People Have Noticed My Lack Of Blogging :/

So I have been busy trying to keep up the demands of motherhood and wifehood! But I've been having a blast! Here is a look at some of the things that have been keeping me busy, from home school activities for my son, or snacks for him, to snacks and meals for the whole family! 

Rock Dominoes

These are simple and fun to create. It's a little time consuming, waiting for the colors to dry. I bought these 'River Rocks' from the dollar store and had them sitting around, so I decided to pull out the paints and see what would come to mind. These dominoes turned out great! You may want to seal them with a top coat so the paint doesn't chip off. But my son can't get enough of them, granted he just wants to hold them and carry them in his hands all day...may be making rock pets in the near future for him.

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

Prep time: 3 mins Cook time: 12 mins Total time: 15 mins

6 tablespoons all natural peanut butter

2 tablespoons all natural almond butter

1 small banana, mashed well in a bowl

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

¼ tsp ground cinnamon (optional... I love cinnamon)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Mash banana in a bowl until nice and smooth. Add in nut butters, spices, and salt, and mix until very well combined.
2. The dough should stick together into one big ball by the time it's all mixed together. Nothing should stick to the side of the bowl.
3. Grease a cookie sheet with a healthy oil.
4. Plop into little balls on the cookie sheet and press down with a fork (or just smoosh down with your hand)
5. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until firm to the touch... but watch that the bottoms don't burn!
6. Let cool and enjoy!!

Dinosaur Fossil Hunt

My son is obsessed with The Land Before Time, and doesn't know the scientific names for dinosaurs, he only knows the dinosaurs as the characters from LBT! It's adorable! I wanted to do something fun and sciencey with him, and voila, dino fossils. These are super simple and fun, it's just a simple play dough recipe (1 cup water, 1 cup flour, 1 cup salt; I used wheat flour so they have a brownish tint) baked at 200-210 F for 2 or more hours until dry and hard. You may have to flip them over if they are super thick, to ensure drying all the way through. 

I made bones, teeth and talons. I didn't use dirt this time, but will next time, with small rocks, for his sensory bin. I used the moon sand we made a while ago, added some Spanish Moss, sticks and leaves we collected the day before at the park, to make dinosaur nests. Gave him his shovels and rakes and he went to town digging around. I also let him bring out his toy dinosaurs to stomp around in their "natural" habitat.

Eggplant Pizzas

Ingredients:

• 1 globe eggplant, about 8 ounces and 9-10 inches long
• about 1 T salt, for drawing water out of eggplant
• about 2 T olive oil, for brushing eggplant before roasting
• about 2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning, for sprinkling on eggplant before roasting
• 10 large basil leaves, cut in chiffonier strips (optional)
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/3 cup finely grated low-fat mozzarella blend
• hot red pepper flakes for sprinkling finished pizza (optional)

Sauce Ingredients:

• 2-3 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 large garlic cloves, very finely chopped
• 1 can good quality petite diced tomatoes with liquid (or use 3 cups peeled and diced fresh tomatoes)
• 1/2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning blend
• 1/4 tsp. dried oregano (use Greek or Turkish oregano)

Instructions:
Cut off both ends of the eggplant; then cut it into 3/4 inch thick slices (trying to make them the same thickness!) Put the eggplant pieces on a double layer of paper towels and sprinkle both sides generously with salt. Let the eggplant sit with the salt on it for about 30 minutes to draw out the liquid. (After the eggplant sits for 15 minutes, turn on the oven to 375F.)

While the eggplant sits, make the sauce. Heat 2-3 tsp. olive oil (depending on your pan) and saute the finely chopped garlic just until it becomes fragrant. (Don't let it brown.) Add the petite diced tomatoes, dried Italian seasoning, and dried oregano and let the sauce cook at a low simmer until it's thickened, breaking up the tomatoes with a fork as it cooks. (Add water as needed, a few tablespoons at a time as the sauce cooks, keeping it hot by simmering at very low heat until it's needed for the eggplant slices.)

