Week 49: Keeping Warm and Bubbly

What's new?

A little, local craft brew tasting of FreeState ales (Lawrence, KS), perhaps? New artwork from an AMAZING (somewhat local) photographer that I stalked found on Etsy? Maybe a delicious new chicken tortilla soup crockpot recipe. Week 49 was all dangerous. That's right, folks. We like to live on the edge. As I find myself smack-dab in the middle of replacing light bulbs, cleaning fan blades, and scrubbing baseboards for our pre move-out special/ my-son-is-napping-so-must-take-full-advantage-of-this-time, I will leave it at this:

1. I have 2 friends here who wanted to commemorate their time in Kansas with some form of bison art, and I loved that idea. In my search of Midwest photographers, I found this extremely talented, Iowa native on Etsy. Please check out Scott Fairbairn Photography, should you have the time. The photo in the top left of my new things collage is a photo of his photo, which I plan on framing and find particularly stunning. I love these creatures, but this photo captured such a beautiful moment of pure texture and humility. 

2. FreeState! Ad Astra is a gorgeous, rich amber ale that I think my husband is going to fall in love with when he gets home and tries this! Unfortunately, I can only find this in a sampler pack. I would love it if I could just purchase the Ad Astra! Copperhead Pale Ale...well, friends, as I have mentioned before on this blog, I am not a fan of hoppy beers. This wasn't too obnoxiously-hoppy, but one was enough and the other 2 in the pack are going to my neighbor. And there you have it: My ultra-sophisticated tasting notes. Try to control your excitement. One item of interest is that Lawrence is only 45 minutes east and south of Fort Leavenworth, and FreeState was the first legal brewery in the State of Kansas.

3. Crockpot Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe...so my friend Adrian shared this recipe with me but did not provide a source. I am not sure if this is her original or not, but it was delicious!! I made quite a few changes only because I am trying to use up the stuff in my freezer/cupboard before we move! My recipe tweaks are in (italics).

Chicken Tortilla Soup (for crockpot)
2-3 chicken breasts (used 3 turkey burger patties)
2 cans black beans
2 cans stewed tomatoes (used 2 cups fresh tomatoes)
1 can green chiles (used 1 bottle of sweet chili sauce)
1 C salsa (omitted)
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 C frozen corn
1-2 garlic cloves (used 5)
1/2 TBS chili powder
1/2 onion, chopped (did not have onion, but added 2 cups carrots, which is totally the same)
2 TBS lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp cumin (used about 4 TBS because I love cumin so much I want to marry it)
(also added 4 C chicken broth, and lots of black pepper)

Put all ingredients in crockpot (I did mine on the high setting) for 5-6 hours. Break up meat with a fork (I chopped mine) before serving. Add tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sour cream, and/or cilantro to each bowl before serving.       

Week 45: Quality Time

Keeping it short and sweet this week. 

Plenty of Week 45 Newness to report, hailing from the great Pacific Northwest, 

of which I am not ready to leave...

• New local tea shop: Ruby Sue's Tea Shop (La Connor, WA) on a momma-daughter date with my Momma! Cute, local tea shoppe with a legitimate variety of really nice teas (which they seemed really knowledgeable of),  rather than posing as a tea shop and mostly selling over-priced, kitschy gift shop items like many do. 

• New Beer: Interurban IPA (Fremont Brewing Co). Shared a big bottle of this with my little brother to celebrate the arrival of his first baby and his amazing construction work on the restoration of his old house, just in time :) His sweet little baby, #7 of the nephews-only clan, has some of the longest fingers on a baby that I have ever seen, and he is already a self-soother and a seemingly patient little fellow, much like his mom and dad. Oh yeah, and the beer - Well, I am not much for IPAs because all I can taste is a bottle of perfume, but this one was well-received, sipped while watching a sleeping baby. Next time I have an IPA, I have decided there must also be a sleeping baby in the room.

• Old movies (with my Dad, of course): Stagecoach and Sargent York. Loved them both, especially Sargent York, which is a true and very sweet story of a hero who never had any intention of fulfilling such roles. Beautiful story. 

