Speidi, KCav, & and Whit...OH MY!!!!!

Image borrowed from The Insider.


It is gloomy outside today. The kind of gloomy that really makes you want to do nothing but simmer autumn potpourri on the stove, drink hot tea, and mull over how delicious both are. I am also pouring over the latest Better Homes & Gardens and MS Living for fall decorating ideas.

Becks is napping {thank the Lord} and I'm repeating a dinner we had recently again tonight, completely understanding why the Diva has this dish repeated on her monthly menu. I tell you what, BFFs, you truly are a source of inspiration for me.

Speaking of Mr. B, that child is really testing my patience lately. He has learned the word no. And uses it frequently. It's very entertaining to see him developing into this headstrong little man, no-no-ing us as he protests being picked up or defiantly pointing to the electrical outlets while repeating this phrase. I actually think he thinks they're called no-nos.

All things electronic are still of great interest to him, and not a day goes by that he doesn't snatch our cell phones and dial insane number combinations and babble to the Verizon lady as she says, Your call cannot be completed as dialed. We've managed to lose three of the four remotes that we have for the downstairs TV. And by lose, I'm mean completely disappear without a trace. They're not even in the deepest depths of the couch cushions or in the toy bins. Completely lost. This is very frustrating when we want to adjust the volume, which now must be done manually on the actual TV. Ah, we are a world of convenience...

Lastly, while the outdoors may be cold and gloomy, my mood is not because...
THE HILLS and THE CITY are on TONIGHT!

Oh, sorry, got a little excited. Had to erase twelve a couple exclamation points there, lest you think I'm even slightly obsessed with either of these shows. Which I'm not. At all. I would never plan to "work at school" tonight around 10pm so that I could take advantage of their cable TV while "prepping my room" for tomorrow. Nope. That wouldn't be me.



Come back tomorrow {or tonight if I feel like posting} so that we can dish about these not-favorite shows of mine, mmmkay?



[That's not me you hear singing Unwritten as I type. Promise.]

My Little Muffin Eats a Muffin (and mom bakes again!)

My little muffin eating, no less, a delicious pumpkin muffin baked in the new oven!


While Beck attempts to non-nap (i.e. reading Goodnight Moon or The Very Hungry Caterpillar in babyspeak instead of napping), I'm going to entice you with a delicious fall meal prepared by your's truly.


I wouldn't say that I'm a superb cook by any stretch of the imagination. I wouldn't even say I'm a good cook. I can just follow a recipe, that's all.



My mom is the chef of the family, and I'm really content to let her be so that I don't have to learn how to cook a Thanksgiving turkey any time soon. Thus, it was by her recommendation (and many taste tests of her leftovers) that I came across this recipe for Butternut Squash Soup.


And, you all, it is a-mmmmmm-azing.



Ingredients

• 6 tbs chopped onions*
• 4 tbs butter/margarine**
• 1 whole butternut squash peeled and cubed
• 3 cups water***
• 4 cubes chicken bouillon
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper
• 2 8 oz pkg cream cheese****

* I used pre-chopped frozen ones from a bag

** I used butter

*** I would recommend more since mine was the consistency of cheese sauce, but still delish.

**** I only used 1 pkg otherwise it would have been OVERLY rich. Promise.

Serves 4.

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, saute onions in butter until tender/translucent.
   
2. Add squash, water, bouillon, marjoram, black and cayenne pepper.
   
3. Bring to a boil and cook 20 minutes until squash is tender.
4. Puree squash and cream cheese in a blender or food processor until smooth.
   
5. Return to saucepan and heat through. Do not boil.
6. Serve! Mmmm!
   

The critics say...

Abby = I could eat the entire pot by myself!

B = Bleh! I hate any type of vegetable that isn't corn!

Beck = Mmmm! I'll share a bite with you!

I am totally baking this afternoon!

