A boy and his dad

These two are something else.  Lars is definitely a 'mama's boy' but man oh man does he love and admire his daddy.  Bob is so busy on the weekends working on house stuff....well both of us are but Bob is generally the one doing the work while I entertain Lars.  Lars is always wanting to help and always wanting to be involved in anything Bob's doing and Bob will usually find a way for Lars to help. It's pretty sweet. 

While Bob was taking a break from tiling in the bathroom this weekend, him and Lars were hanging out and I got to capture a few precious moments. 

a boy and his beloved lion...Leroy

           If you ever come between Lars and his hummus, I can't guarantee you won't get injured.  

Foodie Friday

Ok, so Foodie Friday is not a real thing but it should be, right? It just sounded good and since I am posting about.........FOOD, it seemed much appropriate. 

We've had some delicious food this week which isn't out the ordinary but there are some weeks where no one feels like cooking or we don't have time so we shovel down a bean and cheese quesadillias or frozen veggie burgers and fries but not this week!

Like this seriously yummy dish of chipolte sweet potato and quinoa patties on a tortilla with spicy sprouts, arugula, tomatoes, an avocado cream sauce and crunch almonds. Ummmm..yes please! 

Avocado Cream Sauce

1/2 avocado

small garlic clove

juice of 1/2 a lime

chipolte in adobo (the more you add the spicier it will be)

1/4 cup vegan sour cream or regular sour cream or almond milk (enough to thin it out)

How to

Put it all in a food processor and ta-da! 

I also whipped up a pretty tasty and super simple soup.  I'm a huge fan of soups.  They are quick and easy and I don't have to babysit them.  Throw it all in a pot and let it cook.  That's my kind of cooking. 

I set out to make this Broccoli & Potato Leek Soup with Lemon and Thyme but that didn't happen because guess who forgot to buy broccoli?  This gal!! (I was probably too busy deciding what chocolate bar to purchase.)  I didn't realize it until the 2 cups of leeks were already sauteing so at that point dinner was most definitely going to contain leeks in some shape or form. 

So I made a Kale, Carrot, Potato and Leek Soup and it was pretty damn good. 

I'm terrible at measuring things as in I never measure when I'm cooking. So for me writing recipes is hard and more work than it's worth.  Hence why I always try to find other recipes that are close to what I'm making to link to.  But I'll give it a shot with this one. 

Kale, Carrot, Potato and Leek Soup

3 leeks chopped 

1 tbsp olive oil

4 carrots chopped

1 bunch of kale

4-5 russet potatoes

salt 

pepper

oregano

thyme

cayenne pepper

chipolte seasoning

3-4 cups veggie broth or water

How to

Saute the leeks for about 2-3 minutes in the olive oil.  Add kale, carrots and potatoes.  Salt.  Let the kale wilt just a bit then add liquid and other seasonings.  Let cook for about 30 minutes or until potatoes and carrots are tender.  Use a hand held food emulsifier to cream the soup. 

This and That

Well it's Thursday and the construction zone that is our bathroom is in full force.  There's stuff scattered throughout the hallway and guest bedroom and to be honest....everywhere else in the house.  I will admit that living through this bathroom renovation is a piece of cake compared to the kitchen.  I knew it would be, but I was definitely a little anxious about starting it.

The kitchen renovation was harder for me to deal with than I thought it would be.  I felt like our house and our life was in a constant state of chaos and that we just kept spending money and spending money and spending money.  We managed to stay within our budget but dropping thousands of dollars several different times at several different places can be overwhelming and it was making my head spin.  On top of the money spent, it took much longer than I thought it would (isn't that how it always works out) and having disaster in the middle of our house for a month made me feel like I was going to scream.....and I did, several times.  Add two working parents, a super fun and active toddler and a to do list that doesn't end....at times I felt like I was at the end of my rope.  Through the whole kitchen renovation process I have discovered that I am not cut out for a complete home renovation....while living in it....while working full time .....and with kids. Not for me. Not signing up for that again.  One time was too many.

