Where in the world........

Where have I been????? Not blogging thats where.
Unfortunately I dropped the ball this summer. Not on purpose just got insanely busy.
New job.. yet again... but this time ... its a keeper.
I'm the new file clerk for a Law Firm in the City!!!
Yeah I get to dress up and ride the train into the City to get to my office..
It's pretty cool!! First office job for me and I Love It! Never thought I would settle into the corporate world so easily But the people I'm working for and the environment I work in couldn't be any better.

So whats happened this past summer... Only everything....
My baby boy is Officially potty trained WOOHOO!!!! You go SlugABug!!
A few accidents when he's out of his comfort zone but Ya Know What.... *Bleep* Happens!
Funny Story behind potty training this lil one......
      We must be grateful to our loving Poppy!.. If it wasn't for fishing in the middle of the woods, Johnny would never have learned to pee on a tree and therefore would never have used these skills to go on the potty. Thanks Poppy!

Johnny in his big boy underwear and being silly with stickers.

 

 

We went trash picking ...lol  Seriously around my neighborhood the saying "One mans trash is another mans treasure" really has meaning. I need to go around my house one day and do a whole post on trash picked items I use on a daily basis.

 

This is one of my favorites my Man brought home to me.

 

And it Worked.... took a lil tinkering to get it to light up but since my SLugabug is a John of all trades He fixed it and now it's mine!!!
BTW Blue Moon happens to be one of my favorite beverage

 

We spent the summer visiting local garden centers and farm stands experimenting with different produce. The whole family has been involved and we have even starting changing some of our eating habits. It's been a real educational summer when it comes to our nutrition. And we have made some real good friends!

 

 Plus on Sat. mornings me and Lil Slugabug go to the farmstand and while Mommy enjoys a cooking class the lil one enjoys Arts and Crafts... and visiting the animals... Milkshake the pig, the chickens, the farm kitty, and of course the fish pond and turtles!!! It's always a nice time and Johnny is always well-behaved.

We recently got a new dryer... so My Slugabug cleaned up the basement as much as possible to make it at least less scary then it was...
He's the best!
(sad to say getting a new dryer was practically the highlight of my summer, honestly you never realize a good thing until its not there anymore and Boy was my back hurting from Laundry)




Mommy and Johnny being silly .... I also discovered instagram LOL!

 

Then it was time for Vacation...

5 days to relax on the beach of the Jersey Shore....

Now thats what I was waiting for all Summer......

Lil Slug a Bug on the ride down.

My nephew Lucas

 Digging in the sand and making castles!

My nephew Daniel and Johnny

Poppy and Lucas

Daniel trying to eat his spiderman icecream

 

Toes in the sand!!

 

 

 

My favorite place in the world!!

 

My bro-in-law unicycling on the deck of the hotel.. he's a lil nuts!!

 

Last night ... dinner by the bay!!

 

What a great summer..... But i have to say I'm so ready for it to be over.

Done with the bugs, done with the heat and AC, done with flipflops

I'm impatiently waiting on pumpkin patches and fallen leaves, chill in the air and hoodies, boots and fashionable hats and scarves...

I'm so ready for Fall!!!!

I'm back and ready to blog!!!

"I'm a better person then I was six months ago and I will be better then now six months in the future" I have been trying to live by this motto and I'm doing alright!!

Hope everyone had a happy eventful summer.....

 

 



Midnight Snack!

It was a rainy day around these parts.

SO what do you do on a rainy day with a toddler???

We sing "it's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring........"

over and over again.

We stay in our pjs for most the day...

(for some reason Mommy always has to run to the store for something..)

We color and play transformers....... more like Mommy and Daddy spend the majority of their time transforming these little toy robots.

We find a movie to snuggle up too!

And we make snacks!

(Now I say Midnight Snack because I'am writing this so late but after being a bum all day I'm a little wired....soo I'm eating this snack twice today)

I was in the mood for spinach dip and was not waiting until the next holiday to have it so I just gathered all the ingredients and went to town.

My Spinach Dip

(recipe on Knorr veggie packet)

Everytime I go to the store regardless of how many list I write I always forget something.

This time I forgot the bread for the dip.

Not to worry.

Homemade tortilla chips???

Yessir!

I had some soft tortillas I cut into wedges.

I then laid them all flat and brushed olive oil all over the wedges.

Sprinkled with salt and pepper.

Pop in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes,

I preheated my oven at 400 and just put the pan in it only took ten minutes in my oven for the wedges to become Chips!

<<My dog Capone being a joneser!

Perfect Combination!

Enjoy!

Momma's Meatballs and Sausage!!

SO I callenged myself. I just did it one day.

I went to the store and bought all the ingredients to make my Mommas meatballs, sausage and gravy.

Yes it's gravy!!!....... not sauce!

