Happiness

My husband always says I'm going to live a really long life because I'm so happy and very rarely let stress into my life.

I think happiness is a state of mind and if you allow yourself to be happy- to feel happiness, to forget negativity and stress, you'll live better too.

I've been enjoying every second with my son. I've read a few blog posts and Facebook newsfeed statuses that rubbed me the wrong way lately and I just want to say something  plain and simple: having a baby doesn't last forever. You know the expression or is it a commercial jingle? "You have a child forever but a baby for just one year?" Well, when your baby is waking up for no reason or crying and crying, stay calm and tell them you love them. When your baby falls asleep in your arms and you still have a pile of dishes in the sink and a full basket of clothes to fold, take the time to enjoy it. All week I've been having those peaceful moments with Dylan after he finishes nursing and he's lying fast asleep in my arms. I stare at his perfect face and listen to his loud snore and relish in it because I know these moments won't last forever. It take a lot more effort to be miserable.  It's a lot easier to be happy.  Think about it.

I just received this forward from my mom.  I often delete forwards but I loved this one and had to share.... my favorites are highlighted in red...

7% Written by a 90 year old This is something we should all read at least once a week!!!!! Make sure you read to the end!!!!!!  Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio. "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. 2. When in doubt, just take the next small step. 3. Life is too short enjoy it. 4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. 5. Pay off your credit cards every month. 6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself. 7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone. 8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it. 9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. 10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. 11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present. 12. It's OK to let your children see you cry. 13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it. 15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye, but don't worry, God never blinks. 16.. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind. 17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways. 18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger. 19.. It's never too late to be happy. But its all up to you and no one else. 20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer. 21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. 23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple. 24. The most important sex organ is the brain. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?' 27. Always choose life. 28. Forgive 29. What other people think of you is none of your business. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time. 31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 33. Believe in miracles. 34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do. 35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. 36. Growing old beats the alternative of dying young. 37. Your children get only one childhood. 38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved. 39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere. 40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back. 41. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have, not what you need 42. The best is yet to come... 43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up. 44. Yield. 45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift." Its estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%'. I'm in the 7%. Friends are the family that we choose.

Happy Friday!

Lately...

Lately...

• I've been feeling like this winter is never ending and my family can't catch a break in the sickness department.  One week my son is sick and the next week, me and Dave are sick.  After 3 ear infections in three months, it seems that Dylan is AGAIN coming down with another cold.  Meanwhile, I'm finally at the tail end of my cold and cough. Is it just me or does it seem like the cold symptoms will never end when you're going through it?  Then one day, magically, it's just gone!  Here's hoping that Spring REALLY is around the corner and today was the last snow storm of the season.

• Dylan's been doing great with sleeping, but this morning I woke up at 4 o'clock and just KNEW he was going to get up.  Sure enough a few minutes later, he woke up and I brought him in bed with me and watched him sleep.  Sometimes there is nothing better than cuddling with your baby and watching them sleep.  Motherhood really is so amazing. Also amazing... how your body can adjust to broken sleep...

• I've been cooking using our slow-cooker for ALL our meals and I've been pretty estatic with the results.  Lately I've made Greek Lentil Soup, Salsa Chicken, Pulled Pork and Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches.

• I've been feeling like maybe the reason I keep getting so sick is because I'm not working out.  And maybe I'm {ALMOST} ready to make time for it in my life.  I tested about half of the fit test of the Insanity workout before having a baby emergency and it felt good to sweat.  So, maybe, just maybe I do miss working out... just a little.

• I went to a get-together at my friend Laura's and I got a glimpse into what life would be like 10 kids.  Not that I would ever have that many, but having ten kids under 5 in one house was quite a sight to see.  I felt bad for Laura because collectively, we destroyed that house in less than 2 hours.  But it was fun!

