A Dinosaur Poem...I Think

This is Screature. Santa brought him for Nathan back in 2009. It freaked him out so much that it has been sitting on a bookshelf in my bedroom ever since along with a fake tarantula and a poisonous Shrek glass that we were supposed to return to McDonald's but never did. It's the scary shelf.

And now for a scary poem by Thomas that no doubt disturbed his 3rd grade teacher.

Dinosaur

giant reptile, instinct

moving, roaring, drooling

hunt, kill, kick, jolt

killing, shooting, blasting

dangerous, hurtful

machine gun.

Roasted Pepper Pasta

I was hanging up some laundry in my closet the other day and noticed my Food Network magazines stacked up against the wall. Staring up at me was a picture of this pasta dish. It was the cover recipe from an old issue--July/August of last year. It looked so good, I couldn't believe I hadn't tried it yet. I finished up the laundry, headed into town for the ingredients, made it for dinner that night and...

Wow.

I could've been eating this since last year?! Not fair! It was great but I did make a major change to the original recipe--I served it hot instead of cold. Delicious.

Roasted Pepper Pasta (original recipe here )

16 oz box rigatoni
3 bell peppers, halved, stemmed and seeded
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1/2 cup almonds
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 lemon
8 oz bocconcini (small mozzarella balls)
1 bunch fresh basil, leaves torn
salt and pepper

Preheat broiler.
Cook rigatoni as directed.
Place garlic and peppers (cut side down) on a foil lined broiler pan or cookie sheet. Broil for 8 minutes or until peppers are charred. Put garlic and charred peppers into a container and cover for about 5 minutes.
Toast the almonds in a a dry skillet over medium high heat. When browned and fragrant remove from skillet, let cool then chop.
Peel roasted peppers and cut into strips. Squeeze garlic onto a cutting board and mash with 1/2 tsp salt.
Add peppers and garlic paste into a bowl with olive oil and lemon juice. Add bocconcini, almonds, basil, pasta and toss. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Little Pink Donut

Look who got a new toy!

For the past 2 years that Indie has been with us she has never had a toy of her own. I did get her a Nylabone once to dissuade her from chewing on our rocking chairs and she does have a purple squeaky ball that was a hand me down from the huskies but I've never bought her a toy specifically for her to play with and enjoy.

I was feeling a little guilty about that, after all, the huskies had a ton of squeaky toys, balls, stuffed hedgehogs and kongs. So we headed to PetSmart recently and Nathan picked out a brand new toy just for Indie. It turns out, like everyone else in this household, she loves donuts.

Apple Walnut Sticky Buns

It's been awhile since I posted a recipe--in March I posted my mom's recipe for oatmeal cookies. Today I have another sweet treat, this time from Sandra Lee. I know a lot of foodies give her a hard time by saying that opening a can of cinnamon rolls is NOT cooking but I'm happy to take help wherever I can get it. My only complaint is that she e-nun-ci-ates ev-uh-ry word. But even then I'll sit through her show just to get a great recipe like this...delicious apple walnut sticky buns.

Apple Walnut Sticky Buns (original recipe at foodnetwork.com )

butter, softened (for greasing muffin tin)
1 Granny Smith apple (peeled, cored, diced into bite size pieces)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 (8 count) tube refrigerated cinnamon rolls
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Generously butter an 8 count muffin tin.
In a bowl, combine apples, walnuts and brown sugar. Spoon mixture evenly into the tin. Place cinnamon rolls on top of apple mixture.
Bake 12-14 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes then invert rolls onto a plate.
Mix icing with pumpkin pie spice and drizzle over sticky buns.

The Day I Became Mom

I remember it clearly. It was a late Thursday afternoon in April--April 14, 2011 to be exact. We were driving to baseball practice and Thomas pipes up from the back of the car, "I think I'm gonna start calling you Mom instead of Mommy."

I guess I knew this day was coming, he is approaching the double-digits, after all. I was a little bummed out but I told him that would be fine with me, especially since I'm still 'Mommy' to Nathan.

But then Nathan decides to join in on the conversation with "I'm gonna start calling you Mom, too!" Great.

So later that night when my husband came home from work I broke the news to him that he's now married to a MOM. He took it well...even when I broke the news to him that the name-change extended to him as well and he's now DAD instead of Daddy:)

Our Fourth

I think I post the same pictures each year--Nathan holding his ears, Thomas jumping over the colorful smoke balls, and both of them stomping on whipper snappers and chasing parachutes. And, of course, a big exploding firework. Still fun and entertaining after all these years.

Oh, and the food. The FOOD! Grilled chicken and ribs, baked beans, potato salad, french bread, deviled eggs and key lime pie. Still delicious after all these years.

A 10 Month Difference

When school ended in June I was doing the 30 Day Photo Challenge busily posting pictures of myself (yikes), flowers and my old toys that are hidden away in a closet at my parent's house. So that's why I'm just now getting around to posting these pics of my boys on their first day of school and their last. I'd say they are growing into a couple of fine young men.

On a related but more somber note, stores are beginning to set up aisles for back to school supplies. Glue sticks, dry erase markers, hand sanitizers, boxes of tissue...and none of them are the size, color and quantity that is on your list. It's enough to give a mom nightmares.