Are You a Pioneer Woman?

Clearly, the answer to that question if posed to me would be NO!  However, I obviously want to cook like one, as I've ordered this book.

I periodically check on the Pioneer Woman blog.  To be honest, I find it to be a bit boring. . . she has an insane amount of followers and *I think* a movie being made about her.  There's some great photography on her blog, and some recipes that sound delish.  I've flipped through this cookbook at the book store, and decided to give it a try.  It's got great reviews on Amazon, due in part I'm sure to her huge blog following.  Have you tried it?  What are some of your favorites?

Goode Time Girl

Need a new blog to read? Check out my friend Katie Jane at Goode Time Girls. She's a fabulous mom of two little ones, drug dealer rep, wife, friend, southern girl, hilarious, fashionable, loyal, independent, sophisticated, generous, smart, beautiful, and fun, among countless other superlatives you could fashion. I always have fun with her and she cracks me up. She is hosting an iTunes giveaway on her blog, and who couldn't use some new summer music? Tell her I sent you!

Really, Really Funny

My friend Jennifer has been telling me forever about a website I would love. She. Wasn't. Kidding. It is pee your pants funny. And every single entry could have been submitted by me. I'm not exaggerating. Check it out. You won't be sorry. Hell, even the name is hilarious. It's called Shit my Kids Ruined.

Weekend Roundup

I hope you had a great weekend!  We did.  Why do they always go by so fast??  This past year has been the first time in the seven years Chris and I have been married that we both don't work at least some part of the weekend.  I may have something I work on Sunday night while we watch tv or something, but neither of us actually goes to work on the weekend, and I love it.

Saturday I brought David and Henry to a birthday party for Sophia, David's "little girl".  She's a really sweet little girl with a nice family, and they live in our neighborhood.  David and she went to to preschool together and have been tight ever since.  She had a pajama party.  David and Henry don't wear pajamas typically, so we bought some for the party.  You know, so they wouldn't show up in their underwear.  They both picked Batman pajamas, which I thought was really funny.  They both had these jammies when they were two or three years old, and Jack wears them now.

When we came home from the party, Chris and I decided to go to Huntsville.  Yes, Alabama.  There were ZERO iPads available in Nashville.  I know this because I called every Best Buy store within a 60 mile radius on a daily basis, as well as the single Apple store we have.  I called them every. day.  My boss tried to buy me one but there were none in the stores so he gave me the money for one.  I have ZERO ability to delay gratification, so ordering one was out of the question.  So we hopped in the car and drove to the Apple store at Bridge Street in Huntsville.  Henry didn't want to go, so he went to Gigi's house.  When we got to Gigi's house, Jack didn't want to go either, so David got to be an only child for the day.  (And he was SO good.  No complaining, whining, fussing. . . just a fun boy to be with.)

The Apple store was at a place called the Bridge Street Town Centre.  It was FABULOUS!  It's an outdoor shopping canter (local friends, think The Avenue, but you can't park throughout.  More of an open-mall concept.) with some high end stores mixed with places like the Gap and The Children's Place.  There was live music, a carousel, a lake with gondola rides, dancing fountains for the kids to play in, plenty of parking, and lots of good stores.  I would seriously drive back to Huntsville just to go there.  David and I rode the carousel three times.  He loves the spinning teacups, so we spun FAST.

We are planning to go back to Huntsville in a couple of weeks to take David and Henry to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center.  This would be something they're interested in any day of the week, however there is currently a Star Wars exhibit.  Are you kidding me?  They are obsessed with Star Wars.  And children five and under are free admission to the center, so this is the year for us to go!

Chris met one of his friends out Saturday night for a little while, and I let David and Henry watch a bit of a movie on the iPad before bed.  The were so cute all snuggled up in my bed watching it, and were so careful not to touch!

Yesterday Chris went to his parents' house to finish a tree house for the boys that he and his dad have been working on.  I brought the boys to church at LifePoint Church.  It was the first time we tried this church, and I really liked it.  It was TOTALLY different from any church I've been to before.  My New England friends would be shocked in this church.  And I was surprised how much I liked it.  We're going to go back next week, and Chris is going to come.

After church Jack took a nap and I cleaned up the house while D&H played.  Then we went swimming at my parents' house.  Those boys love to swim!  We had an early to bed night for everyone.  I think we were all beat from the weekend.