• New book - The Hit by David Baldacci: Gratuitous grocery store thriller of 2 snipers trying to outsmart each other and therefore kill each other. Entertaining...not necessarily award-winning literature, but the perfect book for 20 minute specks of reading time throughout the day :)  

Week 42: A Jolly Good Time

What's new?

"Good soup is one of the prime ingredients of good living. For soup can do more to lift the spirits and stimulate the appetite than any other one dish." 

-Louis P. De Gouy, "The Soup Book" (1949)

Thank you, to my friend Emily, for the wonderful butternut squash recipes AND for harping on me about getting a slow-cooker, in Week 42! I have used it twice already, and I just adore this kitchen gadget. I ended up getting the large one with the ceramic insert, which is cool because I can make big batches of freeze-ahead meals or a pot roast, if I choose. It's all dangerous and a huge timesaver. This one also came with a dip warmer insert, which Ted will love for his queso habit. Since I am deliberately meat-free 3 nights a week now ("deliberate" implies that I am talking about legitimate, nutritious vegetarian food, not chips and salsa because I was lazy), the first slow-cooker recipe I tried was the coconut-butternut crockpot soup recipe from Superhealthykids.com. I basically used this recipe as more of an inspirational springboard because I ended up using an acorn squash rather than a sweet potato, adding 2 cups of baby portabella mushrooms, an apple, garlic, 2 TBS more of cumin, cinnamon, lots of black pepper, and I omitted coconut flakes (though I did use lite coconut milk). The end product was extremely rich and earthy, with more of a cream-of-mushroom meets butternut squash and cumin flavor to it than anything. 5/5 stars from this mushroom fan, and if you've always wanted to be a mushroom lover but don't like the texture, I recommend them this way (crockpot + puree = soup). This made about 12 servings. 

Other Week 42 Newness:

• New beer! I haven't tried a new beer in so long! The sadness! And, to make matters even worse, my favorite kind of beer is a good porter, which I have not had in about 1.5 years. It's one of those things...I guess you could say "trigger food" although beer isn't really a food...But it's one of those things that used to be a larger part of my life when I was chubby, much like a lot of homemade yeast breads and pasta and rich cheeses :) mmmm....rich cheeses.....Cutthroat Porter from Odell Brewing Co out of Ft Collins (CO) was good! I thought it had a very strong coffee aftertaste, which I like, but it wasn't as sweet as some of the more chocolaty porters, if you happen to have a preference. I would have it again, though it is nowhere close to replacing my 1st favorite (Mac and Jacks Porter, Redmond, WA) or 2nd favorite (Black Butte Porter, Bend, OR). I forget how expensive some things like this are here in KS (craft brews). Pacific Northwesterners are spoiled. That's all there is to it.

• Wonderscope Children's Museum. I liked it okay, but it wasn't as neat as some of the other museums and discovery/learning centers we have been to in Kansas and Missouri. Henry had a GREAT time, but I think my bottom-line rating for this place is, I am glad we checked this off of our list, but we won't go back unless we are in the area of Shawnee, KS :) I am sure that if we lived there, we would love it. However, if I am going to drive that far, I would just as soon drive to the Kansas Children's Discovery Center out in Lawrence, KS or the Patee House Museum up in St Joseph, MO or the Overland Park Botanical Gardens or Ernie Miller Nature Center...We have been so spoiled with amazing learning opportunities in our midst, and I love exploring them all with Henry! 3/5 stars for Wonderscope :) 

Week 22: Happy Dinosaurs

What's New?

We fully lived each and every moment of Ted's week-long, pre-deployment visit in Week 22, on top of which, he let me win at Scrabble. Just kidding. If you think for a second either of us would ever let the other one win at Scrabble, you totally have the wrong idea regarding the level of competitiveness in this household :) Buuut, I am pretty sure I won with a word that I misspelled, and he initially questioned it, but at the risk of losing his turn should he end up wrong (I was 99% sure of my spelling), took the chance. The word was "Ouija", which I had incorrectly spelled, "O-u-j-a-i". But what a great way to use your J (8 points!) on a double or triple letter block! 

Aside from Scrabble, puzzles and stories with our Buddy, and 99 bottles of delicious and nutritious beer on the wall (to wash down all of the BBQ we consumed), we just enjoyed each others' company and had lots of cuddle time and outside time with our Henry dinosaur. By the way, our level of dinosaur knowledge, in general, is insane right now. Ask us anything about the Cretaceous period, or rather, ask Henry. He would be happy to explain it all to you, which is good because I am pretty sure some of that is going to be on my Praxis exam in July. 

