Oh My How Our Garden Grows

"Man Time" lately has meant gardening time. It's seed sowin' season up in this house!

Because it's too cute - I got another angle:
Gettin' it in the dirt:
Watering
And found this guy growing from leftover seeds from last year. I love red leaf lettuce:
I want to say we use organic farming methods (mushroom and homemade compost for fertilizer along with organic plant food throughout the season). However, I cannot assure you we do not use GMO seeds!

Love this hobby that my guys share together. And glad I'm only there to take pictures. I ran back inside to work on MY project for the weekend.

I bet you will be excited to see what's coming next! There is more in our blog EXTRAVAGANZA (said in Oprah's booming voice).

Love,

P

The Middle of Nowhere, Example #1

When I say I live in The Middle of Nowhere, PA. I mean it.

A brand new playground went in and the structure that came was called:

It was named. Like a ship. But it's a big building that the kids and run around in. Michael loves it there:
Yes, that is a mushroom he is standing on. I moved from The Live Music Capital of the World to the City of Lights, and then to the Mushroom Capital of the World.

You can call me Angelina Jolie at any time now. I lead an illustrious life. I mean - she does have a Vietnamese kid like me:

It's not my favorite park because they put this park on top of a hill with no tree cover. It is WINDY up there. Almost every time. I usually watch which direction the wind is blowing and stand on the side of the Barn so it can shield me.

Thursday, we had a wonderful windy day in the mid 60s with plentiful sun. So I jam packed the day with playdates.

The first up was at 10am with the kids from his preschool at the aforementioned barn.

Then, we ran over to another friend's house who has this HUGE flat grassy backyard.

*le sigh*

My favorite. There's plenty of room for the kids to run - and she has every toy known to man inside and out.

I don't have any pictures from that day because I was busy getting sunburned on purpose. I usually allow myself one for the warm season and then it's SPF500 from then on.

More posts to come! Watch out!

I have adopted my old strategy of downloading pictures quickly and just slapping 'em up on the internet. This is in lieu of the "professional" itch to edit all the pictures and make them perfect. You will see many more "snapshot" type images from me! Better down than gone!

Love,

P

Feet at the top of the stairs

Brian informed me today that he only checks the blog every once in a while because I only blog once every couple of weeks.

NICE - My own family

Honestly - I just do not have time to blog more than once a week (and even that's a stretch!). Do any of the other bloggers I know have time to post as often as we *should* (to maintain steady readership that is), which according to the internet is 3 times a week?

I think from now on - Sunday night is my blogging day.

Enough whining. Onto my post!

After getting Michael to lay down for downtime, I went up the stairs to check on him and ran smack into these little guys:

To see how much he was hanging off the top step:
I peered a little closer. YUP, asleep. On the landing.

Stubborn kids who don't take naps when they are supposed to fall asleep on the floor. Let that be a lesson learned to all the children who read my blog.

And this wasn't after an hour or anything. This was just 30 minutes. Silly Michael.

Vegetarian Pursuits

In my vegetarian lenten pursuits,

(of which, I have fallen off the bandwagon 3x - 2 of which I am going to say that I was sick and was just trying to get any kind of nutrition to stay in my system but I know that it is a pretty lame excuse - and 1 because my friend "forced" me to eat a mini chicken taco that she made for me as a snack and I didn't want to be rude, also a lame excuse)

I have discovered a tasty combination. I roasted vegetables with Wegman's Basting Olive Oil (basically olive oil with herbs) at 400. Roast whatever you like for however long you like in terms of "doneness." I used red onions, asparagus, red bell peppers, carrots, and cauliflower.

Mix with some feta. Serve warm.

That's it! I loved it! The feta was a nice bit of saltiness to balance the sweetness of the bell peppers, carrots, and red onions. I love eating feta because I think it's only 60 calories for 1-2 tbspn of it, which is A LOT. A little Feta goes a really long way flavor wise.

Culture in The Middle of Nowhere, PA

On Sunday March 4, I convinced Brian to go as a family to see the Lincoln University Symphony perform Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham.

