Cousins...

Today Taryne finally met her little cousin, Theia. My sister, Tanya, her husband, Charlie and Theia came to visit us and help me assemble the invitations for a wedding shower. It was a great day and we got everything finished.

This was also the first time Kyle met Theia and I actually got to spend a little time with her today. The day she was born, I only got to see Theia for a few minutes.

Here are some pics from the day...

Taryne and Theia meeting and getting to know one another...

This afternoon we laid them down in the crib together...

Taryne was "inspecting" her cousin...

Taryne was holding Theia's hand...so cute!

Having a blast!

It will be a lot more fun in a few months when Theia is a little older and they can really interact with one another.

Until next time...Gig'em!

Pizza...

I read lots of blogs...especially cooking and baking blogs. I love new ideas and great recipes. This week I decided to try the pizza recipe from Pioneer Woman's blog. So last night I made the dough so it would be ready for tonight.

The pizza recipe calls for eggplant as one of the toppings. Well, Kyle and I do not like eggplant. But the last time I remember eating eggplant was as a child and I think it was fried...so I really don't remember if I like it or not. Well, the recipe had instructions on how to get rid of the bitterness of the eggplant. So I thought..."maybe I might like eggplant...maybe I have always had it where the bitter juices were not removed". Long story short, I decided to add eggplant to the pizza.

I know Kyle prefers some sort of meat on his pizza so I browned some Italian sausage to crumble on one half of the pizza. On the other half I decided to do the eggplant and tomato toppings like the recipe.

I browned the Italian sausage...

So I sliced the eggplant and sprinkled with salt and let it sit for about 30 minutes...(I guess I didn't take a picture of the sliced eggplant...really thought I did...oh well)

Sliced the tomatoes in half and chopped garlic and tossed together...

I thinly sliced the ball of fresh mozzarella...well as thinly as I could...

I then put the pizza dough on the pan and added the mozzarella...

I roasted the veggies...

Added all the toppings to the pizza...

Baked and enjoyed the pizza with Kyle and a friend...

The veggie half...

The meat half...

It was the best pizza I have ever had...I really don't like sauce on pizza but I have always been to scared to order pizza without sauce thinking it would be awful....well I loved it without the sauce...I guess if you really wanted sauce you could add that, but it is wonderful just the way it is...I think I like eggplant...and even Kyle said he would eat the eggplant again...if I mixed it with some sort of meat.

The recipe can be found at the link at the top of this post or here. Until next time...Gig'em!

In bloom...

This afternoon, Taryne and I went to Target for formula. Well, we simply cannot go to Target for just one thing...we have to browse a little. We found this in the $1 bin section. I couldn't pass it up especially since she has "Crazy Hat Day" next week...

Until next time...Gig'em!

Snow Day February 2010

I love snow...I mean I really love snow and cold weather and everything about winter. Some might say I would sing a different tune if I lived someplace where I have to actually shovel snow...who knows, but I think I would rather shovel snow every day in winter than have all the hot, humid days we get here in Texas. Most people think I am weird, strange, a little off because I love winter and hate summer...I just enjoy the cooler temperatures.

Well we actually had snow in College Station today. It has been snowing since a little after lunch...and to my surprise (and joy) it is still snowing as I type! I have been a little jealous of EVERYONE else getting snow the past month or so, so I am glad it is our turn. However, snow in College Station means all the crazy drivers that don't know how to drive in the rain, much less snow, are out and about. I am not claiming I am a great snow driver...I haven't had much experience. But I do try to stay off the roads during snow and I am always extra cautious during any type of wet weather.

Today when I picked up Taryne, she was again sticking out her tongue. She caught a few snowflakes and had a surprised look on her face...what was that cold thing that just landed on my tongue?

So without further ado, here are some pics of the snow...

My neighbors made this snowman in front of the entrance to our neighborhood and in our front yard.

My car after I got home from work and picking up Taryne...

Until next time...Gig'em!

Aggie baseball and other adventures...

