Lots to catch up on!

Week after week of tagging along to the dance studio for Parker's lessons.  Week after week of asking when she would be able to dance.  "When you're three," I repeated 45245 times.  And finally, on this day, I didn't have to repeat myself.

Psyched? Not psyched? Hmmm

The tutus and all things girly.  Love love love.

Teagan was all talk at first.  When the moment came for her to walk into the studio by her lonesome the leg holding and tearing up started.  A quick kiss goodbye, an even quicker hug by the dance teacher and her cries quickly faded away. Whew! I am happy to report that now two months in and she's excited each week for her special class.

In other Teagan news, she turned three! I told her to stay two forever and in typical Teagan fashion, she didn't listen :-P   Teagan at age three is nothing but pure and utter goofiness.  This child will stop at nothing to make us laugh.  She is defiant as a means to be comical.  But she's also cuddly, so sweet to baby E, and plays SO well with Parker.  She likes to rough house and wrestle (for real!), will watch Miles from Tomorrowland, Jake, and Sofia for hours on end if we let her. and is a major fan of Jasmine, mik moss, cats and coconut milk.  Girl has curls for days, loves to paint, and loves even more to wash her hands in the sink and let the water keep running. Happy 3rd sweet T!

It hurts to even type this, but we had to say goodbye to our sweet Sydney earlier this month.  Our house feels so empty without her.  Coming home and not having 40lbs of fur waiting for us is nothing short of  heart wrenching.  Poor Parker has really been struggling. Daily she sobs, daily we hug and cry together, and daily we miss all things Syd.  This sucks.  

I can't even begin to post the pictures we have of Sydney's last day with us.  The emotions are too raw and that evening so sad and hard to acknowledge. One day maybe, but not today.

In non-depressing news...Emerson @ 5 months.  She is so.damn.adorable.

Our easy, sweet, smiley lil one is still a bundle of cuteness.  Emerson is really into rolling from back to belly, putting all toys in her mouth, having conversations with her sisters, cuddles, and not sleeping through the night.  While she'll sleep 12 hours a night, she wakes at least three times to eat.  Come on girl! Naps are random.  Some days she will nap for hours, other days it's filled with cat naps. Thankfully she's still very go with the flow.  Essential for a third baby!

Since P and T have birthdays so close and share so many of the same friends, a joint party was in order this year.  I let the kiddos pick the location and the decided on Bounce U, a huge indoor bounce house party zone.  Easy peasy so it definitely got my seal of approval. After hours of jumping we retreated home to open presents with family and neighbor friends.  All around a great success.  

The birthdays kept coming and Parker turned five.  FIVE.  5.  I am in denial but she is pretty psyched.  Parker at five is a girl with a huge, caring heart.  Always willing to help, always ready to play by the rules that are set and listen.  I honestly could not imagine not having her helping hands day in and day out.  My sweet, delicate flower. 

I die at this picture.  What a perfect image of our insanely beautiful life, day in, day out.  

While we were blessed with many things good, the past month has been very trying for us as well. I am looking forward to embracing all things fall going forward, including cider mills, subdivision parties, trick or treating, and before we know it...Turkey Day.  And then DISNEY!! AHHHHH!

Ginger Pumpkin Bread

Halloween has come and gone which means that I have a bunch of pumpkin meat from the pumpkins that we carved. I already whipped up Pumpkin Cheesecake and will be making Sydney some treats and perhaps some pumpkin cookie treats for me and Kris and will still have a ton of pumpkin leftover so I decided to try out this bread recipe by Martha Stewart. It's delicious and something else that I can look forward to eating every fall.














Ingredients
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus room-temperature butter for pan
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree (1 3/4 cups)
3 large eggs
Sugar Glaze

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter and flour two 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch (6-cup) loaf pans (see note, below); set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together sugars, pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs; add flour mixture, and stir until just combined.
# Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of loaves comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes; invert pans and transfer loaves to a wire rack to cool completely. Add glaze.

Sugar Glaze
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
2 to 3 tbsp water

In a small bowl, mix confectioners' sugar with 2 to 3 tablespoons water until mixture is smooth but thick. Place waxed paper under rack for a quick cleanup. For easy pouring, transfer glaze to a liquid-measuring cup, and drizzle over loaves. Let dry 15 minutes before serving. Makes enough for 2 loaves.

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Dog Treats

I am now officially on leave from work until February. My house is spotless, I dont' have a baby yet to care for (you can come out whenever Parker, just saying...), and there is absolutely nothing on daytime TV, so I'm back to the cooking blog :) I bought some canned pumpkin the other day to make pumpkin rolls and the leftover pumpkin needed to be put to good use. Sydney devoured these treats, but she eats just about anything ;)

Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients
1 cup canned pumpkin
4 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients together. Add water as needed to make dough workable, but the dough should remain somewhat stiff. Roll into 1/2 inch thickness and cut with cookie cutters. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and cook for 20 minutes.

Sydney patiently waiting for the delicious treat














Sydney devouring the treat














Had to put my Ohio State cookie cutters to good use :)

I have a bunch of hot peppers from my garden this year (one of the few things that the deer don't like to munch on!) so I try to incorporate them into as many meals as possible. I really like how this dish is different then your typical stuffed chicken breast!












Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
Garlic powder
1 cup Jalapeno Popper Dip (recipe to come in next post)
1 cup crushed tortilla chips
1 egg, beaten

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Butterfly the thickest section of the chicken breast to create two halves. Place each breast in a Ziploc bag and pound it with a meat mallet until 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick. Season chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic. Add cheese stuffing (however much you would like to!) on one half of the chicken breast. Fold other half of chicken breast over. Coat with egg and breadcrumbs and place in a well greased baking pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

Baked Penne with Chicken and Sun Dried Tomatoes

Martha Stewart recipes never fail! This pasta dish is full of creamy goodness and will leave you full and satisfied!














Ingredients
6 tbsp butter, plus more for baking dishes
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1lb penne rigate
1 tsp olive oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup plus 2tbsp flour
4 gloves garlic, minced
6 cups whole milk
10oz mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, oil drained and sliced
6oz shredded provolone
4oz grated Parmesan

Directions
Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2 quart baking dishes. Cook pasta three minutes short of al dente in a large pot of boiling salted water. Drain pasta and return to pot.

In a large skillet, heat oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook three to five minutes on each side until no longer pink in the middle. Remove from heat and thinly slice.

In a large pot, heat butter over medium heat. Add flour and garlic. Whisk for one minute. While whisking, add milk and bring to a simmer, whisking frequently. Add mushrooms and tomatoes. Cook for one minute and add cheese. Add chicken and pasta and season with salt and pepper. Divide between two dishes and top with remaining cup of Parmesan.

Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Let stand five minutes before serving.

Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps

I was inspired by this wrap when I saw it advertised at a local restaurant. It's quick to whip up and is a crowd pleaser!















Ingredients
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 lb chicken, grilled and sliced
Caesar dressing (recommends Trader Joe's Caesar Romano dressing)
1 cup croutons
Wraps (any kind)

Directions
In a bowl mix together lettuce, cheese, chicken, Caesar dressing (enough for your liking) and croutons. Top on a wrap and enjoy!

Mexican Rice

Mexican rice is the perfect side to go with my many Mexican recipes. It tastes like something from a restaurant and meets my requirement of being easy to make!

















Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 red onion, finely diced
2 gloves garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 cup rice
1 tsp chicken bouillon
2 cups water
1/2 cup corn


Directions
Saute onions and garlic in a olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook about five minutes, stirring frequently. Add in spices. Mix in rice. Add in water and bouillon. Bring to a boil and then simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in corn. Serve.