christmas will come...

A very close family friend of ours would always say the title of this post, "Christmas will come" and I remember how it would always make my mom laugh. Now I understand why... as everyone stresses out if the shopping, cooking, baking, wrapping will be done for the 25th you have to remember if you don't finish something Christmas will still come. It is ok if you only bake one batch of Christmas cookies or decide to shortcut a recipe for Christmas dinner Christmas will still come and you should enjoy it. Well... I am trying to keep that mantra alive while I attempt to get everything done in time for Christmas. Gavin is sick, really snotty, coughy and fever sick. Ugh. And I am trying to bake baby as I posted last time. Well, for everyone who is trying hard to get ready for Christmas to come here is a VERY easy recipe that you can make for a dinner this week.

Real Simple Shepherd's Pie (From Real Simple magazine)

1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey
1 1.2 ounce pkg. chicken gravy mix (such as Knorr)
1 10 oz package frozen peas, thawed
1 20 oz package mashed potaotes (such as Simply Potatoes)
1/4 to 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano (I am generous with this)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. I a large skillet, cook the turkey until it is no longer pink. Add the gravy mix and 1 cup water. Stir frequently until the sauce comes to a boil; cook 1 minute. Lightly coat a 9 in. square baking dish or 4 16 oz baking dishes with vegetable cooking spray. Spoon in the turkey. Top with the peas, then the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with the Pecorino Romano. Bake 20 minutes or until heated through and the top is golden.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Good Luck!!

to triage we go...

So the title of this blog is The Bowers in Pursuit... well I am going to title this post as In the Pursuit of Baking, and I don't mean Christmas cookies! I mean baking baby. We are in the pursuit of baking baby!!! Mark and I spent about 2 hours last night with me hooked up to monitors after I had a contraction yesterday afternoon. Everything is fine now, but what a scare. I went into pre-term labor and then bed rest during my pregnancy with Gavin and I am determined to stay off the couch this time. Especially with my adorable toddler running around! The trip to the hospital was a good reminder that I am approaching my third trimester and I have got to take good care of myself and that little girl. It also made me think how our motherly instinct kicks in so early to do anything we can to protect a little person that we haven't even met yet. I am so happy being pregnant right now. As I type this I feel her little kicks telling me she is here and is ok. I just want her to chill out and be more patient than her big brother was!!!

Three fun things did happen while we were at the hospital last night! Mark and I laughed after we enjoyed two quiet hours with no dogs, baby, telephone or any other interruptions. Someone was there to take care of us and we talked and relaxed. It was heaven! We joked that we should go to the hospital more often!! The second thing was Mark told me a story that made me laugh SO hard I could not stop. The monitors on my belly were bouncing all around and the computer machine was going crazy!! I couldn't stop laughing as I thought of the nurse coming back in and reading the monitor and wondering what was going on with our baby!!! I guess you always have to find a laugh in any moment! And the last thing is the best. For any parent out there who has ever had to clean out a babies nose you know how important a good nasal aspirator is. Well... Gavin has a nasty cold right now and what good mom couldn't help but notice (even while be monitored for signs of labor) a well stocked labor and delivery room with hospital grade snot suckers!!! I screamed to Mark to grab one and have already happily used it today! Mark said it was worth the trip!! Probably so... with the addition of spending quiet time with my hubby and listening to my little baby girl's heart beat and movement for a couple hours. It was all worth it!

gavin is two...

I can't believe Gavin is now two! He even says that he is two and he tries to show you on his little hand, but ends up making some freakish claw!!! I told Mark yesterday that on his first birthday I felt more of an accomplishment that we had made it through the first year. This year I feel much more sentimental. Yesterday, his actually birthday, I watched the clock and thought back about how I was in labor, until the moment he came into this world. I thought about our first day and night together and how Mark and I watched him nervously to make sure he was ok. I think we were more in awe and wonder. I can't believe how much he has evolved over these past two years, and I can't believe how much I love that sweet little soul.

On Sunday we threw Gavin a birthday party. It was a lot to get together, but he deserves it and seeing him enjoy everyone and everything SO much made it all worth it. Here is a little peek at how we celebrated our growing little boy.

Gavin LOVES Elmo so we chose that much loved little monster for his party. I knew most of the guests were adults so I wanted the decorations to be tasteful. I started with what is the focal point of our house right now, our Christmas trees. I feel bad for the boy that he has his special day so close to Christmas so I transformed our trees into Elmo trees with the help of my printer and scalloped edged scissors.

I knew the majority of our guests were adults so I divided our great room into two areas, adult seating and Elmo's World with toddler friendly activities, but chairs for adults to sit in and partake in the action.

I used a box from a mirror we have and filled it with balls and covered the edges with paper for the ball pit. I also filled this block/activity table with rice and added Sesame Street characters and cups for a rice table. Both were a HUGE hit!!

