This post is for all the moms out there. When I read this little paragraph from Love Adds a Little Chocolate by Linda Andersen, I couldn’t help but think of my girls and my mom:
Duty can pack an adequate sack lunch, but love may decide to enclose a little love note inside… Obligation sends the children to bed on time, but love tucks the covers in around their necks and passes out kisses and hugs (even to teenagers!)… Duty gets offended quickly if it isn’t appreciated, but love learns to laugh a lot and to work for the sheer joy of doing it. Obligation can pour a glass of milk, but quite often, love adds a little chocolate.
My mom taught me to sew, bake, decorate cakes, craft, and just go a little above and beyond to make things a little more special. Without my mom, this blog wouldn’t have happened—I’d channel my inner (and outer) geek and you’d probably be reading about tips for programming some jiggamawizzers or whositwhatsits. :)
Happy Mother’s day to all the moms who make life sweet! And to those who want to add a little more chocolate in their lives, here’s a super-easy chocolate syrup recipe for you:
Easy Chocolate Syrup
Total time 10 minutes. Makes about 1-3/4 cups.
Ingredients
3/4 c Water
3/4 c Sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 c Cocoa Powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
In a small saucepan combine sugar and water and heat until boiling and sugar is dissolved. Add salt and cocoa powder and whisk until thickened. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla.
Great for milk (obviously), ice cream, and many other things!
This post is long-overdue. The awesomely talented, Katie Gaines of Love Paper Paint contacted me over a month ago to make bride and groom cookies for her client who was having a wedding at the end of March. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity . First of all, to pair my cookies with the Katie’s work is such an honor. Second, it’s a cookie design that I haven’t made before and I always like a new cookie project. A few ideas were swapped and then I was given free reign on cookies for a sapphire blue and silver wedding.
The inspiration photo that was initially sent had a groom’s tux that was the shape of a tiered wedding cake. I thought it was unfortunate how the bride’s gown had more attention than the groom’s tux. So I went to the baking supply store and found a “sports jersey” cookie cutter. It worked out perfectly for a “tux jacket” shape.
I had royal icing left over from another cookie project and spent an evening piping out blue ribbon rose drageés to accent the jacket and dress.
Here they are, ready to be delivered. Of course, the bride’s dress had to have a little sparkle so I used Pixie Dust to give it a bit of shimmer.
Thank you, Katie for giving me the opportunity to work on these cookies! For those of you who need any custom paint work or over-the-top invitations, announcements, or stationary, contact Katie at Love Paper Paint. She does exceptional work!
I’m jumping on the bandwagon of freezer meals. Yes, I’ve made stock and brine in the past and have frozen them for later use. But I haven’t really had ready-to-go meals at my fingertips in the freezer.
My life has slowly been slipping to disarray with fundraisers to chair, meetings to plan, kids to keep up with, work to be done and not to mention house work… and how it doesn’t get done. Come 5pm, I realize it’s close to dinner and have NOTHING in mind to cook. We stock frozen meats and vegetables in the freezer but I think about thawing those meats a bit too late in time for dinner. So somehow we end up eating something to the effect of, “refrigerator surprise.”
I seriously feel like I’m on an episode of “Chopped” sometimes:
“Your ingredients: mustard, onions, cheese. You have 30 minutes to make an entree (that your family will eat) and your time starts….. NOW.”
Seriously.
I’m sorry to say it’s like that more often than not these days. I used to be one to “cook from scratch.” It’s how I was raised – I was never used jarred pasta sauce until I became a mom and grabbed one out of convenience and curiosity. When it came to casseroles, I’d whip up a roux and add milk and nutmeg to make a cream sauce. Now, I’ve resorted to opening a can of ”cream of whatever” if I had one in the pantry. I do keep fresh onions and garlic on hand, though. They have a pretty good shelf life.
About a month ago I did a bit of research and started making a list of meals to stock in the freezer. I don’t have a lot of room, plus I need room to freeze sugar cookies before I bake them so my list is small. Some people set aside a good part of their day to dedicate to freezer meals. With my schedule it’s hard for me to do. So instead, I’d make 2 entrees with similar ingredients for dinner at once, then freezing the one that’s not on the menu for the evening. It seems to work out. I have used a few meals already. I mostly need them for the days that the girls have evening swim lessons since we get back at dinner time. It’s a lifesaver.
