**Sigh**

Even when things aren't looking up this smile makes it all better.

Let's Get Physical!

Recently I've been in a funk and it's in every aspect of my life, which isn't good. So yesterday I decided to change that and the first thing on the list was getting active! Since it's summertime (and my least favorite season, even though I love the beach) it's really difficult for me to get motivated with all the hot temps and humidity. I love taking walks outside but TN gets real hot real quick so I'll just wait til fall to start that! But the simple truth of the matter is, I'm not active, at all! I still haven't shed the baby weight and he's almost 2 and I love food, cooking it and eating it, which isn't helping lose that baby weight! Since I'm not willing to not eat yummy food or even have another baby I needed to get active. I don't have the budget to get a personal trainer (which is what I really want, ha!) and I don't even own exercise equipment (the elliptical being my favorite) so I work with I've got!

For Christmas I received the Wii Console as a gift (yay!) and with it a the Wii Active Fitness game and accessories (double yay!). I had started it when I was back in NJ but got bored real quick (motivation failed me yet again) and stopped. The game has a 30 day challenge of preset workouts at 3 different workout intensities that you can choose from! So I'm once again doing the 30 day challenge and hope to finish the WHOLE challenge this time, instead of just 20 days! I started today and did Day 1 and then went back and customized a more fun but challenging, nonetheless, workout to make it an hour! Whew I'm predicting sore muscles tomorrow! Ha!

Please note: I amNOT, by any means, promoting Nintendo's console or games, in any way, shape, or form. There has been no contact by either party (me or Nintendo) and honestly, I don't even know if this will work but I'm gonna try it out because I have it. No sense in collecting dust. Ok. Disclaimer out of the way.

Another thing on my list is trying to reduce the chemicals that enter this house. I was reading this months Parents magazine and this article about keeping families safe from toxic chemicals and it really made me think about what I use and how our bodies, on a cellular level, change or morph, due to these chemicals. So I'm going to be researching green products and ways to safely store our food. Chris is onboard, which is awesome, because in order for this to really succeed we both need to be on the same playing field. I don't want to feel like I'm going overboard with this but I think, after reading that article, anything that we come in contact with on a daily basis should be safer.

Play Doh!

We tried out Play Doh today

and just like finger painting it wasn't successful.

The blue doh was flattened out by me

Logan would only poke it

Or hit it

So Mommy thought going with a different color

(One that he pointed to)

Would do the trick

But as we see that didn't happen

I handed it to him

He proceeded to place it on the table

and then back up from it.

I sat with him in my lap to mold the doh with him

But once I stopped, so did he.

Owell, we'll just try again another time.

Scrap Pages!

I thought I had posted previously about how scrapbooking like crazy but it appears I didn't or I just can't find it...Anywho, after I came home from New Orleans I had this urge to just scrap! I did about 4 or 5 layouts and I'm still working I'm some others. They're not complete because they lack titles. Maybe they'll have some after Christmas if Santa delivers a Cricut or Silhouette!! Ha!

"Cutest Lil' Scarecrow"

(Logan's 1st Halloween)

Materials: Spooked Stars by My Mind's Eye, Halloween Harvest by Stemma; Stickers- Bat Chain by Stampendous, Bazzil cardstock

"Born in the USA"

(Logan's 1st 4th/Boatride)

Materials: Starburst Translucent Red by The Paper Co., Star Paper by Creative Imaginations/Helen Dardik, Ribbon, & Chunky Brads by Doodlebug Design Inc., Cardstock

"Christmas with the Parks"

(Logan's 1st Christmas Party)

This paper was actually a personalized. It was created by a scrap store called Scrap it Simple, located in Spencer, Massachusetts.  My future MIL got this for me at crop she went to. I loved it and this is my favorite layout. The one cardstock had the family last name on it and the other had Logan's name on it, which I used to fill in the ornaments!! Such a fun kit to display Logan's first family Christmas party!

"Beach"

(Logan's 1st trip to the Shore)

Materials: "On the Boardwalk Collection" by Graphic 45, Black & Orange cardstock

This layout is my 2nd favorite!

"Snip It"

(Logan's 1st Haircut)

Materials: "Brilliant" kit by Dreamy 2/My Mind's Eye, "So Handome" Refreshing Green & "Brothers" Seeing Stars.