The bathroom being renovated is obviously not as huge of a project as the kitchen and it doesn't interfere with our daily lives as much either.  We have 2 other bathrooms to use and when we're done working on the hall bath for the night, I can shut the bathroom door, shut the guest room door, ignore the big ass vanity that's sitting in the hallway and pretend everything's lovely.   I also don't feel nearly as rushed with the bathroom as I did with kitchen.

In the midst of our bathroom overhaul we celebrated Easter with Aunt Ann and some great friends.  Lars had a great time finding eggs, even though he thought he had won the game just by finding one! It was adorable.

Lars had so much fun playing on trampoline with big kids! 

Lars has been taking baths in master bathroom in the big, huge gigantic tub.  It's the first time it's been used and he's loving it.  I secretly can't wait to get him back in the other bathroom because trying to wash him in this tub is like an Olympic sport.

all the trash, bath tub and toilet that was pulled out from the bathroom.  The toilet is still there. Bob asked if he could plant flowers in it.....I didn't answer him because a question that stupid doesn't deserve an answer.

could it get any cuter? 

Up until Lars was about 18 months he would have the most perfect mohawk ALL.THE.TIME! People would actually stop and ask what we used to get it like that.  His hair got longer and changed texture a bit and the mohwak just turned into crazy hair.  It just sticks up all over the place and it's amazingly adorable. But on Monday morning, it was like a flashback.  Lars woke up with most perfect wonderful mohawk.  He's awesome. 

Easter morning painting his ceramic bunny that he got. 

new tile in the bathroom

Does the perfect man exist?

I read this article about how women of different age groups perceive the 'perfect man'.  Let it be known that I simply read it as entertainment...nothing more. But it got me thinking....if Bob and I were to meet today for the first time would we hit off like we did 10+ years ago? I sure hope so and I truly think we would!

Bob is still my best friend and we still have so much in common.  Sure our lives have changed pretty drastically over the past 10 years (mortgage, baby, jobs, you know grown up stuff) but whenever we have a second to stop all the necessary but sometimes not so fun realities of life, we have so much fun together just like we always have.

I've always said that Bob is my balance and he still is to this day. I just can't imagine and don't want to imagine my life without him.  It would be a hot mess.  He always finds a way to make things ok.  He's annoyingly logically and unbelievable calm and he's always able to rein in my wandering worries and anxiety. (Note that Bob, I'm pretty sure, doesn't know what it feels like to be anxious. I don't think he has that emotion).
Ten years ago I was 20 and in a wonderful, new, complicated long distance relationship with a guy I had met 3 years earlier in Hawaii.  It felt as surreal as it sounds.  But if you would have asked me then where I saw myself 10 years down the road (I hate that stupid question) I would put money on that I would have said I have no idea where I'll be but I know how I'll be with.

Going back to that article I read, my perfect guy when I was 20 is the same guy now that I'm 30 and I plan on it being the same guy when I'm 110.  Two people don't randomly meet on vacation in Hawaii then don't speak for 2 years, then all of sudden find each other for no reason....the reason was to fall in love and I fell and fell and fell.  I'm still falling.  The guy is lovely! And will forever be my perfect guy even when he leaves wet towels on the floor, hasn't showered in a few days and puts my favorite linen lounge pants in the dryer by accident.  Love you babe!

and then my perfect guy became the greatest dad to another perfect guy and now I have 2! I'm a lucky girl

A list of happy

We have big plans for this weekend!  We are gutting our guest bathroom.  I didn't say they were fun plans just big plans.  Keep your fingers crossed that all goes well and we don't bust a water pipe or something while pulling out the tub.

I'm excited to get started with it but like with any big renovation, it's a little overwhelming.  Here's to hoping all goes smoothly.  And here are a few things to take my mind off the fact that my house is about to be a construction zone....again.

Have a great weekend! Hope everyone gets to do a little pants less gardening.

THIS SONG!  I'm slightly obsessed.

Rejection letters sent to famous people.  This will make you feel a little better about yourself :)

This adorable new Ikea storage table for a kids room.