I got a few recipes from What’s Cookin’ Chicago (which I found on Pinterest). I also converted some of the dishes I make into freezer meals. The key is to label, label, label! This includes cooking instructions.
Here are a few things I’ve made:
Honey Dijon Pork Chops – See the label and instructions? This was super easy. Sear the salt and peppered pork chops, place them in the bag and then add the marinade of honey and dijon.
Lasagna - I didn’t have those oven-proof storage containers. So I lined a 9×13 pan with foil and froze the lasagna (w/pasta sheets uncooked). Once fully frozen I popped it out of the pan, and re-wrapped it in more foil for storage. This freed up my pan for other uses. When you bake it, remove the outer foil and put it back in the pan with the original “liner.” I sprayed a piece of the “outer-wrapping” foil with cooking spray and covered the lasagna to bake. It makes for an easy clean up, too.
Cookie Dough – I scooped out the dough and froze them on a baking sheet, then placed them in a freezer container. This was great since it makes a quick treat or dessert. We’d start dinner and I would set the oven to preheat while the frozen dough was sitting out on a cookie sheet. Once it’s in the oven, it’s finished at about the same time we finish dinner, making for fresh-baked cookies for dessert!
Cinnamon Rolls – This is another Pinterest find. I used Ree Drummond’s recipe (minus the maple icing) since it makes a lot. I froze the rolls individually on a silicone cookie sheet then popped them in a freezer bag. I can see making the icing as well and dividing them into smaller bags to freeze. To prep for baking, I set these out to thaw overnight with a wet towel covering it. I would get up for my morning run, throw the uncovered/thawed rolls in the oven and set the timer to bake for 18 minutes. (Yeah, yeah – the instructions on the bag aren’t clear. It looks like you’d thaw overnight in oven at 375. Don’t judge. Hey, but at least I understand it.)
Crepes – The kids would ask for crepes, and it’s hard to make just a small batch. I stored the extra crepes with a piece of parchment on the top and bottom of the stack and placed them in a freezer bag. You can stack them in batches that would suit your family so you don’t have to thaw the whole bag to use it. So for my family, I’d separate the crepes into 8 (2 per person).
Things I didn’t have photos of:
Pizza Dough – Pizza dough is ridiculously easy to make—if you have the time. Most recipes make enough for 2 pizzas. To store, coat the extra dough in a little bit of olive oil and wrap it with plastic wrap then place in a freezer bag.
Chicken and Spinach Stuffed Shells - I used the same method of lining my 9×9 pan with foil and freezing. The shells were cooked to al dente before they were stuffed.
Dad’s Chicken Afritada – This is a Filipino dish comprised of chicken, onion, bell peppers, and potatoes cooked in a tomato sauce (seasoned with bay leaf and fish sauce). I cooked the chicken and simmered it in the sauce. I left the potatoes and bell peppers uncooked and threw them in the bottom of a freezer bag. Once the chicken/sauce mixture cooled, I poured it into the same bag and stored it flat.
The meals have been working out great—especially since I figured out how to use my oven timer! I’ll probably remake some and figure out more things I can freeze.
CHEAPSKATE TIP: Gallon-sized cans (or whatever size they are) of whole tomatoes are a DEAL. I went to Costco and picked up a ginormous can of whole tomatoes and tomato puree and used these when preparing my meals. I couldn’t use it all at once, but they kept in the fridge for the next few days as I prepared the other meals. So I used the tomatoes in the lasagna, afritada and some other things I made during the week. Seriously, you can’t beat $2.79 for a big can… especially if you’re going to use it right away. Compare that to paying 89 cents per 15oz can.
I’m starting to run low on my freezer foods now. What little I’ve made has lasted me almost a month! I don’t use the meals all the time. They’re only for the days that I know that I’d be too busy to make dinner. It has worked out great. My family eats more balanced meals and I don’t begrudge making dinner… at least not as much as I used to.