The layout format for the first 2 layouts were taken from the magazine Creative Keepsakes (April 2010). The Christmas kit came with a suggestive layout that I used with a few tweaks here and there.  The "Beach" layout was my own thing that I came up with. It was part of layout of the month at a scrap store I would go to and I didn't like the concept so I went out on my own! The last layout is credited to my blogger friend and scrap instructor Liz. I had taken a class she instructed and she had given us alternate ways to use the layouts we learned that session. One of the alternate ways is the "Snip It" layout! I'm still working on my layouts. Right now I'm doing a zoo layout and LC's 2 month layout! I also hope to get out of my blogging funk that I'm apparently still in. =0)

**Hugs**

Happy 16 Months.

16 Months.

You're so happy.

You make our lives happy.

You say "Mommy" but prefer "Momma"

You are starting to say words, even by accident

Like no, daddy, bir (bird), da (dog), mimi,

You love "reading" your books.

You're climbing more than stairs

You've succesfully climbed into the tub.

You love to be outside

I see pickiness with food, sadly

I love you so much!

Happy 16 Months!

CHEESE!!!-cake

My love for cheesecake is immeasurable. I've tried many cheesecakes because who can go wrong with cheesecake. My favorite cheesecake is made by Delicious Orchards, a country farm market in Colts Neck, NJ. They have a topping of, what appears to be a, sour cream/sugar concotion which makes oh so delightful. Their cheesecake pie was always a traditional staple at our Thanksgiving dinners when we were growing up. I have no idea what made me want to make one but I did, even though I thought it was a daunting task!

One of my favorite blogs to read, Delicious Dishes, had recently posted a simple cheesecake recipe. Her pics looked so good and it sounded so easy I decided to take on her recipe. I wanted to see too if I could find a recipe for the Delicious Orchards topping (they keep it top secret too)! So I was Googling (I love Google) toppings when I found a website (Joy of Baking) that had a cheesecake topping recipe so similar to the famous D.O.

Recipe (Adapted from Delicious Dishes & Joy of Baking)
New York Style Cheesecake

1 cup honey maid graham cracker crumbs
3 T sugar
3 T butter or margarine, melted
5 pkg (8 oz each) Philadelphia Cream cheese (any brand will do), softened
1 C sugar
3 T flour
1 T vanilla
1 C sour cream
4 eggs
Topping of your choice

Crust:
Mix crumbs, 3 T sugar and butter; press firmly onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan. Bake at 325 for 10 minutes.

Filling:Beat cream cheese, 1 C sugar, flour and vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Pour over crust.

Baking:Bake at 325 for 65 minutes or until center is almost set. Loosen cake from rim of pan; cool before removing rim. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Spread topping over cheesecake and garnish as you please before serving.


Topping:1 cup sour cream (not low fat or fat free)
2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl combine the sour cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Spread the topping over the warm cheesecake and return to oven to bake for 15 more minutes. Remove from oven and carefully run a knife or spatula around the inside edge of pan to loosen the cheesecake.

My finished result...Ok so maybe the topping didn't work out the way I thought it would...We'll have to do something different next time!! It seemed to have pooled in the middle of the cheesecake..Gr. Owell since it has to sit in the fridge for 4 hours I won't know how it is.. Hopefully it tastes better than it looks =)  I can't believe I posted an entire post on cheesecake!! Ha!

Interview Wear

Tomorrow I have an interview for a job. I'm super excited and nervous at the same time because it'll be my first real interview! Whoa! Anyways, I'm trying to make an impression and although I LOVE staying home with my little boy I do have student loans that need to be repaid. So I went out tonight to buy a new shirt to go with the black slacks I bought for a dinner Chris and I went to and I needed new shoes too!

So here's what I bought:

(You can't really see it but it's the Madison pink stripe shirt from NY & Co)

(These cute things are from Target)

I hope my ensemble looks good tomorrow. I'm too tired to try it on tonight but I do have a back up plan if it doesn't work out! Hopefully I can get some sleep tonight too =)

Nursery Set-Up.

