Whatcha got cookin.

Today I am doing pork chops, ala crockpot. I am in love with the crockpot - as they say on the "Ronco" commericals - "set it and forget it".

Today's chops are being cooked in a fruit stuffing, complete with apples, cranberries, celery and onion. It smells SOOO good right now.

Last night, we were in Alma. We went to see an old classmate/roommate of Brian's - Bob Gruca play at Alma College. He is a classical guitarist. I honestly had no clue what to expect, but I will say, it was excellent!

If you would like to hear an example, visit his page: http://www.robertgruca.com/

Well, off to get some stuff done while Isaac is napping!

Hope everyone is keeping warm!

For those who thought it sounded good - here's the recipe:

Chops with fruit stuffing

6 boneless pork loin chops
1 tbsp oil
6oz herb stuffing mix
2 celery ribs
1 med tart apple, peeled and chopped
1 cup dried cherries or cranberries
1/2 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup butter

Brown chops on both sides in oil. Combine remainder of ingredients in bowl.

Place half stuffing in slow cooker. Top with pork and remaining mixture. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, or until meat reads 160 degrees. (Makes 6 servings)

Adventures in cloth diapers

For a long time, my green, earthy side has regretted not starting Isaac out in cloth diapers. Obviously, there are so many new things for a first time mom, trying to figure out the art of cloth diapers in a disposable world was sort of terrifying.

So today...we made the leap...ok, just a little leap, but one all the same!

I went with my friend Christine to Hopscotch, a terribly cute boutique in GR that is "THE PLACE" for those who want to invest in cloth diapers. (http://www.hopscotchstore.com/) I was shocked to learn how many different options and configurations there are in the cloth world. These "ain't yo momma's cloth diapers". Some of them could be configured in so many ways, I was amazed.

I bought some cloth diapers. I know what you are thinking...white squares with huge pins, noisy rubber pants...oh no...they are SOO different these days!

I chose one of the "mid-grade" styles - simple and easy to use - however, avoiding any pins, Velcro, etc. They are called "AngelDry Diapers" and I bought enough for 4 diapers a day. They have an outer "diaper" with an inner changeabl liner. When we get used to 4 a day...then maybe we will buy a few more. They even had some at the store that are the cloth equivalent of "pull ups"...which was pretty cool too! (that's a while off though!)

My thought is to introduce them on days when we are at home, still using the disposable when we are out and about, at day care, nighttime etc. Allegedly, potty training is easier in cloth diapers...so we shall find out!

Anyways, that's the adventure of the day.... :)

Been a while....

Ok...I know it has been a while since I have blogged...but life has been busy! Last weekend, Brian went away for a boys weekend at our neighbor's cottage, and I had some girlfriends over on Saturday night. Dawn, Courtney and I went shopping during the afternoon - and then Leslie joined us for a delicious pasta, whipped up by Courtney. We finished off the night with wine by a fire.

Then, I got great news that my friends - Glenn and Kathy, had their little girl! Congrats!! WHOO HOO, welcome little Ava! I can't wait to meet her this weekend!

This has been a unique week for me. I was "furloughed" due to lack of work this week. We are a bit slow, and obviously, the part timer is the first to go...but I sure hope nothing huge happens with my projects. I should be off for 4 weeks, as I told them 3 weeks was the min. for me to cancel my daycare. It's been nice being home with Isaac - but man, is he exhausting! Clean house - what? I did get to whip up some meatloaf and potato salad yesterday...and today I am making a hearty black bean soup....Yum. I love cooking when I am home! I have been able to go to the gym twice already this week, which has been awesome!

Today, while on the cross trainer, I could watch the kids playing in the gym. I noticed Isaac was REALLY into the basketballs, and all the sudden, he was being chased by 2 little girls. Poor guy, he couldn't get away from them! I told him on the way home, in about 15 years, he will love being chased by girls. Ha.

Anyways, I will try to upload some pictures later this week. I am off to finish my Shutterfly book of Cancun pictures so I can get it ordered...

Have a great week - and keep warm!

Da-Da needs to push record next time.

So today Becky & I were in the bathroom giving Isaac a bath. We did the normal "Say Ma-Ma". To our pleasure he said it clear as day. Like any good parent with a video camera I ran to get it so we could document this exciting event. We sat there for about 5 minutes and he was so proud of himself that when we told him to say his 3 words, MaMa, DaDa, and Ball, he would say exactly what we asked him to.

He was proud, we were proud.

And then I had the sinking feeling of hearing the tape start recording as I thought I was stopping it...I guess some things are just meant to be private memories rather then YouTube ones.

