Weekly quote 5/31/10

Last week's quote was indeed from 'Clueless'. It's one of my favorites. New quote up! I hope I got it right.

Cheesy Potato Soup

This only makes two servings, so I usually quadruple it so we have plenty for leftovers. It is a no-fail recipe, whether you use skim milk or whole.

2 tablespoons onion
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 cup pre-cooked potatoes
1/4 cup shredded cheese

Saute onion in butter until tender. Stir in flour and salt. Remove from heat. Gradually add in milk; cook and stir over medium heat until thick. Add remaining ingredients. Stir over low heat until warmed through.

I always cook carrots with the potatoes to make it a bit healthier. You can add corn or any other veggies you like. It's also good sprinkled with crumbled bacon.

Weekly quote 5/24/10

Though my sisters didn't actually say which movie the last quote was from, I knew that they would probably be the only ones who would know the answer. The quote is from 'Emma' (with Gwyneth Paltrow), after Emma met Mrs. Elton. Let's see if anyone can get this week's quote!

Carrot cake

This is the best carrot cake I've ever had! I make it every year for Tyler's birthday.

Carrot cake

2 c flour
2 c sugar
1 c oil
4 eggs
3 c grated carrots
2 t cinnamon
1 t salt
2 t baking soda
1 small can crushed pineapple (including juice)

Mix all ingredients for 2-3 minutes. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

(Sometimes I buy a regular-sized can of pineapple and put about half of it in. It is more moist if you add more juice!)

Cream cheese frosting:

3 c powdered sugar
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 stick butter, softened
2 t vanilla

Beat until smooth. Frost when cake is cooled.

Nutter

Yesterday I went to Park City with my SIL Rachelle. Both of our older kids were gone, so Kate and Keaton enjoyed sitting in the back seat together and making each other laugh while we shopped. We found some really good deals (at Old Navy I got some yellow moccasins [something I've been wanting for a while] for $5.25 and workout pants for $3.50, and at J. Crew I got white pants for $12!). I also bought Ada a swimsuit. It's ADORABLE. I excitedly showed it to her when I got home. She took one look at it, put a frown on her face, and said she didn't like it. She then grabbed it and threw it in the garbage can! I can't believe that girl! Shortly thereafter I put on a show for her and she fell asleep. I think she was just a little too tired. Luckily, today she said, "I like it now!" Phew. We'll have to work on her sleeping habits.

She said a funny thing today as I was painting her fingernails. She looked down and said, "My pinkies are painted. Did you know that pinkies are girls?" That girl cracks me up!

Kate's pronunciations

Cinderella = Lella
Snow White = Swite
Jasmine = Jazum
Sleeping Beauty = Beauty
Barbies = Darbies
elephant = ephelant
applesauce = aslesauce
clean up = clea-mup

And, my personal favorite:

chocolate = chewlocket

Weekly Quote

Each Monday I will post a quote on my sidebar. It can be from a movie, a book, a song, or from someone I know. Post a comment if you know where the quote comes from!

Whole Wheat Pancakes

I've decided that Thursday will be recipe day. I'm ashamed to admit that I don't have many main dish recipes, so look for lots of desserts and such. Look forward to the weekly quote on Monday!

Whole Wheat Pancakes

1 c whole wheat flour
1 T sugar
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 egg
1 c milk
2 T oil

I like to substitute one T of oil with applesauce, and I add cinnamon. The kids and I love to eat these for lunch topped with hot jam.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

I haven't been good at blogging lately, so I'm ready for some changes. I changed up the music a little bit for your listening enjoyment. I got a new background. I've decided to add two weekly installments: a weekly quote (an idea I've been toying with for ages, courtesy of my friend Shanny) and a weekly recipe. Hopefully it will get me blogging more regularly and make things a little more interesting. More to come!

As far as the family goes:

Kate:
-now has nine teeth. I discovered two bottom molars a few weeks ago because she started grinding her teeth. Ugh! Hopefully the gaps fill in soon
-finally knows her colors. I know she's still young for this, but Ada knew hers earlier and we've been working with Kate for a while on this. She is talking a lot
-constantly wants me to play 'incesses' or 'clubhouse' with her. She is so cute when she makes the characters interact
-is obsessed with putting her hands under running water. She constantly wants her hands washed and can now turn on the water in the tub

Ada:
-has decided that she no longer likes Minnie. She is now always Daisy and wants Minnie (me) to do mean things, like take Daisy's jewelry and lie to everyone else. She also loves to pretend that Goofy and Belle (from Beauty and the Beast) are going to get married. She wants to play 'Mickey Mouse Clubhouse' all day long, even when she's playing with something else
-hasn't been to preschool in a month-and-a-half. Her poor teacher got really sick and had to end the year a few months early. We've been trying to play with friends more and get out of the house so we don't go crazy

Tyler:
-has been working his butt off at the office. He has had one big project due after another and has been putting in some late hours the last several weeks. It's a good thing he loves his job. We will soon see the monetary benefits of this, thank goodness
-has also been busy at home, and has lots to do still: he put in a garden (we still need to figure out what we're going to plant) and how has the construction of a new playground, computer, and elliptical (that we're borrowing from his parents) to look forward to
-still finds a way to read, one of his favorite things to do

Alison:
-has been trying to come up with ways to get out of the house to keep her sanity. She is open for just about anything right now!
-is completely bummed about the way the Jazz's season ended. At least she can try to get to bed at a decent hour now
-got a killer deal on fabric (before Easter) but has yet to make curtains for the front room
-finally finished reading 'David Copperfield' and absolutely loved it