I hope you had a great weekend!

iGot

Oh yes folks. I. Got. An. iPad. Can you freaking believe it?! My boss bought it for me. iSpoiled, a little bit iSuppose.  Seriously, he's the best boss. Ever. And I thought that before he bought me an iPad. There are ZERO ipads of any sort available in Nashville, and I have no ability to delay gratification, so we drove to Huntsville today to get one. Totally worth the drive people! I'm off to download apps until my fingers fall off!

Kashi Roll

We tried a new Kashi product this week.  (New to us - I don't know if it's new to Kashi's line of products.) It's the Roll! Protein and Fiber Bar.

The Kashi website describes the product this way:


This deliciously unique snack bar has a chewy nougat center that is surrounded by a decadent layer and then rolled in whole grains, nuts, and crisps. 

The GOLEAN® Roll! is specifically designed for an Optimized Glycemic Response with slow release carbohydrates to help balance your blood sugar, and protein and fiber to help you stay satisfied.

A chocolate center is surrounded by smooth caramel and rolled in toasted pecans, crisps, and whole grains.

Do not eat this product if you wear dentures.  I'm serious.  I don't wear dentures and I was concerned that my teeth would pull out of my head.  This is a hard core nougat center.  "Chewy" is a bit misleading.  The taste is great - I loved the crispy bits the bar is rolled in, and the center has a nice taste.  Once you finally get to it.  This is a seriously sturdy roll.  I think it could have been crafted to be a bit easier to chew, but the flavor is good.  I don't know if we'll buy these again, however we will continue to buy other Kashi products.  I'm typically a huge fan of their foods.  This Roll! however left me in fear that my teeth would be rolling across the floor!!

Menu Planning Monday

Monday - Tortialla crusted tilapia, Black eyed peas, frozen vegetables
Tuesday - Breakfast for dinner.  (I'll be at Bunco!)
Wednesday - Steak salads
Thursday - Chicken Kabobs, rice, grilled veggies
Friday - Leftovers
Saturday - Burgers, grilled potato packs, fruit salad

Two Product Reviews

I've tried two new food items recently that are worth mentioning.

The first is fruit2day.  Fruit2day is a drink (6.75 fluid ounces) with two servings of fruit in a tiny package, no sugar added, and 110-120 calories.  It's filling and has delicious bits of fruit throughout.  It comes in the following flavor combinations:  strawberry orange, pineapple banana, mango peach, cherry grape, and blueberry pomegranate.  You get two per package, and I'll warn you that it's a bit pricey.  However, there has been a coupon inside each package I've gotten, and they are on sale quite frequently.  I've found them at Kroger and Super Target so far, and it's housed in the produce section.  I really like it because it's portable - I can throw it in my purse and take it to work with me without worrying about having fruit in my purse.  My husband and kids like them too, which says a lot!  There are two Weight Watcher points per serving.  

The second product is actually a line of products made by gardein.  The company makes several types of food products, including fresh, frozen, trio complete meals and offer a food service division which provides foods to be served in schools, restaurants, hospitals, and things of that nature.  What is gardein?  Meatless protein foods.  (Think soy protein that doesn't taste like cardboard.)  I got the trio complete meals, which is exactly what it sounds like - three things in one.  I've tried the Burgandy Trio for lunch the other day, which has "beefless tips", veggies, and rice.  It cooks in three minutes in the microwave, which sold me.  The consistency of the "tips" was beef-like - not as chewy as beef, but definitely the best meatless-but-feels-like-meat product I've tried.  The sauce was great, and the veggies and rice were as well.  The veggies weren't chewy, which I appreciated.  The Weight Watchers points value for this particular item was 4, and it was certainly filling enough for a meal without adding anything else.  What appealed to me the most about this product is that I can take it to work for lunch.  I bring my lunch almost every day, and I get sick of the same Lean Cuisines, sandwich, blah, blah.  The gardein products can be found, according to their website, at Kroger, Safeway, and Whole Foods.  They're in the (at Kroger) organic area in a refrigerated case.  Much like the fruit2day, a little bit pricey when comparing to something like a Lean Cuisine.  I think the gardein products I got were about $3.75 each, and they were on sale.  However, if I were to eat my lunch out everyday at work I would be spending significantly more than that.  Also, the gardein product is much lower in sodium, and is fresh, not frozen.  I'm going to have the Thai Trio for lunch today!   