It was free and perfect for kids! They did a great job of it and Michael was particularly enthralled, especially compared to his classmate there to the right:
He sat on the edge of his seat and watched the whole thing! I was pretty proud of my little theater-goer.

In my mind, I have huge hopes that he'll come with me happily to see musical performances. But knowing that he is a Besancon, I'm thinking that going to hear the symphony will probably not be his favorite thing to do.

The orchestra did a great job and brought out each group of instruments to the front to demonstrate to the children the high/low pitches of each instrument.

It was like a Baby Mozart, but in real life.

After the show, they had a Musical Instrument Petting Zoo! So all the kids could try out trumpets, touch violins, and bang on drums.

Michael was pretty impressed with the violin. Embrace your Asian Heritage, son:

Then, we waited in a pretty long line for the percussion section.

Here are father and son, playing on stage:
Michael at the instrument that makes a train whistling noise:
Rockin' out on the drum set:
Can't leave the section without swiping the wind chimes:
And if you run out of music stands, just go to the University of Delaware and pick up some extra:

Michael really enjoyed himself, and that was the goal! He told me his favorite instrument was percussion and that he wanted to start violin lessons! DONE AND DONE!

It was a really great show that was free and super close by. I was glad for Michael to experience something that is important to me, music. And he genuinely enjoyed it - which brought warmth to my heart. There will always be a part of me that remembers being on the stage with all those bright lights and playing music. And loving it. And now as a parent, I wonder if Michael will want any part of that.

Last Sunday, Michael told me:

"Mommy! I like church now! I like the kids liturgy that I go to."

Well how about that. And after that, we find him saying part of the Our Father that he picked up on his own. Michael's funny that way - it will seem sometimes that he is not paying attention or doesn't know something - and then one day - he shows you that he's known all along and was just waiting for the right time to show it to the rest of the world.

Gems

I usually do not post so much about all the funny things michael says, but lately, he has been full of them! Must be the phase.

Before we left the house, I asked him about talking to dad about the creature power suits.

"hey, so you told dad last night about creature power suits"

"yea, Santa is going to bring me some."

"daddy told me you wanted to be a warthog."

"well, I want to turn into a cheetah!"

"oh yea? Why?"

"so I can be faster than my dad."

Today, we had to drive out to Ardmore, pa - about one hour and 15 minutes away. On our journey, we discussed the following:

Passing by the elementary school that we have passed by - oh I don't know - 500 times by now:

Michael, shrieking: "mommy! College!"

Uhhhh - no, that would be the elementary and intermediate school we pass by at least 2-3 times a week.

"mommy! You are going 60 (mph)! You never go 60!"

"does daddy ever go 60?"

"well yeah, one day he did."

I am sure it is more than that.

And do not make fun of me that I do not go 60mph a lot. He just doesn't notice. That's my story and I am sticking to it.

I bet you are wondering why I drove all the way out to Ardmore, pa. Michael had an allergist appointment that confirmed he is still allergic to peanuts, pistachios, pecans, walnuts, and hazelnut (slightly). It did also tell us that he is possibly NOT allergic to almonds, cashews, and Brazilian nuts.

This is fortunate. Apart from Brazilian nuts, almonds and cashews are frequently eaten in this house!

Santa

For those of you who are in-the-know about wild kratts, here is a story for you:

Michael: dad, I want creature power suits.

Daddy: what's that?

Michael: they are suits from wild kratts that lets you turn into an animal.

Daddy: well, I don't think they sell those.

Michael: that's ok. Santa will bring them to me for Christmas.

Daddy: well, what animal do you want to be most?

Michael: a warthog.

This little exchange happened between Brian and Michael at bedtime. It is one reason why I am not heavily involved at bedtime. :)

Michael also mentioned about using the suit to turn into a shark or an octopus or a sperm whale. Good luck with that, boy.

Should I be scared that he sounds like Marcus from about a boy? I am going to be worried if he starts talking about dolphins .

