Spring Break 2011 Part 1

Ahhh, it's that time of year again.  The robins are getting their worms, the daffodils and tulips are in full  bloom and the kids are off for a whopping 12 days!  I get so excited when the kids are off from school.  I love having my ducks in their nest.  It gets a bit frantic at times but it's worth it.  Plus Spring Break means that the last day of school is right around the corner.  So we started our break last Thursday with the big kids going to Preschool with Brayden.  They LOVE this.  If they are out of school and he has school they are allowed to go with him for the day.  It was Brayden's Easter party so they all got to make Easter baskets and find eggs.  Teacher Jen and Teacher Kim do such a great job with the little ones and their older siblings.  There are only six kids in the class and all but one have older siblings that my kids are friends with so it is such a fun day.  I sent them off at 9 am with a box of munchkins to add to their Easter treats.  I pulled in at 11:30 am to pick them up and they were busting out of the door of the little school.  Teacher Kim and Teacher Jen looked a bit exasperated and I had wished that I sent a bottle of wine with the kids instead of the munchkins, the teachers looked like they needed it!  My best friend, Kristin,  and I carpool so I had to pick up her huge brood as well.  My car was like a clown car with the never ending stream of kids piling into it.  It was me, Gray, Brayden, Zac and Kaitlyn and then 3 out of her 6 kids- Luke, Patrick and Shane.  I brought them all back to our house and they played outside and had lunch together.  What a great way to start their break.  That night I made a quick and easy dinner.  We invited Gramy over at the last minute too.  I made Honey Dijon Chicken, mini pierogies and asparagus.  For the chicken, you put about 1/4 cup of dijon mustard, 1 TBSP honey, 2 TBSP soy sauce, some mustard seeds, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix that up.  Then you dunk 6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (pounded a bit) in the mixture.  Cook them up in a pan that is coated with a little olive oil until they are done.  I really don't measure the ingredients out for this dinner so I estimated on what I think the measurements are.  Along with the chicken, I boiled up 2 boxes (1 is no longer enough for this family) of Mrs. T's mini pierogies.  Once they were done boiling, I fried them in a pan with about a TBSP of butter.  I then served them with sour cream.  I also had steamed asparagus that after steaming I sauteed with a little olive oil, fresh grated garlic and some lemon juice.  Gramy brought ingredients to make rice crispy treats.  She made them with Kaitlyn and Zac and was so fast that I didn't even get to snap any action shots of the treats being made!


Gray, Flash Gramy (cuz she is such a fast treat maker) and Zac



     On Friday we headed out for our much anticipated trip to Penn State!  The kids were so excited (and so were Jason and I, it had been 6 years since we have been there).  We arrived in State College at around 4 on Friday evening.  It was beautiful out and the patios to the bars were packed.  We headed downtown for some Penn State clothing shopping and then ate at Baby's.  Baby's is a 50's diner that I worked at for nearly 3 years while attending college.  We had to wear these cute 50's dresses, red scarves in our hair, saddle shoes and bright red lipstick.  We were encouraged to chew bubble gum and sit down and chat with our customers.  It really changed and it is under new management. The girls didn't have the same cute little dresses, there weren't any scarves or red lipstick.  And to be honest, our waitress was not very friendly.  I decided that their was no way that she would have been hired to work there when I worked there because she had a lousy attitude!  The pinball machine was gone and we couldn't hear the music from the juke box.  The food wasn't nearly as good either.  My favorites were still on the menu- Grilled Cajun Chicken salad (with fries on top!) and a side of mac and cheese.  Kaitlyn and Brayden got  Wimpy Baskets which has 2 little "wimpy" burgers and fries.  It was a bit disappointing after looking forward to going back there for so long.  Jason and I had great memories there from when we were dating.  He would come in all the time, play some pinball and I'd make him a chocolate chip cookie sundae and a real cherry coke.  I also met my future in laws for the first time there as well.  Jason brought them in (and his little sister, Kris, who was actually shorter than me at that time!) for a meal after one of his football games.  My best friend, Kristin, worked there with me one summer as well.  We only got to work one shift together and then we weren't ever scheduled together again.  Something about us being loud and boisterous?  Oh well!  Many great memories were had at Baby's, and maybe I held it up on too high of a pedestal but it was a bit sad to see how it changed.  After Baby's we drove around awhile showing the kids the sights.  We then headed up to Beaver Stadium for the Blue and White weekend carnival.  Jason despises carnivals, and this was a real one with all the fried foods, rides and real "carnies" working the rides.  We rode some rides and played some games.  We then headed back to our hotel for a good night rest.

