Times Are A-Changin'

As I think about what our upcoming move to small town, North Carolina will mean for us all, I can't help but dwell on how Parker's childhood and adolescence will differ from ours.

In my mind's eye, I see Parker racing down the ski slopes and attending intense outdoorsy summer camps filled with camping, canoeing and white water rafting. We'll spend our Friday nights attending his football/baseball/swimming/lacrosse events (it varies from daydream to daydream) and we'll spend our winters in front of the fires on family movie night...until he hits 14 and he locks himself in his room to listen to death metal (wait, does death metal still exist?)

There won't be a bar within 40 miles that he can sneak into underaged since all of the bartenders know that he's the professor's kid (and she tips verrry well). So, his version of trouble will be driving fast on the mountains without headlights, and while dangerous, doesn't hold a candle to the streets of south Florida.

Ah, south Florida. I remember the hookers and drug deals that we used to pass by on our way to the mall...learning to drive on I-95 where every other driver was determined to take you out...knowing the exact change in atmosphere when a fight was about to break out in school...I'm getting nostalgic.

I'm not sure if you know this, but there's a particular expression that you learn in big cities that says in no uncertain terms "do not approach me." To this day, that's my default expression and a number of people have come up to me and said, "I saw you at the gym/grocery store/park yesterday, but you looked really angry so I didn't say anything." I just chuckle and think, "It still works."

Yes, south Florida was a bit rough around the edges and there's a time or two that I wonder how I came out of it unscathed, but it definitely taught me about survival and that knowledge has served me well over the years. I have a very well-developed sense of "stranger danger" and even though I look like a preppy, fresh-faced coed, I can definitely hold my own in prison.

I wonder sometimes if we're making the right choice for Parker. I intend to teach him about poverty and crime and the streets, but hearing about it and seeing it are two different things. I guess we'll have to wait and see, but in the meantime, I can instill the fear of God in him and hope that he takes my word for it.

KidFest - Just For The Boys

Last weekend, the Irishman announced that he was taking Parker to KidFest (which I assumed was a fest for kids, or something...) He was meeting a buddy of his who was bringing his little girl (about a year younger than Parker) so it was going to be a daddys day out with the kiddos.

I forced a camera into his hands (not my beloved Nikon of course) and then I called him three times to make sure he was taking pictures. Excessive? Yes. But I assure you that if I had not, the camera would have went directly in to the diaper bag where it would have stayed for the duration of the trip. Thanks to my persistence (err, nagging), here is the pictorial story of Parker's day with daddy.

Here's Parker pulling Savannah in the wagon because as you know, big boys don't ride in wagons, they pull them to prove their fortitude.



Oh look, a person in a fuzzy costume! When Parker was telling me about this part of his day, he said he "hugged a star" and I was thinking that perhaps Bobby Bowden was there...but he meant it quite literally.





If there's one thing that Parker likes almost as much as people in fuzzy costumes, it's blowing bubbles.



He also road on "Nemo"...



...and played in a sandbox filled with birdseed.



I'm so glad that I have the pictures to go along with Parker's story otherwise, hugging stars and riding Nemo and playing with the birdy's food would have sounded like a whole bunch of gibberish.

Egg Salad

I came to a conclusion today - I don't make egg salad nearly often enough. It's one of those things that I'll eat willingly (even eagerly) when I'm out, but it almost never occurs to make it at home even though I always have all of the ingredients on hand.

Well, that's about to change. I whipped up this delicious egg salad for lunch today that definitely hit the spot. Here are our ingredients: hard-boiled eggs, onion, mayonnaise, dijon mustard, paprika and dried dill.



First, dice your eggs in a bowl. I prefer actual pieces of egg in my egg salad instead of mushed eggs. I just don't find the smooth variety very appealing.



Next, I diced up about a 1/4 of a small onion. I only added half in (so 1/8 of an onion) and it turned out to be the perfect amount.



Now, add in about 1 Tablespoon of mayonnaise (it's important not to overdo the mayo), 1 teaspoon of mustard and a sprinkling of dill and paprika.



Mix it all together (again, careful not to mush) and heap it onto your bread.



If you were going to go traditional here, you would use a soft white bread (think the Wonderbread of your youth), but we're pretty much exclusively a whole grain bread kind of family, so that's what I had on hand.



With the dill and paprika, this egg salad tasted anything but bland. It had all of the protein I needed to get me through a crazy day and an added bonus was that it cost less than $1 for all of the ingredients. With a pickle spear and a handful of chips, you can't beat a deal like that.

Two Peas In A Pod

I was going through some old photos and I came acoss this one.



This is Parker and my father. Parker has his middle name, his ears and a number of shared mannerisms. Apparently, they also share a preference for collared shirts, khaki shorts and bottles over cups. Fascinating.