• Oh and lastly, after finishing all five seasons of Friday Night Lights, I went on a search for another great series to watch during my commute.  I've started Parenthood and I like it, but don't love it.  I also started Girls and got so hooked that I've already finished the first 2 seasons.  After the first few episodes I didn't think I was going to like it, but it's just so well-written and intriguing that it draws you in and you can't look away.
• Edited to add- another random thing to add... I've been totally inspired by one of my bff's Stephanie and all the DIY stuff she does at her two homes.  And lately, her latest endeavor- re-doing her kitchen at her Cape house, has led to us thinking (and hopefully acting) about doing the same.  Go check out Stephanie's blog- better yet, add it to your reader... err... FREELY and get inspired!

What's been going on with you lately?

Tuesday Things....

I've been wanting to write on this blog but haven't found the time and when I do have the time, I lose the motivation.  So this post will be so random. Random Tuesday Things!

But at the end, I promise I'll have a recipe!

• We hired a cleaning lady, finally, after living in our house for nearly 6 years.  It's the best investment we've ever made!  I was sick of spending every weekend during naptime running around the house trying to get all my cleaning done in a short amount of time.  I don't enjoy cleaning (AT ALL) so now it's nice to know I don't have to do it!  And now we can enjoy Dylan's naptime as a family.  Twice this weekend, we took Dylan out on a walk during his normal naps.  He looks all around until he just passes out...

And when we're not out and about during his naptimes, we like to take naps as a family in bed.  It's the best!

• I still feel like a superhero for everything else I get done even if I'm not running around the house during his naptime.  Over the weekend, I did four loads of laundry and got it folded, Grocery shopped, menu planned, cooked dinner for us, cooked food for Dylan, took a million pictures, edited a ton of photos, visited with friends and family.
• Speaking of friends and family, it was my sister-in-laws birthday Saturday so we celebrated at my moms.  I absolutely love it when we get the boys together.

• My dad used to live in track suits when I was growing up so seeing the boys in these made me smile.  Made me feel like my dad is still with us...
• We also visited with Dylan's bff Dane who is a month and a half older!  And a lot stronger, as he totally tried to beat up my son...

But then would try to kiss him right after...

Dylan wasn't so sure about the kissing...

• In other news, Dylan started eating little chunks of food and I've found the easiest appliance to cook all his food in is my rice cooker.  We got a rice cooker for our wedding (almost 5 years ago!) and sadly, I had never used it.  But now I've been using it weekly to make softened apples and apple sauce and to steam carrots and sweet potato. It's as simple as peeling your apples, coring them, chopping them up and putting them in the rice cooker with water.  At the same time, you can dice up some sweet potatoes and carrots and steam them on top.  And Dylan's been loving it!

• Other random things... Dylan seems to always get sick on Tuesdays.  I got home from work yesterday and he looked absolutely miserable.  We went to the doctor this morning and sure enough, another ear infection.  My poor baby.

• I've been getting an insane amount of spam on this blog- anyone else having issues with Blogger and Spam?

• Also, I've started to plan Dylan's first birthday.  His nickname is Picks, so let's just say it will definitely be Pickle themed! If you have any amazing pickle-themed recipes or dishes that go great with pickles, please send them my way!

• Okay, enough rambling for one post... want a recipe?  How about an easy Slow-Cooker recipe that sounds really weird but tastes really good?  Pretty much everything I've been cooking lately is with my slow-cooker. My friend Kerry recommended this to me and it was so good!  I changed a few things but for most part, kept the recipe the same.  Kerry got it from a Slow-Cooker recipe book.

Kielbasa Chickpea Slow Cooker Stew

Ingredients:

1 large can of chickpeas or two 15 ounce cans

10 baby carrots sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

1 teaspoon of dried basil

1 teaspoon of pepper

1 package of turkey kielbasa, sliced (or sausage would be great)

2.5 cups of Chicken Broth

1 container (8 ounces) of hummus

1 can (6 ounces) of tomato paste

salt to taste

Instructions:

Throw everything in the slow cooker except the hummus and tomato paste and cook on low for 10-11 hours or on high for 4-5.  Once ready to eat, add in the hummus and tomato paste, mix well, adjust seasoning, cook for 10 minutes more and serve.