Yesterday I made a quick St. Patrick’s Day lunch for both my girls – a PB&J sandwich with a green shamrock cut out. It’s easy as making the sandwich, cutting out the center with a cookie cutter, spraying the shamrock with green food coloring (I used Betty Crocker’s Decorating Spray) then replacing the cut-out back in the sandwich.
Last night was a struggle getting the girls to bed. They were so wound up about making leprechaun houses and getting a visit from leprechauns. I ended up having to grab our “Book of Saints” and read about St. Patrick’s life to explain why the day is celebrated. Apparently, the story about St. Patrick teaching about using a shamrock as a way to explain the Holy Trinity might be a legend. So was the whole story about how he drove snakes out of Ireland. Oh well, it still makes a great story. He is really known for being pious, without having fear of anything for he had his trust in God.
It all leads up to my first half marathon. I couldn’t have asked for a better race than the inaugural San Diego Half Marathon. It was a mostly-scenic run (there were some industrial parts) and the event was VERY organized. I organize a lot of fundraising events so I’m a stickler for details. From the online registration, parking info, maps, online tracking, awesome EPIC Stadium finish, all the way to retrieving my bag at the end, it was one of THE BEST executed events that I’ve ever attended.
Back to the running: In high school and part of college, I ran recreationally and enjoyed it a lot. But between then and 2010, I convinced myself that I couldn’t run. I had a bad left ankle sprain in college that was not treated properly and developed into scar tissue. It gave me problems every time I tried some sort of running. In 2010, my friend mentioned that she was going to do a mud run in Del Mar. I’ve always wanted to do a mud run and she invited me to join her team. I had a lot of fun and realized that the whole running—even through mud—wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. From there, we planned to run an Earth Day 10k in Carlsbad on April 2011 and signed up for the Camp Pendleton Mud Run in June 2011. I got fitted for proper shoes and then that’s when the training really started. Long story short – my friend had to drop out which left me to train on my own. I ran both the Earth Day and Pendelton Mud Runs. 6.2 miles were tiring to me — I couldn’t imagine doubling the distance.
I ran on and off… mostly aimlessly and without my heart in it. Then I met a few people who have completed many half and full marathons and I thought, “I need to get there… I need a goal and a plan.” A friend posted a link on facebook to the San Diego Half Marathon and I immediately signed up to whip me into shape. I psyched myself up for the training, and vowed to follow Hal Higdon’s half marathon Novice 2 plan. It worked out well with my schedule and to my surprise, my body was responding! I had a goal to run 11:00 min/mi at the half marathon but found myself clocking a faster pace during my long runs.
I learned a lot about myself, about life, about running, nutrition, pain… I get it now. I get why people do this. It felt good to run. It felt good to reach a destination. It felt good to get somewhere and back by the power of my legs.
Oh and that freak stint in a neck brace… it was my kid’s fault. I lost a week of training.
My race went well. I finished in 2:20:06 – faster than my initial 11:00 min/mi goal but slower than I anticipated since I clocked a 10:15 min/mi pace on my 12 mile run. A growling stomach before the race should have been a hint of the aftermath. I couldn’t get my spare banana right before the race — I had already checked my bag. So I ran on empty. I drank Ultima replenisher at the aid stations (which left a bad taste in my mouth) then had some GU at mile 8.5 which was gross. Niether of those sat well in my stomach and gave me problems at mile 9 to the end of the race.
The finish line couldn’t have been a more welcome sight. Running into Petco Park was awesome — the crowd cheering, with my family right there cheering me on. I somehow got the energy to sprint to the finish. I think my race photos prove it… they were terrible at the finish line. I nearly fainted going up some stairs and was in bed for the rest of the day. I should have stuck to what I trained with — Gatorade and Powerbars. Lesson learned.
My husband put together a montage of photos of me at the finish, what a sweet guy. See, I finally got my banana.
This is not my last half-marathon. Am I ready to do a full marathon? Maybe I’ll wait until I can dedicate a good block of time for my long runs.
