Christmas Countdown: Twinkle Lights

Probably one of my favorite things about Christmas is the lights. I  LOVE lights. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE them! They just make me happy.  If I had my way, I'd leave Christmas lights up year round.  Something I tried last year (not intentionally), but my HOA didn't seem to appreciate it as much as I did. 

Do you do lights at your house? 

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Christmas Countdown: Warm Beverage

This is my favorite time of year, but it just seems like it's been flying by this year. It's probably due to me being zombie mom with a 4 month old who likes to party until 2am.  So in a little attempt to hit pause or at least slow things down, I'm going to post some of my favorite things about this time of year over the next couple days.

Warm beverages:  Is there anything cozier on a cold day? Whether you're a coffee drinker, a tea drinker or a hot cocoa lover, the drinks this time of year are always especially good.  And it's not just about the flavors (egg nog, peppermint, gingerbread).  It's the whole experience.  It can even muffle a 3 year old with no volume control for a brief moment of peace.  Magic.

What's Been Cookin'

I actually didn't realize how long it's been since my last post, but waaaay too long!  As you can see I haven't quite felt like myself the last couple months.  This little girl decided to surprise us shortly after Christmas and it took us a while to get over the initial shock of it. However, I'm past the "sick and tired" phase and finally getting to my favorite part of being pregnant. 

My biggest adventure so far in this pregnancy? Finding a doctor. I had put off finding a doctor since we moved because I LOVED my doctor in Vegas. I explained to husband that aside from him, the most important person in my pregnant life is my doctor. Right ladies? Since I clearly couldn't put it off anymore, I made an appointment with Dr #1.  My first impression when he walked in the room...he looked like a slightly older George McFly from Back to the Future. Ok, no big deal I can be cool with that.  However, he wasn't very nice and had some definite weirdness to him, so I decided this wasn't the doctor for me. Husband doing McFly impressions on the way home, kinda sealed the deal. That night, I started scheming how I could pull off having my Vegas doctor deliver this baby.  

I had picked doctor #2 for my next monthly appointment.  He was very nice, but made some strange comments about his lack of patients and seemed nervous about doing my c-section surgery.  Hmmmm.  So I took my nervous self  home once again, cried (yes I'm pregnant), and tried to figure out how I could plan spontaneously going into labor while just happening to be in Vegas. 

Aside from feeling like a crazy lady, husband was convinced I wasn't going to be happy until I found Vegas Dr's twin. In a last ditch effort to find a doctor before running back to Vegas, I saw Dr #3 - yes 3. This one was a referral from another Dr who had a great reputation, but didn't take my insurance.  The word was Dr #3 was a great doctor and surgeon.  So off I went with NO expectations. I saw him last week and he was completely normal and confident. THANK HEAVENS!! He wouldn't have understood, but I sooo wanted to hug and kiss him after my appointment. Needless to say, I slept well that night.    

Now hopefully it's just smooth sailing til August.  So don't be surprised if you see baby posts for a while now;)

Soup Season: Butternut Squash

My favorite season is finally here! It's finally turned chilly here in Southern California and when that happens I find that I immediately start craving soup.  A couple months ago I had lunch at a Wolfgang Puck restaurant and got the Butternut Squash Soup and O-M-G it was amazing!! I've been dreaming about it ever since, so I found the recipe and tried it out. Now, it does take some time to do, but it's well worth it. Just make sure you make a bit extra to last you a couple days.  I promise you won't regret it.

What are some of your favorite soup recipes? 


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Movie Monday

I know I've been MIA for a while now, but I've been in full mommy mode lately.  We've got school, dance, gymnastics, and everything in between.  So when (if) I finally get the hang of this schedule I'm dying to start posting again because I'm bursting with fun stuff to share.

Aside from being a Sarah Jessica Parker fan, this movie looks adorable and is so up my alley right now. So this is for all you Mommies out there working and stay-home who can relate. 

Summer Munchies

I stumbled upon this recipe for fruit salsa with baked cinnamon chips and WOWIE it looks amazepants! Perfect for a summer treat don't you think? I always notice that I tend to eat light foods when it gets hot out. What are some of your favorite summer eats?

Recipe:

2  kiwis, peeled and diced2 Golden Delicious apples - peeled, cored and diced
8 ounces raspberries
1 (16 oz) carton of strawberries, diced
2 tablespoons white sugar (more or less to taste)
1 tablespoon brown sugar (more or less to taste)
3 tablespoons fruit preserves, any flavor (I used strawberry)

10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray
2 cups cinnamon sugar

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, apples, raspberries, strawberries, white sugar, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes.

2.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3.Coat one side of each flour tortilla with melted butter or butter flavored cooking spray. Sprinkle tortillas with desired amount of cinnamon sugar. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Spray again with cooking spray (not necessary if using melted butter).

4.Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture. Best when made and eaten the same day otherwise the fruit gives off so too much juice and it gets runny.

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Little Lanvin

Lanvin has come out with what is quite possibly the most adorable children's collections I've ever seen! The Lanvin Petite Collection is a little fashionista's (and their mommies) dream. Just look at those dresses and ballet flats. Have you seen anything cuter??

See more of the collection here

(pics via*)