      After breakfast the next day we headed to the stadium.  It was POURING. All day.  And windy.  Luckily we were able to hang out in the Letterman's Lounge for most of the morning.  The Letterman's Lounge is only for past football players and it is so nice.  It is located in the actual stadium.  They have coffee, donuts, chips etc.  The bathrooms are amazing!  Beats the ones I had to use all those years tailgating and going to the games.  We got to see lots of other football players from all different years.  Jason ran into his old coach, Fran Gantor.  He sat down and talked to me and the kids too.  The kids were a bit rowdy and making quite a mess.  So it was politely suggested to us that we go to the part of the lounge designated for children.  There was a TV there with kids DVD's, coloring books and lots of snackies.  Brayden must have had 20 miniature Hershey bars.  Zac spilled a whole football helmet (they serve the chips in helmets!) of chips and I spilled coffee all over me and the couch.  We were quite a disaster!

Gray enjoying a donut

The Blue Band "playing" into the stadium

Zac and Jason watching the beginning of the game

Jason's picture was on the wall in the Lounge, he is in the first row #72

Brayden colored a picture of the Nittany Lion

Kaitlyn and Brayden enjoying some chips from the helmet...I really want one of those

     We finally decided to brave the weather (and give the poor people in the Letterman's Lounge a break from our family!) and head to the bleachers to watch the game.  Why did we have to leave the nice dry warm lounge???  They had TV's with the game on it everywhere?  But we had to.  It wouldn't be right not to go sit on the wet cold bleachers...it wouldn't be the real experience.  So out we went.  It was so cold, pouring and windy!  But Gray actually managed to fall asleep.  We stayed until half time and then had to go back to our hotel to get warm and dry.  We napped a bit too.  I love the Letterman's lounge and if anyone sees those helmet chip servers,  please snag me one! 

    
     After napping and warming up, we headed out to Champs.  This was a favorite restaurant of ours.  They added onto it and it is huge now.  We had to wait an hour for our table but it was so worth it.  We got wings, nachos, pizza and lots of beers...Shirley temples for the kids.  Champs lived up to how we remembered it.  The kids loved it also.  What a great day, despite the weather!

 
     On Sunday we headed back to the stadium to the All Sports Museum.  We had the whole place to ourselves.  The kids were thrilled to see their Daddy's name in the computer that has all the football players in it.  They loved this museum.  Especially the football area. 

Kaitlyn

Brayden

Zac

Jason with his actual Rose Bowl ring, comparing it to the one in the display




      After the museum we went to the Nittany Lion Shrine for some pictures.  Nearly 14 years ago, Jason and I had our wedding pictures taken there.  It was surreal to be back here with our 4 kids.  Who knew then how blessed our lives would be? 

    




Weekend Blur

     I can't remember when the last time was that I had a "normal" weekend.  It has been years for sure.  This weekend was the usual crazy blur.  They are so busy and go by so quickly that it's really hard to take the time to enjoy them.  And a lot of times I just pray them to be over fast and to get through the litany of activities.  This weekend I tried to really just enjoy everything.  It began Friday night with Kaitlyn's much anticipated sleepover.  Since she has started Middle School she seems to have a lot of group sleepovers (almost every weekend).  Before Middle School they were always just a sleepover with one girl and not nearly as frequent.  So it was our turn to host.  I tried to hold her off...."Daddy just had knee surgery" and "Gray doesn't sleep through the night"  but it was clearly my turn and I didn't want the other Mom's thinking I was a deadbeat sleepover host.  So of course I dreaded Friday night and kept telling myself to just enjoy it.  Two girls, Emily and Erin, came over at about 5:00pm.  It was a dark, cold and rainy day so they couldn't play outside at all.   They both came bearing treats.  Emily brought Tasty Cake cupcakes and an incredible mix of fresh chopped fruit.  Erin brought her homemade chocolate chip cookies.  And Gramy sent Papa over with her signature pretzels with blue and white M and M's for Penn State (we are going to the Blue White game this coming weekend!).  I had an assembly line prepared for the girls to make their own pizzas.  We had small boboli pizza crusts, mozz cheese, parm cheese, pizza sauce, black olives and pepperoni.  They had so much fun making their pizzas.  Erin's had a smiley face and Emily's had a pepperoni pyramid.


Erin, Kaitlyn and Emily assemble their pizzas





While the pizza baked, the boys rumbled in to create their own pizzas.  We had Zac, Brendan (Zac's best friend), Brayden and Gray take over the table...