The most inspiring part of the race was the last finisher — Victor Diaz, legally blind and walking with a blind cane, finished the half marathon to a standing ovation. Moral of the story… don’t convince yourself that things are impossible.
I was flipping through Family Fun magazine and came across this cool little project for March. I had leftover clear Christmas ornaments from many years ago and I was happy to give it a new life and have a project to do with the kids.
Materials:
Clear glass ornament
Activated Carbon (you can get this at the pet store in the aquarium section)
Small gravel
Potting Soil
Clover plants with roots attached
Ribbon for hanging
Chopstick or skewer
Carbon, gravel & potting soil
Put a shallow layer of activated carbon on the bottom of the ornament. Follow with a layer of gravel, I’d say no more than 1/4 of an inch. Then finish with about 1/2 inch of potting soil or enough to fill the ornament half way, depending on the size of your ornament.
I found clover plants in my yard (I need to weed, I know). I picked them out with their roots and separated them into smaller rooted pieces.
Clover "weed"
Plucked with roots
Put the clover plants in the ornament and use a chopstick or skewer to position and plant them into the soil. Add enough water to moisten the soil without flooding it. I used a squeeze-top water bottle to slowly drip water into the ornament.
Replace the top, add a pretty ribbon and hang. It’s easy as that! Don’t be discouraged if your plants look a little sad. These plants perked up the next morning. So far this has lasted almost a week. Eventually I might replace the plants with something a little more permanent… maybe a small succulent would work.
Ready to hang!
What projects do you have in store for March? Post them in the comments below!
I’ve had my KitchenAid for almost exactly 11 years now. It was my Valentine’s day gift from my then-boyfriend/now-husband. The story goes… I was looking for something on Craigslist and ran across an ad for the mixer. It was Pro-Line 5-quart mixer for $175, 1-month old, never used but out of the box. The man who was selling it said that it was a wedding gift but he and his wife were getting a divorce. (Yikes! You can do the math with how long that marriage lasted.) So I forwarded the ad to my beau and told him that it was a great deal and that he should get it. I never heard anything about it since the email. Forward to a week later, Valentine’s Day, 2001 – I get a big, heavy box and was pleasantly surprised to see the mixer!
My husband got grief from his co-workers back then for giving me a mixer. They commented that it sets the tone of our relationship and how he’s insinuating that I should be “domestic.” We both knew that was not the case. He knew that I loved cooking and baking and thought this was perfect… and it was.
My dad has donated slicer attachments (he had two sets). But the one accessory that I’ve gotten the most use out of is the Beater Blade. It’s a paddle attachment with silicone flanges that scrapes the bowl as it mixes. Talk about time-saver! Since my Kitchen Aid has a bowl-lift (as opposed to the tilt-head) this has proven very useful since it was difficult to scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula without completely removing the bowl and beater. It does a great job, too!
Getting it going
Watch it mix and scrape!
Nice, light and fluffy butter/sugar mixture!
The next best thing for the KitchenAid is the pouring shield. This really helps reduce the “explosion of flour” (or powdered sugar) when you’re mixing dry ingredients into your wet ingredients. Also, it helps direct the mixture in the bowl, instead of all over the counter. Which I still manage to do even with the shield – but that’s mostly because I’m not paying attention.
Today I’m baking sugar cookies (no surprise there) for Valentine’s Day. I’ve got my dough ready to refrigerate with the help of these tools!
What are your favorite tools for cooking or baking? Post them in the comments below!
I stumbled across Design Seeds a few months ago and was recently reacquainted with the site when color palettes started showing up on Pinterest. I LOVE color… I know it’s a silly thing to say – I mean, who doesn’t love color? At my old job (ad agency), I was usually put in charge of choosing color palettes for clients. It wasn’t as easy as you think it would be. Things I have to take into consideration: company image, target market, company goals, etc. So tech companies would tend to gravitate towards “steel” colors but why not throw in something bright like an orange to make them friendlier or cutting edge? Perhaps red would make a little company look bold and powerful.
