A Day of Failures (kinda)

Last week I decided to try two new recipes in one day. First up millionaire shortbread- shortbread with caramel and chocolate on top. 

Sounds so easy, right?

Oh look, I made shortbread...successful start to the recipe.

Caramel done...only took 35 minute longer than the recipe said it would. Thanks food network. I'll never trust you again.

Doesn't that look nice? All ooey and gooey and sugar coma inducing.

Well all the short bread fell off the bottom when I removed it from the pan. All of it. I was left with caramel chocolates. 

No one complained. It was delish. But not what I wanted to make. But yummy.

Next up...I failed at black bean burgers. What an encouraging day!

Black beans, carrots, onion, garlic, mushroom and some spices all mushed together into patties and baked. I followed the recipe exactly...since I'd never made it before. 

Everything fell apart on the baking sheet. Eventually I got frustrated and mushed the remains into a pie dish and baked a bean pie. That kinda worked out. I managed to cut it into pie shapes to serve Daphne for dinner.

Semi-edible, yes?  

She hated it. After all that, she hated it. 

Didn't eat any. 

Toddlers, right? What can you do?

My husband says they aren't really failures since they were both tasty, they just didn't turn out the way they were suppose to. 

Part of the thing I love about cooking is being able to change recipes to suit my abilities and tastes. 

I'll probably try the shortbread again but I think I'll leave the blackbean burgers to the vegans. #porkburgersforlife

Leave a comment and let me know what you failed at today.

--Siobhan xoxo

Swiffer Sheets

I LOVE CLEANING

Yes yes I do ..... and therefore love cleaning supplies.
My heart races at the thought of a new vacuum or new cleaning spray
Of course I have my favourites but am not going to endorse any commercial product...
I do rely heavily on homemade solutions too ... can't go wrong when you have white vinegar, lemons, baking soda. and Dawn dish detergent. (I know I said I wouldn't endorse but Dawn IS a terrific grease buster)
Okay one more ----- I love my Swiffer.  I have mostly hardwood and laminate on my main floor and I have 2 pussy cats.
So I am pulling out that Swiffer every day sometimes twice.
I also want to do my part for the environment so using the Swiffer sheets a couple times a day was a concern.
I searched Pinterest and found a few patterns for crochet Swiffer sheets.

After trying a few I improvised a pattern that works for me and I have also made a few for Siobhan.
Good or Bad I have passed this cleaning obsession on to my girls.

I used one skein of Bernat's cotton with a 5mm crochet hook (one skein makes one sheet)


Chain 56
Single crochet in each chain turn; chain one, skip next single crochet    ,crochet for 15 rows or 4 inches or desired width (you will need more cotton if you make them longer or wider DUH :-)
Fold one end over by 10 single crochets (making a pocket for the Swiffer) and sew or crochet sides.

Do the same on the other end.
I single crochet all around the finished sheet .

 You don't have to do that .....

I am thinking these would make a nice housewarming gift with a Swiffer and maybe a few crochet dish cloths to match !!

Dishcloth
One skein Bernat's cotton and 5mm crochet hook
Chain 36. Turn. Skip next single....
Single crochet til desired width or just use the whole skein .
It gives you a nice size cloth .....

ciao for now
susan

Nap Training - Day 7,8,9,and 10

Last day of the first week. It hasn't gotten easier...yet. Although it's getting easier to walk away and listen to her scream...I'm getting used to the sound.

Day 7 - SUNDAY

Thankfully with Will home he volunteered to put her down for her morning nap. It wasn't too bad. 

Some crying, some dramatics but nothing new. Took close to an hour to settle her completely.

So I don't really know how long she slept for cause I'm not entirely sure when she gave up and went to sleep. Maybe an hour?


I got 3 loads of laundry washed so it must have been long enough to do that.

Afternoon nap included 50 minutes of crying and 30 minutes of sleeping.

When exactly does this get better?

The next 2 days were going to be stinking hot and D had her 1 year shots on Wednesday in CP so she spent Monday and Tuesday at Nona and Bapa's. Mostly so she could be in the AC but also so I could get some more things done. 

She did nap in her crib on Monday before they picked her up. Took about 10 minutes of screaming. I tried putting lullaby's on in her room. Not sure if it actually helped or if it was a coincidence. 