The easiest kind of recipe!

Happy Tuesday!

Taco Bar Party

So I fell off the planet yet again... but at least this time I have a better excuse then just saying I'm a full-time working mother.  I've pretty much been sick for over a month.  First with a cold that wouldn't go away which turned into a sinus infection.  After about a week of being on Antibiotics, and finally feeling healthy, I got the Norovirus.  You know, the cruise-ship virus- the one where you can't keep anything down.  Fun stuff.  After four days of barely eating and barely drinking I was extremely dehydrated and had intense stomach pains.  I went to the ER in the middle of the night with my mom and was diagnosed with kidney stones.  A week later I got surgery to break them up and that's where I'm at.  Finally feeling healthy and finally feeling like I'm on the mend.  The rest of 2013 has got to be better than the start, right?!

Well one of the highlights in the last month was the Taco Bar Party* I had in late January.  

*The asterisk in the title is because this party could also be named the Norovirus Party since half the party got sick after... Not sure who brought the sickness over but that is one contagious virus! And all I can say is that if it happens to you, don't let yourself get too dehydrated!  Especially if kidney stones run in your family.  Lesson learned.

Anyway... I love hosting parties but I usually put a ton of pressure on myself to have the best food.  Since having a baby, I've realized that I just can't do everything so I wanted to simplify my menu which is how the idea for the Taco Party was formed.  I kept it simple but still had a ton of options for everyone.

I'm psyched how well this turned out and I think it's a great way to have a party- 

Make Your Own Taco Bar!

My friends had the choice of Flour, Corn, Whole Wheat Soft Shell Tortillas or Hard Shells. 

 For proteins I had Ground Turkey that I cooked with Taco Seasoning and Rotel.*

*Rotel is always my secret ingredient in Mexican cooking.  It's a great tool to add spice!  It's a canned tomato product with Jalapenos or Chilis.  

I also baked up some Blackend Fish (Cod) using a recipe I've made countless times on this blog.  Only I baked the fish this time instead of frying it.

I also made a double batch of Zatarain's Black Bean and Rice for a side or to put inside your taco.

Now let's get to the good part- the fix-ins!

 I pretty much had everything you can think of that you'd want on a taco- chopped tomatoes, medium spice chunky salsa, mango salsa, salsa verde, lettuce, cheese, green onions, red onions, cilantro, jalapenos and homemade guacomole.

I had the perfect mix of store-bought and homemade in the mix and I think I had enough choices that satisfied everyone. Plus I set up all the fix-ins with my cute martini glasses and glass ice cream bowls : )

All in all, the Taco Bar ended up being a great idea and I definitely want to stick to one theme for future parties.  Doing something like this made the party more fun and allowed me to concentrate on the real fun- the kids!

Hope everyone is having a lovely snowed-in weekend!

The Future of the Blog...

So blogging...

And the future of this blog...
Is it okay to say I don't know where this blog is going?  That I had a clear direction- food and running- and... well... now I'm not exactly passionate about either?

I was talking to my friend Meredith today about blogging and how I thought she should start one.  Her immediate question was:
Who would read it?
I told her that you don't start a blog for people to read it.  You do it for yourself.
I later was talking to Gretchen (the girl who is responsible for me starting this blog to begin with) about that and she said that's not always the case. Which I guess is also true.

If you blog, you most likely love getting feedback in the form of comments or emails.  You're probably also a little narcissistic.  That's not a bad thing- it's just probably the truth.  You're proud of something- so you write about it... for the world to see it.

In a way that's what I used to do with the meals I made and the races I ran.

But as you know, my world changed. I had a baby.  And I went back to work fulltime. So the idea of spending all this time and energy cooking just doesn't interest me anymore.  I'd much rather be spending the the time with my son... watching him start to scoot across the floor... watching him take two toys and bang them together like it's the best thing in the world. Listening to him laugh...