Back then, I had stacks of Pantone® swatch books and pretty much had to go through the colors to see what would work. I used digital photos and had my “eyedropper tool” to pick out colors as best I could, found a match in a color chart and adjusted the pigments so that they’ll look okay when printed (because what you see on screen sometimes doesn’t come out the same when printed). Whew. Enter Design Seeds… the work is pretty much done for you! The site is great for pretty much everything that requires a color palette – from home decorating to picking colors for a sugar cookie.
I mean seriously… don’t these colors make you want to lick your screen?
(Please don’t do it, though. I’m not responsible for dusty tongues and germy screens.)
Or how about this one? It makes you want to go out and find a treasure while discovering an abandoned place.
So for those of you who are color-challenged or even for those needing inspiration, you’ve got to check out this Design Seeds at design-seeds.com! There’s something for everyone here!
What are your favorite sites for design inspiration? Post them in the comments below!
I’m going to add something a bit different on my blog. Finding joy is part of making life a bit sweeter. I find joy in being out and about and discovering new things. My family loves finding things “off the beaten path” — especially when we travel. But it’s even more wonderful to find something hidden within your own city. I was born and raised in San Diego and thought I’d know everything about everything about what our city has to offer. I’ve been pleasantly surprised recently, especially with discovering new things while afoot (running will do that for you).
My daughter and I went to Balboa Park a few weeks ago and I suggested we stop to see the 25th Street Music Bridge. I appreciate public art just as much as the next person. There are blatant displays of public art throughout San Diego — “trees” by the harbor, sculpted surfboards/green flashes by the beaches, and a whole bunch of other projects that refer to San Diego’s sailing, beach, marine life, location, etc. When I heard about the 25th street bridge, I was tickled. It wasn’t a sculpture of a dolphin, nor was it a new water feature, it was sound… music, to be exact. And music is ART.
I forget how I stumbled across the 25th Street Bridge. I’m sure Google had something to do with it. I’ve crossed this bridge many times when taking the “back road” to get to the zoo, navy hospital or Balboa Park. It’s not located in the prettiest part of town (although with all the Victorian homes in the area, it would be awesome to see them fixed up). The bridge is unassuming, but when you look closer at that pedestrian walkway, you’ll see chimes attached to the rails. When you bring a stick, walk rhythmically and strike the chimes, it makes music!
The improvements to the 25th Street Pedestrian walkway was completed in 2003. Along with the improvement, the project was awarded a $39,000 grant from the City of San Diego Arts and Culture to create the music railway. It plays a song called the “Crab Carillon” which is a palindrome (plays the same tune in both directions). I have to admit, it’s hard to hear with the “roar of the 94″ freeway down below. But I think it adds to the effect – almost crashing-wave like, but in the city.
Here’s the video of my daughter striking the rails:
The 25th Street bridge is located at SR-94 and 25th Street. You can park on either F or G streets (both one-way streets, but not busy). Bring a ruler or a good stick and get walking!
What hidden treasures are in your city? Post them in the comments below!
Happy 2012! I’m sure a lot of you have a list of resolutions. For me, it was always something superficial like, “I will eat healthier,” “I will floss my teeth more” or “I will lose some weight.” I never had a goal and I usually ignored it after 2 weeks into the new year (except for the flossing – I still floss more often than I used to). So what’s my resolution for this year? To be more joyful and to fill my life with things that bring me joy.
I don’t reveal too much about my personal life – yes, I know I’m on facebook and twitter and I do updates on my life there. But as far as deep issues – I don’t thing that social media outlets are an appropriate place for that. I’m very blessed to have the life I have: to have a home in San Diego, two beautiful and smart kids, a handsome loving husband, my health, my friends, and most of all, my God. But like most of you, I find myself in a funk sometimes – I get angry, sad, and cynical and I’ve been that way a little more than I care for in the past few years. I don’t want to live that way and I don’t want to teach my children to be that way. I want to focus on the blessings that God has given me and live thankfully and joyfully. This is a very emotional and challenging resolution and I know it’s going to test me. But with everything, I’ll have to make a habit of it to BE it.