Happy New Year....

Well, since I missed blogging about Christmas....I hope everyone had a good one. We spent a good amount of time in Flint, between "Faux Christmas" with the extended family and the actual holiday. We took all of the boys (Sam, Jack, Chris, Gusieppe, Will and Isaac) to Crossroads Village for the first time - which was tons of fun! They all loved the train ride!

We even got to run up to the cabin for a night, just to check on things. All is well on Birch Ave.

Today we head to our New Year's fun. We are spending 2 days at an indoor waterpark with 3 other couples. 8 adults, 7 kids and 1 condo. Should be fun!!! I hope everyone else has a wonderful new year!!

Mean Kitty...

I got this from Courtney's mom. Anyone who has had a unique cat should appreciate this!

Motor City Bowl - Part Deux

Brian and I are going to the Motor City Bowl again this year. This year they will be playing Purdue. We are super excited to put on our Alumni gear and go cheer them on again. It will be our first game this year, due to an unfortunate flu outbreak in our house in September! We are going with the same gang as last year -but don't have the same time constraints of a 4 month old waiting for us at home! This year...I will likely be the only gal going...but you know, that does often seem an ongoing theme, doesn't it!?

Any other Chips out there planning to see the game?

Chris-giving with the Spratke's...

Brian's parents came this weekend to celebrate a joint Thanksgiving / Christmas with us. We have had a busy weekend!!!


Saturday morning, we got up and took Isaac to his first visit to Santa! Santa made a special appearance at Dematic (Brian's work)! Isaac didn't even flinch. He just sort of looked at Santa, then at us, looked at Santa - he was like "who IS this dude?". Needless to say, I am pretty sure he didn't ask for a Red Rider BB Gun...(you'll shoot your eye out!)

Then, we went directly to Meijer Gardens to see the Christmas tree / Train exhibit. It was just as fun as the last time!! We were able to get some photos to send out in our Christmas cards (which will likely be late again this year...ha).



After a nice nap, and some lunch - we headed out to get a Christmas tree. I LOVE going this - and we found a great place! They had fire, a sledding hill, and hot chocolate! We roamed all the way to the back before we found a tree. It probably wasn't the perfect tree - but as I told Brian - I can make any tree look Christmasy! :)

While we were there, Brian decided it was time for Isaac's first sled adventure. I was skeptical - however, Isaac surprised all of us with giggles the whole way down...all THREE times! He loved it!

We finished off the day with a big "Christ-giving" dinner and watching Blades of Glory.

Stay out of the way

Yesterday Isaac decided that he wanted to see what it was like to walk around with a bucket on his head. Who are we to stop a kid from running around with a bucket on his head?

Dancing Season

While Becky was making Christmas cookies tonight and getting herself in the Christmas mood, Isaac decided to do some entertaining.

A sign that it's cold outside....

Really? Isaac - you think that's a good way to get warm? Mommy doesn't think so....

Christmas Train at Meijer Gardens

This week, we went to Meijer Gardens to see the Christmas displays. Every year, they line the main hall with Christmas trees decorated to reflect countries and cultures around the world. This year, in addition to that, they have a train set up. This train is built by a gentleman who is famous for his scale model train sets. All of the buildings are replicas of historic buildings of the area - and are all made out of wood, bark and twigs.

Isaac was absolutely captivated. I can't describe his reaction any other way. It was a joy to watch! I am sure we will go back again soon to watch the trains!

Mom's Gone Wild - Cancun

Well, I know this is a bit belated, but here is my report on my first post-child, no-child getaway. The adventure of Katie, Mary, Jen and myself.

We left late on a Tuesday night and headed to Detroit. We got up at 4am to get ready and head to the airport. Unfortunately, the cold that I had come down with on Monday wasn't letting up - but I was still determined to have fun!

We made it down to Cancun around 2pm. It was BEAUTIFUL out. The airport was immaculate and we made our way to the hotel without any problem. Within the hour, we were in the pool....:)

The next 2 days were filled with reading, napping, swimming, sunning, eating and a tasty beverage or two. My cold did not let up, but I still have a really wonderful time. We were hit on by a group of "mature men"...ok, we weren't really hit on, and when I say mature, I mean about 30-some years older than us...but hey - I can pretend, right!? They were actually really cute - on vacation with their wives, and we made them take a group picture together!

The sand was so white, the water was SO blue, and every night, we slept with the door open so we could hear the waves! One night, we split up for date night - Katie and Jen to the japanese place and Mary and I went to the "meat place"...(brazilian?). I had a wonderful time getting to know Mary better, since this was the first time we had met. We also hit the Pacha - (disco, anyone?) and Katie honored us with a fabulous air guitar performance, in honor of her husband. We saw the most captivating couple dancing there, and were all left with a sense of...."dude, wish WE could dance like that!!!".