I still cook but our meals are more about convenience and speed rather then creative, seasonal recipes that I used to love so much. I think everyone is looking for quick meals so I will try to continue my QFM (Quick Fix Meals) Series.  But I just don't know how often I'll do that...

But the running.  I'm not sure what to say about it except to say I'm not doing it.  And, I don't miss it.  Yep, it's true! It's safe to say running was a huge part of my life for about 15 years. But even though I ran pretty consistently, I wouldn't say I ever loved it.  I loved the feeling I got when I finished a long run, or ran a tough speed workout... but somewhere along the lines, my passion dwindled.  I say this to my friends and family a lot, but I do think I'm inherently lazy. I'm not nor have I ever been, the type of person who craves working out. My college roommate Lindsay and my running partner Nancy (who at 3 months post-partum already runs at least a half marathon every weekend) need it in their daily life. I want to love running again and I want to crave working out... but with where I'm at in my life, it's taken a huge back seat.

So I guess this post is just simply asking you guys to bear with me while I figure out what I want this space to be...

I'll try to show up here a little more often with recipes.  And hopefully, someday, I'll actually run again.

In the meantime, I started Project 365 - and I'm hoping to take a picture of something cool everyday of the year (not just of my baby- even though I think he's pretty cool and fabulous).  I also am obsessed with Instagram and I still blog on my baby blog.  Both of those are private though...

Oh, two more things...
1. Is this the saddest thing you've ever heard?

Recall on my absolute favorite baby item! My suggestion- wash the damn thing!  You know I'll still be using it!

2. Is Friday Night Lights the best show ever?  I started watching it on my iPhone during my commute.  It's making commuting a lot easier! Clear Eyes, Full Heart: CAN'T LOSE.

So that's it, for now.  Thanks for letting me ramble. I'm sure I'll be back....

Christmas {In Pictures}

Christmas Eve and Christmas were special days for us. Although I didn't grow up celebrating, I love getting together with family. Here's some pictures that document our holiday.  From our family to yours, Merry Chrismakkah and Happy New Year!

Scenes from Christmas Eve...

Dylan joins his 6 cousins- all boys!

Christmas Day...

My favorite gift...

Merry Holidays! Here's to a happy and healthy 2013!!!

Thanksgiving 2012: Mostly in Pictures

(Thanksgiving- WHAT?!?!? Another post I started weeks ago, figured I better get it up since Christmas is in two days!)

Thanksgiving 2012 was just a wee bit different than past years.

Mainly because of this guy.

I'm beyond thankful for my little man.  I can't imagine my world without him.  He has made us so incredibly happy and has brought so much joy to our life.

Dylan + his 3 Cousins.

Dylan, Xara, Enzo and Dante. Xara is two weeks older than Dylan and the twins are 5 months older.  

It was just so much fun to have al the babies together...

And well the food was pretty delicious as well!

Starting with our brined 20 pound turkey!

Sliced perfectly by Dave!

Another favorite- Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Bacon, Dried Cranberries and Pomegranates. 

A Delicious Mesculin Green Salad with Feta, Dried Cranberries, Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions and Candied Pecans.

Maple Chicken Sausage Stuffing with Butternut Squash and Dried Cranberries 

Butternut Squash, Kale and Cheddar Bread Pudding

Candied Sweet Potatoes

There was a ton of other food, but I didn't take a picture of everything.  

Maple Gingerbread Cupcakes...

Action dinner shot...

We even had handmade by my cousin's 3 year old Zoe- place-cards.  How precious are these?

My plate of fabulous food...

Another angle...

Special pictures from the day...

My nana with her 5 grandbabies.  All the kids are wearing I LOVE BUBBIE shirts!

My baby, me and my Nana.

It was such a wonderful holiday with such delicious food and fabulous company!  And one of my brothers babies took his first steps.  Couldn't have asked for a better Thanksgiving.  Looking forward to Christmas and sharing these precious memories with Dylan.