I also had TONS of plans for what I was going to make with all of those juicy oranges that we had. I zested them and juiced them with that pitiful little wooden handheld piece of crap in the picture (I bought something more suitable the very next day). Then we ended up just drinking the juice! We couldn't help it, one sip and we were hooked. So orange creamsicle jelly will just have to wait until next time : (
Lastly, I made Nigella Lawson's Toad in the Hole from her new cookbook. I'd heard of this dish but never really knew what it was. When I was reading through her new book, Nigella Kitchen, and realized that I had all of the ingredients I had to make it. I am so glad that I did, it's really tasty! I can't believe how easy this is to make also. It's basically sausage made into patties (or cut up I suppose is more traditional) fried for a minute or two in a bit of oil and then topped with a popover batter and tossed in the oven. I thought it was pretty funny how looking at the finished product tells you how this dish got its name.
I also tried out a co-op that is available locally. I got all of this produce for $15 which is kind of a steal. The only drawback is that I had to be there at 7AM on a Saturday and was therefore sneaking out of the house trying not to wake anyone up at 6:45 on our only sleep-in day. I'm not sure yet if I'll do it again as not all of the produce has been great. The one thing I do like is that everything is locally grown, we'll just have to see if I actually use everything.
This camera shy girl is turning 12 in three days!! Yes, I said 12!! Where has all of the time gone?
We've also been enjoying as much time outside as we can get. It's still beautiful here for hopefully another month or two so we'll just keep at it until we can no longer take the heat.
Gelsey taught Frank how to hopscotch, pretty hilarious if you ask me!!
Sorry for the brain dump, it's been a little while since I've been on here I'd built up a backlog of stuff. Next time I'll give updates on the garden : ) Hope all is well!! XOXO -Amber
So I had two baby showers in one weekend last week. It was very fun and I got to see some friends who have moved out of town and I hadn't seen in a year. As gifts I decided to go with something homemade so I made changing pads for on the go and a mini diaper pouch that holds a couple of diapers, wipes and maybe some A&D. I found the tutorial HERE (Violet Craft) but I can't find the direct link. I actually think it was linked from the sew mama sew blog as a gift idea but I snagged it a while ago and I can't quite remember. Anywho, it was super simple but practical and cute. I used flannel as one of the fabrics so it would be soft for little baby bottoms and I got to make one for a boy and one for a girl which was exciting as we find out what we're having next Thursday and the prospect of either is exciting. 
I've also made a couple of pairs of shorts for the boy. They're just right for a boy who would rather wear no clothes, as they were cheap and easy. He got to pick out the fabric which I hoped would make him actually want to wear them and so far it's worked pretty well : ) 
Now I'm on to Easter outfits which I'm 100% sure I won't finish in time but I've also got something else up my sleeve. I'll fill you in in a week and three days.
Hope all is well!! XOXO -Amber
One of the things we made with all of these lemons was lemon bars. They were easy, and kind of pretty but they didn't taste very good : ( We did, however, have lemon meatballs, lemon cranberry muffins and lemon fish which were all tasty. I think tomorrow will be lemon curd and lemonade, then who knows. 
We also tested out an indoor pulled pork recipe which was delish. Even Frankie agreed, he was sneaking bites before dinner. 
The weather has also gotten BEAUTIFUL!! So during the day, while the girls are at school, we've been hanging outside a lot! I am looking forward to having the girls home so we can have some serious water fights. 
This is what we have to work with next, any ideas???
Hope all is well!! XOXO -Amber
I've also decided to not give up on carrots. I've never had much luck getting big enough carrots to amount to anything but I planted a carnival blend and amended the soil with chicken pellets and voila, enough for dinner : )
This is the least interesting to look at now but it's the thing I'm most excited about. I've dedicated an entire box to the squash family this year and have planted 3 heirloom varieties. One of them is a winter squash, a blue hubbard. The other two are mini zucchini's and patty pan squash as well as a regular crook-neck squash. Hopefully they will do well as my hopes are through the roof! I've also planted four different varieties of tomato. A moon and stars watermelon which I'm excited about. Two varieties of eggplant, two of okra and a couple peppers. I will finish with my planting tomorrow with peas and beans and anything else I may have forgotten about.
We also FINALLY took Frank for a ride on the Anthem choo choo train. Ma'am was here so she got to share in the experience. Hope all is well!! XOXO -Amber
I LOVED Natalie Portman's dress/look. She certainly makes pregnancy look good! I was also soo happy that she won the Oscar. My mom and I saw the Black Swan over Christmas break and she gave me chills. It's a very clever story and her transformation into the black swan is phenomenal, it's spooky!! If you haven't seen it yet you should, but not with your kids, trust me on that : )
I couldn't be happier for Christian Bale either. I haven't seen The Fighter yet but he has been one of my favorite actors for a very long time. He's brilliant in every movie he does and if someone deserves to be recognized for their talent, it's him. I also think Sibi, his wife, is very pretty and I like her sparkly dress too.
Anywho, I hope all is well! XOXO -Amber
