Always Fashionable (Even In The Rain)

Someone Turned Four

Last week, Maureen celebrated her 4th birthday. Her annual birthday letter will be coming eventually, but my laptop is in the throes of death, so my online time is limited to when The H is home, so I can use his.

Most of the photos have other people's kids in them, and I prefer to not post those here, but I did want to share this cute little frog.

For her party, we had a Princess Party and all the girls came dressed in fancy Princess dresses. They played Pass The Slipper (a princess version of musical chairs or the hot potato game) and Pin The Kiss On The Frog. Since these were mostly 3 and 4 year olds and I didn't want any of them walking into the wall, I used a sort of sheer scarf for the blindfold, and they figured out right away that they could sort of see. So all the kisses actually made it onto the frog.

After the games, they decorated foam crowns and had cake and ice cream and then the party was over. Since she likes cats, the cake was decorated to look like a cat face. Not my best effort, but it tasted good.


Happy Birthday, Maureen!

Menu Plan: The Cookbook Version

Next to the steps in our house is a floor to ceiling built in bookshelf, and those shelves are mostly crammed with cookbooks. I don't tend to follow recipes to the letter, but I like cookbooks to get ideas or for general guidelines.

Lately though, I've been getting recipes and ideas from cooking magazines and the Internet, so I decided this week to actually crack some of those dusty cookbooks and plan my meals from those pages.

Here's what we'll be eating.

**Chicken with Apple Cream Sauce--This comes from the Taste of Home Cookbook that my mom gave me for Christmas one year. The list of ingredients is short. In fact, the only thing I don't already have is the cream. I'll serve it with rice and veggies.
**Fully Loaded Chili--Another Taste of Home recipe, this chili features 4 different kinds of beans. I've made it before, so I guess that's sort of cheating, but it's also in the book and I have most of the beans. Bread on the side.
**Cheese and Tomato Pizza--This one is from Cheese, 40 Sumptuous Cheese Recipes For All Occasions. It was another gift from my mom. Pizza doesn't sound very ambitious, but this one has homemade crust and is made with fresh mozz, fresh tomatoes and fresh basil. Yum!
**Lamb Pie with Goat Cheese Mashed Potatoes--It's definitely that time of year for stick to your ribs, warm you from inside food. This recipe is from Pot Pies, Comfort Food Under Cover, and I had a terrible time deciding which of the many delicious pot pies to make. The decision finally came down to the fact that we have lamb chops in the freezer. Plus, the various components to this recipe can be made in advance and assembled later.
**Pasta and Chicken Gratin--From Thursday Is Potluck, this dish not only sounds easy, but delicious as well. And who doesn't like melted cheese? Salad and veg to go with it.

Do you have a lot of cookbooks? What are you eating these days?

CSN Stores Product Review

My husband and I have been married for 8 1/2 years. Our house has changed a lot over the years, as we transitioned from newlyweds to parents. Nearly 9 years in, a lot of the things we received as wedding gifts are starting to wear out. I've broken a bunch of dishes in the past few months, and our towels are starting to look a little ratty. So we're slowly going room by room and replacing things. It's time consuming and also a little mind boggling because there are so many choices and so many retailers.

So I was thrilled to hear from CSN Stores again. You may remember that in the past, I've reviewed a sand table, a boy's bedding set and a kid's bike. I've always been very pleased both with the company and the products!

What's even better is that CSN has over 200 online stores with tons of choices, everything from bar tables and stools to baby cribs to home decor and more.

I have chosen a storage item for my bathroom to replace something that broke awhile ago, and hopefully it will help me organize things, as well as look great.

Stay tuned for my review!

Menu Plan: Fall Favorites

Fall finally found us and winter is near. Say it ain't so! Alas, the mornings are chilly and it's freaking dark by 5PM. Bye bye, warmth and sunlight, see you next Spring.

However, if there's one good thing about cold and dark, it's the opportunity to cook food that really sticks to your ribs. Here's what we'll be eating.

**Ham and Scalloped Potato Casserole--An old favorite from my childhood. Plus both kids just love ham. I'll serve it with salads and some kind of veggie.
**Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup--A few weeks ago, I made Bean Soup and Johnny not only ate an entire bowl, but proclaimed that he loves onions when they are cooked with other things. And he also asked me to make chicken soup. So here it is. Salad and bread to go with it.
**Mexican Chicken Fingers-My mom gave me a subscription to The Food Network magazine, and these chicken fingers look like a good opportunity to use up all those partial boxes of taco shells in my pantry. Some kind of veg with it and maybe fries?
**Macaroni and Cheese Carbonara--Over the summer at the beach, I caught an episode of Throwdown with Bobby Flay that focused on Mac and Cheese. Turns out the episode is a couple of years old AND when my first issue of my new mag came, there was the recipe right there! So it's a sign. I need to make it. Yum.
**Buffalo Sliders--The H and I both independently purchased large packages of ground beef that now need to be used. And the last time he was on a business trip, I made these burgers for his parents and he was sad to miss it. So I'm making them for him next week. Fries, salad and maybe corn with it.

What are you eating these days? And have you entered my latest giveaway yet?

Cradle Rock Review and Giveaway

One look at my iPod will tell you I'm a girl who likes a wide variety of music. I'm also influenced by the music I grew up listening to, especially those artists favored by my parents. That's why I love ABBA, Bob Seger, CCR, John Denver and Patsy Cline.

One thing I'm not a fan of is most music composed for kids. I know I'm not alone, most parents find it boring, annoying or just too cutesy. But now that my kids are older, I find myself increasingly disinclined to let them listen to current music because the lyrics are inappropriate or offensive.

So when I was offered the chance to preview three CDs for kids based on music by iconic artists, I accepted with a bit of trepidation.

And I was very happy to be pleased with what I heard.

Cradle Rock Cds are instrumental lullabies adapted from the music of Kenny Chesney, Michael Jackson and Johnny Cash. Rather than using them at bedtime, I played them on a day when I needed some quiet, hoping the soothing music would encourage my kids to find a less frantic method of play. Not only did it work, but both expressed interest in the music. My favorite was the Johnny Cash version, "Crawl the Line." The Michael Jackson CD was just as good. Not being familiar with Kenny Chesney's music, I can't speak to how true the instrumental lullaby versions remain to the originals, but the music was pleasing to listen to and blended well into our day.

To check out more about Cradle Rock and to listen to what it's all about, visit Cradlerockstore.com.

THE GIVEAWAY
One lucky reader will win a copy of the Cradle Rock CD of your choice. To enter, leave me a comment telling me which one you would like and why. This giveaway is only open to US and Canadian residents and will close on Thursday, November 18, 2010. I'll choose and notify a winner on Friday, and you'll have 24 hours to get back to me. Please make sure I have a valid email address! Good luck!

disclaimer: I received all three copies of the Cradle Rock CDs at no charge to review. All opinions are my own and I am not being paid for a positive review.

Halloween 2010