If you're not aware already, our house is in a constant state of remodel and upgrade. Only weeks ago did we finishing ripping up carpet that we started pulling up almost a year ago. It's difficult to do anything with a one-year-old on your hands, and since we try to be DIYers our time scale is s...l...o...w. We take our time (accumulating funds) and recruit lots of help for our projects that don't cost more than our great company ;) Except for the installation of our new AC, my father-in-law is usually present for anything we tackle. And we couldn't thank him enough.

Anyway, this past week we added a new ceiling fan to our new old bedroom and I am forever grateful for its installation. I am totally a fan sleeper, and need at least the noise to lull me to sleep every night. Since we moved rooms three weeks ago, we've been fanless so I had to rely on Becks' monitor to channel his noisemaker noise into our room. It worked well, but now I have noise and a breeze. Perfection.


Several months ago I talked about our Granmother Range. Besides pop out chocolate chip cookies and meatloaf, her main objective in our kitchen was to really enhance the ugly. And that she did. I don't think any other appliance could pull off Harvest Gold quite like she could. She provided us with two years of great service, along with the 30+ that she gave to the previous owner(s). However, it is with great glee sadness that I inform you of her passing. She bit the dust and left us for that Great Gas Range in the Sky about a month and a half ago. Fortunately, we've supplemented by grilling out and just decided to wait to purchase a new one until fall rolled around.
In the meantime, B's parents decided to gift us this beauty as an early Christmas present! We were so pumped! And while she hardly fits into our waaaaay dated kitchen, she adds a little glimmer of hope for what's to come. Visions of stainless steel dance in my head...

Anyway, hope y'all are having a fantastic Saturday! Go Cats & Wolverines!

Goodbye, Baby B

I'm having a hard time calling him Baby B these days.

When he does big boy things like place very important phone calls. Probably to China, running up my minutes without me even knowing it. And look at him. I mean, he's not a baby anymore. Despite what his mama says.

I read many blogs where parents call their kiddo by his/her real name. And, if you looked hard enough through archives, or took the many hints I've given that lend themselves to discovering what we call him in real life, then you probably already know that he's at least named after a famous soccer player.

And, no, it's not Ronaldo. Or Pele. Though, there is a certain ring to Ronaldino. Maybe if we ever have another son...

So, anyway, I'm stalling. And I don't know why. Like it's a big reveal or something. I mean, I blog. I can't be too private, right?

His name is Beckham. Named after, no lie, the delightfully charming and delicious David Beckham. B and I picked out that name my junior year of college. I remember the phone call specifically. It was snowing. I was holed up in the ADPi house with one of my two roommates, and I think we were both on the phone with our significant other since we couldn't see them in person due to the treacherous conditions. We somehow got on the subject of children, and both agreed that Beckham was a fantastic name for the son we might have together someday. And then, four years later, we signed a birth certificate and gave that name a real meaning and permanency in our lives.

So, there you have it. And just like that old Beanie Baby you have from 1995, Baby B is now retired. He will, from this point forward, be referred to lovingly as Becks. Since, that is what we call him on a daily basis when he's being cute or getting into trouble or snuggling in our laps. And I no longer have to backspace every time I write his real name in a blog post.

And let me just throw it out how weird it is for me to even see his real name on the screen. It's like I've suddenly changed the main character in a novel.

Am I over dramatizing this a smidge?

Sorry.

So, without further ado, our life in pictures as of late. Or, Becks' life in pictures, at least.

Because no toy box should be left un-sat in. Of course.

Flashback

So, have you ever been listening to a song that you're pretty sure that you've never heard before, only to find yourself humming or singing along to it as if you've obviously heard it many times before? Oddly enough, I was watching SNL last night while I was detoxing from a weekend teaching conference, and there I was singing Do you know your enemy? along with Green Day. It's bizarre, really, since I didn't even know Green Day had a new song out, nor do I profess to be the biggest Green Day fan. {Also, does it not seem that Billy Joe is perpetually 20something? Maybe it's the eyeliner, but that dude hardly looks almost 40.}

Anyway, a similar effect occurs when, say, Spiderwebs by No Doubt is recirculating on the radio, and there I am remembering every word and suddenly having flashbacks to eighth grade when I received Tragic Kingdom as my Very First CD Ever for my 14th birthday. Then I have one of those moments where I'm like HOW DID I REMEMBER THAT? Weird.

