Tutor

Here's how tonight's dinner conversation went down.

Tyler: What number of job is this for you, Dad?
Me: Shane, tell him all of the jobs you've had before this one.
Shane: Well, I worked at McDonalds and a pizza place. Then I was a tutor.
Tyler: (making a fart noise) A TOOTER! HAAAAA! HAAAA! HEE, HEE HEE!!!!

Needless to say, our son may require a tutor in the near future. . . possibly for vocabulary.

laughing

There's just nothing like that belly laugh! I love it!

This and That and a recipe

The smell of the pinewood derby is in the air. . . Tyler's first, you know. This is the part where Shane gets to relive his childhood scouting experiences. They drew up sketches, did a little online research and sanded to their hearts' content. The finished product will only be revealed on the night of pinewood derby. . . so you can look forward to that. (I'm sure you can't wait.)

Now on to the girly things . . .

Mo is eating everything in sight. Puppies for dinner? That's right. If she's in her chair and you give her something, she attempts to eat it. She's all about carrots, bananas, berries and applesauce. She wasn't such a fan of the chicken and rice, but we'll keep working on that.

Paige just started her little ballet/jazz class throught the community. She loved her first day. I wasn't allowed in the room, so we'll have to wait until the recital for the good stuff. That probably ok with her, because the first day was pretty comical. I watched through the door as she attempted to touch her toes. With her legs bent, she grinned at her teacher. Then it was on to teaching the stretches for the splits. The teacher asked for a volunteer to show the class how to properly do the splits. "I'll do it!" she exclaimed with her hand in the air. (She's never done this before, mind you.) Poor kid, she got her flexibility from me. She kind of looked like a little frog all stretched out on the floor, but grinning from ear to ear. Good thing I was OUTside the classroom, because I laughed out loud. The teacher was much nicer. "That's good Paige, but let me show you how to do the splits properly." HA!

And, here's a little recipe from last night that has to be shared.

Here's what you need for Couscous and Feta-Stuffed Peppers. (minus the tomato paste)

Couscous and Feta-Stuffed Peppers

Vegetable-oil cooking spray

1 1/4 cups fat-free chicken or vegetable broth

2/3 cup couscous (I used Hodgson Mill whole wheat couscous, garlic and basil flavored)

4 large bell peppers, yellow, orange, or red

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion (I used green onion)

6 oz zucchini, quartered lengthwise then sliced across thinly

6 good-sized mushrooms diced

1 handful of fresh spinach, chopped

1 clove chopped garlic

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp salt

pepper

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

2 oz crumbled feta cheese (about 1/2 cup) or more if you want

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a small baking dish with cooking spray. Bring the broth to a boil in a saucepan, add the couscous, cover the pan and remove it from the heat.

Meanwhile, cut the stems and top half inch off the bell peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Microwave trimmed peppers until you start to hear them sizzle.

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet. Add onion, garlic, zucchini, mushrooms, spinach, oregano, pepper and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened. Remove from heat and stir in the tomatoes. Using a fork, fluff the couscous and then scrape the couscous into the skillet and toss with the vegetables. Stir in the crumbled feta.

Place peppers upright in the baking dish and fill them with couscous. Bake 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

yummmmmmy! I served this with Pioneer Woman's Marinated Flank Steak.

Then today for lunch I had 3 oz of the leftover meat on my salad. Excuse me while I wipe the drool from my chin.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

A little bloggin' slump lately, and, I know that my page header still says Merry Christmas. . . get over it. Sometimes we need a little celebration on this the 4th week of January (or maybe "we" are just too lazy/unmotivated/slow to change it this very moment.) Label me as whatever you want. Categorize me with those who leave their Christmas light up all year. . .whatever. I've found other things to occupy my time. Let me list them for you.

getting fit
spending more quality time with my kids
having FHE every Monday night
cooking healthier/tastier/newer recipes
(this had to happen or I was going to claw out my own eyes and give up on eating altogether)
pureeing veggies and feeding Morgan her first real foods which she likes, I mean LOVES
bathing her after the feeding frenzy takes place
working on Tyler's Bobcat, and now his Wolf

What I'm saying is. . . I'll post soon, with pictures and such. Just don't get your panties in a wad if you read regularly. We're still alive and well.

Baptism day

Ty was baptized this last Saturday, the 10th. He was very nervous on Thursday, but by Friday and Saturday he was really excited. Grandma and Grandpa Simmons, Grandma Barbs and Grandpa Hars, Cindy and Kevin, The Poulsen Family, The Stanford Family and Aunt Sharon were all there. Tyler was baptized last out of 8 kids. Shane and Ty both did great, even though the water was freezing.

Happy Birthday Ty!

Can you believe that this guy is already 8! ***as of Dec 29th*** I can't. Where has the time gone?


He's so into:

the Wii
Legos
Star Wars
Drawing and writing stories
playing football with his friends
eating ribs
eating crab
eating
eating
eating. . . especially dinner!

He says things like:

BOO-YAH . . .can you believe it. . .he used to say "I'n dippin a chip!"
So long, SUCKERS! - he's the epitomy of videogame sportsmanship, as you can see.

He is a great big brother
He is an excellent student
He's so excited to be baptized

Happy Birthday buddy! We love you!