Little man Lars after his 2 year check up.

The A to Z Dance Video.  Awesomeness!

Does it make me creeper stalker-ish that I want this book.

YES! Thank goodness.  I'm a serious doodler.

Bye Bye Binky

I've been wanting to write a post about this but I was afraid I was going to jinx it and shit was going to hit the fan.

We got rid of Lars' binkies last Friday and to our complete and utter shock things have gone on without a hitch.  I keep asking myself, how can that be?  I just knew it was going to be a huge ordeal, no one was going to sleep for months and everyone was going to be upset.  Not the case! Just one more thing to add to the tab of how parenting makes me eat my words.

see all those binkies....one in the mouth, one in the hand and 2 (that we can see) in the bed. 

I went back and forth on whether I wanted to give Lars a pacifier.  I ended up giving him one around 4 weeks because he was so inconsolable at times.  Then we discovered my struggle with low milk supply. This was the cause for the constant crying and frustration.  We remedied that situation and I took the binky away.

Then, at around 5 months out of pure desperation and in a state of being beyond exhausted and sleep deprived, we gave it to him at night.  At this point I would have done damn near anything that was legal and not harmful to help us all sleep.  Lars wasn't sleeping.  Just flat out not sleeping and if he did sleep he would wake up every 45 mins-1 hour.  It was rough around our house.  Five months of no sleep can lead to a lot of unpleasantness.  If a binky was the key to solving these issues then by all means give the boy a binky.  That's how we felt.

It certainly wasn't the cure all but it did help soothe him. The binky along with some pretty strict scheduling helped Lars figure it all out eventually.

Lars has only ever gotten his binkies for sleep and in the car on long rides.  But the boy loved them! They were his source of comfort at night.  He would hold one in each hand while he slept even if he didn't have one in his mouth. They were toys too.  He would play with them if he woke up in the middle of the night or while he waited for us to come get him.  So I was dreading the day we had to take them away.

I considered taking them away at 18 months but I just wasn't ready to fight what I thought would be a battle and to be honest I wouldn't have been in a rush to take them away at 2 years old either but we noticed that his 2 top front teeth were jutting out just a bit.  Maybe it was the binky, maybe it's just his teeth but it was enough to make us want to bite the bullet.

he even manages to look cool with a pacifier.  

The week leading up to Friday (bye bye binky day) we would mention to Lars very nonchalantly that it was almost time to give away his binkies because he was a big boy now.  We told him that we were going to give the binkies to all the new baby deer on our property.  Lars loves loves loves watching the deer and when he sees several of them together he tells us it's a mama deer and her babies.

So on Friday I gave Lars a small basket and had him go get his binkies out of his bed, put them in the basket and we walked all the way to the back of our property (in the jungle as Lars calls it).   I told him to find a good spot to leave the binkies.  He left them on a tree stump and yelled 'Come here baby deer'.  I told him that the baby deer would get the binkies during the night and that it was time to say bye bye.  He said 'bye bye binkies' turned around and walked away.  I was a little taken aback.

I had a big boy basket waiting for him at the front door.  It had a new big boy pillow with a fun pillow case, new sleep friends (Connie the cow and Frank the frog), a new blanket and glow in the dark stars to put on his ceiling.  He was thrilled!

When it came time for bath and bed I was freaking out (internally of course).  I just knew things were about to get crazy.  He never once asked for his binkies that night.  I read him his books, rocked him for a bit, turned off the light and laid him down in his crib.  He was mesmerized by the stars on the ceiling.

Since Friday Lars has asked about his binkies maybe 3 or 4 times.  We remind him that we gave them to the baby deer and move on to something else. I can't believe this transition has been so smooth.  I really can't! It just goes to show how amazing children are and how they are capable of handling more than we think they can.  They are so adaptable and don't have the fears and worries about change like we do.

I took this picture on Saturday morning after waking up and realizing we had slept all night without the mention of a pacifier.  I told him I was so proud and that I was going to make chocolate muffins for breakfast.  This is his 'I love chocolate muffins' face.

