Somethings Missing...

Since I've started night school something has been missing from my evenings, oh yeah - dinner. I get off work at 3:30, pick Tyler up from the Boys and Girls Club, get home around 4, attempt homework with Tyler, leave for school at 5, get home almost at 8, get Tyler to bed, do MY homework, and then hit the hay. I hardly think about my forgotten meal until the hunger pangs hit me in the a.m. (5:30 a.m. to be exact).

My solution to no time for hot meals is to drink my dinner instead. I decided to start with a healthy green kale, spinach, pear smoothie. Sound good? It was an interesting concoction but the healthy rewards are blog worthy. Kale and spinach are rich in folic acid, fiber, protein, and consumption is recommended daily. This drink will satisfy you longer, stabilize blood sugar, and promote a better mood - all 3 are much needed for me. I've listed the recipe below, give it a try :)

1 heaping cup spinach leaves

1 heaping cup chopped kale leaves

1/2 pear

1 frozen banana

1 1/2 cups cold almond milk (or soy milk or orange juice)

1 tablespoon honey

Remove kale leaves from their rough center stalk and coarsely chop. In a blender, combine kale spinach and almond milk. Blend until no big kale bits remain. Stop blender and add banana honey and pear. Blend until smooth.

Compliments of Joy the Baker

Homemade Baby Shower Gifts

For my sisters baby shower I wanted to make some of the gifts. I decided to make a little play blanket and some flower clips. I didn't take any pictures of the flower clips but I'm sure you all know what they look like - black, purple, and white flowers with rhinestones, the end.

The blanket however, took more thought and time. I got the idea from a friend who had made one for her daughter, her tutorial is HERE. I made the ribbons 4 inches instead of 2 inches and I also sewed a baby wipe bag in the middle to add that crinkle feel - we all know babies love textures! I added some toys (from Walmart) around the blanket and there is still plenty of room for my sister to add more. Hopefully the little darling likes it!

A Little Lady Is On Her Way

Today my mother and I threw my sister Heather a baby shower. Our theme was pink. She is due February 28th with her first child and we couldn't be more excited for her. As you can guess she is having a little lady and she has yet to be named. Tyler, my son, refers to her as "Question Mark". Here are some pictures of "Question Marks" first party.

The Decorations:

I spent my breaks at work making all these pom-poms!

Cute little clothes line of newborn onzies!

The Food:

The belly cake made by yours truly:

I wanted to frost "bye bye tummy hello mummy" on the top of the cutting board but I didn't have room. So instead I just typed up a sign.

The Presents:

The Games:

In this game you had to guess what mommy wants for her soon-to-be lady. Does she want her to have the attribute of mommy or daddy?

Everybody loves a good game of BINGO right? I like this one because you are forced to pay attention to mommy opening her gifts.

Here I am with the mommy-to-be! One more month!

Throw away a BOOK?!?

That was my response to Deke when he suggested I throw away this book while re-organizing our bookshelf. I have a passion for reading and I cherish the books that I have accumulated over the years and he wants me to throw one away?!?

Apparently Deke was talked into purchasing this book from a co-worker and after reading a few pages completely lost interest. He claimed he would never pick it up again and didn't want it wasting space on our bookshelf. OK, I agree we shouldn't keep books we don't want but I was having a hard time considering just tossing it.

So instead.......

I decided to make a craft out of it!

4 hours, 5 glue sticks, and about 50 burns later I had this masterpiece to place beautifully beside my beloved bookshelf! I found this AWESOME book wreath tutorial HERE.

I think its very complimenting next to the bookshelf, wouldn't you agree?

The only thing I changed in the tutorial was to add the long black ribbon in opposed to her short loop. I think the long ribbon added some class!

Ohhh it feels good to be resourceful!

A basket of flowers

A friend of mine asked if I'd make a cake for her mothers birthday. She said she wanted chocolate and flowers, here's what I came up with: a loosely woven basket weave topped with yellow and pink roses.. on a chocolate cake of course.

Does it look like it took forever? Well it did but not as long as it would of taken if I didn't have such a wonderful, helpful, and talented husband to help me make all those roses. He made the pink and I made the yellow. I am always so grateful for his help.

Treasure find

Today Deke and I went to a few Estate Sales that were in Cameron Park. I love browsing through other peoples stuff and finding little (or big) treasures. I found this cute retired Alice and Wonderland snow-globe and I couldn't be more excited about it. For anyone who knows me knows that I was OBSESSED with Alice and Wonderland when I was a child. So much in fact that I changed my name to Alice (my family still teases me about that). It was also a childhood dream to get a job as an Alice character at Disney Land. So when I found this snow-globe I knew I had to have it. I thought it was kinda pricey at $25 but got it anyways then came home and found it on ebay for $100! I don't plan on selling it but it made me feel better about the price I paid :)

Deke found a few treasures too. He got a collectors edition of The Adventures of Robin Hood, a book on Abraham Lincoln, and a Johnny Cash vinyl record set (he collects vinyl), all for only $6! Their trash our treasure :)

Noodle Legs

For FHE this past Monday we finally fulfilled our yearly tradition of going ice skating. Tyler had been bugging me for weeks to take him but I kept putting it off because its SO dang expensive. Deke and Tyler both suggested we buy our own skates so we can at least avoid the rental cost every year. I think I'll be spending my time on craigslist looking for good deals before next years outing! Who knows, maybe with our own skates we'll feel like going more than once a year :)

I told Tyler that he has "noodle legs". Every time he tried skating without help his legs wiggle and wobble all over the place! Its pretty funny.

It looks like Deke is about to take a nasty fall right here but in fact he was attempting to skate on one leg.

A New Years Eve Tradition

For as long as I can remember its been a family tradition to make egg rolls on New Years Eve. All the other appetizers and entrées have varied but one thing has always remained consistent, homemade egg rolls. I've had egg rolls in many different restaurants but none will ever compare to these egg rolls. Maybe it has something to do with the fact my dad served his mission in Taiwan and is now a master chef in Chinese cuisine? I don't know, but if you think you've tasted the best egg rolls put me to the test and make these! They will rock your socks off!

Prepare the following:

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 large onion (we always put it in the food processor to avoid crying)

1 cup celery (also put in food processor)

1 pound cooked ham cut into matchstick pieces

1/2 cup sliced bamboo shoots also cut into matchstick pieces

2 cups of finely shredded cabbage (food processor)

Combine:

1 tablespoon cornstarch, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, and 1 tablespoon of dry sherry. set aside.

Directions:

Heat wok or wide frying pan over high heat. When pan is hot, add 2 tablespoons of salad oil. When oil begins to heat, add garlic and ginger. Stir once, then add onion and celery and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add ham, bamboo shoots, and cabbage; stir-fry for 2 minutes. Stir cornstarch mixture once, add to pan, and cook, stirring until sauce bubbles and thickens.

Once mixture has cooled down prepare the wraps for frying.

You can find egg roll wrappers at most grocery stores

How to roll egg rolls:

Below this picture shows the beginning process for rolling. You start by placing 1 large tablespoon of the mixture near bottom of the wrap. Roll once, then tuck in the sides, roll once more, then apply water to the top point. The water acts as your glue and now roll once more to complete the roll.

Sauce:

In a pan combine 1 tablespoon cornstarch, 3 tablespoons each sugar and wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon each soy sauce and chili powder, dash of ground red pepper (cayenne) and 1/2 cup chicken broth. Cook, stirring until thickens. Let cool.

ENJOY!