"This is the way we eat our food"

One of my favorite things about toddlers - their crazy eating habits. Here is Edward "enjoying" some of my Pasta Fagioli...

Finger food?

"Is anyone looking? Cuz I'm about to make a mess..."

"How much mess CAN I make?"

"This is so much fun!"

"...and I'm WAY too cute to get in trouble. Just ask my Mom." :)

A V-day to remember, for all the wrong reasons...

This Valentine's Day will go down in infamy for me. It was, by far, the most depressing Valentine's Day I have ever had. No, Lou did not neglect me - we never go all out, but we always give a little something to each other.

It was depressing because we spent the majority of the day at a funeral for an 8-month old baby boy. He died suddenly and unexpectedly in his crib, during his nap a week ago today. They think he perhaps choked to death on some baby cereal that he spit up during his sleep (he was congested from a cold and couldn't breathe through his nose). It was a tragic event, or course, for not only the family, but for all who know them. The parents of the baby are co-teachers in our primary, so I have served with them for almost a year now (I am in the Primary presidency, by the way, in case I didn't mention that before), and have gotten to know both of them pretty well. The mother and I spent countless hours together in the mother's room nursing our babies together.

These two parents are two of the sweetest people that I have ever met - bar none. They are converts to the church (as a result of a pass-along card, of all things), and we recently were blessed enough to join them in the temple to witness them receive their endowments and be sealed to their two children (they have another son who is 2 years old). They are a beautiful, sweet and kind family, and it just broke the hearts of all who knew them to have this happen.

My heart aches for them, and it frustrating to be in this position of helplessness. I put their family's name on the temple prayer roll, bought them a book written by an LDS author on coping with the death of a child and the doctrinal perspectives on the salvation of little children (recommended by another friend who lost a child, too), and am planning to bring them a meal this week, but I keep thinking - is this enough? Does any of this really even make a difference? They put their baby in the ground yesterday. Does making them a casserole and giving them a book really fix that? Or even make a dent in their sorrow? I have this aching need to just fix it all, to make all the pain go away, which is ridiculous because I know that I can't.

I am grateful to know what I do about the plan of salvation, and that their baby is not gone forever. He went home early, that's all, and they WILL be reunited as a family someday, but I'm sure it will be a long time before that brings them any comfort. They were very strong at the funeral yesterday, but I couldn't help but notice that they both looked just...broken.

Though moments like this can be challenging to our faith, it does bring me comfort to know that, despite tragedies like this, our Father in Heaven DOES love us. We cannot know why we have to endure the trials that we have in this life, but we can lean on Him for comfort and understanding on some level. God does not like to see us suffer, and I know that He feels all of our pain and heartache. He does not protect us from all the tragedies of this life because He knows that there are things that we have to experience to make us who we are meant to be - I truly believe that.

Please mention this family in your prayers today.

Am I the only one? #45

Okay, so warning - this may offend some of you, because I'm sure that some of you have done this in the past, but I feel that this post is something that needs to be said. So, here goes...

Am I the only one that thinks that it is tacky and inapporpriate to hand out invitations to personal parties during church? I'm sorry, but this is a pet peeve of mine.

Confession: I, myself, have done this once - ONCE - it was for a baby shower. I was uncomfortable with it the whole time and swore I would never do it again, and for good reason.

Devil's Advocate: Now, I know why people do this - postage is expensive, so hey, why not save some money on stamps and just hand them out at church? ("gee, I just don't get why people think mormons are cheap?")

Here's why this is a TERRIBLE idea: Are you inviting the entire ward? Didn't think so. And isn't there just the smallest chance that some of the people that you didn't invite might see you going around slipping people envelopes and think "I wonder what that's for?" and then wonder why they don't get one? And then feel nice and excluded? Yeah, I'm guessing there's a good chance of that.

Now, I bet by this point you are thinking that these are the bitter rantings of someone who has recently been one of "those" unfortunate people - the uninvited. Not so. I just really don't like it. No matter how it's done, it's not appropriate in a place that is supposed to be welcoming and open. If it's done discreetly, it's all secretive and hush hush: "here - don't let anybody see this", and if it's not discreet it's even worse: "Here's one for you, and one for you, and one for you...oh, not for you, though".

As I've said, I've never liked this practice, but in the last few months it has really touched a nerve for me because TWICE now my daughters have had their feelings hurt because they saw a bunch of other kids getting the prized envelopes, and not received one themselves. (Cue in mother bear...)

The first time was in the fall and was especially awkward. The girls and I were just leaving church when a little girl rushed up to Maria and Josephine saying "Oh, we have an invitation for you, for my party!" So the girls and I stopped and waited for her to hand them the invitation. Her Mom grabbed her arm and was all "NO! Wait a minute, just WAIT a minute" The mother just sat looking at me like a deer in headlights, and then avoided further eye contact and kept stammering "um, just wait a minute, honey" to her daughter as they walked away. So I sat there for a few seconds like a dummy, and then it hit me "Oooooh, they aren't really invited and she doesn't know what to say...". Yeah, talk about awkward. A few dollars in stamps could have saved her a lot of embarrassment and spared my girls' feelings who just kept saying "But Mom, she said we were invited - how come we're not invited?".