Ted and I also managed to squeeze in a wonderfully long date night at The Majestic, which is a delicious steakhouse and jazz club located in downtown Kansas City. This place had come highly-recommended by some dear friends and acquaintances alike, so we had to try it out! Though it was recommended that we get a seat downstairs, in the club, we actually opted to sit upstairs, in the main dining area, next to the beautiful bar and the jazz pianist. It was a little more open and airy, which was a plus for us. We experienced wonderful service, and any server who is willing to talk about the marbling and aging in steaks for 20 minutes had me at hello. I recommend trying one of their prohibitionist era cocktails :) Also, I am 99% sure that after a week of partying with my husband and 2.5-year old, I can no longer fit into the dress I wore for this date night :)

Ah well. I love that man so much I want to marry him. Good thing I did :)

Other Week 22 newness:

• Discovery of the most beautiful running trail ever, which I got to run sans jogging stroller while Ted and Henry went for a hike on a nearby nature trail (the one I ran was paved). From what I could tell, it was pretty non-creeper, but I would still carry mace just because I will mace your face! :) Thanks to my Lover, who showed me where this was. 

• T-Rex Cafe in Kansas City. We sat under Pachycephalosaurus and had a view of Parasaurolophous and the jelly fish forest. AND we sat by the aquarium. Overstimulating just a teensy. Good food! Best timing ever for a 2.5-year old obsessed with dinosaurs, but still a bit scary because they do a simulated meteor shower every 30 minutes and all of the animals roar, tweet, or buzz all at once. A solid 5/5 stars for us!!

• Ted and I tried 2 new beers from Boulevard: Long Strange Tripel and The Sixth Glass. Ted is a harder sell on new beer than I am, but he said he liked them both. I loved The Sixth Glass for the light molasses aftertaste and cannot wait to have it again. It has all of the flavor of a good, dark beer but with a light body. I think these Belgian dark ale finds are slowly but surely becoming my little beer treasures in life. Not the easiest to find, but I always like them. Long Strange was meh. It was good. Nothing to write home about, but then, you are reading beer notes from a gal who still likes Budweiser with her barbeque. What do I know? :)

• I finally perfected one of my favorite comfort foods of all time and one of 3 things that my Dad knows how to make: Cocoa Quickies. This is more like a candy than a cookie, which means it requires precision, patience, and exact ingredients. I had to finally just call my Dad because of course I kept screwing it up so badly. The key ingredient? Nestle Quick Cocoa. Yes. It has to be the one with the bunny :) And the key technique? Cook 3-4 minutes AFTER you bring it to a boil, otherwise it will be gummy!   

Here is the recipe for my Dad's Cocoa Quickies: 2C white sugar, 1/2C butter, 1/2C Nestle Quick, 1/2C milk, 3C oats, 1 tsp vanilla. Mix all in saucepan. Quickly bring to a full, rolling boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook 3-4 minutes. Take off heat and add oats. Drop onto waxed paper until they harden. "You will know immediately if you did it right or not." (my dad)

Week 21: Tornados, Tiger Tails, and Those We Love

What's New?

In Week 21, I received a phone call from my Dad asking if we were in our basement. No, I responded, we just got home from a run. Laughter. "There's a tornado watch in effect in your area," he explains. "Yes, Dad. I know. But we ran in between watches." Twenty minutes later, our power was out, and wind gusts were strong enough to throw our neighbors' yard trampolines across Post and to knock a person over. And those are just wind gusts. We experienced our first real tornado watch.

We are relatively prepared for minor things such as power outages in our area, and for this, I am thankful. Flashlights, candles, propane stove, blankets, changes of clothes and water/food/medicines...We would be okay for a few days. Residents of our area were told to watch the skies for hail and a "greenish" tint. Henry and I made hot cocoa and curled up in a blanket and sent texts back and forth to my Husband and Siblings/Parents. Henry was getting over a quick but nasty flu virus, and honestly, my worrying had been so great over that incident, that the tornado watch seemed somewhat insignificant in comparison. I just hugged him and smiled at his 2.5-year-old curiosity about what thunder and lightening and flashlights were. 