Well we've been in TN for 2 1/2 months now and although our house is still not yet a home, Logan's poor room was lacking major love. His furniture was set up but it was lacking the warmth and love that his old room had. So I've set on making Logan's room a nursery one of my goals for the week. Here's what our progress looks like:

This blue (Behr's "Peaceful Night") was the closest that I could get to the dark blue in his bed set. That wall has been painted 3 times and touched up countless times thanks to Logan's little handprints!! The first time we got it wrong and it was bright royal blue!!! This is NOT the main color though for his room. The rest of his room will be painted a light blue (Behr's "Coastal Mist"). I wanted to make him a big boy room without removing alot of his baby elements so that's why he has one dark painted wall but if it doesn't work thank goodness there is primer and "Coastal Mist" =). The plan for that wall is to put up Logan's fingerpainted canvas and add shelves on either side (or his name up in letters).

One of the other walls. My plan is to get a valence for his window, that dresser that you can sorta see on the left is going to be repurposed and painted white, and then have a frames on it, with a picture or something big on his wall above it. It's definitely a work in progress and my weekend has been spent painting that darn wall. Chris had a shelving project in the laundry room, to store our still unpacked boxes, which came amazing. So we were busy beavers this weekend!

Oh So Delish!

Whoa! I've taken a back seat to blogging, huh? I think I've been in a blogging funk although I have come on to read my favorites!

Last night I made the most delicious, easy, and colorful (summerish) dish and all courtesy to Giada DeLaurentiis!! I love Giada, her products, her food, well I could go on forever! Ha! Now it looks intense but trust me it's not!! I almost didn't make it because it looked intense! I made no changes except that I only used one bag of peas and thought it was too much! Oh and where it says serve immediately, do so!! I waited for Chris to buy the cheese and it was done long before he came home and it got cold fast, even so it still tasted good!! So here it is & Bon Appetit!

Pasta with Tomato and Peas

(Their picture =)

(My picture, not quite like there's but I didn't want my sauce completely watered down!)

Ingredients

•1 pound linguine
•3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
•3 shallots, chopped
•2 garlic cloves, minced
•1 carrot, diced
•1 teaspoon salt
•1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
•5 tablespoons tomato paste
•1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
•1 teaspoon dried thyme
•1 teaspoon dried parsley
•1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed
•1/4 cup grated Parmesan
•1/4 cup grated Romano

Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving 2 cups of the pasta water.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallots, garlic, carrots, salt, and pepper. Cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and 1/2 cup of the hot pasta water. Stir to melt the tomato paste and create a sauce, adding more pasta water if necessary. Stir in the oregano, thyme, and parsley. Gently fold in the cooked pasta, peas, and the cheeses, adding more reserved pasta water if necessary. Transfer to a platter and serve immediately.

July 4th!

As with each holiday, I hope everyone had a safe and fun 4th! I love the 4th of July. It's our nations birthday and we get to celebrate it with great food, music, drinks, fireworks, sun, and the greatest family and friends! This year Chris and I celebrated the 4th of July in New Orleans with my family! My grandparents made an awesome BBQ dinner with the most AMAZING homemade potato salad EVER! We went to the Riverwalk to watch the Dueling Barges in New Orleans and then of course spent an hour and a half trying to get out of the parking lot! The fireworks did not phase Logan again, which I was so happy about because they didn't phase him last year! He just watched in awe as the rest of us did!

The Steamboat Natchez (They were sold out but tickets to watch the fireworks were $119 each for adults and $89 each for kids!)

Happy 4th of July!

Imagine two of these going off....That's what they were doing! It was gorgeous!

♥

Fingerpaintin' Fun

Today I went ahead and did a very messy fingerpainting project with my 15 month old toddler! It was SUPER fun and it was funnier watching how my baby DID NOT want to get messy! He wouldn't put his hands palms down on the paint he would only move the paint around with his pointer fingers!! We tried it twice. The first time he was uninterested and a bit cranky so after his nap we went ahead for a second try. It was better than the first try! It was fun and super easy to clean up. It was Crayola's Washable Fingerpaint and when they say washable they absolutely mean it. It came off of every surface that its paint had touched including clothes!! I got the canvas (16x20) at Michaels for $10. Needless to say even though fingerpainting didn't go has I had envisioned it I still got a nice piece of "work" out of it and can't wait to hang it up!!

I wish everyone a safe & happy

FOURTH OF JULY