Cordless Headphones - Better Than Sliced Bread

The Irishman recently got cordless headphones for himself so that he could watch television after Parker had gone to bed without disturbing him. I've since found a better purpose for them.



If you've never watched children's programming for more than 5 minutes, what you may not know is that every show has a song that plays at least 3 times during the show. If you child is fixated on one particular show, that means that you have the potential of hearing that song dozens of times in a week. Of course, it seems that the more annoying the song, the more children like it.

It's so bad that even when I was laying on the bathroom floor last weekend nearly unconscious, I had one of those songs stuck in my head. As if being violently ill wasn't torture enough!

But now, everything is better. Parker is fascinated by the headphones and I can control the volume.



So these days, while he's watching Thomas the Train or Tigger and Pooh or (heaven forbid) Handy Manny, I'm listening to Nora Jones, sipping a porter and cooking in the kitchen. Peace has been restored. Amen.

Tzatziki

Tzatziki is one of the most well known and most mispronounced Greek foods. In this country, it most often appears as the sauce in a gyro, but in Greece, it is a common appetizer served either which rustic white bread or warm pita bread. Before I show you how to make this lovely yogurt-based dip, I'm going to teach you how to say it. While we're at it, I'll teach you how to say gyro too.

Americans can most easily pronounce "tzatziki" if they drop the "t"s. So, if you can say "zah-zee-ki" (with the emphasis on the middle syllable), you'll do just fine in Greece.

Gyro is pronounced "yee-row" with as little a southern accent as you can manage. Please, whatever you do, promise me that you'll never say "jai-row" again. It's more than this Greek girl can take.

Ok, enough about that - let's eat! Wait, first we have to make it.

Our ingredients are simple: 1 container Greek-style plain yogurt, 2 cloves garlic, 1 cucumber (a seedless European one if you can find it) 1 Tbs. olive oil, 1 Tbs. red wine vinegar, 1 tsp. dried dill weed, 1 tsp. salt, pepper to taste.



**If you have just regular, non-Greek style yogurt, line a mesh strainer with coffee filters and position it over a bowl (the bowl should be small enough that the strainer doesn't touch the bottom). Now add in your yogurt, cover with saran wrap and refrigerate overnight. The next day, you'll see a pool of excess liquid in the bottom of the bowl. My mom always does it this way. The only brand that this won't work with is Dannon because of the gelatin they add to their product.

First, grate your cucumber in a bowl. (if this was a seedless cucumber, there, uh, wouldn't be seeds. I see that I probably didn't have to point that at to you. My apologies.)



If you look above, you'll see lots of excess liquids in our grated cucumber. If you're the fancy type, go into your huge butler pantry, grab your cheese cloth and squeeze out the excess liquids. If you're like me, take it over to the sink and just squeeze it out with your hands. Then, put it back into your bowl.



Much better. Now, add in your two cloves of garlic. You can either mince it or use a garlic press.



Now, just add in your yogurt and the rest of your ingredients all at once...



...and mix it all together. I'll tell you a secret, I put most of the tzatziki back in the original yogurt container to store it. It lets me reuse the container and it reminds me that I have some yummy tzatziki still in there left to eat - tupperware tends to not get our notice.



I generally eat tzatziki the Greek way by just grabbing a chunk of a baguette and digging in or by warming up some pitas, quartering them and adding a dollop of tzatziki to each piece.



Enjoy!

Going International

Hi folks, just wanted to let you know that in two weeks, this blog is going international and, of course, I'm taking all of you with me. After a brief stop in Disney for my Danskin triathlon on Mother's Day...



...we are headed over to Paris, France for a week.



Paris is one of my all-time favorite cities. I spent a summer there exactly 10 years ago as a college junior taking classes with Florida State's study abroad program. It was one of the most influential experiences of my life. It was a turning point for me, which propelled me towards academics because I knew that I wanted to spends months traveling the world and experiencing as many different cultures as I could. I've missed you so much Paris and I can't wait to see you again.