P

Lenten Mac-n-cheese

Michael asked me for Mac-n-cheese earlier this week so I decided to make it for ash Wednesday (as there is no meat and only 1 meal is eaten today for fasting so you can save all your calories for this meal).

After getting some tips from Kim kropka, who made it last night, I got to it.

I warn you, it is not for the faint of heart:

Also, this is not an exact recipe. I apologize!

Lenten Mac-n-Cheese

Ingredients

4 tbspn butter

5 tbspn flour

Milk - you will add this in half cup increments until you get the right consistency

1.5 cups shredded cheese (Monterrey or Colby jack, whichever you have on hand)

8oz of velveeta, cubed

12 oz elbow noodles

Nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

Steps

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Noodles:

1. Cook noodles according to package directions for al dente.

2. Drain and coat noodles with about 1-2 tbspn of olive oil to prevent them from sticking to each other.

Make bechamel:

1. Melt the 4 tbspn of butter over med heat. Lower heat to med low and whisk in the 5 tbspn of flour. Continue to whisk for 1 minute, do not stop or it may burn.

2. Increase heat back to med and whisk in 1/2 cup of milk. Continue whisking until mixture starts to thicken. Add another 1/2 cup of milk. Whisk again until it thickens. Keep adding milk in 1/2 cup increments until your bechamel base is the right consistency.

For me, a good bechamel base is not very thick (like pancake batter) nor is it very runny like water. A good bechamel is about the consistency of tomato soup from a Campbell's can. It is slightly thick, but still more towards the runny side. You do not want a super thick bechamel base because it gets really thick after you add the cheese. In the end, it is your preferences which will reign.

3. When your bechamel is the right consistency, season with salt, pepper, and a dash of nutmeg. Remove from heat. Add in the cubed 8oz of velveeta and 1.5 cups of cheese. Stir until everything is well melted and melded all together.

4. Mix in elbow macaroni to this cheesy bechamel.

5. Butter a 9x9 dish. Add in the cheesy elbow macaroni. Pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the Mac-n-cheese is bubbly and slightly crispy on the edges (if you like that).

If you like a topping that adds a bit of crunch: melt 1.5 tbspn of butter. Combine with 2-3 tbspn of Panko bread crumbs and 2-3 tbspn of shredded cheese. Sprinkle this mixture over the Mac-n-cheese before placing in the oven.

See - told ya it wasn't for the faint of heart. You really need to starve all day to eat it at the end of the day.

And I know this isn't the fanciest recipe ever. I just thought I'd share. And it's not a stupid proof recipe either because I didn't provide exact measurements!

In case you want to use a fancier cheese, I would go towards gruyere or fontina.

Happy ash Wednesday!

P

For reals

I just had this conversation with Brian:

Phuong : You know, i do not like taking the iPad out with me because then I worry about whether or not I have it in my purse and not in my car and then I worry if my purse is still on my shoulder and not stolen....

Brian: are you ok?

Phuong: I am just fine. Why?

Brian : well you were saying that your purse was digging in your shoulder so I was just wondering.

Phuong : * looking a bit exasperated and laughing to myself because he really was trying his best.*

Brian : dang....

Oh well. At least he was concerned about me....

Dentist et al

Today, Michael went to the dentist and did a great job! He did not freak out for his teeth cleaning, (like he did last time) and he got all of X-rays done with no problem! Even I have trouble with those bite wing ones!

Luckily the dentist said everything looks fine. Considering Michael only has about 8-10 teeth that are not capped or fake, I should hope so. Poor guy. We definitely are more vigilant about his teeth than we ever were!

In the car, he said to me: "mommy! I am so proud of myself!"

Today, he had this conversation with me:

Michael: Mommy, I really like baby birds. Do you like baby birds?

Me: yes Michael. I do.

Michael: I really like baby birds. They are so cute.

Me: they are!

Michael: I do not like mommy and daddy birds because they peck people and baby birds don't do that.

Me: huh....

Michael: they peck people because they think their hands are food, baby birds don't peck people.

The end. Good talk.

While we were having lunch, Michael says to me, "mommy, 6 plus 3 plus 1 equals 10."

