Ha ha

This made me laugh so hard because I always seem to be wearing ugly shoes in the winter. Seriously funny (no one knows the identity of the blogger, but her satire has gotten some good laughs out of me).

See what I have to deal with living in perfect land?

I am very aware that I could/obviously need to increase my efforts in the style department, but the effort in appearances that seems to be the norm around here boggles my mind.

Halloween

I love Halloween. October zoomed by, and we didn't do as many fun fall things we normally do. But of course we managed to attend the school's Monster Mash on Friday (complete with all the elementary school kids dancing to Thriller) and to have fun on Halloween. We had some spooky fun with my sister's family on Saturday, including a Halloween feast (had to have the Halloween-themed food!!) and lots-o-candy of course.

It is always fun to see how quickly the little ones grasp the concept of running from house to house, begging for candy. Nora (along with her cousins Isaac and Josh) caught on right away and couldn't seem to get enough until they declared they were too cold.

My Star Wars gang: Jengo Fett, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia

The Star Wars gang with cousins: lion, zombie bride, vampire, dog, and Ben as himself




and various faces of Halloween . . .

Yummy: The best chocolate pudding, and it's easy

Homemade pudding! How retro and comforting and yummy.

One of my favorite food blogs is the Smitten Kitchen. I have been a loyal reader and recipe tester for a long time. I love the recipe she posted for chocolate pudding because it is made from simple, good stuff, and it is VERY easy to make, especially compared to other recipes that contain eggs, require multiple pots, etc.

I just use regular chocolate chips, not good chocolate as she suggests, because we haven't served it at any fancy dinner parties yet. Ha! The flavor options are endless: milk chocolate (my kids prefer, I prefer dark), mint chocolate, butterscotch, etc., the chips or the good versions of these. Apparently this makes a great ice cream too. Just put it through your ice cream maker (I haven't tried it). The blog comments also suggest a soy version works well.

I think it will also fix the economy, catch all the bad guys, and bring peace to the universe. Oh, and I don't strain it. If you pay attention and whisk it thoroughly, it will come out just fine. My double boiler is a metal bowl sitting on top of a simmering pot of water.

The following recipe (she has great photos) is taken directly from the Smitten Kitchen.

Silky Chocolate Pudding

Adapted from John Scharfeenberger, via Wednesday Chef

Serves 6

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 cups whole milk

6 ounces 62% semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used good quality semisweet chocolate chips; use 70% bittersweet if you want more of a dark chocolate kick.)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt in the top of a double boiler. Slowly whisk in the milk, scraping the bottom and sides with a heatproof spatula to incorporate the dry ingredients. Place over gently simmering water and stir occasionally, scraping the bottom and sides. Use a whisk as necessary should lumps begin to form. After 15 to 20 minutes, when the mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of the spoon, add the chocolate. Continue stirring for about 2 to 4 minutes, or until the pudding is smooth and thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

2. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer (of skip this step if you're a slacker like me who is absolutely certain that there is nary a lump in her puddin') into a serving bowl or into a large measuring cup with a spout and pour into individual serving dishes.

3. If you like pudding skin, pull plastic wrap over the top of the serving dish(es) before refrigerating. If you dislike pudding skin, place plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently again over the surface before refrigerating. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days (ahem, good luck with that).

Yummy: A soup with lots of zucchini

Overrun with zucchini? Here is a soup that we love, even the boys and the vegetarian. Try to use the normal-size, slender zucchini, not those resembling clubs if possible.

Italian Vegetable Soup
Recipe by Giada de Laurentiis

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 leeks (white and pale green parts only), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 zucchini, thinly sliced crosswise
2 (13 3/4-ounce) cans quartered artichoke hearts packed in water, drained (I omit sometimes)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
10 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
4 ounces dried wide egg noodles
Freshly grated Parmesan

Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the leeks and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the zucchini and artichokes. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Saute until the zucchini are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the vegetable broth. Stir in the thyme and cook for 2 minutes. Cover the pot and bring the soup to a simmer. Decrease the heat to medium-low and simmer gently until the flavors develop, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the noodles and cook until al dente, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.

Yum.

Karlie's a Junior!

I know I have fallen off the blogging wagon, but I could not let this day pass without wishing Karlie good luck. Today Karlie starts eleventh grade!! I can't believe how quickly time passes. And she will be 17 in October! I am so excited for her to have a wonderful year in school and start making plans for after graduation. Karlie is very excited about some of her ideas (which include studying film) for after high school.

I wish I could have been there to give her a big hug and kiss on her first day. I can't wait to hear about it!

Karlie digging into some Nutella

Karlie & I living it up in Las Vegas this summer. The real Eiffel Tower is much more impressive, in case you were wondering. But it was a fun summer.

Welcome Baby Hayden!

Hayden John Baker (pictured here with his big sister Savea) was born on April 23rd!