The second time was more recently. Someone was handing out invitations during Primary of all things, with all the kids there watching! Um, HELLO!! I heard two or three kids say "Hey, I want mail! How come they get mail and I don't?" Josephine saw it and said to me "Mommy, are those invitations to a party? Are we going to get one?" Maria just gives me this look (too smart for her own good). Now, seriously, what the heck am I supposed to say to that?

Disclaimer: I am not one of those ultra-liberal feel-good parents who thinks that kids should never have to suffer disappointment. I don't think that all the teams should get a trophy, even if they stink, and I don't think that all students should get awards at the end of the school year ("Oh honey, you got an award for 'Most Improved in Coloring in the Lines - I'm so proud!!") . And I don't think my daughters should be invited to every social event in the ward (that is just silly). BUT, being publicly excluded from a group is different, and don't kid yourself - the church building is public. I am an adult who can take life's punches with the best of them, but I have to tell you, I know what it feels like to feel "left out" of something that I thought I would be included in (as I'm sure you all have), and it's NOT a nice feeling. And it certainly should not be felt at church, of all places.

Moral of the Story: If you are throwing a party, you are NOT obligated to invite the entire ward (that is not the point of this post). BUT you should keep your invitations as private as your party. Unless you are inviting everyone to your event, don't hand out the invites at church. It openly excludes people, hurting feelings and making you look rude and thoughtless, even if you are a super nice person and that is not your intention. If you don't have the cash for stamps, send out an email or a freakin' Evite - they're FREE, for crying out loud! Okay, rant over ;)

Easy, yet decadent breakfast

I'm on new recipe kick, as you can see. To change gears a little bit, here's a breakfast one:

Banana Oatmeal Cinnamon Creme Brulee

A friend of mine posted this recipe on her facebook page (thank you, Christina!), and it is, indeed, a gem of a recipe. Easy, quick, delicious - divine, actually.

The only ingredient you might not have on hand is the pudding, but that can be made up in a flash if you have the boxed stuff on hand, and those little pudding cups are easy to get anywhere.

Anyhow, click here for the whole recipe.

A couple of notes -

1) I'm not a big fan of instant pudding (I think it's nasty, actually), so I used those little pre-packaged pudding cups. Three of them made up the exact amount I needed. You could also make the "cook and serve" kind of boxed pudding, but the whole beauty of this recipe is that it is fast and easy, so I didn't want to add that extra step. I got a four pack of pudding cups at Aldi for .89.

2) If you don't have quick-cooking oats on hand (I didn't because I never use those for anything), you can make it with old-fashioned rolled oats. You just increase the water to 3 ½ cups (but use the same amount of oats in the recipe), and you have to cook it for a little bit longer - 5-6 minutes on medium heat, stirring occasionally. Then cover the pan, remove from heat and let stand for 2-3 minutes. It may seem a bit soupy at first, but don't worry, it firms up upon standing. Follow the rest of the direction as is.

3) Also, this can be made family style – I did this because I don't have any small oven-proof bowls. Just put everything into 8 or 9 inch casserole dish (I used my round pyrex one) instead of individual bowls before you put it in to broil, and be careful when you broil it - stay there and watch it closely - as soon as the sugar begins to bubble - it's done! Sugar burns easily (and tastes gross when it does), so don't leave this unattended during this part!!

Okay, so that's it - this is soooo yummy, and the simplicity of the recipe makes it even better. Enjoy!

More green food - this time, Italian!

Oh, this one is so good, I just had to share it.

Pesto Linguini with Green Beans and Potatoes

I know, you may be thinking "Potatoes and green beans in your pasta? Weird" But don't let it worry you - it is FANTASTIC!! I saw this made on a cooking show, and, being a lover of all things pesto, just had to try it. This is apparently a typical dish often made in Genoa, Italy. I am not even going to pretend that I know where that is or that I've been there, but I give a big two thumbs up to this recipe.

I found a few versions of this recipe on the web, and I took some ideas from this and that and came up with my own version.

Here it is: (you can easily just halve this recipe if you are making it for only two people)

1 pound whole wheat linguini
1 cup prepared pesto (you can use homemade or store-bought)
1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into thirds (or halved if they are small)
4 small-medium sized all-purpose white potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2" - 3/4" cubes
salt
freshly ground pepper
grated parmesan cheese

Okay, so this is really simple.

#1) Heat up the water for the pasta
#2) Put the pasta AND the potatoes in at the same time
#3) During the last six minutes of cooking, put the green beans in with the potatoes and pasta
#4) When the pasta/potatoes/green beans are done (which should be all at the same time if you have timed it right), drain the whole mess into a collander
#5) Return it all to the pot, and toss with the 1 cup pesto.
#6) Season with salt and pepper as desired
#7) Serve immediatly, with grated parmesan cheese available to add as desired

I was absolutely over the moon for this dish, and was pleasantly surprised at how well the green beans and potatoes went with the yummy pesto flavor.

You could serve this with fresh bread and salad, but honestly, I think this meal stands alone quite nicely. Lou said he would have liked to have plain fried meatballs on the side, but I liked the fact that this dish was nice and filling with NO meat at all (I love me some meat, but I also like a break from it from time to time).

Anyhow, happy eating!