 I added some blue polka-dot pillows to our couch to compliment the color theme of the party...

 Covered the gift table and the food table in cheap fabric...

 And made these Elmo toothpick decorations to adorn the food. All I did for these were print, cut and then hot glue the circles to toothpicks. Mark even helped glue!! :)

I found the Elmo buckets in the $1 bins at Target and bought the red and white polka-dot napkins months ago on sale!

 I made favors for both the adults and kids to thank them in celebrating the day with us. The adults got fish spritz cookies that I made with my cookie press... because Elmo does love his goldfish Dorothy. I added a special message to each.

 The kids got a bag including a book, crayons, play figure and more goldfish. I again found the books and figurines in the $1 bins at Target!

But do you want to see the best part of this party?

This face... :)

that fuzzy red little fellow...

While most people are busy getting ready for the man in the red suit to arrive I have been busy getting ready for THIS fuzzy red guy to come to our house!

Here is a small peek at some of the things I have been collecting, creating, and... cutting LOTS of cutting!!

Can't wait for the big day and to share the finished products with you!

too many hats...

In my life I wear many hats. I attempt to juggle these hats successfully one day at a time, but boy are they weighing me down lately!! Here are some things I have been juggling...

I have been working on trying to get all of this up...

I actually spent all Saturday decorating our tree. Of course as I tried to juggle taking care of all of us and trying to watch a toddler underfoot. And did I mention all three of us came down with colds on Friday!! :)

I also have been trying to work on this...

Gavin's second birthday party is this Sunday and this week is crunch time!

And all the while I have been still trying to work on this...

Getting the books for the businesses updated is kicking my butt!! I also had to try to help Mark with a design, which he ended up finishing... sorry Mark, and help with a bunch of other random stuff.

I also need to work on Christmas gifts, Christmas cards, my mother-in-law kindly asked me to send pictures of the boy months ago, (I think she has given up on me), I have to take Fisher to the vet, call a friend, plan Gavin's new room to figure out what he needs for gifts, write a few thank you cards... yada yada yada. Whew... wish me luck. I have a plan though!!! The dogs have already had a good walk, I have organized my book work for the day and Gavin is not even awake yet. Yay!!

Good luck for me and good luck to all of you!!

so thankful...

What a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was a wonderful week with family and friends. I didn't want the holiday to end.

But what am I most thankful for this year? Well I am finally ready to share our news. We are expecting a baby Apirl 10th and I can not express how thankful I am for this most wonderful gift. We have had friends dealing recently with difficult pregnancies and sad news so I felt even more honored and blessed when we finally got the news last Monday that we are having a girl and that she is growing well and healthy. We are so fortunate.

I have already added her picture to our family of photos.

I am 21 weeks and my belly is really popping now and I am feeling her move more and more. She has already gotten the hang of giving her mama some pretty good kicks! Mark and I were sure we were having another boy and I was so excited, but when the doctor told us it was a girl tears of happiness filled my eyes. I have already started to get a few pink gifts and can't help but begin to plan out a sweet nursery for a much loved baby girl.

collage fun...

Here is another very easy craft to do with your little ones. I wanted to make something fun with Gavin today and I thought this fit the bill!

Torn Paper Collage

For Thanksgiving I had Gavin make Indian corn, but you can use the same technique to make anything. Gavin made a pumpkin for Halloween and I remember having him and his buddy Henry make stars for the 4th of July. Tearing is great for little ones who are developing their fine motor skills. Once the paper is torn you can make anything you want.

For Indian corn you will need:

1 piece of yellow paper
1 piece of green paper
Small pieces of orange, brown, white and red paper
Scissors
Glue (I use a glue stick)



Cut the yellow paper and green paper to create the corn and husks. Tear the rest of the paper into little pieces. Gavin is still a bit young to do this. He can tear big pieces of paper, but has trouble with smaller pieces so I help him like this.

It helps to hold the paper yourself tightly on one side and let the child tear on the other or hold onto the child's hand to help give more strength in tearing.

Once you have a pile of pieces you are ready to add glue to the whole piece of corn. Gavin loves to use the glue stick to add the glue.

After the corn is covered in glue, add the small pieces of torn paper as corn kernels.

Finally add the corn husks and...

ta da you have a beautiful piece of Indian corn!

Have fun!

give a little to get a lot...

While Gavin naps I would rather be working on this...

But instead I am working on this...

Ugh... I always joke that I went to school to become an art educator and now I am the bookkeeper for our businesses, but I will never complain. My new found career provides me with the opportunity to stay home with my little guy, and I wouldn't trade that for the world. I may have to sacrifice some happy homemaking, but the weekend is near. Projects can wait. So no more distractions... I must get back to my most hated Quickbooks, but I will revel in the fact that when my little one wakes up from his nap, I will be here.