After 30 minutes, wipe the eggplant dry with paper towels (this also removes most of the salt.) Spray a roasting sheet with olive oil or non-stick spray, lay eggplant slices on, brush the tops of the eggplant with olive oil, and sprinkle with dried Italian seasoning. Roast the eggplant about 25 minutes (but "not so long that the slices become mushy and lose their shape" as Julia says.)

While the eggplant roasts, thinly slice the fresh basil leaves (if using) and combined freshly grated Parmesan and low-fat mozzarella blend. After 25 minutes or when eggplant pieces are done, remove eggplant from the oven and turn oven setting to broil. Spread a few tablespoons of sauce on the top of each eggplant slice, sprinkle with thin basil slices (if using) and top with a generous amount of cheese. Put pizzas under the broiler until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. (This took 6-7 minutes for me, but I was using a toaster oven and in a more powerful broiler it would probably only take a few minutes.) Serve hot, with red pepper flakes to sprinkle on pizza if desired.  --From source

Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

INGREDIENTS:

2/3 c raw cashews
1/3 c oats
2 Tbsp Agave
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup (Omit and use Agave to preserve true Raw Status if you care)
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
1/4 c Chocolate Chips (or to preserve true raw status, take 2 Tbsp Raw Cocoa Powder and add 1 Tbsp Agave, optional dash of vanilla extract, whisk and blend.  Spread into a thin layer on wax or parchment paper, freeze.  Take frozen chocolate off parchment and crumble the shreds into the mixture as your raw "chips".)

DIRECTIONS:

Blend the cashews and oats in a Vita-Mix, food processor, or high speed blender until they're a fine powder. Don't overblend or you'll wind up with cashew butter very quickly.

Add the agave, maple, vanilla and blend until incorporated. Be careful to just blend in short bursts and only until combined; don't over-process.

Stir in the chocolate chips by hand.

Form into balls and serve. If dough is sticky, chilling it in the refrigerator or flash-chilling it in the freezer helps make it easier to work with. --From Source

Gummi Fruit Snacks

Ingredients:

2/3 cup fresh lemon juice or fresh orange juice (if you don’t like sour go with orange!)
2/3 cup frozen or fresh berries (raspberries, blueberries, strawberries are all great.)
1 – 2 Tbs honey
5 Tbs gelatin (from grass fed cows)

Directions:

1. Pour juice and berries into a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally until berries become tender and begin to soften.

2. Add honey and stir until completely incorporated. You will want the fruit to dissolve quite a bit until you have a compote.

3. Puree mixture using a immersion blender or small blender (my magic bullet works great for this!)

4. Let sit, off heat, for 5 – 10 minutes.

5. Whisk in gelatin, one tablespoon at a time. Whisk vigorously until completely incorporated, mixing the gelatin in very gradually to avoid lumps. (If you do get lumps, just run the mixture through your blender again or you can put it back on the heat to help dissolve the gelatin.)

6. Pour into a 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 glass dish. Refrigerate until set (30 minutes to an hour). Cut in small squares. (You could also use some cute molds like this and create awesome shapes. I’m not awesome like that… but you could be!)

 These are strawberry with lemon juice, and are super sour/sweet, and cold, they are extremely refreshing! Haiden eats them by the handful!
--From Source

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

INGREDIENTS
2 cups quick oats
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup Peanuts
1/4 cup Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
Line 8×8″ pan with parchment paper leaving excess on each side for lifting. (I used a larger pan and they were still pretty thick, next time I will use the 9X13 pan to make them more 'granola' size).
Combine oats, peanuts and Rice Krispies in a large bowl and mix well. Set aside.
Combine peanut butter, honey, brown sugar and salt.
Microwave on high for 1 minute, remove and stir.
Microwave for another minute. Stir in vanilla and stir 30 seconds.
Pour microwaved mixture over dry mixture and incorporate evenly.
Pour into prepared pan. Press down to form an even layer.
Sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over top.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Remove from pan using parchment paper and cut into squares.

