Little Turkey, and Menu Monday

We did it.  We survived Thanksgiving and all the festivities that come a long with it.  It was just my own little family for the big turkey day this year, so we kept things pretty simple.  After all, who wants to spend forever cooking in the kitchen for just 2 people??  (Okay, technically 3 people needed to eat…but I knew my little turkey would take about 2 bites of his dinner, so I didn’t really factor him into the food preparation equation).

So we just had the basics.  Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, rolls, carrots, and we tossed in a glass of sparkling grape juice just for fun.  And pumpkin pie for dessert.  LOTS of pumpkin pie.  We ate at 1:30, were finished by 1:40, had everything cleaned up by 2:00, and were all taking an afternoon nap by 2:30.  It was great!

 

This is my little Turkey at his Preschool “Thanksgiving Feast.”  One adult was invited to join them for their feast (snack time) last Tuesday.  I was the fortunate one to attend, and Miles was soooo excited.

We got to make our own turkeys out of a bagel and cream cheese, veggies, cracker and raisins.  The kids also worked very hard in class preparing a pumpkin pie pudding.  (And I was shocked that it was actually REALLY good!)

The Judesters was there too…but managed to sleep through the entire thing.  As usual.

I had a great weekend eating good food and enjoying time with my little family…but now it’s back to the real world!  (Which means planning weekly menus) 

 

So here’s mine for this week:

 

Turkey Pot Pie  (it’s my cheater chicken pot pie recipe…only I am using leftover turkey)

Breakfast for Dinner – there’s no “official” recipe.  I don’t know for sure what we’ll have, but probably french toast.  Or waffles.  Or bacon and eggs.  Or all of the above.

Clam Chowder & Bread Bowls – My friend Erin (from The Sisters Cafe) invited me to a luncheon last week to celebrate my birthday.  She served this clam chowder…and it was to DIE for.  I mean it.  And my friend Anona made these awesome bread bowls to go with them.  The combination was heavenly…(Thanks again to my amazing friends!!)

Southwestern Crockpot Chicken

 

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork, Cafe Rio Cilantro Lime Rice, & Cafe Rio Beans

     The recipe I use for my Cafe Rio “copycat” dinner is one I have sort of made-up from several different recipes.  I’ll post it soon…but it still needs to be typed up, and since it’s almost 2 am…I’m going to BED!

Happy Monday Everyone!

Red, White, and Blue

Happy Independence Day!

While we WISH we were in Wyoming to indoctrinate Miles into the tradition of pyromania that is July 4th there……

A box of sparklers and $10.00 pack of fountains will have to do. For Now.

Next Year I think I’ll be making the trek to Toledo to bootleg “the good stuff” across the border.

And because fireworks aren’t the MOST important thing on the day we celebrate our nation’s Independence….

A special Thank You to all those who have served our country, making it possible for us to have the freedom we all enjoy in this great nation.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!

Easter

I have always looked forward to Easter. It is one of my favorite Holidays. And having a 2 and a half year old….(WHAT!!! 2 1/2 years old???? Holy Moly, he is growing up too fast)…. meant I was even MORE anxious to see how he would react to all things Easter.

Like, say…the Romer Family Annual Easter Egg Hunt.

This year it was inside because the weather was so gloomy. Grandma Romer hid eggs and candy all over the basement. Miles’ little cousin Taylor got to start first (seeing as she is only about 18 months or so). After her minute was up, then Miles got to join in on the fun. I was expecting wide eyes, crazy running around, and maybe some shouts of pure joy coming from my little guy.

But alas, it was not meant to be. He just looked around, saw things on the floor, and dutifully went about putting them in his basket. Like it was just another typical day, and I was making him clean up his toys and deposit them in the toy box.

He didn’t even care about the eggs. He walked AROUND the eggs. So I was forced to take drastic measures. I opened one egg so he could see. And he saw alright. He saw MONEY in those eggs. Then the kid was all about business and ended up having a pretty decent basket to show off.

His sugar high never really wore off, and it was a chore getting him to bed that night. But I was able to coax him into dreamland by by reminding him that the Easter Bunny only visited little boys who WENT TO SLEEP! Eventually, sleep he did.

And the Easter Bunny brought this!!

I thought it was ESPECIALLY nice of the Easter Bunny to personally make a coordinating tie to go with Miles’ new Easter outfit. How thoughtful!!

But the only thing Miles’ REALLY appreciated were the Reese’s peanut butter eggs that he found in his basket. He felt it necessary to separate those eggs from all the other “inferior quality” easter treats, like jelly beans and m&ms. No, he could not even CONSIDER eating any of those until his beloved peanut butter eggs had all been consumed. At least now the Easter Bunny knows not to waste her time with Jelly Beans.

(Like THESE ones the Easter Bunny lovingly laid out). Nope. The kid was not interested in them. Not At All.

Because Easter Sunday just happened to also be Conference Sunday, Miles didn’t get to don his new duds. But pictures will be coming soon.

We missed Mike (who was still in Michigan, enjoying the beautiful Spring weather out there), but were glad we could share in some fun activities with the Romer clan.

Thanks Romers for so much fun!