Let's Make This a Monthly Event

Daily blog posts are for wimps.  Imagine a once per month blog- go big, get it all out, save time (for the writer as well as the reader).  Can you dig it?

Well, here we go.

A few good things:

Dinner:

Try this recipe for Pad Thai.  Quick, easy, yummy.  Hadley had seconds.  Blake had fourths.

Then he ran back to the table for one more bite.

Dessert: 

Chocolate Rads.  Super delicious, crispy outside, gooey center, major chocolate flavor, and fairly easy.  I snuck 2 dozen of them into a movie theater last night (I shared)- way better than movie theater popcorn. 

Flowers:

How can you not love spring time?  No picture can capture the beauty that is Boise right now.  Huge flowering trees and bushes line the streets; tulips and daffodils line my yard.  The windows are open, the house is filled with a delicious breeze.  Life is good. 

Can you see the hint of pink?  Blake's bedroom doesn't have much of a view (sideyard/neighbor's house), but when this tree blooms, his view will be filled with plum blossom awesomeness.

Blinds:

Speaking of views, do you know about top down/bottom up blinds (that's probably not the real name)?  I had never heard of them until we moved into our new house, but I'm a fan.  We leave them on the bottom half only in our master bedroom and bathroom, so we have privacy, but still get views and daylight/moonlight.  We can lie in bed and see the stars, or wake up to this view in the morning.

I love blue skies and "Simpsons" clouds.  

Or this view from the master bathroom:  Sky, flowering pear tree (which sadly does not produce pears), and the chance to pretend that there are not actually 50 houses visible from that window.   

Fun fact:  The other day I was standing on the edge of the tub to open that window, when I realized that we can see the Owyhee mountain range in the distance to the South.  Imagine that- a mountain range has been out our window this whole time, and we didn't even know it.  (You can also see the Boise foothills from Hadley's room, and just barely from Blake's room).  Hooray for mountains.

Black out curtains:  If you have kids and you want them to fall asleep before 10 PM in the summer, you need black out curtains.  Target has a much improved selection compared to a few years ago, with some colors and patterns designed for kids.  I think the curtain was about $25 and I bought a cheap curtain rod for under $15.  For the extra sleep they'll provide, they are worth every penny.

Master Bedroom:  Blake wasn't the only one to get new curtains.  Our master bedroom has been bothering me since we moved in.  The walls were the same pink/mauvey brown as the rest of the house, and we had only put a few things on the walls.  I tried to freshen it up with new curtains last fall, but they just didn't look right (perhaps it was because they hung on a lovely brass rod with flower finials). So, I tricked my husband into painting it with me late on Easter Sunday.  I told him it would take two hours; it took six.  Close enough.  After a fresh coat of Bleeker Beige ($25), some new curtains ($25x2 at JC Penney), a new curtain rod ($13 super clearance at Penney's!), and a lovely quilt/shams from Pottery Barn (not on sale, but I had a 15% off coupon),  it feels like a new room.  We added a wall hanging from the old house (originally purchase at TJ Maxx about 5 years ago- I think it was $39).  The room isn't done, but it feels much more complete and purposeful.  The quilt is not our usual style, but there is such a cozy sense about it, and I am hopeful that the classic print will stand the test of time.  

Tortillas:

Have you tried Tortilla Land tortillas yet?  They are fresh, uncooked flour tortillas.  I'd heard rumors of these magically fresh tortillas from my Costco shopping friends, but I had never tried them, so I was so excited to spot them at Fred Meyer a few months ago. They have no preservatives and only a few ingredients (have you looked at the ingredient list on regular store bought flour tortillas?), and they taste awesome.  Oh, and they literally cook up in a minute!  

Butterflies: 

Have you or your kids ever raised butterflies?  We used to catch caterpillars, stick them in a jar with a few leaves, then dump them out when they died.  I don't think they ever made it to the butterfly stage.  A  few weeks ago, my kids were asking lots of questions about how The Very Hungry Caterpillar became a beautiful butterfly.  And, well, I really didn't know how to answer that one.  I decided to embrace the learning opportunity, and ordered a butterfly house.  We've already all been amazed by the quick transition from larvae to caterpillar to chrysalis; the butterfly hatch is sure to blow our minds. 

A Feel Good Film:

Well, that's all for April.  Who knows what May will bring?

Those Tricky Leprechauns

Remember a few years ago when Jessica Seinfeld wrote a book about sneaking vegetables into kids food?  I remember hearing some debate over whether or not you were actually doing a disservice to your kids by sneaking vegetables into meals, versus teaching them to like them, straight up.  This was before I had kids, so you can guess which side I took.  Now, as a mother with years (3) of experience, I'm all about lying to the little stinkers.