This past weekend was pretty busy. We had Kyle's cousins Sarah, Jeff and Lizzie stay with us all weekend. Lizzie participated in Whoopin' Weekend at A&M...an event, I am sad to say I had never heard of until recently. It is a weekend for high school sophomores, juniors and seniors to come to Aggieland and learn all about our wonderful university.

While Lizzie was Whoopin' it up, we were able to spend time with Sarah and Jeff. On Saturday, we were invited over to Sarah and Jeff's friend's house for breakfast. It was such a wonderful breakfast and their friends are absolutely wonderful people. After our morning with new friends, we headed to campus to tour the dorms and attend an Aggie baseball game. Aggie baseball started this past weekend and we came out of the weekend with a 3-0 start!

Saturday was Taryne's first Aggie sporting event. I really think she had a great time! She only slept for about 20-30 minutes of the game and could not get enough of the action. She also learned to stick out her tongue on Saturday. It was a bit windy, so I don't know if she was "licking" the air or what, but it was pretty funny!

So we decided she needed sunglasses for future sporting events as well as other outdoor adventures. I found these at Target last night and they were too cute to not get...And to my surprise, she didn't try to take them off...

We had a busy but fun weekend. And we were all exhausted on Sunday. Thanks Sarah, Jeff and Lizzie for a great weekend!!! We hope to see you all again soon! Until next time...Gig'em!

Story time...

This past weekend we were again busy with cleaning, organizing and working on projects. Friday evening we took a break to read a story to Taryne. (Don't be alarmed...we took lots of breaks during the day to play with Taryne and tend to her every need... :-) )

Taryne has recently started sitting on her own. She is really good about sitting with the Boppy pillow behind her rear end, but she is becoming more independent with the sitting...

Well, Kyle decided we needed to read a few books to Taryne...it wasn't bedtime yet, but normally I read her books and he just wanted to do it this time...so I let him. And of course, he made up crazy stuff...and it was HILARIOUS!! But nonetheless, Taryne really didn't care, she just liked looking at the pictures and holding the book.

Taryne is learning all the time. She loves to pet Cassie and Phoebe and loves touching stuff. She will sit for minutes at a time (I would say hours, but that would be a huge exaggeration!) touching Kyle beard. The look of curiosity on her face is priceless!

We made a trip to Barnes & Noble over the weekend and she LOVED the children's book section. I hope she loves to read like me...

Until next time...Gig'em!

Taryne's First Ponytail...

Last Friday was Tie Dye Friday again at day care...so Taryne sported her tie dye shirt again. When I picked her up, she had an addition to her "wardrobe". She had the cutest little ponytail on the top of her head. She sort of looked like Pebbles from the Flintstones. Her teacher thought it would be cute (and it was) and Taryne is the only girl in her class that actually has hair to go in a ponytail.

Here are a few pics from last Friday....

A close up of the ponytail...

Phoebe is not really biting her...I know it looks that way...

And the other addition to her wardrobe...a stamp...

Until next time...Gig'em!

Valentine dessert...

As I have previously mentioned, we are not too big on Valentine's day. Well, this year, we had dinner at a favorite Mexican restaurant...on Saturday to avoid the crowds...and I made a special dessert for us for the actual day.

I decided to make Strawberry Shortcake. I love this dessert, but Kyle and I differ on how it should be made. I prefer my Strawberry Shortcake be made with pound cake or angel food cake. Kyle on the other hand, prefers the biscuit like version. I thought I would be the thoughtful wife and make the biscuit like version for Kyle...how sweet, right?

So I searched for recipes and decided to use the one on the side of the Bisquick box. And it didn't disappoint. It was biscuit-like  but sweet. A perfect compliment to the strawberries and the whipped cream.

I decided to make my own whipped cream. I have never attempted this in the past, so I was a little nervous. But after seeing Alton Brown make whipped cream from scratch earlier in the week, I knew I could do it. So I poured the heavy whipping cream in my mixer and beat until it was stiff. I then added sugar and a little vanilla. I beat a little longer until "stiff peaks formed"...really I just beat until the sugar was dissolved and it tasted yummy!

