Who knew one day could last two months?

Since marrying Tara I have been introduced to the concept of the birthday month (I know, it doesn't make sense to me either). However, it should be called the birthday couple months. She believes her birthday starts a month before her actual day of birth and ends about a month after. So for two months every year I hear things like: "what are you going to do for my birthday month", or "but it's my birthday month". I keep hoping that this will decrease over the years since a birthday just means she is getting older, this has not yet occurred. I barely remember my birthday, usually Tara is the one that reminds me that it is coming up.

So in tribute to Tara's birthday couple months I decided (actually, i was poked and jabbed in the side several times and missed out on precious sleep (the best way to get me to commit to something)) to write something nice about that wife of mine. Tara is a beautiful woman (even some creepy guy in the grocery store parking lot agrees with me). She is definitely my better half and has made me a much better person. You might just say that we are soul mates. It's hard to imagine my life without her. It seems like my life didn't begin until we were together (but she thinks I did way too many fun things before we were together, and that i should have waited to do them all with her). I will be forever grateful that she is my eternal companion. Happy Birthday Months Tara!

It's My Birthday Month!

It's my birthday month. I DID have a wonderful, and great birthday thrown by my dear husband and girls, and attended by them (and me, of course). I felt loved, 1 year older, wiser, and like the years are going by faster now that I'm closer to 30. Well, I am going to say THIS about my birthday: Thanks for the wonderful day little family of mine! Thanks for making me feel loved! Thanks to all of my parents and in-laws, brothers and sisters, grandparents, friends, and aunts and uncles for remembering me. It was great. Now, the next post will be Randy's. Since it is my birthday month.

Now, moving on. On Emma's birthday Kenadi got some stamps. She decided on Sunday morning to smell them, or something, and came out with this blue nose. I tried for a while to get it off, and finally concluded that she was going to church like this-with a blue nose. A couple hours later I got it off, and luckily, because it was right before church, and Kenadi didn't want to go to church with a blue nose. I had a good laugh about it though.

Kenadi has been doing preschool lately. Well, it's Joy School. Some other moms and I are teaching it. It is so cute to see Kenadi in her little back pack. She does really well in preschool, and has amazed me with how fast she learns.

Emma is walking like crazy now. Well, she mostly runs. It doesn't mean that she gets into more things than she used to, but she just does it faster now. You should see my house. Or maybe you shouldn't.

Chicken Alfredo Veggie Pizza

I tried this recipe off of Taste of Home this week, and we loved it! We especially loved the crust... it's definitely worth a try!

Ingredients

• 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic-herb seasoning blend
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 2-1/4 to 2-1/2 cups bread flour
• 1 tablespoon cornmeal
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach
• 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1-1/4 cups 2% milk
• 1-1/2 cups cubed cooked chicken breast
• 1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• Dash white pepper
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1 plum tomato, seeded and chopped
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
• 1/4 cup sliced ripe olives
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese

Directions

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the oil, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, seasoning blend, whole wheat flour and 2-1/4 cups bread flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough.
• Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a bowl coated with cooking spray, turning once to coat the top. Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.
• Punch dough down; roll into a 15-in. circle. Sprinkle cornmeal over a 14-in. pizza pan coated with cooking spray. Transfer dough to prepared pan; build up edges slightly. Bake at 425° for 12-14 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring 1/2 in. of water to a boil. Add spinach; cover and boil for 3-5 minutes or until wilted. Drain and squeeze dry; set aside.
• In a large saucepan, combine flour and milk until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Add the chicken, Parmesan cheese, remaining salt, pepper and reserved spinach. Cook and stir over medium heat until cheese is melted.
• Spread sauce over crust; top with remaining ingredients. Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until cheeses are melted. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 slice equals 317 calories, 9 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 40 mg cholesterol, 476 mg sodium, 38 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 22 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 2-1/2 starch, 2 lean meat, 1/2 fat.

Happy Birthday Emma!

This is how most of Emma's day went on her birthday. I felt really bad for her, because she is teething, and in tons of pain. Her little mouth has teeth popping out everywhere. She has 9 teeth, and about 4 coming through right now.