Speaking of lying, how about leprechaun tricks, traps, and shenanigans?  My kids have been talking about nothing but the creepy little green men for past 2 days.  So far, our leprechaun has not been very creative (green water in the toilet, green water in the flower vase, a green banana stuck in the couch cushions- yep, even I don't understand that one).  Luckily, my kids are using their imaginations to my advantage, upgrading our leprechuan a notch or two.  They have been seeing him hiding above the kitchen cabinets, and hearing him in the dining room, prompting them to eat their dinner nicely.  They are finding "tricks" all over the house, my favorite of which was tonight, when Blake ran into the kitchen, saw a container of spinach, and screamed, "Wow!  The leprechaun brought us salad!"   Nope, not the leprechaun, just your sneaky mother.

The spinach was turned into frosting.  To top cupcakes made with beets and zucchini.  Quit gagging.  Seriously, knock it off.  If I hadn't told you, you'd never know what was in them.  What would you do if a box of produce containing beets and zucchini unexpectedly showed up on your doorstep?  (Wait a minute, damn leprechauns...)  Add chocolate, of course!  I've seen recipes for chocolate zucchini cake, and recipes for chocolate beet cake, so I figured I could mix it all together, and luckily, it worked.  I also had recently seen a recipe for frosting that used spinach for green coloring, and so it was decided.  Zucchini beet chocolate cupcakes with spinach frosting.  Eat your heart out, Jessica Seinfeld.

Mmm.. beets a' boiling

 The dry

 How about some veggies with your cupcake batter?

 Fresh from the oven

It's frosting time!

Zucchini Beet Chocolate Cupcakes

adapted from this recipe

makes 28 cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, stir together:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 1/2 cups white sugar

3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

In a small bowl, mix together:

4 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cups unsweetened applesauce

1 tsp vanilla extract

Stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients and mix well.

Add:

 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini (raw, unpeeled)

1 1/2 cups shredded beets (cooked and peeled)

Mix, then portion into muffin tins, greased or with liners.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool, then frost if desired.

The cupcakes are moist, dense and chocolatey.  Sure they contain sugar and white flour, but pre-frosting, they can't be any worse than most muffins.  They made a perfect afternoon snack for my kids.

Spinach frosting

inspired by this recipe, and this one.

In the bowl of food processor, mix:

 2 1/2 cups fresh spinach

1/2 cup softened butter

1 tsp vanilla

2-3 TBSP milk

3.5 cups powdered sugar

Chop/mix until smooth and combined.  Pour mixture into the bowl of a stand or handheld mixer, then whip until thick and fluffy.  Frost cupcakes, then keep refrigerated.  This frosting is a bit on the thin side, and tastes like powdered sugar frosting with a twist.  Had I remembered to buy whipping cream, I would have whipped one cup of cream until stiff, then folded in the spinach frosting mixture.  If you try it, let me know how it works.

Yum!

Paint-Free Bathroom Transformation

Hadley and Blake's bathroom has remained mostly untouched since we moved into our house.  This is partly because we're out of time, energy, and patience.  I've done enough painting for a long while.  I've spent far too much money at Lowe's.  Plus, the kids hardly use the room; the bathtub is in a small space and has a sliding door, so it makes it hard to bathe the kids there.  Thus, the kids (and 100+ bath toys) have taken over our big tub.  And, their bathroom has gone ignored.

Except, every time I come up the stairs and head down their hall, I stare at the ugly, plain, beige room.  Something had to be done.  Project mini bathroom makeover started last week when I let the kids each choose a hand towel at Target- Hadley picked blue stripes, Blake chose green.  I looked at all of the "kid" bathroom sets, and while they were cute, I didn't love any of them.  So, we left with two towels.  A few days later, a friend suggested I check the bathroom section at World Market.  I had planned to be near the store that evening anyway, happened to have a 25% off coupon, and the bathroom section happened to be 20% off that day.  Destiny.

A couple of throw rugs, a curtain rod, and a shower curtain (for looks, not function.  I think the sliding doors are ugly), and we were in business.  The instant transformation was amazing!  As in, I kept going back into the room and to just stare in awe.  Behold, the power of 2 rugs and a shower curtain!   Yet, something was missing.  A pinterest search for free printables, some $1.99 Ikea frames that were stashed in the closet, and 15 minutes during nap time...Bingo!