Design Star

OK, not really.  I do love that show though.  I always have great visions in my head for things to do to our house.  They always fall short.  I've taken on recovering my dining chairs and the bench in our kitchen.  This, my friends, is within my ability levels.  I may even throw in a valance for the kitchen for good measure.  In the dining room we have a striped fabric now.  It's cute, but I'm over it.  Our walls are a khaki color and I like my drapes and don't want to change those.  I found this fabric deeply discounted (think 80% off) at Joann's this weekend and I l.o.v.e it.

It looks great with the dark wood of our dining furniture, compliments the walls, and coordinates with our drapes.  I love it so much that I'm carrying it into our kitchen as well.  Our kitchen walls are yellow.  Bicycle Yellow, to be exact.  

I'm sort of over the yellow kitchen, but it's staying.  Chris has pulled down the "trim" that was on the tops of our cabinets and is building the cabinets up to the ceiling.  We'll then add a thick moulding around the tops to make it look more like a piece of furniture.  The biggest change will be that we're going to paint our cabinets an off-white color.  They're the builder brown right now and I. Hate. Them.  We'll change the pulls as well and probably replace the light fixtures.  All in baby steps.  

I have one chair covered.  They're really easy to do, I just don't feel like doing them all at once.  Mostly because by the end of the day when I have the time to do them, I'm tired!!  I'll post before and after photos soon.

Who Will You Vote For?

Tennessee will elect a new governor this year.  Our current (Democrat) Phil Bredesen will be term-limited in 2010.  Who will you vote for?  I'm going to vote for Bill Haslam.  He's the current mayor of Knoxville, and I think the strongest candidate we've got.  He's a Republican (duh) No matter who you plan to vote for, just please vote.  I am shocked by the number of people who do not vote, aren't registered, don't care, etc.  I think it's one of the most important things we can do as citizens, and I try to vote in every election.  So, even if Haslam's not your guy, pick one and support him or her!

Food, Inc. - Hungry for Change?

Have you heard of Food, Inc?  It's a documentary film that looks at the mechanization of our nation's food industry.  It's Highly. Disturbing.  And will possibly change the way you think about the food you eat.  I watched it on You Tube.  If you wonder about what you eat at all, I so strongly recommend you watch it.  I really try not to be in your face about stuff like this, but I was shocked by some of the things in this movie.  And completely grossed out.  (Clearly the goal of the film, FYI.)  The intent of the movie is very obvious throughout, but there are some truly good points made and some really disturbing footage.  It certainly makes me think about what I'm eating and where it came from. . .

Weekend Roundup

What did you do this weekend?  

Saturday morning we went to the Farmer's Market in Franklin.  I think it's the best one around.  The Nashville Farmer's Market is good and has a large selection.  It's open all week, which is a bonus, but it's in sort of a ghetto neighborhood.  I don't like that.  The Franklin Farmer's Market is at The Factory and it's really nice.  There's a great mix of vendors, and a good variety.  The only downside?  So many people know about it.  We've been going for a couple of years, and it's grown tremendously.  While I love that, because it just brings more variety, et cetera, I hate it too because there are so many people there!  If you want to go, go early.  There's everything from the obvious fruits and veggies, to breads, fresh baked cookies, honey, the most amazing pies from Geraldine (Seriously, the MOST amazing.  Worth a trip just for her pies.), hand made soaps and lotions, organic goat cheese, hummus, flowers, pickles, preserves, jams and jellies, organic meats and eggs, herbs, dog treats. . . seriously more than you could imagine.  And if you get hot or bored (or need to use the potty!) you can go inside and walk around the Factory.  There's a lot of good window shopping, a coffee shop, clean bathrooms, and cool air conditioning.  

After the Farmer's Market we came home and Jack took a nap.  I brought David and Henry to the movies to see . . . 

It was so cute!  They were to go today with Chris and his dad to the 3-d version.  However, Chris had already told them that he would bring them on Saturday.  He thought perhaps he could reason with them so they would just see it on Sunday. . . notsomuch.  We opted for the normal version on Saturday.  They liked it a lot, as did I.  It's a cute story.  Barbie and Ken are my favorite!

After the movies we made some pickles.  Yes, we made them.  I'm going to do a separate post about those.  It was much, much easier than I anticipated.