Baked Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Occassionally, the Irishman will come to me and ask that I try and duplicate a recipe that he loves, but hasn't been able to find locally. He'll describe to me the flavors that he likes most about the dish and I'll start making different incarnations until we find one that's almost perfect. I've successfully made versions of Benihana fried rice and chicken piccata that were to the Irishman's liking and we can now add this baked spinach and artichoke dip to the list. This is one that you definitely don't want to miss.

Here's a list of our ingredients (I forgot to snap a picture in my excitement):

1 box of spinach (10 oz.), thawed and drained
1 small onion, chopped
1 can artichoke hears, drained
1/2 stick of butter
1 block (8 oz.) of neufatel cheese (right next to the regular cream cheese)
1/2 container of reduced fat sour cream (about 8 oz.)
3/4 cup monterrey jack cheese
3/4 cup parmesan cheese

First, preheat your over to 350 degrees. Once you've done that, go ahead and melt your butter in a large saute pan.



Add in your onion and cook until softened (about 4-5 minutes or so).



While the onion is cooking, I'm going to shred the cheese (we're having tacos this week, so I'm going to shred the entire block, but for this recipe, we're using about 1 cup total).



I've also chopped the artichoke hearts...



...left my neufatel cheese out to soften...



...and I've put my sour cream and parmesan next to the stove in preparation for the next couple of steps.



(by the way, this Breakstone reduced fat sour cream is the only low-fat one that doesn't taste grainy to me. We use it for everything.)



(In the event that I buy my parmesan already grated, I prefer the shredded variety to the powdery stuff.)

When your onions are soft and translucent, add in your spinach (make sure you've squeezed out all of the excess liquid).



Go ahead and add in the rest of your ingredients (both cheeses, the sour cream and the neufatel cheese).



Mix it well until everything is melted and completely combined. Now, pour it into an oven-safe dish (or multiple ones if you prefer).



At this point, I sprinkle some monterrey jack and parmesan on the top as well.



Pop it in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the sides of the cheese just start to brown.



Oh man, I cannot wait to stick a tortilla chip in this...but wait! It is currently like molten lava (or so I've heard. It's not like I've burned my tongue a dozen times before in my inpatience.) So, spoon some of the dip onto a plate and allow it to cool off for 42 seconds...waiting 45 seconds would be sheer agony.



I'm not sure that I can convey how good this is in words, so let me instead say that it makes my eyes roll into the back of my head and causes my toes to curl involuntarily. All of the different cheeses meld together to add a complexity of creamy flavor. The spinach and the artichoke are subtle, but not lost in all of the cheeses. You'll notice that this recipe has no mayonnaise in it. I used sour cream instead to keep it from tasting too heavy. I think the balance worked out perfectly. This is meant to be an appetizer, but I have no qualms about making a meal out of this.

Engineer

While I was cooking last night, this is what Parker was building.



The Irishman and I both went over to investigate after Parker's very enthusiastic, "Mommy, daddy, come see!" I don't know about you, but I'm seriously impressed with the symmetry.

Oh and that train that he's playing with? That's Emily and he took (no exaggeration) 20 minutes to pick her out at Target yesterday. It was a very close call between her and Spencer. I'll probably go back and buy Spencer for the plane ride. That's bound to buy me an hour of peace...

Apple Coleslaw

I'm a big fan of mixing it up and that extends to salads and veggies. Last summer, I probably made this apple coleslaw at least twice a week. It's crisp and refreshing and it's one of those recipes that you can modify to add whatever extra veggies you have on hand. I've added broccoli in before and it was great, I just didn't happen to have any yesterday.

Here are the basic ingredients I use: red cabbage, carrots, red and green apples, and green onions (the ingredients for the dressing are mayonnaise, lemon and brown sugar)



First, we need to core our cabbage. Just take your knife and cut out the white center, which is on the bitter side.



You want about 3 cups of chopped cabbage, so I'll end up using about 1/2 of this small head of cabbage.



Once we've thrown the cabbage into a large bowl, go ahead and grate a carrot or two (depending on the size of your carrots) directly into your bowl.



Next, slice your green onions and add them to your bowl (in hindsight, I should have only used one of these - it was a little too onion-y for me).



Moving right along, dice up your green and red apple (skin on) and put them right into the bowl.



***At this point, go ahead and squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lemon on top of the apples so that they don't oxidize and brown.

To make the dressing, just combine 1/3 cup mayonnaise with 1/3 cup brown sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice.



See these little sugar granules?



Keep mixing until they're virtually gone. Once it's thoroughly combines, pour it on top of the fruits and veggies and mix well.



Like most things, this is definitely better after it's been refrigerated for an hour or two and the dressing has been absorbed. This is one of those dishes that I typically just eat right out of the bowl. I can't seem to help myself. The apples are crisp, the cabbage is crunchy and the brown sugar adds a nice sweetness that isn't overpowering.