Then, we're off to Greece...



Greece really is home to me. I spent all of my formative summers growing up there and it's something that I fully intend to pass on to Parker. While Paris will be all hustle and bustle, Greece is where the relaxation will happen. We have a home there so it's easy to get comfortable. Even as I type this, I'm yearning to go out to the balcony with my dad and have a glass of wine while watching the sunset. I'm almost there. I just need to make it through another couple of chaotic weeks, but the reward is well worth it.

Derailed

This weekend was not good. I started feeling slightly ill on Saturday afternoon and by Saturday night, I had a full-blown stomach bug with all of the joys that entails.

To make matters worse, the Irishman was out of town for the night, so I literally crawled to the kitchen to get some water. If you've never crawled through your own house with curious cats sniffing you along the way, I can assure you that it's a humbling experience.

My biggest fear that night was that Parker would wake up ill and that I would have to somehow drag myself away from the bathroom floor to take care of it. The next morning was no better. Sweet Parker woke up full of little boy energy, but I literally couldn't leave the bed for more than 5 minutes at a time. I have never been more thankful of having a child who can self entertain. I left the bedroom door open and he would bring his trains in to show me and then went back to playing. I set up a breakfast buffet so he could help himself as he was hungry and I tried desperately to stay awake.

Around 11am, buddy Mel came to the rescue and took over for the next couple of hours. She played with the little guy and made him "acorns" (boiled eggs) and I slept...and slept...and slept... Thankfully, it was then nap time and then husband came home shortly after Parker woke up. I took a bath (standing was not an option) and passed out around 7pm only to sleep a solid 11.5 hours. Wow.

But, today is a new day and I've thus far eaten toast and an egg, so I think everything is on it's way to normal, including this blog. I have more recipes coming shortly (including one for herbed basmati rice - yummmmm) and I'm wrapping up the training for my triathlon, which is in a mere 13 days!

Peanut Butter, Banana and Chocolate Smoothie

Let me just say, oh my goodness is this smoothie GOOD! I was not expecting the amazing deliciousness when I threw this one together. In all honesty, I was probably better not knowing because now this smoothie will need to be entered into my weekly rotation of things that I can't live without. Oh well, at least it's good for me.

The three simple, delightful ingredients are: chocolate soy milk, a banana and unsweetened peanut butter. Yup, that's it.



First, put a heaping tablespoon of peanut butter into your blender.



Then add in a whole banana and a cup or two of chocolate soy milk...



and let 'er rip. Let it run for 30 seconds or so...



and serve.



If you make this, I promise that you will not be disappointed. You may, however, become addicted. Now if you'll excuse me, Parker and I have a date for smoothie happy hour.

Citrus Smoothie

We are full blown into spring and that means one thing to me...more fresh produce is in season! I would never entertain the idea of being a raw foodie full-time, but I love fresh fruits and vegetables. I could literally eats pounds of each a day and be perfectly satisfied. My blood, however, would not be so pleased (I'm annoyingly anemic). Anyways, enough about my blood - let's talk about smoothies!

I have a Vita Mixer, which essentially pulverizes all parts of the fruits and vegetables (particularly those tiny berry seeds that get stuck in your teeth and no one bothers to tell you and you notice it hours later in the bathroom...), but this recipe (and pretty much all smoothie recipes) can be made in any blender you might have around.

This particular recipe, I snagged right out of my Vita Mix cookbook. It is one of Parker's favorites. Here are our ingredients (as well as the nutritional information if you're into that kind of thing): 1 medium carrot, 1 orange, 1/2 apple, 1 cup pineapple juice, 1/2 cup ice.



First, get all of your fruit and veggies ready (and yes, leave the skin on the apple and the pith on the orange).



This is the particular pineapple juice that I like to use because it's pressed pineapple juice instead of "from concentrate" so you're getting more of the real fruit.



