Best Bud

Dawson absolutely adores my friend Sheri's son Parker! Whenever he sees him he lights up, gives him a huge hug, and could play with him for hours. He just idolizes him!! Whenever we have to leave or if Parker leaves our house, Dawson cries and whines and is so sad. The funniest part is Dawson is not yet 2 and Parker is almost 7!!! I think Dawson just watches him and thinks he is so cool and tries to mimic everything that Parker does. The best thing is, Parker is such a good sport about it and is so cute and kind to Dawson and is always giving him little toys he played with when he was little. Thanks Parker, for being such a good buddy to Dawson!

So I Had To Share...

My cute little hubby has never been good with the English language. He is a great nurse, but when it comes to words...not so much! So anyways, this evening I made mention how when we had some extra cash I wanted to replace the blinds in our three bedrooms (we did the front of the house a little while back.) This is how the rest of the conversation went:

Christopher: So you want to get fox wood blinds like the ones here in the front room and kitchen then, right?

Sarah: Wait, what?

Chris: You want to get these fox wood blinds.

Sarah: *Thinking...trying to figure out what he is talking about...CLICK* OH you mean faux wood blinds!! *Laughing*

Chris: Man I hate the English language why would they put an x on the end of it if you don't pronounce it!!!

My poor hubby. He said he was glad he didn't talk to anyone in the store about fox wood blinds because he would of felt like an idiot. Don't worry though hon, your awesome at math and science and nurses aren't suppose to be English majors! Love Ya!

Tasty Tuesday

As you all know by now, I love the Sneaky Chef. I really have only made her purees, but tonight I tried a recipe I found on her website called Cold Sesame Noodles. It's a healthy take on a not so healthy take-out food. I am always excited but nervous to try a new recipe because you never know if it's a keeper, but let me tell you, this one is a keeper! I loved how it smelled as I was making it and even better I loved how it tasted as I was eating it!!! You have got to try it (click on the link then free recipes for the recipe.) There is an ingredient in the recipe called tahini. I could not find it anywhere, so I left it out and I thought it was fine! I added the green onions and toasted sesame seeds to it like it recommended as well. I marinated some chicken in an Asian marinade, we grilled it up, and with the cold noodles it was a delish summer meal that I will be definitely making many more times. YUM!

Sweet Memories

Dawson loves to watch the little videos we have taken of him with our camera, so as we were sitting here watching movies of him, I started watching to ones of when he was first born, his first laugh, etc. It made me want to cry! He is so big now I couldn't believe watching some of them because you forget how small they were and how quickly they grow up!! I am so glad we have lots of movies and pictures of him so I can remember the days when he just would lay in my arms! Here are three blasts from the past that I love! I couldn't pick just one :-)

Update!

So Here is a recap of some things that have been happenin' around the Selin household:

1. Dawson absolutely LOVES our pets! We have a cat named Princess and a puppy named Max. He loves to go up to them grab them, and fall on top of them giving them a big hug. The whole time he says "awww" like he knows he is being sweet. All the while, the "victim" is trying to scramble away making squealing noises. I keep telling myself that it's good I can teach him to be gentle now, instead of one day with a sibling! The cat and dog even try hiding under our bed or couch and Dawson sits there trying to yank them out. Oi. The thing I love the most though is seeing him just playing and having so much fun and loving his pets. They are his friends, and they are both really patient animals!
2. Our fence is finally finished!! The neighbors on both sides of us put up fences awhile back because they have kids and animals, so we have had those sides up; but we never put one in the back or closed off the front. It just wasn't a priority at first with us. Now with Dawson and his ability to run around the house, it is a necessity! So a couple weeks ago we got it ordered and Chris put it up. I love it!!! It is so nice being able to have our own private yard and to be able to keep Dawson in one spot.
3. We took a little last minute family trip to Las Vegas. We found a great deal online where our 3rd night was free, and with Christopher's schedule last week he worked Sunday night, Monday night, and Wednesday day. He didn't have to go back until the following Monday so we figured why not!? We left when he got off work Wednesday, drove the six hours, getting in at about 2am. Dawson slept in the car though. It was such a nice trip!! We were SO lazy! We slept in, took naps, ate food, and played by the pool all day long. The second day we rented some chairs with an umbrella so we could have some shade for Dawson. Little did we know, they were ours all day long, we could come and go as we pleased, and they gave us as much water, ice, and cold towels that we wanted!! It was nice to get away on a relaxing trip just the three of us. Dawson loved having 24/7 attention from both Mom and Dad.

Every time we went into the bathroom he climbed into the glass shower and put his face up against it. He thought it was the funniest thing.
My boys in the sun!
He loved swimming in the pool.

Tasty Tuesday

Here is a recipe that I love to eat during summer for this week's Tasty Tuesday entry. I hope you all enjoy it too! It has strawberries, spinach, and almonds in it, making this salad full of antioxidants, folic acid, vitamins A & C, iron, magnesium, calcium, and healthy oils. Making these three nutrient powerhouses. The best thing is it's so yummy too!

Strawberry Spinach Salad I
From: allrecipes.com

2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon minced onion
10 ounces fresh spinach- rinsed and dried
1 quart strawberries- cleaned and sliced
1/4 cup slivered almonds

In a medium bowl whisk together first eight ingredients, cover, and chill for one hour. In a large bowl combine spinach, strawberries, and almonds. Add dressing and toss. Refrigerate for 10-15 minutes more.

