this week's menu

1. lasagna
2. potatoe soup
3. this Salmon dish
4. pad see ew
5. brisket and mashed potatoes
6. NY style ruebens

My big guy turn 5 on Wednesday, and he requested meal #4. It really is one of his favorites.
I'm very flattered that most of his favorite meals are one that I make for him at home. Not counting a hand full of dinners, like McDonnalds?!( We have eaten here once or twice, but I think the play place has something to do with this choice) And Pizza hut. Sheesh. Here's to babies growing up!

reality strikes

We are getting tons of snow. And it's only 10 degrees right now. So this is an extremely practical outfit. Including the sunglasses, so I don't go blind.
I'd like to go sledding with the kids again, but 10 degrees is really cold. We might just watch movies and drink hot cocoa instead.
I actually like this weather, but I feel so bad for my chickens. :( I know they are covered in down, but I still want to bring them inside and wrap them in blankets.

Here are some links. Hope you like them.

Anything with a name like this deserves a try right?
Love these little pieces.
Does anyone like donuts? Have a look at these.
I'm planning to try this binky out this time around.
We are going on a date tonight! To a wonderful gourmet friend owned french restaurant.
Um yes, I'll be making this tomorrow.

Happy weekend!

p.s. I really want to knit that hat.

I like the children

I want to have some of these print in my kids room. Yes their collective room. They love being together. I can't see us separating them boys and girls yet. Phoebe would be too lonely. And the boy would miss her so. It is very cute to see them so stuck on each other. And this is really fun for me. For more than one reason. But one of those reasons being that I love the idea of the gender neutral nursery. Full of things all children love.

Here is the border on the sweater with out the button holes. Even though the button holes are complete. I"m getting so close I can smell it.

this weeks menu

Swedish oatmeal pancakes (Serve with bacon of course, bananas are optional)

2 cups of oats
3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/4 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
butter for skillet

Mix dry ingredients in one bowl, and the wet in another. Combine. Batter is going to be lumpy. The original recipe said to let it sit refrigerated for at least 2 hours. And over night is a- okay.
I think 30 minutes is enough and overnight produces mush. But, experiment if you will. Its part of the fun I think. We eat so many of these over here. It's my fault. I wake up craving them. My cravings are playing terrible tricks on me they are.

Anyhow, here is what I plan to make this week. I never really plan lunches. Or breakfasts for that matter. We eat pancakes for breakfast, and we love leftovers for lunch.

1. Roast chicken with rosemary-garlic paste
2. Beef stew
3. Olive oil poached salmon with Indian spices
4. Sausage, red onion, and mushroom pizza
5. Chicken and broccoli
6. Steak and baked potatoes

Any or all of these dishes could get tossed out the window, last night I served Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner. It was all my stomach could handle. So yeah.

for a snowy Friday

I always feel so wonderfully regal wearing a maxi dress. No matter how much laundry I'm doing.

Happy weekend!

some progress

I am a little less excited to show you my wonky hood. I thought I knew who I was, and decided I didn't need to count stitches because "I can totally tell where I need to decrease" I didn't really.
But, it's pretty much completed now, and the next step is to knit a border around the whole sweater.


We had some little Martha Stewart puppet crafts stored away and got to do them. The kids loved this, but never used them again after that day.

happy valentines day!

via

We are planning a lazy, sweet, crafty kind of day today. Completed by our favorite spaghetti and meatballs. It will always be romantic my my eyes.

I need to plan ahead

I Love this scarf from Zara. I would love to get my hands on it. And a pair of these Biviels too.

Have a good weekend!!

p.s. Did you know how much I like mushrooms?

we should be getting stairs

We did a little bit of a house renovation this past fall. And even though we aren't done, I'm putting together some ideas for how to decorate this newly configured space. We went up, so we will gain a stairway. (We don't currently have one of these) I think I'd like for it to look something like this.

image found here.

I love the globes.

so excited

And for a late Wednesday post, may I introduce baby number 4.
We are hoping to meet the little one some time this fall. We would love for you to pray for us!

a hood

After 3 weeks time, and picking up, then taking out stitches 20 times, the hood is on. I'm so glad it's on. I am a little bit closer to finishing. Wahay!
I really shouldn't be so excited, the sleeves are yet to come, not to mention button holes. :/

homemade deodorant only works if you use it

And then it works really well.
Here's what I might be making for dinner this week.

1. chicken pot pies in the shape of hot pockets. ( I had a dream about this)
2. real Italian manicotti
3. chicken vindaloo
4. southwestern grilled chicken salad
5. more burgers, because we love them

I actually got around to making those dumplings. They were wonky looking, but delicious. And I forgot to take a picture. Because by the time I finished them, I was too hungry for cameras. So here is a picture of some seed pods instead
.

a cape

For these rainy days. I'll convince myself it's a segway into spring. And it will make me smile till may.

Here are a few fun things I liked this week.

The minimalist chooses his 25 favorites.
Amaretto hot chocolate? I know yes.
H& M sells home goods! But unfortunately only over seas. So we just get to look.

Have a good weekend!

living spaces

I would love this chair in my living room.
It's been almost two years since we moved in and the whole place is sadly unfinished. I am highly motivated to get things together in here though. Decorating is not my high point, so this is going to take some serious work. I really like a natural rug on the floor. This pillow is my real favorite. Also the orange blanket is just orangy.

my baby in the window

He's playing with school paraphernalia. And being the regular rascal that he is.

We are planning to lay low inside. We like to walk around town when we can, but its gotten cold outside again. After a slight rise in temperature these past few weeks, 20 degrees feels really cold again. It is really cold I guess. Cold enough to freeze the chickens eggs before we collect them. :/ Hoping it warms up again soon.

the jacket's end?

I really should have some better progress to show you. But I am finding it impossible to pick up 60 stitches for the hood. I mean, I am only getting 40. 40!!!

That is 20 missing stitches. I must be doing something terribly wrong. Because that is just ridiculous.
I'm going to search you-tube for its wisdom. If that fails me I'll be heading downtown to seek help at the local shop.

The frustration compels me to put down the needles. In search of another project.But,I really want to finish this. So I'm going to keep trying.

I don't know if you can really tell in these pictures, but we finally got a hair cutter.