Brendan is very proud of his pizza

     The kids ate their pizza and then proceeded to have a dance party in the living room.  It was quite funny, especially since Brendan, Zac and Brayden weren't supposed to be allowed to play with the girls.  However the girls accepted them into their circle and they all danced together.  Good times!  After the dancing the girls went upstairs to Kaitlyn's room to paint their nails and chat.  Brayden kept trying to break in but he wasn't too successful.  The girls then came down to eat some more...chex mix, cookies etc. and drink Sprite.  Then it was into the family room to watch a movie.  All week I explained to everyone, including Jason, that once 8:30pm rolled around, the family room was the girls and we had to hang out in the living room.  The girls were going to watch a movie and then sleep in the family room.  They chose to watch Romano and Beezus (or is it Beezus and Ramona?) and they actually welcomed Zac and Brayden into the lair!  As long as they went up to their own room when the movie was over.  So at 11:10 pm, Zac and Brayden headed up to their room.  The girls chatted awhile and were all asleep before midnight.  What was I dreading about this?  It was such a fun night and they didn't disturb Gray at all.  Plus they are at the age that they really don't need my help much at all.  The girls had to wake up bright and early because Kaitlyn had a 9 am Volleyball game.  So I took Brayden, Gray and the girls to the BYC field house and we all watched her game.  They lost but Kaitlyn did a great job (especially serving).

She's number 7


     Saturday morning, Jason woke up with a nasty stomach bug.  He basically stayed in bed all day, getting up to get Advil, and then slept through the night.  When he woke up Sunday, he felt a little better and was off to see the patients that he didn't get to see on Saturday.  He worked until about 2 pm.  Kaitlyn had Confirmation rehearsal (she makes her Confirmation on Sat. April 30th) at 3 pm so I ran her there.  I couldn't believe that I didn't have any other kids with me-that never happens!- so I ran a few errands before picking her up at 4pm.  Sunday evening I made my Vodka sauce for dinner and the kids loved it.  I used to make it a lot before we had kids.  When I was pregnant with Kaitlyn I would make it nearly weekly towards the end of my pregnancy.  I would be in the liquor store every week buying those little bottles of Vodka!  The guy working there must have thought I was crazy, waddling in their 8 and 9 months pregnant to get my Vodka!  The recipe is so simple and with how the kids loved it, I will be making it more.  You saute about 8-10 cloves of garlic in a couple of TBSP of olive oil for a few minutes.  Then you add 1/2 cup of vodka.  Let that simmer for a little bit.  To that add 1 cup of heavy cream and bring to a boil.  Turn it down a bit and add 2 Cups crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes OR tomato sauce (I used crushed tomatoes this time).  Let that cook for awhile and then add some salt and basil (fresh is best).  Serve over the pasta of your choice and top with some grated parm.  So good! 

Jason with his queasy stomach enjoying it-not the best choice when you are sick!

Kaitlyn really enjoying it!

     So another crazy weekend has come and gone.  I really am going to try to relax more and enjoy the time-even if it is so fast paced.  Spring Break starts this Thur. and lasts until the Tue. after Easter.  We have jam packed weekends in store...travelling to Penn State this weekend for the Blue White Game, off to York on Easter Sat. for dinner with Aunt Kris and Uncle Kevin and then to Leesburg, VA for Easter with Aunt Cheri.  And the last weekend in April, Kaitlyn makes her Confirmation.  Whew, when will it slow down?

Random picture of Gray enjoying his favorite window seat

"What's for Dinner???"

     I've been trying to remove some pounds lately so I've been looking for healthier weekday dinners.   I don't mess with the weekends, they are all about enjoyment and we usually grill one night and then have a good family meal on Sunday (usually Italian and it wouldn't be right to lighten that up!).  This Monday I made Spicy Turkey Burgers.  My family loves buffalo wings so this recipe gives us this sought after flavor but in a healthier way. 

Spicy Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey

2 gloves crushed garlic

3 TBSP plain dried bread crumbs

4 TBSP mild wing sauce (I use a very mild sauce because of the kids, if it were just Jason and I, Red Hot sauce would be used)



Mild wing sauce for kids taste buds!

salt and pepper                                                                    

Blue Cheese or Ranch dressing

Hamburger Rolls

Lettuce and Tomato (optional)

     Mix the turkey, garlic, bread crumbs, wing sauce and salt and pepper very well in a bowl.  Shape into 4 burgers (yes I have to double this recipe as well so I have 8 burgers).  Grill (I used an indoor grill pan because it was a cold rainy day) about 5 minutes on each side until turkey is cooked through.  Remove from pan and serve on buns with either blue cheese or ranch dressing drizzled on top.  Top with lettuce and tomato if you so desire.  I served this with a salad and baked french fries.



     Last night I made Chicken Fried Rice.  This was my adaptation of about 3 different recipes for fried rice.  Here's what I did...