Emma was scared of the candle... we didn't figure out what she was crying for for about a minute, and so I held her on my lap and she was fine while I blew out the candle

She also decided to take 1 nap that day, and was extremely exhausted. So she wasn't happy until she got a little cake in her system.
She dug right in, and was just as messy as she could get. She LOVES getting messy, so this was right up her alley.

I made Emma's cake. I am taking a cake decorating class, and see what I could do just after the 1st class?! (I hope no REAL cake decorator looks at this...) This is also my food for thought Friday. I'll post more pictures of cakes as I make them.

We opened gifts. Emma loved them, and actually played with the toys more than the wrapping paper.

We went on a walk, cause Emma loves being outside, and walks too. She's been walking for over a month, but only if I stand her up and say, "walk to Daddy!". She still chooses to crawl, unless you hold her hand (or tell her to walk somewhere). She'll take a hold of your finger and walk you in circles around and around the house for as long as you'll let her.

She's also really into purses, and bags. Emma likes this little bag of Kenadi's a lot. She gets it first thing in the morning and puts it on her shoulder, or around her head, grabs her push-toy and is entertained for an hour. It's so cute.

I can't believe she's already 1...

I never understood how a family can automatically love the second kid just as much as the first, until I had Emma.
I learned how much love a heart can hold, and it has room for more!
Over the year I learned how different 2 kids in the same family can be. That is amazing.
Emma makes me laugh every day. She has the funniest grins... full of teeth. I love her smiles, and her kisses, and her rare cuddles. She likes to make us laugh and does silly noises to see our reaction. She'll say, "Thankyou!" "Uh Oh!" "Dadda", "Momma", and "Bye-Bye!" She loves her big sister Kenadi and follows her all over the house. We love our Emma!

1 Thumb UP, 2 Thumbs Down, and 1 In between...

I made Gingered Pumpkin Soup for dinner yesterday, and it did not go over well. I liked it, but soon found out that the rest of the family would not be big fans of the stuff. Kenadi was gagging on it, and Emma was spitting it out. Randy had his comments too. He likes "chunky" soup. Not pureed.

Here's the recipe in case you want to try it. I thought it had nice flavor, and I like creamy, pureed soup. I tried the recipe from the library pumpkin cookbook. It has so many great ideas, and I would like so many of it's recipe's. My family on the other hand...

Gingered Pumpkin Soup

2 1/4 lb pumpkin, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped.

1 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled

1 T oil

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

2 t ground ginger

1 t ground turmeric

2 ripe tomatoes, skinned and chopped

2 t light brown sugar

1/4 t nutmeg

1 strip thinly pared orange zest

2 1/2 C chicken stock

salt

pepper

1 1/4 C plain yogurt

1. Put the pumpkin and the piece of ginger in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. Drain thoroughly and discard the piece of ginger.

2. Heat the oil in a clean saucepan, add the onion and fry over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Stir in the ground ginger and turmeric, and cook for 1 minute.

3. Add the pumpkin, tomatoes, sugar, nutmeg, orange zest and stock, and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Cool slightly. Discard the orange zest.

4. Puree the pumpkin mixture in a blender or food processor, then return the puree to the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir in the yogurt. Heat gently. Taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

5. Serve in warm bowls, garnished with grated Romano, Parmesan, or mozzarella cheese.
Serves 6

I don't think I'll do this one again. Too much work for the reviews I got. Kenadi took one bite and told me she wanted a hamburger... Hope you have better luck than I did!

I thought I'd add a few more pictures. Emma, "helping" in the kitchen. See my grocery list on the floor along with everything else she drug in there? I trip on more things cooking than I do playing soccer. (by the way, I have a game tonight and our team is severely loosing this season) I can't help but think it is so cute, though.

I finally got Kenadi a helmet so she can ride her bike that Grandpa Curtis got her. Now she feels a bit more secure riding.While Kenadi was riding the other night, Grandpa Curtis came over to give Emma a hand while she wanted to walk all over the driveway. Emma has been walking for about a month now, she'll go across the living room all by herself! However, she will only do it when Randy or I stand her up and tell her to "walk to Daddy/Mommy!". She hasn't decided to do it much on her own. I have caught her here and there doing it, but her mode of transportation is still crawling. That's ok... she's still into everything.