Celebrate Good Times!

We are celebrating a momentous occasion in our house today. Danny has improved by leaps and bounds in the toilet training efforts recently and today was the first day he had no accidents AND told me that he had to go "number two." I thought this day would never come. I am one happy girl, I mean, mom.

** I hope the following doesn't sound crude and immature, but I don't know how to talk about it other than using these words. **

I don't know if there is a connection with this, but two days ago we started putting Danny's toys in time out when he had a poop accident. He would always be playing with something when it happened, so I decided to put the toys he was playing with in time out. He was told that he could get them out of timeout when he went "poo poo on the potty." Accidents happened two days in a row, but today in the midst of the craziness of getting dinner ready with the missionaries, Danny told me he needed to go, and he went! I was ecstatic about this HUGE accomplishment and he was so excited to take his toys out of time out. Now if we can just keep this ball rolling...

Kate's Party

So I realize she's only one, but it is her first birthday! I enjoyed throwing a big party for Danny on his first birthday, so I wanted to do the same for Kate. And I have been having a lot of fun with cakes, so this is an original Rebecka creation.

I made two cakes in cookie sheet pans, made a delicious pudding-y icing for the center, then cut the cakes into the shape of a one. Then I frosted it with a homemade butter cream icing. For the blocks and letters, I colored fondant and rolled it out, then cut out the shapes I wanted. Just to cover up my icing "issues" I placed Skittles around the perimeter of the cake. If I were to do it again, I don't think I would have used the Skittles. I don't know if it needed anything around it, but I definitely would do something different in the future.

I love this picture, because Kate had three of her cousins AND her brother, all 2 and 3, desperately wanting to help open her gifts. They were so excited they couldn't help but rip the paper every once in a while. Or a lot in some cases.

One happy birthday girl.

Zucchini lovers and haters

For those of you who have zucchini coming out the wazoo and for those of you who hate zucchini, try this recipe! It's smooth, light and delicious! My kids even love it.

Recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart.

Curried Zucchini Soup

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
coarse salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1 1/2 pounds zucchini (about 3 medium zucchini) sliced 1-inch thick
1 baking potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted for garnish.

1) Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and 1 Tbsp salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and curry powder; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

2) Add the zucchini, potato, and 4 cups of water; reduce the heat, and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 10-15 minutes.

3) In batches, puree the soup in a blender (do not fill more than halfway) until smooth, serve immediately, or let cool, and refrigerate in an airtight container until chilled. Garnish with the toasted almonds.

Let me know if you try the recipe. I hope you like it!