And he got to paint on the front porch because he really could do no wrong on Saturday because I was so proud and in complete shock that things had fallen into place so nicely. 

Finding time for the little things

Like every other mother, working mom, married lady, single lady,....just woman in general, I am always wishing there were a few more hours in the day.  Either to get stuff done, spend time with the fam or just flat out do nothing.  I sometimes wish there were more hours in a day to simply do nothing.  Does that make me lazy?

Often times I have to remind myself that the laundry can wait, the dishes can wait, the paint can wait, the everything on the to do list can wait in order to hang out with Lars and Bob. I also have to force myself sometimes to take 20 mins for myself and do a little yoga or work out. Yoga makes me feel so much better and I know that, but it's still hard to take the time to do it when I know I could be doing 1 million other things.

During the week, if Lars is feeling it, we will do yoga together when I get home from work, but more often than not he wants to play outside, paint or play in the 'waters'.  This just consists of pouring buckets of water out on the front porch.  He about peed himself the first day it was finally warm enough to do this.  It's his favorite. On those days if I'm not a walking zombie after Lars goes down I will squeeze in a quick yoga session or work out.  *Side note....I do a little mini session of yoga while I'm hanging with Lars while he bathes. 

On the weekends, I literally have to make myself take a few minutes to exercise while he naps.  Nap time is a crucial moment while renovating a whole house.  When Lars is napping Bob and I can knock out a crap load of items on our to do list. It's our 2 hours to accomplish 10 hours of work.  So taking a 20 minute break can be hard.

But, I'm a better and more focused person if I can squeeze in a 20 minute yoga break.  My lovely and oh so patient husband took these over the weekend. Even he took time out from painting and staining the master bedroom to play photographer for me.

On the other hand, Lars (like most kiddos) is the epitome of  making every second of the day worthwhile and not being caught up in the to do's, should do's and could do's.  He makes me stop, take a deep breath and just chill.  He literally sometimes says, 'take a deep breath' and then breathes really fast.  It's adorable.

This kid's love for nature is beyond anything I could have ever imagined.  Some say it's because he has hippy parents.  Some say it's because we live in the country.  I say maybe it's a little of both of those but the adoration he has for nature is not something anyone could have taught him.  He appreciates a tiny little leaf like I appreciate a well designed mid century modern chair, like Bob appreciates a well poured IPA.  He gets over joyed about seeing a grasshopper leap through the yard.  He looks at all sides of a leaf or flower, just cherishing every piece.  It is hard not to find happiness in these small things also when you're with him. Talk about putting things into perspective. 

He saw a turkey vulture flying in the sky and was calling him to come eat the leaf he had found. .  "Here Mr Eagle.  Come Eat."

Joy.  Just pure joy about seeing a bird in the sky. 

If he's not outside, he's looking outside or talking about outside. 

My sweet little love.  

So Much

I've got so much to share! First, if you haven't already be sure to check out our kitchen renovation featured over at House*Tweaking.  I'm super excited about it!

Secondly, as if you're not tired of hearing about Lars' birthday I have one last post...I promise! For his actual birthday I made him this delicious vegan birthday cake. I made a really small one because we were leaving the next day to spend the weekend in San Antonio.  Lars of course enjoyed the icing and left the rest of the cake in various parts of the house.

he was so excited to wake up and sing happy birthday and blow out candles! 

after he blew his birthday candle out he asked to blow out a candle i had burning also.  why stop at the birthday candle? 

boy loves to eat the icing. 

Last night I made vegan cauliflower tater tots.  They were a huge hit! They are actually delicious.  Vegan? Yes.  Gluten free? Yes. Healthy? Ehhhh....maybe, maybe not.  They are fried in olive oil so it's your call.  

Also, I captured some Lars yoga being performed on the couch.  It's a very advanced technique to find balance on the couch. Lars the yogi. 

Bob swooped in because Lars is just too cute to stay away from....especially when he's doing yoga. 

 Life's been busy, but lots of fun.  Sometimes Lars telling me he's doing yoga on the couch is enough to slow things down.