Picking up where I left off… Is it just me (I tend to be a bit of a scrooge, so it may be) or has Valentine’s Day gotten completely out of hand for school kids?? Like what the what is going on here!? Both kids came home with elaborate goodie bags full of treats FROM EACH STUDENT. Uhhhh, excuse me? Our Valentine’s were cards. Home made cards. They painted them the week before and then cut them out into heart shapes and decorated them with stickers and signed them. That’s it. I feel bad for… Read more >

Birthday week! Mr. P had a MAJOR week with his birthday, Valentine’s Day, the 100th Day of school, his party, and visits with BOTH sets of grandparents! Lucky kid. We went to my parents’ for a family celebration on Saturday. Valley is OBSESSED with Brookie boo. She is 100% ready to be a mama (in her eyes)and talks about “when she’s an adult” and “when she’s a mama” 24/7. I had chips for lunch. And some greens to pretend it was balanced. But really, it was about the chips. And for dinner we had so… Read more >

Fancy dinner night!! Remember that TJs toasted sesame dressing I mentioned before? Here’s the meal I made the first time I tried it. I worked 1/3-1/2 the bottle into a ginormous head of cabbage during nap time so that it would soften and wilt down to a nice texture by dinner. I have been getting cabbage and bok choy every week in the CSA and I got a week behind with the cabbage, but playing catch up is easy when your whole family loooooves cabbage! I splurged and bought us some nice chunks of salmon… Read more >

PREP GAME STRONG. Kyle and the kids voted for lemon poppyseed bread next. Let’s see if this loaf lasts any longer than the banana bread I made last week. I made THE most delish salad for lunch and I hope I can replicate it again because it was everything I’ve been craving lately and I already want it again. It started with these leftover roasted veggies – butternut squash, rutabaga and turnips, and Brussels sprouts. The other stellar part of this was Trader Joe’s new organic toasted sesame dressing. YOU GUYS. Get your hands on… Read more >

I skipped grocery shopping the week that Kyle was gone because, let’s face it, the produce from our CSA is enough to carry us through the week when combined with our freezer and pantry staples. That said, I was suuuuper uninspired when it came time to make something at the end of the week. BUT. It was his first day back home so I knew he’d want something healthy and home-made. He always says he misses my cooking while he is traveling. I think he misses me too, but home made food is definitely a… Read more >