The next day, we turned on the news to hear and see the tragic outcome of the tornado in Moore, Oklahoma. Feelings of helplessness and grief washed over us all. As insignificant as it may be, here is the link to the Red Cross if anyone reading this feels lead to help out in a small way. 

Hug your loved ones, and maybe even your acquaintances, once in a while.    

Newness for Week 21:

• Tried out Weston Brewery on a momma's-only lunch date with a girlfriend. The Drop-Kick Ale (which I had never tried from there) was delicious, comparable to a nutty amber such as Fat Tire, but better. We enjoyed delicious burgers and spicy fries on the patio - I will definitely be returning! Very kid and family friendly, which is always a plus. 

• Tiger Tail Rolling Muscle Massager! WHY is this just now in my house?! A-MAZING. I have been rolling it over my feet, my ridiculously tight IT bands, and my hip flexors. I basically just want to marry it. 

• Discovery of a great new blog: Silly Eagle Books. The author of this blog is a friend of a dear friend, who recommended this site to me. She reviews children's fiction and discusses related projects that she does with her kids, who are home-schooled. It is not a cheesy crafting site where they paint egg cartons and glue googly eyes onto toilet paper rolls! It is very legit with some meat on its bones, if you know what I'm getting at :) Check it out! You will love it even if you don't have children!

• Guess who came home (for a whole week!) during Week 21?! Our Other Third!! We are sooo excited. We have missed him greatly these past couple of weeks.  

Week 13: A New Poem, Friend Dating and the No Nap Zone

New in Week 13? First, some new poetry:

little, muddy shoes lay strewn across 
the kitchen floor like sleeping kittens
whose bellies bulge from too much milk.
when they wake, clods of dirt will
my shadow, be.
I am grounded by it - the sound
of pitter-patter 
-Becca, 2013 (allbrandnewin52.blogspot.com)

There are many new things to report on this week. First, I might as well tell you all that we are dating again, and it is going very well! Henry and I have met some keepers :) Yep, back in the saddle, as they say. You think friend dating is different than romantic dating? Think again. It is a natural part of life if you ever relocate, start or end a job, quit drinking, start drinking, get married or divorced, have kids, or experience any other major change of life, it seems. And friend dating now, I am more picky; I know what I want. I love being sociable, but not to the point where I will just hang out with anyone because they are a warm body. I have recently realized that I want the same thing that I wanted when I met my Husband: A bonafide, normal person without hangups, who doesn't try to one-up you but who, instead, makes you want to be a better person in some way. Negative people, victims, drama queens, multiple personality disorder...you need not apply. I was talking to M about this the other day, and she also brought up the good point that how they treat/discipline their own kids becomes a factor - So true. I have a large amount of respect for moms who correct their children in public places - Moms who are paying attention and not just letting their kids run rampant through the streets, screaming their heads off at 1am...ahem...

I have the best collection of friends a person could ask for, but it is nice to have in-the-flesh folks who you can go on a walk with or saunter into their house and their dog attack-licks you and coffee is ready in a steaming mug of hello how are you and no one blinks twice about the fact that the kids are still in their pajamas at 2pm. And those are the rare ones (or the ones who have moved/are soon-to-be moving, booo!).    

Week 13 represents the 25% milestone! Yes, friends, we are a quarter of the way through 52 :) Here are the new things we did to celebrate:  

• went on a blind friend date and loved both mom and sons

• went to a new playgroup at a new library outside of town

• tried 3 new recipes (red lentil curry, orzo salad, and stuffed cherry tomatoes), all of which I would make again, though I have decided lentils are never as good as they are the second day. Fact.

• went to a new local farm to buy fresh goat milk (Screamin' Oaks in Tonganoxie)

• tried a new mom and pop cafe with blueberry pancakes as big as your head (Mirth Cafe Too) 

• experienced a snow-storm in mid-March

• began 2 new crochet projects, one of which is for ME (a big-time first!!!)