My little brother now has two kids. Congratulations!!

Happy Birthday & Kaló Pás'ha

April 19th was Gloria (my mother-in-law) and Stelios's (my brother-in-law) birthday and Orthodox Easter (the date of Greek Orthodox Easter is based on the modified Julian calendar and the Western world uses the Gregorian calendar, in case you were wondering.)


Every year we celebrate Greek Easter, Greek-style of course with Terry's father (who is Greek in case you were wondering).

Eggs for the egg cracking game

Getting ready to crack eggs

Adrian attempting to crack someone's egg with his egg.

And the last egg standing . . . Theo's!

I like Orthodox Easter because there is no Easter Bunny. I am really not one of the Easter Bunny's fans, and not because I am no fun, but I dislike holiday hustle and bustle. I like holidays for the spend-time-with-family factor, eating great food, and making memories and not for the crap you get guilted into buying. Yes, crap like candy no one will ever eat or ugly stuffed animals. And since when does Easter rival Christmas for the amount of gifts given to children!? I am always puzzled by the amount stuff that goes into a holiday. And don't get me started on Christmas and related crap.

Halloween on the other hand. I love fake, scary stuff. And the opportunity to dress up like anything or anyone I want.

Yes, for whatever reason, April and May are packed with birthdays! And in that tradition I have a new niece and nephew born this spring. So there will be more birthday news to come.

Happy Birthday & Happy Easter

April 12th was not only Easter, but also my sister Callie's birthday. I am lucky enough to live a short drive from Callie! She claims to be younger than I, but considering that I am 27, I do not see how that is possible.


And some Easter shots. We have a cupcake obsession at our house.

Third Annual Easter Egg Hunt

This year marked the third annual Bigelow Easter egg hunt. Two of my mom's sisters live nearby and the past few years we have gotten together the Saturday before Easter for a huge egg hunt at Jane's house. The kids have a blast, and it is the highlight of the weekend.

My aunts, Jenny and Jane

The kids run out the back door and don't stop until every egg is found. The Easter Bunny is never stingy with the eggs!

Cousin Ben & Theo

Nora caught on to the idea pretty well.

Checking out the lootGetting together with this side of my family is so fun because it reminds me of Grandma Bigelow (my mom's mom). She always celebrated holidays BIG and one of her favorites was Easter. Easter will always remind me of her! She and Grandpa would host a huge Easter egg hunt on their farm, regardless of the weather. I wish I were better at making holidays special for my kids. Some of my clearest and fondest holiday memories involve Grandma!

Here Comes Baby Layla and Happy Birthday To Her Mom!

Layla Tadlock was born on March 23rd!

She is the third child for my sister Beth and her husband Jason. I was very lucky to be able to see Layla when she was just two weeks old!

Karlie, Layla, and my mom

I was also very lucky to see Beth on her birthday (April 3rd). I won't mention how old she is because being that I am 19 months older than she would only point out my advancing years.

Love you Beth! Layla is a doll!!

Catching Up

I always debate whether I should bother posting things from way-back-when or start with now. But I can't pass up mentioning some fun and exciting things that happened over the past couple of months. So here goes . . .

Going Private

Everyone was excited for a photo on Easter.

I am alive. I was starting to wonder myself.

After going back and forth for months, I have decided to make my blog private. I think I would feel more comfortable posting certain events in our life, and I think I would actually post more often. So I am going to give it a try.

I really have no idea who reads this blog, if anyone does at this point (since I have been missing in action). So if you would like to read this blog, let me know and I will send you an invite.

Happy spring to everyone!

If I tied the knot on Valentine's Day . . .

This would be a serious contender for my wedding cake. Love it! From Dahlia's Custom Cakes.

As described in the website, each tier is a different flavor, one being a coconut cake filled with dark chocolate ganache. Hello!

So speaking of wedding cakes, I really love them. And I am seriously considering some sort of wedding anniversary bash/ renewing of the vows to give me an excuse to have another wedding cake. Maybe someday.

Hello!

So it has been a while. Obviously. But what a busy couple of months it has been! Maybe someday I will get around to updating. But for now, the news at our house is:

1. Theo lost his first tooth (last Friday). He was excited because the kids sung to him at school on Monday. He was very worried we were going to be late to school and he would miss out on his big moment. The tooth really is lost and we are hoping to find it when we get around the cleaning up the playroom.


2. Nora is walking pretty proficiently (video to appear at some point). I can't find the photo I was looking for, so here is one of Adrian and Nora sitting in their kitchen cupboard, eating BBQ chips (their new favorite snack). Yes, Adrian is messy and his pants end up looking like that on most days.


3. We had a huge flood due to a busted pipe above our garage that caused a significant amount of damage. It is still being fixed after a month. The below photo is of the poor guy who had to tear out the sheet rock and insulation in the garage and got rained on. Thank goodness for insurance.