Avocado White Bean Tacos

I haven't done a recipe in a long time and whipped this up the other night for a quick dinner and decided this was perfect to share.  I've really been on a cooking hiatus and nothing seems to ever sound good for dinner.  Especially when it takes more than twenty minutes to whip up and Noah is clinging to my legs as I try to decided what to make.  He's a great cooking buddy but really wants to be all up in it and honestly, I get a little worried he's going to touch something hot, so I try not to cook with him much right now.

Anyway, this is super quick and not a lot of cooking to be done.  Really just assemble and enjoy!

Difficulty: Super Easy
Prep Time: 5mins  Total Time: 8mins

Ingredients:
8 Corn Tortillas
1.5 C Frozen Corn (Microwaved)
1 Can of White Beans
1 Avocado Sliced
Feta Cheese
Mayonnaise
Olive Oil

Directions:
1. Prep your ingredients - slice avocado, drain beans, defrost and heat corn and have your mayo and feta cheese ready to go.
2. Heat up a little olive oil up to medium heat in a pan.  One at a time drop your tortillas in and brown. For about two minutes. Flip and repeat.
3. Assemble your tacos thru your taco station since you've already have that all nice and set.  Fold the taco and enjoy!

In my opinion the corn tortillas are what makes this dish so yummy, so throw out the flour ones for today and splurge a little!  Perfect for meatless Monday too! (I don't do that, but I hear that's a thing the cool kids do.)

Babylit Books

I have a new obsession.  Babylit books.  Have you checked them out yet?  I've been reading blogs for quite some time now raving about these books and I thought I would give a couple of them a try, and they are everything everyone is talking about!

Not only do they tell stories of our classic favorites, but the illustrations are super cute.  There aren't a lot of words and not much reading but the learning opportunities are still there so it's great for younger toddlers that can't quite sit still for a long time waiting for you to finish the words on the page.  So far Noah has been really into Frankenstein and points to all the body parts as we go thru the book.  My personal favorite has been Romeo & Juliet.  I always fall for the love stories.

During our weekly Target run we also picked up the cutest little glasses for Noah. Perfect for some reading time.  Too bad he wont keep them on his face for more than ten seconds.

Target seriously just sucks you in.  I'm pretty sure I say this every time I talk about it but it's so true.  We literally went to return a shirt and came out with glasses and groceries.  How does that happen?!  On a separate note, taking Target trips in the way early morning as soon as they open is so the way to go.  We just walked around and enjoyed some slow meandering through the isles.   I let Noah touch pretty much everything and stretch his legs.  He loved the party favors isle and we spent a good twenty minutes around there.  Easy parenting at it's finest.

Because I'm a Mom

These last two weeks have been not as fun for Noah.  It's been hit or miss with his sleeping in the morning, he just didn't seem super happy as usual and was really just grumpy.  I just couldn't figure out what his deal was and I thought he may have been like this because he's getting his fourth tooth up front.  Although I really thought that was slightly odd since it popped out about a week ago.  And then... I saw something in the back of his mouth! I reached in and found a molar in the back!  Why didn't I think of that?!  And it all made sense; the finger in his mouth, the extra drooling, the grumperton of a son... It's like a light-bulb went off!

But I laugh even thinking about it because we as parents seem to analyze everything about their kids.  We're just so worried when anything is unusual.  Almost even a little obsessed by it.  And then I thought, of course, I'm a mom! 

I remember when Noah was first born and my mind would never stop at night thinking about his schedule.  "Ok, feeding in three more hours, he will nap for two, then we'll play for an hour.  What educational games should be do? Will he ever roll over? Maybe I'm not doing enough tummy time? But I only have one hour and then he's back to bed and then feeding again..." ugh!  And I would lay awake all night thinking about how I could get him to sleep longer and just grow up.  And why he didn't do those things.  And maybe I wasn't doing something I should be.  It was a stressful time taking care of a baby.

And as I'm looking back it's just funny because although I don't worry nearly as much, I'll always worry about something, because he will always be my little (big) baby.

