Yummo

Another delicious dinner was had in the Dough house. It was inspired by the side dish I had with my lamb kabobs at the Inn for our Anniversary dinner.

Here is an edited version of a recipe I found. It was so good. It took some work because I cut the veggies ahead of time into small pieces and I should have just followed the recipe, it would have made it much easier to grill (I used the Foreman).


Toasted Israeli Couscous Salad with Grilled Summer Vegetables
Recipe courtesy of Bobby Flay

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 cup olive oil
Salt
freshly ground pepper

2 green zucchini, quartered lengthwise
2 yellow zucchini, quartered lengthwise
6 spears asparagus, trimmed
12 cherry tomatoes
1 red bell pepper, quartered and seeded
1 yellow bell pepper, quartered and seeded
1/4 cup basil chiffonade (stack leaves, roll in a cigar shape and cut crosswise into thin strips)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound Israeli couscous
Vegetable stock, heated

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard and garlic, slowly add the olive oil and whisk until combined. Season with salt and pepper.

Pour 1/2 the marinade over the vegetables and let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Preheat the grill. Remove the vegetables from the marinade and grill the vegetables until just cooked through.

Cut the zucchini and peppers into 1/2-inch pieces, cut the tomatoes in half.

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, add the couscous and toast until lightly golden brown. Cover the couscous with the hot stock and bring to a boil, cook until al dente and drain well.

Place in a large serving bowl, add the grilled vegetables and herbs and toss with the remaining vinaigrette. Serve at room temperature.

I made some changes... I added red and vidalia onions and didn't do asparagus (I didn't have any), I also did red, yellow and orange peppers since I had them on hand.

I didn't cook the couscous like they recommended. I just followed the directions listed on the box I bought.

I also made some extra marinade anjd marinated some chicken and grilled it to go with.

So good. The girls just ate it up. They even asked for the leftover for their bedtime snack.

I can't take it anymore...

What is up with the MANPRIS??????

I just want to say to all ya'll mens out there... just don't do it. Please.

I beg you.

You are not meant to wear cropped or capri type of pants. Board shorts are as long/short as you should go with non traditional pant lengths.

Even Zack Efron in High School Musical 2 (at the end singing All For One) is wearing some capri length jeans. ICK.

The boys from HI-5 are also often caught wearing this non-flattering downright scary fashion NO.

Summer lovin'...

Best part about living in this house...

Playing in the ginormous acre+ yard




Worst part about living in this house....


Mowing the ginormous acre+ yard





We have been locked in a 2 month battle to get someone to mow the yard. The guy who normally cuts the yard (oh yeah... he showed up at the door and announced... "I'm Paul XXXX from Clippendales" I thought I was getting a show! I was thinking, "awwww thanks Dan!") moved it once while he thought it was still the old tenants.


We thought the owner had called him so we thought he'd come back. Then 2 weeks later we called him to come back. He never called us. We scheduled someone else to come out and mow, but both times it was pouring rain.



4 weeks later (2 weeks ago) he showed up to do an estimate. He said that since the lawn had gotten so long it would be big bucks - but to call him that night and he'll give us an estimate. So we call.

No reply.


Call him again. Leave another message.

Nothing.

Call him again. Leave another message.

Nothing.


Last weekend we attempted to use the lawn tractor. THe choke is frozen. After three hours of messing with it, it was going to cost us $200 to fix a tractor that isn't ours to mow a lawn once. I don't think so.


It's now 1 week before we leave, and we have to do something.



So Enter the Billy Goat!!

I spent 2 1/2 hours mowing 2/3 the lawn. I have blisters the size of quarters on both palms and from wearing Dan's shoes (I didn't have any closed toe shoes) I have blisters on both heels. I love this thing. It is super self propelled and cut down these weeds like they were teeny bits of grass. Awesome. Dan is finishing up now and I am amazed at this thing. It was worth every penny to rent ($40 for the weekend). I'm relieved it will be taken care of.

Screw Mr. Clippendales and his non phone call returning self.

Damn that's perfect...

My friend Shel was describing her son who is Anna's age, "He has devil horns holding up his halo"

Seriously... you could not find a better description of Em. She is the most mischevious little thing, but with a wicked smile and a sense of humor that is outragous. She is sarcastic. At almost 18 months. You only have to be around for a little while to find out she's probably smarter than you are and that she knows it.

