Where to begin, it's been so long?

Well I'll begin with today. We made homemade ice cream and Jack enjoyed it very much. Katy and Jack played in the pool and enjoyed being crazy. Katy lost her first tooth the other day and we finally remembered to take a picture of it. Jack came out from his room decorated in clothing and was very proud of himself. That was our life today...I left out the not so fun stuff like potty accidents....ya know those kinds of things. The last photo is a bonus because it's just cute.




Can't think of anything better than the norm around here: Jack singing to Katy while she takes a bath. I love my life!

Our Fun filled weekend!

We just got back from a fun weekend with my parents. It snowed so that added to the normal fun that we have. The kids enjoyed running around in the snow and collecting icicles. I enjoyed staying inside by the warm fire, watching Hallmark movies, decorating my Mom's room and going through all the jewelry from generations past. On our way home we stopped by the Hanggi Ranch. I grew up roaming the hills, playing in the barn, fishing in the pond, throwing cow patties, playing hide and go seek amongst the hay barrels to name a few. My dad now has the ranch since my grandfather has been gone for a number of years now. I have been wanting to go look in the deserted barn for a while to see what kind of treasures might be found. And boy did I find some treasures along with some not so nice things but that didn't deter me too much. I only screamed once when a barn cat jumped out from under some boards. I can't wait to go back with my Dad and get his help removing some things and I know there are more hidden jems underneath all the junk and yucky animal stuff. I posted a few of the finds that I immediately spotted. A table that is a pale teal and white and already very distressed, an old red retro stool, a trunk that Katy and I might fight over, I mean flip for, and some doors, window frames, stools, and various other things.

"Fried" Zucchini

Do you like crunchy zucchini dipped in ranch? I grew up going to Carl's Jr. and getting those salty babies. But it has been years since I have gone to Carl's Jr. and would not have a good conscience getting them now with all the calories. So here is a healthy version of the same babies. I love to make these and they are best fresh out of the oven. If you need to rewarm them do it in your toaster oven to crisp them up again otherwise they will not have the same crunch. And make sure to use a low fat ranch dip or marinara sauce otherwise it won't be low calorie.

This is what the recipe said but I'll tell you later how I altered it. (I am really bad at using a recipe! Unless it's you Karen, then I try to follow your recipe since I know you have altered it to perfection!)

2 small or 1 large zucchini, cut into spears or 3/4 inch rounds.
1 1/2 tsp flour
2 tbs bread crumbs (I use Panko since they get brown and crunchy)
1 1/2 tsp grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp finely chopped parsley
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 large egg white


Preheat oven to 425

Mist a baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray. I use a silpat or parchment. Put flour in a shallow bowl or a plate. (I didn't even use the flour but it probably would have made my crumbs stick better. I use a special romano cheese sprinkle from Penzey's called Brady Street cheese sprinkle so I omit most of the spices and such. I basically cheat since I'm lazy. But I have followed the recipe before and remember I loved it which is why I have started making them again.)

Mix together the next 7 ingredients and put in plastic bag or you can just put in a shallow bowl. Beat egg white till bubbly in a small bowl. Dip both sides of zucchini in flour then roll it around real good to coat it. Shake off excess flour then dip it in egg whites. Drop in crumb mixture or shake in bag till coated then place on your baking sheet in a singe layer making sure they do not touch...no touching (that temporarily brought back memories of long car rides where my Dad had to keep telling us not to touch one another). Lightly mist the tops with cooking spray. Bake for about 7 minutes then flip and bake until lightly browned. (I never turned mine and they were brown on both sides, again, I am lazy like I said or was busy doing school and forgot about them cooking until I could smell them and remembered to check them.)

Give them a try! Yummy!

Valentine's Day

What a joy it was to try to make Valentine's day special for my family. It was a bit challenging on me physically being sick and having one child that had been sick for almost two weeks. Although I did not do everything my mind would have liked, it was a blessing to see them enjoy the little extra touches that Mommy did to say "I love you". Steve and I had gone out a couple days before and enjoyed a yummy dinner, holding hands, looking into each other's eyes and well all that lover stuff!

December 2010 and January 2011

Time keeps flying by and I have not blogged in a while. Since school started all the little extras are hard to get to. We are enjoying the kids and each of their ages is so fun in their own way.

On Saturday we took a trip to the Aquarium since we have passes that will expire in a couple months. The weather was gorgeous and we had such a great time! I love the underwater world and seeing the creativity of our Creator. I love this picture of Steve, he takes my breath away. Those blue eyes that sparkle, the lines around his eyes when he smiles, and his cute dimples.


Jack is my little helper. When the kids are in school we have a great time bonding. He was so eager to help with raking one morning. Notice his little sand toy was his dust pan. I love seeing his creative mind at work and spending some alone time with him each week.



Did anyone notice the rainbows on December 22nd? There were two in our neighborhood. The heavens declare the glory of the Lord!

There are not many Christmas pictures. We all get so into the day that we forget to take some. I think the best gift was Larry and Bob given to Jack. He carries them around most of the day singing "Silly songs with Larry". Carter and I played Battleship during the Christmas break and drank hot chocolate.

Candied Pecans...not your ordinary nut

These are so yummy you won't be able to stop eating them unless of course you have self-control...which you should.

1 lb pecans

Whisk together 1 egg white, 1 tsp cold water and pour over nuts in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix together 1 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp salt. Pour over nuts to evenly coat and spread in a single layer onto a cookie sheet with parchment or a silpat. Cook at 225 for an hour and stir a few times if you feel like it.

I use the 2 lb bag of pecans from Costco and just double this recipe while I am at it.

Enjoy!

Thanksgiving

We went to my parents for the Thanksgiving weekend and enjoyed a lot of snow!