Photo Friday – 04.16.2010
Portobello Mushroom and Bell Pepper Sloppy Joes
I made this recipe tonight and Matt and I loved it, the boys didn’t care, but lately they haven’t liked dinner at all, not even old favorites.
Portobello Mushroom and Bell Pepper Sloppy Joes
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 each small green and red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and thinly sliced
1 yellow onion thinly sliced
1 pound portobello mushrooms, wiped clean, black gills scraped out and discarded, and thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
1 cup tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. chopped fresh oregano (I didn’t have)
1/2 tsp. Tabasco sauce (didn’t have, so I used Louisiana hot sauce)
4 whole wheat hamburger buns
1. Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large skilled over medium-high heat. Add garlic, bell peppers, and onion; cook, stirring, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add rest of oil and mushrooms; toss well. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are soft and liquid is absorbed, 8 to 10 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
2. Reduce heat to medium. Add tomato sauce and paste, Worcestershire, oregano, Tabasco, and 3/4 cup water; stir well. Cook, stirring often, to thicken, about 10 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
3. Spoon mixture inside hamburger buns.
One Year Ago – 04.14.2009
Funny I’ve been seeing a lot of the same from Ez the last couple days.
When life gives you beans make hummus.
What you’re not familiar with that saying? This morning I woke up ready to can black beans for the first time. You see we eat a lot of beans around here and I am concerned about feeding too much BPA to my little cuties. I am sure in very small amounts our bodies could rid us of BPA, but it seems to be found in more and more stuff, so I try to eliminate when possible. I cook from scratch for the most part, but having a can of beans on hand is so convenient, easy way to add protein and so yummy. I own a pressure canner, so I thought why not? Its actually not that difficult but when you make a few mistakes (like someone did this morning) it can be more of a task than anticipated.
Mistake #1
Assumed my children would sleep to their normal wake-up time and I would have the beans in the canner before hearing a peep from them.
Being entertained in their highchairs by whisks. I was moving a pot of boiling water and didn’t want to risk an accident.
Mistake #2
Left beans on stove (waiting to boil) and went and dressed two adorable little boys. I came back to the biggest boil over I have ever had, my entire stove-top was covered. I guess I am lucky that I got there before it started running down the sides.
Mistake #3
Not reading my pressure canner instructions before starting. Yes I have used it before and get most of it. The mistake I made, I just KNEW it fit 7 quart sized jars, reality it fits 5 quart sized jars. (meaning I had about 4 store bought cans too many of beans to can)
Mistake #4
I did an extra step, yep more work than necessary. I sterilized my jars, but for pressure canning you only have to wash not sterilize.
My giant mess, see my water bath canner on the left? Totally unnecessary, I only got it out to sterilize the jars.
Despite all my mishaps, I am still happy with the results. I now have 5 quart sized jars of canned beans (equal to 10 cans) and a large batch of this hummus and an idea for dinner. I chose quart for black beans because most recipes I use call for two cans.
The finished product!
Ez using my apron as a cape. Wouldn’t you want to protect these cuties?
Photo Friday – 04.09.2010
Noah took him up on the offer and licked the little the spilled off the floor, and then giggled.
Dancing bucket head and his brother
Ez is really into sharing food and drink right now, and apparently the grapevine looked thirsty.
Why is my child purple? I used California Baby sunblock on him.
Noah climbed up on the couch all by himself last night, he was so proud.
The real reason I didn’t want them climbing on the couch, they are obsessed with the side tables and lamps.
Noah and the hose.
One Day *Edited
Today we went barefoot all day. We did it for One Day Without Shoes. Sadly we didn’t have any plans and I didn’t feel like making any so we just went barefoot around the neighborhood. We went for a walk, did our chores, and played outside. I tried my best to avoid walking across the rocks, but had to do it a few times.
Here’s some facts on why we went barefoot to raise awareness:
- In some developing nations, children must walk for miles to school, clean water and to seek medical help.
- Cuts and sores on feet can lead to serious infection.
- Often, children cannot attend school barefoot.
- In Ethiopia, approximately one million people are suffering from Podoconiosis, a debilitating and disfiguring disease caused by walking barefoot in volcanic soil.
- Podoconiosis is 100% preventable with basic foot hygiene and wearing shoes.