Now, add all of your fruits and veggies and measure out 1 cup of pineapple juice and 1/2 cup of ice. ***If you happen to have a banana laying around, throw that in too. I made a second batch of this later in the day, added a banana and it was delish!



Now, turn it on full blast and let it blend for a full 30-60 seconds.



Pour into your glass (we have plastic ones naturally since Parker will always prefer to drink out of my glass instead of his own. Sippy cups are so last season)...



...and enjoy! This is particularly great for someone who isn't a big veggie eater because you can't taste the carrots at all. It just tastes citrus-y and refreshing. Because the pineapple juice needs to be finished within a week of being opened, I've been enjoying one of these every morning for the last three days. The fiber in the apple makes this a satisfying snack that stays with you while the sweetness of the pineapple makes it particularly enjoyable if you're craving some sugar.

Prison

***Hi folks, sorry for the break in posting. Parker spiked a high fever on Saturday night and we went into major clingy mode until he got better.

Yesterday, I took the first of two groups from my university class to prison. I love taking students to prison because they're reactions are priceless. It's a mixture of fascination combined with fear of the unknown. I think as budding criminologists, this will be a turning point for them - stay in the field or run like hell because if criminology is what you're into, nothing either excites or revolts you like seeing the system in operation first hand.

I really miss that rush of emotions that I used to get when touring prisons as a student. Strangely, prison is normal to me now. I know a lot of the staff and I see my students walking around. They always waive enthusiastically, which makes me feel like my presence there is making a tiny bit of a difference.

I only have a week left I go back down to one job...and being a full-time mom (so I guess my workload is actually increasing!). I'm going to miss prison. The stale smell, the dirty looks of the inmates who are not my students because I look like nothing more on the surface than a young, preppy idealistic girl who dares to bring some brightness into their personal hell. Ah prison, we'll meet again. It might be different women (or men), but eventually I'll find my way to another one because, as a criminologist, I can't resist the allure of those barb-wire fences and guard posts.

Smoothie Recipes Coming Soon...

My assistant and I are diligently making and taste-testing smoothie recipes. The top five will be featured during an all smoothie recipe week.

Stay tuned!

Before There Was Parker...

I did this to my dog. It's possible that no one was more joyous about the news of my pregnancy that sweet Nona.

Parker's Obsession: Furry Costumes

Before Parker was born, I had always heard about kids being afraid of the characters at Disney and at the local mall. I mean, I don't blame them. There's definitely something freaky about an 8 foot tall rabbit if you ask me, so I was totally prepared for Parker to run screaming from the first large furry man-animal that he saw. This was not the case.

I would like to introduce into evidence Exhibit A: Meeting Some Lion Thing at Mule Day.



When we went on our annual trip to Mule Day, a celebration of mules in Calvary, Georgia, Parker spotted this lion from across the way. He dragged us over to Sir Lion and promptly threw himself at him. He buried his face in the dingy lion fun and promptly fell head over heels. After snapping a couple of pictures with the lion, we tried to leave. That did not go so well. If fact, once we pried Parker's little fingers off of the lion (after about 6 minutes), we had to avoid the area for the rest of the day because he went into hysterics every time he saw him.

We thought that perhaps it was because Parker was going through a lion phase (remember the roaring?) and we moved on without giving it a second thought. Fast forward a couple of months to our Disney trip. I present to you exhibit B: Meeting Winnie the Pooh.



Oh dear. I remember the Pooh meet and greet so clearly. It was all I could do to keep Parker from racing straight up to Winnie and jumping into his arms (two year olds don't exactly understand the concept of waiting in line). Once we had our turn, Parker hugged Pooh, closed his eyes and did not move an inch for about 3 minutes. It was probably the sweetest thing I've ever seen. But of course, other children had to see Pooh too so we had to move on.

Finally, we get to exhibit C: Meeting the Easter Bunny.