So day 8,9, and 10 were all not productive since we weren't at home. I'm going to keep at it but it's taking time. Although she did nap in he crib at Nona and Bapas...that's progress...right?


Instead of the daily updates I'll just post again when we have some success. 

I think I'd rather write positive posts about Daphne. She's actually a really awesome, well tempered, hilarious little lady and these posts only highlight one little hiccup. 

-- Siobhan xoxo

Pizza Night!

Had an awesome pizza night with Nona and Bapa. Skyped with Aunt Holly, Uncle Dan, Miles and Riley while Bapa was preparing the meal. Great to catch up with them. :)

Daphne looooved the pizza. It was really good but I surprised by how much she ate. Her little tummy was rock hard by the time we finished.

 Margarita pizza.

  

And a delicious steak and caramelized onion pizza. D only ate the margarita pizza but took a good solid look at this one.

Daphne stayed with Nona and Bapa Saturday night so it was great to share a glass of wine and a slice of pizza with them after she came home.

--Siobhan xoxo

Exploring the new 'hood

I mentioned briefly in my moving day post that the river was only about a 10 minute walk from where we moved to. I have been taking full advantage of this and making sure Daphne and I take a walk down to the water as much as possible.

Such a different atmosphere from the suburbs. Tree lined streets and homes with character. I love strolling the avenues and just observing it all.

Daphne really seems to enjoy getting out of the house more as well. The third day we went for our walk she passed out in the stroller for about 10 minutes...she has never done that...EVER!

There is no beach or anything but it is nice to hear the water crashing against the shore. I've been doing a loop around the avenues so the "10 minute walk to the water" turns out to be a 45 minute 5km walk...

Requring hydration and pb&j sandwiches upon our return.

It also seems to help with the sleeping. We have changed Daphne's schedule slightly so she is staying up until 7pm, having dinner at the table with us and (most days) sleeping until 6:30am.

The air conditioning might also be helping with that. :)

--Siobhan xoxo

Nap Training - Day 5&6

Day 5 - FRIDAY

You sick of this yet?

Still screaming before naps.

Still not napping very long.

I won't bore you with the details.

Day 6 - SATURDAY

Today was a nap training bust because we went to Quebec with Will's parents to go swimming. 

Worth it!

Although she did take her morning nap in her crib...so a small victory. Not without the required screams and whines, though.

--Siobhan xoxo

Getting the house organized

Moved in a week ago today and half my stuff is still in boxes. We do have all the important things unpacked. The kitchen, living room and bedrooms are all unpacked enough to not be annoying to work in. 

Now it's time to work on some decor and organizing the random stuff. 

I don't have too many pictures of the house yet. Still too many things on the floor waiting for a permanent place.

Here are a few from the last week. 

Shocker. It's mostly of Daphne ;)

I'l get some nicer ones of the rooms as they come together. The kitchen is 100% done but the dining room table has become a holder for things that need homes. 

All in all we are very very happy with our new home. Lots of space for Daphne to play, a big backyard and garden I am excited to work on next summer, and a walk in closet just for me(and Will, I suppose...but I enjoy it more)!

--Siobhan xoxo

Nap Training - Day 4

Day 4 - THURSDAY

So begins day 4 of nap training. I'm told this is when it starts getting easier. I really hope so because spending 3 hours a day listening to an otherwise happy baby scream is not my idea of a good time.

Morning nap went well though. Played until about 9:00, had some bananas and went upstairs closer to 9:20am. 

3 twinkle twinkle's and about 5 minutes to calm her down in her crib. 

Took her only 3-5 minutes of crying to calm herself back down after I left. A big improvement from yesterday.

I'm not sure how long she slept. Long enough that I passed out sitting up for a little bit and forgot to check the clock when she woke up. But not long enough for my screen saver to turn on. So it couldn't have been longer than 40 minutes.

If she can start taking naps without all the dramatics I know it's only a matter of time before she starts sleeping for longer periods of time.


Second nap was the same as always. Lots of screaming. Not much sleeping. ugh. 

Maybe tomorrow?

Lets hope.

--Siobhan xoxo

Lemon Mug Cake

I have seen a lot of recipes for these micro wave mug cakes.

We don't eat a lot of cake around here.

A beautiful chocolate layer cake once in awhile but  

 

 

 

 

unfortunately most of it ends up in our compost pile.

