Category: Food

summer has arrived

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Aside from the 90 degree weather, another sure fire sign that summer is upon us is watermelon.  I ate so much of it the summer I was pregnant with Jay that I haven’t wanted much of it the last two summers however I seem to have finally gotten my taste for it back.I have grabbed some the last few times that I was at publix and we even scored a huge one for just $3 when we were at the blackberry patch (yay!!) so we have been enjoying it out in the front after supper.  I mean what could be a better end to the day then a super sticky kiddo covered in watermelon juice?

Charlie wanted a taste too…

So we gave him one ;)

berry delicious

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Over the weekend we packed up the boys and headed to Pappy’s Patch, the place where we have picked strawberries this year and last, to take advantage of their last picking weekend.  The strawberries were few and far between (the season is way past); however, our mission was blueberries.  Sadly, not long after we arrived we realized that the blueberries were also pretty picked over.  We did our best to get what we could, and we did get some delicious blueberries, but we were a little disappointed with our pickings.  That was until a group of ladies suggested we check out the pick your own blackberry farm just down the road.  I was sold at the word black… so we packed up the boys and headed off.

Man am I SO glad that we did!!  The berries were/are delicious, they were super easy to pick (the bushes were thornless- AMAZING) and I found it much easier to do with Jay than strawberry or blueberry picking.  The way the blackberry bushes grow make it easy for little ones to pick and the farm was set apart from the parking lot so I felt better about Jay just running around on his own.

We have been eating the berries by the handfuls every day since picking them but still have a whole bunch left so I am looking at either of these two recipes… probably both and if we still have some leftover then maybe some jam- we’ll see!

Blackberry Fool or Honey Yogurt Pops

Rows and rows of bushes with my sweet trio of guys down at the end

shrimp boil 2012

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I am not sure how many years now the annual Shrimp Boil has been going on… I would venture a guess that Jamie has been hosting it with his Dad for a good 10 years and then George probably hosted it on his own prior to that for another 10. This is my fourth year of joining the festivities and I must say I look forward to it EVERY year! I mean what is not to like- good food, good drink and good people. What more could you ask for on a sunny Saturday afternoon?

Since having the kiddos I find myself not as “free” to shoot as much of these events as I would like (putting sleeping babies down, getting not sleeping big brothers up, etc can really eat up some time). However, I did manage to grab a few photos of the day… although none of the pouring and unfortunately very few of anyone other than family… Either way, documented or not, there were family, many great friends and a wonderful assortment of colleagues that joined us in bellying up to the table. Thanks to all that came, it was great seeing you, and for those of you who couldn’t make it- you were missed but there is always next year ;)

pretty flowers compliments of Publix… I really do love me a mason jar ;)

banana pudding bites, check out a recipe here

Pepere and Charlie- prepping the water ;)

I was trying to get a photo of me and Jay but he was way too distracted with all of the people in the backyard to smile… not even tickling really worked

Charlie hanging on the blanket

enjoying some delicious corn- purchasing it fresh was definitely the way to go!

Aunt Jamie- silly girl

Uncle Mark

Josh- by the way Jay adores him and rightfully so… he is wonderful to him, they are ‘briends’

three cheers for the chef

more cheers for more chefs…

grub

YUM

enjoying the shade

couldn’t resist posting this one of little miss Avery- check out those baby blues!!

good bye highchair

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For the last few weeks I have been letting Jay sit with me at the table and have lunch.  I wanted to slowly transition him out of the highchair before Charlie needed it so he didn’t feel like he was being kicked out.  However, he has done so well it’s kind of become a regular thing.  He crawls up on his own and buckles himself right in.  He’s getting to be such a big boy these days; honestly I am afraid to blink too long for fear of missing any of it.

and yes the majority of his plate is filled with fruit… not a battle I want to fight these days ;)

simply done cuisine

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My crazy talented brother-in-law just launched his cooking blog, Simply Done Cuisine.  To say that he is talented would be an understatement- seriously the boy can COOK!!!!  He is posting some super delicious recipes along with fun videos on how to make everything- really you NEED to check it out.  Each episode allows you to cook two meals out of one set of ingredients; so after cooking you end up with one meal for tonight and one for tomorrow.  Yup, you read that correctly- one for today and one for tomorrow!!  I know that my crazy busy Mom friends are singing his praises right now.  Seriously, less time spent in the kitchen these days is so worth it because I honestly have so many better things to do- playing cars and Charlie snuggles trump most things!