Oh, and I totally wanted my very own phone line so that I could say "Hey! It's Abby! I'm walking into spiderwebs. Leave a message and I'll call yooooou back!" on my answering machine in 1996. Instead, I might have practiced and recorded this hypothetical voicemail greeting on a cassette tape just in case.

Ah, the beauty of adolescence.

FYI, my Second CD Ever was the single by Fr*ak N*sty Put Your H*nd Up On My H*p. I totally rocked that dance at eighth grade formal. I don't even think my mom knew I bought or owned that totally awesome cringe-worthy hit. Which I'm sure I purchased on one of the many weekends I spent at the mall, pounding the pavement in my Nike Air Maxxes and stinking to high Heaven of Tommy Girl or Country Apple by Bath and Body Works.

Other songs that send me right back to the 1000 or so days I spent being awkward are:

1. Anything on the Jock Jams CDs. I think I owned pretty much all of them.
2. Ironic by Alanis Morissette.
3. The Macarena.
4. Foolish Games by Jewel.
5. Any song associated with the death of Tupac or B.I.G.
6. The Freshman by Verve Pipe
7. Semi-charmed Life by Third Eye Blind
8. No Diggity by BLACKstreet
9. It's All Coming Back to Me Now by Celine Dion
10. I Love You Always Forever by Donna Lewis

What song takes you waaaaaaay back? Or, at least back to eighth grade? Do tell!

Sad face.

I'm away. On business, believe it or not. And I miss this.

Sending kisses and lots of love to my boys...

Happy Hump Day!

Tonight I made a trip to that one store where we all spend way more than we intend to. You know, the one symbolized by the bullseye? Ah, yes. That one.

I believe the French call it: Tarjay. Or maybe that's just me impersonating the French.

Anyway, what was supposed to be a quick trip to return a few items, suddenly turned into, Honey, do you mind if I just briefly browse the sales racks while you chase after our restless, footy-jammied 15-month-old through seeming endless places to play hide-and-go-seek?

I promised to be fast. But the sales were plentiful. And nearly everything I pulled into our cart was my size and {gasp} $5 or less. I couldn't pass it up. And, I just knew that if I waited until another day, everything would be gone. That's how it always works. So, while B played baby corral, I skipped and flitted with glee in and out of the dressing rooms with just one more thing.

It was great fun.

As was the resulting photoshoot where I tried to impersonate Beyonce's Single Ladies music video. Um, let's just say, FAIL. But B and I were both cracking up, and it's always fun to laugh with your husband. I did, as a matter of fact, break out a couple pair of my Ugglies just for the fun of it. Even with my workout leggings, I was trying really hard to rock them. (Workout? Who am I kidding? I should have said lounge wear leggings instead...)

Here are my new $5 wardrobe addition...

Maybe you wouldn't know unless I told you, but I believe that this first piece is totally a swimsuit cover up. I don't think I really care. Paired with some leggings, a black tank, and some heels, I think I could pull it off :)

I lie. This one was $10. But it might be my favorite. I am loving me some print tees these days . Oh, and that one was more like $12. But I bought it the other day. So it doesn't count toward the frugal buys from today.

Obviously, I was never meant to be a model. The hands-on-hip pose is pretty much the only one I know. And it was really very awkward. And my husband, who already knows what a big dork I am, is further questioning his choice to marry such a loon.

Before I forget, I must, must, must plug Duet Diva's fantastically simple recipe that she shared on her blog the other day. I made it tonight and it was divine. The bonus is that B ate it! Spinach, you all, B ate spinach! This is the man whose palette is only pleased by all things bland and blander. It's pretty too. Thank you, Duet Diva!

And, so that we could enjoy our delish meal, I gave Baby B a pudding cup and we tried real hard to hold an adult conversation that didn't center around our darling son, but when he's covered in chocolate, it's really hard to discuss anything else.