Ok then! Michael has never been terribly gifted verbally, but math is something he gets. Wonder if he got that from us... :) I did not know he had started to be able to add multiple numbers sequentially yet!

That is it for today.

Mommy and Michael Date Night!

Michael's school that he will be going to next year had a Mother/Son dance last night - Sock Hop style:

We had SO much fun shopping for our costumes, and Michael's been excited for our "date" and "dance" all week!

We started the night out at Miss Oxford Diner, which is a bonafide diner with a counter/stools and everything in an old railway car. Michael ordered a bowl of fruit loops for dinner, and I had grilled shrimp kabobs and rice, which Michael promptly ate half.

Then, we ordered a STRAWBERRY MILKSHAKE!!! In an old fashioned cup and everything - with TWO straws. Michael had a sip and said, "DELICIOUS!" His first milkshake on Mommy/Michael date night! We sat at the counter and had a nice meal.

Off to the dance to meet our "double date" : Renee and Ryan! I love my new friend Renee who invited us to the dance. She is so helpful and just fun to be around. Ryan and Michael will be in the same Kindergarten class next year so I am looking forward to getting to know her more!

We had pictures taken just like at a dance (my neighbor is also a photographer and does it for the school for free) and then we got our groove on - 1950s style!

The place was gorgeously decorated and Michael immediately had me dancing with him on the dance floor! There's gonna be a lucky lady who gets Michael as a husband because he LOVES to dance!

Until...other people show up on the dance floor.

Then, he is happy to be a putz and sit around and wait for the dance floor to clear. I guess he needs the room to bust his move.

The dance was supposed to last until 9pm, but by 8pm, Michael said to me, "Mom, I'm ready to go."

Alright then!

So we left and went home to play Monopoly with Dad. :)

Abbey was at the dance and you should have seen the smile on Michael's face. I almost thought my date was going to ditch me.

Oh - more pictures later. My friend Renee brought her tiny point and shoot camera - I should have brought my camera! SIGH. So I'll post more pictures of the inside of the place and of all of us hanging out later!

Until then, one last porch picture that I tried to edit Vintage, but I am just not a vintage girl:

Michael and Brian are off to a fly fishing convention today so I have the morning to work and what do I do? UPDATE MY BLOG! In 2012, my priority is going to be MY memory recording!

P

Living Room Inspiration

So I have had big plans for my living room for a while.

Plans I have not acted on because I've not had a catalyst for change. I mean, who doesn't like a very a traditional living room?

Are you saying you don't like split pea soup green for my wall color?

While Brian really likes the heavy and the dark, I am not as much of a fan.

Here's my original plan for my living room:

Which is safe and neutral and palettes that I love and can live with.

But a big part of me wants to go HERE:
It's a bit crazy, but I like it. I am thinking that crazy mirror might be fun over my mantel - but I'm leaning more towards NOT:
Don't make fun of my face fat. Apparently, I turned 33 and have permanent face fat - no matter what I do or at what angle. This is a closeup of the mirror so you can see the bulbous colors up close.

But then I saw these knobs at Anthropologie and almost considered keeping my split pea soup walls:

I love that turqouise combination with the split pea green - wood tones, cream, navy, and dark green. Let's face it, I love turqouise just about anywhere. And it would go with my curtains that I am preparing to make for my piano room!

Choices, choices. I think I will at the very least, brighten it a bit with a more neutral and lighter shade of split pea green.

Then I saw this fun clock wall at Pottery Barn that I'd like to put somewhere in my house. I just love all the B&W prints next to the silver and the different mats:
I had to warn the sales associate that I was taking a picture of the display and not a weirdo trying to take a picture of him specifically.

So - I am at a distinct fork in the road. To the right - is the safe neutral blues/greys/purple that I love. AND then there's the left - the crazy-

But no matter which road I take, I'm pretty sure that rug is not going to make it with me.

P

Pinterest Strikes Again

Michael is pretty used to me on Pinterest. I hear often from him:

"Oh mom! I like that - PIN that!"

He knows about "his" board that is called, "Kid Ideas." He peruses it and tells me what he likes.