A little history:.... Growing up in my household most Sundays was a meatball and sausage day. Mainly because it was the one day out of the week where my mom had the time to wait around for hours while the gravy simmered and cooked. The smell...O M G! I could smell dinner cooking before you even opened the front door and it's also the kinda smell that sticks to your clothes all day... everyone knows where you been! At Momma's house eating some great grub!

Nowadays my mom still picks Sundays to make a great pot of gravy. Only now she makes sure theres enough for EVERYONE to take home another nights dinner...  Ain't she so sweet.

So here it goes.... Mom I hope I make you proud!!

Ingredients to go into meatball mix.

Just know this recipe is one of those a lil of that and a lil of this kinda recipe.

measurements are in the form of "ok that looks good"

Use your own disgression!

 I had about a pound and a half of mixed ground meat (pork,veal,beef)

Put in a mixing bowl with

1 egg

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated cheese

sprinkle of garlic powder

parsly

salt and pepper

 Mix it all together, using your hands is the best method. Then roll your balls!

I make them a deceit size.

 I got sweet itailian sausage.

Then fry up all your meat. So they get brown on all sides.

The meat will finish cooking in the tomato sauce.

I chopped up a small to medium size onion and about five garlic cloves.

Saute in the same pan you fried up the meat in.

After the onions and garlic look translucent I added a couple tablespoons of tomato paste.

Then I add everything to a huge stock pot. Make sure theres room for the meat to swim.

I then added three 28oz cans of tomato sauce and one 28 oz can of

  crushed plum tomatos. (side note: use one 28 oz can of tomato puree. I thought I could get away with not using it .Def. MUST use PUREE.) Let the pot of gravy simmer for at least 4 hours! Mucho importante.  Make sure to Stir the pot every now and then to keep the gravy from burning on the bottom.



 

End Result: Delicious and Scrumptious.

For my first attempt I did pretty good. Def. wasn't Moms but next time I won't try to improvise I will get the puree. It really made a big difference. Also be gentle when stirring your pot. I broke a few meatballs but it was all good I made a lot for our family so nobody noticed.

 My house smelled like my childhood. And I had a lot of fun putting this together myself.

I wonder if any of my sister's tried to attempt a pot of gravy. If so I want to know how it went.

If not ..... I'm challenging you Megan and Colleen!

Mommas gravy cookoff in the close future????

Enjoy!!!

Lazy Sunday!

I don't know what has happened to our beautiful spring weather but it has been miserable, damp, and groggy around these parts. After a weekend filled with family parties, cleaning, running errands and taking care of everyone like I usually do, It just seemed right to kick back and relax with one another. We cuddled up under our blankies and watched movies all afternoon After of course a big hearty breakfast that this momma put together!

Scrambled eggs, tator tots (hashbrowns), bacon and Mangoes. Don't forget the OJ!! Yes of course we were all full hence the need to cuddle up on our couches and take a load off. I mean Sunday is the day for rest is it not?

While resting I snapped some pictures. (This is rare for me but I like having theses kind of moments in photos so I think I might do it more often. LOL) Anyway Hope you all got to enjoy some kind of rest this weekend to help prepare you all for the week ahead!!

Daddy and Capone!

My Boys!

Coco had to come into the mix.

Awww kissy time!!

Then we were trying on hats.

I had a wonderful weekend Hope it's a great week as well!!

Veggie Box Galore!!

So remember I was talking about my vegetable box from the local garden center. Well Look at my bounty!!!!

1 bunch swiss chard

1cont.strawberries

4 green peppers

1 lb onions

3 cucumbers

1lb yams

3 oranges

1 head iceburg lettuce

2 bunches asparagas

and the only thing not shown was 1/2 gal apple cider.

This sure was a plentiful box.

I made a lot of salad!

Here's one I found simple and delicious.

Cherry heirmloom tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, sprnkle of cheese, and some thousand island dressing...... thats the way I like it.



Yumm!..... Great lunch or dinner starter.

Next I made Chili!!!

I got my ingredients together

1 lb ground beef

2 peppers 1 green, 1 orange

1 onion

a few cloves of garlic

1 28 oz can tomato sauce

1 14 0z can kidney beans drained and rinsed

spices: chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes

First I chopped all my veggies.

I added about 2 tblsp of unsalted butter to a heating pot.

Once melted, add the veggies to soften and get tender.

Next I added in the spices.

Now I don't measure I just sprinkle to coat the top of the veggies and I use the spices to flavor every layer of this pot.

Once all the veggies have had time to saute then comes the beef.

Add it in and break it up and add more spice to the top.

cook until there is no more visible pink meat.

Add in drained and rinsed beans

spice: optional

Then the tomatoe sauce.

Def. add more spices and a lil salt and pepper this is the last step.

 

So I did something different this time around. Since my mom had gotten me this really cool dutch oven I used to make the chili in I thought, Why not bake it?

So I did! I put the pot in the oven for about 2 and 1/2 hours on 300 degrees.

It came out Awesome!!

Add a little sprinkle of cheese and a dollop of sour cream

Just how like it!!

More recipes to come .....Enjoy!!