I sliced the strawberries and tossed in a little sugar and assembled. They turned out great! This is definitely something I will be making again and I will definitely be making my own whipped cream from now on...Cool Whip does not compare...AT ALL!

Whipped Cream
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 t. vanilla

Beat heavy cream until stiff. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until stiff peaks form...taste it and make sure the sugar has fully dissolved. Enjoy!

Until next time...Gig'em!

Valentine goodies...

Kyle and I are not too big on Valentine's Day. We typically go out to dinner for said holiday, but we always go on some OTHER day to avoid the madness that includes 45,000 college students. But for work I try to go all out...or at least bring something...

Every year I search through the pre-made Valentine boxes available at my local Target and my only rule is to get something fun. One year I bought Valentines that turned into the little football game with the triangle shaped football...too fun...the Valentine even became a goalpost. Another year I got Valentines with tattoos...too fun, right? Well, this year, I found little Tinkerbell Valentines that had little flower pot shaped pieces to attach to the Valentine. Each of these pieces contained flower seeds and if you soak it in water and plant, you have beautiful flowers! I also try to make some sort of sweet to go with my store bought Valentines. 

This year I decided to make brownies...but I couldn't just give little squares for Valentine's Day...I had to make them festive!

I decided to make things sort of easy on myself and I baked my brownies from a mix. I made 2 pans of brownies. I made sure to line the pan with foil (that was liberally coated with cooking spray) so I could easily lift the brownies out of the pan to cool and to cut them into little hearts.

After the brownies were cooled, I used a heart cookie cutter and cut out as many little hearts as I could from each pan. I placed them on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper to decorate.

My little helper...

I decorated each brownie with butter cream icing. To make the icing, I creamed the butter, added the powder sugar (a little at a time) and then added a little milk and almond extract. Once the icing was ready, I tinted the icing pink (for Valentine's Day) and scooped it into a piping bag with a star shaped decorating tip. I then piped the icing onto the hearts. I decided to make 2 different patterns to make things interesting.

Once everything was decorated and it had a chance to set up, I placed 3 brownies in a cellophane bag and tied it closed with a ribbon.

Butter Cream Icing

1 1/2 cups butter, softened to room temperature

4 cups powdered sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

Beat the butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar until combined and creamy. Add the milk and the vanilla or almond extract. Color if desired.

Until next time...Gig'em!

Just chillin'....

....with my Cassie while mom and dad work.

Last weekend we continued our home improvement projects and we started the reorganization of my craft closet/area. When we first moved into this house, I had a craft room. Once I found out I was pregnant, I slowly started moving my craft stuff to the closet in the guest room. Well, it never really got organized the way I wanted it. So, every time I need something, I end up taking half the stuff out and laying it on the bed to find the few items I really need. We decided that we needed to clean everything out of the guest room closet and the office closet and combine the two. This way when we have guests over, they actually have a place to hang their clothes!

Well, everything is out of the closets and Kyle created some crafty bins for me to store my scrapbook paper. Most scrap book supply storage devices are over priced because they know you really need it and since it is for crafting, it is super pricey. Well, we already had one of those mesh cube things you can buy at Target, so instead of the 6 cubes we originally had set up in the office closet, we made it 3 tall and took the extra pieces and made vertical slats for my paper in 2 of the cubes and one horizontal mini shelf for all the little stuff so we don't waste space. The paper is in the closet and that is about it. The rest of my craft stuff is in bins all over the guest room and the office. I just have way too much stuff! And what's bad, I want tons more scrapbooking stuff...oh well.

During our purge of my junk (ie. craft items) Taryne decided she wanted to play with Cassie. Up until the last week or so, Cassie has kept her distance from Taryne. She is not scared of her, she just doesn't get too close. She will smell her, but I think now that Taryne wants to interact with her, she is being more receptive. She has started laying next to her when Taryne is on the floor playing. Saturday, Cassie decided to lay down next to Taryne and she has learned to "pet" her. It is more of an opening and closing of her hands, but it is her way of petting Cassie.

Here are some pics of Taryne interacting with Cassie...

Until next time...Gig'em!