She has a little glimmer in her eyes that is brilliant. Anna has one too, but it's different. Anna is a curious and funny in a hammy, silly kind of way. Anna is Jon Stewart/Dana Carvey to Em's George Carlin. And I mean the raunchy George Carlin. Julia is more Jane Austen than comedienne.

Em's very much a study of contradiction too. She's fiercely independent, refusing baby food by 9 months (give me the grown up stuff, damnit!!), figuring out how to get out of her crib by a year... she is the "I'll DO IT" kid. Even though, she's clingy and a mommy/daddy's girl (you never know which you'll get from her). People often ask me, "Is she laughing or crying."

I usually reply, "yes"

Silence

I love my kids.

Being a mom is amazingly inspirational. And downright tiring at times.

Right now, when I should be working (yes, at midnight - like I can get anything done when the kids are awake??! ha) I am sitting in my bed with hum of a Baby Einstein (it bores the kids right to sleep each night) DVD playing. Three little girls fill the the empty spaces of the double bed we are currently using in this house. Dan is on a flight back from Atlanta (finally after hours of waiting out storms), and the girls fought hard to sleep with me tonight, and I let them win. I remember wanting to sleep with my mom when my dad was out of town.

All three girls are sleeping. It amuses me to no end how each day pretty much begins and ends in perfection and somewhere in the middle is, well, sometimes perfect, but usually just good. Sometimes bad, sometimes hard, sometimes stressful. I mean come on... the second best thing about parenting are the free giggles.

But no matter how difficult my day is, I hold close the fact that before I go to sleep, I will get to cuddle with three angels. Their horns slide back in their skulls at night for comfortable sleeping and the halos perch just above their sweet little heads. I know that one of the last things I will see everynight are rosy sleep flushed cheeks. Normally I then get to skip to my room and enjoy silence, but tonight I'll take the light snoring and bumps.

The girls sleep just like they live.

Julia likes to be bundled up in her blankets. She throws her self around dramatically in her sleep, and frequently shouts out dire warnings or professions of love.

Anna can't be restrained by mere cloth. She throws her blankets aside (thank goodness for those soft, warm fleece jammies). She goes and goes and goes until she passes out. She sleeps as hard as she plays. She rarely moves but when she does it's usually to toss herself out of bed. Even in her sleep she's a danger to herself.

Em. Well, the best way to describe Em's sleep is that she doesn't do much of it. She's unpredictable even in sleep. One night she'll sleep 10 hours, the next night she'll be up every hour from 8pm-8am. She can sleep like a rock or throw herself about. She can sleep through barking dogs and accidental smoke detector alarms, but can wail awake with just the quietest padding of the cats feet across the carpeted floor.

I should be sleeping, but the silence is alluring. I don't realize how loud they are as a trio until they do finally stop for the day.

Ahhhh...

ha ha ha ha ha

Oh my how funny iks this laughing baby!!



Try not to giggle... I dare you...

Thanks to very funny BECAUSE I SAID SO for this gem

Oh what a night...

We had a great day yesterday and finished it off with a spectacular night.

We spent the day lazing around the house, cleaning and doing laundry. The girls were busy outside getting sap all over their clothes playing on the tree swing and running around merrily.

Then we went and looked at a prospective house. It was nice but I like our planned arrangements a little better.

Then we loaded into the van and headed to Freeport. We found a great parking spot right away and loaded the sleeping bag, folding chairs and our big bag into the stroller and headed over to Bean. The place was packed and so we walked around a bit finding a place for us and the stroller. After securing a spot we dropped off the blanket and chairs and went school shopping.

Julia picked out her backpack (she chose purple instead of blue) and we found her a pair of adventure Maryjanes. We bought a pair of flannel pants for Em and then went and joined Dan back at our seats.

I was so excited to find that Brandi Carlile was the opening act. She is an amazing vocalist and songwriter. I'm a big fan of her song "The Story." Check it out if you have a chance.

Then it was time. THEY (the Indigo Girls) came on stage. I have seen them 3 times before and I know they always put on a great show. They sang a bunch of new songs, and my favorite old ones. Julia and Anna made a new friend (and I had a great time with her mom) and we all danced and bopped and sang along. In this kind of outdoor venue we were able to walk around and get really close to the stage. It was great. They brought Brandi Carlile and Melissa Ferrick on stage for Closer to Fine. They closed with Galilieo. Couldn't have been better since I LOVE that song. Anna and I were dancing and singing along.

