Introducing Squash

I bought a butternut squash the last time I was at the grocery store, planning on using it to make Laina some homemade baby food. I kept putting it off for some reason, but not wanting it to go bad, I pulled it out of the fridge yesterday. I found this great little website on making your own baby food.

I cut the squash in half, put it flesh side down in a pan with an inch of water, and cooked it at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes. The skin started to blister a bit and I was able to peel some of it off and easily scoop out the rest with a spoon. I put it in my blender with some water and pureed it up. I had to add water a few times until I got it to the right consistency for Laina. I added some to her rice cereal last night and she gobbled it up!

She gave it a very enthusiastic two arms up!

Now I have a container of homemade squash puree in my fridge.

I wonder what else I could throw it in? I have that recipe book about sneaking veggies into your food without your kids knowing, so maybe I'll have to try some of the recipes that use squash. I'll let you know if any of them work! I think I read somewhere that you can freeze it in ice cube trays and then just pull out a cube whenever you need it. I was so glad that she liked it. Now I can't wait to try out some more fruits and veggies.

Valentine's Day Wreath

Everyone has probably already seen a wreath like this. I saw the idea on the blog Idea Room last year and fell in love with it. The only problem was when I went to buy a heart shaped foam wreath they were all out. I finally found one after Valentine's day, so I shelved the idea for the next year. Well, it is now January and I just got around to taking down Christmas. I saw the wreath sitting on my shelf downstairs and decided to give it a try. I can't tell you how many felt circles I cut out, let's just say my hand was a bit tired by the time I was done. It was well worth it, because I got this as my end result.

Isn't it beautiful?! I love how it looks all ruffly and soft. And according to Michela, "it is AWESOME!" Now I have a new cute decoration to add to my little mantel grouping.

I also still love this plaque I made a few years back.

I hung it by my front door this year. Now that I've got one craft done, I'm itching to make more. We'll see how much time I get in the next few weeks. Somebody might not want to cooperate. In fact, she made it quite a bit difficult for me to even take these pictures.

Ha, Ha, ... she is too funny.

Waffles!

There is something about waffles that I just adore. I totally prefer them over pancakes any day. Maybe it is just me, but I'm a girl who likes a little crunch. I like my bread toasted, I don't mind a little burnt edge on my meat, and I like a firm waffle, no soggy waffles here.

When my Mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas I was a bit stumped. I didn't really need anything, but then I spied my cheapo piece of crud waffle iron in the pantry. What I wouldn't give for a nice new waffle iron so we could have waffles every once in a while instead of boring ol' pancakes.

The other morning I made waffles for the kids. Our favorite topping right now is nutella and peanut butter. Can I just say, "YUM!" Hunter and I like to top one with peanut butter and one with nutella and smoosh them together sandwich style .

Aria likes it all smeared together and Chase and Michela likes there's smothered in pure nutella.

I'm thinking next time I am going to try putting some slices of bananas in there as well. Sounds like pure heaven to me!

Favorite Books of 2010

I'm always getting asked for book recommendations, so I thought I would put together a little list of my favorite reads from 2010.

Picture Books:

Hooway for Wodney Wat by Helen Lester

Poor Rodney is made fun of at school because he can't pronounce his Rs. In the end he saves the day with his speech impediment and becomes the hero. Funny read and I think I loved it so much because Chase has the same problem.

Princess Pigsty by Cornelia Funke

A cute story about a Princess who doesn't really like acting how a Princess is supposed to. Aria loved it!

Kid's Books (Ages 9 and up):

The Ranger's Apprentice Series by John Flanagan

I'd heard about this series a long time ago and I even purchased the first book at a book fair, but never got around to reading it. It turns out I had been missing out on a great book. I've now read quite a few of the series and can't wait to hand them over to Hunter. Lots of adventure, great examples of friendship, loyalty, and courage.

Savvy by Ingrid Law

Quirky fun book about a girl who is about to turn 13 and receive her magical savvy. Mibs, two of her brothers, and a couple of friends go on a crazy adventure while they try to get to the hospital where her Dad is in a coma. Michela had a lot of fun reading this book too.

Young Adult Fiction:

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima

After reading the Warrior Heir series a couple of years ago I fell in love with the author's writing. This new series is every bit as good, but with a lot less violence. A story about a country in peril as the magicians try to take over the queendom. Interesting characters, lots of action, and lots of twists and turns.

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

I really enjoyed Westerfeld's Uglies series, but this is a total departure from that kind of story. A bit of Steam punk thrown in with an alternate reality. A war adventure with some strong characters, a lot of spunk, and some good laughs as well.