I decided to count my pairs of shoes in honor of the day and confess how many I had, 26 pairs. Made me sad I had so many shoes and so many in the world have none. So I gave away a few more pairs, 8 and am down to 18. I would still like to give more away, but I am a former shoe addict and I did the best I could today. I am pledging that from now on whenever I buy a pair of shoes, whether new or used, I will donate the exact same amount to a charity that gives shoes to those who need them. It will help me think about how much I really “need” those shoes and it will help a few people who need some shoes.
*Thanks to Melissa for her comment, here is a charity some might be interested in: http://www.soles4souls.org/ If you know of any others please feel free to add them in the comments.
Tickling
The other night Noah was still in his high chair practicing his fork skills, because he is obsessed, and Ez was done. So Ez decided to tickle his brother. It was super adorable. We, of course, tried to capture the moment on video, but toddlers have some sixth sense when it comes to video cameras. Anyway I caught two short snippets of the giggling fun.
MVI 6992 from Stephanie Adams on Vimeo.
MVI 6991 from Stephanie Adams on Vimeo.
Wordless Wednesday – 04.07.2010
Rotini with Marinara & veggies
I made this recipe the other night and Ezra devoured it and Noah ate it. The best part about it, lots of veggies! They ate the veggies with no issues, possibly because they didn’t realize they were there.
Rotini with Marinara, Broccoli, Carrots, and Peppers
Good Housekeeping October 2008
12 oz. rotini or penne pasta
1 bag (12 oz) broccoli florets (I had some fresh that I just steamed and added at the end)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 med. carrots, thinly sliced
1 sm. onion, chopped
1 lg. red pepper, chopped
2 c. marinara sauce
3 oz. sliced pepperoni, cut into slivers (we skipped so it was a vegetarian dish)
1/4 c. loosely packed fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (oops forgot to buy, would have been yummy)
1/3 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1. Heat large covered saucepot of salted water to boiling on high. Add pasta and cook as label directs, adding broccoli to saucepot 4 minutes before pasta is done.
2. Meanwhile, in deep 12 inch nonstick skillet, heat oil on medium 1 minute. Add carrots, onion, and pepper; cook 8 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in marinara sauce and pepperoni; cook 2 minutes to heat through.
3. Drain pasta and broccoli; stir into skillet with marinara mixture. Sprinkle with basil. Serve with Parmesan.
Happy Easter
The cousins and the Bunny
Thrilled
My bro, me, and the kids
Dancing Noah
Dancing Ezra
Ez contemplating
Abby mowing
Abby hunting eggs
No Winny
Ez checking out his basket
Noah finally picked up an egg, then ran off to take it apart and put it back together, again and again
Ez eating an egg
Abby and her juice
Photo Friday – 04.02.2010
Such Determination to get to the lamp
Noah and his Nana
Hut, Hut, Hike
Cutest little face
Grandma handing out their favorite snack sidewalk chalk
Jason getting hit by the ladies in his life
Grandma and Ez just hanging out
Grandpa and Noah
Abby flying high
Ez wearing two pairs of sunglasses, he likes to put them around his neck just like daddy
Noah hiding in his favorite peek-a-boo spot
Can you guess Ez’s favorite snack?
Not eating his dinner
The last two just sum up the majority of our week, we are teething, emotional toddlers this week
One year ago – March 31, 2009
As our Family Day quickly approaches, I thought I would start a series of post celebrating the photos we were so lucky to receive as we waited to travel. Shortly after our referral our agency lifted the ban they had on traveling families taking photos of the children. We were so lucky to have many traveling families take photos for us. Thanks so much to those families, because of them we have photos of much younger babies. In the world of international adoption this is an amazing blessing.
These photos were taken March 31, 2009.
This following photo is honestly the one I treasure the most. It’s not the best photo of them by far, but we are beyond privileged to have it. It was taken January 1, 2009. Yes you read that right, before our referral! Another family visited their orphanage and had captured twins boys. After receiving our referral they tracked us down through our agencies yahoo group. They were so kind to call us and tell us all about our boys’ orphanage. Plus they had managed to capture a shot of the two tiniest babies. 🙂
Wordless Wednesday – 03.31.2010
Phoenix Children’s Museum
The boys’ received a membership to Phoenix Children’s Museum for Christmas. (I had asked for memberships places since we have lots of toys already.) We waited until now to actual purchase, so the boys could enjoy it a little more and enjoy it they did. They had lots of fun and kept us very busy! It will be a great place to go and play once the weather is hot and we can no longer play outside for hours on end.
Thanks Nana and Papa!