So I leave you with Galileo...

galileo's head was on the block
the crime was looking up the truth
as the bombshells of my daily fears explode
i try to trace them to my youth
then you had to bring up reincarnation
over a couple of beers the other night
now i'm serving time for mistakes made by another
in another lifetime

how long till my soul gets it right
can any human being ever reach that kind of light
i call on the resting soul of galileo
king of night vision
king of insight

i think about my fear of motion
which i never could explain
some other fool across the ocean years ago
must have crashed his little airplane

how long till my soul gets it right
can any human being ever reach that kind of light
i call on the resting soul of galileo
king of night vision
king of insight

i'm not making a joke
you know me i take everything so seriously
if we wait for the time till all souls get it right
then at least i know there'll be no nuclear annihilation in my lifetime
I'm still not right

i offer thanks to those before me
that's all i've got to say
maybe you squandered big bucks in your lifetime
now I've got to pay

but then again it feels like some sort of inspiration
to let the next life off the hook or
she'll say look what i had to overcome from my last life
i think i'll write a book

how long till my soul gets it right
can any human being ever reach that kind of light
i call on the resting sould of galileo
king of night vision
king of insight
how long, how long, how long

Freaking delicious....

Ok, every Thursday night up at the lake we have a lobster dinner on the beach. Lobster, steamers and delicious garlic bread are provided and everyone brings a side dish and a dessert. Seriously good stuff passes through there each week. My Aunt Patty always makes her yummy fo*replay pie (because it's really "Better than se*x" pie). (I'm not sure if this is the recipe, but it's like this one...)

Crust
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup butter
Filling
1 cup Cool whip divided
1 (8 oz package) cream cheese
1 (3 oz package) cream cheese
3 packages instant vanilla pudding
4 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/2 cup confectioners sugar (optional)

Method CrustMix flour, sugar and butter and beat until smooth and creamy. Place in a 9 by 13 inch pi pan. Bake at 350°F until brown, about 10 minutes. Cool thoroughly.FillingSpread 1/2 cup cool whip into the cooled crust. Soften the cream cheeses and mix with pudding and milk. Mix well. Spread this mixture on top of cool whip. Top with more cool whip and chopped nuts. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar if desired.

This last week someone brought a terrific salad that everyone raved about. My mom and I tried to replicate it using her recipe but we were sorely lacking. I've done some research online and I think I have come up with a version that works great for me. This dish looks like you spent all day chopping veggies but it's super easy and SOOOO good. It's colorful and yummy. I think it would be a 4 season dish too. I'm making it this weekend and I'll post any tweaks then.

Oriental Broccoli Salad

Dressing (if this didn't make as much dressing as you'd like, you can double it, but I found doubling it made the bottom of the salad soupy)
1/2 cup oil (olive or a veggie oil, with a splash of sesame if you have it)
1/4 cup rice (or distilled white) vinegar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 packet from Oriental (or chicken) flavored ramen noodles

Salad:
2 (3 ounce) packages ramen noodles, crumbled (seasoning packet used in dressing)
2 package of Broccoli slaw (variety with shredded carrots and red cabbage)
2 bunches green onions, chopped
1 small bell pepper, diced (red or yellow would provide a great look)
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 - 1 cup Craisins (or raisins if you prefer)
EDITED TO ADD - a can of drained mandarin oranges would be super yummy!!

Mix salad ingredients together in a large serving bowl. Mix dressing ingredients together in a smaller bowl. Let dressing sit and then put on salad when ready to serve.

Then... Dan and I went to dinner at the Inn where we were married. It was delicious. We had a great time with my cousin and her fiancee'. I had a delicious beet salad that I had to have again when I went up for drinks and apps with my friend J. This is the best re-creation I could find.

Beet Salad

Gorgonzola Dressing (or if you can find a good bottled gorgonzola dressing)
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola


Combine all ingredients. Mix well.

1 small Red Onion, cut into thin sliced circles
3 tablespoons coursely chopped walnuts

Beets:
Rub beets with olive oil, salt and pepper and place in foil covered roasting pan. Roast in 350 degree pre-heated oven until you can easily pierce the beet with a paring knife (approximately 45 minutes for a baseball size beet). Cool and slice with a knife or mandolin. (Or you can use canned sliced beets or a light pickled sliced beet)

It was beautifully presented on a large salad plate. There was a beet slice in the center of the plate, with 5 beet slices surrounding it (think like a 5 petal flower with a center). Each beet was then topped with one of the onion circles. The gorgonzola dressing was mostly drizzled in the center and then sprinkled with the walnuts.