So this is he, Jeremiah, with my sister-in-law (Jamie’s sister)- yes they are fantastically adorable together.

And here’s some food photos to get your tummy growling.  This dish was so delicious that Jamie and I had it twice in one week- once at the filming and then again when we made it ;)  Actually we ate the pasta 3 times since we had enough leftovers for two meals- bonus!!

All this to say check it out, you won’t be sorry!

breakfast

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Our mornings usually look something like this…

Jay getting up and being changed

Jay walking to the kitchen and asking for his juice (which he may or may not specify to be in his “neen”- Lightening McQueen- cup)

Jay helping me to put a waffle in the toaster and pushing the button for it to start

choosing his fork after I give him a few color choices- btw, he his favorite is the pink one ;)

feeding Piper (his morning chore)

playing a bit with cars- if there’s time before the toaster beeps

announcing to me that the toaster has beeped as if I didn’t hear it myself- “beep, beep Mommy, beep, beep”

then breakfast- he eats and I eat…  He concentrates really hard on using his fork all by himself, I marvel at how fast he is growing up…  I tickle his toes from beneath his tray, he giggles and pulls them away from me…   We smile at each other but don’t say much… it’s perfect and wonderful; not a wonder it’s the most important meal of the day…

his excited face as of late, it's precious and I love it ;)

 

udderly fantastic day…

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Yesterday Staci and her herd came by the house, yes in the middle of the torrential down pour, to make cow costumes with us. Why you ask?  So we could all head to chick-fil-a today for Cow Appreciation Day and get free meals.  No, there is not a limit to what stay-at-home Momma’s on a budget will do for entertainment and free food.  Free meals were received, moo-ing noises were made and good times were had!  Honestly it was udderly fantastic and so worth it :)

Here’s some photos of our group.  It took a lot of coordinating to get 7 kids and 3 adults (Mandy, a friend of ours, and her three kiddos joined us too) dressed and fed but it was worth it and I think that the kids had a good time.  Heck, who am I kidding I had a good time…

moo-ve over here comes one cute cow!
"Not too sure about this Mom..." Honestly though, he did great and didn't even rip off his spots or udders until after lunch- yea Jay!! He even loved the big dressed up cow and mooed everytime he saw it :)
this Momma and her adorable calf
his tail!
Sophie- Staci's middle cow
cow smiles
mooing for the camera
three little cows, by the way Brock (Staci's oldest cow) is on the far left
the 9 of us- Mandy's youngest is less than a month old and opted not to be in the photo
Staci and most of her herd- Brock on the right, Eli on the left

so thankful- day 5

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Because Christmas decorations are already up in the stores, since the weather here is in the low 80’s, because the leaves are changing colors on the trees (ha- we live in Florida folks) and because we hope to enjoy time with family and stuff our bellies to capacity this week, it can only mean one thing- Thanksgiving is almost here!! And since we have been especially blessed this year we thought that we would take the week to tell you about a few things we are most thankful for. We hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and are able to enjoy it with those most dear to you…

Make sure to check on posts from the rest of the week too…

We are thankful that we can ask ourselves every night- what leftovers should we have or what should I make for dinner, rather than how are we going to feed our family. We are so grateful to not have to worry about these things and to be able to enjoy great meals as a family and watch our little Jay continuously expand his palate.

pickles!

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On Tuesday when Grandpa was over having lunch with us I thought it would be funny to see Jay’s face when he tasted a dill pickle.  So after he finished his lunch I handed Jamie the rest of my pickle to give to him.  Much to our surprise Jay loved the pickle and didn’t make any silly, squishy faces while eating it!  So yesterday I gave him another after he was finished eating and he gobbled it up again.  Guess I will have to put in his baby book that his first real table food was a pickle…  Enjoy the pictures, I think they are too funny!