Today Chris and his dad headed back to Toy Story with David and Henry.  My mother-in-law and I went to do some shopping.  We had only been gone about an hour and ten minutes when the phone rang.  Henry was crying and wanted to leave.  I had a feeling that was going to happen.  We went back and picked them up.  We got a few pairs of shorts for David and Henry and headed home.  On the way we stopped at Gigi and Grampy's house for a swim.

We love to swim!  The boys are doing so well with their swimming.  Jack is getting braver and braver.  He's ventured into the big pool now as opposed to the baby pool or the hot tub.  He's not a fan of going under water, but it's getting better.  Hopefully he'll be swimming by the end of the summer.  

The boys finished a week of vacation Bible school this week.  They love, love, loved it.  It was held at LifePoint Church and they absolutely love it.  My New England friends would not believe the size of this church.  Joel Osteen would be proud.  We're going to service there next weekend they liked it so much.  I've wanted to go to church with them for a long time, but it's so hard with three little children to get out the door and to church on time.  I know that's an excuse, and I own that.  However, they loved it so much, we're going to try it.  And it's very close to my house, which I like.  And, really, it has a coffee shop inside the church.  That's sort of what sold me.  While they were at "camp" as they called it, they did some crafts.  One was the mask below. . . on the world's tiniest Zorro.

 

I'm off to get things ready for another Monday.  David has running camp this week, and he's very excited about it.  Thankfully it's in the evening, because it's been approximately as hot as the surface of the sun here this past week.  Have a great week!

Newest Jewelry Obsession

My new jewelry love is Stella & Dot.  It started with my Boca necklace for my birthday.  (Truly it started well before then when I began to covet all several of the pieces.)  I got this little beauty with some of my birthday money.  LOVE it.  I get so many compliments each time I wear it.  The only downside?  I set off every metal detector within a 2 mile radius.

The next one I have my eye on?  

It retails for $248, which is a bit ridiculous for me.  However, I have a lot of faith in eBay, and am watching it like a hawk.  If I had time to do trunk shows, this is one company I would consider being a rep for.  You know, in my spare time.

iWant

Dear Sugar Daddy (wherever you may be),

I really, really, really hope I get an iPad.  I love them.  I promise a gift like this would not be wasted on me.  Pretty, pretty please.

Thanks,
KJ

Summer Bathing

Does swimming count as a bath in the summer?  Because I'm pretty sure most days it does.  There has to be enough chlorine in the swimming pool/hot tub to kill any germs on these children I have.  Because really, if it doesn't count as close-enough-to-a-bath, we're kind of in trouble.  By the time we're done swimming, we don't have time for a bath.

Boca Dreaming

I L.O.V.E. jewelery.  Love it.  There is very rarely a day when I'm not accessorized with at a minimum a necklace.  I get this love for accessories honest, as they say here in the South.  Some of my earliest memories are the clinking of my mom and grandmother's silver bangle bracelets, the monogrammed pendant necklace my mom used to wear, her dangling silver earrings, and the sparkle of my grandmother's (now mine) engagement and wedding rings.  Now I have fabric bulletin boards hanging in my closet with my necklaces hanging off of them, bowls of bracelets, and a a full jewelery box of earrings and rings.  When I got my first bonus working for the Gap, the first thing I bought was the Elsa Peretti bean earrings from Tiffany.

My boss brought my birthday gift in to work today, and it was the stella & dot Boca necklace with bee brooch.

I love it!

First Friday Concert

Friday night we brought the boys to the First Friday concert on the square in Murfreesboro.  There's a concert the first Friday of June, July, August, and (maybe?) September.  You just find a spot and hang out.  We brought a picnic, a blanket, and some chairs.  We loved it!

They had a few vendors selling barbecue, hot dogs, sno-cones, and things of that nature.  Henry had a sno-cone.  But he was really hoping for some cotton candy.

 Randomly, one of the attorneys I work for had some cotton candy in his office left over from his daughter's birthday party.  David, Henry, and I just walked over to my office and picked up the cotton candy.  Mr. Kirk saved the day!

The boys played in the grass, ran around with some new little friends they made, got balloons from the people from First Tennessee Bank, and caught fireflies.  We stayed until almost 9:00, and had a great time.  The music was great, but I don't even know what the name of the band was!

We'll definitely be back in July!