--From Source

Gluten-Free Almond Protein Bars

INGREDIENTS

1 cup almond butter (I used sunflower "peanut" butter, and if you do, don't be alarmed by the green color, that is just what happens with you bake the sunflower butter)
3 ounces vanilla plant-based protein powder (I used chocolate protein powder because we don't use vanilla)
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 eggs
2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
1 teaspoon baking soda

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-by-11-inch pan with cooking spray.
2. In a small bowl, use an electric mixer to mix almond butter, protein powder, and maple syrup. Beat in the eggs.
3. Stir in rolled oats, coconut, and baking soda, and mix well.
4. Firmly press stiff dough into the pan using the back of a spoon.
5. Bake for 12 minutes or until the top browns slightly.
6. Cool pan on a rack, cut into 18 squares, and store leftovers in an airtight container. --From source
1. 
2. Fried Mozzarella Sticks
3. String cheese and Lumpia Wraps is all you need.
4. Wrap a string cheese with the wrapper tight, and use a little coconut oil in a sauce pan to brown on all side or until the cheese is melted and starts to leak out of the wrapper. Serve with a side of dipping sauce, I just used marinara sauce. Enjoy!

Time flies when you have a toddler!

After having a crazy end to our summer with Briana, Ann-Marie, Austin, Aunt Megan and Craig visit us, things settled down...for a week or so!

In, August, we celebrated our second year anniversary <3 and Debbie, Zach's mom came from TX to stay with Haiden, while we left for Abita Springs, LA and spend a wonderfully, short, rainy anniversary! We stayed at the Abita Springs Bed and Breakfast, and ended up being the only couple there the entire weekend! Our first day out, we decided to check out a neighboring town before check in, so we antique shopped in Covington, LA. It was the cutest little town and we had a blast. Well I had a blast and Zach ended up having to drag me away so we could get to the B&B for check in. We also grabbed a couple cupcakes for dessert (I picked out a wedding cake one, which ended up being almond flavored cake, just like our wedding cake!) We got checked in and decided to order out, instead of trying to cook in the super tiny kitchen. We got some Cajun/Itlaiany food, set up the picnic blanket on the floor by the fire place (where we searched and searched two towns to find that fire wood is only sold in the cold season and not in August, when it's raining and we can't find anything dry and light and wanted a romantic dinner by a fire place); popped open some Perrine Winery wine (thanks mom and dad!) and left the door open with the rain pounding away outside, and it was perfect! We made a to-do list, read the journal of others who had stayed at the B&B, and went exploring. We had wanted to go fishing, but it was so rainy and muddy we didn't get to, and the walking trail was also too muddy...so we set out to town and found some drinks to have out at the pool, and as soon as it was dark, we rode the golf cart over to the pool! We ended up spending hours there. The rain made it magical, and the hot tub and pool were so amazingly picturesque, we never wanted to leave. We did swimming competitions, hand stand challenges, cannon balls off the hot tub into the pool, drank and laughed, and had the best time ever!! We head back to the cabin, to curl up and watch Pretty Little Liars, and fell fast asleep. The next morning we were so sore from the hours and hours of swimming we lazily checked out and headed to Abita Springs brewery. We stayed for the drinking part of the tour, where Zach sampled a few beers he'd been wanting to try and I sampled the root beer! Instead of waiting for the walking tour, where the group had grown from 10 people to easily 30 plus, we decided to head back home and relieve Debbie. We have decided we are going to do this again, and stay for longer next time, it was too short of a trip and just when we started to relax, we had to pack up and go home. But it was an anniversary to remember!

                  

 

 Zach bought this key chain, which I wear as a necklace for our anniversary at one of the antique shops in Covington! I wanted some skeleton keys, but this is something I wear on a frequent basis now, and it's my little Navy charm :) I love how Zach is in the Navy, but works on planes!! I love my Airman! 