My in-laws took Parker for the bunny meet and greet and they shared the same story. Rapture upon first meeting, hesitation to leave, but because grandparents are nicer that regular parents, my mother-in-law let him get back in line so that he could sit on the bunny's lap again.

I know that one day I'll have to share the unfortunate truth that he did not, in fact, meet Winnie the Pooh, but simply someone wearing a Pooh costume. And when he realizes that he's been clamoring all of these years to sit on the laps of strangers, well, I know exactly what his reaction will be.

Chewy, Also Known as "The Other Corgi"

When I was about 5 months pregnant, the Irishman and I decided that it would probably be a good idea to get a puppy... I'll pause while you laugh at our poor judgment. In our defense, Nona was two years old and had been our baby since we brought her home. She was accustomed to games of frisbee, long walks in the evenings and going everywhere with us. This human baby was going to be a rude awakening and since we had such a fondness for our little corgi, we decided to get a second corgi puppy to keep her company.

When we got Nona, what the Irishman had really wanted was a blue merle corgi boy. So, this time around, that's what we got. We argued over boy names for a couple of months (picking our son's name was easy, but picking a dog name...not so much.) I had wanted to name him Dutch. I don't know why really, but I liked it. The Irishman was fighting hard for Chewy (as in short for Chewbacca) and in the end, that's what we settled on.

So, Chewy came home and boy was he beautiful.



He had the lightest blue eyes and that gorgeous coat. He was definitely a looker. He was also very tiny.



In the beginning, we worried about Nona pushing him around.



She was known for putting everyone else in their places and we knew that this puppy would break all of her house rules.

As he started getting older, we realized that he was also a classic second child. Where Nona was serious and disciplined, Chewy was footloose and carefree. He was all about play...and antagonizing Nona. He would run in and out of her crate, steal her toys and pounce on her without provocation...in other words, typical brother behavior.

I must say that his beautiful appearance is not befitting of his favorite past time - getting muddy by rolling around in the dirt. Yes, despite his delicate appearance, he's 100% male. I think of him as a big, dumb dog, but it's not because he isn't intelligent. It's simply because he kind of flops around like a big ball of fur. He's very sweet and let's Parker climb all over him, but he's also loud and clumsy.

Yup, we have a big, dumb, lovable dog...



and now that they're 3 and 5, Chewy and Nona are quite the bonded pair. They love on each other, fight with each other, but most importantly, they wear each other out.



Amen to that.

Easter, Take 1

You may not have know this, but Parker is a mixed child. Yup, it's true. He has an Irish Catholic father and a Greek Orthodox mother. What that means for most of the year is...absolutely nothing, but for Easter, well, he gets two of them. So, this past week was Easter festivities, take 1.

Parker's school had an Easter egg hunt on Friday (or as he calls it, a "bunny hunt"). Here's Parker and his self-decorated bag.



After posing for a single picture, he was off and fighting the other kids for some eggs.



He did pretty well for himself, so I asked him to share his eggs with one of his best buddies...whose mother wasn't there to point out all of the eggs.



Fast forward to yesterday, Parker first got his Easter Egg basket from his grandparents...



then had his very own Easter egg hunt in his Nana's backyard. Even though he wasn't racing anyone for eggs, he still worked up some enthusiasm.

"I see an egg! I see an egg!"



Then he decided that baskets are for wimps.



Then he realized that even strong, strapping toddlers still can only carry a limited number of eggs, so he went back for the basket.



Then he decided that his mother was getting decidedly annoying with the camera.



Then we had dinner. The end.

Next week, an Orthodox Easter complete with dyeing red eggs and slaughtering lambs.

Ok, Ok, I'm totally just kidding about the red eggs.

Cupcake Bites

***I just found out that the origins of the cake ball/cupcake bites is www.bakerella.com. I was probably better off never knowing that her site existed. Wowsa, she's amazing!