Katie drinking a "dirty monkey"


We took TONS of pictures, which are mostly on Mary's camera....While I was there, I read Eat, Love, Pray - which was a GREAT book!

I had a great time. I would totally vacation with these gals again! I did miss Isaac and Brian, of course, but for a Mom's getaway...

Happy Thanksgiving....

We hope that everyone has a party in their tummy this Thanksgiving!

Sunshine - Here I come!

Well, the week has finally arrived. My first girl-fest vacation. Brian has gone on lots of manpanionship adventures in recent years - and now it's my turn! Tomorrow night I will leave for 4 lovely days in Cancun. I am quite excited. I am going with 3 fun gals (Katie, Jen and Mary) to soak up sun (on my uber white body), drink fruitiness, read books and have a good time. This will also be Brian's first time staying home while I travel somewhere - so wish him a happy, content monkey-Isaac!

However, before I go...here an update on the last week or so....
- We enjoyed the rest of our time with Ms.Samantha. We made visited to the play area at the mall, Brian took her to Meijer Gardens, we made cakes, threw a tie dye party and played with balloons! It was a lot of fun, but it's amazing what a different level of energy a 3.5 year old has!!! Sam is happily back home with Jon and Dawn - and Dawn is recovering nicely. :)
- Thank you for all the birthday wishes. It's weird to think I am 32...seems like just yesterday I was 23! I am amazed and thankful for all that has happened in the last decade of my life. From meeting my husband, graduating from college, our first home, several exciting jobs. many travels...to having my son. Growing up isn't so bad... :)
- Brian and I had a quiet and restful Sunday at home. I was able to start my packing for my trip, and watch a few of our sitcoms.
- Today and tomorrow I am working (we leave tomorrow night), so the days are going to zoom by!

Well, enough for now...off to pick up some last minute items for my trip!

Happy Birthday to Me....

Wow. Since I don't remember my birthday last year - and it's not because of malty libations, but probably excitement over prepping for Isaac's baptism and the visit of Molly and Robert... I figure, I can say that - right?

Oh hum, happy birthday to meeeeee....

A nice birthday present would be if anyone in Flint could go out and vote for Walling, since I can't...ha. You think I am joking?

Or, for my friend Dawn to wake up feeling fabulous after her surgery today! That might be a stretch, but hey - good vibes can't hurt.

Anyways, I am going spending the day with Jon and Dawn's daughter Sam - doing fun thing, like baking cakes, hanging out - just doing things a 3.5 year old girl likes to do. Hopefully Isaac can be patient with us and doesn't go monkey wild on any of her toys!

Ohhhhh...happy birthday...to me.....

Monkey Causes Carnage - News at 11

 

Today was Halloween. It was pretty eventful! We had a good time! First, I went to Isaac's party at Rainbow. I thought it pretty funny when he went "ape" on the stuffed animals. He enjoyed the parade and got knee deep into a big sugar cookie with orange frosting. Ah, it's good to be a monkey.

This evening, Brian took Isaac around the neighborhood with a group of neighbors while I stayed home and gave our the candy. They were gone for ages - having made the rounds to EVERYONE! Ha. Isaac's favorite loot? Three duckies that have colored LED's in them - causing me to want to call them the "X-tasy Duckez". (is that wrong?).

Anyways, here are some pictures from Isaac's second Halloween. Fun was had by all. :)

Blue thinks to self...can I have that banana when you are done with it? (guess what folks...he did!)

Couple of Videos

It's been a while since I've done a video. Since everyone always complains that I put them on YouTube and make them private, I'm going to give it a shot and do a couple of public ones to please the masses.


This one is of Blue, a Balloon & Isaac


This one is of Isaac when he was in his, I want to sleep 2 hours before bedtime so I don't go to bed until past Mom & Dads bedtime.

MM....good...?

Only in babyland are bizarre combinations of food uber good.

Today's lunch...scrambled eggs with peas and carrots, a cheese slice and pineapple.

Once, at daycare, I saw a meal that consisted of chicken chunks, mandarin oranges, break chunks - all slimed in something resembling cream of mushroom soup.

Or - the ham and butter on bread-wiches. Eww.

Wanna play a game???

This morning, as we were leaving the house - Brian and I noticed a very interesting collection of items in our neighbor's yard. I decided it would make for a humorous game...can you name all the random items in our neighbor's lawn....

There are at least 16....