It was yum yum yum

Back to School Shopping

We're just over two weeks away from school starting here, but we're getting ready here at the Dougherty house. We're lucky in that the school district Julia goes to doesn't require school supplies purchased for Primary students. There are still plenty of things to buy... so I thought I'd share some of the things I've come across in my online adventures.

Backpack

Here in the land of the frozen tundra our backpacks needs to be large enough to hold folders, library books, dry shoes, wet boots, snow clothes and mittens... luckily we don't carry school books back and forth and when we run out of room for the lunch bag, we attach it to the bag with a carabiner.

Julia's preschool and Kindergarten bags were both from LL Bean. Both of them saw lots of use (the preschool bag is still being used by Anna) and have held up spectacularly. They don't show any wear and clean nicely. We are letting Julia choose a new bag this year only because she doesn't want a pink one... but we've explained it will have to be for 1st and 2nd grade. She wants a messenger style bag, but we're going with a traditional back pack again.

LUNCH BOX:

We'll be doing the Lands' End Clean Sweep Lunch Box. It's leak resistant, seamless for easy cleaning and a rigid bottom to keep things from being crushed. If you have pulley back pack it also has a handle to slide over the handle for easy transport.

Aren't these clothing/item labels awesome??? I'm sure Julia's school isn't alone in that it ends the year with piles of unlabeled lost clothing. I'm pretty sure I'll be using my trusty Sharpie again this year, but I love the idea behind these. Labels for clothes, tags for bags and equipment...

I also like these bag tags (I don't have a graphic) from Stuck on You.

SHOES:

I'm totally into these All weather Mary Janes from Lands' End. These will be perfect for non gym days, and I don't have to worry about the suede getting damaged from damp mornings at the bus stop. Mom's Helpers (and I'm not talking about the little happy pills)

As for me, I'll be using my new Mom's Family Calendar. It was awesome for us last year. I only wish it had more room in each spot because I'm a big writer... I'll be keeping track of the school menus, parent guidelines, dance schedules, etc... with the Kitchen Folio my mom bought me (THANKS MOM!!) from momagenda.In my bag will be the momagenda daily mini planner along side my PDA. (I just can't give up the hand written back up). It has the same mom plus four planner set up that the family calendar has but in a portable size for me. I love everything momagenda has. They have these great menu/grocery list notepads, babysitter notepads. If you have kids or even a busy hubby to plan for/with/around... it's worth a peek.

Ahhhhh.... It's almost time!

We're married...

The renewal was wonderful. It was quiet, private and amazing. The girls were beautiful.

After some debacles... Anna and Julia walked down the hill with me carrying sunflowers.

Then our long time family friend talked with the girls about family being part of you, then we renewed our vows, and joined hands as a family.

It was just what we had hoped for.

I did it...

I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

I LOVED IT!

I cried through the last 200 pages.

Wow. It was a great ride.

I read it while sitting on the beach and out in the lake. It was perfect.

We're back!

If only briefly.

It was the best vacation. Little travel time, 11 days that felt like 30, lots of relaxation, lots of family and great friends, beautiful surroundings, perfect weather, campfires, swimming and happy kids. Oh yeah... and lobster.

We had so much fun we're going back. I'm taking the girls back up on Thursday to spend some more time with my parents.

Julia's self esteem boost from Mugglefest carried over into her vacation. She stayed with my parents for a week before we went up. My extended family (all 17 of them!!) was up there and the kids all had a blast. I think this year of Kindergarten did a world of good for Julia. There was NONE of the crying and hurt feelings from years past. She just plain old had fun. At one point there were 14 kids age 10 and under. That's a force to be reckoned with. Julia also wrote a counting book for Anna that is just beautiful. Her birthday buddy helped with the writing and her cousins helped with some of the illustrations. Her hair has bleached out and she has a dark tan even with all the sunblock we chase her around with.

Anna also had fun. She spend 5-10 hours a day in the lake. By the time we left she went from walking around but not wanted to get her face wet, to spending most of her time underwater. Friends of ours K and G taught her to swim and she was doing great. She had a good time playing with the kids and usually fell asleep from pure exhaustion during dinner.

Emma was the most changed little one. Constantly surrounded by new people she has mellowed out tremendously. She's even letting "strangers" hold her now. She has almost stopped her Pteradactyl like yelling when she doesn't want something... and now says "nuh uh". Her vocabulary increased by leaps and bounds too. Other people were even starting to understand her. She also likes the water and loves to jump off the dock, whether or not someone is there to catch her.