PS....I use the whole bag of spinach I buy at the store, and I usually don't add all the dressing, adding it until it tastes how I like it!!

Happy Father's Day, Christopher!!

What an awesome Dad Christopher is!! Right from the start he was very hands-on with Dawson; changing diapers, baths, helping out in the middle of the night, etc....and he still helps out! To Dawson, his Daddy is the most fun person in the world. As soon as Christopher gets home from work Dawson runs up growling and "attacks" Chris ready to play and wrestle. They laugh and have so much fun together. Dawson also LOVES to help Chris with the "manly" stuff. If Christopher is mowing the lawn, Dawson is right there with his little plastic lawn mower mowing the lawn too. He loves to help Chris take the trash out, work in the yard, "lift" things, and loves it if Daddy lets him pull the car in the garage if it's in the driveway. I know Christopher is just nuts about our little guy and loves being a Dad because it shows. The two of them are best buds! Happy Father's Day, Christopher!!!
Playing Guitar Hero like his Dad.
Helping Dad install the TV.
Watering the garden.
Wearing Daddy's clothes.

FYI...

My friend Summer past along some wonderful information to me and I just wanted to pass it along to all you ladies out there; be it moms, moms to be, grandmas, aunts, sisters, whatever!! The Children's Place is having a big "monster" sale where a ton of clothes are $7.99 and under!!! I am talking cute dresses for girls, sweater vests for boys for like, five bucks, tees, shorts, pants, etc. You have to check it out. I ordered some stuff for Dawson for fall and some for him for next summer (lets keep our fingers crossed I ordered the right size...I stuck with shirts though so I think we will be ok!) Shipping and handling is a $5 flat rate, I mean come on, can you beat that? Regardless of the fact that I spent a large amount on him for summer clothes I figured $5 for shirts for next summer is really worth it. So I hope you all check it out and happy shopping to you!

PS...If you look at the time I am posting this, it's 1:37am. I cannot sleep. So what am I doing? Shopping and blogging!! Where's the sleeping pills before I spend anymore money!

Tasty Tuesday

Lately I feel like all we hear about is how bad our health is as Americans, how this vegetable has e-coli or salmonella, how animals are injected with this or that, and how fruits and vegetables have tons of chemicals on them and it really kinda scares me! I really wonder if a lot of the stuff that is in our food is what is causing cancers and other health problems we have today, which is why I decided to have our family start to eat some organic foods. It is DEFINITELY more expensive, which is why I did some research and found out that the best place to start is changing your meat and dairy to organic first. Anything a cow, chicken, etc. eats or goes into them goes into you whether it be thru the meat, milk, or eggs you eat. A couple of good websites to check out are www.kidsorganics.com and www.sarasnow.com. Now that you have listened to my little rant, pretty much the purpose of this post is just to make you think and assess what you eat, not just organically, but in general...let's be more healthy! Take the time to prepare well rounded meals for yourself and your family! Plant a garden to have your own vegetables that are safe and pesticide free! Think about what you are putting in your body and your family's. I am by no means saying to change your whole diet to organic (which we certainly haven't) or be a complete nut about it just maybe make an effort to modify a few things. I believe all things in moderation and a cheeseburger and ice cream won't kill you!

Discovery Gateway

Last Saturday we took a family trip to downtown Salt Lake to go to the Discovery Gateway at the Gateway Mall. I knew it looked and sounded like a cool place, but I had no idea just how cool it really was and how much fun Dawson would have! You walk in and it's pretty much a kid's imagination your walking into. They had an exhibit with tons of plastic whiffle balls that you could put in tubs, mazes, and holes, they had a water play area, a "construction" zone with soft foam bricks they could stack, a make-believe house, grocery store, farm, and even a life flight helicopter! The first floor was very appropriate for kids about 1 thru 6, then upstairs they had a lot of science type of stuff for older kids. I will definitly be taking Dawson there again, we only could stay a couple of hours but he would of easily been entertained for a few more!

Tasty Tuesday

For those of you who are newer to reading this blog, every Tuesday I do a "Tasty Tuesday" segment that features either a healthy recipe, a veggie puree, or other healthy foods. This Tuesday's healthy recipe is another one from The Sneaky Chef. It is called White Puree. This puree consists of cauliflower and zucchini. You can mix the white puree in just about anything because it has no color. Some suggestions are mac and cheese, spaghetti-o's, twice baked potatoes, lasagna, spaghetti sauce, burritos, tacos, mash potatoes, sloppy joes, or even used as a wet coat on your chicken tenders or fish sticks. I hope you enjoy!

White Puree
Missy Chase Lapine

2 cups cauliflower, cut into florets
2 small to medium zucchini, peeled and roughly chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
3-4 tablespoons water

Steam cauliflower until very tender. While waiting for that to steam, start to pulse raw zucchini with lemon juice only. Drain cauliflower and work into zucchini in batches with 2 tablespoons of water. Puree on high until smooth, adding more water if necessary and pushing down contents as you go. Makes about 2 cups of puree. Refrigerator 3 days or freeze in 1/4 portions in sealed bags.

What is so good about these veggies? Well, zucchini is low in calories but high in fiber, maganese, vitamin C, and potassium. It can help protect against asthma, cancers, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Other benefits? Muscle strength, more energy, clear thinking, and a happier disposition! Cauliflower is pack with vitamin C, folate, and fiber. It enhances immunity and fights disease almost as well as broccoli.