For the past 6 days Kyle and I have been in the East Bay. It’s incredible having P in my hometown – and very cool/weird/surreal taking him to all the places I grew up around. He’s also gotten to meet some of my bestest friends.
But I’ll back up to the trip to get here…because we were slightly apprehensive knowing we had a 6+ hour drive with a baby. We’ve conquered hour long walks no problem. Short outings are a breeze. But the I-5 is a whole other ball game – there are 35 mile stretches without exits! Definitely a new experience.
The day before was Kyle’s birthday, and as I mentioned we got Veggie Grill take out. I didn’t want to stray from my usual order (the kale salad with blackened tempeh), but I was also in the mood for something slightly different. So I compromised by ordering the same salad with the creamy ranch dressing instead.
Such a good call! And since I got two of them I saved the extra for later (wait for it ahead).
While working on the birthday cake (I promise I’m going to post the recipe) I was also packing food for the road trip.
Hours in the car means lots of snacks, so in addition to the above, there were tons of little bites. Like hummus, nuts, trail mix, Mary’s Gone Crackers, Clif bars, apples, and I don’t know what else.
Those onion skinny chips were an Expo West freebie. They were too onion-y for me but Kyle liked them fine – not very substantial on their own, but dipped in hummus they get the job done.
My breakfast was oats with nutritional yeast and fried egg (I microwaved it in a bowl sprayed with nonstick for 45 seconds). Kyle had a breakfast burrito.
My lunch was fridge hodge-podge that needed to be used up – brown rice, peas, sweet potatoes, nutritional yeast and the extra Veggie Grill ranch dressing. Yums! Kyle had a PB&J.
P did so well – he actually slept for 3+ hour stretches on the drive – so we only had to stop once (!!!). It was my first public restroom diaper change and it wasn’t as horrible as I thought it would be. Afterwards I nursed in the car and then we were off again. Kyle and I alternated driving shifts while the other person stayed int he back seat with P (and operated as snack dispenser as well). Fingers crossed that the ride back down the I-5 goes just as well.
We were approaching hour 4 without eating by the time we arrived at my parents’ house so I immediately breast fed P and then gave him over to my mom grandma.
My parents borrowed a pack n play and vibrating seat (above) from their friends (also grandparents) so P was right at home.
Dieden family grapes are in this vino. 🙂
Dinner was salmon, sweet potatoes, and a salad.
The salad had spinach, strawberries, pecans and Annie’s balsamic vinaigrette.
My mom marinated the salmon with a delicious rub (that was doubled due to the insane amount of fish she got).
Salmon with Paprika/Cinnamon Rub [yield 8 servings]
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. salmon fillets
Marinade:
- ¼ cup orange juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp thyme
Rub:
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp Saigon cinnamon
- 1 tbsp grated orange peel (+ more to taste)
- 1 tbsp thyme
- ½ tbsp sea salt
Directions:
Mix marinade ingredients in small bowl. Place salmon in large glass dish,
add marinade, and turn to coat well. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes or longer for extra flavor.
Combine spice rub ingredients in small bowl. Remove salmon from
marinade and place in greased foil-lined baking pan. Discard any remaining
marinade. Rub top of salmon evenly with spice mixture.
Roast salmon in preheated 400° F oven for 15-20 minutes (or longer
depending on thickness of salmon), until fish flakes easily with a fork. Watch to
make sure coating doesn’t burn – if getting too dark, cover loosely with foil.
Beautiful!
I only had half the sweet potato with Earth Balance (because they were ginormous!) and saved the second half for later.
As per our routine, I headed to bed at 9 and left Kyle with P for the few hours while I got some shut eye. Ummm…yeah…that didn’t really work out…unfortunately all that sleeping P did en route backfired and he was up all night. Good thing he’s adorable.
The next morning Kyle headed off to several meetings all over the Bay Area (SF x2, Belmont, & San Jose), so my mom and I had P to ourselves for the day.
I watched basketball (love March Madness) made Dandy tea and then my girlfriend Lauren came over to meet Patty-cakes.
I made breakfast while she played with my little monkey and then we caught up on life.
This leftover half of a baked potato was scavenged from the depths of my parents’ fridge. Ordinarily it’s sooooo packed I swear they don’t even know what’s in there, but they just got back from a few weeks in Thailand so it’s not too chaotic inside.
I packed it with Earth Balance and fried an egg and was a happy camper.
Later on my sister came over. She hasn’t seen P since he was in the NICU so this was a big deal. Unfortunately she was just barely getting over a cold so she waited to hold him (knowing we were going to be in town for several days).
We ate lunch and hung out while watching basketball. I wanted to hear all about her visit to Australia and Thailand.
Lunch was leftover salad from the previous night (enhanced with extra spinach and carrots) topped with a HUGE portion of salmon. I haven’t taken my DHA in a few days because of all the fish I’m eating on this trip home.
