Family Time
We really haven't had any family business noteworthy to blog about lately, but that doesn't mean our lives have slowed down much. Justin and I (but mostly Justin) have spent a lot of time putting in weed block and planting plants in our front yard around the house so we can finally finish up the landscaping (pictures to come when it's finally finished). We've actually had quite a bit of just unplanned family time in the evenings, so that's all I have to post about.
How could this not cause a concussion? Adaira, Dale & I had walked down to the bus stop to bring Brighton home. We came back to the driveway and I took Dale out of the stroller and let him run around while Brighton and Adaira played on their bikes. I had a few small plants I wanted to plant in front, so I got to work. While I was around the corner, Dale climbed up on the stroller, and proceeded to try and climb up to the handle of the stroller (this kid always has to get up to the highest point possible on anything he crawls on). Well, what else would happen other than the stroller would fall over backwards and he would slam his forehead on the concrete. This picture doesn't even do it justice. This egg on his head was huge! I was really worried that he might have literally fractured his skull, but after watching him carefully for a few hours he appeared to be back to his usually self. It will seriously be a miracle if this kids teeth actually last long enough to fall out on their own and aren't knocked out prematurely by all of his antics...
I started playing with our camerae and realized how the light coming through our windows was really lighting up everyone's blue eyes, so I had to snap a bunch of shots.
Couldn't get Dale to sit and take a picture with me!
Adaira is beautiful....and loves to pose for pictures.
Blue eyed boys...
This picture I love because it's all natural light, no touch ups. Though I wouldn't mind an airbrush to make my skin look as perfect as Adaira's...
I took these through the window. Dale was out on the patio just chillin. He was laughing at Adaira as she rode around on her scooter and would run into his chair every time she came around. He thought it was pretty funny.
Adaira saw me with the camera and ran in the door and say "Take a picture of ME mom!"
Later on that night we made brownies. We haven't made them in a while. I've sworn off sweets after having the sad realization that I had gained 7lbs since Christmas for absolutely NO good reason other than I love food and we've been on a sweet kick around our house since Valentine's Day. My problem is that when I'm happy, I eat. When I'm depressed, I don't eat. So when you see me porking up, it just means that life is too good unfortunately. Stepping on the scale was a real eye opener for me since I just hadn't been paying much attention to my weight. I'm really trying to watch what I eat now... Making brownies doesn't really coincide with this new goal, but we did substitute most of the oil for applesauce so they were slightly less fat (though adding nuts and chocolate mint chips probably filled in where the the full amount of oil would have put us) and I only had three of them (over the course of two days until they were gone). **Sigh** Dieting and I have never been friends...
Adaira wanted another "beautiful" picture after licking the bowl...
Dale figured out what was happening and made his way over for the bowl lickin'
Is it just me or does he look like Heath Ledger as the joker in the picture below (minus the fingers in his mouth)?
Brighton even stepped away from his new favorite computer game to get a few licks.
Adaira and her funny face. My friend Laura doesn't read this blog much, if ever, but for some reason Adaira really reminds me of her in this picture, lol.
Dale being super cute in his high chair. He just kept giving me these coy cute smiles and I had to capture it.
So in other news, a friend of mine (Hi Robyn) posted a recipe on her blog that looked so good! Her blog is private so I'll post it below:
Grilled Bruschetta Chicken
1/4 cup Kraft Roasted Red Pepper Italian with Parmesan dressing, divided
4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 medium tomato, finely chopped
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, or 1 tsp. dried basil
(I like to double the topping)
Place large sheet of heavy duty foil over half of grill grate; preheat grill to medium heat. Pour 2 TBS (I usually do more) over chicken in re-sealable plastic bag; seal bag. Turn bag over several times to evenly coat, the refrigerate at least 10 minutes to marinate.
Grill the chicken on uncovered side of grill for 6 minutes. Meanwhile, combine tomatoes, cheese, basil, and remaining 2 TBS dressing. Turn chicken over; place, cooked-side up, on foil on grill. Top evenly with tomato mixture. Close lid. Grill an additional 8 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (170 degrees).
Most of the ingredients were items I usually have on hand, and I had just happended to get a bunch of tomatoes from my Bountiful Basket so I decided to give it a try. Only problem was that I didn't have time to go to the store, and I didn't have any Kraft Roasted Red Pepper dressing, so I improvised...
I did have some vinegarette on hand, so I substituted it for the Kraft dressing...
I had everything else except my mozzarella was sliced rather than shredded. I cooked it the same as the instructions as for and it actually turned out pretty tasty! Justin doesn't like Vinegarette but he still liked it and took the leftovers for the lunch the next day. I'm not much of a cook (cooking is pretty much a necessary evil for me...) so it's kind of a big deal that I even tried this, and that it even turned out good. I had also gotten a bag of yellow potatoes and a bag of string beans in my Bountiful Basket, so I mashed the potatoes and steamed the string beans and added butter and bacon bits and served it all with the chicken. It was a great meal, thank you very much!
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