"Yep, he's hot"

Okay, so it became apparent a few years ago that I have sort of quirky tastes. I've never been a fan of the typical Hollywood guys (ie: Brad Pitt, George Clooney... blah) But the issue really came to my attention after I watched "Lord of the Rings." This past weekend I saw "Avatar" and my little list is growing. So, drum roll.... Here's who I think is hot:


1) Legolas from "Lord of the Rings." It's very impt that I make a distinction here- I do not find Orlando Bloom attractive at all! He's sort of a girly man in Pirates of the Caribbean and does nothing for me. But give him a blond wig, some pointy ears, a quiverful of arrows and DANG!

















2) Wolverine from "X-Men." Impt distinction: not Hugh Jackman (see #1). It helps that I LOVE his character in the X-Men movies. I'm normally not a facial hair person but on him- it's perfect. Note to Curtis: Dressing up like Wolverine is encouraged!























3) Diego from "Ice Age." Yes, I know he's a cartoon. Yes, I know he's an animal and yes I've seen Dennis Leary. But... I love that Diego!
















4) And now I love JakeSully from Avatar. But I don't love him when he's human, only when he's a 10 foot blue alien. Wha...?



So there it is. Who will be next? The good news: when I was searching for a picture from Avatar I found a thread of others who agree with me on JakeSully- so I'm not alone. The bad news: I think Curtis is offended when I tell him I think he's hot! Doh!

Home Cookin

I love the show "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." Everything looks so yummy on that show. I need to road trip across the country and visit every place that has been highlighted. They always interview patrons of each restaurant and I couldn't help but notice that many of them said the same things: "This is just like home cookin," "Feels like family here," "This food tastes like my Grandma's,", etc... It dawned on me that people are really craving "real food." By real I mean something that's not straight out of a box!
Last year there was a hurricaine here in Texas and some of the first foods to sell out (after milk and cheese) were things like frozen chicken nuggets and corn dogs. I think I sort of surrounded myself with likes minds in Minnesota so I didn't realize how much processed food most people usually eat. When I heard the comments on DDD about the food being "Just like grandmas" I couldn't help but wonder what their grandchildren would be saying someday.
I find that many women are hyper defensive about their cooking. Hy.Per. I'm definitely a so-so cook but it doesn't matter. As soon they find out I make spaghetti sauce or homemade soup their claws are out faster than you can say Hamburger Helper! Usually there is some sort of comment like "I don't cook." But then later it gets a little uglier with implications (you must have nothing better to do, must be nice to have so much free time- the rest of us are just too busy!, poor you, your husband must demand that you cook...)
So far I find myself shrugging or trying to deny it. It's silly because I only make dinner 4-5 times per week and one of those is always pasta and another is usually a cold meal like hummus and edamame. I'm certainly no Martha Stewart (been called it though!) and I keep things pretty simple. It's not like I'm slaving away in a hot kitchen all day. Seriously I just like good food, and it saves money, and it's healthier, and cooking is a skill, AND I want my kids and grandkids to talk about their favorite meals from my kitchen someday. Is that a crime?
And with that I will post one of my all time favorite recipes. My buddy Sarah got this from Family Fun magazine- I've added garbanzo beans b/c my kids love them. Start to finish this recipe takes 30 minutes and my kids SLURP it up!

Creamy Chicken Curry in a Hurry

1 1/2 T veg oil
1 med onion, diced
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp curry powder
1 (12-14 oz can) coconut milk
1 c canned diced tomatoes (I always just use a whole can)
2 T Tomato paste (I often skip this if I don't have any)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes (or you can use a can of chicken)
3 packed cups fresh baby spinach, chopped
1 or 2 cans garbanzo beans
1/2 c. toasted coconut

Heat oil over med heat. Add onion and 1/2 tsp salt. Cook until soft, about 7 min. Add curry and stir one more minute

Stir in cocnut milk, tomatoes and paste and cook another 5 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly.