...and yes... that is my bed... unmade even. I love to work in bed. Another perk of working from home.

little buggers...

I know I should not complain. I just had a WONDERFUL time with my mom visiting the past couple days and feel very blessed in my life... but (you knew this was coming!)... something is bugging me!!! We have ants!!! One BIG pro for Colorado is NO BUGS. I am serious NO BUGS!! But I guess you do have to deal with the occasional bear rummaging through your trash. Now I have to bag, clip or seal everything so tightly closed.

Why does living in the south mean sharing your home with pesky pests? My sister wrote more about this crazy relationship here on her blog. I remember recently visiting some friends who also had ants invading their home. The poor beloved dog had all of his food thrown away because ants had taken it over. We have been battling them here in one cupboard of our kitchen.

I think they are trying to find a way into Gavin's M&M's (used for something I will have to post about soon)!

I apologize for the silly post, but I must vent!!!

pumpkin bread...

My mom is coming this afternoon and I am SO excited. It has been way too long and I can't wait till she arrives! I wanted to make something yummy for us to enjoy while she is here, so once Gavin gets up from his nap we are going to make pumpkin bread. Yum! I craved this recipe while I was pregnant with Gavin like there was no tomorrow. Hopefully he will enjoy it outside of my belly as much as he did in!

Pumpkin Bread

Combine Dry Ingredients:

2 cups sifted self-rising flour (I have to admit, I never sift)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon allspice

Add:

1 cup canned pumpkin
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup butter or margarine/melted
1/2 cup apricot nectar
1 teaspoon maple flavoring

Pour batter into pan and bake 60-70 minutes at 350 degrees.

** Note: I do bake this in a flower pot bread pan that I have. If you bake this in a normal bread pan I would keep a close eye on the baking time.

Enjoy!

And since I don't have a picture of the bread yet I will leave you with this picture of the little guy who probably is much like this right now. :)

growing...

I had to share this shot of our pumpkin seed we planted at the Children's Garden not even two weeks ago...

Can you believe it!!! Gavin and I planted this the Friday before Halloween and the little thing is growing like crazy! It made me start to think about how, with a little care, things can grow beyond your highest expectations. We are slowly getting settled in and re-acquainted with our life in Florida. The only things left unpacked are the garage and pictures on walls. We have gotten together with friends and have started to make new ones. It is wonderfully comforting to have our family close by and see them often. Life is good and we are savoring its peaceful pace. I feel as if we are finding a new fondness for our old hometown. With the care we are taking in growing our home and life a peaceful happiness is sprouting. Now don't get me wrong... when I heard that it is snowing today in Colorado my heart did pang a bit, but I will focus on enjoying a sweet walk with the family tonight in the nice cool Florida air.

Now I just have to figure out what to do with this pumpkin plant that is taking over my kitchen window!

halloween hauntings...

What a week! I can't believe Halloween was a week ago! The weeks seems such like a blur! I will explain...

We had a wonderful Halloween. Halloween morning we of course carved our pumpkin. Gavin picked out his design from three choices and Mark carved it out. Gavin and I scooped all the gunk out and Mark prepared the seeds to roast. And I think the seeds were the best I ever made (if I can say so myself)! I tossed them with a little olive oil and kosher salt, roasted them at 300 degrees for 45 minutes and they were ready to eat. Yum!

Here is Gavin's completed costume. If you can't guess... he is the bear Corduroy from the classic children's book series. He loves those books and I wanted him to be something he liked.

We took him to the Children's Garden in downtown Sarasota. It was perfect for him because he could walk through the garden and trick-or-treat and got to enjoy seeing other kids in their costumes. There was a scary pirate though that Mark said got too into his part...



calmly running for his life...

He has been talking about this pirate ALL week. The guy was handing out candy eyeballs... so he would say, "do you want me eye". So all week Gavin has been talking about the man with the eye. Geez... poor little guy!
After the garden we returned home to have hot dogs with Mark's family (a tradition of his childhood). We also visited a few of our close neighbors which was fun.

Tuesday was my birthday and I had a great one. Gavin and I went to his class at Forty Carrots together, which I LOVE, Mark brought home my favorite-- Anna's sandwiches for lunch from their shop on Siesta, and Mark and I went to a very nice dinner on St. Armands to Crab and Fin. I had stone crab claws!! And then Cold Stone for dessert!!! Too fun!

After Tuesday things went kindda downhill in our house. Mark and I came down with very bad sinus infections. I know... Mark had to tell a customer he canceled an appointment with andf she said yuck! I have never felt so much pressure in my face. I thought I was going to go insane! All I wanted to do was scratch off my skin to relieve some pressure! It was pretty comical the two of us, so pathetic, going to the doctor together on Friday. Gavin had a sleep over with his Grandma this weekend. I know it was for the best, but I miss him desperately. He is headed home shortly!

Hoping today is the start to a much better... healthier week!!!