I had Crunchmaster (GF) crackers on the side. I love these things, but they are crazy addictive. I inevitably put them away and then go get them again and have “a few more” multiple times a day.
We contemplated going for a hike with the dogs after lunch but P isn’t quite big enough for the Baby Bjorn yet. Also, I’m being overly cautious in the introduction of my parents’ dogs to P.
While they’re super friendly dogs, they’re still animals and they aren’t my pets, so I’m not sure how it will all play out.
We ended up going on a walk with the stroller (to the post office) instead. I had to mail back some nursing tanks that didn’t fit. I hate online shopping for that reason, but getting to the store is kinda difficult still.
Right after I got back from the walk, my second family came over (sorry for the icky blurry iPhone photo). I’m the fifth daughter in their family and I call their mom my second mom, so naturally P is like their nephew.
For dinner we got delivery from Patxi’s.
Okay, so you all probably know how much I LOVE Patxi’s. However, this was a rather disappointing meal experience.
My sister and I split a daiya pizza with spinach and tomatoes on a thin crust. Basically the same order I get every time.
This is now their thin crust??? If you look at previous links to Patxi’s pizzas on my blog (also with thin crust orders) and compare it to this one, you’ll see there’s been a serious decline in the quality.
My mom’s looked even more pathetic.
If this is thin, what’s extra thin??? Also, her pizza was supposed to have red onions, mushrooms, spinach and roasted chicken. Do you see any of that?
We were so disappointed we actually called the restaurant back to discuss the issue. They were very nice and offered to send a re-do of our order out immediately. So at least they have good customer service.
Mine looked the same, but like I said, I didn’t really have that big of an issue with it. I was annoyed by the fact that a thin crust is no longer what it used to be, but aside from that, the pizza tasted good.
My mom’s pizza was a huge improvement though (in that she actually had toppings this time!).
Sadly, Patxi’s was kinda ruined for me. I don’t like pan pizza/Chicago style, and their thin crust is supposed to be like a regular crust, so I don’t know if I’ll go back because there’s not an in-between crust option that I like.
Too bad because they have daiya cheese and vegan dough and I like supporting that.
P slept MUCH better this night (back on schedule!) and we got to snuggle in bed the next morning (we sent the photo below to Kyle since he was away for business stuff again).
I got him to rest semi-soundly while I showered (and watched him in the pack n play from the bathroom). It’s always exciting when I learn to do new things solo and/or one-handed.
Then made tea and breakfast. These sweet potato pancakes were perrrfect so I’ll post the recipe later. They only had two ingredients (plus salt) and somehow turned out amazing. I topped with with Earth Balance of course.
Lunch was the same salad as the previous day’s with even more salmon and the rest of the Crunchmaster crackers. Four servings my a$$.
After lunch my mom went to a cooking class so I went on a walk with P. We went all over my home-town and I showed him the local spots that I grew up frequenting. It’s a dream to be able to do this, and I can’t wait til he’s old enough to actually know what I’m talking about (or stay awake).
Elaine, Dave & Cooper came over to hang out in the early afternoon. Lauren joined us too (how could you not want to hang with these adorable babes!?). And after my sister got off work she came over, too.
She was so excited because she finally got to hold him.
For dinner Kyle and I cooked. My mom did all the grocery shopping with the list I gave her and even brought me home a few Kombuchas. 🙂
We made these recipes from Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook.
Instead of chicken, I used tempeh (3 blocks of Lightlife’s flax tempeh) for the four of us.
We made broccoli too, but I didn’t have any.
The meal was delicious. I thought the kale fried rice was awesome and everyone loved the tempeh (even my mom and sister who aren’t seasoned tempeh eaters like Kyle and I). Definitely recommend.
After dinner we watched Cal win and UCLA lose. Meh. My bracket isn’t doing so hot.
To be continued…
P is so adorable!! I am happy that your drive went well the way there, and so happy you got to spend time with your family and extended family!
P is seriously super cute! I had when pizza places drop the ball, I definitely have no problem calling and telling them I have an issue with the food.
Sounds like a great trip. I’m totally jealous that you are wearing shorts! I live in freakin’ Georgia and right now it’s 35 degrees out!
1. P looks SO different and so healthy…and older already!
2. You look fabulous and like you didn’t just have a freaking baby. Seriously. And I’m also jealous of a) your weather and b) vegan pizza.
3. Those crackers are crack. No questions asked.
OK OK this is great! My two fav pics are the early morning one! And the cute “I’m asleep with the monkeys and I’m adorable” 🙂
This post coincides with my brand new IPad purchase so I am reading on that & not my phone like usual so awesome timing P!
Did your folks like Thailand, I go there all the time, though I’m sure they loved Oz 😉
Love this post with mix of food, life and P!
