An Old Memory

Growing up I always remember eating goldfish and cheez-its with my grandmother.  Today, Stella and I shared a snack together - yummy goldfish - and it brought back so many memories of my childhood and eating goldfish w/ my Granma.  Guess every time we eat this snack I'll always think of her.

It's wonderful how we get to relive all of these special memories of our loved ones daily!  I sure do miss my Granma and wish SO badly that she could have met the most precious, beautiful, smart little girl.  She would be in love just like the rest of us!

Pork, It's What's for Dinner

A friend of mine had a delicious recipe that she shared w/ me that involved a rump roast and I told the hubby about it and he definitely thought we should make it...soon.  So this week's grocery list included purchasing the roast.  However, I bought the wrong kind!!  I bought pork instead of beef.  I guess that should tell you how coo coo I've been these days. LOL Must be lack of sleep!

Anywho, we made Crockpot Pulled Pork for dinner tonight and it was pretty darn good if I do say so myself.  Mimi even stayed and enjoyed it too!  I think it would have been better w/ a vinegar-type of BBQ though but I thought I'd share in case anyone's interested.  Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork (spice rub from Cooks Illustrated)

Spice Rub:
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
4 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons table salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground white pepper

1 (6-8 pound) bone-in pork shoulder
½ teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
2 cups barbecue sauce

1. Mix all spice rub ingredients in small bowl.

2. Massage spice rub into meat. Wrap tightly in double layer of plastic wrap; refrigerate for at least 3 hours. (For stronger flavor, the roast can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

3. Unwrap roast and place it in slow cooker liner. Add liquid smoke, if using, and ¼ cup water. Turn slow cooker to low and cook for 8-10 hours, until meat is fork-tender.

4. Transfer roast to cutting board; discard liquid in liner. “Pull” by tearing meat into thin shreds with two forks or your fingers. Discard fat.

5. Place shredded meat back in slow cooker liner; toss with 1 cup barbecue sauce, and heat on low for 30-60 minutes, until hot. Serve with additional barbecue sauce.

Lots to Brag...I mean BLOG...About

We've had a very busy week this past week.  Kyle was out of town at the Edward Jones Headquarters at an Educational Conference so Stella and I were home alone - for a whole week!!  It definitely made me step back and realize how much he actually helps me with and all I can say is I'm one lucky and blessed girl!

After a few sleepless nights during the week, Stella must have felt sorry for me because on Wednesday she finally said the words I've been longing to hear...yep, she said "MAMA"!!!!!!!  Talk about being the happiest girl alive!!  Those words were like music to my ear.  Of course I called Kyle as soon as she started saying it and...he didn't answer.  So then, I called my mom...and she didn't answer.  No one was going to believe that she actually said it!!  From then I knew that I had to go nuts clapping and screaming w/ excitement so she would know that she had done something wonderful.  {Not that I wasn't already acting like a complete crazy lady that just won the lottery or something!}  So from that day on we practiced saying "MAMA" all day long.  Sure enough, when Mimi came to stay w/ us on Thursday, she heard the words "MAMA" too so I was even more excited!  

Stella has also learned to say "BAY-BEEE" and that is one of the sweetest things I've heard her say too.  She loves her baby dolls and we're constantly calling them by name...Baby Lexi, Baby Molly, etc.  Also I read to her every night and lately they've been books about a mama and a baby so I guess it finally clicked!

Another cool thing that happened this week was Stella learned how to "Give Me 5"!  One day while I was feeding Stella lunch I thought...wouldn't it be cool if she could "Give Me 5"!!  So I thought I'd try it out.  She pretty much caught on right away.  So awesome!  I'm telling ya - she's a genius!

Needless to say when we picked Kyle/Daddy up from the airport yesterday we had lots to catch him up on.  He was TOTALLY blown away by all that she had learned while he was gone.



We are both so proud of our sweet, adorable, little girl that amazes us every single day by all that she's learning and doing.  

BTW, these pics are from Stella's friend, Jack's 3rd Birthday Party today!  We had a blast!  Happy Birthday Jack!

Rock Like a Princess

The other day Stella and I were shopping at Target for the necessities...formula, diapers, the occasional bargain on sale, etc....when I thought "ya know, Stella really hasn't gotten a 'new toy' in while, maybe I'll pick her up something fun and inexpensive!"  So I found this adorable little guitar that plays music and I thought - perfect b/c she loves music and likes to dance when she hears music.  Needless to say it was a hit!!  She's had the best time w/ this lil guitar and I've enjoyed dancing around and acting silly w/ her just to see this adorable face...

Stella has a shirt that says "Rock Like a Princess" so I thought it would only be appropriate to put her in that while she's playing her guitar.  What a rock star!!

I've had such a fun day w/ my girls today!  Bella went to the groomer and came back looking all pretty and we've had a fun day playing, relaxing and making memories!

She Gets It From Her....DADDY!

That's right - Stella gets all of her "smarts" from her daddy!  My sweet hubby has passed his second exam, the Series 66, to help secure his job as a financial advisor with Edward Jones.  We are SO proud of him and all of his studying and hard work is paying off.  Only one more test after this and he can officially take on clients and help them meet their financial needs.

Not only is Stella smart like her daddy, but she likes to dress like him too. :)  jk!  But she loves to help with laundry and I just couldn't resist putting her in one of his big t-shirts!!  She's such a good sport - and a ham!  Wonder who she gets that from?!?

Hey good lookin'! Whatcha got cookin'!?

I posted this on my MXB's blog, Practical GRITS, today so I thought I'd post on my personal blog as well...


Today was my day off so I have made a promise to myself to get things done on my days off.  That includes laundry, cleaning, errands and having dinner ready for when my hubby gets home from work.  Crock pots are a life saver because they let me do just that - get all my errands and chores done while dinner is cooking away all day and I haven't wasted 3 hours preparing, chopping, cooking, steaming and baking.  Tonight's dinner was Crock Pot Chicken and Black Beans did it smelled delish cooking all day!!  Below is the recipe and guess what - I was a "bargain shopper" on this one because we already had all of the ingredients in our cabinet.  Of course it's Mexican so I knew we'd love it.  It's definitely different but it was a nice change to the tacos and fajitas we usually eat.

Crock Pot Chicken and Black Beans

3 to 4 boneless chicken breast halves, cut in strips

1 can (12 to 15 ounces) corn, drained

1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 onion, halved and thinly sliced

1 green bell pepper, cut in strips

1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes

1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste

Combine all ingredients in the crockpot and cook on LOW about 6 hours.
I left out the green peppers and I only add 1 1/2 tsp of cumin.  But do what suits your taste.  Now warm some tortillas.  Place your crock pot mixture in the tortilla, add lettuce, cheese and sour cream.  Roll it up and you have a fabulous burrito!

ENJOY! :)

Genius

Of course we're not being biased or anything but we are seriously starting to think our lil princess is a true genius!  Today was Mimi's day to keep Stella and while Mommy and Daddy were hard at work, Mimi was hard at work teaching Stella a new "trick".  When I walked in the door this evening, Stella got SO excited and came crawling to the door.  She is always so excited to see us when we get home from work but today I think she was excited to show me what she had learned.  Once Kyle and Mimi started singing "Patty-cake, patty-cake, baker's man...", Stella began to clap her hands to the beat.  Seriously, our 11 month old daughter now knows how to do "Patty-cake"!!!

This is just one of the many things she's learned to do.  She is so smart and we're so proud of her and can't wait to watch her learn more and more every day.