Toddler Meal Ideas

When Noah first started eating real food I struggled with what foods to give him and how little to cut the pieces.  With Baby Led Weaning (BLW) you basically just give babies whole foods from the get-go (obviously soft) and let them gum it out.  We did not do that, and that's ok.  Everyone says you can just feed you're toddler what you eat, but for the sake of being somewhat toddler friendly AND somewhat clean we tried to cut some things up and not give many things completely whole. Don't get me wrong, sometimes if you want them to eat rice pilaf, or cottage cheese, or other small foods like that.  So your two options are either feed it to them or let them go to town.  And sometimes we do let him go crazy, mostly when we eat on the deck, but for the most part I like to keep my kitchen clean. =)

Here are some ideas for toddler meals that we feed Noah -

From top to bottom:

1. Pizza sandwich - grapes - zucchini bread
2. Chicken Pot Pit -grapes
3. Asian spiced rice noodles with chicken - puffs - strawberries
4. Baked pasta - brocolli cakes - strawberries
5. Brats - roasted potatoes - tomatoes - owl crakers
6. Scrambled eggs and cheese - banana - toast with peanut butter

What to do feed your kiddos?

Our Weekend: The Cold has Arrived

Geez! It's cold here in Michigan! I made Jeff turn the heat on the last couple of days because I've been waking up to the house being around 60 degrees.  I've brought out the leggings and slipper boots and I've been living in this super cute cozy sweater all weekend long. I finally was able to put pants on Noah and luckily the ones that were long last winter fit like they should now.  I doubt they'll make it 'till the end of winter but at least we've got some for this weird transition time.

Lucky for me, Noah slept pretty good this weekend, 'till about eight, and since I'm used to waking up so much earlier for work I got to "sleep in" and get up and make breakfast before Noah did.  It's nice to get things ready ahead of time. I also premade a whole bunch of pancakes and froze them so they were ready to go the rest of the week. Noah, who loves to be in the kitchen we me all day long, could not keep his little paws away and stuffed whole pancakes in the mouth. As many as he could fit.

I finally got around to doing some fall shopping for Noah, and Old Navy and Gap did not disappoint.  We always get the best deals shopping online. I live for comfy and therefore that's all I think about for Noah, and these sweats are the best.  I can't stand the look of onesies for toddlers.  I love when Noah looks all grown up in normals clothes, so tees for me are the best thing for playtime.  This stripped one and this baseball tee will look super cute with his new jeans too!

We spent the rest of the weekend scavenging for the last batch of tomatoes in the garden before I pull the plants up and of course helping daddy mow the lawn.  This cold, rainy weather has really made things sprout rather fast!

Fifteen Months

We're already a quarter into Noah's second year and it's going so much more smooth and so much faster.  I'm really enjoying being with Noah and he's really starting to feel like such a part of our family.  We're able to do so many more things together and going out isn't as much of a chore. Noah's communication skills are much better and he's really signing for a lot of things.  We've introduced a couple of new signs here and there are he learns them pretty fast.

We gave Noah is third haircut and decided to go much shorter than the last two times since his hair is growing so fast.  It looks nicer long, but geez, I just can't keep cutting it every couple of weeks!  We've really enjoyed being out in the garden this month and Noah loves the tomatoes.  There are tomato seeds all over the house.  I just can't seem to get rid of them fast enough!

• Stats: Size 4 Diapers | 18mo to 2T clothing
• Size: 28.5 lbs - 32 in (Have not measured him this month but we do have a Dr. Apt near the end of the month) I'm going near 30 lbs - maybe a little taller.
• New Abilities: His walking is way more steady and we really don't worry about him any more.  A couple of times he has tripped on uneven concrete which has landed him some big goose eggs but otherwise he's pretty good.   His talking/babbling is looking up.  Although he can't say many words, I think he's starting to try.  Maybe he's figuring out he can say the same things we say.
• New Words: "hot (ot)" "doggie (oggie)" and "truck (uck)

• Sleep: Sleeping consistently from 7:30pm to 7:30am. Naps twice during the day. A morning, an afternoon for about 1.5 hrs.  We thought last month we would move towards one nap but now we really don't think that at all.  Could have been anything that made him more awake, but he's back to normal with two naps and I'm loving it.  Gives me a good break before bedtime to make dinner and clean up.
• Mom Check-In: I was excited for school to start and for work to be busier and the first week was just that but now we're settling back in to a slower pattern.  Good for my movie watching, bad for boredom... I guess it is what it is...   Loving hanging out with Noah lately.  I've been getting lots of cuddles and more laughs.  If only I could skip the first year I could have a million kids. =)

And to check back to our summer list, it looks like we almost completed it.  Not too shabby.
The potty has worked out great and Noah's sitting on it (with clothes) any time we go to the bathroom.  We let him flush the toilet if he poops in his diaper and then sits on the toilet.  We'll move forward from this when he's more ready though.  We don't want to push him if he doesn't get it but we definitely want him acquainted as soon as possible. 