Chicken Fried Rice

1TBSP Pure Sesame oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

12 oz chicken breast, cut up into bite sized pieces

1 bunch scallions, chopped

1 C shredded carrots

2 Large eggs (beat in a separate bowl)

3 C cooked rice

2 TBSP soy sauce

1 TBSP teriyake

About a teaspoon of ginger

     Put Oil in a pan and cook garlic cloves for about a minute.  Next cook chicken until just about cooked through.  Add the scallions and carrots.  Push the mixture to the side of the pan and cook the eggs, scramble them and then mix them into the chicken mixture.  Add the rice, soy sauce, teriyake and ginger.  Stir together well and cook for an additional 5 minutes. 

     I served this with vegetable egg rolls that I bought from Market Day.  They come with a sweet and sour sauce to dip them in and the kids love them.  Poor Jason, all the guy wants are peas.  I have them in the freezer and you could put a cup of peas into this as well but I just can't bring myself to their level.  I despise peas.  I guess I should grin and bear it for my husband, but I'm just not that good of a person.  Peas bring me down.  I love vegetables, most vegetables, but not peas.  So once again, Jason went without peas.

Sunday Dinner

     I made Aunt Kim's Italian Wedding Soup recipe this weekend.  I can't even begin to describe the reaction that I got from everyone.  The kids LOVED it and kept praising my soup all through dinner.   Italian Wedding Soup was believed to be created by the Romans.  It isn't actually a wedding tradition in Italy.  The term "wedding soup" was actually a mistranslation of the Italian language, minestra (soup) maritata (marriage).  It means that the green vegetables and meat mixed with the clear broth is a good marriage or combination of ingredients.  Whatever it means, it is damn good soup!  And Aunt Kim's recipe was amazing.  So here it is...

Aunt Kim's Italian Wedding Soup

8 oz ground beef and 8 oz ground pork- put into a mixing bowl

1/3 C chopped Italian Parsley

1 large egg

2 cloves (or more to taste,  we love our garlic around here!)

1 tsp salt

1/4 C bread crumbs

1/2 C grated Parm (fresh is always best)

Ground pepper

    -Mix well and toll out 1" meatballs, place on plate

The Soup:

12 C chicken broth in a nice pot (My brother, Dave, insists on a nice pot so just get yourself a nice pot-you deserve it)

1 lb. escarole (you can subsitute spinach-this is the first time I used escarole and it really is good), chopped into thin strips

2 large eggs

2 TBSP grated parm

1 box of small pasta such as orzo, pastini or I used Acini Di Pepe which are little tiny balls

salt and pepper

     -Bring broth to a boil and add the meatballs and escarole and simmer till' the meatballs are cooked through (about 8 minutes).  Whisk the eggs, cheese, salt and pepper in a bowl.  ALERT, here is the tricky part!!!!  Stir the soup in a circular motion and gradually drizzle the egg mixture into the moving broth, stirring gently with a fork to form thin strands of egg, about 1 minute.  I found this to be very challenging.  I am not sure if thin strands were ever formed but it still tasted wonderful.  Add pasta and cook.  That's it!!!!

Kaitlyn enjoying some bread with olive oil for dipping

     My family can eat.  I've got 3 growing boys and Jason!  We also had Gramy and Papa for dinner so I doubled this recipe.  Dave mentioned that this soup is so much better the next day.  So I made it on Sat. but he suggested that I don't add the pasta because it soaks up all of the broth.  I added the pasta about an hour before we ate and it was perfect.  When you do have leftovers after adding the pasta, you will need to add more broth.  There is enough for leftovers for our family and I was able to send some home with Gramy and Papa.  I served this with Italian bread and a plate of olive oil with some Italian seasonings and grated parm to dip the bread in.  And a big salad and it was such a complete and hearty meal.  Gramy brought so much too.  She brought her bread that she baked that day and olive oil with garlic and parsley to dip the bread into.  Gramy can't come over for a meal or party without bringing her punch.  The kids wouldn't allow it!  She mixes sprite with Minute Maid fruit punch and then makes icemolds using the fruit punch and adding cherries and mandarine orange slices.  So good!  Gramy brought so many goodies for dessert as well.  She made her signature pretzels with  a melted chocolate and M and M's pressed into the chocolate.  She also brought her homemade chocolate chip cookies.  And finally the best dessert was her Angel Food cake with fresh berries (strawberries, raspberries and blueberries) topped with Whipped Cream!  We had a feast!  Gramy told the kids that Aunt Kim was surely looking down from Heaven and smiling at the wonderful family dinner we had. 

Gray, Zac and Gramy



Brayden enjoying his soup



  





Papa and Zac try to nap after their meal but Gray is not allowing it!



Ha Ha Mother Nature!

This is what we woke up to on April 1, 2011...

Good one Mother Nature, you got us on this April Fools day!  SNOW!!!  When will this winter end?  First Phil the groundhog lied to us and now you, Mother Nature?  Come on, bring on spring already! 



Zac



Brayden (the smart one inside!)



Just planted my poor pansies!




A cardinal on my almost empty bird feeder