As a general rule, I don't make elaborate desserts. I don't see the need for taking the time to make a 15 layer cake when you can get about the same taste making a 2 layer cake (and with hours less work). Sometimes, however, I feel like stepping it up and making something that looks over the top. That's how I came to try these cupcake bites and let me just tell you, they didn't disappoint. By the way, did you notice how I said, "that looks over the top?" That's because these cupcake bites are easy!

They have a couple of steps and some down time in between those steps, so I generally make them on a weekend when I can run errands or fold laundry in between steps. Here's what you'll need:

- 1 box of your favorite cake mix (and whatever else you need to make it like eggs and oil)
- 1 container of your favorite frosting
- 2 packages meltable chocolate
- 2 or 3 candy molds
- 1 package candy melts (or more if you want to make multiple color combinations)
- Sprinkles
- M&Ms

This first picture is actually not the beginning of the process. To get here, pick your favorite box cake mix (I used devils food cake) and bake it according to the box directions. Let the cake cool completely and crumble it up in the pan. (Sometimes, I bake the cake the night before and throw it in the fridge). Then, buy your favorite flavor frosting (I used cream cheese) and incorporate the frosting into the cake crumbles with your hands until the cake is moist and the frosting is completely incorporated. When that's done, it will look like this, which looks like of gross in reality, but tastes like heaven. Plus, it won't look like this for long.



Now, take a tablespoon and scoop out some cake. You're going to roll it into a ball and put it onto a cookie sheet. **Note: the size of your cake balls is going to be determined by which candy molds you buy for the next step. You want the ball to just fit into the candy mold, so have the mold nearby in order to determine the perfect size.



You want them all to be roughly uniform in size.



Now, stick the entire tray of cake balls in the freezer for 30 minutes or so. After 30 minutes, you can start getting your assembly line ready for the next step in the process. For this step, you need to buy two or three candy molds from the store. I got these Wilton's molds from Michaels.



This is what the mold looks like.



Now, we're going to melt some chocolate. These chocolate wafer's are made by Wilton's and I got them from Michael's also.



Put your wafers in a bowl and microwave them in 30 second intervals (stirring in between each 30 second period) until the chocolate is completely smooth.



Now, fill your mold up halfway with chocolate.



I would do these one at a time until you figure our exactly how much chocolate you need. When you add your cake ball in (these should have just come out of the freezer) the chocolate should just come up around edges when you press down gently. If it comes spilling over the edges, you have too much chocolate.



Once you've filled a whole tray, pop it back into the freezer for 5-10 minutes to help firm the chocolate. Once you take it out, just pop out the chocolate and it should look like this. ***Pardon the fuzzy picture or two, but I was trying to move fast since I made about 80 of these cupcakes. I know you won't hold it against me.



Ok, I hope you're still with me! Now for the final step in the process. I bought these vanilla flavored candy melts (still Wilton's and still from Michael's) in pink and yellow. You can find them in a dozen different colors.



Put them in a microwave-safe dish and heat for 30 second intervals until it's completely melted (still stirring in between rounds).



Now, we're going to dip the chocolate cake balls into the melted candy and we're trying to cover the exposed cake without overlapping our chocolate cup if at all possible.



Once you've done that, give it a little shake to get rid of the excess.



I immediately added some sprinkles and an M&Ms on top and once the top gets firm (about 5-10 minutes), they're ready to serve!



Not only are these little cupcake bites adorable, but they're also delicious. The cake inside is moist and the chocolate adds a nice firmness of texture. Plus, I love that they're bite-sized. That's not to say that I didn't eat six of these over the course of the day (I mean, I didn't want to waste the failures), but these would be great for office parties, kid's birthdays or just to make because it's fun. Personally, I'm looking forward to using red velvet cake and dipping it in green candy melts for Christmas. The possibilities are endless. Oh, and you'll look like a total baking rock star in the process.