Yesterday, he said, "Mom - I want to do that laser thing with the yarn."

OK THEN. Pictures en suite...

Oooo - see how neat my room is back there! It IS getting almost there...almost there...where I can take pictures of it after it is staged and finally what I like.

I digress - back to Michael:


Betcha love my night light back there!

Now, onto my little teaser. About 6 months ago, I embarked on "Project Teal:"

Yes - I painted a teal band up there in my tray ceiling. I don't care if you like it. Even though it is a bit radical, I like it. And it goes with my color palette inspiration that is now on the wall. Wait, I bet you don't like it? Do you like it? Just curious.

I am very close to finishing up my room. I'm about $200 from being done. Here's what I have left to purchase:

• 2 lamps - probably going to be pier 1. Which one do you like?

OR

• Creme colored quilt - finding these at Marshalls for $49.
• BIG GIANT map of France for my one blank wall - but I have that planned for the end of the year.

I still need to:

• Sew my striped pillows
• Sew my modern print yellow/white pillows.

It's not in the budget for me to be finished this month, but maybe next month!

And when it mostly all comes together, you will be the first to see - my first completed room. I bet you are waiting with intense anticipation. INTENSE.

Love,

P

Does this count?

It didn't take long. This week I fell off the one sentence a day bandwagon. I just updated Wed-Friday and have no recollection of Mon/Tuesday. It was short lived, but at least it was lived.

I am not stopping. I am just stopping HERE on the blog. I've been doing double the work, posting both here and in my 280daily.com website that Katie (Yea!) suggested. Frankly, I prefer the 280 daily website - it reminds me and it is easier!

Today -

Michael: Mommy! I think I saw a dingo!

Mommy: Really? Do you know what a dingo is?

Michael: It's a really fast dog.

Mommy: Where did you learn that?

(While in my head hearing Elaine from Seinfeld say, "Maybe a DINGO ate your baby!")

Michael: Wild Kratts

I Love Wild Kratts. I wish it was a bumper sticker. If you have children preschool age, take a look at it on PBS Kids:

http://pbskids.org/wildkratts/

There's a cartoon portion of the program in the middle. However, it is sandwiched on either end by the Kratts brothers running around and introducing animal facts in real life. It is all quite enthralling! Michael continually tells me all sorts of new facts about animals that he learns from it!

Bed!

Wintry Mixes

On Friday night, we received our first snow of the season - a wintry mix as deemed by Weather Channel.

While Brian was making our delicious breakfast, I asked Michael: "Do you want to go play with the snow on the deck?"

If Michael knew to say, "Heck yes I would!" I think he would have.

Then begins what I am going to call The Bacon Trilogy.

"Michael, would you like some bacon?"

"We'll feed it to you so you don't have to take your snow gloves off and come inside."

"Would you like some more?"

After breakfast, there was the sledding and the shoveling of the driveway.

I can assure you - that if anything REALLY bad happens to Michael on that sled - I am absolutely taking NO blame for this. I know the TWO people I will be thinking can live with it on their conscious.

And my sweeties:

We went inside for hot cocoa (and hot milk with honey and marshmallows on it for M). Michael told me, "Mommy, snow is THE BEST!"

Well, you can hang with your dad on that one because your mom is a tropical asian flower from Houston who busted her front tooth doing "winter sports" so I'm not as much of a fan as you are son.

01.22.12

01.22.12

Volunteers for Liturgy of the Word came over today for a BBQ lunch. It was great! Had a great time talking to a volunteer named Michelle! She has 5 kids and her mom lives with her. She is super funny and talks a lot. I love it! I wonder if we'll be good friends one day...hmmm

Pictures from the first sledding of the year coming soon. I think. :)

Catch up!

01.21.12

Woke up to our first snow last night! Michael ran into my room and said, "Mommy! It snowed!!!" The wintry mix was a bit tough to shovel (heavier than powdery snow), but Brian and I knocked our long driveway out in no time flat! Pictures to follow!