• treated myself to a new pair of DKNY Bermuda skinny shorts, my wardrobe for spring :)

• Henry decided to give up napping. This may be a phase or a new routine, but for the past 2 weeks, he has only gone down a couple of times. He lays in his room and reads his books for about 45 minutes and then gets up. He also is sleeping much longer at night, so I really have nothing to complain about. But I'd be lying if I said this was not an initial shock to the system (in week 13, mommy drank a LOT of wine...)

• tried a new beer! Sofie Belgian Ale 2012 (thank you, M!) It was citrus, honey-cream, and very ripe banana, which was not overpowering due to the very strong, tangy lime overtones. I thought it was good by itself and would have it again.  

• We received a very sweet Easter care package from Daddy this week...complete with Chuck the Truck stickerbook, a steamroller playdough set, and Godiva chocolates :) Best package ever.

Week 7: Mermaids and Talking to the Ocean

Week 7 has been a busy and wonderful week in San Diego! We have had great fun visiting our old stomping grounds and have tried many new things. Ted has been working very hard getting his crew ready to pass inspections for their upcoming deployment and fitting in quality family time with us while we are here. Of course, we wish we could see more of him, but I cannot be sad about being able to get in quality girl time and conversations with my best friends and my son, every day! One of my favorite new things that we did this week was just sit on the beach and watch the waves crash against the sand (Henry and I). He seems to love doing this as much as running in the sand, and one day he just plopped down and I sat down next to him, and we began telling our story of the little boy who talks to the ocean. This may top my favorite Henry memory list :) What an amazing son I have. 

Other new things we did or tried in Week 7:

• A new beer! Coronado Brewing Co. Mermaid's Red Amber Ale: Ted did not care for this because it was too hoppy and therefore too much like an IPA and unlike his favorite nutty ambers that teeter on being brown ales (in my opinion). I normally dislike IPAs as well because they taste like perfume, but I have to say, I liked how they did this. Even though it was hoppy, it had just enough of a fruity twist to overpower the floral notes, and what I ended up getting was something along the lines of peach and rose petal hues. I actually liked it, which is weird because I normally do not like any hint of fruit or floral in my beer, whatsoever. I guess this is a great example of how complex craft beers can be and why one should continue to try new things :)

• Balboa Park Science Center: One of my girlfriends here has a daughter Henry's age, so we took them to the upstairs area of the IMAX Science Center, where they have this great play/discovery room for kiddos under 5. We've done a couple of things like this before with Henry, and he seemed to be a little overwhelmed and overstimulated, and it wasn't all that fun. So, I was really happy that he had such a great time here and wanted to stay and explore all of the activities. He is at the perfect age for this stuff at this point, but up until this point, I really don't think he has been. Every kid is so different! I love spending time with other kids his age and noticing all of the diversity in 2-year olds.

• 1-20: Henry can now count to 20, which is cool, but the concept of "how many" doesn't necessarily have anything to do with being able to count. For example, if I ask him how many feet he has, he may count to 2 or 4, depending on his mood :) He also seems to have a good memory for numbers such as street addresses and such. 

• The Little Red Caboose: We got a new book, and he loves reading it to us, which is also a new thing (him reading to us). He is a very good memorizer. Future botanist? :)

• I finished a crochet project (that was a fast one!)...

• I think I have officially decided what I am going to do when I grow up (what I am going to do for a career when Henry starts pre-school when we move to Northern Virginia next year). I've known I was not going to go back to being a field biologist or a consultant since I left my job. I thought for a long time about going for my Master's in Occupational Therapy and teaching people how to do the small things that will empower them to live their lives again after they've been in accidents. I've also thought about getting my teaching credential and teaching biology and/or earth science at the Jr High level. I've been thinking heavily about this all year, and I think I am going to teach. When I was interning after college, I got a lot of opportunity to teach environmental science projects to kids of all ages, but Jr High was my favorite, and having strong female role models in the science community is a topic that is becoming more and more important to me the older I get. I think it would be fun because I have 10 years of experience working in the field and could (hopefully) transfer that passion of nature and of science to kids. The idea of being a substitute teacher for a while also appeals to me because I could get teaching experience while still being able to be there for my family in the way that I would like to be. I haven't really talked to a lot of people about any of this, so if any of this comes as a shock to anyone, hopefully it is a good shock :) 

          Climb aboard, explorers!! :)