In August, I started teaching my Go-Green class again, and am now on my second set of kids for the year! It is such a fun experience, I'm glad to be a part of. Zach and I also decided we wanted to start some kind of home-school for Haiden, since he is such a smarty pants, and also full of energy. So I talked with a friend, as she had mentioned wanting to get back into signing, since she had done some with her oldest when he was younger but has since stopped with the other two kiddos. Then came a new challenge and journey, of making lessons for a toddler, three year old and five year old! We started out with a 4-5 morning a week lesson idea, which proved to be too much for the kiddos and for us! So we are now doing a rough 3 days a week signing lesson, with some crafts and games mixed in. Each week we pick one letter of the alphabet and work on that letter signs, and the crafts and games also start with that letter. It has been so much fun seeing all the boys sign, and even her youngest (16 months now) has started using signs on a regular basis, but he also has a nap during school time, so these signs he has picked up from his older brothers and parents using them!! 

Haiden and the boys love each other so much! As soon as we pull up to their house, he says all their names and gets really excited about school! 

September was a slow month for us, it was Zach's birthday...where he finally broke down and admitted he's old. After three months of him harping on me for being old, he decided he didn't want to do anything for his birthday, so we didn't :/ I just now, in November made the cake I was planning on making him for his birthday as a really late surprise! He did however love his gifts, I gave him the Walking Dead graphic novel, first couple of volumes, and Haiden got him Despicable Me (which they both thoroughly enjoy watching together!) 

October brought a ton of joy! Haiden's Godmother and one of my besties and bride maid, eloped in St. Lucia! And they held their wedding reception the following week, in which I drove to TX to be a part of! I still give her hell for eloping and not having me as a brides maid! But they had a gorgeous wedding that everyone saw via pictures playing as a slide show at the reception, and had a crazy fun reception!  

Two weeks later, and the entire family was back in TX for a family reunion! We met up with one of my best friends, her kids, her parents and her sister, with her husband! They decided to come in for the A&M vs Auburn game, since we lived in College Station and her and her sister went to Auburn (I also spent time with them at Auburn, just not for schooling). It had been 2 years since I had seen her and her parents, and about 8 years since I last saw her sister! We had a blast!! The kids all took each other in as cousins, the adults all told stories of the crazy times back in the day, we got to catch up and meet the new addition to the family, a brother-in-law! Even Zach's mom was greeted as "grandma" by my friends kids! And it was like no time had passed at all. I attended the football game with my friend, her dad, my dad and her sister and husband! And oh what a game it was! Auburn pulled a win right at the end, where we had almost been ready to leave!! We all drank wine at Perrine Winery (since mom and dad still had to work during the visit), ate townie food, and then my friend and I hit the town, and the college bars, where we sat in a corner feeling old and singing to oldies, catching the attention of some "interesting" characters, and overall running into only 3 people we knew (well that I knew, since she was only in school with them for junior high and freshman year of high school, and I had grown up with them for a decade and a half). Zach also got his first tattoo!!! Rather, I bought him his first tattoo, as an anniversary gift that he had to wait two full months to get and was super excited about, therefore I had to hear about the excitement for two whole months! We definitely can't wait another two years with out seeing each other, I miss these guys and miss seeing my niece and nephew grow up! 

Meanwhile, these fun shenanigans where going on, the government shut down was happening. That meant, my parent's were off their full time government jobs, but still worked and operated the winery. Zach still had work like normal, and most of the extra things on base were closed. We had to go out in town for grocery shopping, but as far as things that affected us, that was it. Now everything is back to normal. 