Birthday Weekend, Part One

I'm a huge, huge fan of birthdays.  Especially mine.  It's the only day of the year that is just for you.  Except mine, since I share it with my grandfather.  However, you know what I mean.  Chris took the boys shopping on Friday to pick whatever they wanted to buy me for a birthday gift.  They were creative!

Henry picked a candle, after much deliberation.  Henry is a very thoughtful decision maker.  He's not one to make a snap decision.  He likes to think about it.  A. Lot. Chris said that he really wanted to buy me a shirt.  Chris talked him out of that, and he then decided on a candle.  A huge, orange, stinky candle.  He (thankfully!) changed his mind and got me a small "vanilla cupcake" candle that he decided is for my office.  I think that's a fabulous idea, and will be bringing it to work with me on Monday.  He also made me the adorable card in the picture, and I am framing the part that is a drawing of Henry and me holding hands.  He loves to make cards for people, and he does a really sweet job.

David had decided early in the week what he would be getting for me.  Lipstick.  He wanted to get three of them, in the same shade, because "Mama wears a lot of lipstick".  (PS. I totally don't.)  He selected Revlon "Ravish Me Red".  It's a bit of a hooker red.  Thankfully Chris kept the receipt.  Let's just say that's not exactly my color.

Chris got my some really pretty flowers, a yummy chocolate fudge cake, and some cupcakes for the boys.  Batman cupcakes.

David, Jack, and I went to the first Murfreesboro Main Street Market.  (I think they have the cutest logo!)  We got there two hours after it opened, and the selection was very, very small.  However, it was the first day they've done it and we got there late.  We'll definitely try again.  I love the Murfreesboro square and like supporting local businesses, so we'll keep trying the Murfreesboro Market.  David was disappointed that he didn't get any fruit, but he was happy to just explore.  And Jack was happy to ride in the stroller and people watch.

In the afternoon after Jack's nap, we brought the boys to my parents' house for a sleepover.  Jack was so excited to "sleep Gigi's HOUSE!"  We went to dinner after we dropped them off, then headed to Arrington Vineyards.

I LOVED it there!  How have I not been there before?  Next time I want to do a wine tasting, but there was a two hour wait for it, so we just picked something.

We had the Raspberry 08 dessert wine and raspberry chocolate truffles.  Oh. My. Goodness.  DELICIOUS.  Chris is hooked and wants to be a wine drinker now.

Today?  Birthday weekend, Part two - a celebration at my parents' house with a cookout and swimming.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Happy 33 to me!

Birthday Dinner

My sweet friend Julie brought me to dinner last night for my birthday.  We never get to spend enough time together and it was so nice to go out, just the two of us.  We went to dinner, shared this dessert after the wait staff sang Happy Birthday to me while playing a gong (WTH?), then did some browsing at a few stores.  I had a lot of fun!  Thanks Julie - Love you!

Who Thought This Was a Good Idea?

Clearly, I'm an exceptional parent.  Why?  Because instead of telling David to get down as he climbed the doorway Spidey-style all the way to the freaking top I told him to stay still so I could take his picture.  Whatever.  He had a "drop zone" of pillows in a six foot area on the floor.  Of course he did.

Hipstamatic

Do you have an iPhone?  I love, love, love the Hipstamatic app.  It's a photo app and takes phots with different filters, borders, etc.  They take a minute to load after you take them, but I love the effect.  And the look on David's face in the photo below.  I think he looks like his baby-self in this picture, which I so rarely see anymore. 

Bling

My grandmother died 4 years ago.  She had a pretty good collection of jewelery.  A lot of it Some was crap.  Like her plastic pretzel earrings.  Some was really great - like a diamond watch, a string of really pretty pearls, my engagement and wedding rings, and the ring above.  My grandmother was also the size of a 10 year old boy.  Seriously - she probably weighed 75 pounds.  This ring was a size four and a half.  I put it on my ring finger and it fit just past my first knuckle.  Then my finger started dying.  Happy birthday to me, I had it resized.  And I. Love. It.  Let's ignore the fact that my hands look like wrinkly old dried up man hands.  What the hell?  I think a manicure is in order.

Cute, Cute Gifts

If you need a personalized baby/kid gift, housewarming gift, birthday gift, etc. you need to check out Jennifer's blog.  She's a friend of a friend, and she does the cutest monogramming, custom sewing, appliques, and personalized gifts.  And her prices are exceptional.  And she's a sweet, funny girl.  This is just a very, very small sample of what she has to offer.