably won't take any more, or better quality, pictures than I do now but what I WILL be doing is posting more updates about what we're doing, as we're doing it.

In honor of my new blog resolution, here are a couple of photos from a wedding that Q and I went to a few weeks ago. It was in Palos Verde up in the hills at a gated estate overlooking the coast and ocean. It was gorgeous, small, intimate and decorated in Kings colors since the bride and groom met at a game and are super-fans. As some of you know I obsessed for WEEKS about what to wear to this wedding since I don't really have any dresses and I wasn't sure what "garden cocktail" was supposed to mean. My dear friend Karen helped me pick something the night before and I totally wasn't thinking of the invitation colors since my shopping was so last minute. I ended up completely matching the wedding and looked like I was part of the bridal party (whoops!) but no one seemed to mind. The photographer took a couple of good shots of Q and I so here they are.


(yikes! I need to work on that double chin, and I CLEARLY needed a haircut. Oh well.)



June 1, 2010

q is 2, part 2


For those who aren't on Facebook, check out the awesome pics we had taken by my favorite photographer, and friend, Adrea. You can check out her blog on the right under "Friends and Fun", Bright Waters Photography.


I think this might be my current favorite....though they are all so great it's really hard to pick!

Now the dilemma is which to print and hang up.....

May 12, 2010

q is 2!


Hooray! We're officially in the "Terrible Twos".

Clearly they're not so terrible in the Q house so I think I'm going to rename them the Terrific Twos. We've been super busy and having a blast but I don't have very many pictures to show for it. Here are a few clips of this week:

James playing with his water table (definitely pre-haircut). Thanks Karen and Jason!


And my personal favorite.......

That's all for now!

Whoops! I forgot the all important Stats.
Height: 34 3/4"
Weight: 26 lbs
Head Circumference: 49cm

Thanks for reminding me Jeanne :)