Speaking of habits, I’ve been training for my first half-marathon and I’m 2 weeks into it. So far it’s going well and I’ve learned a lot about myself with every step I take. This is a picture of a hill I ran up on New Year’s Eve, which was at the end of my 5-mile long run (yes, I’m hardcore – even trained while on vacay). It’s a 13% grade just outside of the Universal Studios property. You can only imagine, I ran for 4.9 miles and I had to face this behemoth to get back to the hotel! A lot of my training involves hills since my neighborhood is at the base of a mountain. I used to dread hills with a passion. But I’ve found that it’s okay to take it slow and steady rather than stop than restart right in the middle of the hill. As with every hill you go up, your reward is the coast downhill. What a great comparison to all our challenges in life.
While on our year-end mini-vacation I met up with my friend, Sthanlee, who I met back as a freshman in college. We reminisced about the past and also caught up on what’s has happened over the past decade (gasp!). It was fun to talk about what we “were” back then and who we are now. It really made me think about the things I’ve done and what has brought happiness in my life. So here goes my “goal to joyful” list (in no particular order):
Keep Running / Be Fit:
Fitness has always been a part of my life and it, too, has gone through its stages. But now that I’m running again I feel better than ever and I want to hang on to this feeling for as long as I can.
Take time for music:
If you’re a musician or a vocalist, you understand how music moves you. I can’t describe the joy I feel when I play the piano and sing. It’s exhilarating. It’s like therapy. I used to do it a lot. In fact, it’s how people identified me in my formative years. Somehow I lost it when I had a lot of “growing up” to do and I’m awkwardly trying to find my way back – singing or playing the piano at every opportunity I get. The next step – get my guitar back from my nephew – I want to ROCK.
Play with my kids more:
I find myself being too much of a “mom” and not having fun. When I play with my kids, I find myself organizing their toys as they’re pulling it out. It would be great to let go of that.
Be more prayerful and open to hear God’s answers:
I’m a cradle Catholic. I’m not a “preachy” type. I go to mass every week. I can’t quote the Bible but I do remember a quote from St. Francis of Assisi that my pastor mentioned during last night’s homily, “Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.” It’s how I intend to live my life. There’s nothing more humbling than saying a prayer—to believe that there is a power greater than ourselves that can help us.
Embrace the off-kilter:
No-brainer here. Things that don’t go the way as planned always make life interesting. I have to let go of perfection.
Be more charitable:
It seems that I dedicate a lot of my life to charity. I tend to lose the whole intention of being charitable when I’m burdened with the details and planning of fundraisers. I need to focus on the cause rather than myself.
Be compassionate:
While on vacation, I ran into a mom of newborn twins who gave more than her share of opinions on what kids and people (in general) should and should not eat. I found it very hard not to be a “judging mother.” I kept quiet and let her state her opinions – I’m sure it’s hard for her to be juggling a 2-1/2 year old and newborn twins. I shouldn’t be the one to tell her that her views will change when her kid will not eat anything but PB&J sandwiches. If she keeps doing what she’s doing, then more power to her. “Us moms” are too hard on each other.
Bake more, sew more, craft more:
Yup, you saw that coming. I love it. It brings me happiness to MAKE something—especially something sweet for others!
Love my husband:
Yes, I know I have to. But my goal is to be more loving in every sense of the word. He brought joy in my darkest days and now I need to dedicate myself to bringing him joy as well.
Oh this list can go on and on. I’ll get started on this stuff and I’m sure other things will work their way in. If you’ve read to this point, thank you. You guys are great friends (and troopers). I wish all of you a JOYOUS 2012!
Honey Dijon Pork Chops – See the label and instructions? This was super easy. Sear the salt and peppered pork chops, place them in the bag and then add the marinade of honey and dijon.
Lasagna - I didn’t have those oven-proof storage containers. So I lined a 9×13 pan with foil and froze the lasagna (w/pasta sheets uncooked). Once fully frozen I popped it out of the pan, and re-wrapped it in more foil for storage. This freed up my pan for other uses. When you bake it, remove the outer foil and put it back in the pan with the original “liner.” I sprayed a piece of the “outer-wrapping” foil with cooking spray and covered the lasagna to bake. It makes for an easy clean up, too.