Sigh.....

Anyway I digress ......

 

 

 

A few weeks ago I found a post on Facebook with about 5 mug cake recipes

and thought I would give a go ..

Here is the recipe for the Lemon one

 

3 tbsp. flour

0ne quarter teaspoon baking powder

1 large egg

3 TBSP white sugar

2 TBSP veg oil

1 TSP lemon zest

2 TSP lemon juice

1 TBSP icing sugar

 

Spray or butter a 16 ounce mug

In a small bowl combine the dry ingredients

With a fork beat in the egg,oil, zest, and juice.

Pour into mug.

Microwave on high for 90 seconds

Cool, sprinkle with icing sugar, and eat directly out of mug

 

 

I found my cake was a bit too dry for my liking so am going to try again

except only "baking" it for 60 seconds.

 

There were also chocolate, coffee cake, pumpkin, s'mores, and banana.

I will take the mug cake bullet for the team and taste test them ALL

 

 

 

 

 

ciao for now

susan

MOVING DAY!!!

It's moving day! Finally. Feels like forever ago we signed the papers and finally it time to move in!

We're leaving the constant construction and identical housing of Barrhaven and moving to Arnprior.

Arnprior is a small town just northish of where my parents live. Population is somewhere around 8000 so it's quite small but lots of parks, recreation and the Ottawa river is a 10 minute walk from our house.

I'll post more pictures once we are all settled in.

--Siobhan xoxo

Nap Training - Day 3

So begins another nap training day.


Day 3 - WEDNESDAY

Again, around 8:30am (she's like clockwork in some departments) she was yawning and desperate for nap cuddles. 

I took her upstairs, gave her a snuggle and a back rub and left.

Had to go in four or five times to pick up Jocelyn and/or give a back rub for comfort.

She screamed. She wailed. She whimpered. She complained. For 45 minutes.

Asleep(or maybe just quiet) 30 minutes...at the most. 

One day I'll grow a set and go up to make sure she's sleeping. For now, I'm just enjoying having my hands free for a little bit.


Second nap same as the first. A little bit louder and a little bit worse.

Took over an hour before she settled.

Should I actually use the word settled? Probably not. She didn't make any noise for 30 minutes but I really don't think she actually slept.

Well another day down and still no good long naps in the crib but we shall trudge on. 

I've got 30 years of stubborn on this girl. She shall not out-stubborn me!

--Siobhan xoxo

An Anniversary and a Birthday

Hey y'all
Just a quick post  --- to celebrate HB's and mine 37th wedding anniversary

37 reasons I love you

-rub my feet when they are offered

-waits “patiently” while I shop at Michael’s

-is a terrific Bapa

-makes sure there is a bottle of pinot grigio in the fridge

-makes great Saturday pizza

-loves the kittys even tho he pretends he doesn’t

-keeps our gardens weed free

-always encouraging with any hair brained ideas I come up with

-will watch an old movie with me over and over

-always looks for a western to watch on Saturday morning

-tells me I am beautiful even when I feel yukky

-is a great Dad

-does a great job vacuuming the family room

-makes sure the cats boxes are clean and the girls have fresh water

-makes a monster mega block and Lego tower

-bakes terrific bread

-knows every bird I have seen on our trips

-we go on Starbucks dates

-loves teaching the G kids how to make pizza

-does a “mean” All around the Mulberry Bush

-loves his vanilla ice cream

-enjoys entertaining friends

-takes me to Ikea—I think he secretly enjoys it  LOL

-loves to BBQ

-enjoys Scrabble night – even if he doesn’t win

-does a terrific pumice on my feet

-doesn’t get upset when I fill in the wrong answer in pen in his crossword

-looks good in his driving cap

-he knows there is a difference between crocheting & knitting

-has a terrific sense of humour

-we take spur of the moment adventures – altho it has been awhile

-drives me wherever – cuz he knows I dislike driving

-loves a good blow em up movie…. See below

-loves an intellectual documentary,,, See above

-he laughs at my jokes

-LOVES his family and friends

-would do anything to bring happiness to above

 

 

And our oldest daughter turns 32 today

Happy Birthday hunny....

 

 

We are going out for dinner at a Tapas Bar with our bestest friends.

Champagne Cocktails for ALL!!

Have a drink for us.....

 

ciao for now

susan