-Make and let Noah have popsicles
-Go to the zoo
-Make Noahs one year photo book
-Start using the spoon to eat (although not yet mastered)
-Start shopping for Noah's fall clothes
-Go to the GR Downtown Market
-Have a family lunch date outside downtown with Noah
-Buy a potty

A couple more pictures of the kid:

See you next week!

Pjs For The Little One

It's that time again when I'm digging through the millions of clothes Noah has and realizing that he's seriously grown out of everything!  The things he grows out of the most are his pjs because they are snug as it is.  I can't get myself to buy the loser ones because I can only imagine how uncomfortable all that extra material is.  I mean, that's how I feel when I feel lose pjs.  Personally I love Old Navy's pjs the most.  They are good quality and very soft.  Not to mention super cute.  Since I buy so many all the time though, the best part is the price.

Here is my roundup for my next set of pjs:

one | two

three | four | five

six | seven | eight

I'm loving all the colors this fall has to offer.  It really caters to boys.  And how about all the space stuff out there?  I love!  Did you see some of the JCrew ones glow in the dark?!  No wonder they cost so much. Ha!

A Giveaway With Mint Julip Boutique

Here goes the debut of my fashion blogger status. Ha! Not really... as I mentioned last week I was not meant to be a fashion blogger.  Guys, do you know how hard those girls work? Not to mention how super awkward I am in front of the camera.  Jeff and I did lots of laughing at how ridiculous I was at taking these pictures but I think you'll get the point.  Also, lets be real ladies.  I'm a mom of a young child, and I could care less what I look like when I'm rolling around the kitchen floor picking up beans that used to be in a noisemaker.  Or you know, like anything else of those sorts.  So, as much as I love dressing up, I just can't imagine doing it for a blog job.  At least not until my kids can poo on their own anyway.

However, when The Mint Julip Boutique wanted to send me some clothes to model for you guys, I put on my big girl panties because their clothes are the cutest.  I follow them on Facebook and Instagram, (as should you) because they post daily all their new pieces and I literally want all of them.  On the rare occasion when I do care what I look like, I want to look the the Mint Girls.  I mean, she looks pretty put together in that blush sweater right? I want to look like that when I go to the post office for sure.  Maybe even when I stop by Panera to pick up one of their most amazing chocolate croissants.

Dress - The Mint Julip Boutique c/o

Belt - New York & Co. (old) similar here & here

Wristlet - Gap (old) similar here

Ok, so two awesome things. First, sign up for The Mint Julip Boutiques' newsletter and get $10 off your first order. Woop!

Second, I'm giving away $15 to The Mint Julip Boutique so enter bellow and start shopping!

Third, (Don't make fun of my lame modeling skills)  But really, how cute is this dress!?

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Labor day Weekend Festivities

We really soaked up the last bits of summer this weekend and packed in a lot of fun.  My allergies kicked in big time on Thursday and I was super worried I would be down for the count all weekend but luckily I was able to make it through with a little help from some meds.  Saturday we spent all day at home with no plans.  We did a lot of relaxing, nap taking, bike riding and finally before bed we had a major dance party around the house.  Noah gets so excited when we put on music and wiggles all around the house, usually with the tv remote in his hand.  It's the cutest.

Sunday, we ventured out of the house in hopes we could go to a minor league baseball game.  We let Noah take a super long nap and headed out after the third inning. 

Noah did surprisingly well considering how hot it was.  We let him run around a little and unfortunately lost a ball we brought with us as he tossed it down a ramp and pretty much onto the field. Lesson for next time; make sure you bring a bigger ball that doesn't fit between the gate railings... oh well!

We didn't make it 'till the end but we still had a great time.  And the best part was that Noah stayed up all the way home so he made it to nap time in his own bed. Always a win for parents!

Monday, we spent most of the day hanging out in the house as it rained most of the day.  It finally cleared up in the afternoon just in time for Jeff and I to enjoy our date night and for some picture taking for a future post.  (which by the way... I'm a terrible fashion blogger - stay tuned for that mess)
Also, if you guys are even in the Grand Rapids area, you must go to this restaurant and try out their root chips because not only are they addicting but the goat cheese fondue that comes with is to die for!

See?! Teeerible. =)