01.20.12

TGIF! Ran errands in Newark. We played Monopoly for family dinner/game night. Michael got shut out early and was acting like a butthead because he was SO very tired that we put him to bed pronto!

01.19.12

Brian came back from Pittsburgh early today! He was supposed to be in at 10pm, but got a flight out at NOON! So we got a quick peek at him around 2pm at home before he headed back into work. What a treat for him to be home at a normal hour instead of late at night!

For Brandi - and Whomever Else is Curious about Steak

One of my most avid blog readers and commentors, Brandi, seemed quite impressed with our dinner of steak sauce and a red wine reduction.

In all honesty, it is super easy to make and Brian usually takes care of it - in about 15 minutes. Anyone can do it! It IS delicious!

Here's the recipe if anyone is interested. Because I'm not the pioneer woman and going to take pictures of me making it at every step:

2 Tb of a mixture of several kinds of peppercorns, or white peppercorns
2 to 2 1/2 lbs. steak 3/4 to 1 inch thick

A hot platter
Salt

1 Tb butter
2 Tb minced shallots or green onions
1/2 cup stock or canned beef bouillon
1/3 cup cognac
3 to 4 Tb softened butter
Sauteed or fried potatoes
Fresh water cress

Place the peppercorns in a big mixing bowl and crush them roughly with a pestle or the bottom of a bottle.

Dry the steaks on paper towels. Rub and press the crush peppercorns into both sides of the meat with your fingers and the palms of your hands. Cover with waxed paper. let stand for at least half an hour; two or 3 hours are even better, so the flavor of the pepper will penetrate the meat.

Sauté the steak in hot oil and butter as described in the preceding master recipe. Remove to a hot platter, season with salt, and keep warm for a moment while completing the sauce.

Pour the fat out of the skillet. Add the butter and shallots or green onions and cook slowly for a minute. Pour in the stock or bouillon and boil down rapidly over high heat while scraping up the coagulated cooking juices. Then add the cognac and boil rapidly for a minute or two more to evaporate its alcohol. Off heat, swirl in the butter and half-tablespoon at a time. Decorate the platter with the potatoes and water cress. Pour the sauce over the steak, and serve.

From:

http://cookingwithjulian.blogspot.com/2011/05/julia-childs-steak-au-poivre.html

Notes:

Where it says:

Sauté the steak in hot oil and butter as described in the preceding master recipe.

First, you heat the oil and butter together in the pan. You'll see the butter melt. And then you will start to see the butter bubbles subside. This is when you know your oil/butter is hot enough to ear the steaks. Important step and thing to notice.

Second, if you are afraid of cholesterol, you shouldn't try this recipe.

Thirdly, make it according to the recipe the first time to know what it is SUPPOSED to taste like. Afterwards, I take all sorts of shortcuts because I'm lazy. Like, I don't hand crush my own peppercorns. I just use a pepper mill. And if I'm super behind, I just marinate for 30 minutes or not at all. Of course, it's not as good. But if I'm hungry, I won't care.

Fourth, if you want to make a red wine reduction, you just substitute the cognac with red wine and reduce it to cook off the alcohol.

Hope that helps! Make the sweet potatoes in the microwave while the steak is cooking!

P

Jesus and Monopoly

Michael created this at preschool this year:

Michael's latest thing is playing games. Lots of them. No surprise since he is in OUR family.

I was never a big fan of monopoly growing up, but Michael loves to play it now. In this picture, Michael took all my money. Yes, Michael, not Brian. I was playing, but my side of the board is now blank. I guess I am no Donald-Trump-Real-Estate-Mogul.

We did this for about 2 hours last Saturday. We meant to go to philly to touch something called the Liberty Bell. Instead, we stayed home and did this. We are so happy to be home!

Ignore my messy kitchen back there. In all honesty, that is "CLEAN" for my kitchen. :)

P

01.18.12

01.18.12

Sometimes, I wish I would just shut my mouth at bible study. I'm not the most insightful person that ever existed. Skipped Michael's last day of basketball. He doesn't like it anyways. Instead, we stayed home and built an obstacle course that we timed his best time on.