Ready for Spring

I am so happy with how this turned out!  And I managed to make it really quick after I figured out the pattern.  (It was a little confusing to me.)  I think she may need more of these kinds of outfits for summer; they are so cute!  But next up is spring green shirts for the boys.  They will be a bit harder, I think, but I'm gaining confidence.

Moroccan Stew

Mmmmmmmmmmmm...
I got a cookbook from my friend Karen called the Healthy Cook.  I started thumbing through it and came across a recipe for Moroccan Vegetable Stew.  I immediately made changes, without ever trying it (as usual), but I didn't change any of the spices, which I guess is what makes it "Moroccan".  I really wouldn't know, though, because I've never had Moroccan food, so here's the disclaimer for those of you who have: I have no idea if this tastes like Moroccan stew or not.  But it is really delicious!  So here is the stew the way I made it:
1 small onion, chopped
1 c chopped celery
1 bell pepper, diced
4 or 5 cloves garlic, minced
1 T flour
1tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1 medium eggplant, peeled and diced
1 small (or 1/2 of a large) butternut squash, peeled and diced
2 c tomato sauce
2 - 3 c stock*
1 - 2 c water
salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 tsp each)

Cook onions, celery, pepper, and garlic in about a tablespoon of olive oil in the bottom of your pot until softened, maybe 5 minutes.  Add all of the spices and flour, and cook another minute or two.  Then add everything else.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes or so, until the squash is tender.  You can add more stock or water if you want it, but I like mine very thick.  Enjoy!

*I actually used pork stock, but chicken or vegetable would work fine.

Lydia's first glue experience

We got out the bean box today.  After letting her pour for a while, I decided to let her try glue, too.  She loved it:

Kitchen Art

My kitchen makes me so happy.  It is really cheerful now.
I went on etsy and had fun buying artwork.  All of these paintings come from etsy, from 4 different shops.  (Have I mentioned that I love etsy?) 

Here are the 4 in relationship to the room.  You can see Lydia's high chair.  This is the only "large" section of wall I have in the kitchen.  (It obviously isn't very large.)  The kids were very excited as I hung these tonight.  I was originally going to wait until Nathaniel gets home from Europe, but we needed a diversion, and this was fun.  He hasn't seen all of the paintings yet.  Actually, I think only one was here before he left.

The Library

I don't think I mentioned what I came home to:

Dad installed my bookshelf, and Mom filled it full of my books.  She even organized!  My parents and brother gave me the shelf for my birthday, and I am so excited to have my books out of the cardboard boxes that they have lived in for years!  (For those of you who don't realize my book addiction, this shelf is full of my history and language non-fiction.  Seriously.  Fiction, children's and other non-fic are on two smaller bookshelves in the same room.)  I also hung some photos that I've been meaning to put up:



I love this one.  It's in the "library", too.

My library is now a real room, not full of boxes and junk.  It's so nice.  Thanks so much to Mom, Dad, and Missy for all their work here!

In other news, we've just been dealing with colds.  The boys are getting over theirs; they got them over the weekend.  Lydia and I are really a mess today.  I'm even letting her watch 3 Mickey Mouses, which is about 2 1/2 more than usual!  But we are both tired and needed some couch time.

Snow Birds and Lions

I just saw snow birds outside my window, so I guess the weathermen are right.  They are predicting up to 2 inches of snow tonight.  It's supposed to be 40 tomorrow, though, so I doubt it will stick around...if they're right about that!

When we went to Vegas, we stayed in the MGM Grand.  So when I told the kids that there were lions in the hotel, Malachi asked, "Were they in your room!?"  Too cute. We did take a few pictures of the lions, and I explained about it being like a zoo room inside the hotel, but it's hard to describe to the kids.  They were highly impressed.

The lion with the blue bowl was playing the whole time!

Nathaniel leaves for Europe on Valentine's Day.....

Guacamole

Since I just got back from Las Vegas, Lydia and I ran to the grocery yesterday in search of fresh things.  I think because it's the middle of winter, I'm really craving fresh fruits and veggies right now.  Lydia started begging for tomatoes.  Now, I don't usually buy tomatoes in the winter because, well, they aren't really tomatoes.  But I will make an occassional exception for cherry tomatoes, because at least they have some tomato taste to them.  And avacados were on sale...and so I decided to make guacamole.  Lydia and I devoured it.  You need:
1 clove garlic, diced and then mashed with a little salt
2 avocados
juice of one lime
about 2 strips of bell pepper, diced
about 2 cherry tomatoes, diced
a small amount of minced onion

Smash the avocado with the lime juice and then add everything else.  None of the guys in my house will touch guacamole, but Lydia and I eat it as the main course.