Day 38

Today there was beautiful cold sunshine. And I am grateful for my husband for taking me out to lunch so I had the opportunity to see it. We don't get the opportunity to spend time with just the two of us very often so it was a extra special treat.

I don't have a picture today, I thought about taking a picture of my Subway sandwich but it seemed a little cliche.

Ken was off from work today. He is still recovering from having his wisdom teeth out on Tuesday. He had one bite of his sandwich and then decided liquids were still the best option. Boy have we gone through a lot of yogurt the past couple of days.

He plans on going back to work tomorrow. Hopefully, the soreness and pain he has in his jaw and mouth will be bearable. Fingers crossed!

Day 35

 

Today I am grateful for having a crock pot. We are trying to cook more and eat out less. This was driven by the need to get healthy and the even more urgent need to cut down on some of our monthly expenses.

I have been cooking at least one to two meals a week in the crock pot. Not only do they require minimal prep but you come home to a yummy smelling house and dinner ready and waiting.

This isn't my crock pot but it is very similiar. I chose not to photograph mine since it is well loved and has some years on it.

You can find this crock pot on Amazon.

Today I needed to use up some of the leftover ingredients from the last weeks. So, I browned up a little over a pound of ground turkey that was extra from our taco night, added some basil and oregano while it cooked. Once that was browned, I poured a jar of pasta sauce in (couldn't find spaghetti squash this week, so we didn't have spaghetti night) and then the remaining ricotta cheese left from our Million Dollar Spaghetti (find it on Pinterest). I added a cup or so of water and mixed it all up.

I then poured this all into the crock pot. Added two cups of uncooked bowtie noodles. You could probably use any kind of noodle but this was what I had in the cupboard. Then put the lid on and eat when you get home. The noodles were soft and flavorful and the sauce had thickened alot. Very filling! And even the kids were happy with dinner.

Day 34

 

 

 

This weekend was busy with lots to do but there was still plenty to be grateful for. I had the opportunity to have lunch with two good friends on Saturday with plenty of time for chatting and catching up.

 

Today, we headed south to Bailey's soccer game and then back to my in-laws for the Superbowl. I had a chance to edit lots of pictures while watching. I'm just in it for the commercials really. We had the chance to hang out with family only see every once in a while.

 

I finished up the rest of my Pike Place Market pictures and started on the pictures we took sledding while at Mount Baker this winter.

 

I'm grateful for family and friends.

Day 30

 

I'm grateful for a warm, dry house filled with the smells of fresh food and the sounds of family.

 

This was my first experience with Butternut squash soup. I modified a Martha Stewart recipe. Here's the recipe I used:

 

1 butternut squash cut in cubes

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

2 inches of peeled and chopped ginger

2 tablespoons of butter

3 cups of chicken broth

1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon coriander

 

I cut the butternut squash in half and placed it flesh side down, after removing seeds, in a baking dish with a small amount of water (1/2 cup or so). I then baked the squash at 350 degrees for almost an hour.

 

I then sliced the squash into strips and cut the skins off before cubing. I found cutting the skins off to be easier than peeling them. I chopped the onion, garlic and ginger next.

 

Put 2 tablespoons of butter in the bottom of the pot and once melted add the chopped onion cooking for about 2 minutes until softened. Add squash, garlic and ginger to the pot and cook all ingredients together until the squash is softened. This should take 6-9 minutes.

 

Add 3 cups of chicken broth to the pot, the cayenne pepper and coriander. Bring to a boil and then reduce and simmer for 20 minutes. When  you're done, run the soup through the blender until pureed. I found I had to do this in two batches.

 

The results are a flavorful soup with a kick.

 

Ken thougth it was a little too spicy but he has a very low tolerance for spicy foods.

 

I'm glad this was a successful experiment with new soups. I wish I had remembered to take my final picture of the completed, pureed soup!

 

Day 29

 

 

Took these yesterday but didn't get a chance to post them. Do you know what exciting day January 29th is? That's right, it's National Puzzle Day!!

 

I put up fliers at work and invited everyone to join in a puzzle exchange. Everyone could bring a puzzle or more and trade it for another that was on the table. I also laid a puzzle out on the table. We extended it another day because several people forgot their puzzles. There were only a few people who brought puzzles but others have been wandering back throughout the day to put together pieces. It's starting to shape.

 

I'm grateful to be able to share something I love with my co-workers and to provide an activity everyone can enjoy. It's nice on breaks to connect with staff you don't always see regularly.

 

Day 22 & 27

 

I'm really out of order here but I hadn't gotten around to photographing what I was grateful for on Tuesday.

 

Each month I have the opportunity of working in my daughter's classroom as an Art Docent. This month the lesson focused on Picasso. We discussed the life and styles of Picasso's art. We also touched on colors and what different colors can express about our feelings.

 

I decided to do a piece inspired by his Blue Period. Each child drew a self portrait with Sharpie and then chose the color they felt reflected their mood for the day. They could use white and black to make tints and shades of their color.

 

We discussed light and dark areas of the face and then they each made a beautiful portrait.

 

I'm grateful to have the opportunity to work with the kids and to have a job that allows me the flexibility to get into the classroom once a month.

 

The weather here has been gray and wet for the past week. The fog finally went away though so that's something. Sunday, Bailey was out with friends. We were looking for a family activity for Ken, Anique and I. Despite the wet weather we decided a trip to Pike Place Market would be fun.

I'm grateful for the chance to spend time with my family and to explore the city sights we so often take for granted.

Day 24

 

 

 

I ran into a shortage of lunch containers for today's lunch. I pulled out a couple of brown paper bags and decided I would decorate them just like the old days.

 

Bailey's favorite character is Batman and Anique's is Robin so it seemed like a perfect pairing. It's a good day when your 14 year-old still likes bags that were drawn on by mommy.

 

I'm grateful for having a child who can still enjoy being a kid even when it seems like he is moving toward adulthood way too fast for me.