Monthly Archives: June 2014

B-Man is Three!

Posted in Brady, Family by

Our big man, my first love, is 3. Three is the beginning of “big boy” world- no more diapers, constantly asking “why?”, off to real pre-school, and so much more. I just wanted to take the time to write down some memories of my sweet lil’ guy so I’ll always remember him at this age.

Brady loves all things golf. Putting around at Dick’s Sporting Goods with daddy is about the best thing in the world.

His favorite foods are hot dogs, popcorn, and fruit (all of which he requested for his birthday party.)

He loves Disney Junior and would watch Mickey Mouse all hours of the day…if I let him.

He’s fearless around water. Since he was a baby he has always wanted to dunk his head under and doesn’t understand why we won’t let him go to the deep end of a pool.

He loves music. From singing nursery rhymes, to jamming out to Disney songs, to our nightly dance parties with the “Happy” song, the kid just loves music.

He always wants to do things himself. He’s stubborn, short tempered, and easily frustrated, and always refuses help when trying to accomplish a task. (Gets those traits from daddy.)

He’s checked out almost every book about trains that the library has. Airplanes and tractors are pretty cool too, but trains are where it’s at.

He’s totally daddy’s sidekick. When it’s time to mow the yard, he’s got his bubble mower right there. When Chris has to fix something, Brady has his tools too. If daddy gets the motorcycle out, he’s right there waiting to honk the horn.

He loves his little brother so much. They are absolutely best friends. {Melts this momma’s heart.}

He pronounces his own name as Brady Chri-a-pher Miff (Brady Christopher Smith)

He still snuggles with mommy- gives hugs, plays with my hair, and asks for kisses on his “boo boos.”

Brady has such a sweet, soulful disposition. He studies people and is always thinking. He’s tender hearted and a little praise goes a long way. One of my favorite things he says is, “I make you happy!” when he does something that makes us smile.

Happy Birthday Brady-Boo. You make us so, so, happy.

DSC_0703

DSC_0710

DSC_0717

Blueberry Greek Yogurt Muffins {Moo Muffins} – KCM

Posted in Kids Cook Monday by

We went with a comfort food dessert for Kids Cook Monday this week. After a weekend full of potty training, we felt (gross, disgusting, frustrated) like we deserved a little treat! Brady has made great strides since embarking on his diaper free journey, thanks to his ultimate motivator- TV! That means we’ve watched lots of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse over the past couple days and got some inspiration for our recipe this week. Toddler parents; perhaps you’re familiar with Clarabell’s Moo Muffins? We decided to make our own Moo Muffins with the abundance of Blueberries that are in season right now.

DSC_0614

I love searching Pinterest for different recipes and then tweaking them to make my own creations. Several of the muffin recipes I’ve come across involve Greek Yogurt (yum!) and lemon (double yum!!) and I really wanted to give those a try. We were sure Clarabell would approve! Here’s what we came up with.

Blueberry Greek Yogurt Muffins

Ingredients

3 Cups Flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1 & 1/2 Cup sugar
2 eggs
1 container Greek Yogurt (we used Blueberry, Lemon would be tasty too!)
Juice of 1 lemon
1 pint of fresh blueberries

Pre-heat oven to 350* and prepare a muffin pan with liners. Combine dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, soda, and salt) in a bowl. In another bowl, use an electric mixer to combine oil, sugar, eggs, yogurt, and lemon juice. Slowly add dry ingredients into wet and mix on low. Last, fold blueberries into batter. Bake muffins for approximately 20 minutes (or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean.)

DSC_0619

Brady really got into baking and it was a nice break from potty training and TV watching; however, littlest man was much more into eating the muffins than B.

DSC_0635

These muffins were a great mix of sweet and tart and we will definitely be making them again!

DSC_0638

 

 

 

 

Awesome Sauce! – Kids Cook Monday

Posted in Kids Cook Monday by

One of the reasons I am always getting my kiddos in the kitchen with me is because I love the idea of raising men who know how to cook. What woman doesn’t love a man who knows his way around the kitchen? Someday, my boys’ future spouses will be so happy their mama taught them a thing or two when it comes to food! It’s so fun to see Brady looking forward to our cooking sessions. He drags his little step stool up to the counter and now (thanks to mommy’s super Target clearance find!) puts on his Planes apron!

32

For this weeks meal, I wanted to see just how many veggies I could pack into a meal. Nolan is not the greatest when it comes to eating his vegetables, but he loves spaghetti, so I thought I could sneak some in that way. Although, I don’t really like the idea of being “sneaky” when it comes to food per se- I think it’s important for kids to know what they’re eating so they are aware that they actually like certain foods. I just like the idea of presenting new foods in a way that’s somewhat familiar, and of course, tasty. If I just gave the kids a bowl of spinach, it probably wouldn’t go over so well, but by cooking a yummy sauce with spinach, I’m showing Brady that he likes spinach.

I called this sauce “Awesome Sauce” because it tastes awesome and it has some awesome ingredients in it…

Ingredients:

1

1 onion
1 bell pepper (I had an orange one on hand)
2 cloves of garlic
1 pint of grape tomatoes
1 cup of shredded carrots
1 bag of spinach
2 cans of tomato sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
~1 Tbs. Italian Seasoning
~1/4 cup Heavy Cream (optional)
1 box of your favorite pasta

 

4 5 6 7 8 9

B and I chopped up the onion, pepper, and garlic and sautéed them together in olive oil. Then, we added the shredded carrots. Once they were all tender, we added the grape tomatoes. I left them whole, seasoned the pot with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning, and let all the veggies hang out together for a while (until the tomatoes started bursting.) Then we threw in the bag of spinach and let them wilt for a minute or so before adding the 2 cans of sauce.  The sauce was super chunky at this point so I took my immersion blender and let Brady give it a few pulses to smooth it out. Last, we stirred in a little cream to give it a little creamy sweetness.

Brady was quite proud of this creation. The spinach adds lots of vitamins and protein to this otherwise “carby” meal. And even though it really doesn’t change the flavor too much, the little specks of green throughout, remind you just how good this sauce is for you. It would be super good over ravioli, pizza or in a veggie lasagna and this recipe makes a bunch so I now have a container in my freezer as well. Awesome Sauce!

DSC_0607