Then before we knew it, Halloween was upon us! The night of Halloween, Zach and the neighbors hurry to put up decorations outside, while handing out candy. Haiden played with the neighbors boys, and cousins, waiting the get candy. After an hour or so of hanging out and handing out candy, we got Haiden into his Buzz Lightyear costume and headed around the neighborhood with the neighbors. I had already taken Haiden to the Magical Maze, where they set up a "maze" in the Community Center and have little stops, where story book/children's movie characters hand out candy; and he didn't get it. Haiden kept wanting to take the candy he was given and walk back to the character we had already passed, to give them the candy!! It was adorable, even if we did hold up the line. We had also taken Haiden on the Haunted Hay Ride, where adults were yelling profanities and kids were screaming...Haiden, laughed!! Yes, laughed! Which made everyone else laugh. One character scared Zach, as he walked right next to where Zach was sitting, but Zach was busy talking to me, so I said "look!" and as soon as he turned he screamed! It was priceless. Near the end of the ride, creepy music was playing, and Haiden, being Haiden, started to dance! Geez, only our kid would laugh and dance at demonic clowns and beheaded vampires! So when Trick-or-Treating came around, he wasn't scared of any of the costumes, maybe a tad bit leery of some of the costumes people giving out candy were wearing, but he still said "Thank you," after getting the candy. He didn't however realize you get your piece and move out of the way for others to get theirs. Instead, he would stand there just taking candy after candy, and toward the end, finally placing them in his bucket. Every one giving out candy was such a good sport, and they would just keep entertaining his notion of candy domination, with smiles on their faces! Haiden would even say "Buzz" and point to himself when people would say, " Hi, Buzz!" It was truly adorable and very rewarding as a parent, to see he has retained his manners, and confusion during Trick-or-Treating! 

My sister also came to visit in October! It had been months since I or anyone had seen her. She had spent the last 5 months in the Adirondacks, in New York, building park trails, removing debris from trails, building bridges and all sorts of things...but for five long months! We had little to no contact with her the entire time, because she was so far out in the wilderness, it was an awesome surprise for her to stop by on her way home and see us and hug and kiss Haiden! It was a short visit but we tried to make the most of it, and we did! We made her karaoke every song with us when we went out one night! She and I both lost our voices, but we all had a blast! She even met some bearded guys that reminded her of her wilderness friends.

Right after Halloween, one of my friends from Ohio, now Chicago, came to visit! It's been years since I've seen him, but we've always had fun visits. After I left Ohio, he visited and while I worked, he went sight-seeing all over TX. Then I visited Ohio, and he drove me all over to my old stomping grounds, and now like four years later his girlfriends cousin wanted to party up NOLA for her 21st! I got to meet up with them one night for a Bourbon night with one of my girl friends, and the next day I took Haiden downtown to visit one on one with him, and we walked all over the outskirts of downtown while the girls got changed and ready for another night out. The last night they were here Zach and I managed to get out without Haiden, and met up with the gang, once again on Bourbon, and we all (with the exception of Zach) rode a mechanical bull!! We were all sore for daaaaays!!! I will never do it again, but it was fun to do just once. And again, it was another short visit, but it was so fun, and Zach finally got to meet one of my Ohio peeps!!!!! 

Met a Seahawks player! 

Thinking of Haiden, even when I'm out :) 

Thinking of my sister and her wilderness ways!

Over all these last few months have been crazy, and full of friends and family! I'm looking forward to some changes with our family soon, and more news on that when we know more details. I'm so happy for my friends who are finally married, and our closed friends of both Zach and I, are our married friends!! Also, one of my besties made a giant move, and is now living in Cali with her boyfriend. She finally got a job out there so now, after 4 years they are finally in the same city and state! It was super fast and I'm bummed we didn't get to say goodbye, but I'm so happy for her and all this new en devour brings! As a family, we are trying to get a little more organized, still! I have found a love for mason jars, and have been putting anything and everything I can make in them. So I'm back on the cooking track after taking a much needed two weeks off of actually planning and making anything, Zach was great and made us some awesome meals though. 

Haiden is growing like a weed! He is copying everything we say, and I mean EVERYthing! He is stringing two and even three words together. He now is getting all of his teeth, and has a tendency to be miserable, but I'm happy we are finally there and his teeth are here! He has a total of 7! Yes only 7, but 8 is almost all the way out of his gums and he has more coming in. He is running and playing like a pro, he will even go down the slide on the play ground all by himself! When just a month ago, he was terrified to even climb the first step. He is a stair master now, and climbs them like a big boy, trying to hold the railing the entire way! We've also gone up two shoe sizes in the last couple of months. I bought a pair of shoes for him and two weeks later he had out grown them!! He is a Sasquatch just like his mommy and daddy :) 

I can't wait for Thanksgiving, and all the fun and joy that will bring! I hope everyone else is living life to its fullest and enjoying every minute! Here's to the next few months and more updates <3