Fiction- Mystery:

Lemon Tart by Josi S. Kilpack

I thought I had this one figured out, but the author threw in a little twist in the end. I love surprises. A fun quick read with a fabulous heroine. And the icing on the cake is the wonderful recipes sprinkled throughout the pages.

Fiction- Romance:

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

I love this author's writing. Her books all seem to have a little magical element to them. Her writing is magical as well. This story centers around a teenage girl living with her grandpa in a quirky little town. Here she befriends the next door neighbor who has some secrets from her past that she has been trying to run away from.

Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Patillo

If you love Jane Austen's books, you'll have fun reading this book as well. Our modern day heroine is going through some trials which end up bringing her to England. Here she is on a quest to get a look at the "lost" letters of Jane Austen. But before she can see them, she must go on a treasure hunt of sorts through the life of Jane Austen.

Fiction:

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Amazing historical fiction that takes you back to the 1960s during the time of the Civil Rights movement. So many strong characters that you can't help but fall in love with. The writing is wonderful and it makes you feel like you are there with these incredible women. It really made me think, how would I have acted in these situations? A definite must read!

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman

This book takes place around the same time as The Help but has a different tone. CeeCee has lived a hard life and after her mother dies she is taken in by her Great Aunt. The book is full of amazing women who help CeeCee come to terms with her past and work through her grief. I found myself crying and then laughing out loud all on one page.

Guilty Pleasure:

The Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter

My friend introduced me to these books saying she had bought them for her teenage daughters but ended up reading them herself and loved them. Fun reads with laugh out loud moments and lots of adventure. What isn't there to love about a boarding school for girls that ends up being a spy school training the spies of tomorrow.

6 Months

How can it be that 6 months have already flown by since little Laina joined our family?! It has been a bit of a whirlwind. She is finally sleeping through the night on a pretty regular basis, but she still needs to work on the napping. Twenty minute cat naps here and there do not provide Mommy sufficient time to get much of anything done! Anyone have any suggestions on getting babies to nap? It didn't seem this hard with the other kids, well except for Chase.

Laina weighed in at 18 lbs. 4 oz. and is 27.5" long. She is bigger than Aria was at this age, but still not as big as the rest of the kids were. She has finally learned to roll from her stomach to her back, so now she is doing 360s all over the place. She also rotates herself around on her stomach with her hands and is pushing her self backwards a little bit. I see crawling in the near future! She's tried sitting up and can do it for a little bit, but she usually gets too excited about trying to grab stuff and ends up falling over.

Laina is a drool machine (teeth coming?), loves to spit, and is constantly sticking out her tongue.

She looks like a little puppy dog with her tongue out and her big brown eyes. She loves to squeal and has the cutest laugh. She is obsessed with the tiniest details on her toys. Tags, eyes, strings, ribbons, ... she fixates on them. The funniest thing is when she has a little stuffed animal. She looks at the face, cooing, and then screams as she stuffs it into her mouth. She totally attacks the poor thing.

We started solid foods, the lovely rice cereal, and she is slowly taking to it.

She still hasn't quite gotten down the whole spoon thing, but she is getting better. Mike is excited to use our Blend Tech blender to make baby food. We'll see how that goes.

For the most part these last 6 months have been pure joy. She has a smile that lights up the room and she just makes everyone happy. The not so joyous stuff won't last forever, so I just have to keep telling myself that things will get easier. My creative endeavors are on hold for a bit, but at least I'm getting plenty of reading in!

First Dance Concert for Aria

Aria has been working hard at learning her dance for her first dance concert. The dance is to "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie, Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" and it is full of lots of hip shaking and cute little moves. What's cuter than five little 3 and 4 year olds in sequins, polka dots and hair bows shaking their little bums?!

On Saturday night we went and watched Aria dance. She wasn't scared one bit and was so ready to perform. Unfortunately she didn't end up in the right starting point and did the first third of the dance in someone else's spot. It was pretty funny watching her go through the moves while the other little girl kept telling her to get off of her polka dot. But she didn't let it faze her and once she finally got to the right spot she did a stellar job.

I would of had some video but a big guy walked right in front of me and blocked my camera as he walked down the aisle. Bummer! I did get a picture of her though in her costume and full hair and makeup.

She was so patient as I curled and sprayed her hair. Her hair doesn't keep curl very well so I had to break out every hair product I own. She loved the makeup, but have you ever tried to put mascara on a 4 year old? Not the easiest of tasks.

We had so much fun watching her and the other dancers. After her dance I went and got her so she could watch the other dances. She loved every minute of it. Watching her brought back sweet memories of dance lessons and concerts years ago. Dance was such a big part of my life when I was younger and holds such great memories for me, especially since I danced so much with my sister Tiffany. I still wish I could find a dance class I could go to now. If you hear of any, let me know!