Heading Out

We're about to take this show on the road! I made a last-minute decision to take the kids' to visit Nana & Pop before school starts this September, but with my first craft fair only two months away, I knew I'd have to take work with me. For most, this would mean packing a laptop. For me, this means spending the week cutting pieces for skirts and dresses and ruffle pants and loading them up in a giant Rubbermaid. The serger gets to come too. I'm sure my embroidery machine will be glad to get a little rest. Enjoy it, girl. I'll be running you ragged when I return. Here's hoping that I actually get some of this finished while we're away!

My New Book

I heard an interview with Christine Avanti on K-LOVE last week as part of their A New You in 52 series, and I knew I had to have this book. Okay, fine. I really wanted this book. After a botched attempt at finding it in my local Books a Million store, I ordered it from Amazon, which is what I should have done to begin with. I was super excited when it arrived today. 

Christine Avanti is a nutritionist who believes in feeding your body rather than starving it. In this book, she explains the science of the body, when you need certain foods, and why you need them. She also provides an eating plan and loads of recipes. I've made it through the introduction and the first chapter, and I'm eager to hear more of her perspective.

I'll give a more comprehensive review of the book once I've finished it and maybe share a couple of my favorite dishes. Sparked your interest? Click on over to Amazon and get your own!

You lookin' at me?

Go team!

This many rival colors don't usually hang out in one place, and especially not at my house! I've been making team skirt samples, and of course, the only fabric I haven't been able to find is my own team. I'll be placing an order for that soon. Neely will just have to wear her cheerleader outfit until then. Go Vols!

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

I know you're all probably tired of hearing me talk about making things yourself and knowing exactly what you're eating, but I'm going to do it again today. If you're over it, by all means, click on out. I'll see you next time. If not, continue reading, and find out how I've made over my morning oatmeal.

While instant oatmeal doesn't have the worst/longest/craziest ingredient list out there, I still feel that eliminating those mystery items is healthier for me. I recently bought my first can of steel cut oats. The last few grocery trips I've made, I've considered buying them. I've held them in my hand and ultimately put them back on the shelf, because who has time to wait 30 minutes for oatmeal to cook? Regardless, I finally bought some.

On Saturday morning, when I had plenty of time, I cooked the steel cut oats. I made a few extra servings, and I portioned them out into individual bowls for the rest of the week.

Here's where it gets instant. All I have to do in the morning is grab one of those bowls and microwave it for 1:40 (in my microwave). It's also really simple to duplicate some of the flavors from those instant packets. Maple brown sugar? Add a little pure maple syrup and brown sugar, just not too much! Apples and cinnamon? Mix in some applesauce and sprinkle cinnamon on top. Bananas and cream? Mash a banana and mix it into the oatmeal - my personal favorite, and I don't even miss the "and cream" part. Blueberry? Add blueberries. You get the idea. Plus, for most of these, you're adding fresh fruit to your diet first thing, which is definitely better than whatever dehydrated mess is in those little packets.

If the fruit isn't sweetening the oatmeal enough for your taste, add a small amount of sugar, or Splenda, or Stevia, or whatever floats your boat.

And that, my friends, is what I've been eating for breakfast this week, and it has me feeling much better about my oatmeal. Now, what am I going to do with all my leftover instant packets?

The Bed

Well, this is it. The crib is gone, and in its place is now a big girl bed. Isn't it lovely? I think so. I wish Neely thought so. And before any of you character-haters notice and give me a hard time - yes, those are Tinkerbell sheets. I have never seen anybody get so excited about sheets as Neely did when we were selecting them at Target. We thought it might help her get excited about the new bed. It didn't. She hates the bed. She starts crying before we can even lay her down in it, be it at bedtime or nap time.

This is a new experience. Aidan never cared where he slept. For a long time, he'd climb out of his bed and fall asleep on the floor. He finally figured out that the bed was more comfortable, but changing from crib to toddler bed, toddler bed to twin was no sweat. I should have known Neely would be a diva. Oh, well. We can sleep when we're dead, I suppose. ;)

The room is now a work-in-progress again. We need to rearrange the furniture some more and start figuring out where to hang things. It feels like there's more blank space now. I'll share as I figure out how to fix it.

One more thing, please don't criticize the photo. Nobody would be still or look at me. These children are constant motion, and the blurred photo is only evidence of thus.

Asparagus Pesto

I just discovered this recipe in the March issue of Southern Living magazine, and I couldn't wait to try it! Yes, I said March. That's how long it takes me to get through a whole magazine. I can now move on to April. Anyway, this pesto sounded yummy to me, but I was a little leery of how many calories would be in it. I entered it into the calorie calculator and was pleasantly surprised, so I picked up the ingredients at the store this morning.

Asparagus Pesto
1 lb. fresh asparagus
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I cheated and used pre-shredded)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
1 garlic clove
1 tbsp. lemon juice (As I typed this I realized that I left this out. Oops! It still tastes good.)
3/4 tsp. salt

1. Snap off and discard tough ends of asparagus. Chop into 2-inch pieces. Cook in boiling water to cover 3 to 4 minutes. Drain.
2. Plunge asparagus into ice water to stop cooking; drain.
3. Process asparagus and the rest of the ingredients in a food processor until smooth, scraping down the sides as necessary.

Voila! Asparagus pesto. The recipe makes about 2 1/2 cups, so I figured that's about 10 servings at 1/4 cup each. According to the calorie calculator, that's a grand total of 174 calories for the pesto. I added it to a serving of penne pasta for a grand total of 384 for my lunch. (I can't help you if you need to know things like fat grams and fiber and protein and all that mess. I've just been focusing on calories.)

It's good! I promise. Well, you'll like it if you like the taste of asparagus, that is. That little jar doesn't stand a chance in my fridge. It will all be eaten soon. :)