Add chicken and cook 5-6 minutes until meat is cooked (sometimes I cook the meat beforehand- that's okay too). Add spinach and cook until wilted, about 3 minutes. Add salt to taste. Serve with rice.

To toast coconut, place on a cookie sheet in 350 oven and watch closely. Cook until golden, just a few minutes. This adds so much flavor to the dish and is my favorite part.

Who Am I?

I just realized why I hate facebook. I joined a couple of years ago at the urging of several friends. Since that time I have reconnected with old friends from high school and church, lots of people I hadn't talk to in years. I caught up with old boyfriends and buddies and have had the chance to see pics of their kids. All of this has been fun... but also a little strange. And I finally know why. Drum rolll... I am different with different people. I don't joke about prostitution with my parents but tramp is a term of endearment for my old roomies. I try to maintain some level of respectibility with the youth at church but laugh at SNL skits with my sister. I have strong opinions about religion, politics, parenting, you name it but I don't want to debate or even share these with everyone. I can play the role of serious sahm or revert back to my "Jagged Little Pill" days. Do I have mulitple personality disorder? Am I just a total hypocrite? I know this isn't a problem for everyone. I bet there are lots of people who are always the same- no matter who their with. I sort of envy them but that's not who I am either. Anyway... long story short: I'm slowly going to exit the facebook scene. You'll miss me.

Best Bike for Kids Who Don't Want to Ride

Jonah and Isaac were both very early bikers- taking their training wheels off when they were barely 4 years old. I wondered how it would go for Daniel. He was much more timid and did NOT like the wobbling of the little bike with training wheels.

I started to notice that Daniel was running behind all the neighborhood boys as they rode their bikes. It seemed so sad. I really put a lot of effort into teaching Daniel to ride. But he hated it and my back hated it. I wasn searching around online one day and came across a product called a Balance Bike. Long story short- it's the greatest invention ever! I wish I had discovered these when he was 3! They are quite small and have no pedals. The point is that kids can push with their feet and place their feet on pegs as they get better at balancing! A bonus for someone Daniel's age (he'll be 6 in a few months) is that he doesn't have the stigma of training wheels. We have just started riding bikes again (in Texas we don't ride in the summer or fall- too HOT) and he is doing great! Miles ahead of where we were last year when he completely refused to get on a bike. I'm hoping he'll transition to a bike with pedals in the next few months and then I will have the balance bike for Lucy!

FYI I chose the PV Mini glider, found here. A little pricey but I think they resell well and if you have more kids on the way they can be passed down!

PS: My good buddy Heidi reminded me that you can make your own balance bike too. There are instructions online for building a wooden bike if you're inclined or, you could just remove the pedals and chain from a small child's bike.

Happy Birthday Men!

So I've been trying to upload this onto fb all day but I give! Enjoy!

Isaac turns 7!

Well I cannot believe it's been 7 years since sweet little Isaac came to our family. He has a mouth full of big boy teeth and is growing so quickly. One of my favorite things about Isaac is that he tackles life with all he's got. Isaac doesn't do anything halfway. Whether he's giving you a hug or learning to play football, he does it till it hurts. One of my and Curt's all time fav quotes is from Isaac when he was about 2. He was standing on the couch and Curtis sat down and leaned back, squishing him. Isaac yelled "Stoooooooooop! Do it again."

For Christmas Isaac got a beautiful arts and crafts set with markers, crayons, pastels, paints and is taking such good care of them. He loves to be creative. His reading is really taking off, although he still loves to be read to. He's also a wiz at math and would love to do more multiplication in school.

Isaac is a great eater and requested "Creamy Chicken Curry in a Hurry" for his birthday dinner. He ate more than I did! :) He is always willing to try weird foods and seems to have my same taste: ie he loves sushi with me and crab rolls and salads, good cheeses on bread... I'm getting hungry.

For Isaac's birthday party, he invited two friends to go see "The Squeakquel" and they loved it! I was really crabby when Isaac was born because he was 9 days overdue and my sister came all the way out from Michigan to help but had to leave the day after he was born! He was worth the wait!