Cheers
Lori
I’m so glad you got to bring P home!!! That must have been great to show him off to your family and friends! And I’m so sorry about the pizza… it’s always disappointing when places change things and it’s not as good anymore. I used to get the same chicken Mediterranean salad from a local place but they changed it up to be more “American” and it’s just awful… I can’t go back.
You look awesome girl! I’m glad you’ve had such a great time with family. Little P is already getting so big! How fun!
Love all the pics! Cutest little fam around.
Great post. Your mommy and you in your Tom’s is too cute. P-dawg Ness a pair of baby Tom’s.
So adorable! I’m so glad the drive went well! There’s no place like home 🙂
P is so cute! It sounds like you are having a wonderful visit!
Okay, P is officially the 3rd cutest baby ever (after my nephew and niece, of course 🙂 )!! How wonderful that you are able to spend this time at home with your parents and P is getting to know is grandparents!
Courtney
I loved this post! That little man of yours looks so much like you! And your sister looks like a natural with him!
Aw, so glad that P got to spend some time with grandma and the rest of the fam!
That salmon + salad combo sounds amazing! Strawberries and pecans are so awesome together.
Cuteness overload! So many great photos. I love the early morning snuggle one the best. Glad to hear that your drive was smooth. I had 2 car screaming babies, and it was awful. There are so many amazing carriers on the market that you can use from day one. Wraps are really supportive and much better on your back, and then there is The Ergo carrier that you can use through the toddler years. It is seriously a workhorse that won’t hurt your shoulders or back, and will put pressure on baby’s spine. I’m sure you have some hippie baby stores in CA that have them 🙂
Ohmuhgosh. You guys are the cutest! His perfect little round head…he’s already filled out so much! Oh and your parents’ german shepherd….eeee!
Dying over how cute your family is.
He is such a beautiful baby already!
And you are looking SO great Elise!
What a great visit home, it must’ve been such a blast seeing him with all your friends and family.
Loving P’s chubby cheeks in the last photo of him, he’s obviously thriving, so cute.
Kale fried rice sounds fab, I will try that soon!
You look great, and your family is adorable! P is one lucky guy.
And those sweet potato pancakes look delicious- can’t wait for the recipe!
you look great!! really great! can you talk more about deciding to eat fish? maybe you did and i missed it. i read where you briefly talked about it. ive been veg for about 5 years and my fiancee is pescetarian and ive been thinking about eating fish for awhile now.
Aww- this post put the biggest smile on my face! I’m sure your family is loving having you all there and I can’t believe P did so well on the trip! What a trooper. (:
I can’t WAIT for the pancake recipe! My roommate decided to buy a massive bag of sweet potatoes over the weekend that we’re trying to use up!
First of all, beautiful baby and family! And I wanted to ask you if you’ve ever tried spelt flour and how you handle it? And what your opinion is on it?
Great pics and sounds like you had a great visit. Food looks good too. No Whole Foods in my area. I’m going to check out Trader Joe’s to see what they have.
P is so adorable! I l just love that one of you and him in bed. Such a sweet expression on his face.
ew! thats horrible 🙁 come visit ca!
hes growing SOOOO fast! hes such a chunky monkey. i love it. 🙂
ps thanks for the ego boost!!
definitely check out TJs. they have lots of good stuff. not as much organic and more pre-made stuff than raw ingredients, but definitely lots of healthy options.
i tolerate spelt actually but havent used it much recently. no real reason other than i often forget about it if its not stocked in the pantry. i know theres a difference between spelt in the US and in europe though (the ancient/ancestral grains are supposedly safe for those with celiac and wheat/gluten allergies, but the more common spelt that we have here in the US is not typically safe for those w intolerances).
then youre gonna LOVE this recipe.
hmmm…im not sure theres much to say about it really. i have been thinking about it for a while, especially since following a low fodmaps diet makes me have to be more diligent about my protein sources (since the amount of beans i eat is limited). in any event, ill think about it more and if theres more to share ill do a post on it.
your wedding food looks insane btw. i want that salmon please!
hes definitely putting on the lbs. i LOVE IT!!!!
thanks lisa 🙂
isnt he SUCH a chunky monkey! love it 🙂
agreed! i never liked pecans much until i start using them in salads actually.
ha. im glad you didnt sell out on your nephew and niece 🙂
she is a natural!! shes babysat for really young infants before though so shes got lots of experience.
agreed. when you come to nor cal we need to have a date okay?
100% amazing visit. 🙂
omg we totally need toms for P!
how are you!!!! so happy things are okay after your little scare. thinking of you all the time!!!
gah. its such a bummer when good dishes get changed and restaurants lose their awesomeness 🙁
Yes please!
they loved thailand! and australia too!
Elise, where do you find the crunchmaster crackers? I would like to try them. Thanks! 🙂
ADORABLE!!!
costco, vons/safeway.
love that GP recipe!! and I especially love all the photos too!!
i figured youd be loving all these posts…they’re the family/food mix kind you like 🙂
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